Winters Thaw

chapter Seven


Sienna sat on the front porch, rocking slowly on the swing. While her eyes were taking in all the happenings of the ranch, she wasn’t seeing a damn thing. It was her day off. She’d intended to use the time to do a little Christmas shopping, but she couldn’t manage to wrap her head around the holiday.

After a week of sneaking out for midnight rendezvous with Daniel, she was tired, sore in places that had never hurt before and flying so high off the ground, she couldn’t see Earth.

So far, she and Daniel had managed to keep their change of status from friends to lovers a secret from her immediate family. Only her cousins knew. She smiled when she recalled the very long group grilling she’d received after her first night in Daniel’s RV.

She’d never seen Jade so impressed and, if she wasn’t mistaken, Sterling had appeared a bit jealous. Of her. It was fun to be the wild Compass girl for once. For the first time in her life, she could see the appeal of cutting loose, having fun, living on instinct.

She and Daniel had agreed to keep their relationship a secret because neither of them was sure how her father would react. Daniel needed his job and, given the fact Sienna had never dated any boy besides Josh, there were some unknowns in terms of how far she could push Dad’s protective streak. Sex with a boyfriend was one thing, but a casual affair with one of his ranch hands? Sienna had no desire to approach her father and say, “Oh, by the way, Dad, I’m sleeping with Daniel. But don’t worry. It’s nothing serious. Just f*cking.”

Vivi and Hope walked out onto the front porch.

“There you are,” Vivi said, joining her on the swing. Hope claimed a rocking chair nearby. Vivi and Hope had a standing weekly lunch date. Usually, Hope would pick her up and take Vivi out somewhere special, but as their grandmother had just started to recover from a head cold, they’d opted to stay in today.

Sienna grasped her grandmother’s hand. “Did you two have a nice lunch date?”

Vivi nodded. “We sure did. Hope’s chicken salad is officially better than mine. My reign as ruler of the kitchen is over.”

They laughed, then Vivi lifted her face and took a deep breath. “The fresh air feels good. It’s a pretty day.”

Sienna agreed. They were having a brief respite from the chilly weather. Today’s sunshine actually felt warm for a change. “That’s one reason why I decided to hang out here rather than tackle the shops. Unfortunately, I’m afraid I’m going to pay for that later. I still don’t have Christmas gifts for James or Dad.”

Vivi pulled her sweater around her, her legs moving in time with Sienna’s as they rocked on the swing. “Your mom and I went in together to buy your dad that new saddle he’s had his eye on. That man will buy the boys the best of everything when it comes to riding equipment, but he never manages to get himself anything nice. I swear he’s used the same saddle for nearly twenty years. I can’t believe the thing hasn’t fallen apart.”

Sienna nodded. “Yeah, that’s true. Maybe you and mom are on to something there. I’ll talk to Daniel to see if there’s anything else Dad’s using in the stable that could stand to be replaced.”

Hope spent a few minutes listing all the things she’d bought for her family. Sienna grinned as she listened. Hope was the queen of Christmas. She usually had her shopping finished and her presents wrapped before Halloween. While Sienna wasn’t quite that efficient, she was typically in better shape by this time of the year. If she didn’t get her act together soon, she’d be doing the Christmas Eve dash with Jade and Sterling. Something she never thought she’d have to do.

It had been a weird winter. Hell, the whole year had been screwed up. And yet, Sienna couldn’t muster any regret or sadness. Truth be told, she was having the time of her life.

Vivi smiled. “Sounds like you found some really nice things, Hope. Jody and I got Seth a new saddle. I can’t wait to see his face when he opens the box. That one he’s using now is about to fall apart.”

Hope gave Sienna a funny look before turning her gaze back to their grandmother. “You just told us that, Vivi.”

“Oh. Did I?” Vivi frowned as warning bells sounded in Sienna’s head.

Sienna leaned closer. “I’d like to make you an appointment to come in and see Dr. Spencer.”

“Why?” Vivi asked. “I just had a checkup six months ago.”

Sienna nodded. “Even so, I’m concerned about these lapses of memory you keep having.”

Hope chimed in. “I think a checkup is a great idea.”

Vivi waved away their concerns, dismissing their anxiety with a joke. “You’re worrying for nothing. When you get to be my age, you’re lucky if you can remember your own name most days.”

“Even so, I’d feel better if you’d go,” Sienna pressed.

Hope bent forward, resting her elbows on her knees. “So would I.”

“No,” Vivi snapped, rising from the swing angrily. “There’s not a thing wrong with me and I don’t appreciate you girls pestering me. My memory is fine.”

Hope bit her lip nervously. Sienna shared her cousin’s surprise and anxiety. Vivi had never lost her temper with them. Ever.

“Vivi,” Sienna started, trying to keep her voice softer, calm. “I just think—”

“Dammit, Jody. I said no!”

Sienna wasn’t sure how to respond.

Finally, it was Hope’s quiet voice that filled the silence. “That’s not Jody, Vivi. It’s Sienna.”

Vivi’s angry face melted away as bewilderment clouded her eyes. Sienna realized she preferred the anger. Her grandmother’s gaze passed from Sienna to Hope, appearing so lost, it took all the strength in Sienna’s body not to rise and wrap Vivi up in her embrace. To drop her request. To promise that everything would be okay.

“Fine,” Vivi said at last. “Set up the appointment, Sienna. I’ll go.” She walked back into the house leaving Hope and Sienna floundering for answers.





It was several hours later when Sienna made her way to the stable. She and Hope had made an appointment with Sienna’s boss for after New Year’s. Dr. Spencer assured them he’d do a thorough exam and he agreed that the girls were right to insist Vivi come in.

Once they’d spoken to the doctor, they called Sterling and Jade to tell them what had happened. All four girls made plans to accompany Vivi to the appointment. Talking to her cousins had gone a long way to soothing Sienna’s concerns, but she still couldn’t quite let go of her anxiety.

She hoped Daniel could offer her some sort of solace. He had a way of taking her mind off her worries, either with jokes or sexual innuendoes. Every night, they’d come together in a mad dash, stripping off their clothing and tumbling onto the bed, barely speaking a word. The sex was incredible, but she enjoyed the cuddling that came afterwards just as much. Daniel would hold her as they talked—their conversations little bits of nothing most of the time. Lately, it felt as if he was tempering so many of her rough edges.

After her distressing conversation with Vivi, she hoped to do some forgetting of her own.

She glanced around the stable, disappointed when she found it empty. She hadn’t sought Daniel out during the day this week, appreciating their need to be circumspect. But today…she needed him.

“Hey,” Sienna cried when strong arms engulfed her from behind. She relaxed within seconds, recognizing Daniel’s touch.

“Shh.” Daniel’s breath tickled her ear. “Walk.”

She obeyed his hushed demand for silence, amazed by the instant arousal his touch provoked. He propelled her toward the tack room. The windowless space was small and dark. Once they were inside, Daniel didn’t bother to turn on the light. She jerked when she heard the door close behind them, twisting in his arms.

“What are you do—”

Daniel cut off her question with a kiss that not only robbed her words, it stole her air as well.

“No talking or I’ll gag you.”

Daniel’s voice was dark, threatening, hot as hell. God, he’d remembered her capture fantasy. She’d secretly worried she had told him too much about her dark desires that first night because he hadn’t mentioned them since.

In the past week, though the sex had been hotter than hell, it had also been fairly straightforward. Usually, he met her outside the back door of her house and walked with her to his trailer. By the time they got to his place, they were too hot and bothered to do much more than tear each other’s clothes off and f*ck as if their lives depended on it. She’d never felt so much passion, such heart-racing need in her life. The days dragged by at a snail’s pace while she waited for the time when she could fall into Daniel’s bed again.

“Daniel,” she started.

He turned her away from him, dragging her arms behind her back. “You’ve got the wrong guy. Now be quiet and you won’t get hurt.”

She shivered with excitement when she felt him wrap something around her wrists. He was tying her up. This was real.

She wasn’t about to waste a hot fantasy. Sienna started to struggle. Her sudden spring into motion caught Daniel by surprise, but only for a moment. Then he managed to recapture the arm she’d freed, showing her exactly how strong he was.

Once she was secured, her hands bound behind her back, he spun her around.

“Bad girl,” he said in a hushed whisper.

She could hear the voices of several ranch hands passing by outside. The idea that they could be caught at any moment increased her arousal more than she would have thought possible. “Did you lock the door?”

Daniel didn’t respond. God. Had he? She couldn’t remember hearing the lock snick into place, but she hadn’t exactly been listening for it. Anyone could walk in.

His hands caught in her hair, tugging it tightly as he drew her closer. “You’re mine.” Two words had never sounded so threatening…and delicious.

She tried to escape his grip. He would have to earn the right to that claim. “I belong to myself.”

“Is that right?”

They spoke softly, their voices hushed so they wouldn’t be heard beyond the door. The same couldn’t be said of the men speaking outside. A few of the ranch hands were obviously hanging out after a long day’s work, chewing the fat—as her father would say. The stable was never a quiet place this time of day. Sienna couldn’t believe Daniel was taking such a risk.

“I’ve captured you. I can do any damn thing to you that I want.”

The stable was filled with male laughter. She trembled with anticipation and a healthy dose of fear. Who would have thought those two emotions could be so arousing?

“In fact, I could open that door and invite some of those cowboys to join us.”

It was an empty threat. At least…she thought it was.

What did she really know about Daniel’s preferences? They’d spent their nights lost in a haze of sexual exploration, but there hadn’t been much in the way of pillow talk. None of the usual let’s-get-acquainted games that Jade and Sterling had told her were common in new relationships. She and Daniel had gone straight from acquaintances to friends with benefits. She’d purposely avoided delving deeper into his past because she was determined to take her grandmother’s advice. This was the new Sienna. The one who took each day as it came.

“How many should I let in? Two? Three? Six?”

She gasped, trying to fill her lungs with air. Would he really share her? Would she let him?

F*ck. Her heart tripled its pace as she considered what it would be like to be taken by so many men at one time. Curiosity warred with true panic. “Daniel. I—”

Her voice seized up. Daniel seemed to take her sudden silence as consent.

“I see.” Daniel released his grip, walking toward the door.

Panic set in. “No!” Her refusal came out louder than she intended, but it didn’t appear that anyone in the stable heard.

Daniel returned to her and his hands gripped her face between his large palms. Her eyes had begun to adjust to the dim room. She could see relief in his expression. “Good. I don’t share.”

He didn’t need to freaking share. There were times when she felt like he was too much man for her. He’d driven her to orgasm after orgasm, night after night.

However, the idea that he would have gone against character to offer her a different fantasy touched her. He’d truly walked to the door with the intention of giving her what he thought she wanted. Had anyone ever cared so much about her desires? Had Josh?

She’d promised Daniel their first night together she wouldn’t bring Josh into the bedroom with them. She’d tried very hard to keep that vow, but there were times when it was nearly impossible not to make comparisons. The sum total of her sexual experiences had been exclusively with Josh. He was the yardstick she measured by.

Or had.

Something told her from now on, Daniel was going to be the stick. And she had very little faith anyone else would ever compare.

She tried to escape his grip, while shaking off her memories. She wanted this and she wasn’t going to waste a single second thinking about the past. “You can’t control me,” she taunted. “I’m free, remember? I can sleep with anyone I please.”

She heard the rasping of a zipper, then felt Daniel pressing her down, toward the floor. “I told you not to talk. Looks like I’ll have to fill that sweet mouth to keep you quiet.”

She dropped to her knees far too willingly for a captive. Daniel chuckled at her enthusiasm. “My beautiful slut.”

It was a strong word. Sienna started to blast him for it, starting to stand as she did so, but Daniel’s strength was irrefutable. He had the power to take whatever he desired and he proved it. With one of his hands, he cupped the back of her neck, holding her in place, while the other guided his cock to her mouth.

“What were you saying about control?” He pushed the mushroom-shaped head between her lips.

God, he was trying to provoke her on purpose, initiating a fight. She tried to rise, but he held her in place, his large palms engulfing her face as he pushed his cock deeper. She truly was captive. The fantasy gave way, mingling with reality, taking her to a place she’d never known.

She tried to shrug off the bindings at her wrists, but her cowboy knew his knots. Try as she may, she wouldn’t be released from their hold until he decided it was time.

He continued to thrust his cock into her mouth and soon her struggles for freedom turned to silent demands for more. Her p-ssy clenched, and she longed for the use of her hands. If only she could touch herself. Two quick strokes on her * and she’d likely go off like a bottle rocket. She whimpered around Daniel’s thick erection—torn between how much she loved his dominance and the temptation to demand he take care of her needs first.

Every night, she’d come to his bed, desperate for his touch.

Every night, she’d become his willing slave, relinquishing every ounce of control into his very capable hands.

It was heady, addictive, overwhelming. An absolute release of power.

Her inner muscles tightened again and she cried out, the intense need painful.

Daniel didn’t give in. “Be a good girl and suck my dick, Sienna. Give me what I ask for and I’ll make sure you get what you need.”

Her brain screamed at her to bite him for being such a cocky male chauvinist pig. Her body refused. She was putty in his hands.

Soon, she became aware of how much she relied on her ability to touch during blowjobs. She’d use her fingers to help her, cupping Daniel’s balls, squeezing the base. Without them, she was forced to pay attention to her tongue, her teeth. She closed her lips tighter around him and sucked. She was rewarded by Daniel’s low groan.

“God, yeah. Just like that.” His words of praise drove her on. She pressed her tongue more firmly against the sensitive spot just beneath the head. His fingers gripped her hair, pulling until her scalp tingled with a pain that besieged her, turning into a pleasure that weaved its way down to her empty p-ssy. She sucked harder.

“F*ck.” Daniel’s tone told her he was close. “Not this way.”

His hands reached beneath her arms, tugging her up before he could come. Sienna started to complain. She was dying to taste him. “No. Wait—”

He halted her with a hard, short kiss.

“You’re going to finish that blowjob later tonight. But for now, turn around.”

She complied without argument, too far gone to consider anything except the fact she needed to obey, needed his cock inside her. Now.

Daniel, the gentlest of souls with the horses and her brothers, turned into a demanding sex god in the bedroom. She never knew what he’d do next, yet she’d never experienced anything at his hands that didn’t make her toes curl with incredible delight.

He released the ties around her wrists. Sienna missed them instantly. A disappointed mewl escaped, and Daniel chuckled. “Don’t worry. Those ties are going to get plenty more use. I have plans to see you bound spread-eagle on my bed…a few times.”

She licked her lips, imagining just how much she enjoyed being at Daniel’s mercy. His hands made quick work of the snap and zipper of her jeans. He tugged the denim and her panties down, using his boot to help him tug one leg free from around her shoe. He didn’t bother to free himself or her of any more clothing.

“Hey,” she heard a male voice call from the stable. “Anybody seen Lennon?”

She giggled, nerves mingling with provocation. Daniel’s hand crept around her, covering her mouth. More moisture dampened her p-ssy. God. She wasn’t sure what it said about her, but she loved the way he manhandled her.

She felt the head of his cock graze her opening as he pushed her legs farther apart.

“F*ck.” He released her mouth and she felt him rooting around in the dark. She knew what was missing.

“I’m on birth control.”

Daniel stopped moving. “Sienna—”

“F*ck me, Daniel. Now.” He wasn’t the only one capable of making some demands.

He was back in an instant, his cock penetrating her in one rough thrust that made her groan.

“Didn’t realize just how loud a lover you are.” Daniel’s jest would have provoked a laugh if he didn’t punctuate it with two deeper, harder passes.

“God,” she cried.

His hand returned to her mouth, causing her p-ssy to tighten.

“Holy shit. Keep doing that and this isn’t going to last long.” He used his free hand to pinch one of her nipples roughly. Her cunt clamped down again and she barely restrained from coming.

“That’s it, Sienna. Be ready for tonight, sweetheart. I’m going to tie you up, gag you, f*ck you hard.”

She squirmed in his arms, struggling for more. He increased his thrusts. They were back to chest, with very little room to move. It didn’t matter. Daniel’s rough possession, his hand on her mouth, his whispered dirty words filled every empty, lonely spot inside her.

She trembled as he rubbed her *. “You’re mine. Come for me, Sienna.”

Her body splintered, ruptured into a million bright shiny pieces, putting the sun to shame. She’d never felt so desired, so beautiful, so complete.

Daniel came with her, his come filling her. His arms tightened around her, supporting her with that strength she’d come to rely on. He’d never let her fall.

Vivi’s story about JD flashed through her mind. No. This was different. So different.

Wasn’t it?

Neither of them moved for several moments as they waited for their breathing and hearts to slow. Daniel was the first to stir.

He withdrew, fastened his pants, then bent to dress her. Once he had her jeans in place, he gripped her waist and offered her a kiss so sweet, it seemed in direct opposition to the forceful claim he’d just staked.

“Stick around a little while,” he said. “You can help me work with that new horse your dad just bought.”

Sienna wanted nothing more than to spend the afternoon with Daniel, but without the protection of the condom, she was a bit sticky. “I should probably go inside. Get a shower.”

He shook his head. “No. You’re staying with me. I like the idea of you walking around with my scent on your skin, my come inside you. I told you, See. You’re mine.”

His words confused her, thrilled her, scared her. While he’d staked his claim on her body, he’d never alluded to expecting anything more from her.

Maybe they’d been fools to jump into bed without setting up guidelines. This was what came from living day-to-day. The old Sienna would never have let this affair begin without establishing rules.

She started to protest his assertion, but the words wouldn’t come. She was happy for the first time in a long time. She wouldn’t ruin things by reverting to character.

“I’ll stay,” she said.

He walked to the door. She was relieved when she watched him unlock it. He’d protected her, even while giving her the illusion of danger. “Where’s the key that opens the door from the outside?”

“In my pocket.”

She grinned, standing back as he opened the door and looked around. “Coast is clear. Come on.”

She followed him to the corral where her dad’s new horse stood. “Now,” he said, handing her a halter and a rope, “why don’t you tell me why you were so upset earlier?”

He’d noticed that? “What?”

“I didn’t like that serious expression on your face,” he said. “Thought you could use a diversion.”

She laughed. “Here’s a little FYI for you. You can distract me anytime.”

He winked. “I appreciate the permission. And just so you know, I intended to do that anyway. So what’s up?”

They worked side-by-side for nearly an hour as she told him about her concerns over Vivi’s failing memory. He listened patiently, offering words of comfort and advice, until the heaviness that lingered in her chest lifted completely.

As they washed up, he told her dirty jokes until tears streamed down her face. One week had passed since she’d entered this casual affair with Daniel.

It had been the best week of her life.