Chapter Seven
The following morning, Peyton woke up, and she was facing Shae. His arms were wrapped around her, as they were every single morning.
They were having unprotected sex. She knew the risks but was also a little worried about telling him. He surely knew what he was doing, didn’t he? The risks of having unprotected sex—a baby.
Shae was the one to tell her he would end it when he decided. What if she got pregnant? Would he leave her? Toss her aside? Would she have to raise this baby all alone? The very thought of it scared her. She would do it. Their baby.
Being pregnant didn’t scare her. She wanted to fall in love, be a mom, and have a large family. Be with a man who loved her as much as she loved him. The thought of having a baby Shae wanted nothing to do with, and everyone in town knowing the truth, terrified her.
They were finally getting along. Talking. Learning about one another. He had shocked her by admitting he was the one who owned the building and the business her parents had worked so hard for. Not once did Shae come to take the business from her. Only when her sister caused trouble did he come.
She didn’t regret the deal she made with him with regard to Lily-May. What did scare her was the feelings swirling inside her heart. Shae was not hers. He didn’t belong to her. And she didn’t know why that bothered her so much, but it did. Peyton had never felt this way about anyone.
As she looked at him, she had to wonder what he was thinking. Then, as if he could feel her eyes on him, he opened his and looked at her. “Good morning, beautiful,” he said.
Why did he have to say things like that, that made her want him even more?
“Morning.”
“How long have you been awake?”
“Just a few minutes.”
“I am not used to someone being awake before me.”
This made her smile. “I’m pretty sure you have had many women in this bed.” She had to keep reminding herself he was with a lot of other people before her.
“No other woman has been in this bed,” he said.
“What?”
“Do you think I’d make you sleep on a mattress that other women had been on? I never brought women back to the ranch. They wanted to come but only to see what stuff I’d gotten. I never brought them back here. My dad always said the only woman that came to the ranch was the one who stayed.”
Okay, did he even realize how that sounded?
“Why did you bring me?” she asked.
Shae looked at her. “Because I wanted you here.”
She nodded.
They didn’t speak and she couldn’t help but lick her lips as she glanced over at him. Last night had been incredible. They had sex in his office, and after she had ridden him on his sofa, Shae had carried her to the desk where he fucked her hard and fast.
“You know, that flush to your cheeks tells me you’re thinking of all the dirty things I could do to you.”
“It does?”
“You’re going to tell me you’re not thinking about how good my cock feels inside your cunt?”
“You say it so dirtily.”
He chuckled. “There’s no other way to say it.” He gripped the back of her neck, pulled her in close, and kissed her lips. “Do you want me to show you another way?”
“Yes.”
In the back of her mind, she knew there were a lot more things she should be asking, but they failed to come to her.
He pulled the blanket off her body, and like every other time, she was not wearing a stitch of clothing.
Shae groaned, and she didn’t get a chance to ask him what was the matter, as he leaned down and then took one of her nipples into his mouth.
He quickly moved onto the other one, sucking the hard bud within his mouth, making her cry out, arching up against him.
Shae moved between her thighs, and for some reason she expected him to kiss down her body, only he shocked her as he grabbed her hips and without being too gentle, he flipped her over so she had no choice but to go to her knees.
He ran his hands up her back, curving around to grasp her tits, then down toward her ass, squeezing the flesh.
She moaned as he spread the cheeks of her ass, and then his fingers delved between her thighs as he stroked her clit. He pulled back, and pressed not one, but two fingers inside her, and he pushed them to the knuckle.
“You’re so wet for me,” he said, groaning as he did so.
Peyton didn’t have time to think as he pulled his fingers from her body, and then she felt the tip of his cock as he started to press inside her from behind.
Both of his hands returned to her hips, and he held them tightly as he sunk, inch by inch.
From this angle, it was like he could go deeper than he ever had before, making her sink her teeth into her bottom lip.
He gripped her ass, spreading the cheeks. “Let me hear you moan.”
She let go of her lip, then moaned as he suddenly slammed the last inch of himself inside her, and he was to the hilt. The pain and pleasure mingled. One was not stronger than the other.
Sinking her fists into the sheet beneath her, she was pretty sure she could see the stars, but Shae was not done with her.
He took his time, easing out of her, but not quite leaving her, and then slamming inside. Each time he did so, it was like he was hitting her cervix, taking her breath away. Peyton didn’t think she was going to be able to take any more, but then he began to tease her clit, and she cried out.
Her body was no longer her own, but belonged to him as he drove her higher and higher, until there was nothing she could do but come apart in his arms. Shae held her tightly as he then rode her pussy, driving in deep, and she pushed back against him, not wanting him to stop.
She felt the thickening of his cock, and then he pushed forward, driving inside her and pulsing as he spilled every droplet of cum deep within her. They were both panting, but Shae spread the cheeks of her ass, and she felt him start to ease out of her.
“Fuck me, that is a pretty sight,” he said.
She felt his fingers at her core, and what he did next surprised her, as he pulled them right back and circled the tight ring of her anus. Peyton tensed up, as she knew exactly what he wanted.
“One day, I’ll have this virgin ass as well.”
****
Shae watched as Peyton climbed out of the truck, headed toward the gate, opening it up, and he drove through. She waited until he was all the way clear, and then closed the gate. He was taking her on a ride through the ranch, and she had taken to the work better than he could have imagined.
She had on one of his sweaters and a jacket, along with a scarf. They had gotten a blast of cold, and he was checking on the cattle.
The ranchers he employed were also working, checking the fences and doing what they needed to do. He ran a tight ship when it came to the ranch. His father always said it didn’t matter what the other businesses were doing, as long as the ranch stayed above water.
The ranch had been earning its keep for as long as he could remember. The Marino name and brand was one that rivaled most in the state. The legacy that had been handed to him was one he intended to hand to his son or daughter.
Just thinking about the children he and Peyton were going to have reminded him of this morning, spilling his seed inside her.
Today, he got to see it dripping from her pussy, and it was a pretty sight to see.
He just couldn’t resist teasing her, drawing it across her ass, knowing he was going to claim her ass soon enough.
She climbed back into the truck, and her cheeks were lovely and flushed.
“You loving it?”
“Yeah, I am. I had no idea you had so much land.”
“Ranching has been in my family for many generations. My father always told me the ranch had to come first.” Well, the protection of the town came first, and the ranch was a part of that.
“It’s like a huge piece of history is attached to your land,” she said.
“Yeah, it is.”
“Do you like ranching?”
“Yeah. There is nothing quite like being in the open country, you know, smelling that air. Of course, the cow shit smell is disgusting, and there are parts of it that suck. Sick cows, poachers, that kind of thing. We don’t get many poachers anymore.”
Anyone who did attempt to steal from him ended up dead. He hadn’t dealt with a poacher in a few years.
They rode along the fence. Usually, he did this on his horse, but with how cold it was and the fact Peyton couldn’t ride, he wasn’t going to make her nervous. Partway down the west side of the fence, he saw a break in one of them.
“Shit,” he said.
Pulling his truck to a stop, he parked the car. “Do you want to help?”
“Yeah.”
He loved her excitement.
Climbing out, he got the wire and his tools, and with Peyton’s help, he changed the wire that had snapped and made sure to remove it so none of the cows would get tangled up in it.
He’d done that once when he was a boy—left the wire, and one of the calves got caught up in it.
His dad made him sit with that cow for two weeks until it had fully healed.
He learned his lesson and never left shit lying around again.
Once the fence was fixed, he tossed everything into the back of the truck and climbed inside.
Peyton did the same. After checking all the fences, then responding to a call from one of his men, he checked on one of the cows that didn’t look so good.
Before they drove back to the ranch, they called the vet, and he got one of his employees to take the cow to a holding shed where they could care for the cow properly.
Arriving back on the ranch, he saw that several of his men were climbing into their cars and heading out.
“What’s going on?” she asked.
He checked his watch and saw it was a little after five. “They’re heading to the diner.”
“Why?”
“Since my mom died, we stopped feeding them on the ranch.”
“You have?”
“Yeah. Didn’t have a cook willing to make so much food in one go. William comes out when he can, but he also makes them go to the diner.”
Peyton frowned. “Do you want me to cook for you?”
“You’re busy at the bakery. That is not going to work, you coming to the ranch.”
“What if I did it in advance?”
“No,” he said. He went to her and cupped her face. “You’re not doing double the work.” And with that, he kissed her lips.
“But it just seems wrong, and they deserve a good meal.”
“They’ll get one. William takes care of them, and I pay for it.” He shrugged. “It’s no big deal.”
He did miss his mother being in the kitchen. The downside to living on the ranch that was handed down generations was the memories. They hurt.
“Do you miss your parents?” Peyton asked.
He stopped and turned to look at her. It was like she had read his mind. “Yeah, I do.”
She nodded. “I miss mine too, and I think it’s scary that sometimes I wish I could yell at them for keeping the trouble they were in to themselves.”
“You think it would have made it easier knowing what they were going through?” he asked.
“No, it wouldn’t have made it easier, but I might have been able to help. They were not bad parents at all. I know Lily-May doesn’t show that.”
“It’s not always the parents’ fault for how kids turn out.”
He saw her smile.
“I think they would have been so disappointed in me for making that deal with you.” She sighed. “But you know what?”
“What?”
“I don’t care. I know deep down that I should care but it was always something with her.
She wouldn’t just leave the business alone.
I might have actually been in a better place than I am now if it weren’t for her.
I might have been able to hire someone myself.
I’m running on that thin line. Each day it is make or break. ” She sighed.
“I won’t let anything happen.”
“You can’t guarantee the future,” she said. “If a shiny new place opens up, I’m screwed.”
“Everyone adores you, and I’m here. I’ll help you figure it out.” He had every intention of marrying her. Keeping her.
“Thank you,” she said. “You know, you have a lovely place. It is amazing out here.”
“You like it?” he asked.
“Not just like, I love it.” She sighed and he watched as she took a deep breath, and he realized for the first time she was relaxed. “I mean, it is a little cold, but other than that, it’s perfect.”
“Come on, let’s head inside,” he said.
They made their way inside his home, and William was busy at the moment, so it was up to Shae to feed himself and Peyton.
He took hold of her hand, as they made their way into his home and went straight to the kitchen.
It was a classic ranching kitchen. Three large ovens, plenty of stoves, lots of kitchen counters to work on, and a massive sink for all the dishes.
There was a lot here. His mother had redesigned the whole kitchen to make it more efficient.
“Have a seat.”
“You’re going to cook for me?” she asked.
“It’s only right seeing as you’ve been my helper all morning,” he said.
This made her chuckle. “Go on then, show me how it is done.”
He opened up the fridge, and he wanted to get her real excited so he pulled out a large packet of sliced ham, lots of cheese, and then to top it off, some pickles, and as he winked at her, she started to laugh.
“A ham and cheese pickle sandwich. It sounds like a delight.”
He smirked, and he got to work making her a sandwich. He loved having her eyes on him at all times.