Bonus Scene
Matthew
“You looking for Connor?” Atlas asks, his voice deep and throaty, just like you’d imagine a cowboy would be.
I noticed it the first time I came to the ranch, and it has this way of rippling through me like a song I can’t escape.
He’s wearing a dark red flannel shirt, and it clings to every muscle as he leads a huge black horse toward the stables.
“Yeah, I have a few things to go over. Is he down with the cuddly ones?”
His lips spread into a wide smile, and it’s like the sun just got brighter.
Not that he’d notice me looking. At least he hasn’t yet.
I’ve caught myself staring more than once since I moved to town.
It’s hard not to when your childhood wet dream is a real-life fucking horseman standing right in front of you.
He probably thinks I’m just another city boy playing cowboy, and he’d be mostly right, except I’m not trying to play anything.
I know what I know about ranches from studying the Richmont Group business dealings, and while this is the first ranch I’ve actually ever stepped foot on, I knew right away that it’s different.
“If he isn’t there, he could be checking the fences.”
“So… what’s wrong with this one?” I ask, and he frowns. “I mean, like he doesn’t faint too, does he, she. It?”
“This is Queenie, and she’s about the most sure-footed mare you’ll find out here or on any ranch within a thousand miles. She used to be a famous show jumper,” he says, running his hand down her mane.
“What happened?” I ask, stepping closer, which was a huge fucking mistake because the wind shifts and all I get is a huge lungful of his scent, sweet and musky and fucking delicious.
“Same thing that happens to every showgirl, they get replaced by a shiny new model. But out here, you’re still the star of the show, aren’t you, Queenie?”
I reach up and run my gloved hand down her side. The weather out here is slowly getting warmer, but it’s still freezing compared to the climate-controlled offices I’m used to back in Houston.
“Do you ride?” Atlas asks.
“Motorbikes and quads but never something with a mind of its own.”
“Scared they’ll take you places you’ve never been?”
“Something like that.”
“Well, if you change your mind, you know where to find us.”
“I’ll keep that in mind, thanks,” I reply, and he nods and disappears down the path, his ass lifting side to side in a rhythmic sway framed perfectly by his leather chapped pants.
I find Connor lying against Miss Moo, or Milky, I always forget which is which, his face hidden by his hat, arms folded over his chest.
“What you got for me today?” he asks before I even say a word.
“The purchase went through for the ranch in Montana.”
“Great, and the family that works it, are they still happy to stay on?” he asks, lifting his hat.
“Yeah. They invited you down to see it if you want me to book a trip?”
“I’m good here, as long as they keep doing what they do, I’m happy.”
“The board will want more than that.”
“Then they can go visit. Next,” Connor says, and I scroll through my list on my phone. “The board is proposing another acquisition of a neighboring ranch. I’ll bring you the details when they send them, but I’m guessing if you buy it, you’ll want the family to stay there too?”
He taps his nose, and the large cow shifts behind him.
“Are we disturbing your sleep?” he asks the cow, pushing up into a kneel and rubbing behind the cow’s ear like he’s petting a large dog. “Okay, what else?”
“Your grandfather’s estate is set to go up for auction in two weeks.”
“See, now that is great news. What about the belongings?”
“I had them all catalogued like you asked and put in storage.”
“Good, can you send me the list?”
“I’ll send you the link,” I say, going through my online drive and selecting the folder containing lists of all of his grandfather’s possessions.
It took a team of five two weeks to photograph and log every item before packing up and moving into storage.
“Okay, you should have the link now. Let me know the item numbers of anything you want to have shipped out here.”
“Thanks. Anything else?”
“The materials and the team you hired to build the extension on the stables should be here today.”
“Nice, oh, umm, can you check with Atlas if he’s still good with the location? Dean said the final say rests with him.”
“Sure, he was just over there, so I can ask.”
Connor checks his watch.
“He normally heads back to his place for lunch about now, you know where that is?”
“Back of the horse paddocks?”
“Yeah, but—“
“I’ll find it. I have to get my bearings about this place sooner or later.”
“Okay. Sure, well, let me know.”
“Will do,” I say, and I head back over to the stables.
Just like Connor loves living near his mini cows and cuddle cove, it seems like Atlas loves living near his horses.
You can’t even see his place from the ranch, and when I don’t find him at the stables, I make a start around the horse paddock to find him.
I stroll along the outer edge, boots crunching under my feet as the slightly warmer air whips at my back.
It’s been a week since we last saw snow, so the ground has had time to dry.
Through the thickening tree line, I can just make out the horses taking in some sun, galloping in a group like you might see them do in the wild.
I get almost all the way to the end when I finally spot what I think is his trailer through the trees.
I weave through the dense tree line toward the rail and heave myself up, the cool wood cutting through my thin gloves as I manage to get one leg over top.
Just when I think I have a handle on it, my body slips sideways, my grip on the rail fails, and I land face-first, hard against the ground with a thud.
“You alright there?” Atlas asks as I scrub the dirt from my cheek, the sting of the landing spreading like a flame across my face. I push up onto my knees, but the moment my gaze lifts, I’m met with a long, thick cock right in my face, with a perfect big blue vein running down one side.
“I’m penis. I mean, I’m fine,” I stutter as he chuckles and offers me a hand.
“Most people go around,” Atlas says, nodding to the railing behind me as he helps me stand. My back aches with every movement I make, but it’s hard to focus on anything except the fact that I’m standing outside with a very naked horseman wearing only a pair of winter boots and a smile.
“I… the stables. The delivery is coming. I mean, it will be here today, soon. Connor said you have the say where it goes,” I finally manage to get out, my voice pitchy and my heart racing as I struggle not to keep looking at his dick and imagining how glorious it must look hard when it already has me weak in the knees.
“Oh, fantastic. Wait there, I’ll come with you,” he says, turning and jogging toward his trailer.
I swear he’s running in slow motion in my mind, his back like a map of muscle, every inch of him tanned and toned down to his perfect round ass that picks up with each step, giving me an instant semi. I think I’m going to like it here.