Chapter 8

"How was the riding today, kids?" Loretta asked her children.

She was lying in the sun on a deck chair on the patio outside the main house, sipping a gin and tonic. The man, Tex, who owned the ranch, stood at her side.

"Great Mom!" Tanya ran by to go into the house and take a shower.

"Yeah, it was just great!" Jason too seemed to be in a hurry to get inside.

Tex smiled at Mrs. Reynolds after her children had disappeared.

"Your children seemed to have enjoyed their first day on horses."

"Mmmmmm-mmmm," she smiled. She looked up at him ironically.

He sat down on a chaise lounge near her and stroked the little blue veins in her hands. He said, "I'm going in to see that everything is ready for dinner. See you later?" He didn't smile. He rarely smiled.

His sun-burnt face looked like it would have cracked if he really tried to smile.

But the corners of his mouth just turned up ever so slightly.

"Umm-hmmmm," she said and she tickled the palm of his hand.

He left the pretty woman lying in the sun. She closed her eyes and began dreaming.

She recalled the strange, incredible, unexpected events of the day.

She'd gotten up late, after the kids already left.

There was a pool outside the house and she planned to spend the day lying beside it, doing absolutely nothing. But soaking up the sunshine.

But when she came out in her black bikini, which showed off her firm, ample figure she found Tex had other plans for her. He looked her up and down once.

She could tell the unmistakable signs of appreciation of her shapely figure.

He licked his dry lips. He was wearing his pressed jeans and black shirt (it seemed he always wore a black, cowboy style shirt) and his Stetson. And his pointed cowboy boots.

He was holding a thick lasso.

"What are your plans for today, Mrs. Reynolds?" he asked.

But before she had time to answer her he told her, "I'd like to give you a tour of the ranch. It's a pretty place, and I think you'll enjoy it."

He didn't give her a choice. "Well, of course, Mr. Babcock."

She hurried into a pair of sandals and slipped a long, sheer loose gown over her bikini. She slipped on her sunglasses, and followed him.

They walked all over the huge sprawling estate. They walked until Loretta's feet were quite sore. She was only wearing a thin pair of leather sandals.

He told her to call him Tex, and she said he could call her Loretta.

"Er, Tex, I can't walk anymore. I'm not used to this kind of exercise."

She was trying to keep up with him as he climbed some rocks.

He laughed at her and pulled her up by the hand.

"City women!" he said contemptuously and he spat on the ground.

But still he continued to hold her hand and he stood behind her and pressed his body against hers. She was astonished, but she found she didn't even mind him taking this kind of liberty. She even rather liked it.

She had been faithful to her husband all the time of their marriage. But now she found herself strangely turned on by this taciturn, craggy-faced cowboy. She even let him put his hands on her breasts and squeeze them.

"My, you sure do take liberties with a lady, Mr. Babcock," she said, imitating a Western drawl. She stared at him over the scene of green rolling hills.

He slapped her ass and started walking again.

She had to run to keep up. She was a hot steaming mess when they got back to the ranch buildings. Although he had touched her and spoken to her familiarly, he had not made any move to try and take her while they were out in the lonely woods.

She was hot and perspiring from the heat and from the constant touching. But she didn't know what this forward man was after.

He was starting to seem not so charming, and rather irritating.

"I think I've had enough for the day," she said stopping in front of the stables.

"But you haven't seen the stables, yet," he said with his slight smile.

"Some other time," she said haughtily, walking away.

"I said, but you haven't seen the stables yet, lady," he said and he grabbed her and picked her up and carried her into the horsy-smelling stalls.

She was kicking her legs and screaming, "Put me down!"

He just slapped her ass and carried her inside.

When he put her down inside the dark cool stable, she had to blink for several minutes before she could see. Then she got accustomed to the light.

She was aware of several large, breathing horses around her.

"Yes, well it's very nice in here. And now I think I'll just..."

"Stop!" his voice rang out in the darkness.

There was something authoritative about his voice that made her obey.

"Yes?" she said, waiting tentatively to see what he wanted.

"Did I tell you, you could leave?" He seemed even taller in the darkness.

"Well," she laughed. "I don't have to do everything you say."

She laughed uneasily. He was approaching. She heard a horse in a stall stamp its hooves. She moved away. She saw that he was carrying a whip in his hands.

He moved past her. "Have you ever seen a horse really close up, Mrs. Reynolds?"

"No," she said reaching down to massage her sore feet.

He opened one of the stalls. "Come here and look at this beauty."

She hobbled over. Standing there was one of the most beautiful beasts she had ever seen in her life. Pure black, with a shining coat, the stallion glared at her.

"Up boy," Tex snapped his whip once in the air.

The powerful beast whinnied and reared up in the air.

"One of the finest animals on the East Coast, Mrs. Reynolds," he said preferring to call her by her married name and remain formal.

"Yes," she murmured appreciatively, "he's quite a specimen."

She had come up beside him now. She wanted to put her arm around his waist.

But he seemed to have forgotten her. He was very tall.

He turned around slowly and slid his hands down into her gown.

Her nipples rose in the palms of his hands. Again, she didn't know why she was letting this stranger do this to her. Except that he fascinated her.