Two Dude Ranchers for Dawn [Cowboy City 1] (Siren Publishing Ménage and More) (3 page)

Garrett came back into the room, still wet from his shower. Usually, Ben would make the most of a chance to lay back and watch him get dressed, greedy to drink in the sight of his big, hard body before he covered it up, but today, the tension on Garrett’s face distracted him.

He got to his feet and crossed the room, taking the towel out of Garrett’s hands and helping dry him off. “You okay?”

“Yeah, I’m good.”

“I’m sorry I mentioned Mary. I wasn’t trying to be a heartless jerk. I miss her almost as much as you do.”

Garrett’s hand closed around Ben’s. “I know you do. Besides, that’s not what got me all fired up.

It’s the fact you’ve never really believed that I don’t need anybody else but you.”

“Hell, I believe you. Look at everything you gave up so we could be together. You fought hard for me, Garrett, and I’ll never forget that.”

Ben kissed Garrett and went through to the bathroom, deciding he should let the subject drop for now. He turned on the water and jumped in the shower, groaning with pleasure as the hot needles massaged his skin while he thought back over what he’d just said to Garrett.

It was true, the man had given up everything for him. His family. His home. As soon as Garrett had realized people weren’t gonna get behind the idea of him and Ben being together, he’d talked Ben into packing up and moving away with him. Ben hadn’t called anywhere home since he’d left the foster care system as a kid, so the move was easy for him, but Garrett had suffered losses, both emotional and financial. His parents didn’t want anything else to do with him and he sold the house for less than market value so he could leave straight away. Just under six months after Mary’s death, Garrett turned his back on his past and moved to Cowboy City to make a future with Ben. And now, all they had was each other. But was it enough?

Ben thought about the night they became more than just friends. Garrett had been drinking too much, a habit he’d taken up after the accident, and he’d stumbled into Ben as they walked home together from the local bar, pinning him up against the side of the house. He could swear as he looked back on it now that time had stood still as Garrett had stared at him, an unreadable expression on his face. Ben knew now that the look meant Garrett was turned on. But, back then, he’d assumed the man was about to have another emotional breakdown over the loss of his wife. Garrett’s breathing had become labored and ragged and when Ben grabbed him by the shoulders, ready to prop him up and walk him into the house. Garrett had slammed him back against the barn and crushed his lips into Ben’s.

He’d pushed Garrett away, convinced the drink and his devastation at losing Mary had made him desperate for physical comfort and an emotional connection no matter where it came from. Ben had long since dealt with his own feelings for Garrett. He’d wanted the man from the first minute he laid eyes on him, but Ben had quickly come to terms with the fact that Garrett was happily married, and one hundred percent straight, or so he’d thought. When Garrett had approached him again the next night, sober and clear eyed, apologizing for his actions but confessing that his feelings for Ben were no longer just platonic. Their relationship changed forever and they became lovers soon after.

Ben stepped out of the shower and grabbed his razor from the holder above the sink. He shaved without paying particular attention to what he was doing, his mind elsewhere. Garrett could deny it all he wanted, but Ben knew this woman had caught Garrett’s eye for a reason, and he sure as hell intended to find out what it meant.

A few hours later, the girls were sitting on a circle of hay bales in a corner of the yard, watching the sun dip down behind a mountain as they enjoyed the Welcome Night Hoe Down and Barn Darn the ranch had organized for the new guests.

Dawn looked around the large area ringed by wooden fences, amazed at how many of the guys were dressed like cowboys. It was easy to tell who the real ones were–their jeans, boots, and hats were well worn and faded, as if they’d spent years working in the dirt. Not that the visitors didn’t look great in their embroidered and fringed shirts, hand-tooled boots, and custom-fitted jeans, but they sure as hell didn’t look like cowboys. Dawn admired them for getting into the spirit of things though. She looked down at the jeans and T-shirt she’d thrown on and wished she and her friends had made a bit more effort.

Contrary to what the reviews on the ranch’s website had led her to expect, the guests were pretty evenly split between males and females, singles and couples. It was clear most of them were gay, but many were straight, although none of the single guys were, as far as she could tell. Alan definitely wouldn’t have let Jen come if he’d known there might be straight guys staying at the ranch.

Her gaze landed on a familiar face in the crowd, and she realized it was the tall, dark-haired guy who’d helped her earlier. She saw him turn to talk to someone beside him and saw that his blond friend was with him again. Dawn saw the taller one send the other guy a look so hot it would have stripped the paint off the side of a barn and realized with a pang of envy that they must be a couple. The shorter one lifted his beer bottle to his lips in a slow, tantalizing move, making it clear to anyone who cared to pay attention that he wanted to suck the other guy’s dick.

Dawn was caught off guard by the sudden rush of moisture that flooded her pussy as she watched them, and her mind tortured her further with an image of the two of them locked in a sweaty, naked embrace, their muscles straining with tension as they fucked each other, hard and fast. She’d bet every dollar she had that the dark-haired one was the more dominant of the two, and she could imagine how he would look as he pinned the blond guy down and rode him mercilessly.

The blood began to pound through her eardrums, and she felt her cheeks grow warm. Dawn lifted the beer she was holding to her mouth and took a swig, aware she must have had too much already if she was getting horny staring at a couple of guys she barely knew, but if she’d never actually needed a drink in her life before, she did now.

The sound of laughter behind her dragged Dawn’s attention away from the men, and she turned to find Jen collapsed in a fit of the giggles. Seeing her like that reminded Dawn of how happy Jen used to be, and she had to stop herself getting misty eyed at the thought of how much she missed having her best friend in her life. The others followed the direction of Jeanette’s gaze, and they all started laughing, too, when they saw Julie up on her feet and dancing wildly with a trio of guys. She was whooping and screaming as they each took turns spinning her around, her long blonde hair whipping around her face as they passed her between them and barely gave her time to catch her breath. Dawn recognized them from earlier in the day and realized they were the guys who’d helped Julie with her luggage.

“You go, girl!” Ruth shouted, clapping her hands and cheering on her friend. Sally had her hands over her eyes as she laughed, watching Julie through her fingers, her cheeks flaming red with second-hand embarrassment. Julie and her trio of cowboys were the only people dancing, and a crowd had formed around them as the rest of the guests enjoyed the impromptu show.

Dawn became aware of a large figure approaching and turned to find the tall guy from earlier walking toward her with his friend a few feet behind. His green gaze locked with hers, and she got the strangest feeling that he was coming to get her.

He took his hat off as he drew level and gestured to his friend, who did the same. “Evening ma’am. I’m Jace but everyone calls me by my last name, Garrett, and this here is Ben Wilson. We wondered if you’d like to dance.”

“With both of you?”

Garrett smiled. “If you want.”

Dawn shook her head. “I’m not like my friend Julie. I’m pretty sure I can only handle one of you at a time.”

The smile slipped from his face, and he gave her an appraising look. “Now, how do you know that unless you try, Dawn?”

She got a feeling he wasn’t talking about dancing any more, but the fact he knew her name distracted her. “How do you know who I am?”

“I made it my business to find out earlier.”

“Why?”

A dimple popped in his cheek as he sent her a crooked grin. “Why not?”

She laughed because it wasn’t as if she could come up with a good reason why he shouldn’t know her name. Dawn guessed it was probably part of his job to make the guests feel welcome.

“So, which of us would you like to dance with?”

Dawn looked past Garrett to Ben. He seemed a little less intimidating and she got the feeling she might be able to handle him a little easier than she could his friend, but she didn’t want to offend either of them.

“I couldn’t possibly choose between you.”

Garrett turned to speak over his shoulder, although his gaze never left hers. “You mind if I go first, buddy?”

“Be my guest.” Ben smiled and put his hat back on. “I can’t promise I’m not gonna cut in though.”

He sent Dawn a wink that told her he had every intention of doing just that.

The band started another tune, one better suited to slow dancing, and Dawn had no good excuse not to take Garrett’s outstretched hand and follow him into the center of the dance area.

Dawn stepped into his embrace, keeping her eyes averted so he wouldn’t see how his closeness was affecting her. She stared over his shoulder toward the dying embers of a breathtaking sunset bathing the tops of the distant mountains in a gold and orange glow. Overhead, the sky was a turning a deep shade of indigo studded with bright stars and a warm, gentle breeze caressed her cheek, bathing her in Garrett’s woody, masculine scent.

“It’s going to be a beautiful night,” she whispered, leaning back briefly to glance up into his face as she spoke.

“Sure is. It’s especially pretty this evening.”

Dawn felt his fingers close around hers as his other hand moved from her hip to the small of her back, and he pulled her closer.

“You and your girlfriends are here on a bachelorette trip?”

“Yes.”

“Who’s the lucky lady?”

“My friend, Jeanette.” Dawn gestured toward her friend, who was still sitting on the hay bales except that now, she had a handsome man flanking her on both sides. “I’m not sure if I’d call her lucky though.”

Garrett chuckled deep in his throat. “No need to ask what you think of him.”

“I’m sorry. I’ve said too much. Jen loves him. I guess that’s all that matters.”

“If you have concerns, maybe you owe it to her to tell her?”

“I tried to talk to her before, but it went very badly. She said if I was really her friend I should support her choices, so that’s what I’m doing.”

“Have you known each other long?” Garrett asked, thankfully moving on from a topic Dawn found difficult to talk about without getting angry.

“Since kindergarten.”

Garrett whistled. “You must be like sisters.”

“Pretty much. How long have you been friends with Ben?”

He’d given her the perfect excuse she needed to find out more about what she’d just seen passing between the two men. Dawn knew he would probably recognize her question for the blatant fishing expedition that it was, but she couldn’t resist.

His green gaze warmed with humor and something else Dawn could only describe as a fierce pride as he answered without hesitation. “Ben is my life partner. We’ve been together since we were both in our late twenties, so about ten years.”

“Figures.”

“Figures?” Garrett stopped moving and stared down at her as if trying to read her mind. “Why do I get the feeling there’s more to that sentence?”

She laughed as she felt the color rise in her cheeks. “Sorry. That was a dumb thing to say. I meant it figures that you’d be gay. The good looking ones always are.”

He didn’t answer for a second and thankfully started to dance again, freeing Dawn from the prison of his gaze. “So I take it that means you haven’t got someone waiting for you at home?”

“Uh-uh.” She shook her head as she leaned into his embrace. In a weird way, finding out that the big, beautiful cowboy holding her in his arms was gay made it easier for her to relax and enjoy the experience. Gay or not, Jace Garrett was probably the best looking man she had ever had the pleasure of dancing with, and as his large hand pressed into the small of her back, urging her closer still, Dawn knew he would be fuelling her fantasies for many years to come.

Maybe she’d had too much to drink, or maybe she just craved more of a man’s touch after being single for so long, but Dawn was powerless to stop herself from getting closer to Garrett. Her hands slid from his shoulders and she wound her arms around his thick torso so she could lean her head against his chest. He didn’t pull away, not that it had even occurred to her that he might, and she felt his fingers splay across her back as he applied a gentle pressure and urged her closer still. Her leg slipped into the gap between his thighs, and their dancing slowed down until it was barely more than a rocking embrace.

Dawn felt his breath on her neck and sensed he must be looking down at her, so she lifted her head in anticipation of what he might say.

The heat she found in his waiting gaze made her mouth go dry. Garrett’s eyes burned into hers and, as they stared at each other wordlessly, she felt a sudden hardness pressing into her abdomen.

Dawn gasped out loud, too surprised to stop herself from doing it.

Garrett cocked an eyebrow as he stared at her, then dropped his head so his lips were level with her ear. “This can’t be the first time you’ve turned a man on.”

“I’m so sorry.” Dawn tried to pull away but Garrett’s grip on her tightened, stopping her from moving.