Duty Bound: Bound and Tied, Book 2 (9 page)

KC sucked in a sharp breath along with Jake’s cock. She cupped his balls and kneaded them between her fingers.

He thrust in and out, over and over.

Rosalyn bent to kiss KC’s bottom, her tongue tracing a line down to the crease between her cheeks, lower still to the tight round hole of her anus. Her fingers slipped into her pussy and back out, coated in juices. She slathered the moisture over KC’s clit and stroked her until the tension built.

Rosalyn rocked behind her, thrusting against KC’s clit, her moans rising as Jake tongued her cunt.

KC took all of Jake’s cock into her mouth, clutched his ass and pushed him deeper.

His body was rigid, the muscles in his thighs tight. Everything building, building…

Rosalyn cried out, her voice echoing in the darkness outside the fire’s glow. “There. Oh yes, there.” Her fingers worked feverishly over KC’s nubbin as though her pleasure hinged on KC’s. Her thumb slid down the crack of KC’s ass and pressed into KC’s anus.

KC rose up the length of Jake’s cock and back down, faster and faster to the same rhythm as Rosalyn’s thrusts.

Her head spinning with the myriad sensations, KC sucked hard on Jake’s dick as she plunged over the edge, her own cries garbled by a mouth so full of cock.

Jake shoved Rosalyn to the side. “My apologies,” he said as he pulled his cock from KC’s mouth and flipped her over onto her back. He was on her, lying between her legs before she could catch her breath.

“I can’t wait any longer.” He drove into her, breaking through her maidenhead.

KC cried out, clutching his hips in her hands, pushing him back.

He pounded in and out, slamming harder against her until his balls made a slapping sound against her bottom.

After the first sharp pain, the intimacy of their coupling eased her concern and she settled in, planting her heels into the blanket to meet him thrust for thrust.

As the pace increased, so too did the tension in KC until she longed for another release equally soul-defining as the last. Rosalyn slipped her fingers between them and stroked KC’s clit. There. That was exactly what she needed. KC pitched over the top.

Jake thrust one last time, his body going rigid, his head thrown back, his eyes squeezed tight. “Oh, KC.” He collapsed over her, trapping Rosalyn’s hand between their bodies.

When his body quit jerking, he rolled to her side and reached down, smoothing his hand over her cunt as he leaned up on his elbow. “You were wonderful.”

KC basked in his praise, forgetting for a moment that she had to be wonderful to keep him entertained.

As his hand smoothed over her pussy, he drew it away and stared down. “What the hell?”

“What?” KC leaned up to see what he was looking at.

“This is blood.”

She lay back, the glow fading from their magnificent coupling.

“Oh, dear Lord.” He cupped her cheek and stared down into her eyes. “You were a virgin?”

Her vision clouded with a wash of unshed tears. “What did you think?”

“I thought you knew more. You acted like you knew more.”

“Rosalyn taught me everything I know last night.”

He glared across at Rosalyn. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

She shrugged. “Would it have mattered?”

“Of course it would have mattered.”

“So? I was a virgin.” With the cooling of Jake’s ardor and hers came the return of reason. “Consider it a bonus for the deal you made.”

Jake lay awake the rest of the night, regret tormenting his waking thoughts, refusing to let him fall into the oblivion of sleep.

He’d taken KC’s virginity. He felt as badly as he would have felt if he’d raped her.

She lay cocooned in her blanket, snuggled up to Rosalyn, sleeping like the baby she was.

A damned virgin!

Jake sat staring into the fire, stoking it when it needed stoking to keep KC warm from the cool mountain air. He couldn’t undo what he’d done. He couldn’t give back her virginity.

The bad thing was that he liked her. She was the kind of woman he always imagined being with.
Unselfish
. She’d sacrificed herself for her family.
Protective
. Defended her father’s honor by stalking into a bar full of drunks to punch the man who’d taken everything they owned in a round of cards.
Strong
. Jake rubbed his jaw.
And beautiful
. His little game of trading the ranch for her had somehow backfired.

He was still sitting there when the sun lightened the sky. It would be another hour before it topped the high peaks and shone down on them, but they might as well get going. They had a long day’s ride before they arrived at the cabins.

Jake gathered his blanket, slipped into his clothing, still damp from their fall into the creek, and tossed his saddle onto his horse before he went to wake the others.

If he was a decent man, he’d take KC back to her father where she belonged. If he was a decent man, he’d never have fucked her, acting as though she owed him for what her father had gambled away.

But then he wasn’t a good man. He’d taken the only thing most women had of any value. Her virginity. She was ruined as far as any decent man would be concerned. Once he tired of her, she’d only have her body to sell to the highest bidder in some mining camp.

He took a kerchief from his saddlebag and wet it in the cool, clean water of the creek, wrung it out and walked over to where KC slept. She lay with a smile curving her pretty pink lips. How he’d ever mistaken her for a boy, he couldn’t understand. Everything about the slender neck, the little ears, the slight tilt of her nose screamed female. Her long blonde hair played out over the gray wool blanket, a sheath of gold in the early morning light. He longed to reach out and run his fingers through the silken strands.

“She’ll be fine,” Rosalyn said in a quiet whisper, already dressed in her riding outfit. “Women are a lot sturdier than most men think. And KC is stronger than most.”

Jake nodded. “I brought her this.” He nodded toward her middle. “You know…”

Rosalyn took it from him. “I’ll help her. You go on. She’ll just be embarrassed.”

KC stirred and Jake beat a retreat, using the horses as his excuse. He led them to the pool. While the animals drank, Jake placed a pot over the fire to heat water for coffee and pulled jerky out of the package he’d purchased in Idaho Springs. The meat held no taste for him, reminding him of shoe leather. But he ate to keep up his strength. They had a rough haul the rest of the way up to the Lucky Lady mining camp. When he chewed through the first strip of meat, he gave up on food and saddled the remaining two mares, secured the packages onto the mules’ backs and turned to see how the women were coming along.

KC lay against the blanket, her legs spread wide as Rosalyn cleansed the blood from between her thighs. They spoke so softly that Jake couldn’t hear a word they said.

It bugged the hell out of him and made him want to rant like an old farmer’s wife. “We need to leave now if we plan on gettin’ there by sundown,” he called out, his voice gruff with anger at his own carelessness.

“We’ll be ready in five minutes,” Rosalyn responded.

KC stood, gathering the blanket around her, covering as much of her delicious body as she could.

Pangs of lust lashed at Jake, reminding him how good it felt to be between her legs. How her mouth on his cock make him burn just thinking about it.

Now she wouldn’t even look him in the eye. She kept her face turned away from him as she gathered her clothing and walked into the woods for privacy to dress.

Jake knotted another bundle on the mule’s back, jerking the strap so tight it snapped. “Damn it!”

“Drink this.” Rosalyn handed him a cup of coffee.

He took the cup and sipped the hot liquid, staring toward the place where KC had disappeared into the woods. “She gonna be okay?”

“Absolutely. A little sore, but she’ll be fine.”

“We can stay here another day if she needs the time.”

“No, she wants to move on and get to more solid shelter.” Rosalyn stared up at the sky that had started out clear and now was overcast. “Looks like we might get rain before the day’s over.”

“Yeah. Makes the paths even more dangerous than they already are. We should get a move on.”

KC stepped out of the woods dressed in her men’s trousers, shirt and vest, with the overcoat as the finishing touch to hide every bit of her womanly attributes.

But Jake wasn’t fooled by the clothing. Beneath all the men’s trappings was the heart of a woman. One who’d been cruelly used.

Feeling lower than a snake’s belly, Jake bent to give Rosalyn a boost up into her saddle, helping her to arrange her skirts to cover her legs.

He stowed the coffeepot and kicked dirt over the fire.

By the time he looked up, KC had already mounted and was settling gently into the saddle, her face pinching into a grimace as she lowered her crotch to the hard leather.

Jake winced along with her, imagining her pain. When she glanced his way, he turned his back to her so that she wouldn’t have to suffer further embarrassment at his hand. He handed her a piece of the jerky.

“No thank you,” she said, refusing to take it.

“Take it and eat it. It’s a long way to the camp. I won’t have you passing out from hunger.”

She took the jerky, her blue eyes flashing beneath the brim of her cowboy hat. “I wouldn’t dare pass out. I know my limitations, thank you very much.”

“Apparently you don’t know when to tell others of those limitations. Eat the damned jerky.” He stomped away, cursing beneath his breath. “Damned woman. Doesn’t know what’s best for her.”

“I heard that. And I do know what’s best for me.” She jerked up straight in her saddle and winced.

“Horsefeathers. You don’t know what’s best for you or you wouldn’t be in this situation to begin with.”

She turned her face away. “I’m not arguing with a gambling miner.”

Rosalyn chuckled. “Then what do you call that little display?” She nudged her horse’s sides, sending her between KC and Jake. “If I knew the way, I’d head out on my own and leave you two to the fight.”

“We’re not fighting.” Jake swung up into his saddle and kicked his horse in the side a little too hard. The stallion reared and almost unseated Jake.

KC laughed out loud, clapping a hand over her mouth when Jake glared at her.

He left the clearing at a trot, quickly angling up a barely noticeable trail, climbing ever higher into the Rocky Mountains.

KC let her horse set her own pace, keeping up with the other two, the swaying motion beneath her calming her jagged nerves. She ached between her legs, but that couldn’t be helped. Unless she wanted to stay in the clearing by the pool for several days, she had only one choice—follow the aggravating miner up into the mountains.

Riding through the mountains was grueling work for both horse and riders with long stretches of silence between stops to rest the horses.

It gave KC too much time to think. About her, Jake and Rosalyn. Last night had started out as part of a bargain she was beginning to hate and almost ended up magical. Until Jake had gotten all upset about the fact that she had been a virgin.

Well, hell, when had she had time to make love to anyone? Since her father hadn’t bothered to beget sons, the chores and ranching had fallen on her. Not that she minded. She liked to be out riding and herding. It beat the hell out of washing, mending and baking.

Her gaze went to Jake. She sure as hell hoped he didn’t expect her to be his house slave. He would almost certainly die of food poisoning at her hand. Not only had she not had time to roll in the hay with the cowhands, she hadn’t made time to learn the finer art of making a house a home. She’d left that to her mother and little sisters who seemed quite willing to let her go out the door each morning to spend the day in the saddle.

No, she wasn’t a proper housewife.

Wife? Who said anything about being a wife? She was too coarse and unschooled in the ways of men and women to be good wife material. Not that Jake was asking. Once he tired of her, he’d toss her out the door. Of that KC was certain. A man as handsome as Jake could have any woman he wanted. Look at Rosalyn. He’d been more than happy to oblige her even while KC sucked his cock. The experience had been beyond exciting. Watching the man do to Rosalyn what he’d done to KC…

Her pussy flexed, moisture dripping out to stain the crotch of her trousers. “Sweet Jesus. I need to quit thinking that way.” Her sinful thoughts continued to threaten her peace of mind as the hours crept by and the trio only seemed to go deeper into the mountains.

By the time KC was ready to fall out of her saddle and crawl the rest of the way, they crossed a pretty stream and climbed another hill to a small valley with a hill pushing up behind it. Nestled in a clearing were two cozy cabins not far from each other. Smoke puffed from one chimney. The entire scene was idyllic, something KC remembered seeing in a painting once in a hotel in Denver.

She lagged behind, pausing at the edge of the woods, appreciating the view when the cabin door opened and a man and a very pregnant woman spilled out into the clearing.

“Jake!” The pregnant woman waddled forward, her face wreathed in smiles. “I’m so glad you’re back. And you’ve brought her.” The woman’s face lit up and she clapped her hands.

The tall dark-haired man behind her hurried around to help Rosalyn down from her horse. “You must be Rosalyn.”

Rosalyn smiled and leaned over for the man to lift her down from the saddle, like it was perfectly natural for a woman to let a man help her as if she couldn’t do for herself.

KC reined in her horse, staying at the edge of the trees in the shadows, feeling like she didn’t belong in this scene.

The pregnant woman hugged Rosalyn and shook her hand then hugged her again like an old friend. “I’m so happy you came. I get really lonely for another woman to talk to. All I’ve had is these two big men around for the past ten months. We will have so much to talk about. You’ll have to tell me all about the latest fashions. Oh, Jake, don’t you think she’s lovely? I know you two will get on famously.”

Jake dropped down from his horse, his gaze going to KC. “Er, Honor, we have another guest.”