Chapter 4
CHAPTER 4
Gordon
“It’s been far too damn long.” Jared’s welcome rang out as he strode across the lobby of Rawhide’s main lodge. Reaching his target, he ignored the hand that Gordon Sheffield extended and pulled him into a hug.
“Yeah, it has.” Gordon had to agree.
There had been a time when they had seen each other most every day. Their friendship had begun when Jared became a mentor to the younger man when Gordon joined Jared’s firm as a legal intern. He’d been at Gordon’s graduation and had taken him out on the town to celebrate when his protégé passed the bar.
Their friendship became an unbreakable bond when they discovered they shared more than a love of the law. Both were Dominants. Jared’s mentorship continued as he guided Gordon through rules and procedures that weren’t necessarily addressed in a courtroom but were just as important if he ever expected any woman to gift him with her unwavering submission. Both were gifts that had set Gordon’s feet along the path he had been traveling for over a decade, but he was no longer taking the journey alone.
Stepping back, he turned to slip his arm around Lori.
“Lori, this is my old friend, Master Jared Stark. Jared, this is Lori, my Little girl.”
A brief flare of surprise showed in Jared’s eyes as he looked from Gordon to the petite woman standing beside him. His smile was sincere as he bent forward to offer her his hand, shaking hers gently.
“Hello, Miss Lori, it’s a true pleasure to meet you.”
“Is it true you spanked my Daddy?”
Jared’s look of shock lasted but a second before he threw his head back and roared.
Gordon just shook his head at the sound of Lori’s giggles joining in. He dropped down on his haunches in order to be closer to Lori’s level. “What on earth gave you that idea?”
It took a couple of seconds before Lori managed to answer. “I heard Auntie B telling you if you didn’t study, Jared was gonna give you another”—her lips twitched before she added—“spankin’.” Losing the battle to keep the giggles inside, they tumbled free to join Jared’s chuckles.
Shooting his mentor a look, Gordon shook his head. “Sweetie, I think you misunderstood what she told you. Master Jared didn’t really spank me, he just–”
“Excuse me?” Jared managed to stop laughing long enough to butt in. “If you need help to bring your memory back, I’ll be glad to oblige.”
“You aren’t helping,” Gordon huffed.
“I just offered to help you remember the truth,” Jared countered, his eyebrow arching. “Or have you forgotten how I taught you how important being completely honest and transparent are vital in any lasting relationship?”
“Lori, what this big oaf means is that he used me to demonstrate the differences between a Lexan and leather or wooden paddles.”
“Used you? How?”
“Well, he swatted me but–”
“On his bare butt,” Jared clarified.
“Isn’t that a spankin?” Lori asked, her eyes wide.
“What a smart Little girl,” Jared said.
Gordon rolled his eyes and rose, this time with Lori in his arms, fully aware the quivers he felt weren’t caused by distress, but from the laughter she was attempting to hold in. “Smart isn’t the exact word I’d use for either of you”—he gave each of them a stern look—“unless we add the word ‘aleck’.”
“Lori, I think you and I are going to become very good friends. You’re going to love it here. If you ever need anything at all and I’m not around, just ask her.”
Lori turned her head to follow the finger to where Jared was pointing. A very pretty woman was walking toward them, a big smile on her face.
“Who do we have here?” Erika asked, totally ignoring Gordon as she met Lori’s eyes. “Let me see if I can guess your favorite color. Is it pink?”
Gordon made a show of looking down his frame, holding out one arm before transferring Lori’s weight to his other hip to hold out the other. Lori squealed, her arms tightening around his neck as he bent down to pull up first one pant leg then the other to look at his socks. Straightening, he shrugged. “Don’t know why you’d ask me since I don’t appear to be wearing anything pink. Are you going color-blind?”
“Daddy, she means me!” Lori said, holding out the skirt of her dress. “It’s pink.” Removing one arm from around his neck, she held out her hand. “I’m Lori and I love everything pink. Oh, and this is my Daddy. His name is Gordon. He likes green.”
Erika took Lori’s hand and shook it. “My name is Erika. It’s so nice to meet the Little who brought her Daddy to visit us. Even if he likes green. Did my husband remember his manners and offer you a snack?”
“Master Jared is your husband?” Lori asked, looking between her and Jared.
“He is. Did he tell you we have a big basket of goodies for our Little guests to choose from?”
Jared gave an exaggerated moan as Lori shook her head.
Erika sighed. “I didn’t think so. How about we go pick one out while these guys get reacquainted.”
Her question had Lori looking back at him and Gordon smiled. “Would you like that?”
Lori took a moment to consider. “You won’t go far?”
“Nope. I’ll be right over there.” He pointed to a pair of chairs in front of a huge fireplace. “You’ll be able to see me the entire time.”
Looking at the three gathered around her, Lori nodded. “Do you want me to pick a treat for you too?”
“That would be nice.” Kissing her cheek, he set her back on her feet and gently adjusted her dress that had twisted a bit when he picked her up. “Be a good girl now.”
“Okay, Daddy,” she said, taking the hand Erika offered and then turned to look at Master Jared. “I’ll bring you one too.”
“I’d be honored, Miss Lori,” Jared said, giving her a little bow.
The two men watched as Erika led Lori over to the counter of the check-in desk. The pair made quite the sight. Both were petite, and while both submitted to their chosen partners, Erika was not a Little. Her brown hair was short, the pixie cut suiting her perfectly. The white blouse and sleek, A-line skirt, and heels she wore attested to the fact she took her responsibilities of helping to keep Rawhide Ranch running smoothly to heart. Her easy smile and friendly demeanor went a long way in making sure every single guest felt welcome.
Lori’s blonde mane hung to her waist, its weight held back from her face with a large pink bow. Her pink dress’s impressive poufiness was aided by the tulle petticoat beneath it. White tights and shiny, black Mary Janes completed her outfit. Gordon watched Erika swing her newest guest’s hand as they walked away, knowing Lori had just made a friend.
“Seems we have a lot to catch up on, Daddy ,” Jared said.
Gordon chuckled. “It’s still Gordon to you.” Looking around, he said, “Damn, you’ve got a really nice office.”
Jared slapped his friend on the back and the two walked across the lobby to settle into a pair of leather-covered chairs. Gordon turned his slightly to make sure Lori could see him if she chanced to look around. He was very pleased to see she seemed quite occupied with carefully looking through a rather large basket which he gathered held the treats Erika had offered.
“Erika seems great,” Gordon said.
“She is great,” Jared affirmed. “Helping Derek run this place makes her feel fulfilled. With the way we continue to grow, I keep watching for signs of burnout.”
Gordon laughed. “I wouldn’t hold my breath. From what you’ve shared, that woman blossomed and came into her own here. As small as she is, I’m betting she would tear the head off anyone who tried to suggest she’s not capable of doing it all. And, my friend, that includes you.”
Jared smiled but shook his head. “She could try but as right as you are about others, Erika knows I’m not only her husband, I’m her Dom. Even headless, I’d make sure she couldn’t sit comfortably for a week if she ever tried.” He glanced from the counter back to Gordon. “Speaking of which, was it that little demo I gave on paddles that had you change your mind and go from Dominant to Daddy?”
“In your case, I believe smart ass is the better adjective.” Both chuckled before Gordon continued, “Actually, it just sort of developed. You never met her, but do you remember Barbara?”
“Of course, not only did you speak of her quite often, but I do believe she was the reason you moved to Texas.”
“She was a huge part of it, as was the job offer I received. Anyway, after we’d been living together for a couple of years, I was assigned the case which brought Lori into our lives. We all three connected on a pretty intense level. When Lori discovered I was a Dom, she tried to convince Barbara and me as well as herself that she was a submissive. It didn’t take very long before she admitted something was missing, but she wasn’t sure what. Barbara put her in some classes at our club and she came away a Little. You should have seen Lori when she realized Littles could have both a Dominant Uncle and an Auntie B.” He paused as memories played like a film in his mind. “By the time Uncle became Daddy, I would have been anything she needed.”
Jared nodded, his head swiveling to look at the women again. “Yeah. Here we are, big-ass men thinking we rule the world, when it really is the women who choose us simply letting us think we do.”
“True enough, but don’t let them know that. Lori has me wound around her little finger already. She doesn’t need any more leverage or you telling her any more stories. I might not be so magnanimous if the next time I have to put Lori across my knees and roast her ass, she feels the need to remind me Master Jared thinks I’m a wuss.”
“Who’s a wuss?”
The friends looked to see who’d spoken.
Derek Hawkins chuckled when Jared and Gordon both pointed at each other. “Well, that certainly clears that up.” Holding his hand out, he addressed Gordon. “Derek Hawkins, and I’m guessing you are the elusive Gordon Sheffield?”
“You guess correctly,” Gordon said, shaking Derek’s hand. “Jared’s been expounding the virtues of your Ranch for years now. I’m very glad to be able to bring Lori and come see for myself.” He nodded across the lobby where Lori was sitting on a chair, her hands waving in the air as she told some story to Erika. “That’s Lori. She’s my Little girl. She was a bit leery of visiting someplace unknown, but by the looks of her now, I’d say she is already having a good time.”
“Wait until she meets my Sadie and all the other Littles. You might regret coming as your Little might not want to ever leave.”
Gordon smiled. He knew how long it had taken his Little to feel secure enough to even talk to strangers. If Rawhide Ranch helped her to feel brave enough to accept that all the things she craved, even if they were different from those of the vanilla world, were perfectly normal in theirs, he might not want to leave himself. “I look forward to introducing her to your Sadie. Is that her?” he asked as a young woman with turquoise hair joined Erika and Lori at the desk.
“No, that’s Luna. She’s a service submissive and helps out at the desk. I hate to break up their little party, but I need to grab Erika for a video conference that starts in a few minutes. When Moses told me you’d arrived, we both wanted to come meet you and your Lori. How about you bring her over to the Big House for supper tonight? Jared, you and Erika come as well. That will give your Lori a chance to meet my Sadie and give us Bigs an opportunity to talk more.”
“Sounds good,” Jared said. “I’ll get Gordon and Lori settled into their room and let them rest, but we’ll see you tonight.”
After shaking Gordon’s hand again, Derek left them to approach the desk. Erika spoke to him and Gordon watched as the man hunched down to meet Lori.
“I hope your boss isn’t easily offended,” Gordon said. “Lori doesn’t cotton much to strangers, especially men, s…—well, I’ll be damned.”
Jared laughed. “I don’t think there is a Little on this planet who doesn’t cotton to Derek Hawkins. Even when he finds it necessary to roast a Little’s butt, they adore the guy. He has some sort of magical touch that is truly unbelievable.”
“I’d say so,” Gordon said, watching as Derek spun the chair Lori was sitting in, hearing the peals of her giggles all the way across the lobby as the two walked over to join them.
Derek and Erika excused themselves, both promising to see them soon.
“That’s Master Derek,” Lori said. “He’s a real cowboy and said I can ride a pony any time I want to! Can we go pet the ponies, Daddy?”
“Not right now,” Gordon said. “We need to get settled into our room and you, young lady, need a nap.”
“But I’m not sleepy!”
“It’s a rule, babygirl.” He could see Lori trying to decide if throwing a fit would work. To save her time, he added, “And what does breaking a rule earn you?”
Her sweet face flushed hotly. “I guess I can sleep.”
“I guess you can, but that doesn’t answer Daddy’s question.” When his Little shot looks at both Luna and Jared, Gordon knew she was practically begging him not to make her answer. But like he’d told Jared, she was well aware her Daddy was very much a Dom.
“Lori? Does Daddy need to give you a reminder?”
“No!” Evidently she was aware she’d said the word a bit too loudly as her face grew redder. Lowering the volume, she whispered, “Ouchies.”
“What sort of ouchies?” Not for the first time he wondered if there was anything cuter than watching a Little squirm, torn between embarrassment and arousal.
“Bootie ouchies, Daddy.” Big eyes the color of spring grass shone as they looked up at him, her cheeks flushed, her lips slightly parted.
“That’s my good girl,” Gordon said. “Thank you.”
She smiled and slumped a bit in relief before suddenly sitting up straight again. She held up a bag. “Oh, I got you gummy bears. I know you don’t like the red ones, but I can eat those for you.”
Pretty sure the color red would represent the majority of his bag’s contents, he smiled. “Thanks, sweetie. That is very nice of you. I’ll save them for later, and if you are my very good Little girl, I’ll even pick out the red ones and save them for you.”
Lori held out her other hand. “Master Jared, you get worms.”
Jared gave a look of exaggerated delight, rubbing his hands together. “How did you know that I have a fondness for nice, fat, juicy worms?” he asked as he ripped the bag open and drew out a long worm. “Looks yummy.”
Lori looked fascinated as Jared threw his head back and dangled the worm above his open mouth, making it wiggle quite realistically. While Lori giggled, and confessed they weren’t real worms, Gordon introduced himself to Luna and accepted the key cards she offered as well as her welcome to Rawhide.
“Your Little girl is really a sweetheart,” Luna said.
“She is that,” Gordon agreed. He lowered his voice and added, “But fair warning, if she gets overly tired, all bets are off.”
Luna laughed. “She’ll fit right in then.”
Waiting until Jared chewed and swallowed, Gordon scooped Lori up. “Let’s find our room, shall we? I hear it is very nice.”
Lori waved to her new friends and Gordon had to wonder if that magic Jared spoke of included everyone on the Ranch. If so, he couldn’t wait to see what else Rawhide had to offer.