“I agree and I think Veronica is more stressed out than she lets on. She’s a bit of a hermit, you know. Someone actually showed up on her doorstep a while back, claiming to be her greatest fan. She wasn’t very forthcoming when I asked her but I heard about that and one other incident from her brothers recently. I have to confess, I’m a little worried about Veronica. She lives so much of her life online and that can’t be healthy.”
“Tell me what you need.”
“She needs a change of scenery, in my opinion. I don’t know if she’s ever taken a vacation. And there’s this pattern I see in her that I don’t like. It’s not so much that I wanted to see her defend herself against that bully in chat tonight, because those kinds of battles are impossible to win, but…” Grace perked up, because Kate wasn’t the type to not be able to put her feelings into words. “I think she could use a little sabbatical. A little time to gain perspective and to find…whatever it is that’s missing in her life.”
Grace answered without hesitation. “I think you should bring her with you. We have plenty of room.”
“The dilemma lies in the fact that you keep your online life and your real life very separate and I wouldn’t want to compromise your privacy. She doesn’t realize that my friend Grace in Divine and Caressa MacFarland, successful erotic romance author, are one and the same person.”
“Do
you
think she could be trusted?”
“Absolutely. I’m sure of it.”
“Then that’s good enough for me. You understand why I protect my privacy and wouldn’t endanger that by letting someone know my secrets. I’ve known Veronica online for some time now. While I don’t make a habit of revealing my private life to author friends, there are exceptions. You say you’d like for her to take a sabbatical down here but early in the chat she mentioned that she was going into a heavy writing cycle, trying to get a three book series completed.”
“Yes, that’s what she said.”
A plan began to formulate in Grace’s mind. “Would she like someplace quiet, where she could work and get some much-needed rest?”
“Ideally, yes. She’s already planning on a working vacation in Lusty. I just want to get her out of Billings. Out of her gloomy apartment, and…”
“And?”
“And away from that boyfriend of hers. Brent-somebody.”
“She has a boyfriend?”
Grandma Kate’s voice took on a sharper edge. “Yes. I’ve met him a time or two in the last couple of years. He’s not respectful or loving toward her. He drives one of those jacked-up trucks that sometimes make me wonder if the owner isn’t compensating for a small penis size. The gigantic bull testicle ornament he displays on his trailer hitch leads me to believe that he’s covering up for all-around deficiencies. Veronica’s brothers, Cord and Jackson, refer to him as Bubba, the knuckle-dragger. I don’t think online bullying is the only kind of bullying Veronica is dealing with. I think she has a hard time with confrontations and defending herself.”
“Oh, no. He sounds like someone I used to know.”
“I was hoping you’d see it that way. So you wouldn’t mind an extra houseguest?”
“Not at all. You could stay in the ranch house with us, and if Veronica would like to have quiet and a little space, she could set up in the old foreman’s house. It’s clean and unoccupied at the moment. It has some beautiful views of the ranch, too.” She glanced up to find Jack and Adam watching her and when she caught his eye, Jack nodded and gave her the thumbs-up.
“You’re sure it’s no bother?”
“None at all. And if she’s interested in ménages, this would be a great place to do research. I know several people who would be happy to talk with her.”
“You know…she mentioned doing some hands-on research into the Dominant-submissive lifestyle. We have several people in Lusty who she could interview, but she didn’t seem comfortable with talking to family about that when I suggested it. Do you suppose there’s someone there she could speak with, maybe get to know?”
Grace could practically hear the fishing line being cast and she giggled quietly. “As a matter of fact, I know a Dominant she could ‘speak with, maybe get to know…’”
Kate’s giggle made her smile. “Mightn’t Ethan speak with her? Hmm?”
“I’d be fine with that, but I was thinking about introducing her to Hank Stinson. He knows a thing or two about the subject. He’s also starting a women’s self-defense class soon. And he’s single,” she added, stifling a snort of amusement when Jack shook his finger at her and grinned. Her matchmaker instincts were on alert. She couldn’t help it.
“I remember Hank. I think I might like to take a self-defense class if he’s teaching it. A Dom, you say?”
Grace smiled, imagining Hank’s reaction to that question. “Not openly, but yes. Since he’s an elected official, he stays well below the radar.” Grace and Kate had talked before about the differences between Lusty, where the ménage and other alternative lifestyles were practiced out in the open, and Divine, where they were still very much the minority of the population. Grace knew Kate was discreet and trustworthy.
“You know, I’ve always thought there was something about that man. Couldn’t put my finger on it. He’s not exactly…”
“Pushy? Domineering? No, he’s not, although I’ve seen him take complete control of situations when it was called for. He has a burden for taking care of people in need of protecting. I think they might get along well. If Veronica wanted to stay on for a bit and enjoy the peace and quiet of ranch life while she writes that series, she’s more than welcome to extend her visit. I’d love to get to know her better.”
“Would you mind if I revealed your alternate identity to her?”
“No. It would be hard to hide that fact, and I see no reason to do that. Plus, it’d be kind of cool for Rachel and me to have another author in our genre in the area for a visit. I’m sure the guys would enjoy showing Veronica around the ranch, too.”
“Then it’s settled. I know Veronica will be in capable hands.”
“Very capable, I’m sure.” Grace could barely contain her glee. “While she’s down here, if you’d like, I can get in touch with Ace and Kemp, and maybe Duke Rivers and Gage Randall. They could teach her how to protect her privacy and her persona online, as well as look at putting a stop to that troll’s harassment of her. They can be extremely persuasive.”
“I’ll leave that to you to organize. One last question and I’ll let you get back to those adorable men of yours.”
“Sure.”
“Do you have a vacant pasture that’ll be available the day I arrive?”
After the last details were worked out, Grace ended the call and went back to searching the scrapbook.
“Judging from what I heard of the conversation, someone is in need of a place to stay and rest for a while?” Jack asked as he placed a warm, comforting hand on her knee. She tried to picture herself navigating the waters of a public persona on her own and shuddered. It was challenging for her, with the wonderful support system she had, and she couldn’t imagine doing it alone.
“Thank you for being open to Veronica staying in the old foreman’s house. I think she’ll like it there.”
“Sounds like she’s having troubles.”
Grace laid her palm over his work-roughened hand and said, “I think a stay in Divine is exactly what she needs.”
“What are you doing, darlin’?” Jack asked as he looked over her shoulder.
“Justine needs some pictures from last Fourth of July for a school project. I told her I’d see what I had.”
She slid her hand over a picture in the lower left corner so she didn’t have to look at it and carefully removed another picture from the page. Jack kissed her shoulder and lifted the picture she removed to look at it.
“Justine and Beau are growing up fast.”
“I know. Thanks again for giving him a weekend job with your framing crew.” Her nephew Beau would be finishing high school the following May before going off to college in the fall. Only a year behind him, his sister Justine was a junior at Divine High School.
“The boy’s not afraid to work. I like that.”
Grace turned the page and slid her palm over another photograph as she lifted another picture from the page.
“Why do you keep doing that, darlin’?” Jack softly asked.
“Doing what?” she replied as she tried to close the scrapbook. Jack stayed her hands and flattened the album and pulled it a little closer. “You keep covering up pictures of you. Why?”
With a sigh, Grace let her fingertip drift across the candid photograph taken of her from the rear while she carried on a conversation with a family member. Her ass was enormous. “I’ve put on so much weight in the last couple of years. I’m heavier now than I was when I met you, Jack.” Heat crept up her neck and her lips trembled. “I’m not voluptuous anymore. I’m fat.”
Jack let out a long sigh, and she sensed it when Adam looked up from his computer and laid it aside. Jack tilted her chin so she was looking into his ocean-blue eyes, but she felt it when Adam drew near, too. “Darlin’…” With that one empathetic endearment, his heart resonated in his voice.
Adam tilted the scrapbook so he could see the image and said, “I don’t care for that picture either, but for a totally different reason, baby. Number one, that’s not how I see you from that angle, and also because I don’t like how tired you look in that picture. You’d been sick recently, you hadn’t been sleeping well, and you were worried about finishing that manuscript.”
She could hear Adam’s heart in the rough timbre of his voice.
Will I ever believe them when they tell me they think I’m beautiful? Believe it enough for self-acceptance to last?
Guilt followed as she tried to swallow the lump in her throat.
Why do I make them keep reminding me of this? It’s like telling them I don’t believe them.
A fresh wave of fatigue swept over her and a tear streaked down her cheek. “It’s always one thing or another.”
Jack kissed her shoulder, his beard stubble rubbing through the thin fabric of her robe. “But all those issues resolved themselves. Remember? You got well and the book was done in plenty of time.”
“You’re still not sleeping as well as I’d like, though,” Adam said as he stroked her knee. “Maybe you should go see Emma.”
She’d actually considered making an appointment with their doctor but when it came to mind, it was always an inconvenient time. Her schedule was so busy some days she didn’t know which end was up. Just having two of her men clustered around her made her feel better. “Maybe I’ll do that.”
Adam cleared his throat and said, “Rose Marie has been a handful for you lately, too, hasn’t she?”
Grace nodded. She wasn’t going to put the blame on their three-year-old daughter but the little girl had recently discovered that she had opinions of her own, many of which ran counter to her mother’s. Some days felt like a competition.
“She’ll outgrow this stage. I know she will.”
Adam leaned forward to kiss her forehead as he placed the scrapbook and the loose pictures on the coffee table.
Ethan jogged down the stairs and came into the living room. A smile crossed his lips as he surveyed her in the blue robe. “Feel better?” When he made eye contact, he frowned. “What’s the matter?”
Adam rose to his full, imposing height and reached out a hand to her. “Nothing a little tender loving care won’t fix.”
Chapter Two
Hank Stinson removed his pearl-gray cowboy hat as he walked through the front door of the Dancing Pony nightclub. He placed the Stetson on the bar and put out his hand to shake with the man sitting at the next seat down.
Travis McDaniel grinned and turned to him for a back-slapping hug instead.
“Welcome home, Fishcop. You stayin’ this time?”
Travis had started out as a humble game warden in Texas, only his career had taken a circuitous route. In recent years, he’d been in Washington, DC, working for changes that would help the whole country rather than just a few territories. Hank had heard the frustration in his voice the last time Travis had called.
Travis chuckled as he sat back in his chair. “You get right to the point, don’t you?”
“Last time your visit was so damned short I didn’t have a chance to ask so I figured I’d better get it out first thing.” He nodded at Phil when the bartender held up a beer glass and pointed at it. He was off duty for the rest of the night, and after the day he’d had, he was due a beer and some relaxation time with his oldest and closest friend.
Travis sipped from his beer bottle and then angled in his seat so he could speak face-to-face with him. “I’m here for at least a month, until after Thanksgiving. I’m considering taking early retirement. The leaders in Washington are incapable of enacting any meaningful legislation because they’re afraid of losing their political funding. I’m tired of playing the game and I’ve been in long enough I could get out with a good pension and find something closer to home to occupy my time.”
“That’s music to my ears, man.”
“I put out some feelers a couple of months ago and one of them offered an interview. It’s a corporate position as a private consultant, doing what I’m already doing, offering solutions for wildlife management and agricultural development. The bonus is that it involves educational programs. I’d love to get into a classroom setting teaching the next generation. I have a meeting in a couple of weeks. Until then, I’m here to relax. It’s impossible to get anything done where I’m at now and this position would give me a chance to make a difference.” Hank could clearly see the light in his eyes as he talked about it.