Chapter 2
Chapter Two
Kennedy
Standing in Alden’s living room in nothing but my bra and panties, I tried to limit my grumbling. He took my well-being seriously but spent far too much time inspecting my body. Being pulled from one horse to another at something more than a canter had knocked the wind out of my sails. Everything from my waist down felt bruised. My neck and shoulder muscles were knotted with tension.
Alden glanced at me, his blue eyes sparkling with something I couldn’t name. Lust? No . Mirth? Something else. Arousal? His calloused hands brushed across my hips, stoking a fire in my core. Maybe some part of him was happy to be touching me even after a serious situation. Rubbing his hands over each of my legs, he took care as he made his way to my ankles. “Does anything hurt more when I touch it, darlin’?”
“Not more than my pride. Especially since you were lecturing me before practice.”
“Reminding you of important shit since you haven’t done this in a long time isn’t a lecture, sweetheart.”
“You obviously believed today was my first day on a horse.”
Alden rolled his eyes. “I tell you the same thing every time you come over here. Where’s this little attitude coming from?”
Staring down at Alden, I huffed. He had no idea the sorts of things that had been flying through my brain the past few minutes.
“I don’t know. Maybe I was distracted.” I threw a lame half-hearted response at him.
“When you’re ready to ride again we’ll have a conversation about the importance of double-checking the latch. That way distractions or not, you’ll know it’s secured.”
“Will that conversation involve your strap?”
Alden cocked his head slightly. He studied me for a moment as if trying to figure out exactly why I was goading him into something physical. He had spanked me more often than anyone else in my life, but only for fun.
“Does it need to?”
“No,” I said, sulking. Though there was a part of me that wanted to say yes. Maybe it would be a better deterrent than another boring lecture.
Alden picked up my right foot. “You’re not being honest, but we’ll come back to it. Are your ankles sore or stiff?”
“Isn’t that the same thing?”
“Sort of, but I want to make sure they aren’t injured. Rotate your ankle, darlin’.”
“Oh, I understand. It’s stiff, but it doesn’t hurt like a sprain.”
“That’s good.”
He repeated the process with the other one, standing up when he’d finished. I owed him a better answer to his question about physical correction. Before either of us could say anything else, the back door banged open and slammed closed, announcing Wyatt’s arrival. His presence halted our conversation.
“Horse is in the barn. I rubbed him down. Fed him. Didn’t want him thinking he was bad.”
“Does that work for you too?” Alden asked mischievously.
“You should try it and see. I did a good job today.” Wyatt winked as he strutted over to us. His attention was suddenly diverted to me. He leaned into my body and touched my waist.
“Can you back up, Wyatt? I’m almost naked.”
Undeterred, he continued eyeing the bruises and pointing them out. “You looked fucking majestic on Topaz! Your hair was blowing, your tits were perky. It was like watching a movie trailer.”
“Wyatt,” I huffed in an exasperated tone. His dark-red hair flopped across one eye and he pushed it out of his face while he straightened. Did he always look ruggedly handsome? Probably.
Something of a playboy, Wyatt had a reputation. Then again, that had been back when he was riding the circuit. A lot of them had reputations. He and Luke Rhineheart started many rumors especially with the amount of times they’d dated each other. Wyatt used to bet with our crew to see how many people he could get to fall for him at one show. That was a long, long time ago, I reminded myself.
Luke wasn’t reckless any longer. At least not since settling down with Elias and Emma. Maybe Wyatt had changed over the years. Or maybe not? Regardless, his intense gaze left me feeling like a pile of goo.
“You’ve got a hell of a bruise here, sweetheart,” he said, murmuring. “Put some Arnica on it when you get home.”
Alden studied the spot, nodding in agreement. “Sorry, darlin’. I only had one chance to get you off Topaz. Those bruises are where I grabbed you.”
“It’s fine,” I said quickly. “But I’m in my bra and panties. Tell Wyatt to be a gentleman!”
“I am a gentleman,” Wyatt answered, waggling his eyebrows. “Would you like me to strip down to my boxers so we’re even?”
“No! You’re close to my–” Their combined gazes brought another rush of heat to my face. Neither of them had done anything inappropriate. Still, I couldn’t stop the arousal consuming me. What the fuck was my problem? Too many nights being alone. That was my problem. “–woman parts.”
“Want me to kiss it better?” Wyatt grinned.
“Absolutely not!”
“Might take your mind off it,” he said flirtatiously.
“Give her space, Firecracker,” Alden chided, using his ring name and call sign simultaneously.
Our small town had unreliable cell service but the radio service worked when there was an issue. There were even dispatchers at the firehouse and police headquarters who manned emergency lines 24/7. We often communicated that way, and all knew each other’s call signs, using them interchangeably with names.
Wyatt pouted, sticking his lower lip out until Alden raised his eyebrows. Was he in a mood too? Aroused and lonely? He’d been involved with people romantically but no one ever stuck around. Maybe under his rough exterior, he had a secret soft spot like Alden. My eyes flicked to his cupid-bow-shaped mouth. Wyatt kissed almost everyone in our friend group back when we’d played stupid party games in our twenties. But I couldn’t remember if we had made out or not. I was pretty sure I’d remember since he was incredibly attractive.
Wyatt grabbed a bottle of water out of the fridge and leaned against the kitchen island. “Did I make you uncomfortable, trix?” he asked in between large gulps of water.
He and Alden sometimes shortened my call sign to a sweet term of endearment based on my love of trick riding. That and back when they were both in the circuit, I’d play tricks on them until one of them caught me and responded. Back then it was more of an attention getter, but a playful swat on the butt went a longer way then.
“Nah. If you touch me inappropriately, I’ll grab your balls and squeeze until you get out of my face.”
“I might be into that.”
“Kennedy needs rest. Let her be,” Alden said, growling as he spoke.
“Sorry, Daddy. I’ll behave,” he quipped.
Alden set his jaw, and shook his head. He stepped to the counter, tugged Wyatt close to him and cracked his palm off his jean-clad ass twice. Wyatt yelped and the water bottle went flying.
“Don’t call me a title without my permission. A Daddy sets rules, enacts consequences. Is that something you wanna explore?”
Wyatt rubbed his hand across the seat of his jeans and glared. “No!” He cleaned up the mess and drank the rest of the water. The two of them battled often but I couldn’t recall them getting physical in front of me. Alden had a point. My knowledge of the sort of relationships or dynamics Wyatt sought was limited. His left boot grazed the floorboard, and he raised his head to meet Alden’s gaze. I thought maybe he’d been suddenly shy, but desire blazed in his hazel eyes. Shooting a flirty glance in my direction, he then swept it to Alden.
Alden took Wyatt’s chin in between his index and pointer finger, raising it slightly as he stared. Something about the way the two were acting turned me on. My raging hormones needed to calm the fuck down.
“Answer me. Do you want me to explore a dynamic?” Alden kept his hold.
“Maybe I do,” Wyatt replied, his pupils huge. “What happens if I don’t behave?”
“I’ll take you to the barn, bare your ass, and show you what happens when you call me Daddy. You been a smartass since you strutted onto my ranch. It stops now.”
“I’d like to continue this conversation away from Kennedy,” Wyatt said gruffly.
I held up my hands in what I hoped was a placating fashion. “I’m not judging you, Wyatt. But I am exhausted. Let me get dressed while I still can.”
“Getting pulled from one thousand-pound horse to another while they are moving is like being involved in a minor car crash. I’ll grab you some ibuprofen and give you some privacy,” Wyatt offered.
“Thank you. I’d appreciate that a lot.”
I watched him swagger up the hallway. At least his confidence returned. Alden shot another glass of honey whiskey. His second since we came in from the barn. He didn’t drink often, which meant our ordeal had likely gotten to him more than he let on. “Are you still upset?”
“No, sweetheart. I’m not upset.”
“I’ve never seen you, uh, physically respond to Wyatt.”
Alden cocked his head to the side, studying me for a moment. “Titles, at least to me, are more than just a few letters strung together.”
“Aren’t you both dominant? I guess I’m not sure how that’d work,” I said, a bit confused. It wasn’t that the dynamic confused me, but the two of them.
“Wyatt also enjoys being submissive. I do not.”
Alden lifted me up in his arms. I sighed, blowing out a long breath. “I appreciate the clarification. You make it sound simple. Hey! Where are we going?”
I knew him well enough to know he was distracting me from whatever he was about to propose, otherwise he would have let me get dressed.
“I’m bringing you to the guest room. Stay here tonight.”
“You’ve done enough.”
“I’ll cook my famous buttermilk pancakes in the mornin’.”
My mouth watered. Alden had perfected his recipe. I knew without asking that he had huckleberry and wild raspberry preserve in his pantry. It tasted divine on top of pancakes along with homemade whipped cream. I joked that someone rough around the edges shouldn’t cook and bake like a domestic goddess.
“Now you’re bribing me,” I said as if I wasn’t dreaming of pancakes.
“The aftermath isn’t going to be pleasant. I’ll spoil you all day.”
“Why on earth would you do that?”
“Somebody ought to. It might as well be me.”
“Alden–”
“Stay here one day, darlin’. I’m not asking you to move in.”
I hated how well he read me. The most surprising part was that if he asked me to move in, my bags would be packed before he finished the question.
“Do you still have my clothes?”
“Yeah, in the dresser. You have stuff to wear tonight and to change into tomorrow. I’ll throw your outfit in with my wash.”
“Cooking me delicious food, waiting on me, and doing my laundry? You drive a hard bargain,” I said sweetly. “Okay, I’ll stay.”
“You’ll sleep better here.”
My resolve had been slipping since he picked me up. Before the mention of yummy food. Had I been crushing on him again? That was a dumb question. Alden hadn’t left my dreams…