Two In Hand
By Mary Winter
Copyright 2009 by Mary Winter
ISBN#
978-0-9824885-7-7
Smashwords
edition published by Pink Petal Books at Smashwords
Smashwords
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Chapter One
Katie curled her fingers around the cool metal bleachers and stared into the arena below. Her drink sat forgotten by her side. She barely noticed the sweat that dripped down the back of her neck, seeping into the collar of her t-shirt. The action in the arena fascinated her far more than it probably should have. Maybe it was because Daniel had invited her here.
The announcer called out the winner of the steer wrestling and the arena emptied for the team roping, Daniel’s event. Around her, the usual trappings of the rodeo, fans in bleachers cheering and stomping their hands, the prerequisite cowboys, horses, steers, broncs, and bulls waited in the chutes and back lot areas. Livestock milled in pens, cattle bawling, the smell of beer and popcorn, all of it was familiar to her. Yet, parts of it made it seem strange and new.
Two rows down a couple of men snuggled together. A banner in the arena proclaimed this as an event held by the Oklahoma Gay Rodeo Association. Katie stared at the sign, listening to the announcer giving some air time to the event’s sponsors. She shook her head, still not believing she’d been invited here.
By Daniel, her ex-boyfriend.
Katie barely contained the grin that turned her lips upward. She’d have laughed out loud if she had thought her amusement wouldn’t draw attention to herself. Daniel Westin, high school heartthrob—completely and totally gay. Well, technically bisexual, but she assumed since he’d invited her to a gay rodeo he wasn’t going to ask her to the dance afterwards. That was a leap of reason she’d made on her own, reminding her of the logic puzzles they’d filled out in “gifted” classes back in school. There was no need to even ask; she just knew. But Daniel at a gay event was something she had to see for herself. As teenagers they’d made out nearly every way, in nearly every location possible. Just thinking about it sent a wave of heat through her strong enough to ward off the unseasonable April chill.
“Next up is the team of Daniel Westin and James Stanton. Last year, this duo narrowly missed the championship. You can bet they’ll be in the hunt this season,” the announcer said.
Katie tuned out the announcer who would obviously be going on about James’ work as a stock contractor, focusing instead on the two men on horseback at the far end of the arena. She easily recognized Daniel riding a muscled dun horse. He had always sat a horse well and today was no exception. With his hat pulled low, his rope loose in his right hand, he held his horse in the back corner of the starting box. A heartbeat later he nodded and the calf burst from the chute.
Daniel followed. The thin rope barrier pulled across the front of the starting box, whipping past Daniel’s horse’s chest a moment before the horse would have hit it. Next to him, James surged forward on his big bay horse. One loop, two, Daniel worked the rope above his head, and Katie’s breath caught as she remembered exactly what those talented fingers could do. The rope settled easily against the calf’s head, hooking his horns.
Daniel tied off the rope, turning his horse to give James a good shot at the calf’s hind legs. A swooping loop ducked beneath the back hooves, and the calf hung suspended between the two men.
Katie glanced quickly at the scoreboard. The timer read six seconds flat and she breathed a sigh of relief. She’d seen good cowboys work, great ones even, and these two men were the perfect team. Amidst cheers from the crowd they released the calf and trotted their horses back toward the gates. James pulled alongside, their horses nearly perfect in size and muscling. Leaning over he grabbed Daniel by the arm and the two men shared a hot, heated kiss on their way out of the arena.
Yep, no doubt about it. Daniel liked men.
Whoops and whistles erupted all over the arena. Katie’s cheeks burned with heat. From what she’d seen of James, she wouldn’t mind kissing him either. Moisture flooded her pussy and all she could think of was how damn sexy their embrace had been.
She closed her mouth, suddenly aware she was staring gape-jawed at the men. She fumbled for her soda, sipping it to ease the sudden dryness in her throat. Behind her ribs, her heart hammered, and before she could second guess her intentions, she rose to her feet and hurried down the bleacher steps. She chucked her empty soda cup in the trash can, her gaze fixed on the two men behind the chutes.
Daniel had kissed another man.
Somehow wrapping her head around the notion made her ache in places that had been dormant for a while. He’s making me horny again, except this time he’s not going to do anything about it. She bit back a groan. Damn fine time for her hormones to wake up again. After her last relationship had ended with a whimper and a mutual agreement, she’d thought she was done with men for good. She gave too much of herself to her horses and her sport—or so she’d been told. At least she knew Daniel wouldn’t have a problem with hay or manure.
She blended in with the crowd of people behind the chute and quickly made her way over to the guys. “Hey,” she said when she drew near enough to Daniel, who now led his horse back to the barns. She reached up and patted the dun mare on the neck. “Nice ride.”
“Katie!” Daniel turned and captured her in a huge bear hug, drawing her against his well-muscled body. She had just a glimpse of his sandy blond hair beneath the brim of his cowboy hat. Excitement twinkled in his deep green eyes. When he pulled back, she saw age had turned his blocky features into mature planes and angles. His shoulders had broadened, giving him that perfect inverted triangle-shaped torso. His flat stomach led to lean hips and muscled thighs and calves. He’d turned out very nicely indeed.
Her nipples tingled where they pressed against his chest and butterflies hit her stomach hard. “Hope I’m not disturbing anything.”
The competitors in the arena failed to rope their calf and the announcer called a no time.
“No. I needed something to take my mind off whether we’re winning or not.” Daniel gestured to James. “Come here, I want you to meet someone. Katie, this is James.”
“Pleased to meet you.” James held out a gloved hand, his brown eyes open and friendly. He had a scar high on his cheek and a bump that suggested a broken nose. “Danny’s talked a lot about you. I feel like I know you already.”
“Oh,” she said, momentarily taken aback by the fact that Daniel would mention her at all. “I hope it was all good.”
“Very good.” James cocked his head toward the arena. “Another pair goes out with no time.”
“Maybe you shouldn’t breed such ornery stock,” Daniel teased.
Katie thought for a moment, putting that fact along with James’ name together. “You’re the stock contractor on the outside of town, aren’t you? I was on the county rodeo committee a couple of years ago and I think we worked with you then.”
“Probably. I do most of the local events and ship some of my stock out to the larger ones too. I happened to have a fresh bunch of calves that peaked in time for this event, so I offered them. We used someone else’s stock for our run, just in case you think we had an edge.” He grinned, open and friendly.
“Nah, Katie knows that I’m naturally good.” Daniel slung his arm around her waist, pulling her against him.
She melted into him, her body remembering what it felt like to be snuggled against him. She caught James eyeing them speculatively, and she wondered if she shouldn’t push Daniel away or something. She’d just seen him kissing another man!
James coughed. “There were two of us in the arena.”
“I’m sure you’re both very talented.” She stared at her boots. Oh God, she’d just spoken aloud. Her mind turned every comment into an innuendo, and with her hip brushing against Daniel’s side, she couldn’t think straight.
“I’d like to think we are.” James replied casually.
“James is the best heeler I’ve worked with,” Daniel said. “I think he’s spoiled me for any other partner.” He paused a moment to listen to the announcer. They’d gone first. “Let’s lead the horses back a ways. We probably have ten more pairs to go yet.”
He released her hand, leaving her with a sense of abandonment, and strode through the tangle of people and livestock to head for a clearing near the low barn on the edge of the fairground. Katie followed, familiar with the layout. She’d stabled her horses here many times for competitions. James walked a bit behind her, leading his horse. Funny to have reunited with him so recently, and yet, feel so connected to him. It was like their time apart faded away.
They stopped in the clearing, well away from the in-gate, and Katie found herself between the two men. She yearned to ask Daniel about his invitation, about the kiss she’d witnessed in the arena. She didn’t. Instead, she turned to the dun horse, patting its neck as Daniel loosened the cinch on the saddle. His rope hung coiled from the saddle horn.
“Shouldn’t you stay close so you can go back into the arena for the victory gallop?”
Daniel offered her a sexy grin. “It’ll be awhile. Let’s get away from the bustle so we can talk.”
Talk. His words conjured up the memory of his invitation and of their past. She looked at the horse’s dun hide to avoid searching Daniel’s face for any clues. “So did you end up with a place around here?” Katie asked Daniel. The last time she’d talked with Daniel he had moved across the state, but was trying to find a closer farm.
Daniel glanced at James and the two men shared a slow, intimate smile. “You could say that,” he replied.
“That’s nice,” Katie said, the platitude the only thing she could think of at the moment. Just ask him about the kiss! Another team completed their run to thunderous applause. The announcer gave the time as only a few tenths of a second slower than Daniel and James’.
“Good going!” a cowboy called on his way to the barn. “You guys are going to be tough to beat this year.”
Daniel grinned an all-too-familiar smile Katie recognized from the football field.
“When you got it, you got it. You’re not too bad yourself. I heard you’re at the top of the steer wrestling standings.”
The cowboy shrugged. “Well like you said, when you got it, you got it.” He tipped his hat to James and Katie and hurried into the barn.
Katie watched him go, her mind rolling a hundred miles an hour, wondering what connection the unnamed cowboy had to Daniel and James, other than fellow competitor. He didn’t look familiar, though his black cowboy hat hid dark brown hair, and his face had the same weatherworn look as most of the guys. He was tall and heavily muscled, like most steer wrestlers she’d seen.
Daniel reached out and touched the small of her back. “You’re trying to figure this all out, aren’t you?” he whispered in her ear.
The brim of his hat brushed the top of her head, the soft caress sending shivers down her spine. She licked her lips, not really wanting to give into his teasing. Even back when they’d been dating, Daniel had liked to tease…in and out of bed.
“You’re remembering, aren’t you, honey?” he asked.
She nodded, her throat too tight to speak. James moved in to her other side, presumably to shield her from view. Her nipples ached and poked against the cotton of her long-sleeved shirt. She’d gone braless, not from any attempt at seduction, but because she’d taken a fall yesterday and had a nasty scrape along her left shoulder blade. Luckily, she was endowed just enough so she could go without support if she needed it. When she’d dressed to come here, she’d forgotten the instantaneous affect Daniel had always had on her. Of course, when she’d accepted the invitation, she hadn’t known he really was off limits.
The announcer gave the last team’s time, several tenths of a second behind Daniel and James’ time.
“That’s it,” Daniel said as if the previous few moments hadn’t happened. “I think we got it. Let’s go back to the arena.” He tightened the cinch on his horse in preparation for a victory gallop.
The speakers crackled, the static drawing Katie back to herself. For a moment with James on one side of her and Daniel on the other she’d imagined the feel of their calloused hands on her skin, imagined the taste of their masculine lips and the hard thrust of their cocks against and inside her. She suppressed her desires, even as she lingered and caught a glimpse of Daniel’s hard, denim-clad ass. Damn, he always had looked fine in jeans.
~* * *~
Daniel paused by the in-gate and swung into Diamond’s saddle. He supposed he shouldn’t mention that the horse—Bright Diamond Katie— was named after her. The buckskin foal had a ton of spunk and wasn’t afraid of anything, just like the Katie he remembered. Daniel nodded to James as they rode into the arena. Thunderous applause greeted them, the roar of the crowd fueling the adrenaline rushing through his veins.
He itched to find out what James thought about Katie. Damn, seeing her again was like a punch in the gut. She’d been fine back in high school, all long legs and tousled sun-kissed brown hair. As a woman, she rocked him back on the heels of his cowboy boots. Her smallish curves had rounded, pressing against the cotton shirt she wore. Her hard nipples made him want to palm her flesh and see if they felt as good as he remembered.
After all the personal confusion and social phobias he’d encountered where his sexuality was concerned, it was good to know that life held one constant. Katie Kendall still made him hard.
Luckily, he could ride victory laps in his sleep and after the perfunctory (enter a number) times around the ring he left the arena to the cheers of his fellow competitors and the crowd. The next event was announced and Daniel remained mounted as he headed for the barn. He hadn’t made it far when Katie pushed through the crowd, jogging toward him.
“Hey, is there anything I can do to help?” she called.
He admired the sway of her breasts for a moment before James cleared his throat beside him. With a grin, he stopped Diamond.
“Sure.” Glancing around, he dismounted and waited for James to do the same. “You can help with the horses.”
He slid the reins over Diamond’s head. James fell into step beside him and Daniel shot him a sideways glance, surprised by the man’s shuttered expression. For a normally taciturn guy, James remained especially quiet.
Daniel didn’t let it bother him as they headed to the barn, Katie on the other side of Diamond. It felt right…having one of them flanking him. He grinned, the winner’s check he’d receive having nothing to do with the spring in his step. He paused at the threshold to the barn, letting his eyes adjust to the darkness.
“Which stall is yours?” Katie asked.
James stopped behind her, so close that he nearly bumped into that gorgeous heart-shaped ass of hers. His horse, Midnight, always a pushy sonofagun, nuzzled Katie’s shoulder and James curled his hand around Katie’s hip to steady her.
A tiny gasp escaped her lips and Daniel’s cock tightened swiftly.
Daniel bet she made noises like that in bed too. The desire to find out had prompted his spontaneous call to her. Kind of like when he went on the gay rodeo circuit, a half-assed joke and a challenge had turned into something more. Then again, if he hadn’t gone on the circuit, he wouldn’t have met James and that turned out pretty good. He only hoped his phone call to Katie would have the same result. He eyed James’ hand on Katie’s hip. Maybe he wouldn’t need to ask his lover what he thought about Katie. That lingering caress said it all.
James leaned in so close his breath teased the strands of her hair around her ear. “Third aisle. All the way down.”
He released her with a little squeeze that caused a quick shiver to roll through her slight frame and Daniel glanced at her pert nipples pressing against her shirt. A slight hitch in her breath told him she was aroused. He grinned as she scurried down the aisle and toward their stall.
“All the way down, huh?” Daniel leaned in and whispered.
James grinned. “A man’s gotta try. I think this is going to be fun.” He patted Daniel on the ass and hurried after Katie.
Daniel watched his lover, noting the sinfully tight fit of his jeans and those long, muscled legs wrapped in denim. Of course they were better wrapped around him, and he discreetly adjusted himself before following. When James had told him to stop mooning over Katie and just hook up with her, he’d been eager for the chance. Now, uncertainty fluttered in his stomach, making him wonder if he’d made the right decision.
James looked over his shoulder and winked at Daniel. Yeah, he’d made the right choice. He hurried down the aisle, the clopping of Diamond’s hooves music to his ears. He watched Katie unfasten Midnight’s girth and lift saddle and pad from the big black gelding. She swung it over to the stand, effortlessly sliding the saddle over and turning the pad upside down on top.
“We should bring her along to all our rodeos.” James took a stiff brush to Midnight’s coat. “Free help and pretty too.” He gave an exaggerated wink.
Katie opened her mouth to say something, then closed it again. She glanced at him, a speculative look on her face. Daniel truly wanted to know what was running through her mind.
Daniel removed the saddle and watched James relinquish the brush to Katie. Both men watched her groom the horse. Daniel figured his partner, like he, imagined what Katie’s small hands would feel like touching him.
Her slender hands moved over the soft black hide. She spoke under her breath, a calming tone that Daniel bet she wasn’t even aware of making. She focused her entire attention on the horse, tuning out everything around her. He knew she made love with that same intensity and he bit back a groan at the thought.
“Hey,” James asked on his way to the saddle rack. “You want to head out for a drink? I could use something to eat and I bet Daniel could too.”
“Sure. That’d be great.” She led Midnight into the stall across the aisle with James’ name on it and the horse immediately buried his head in the hay manger. “Looks like your horse has the same idea,” she chuckled.
A memory of them, years younger, standing in the barn, filled his mind. Daniel grinned and led Diamond into the neighboring stall. “There’s a great place just down the road. Let’s go.” He gave both horses a final check, saw that James had picked up the tack area. Any day he rodeoed was a good day. Going out with Katie and James made it a perfect one.
Chapter Two
Katie had squished herself into the corner of the diner’s booth and tried not to brush against Daniel. She failed miserably. Every time their legs brushed against each other a little frisson of heat shot through her. She was thankful when he noticed a rodeo buddy he needed to speak to and quickly excused himself. Until she realized that left her alone with James.
There was no denying this particular cowboy kept her off-kilter. She thought he was gay; Daniel and he certainly had enough signals going between them to make the assumption safe. And they were competing at a gay rodeo. She wondered if the rodeo allowed straight people to compete.
James reached across the table to touch her hand, offering her a heated look. “It meant a lot for you to be there today to see Daniel. He’d been hoping you’d come.”
“I’m glad. We haven’t talked in ages.” She glanced down at where James’ fingers rested not far from hers. She thought about mentioning she and Daniel had been lovers, though fuck buddies was probably the more appropriate term. There weren’t many dates that didn’t include one or more rounds of wild sex. Yeah, probably not the best thing to mention to his gay lover.
“So how long have you guys been doing this?”
James arched his eyebrow. Heat filled his gaze, and she couldn’t tell if it was directed at her or Daniel.
“The rodeo thing,” she clarified quickly.
“A few years. I needed a header and Daniel was there. What about you?” James turned her hand over and traced a callous on the side of her index finger. “You work with horses too?”
She focused on his finger tracing patters on hand. His touch, so gentle and sure, reminded her of the way he handled a rope. She was willing to bet he handled Daniel in the same manner. Her body tightened, the strength of her wanting forcing her to turn her mind to safer topics, like her horses. She nodded.
“I’m a competitive driver, two in hand. I do combined driving mostly, with a few other events just for fun.” She debated about how much to tell him. Combined driving was a pretty specific horse sport, dealing with various events done with harness horses. It was hard to explain to people outside the sport. Getting one horse to cooperate in harness, let alone two, was a nerve-wracking job sometimes. She suspected any woman who would try to corral these guys would experience much the same thing.
“I’ve heard of it.” His finger slid across the pad of her thumb.
Little shivers found their way down to her pussy, and she pulled her hand away. Down girl. He doesn’t swing your way. She glanced over her shoulder in the direction Daniel had gone. He wasn’t anywhere in sight. Get back here. Your man is making a play for me. Laughter, quickly banked, bubbled up deep inside. A gay man was making a move on her. Yeah. Now that made a whole heck of a lot of sense.
Come on, Daniel. Get back here. She squeezed her thighs together, willing the ache between them to fade away. It didn’t, and she settled herself in for a long afternoon. They hadn’t talked about plans, but she imagined the three of them going back to the rodeo, trailering the horses and probably heading to their respective ranches. She hadn’t thought that far ahead and other than evening chores, her schedule was completely clear.
James caught and held her gaze, his fingers moving over her hand. The slow caresses worked toward her palm and up to her wrist. “It takes good hands to drive horses.”
He caressed her pulse point, back and forth, back and forth, riveting her attention to the dance of his finger across her skin. She swallowed, trying to battle the soft mewl that threatened to emerge from her lips. God, it’d been a long time since a man had gotten her this horny, this fast. She licked her lips, wishing the waitress, or Daniel, would return and break the seductive hold James had over her.
“You know, I bet everything Daniel said about you is true.”
Her eyes widened, imagining some of the stories Daniel might have told. Perhaps about the time they were caught making out behind the hay bales on his parent’s farm. Or maybe when they’d been making out at Lover’s Point and had locked themselves out of the car and their clothes.
“And just what has Daniel said?” Her voice emerged a bit too husky for her liking. She resisted the urge to look behind her. What the hell was taking him so long?