Ball and Chain (17 page)

“Hey, there!” the bartender said as he walked over to where Clint was standing. “If it isn't the great Clint Adams.”

“Not so great, but Clint Adams all the same,” Clint corrected.

“Fair enough. What can I get for you?”

“How about a beer?”

“Sure thing!”

Noticing that the barkeep seemed to be gearing up for an announcement, Clint leaned forward and said, “A beer and nothing else to go along with it.”

“Ben told me not to let you pay for your own drinks while you're here,” the barkeep said. “He also made it clear that you should be known as a hero in this place.”

“I'll pay for my own beer, just as long as I can drink it in some peace and quiet.”

Patting the top of the bar, the barkeep nodded. “Just trying to liven up the place. Most men like a bit of fanfare.”

“Your place seems lively enough already. I'll just take a beer.”

The barkeep filled a glass to the brim and set it down in front of Clint. When he saw the money in Clint's hand, he said, “Still on the house, friend.”

“Much obliged. Say, would you happen to recall if there was anyone else that came in here? Maybe someone during that little party Ben threw for me?”

After thinking it over for a second, the barkeep winced. “A whole lot of men were in here. Soon as someone starts buying drinks, they flock to my bar like vultures.”

“That's what I figured,” Clint replied with a shrug. After that, he took a drink of his beer and savored the bitter taste of it.

“What did the fellas look like?”

Glancing up as if he were surprised the barkeep was still standing there, Clint told him, “One was a big man with blond hair and a dumb face. The other was about my height with stringy hair. Both of them would have been armed.”

“The smaller one have a limp?”

Holding his glass up without drinking from it, Clint said, “Yeah. He was shot in his right hip.”

“That's the one. I saw him, but not the other.”

“Are you sure?”

The barkeep nodded. “I try to remember all the men that come in here heeled. I can't always commit them to memory, but it wasn't that long ago when that man came in here.”

“You're sure it was him?” Clint asked.

“He walked like his right leg was hurt. He carried a gun and he looked more or less like you described. I even saw him down the street a ways in front of the Ranger Hotel earlier tonight. That place serves a fairly good steak. A bit too much gristle, but that's neither here nor there.”

“The Ranger Hotel, you say?”

“I don't know if he's still there or not, but you can see for yourself. He may not even be the man you're after, but it's worth a look.”

Clint downed the rest of his beer and nodded. “I was thinking the same thing.”

“Make love to me.”

When Acklund had come back into town, he'd been angry at his brother. Actually, he'd been angry at both brothers. Dave was the idiot who'd turned everything into a mess by associating with the likes of Al and Rob, while Mose was the idiot who insisted on trusting those two assholes.

Acklund still wore a scowl on his face as he asked, “What did you say?”

Smiling as if she'd been hoping to repeat herself, Ellie leaned in closer to him and whispered, “Make love to me.”

“I don't know about that.”

“I've been thinking about this ever since you left.”

“But,” Acklund cut in, “that was only—”

“I'm tired of thinking,” Ellie said as though she didn't even realize he'd been trying to speak to her. “This night has been so good and I don't want it to end. I want it to get better. I want you so much.” Suddenly, her eyes snapped open and she asked, “Do you want me, too?”

“Of course I do. I just—”

“Then come to my room,” Ellie said happily. She grabbed him by the arm and dragged him to her door. “I don't ever want to forget this night.”

Acklund struggled to keep his wits about him. That became an almost impossible task when Ellie got him into her room, shut the door, and then wrapped her arms around him. Her lips pressed against his and quickly parted. He opened his mouth as well. Once he felt her tongue sliding upon his own and her body grinding against his, there was no going back.

He could feel her smiling against his mouth when he reached around to place his hands upon the small of her back. It didn't take much to get Ellie to push herself even tighter against him. When Acklund moved his hand down, she lifted her leg to rub it against his hip. Letting his instincts take over, Acklund reached under her skirts until he could feel the smooth, warm touch of her skin.

Suddenly, Ellie reached down to tug at his belt. She pulled at the buckle and even let out a little growl when it didn't come loose right away. She quickly had his jeans unfastened so she could pull them down. Ellie tore free of Acklund's hands so she could drop to her knees and wrap her lips around his cock.

It happened so quickly that Acklund nearly lost his footing. Ellie grabbed him roughly with both hands and sucked on him greedily. Her tongue slid up and down along the length of his penis. When he grew harder in her mouth, she sucked on him with even more vigor.

“Slow down, girl,” Acklund said. He tried to back away a step, but that only made her want to devour him more. He reached down to pull her head back and hold it there. “I thought you said you didn't want this to end.”

It took her a moment, but Ellie soon giggled and dabbed at the corner of her mouth. “Right. I just got carried away.”

Acklund helped her to her feet. “Speaking of that . . .” He then picked her up and carried her away to the bed.

She wrapped her arms around him and swung her feet as though she were riding on a porch swing. Acklund set her down and immediately started undressing her. He loosened the ties of her dress and then peeled the clothing from her body. To make things easier, Ellie wriggled out of the dress until she wore nothing but her stockings and a little pair of panties.

“You look pretty as a picture,” Acklund said.

Smiling from ear to ear, Ellie stretched out on the bed and posed for him. First she lay on her side so her pert breasts were on display. Then, she rolled onto her stomach and kicked her feet up so her tight little backside wiggled just right.

Acklund couldn't take any more. He crawled onto the bed, pulled her panties off, and buried his face between her legs. Ellie's pussy was wet and waiting for him, so he lapped her up and felt her entire body tremble in response to him. Ellie wrapped her legs around the back of his head so she could hold him close while arching her back.

Suddenly, she sat up and scooted away from him. “Come here,” Ellie said as she curled her finger invitingly.

Still able to taste her, Acklund crawled onto the bed.

“Lie down,” she commanded.

Acklund may not have known her for very long, but he never would have guessed she could speak so sternly. That tone of voice went well with the look in her eyes. He wasn't about to deny her order, so he lay on his back and watched to see what she would do next.

Ellie remained on all fours and took her time crawling on top of him. Raking her fingernails gently along his leg, she lowered her head like a cat drinking from a saucer of milk. Her tongue flicked out to tease him here and there. Even though she lingered at his rigid pole for a while, it wasn't nearly long enough. Before Acklund could get too upset about her moving on, he felt her mouth work its way along his chest.

Swinging one leg over him, Ellie mounted him and reached down to stroke his penis. She smiled and moaned softly as if touching him was enough to make her feel good. She lifted herself up a bit, guided him between her legs, and settled down again.

The moment Acklund was inside of her, he could feel her body quiver. The lips of her pussy gripped him tightly and only became tighter as they slid along his length. Ellie lifted her head and moaned louder as he drove deeper inside of her. By the time she'd ridden him all the way down, her face was aimed at the ceiling and she was shuddering with a full climax.

All Acklund needed to do was lie back and watch as her face contorted in the grip of her own pleasure before finally settling into a contented smile. When she looked down at him, she looked as though she'd just run a mile to get there.

“Now it's your turn,” she said.

Acklund grabbed her hips and pumped up into her. The move caught her by surprise, because Ellie let out a little yelp. She must have liked surprises, because she kept smiling and quickly moved her hips in time to his.

She straightened her back and dragged her fingers through her hair, giving Acklund a perfect view of her tight belly and pert breasts. Her nipples were hard and inviting, so he reached up to play with them. The moment she felt his hands on her, Ellie put her own hands on top of his and begged him not to stop.

Soon, she lowered herself so her face was directly above Acklund's. He wrapped one arm around her and used his other hand to rub the curve of her buttocks. That way, he could pull her close every time he pumped up into her. She moaned in his ear until Acklund swore he could feel the floor rattling beneath the bed. The closer he got to his climax, the more his ears filled with the pounding of blood rushing through his veins.

Then again, that sound may not have been blood in his veins.

The floorboards were definitely rattling and the sounds he heard seemed to be filling the entire room.

Suddenly, the door was forced open and slammed against the wall. Despite everything in him that wanted to get up and get to his gun, Acklund couldn't get himself to move.

Clint stormed through the door with his gun already drawn. He quickly realized he wasn't the only one with his gun out of its holster.

“Jesus!” Clint said reflexively when he caught sight of Ellie. Once he took a moment to see who was beneath her, he added, “What in the hell?”

Ellie twisted around to look at him over her shoulder. Despite the fact that Clint had already seen her without a stitch on, she grabbed one of the blankets and pulled it up to cover herself. “Clint? What are you doing?”

“I could ask you the same thing. Do you know who you're . . . who that is?”

Acklund watched Clint intently. One of his arms was outstretched toward the gun belt that lay crumpled on the floor. As Clint stalked toward the bed, the muscles in Acklund's arm strained even more.

“Clint, give us some privacy,” Ellie begged.

Using his boot to drag the gun belt toward him, Clint said, “This is one of the men who shot at your house the other night. He's the reason we were holed up and you were so frightened.”

“That's enough,” Ellie snapped.

Just then, Clint wasn't sure if Ellie was frightened about what he was saying or if she was worried about what he might say. Not interested in stirring up anything by letting Acklund know just how familiar he was with Ellie, Clint picked up the man's gun belt and draped it over his shoulder. “Get off of him,” he demanded.

“Clint, don't be jealous,” she said. “Please, just give us a moment.”

“Ellie! Right now!”

She reflexively jumped at the sharp edge in Clint's voice. Her bare feet scrambled against the floor, but she was able to regain her balance and rush over to her clothes. Ellie didn't drop the blanket until she could immediately pick up her dress and pull it on.

While she was fussing with her clothes, Clint kept his Colt aimed at Acklund's head. His glare was strong enough to keep the man pinned to the mattress. “What did you do to her?” Clint asked.

“I didn't . . . well . . . I did, but . . .” Acklund stammered.

Ellie rushed over to pull Clint away. She tugged at his arm, but wasn't strong enough to get him to budge from his spot. Even so, Ellie kept trying as her hastily buttoned dress hung precariously from one shoulder. “James is a good man,” she said. “We're in love.”

“What?” Clint asked. “Did you hear what I just told you? This man tried to kill us!”

“You killed my brother!” Acklund said.

Clint turned his attention back to the man. “Are you serious or maybe you're just blind? Your brother snapped his own damn neck while trying to steal my horse!”

Reluctantly, Acklund nodded. “Yeah. I know. But I was still worked up when I took them shots at you before. I'm sorry about that. Dave always was an asshole.”

Blinking, Clint found himself at a loss for words. Of all the things he'd expected to find in this room, this wasn't it. And of all the things he'd expected Acklund to do, apologize wasn't one of them.

“At least let James put some clothes on,” Ellie requested.

Clint nodded and backed up a step. “Get dressed,” he said to Acklund. “And while you're doing that, you can explain yourself.”

“Do you know each other?” Ellie asked.

“Dammit, Ellie, just listen for once, will you?” Clint barked. As soon as he saw the look on her face, Clint regretted speaking to her like that. Before the tears could roll from her eyes, Clint quickly tried to repair the damage he'd caused. “I'm telling you, this man isn't who he says he is. He admitted it himself!”

Acklund sat on the edge of the bed, pulling on his jeans. “He's right, Ellie. I wasn't altogether honest with you before.”

Finally, Ellie seemed to hear something that was being said to her. She looked at Acklund and asked, “What do you mean?”

“My name's not James. It's Acklund Winter.”