The Cowboys Ride Again Read online

  Trace moved the side of the bed. She didn’t wait for an invitation. Not his Natalie, she rolled over onto all fours and gazed up at Trace. He touched her expectant face. His cock waved proudly, waiting for her. The little vixen wrapped her fingers around it, opened her mouth, and took Trace’s dick like it was candy. She worked his buddy’s entire cock, played with his balls, and took him down her throat.

  Levi moaned, aware of how painfully hard his own cock was. It needed a nice, tight ass for a nightcap. Reaching down, Levi slid a finger inside her. Once it was wet with her juices, he parted her butt cheeks and worked his finger inside her sweet, tight asshole. Stretching her, he replaced his finger with his hard dick and pushed inside. She moaned. Her hole offered a little resistance, but he persisted and eventually buried himself inside her ass. His thrusts started slow and gained momentum. The smell of sex and sweat filled his nostrils. He gritted his teeth, determined to hold out for maximum pleasure. His entire body was strung so tight he thought it’d explode any second from the incredible pressure building inside.

  Trace’s eyes rolled back. The veins stood out on his neck. His muscles tensed and bunched. He vibrated with the power of his orgasm, and shot his load into Natalie’s mouth.

  With cum dripping down her chin, she glanced over her shoulder at Levi. One look at her and his control fractured. He pulled out as his cock jerked, spreading cum on her gorgeous ass.

  Levi rolled to his back, panting and spent.

  And madly in love with Natalie all over again.

  Chapter 7

  A month passed. Sex had never been this good, yet Natalie kept pushing her own limits. Tonight they enjoyed a normal, quiet evening at home.

  Natalie cooked dinner. Trace set the table, and Levi cleaned up afterward. Then they settled in front of the TV for a movie. It was Natalie’s night to pick the movie, a romantic comedy, which brought groans from both men. They hated chick flicks. Natalie loved them.

  She sat between them on the leather couch. Levi had his arm around her. Trace held her hand. All seemed to be well with the world, yet something felt off, but she didn’t have any idea what it was.

  The doorbell rang, and Natalie jumped. All three of them glanced at each other in surprise. “Expecting anyone?” Levi stood and swept his gaze over both of them. They both shook their heads.

  Feeling sick to her stomach for reasons she couldn’t explain, Natalie followed him to the door. Trace stayed where he was.

  Levi opened the door, and Natalie’s worst fears were realized. Some sixth sense had been trying to warn her, and she’d ignored the warnings.

  Her father, a distinguished man, almost six feet tall, with short gray hair, and impeccably groomed, stood on the porch. Behind him stood his bulldog and chief of staff, Heath Linstrom, and his PR barracuda, Sylvia Lawrence.

  Levi recognized them immediately. His eyes narrowed. His face turned to stone.

  Clifford Andrews didn’t wait to be invited in the house. He pushed past Levi and elbowed his way inside. Shrugging off his coat, he handed it to Levi, as if the man were his servant.

  “Natalie, give your father a hug,” he ordered.

  She complied, like the dutiful little girl she’d once been. His hug crushed her to him, all too clearly emphasizing his control of her and expressing his underlying anger.

  Drawing back he regarded Levi. “Levi, I’m sure you remember my right-hand man, Cliff.”

  “I couldn’t forget him.” Levi didn’t offer to shake their hands and neither seemed to care.

  “This is my PR guru, Sylvia.”

  “Our bags are in the car. Please get them.” He gestured to the black luxury sedan parked in the front of the sprawling ranch house.

  Bristling at being ordered around on his own ranch, Levi’s eyes flashed with anger. For a moment, Natalie expected an argument, then Levi complied, obviously deciding to pick his battles.

  Natalie fidgeted and avoided her father’s eyes. He always reduced her to a little girl with no mind of her own. His visit scared the crap out of her. She could only imagine his wrath when he found out she lived here with two men. It was bad enough for the conservative senator that she lived here with Levi.

  Trace walked down the hallway. He stopped. His shrewd brown eyes assessed the situation. The senator watched him, his expression anything but inviting. Natalie stepped in to do damage control.

  “Dad, this is Trace O’Malley, a good friend of Levi’s and mine. Trace, this is my father, Senator Clifford Andrews, his chief of staff and friend, Heath Linstrom, and his PR coordinator, Sylvia Barrett.”

  Her father snubbed Trace by turning his back on him, dismissing him as inconsequential. Natalie quaked inside, unable to stand up to the imposing man and call him on his rude behavior. She hated being such a coward, but it was next to impossible to undo years of programming.

  Levi returned, laden with bags. Natalie stared at the amount of luggage, and her heart sank.

  “It looks like you’re planning a long stay.” Levi spoke the words as if they left a rancid taste in his mouth.

  “As long as it takes. You can put them in your guest rooms. I assume you’ll have a room for all of us.”

  “Dad, I wish you’d told us you were coming. We would have prepared rooms for you.”

  “You can do that now.”

  Levi and Trace hesitated. Natalie set her jaw and stepped into the hallway with her men. She lowered her voice. “It’s fine. Leave me. This is my battle. I need to stand up to him.”

  “Are you sure?” Levi hesitated. His eyes narrowed. A telltale muscle jerked in his jaw.

  “I’m certain. If I don’t do it now, I’ll never be free of his control.”

  “If you need us, we’ll be in the den.”

  What she needed were some iron balls, instead of a weak pussy. Levi jerked his head at Trace, who took some of the luggage and followed his friend down the hall. They seemed more than relieved to escape the senator and his staff.

  Her father ordered her around like he had when she’d been ten years old. “We’re hungry. There wasn’t a decent place to eat for miles.”

  Bound by her inability to be rude to guests, even uninvited ones, Natalie led them to the kitchen. They sat at the counter, while she thawed and prepared steaks, steamed potatoes, and a mixed a salad, while waiting for the real reason for their visit.

  She didn’t wait long.

  “I’m receiving some disturbing reports about you. I need to know exactly what’s going on at this ranch. So far, I’m not happy with the rumors. They’re troubling, to say the least.”

  “My life is my business.” Natalie’s voice faded to an unconvincing squeak. Her attempt at asserting herself fell flat.

  “Not when it affects your father’s re-election campaign.” Heath’s hands fluttered nervously as the small man hovered over his boss. He perused Natalie’s rumpled clothes. His upper lip curled with disapproval.

  She shuddered with revulsion, as if she’d just been slimed.

  “That’s a concern, but my primary concern is your well-being. I believe you’re being coerced into acts, that are not part of your nature.” Her dad was smooth, too smooth. Natalie’s well-being had never entered into the picture.

  “No one’s coerced me into anything. I’m here because I want to be here.”

  “Living in a house with two men? Surrounded by nothing but male ranch hands? That’s a recipe for disaster and exploitation. It presents a very bad picture.”

  “We’ll find a way to put a positive spin on it.” Sylvia sniffed, as if she smelled something unpleasant. “At the same time, we could gain sympathy by playing up a popular cause such as human trafficking, date rape drugs, something along those lines.”

  “What?” Natalie’s hands shook as she placed their plates in front of them. Her ruthless father’s intentions scared the crap out of her. He’d been known to stop at nothing to get what he wanted. He wanted her away from this ranch, especially Levi and Trace, the men she loved. Her fath
er’s manipulation of power got him where he was today, one of the most powerful men in D.C. She prayed she’d find the strength to resist him. So far, she hadn’t.

  The senator rubbed his chin. “That might work. What else do you have?”

  Natalie’s mouth dropped open as she stared at each one of them. “You can’t accuse Levi and Trace of that. I’m here because I want to be.”

  Her father turned his back on her, ignoring her. Her feelings had never mattered to him before. Why the hell did she think they would now?

  Sylvia leaned forward. Her eyes gleamed with an obsessive light. “We could try the drug route, or perhaps she’s reformed from her life of sin and chosen to do missionary work in a foreign country.”

  “I’m not leaving here.” Her voice squeaked, not exactly the way to assert her will.

  No one paid attention to her as they put their heads together and schemed. What did the three of them know about her relationship with Levi and Trace? They couldn’t know about the threesome. They just couldn’t.

  Clearing their plates, she excused herself from the room. Her father followed her, stopping her in the hallway.

  “I’m not playing games, Natalie. I can ruin your friends and see that they’re locked up for a long time unless you cooperate. What’s going on here is not going to continue. If it gets out, my chances of reelection are destroyed. I won’t let your elicit behavior endanger my future. I raised you better than this.”

  “Dad, please, don’t do anything to hurt them.”

  “With their backgrounds, they don’t stand a chance, especially when I have reliable sources ready to corroborate my story. This is for your own good, Natalie. Those two are trouble. I shouldn’t have let this affair with Levi go on for as long as I did. But adding his friend to the mix is intolerable. Think about it. Saving them is all up to you, but if you mention a word of this to those bastards, I’ll destroy them. They have to think it’s all your idea.” He pointed a finger at her. “Think about it. I’m sure you’ll see fit to do the right thing for all concerned.”

  He turned on his heel and stalked back to the kitchen and his devious supporters.

  Natalie ran for the bathroom. Her stomach in turmoil, she retched into the toilet.

  She didn’t know what to do next.

  Chapter 8

  “Get out of here, please,” Natalie hissed into the darkness. “You can’t be in here.” Oh, man, she didn’t need this. If her dad caught them, he’d go after them with everything he had and then some.

  “What the fuck?” Levi snorted and pulled back the sheets. “It’s my house, unless you know something I don’t.”

  “Please, honey, please. I can’t shake up Daddy any more than he’s already shaken up.” She struggled with the blankets and wrapped them around her like a shield.

  “How about we kick the bastard and his posse out on their pompous asses?” Trace suggested from the other side of the bed.

  “Shh. Be quiet. They’ll hear you.”

  “Who gives a shit?” Trace lay on top of the covers next to her and propped his head on a pillow.

  “I do.”

  “Remind me again. How old are you?”

  She cringed at Levi’s disapproving tone. “Don’t talk to me like that. You sound like my father.”

  “You sound like your father’s daughter. Nat, you’re a big girl. If you want to sleep with one guy or two guys or a whole fucking football stadium full of guys, it’s your business, not his or his minions.” Levi stretched out beside her and nuzzled her neck.

  “Yeah, darlin’, you need to grow a pair of big cojones.”

  “Why? I have you two.”

  “You know what I mean. He can’t keep dictating your life.”

  “It’s not that simple. I can’t undo three decades of being under the man’s thumb. Some of the most powerful men in the world cave when Daddy sets them in his sights. What chance do I have?”

  “You have us. You’re not in it alone.” Levi’s tone softened, sounding more like the man she’d fallen in love with at first sight.

  “Yeah, you do. He doesn’t intimidate us.” Trace snorted and played with a lock of her hair.

  “Thanks. I appreciate it. Regardless, he’s still my father.” Some part of the little girl inside her craved his approval. Another part feared his power. He’d made his threats. They were wrong. She was in it alone.

  “I know that, honey, and I respect that,” Trace conceded, his voice tight and tense.

  “Can’t we pretend we’re all just friends until they leave? If we don’t give him any ammunition, he’ll move on,” Natalie pleaded with them.

  “Him? Are you kidding? He never gives up until he gets his way.” The disapproval in Levi’s voice rattled her.

  “I’ll show him my catering business, which is pretty benign. Levi, Dad was a cattle rancher. Show him your prize Angus bull. And Trace, rodeo stars impress him, so blind him with one of your dinner-platter-sized championship belt buckles.” Wishful thinking, she knew. Impressing her father enough to back off rarely worked. They were nothing more than amateurs attempting to manipulate a master. A major powerbroker in national politics, her father crushed those who dared oppose him.

  No comments from her men. Silence, except for their steady breathing.

  “Please,” she pleaded into the darkness. “I’ll make it up to you big-time after they leave.” Guilt cut through her. Most likely she’d leave with her father He wasn’t giving her an option.

  “How big?” Trace sounded intrigued.

  “Really big. I’ll fulfill your ultimate fantasies.”

  “I’m not sure you’re ready for that yet, babe.” Levi chuckled. His big hand slid under the sheets and stroked her thigh. She slapped him away, but he ignored her.

  “Trust me. I can take anything you can dish out. Just let me have my way on this.”

  Both men sighed as if on cue and sat up. Levi pulled her to him and kissed her, long, deep, and hard. When he pulled back, she panted for breath. Trace didn’t give her any recovery time and kissed her in his own way, tender and gentle with a trace of possessiveness. So like the man.

  Without another word, they crept from the room. Trace’s little dog crawled up on the bed and curled up next to her. Grateful for the company, Natalie stroked the animal’s fur.

  Lying on her back, she stared at the ceiling. The moon through the window cast shadows across the room, much like the shadows across her heart. She’d die if her father found out she’d been participating in a threesome.

  Obviously, she hadn’t come to terms with the social stigma of such a relationship. She didn’t know if she ever would get beyond her guilt and shame, despite how hard she tried.

  She’d been in love with Levi for years. She wasn’t sure what she felt for Trace. Sometimes it felt like love. The three of them lived an out-of-the-ordinary lifestyle, the type her father would never understand. The type Natalie herself was only beginning to understand.

  * * * *

  Tonight was a good night to get drunk. Or at least it seemed that way from Levi’s point of you.

  “The good senator craves control to the point of it being a pathological illness.” Trace popped the top from a beer and passed it to Levi then sank deeper in the warm, swirling water.

  “You’re telling me.” Levi leaned back in the hot tub and stared at the stars in the sky. He rubbed his forehead. His temples throbbed, his jaw ached from clenching it, and even his eyes hurt. Battling with the senator, even under the guise of being polite, emotionally drained him. He’d rather fight a grizzly bear naked with boxing gloves and one hand tied to his dick.

  “I’ve never met anyone so self-absorbed. Shit, it’s all about him, isn’t it? If Natalie wants his love, she needs to cater to his demands and not displease him.”

  “So much for a father’s unconditional love.” Levi took a long pull on his beer.

  “Like you and I would know anything about that.”

  “Not a fucking thing.” Lev
i snorted and snagged a chip from the bowl behind him.

  “The man is a donkey’s ass.”

  “Isn’t that redundant? Besides, what’ve you got against donkeys?”

  “You have a point. We need to get rid of the bastard.” Trace sank lower into the swirling water.

  “No, we don’t, Natalie does. She needs to fight this battle if she ever hopes to be free of his control.”

  “Does she have the strength?”

  “I’m not sure, but as much as I hate the thought, I need to keep him around long enough for her to have a fighting chance. If he has his way, he’ll pack her up and hustle her out of here tomorrow before we can bolster her courage and counteract his brand of poison.”

  “You really love her, don’t you?”

  “With everything I have. What about you?”

  “I’ve never loved a woman. Not sure I’d know what it felt like, but it’s possible I’m heading that direction.”

  Levi nodded. “Who would have thought we’d fall for the same woman and actually be able to share her? She’s one of a kind, but until she separates herself from her father’s control, we don’t stand a chance. He’ll always be there between us.”

  “Do you think he knows about the three of us? Together?”

  “I think he suspects. Let’s face it, you and I don’t have the greatest reputations. He’ll expect the worst of us.”

  “So what do we do?”

  “Rumor has it the senator is badly in need of reelection campaign funds.”