A Ballad for Her Cowboys
Hot off the Ranch 2

Now Available!

Hot off the Ranch

16 Ratings

Avg - 3.4

5

4

3

2

1

Excerpt

STORY EXCERPT

The tension between Aiden and him didn’t ease all the next day. They worked side by side through the morning and late into the afternoon, neither of them doing much more than grunting an instruction at the other or passing tools and equipment when requested. By the time they walked silently into the bar to meet Misty, Seth’s anger simmered away just below the surface, ready to erupt if Aiden so much at looked at him again.

She joined them as usual, taking her seat before she seemed to catch the strained atmosphere between them. Seth suffered a huge pang of guilt when her pretty face told him how confused she was.

He wrapped a strand of her silky hair around his fingers and gave it a little tug. ‘It’s been a tough day.’  He wanted to explain even if she hadn’t asked.

‘Are you guys still in the mood for supper? We can do it another time if you want?’

‘Wild horses wouldn’t keep me away. I can’t speak for Aiden though.’ Seth smiled at Misty, ignoring the murderous glare he got from his friend. Misty turned to Aiden, ignorant of the real reason behind the strange vibes emanating from them.

‘Are you coming over, too?’

‘Bank on it.’ Aiden didn’t even bother pretending he was speaking to Misty. His gaze locked with Seth’s and held it until Misty stood and blocked their view of each other.

‘Let’s go then,’ she said, heading for the door without checking to see if they trailed behind her. Even she knew on some level that they followed her anywhere without question. Seth wondered why he was the only one who could see the bond formed between them. Sex wouldn’t ruin their relationship. It would make it complete.

Misty chatted without pause as they walked the mile from the bar to her home. Since she had the pair of them around to escort her to her door every night, she’d stopped renting a car.

Lost in his own thoughts, Seth walked at her side, happy to let Aiden fill in the rare pauses she left in the conversation. He felt guilty about his anger towards his friend, but what in the hell did Aiden expect from him? Seth hadn’t had the love and support of a stable family like Aiden. His mother abandoned him at birth and he didn’t know to this day who his real father was.

His childhood spent being sent from one stranger’s home to another. Sometimes, the families were kind people who just wanted to love someone—but other times, he found he was no more than a means of making money and at the mercy of couples who didn’t know how to care for a child.

His last foster home, when he was fourteen, had been in a small town a few miles outside of Lambert’s Creek. That’s where he met Aiden at school and he’d been his shadow ever since. The years he spent growing up there had been the happiest of his life, especially after Kate and Brian Orton legally adopted him. But when they died in a car crash just after he turned eighteen, he found himself alone again and Aiden became his only family.

He inherited a small amount of money from them, but didn’t do anything with it for a while. Not until the opportunity to invest in Aiden’s family business and finally put down roots of his own had presented itself. Seth sold his parents’ small house and moved his life to Lambert’s Creek.

Seth smiled at Misty when she shook him out of his reverie by asking if he had a good day. He didn’t have it in him to lie and tell her everything was okay, so he let her read whatever she wanted to into his silence.

An hour after they reached her apartment and they’d eaten the chili she massacred with the silence still hanging over them like a dark cloud, Misty marched into the center of the room and put her hands on her hips.

‘Okay, guys, I’ve had enough of this. What the fuck is going on?’

‘Ask him,’ Seth said, refusing to look at anyone.

‘Seth…’

He heard the warning in Aiden’s voice, but it didn’t worry him, not when the moment came to put up or shut up. Could he tell her how he felt and what he wanted? Should he? Misty squeezed herself onto the sofa between him and Aiden, turned in Seth’s direction, and lifted his clenched fist from his lap. ‘Seth, talk to me.’

Aiden put a hand on her shoulder and tried to turn her away, but her gaze stayed on Seth’s. ‘Don’t push him on this, Misty.’

Aiden peered over her head and silently told Seth with a look not to say whatever he was about to. Misty seemed as intent on ignoring Aiden as he was. She leaned forward. ‘Tell me.’

Seth stared into her face, searching for some sign that he should let her know what was in his heart. Her huge brown eyes seemed to beg him to open up to her, but a part of him dreaded to see them go hard and cold if she didn’t want to hear what he had to say. He smiled when he saw tears welling up in them, not because it pleased him to see her cry rather because it showed him she cared as much as he hoped. But maybe just not in the same way he cared for her.

Seth sighed, turned his hand over so she could place hers into his upturned palm. He wrapped his fingers around hers and rubbed his thumb across her knuckles while staring at them until he found the courage to speak.

‘I’m in love with you, Misty. Have been since the day we met.’

Silence followed his whispered confession. He had to lift his gaze and look at her to be sure she’d heard what he said. The color drained from her face, and she’d closed her eyes. She heard him fine. Seth wanted to keep talking, to tell her that he wasn’t the only one who felt that way, but if Aiden wanted her to know, it was his job to tell her. Seth didn’t want to rob him of the right to do it on his own terms.

The loud ticking of a clock on the wall made the only other sound Seth could hear except for his own heart pounding while he waited for her next move. He thought he might have to repeat himself, until Aiden spoke, surprising Seth probably as much as he did Misty.

‘I feel the same way as he does.’ Aiden groaned and sat forward, rubbed his jaw, and smiled ruefully as she turned to stare at him. ‘I didn’t want him to tell you, but now he has. There’s no point in my keeping silent about it. I love you, too.’

ADULT EXCERPT

‘Uh—do you want to talk about this?’ Seth said. He took some pride in his ability to speak at all, when all he wanted to do was rush to her and tear away the pathetic scrap of lace hiding her breasts from him.

Misty smiled and shook her head. ‘We talked plenty. I don’t want to talk anymore.’ She reached behind her to undo her bra, but paused when Aiden got to his feet.

‘Are you okay?’

Aiden grabbed her arms and brought them to her sides, forcing her to stop undressing and look at him. Misty stepped closer, wriggled her wrists until he let her go, and then slid her hands up into his hair.

‘I’m more than okay, Aiden. I’ve never felt so good or so sure of what I want.’ She kissed him softly, almost chastely, and then turned to Seth. ‘Come here, baby.’

He got to his feet and took her outstretched hand, trying not to feel disappointed when she didn’t kiss him before she led them to her room.

Misty left them by the bed and turned her back to remove the rest of her clothing. Seth cast a glance in Aiden’s direction and found he stripped down to his underwear already. Damn that boy could move fast when he wanted to. Seth rushed to shed his clothing and raced to lie beside Misty when she crawled over the covers.

Aiden reached for her, but she raised a hand to stop him. ‘Hold on there, cowboy. Last time, we did things your way. This time, I’m in charge. You guys just do what I tell you to, okay?’

She addressed the last part of her sentence to Seth. He nodded eagerly, mesmerized by her and excited at the thought of what she might want him to do.

She rewarded him for his obedience by crawling onto his torso and dragging her moist flesh over the skin on his stomach. The heat from her pussy branded him when she slid farther down him. Her lips found his, and he groaned in delight at her boldness. Misty’s mouth felt as hot as her cunt, and Seth couldn’t help but lift his hands to her hips to try to guide her onto his aching cock as he plundered her mouth with his tongue.

Misty chuckled against his lips and squirmed away, sliding even farther down the bed to kneel between his thighs. Her head tipped forward as she leaned over him and her glorious hair fell onto his groin in an inky pool, hiding her face. Torn between moving it away so he could see what he knew she was about to do and keeping his hands to himself, he lay still and held his breath. Misty tossed her head, threw her hair over her shoulder so both he and Aiden could see her, and wrapped her tiny hand around his prick. Her tongue darted out, moistened the tip of Seth’s penis, causing him to buck beneath her, and Aiden to groan low in his throat. Seth turned his head, surprised to hear a noise coming from his friend, only to find Aiden flat on his back with his eyes closed. Seth’s gaze travelled downward, discovering the reason for Aiden’s arousal. Misty’s hand held onto his cock as firmly as her other held Seth’s.

She flicked her tongue again, which brought his focus back to her instantly. This time, she followed it with a little kiss pressed onto the head of his penis. Her lips stayed against his skin and she opened her mouth wider to swirl her tongue all over him inside the warm vacuum she created. Seth shuddered when she lowered her head, flattened her tongue, and glided halfway down his shaft. Misty pulled back quickly and dipped again, this time taking even more of him in.

Seth sat up. He tried to lift her too, but she fought him. ‘I’m gonna come if you don’t stop.’

Misty looked up at him with a grin. ‘Isn’t that kinda the point?’

His cock throbbed again when he saw the moisture on her lips and knew she sucked some of it out of him. ‘I want to be inside you. I want to fuck you. Please, Misty.’

Seth didn’t want to take her power away, but if he didn’t feel her pussy clenching him around him sometime soon, he knew he was going to explode. Aiden moved, getting to his knees beside her as she crawled and straddled Seth. With her hands braced on his chest, she held still, allowed him to line his cock up with her dripping wet opening. He bit her lip when he pushed inside.

‘Fuck!’ he shouted, barely able to control his urge to pump her too hard when he felt her cunt quiver around him. Seth raised his head a little to watch his prick disappear inside her, but his view was blocked by Aiden’s elbow. The motion of his arm told Seth that Aiden had placed his hand on Misty’s clit to rub her hard and fast. She gave a small scream and Seth looked up at her face just at the moment her perfect white teeth bit into Aiden’s shoulder.

‘You like me touching your ass?’ Seth heard him say. Misty groaned but Aiden wouldn’t let her get off so lightly. ‘Tell me you like it—that you like having Seth’s cock inside your cunt while I finger your ass. Tell me that you want more.’

Seth pumped into her harder, helping Aiden in his quest to get her to admit that she loved what they were doing to her.

‘I want more…I want more,’ she moaned and Seth felt her muscles tighten around him. ‘I want you both inside me.’ She started to gasp. ‘I want you both to fuck me.’