Masuk“Yes, Bennett, I understand.”He teased, tortured and tormented her. Taking her to the edge several times, seeing if she’d disobey and throw herself over. He skimmed her jawline with light kisses. “How close are you?”“Very. God.”Ben flipped her onto her back and started kissing down the side of her neck.“Don’t. Please.” Ainsley twisted her head away.Which caused Ben to grab her hair and pull slightly. “Stay. Still.”She whimpered softly.“I adore your body, angel.” Ben kissed the hollow of her throat. The tops of her br**sts. “I intend to play with it, however I want, for as long as I want. Testing your limits and mine.” He kept finger f**king her, studying her reactions, from the anxious expression on her face, to the hard tips of her ni**les, to the flexing of her toes and the clenching of her jaw. When he heard that swift intake of breath, he removed his hand from between her thighs.Her entire body drooped against the mattress, but she wasn’t relaxed.“You did good.” Ben turne
“What books?”“The ones that deal with…BDSM.”To some extent, he hated the way the term BDSM was thrown around as much as he disliked the casual use of the word Master.“Have you read any of those books?” she asked.“Fiction? Or nonfiction?”“Either.”“Nonfiction. When we first went to the Denver club. One of the owners saw that we were clueless bastards and took pity on us. He gave us a stack of material to read so we knew the differences between what we wanted as dominants and what was expected in certain Dom/sub relationships. And I’ll admit, even from the start, I’ve been on the side of the fence where dominance is used as a sexual tool to heighten sexual experiences. I’m not into debasing a sub by using a cage or a pallet to sleep on or a shock collar. Or extreme pain games. Never been tempted by bloodsport or knife play or piss play or even breath play. If I knew subs who were into that stuff, I’d avoid them. But I’ll admit it’s practically nonexistent at the Rawhide anyway.” He
“That’s a relief.”“For me too.”“Why?”“Performance anxiety.”She laughed softly, naturally. “I doubt you’ve ever suffered from that in your life.”“There’s always that first time. Now, I’ve gotta make an embarrassing confession.” Ben hung his head. “I’m addicted to Wheel of Fortune. Most nights I eat supper in front of the TV so I can get my fix.”“Well, that changes things between us dramatically. Because I’m more of a Jeopardy fan myself.”“That’s because you have way more brain power than me, smart girl.”“Because you’re just a simple rancher, right?” she teased.“Yep. So how about if I fix us a bowl of popcorn and you can snicker at me as I try to guess the puzzles?”“Sounds good. You need help?”“Why? Do you think I’ll burn it?”“No. I just want to make sure you pour extra butter on mine.” She stood on tiptoe and kissed him. “If your goal is to keep me off balance, it’s working.”They settled in front of the TV. Ben thought you could learn a lot about a person by how they ate p
“That’s an excellent suggestion, Ben.” Mark said. “Would Chase be interested?”“I can ask him. If he is you’ll have to get in touch with his PR people to finalize the details. I only see one problem with this.”“What’s that?”“The McKays have always been customers at Settler’s First Bank. I reckon they won’t take too kindly to a celebration for Chase McKay bein’ sponsored by a competing bank.”Silence.Ainsley looked impressed…and a little peeved.“I’m sure we could work something out.” Mark glanced at his watch. “I’m afraid I’ve got a meeting. Could I drop you off at the bank, Ainsley?”“No. I’ll walk back. I’d like to talk a little more in depth with Mr. McKay about his ideas.” She winked at Mark. “Maybe try to sweet talk him into hearing my National West Bank pitch about all the services we offer our new customers.”“Excellent idea. Enjoy.” He hustled out the door.Ben gestured to the booth. “Could I interest you in a slice of pie or a cup of coffee while I hear how well you can se
Ben gave them credit for quick thinking. “We’ve always wanted that creek front section. But they’ve always refused to sell.”“It don’t look like Rielle’s got an option now. The sale of that acreage will give her enough money to keep her bed and breakfast open if she wants.”“Who else have you talked to about this?”“No one,” Dalton said. “Not even Brandt.”“Why not?”“Because as much as we appreciate that Brandt’s a hard worker, he’s a damn do-gooder. He’ll see even talkin’ to Rielle as takin’ advantage of her. We don’t see it that way. We figured you wouldn’t either. So, we’d appreciate it if you didn’t mention this to Quinn.”It clicked. “Quinn would feel the same as Brandt.”Tell nodded. “You’re practical, Ben. And to some extent, unsentimental, like us. It’s just business.”“Good business,” Dalton inserted. “It has to be just the three of us, if we can swing it.”“Because you don’t want Uncle Carson or Uncle Cal to get wind of this either.”“And buy it right out from under us? Fuc
“He drinks until he passes out. We stop by to check on him.”“To make sure he ain’t dead,” Dalton said.The muscle in Tell’s jaw flexed. “Mom would have a conniption fit if she saw the state of the house. It’s nasty. Dad’s been livin’ like a drunken hermit since their divorce was finalized.”Dalton scowled. “Even after all the shit Dad did to Jessie over the years, she still tried to help him. Cleaned the place top to bottom. Washed his clothes. Cooked for him. He’s such an ungrateful bastard that Brandt won’t let Jess go over there anymore.”“Too bad you can’t just move your dad’s stuff to Brandt’s trailer and then he and Jessie could have the house. It’s at least fifteen minutes closer to her job.”Tell and Dalton exchanged a pained look. “We think that’s what they’re waitin’ for.”“Waiting for Uncle Casper to die?” Ben said sharply.“He’s killin’ himself, Ben. He won’t listen to any of us. Believe it or not, Mom had some influence over him, but that’s gone. They haven’t spoken sinc
Over the next weeks, the weather grew warmer and Mary spent as much time outside the keep as she could. Though she wouldn’t admit as much to Edward, she kept a sharp eye to the horizon, watching for when her dowry would be brought by the king’s escort.Edward’s missive to the king had gone unanswered
She nodded.“You’re cold, lass. Come back inside the keep so I can warm you properly.”As he’d hoped, his words made her stir restlessly against him. To give her added incentive, he fused his lips to hers, his heat melting her cold mouth. Ice against fire. In moments, she was returning his kiss with l
He turned to survey the many people seated at the tables in the hall. “Let us eat,” he announced.The servants lining the wall burst into activity, filling goblets with wine and setting out the trenchers of food. The aroma was tantalizing and the tables overflowing with bounty.“Eat,” Edward whispered
Edward scowled at that, his face growing as dark as a thundercloud.“They crowed over the fact that they had managed to capture both your son and wife.”Edward leaned forward, his eyes intense. “Did they say anything else? Did they identify themselves? Did you recognize their crest?”Slowly she shook h







