Van, Becca - Double E Ranch [Slick Rock 2] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) Read online

  “I wanted to see what she was made of. She sure showed me up, now didn’t she?” Tom said with a grin.

  “Yep, she sure did. She’s better in the saddle than Jack. Don’t you tell him I said that,” Billy said with a smile. “She sure knows how to handle ranch work. So, what do you think?”

  “Not sure. Gonna have to take a week or so to see. She’s not very submissive. You saw the fire in her eyes when I was baiting her, as much as I did. She’s a feisty little thing. But she’s had me hard since the moment she walked into the kitchen.”

  “Yeah, me too. She’s so sexy. I can’t wait to strip her clothes off and get a good look at that body she’s trying to hide,” Billy stated.

  “Those lips of hers are so full. They’re just begging for a man to kiss.” Tom groaned, closing his eyes as he imagined those lips wrapped around his cock. “We’ll have to let her feel her way around here a bit before we put our moves on her. I don’t want her running away.”

  “So are we in accordance on this?” Billy asked as he rubbed his hands together.

  “Yeah, we are, little brother.”

  * * * *

  Felicity hadn’t had to brand cattle for a long time. So by the time they were finished, her back was aching from bending over, and her arms and legs were aching as well. She had a headache from all the noise and dust, and since she hadn’t had a break since she first arrived on the Double E Ranch, she was thirsty and slightly dehydrated. She helped Jack brand the last calf, stood up, and stretched her tired, aching muscles. She heard voices off to the side of the corral and turned her head to see Tom and Billy heading their way.

  “I see you’ve finished with the branding. I want you to come up to the house for a discussion,” Tom stated as he drew up beside her, and then she saw him turn toward Jack.

  “Thanks, Jack,” Tom said, giving Jack a thumbs-up.

  Felicity followed Tom and Billy into the house. They led her to a room off the end of a long hallway, and she knew she was in their office. There were two desks set up with laptops and phones on each timber surface. There were a couple of spare chairs off to the side of the room, as well as a small sofa. Felicity eyed the sofa with longing but turned her head away from it to face the two men leaning side by side on one of the desks, their arms crossed over their broad, muscular chests.

  “Take a seat, Felicity,” Billy commanded, indicating the sofa.

  Felicity took him at his word and sank onto the cushion gratefully, hoping neither man could see how she was stiffening up already.

  “We’d like to offer you the position of ranch hand. You’ve proved you’re more than capable of doing the job. You’ll be paid cash for today, as today is payday. You’ll be paid weekly just like the rest of the hands. I want you living on this ranch, just like the other hands do, but since we don’t have a separate bunkhouse for women, you’ll be staying in this house. We have a spare room you can use. You’ll get all meals supplied, as well as a roof over your head. We want you to sign a contract just like all the other hands have. The contract is for twelve months, but if we feel you have breached any of our rules, we can terminate your employment, effective immediately. You are not to date any of the ranch hands. We don’t want relationships causing any trouble between the hands. So now the decision is yours. Do you want the job, Felicity?” Tom asked.

  “Yes. Thank you. I do. There won’t be any dating, I don’t date. I don’t think it’s right that I live in your house, though. I don’t want to be seen as given preferential treatment just because I’m female,” Felicity asserted.

  “I don’t care what you want, little girl. There is no way in hell I’m putting you in the bunkhouse with those men. Think about the trouble having a woman amongst them would cause,” Tom replied.

  “Don’t they have separate rooms?” Felicity asked.

  “Yes, they do have their own rooms, but the shower is shared between them all. How would you like to have five big, horny men holding you down to have their way with you?” Tom almost spat out.

  Felicity paled as the image of five men raping her coalesced in her mind. It looked like she was staying in their house and not the bunkhouse, after all. “Okay. I’ll stay in your guest room. Thanks.”

  “I make the rules in this house and on this ranch. What I say goes. No arguing, you have to accept mine and Billy’s word as law. Do you have a problem with that?”

  “No. As long as your rules are fair and not discriminatory,” Felicity replied.

  “I don’t care whether you think my rules are discriminatory or not. My rules are to be adhered to at all times. The rules I set in place are for everyone living and working on this ranch. They are to keep you and everyone else safe. Do you understand?” Tom rapped out.

  “Yes.”

  “Will you obey my rules?”

  “Yes,” Felicity replied, her eyes on her feet.

  “Okay. Here is your contract of employment. Read it over and then sign it. You can leave it on this desk. When you’re done, come into the kitchen to find me. I’ll show you to your room. If you give your car keys to Billy, he can unload your stuff and park your car in the carport,” Tom stated then left the study.

  Felicity stared after Tom, nibbling on her lower lip, wondering if she was doing the right thing. She had nowhere else to go. She didn’t really have much of a choice. She picked up the pen on the desk and signed her name to the bottom of the contract. She looked up to see Billy standing in the doorway, eying her speculatively. She handed her car keys to Billy then headed toward the kitchen. She really needed a drink of water.

  Chapter Two

  Felicity sat down for lunch with the ranch hands. Over the last couple of weeks, Felicity had gotten into a routine of helping out in the stables, feeding the horses, and cleaning out stalls. She was actually relieved to be staying in the ranch house guest bedroom, and she knew it would have been uncomfortable if she was sharing the bunkhouse with five other men. Tom and Billy had been courteous but distant toward her, except at mealtimes. Everyone would convene in the large kitchen dining room where the elderly housekeeper, Nanette, would have the meals ready for serving, and share the food. The noise of seven men chatting at every meal could be quite loud and rambunctious.

  Felicity was still trying to come to terms with the fact “the guest bedroom” was indeed the master bedroom of the house. She knew there was no way Tom would let her sleep in the bunkhouse. Not that she really wanted to. Felicity didn’t participate much in the conversations at mealtimes. She was trying to keep a low profile. Even though she had always been more comfortable around men and she had a great rapport with Jack, the other ranch hands tended to keep to themselves. Except for James. Felicity had often caught James eying her like she was a mare in heat, and he was making her feel decidedly jumpy. Often James would “accidentally” bump into her, brush an arm against her breast, or nearly knock her over as he pretended not to see her. The man gave her the creeps. She hadn’t said anything to Jack, Tom or Billy because she needed this job more than she needed her next breath of air. Plus, she didn’t want to be seen as having led on any of the men on and therefore having caused trouble.

  Felicity looked up from her plate of stew to find James once again leering at her body. She quickly lowered her head and tried to ignore the jerk. When lunch was done, Felicity was the first to head out and start on mucking out the stalls. She knew the men would linger over their coffee, as Tom and Billy always took the opportunity at mealtimes to catch up on things happening around the ranch.

  Felicity had just moved Zeus out of his stall to the spare at the opposite end of the barn, preparing to begin mucking the stalls, when she heard footsteps heading in her direction. She raised her head to see James heading her way. She gave a mental groan then turned back to her task. She had just begun to rake out the stall when two bands of steel wrapped around her waist, hauling her back against a tall, rangy, masculine body. Felicity didn’t need to turn her head to know it was James behind her. She stomped down o
n his toes as hard as she could, making him yelp with pain as he backed away from her.

  “You think you’re so high and mighty, don’t ya, you little bitch? You think I don’t see the way you’re twitching your ass around all of us. You think you’re way too good to live with all the other ranch hands. Well, you’re nothing but a piece of ass, and I intend to have me some of that ass,” James spat out. He lunged for Felicity, catching her arms as she swung the rake toward him. He caught it and pulled it from her hands before she could do any harm. He pushed her into Zeus’s empty stall using all his strength, not caring if he hurt her or not. He had her up against the barn wall with her hands held above her head before she could blink.

  “Let me go, you son of a bitch,” Felicity ground out through clenched teeth.

  “Now why would I want to do that?” James replied with a leer. He ground his hard cock against her stomach, making her feel physically ill.

  Felicity struggled with him, knowing her actions were futile, but she wasn’t going to let this asshole win. She tried to knee him in the groin, but because he was keeping her pinned with his body, she didn’t quite reach her goal.

  “Let me go, now, you bastard.”

  James didn’t relent. He slammed his mouth down on hers, trying to push his tongue into her mouth. Felicity felt bile rise up from her stomach. She knew she was in big trouble. She didn’t try fighting him, knowing it was useless. She held still and hoped he would get bored with her nonresponse. When he grabbed her hair and pulled hard, Felicity couldn’t help her cry of pain. He used that involuntary act against her, immediately shoving his slimy tongue into her mouth. Felicity didn’t hesitate. She bit down on his tongue hard. James pulled away from her with a yelp then backhanded her so hard across the face, she stumbled into the side wall of the stall, hitting her head. She slumped to the ground, both of her ears ringing as she saw stars in front of her eyes. She breathed deeply, trying to keep her wits about her, not wanting to give James the advantage by passing out.

  Felicity felt rough hands tearing at her shirt, then cool air as her upper body was exposed. She opened her eyes to see James licking his lips as he stared at her chest. Felicity used her leg and kicked out at him with everything she had. She caught him on the thigh, not doing much damage, except to make him curse. She didn’t see the fist coming her way, but felt the agony as it connected with her jaw. Pain exploded in her face and head, and then she slipped into a hurt-free world.

  * * * *

  Jack had just entered the barn to give Felicity some help cleaning out the stalls when he heard James curse. He looked down to the other end of the barn, but couldn’t see him or Felicity. He knew that bastard was up to no good. He ran to the other end to see James’s fist connect with Felicity’s jaw. She was out cold on the ground, her shirt ripped open with bruises forming on her face and breasts. He gave a roar of fury. He hauled James away from Felicity by the back of his shirt, spun the other man around, and planted his fist into his face. The bastard didn’t get up. Jack had broken the fucker’s nose and knocked him out with one punch. Jack kicked James out of his way and knelt at Felicity’s side. He pulled her ripped shirt over her chest, gently picked her small body up from the ground into his arms, and then ran for the ranch house, being careful not to jar the small woman he held. As he reached the ranch house veranda, he yelled for Tom and Billy.

  Jack saw Tom flying out the door first, and he came to halt when he saw Jack and Felicity. Jack’s employer opened it for him, and his boss stared down at the unconscious woman in his arms. Billy was on Tom’s heels, and Jack could see the pain and fury in their faces.

  “Who?” Billy snapped, and Jack saw him look at Felicity’s face and ripped shirt.

  “James. He’s in the barn. I knocked him out,” Jack replied.

  The sound of Billy’s yell of rage was enough to send chills down Jack’s spine. Billy was out the door before he could say anything else.

  “Bring her to the bedroom,” Tom commanded through clenched teeth. Tom’s voice was so full of fury, even Jack flinched as his boss led the way to Felicity’s room.

  Jack knew Tom watched as he gently laid Felicity on the bed and stepped back.

  “Get Nanette to call for the doc,” Tom ordered.

  Jack left to do Tom’s bidding.

  * * * *

  Tom could feel his hands shaking as he reached out to Felicity. He wanted to go and kill that bastard with his bare hands, but knew Felicity needed him more. He gently pulled her shirt from her body, hissing through his teeth when he saw her bruised breasts. He carefully worked the ripped shirt from her body, then her jeans, until Felicity was left in her bra and panties. He covered her with a blanket from the closet, headed to the bathroom for a wash cloth and warm water. Just as he was carefully washing Felicity’s bruised, battered face, Nanette walked into the room. He heard her gasp of shock as she saw Felicity’s face. She hurried over to Tom to help care for the small woman on the bed. Between the two of them, they had Felicity’s face, arms, and chest washed, all dirt removed from her body. He knew Nanette was as concerned as he was because Felicity hadn’t come around yet. The sound of the door slamming against the wall announced the arrival of Billy.

  “Where is the bastard?” Tom asked his brother.

  “He’s gone. He must have come around when Jack was bringing her to the house. I was just in time to see the tail end of his car leaving the ranch. Fuck it. He got away, Tom.”

  “Once we have treated Felicity as much as we can, we’ll let the doctor examine her and the sheriff take over. I don’t think he’ll ever show his face around here again. The bastard is a yellow-bellied coward,” Tom replied as he stared down at Felicity.

  The doctor arrived twenty minutes later. Even though he ordered Tom and Billy from the room, they wouldn’t budge. They just both stood against the far wall, their arms crossed over their chests, glaring at the man. They watched Doc exam Felicity, trying to use his body to keep prying eyes away.

  Tom listened as Doc muttered to himself as he worked. He saw the elderly man baulk, his voice becoming louder as examined Felicity.

  “I can’t believe someone could beat up such a small, helpless woman. She has bruises covering her cheeks, chest, and another beneath her jaw where a fist has connected with her skin. Her face is swollen, and she’s suffering from a concussion. She should wake up pretty soon.”

  “If you need to get her to a hospital, then that’s what we’ll do,” Tom bit out. He wanted her where he knew she was safe, so if she had to go to the hospital, he would organize guards for her. Otherwise he and Billy were going to be vigilant to the point of annoying but knew if Doc said Felicity needed to be hospitalized he would take her to the hospital himself.

  Tom watched Doc as he froze on the spot when Felicity moaned. He and Doc watched her intently as she slowly opened her eyes, slammed her eyelids shut again, and clutched her head between her hands.

  “Felicity, I’m Doctor Foster. How are you feeling?”

  “Terrible,” Felicity replied through dry, bruised lips.

  “Now, I don’t want you moving around too much. You have a bad concussion, which is no doubt making you feel sick. Your face is also swollen and bruised. You need to take it easy for at least a week. If the headache doesn’t begin to go, you’ll need to go to the hospital,” Doc said.

  “No insurance,” Felicity replied.

  “What’s more important, money or your health? Can you open your eyes for me, little lady?” Doc asked.

  Tom could see when Felicity opened her eyes that she was having trouble keeping them open. He could tell by the way she was blinking she couldn’t see. He saw her flinch back away from Doc as he shone a light into her eyes.

  “Sick,” Felicity cried out as she slammed her eyelids shut again.

  Tom knew Doc or he wouldn’t have time to get a bucket for the ill woman. He saw Doc glance around the room, spy a trash can near the bedside table, grab it, help Felicity to roll to her side, and hold he
r head as she was ill. When she was done emptying her stomach, Doc looked over to him and Billy.

  “Please bring a glass of water for the young lady,” Doc demanded.

  Tom sent Billy for the water, and his brother was back in moments with a glass in hand. He watched as Billy and Doc helped Felicity to take a drink and rinse her mouth. Then he saw Doc head to the bathroom, the sound of running water and the smell of disinfectant telling him Doc was cleaning the garbage can. Doc was back a few minutes later. Tom kept a watch over Felicity as she fell asleep. Doc turned to him and started giving instructions.

  “I want you to keep an eye on this little girl for the next twenty-four to forty-eight hours. Wake her up every hour for the first twenty-four hours, make sure she knows where and who she is. After that you can wake her every four hours. If you have any concerns, or if her nausea and headache don’t settle, call me right away. No pain medication at all until the headache has gone. You need to get some ice packs to bring down the bruising and swelling on her face.”

  “Thanks, Doc, I appreciate you coming out,” Tom replied as he led Doc to the door.

  “Billy, call the sheriff. I want him to look for that asshole and have him locked up for assault and attempted rape. Ask him to come out to the ranch so he can see what James did to Felicity,” Tom commanded then walked back down the hall to keep an eye on their injured woman.

  Tom greeted Sheriff Luke Sun-Walker with the familiarity of a long-standing friendship when he arrived at the Double E Ranch thirty minutes later. He led the sheriff into the kitchen and took a seat at the kitchen table after offering Luke a seat. Nanette handed him a cup of coffee as he, Billy, and Luke sat down to discuss what James had done to Felicity.

  “You know I’m going to have to see her and take photos of her bruising. I know it’s going to be hard for you, but it will be even harder for her. The last thing an attempted rape victim wants to do is relive their nightmare again. I’m real sorry to have to put her through that torture, but I need those photos for evidence. Nanette, can you come into the bedroom, too? Hopefully the presence of another female will help put Felicity at ease,” Luke stated.