Smashwords Edition
Copyright © 2013 by Melissa F. Hart. All rights reserved worldwide.
No part of this book may be replicated, redistributed, or given away in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, without the prior written consent of the author/publisher.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.
Books in the series
Taming Suzanna - Volume 1
Capturing Suzanna - Volume 2
Freeing Suzanna - Volume 3
Suzanna Bound by Love - Volume 4
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Synopsis
Book One: Taming Suzanna
Suzanna Wheeler enjoys the attention she receives from the men who work on her father’s ranch. So, when her Daddy tasks his best foreman, the handsome and rugged Colton Stevens, with the chore of keeping an eye on her, she isn’t the least bit happy about it. Willful and defiant, she is determined to keep doing whatever she wants, even when that leads to trouble and danger. Passion and love erupt in this exciting tale of a rancher’s daughter who wants to experience life’s taboos. Is Colton the one to tame her wild heart?
Book Two: Capturing Suzanna
Suzanna Wheeler knows that the love she has for Colton Stevens, her father’s best ranch foreman, is as taboo as the sensual games they enjoy together. She knows that if her Daddy were to catch the two of them together, it would be the end of their romance; however, that isn’t the most dangerous problem she faces. Someone far more sinister is out to capture Suzanna, and if he succeeds, it will mean the end of her father’s ranch, and possibly even of her life.
Book Three: Freeing Suzanna
Suzanna Wheeler has finally found the love of her life in Colton Stevens, the handsome ranch foreman who taught her to free her passions with taboo games. It is a cruel fate that both of them are now going to die at the hands of a vengeful villain, unless Suzanna’s plan to free them works. Danger and excitement blend with romance and lust as Suzanna races against time to save herself and the man she loves.
Book Four: Suzanna Bound by Love
Suzanna has survived a lot, but now she has finally married the love of her life, Colton Stevens, and is ready for her happily ever after. They share a boundless love that is enhanced by the sensual games they enjoy together in the bedroom. Unfortunately, the troubles they thought they had left behind are not fully over yet. Someone from her past seeks to use the things she loves most to harm her, by destroying them all…one by one. Will Suzanna get the happiness she desperately desires?
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Table of Contents
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Suzanna Wheeler quietly tiptoed down the stairs in her socks, holding her favorite pair of boots in her hands. She knew their hard soles would make too much noise on the wooden staircase of her family’s ranch house, and she desperately didn’t want to wake her father.
Daddy was a good man who meant well, but he thought a girl’s place was in the home and not out riding horses. At the age of twenty-one, Suzanna had grown well beyond being a girl into a fully-fledged woman, and if the looks she received from Daddy’s ranch hands were any indication, she was quite an attractive one.
Suzanna wasn’t the kind of girl to be coy. She knew full well the effect she had on men when she walked into the field wearing a thin white t-shirt stretched tightly over her ample breasts. She also knew how they liked to watch her ass move when she wore her jeans just a little too tight. With a naughty, crooked grin, she had to admit that she liked the attention. It made her feel alive and sexy to feel their eyes upon her that way.
Of course, their eyes were the only thing anyone ever laid upon her. It was no secret that Daddy didn’t want anyone deflowering his little princess. To make sure no one tried, he saddled his most trusted foreman with the task of keeping an eye on her.
“You don’t pay me to be a babysitter!” she had overheard Colton Stevens shouting at her father, as only he had the guts to do.
“I sure as hell do!” Daddy’s voice sounded as forceful as she’d ever heard it. She had leaned against the barn door, curious to hear who would win this battle of wills. Daddy said to Colton, “You babysit my horses, my cattle, and all the ranch hands who work under you. Well, now I’m telling you to babysit my most valued possession of all, Suzy!”
“Damn it Sir, I don’t want to disrespect you, but your daughter is a full-grown woman with a mind of her own. I’m not going to be able to stop her from doing whatever she puts her mind to around here.”
“Well, you’d better try. I know she’s got the spirit of a wild Mustang sometimes, but until I find the man who can tame her, I’m counting on you to make sure she stays safe and pure. I don’t care if you have to hogtie her to the back of your horse! I want to know that my little girl will be wearing white on the day I walk her down the aisle, and if she can’t, you’ll be answering to me for it!”
Suzanna heard her father’s voice crack with emotion at the end of his speech and felt a flutter of guilt that her beloved Daddy held such strong feelings for her wedding day. Obviously, the rare display of emotion touched Colton too, for his voice softened when he said, “Yes, Sir. You can count on me to keep an eye on Suzanna for you.”
“Better make it both eyes,” Daddy joked to lighten the moment. “I know what a troublemaker my little angel can be.”
“Amen to that,” Colton said, and Suzanna felt her cheeks flush with rage that the two men were making jokes at her expense. How dare Daddy order his best foreman to act as her babysitter and how could Colton accept the role with such a cavalier attitude. She wasn’t some doll they could keep locked in the house until the day her father found a suitable man to marry her! She was a flesh and blood woman with desires and dreams. She would do whatever she wanted, whenever she wanted, and no one could stop her, starting right now!
In the months that followed, Suzanna had made it her mission to foil Daddy and Colton’s attempts at watching her as often as she could. She’d gotten quite good at sneaking out of the house and away from prying eyes, although Colton had proven to be a worthy adversary. Somehow, he managed to always be one step ahead of her with that smug grin on his handsome face. He absolutely infuriated her.
It wasn’t enough that Colton was smart and able to outwit her at every turn; but the guy was undeniably the most handsome man in the county. Years of working as a ranch hand had given him a toned body and a muscular physique. His skin was tanned to perfection, setting off his deep green eyes and wavy brown hair. Just looking at him made Suzanna feel weak in the knees, which was totally frustrating, given the fact that all he wanted to do in life was protect her virginity. To make matters worse, he had a heart of gold that was utterly impossible to resist. She’d seen him save a dying mare by helping her birth a breach colt and he was deeply devoted and loyal to her father. If she didn’t despise Colton Stevens, Suzanna knew that she would love him.
“Good morning, Miss Wheeler. Off for a pre-dawn stroll today?” Suzanna clutched her boots and stifled a yelp at the sound of the deep male voice. She turned from the stairs to see Colton himself sitting at her family’s kitchen table, pouring himself a cup of coffee.
Outsmarted again! Suzanna tried to look casual and unperturbed as she sat in a chair next to him and began pulling on her boots. She said to him, “I thought I’d get an early start this morning. I heard you say you wanted to check the fence line for gaps and broken posts on the west side of the cattle pasture today.”
Colton grinned charmingly as he poured her a cup of coffee and said, “I did say that, but not to you. I was going to send Randy and Mike out to do that. I believe I told you that your father wanted you to stay in the ranch house today to meet with the suppliers.”
Suzanna took the cup of coffee he handed her and pouted at it. Angrily, she said, “Daddy doesn’t need me to meet with the suppliers. He hasn’t changed his order with them in years! He just wants to keep me locked in the house like Rapunzel in her tower. Come on, Colton, you’ve been following me. You know I’m capable of so much more than what Daddy gives me credit for! Let me do something! Let me be of real help working on the ranch!”
“Well you can ride better than half the men working under me, that’s for damn sure,” Colton said with honest appreciation. “You’re good with the animals and you’re good with your hands, too. I just can’t do it though, Suzanna. Your father would fire me and throw me out on my ass if I let you work in the field. You stay put, and that’s that!”
“Colton, this is a load of bull!” Suzanna yelled at him, and slammed her coffee cup onto the table. “You can’t make me stay here!”
Colton rose from the table with slow movements, deliberately showing her that he was in control and not the least bit riled by her hissy fit. He finished his coffee, rinsed his cup in the sink, put his hat on his head, and strolled casually to the door. Then he looked at her and said in voice as smooth as honey, “Miss Wheeler, if you set one foot in that field today, I will find you and give you a spanking you won’t soon forget, young lady.”
Then he closed the door firmly behind him. Suzanna paced angrily out of the kitchen table and into the dining room, fuming with rage. Determination set it and she came to a halt in front of the large mirror in the dining room. Her cheeks were slightly flushed, but it only enhanced the beauty of her face, with her delicate features, healthy tan skin, and sparkling blue eyes. Her long blonde hair was pulled neatly into a single braid that hung down her back clear to her waist. Her breasts were heaving slightly and she could see the outline of her nipples protruding from her white cotton blouse. It made her realize how aroused she had become fighting with Colton.
“I’ll go where I please! Let him spank me if he wants to!” Suzanna said brazenly to her reflection in the mirror and immediately felt a tingling in her loins. The idea of feeling his hands upon her in such an intimate way excited her in a way she didn’t fully understand. Suzanna grabbed her hat off the coat rack, placed it firmly on her head, and strode purposefully out the front door of the ranch house. She was going to check that west fence for gaps whether he liked it or not! As Suzanna mounted her horse and headed out, she found herself hoping that Colton would indeed find her and give her that spanking he had promised.
***
Colton Stevens tried to get Suzanna out of his thoughts as he supervised the ranch hands. He knew his boss’s only daughter was strictly off-limits, but why did she have to be so damn sexy to look at! It took every ounce of will power he had not to take her into his arms and kiss her every time he saw her.
At twenty-eight years old, Colton knew he was nearly a decade older than the lovely filly, but he’d seen the fire in her blue eyes and he knew that she felt the same sparks for him that he felt for her. It was part of the reason he was so hard on her sometimes. Maybe, if he could make her hate him, he could help to ensure that nothing happened between them. There had been more than one occasion over the past months when she leaned really close to him that he’d thought they might kiss. Luckily, they’d been interrupted by her father.
That was the other reason he was so hard on her. Colton had never had much of a relationship with his own father, but Jeremiah Wheeler had taken him in, given him a job bucking hay, and taught him everything he knew about working on the ranch. He’d discovered he had a real knack for it and Mr. Wheeler had always treated him right. He had promoted him quickly up the ranks, and paid him a good wage. Colton didn’t agree with the strict rein Mr. Wheeler wanted to keep on his daughter Suzanna, but he respected and loved the man too much not to follow his wishes. Even if it meant denying himself the one girl he knew he was falling in love with.
Thinking of Suzanna again, Colton figured he’d left her to stew in her own anger long enough and headed back to the ranch house to invite her out to help with the west fence. He wished he could say he was surprised to find she had fled the coop, but once his anger died down enough, he realized he should have known better than to leave her alone for so long. He only had himself to blame that she had run off.
Mounting his horse, he followed the tracks that he knew belonged to her copper-colored mare, Lucky Penny. They led him right to the fence line of the west fence, which didn’t surprise him, but what did surprise him was that they didn’t end there. Midpoint along the fence, a huge gap could be found where one of the posts had been knocked down. Hoof prints in the soft dirt clearly indicated that one of the Wheeler’s cattle had escaped through the gap. Worse than that, another set of hoof prints clearly indicated that Lucky Penny had gone through that same gap. No doubt Suzanna herself was on that horse, heroically thinking she could find the cow on her own.
“Crap!” Colton swore a string of curse words aloud as he urged his own horse through the gap and out into the Montana wilderness. Suzanna’s tracks were easy to follow and he had no doubt that he’d find her, but there were dangers out here that she didn’t know about. A gang of rustlers was reported to be hiding in the area, which could be very dangerous. If that weren’t bad enough, several ranch hands claimed to have seen a mountain lion prowling the plains just two nights ago. Colton hadn’t wanted to worry Mr. Wheeler or Suzanna, so he had told the men to keep the information to themselves, but now that Suzanna had wandered out of the safety of the fence, he wondered at the wisdom of his decision.
“Too late to change it now. What’s done is done.” Colton rationalized to himself aloud, making his horse’s ears perk up at the sound of his voice. Patting the animal’s neck reassuringly, Colton said “Don’t worry, boy. We’ll find her before anything bad happens to her. We’ve got to!”
Suddenly, a shrill scream echoed through the air, which Colton recognized instantly as being Suzanna’s. He spurred his horse into a gallop, following the sound.
He heard the sound of oncoming hooves and suddenly Lucky Penny appeared from over a hill, running toward them at full speed, but without a rider on her back.
“Where’s Suzanna?” Colton asked the horse as it ran past him. The terrified animal obviously had no answer for him. Shaking his head, Colton spurred his own horse onward even faster. Suddenly, the sound of a gun being fired pierced the air and he guided his horse over the hill just in time to see her.
There was Suzanna with a rifle butted against her shoulder and her hands on the trigger. Smoke rose from the freshly-fired barrel and the mountain lion lay dead in the grass, just three feet from where she stood. It looked like it had been in mid-pounce when it died.
Colton leapt from his horse and took Suzanna into his arms, holding her tightly to him. Suzanna melted into his chest, letting him hold her until her trembling eased and the pounding of her heart slowed.
“My God, that thing nearly killed you! Suzanna, are you all right?” Colton asked with true concern. He caressed her check with his hands, guiding her face to look up at him.
“I’m okay.” Suzanna said, her voice still sounding tremulous. “Lucky Penny started acting like she smelled a predator so I grabbed my rifle. Then, out of nowhere, she threw me and ran off. I screamed as I hit the earth, but I managed to keep hold of my gun. I knew something really bad must be out there for her to bolt like that and sure enough, that mountain lion started stalking me. I knew I’d only have one shot at it, so I’d better make it count!”
“You sure did! You nailed it right between the eyes. I’m proud of you!” Colton said, looking deep into eyes with all the love and admiration he felt in his heart. Unable to stop himself, he bent forward and kissed her on the lips. They were soft and sweet, just like he knew they’d be. She parted her lips for him, allowing his tongue access into her mouth, and they drank each other in, hungrily. Hot, wet, and insistently, they kissed with all the love and passion they’d felt for each other all these months but had to keep hidden. There was no point in hiding it anymore. Life was too short, as they had both realized in that moment.
When at last they pulled themselves apart from each other’s embrace, Colton saw that Suzanna was beaming with happiness. She brushed the loose tendrils of hair that had escaped her braid back behind her ear and said softly, “I thought you’d be mad at me for coming out here all alone.”
“Oh, I’m mad at you, too.” Colton said, but there was humor dancing in his eyes as he said it. The look of relief in his face made it clear that he was just happy she had survived the cougar attack. He said, “I should take your father up on his advice and hog tie you for running off the way you did.”
“I thought you’d said the punishment would be a spanking,” Suzanna said teasingly, her voice thick with arousal.
“We could do both.” Colton said, arching his eyebrow playfully, then he swept her into his arms and carried her over the hill to the shady valley below.
***
A soft moan of pleasure escaped Suzanna’s lips as Colton kissed his way down her neck to her chest. They were completely alone in the valley, shaded by giant trees and shielded by the tall grasses. It was the perfect place to let lose their passion for each other before returning home to tell everyone about the cougar.
Colton’s thick fingers fumbled clumsily with the delicate buttons of Suzanna’s white blouse and she helped him by simply pulling it off over her head.
She hadn’t worn a bra that day; her young breasts were firm despite being so large, and she preferred to go without one. She smiled as Colton sucked in his breath in admiration at the beauty of her naked flesh.
“You are more beautiful than a Montana sunset,” he whistled. He cupped them in his hands, feeling the weight of them, and gently squeezed and massaged them. Then he brought his lips to them, kissing every inch of them while his thumbs rubbed against her nipples, making them harden with arousal.
“I want you to make love to me,” Suzanna whispered as she ran her fingers through his hair, holding his head to her bosom for fear he might stop.
“We can’t,” Colton said in a harsh whisper. “It would be wrong.”
Suzanna reached down and found the zipper of his well-worn jeans and pulled it open. Colton’s erection sprang free, and she knelt down in the grass and rubbed it against her cheek affectionately. Colton groaned with pleasure as she delicately touched her lips to his throbbing member and kissed the length of him. When she came to the tip, she opened her mouth wide as if to take him in, but it was just a tease and instead she pleasured him with her tongue, licking every inch of him instead.
“Will you make love to me now?” she taunted.
“We can’t,” Colton insisted. “It’s forbidden. Get dressed, I’m taking you home.”
Suzanna took his erection fully into her mouth then, making loud moans of pleasure escape his lips. She massaged his balls as she sucked, hoping to make him climax. Colton realized too late what was about to happen, and despite his best efforts, he lost control.
His body shuttered violently as his orgasm rocked through him. When it had finished, Suzanna smiled with satisfaction, pleased that her lips had been enough to bring him to climax.
“You are a very naughty girl!” Colton admonished, but that only made her grin wider. Unable to resist her playfulness, Colton shook his finger at her and said with mock displeasure, “You ran away from the house, left the safety of the fence, took off your blouse, and now you’ve made me climax. You are very naughty girl, indeed.”
“Does this mean you’re going to punish me now?” Suzanna said, her eyes dancing with delight. Clearly, she wanted him to. Colton saw no reason not to participate in the game she was asking him to play. After all, she deserved some sexual pleasure after the incredible orgasm she had already given him.
“I’m going to punish you for your disobedience, young lady, and give you a lesson you won’t forget,” Colton said. He tried to make his voice sound harsh, but it was hard to do with the laughter and delight sparkling in both their eyes.
Colton looked around for a good way to carry out the game. The giant shade tree above them seemed like the best choice. A very low-hanging branch stuck out horizontally from the trunk a few feet above their heads. Colton grabbed a length of rope from his saddle pack and looped it over the branch.
“Come here.” Colton ordered Suzanna and willingly she came and stood beneath the branch. “Give me your hands.”
Suzanna happily complied and Colton bound her wrists together with the rope, being careful not to bind them too tight. He pulled the rope, raising her hands high above her head, and secured them there with a knot. Next, he took her cotton blouse and tied it over her eyes like a blindfold. Suzanna was now completely at his mercy, unable to see or move. The thought of it made them both aroused with passion.
Still, Colton was worried about the woman he loved. In a gentle voice, he made sure that she liked the game and wanted to keep going. She assured him that she’d been fantasizing about doing this very thing for a long time. They created a safe word, “red light”. If ever Suzanna wanted to end the bondage game, she would say “red light”, and Colton would immediately stop. With as much fun as they were having right now, they both knew they would never need the safe word, but it was always good to have precautions.
With the rules of the game properly set, they continued to play. Colton admired his captive’s body; her long braid hung down her bare back. The blindfold covered her eyes and her naked breasts were held high by her up stretched arms. The only clothing on her body was her tight jeans, which accentuated her round, firm buttocks. Colton smiled and said, “I’m going to punish you now, for being naughty. Are you ready?”
“Yes.” Suzanna answered honestly. She could feel her entire body tingling in anticipation, wondering what he would do to her. Suddenly, she felt a firm slap on her buttocks that made her yelp in surprise and pain. It was followed by another and then another. Colton was spanking her with firm slaps of his palm. It radiated through her body, making her shiver with sexual excitement. Her panties became wet with the juices of her arousal and her nipples puckered.
“Are you going to be good girl from now on?” he asked, as his palm came down against her round buttocks, causing it to vibrate deliciously.
“Yes!” she cried out, delighting in the painful pleasure she felt radiating through her body.
“When you address me, call me Sir!” he commanded, bringing his hand down again, and then again.
“Yes, Sir!” she cried out.
Colton’s palm began to throb and he knew she’d had enough punishment. The game was meant to be erotic and fun; he didn’t want to overdo things and actually hurt her.
He ceased spanking her and gently massaged her round buttocks, soothing away the pain. Then, he unbuttoned her jeans and slowly pulled them down her legs. Eagerly, she stepped out of them, helping him to undress her. She stood with her arms stretched high above her head, tied to the tree branch, wearing nothing now but her cotton underwear, soaked with her juices.
Colton pulled them off too and Suzanna drew in her breath, hoping he would make love to her now. She had known for many months that he was the man she wanted to give her virginity to and now was the moment she wanted that to happen.
“Spread your legs apart. Wider.” Colton commanded and Suzanna willingly obeyed.
With the blindfold keeping her darkness, she wondered what he would do next and gasped in surprise and pleasure when she felt his tongue upon her most intimate folds. He made love to her there with his lips, tongue, and fingers, introducing her to pleasures she’d only known by her own hand before that moment. Whenever she had masturbated, she always fantasized that she was making love to Colton. Now, that dream was finally coming true.
Colton had fantasized about this moment too, ever since she’d become a woman at the age of eighteen. As he pleasured her with his mouth and fingers, he found she was even more delicious than he had imagined and devoted himself to the task whole-heartedly. It was an easy chore, for Suzanna was so aroused by the spanking that she neared orgasm quickly.
“I’m going to climax!” she gasped between ragged breaths. She’d given herself orgasms alone in her bedroom, but they were nothing like this. Having an orgasm with Colton was something far more intense and much more wonderful.
Abruptly, Colton withdrew his fingers and he said harshly, “No, don’t climax until I give you permission!”
“Yes, Sir,” Suzanna said, not knowing how she could possibly stop herself.
Colton resumed making love to her with his fingers and mouth, stopping periodically to let her catch her breath and saying, “Don’t climax yet. I’ll tell you when.”
Soon, Suzanna was whimpering with desire and begging him. “Please, Sir. Please let me climax.”
Her entire body was vibrating with sexual energy and ready to explode in orgasm. Colton untied the rope that bound her wrists and pulled the blindfold from her eyes. She blinked, regaining her vision, and saw that he had grown another erection. Colton lay on his back in the tall grass and said to her, “Okay, you’ve been a good girl. You may have your reward now. Orgasm for me.”
With uncontrolled passion, Suzanna leaped upon him, knocking him to the ground. He entered her gently, easily pushing past her natural barrier, because of her high level of arousal. He thrust softly, not wanting to hurt the young virgin, but he had prepared her so well for the moment that she felt no pain and only wanted to achieve her orgasm.
She bucked wildly beneath him, releasing all the passion she’d been forced to contain when he had her bound. Her orgasm came quickly and powerfully, and she clawed at his back as she cried out in ecstasy. It was the most incredible moment of her life and she reveled in it.
Colton wanted to make love to her slowly, but her passion was hard to resist and as she climaxed beneath him, he finally let himself go and thrust with his full force. He groaned with pleasure as he spilled his seed inside her. Finally, he rolled off of her, to lie beside her in the grass, both of the breathless and grinning widely.
“Now let that be a lesson, young lady,” Colton teased, wagging a finger at her in mock admonishment.
Suzanna couldn’t help be smile at him. She said, “I think I’m going to have to be naughty a lot more often, so long as you’ll do that to me again.”
Colton took her into his arms and kissed her, saying, “I’ll do anything to you that you want me to. You may have played the submissive in our little game just now, but in truth, I’m the one who’s wrapped around your finger. I love you and I’d do anything in the world for you.”
“I know you would,” Suzanna said softly, with tears of joy in her eyes. “That’s why you’re the only one I ever wanted to play this game with. I love you, too.”
They moved toward each other to kiss again, when suddenly Colton’s horse whinnied from where they’d left it tied to a tree atop the hill. The sound brought them both back to reality. Further games would have to wait until another time. Right now, they had more urgent matters to tend to.
***
As Suzanna pulled her clothes back on, Colton repacked the rope into his saddle bag and looked up into the afternoon sky.
“The sun looks to be at high noon. We’d better notify the Bureau of Wildlife that you were attacked by a cougar and had to shoot it.”
Suzanna nodded in agreement. She walked up the hill to get one final look at the deceased creature. It was a beautiful animal, with soft tan fur and a strong muscular build. She guessed correctly that it must weigh about 120 pounds. If she hadn’t fired her rifle when she had, it would have latched onto her neck and killed her within seconds. She knew she had no choice but to shoot it, but something troubled her about the whole incident.
“Mountain lions don’t usually attack humans, do they?” she asked Colton, as he checked his horse and made sure it was ready to ride.
“No, it’s pretty rare, but it does happen on occasion,” he said. Suzanna noticed the animal had a deep cut on its front paw, as if it had escaped a trap of some sort, and pointed it out to Colton. He shrugged and said, “A brush with poachers would certainly have made the animal fearful of humans. If there are poachers in the area, that’s all the more reason to get home. Now come on; saddle up!”
Colton patted the saddle on the back on his horse, indicating for Suzanna to mount the animal so they could go home. She ignored him and looked harder at the beautiful cougar lying deceased in the grass. The thought of poachers senselessly killing animals for greed sickened and infuriated her. Then something caught her attention that she hadn’t noticed before and her hands covered her mouth, stifling a gasp.
“Oh my God! It’s a female and its teats are engorged!” She cried out to Colton.
He understood the implications immediately and said “That means she’s a mother and she’s nursing her cubs. Come on, they’ve got to be nearby! Maybe we can find them!”
They climbed onto the back of his horse together with Suzanna in front holding her rifle, and Colton behind her, holding the reins. He set the horse on a very slow walk, carefully checking for any sign of the orphaned cubs.
“Cougars can have up to six cubs in a litter, but typically they only have two.” Colton said to Suzanna as they searched. They’d been at it for hours and the sun was starting to get lower in the sky. He said, “Their mother won’t have traveled very far from away them to hunt. We’d better call it quits and head home now.”
“Look! There!” Suzanna pointed excitedly then let her hand fall. Shaking her head in disappointment she said ,“Never mind, that’s just a dust-colored rock.”
Colton chuckled and said, “The cubs aren’t going to be the same tan color as their mother. Mountain lion cubs are born with black spots all over their bodies for camouflage and lose them as they grow up. Since their mother is still nursing, we can assume these cubs are probably less than six months old and will still be covered with spots.”
“I knew that,” Suzanna said and leaned back against him, so she could kiss him. His left hand gripped her waist and she guided it upward to touch her breast. Suddenly, Suzanna felt something poking her from behind and knew she had given him another erection. It made her smile to know she had that kind of power over him. Acting coy, she said innocently, “So how do we find the cubs if their camouflaged to blend into their environment?”
Shifting uncomfortably, Colton said, “The mother will have formed a den, probably in a cave or rock alcove. She’ll have lined it with dry grass to provide warmth for them. We’ve already searched the nearby rock formations.”
Suzanna reached back and massaged his erection through his jeans and said, “I’ve found a rock-hard formation right here. Perhaps I should investigate it.”
Colton grabbed her hand and said, “Not now, naughty girl. I already gave you pleasure for the day. Now, we’ve got to get home before the sun sets.”
As much as Suzanna wanted to play, she knew he was right. They’d been searching all afternoon and the sun was already getting low in the sky. Submissively, she lowered her eyes and said, “Yes, Sir.”
“That’s a good girl,” Colton smiled and kissed her neck as a reward. It sent tingles of pleasure shivering down her spine and she giggled in delight.
“Oh, maybe being a good girl is just as fun as being a bad one,” she joked.
“Maybe,” Colton taunted. “Keep being good and you’ll find out.”
“Yes Sir,” she replied and Colton rewarded her again with a new round of kisses along her neck that ended with him nibbling on her ear. Then he suddenly stopped, jerked his head up, and pulled the horse to a halt.
“Do you hear that?” he asked her, cocking his head and peering into the distance.
“What? Do you hear the cubs?” Suzanna asked excitedly.
“No, it’s running water,” Colton said, and instantly Suzanna’s eyes lit up, too. They rode the horse toward the sound until they came upon a small stream, rushing merrily along the valley. Eagerly, Suzanna dismounted the horse and splashed the cold water on her hot cheeks to cool herself. Then she cupped her hands and drank heavily. When at last she’d slaked her thirst, she smacked her lips happily.
“I didn’t realize how thirsty I’d become until I saw that water,” she said to Colton, as he sat on a rock in the shade, watching her. His eyes danced with merriment and she knew that he was laughing at the spectacle she made. Glaring at him, she splashed water in his direction and said, “What’s so funny?”
“You got your blouse all soaked.” Colton explained his amusement and Suzanna looked down to see that he was right. Her white cotton blouse was completely soaked through, flaunting the fact that she wasn’t wearing a bra. The cold dampness of the fabric made her nipples pucker into taunt nubs that made him want to take them into his mouth.
Seeing his arousal pressing against his jeans, Suzanna felt playful again. Twisting the tail of her braid in her hands, she said with mock contrition, “Uh oh, Sir. I’m afraid I’ve gotten my clothes wet.”
“Uh oh, indeed,” Colton said, delighted to play the game with her again. “That is very naughty of you. Why did you do a thing like that? Do you want me to spank you again?”
Suzanna smiled sexily at him and said, “It’s not that I wanted to be naughty, it’s just that I felt so dirty. I really needed a bath.”
Colton’s eyes lit up. He got up from the rock he was sitting on and approached her at the stream, saying, “Oh, you are indeed a dirty girl. Take off your clothes and I’ll bathe you.”
“Yes, Sir.” Suzanna stripped for him, seductively removing her clothes piece by piece while he watched. Then she removed his clothes for him too, covering his body with kisses as his flesh became exposed.
When they were both naked, they climbed into the rushing stream together. The cool water on their hot skin was exhilarating and heightened their excitement for each other. Colton’s hands felt warm and firm as he ran them up and down her body, massaging, caressing, and fondling every part of her.
When he entered her with his manhood, her slot was hot and rippling. He moved with slow thrusts, as the cold water rushed around them.
“Yes, faster!” Suzanna cried out in pleasure, as she moved her hips in unison with his.
“Naughty girl. Don’t forget I’m the one in charge here,” Colton admonished playfully. He deliberately slowed the speed of his thrusts, just to tease her.
Suzanna writhed and moaned, every nerve of her body pulsating with pleasure. Then, suddenly, Colton increased the speed of his thrusts, pounding deeply into her with fast, powerful movements that made her cry out in ecstasy.
Suzanna orgasmed loudly; her cries of exquisite pleasure echoing in the Montana sky. Colton shuddered and groaned as he climaxed along with her. It was one of the most intense orgasms either of them had ever had, heightened by the cold water and their love for each other.
When at last it was finished, they bathed in the water, cleaning the juices of their passion from their bodies, and lay in the sun to dry.
“That was amazing,” Colton said, holding her hand as they lay on the warm rocks and felt the sun on their bodies.
“It was,” Suzanna agreed, then laughed and said, “Just don’t tell anybody I agreed with you about something.”
“Don’t worry; I won’t. Besides, nobody would believe me if I told them that you and I had stopped bickering and had become lovers.”
“Is that what we are?” Suzanna asked, stroking his bare chest and gazing at him with adoring eyes.
“Well, I know I’m in love with you,” Colton said tenderly and kissed her on the lips.
“I know I’m in love with you too,” Suzanna said, beaming at him. Then suddenly she jerked up her head and whispered, “No! It can’t be!”
Colton cocked his head and joked, “No, you can’t be in love with me?”
Suzanna smacked playfully at him and said, “No, it can’t be that I heard what I think I heard.”
“Why, what did you hear?” Colton asked, curious now. Suzanna had already gotten up off the rock and was pulling on her clothes. Knowing full well that she’d leave him behind, Colton quickly started pulling on his jeans, too.
Suzanna smiled brightly and said, “Behind that tall grass across the stream! I think I heard the sound of cubs mewling! Come on!”
Suzanna pulled on her other boot, took off running toward the tall grass, and disappeared over the ridge where he could no longer see her.
“Wait! You don’t know what dangers might be over there!” Colton called after her, but it was too late. Her scream already filled the air.
***
“Suzanna!” Colton yelled, his heart pounding with fear. He chased after her, running through the tall grass until he crested the ridge and went tumbling down the same ravine where she had fallen just moments before.
His body rolled over rocks and crashed through brambles, until he finally came to a painful stop at the bottom of the slope, right next to Suzanna.
“Are you all right?” she asked him, as he pulled himself into a sitting position beside her.
“I think so,” he grumbled but one look at her made him smile with barely-contained laughter. Her hair was in complete disarray, mud smudged her face, and her clothes were in tatters. He thought she’d never looked bore beautiful. He plucked a broken twig from her hair and said, “Are you okay?”
“Shhhh!” Suzanna said harshly and pressed her fingers to her lips in a silencing gesture. “It’s louder down here. Do you hear it?”
Colton cocked his head and listened, and then his eyes flew open wide. She was right! He could hear it now too. “Cubs mewling!”
“I knew I heard it!” Suzanna said and started to get up onto her feet, but Colton grabbed her by the arm and pulled her back down. Trying to wrench her arm free, she glared at him and said “What the hell are you doing? Let’s go find them!”
Colton held his finger to his lips in the shushing gesture and whispered “We’re not the only ones looking.”
Suzanna followed his gaze and gasped when she saw it too. A jeep was rolling up from a distance with a large cage fashioned to the back. “Poachers!”
“They’ll be here in a matter of minutes. We’ve got to hurry!” Colton said and for once, Suzanna agreed with him.
The mewling sound was coming from their left and Suzanna headed that direction hoping she could protect the defenseless babies, but Colton shook his head. “No time for them! We’ve got to hide or we’re as good as dead!”
Colton moved quickly toward a pile of boulders about twenty feet away, expecting Suzanna to follow him. When he reached the safety of the cover, he turned around to find she was nowhere to be seen. Shaking his head, Colton realized the defiant filly must have gone to protect the cubs.
“Damn it!” he hissed under his breath. There was no time to stop her now, the jeep had just pulled up and four men armed with guns climbed out and began stomping through the grass.
“I thought you said they were here!” the largest of the men barked.
“They’re here. I saw the mother cougar leave them here when she went hunting for the day. I can’t believe she escaped my trap,” a younger, skinnier man said.
“That’s because your traps suck!” a third man with a black hat pushed the skinny man roughly on the back and knocked him down into the grass.
“They don’t suck! You just didn’t set it right and the spring wasn’t tight enough” the skinny man got back to his feet with a scowl. Searching through the grass again, he said, “We were able to follow the blood trail though and we still got her. I just wonder who the hell shot her.”
“I don’t care who shot her!” the large man barked. “The important thing is they were stupid enough to leave the body where we could take it. We’ll still get our money for all the pieces when we hack her up.”
“Yeah, but we’ll get even more money for those cubs of hers if we can find them. Now where the hell are they?”
“They’re here! Just shut up and listen. We’ll be able to hear them a lot easier than you can spot them!”
“I think I found something even more interesting than a couple of cubs. What are you doing here, darling?”
Suzanna stood up from where she’d been hiding in the tall grass, with a tiny sleeping mountain lion cub tucked under each arm. Colton felt his heart catch right in his throat and his heart was pounding so hard he thought it would explode. He couldn’t let them hurt her! His rifle was still lying in the grass where he had tumbled down the ravine, but even if he had it, he was still outgunned four against one. He had to think of a better way to save the woman he loved.
Of course, Suzanna was never one to be the damsel in distress and there was no doubt she was thinking of a plan to escape all on her own. Colton just had to try and determine what her plan was and help her the best he could.
“You’ve got no right to sell these cubs!” Suzanna shouted angrily to the men.
“It don’t matter if we have the right to or not; there ain’t nobody here to stop us,” the large man said, sauntering toward them.
“Yeah, well, my father’s men are the ones who shot the mother cougar and they’re combing these hills right now, looking for the cubs. If you were smart, you’d just get the hell out of here right now.”
“I don’t think anyone has ever accused Jasper here of being smart, have they?” the large man slapped the man holding the revolver on the shoulder, clearly indicating that he was Jasper.
Jasper shook his head and said, “No, I can’t say no one ever has. I might just be dumb enough to shoot this thing off accidentally.”
Jasper cocked the hammer back on the gun and took aim right at Suzanna’s heart. Holding her head up high in defiance, Suzanna said, “Well, that would be dumb because you’d be missing out on a hell of lot more money than you could get with just these cubs.”
The large man put his hand on top of Jaspers, indicating for him to hold fire. He eyed Suzanna harshly and said, “What makes you say that?”
“I don’t think you know who my father is. He’s Jeremiah Wheeler. He donates tons of money to animal conservation groups. Let me take these cubs home and he’ll pay you a reward for saving them that’s ten times bigger than what you’d get on the black market.”
“And what would he pay to get you back? I bet I could get a ransom that was a thousand times bigger? Perhaps even a million times bigger.”
“My Daddy won’t give in to kidnappers! If you lay one hand on me, he’ll hunt you down and perform a good ’ole-fashioned lynching! Your only hope is to let me go and collect a reward for animal rescue! That’s it! Take it or leave it!”
“Well, since you put it that way darling, I think we’ll take it; as in taking you!”
The large man grabbed for Suzanna and she lashed at him, kicking and punching with all her strength. Colton winced, knowing how much a wallop from her could hurt, but then he realized she was providing him with the distraction he needed. He crawled through the tall grass at top speed toward her rifle, where it lay in the mud.
By the time he reached it, all four men had entered into the fray and finally managed to pin Suzanna down. They tied her hands behind her back and then bound her feet together at the ankles. Still, she thrashed mightily in her bounds and managed to slam her head into the nose of one of them.
“That bitch broke my nose!” the man hollered, trying to stop the bleeding.
“That’s all right; we’ll get our money’s worth out of her old man. Throw her in the back of the jeep and let’s get her out of the open.”
Suddenly, the sound of a gunshot rang through the air and the front tire of the jeep was blown out. The four men looked around with their guns pointed in the air, wondering who had just fired on them, but Suzanna grinned, knowing it was Colton.
“I told you, my father’s men are going to lynch you. Now get the hell out of here while you still can!” Suzanna taunted smugly.
“She’s right! Let’s get the hell out of here!” One of the men jumped into the driver’s seat of the jeep while Jasper helped the man with the broken nose climb into the back. They yelled at the large man, “Come on! Let’s go!”
“Cowards! I ain’t letting this bitch get the best of me!” the large man shouted angrily. Another shot rang out, hitting the jeep’s other front tire. The man behind the wheel slammed his foot onto the gas pedal and the lopsided vehicle raced into the distance as fast as it could go on two flat tires.
The large man shouted curses after them, and then turned sharply on Suzanna. Grabbing her by the hair, he pulled her roughly onto her feet and held her tightly against his chest like a shield. He pulled a knife from his belt and held it to her throat, making her cry out in fear.
Staring at the ravine above, the large man called out, “I know there ain’t a whole posse out there! My guess is there’s just one man up there! Probably your boyfriend that you were taking for a summer romp! Well, fun time is over! Show yourself lover boy, or she’s dead!”
“Don’t do it, Colton!” Suzanna shouted out in a terrified voice. “Stay up on the ridge where you’re safe! Ride home to Daddy and get help!”
The large man grinned; smugly satisfied that he had been right. He kept his eyes trained up on the ravine. As soon as he caught sight of the girl’s boyfriend, he’d fire on him. Then he’d kill the girl and dump both their bodies in wilderness.
Colton furrowed his brow. Suzanna knew he wasn’t on the ridge; then the brilliance of her ploy hit him and he thanked his lucky stars that he’d been blessed with such a wonderful girlfriend. Her ruse kept the poachers attention focused in the wrong direction and made it easy for Colton to move in the grass below.
With careful aim, Colton positioned his sights. Then he took a deep breath for courage and pulled the trigger. The large man screamed out in pain as his finger was shot clean off. The gun he had been holding fell to the ground and he gripped his, trying to stop the bleeding and the pain.
Suzanna picked up the gun from the ground and pointed at her former abductor just as Colton came running up to her from out of the tall grass.
“Nice shooting,” she smiled proudly at the man she loved.
“I couldn’t let them ransom you to your father,” Colton said with a charming wink. “Then the old man would know that you’d been out of house and I promised him I’d make sure you stayed put.”
“Yeah, well I didn’t,” Suzanna said, leaning in to give him a passionate kiss.
“No, you were definitely a very naughty girl today and look at all the trouble it caused. We’ve got two rescued cubs we have to turn over to the Bureau of Wildlife that will surely go to some preservation zoo. Plus we’ve got this jerk, bleeding from a missing finger that we have to take to the hospital and then have arrested for poaching and attempted kidnapping. So much for my quiet day of mending fences.”
“Sorry about that. Perhaps you should punish me for it tonight, when we get back from filing a police report.”
“Oh, I’m going to punish you just the way you want me to, as often as you want me to,” Colton grinned. He pulled Suzanna into his arms, crushing her breasts against his muscular chest and kissed her with all the passion he felt in his heart. She wrapped her arms around his neck, kissing him back just as feverishly.
They both knew they had nothing more to fear from the large man, lying on the ground in agony, moaning and clutching his bleeding hand. What they didn’t know was that he wasn’t the one to fear; Jasper was. He watched the scene unfold from his binoculars a safe distance away and smiled at his men.
“Did you hear what that little filly said? She said he father was the richest cattle rancher in the county.”
“You’d be a fool to try and kidnap her again!” the man with the broken nose cried out.
“Maybe, but it would be a good distraction for stealing all her father’s cattle, wouldn’t it?”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean, no one would be watching the herd if they were all looking for her; besides, no one ever accused me of being smart.”
“Maybe not, but they should. You may like playing the part of the fool, but your plans never fail. Besides, that bitch owes me for breaking my nose.”
“Don’t worry, we’ll get all the money we need from stealing her father’s heard and then you can have the bitch for yourself.”
***
Suzanna collapsed into bed, utterly exhausted. It had been a long day, and an even longer night. Filing the report at the police station had taken hours and explaining things to her father had taken even longer.
“I still don’t understand what you were doing outside the house to begin with?” Jeremiah Wheeler had barked at her, then he turned on Colton and said, “And you were supposed to be keeping an eye on her!”
“Yes, Sir. I’m sorry I disappointed you. It won’t happen again,” Colton had said, respectfully holding his hat in his hand
“Damn right it won’t!” Jeremiah had shouted at him. “You stand post by my little girl every second of the day from now on. I don’t care what it takes; you are not to leave her side ever! Camp outside her bedroom door! Hell, set up a cot by her bed and sleep in her room! I don’t want anything like that to happen to her ever again!”
When father had finally calmed down and gone to bed, Suzanna treated herself to a long, hot shower and then climbed into bed naked, too tired to even bother putting on a nightgown.
She was pleasantly surprised to find a man lying between the sheets. “Colton! What are you doing in here? Daddy will kill you!”
“On the contrary, he told me never to leave your side,” Colton said and kissed her lovingly on the lips.
Smiling happily, Suzanna returned the kiss and said, “Well, in that case, I guess you’d better stay here.”
She ran her fingers through Colton’s thick hair and guided his face toward her breasts. Eagerly, he took them into his hands, massaging and fondling them before putting his lips to her tender pink nipples.
A sigh of pleasure escaped her lips as he suckled and licked them, and then gently nibbled them with his lips. She whispered, “Make love to me.”
She reached down with her hands and found Colton’s manhood. He hardened immediately under her touch, as she massaged and stroked him there. He kissed her passionately, letting their tongues intertwine as the caressed each other intimately.
“Easy, I don’t want to climax too soon.” Colton said, as he felt himself becoming increasingly stimulated by her touch. With a naughty smile, Suzanna massaged him even more aggressively, hoping to make him spill his seed. Colton recognized that she wanted to play and gripped her firmly by the wrist, pulling her hands over her head.
“Naughty girl! Do I need to restrain you in order to make you behave?”
“Yes, Sir. I think you do.” Suzanna smiled, confirming his suspicion that she wanted to play. Colton glanced around her bedroom but there were no restraints that he could see. Then, inspiration struck and he looped her long golden braid around her wrists.
“Grip this braid and do not let it go,” he commanded sharply in the spirit of their game.
“Yes, Sir,” Suzanna said, clearly delighted to obey.
Colton then brought his lips to her body, kissing and caressing every inch of her. His lips kissed the nape of her neck, down the delicate hollow of her throat and up the curves of her ample breasts. He worked his way down her flat stomach, to the inner curves of her toned, muscular thighs. Finally, he found the triangle of her sex and made love to her there with his mouth.
All the while, Suzanna longed to run her fingers through his hair, to scratch his back with her nails, or to stroke his throbbing his manhood. She forced herself to keep her hands behind her head, loosely looped into her braid, in the spirit of the game they were playing. She found that by denying herself use of her hands, her sense of touch was heightened. Every tingling nerve of her flesh was even more sensitive to the delights Colton was performing on her, and her pleasure was even intense and enjoyable. Colton found that it increased his pleasure too, to have tamed this wild filly, especially since she was completely consenting and gave her love to him with all her heart.
When at last he plunged his deep inside her quivering folds, she was so wet and ready for him that she climaxed instantly. As he thrust deeply inside her with long, powerful strokes, he was able to bring her to orgasm a second time before succumbing to his own climax. Then he lay down beside her, cuddling her in his arms.
When the steady rhythm of her breathing told him she had fallen asleep, Colton tiptoed out of her room to sleep in a cot just outside her bedroom door. He knew her father didn’t really mean it when he said Colton should sleep in his daughter’s bedroom, but he was serious about wanting her to have twenty-four hour protection.
“I’ll keep her safe,” Colton muttered, as he drifted off to sleep on the narrow cot, with his favorite revolver tucked under the pillow.
With the house completely dark and all the inhabitants inside finally sleeping, Jasper signaled his men to move toward the ranch house. He saw dollar signs when they passed the herd of prized cattle grazing or sleeping in the field. The man with the broken nose led the way through the bushes, thinking of Suzanna and how he was going to get revenge for what she had done to him.
“This ain’t over yet,” he said.
Inside the ranch house, Suzanna dreamed pleasant dreams, oblivious to the danger that was creeping closer. In her dreams, Colton was her hero; but could he be in real life? They would all find out soon enough.
TO BE CONTINUED IN BOOK TWO: Capturing Suzanna - Volume 2
***
***
Suzanna Wheeler smiled in her sleep at the pleasant dream she was having. Her long blonde hair flowed softy around her. Her blue eyes were shut tight and only fluttered slightly as her dreams intensified.
She was dreaming of Colton Stevens, the man she had given her heart to and now her virginity. She had always had a crush on the handsome cowboy since the day he had come to work on her daddy’s ranch. He had wavy brown hair, deep green eyes, and an incredible body, but it was his heart of gold that had made her love him. She understood why her father had trusted him enough to make him ranch foreman and even ordered him to keep an eye on her. Colton was honest, hard-working, loyal, and true. As much as he irked her sometimes, she couldn’t help but fall in love with him. Suzanna just didn’t know how it was possible that he loved her in return, but he did. One look into his eyes told her that he did.
Suzanna Wheeler knew most men found her attractive. At the age of twenty-one, she enjoyed flaunting her athletic body with tight-fitting clothing that made Daddy cringe. She also knew that most men were just interested in using her for sex or because her daddy owned the biggest cattle ranch in the county. None of the men who worked on the ranch were truly interested in her, and why would they be? She was headstrong, willful, and defiant. Her own daddy often said, “She’s a real pistol! It’s going to take a strong man to marry her and I’m gonna make sure she stays safe and pure until that day comes.”
The only man who wasn’t intimidated by Suzanna’s attitude or her father’s overly-protective instincts was Colton Stevens. He was the one man who could stand toe-to-toe with her father and with her, too.
In the two weeks since she’d given him her virginity, they’d made love almost every day, sneaking wherever they could on the property. There was the old hay loft, the pasture, even the washroom in the ranch house. Once or twice they’d nearly been caught by her father, which would have been the end of their love affair and also the end of Colton’s career as foreman, too.
“Tomorrow, I’m going to ask your father for permission to court you.” Colton had said to her the day before.
“That’s awful sweet of you, but do you think that’s a good idea?” Suzanna had asked, her blue eyes sparkling.
“Of course!” Colton said, not letting her doubts didn’t dampen his spirits in the slightest. “Your father is as old-fashioned as they come. If I ask his permission to date you, he’ll appreciate the sign of respect. He knows what kind of man I am. Why else would he have promoted me to foreman so quickly? He’s sure to say yes and then we won’t have to keep sneaking around like this.”
“You are a terrific man and that’s why Daddy promoted you, but that doesn’t mean he’ll say you can date me.” Suzanna said, knowing her father and his stubborn streak all too well. “He’s always had it in his mind that I’ll marry someone sophisticated and not just another cowboy like he used to be. If you ask him to date me and he says no, what will happen then? We’ll never be able to be alone together again. It will ruin our relationship forever!”
“I don’t care; I’m willing to take the risk!” Colton said with a determination in his eyes that she admired. “If he says no, then I’ll just have to convince him to say yes. I love you too much to keep it a secret any longer.”
They made love again after that and then said goodnight. It was the scene Suzanna Wheeler was replaying in her dreams as she slept. It would be so wonderful to be able to openly show her love for Colton; hold his hand in public and kiss him whenever she saw him. Of course, their love affair wasn’t as secret as she thought. Jasper McElroy, the leader of a gang of cattle rustlers, had been casing the ranch for the past two weeks. Suzanna had prevented Jasper and his gang from selling some mountain lion cubs when she caught them poaching. One of them men had been arrested, and the ones who had escaped lost the profits they’d been counting on for poaching. Now, Jasper wanted payback, and so did one of his thugs named Vernon Hillman. Suzanna was responsible for the broken nose that was still swollen and bruised in the middle of Vernon’s face. He wanted more than just lost money from her; he wanted revenge.
The gang of outlaws had caught glimpses of Suzanna and Colton sneaking in out of the hayloft and guessed what they were doing inside. Still, their focus was on learning the layout of the large property, the security measures that were in place, and how to circumvent them. Finally, Jasper thought they were ready.
“Tonight, we do it!” he told his gang that afternoon. “Lee, I want you to go in first. The window to her bedroom only has one lock and a simple alarm on it. Climb the ladder, cut the wires, and get inside her room.”
Vernon stood up, a massive figure with hateful eyes, and said “I told you I wanted to be the one to get the girl.”
“I haven’t forgotten. You go with Lee and get the girl. Use the stuff we bought and take her to the secured location.” Jasper said and Vernon snorted in satisfaction and sat back down. Jasper continued, saying “While you two are kidnapping the girl, I’ll supervise stealing her father’s cattle. I’ll need all the rest of you men to be with me. There are enough cattle in that herd to keep us all living comfortably for the rest of the year. That’ll teach them not to get in my way again.”
The men hollered and cheered, feeling invincible and excited. Vernon was the only one who was quiet, although his red eyes shined with the most excitement of all. Tonight, he would finally get his revenge against the bitch that had broken his nose. He would take her to the hideout like Jasper wanted, but first, he was going to make Suzanna Wheeler pay for what she’d done to him. Revenge was about to be his.
***
Lee held his breath as he clipped the wires connecting Suzanna’s bedroom window to the alarm system. He could see Suzanna sleeping in her bed just a few feet away. Her lips curved into a smile at the happy content of her dreams and her blonde hair flowed over her shoulders. Her chest rose and fell with deep, regular breaths and she hugged her pillow tight as her eyelids remained tightly closed.
He pushed the latch on the window and when nothing happened, he knew the alarm had been deactivated and breathed a sigh of relief. He then pushed the window open with gloved hands and climbed silently into her room. The brim of his cowboy hat brushed against the window, causing his hat to fall the long distance to the ground below, making him curse under his breath.
“Damn it, Vernon! We should call this thing off!” he whispered harshly. He didn’t mind cattle rustling or even poaching, but kidnapping was way more trouble than he bargained for. A smattering of small rocks fell from his boots and scattered noisily across the floor.
“Shut up and get going. This bitch is gonna pay for what she did to me and that’s final.” Vernon growled as his bulky figure climbed through the window behind him. He nearly slipped on the rocks on the floor beneath the window sill, but managed to regain his balance just in time.
Vernon glared at Lee and held his finger to his lips in a silencing gesture. Then he pulled a rag from his pocket, along with a small bottle of chloroform. He carefully soaked the rag and held it far from his face, knowing the fumes of the chemical would knock a person unconscious. When he was through, he nodded at Lee and whispered, “Hold her down.”
Nervously, Lee moved to grab the sleeping woman by the arms, but the moment he came near, Suzanna woke and sat up in surprise. With quick reflexes and strength that came from working on her father’s ranch, Suzanna grabbed her assailant and struggled against him in a terrifying wrestling match.
Vernon lunged at her with the rag and Suzanna quickly pulled Lee in front of herself like a shield. Vernon ended up smothering Lee with the fumes instead. Angrily, Vernon pushed his now-unconscious partner onto the ground while Suzanna rushed to free herself from the bed sheets and flee across the room.
“Not so fast, little filly.” Vernon growled as he stepped in her way, blocking her path to the door. “You’re not getting away that easy. You owe me and I’m here to collect.”
Suzanna recognized him as being one of the poachers. She remembered breaking the nose of this particular man and knew that if he got his hands on her, she would be in grave danger. Thinking and moving quickly, she grabbed the lamp from her nightstand and held it like a bat. Cocking it over her shoulder, she shouted bravely, “Come near me and I’ll knock you out!”
“I’d like to see you try.” Vernon said and lunged at her quickly.
With a scream of terror, Suzanna swung the lamp with all her strength, but the cord securing it to the wall made it come up short and yanked it from her grip in the middle of her swing. Suddenly, she found herself defenseless with Vernon’s hands around her throat.
Suzanna couldn’t even cry out as the large man held her by the neck with just one of his huge hands and reached for his chloroform-soaked rag with the other. Suddenly, he felt the barrel of a gun at his back and an unfamiliar male voice spoke up.
“Let her go!” the male voice said, followed by the distinctive sound that could only be that of a gun being cocked.
Vernon released Suzanna immediately and put his hands up in surrender. Suzanna crawled to the lamp that was lying on the ground and turned it on, although she already knew who had spoken.
When the room filled with light, she smiled with joy to see Colton Stevens aiming his rifle at her assailant. With her heart pounding, she ran to him and threw her arms around him, kissing him gratefully.
“Colton! Thank goodness you’re here!”
“I promised your father I would keep an eye on you day and night, even if it meant sleeping outside your bedroom door, and that’s exactly what I did.” He pulled her closely to himself and kissed her passionately on the lips. The action instantly melted all her fears as she opened her mouth to him and let their tongues intertwine.
Just then the door to her bedroom flew open and her father Jeremiah Wheeler burst into the room with a shotgun in his hand. He had heard his daughter’s scream as well and had come running as fast as he could.
He stared in surprise at the shocking sight in front of him. One man lay unconscious on his daughter’s floor, a second man stood with his arms up in surrender, and the man he’d trusted to protect her was kissing his daughter right on the lips! Jeremiah was so upset he didn’t know who to train his gun at first, but in the end, he decided on the cad who held his precious little girl in his arms and was defiling her with his lips.
“Colton Stevens!” Jeremiah yelled in anger. Tears of betrayal stung the old man’s eyes but he refused to let them fall. “How dare you abuse my trust and take advantage of my little girl!”
Colton removed his arms from around Suzanna and turned to face the man who was like a father to him. “I’m sorry sir, but Suzanna and I and are in love and I would like your permission to date her.”
“Like hell! Suzanna, get away from him right now!”
Jeremiah grabbed his daughter by the left hand and tried to pull her to him, but she clung to Colton with her left hand, and the two men entered into a strange sort of tug-of-war. The fight was all the distraction Vernon needed. He grabbed Lee from off the floor, threw the unconscious man over his shoulder, and leapt out the window with him.
Colton let go of Suzanna’s hand and ran to the window, trying to see where the criminals had fled, but it was too late. “They’re gone,” he said simply.
“You’d better be gone, too!” Jeremiah glared at him from across the room. “Pack your bags and get off my ranch! You’re fired!”
Colton was about to speak, but Suzanna cut him off. “No, Daddy! You can’t fire Colton! You’ve always said that he’s the best foreman you’ve ever had and that can’t have changed just because you caught us kissing. I was the one who told Colton to keep our love a secret from you. Punish me if you want to, but don’t lose the best worker you’ve got just because of me.”
Jeremiah rubbed his bristled jaw line and thought for a while. The silence in the room was deafening, but both Colton and Suzanna knew better than to interrupt the man when he was deep in thought. Finally, Jeremiah spoke. He said, “Okay. Colton, you can stay, but I don’t want to see you within fifty feet of my daughter ever again!”
The two lovers were both about to object but Jeremiah shouted vehemently, “I mean it! If I ever catch the two of you together again, I’ll fire you and kick you out on your ass and I’ll send Suzanna to live with her aunt three counties away! That’s my final word!”
***
Nobody in the ranch house got any sleep that night. Colton paced in his room, his mind too full of thoughts to allow any rest. He respected Jeremiah Wheeler and didn’t want to hurt him or jeopardize his job on the ranch, but it was his love for Suzanna that ate away at him and kept him from being able to relax. He wanted to be with her, holding her and keeping her safe from whoever might want to hurt her.
Ironically enough, this was the same thought that kept Jeremiah awake, too. He didn’t really have any desire to fire Colton Stevens. The boy was the best damn ranch hand he’d ever had and he knew he could trust him to treat his daughter right. Jeremiah worried about his daughter though and had long been planning to marry her to a wealthy businessman far away, where he knew she’d be safe and well provided for. Suzanna was stubborn, headstrong, and had a bit of wild streak he’d never figured out how to tame. He didn’t know what dangerous men were out to hurt her, but it only strengthened his resolve to protect her until her wedding day.
Suzanna had no idea of her father’s wedding plans for her, although she did know that he loved her very much. She knew it was why he could be overprotective at times. Tonight’s events had been scary, and she longed to have the protective arms of Colton Stevens around her. He understood her in a way no man had before. He allowed the nature of her wild spirit to flourish and brought out the best in her. Despite her father’s ban on their love, she had to see him. Using the old servant’s entrance behind the kitchen, Suzanna crept out of the ranch house and sneaked her way to the cabin reserved for the head foreman.
She saw the light shining from his window and rapped lightly on his door. When Colton opened the door, she flung herself at him, wrapping her arms tightly around his neck and kissing him passionately. Colton broke away from her embrace, pulled her inside the cabin and shut the door tightly behind her. He turned off the light so no one could see them and bolted all the locks.
“What are you doing here? Is everything all right?” he asked with true concern.
“I’m fine; I just had to see you.” She threw herself at him again, but this time he avoided her embrace by dodging to the side.
“You can’t be here,” he said simply. “Your father will skin us both if he catches us together. Now get back home.”
“Are you afraid of Daddy or of me?” Suzanna teased and began unbuttoning her nightgown to reveal her ample cleavage. “Everyone knows you’re the best foreman around. If he lets you go, the other ranchers will go into a bidding war to hire you. You’ll be able to ask for any wage you want and get it.”
She came to the last button of her nightgown and let the garment completely slip away from her shoulders. The soft light of the moon glowed against her naked flesh and Colton couldn’t help but admire the beauty of her body.
Helpless to stop himself, like a moth drawn to a campfire, he reached out and touched her full, round breasts, massaging them gently in his strong hands. Suzanna threw back her head and sighed pleasurably at his touch. The sound broke the magic spell and Colton found his voice again. He said, “I’m not afraid of anyone, but that doesn’t mean I’m going to let some naughty girl who’s looking to disobey her father into my bed.”
The words were not spoken harshly, and a playful smirk curled the corners of his lips, while his eyes danced with excitement. He knew calling Suzanna a “naughty girl” was just the way to thrill and entice her. It was her favorite sexual game and they loved to play it with each other.
“So you think I’m naughty do you?” Suzanna said, her face beaming with delight. She pressed her naked body against him and let her hands slide over his muscular frame. When she found his erection pressing against his jeans, she unzipped his pants and began to massage him there. A groan of pleasure escaped his lips and Suzanna grinned playfully as she knelt in front of him and prepared to take him into her mouth. Playfully, she said, “Let me show you just how naughty I can be.”
Suzanna just teased him at first, letting her tongue swirl around the tip of his most sensitive organ, while her hands delicately stroked the length of him. Then, suddenly, she took him fully into her hot, wet mouth and made love to him that way. Colton had to grip the wall to steady himself as the intense pleasure made him feel deliriously lightheaded.
He realized he was going to climax and urgently withdrew himself from her mouth, saying, “Take it easy. I’m getting too hot.”
“I want you to get too hot,” Suzanna said and reached her hand out to stroke him.
Colton caught her by the wrist and said, “I haven’t had my turn to pleasure you yet. You need to learn to be patient, naughty girl.”
Suzanna struggled playfully in his grip and said, “How are you going to teach me to be patient?”
“Like this!” Colton said and suddenly bound her wrists with a pair of handcuffs he’d purchased for her at a sex shop. He pressed her back against his wall, pulled her hands up over her head, and looped the cuffs over a hook. Now Suzanna was helplessly at his mercy, but she was not afraid.
They reviewed the safety words they had agreed on for when they played such games. They both knew that Suzanna could say “red light” if the game became too rough or she wanted to stop for any reason and Colton would immediately let her go. In the weeks that they’d been playing together, they’d never had cause to use the words, but Colton always wanted to know that she felt safe. In truth, the game thrilled and fulfilled her like no other sexual relationship ever could, and she never felt safer than when she was playing with him.
With the safety words and rules of game properly agreed upon, Colton resumed their playtime. He ran his hands over her vulnerable body and said, “You’re a naughty girl who thinks she just get whatever she wants, but I’m going to teach you patience now by making you wait for your orgasm.”
Colton spent the rest of the evening delighting in Suzanna’s body, inch by inch and part by part. He licked, caressed, suckled, kissed, fondled, rubbed, and massaged every part of her while she was helpless to speed things along. Suzanna sighed, moaned, and cried out as the unending pleasure became more and more intense. She longed to grab him and climb on top of him, but she couldn’t, for the cuffs kept her bound to the wall. It was a game they both loved almost as much as they loved each other.
“I want you inside me!” Suzanna cried out, as his mouth and hands kept her on the brink of climax but wouldn’t let her plunge into the ultimate depths of pleasure.
Colton said cruelly, “That’s your problem, naughty girl. You’re always focused on what you want. Patience is about letting go of your own desires and allowing things to happen on another person’s time.”
He tortured her with pleasure a little longer, bringing her to the brink of climax with his hands and mouth and then not letting her orgasm. When she was whimpering with desire, he said, “Are you ready to be a good girl?”
“Yes, Sir! I’ll be good. I’ll do things on your time and not my own.”
“Good. I’m going to release you from the cuffs and I want you to kneel on the bed,” Colton instructed. Suzanna willingly obeyed, even though every nerve in her body pulsated with desire.
Colton stripped naked very slowly while she watched, cruelly drawing out the time she had to wait patiently. When at last he was naked, he lay beside her on the bed and said, “Okay, climb on top of me but thrust as slowly as you can.”
Suzanna straddled his waist and slid his rigid organ deep into her wet folds, enveloping him with a sigh of intense satisfaction. She began to slide up and down the length of him, relishing the feel of him deep inside her, and quickly started gaining speed.
“Slowly,” he commanded and she forced herself to obey. “Good girl, now faster. Harder, faster, now slower, slower, now faster!”
Colton instructed Suzanna on how fast to thrust upon him, maximizing her pleasure and drawing out her orgasm. They came upon her wave after wave, and each orgasm was even more intense and powerful than the last. In the end, she lost count of how many orgasms he’d given her and they both just lay side by side in his bed. They fell asleep naked in each other’s arms and neither one of them had ever been so blissfully happy, until the rooster’s call echoed across the ranch, waking them. Only it wasn’t just a rooster; another sound blended with the birds. Colton and Suzanna both sat up in fear as they both realized what the sound was. Someone was screaming.
***
Suzanna couldn’t believe it when she came upon the scene. She’d tied her hair into a quick ponytail, thrown on a pair of jeans she kept at Colton’s place along with a pair of boots and a denim shirt, and ran toward the sound of the shouting.
It led her right to a small crowd of people at the open gate to cattle pasture. They were all staring at the empty space where hundreds of cattle should have stood, but they were all gone. The entire herd had been stolen in the night. Suzanna clasped her hands over her mouth and stifled the sob that was caught in her throat.
The look on her father’s ashen face was too much to bear and she turned around, unable to face it. This ranch was his life. To lose the entire herd like that was a devastating blow to him. Suzanna knew she couldn’t let him see her cry, or the hardened rancher might break down into tears in front of his men. She whipped around, prepared to run off into the distance, when she slammed into the chest of Colton Stevens. He caught her in his arms and held her close, not caring who saw them together.
“It’s gonna be all right,” he crooned as he hugged her tight and stroked the length of her ponytail. “It must have been those bastards who had tried to kidnap you last night. When their plan failed, they switched to releasing your father’s herd as revenge.”
“This is all my fault!” Suzanna let the tears fall freely down her cheeks now as she buried her face in his shirt. “I’m the one who interfered with the poachers in the first place. If I’d just left them alone from the start or gone with them when they came last night, Daddy wouldn’t have lost the herd.”
“No, it’s not your fault,” Colton insisted. He raised her chin so she was looking into his eyes and said, “They’re the bastards! They’re the ones to blame. You can’t think their actions are your fault, even for one second. They’re poachers, thieves, and who knows what other horrible crimes they’d be willing to commit. They’re the ones at fault for what they’ve done; not you!”
Jeremiah Wheeler watched silently as Colton Stevens comforted his daughter. He saw the way her eyes shined when she looked at him and the way both their faces glowed with love for each other. Seeing how happy they were together put a twinge of guilt in his heart for keeping them apart, but he reminded himself that she’d be happier in the long run and that he was just doing what was best for her.
Jeremiah walked up to the couple with a glaring frown and gently pulled his daughter away from Colton. “Come on, we’ve got to call the Sheriff’s office,” he said to her. Suzanna shot Colton an apologetic look and he nodded his understanding, letting her know that everything would be okay. Their hands drifted apart and she let her father lead her back to the ranch house.
She kept her head turned down as they walked and something strange caught her eye. “Daddy, what are these tire tracks from?”
Jeremiah shrugged and said, “Tires, obviously.”
“Sure, but tires from what? None of our trucks or equipment leaves a tread like that. I’ll be sure to tell the deputy to take prints of them. They must belong to whoever stole the cattle and tried to kidnap me last night.”
The Sheriff’s office was quick to respond to Jeremiah Wheeler’s call and he sent out his best man, Deputy Larson, to investigate with a full complement of officers. Suzanna spent hours showing them around the property, describing the men she seen, and helping them in every way possible. They found Lee’s hat, took prints of the tire tracks, drew sketches from Suzanna’s descriptions, and fingerprinted everything in sight. At the end of a long day, Suzanna was utterly exhausted and collapsed into bed. However, her dreams were restless and full of nightmares of all that had happened.
The next morning, she awoke early and ran to the kitchen to find her daddy brewing a pot of coffee. “No word yet,” Jeremiah said somberly.
“You mean there’s no sign of the herd yet?” Suzanna said sadly and he nodded. It was the same the next day, and the day after. Several weeks went by with no progress being made by the Sheriff’s office.
Everyone on the ranch tried to stay busy, but with no cattle to tend to, Jeremiah ended up having to lay off most of his men. Suzanna was terrified he would fire Colton, but for some reason, he kept him on and she found as many excuses as she could to sneak away with him in secret. They both knew that if they were caught together, Jeremiah would follow through on his threats to send Suzanna away, but they just couldn’t keep apart.
“I don’t get it,” Suzanna said thoughtfully one day, as she and Colton sat lazily by the river having a Sunday picnic.
“What’s that?” Colton asked with curiosity. He loved the way her mind worked. She was always thinking of brilliant ideas and found creative ways to solve problems. With her help, he’d been able to make her father’s ranch a lot more efficient, which was something it really needed now that it was operating with minimal staff.
Suzanna dipped her toe in the river and said, “Why hasn’t the Sheriff’s office found the cattle yet? There can’t be that many places to hide something so large; it should be easy to track.”
“The rustlers have probably sold the cattle already.” Colton said wisely, but Suzanna shook her head.
“That would leave a trail, too. There’s something fishy about this whole investigation. I say we go back to the place where we first encountered the poachers and see if we can learn anything about them that would help us find them now.”
Colton held her hand in his own and said, “Deputy Larson has already done that and he didn’t find anything.”
“Well then, he must not have done a very good job, because I found plenty of clues.”
“What? You went into dangerous territory on your own and started interfering with a police investigation?” Colton cried out.
“I wouldn’t put it that way.” Suzanna blushed. She pulled her dress over her head and jumped into the river. The cool water made her gasp for breath for a moment, but she adjusted to it quickly and began to swim casually downstream.
“Don’t think you can escape from this conversation by swimming away?” Colton said, and Suzanna grinned ruefully at him.
“Try and stop me!” Suzanna called after him and began swimming in earnest, swiftly moving downstream.
“Come back here!” Colton hollered after her, but Suzanna just kept swimming. She rounded the bend and disappeared from his sight.
“Damn it!” Colton swore. He thought about diving into the river and swimming after her, but he knew she was too strong a swimmer and she already had too much of a lead.
Grabbing his horse, Colton mounted the animal and galloped after her.
***
Suzanna looked over her shoulder as she stroked through the water and saw with a relieved sigh that there was no sign of Colton. She flipped over and floated comfortably on her back, letting the gentle current carry her peacefully through the water.
She knew it was wrong to go looking for the poachers on her own, and she knew that Colton wouldn’t be happy with her about it, but it was something she had to do. What’s more is she had been right. The Sheriff’s department had all the same evidence she had, and she was able to figure out what kind of vehicle the criminals had driven and where they were probably hiding now. If she could find all that out, then Deputy Larson should have been able too, unless he was in on it!
“That’s it!” Suzanna said aloud, spewing water from her lips. “Deputy Larson is in cahoots with the cattle rustlers! Telling Sheriff Newman won’t do any good since it’ll be my word against his and he’s sure to believe his own man over me! I’ve got to get enough evidence myself to prove it!”
Suzanna stood up in the river and prepared to climb onto the grassy bank. She had a lot of work to do! As she pulled herself onto the grass, she stopped short when she came to a booted foot.
“You’re in trouble, naughty girl,” Colton said as he stared down at the beautiful naked woman kneeling in the grass.
The warm summer breeze blew across her wet flesh, making her nipples pucker and she became acutely aware of how naked she was. It was a realization that made her feel vulnerable and deeply aroused. She looked around the countryside and saw they were completely alone. Perhaps this was the perfect time to play their favorite game.
“I’m sorry, Sir. Please forgive me,” Suzanna said, playfully. In the spirit of the game, she remained kneeling and bent forward to kiss his boots subserviently.
Colton felt himself become aroused by her obvious offer to play their game. Seeing that they alone, he decided why not? They could both use some sexual release from the tensions caused by the missing herd. He noticed that he still held the riding crop in his hands that he’d used to spur his horse into a gallop and decided it might be the perfect toy for their game.
Putting on a stern face for the spirit of their game, Colton said, “In order for me to forgive you, I must know that you have learned not to be naughty again, and in order for me to know that, I must punish you first. Do you want me to punish you, naughty girl?”
“Yes, sir. Teach me not to be naughty,” Suzanna said, her voice thick with desire.
Colton found a fallen tree and lay a soft blanket across it to make it padded. He put his hand on the log and said, “Bend over this tree so I can punish you.”
Suzanna felt a thrill of sexual excitement rush through her at the invitation and readily complied. She bent over the log, laying her stomach flat against it and raising her naked buttocks high into the air. She expected him to spank her in that position and her eyes flew open wide with surprise to see him produce a riding crop from behind his back. Her vulnerability heightened her arousal and she felt wetness between her legs from the juices of her desire.
Teasingly, Colton stroked her naked flesh with the tip of the riding crop. She could feel the flat leather caressing her and delighted in the feel of it and the rising anticipation of her punishment. Then, suddenly, he raised the crop and gave her a firm smack on the fleshy part of her buttocks. She yelped in surprise and pain. Tears sprang to her eyes, but the pleasure she felt overpowered the pain and she found herself longing to feel the sensation again.
“Spank me again, Sir. Please.” Suzanna said, and Colton knew she wanted him to continue the game. He struck her again and again with measured slaps of the riding crop. He didn’t want to use so much force that it tore her skin, but even so, red welts rose on her delicate flesh. Still, she seemed to be enjoying the process and didn’t use her safe words.
After he had sufficiently punished her, he reached down and gently massaged her sore buttocks, massaging away the pain. As his hands curved around her inner thigh, he felt moisture there and found that her innermost folds were wet with desire. A gasp of pleasure escaped her lips as he touched her there and he began to make love to her with his fingers, massaging her there in just the way she liked best.
“Please make love to me! I want you inside me!” she moaned and gasped as he quickly brought her to orgasm with his fingers alone.
“Not until you’ve learned not to run away from me like you did today and not until you’ve learned not to go off on your own investigations. These behaviors go beyond being naughty. They’re dangerous and I can’t allow you put yourself in harm’s way,” Colton said harshly.
“I’ve learned my lesson,” Suzanna panted. She spread her thighs wide, inviting him to enter her hot, wet folds but he did not give in to his desires yet.
“I mean it Suzanna. You’re going to get yourself hurt or killed. Promise me you won’t go on this investigation alone. Promise me you’ll always stay where I can protect you.”
He pulled Suzanna from the log and they stood face to face, looking deep into each other’s eyes. She looked at him defiantly, unwilling to give up her real world freedoms for the sake of their fantasy game. She may enjoy playing the submissive role in their games but she was still a fiercely independent woman with no intention of ever letting any man tell her where she can go and what she can do. She hardened her resolve and glared defiantly at him.
Colton knew he couldn’t bully her into obeying him, and he didn’t want to. Her independence was what he loved most about her, but he still needed to know she’d be safe. He brushed his hand over her cheek and said softly, “I couldn’t live without you. Just promise me you won’t go off alone.”
The gentleness of his words melted her heart and Suzanna broke her resolve. Kissing him with all the love she felt for him, she said, “Okay, I promise.”
That was all Colton needed to hear. They lay down in the tall grass, wrapped in each other’s arms, and made love together. It wasn’t the kind of kinky sex games they so often embellished in, but soft, sensual lovemaking that came from the heart. Tender, beautiful, and deeply fulfilling, it left them both breathless and satisfied in a whole new way.
Soon, the couple fell asleep in the cool shade of the grass. When Colton woke up, he turned to tell Suzanna how much he loved her, only to discover she had gone. Within a few moments, he discovered that she had taken his horse, too. Cursing at the horizon, Colton berated himself for being such as fool. He had a bad feeling that he knew where she had gone and it could only mean danger and trouble.
***
Colton trudged through the tall grass, muttering loudly to himself. She’d taken his horse, his rifle, his shirt. Hell, he supposed he was lucky she had left him his jeans and his boots. She’d even taken his hat.
“Freeze, right there!” a voice shouted from behind and Colton stopped mid-stride. He raised his hands in the air and turned slowly around with a wry grin on his face. Suzanna stood behind him, mounted on his horse and carrying all of the items he’d left behind at the picnic site when he first went chasing after her. She’d changed back into her dress and tossed his shirt back down to him. He noticed that she still wore his hat, but she looked so beautiful in it that he didn’t mind.
Smiling happily at the man she loved, Suzanna helped him mount the horse behind her and said, “I woke up first and decided to go back for our stuff. I needed my clothes and I was hungry, too. I figured I’d make it back before you ever woke up, but it looks like I was wrong.”
“You scared the hell out of me, disappearing like that!” Colton chastised but his voice was relieved and not angry. He wrapped his arms around her from behind and held her tight.
She craned her neck around to kiss him and said, “I gave you my word that I wouldn’t go investigating alone and I never break a promise. Now, let’s get going.” She spurred the horse forward and started heading up hill toward the old abandoned shafts of the Groghan mine.
“Going where? The ranch is the opposite direction.” Colton objected.
“Well, to find Daddy’s cattle herd of course!”
“What happened to never breaking a promise?” Colton asked and Suzanna laughed.
“I promised not to go alone. That means you have to come with me. Now let’s hurry. The sun will be getting low soon and I think I know exactly where they are.”
“What makes you think we’ll find anything this direction?” Colton asked.
“This does,” Suzanna said confidently. She reached into her pocket and handed Colton a small stone that she’d found on her bedroom floor. She’d given most of them to Deputy Larson, but she’d kept one for herself and she was glad she had.
Colton looked at it and shrugged indifferently. “It’s a rock.”
“Not just any rock; look at the coloring. I couldn’t remember where I’d seen such a rare stone before, so I went to the place where we’d first seen the poachers and there was nothing.”
“Well, you’re right! That’s a clue for sure!” Colton teased lovingly and Suzanna elbowed him playfully in the ribs.
“Okay, wise guy. There’s more to the story. Last night, I finally remembered where I’d seen this type of stone. They’re all over the ground at Groghan Mine. The miners dug them out of the earth by the ton when they were searching for gold ore. Don’t you remember when we used to go there when we were kids?”
Colton looked at the rock again and a long-forgotten memory came flooding back to him. Suzanna saw his eyes light up and she knew that he knew she was right! Colton furrowed his brow and said, “Why don’t you just go to Sheriff Newman with this?”
Suzanna frowned and said, “Because I think Deputy Logan is in on it.”
“That’s a serious accusation to make,” Colton said softly. They’d come to the fence that sectioned off the mining territory. Huge signs reading Keep Out and Danger hung askew from the broken fence posts. They dismounted the horse and tied the animal to one of the posts. Colton grabbed his rifle and they surveyed the area from the cover of the trees. After a while, Colton asked, “What makes you think the deputy is against us?”
“It’s the only explanation for the lack of progress. I gave him all the same evidence we have and they haven’t come up with anything. Yesterday, I called Sheriff Newman personally and asked him about the tire tracks and the stones and he didn’t know anything about them. That can only mean one thing; Deputy Larson buried the evidence. So, if he’s in on it, it’s up to us to catch the rustlers ourselves.”
“So close, and yet so wrong!” an unfamiliar male voice said from behind them, followed by the clicking sound of a gun being cocked. “Put your hands in the air and turn around real slow or I’ll fill you both full of bullets.”
Suzanna and Colton did as they were told and turned to look into the face of Vernon Hillman. His broken nose had finally healed, but it was more crooked than ever, making him even uglier than before. His skinny partner, Lee, was with him and each of man had a riffle, ensuring that the couple had no chance of escape.
They guided Suzanna and Colton into the opening of the abandoned mine. Once their eyes adjusted to the darkness they saw that it was a vast and wide area just a few feet underground, large enough to hide hundreds of cattle.
“Daddy’s herd!” Suzanna cried out happily at the sight of the cattle with the familiar brand on their flank. “I knew they were here! I just knew it!”
“Yeah, but you weren’t right about everything.” Jasper McElroy, the leader of the gang of rustlers stepped forward and grabbed Suzanna by the chin. He said, “You think you’re just so smart don’t ya, but there was one piece of the puzzle you got completely wrong.”
“What’s that?” Suzanna said with brave defiance.
Jasper turned and welcomed his partner to step forward into the light. Colton and Suzanna both gasped in surprise and horror. Suzanna wondered how she could have been so terribly wrong to suspect that Deputy Larson had been burying evidence. He wasn’t the one in league with the rustlers, it was Sheriff Newman himself!
***
“Sheriff! You helped these thieves steal Daddy’s herd? How could you?” Suzanna cried out with all the pain and betrayal she felt in her heart.
“Your daddy is a powerful man in this county and it’s no secret that he plans to support my opponent in the upcoming election,” Sheriff Newman justified as he paced in front of the captured couple. “Since he lost his cattle, he won’t have the funds or the power to upset my campaign when the next election comes around.”
“He doesn’t need money to ruin your election!” Suzanna shouted out angrily. “The whole county will know that you’re a terrible Sheriff simply because you couldn’t solve this crime! Unless you plan to turn in your partner here!”
Jasper laughed easily, clearly not the least bit worried that the Sheriff would turn on him. Putting an arm around her shoulder, he said, “Don’t worry, little filly. The Sheriff wasn’t able to get back your daddy’s cattle, but he was able to solve a much bigger and more heinous crime. A crime so awful that all of the county is sure to support the Sheriff and re-elect him, even your daddy.”
“What crime is that?” Suzanna asked bitterly.
“Why, the crime of your murder, of course!” Jasper laughed meanly at the look of fear that crossed Suzanna’s face at the words.
Colton balled his hands into fists and shouted out, “You can’t kill her! You’ll never get away with it!”
Jasper put an arm around Colton’s shoulder as if they were buddies and said, “I’m not going to kill her; you are. That’s the crime the Sheriff is going to solve. I’ve got a buyer coming tonight to pay these cattle. Once I’ve got my money, the Sheriff is going to track you here, where you’ll be sitting with a few remaining cows, some marked money, and your little girlfriend. You’ll use her as a human shield when the Sheriff comes to arrest you and end up killing your own hostage. The Sheriff will arrest you for cattle rustling and murder, she’ll be dead and you’ll end up spending the rest of your life in prison.”
“No one will believe that!” Suzanna cried out in Colton’s defense.
“Oh, who are they going to believe; the accused murderer? Everyone knows that he’s been fighting with Jeremiah Wheeler. The old man caught him sleeping with his daughter and threatened to fire him. Since then, Colton was plotting to get all the old man’s money and run away with his daughter, only things went sour and he killed her. Luckily, our good Sheriff will be able to see that justice is done.”
Suzanna and Colton both wanted to say something in the face of this hideous plot, but no words would come. They were surrounded by Jasper’s gang, armed with rifles, and their only hope—the Sheriff—was in on the plot.
Jasper looked at his watch and said, “My buyers will be arriving soon. Let’s tie these two up somewhere out of the way until I get my money.”
“Why not shoot the girl now?” Sheriff Newman asked, and Suzanna felt her heart pounding with fear.
“Because I want my money first!” Jasper said. “That’s the deal. I get my money for the herd and you get the election in your pocket afterward. Don’t try and screw up the plan now.”
The Sheriff made a face indicating that he didn’t like being talked to in that way by a mere criminal, but he had too much riding on this next election to argue, so he clamped his jaw shut. Waiving his rifle at Colton and Suzanna he said, “Come on you two, down the mine shaft. We’ll let Jasper have his way for just a little longer. As soon as he gets his money for the herd, he’ll be gone and the rest is history.”
Suzanna and Colton had no choice but to climb into the rickety old elevator and let the Sheriff lower them into the mine shaft. He placed it about twenty feet down then locked the elevator into place, keeping them trapped in the tiny space deep in the earth.
When they heard him walk away and knew they were alone, Colton took Suzanna into his arms and she buried her face in his muscular chest.
“Oh Colton, what are we going to do?” she sobbed.
“I don’t know, but I’ll tell you one thing; we’re not going to die like this! You’ve got more brains than anyone I know. Pull yourself together and we can think of a way out of this.”
Suzanna drew in a breath and tried to clear her mind. Colton was right, there had to be a way to escape, to stop Jasper from selling Daddy’s herd, to save her own life, and to keep the Sheriff from wrongfully imprisoning Colton. As hard she tried to think, no solution would come to mind.
Suzanna sighed with frustration and wrapped her arms around Colton. She kissed him deeply and said, “It’s no use. I’m just glad I had the chance to love you before I die.”
“Don’t talk like that,” Colton said tenderly and kissed her back. She knew that he loved her, too.
Tears came to her eyes and she said, “I just feel awful that loving me is going to land you in prison for the rest of your life.”
Wanting to cheer her up and make light of the situation, Colton said, “Well, I always knew you were a naughty girl.”
Suzanna was too scared to laugh at the silly joke, but her mouth did curve into a smile. Colton ran his fingers over her delicate lips and kissed her with all the love he felt in his heart. She opened her mouth to him and they drank each other deeply, clinging to each other desperately and running their hands over each other’s bodies.
To her surprise Suzanna felt Colton’s erection on her thigh. She pulled away from his embrace and said teasingly, “You’re the naughty one now. Perhaps I should tie you up like you do to me.”
Suddenly Suzanna’s eyes lit up. She grabbed Colton by the hand and excitedly told him her idea.
“Do you think it will work?” she asked worriedly.
Colton grinned. He knew she was the brightest girl in the county and this proved it. “I know it will! Those jerks won’t know what happened until it’s too late. I love you Suzanna Wheeler, and whether your father ever gives us his blessing or not, I want you to be my bride! When this is over, will you marry me?”
“I love you too, Colton Stevens,” she said happily. “And my answer is yes!”
Sheriff Newman and Jasper waited above for the buyer to pay them for the herd, completely unaware that everything was about to change.
TO BE CONTINUED IN BOOK THREE: Freeing Suzanna - Volume 3
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