Chapter 8
CHAPTER 8
Kurt
“ Kurt !”
He spun Dana around and gripped her wrists, pinning them to the marble tile of the shower stall in which they were standing. He’d little doubt she’d taken him at his word when he’d said they should “take a quick shower and go grab some breakfast” before they continued their inspection of Rawhide, but that was foolish of her. Considering how long they’d known each other, if she seriously expected she could come into the bathroom looking as fucking gorgeous as she had and think he’d not take advantage of the situation…
She squirmed halfheartedly in his grasp, and he leaned in, making sure she felt what she’d done to him, same as she had over and over the night before.
“Dammit, you said breakfast,” she whimpered.
“Breakfast isn’t going anywhere. Now, be still.”
But she didn’t, instead wiggling her ass against the pressure of his body, defiant as a…
“Brat,” he growled in her ear, taking her lobe between his teeth.
“I’m not a brat!” she protested, but there was more yearning than conviction in her tone.
Kurt adjusted himself and pushed forward into Dana’s pussy, and the slick warmth that wrapped his cock made it clear she wanted this as much as he did. He surged forward until his thighs connected with her backside, then held himself inside her, reveling in the sensation.
Reaching around, he found her clit with the pad of his thumb. “Whose pussy is this?” he rumbled in a low tone.
“Mine,” she gasped, tilting her head back. “Although sometimes I let you play with it.”
“‘Not a brat’ my fucking ass.” He thrust into her hard, and she moaned in response as he filled her. Keeping one hand cupped to her ribcage to hold her in place, he continued to tease her hood with the other while slowly beginning to fuck her. Having sex in a shower was never as easy as they made it look in porn. They were both slippery, and the shower tiles and floor were glossed with a sheen of wetness. It was all a bit of a balancing act, and while shower sex was fun, it was certainly more strenuous than chasing her across the bed as he’d done last night.
“Feels good, doesn’t it, Dana?”
“Yes.”
“Do you want to come?”
“You ask some of the stupidest questions...” she whispered.
“ Hmm ,” he groaned, “maybe so, but I wasn’t wrong, was I?”
“Nn… no.”
“And you are a brat.”
“Nnn… maybe.”
He chuckled, then began thrusting into her rhythmically. Dana’s fingers splayed against the shower wall, and all the previous banter disappeared as her sassy comments turned to animalistic noises as they fucked. It wasn’t long until Kurt felt her clenching around him as they both drew close to the edge of their orgasms.
“Fuck, Dana, I’m going to come,” he growled, driving his cock into her fiercely. “I need to come. Are you…?”
“Yes, sir, yes, sir, yessiryessiryessir …” The words became a babble, the sound echoing through the ba throom over the rain-like hiss of the shower. Kurt teetered at the edge of a cliff with zero chance he was going to stop himself from falling over, and he needed her to come right now.
“Then fucking come!” He slammed into her hard, holding himself rigid as he gave over to his orgasm. For several seconds he wasn’t sure if Dana had come because his entire focus had narrowed to the sensation of his cock jerking inside her.
When he did slip back to the present, it was to Dana’s gasps and her body shuddering within his grasp. They stood together as the ssshhh of warm water cascaded over them, silent until they both had fully calmed.
“Goddamn, you are incredible,” he rumbled against her ear.
“You are, too, sir,” she replied in a breathy tone.
“Did that feel good?”
“Did coming feel good?” She turned to look back at him. “Lord, you are just full of stupid?—”
He cut her off with a swat, and she giggled.
As they finished their shower, Kurt preened somewhat. This wasn’t the first time she’d told him he was incredible, but that didn’t matter; it still stroked his ego. Lately, though, the comment had elicited more than just pride. There’d been awareness of something else, an undercurrent he tried not to put too much thought into. Because if he did, if he allowed himself to dwell on it, he was nervous where the trail would lead, and more.
“So… now what?” he asked as he handed her a towel to dry herself.
Dana laughed. “God, that is so you. We just finished fucking, and the first thing out of your mouth is ‘what next’? ”
“I think it’s a legitimate question!”
“You promised me breakfast.”
“Oh. Shit, I did, didn’t I?”
“We could start with that.”
“Sounds like a plan,” he concurred with a grin.
They dressed and a short time later were seated at a table on the front porch of the main building, the breakfast they’d ordered from the café’s menu sitting in front of them.
“Pleased with yourself, aren’t you?” Dana asked before taking another bite of her waffle.
“What?” Kurt exclaimed, his fork hovering over the omelet he’d chosen.
“Last night… this morning…”
“You invited me!”
“I practically had to drag you to my bed.”
“You did not.”
“‘ Do you want to be left alone’ ,” she mimicked.
“I was being polite. And”—he stabbed his fork at her—“need I remind you, you were the one who told me nothing was going to happen here.”
“I’m not even going to dignify that with a response,” she huffed. “You knew exactly what I meant.”
“Sure. Whatever.”
Dana rolled her eyes, but Kurt caught the smile she was trying to hide. He made no attempt to hide his own, and for a few minutes, they focused on their food. The only sounds came from the murmured conversations of fellow diners seated around them, the clinking of cutlery against china, and the song of a bird sitting on the branch of a tree nearby. It all served to add to the restaurant’s quaint atmosphere, and Kurt had to admit was the perfect complement to what had taken place this morning .
Not to mention last night.
Dana was more than halfway through her meal when she spoke up. “So, do you know how much of the area surrounding Rawhide Ranch is actually owned by Derek Hawkins?”
“I…” He narrowed his eyes. “Well, shit. No, honestly, I don’t.” He looked at her. “Do you?”
She shook her head. “We’re slipping. That should’ve been one of the first things we looked into.”
“Your original research was focused on the mine, right?”
“It was focused on the mine as a starting point, yes, but not as the potential sole source. In fact, I’m betting whatever substantial deposit we do find probably won’t be directly located here. This is simply the best and easiest place to begin the search.” She stared down at her plate. “ Once we can begin the search.”
“Understood, and we will, but until then?”
“We wait,” she said glumly.
“Which I know you hate doing,” he replied, with understanding. “But… thank you.”
She gave him a weak smile, then slowly her eyes widened. “Hold on a second, Didn’t Mr. Hawkins say something last night about someone else sniffing around nearby?”
Kurt frowned. “You’re right, he did.” He furrowed his brow, thinking for a moment. “Wait… do you think it could’ve been Bob Thoenberg?”
“Maybe?” she replied with a slight lift of her shoulders. “But they ended up finding their strike over in Colorado.”
“Right, I know,” he said, capturing her gaze with his. “Because they weren’t as smart as you.”
Dana rolled her eyes. “You know you don’t have to flatter me to fuck me, Kurt,” she replied. “Although I’ll admit it doesn’t hurt.” Flashing him a wicked grin, she continued, “But speaking of being smart, here’s an idea I just thought of...” She pulled her cell out and began tapping at the screen. “Okay, we came in off of Highway 38. This road here”—she flipped her phone around where he could see it—“is Skalkaho Rye Road. We could take a little drive and see if we can visually locate any indications not on the property.”
Kurt nodded. “Are there any other older mines in this area?”
“Not that my research found, but most of the activity around here was over a hundred years ago, so that doesn’t mean there wasn’t work done that went unreported.”
“And you think it could be worth looking at?”
“Evidently someone else did as well. Why, did you have other plans?”
He raised an eyebrow, grinning slowly.
“Oh my God,” she groaned. “I never should’ve invited you back to my room last night.”
Kurt laughed. “Hey, take the compliment. You’re just that irresistible.”
“And you’re just that much of an ass.”
“Okay”—he raised his hand—“seriously, you want to take a drive?”
“It couldn’t hurt.”
“No, I suppose it couldn’t, and besides”—Kurt looked back toward inside the main building—“maybe by the time we get back, Mr. Hawkins will have an answer for us.”
Kurt had the valet bring the car around, and in less than an hour they were on the road Dana had pointed out, winding through the Montana mountains. The early fall air was crisp, the crystalline clarity making the fir-covered hillsides pixelated sharp. The road was dirt and gravel, but snow hadn’t come here yet, so there was no mud, no ruts, and their passage was slow but comfortable.
As they drove, Dana kept her eyes on the countryside around them, and while Kurt did too, he stole more looks in her direction than he probably should have. There was no denying he loved seeing her like this. She was in her element, and Kurt hadn’t been lying when he’d said her intensity was hard not to fall into. Her dark eyes shone with concentration, and the swiveling of her head as she scanned the terrain cascaded her hair back and forth across her shoulders in silky black waves. The mountains blocked the sunlight periodically, highlighting her high cheekbones as it passed from brightness to shadow and back. The tawny color of her skin spoke to her Indian heritage separated by three generations from a country about nine thousand miles from where they now were, as she’d explained to him years ago. There was so much about her he found attractive. So much he loved about her. So much he feared losing if she were to do something that?—.
“Stop, stop, stop!” she shouted.
Kurt slammed on the brakes, his blood pressure suddenly thudding double-time as his foot tried to punch a hole through the floorboard.
“What!” he cried as a slew of dust rose around the SUV as it shuddered to a halt.
“Look,” she instructed, pointing.
Kurt followed her finger, gazing across the canyon to the opposite side.
“Mine tailings?” he murmured .
“I don’t think so,” she replied. “It’s too jagged, too… natural.”
“A draw?”
“More likely erosion from a seep. Look at how the scree has sluffed off downslope.”
“Makes sense.” They both scrutinized the canyon side in silence as the motor idled.
“Notice anything else?” Dana asked quietly a moment later.
He squinted. “Well, it’s clearly sedimentary with a granite capstone. I’m assuming there’s an igneous dike in there somewhere, which would be consistent with the Idaho batholith…”
“Thanks, Professor.” Dana chuckled. “Look closer.”
He did, but a minute later he was shrugging. “Tell me what I’m missing.”
She wiggled her finger. “You see where the debris begins to slip to the left. Look right there.”
“Okay. Are you talking about that silvery-gray sediment?”
“Exactly.”
He turned away from the canyon to look back at her.
“That”—she stabbed her finger—“is bastn?site. I’d bet my life on it.”
He turned back to where she pointed. “Are you sure?”
“I suppose we could hike over and look to be certain.”
Kurt glanced further down the canyon. It was a deep vee, and it was already after noon, which meant if they started now…
“I’d rather not be hiking in the dark.”
“Chicken.”
“No, cautious.” He looked back to the cut. “Besides, we’ve been partners too long for me not to take your deduction at face value.”
“Good boy,” she replied warmly. “Bastn?site means there’s probably monazite and loparite nearby too, and that means…”
“Neodymium and praseodymium.”
“Bingo,” she mused.
“Damn, Dana…”
“I told you I was right. I mean, there’s still no guarantee, but…” She pointed to the cut. “That’s a pretty good indicator right there.”
They drove on for another hour, and though they found several more alluvial slides like the first, none of them held the same promise. Dana continued to watch the canyon sides eagerly, but Kurt was less focused. No, that wasn’t true; he was focused, but it wasn’t on the terrain they drove through.
It was on Dana.
She’d done it again. Just like he’d known she would. It was in circumstances like these he found himself drawn to her so intensely. It wasn’t just her physical appearance that had captured him earlier in the drive. No, right now, it was everything else about Dana that fascinated him. Her intensity. Her incredible intelligence. Her drive. And even though the latter was a source of friction between them, Kurt still couldn’t dislike it entirely. In fact, everything that had happened on this drive reinforced what had been a running opinion of his of late. That with some self-control and discipline, her single-minded determination would be less a risk than a feature. One he knew would take her far in the life they shared…
Together.
That was a dangerous thought. An assumption he was starting to take for granted that he couldn’t afford to. Dana had never made a promise to be anything more than what they were right now, but…. That was where the danger really lay, because to try and deny his thoughts hadn’t veered into that territory already was to live in the same sort of denial Dana did about the risks she took.
Hypocrisy, thy name is Kurt.
He pushed those thoughts aside as they retraced their path and returned to Rawhide, because there was nothing to be gained by obsessing over it right now. By the time they’d made it back to the resort, it was late afternoon, the sun already kissing the mountain ridgeline.
Passing the keys to the SUV over to a cowboy named Dax, Kurt strode up the steps of the main building to where Dana stood in the lobby as the valet returned the car to its parking spot.
“So…” he began, watching the fire crackle in the huge stone hearth.
“So.”
“Dinner again tonight?”
“Mmm… maybe.”
“Maybe?”
Dana grinned. “Yes, maybe. Now that we’re back, I’m going to review my previous research in light of what we saw today. I want to make sure there’s nothing I missed the first time with the spectroradiometry scans.”
“And that impacts dinner… how?”
“Kurt. You know me.”
He let out a deep sigh. “Yes, I do. You’d think as long as we’re here, you could take enough time away from working to?—”
“Enjoy the amenities?” she fired back. “I thought I made it clear why I’m here, and what I wouldn’t be doing.”
“Oh, and after last night you expect me to believe you aren’t willing to make an exception?”
“Last night was the exception.”
“Wow, Dana. Cold.”
She laughed. “Oh, you poor baby. Afraid you’re not going to get laid again while we’re here?”
“The thought had crossed my mind,” he said with faux seriousness.
“Uh huh. Well, the Wi-Fi here is really good, so you’ll have no problem connecting to Pornhub, and I’m pretty sure I saw lube on one of the shelves in the convenience store.”
He stepped in close. “This whole brat thing you’ve been doing lately is cute, but it has its limits,” he warned softly.
“Lately?” she murmured in return.
“Keep pressing your luck, Dana, and I’ll show you what happens to brats.”
“Looking forward to it.” She placed a hand on his chest, pressing but not pushing. “Call me later, and we can talk more about dinner and… perhaps dessert afterwards.” Now she did push, slipping past Kurt to saunter toward her room with an unmistakably suggestive sway to her hips.
Wow. Cold, Dana. Cold.
As she disappeared down the hall, Kurt tried to ignore the lower part of his body that was suddenly demanding attention. Attention she’d created. The damn thing was, now she actually had him thinking about doing what she’d suggested.
And you claim she has no self-control.
Sighing, Kurt turned away from the guest wing and stood looking back into the lobby. He’d explored the grounds, the mine, and a little of the main building, but what he hadn’t done…
Kurt crossed the room and started down the steps into the building’s lower level. He stopped to show the guard his guest key, then passed through a pair of huge double doors. After Yasmin had mentioned what was down here, he’d avoided coming to confirm it. Now, though, curiosity overcame his reluctance, and he slowly stepped into the space listed as the Rawhide Ranch Dungeon.
The stone floor glittered with flecks that refracted the overhead lighting as if a million tiny stars were lining the path ahead of him. He stood for a moment looking around. There were only a few people to be seen, and several of them looked like workers preparing for the evening. There was a lounge space and bar straight ahead of him, and Kurt headed that direction.
The dark wood counter stretched across the center of the room, and Kurt took a seat on one of the leather-upholstered stools, glancing left and right. The only couple was seated at the bar, and they were absorbed in deep discussion. Kurt waited patiently, and soon a young woman came to take his order.
“Do you have an IPA?”
“We have Bent Nail. It’s a local brew. Would you like to try it?”
“Sounds good, thank you.”
She stepped away as Kurt looked around the room once more. The place was big; apart from the bar, a lounge contained a multitude of loveseats, and beyond that a series of steps that led down into another room. In what little he could see, there appeared the faintest outlines of what looked to be other furniture, but he couldn’t distinguish much more from this vantage point.
“Here you go, sir.” The bartender was back and placed a glass in front of him.
“Thanks,” he replied politely, taking a sip of the amber ale she’d suggested. “Very nice,” he complimented her with a smile.
“My pleasure,” she returned, clearly pleased.
“Is that the dungeon over there?” He nodded toward the space he’d been looking into a moment ago.
“Yes, sir. If you’d like to take a look around, please feel free. Just know we close from 7 until 9 each morning and evening to clean and restock.”
“Thank you. I assume it’s pretty busy at nights?”
“Depends. During the school year, it can be a little quiet. Like right now because the semester just started, it’s less busy than normal on weeknights. Summertime, though…” The young woman smiled wistfully. “There are plenty of times I wish I wasn’t working.”
Kurt chuckled.
“Do you have a sub you’re bringing, or are you looking for one?”
He took another sip. “The former, though she’s so wrapped up in her work right now I’m not sure I’ll have the opportunity.”
“Well, you gotta make the opportunity. Believe me, I know all about how it is getting caught up in school and work, and if she’s anything like me, without a firm hand providing guidance, she’ll always find an excuse to put work before pleasure.” She gave him a shrewd smile. “It’s an easy trap to fall into, and a lot harder to get out of without someone to help you.”
“Wise words and good advice,” he replied. Another couple approached the bar, and she stepped away to take care of them. Kurt took another drink, then reached into his pocket and pulled out his cell. Bringing up her number, he hit Call. When it connected, it went immediately to voicemail.
“Hey, it’s me,” he said quietly. “Give me a call back when you have a sec. Thanks.”
That it went to voicemail wasn’t unexpected. She was undoubtedly poring over her files, because when Dana dug into her work, she focused on it to the exclusion of almost everything else. There were a few times Kurt had come up on her in the office in the exact same hunched-over position he’d found her in hours earlier. Or woken in her bed at 3 a.m. to wander back to find her bathed in the bluish light of her computer monitor, absorbed in whatever had her attention at the time. She’d told him on several occasions one of the main satisfactions she got in going to a dungeon was being in the moment, surrounded by others, forced by situation and circumstance to let go of any thoughts of work. She needed the distraction, because otherwise, her brain wouldn’t shut off. She admitted to being driven to the point of obsession sometimes. Kurt recognized that in her and did what he could to make those times as indulgent as possible.
While he finished his beer, he lost himself in memories of things they’d done together, both days like today and nights like the other. When the bartender approached to ask if he wanted another, he waved his hand over his glass.
“Another time,” he said with a smile.
“Enjoy your stay,” she replied with her own as he stood. “And make sure to bring your friend to the Dungeon,” she called out, stopping him as he started to turn away. “Even if you have to drag her. ”
“Probably exactly what I’ll have to do,” he said with a chuckle before turning to go.
He considered calling Dana again but decided against it. She was likely head-down in all her data, trying to draw a connection between the cut they’d seen on the drive and everything she’d put together two years ago. If he wanted to see her—and he really did right now, even if only to talk shop—he’d have to go to her rather than expecting her to respond to him.
Once he’d gone back up the steps into the main lobby, he crossed into the guest wing and followed the hallway until he was in front of Dana’s door.
He knocked. “Dana?”
Nothing. No sound of movement, no door cracking open, just… silence.
She wasn’t napping because Dana was a light sleeper. He stood waiting for several seconds, then tried again.
“Dana?”
Still, there was no sound, no shuffling of a chair away from a desk or any indication she’d heard him at all. Dana could become engrossed in her work, but she’d never ignored him in the past, so if she wasn’t responding it was only because of one reason: she wasn’t there.
Okay, then where is she?
He pulled out his phone and brought up her number. “Hey, Dana, it’s Kurt. Just checking in about dinner. Give me a call when you have a sec. Thanks.” He ended the call, staring at her door. This wasn’t like her. If she wasn’t in her room, and she wasn’t answering his calls, then she must have gone somewhere without letting him know.
I need to get into that mine.
Kurt drew a deep breath. He shouldn’t be thinking what he was because she’d promised she’d be patient. But he couldn’t stop the thought, because she’d made promises before, and broken them too. To serve her own purposes. To get what she wanted, no matter the risk or the cost. She was good at what she did: Kurt had told her as much. But how she did it… that was why Gary had the discussion with him before they came here. That was what—if Kurt couldn’t get her to understand—was going to cost her her job.
Okay, he needed to give her the benefit of the doubt, but sans her calling him back, it couldn’t hurt to head over to the mine to see if she was there. Maybe she was there talking to Roman. Maybe she was sluicing for a sapphire. Or maybe she was simply sitting on one of the benches outside, enjoying the view.
And maybe pigs were flying.
He strode back down the hallway and through the lobby until he was outside then picked his way back along the paths that were starting to become familiar. As he made his way to the mine, he glanced left and right in case he caught sight of Dana. He didn’t, and soon he was stepping through the doorway and into the shop. Roman was there alone, and it looked as if he was finishing for the day.
“Hi. You closing up?”
“Yep. Shop hours are from nine to five. Did you need something?”
“Yeah, my friend from yesterday… did you… did you happen to see her come in?”
“Yeah, she came by a little while ago. I don’t think she stayed long, though.”
“She didn’t?”
“No. She asked if she could walk back into the Exploration Area, but when I went back to check on her, she was gone.”
Shit.
“And you haven’t seen her since?”
“No, sir.”
Kurt knew what the answer was going to be even before the words left Roman’s mouth. He didn’t want to, though. He wanted to believe it would be different this time, that maybe he was jumping the gun. That he needed to give her the benefit of the doubt and maybe this time would be…
Shit. Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit.
“Mind if I take a quick look?” Kurt pointed toward the exploration room.
“I really need to close up...”
“It’ll only take a sec, I swear.”
Roman chewed his lip for a moment. “Alright,” he finally replied, “go ahead. But make it quick, okay? I’d rather not be too late leaving.”
“Thank you.”
As he made his way into the room, it was just as Roman had said; there was no sign of Dana. Kurt looked around to see if she’d left any sign of why she’d come back here, but a quick inspection left him without a clue. The room looked no different than it had when they’d inspected it the day before. Kurt started to turn away, and as he did, he ran his eyes over the gated barricade that prevented access into the mine.
The lock.
Kurt stopped, then slowly began to walk toward it. What was it Dana had said to him at dinner? The padlock’s probably a hundred years old…
She… she wouldn’t.
This is Dana you’re talking about .
He came up to the gate and stopped, staring at it. The lock didn’t look tampered with, but he still reached for it, taking the worn, rusted metal in his fingers. It felt secure, but as he started to turn it over…
It fell open.
Fuck.
The shackle pulled free from the lock body, and as it did Kurt noticed a bluish-gray residue on the shank. He touched it gingerly, a sticky substance coming away on his fingertip as he pulled back.
Fuck. Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck.
She’d jimmied the padlock. The gum she’d used to hold it in a dummy-closed position was classic. A Dana dead-giveaway.
Goddammit.
He pulled out his cell and slammed his finger against the screen until the call went through. Again, straight to voicemail. Before the ‘ leave me a message ’ prompt had finished he cut the call off with an angry jab.
She’d gone down there. He was one hundred and fifty fucking percent sure she had. There was no question of it.
He punched his hand into the wall. “God-fucking-dammit!”
He had a decision to make. He could thank Roman for waiting, then leave the shop. Go outside and wait for her to emerge when she was finished with what she was doing. How long that would take was unknown, but when she did sneak out, he could catch her, confront her and…
The things racing through his head he wanted to do to her started with his palm turning her ass shades of purple and blue and only got more vicious from there. This… how the fuck could she do this to him? Again !
Again.
Because it was again. It was willful ignorance on his part to pretend this was the first time she’d done something like this, because it wasn’t. It wasn’t the first or the third or the fifth. And the thing was, she was going to do it again. Unless he did something to make it clear to her this needed to stop, once and for all, it was going to happen again and again and again. Because she could get away with it. She had and she could, and she would because she clearly wasn’t going to stop of her own accord, and without any ramifications, without some form of discipline…
“Hey! You about done?”
Roman’s voice pulled Kurt out of his reverie. Turning toward the front of the shop, he paused for a moment before answering to consider his next moves.
Just go outside, calm down, and wait for her to come out of the fucking mine where she shouldn’t be. Then, confront her, Kurt. Pull her ass back to her room and finally, finally have the conversation you know you’ve needed to for a long time now.
He could do that, and in terms of drawing attention to what Dana had clearly done, it was probably the least obtrusive.
Or…
“No, I’m not,” he called out. “In fact…” He looked back toward the lock, the gate, the dark tunnel beyond.
“I need your help.”