Rough Ride by Piper Stone

Chapter 15

Madisen

Fear was something I’d known my entire life, but never as much as the moment Diego had tossed me into his truck, attempting to take me away from the one place that gave me any kind of peace. He’d been so angry, his eyes full of the need for vengeance. And I’d believed that he would never let me go.

Then my savior had arrived, refusing to allow a horrible storm to keep him from finding me. It was at that moment when Jake had laid eyes on me that I’d fallen hopelessly in love with him. A part of me knew better, but my emotions refused to be denied. He was a cowboy through and through. There was no doubt he’d leave eventually, but I needed him tonight.

As he yanked several blankets off the shelf, tossing them onto the cold, hard floor, there wasn’t a part of me that wasn’t shaking. While the storm was terrifying, the ordeal I’d been through even worse, I was even more afraid of what tomorrow would bring.

Within seconds, we’d become frantic in our efforts to remove our clothes, tossing them aside as if there was no storm threatening to destroy not only the house but everything my dad had worked so hard to achieve. All that mattered was being as close as possible, allowing our heated bodies to mold together. I shivered when he placed the gun in close proximity, but I was grateful that Rutherford had required me to keep a weapon.

Very gently Jake eased me onto the soft blankets, brushing his hands down the length of my hair. In the glow of the lantern, I was able to see so many emotions in his eyes.

Concern.

Anger.

Trepidation.

And love.

I’d never thought a man like Jake could be capable of loving anyone, but there was no doubting the way he felt. As he cupped my jaw, rubbing his thumb across my lips, he shook his head. “I plan on pleasuring you for the rest of my life.”

For some crazy reason, tears formed in my eyes. They were the kind of words I’d wanted to hear my entire life but had never anticipated being able to. When he lowered his head, capturing my mouth, the taste of him was explosive, sending a wave of trickles down my spine. Shivering, I knew it wasn’t from the cold but from my almost desperate need to share our electrifying passion.

He exuded all things masculine, the perfect hero. As the kiss became more savage, his tongue dominating mine, I fell into a sweet lull of desire. There was no storm, no fear of anything outside these concrete block walls. A growl erupted from his throat, tickling my mouth as he swept his arms down the length of my back. He cupped my bottom, crushing my body against his. The feel of his thick, throbbing cock pressed against my stomach made me lightheaded.

I was swooning inside, barely able to catch my breath. For the few precious seconds that the kiss continued, he managed to pull me into a blissful vacuum. My heart hammered against my chest, his touch igniting every one of my senses. I wrapped my arms around his neck, clinging to him as the lifeline he’d become over the past few hours.

Nothing was going to tear us apart.

As he eased his chiseled butt onto the blankets, pulling me down and forcing me to straddle his legs, I couldn’t stop a series of moans from escaping my mouth. I slid my hand down his chest, shivering from the way his muscles felt against my fingers, then I wrapped my hand around his cock, guiding the tip against my swollen folds.

Jake held me aloft, teasing me by wrapping his hand around mine, slicing his cockhead up and down my wet pussy. When he broke the moment of intimacy, he nipped my bottom lip, issuing several guttural sounds.

“Do you want me to fuck you?” he asked in a husky voice.

“Yes. God, yes. Don’t make me wait.”

“Such a bad girl.” He kept our foreheads pressed together as he slipped his cock inside.

The sensations were immediate, rocket flares bursting into every cell and muscle. There was nothing like the feel of having him inside me. Together we rocked, our bodies becoming one. He never blinked, his glorious eyes full of the kind of lust that continued to fuel my desire. The feel of him was even better than before, his skin searing the tips of my fingers, energizing the entire length of my body.

“Oh,” I managed, trying to control my ragged breathing. There was no need for words, no reason to interfere with the special moment. His fingers dug into my bottom as we bucked against each other and within seconds, I was yanked into a glorious round of bliss.

The orgasm was explosive, forcing me to toss my head as the pistons of fire danced through every vein. I opened my mouth, the scream nothing but scattered sounds.

As Jake took over, pulling me up and down on his cock, I realized I’d surrendered to him body and soul. All time had stopped around us, the howling wind becoming impossible to hear. There was only the sound was the combined beating of our hearts.

The single climax erupted into a second, my entire body shaking from the near violence of the vibrations.

“Yes. Yes. Yes!” I lolled my head against him as his breathing became ragged. I knew he was close to coming. I wanted nothing more than for him to fill me with his seed. When I squeezed my muscles, I was overjoyed as he threw his head back and roared, the sound the sweetest music I’d ever heard.

At least a minute later, he wrapped his arms around me, holding me even more tightly than before. When he whispered, the words almost made me cry.

“I could have lost you.”

“But you didn’t,” I managed.

He wrapped his fingers around my hair, slowly pulling me all the way down onto the blanket. As he stroked the side of my face, I shuddered to my very core. “You will never feel unsafe again.”

There was something special about the way we held each other, our arms and legs entwined. Even though I could still hear the howling wind, I believed in the house my dad had built. We would be safe.

“Rest, sweet Madisen. Just rest.”

I closed my eyes, pressing my face against his heated skin as he pulled a blanket over both of us. The moment was magical even though we were locked down in a basement. As I floated away, I continued to think about his words.

I love you…

* * *

Something jolted me out of a deep sleep. As I sat up, I tried to remember what the hell had happened. As the memories of the night before rushed into my mind, I suddenly felt all alone. “Jake.” Quickly turning, I realized he was still asleep. Nothing could have surprised me as much. Leaning over, I brushed hair from his eyes, taking a few seconds to admire just how handsome he was.

When he shifted, finally opening his eyes, I pressed my lips against his.

After smiling he jerked to a sitting position, scanning the basement. “Jesus. I fell asleep.”

“We both did. I think the storm is over.”

He struggled to glance at his watch, exhaling in an exaggerated manner. “It’s morning.”

“Then we should see if anything is left standing.”

He kissed my forehead then struggled to his feet, stretching as he glanced around the room. “Looks like we survived.”

“Mmm… Yes.” After dressing, I noticed he had an envelope in his hand. When he shoved it into his pocket, I inched closer. “What is that?”

“Something that doesn’t matter right now.”

“Are you sure?”

“Very much so. Let me go up the stairs first and don’t you dare disobey me.” While there was a glint in his eyes, I could read his remaining concern. I wasn’t going to fight him at this point, although I was terrified at what we’d find. He unlocked and opened the door slowly, taking a deep breath before pushing it forward.

The house seemed intact, no obvious damage to the inside, yet he kept me behind him as we walked toward the front door. Sunlight filtered into the entrance foyer the moment he opened the door, the glare bright enough that I was forced to shield my eyes. The moment we stepped off the porch surveying the area, I was able to breathe a sigh of relief. There appeared to be minimal damage, although debris from fallen trees was scattered everywhere.

He kept his fingers wrapped around mine as we walked into the yard.

“Nothing we can’t fix,” he said after turning in a full circle.

“Thank God. I was so worried.”

“Maybe karma is finally on our side.” He squeezed my arm before turning toward the sound of an approaching vehicle.

“Devlin,” I said as I walked toward the driveway.

“Guess I owe the man an apology.”

“You thought he was the one who sabotaged the ranch.”

“Yeah,” he huffed. “I did.”

“How did you know it was Diego?”

He turned toward me, a sly grin on his face. “I had a chat with Sheila. Some things became very clear.”

Before I had a chance to ask him what he was talking about, Devlin stepped out of the truck, approaching slowly.

“I thought I’d check on you guys,” Devlin said before removing his sunglasses.

“We’re fine. What about the rest of the ranch?” Jake asked.

“Not bad. Just a whole bunch of debris. From what I hear, other ranches didn’t fare so well, including our friend Bob Cunningham. He suffered major damage to his house and several of the rigs.”

Jake smirked, shaking his head. “Couldn’t have happened to a nicer fellow. What about Diego?”

“He was dropped off at the sheriff’s office. I don’t think he’ll be bothering us any longer.” Devlin’s wide grin was almost infectious.

“Thank you for what you did last night,” I said as I moved closer, giving him a hug.

He tensed, as if uncertain my actions were acceptable to Jake. I almost laughed. “Stop worrying, Devlin. Jake isn’t such a bad guy.”

“You know I care about you, Madisen, as well as this place. It’s my home.” He shifted his gaze toward Jake.

When I eased back, I noticed Jake had extended his hand. “I think I owe you an apology.”

Devlin looked at him, cocking his head. “You thought I was the bad guy. Didn’t ya?”

“Yeah, I guess I did.”

“I don’t blame you. I’m a hard-edged son of a bitch,” Devlin said, laughing as he shook Jake’s hand.

“Then I guess we’re going to get along.” Jake widened his smile but seconds later all three of us were drawn to another vehicle making its way in our direction.

“We have company,” Jake said.

I studied the plain car as it approached, a trickle of fear shifting down my spine. When the car stopped, Jake immediately approached it. I followed closely behind, curious as to why Jake was continuing to smile.

As soon as the man stepped out, I pegged him for an FBI guy, even though he was only wearing a white shirt and dark trousers.

Jake shook his head, both men shaking hands. “Greg Abbot. I was wondering if you’d forgotten all about me.”

“Not a chance. You’re not an easy man to forget,” Greg answered as he lifted his sunglasses, glancing from one side to the other. “You guys were lucky. That storm was a killer last night.”

“Yeah, I think we were. What brings you here?” Jake pushed.

“I thought you’d like to know that the investigation I mentioned is over.”

I inched closer, folding my arms. “Into Cunningham and Whitehorse?”

“Yes, ma’am. I take it you’re Madisen Falwell.” Greg grinned as he studied me. “I’m agent Greg Abbot. I’ve been working on a case against Mr. Cunningham and Mr. Whitehorse for over a year now.”

“Yes, I’m Madisen, so I need to know what’s going on. I’m one of the owners.”

He shot Jake a knowing look. It was obvious the two were friends. “As you might imagine, given the case is still pending, I can’t go into details, but let’s just say that they won’t be bothering you any longer.”

“What happened?” Jake asked.

“The case was blown wide open when I got a call from the sheriff of your good town last night. It seems that the person responsible for handling the dirty deeds for the two gentlemen was ready to sing. We were able to get some of the missing pieces we needed to secure warrants.” Greg shoved his sunglasses into his pocket.

I noticed Jake giving Devlin a nod of respect.

“What does that mean exactly?” I asked, my tone far more demanding that I’d intended.

Greg laughed. “She is a formidable one just like you said, Jake. Again, I can’t go into any real details, but it would appear that the two men in question had been attempting to extort, blackmail, and sabotage several other ranch owners. From all appearances, they’d done some hefty damage in their efforts to sabotage the properties. I don’t think there’s any need to worry. They’ll have their day in court, but my guess is that both men are going to be spending a long time behind bars.”

“Why did they do it? Money? Power?” I continued.

“Remember what I told you, Madisen. Those two things alone can create monsters out of otherwise decent people.” Jake’s voice of reason caused a calming effect, but I continued to believe they’d messed with Rutherford for an entirely different reason.

“He’s right, Madisen. Sometimes there is no substantial reason other than greed. I wouldn’t lose sleep over finding out why,” Greg encouraged.

“I’m not certain I can do that but I’m glad the nightmare is finally over,” I managed, squeezing Jake’s arm. I was surprised when Jake didn’t seem more elated.

“I’d like to think so, at least for you guys. Anyway, I’ll need some additional statements from you folks, but I think you need some time to clean up after the storm.” Greg cocked his head, a grin on his face. “By the way, the asshole who was brought into the sheriff’s office last night had three bullet wounds. He says they came from both of you.”

Jake snorted. “The asshole was lucky he didn’t get one between the eyes.”

Greg shook his head. “Stick with being a bull rider. Would ya?”

“Nah, I’m giving up on that as well.”

Greg whistled then tossed a quick glance in my direction. “I think I can see why. Take care, buddy. I will be in touch.”

I crowded closer to Jake, watching as Greg left only seconds later. “Is it really over?”

“To some degree,” Jake half whispered.

“What does that mean?”

He turned toward me, rubbing his knuckles across my bruised cheek. “We’ll talk about it later. We need to survey the ranch. Check on the horses.” He moved away from me quickly, returning his attention to Devlin. “Again, just wanted to thank you. I owe you one.”

Devlin shrugged. “Maybe you can buy me a beer one of these days.”

“You got it,” Jake answered.

As Devlin headed for his truck, he winked for my benefit. Just before he climbed inside, he leaned over the top of the door. “Jake. I heard you want to learn how to become a roughneck.”

“That’s the going rumor.” Jake lifted his eyebrow as he looked at me.

“Then you’re going to work directly with me. Don’t worry. I’ll make you as tough as the rest of us in no time.”

As he laughed, Jake shook his head. “I can handle it.”

“I thought you could,” Devlin responded, closing the door and gunning the engine.

“I told you he was an upstanding guy,” I said after a few seconds.

“I guess I need to learn to trust you, especially since we have a lot of work to do.”

“As long as we do it together?” My words were posed in a question.

“Lady, you ain’t getting rid of me that easily. Come on. Let’s get out of these clothes.”

“Now, I like the sound of that.”

As he wrapped his arm around me, I had the distinct feeling that whatever he was hiding was going to continue rocking our worlds. My instinct told me that he’d gotten an offer to return to the rodeo circuit and he wouldn’t be able to resist. Even though I’d prepared myself from the day he set foot on the ranch for the possibility, the pain would be almost too much to bear. A cold shiver trickled through me as the ugly thoughts remained in the back of my mind. However, I was determined to place my trust in him.

After all, he was the man who’d stolen my heart.

* * *

Jake

Patience.

I’d been reminded what my mother had told me so regarding my lack of patience several times in the last few days. I still had none and in fact, I wasn’t certain it was so damn bad not having any. That kept my blood pumping and my fury just beneath the surface.

Big Horn had been lucky, the damage sustained minimal in comparison to so many others. Over the course of the last two days, both Madisen and I had worked tirelessly alongside the ranch hands and riggers in clean-up efforts. While the wells were all back online contamination free, the damage had been done to the contract Madisen had mentioned on more than one occasion.

However, I was determined to fix that.

The news Sheila had provided continued to weigh on my mind. While there was no reason at this point to do the right thing since the two ranches beside Big Horn had been shut down given the arrest of Cunningham, Whitehorse, and a slew of men who’d helped them with their extortion schemes, I knew how Madisen would react. That’s why I’d made a few calls to a geologist friend of mine. Hopefully he could provide some answers after making a few tests. I’d wait to share the news until I knew the full extent of what we were dealing with.

And I knew in my gut she’d be livid as a wildcat, but I also wanted to spare her any additional worry. Too much had gone on in a damn short period of time.

Madisen was one of the good guys, a woman who always played by the rules. I was the bad boy who wanted nothing more than to sway her from considering anything I called foolish. One thing I was determined to do was revitalize the contract with the second largest oil refinery in the state.

“Jake. You can’t go barging in like this,” Madisen hissed as she tried to stop me from going inside the building.

I took a deep breath, staring up at the all-glass skyscraper. I might not be an oil man, but after all the research I’d done in the last twenty-four hours, I knew that obtaining a contract with East Refineries had been one hell of a big deal. While the initial contract was small in comparison to others, a test of what Big Horn could produce, it could lead to multimillions of dollars over time.

Except that Marcus Wellington, the district’s general manager, hadn’t returned a single one of Madisen’s calls.

“Who the hell says I can’t?”

She laughed. “Just about everybody in the real world. We don’t need the contract any longer. Remember? I’ve received three more inquiries just this morning. With two major oil producing ranches shut down, refineries are facing a shortage.”

“It’s the point, Madisen. Do you trust me?” I asked quietly.

“Absolutely, but Marcus isn’t the kind of man to be bullied.”

“You know what? Something has bothered me since you told me what Marcus said to you. I did a little snooping, made a few phone calls. Did you know Marcus’ daddy went to college with Bob Cunningham?”

Madisen narrowed her eyes. “Interesting. What are you trying to tell me?”

“That I think Marcus was strong-armed into canceling the contract with Big Horn. My guess is that he’ll be more than happy to reinstate the terms, of course with a hefty difference in price in our favor.”

She gave me a sly smile as she shook her head. “You aren’t going to take no for an answer. Are you?”

“Nope.”

“You’re hardheaded.”

“That’s why you love me.” Love. The word still seemed foreign to me, although saying it to her had felt natural. I could see an odd flash in her eyes, a moment of pain. “Just trust me. With their wells shut down, there’s a good chance he’d reconsider. It’s worth a try.” I wasn’t going to tell her that if the asshole didn’t renegotiate the contract, then he’d have me to deal with in an entirely different way.

“I do trust you. Just don’t ruin our reputation.” She gave me a stern look although her eyes sparkled.

I grinned as I led her to the main doors. “I have no plans to do so whatsoever.”

I whistled the entire time we were in the elevator, likely pissing off everyone who’d stepped inside. I was a man who believed in making points. Mr. Wellington deserved to know it.

When we walked inside the man’s office, I was more than impressed with the posh surroundings. Oil made one hell of a lot of money.

“Can I help you?” the receptionist asked. Within seconds, I could tell she’d recognized me. “You’re Thunder Travers.”

“I am indeed, sugar. I need to speak with Mr. Wellington if he has a few seconds. Trust me. It won’t take very long.” I kept my shit-eating grin as she blushed.

“I think he’ll be honored to have such a celebrity visit him. I’ll be right back,” she whispered then pressed her hand over her lips.

When the woman had walked away, Madisen punched me in the back. “You’re incorrigible.”

“Yup. I’m glad you figured that out.”

As the receptionist led us to Marcus’ office, I kept the same grin. Might as well take out the celebrity aspect for a spin for the last time.

Before making the arrangements to move to Oklahoma.

Tomorrow should be special because I was doing something I’d sworn against my entire life.

I only prayed I was doing the right thing.