เข้าสู่ระบบSo he chewed on it for a day and came up with a solution. Not ideal, but workable. Okay, it sucked ass, and it crossed another line, but he had no choice.Late Tuesday morning Ben ironed his plain white shirt, slipped on a bolo tie embellished with the McKay brand and donned his tan suit coat. He added a western belt, centering it between his jean-clad hips. He settled the black Stetson on his head, grabbed his duster and headed to town.He hadn’t set up an appointment with Ainsley at the bank, too many snoopy people would report back to his that family Ben McKay had applied for a loan. So he was planning to take her to lunch and spring his loan request over a good steak.Ben strode into National West Bank. He tipped his hat to the teller and made tracks straight for Ainsley’s office—only to get intercepted by Jenny.“Ben McKay. Fancy seeing you here again. Is there something I can help you with?”“Yes. I need to speak with Miz Hamilton.”Jenny sauntered to her desk and tapped her fin
“You are hilarious.”Ainsley moved close enough to brush woodchips from his shirt. “I am sorry I assumed it was okay to barge in here.”“Ainsley—”“Let me finish. The last thing I intended was to add more stress to your day.” Her fingertips whisked away more shavings. “Here’s the truth, Ben. I missed you. Not Bennett. Not who you are as a Dom, but you.” She nuzzled the side of his face. “Thank you for stopping by last night. It was totally unexpected. Completely amazing. And exactly what I…needed. I never understood how much I need to access that submissive part of myself until you showed me how good it could be.”The red splotches on her cheeks indicated how hard that’d been for her to admit. It touched him. And flustered him because she was beginning to mean a whole lot more to him than he’d ever imagined. “I don’t know what to say to that.”“Say, I’m happy to see you too, angel.”Ben tugged her between his knees and reached up to frame her face in his hands. “I’m happy to see you t
Ben wondered if he should leave the room.A pause. “You listen to me, Ellen. If you sign the consent form, I’ll be at my attorney’s office first thing tomorrow morning, filing for sole custody of Sierra, without visitation rights. Because she doesn’t need to get her goddamn eyebrow pierced! Or her nose or her lip or her belly button. Don’t try that bullshit argument with me. End of discussion. And I’d better not see one f**king piercing on her body anywhere when I pick her up tonight, we clear? Put her back on.” Gavin paced. “Hey. No, honey, slow down. Sierra-bear, you know how she gets. It’s all right. I’m glad you called me. Of course. I miss you too. See you tonight.” He calmly shut the phone and braced his hands against the counter, letting his head hang down.“Mother-fucking-sonofabitch-goddamn-it-all-to-hell-I’m-going-to-fucking-kill-her-with-my-bare-hands.”That was unexpected from Mr. Calm and Refined.Gavin took several deep breaths, before he glanced up at Ben. “Sorry. Somet
“Spoken like a bachelor.” Gavin helped himself to a cup of coffee. “But that doesn’t explain why it appears Rielle’s has been crying.”She laughed a tad too cheerfully. “It’s from chopping onions for the quiche we’re having for lunch.”Gavin looked like didn’t believe her, but he smiled at her anyway. “Good to know. I’d hate to have to pound on Ben if he somehow maligned your muffins.”Rielle rolled her eyes. “Ben would never do that. He’s a good guy, honest as the day is long.”Ben made a gagging noise.“Plus, he knows what side his muffin is buttered on.” She winked. “If you need anything else, holler. I’ll be in my office.”Gavin refilled his coffee and loaded his plate with a muffin and a banana.“You seem to get along with Rielle,” Ben remarked.“This is the third time I’ve stayed with her.”Like that explained it. “So how long you staying?”“I leave at six tonight on the direct flight out of Rapid City to Phoenix.” He cut the banana into precise quarters. “I’d like to stay longe
The dogs jumped out of the truck bed and raced off into the trees with Rielle’s three mutts.Rielle met him at the front door and held open the screen. “Hey, stranger.”“Mornin’, Rielle. Something smells good.”“There’s fresh coffee and warm muffins inside.”She was in a good mood, which boded well for him. “I didn’t stop over here expecting to be fed, but I ain’t gonna say no now that you offered.” He followed her into the kitchen.“I don’t imagine you stopped over to talk to me anyway.” She pointed to the mugs. “Help yourself.”“Is Gavin up?”“He hopped into the shower as you pulled in.”Ben sat at the counter, poured himself a cup of coffee and set two blueberry muffins on a plate. “I did want to talk to you about something.”“Sounds serious.”“It is. I wanted to bring it up in private.”“Now you’re really scaring me.”Ben looked Rielle in the eyes. “I won’t beat around the bush. How much financial trouble are you in?”Rielle’s cheeks turned bright red and her hands squeezed her co
“Not yet. I wouldn’t mind getting under the covers, though.”After they slipped between the sheets, Ben ended up spooned behind her, tucking her against his body, almost completely immobilizing her.“Thanks for inviting me to your folks’ party.”“You’re welcome. You deserved to be there. You fit right in.”“Which is odd, given I’m never around my family, and rarely around so many kids.”“The McKays were out in full force today.”“You were…scarce.”His rough-tipped fingers trailed up and down her arm. “That’s the way it goes. I’m considered one of the quiet ones, a man of few words, and usually none of importance, so no one pays much attention to me.”“But that gives you the opportunity to pay attention to them.” She paused. “Is that why you’re so in tune with…people? Because you’ve spent a lifetime observing?”“Probably. And without goin’ all psychobabble, I’ve been the middle boy. Even now that Gavin is around I’m still in the middle. Quinn…well, Dad thinks the sun rises and sets wit
She blinked in surprise when she realized that there was a change of clothes lying on the counter that hadn’t been there before. And a thick robe hanging on the back of the door. There was also a pair of slippers. The man had thought of everything.Her gaze tracked to the clothes again and she frowne
She rubbed over the length of her arm through the leather jacket, and bit her lip pensively as the car wove through late morning traffic.There was still a drizzle in the air. No snowflakes or flurries. Not even sleet. But it was cold, gray and overcast, and the skies looked ready to burst at any mom
When they went in, she was surprised to see a desk on the opposite wall from where his was situated. Furniture and fixtures had been rearranged to make room for the new desk, and two bookcases had been completely removed.“This is where you’ll work,” he said. “Since you’ll be working so closely with
Watching Gabe manage the saleslady was a bewildering experience for Mia. He cut through the selections with amazing precision, quickly vetoing the ones he didn’t like while immediately picking up on the ones he did.She’d honestly never been on a shopping trip for herself where she didn’t make any of







