Black Conley (11 page)

"We'll explain everything over breakfast,” Roy said. “I'm so hungry I could eat the ass end out of an old dead skunk."

"I wouldn't go that far,” Black confessed, “but I could use some coffee. It was a long night. These other fellers are just as tired and hungry as I am."

Belle held open the door to allow the men to come into the kitchen. Once everyone was seated around the table, Kate asked about the rustlers.

"It was like you and me talked about last night, honey,” Roy replied. “Someone was dead set on making it look like we were the ones takin’ the cattle. They were running steers from every ranch in the area straight toward the canyon."

"I think they were getting ready to add Belle's steers to their take for the night,” Zeek said. “I can't believe anyone would purposely plant evidence on this ranch that didn't belong here."

Black held his tongue. It wouldn't do him any good to tip his hand this soon. These rustlers had gone from taking five or ten head here and there to taking twenty to thirty head a night. Why would there be exactly ten head from each ranch? He knew the answer all too well. From what the men who had joined them said, ten was the number of cows they had each lost over the past few weeks. It was only Belle who was losing more. By cutting out the cattle that had been taken from the other ranches, along with ten head from the Diamond A, it would look like a usual raid to these men. Black knew differently. They were being planted on the ranch for the men to find in the morning when they were due to arrive and look for their missing steers.

Annie and Belle served up platters of flapjacks along with bacon and eggs. The more the men ate, the more they bragged about how they'd killed those rustlers. Each man took credit for one of the rustlers, when Black knew his bullet had struck home twice and Roy had downed the other man. It was just as well that the men thought they were the ones who had killed the rustlers. Black's expertise with a gun was well known, but he didn't want to take credit for any of the killings last night.

With breakfast finished, the three neighbors mounted up to take their steers back to their own ranches. Once they were gone, Black pushed back from the table.

"I'm taking those steers back to the Diamond A,” he announced.

"You need your rest,” Belle protested. “You've been up all night. The girls and I can take them back."

"Black's right, honey,” Roy said. “It's best if he take back those steers. There's no tellin’ what Clayte would do to you girls if you went alone. Nettie's not there anymore to ride reign on him. Besides, the girls have work to do here. Kate and I will take those hombres into town and alert the sheriff as to what happened last night."

"But you need your rest, too. I can't let you do something that should be my responsibility."

"Let him go, Belle,” Annie said. “I know better than to cross him when he's got his mind set on something. Roy and Joe go back a long way. There won't be any arguing about who killed who or what those men were doing on the Double Bar B."

Black could see the light of understanding in Belle's eyes. She needed to learn to trust men, and what better ones to start with than Roy and himself?

After finishing the last of his coffee, Black went to the outhouse to take care of business before going out to where he'd left his horse. In the corral, the cattle he was about to drive back to the Diamond A milled around as though confused by being taken from their home pasture, driven across Double Bar B land and now being penned up.

To his surprise, Belle led her white stallion from the barn.

"And just what do you think you're doing?’ Black inquired.

"I'm going with you. I am your boss, you know. It's my place to return Clayte's steers to him."

Black didn't argue. It would give him some time alone with Belle. “Suit yourself, but I hope you plan to keep up. I don't have time to be playing nursemaid to anyone who can't keep pace."

The look of indignation on her face brought a smile to his lips. Together they herded the cattle from the corral and started across Double Bar B land to get to the Diamond A. It came as no surprise to see that the fence had been cut in the same place Black mended it the day before.

"On our way back, we'll stop and mend that fence,” he said as he rode up next to her.

"It will be a good place to have lunch. Annie packed some sandwiches for us. She knew we wouldn't get back in time to eat with the girls."

Black dropped back to round up a stray that had stopped to graze. As he did, he thought about eating lunch with Belle. He liked being with her. It made even the thought of mending fence sound less like work and more like something enjoyable.

They met Clayte just beyond his ranch house. “What the hell are you doing on my property?” he questioned as he rode up to him. “Did you come to steal more of my cattle?"

"Hardly,” Belle retorted. “These steers were being driven across my property last night along with those from the other ranches. It's hard telling how many head I would have lost if Black, Roy, Zeek, Jeb and Pete hadn't been there."

The expression on Clayte's face changed. “What happened to the rustlers?"

"Three of them are dead. Roy and Kate are taking them to town so the sheriff can get a good look at who is responsible for the rustling. The last one got away, but I think I winged him. Hopefully, this will stop the rustling and you can all start to relax around here."

"This is your doing, Belle,” Clayte accused.

"My doing? How can you even think such a thing? Why would I put Roy and Black in danger, to say nothing of my own neighbors?"

"To throw suspicion off yourself."

"Well, if that ain't the most asinine thing I've ever heard,” Black responded. “I think those men were trying to throw suspicion from themselves by planting those steers on Belle's place. When Jeb left the house last night he said he and the others would be back in the morning to check brands. Instead, they came back later and were there when the cattle were driven right to the box canyon. Now ain't it strange that those hombres knew exactly where Belle had taken the cattle?"

"Rustlers are a strange lot,” Clayte said, regaining his composure. “They probably were watching when
your whores
drove the cattle to the winter pasture."

"It don't matter none how they knew,” Black commented, defusing the tension he could feel growing between Clayte and Belle. “For now you have your steers back and we have a fence to mend,
again
."

"Well, since one of them jaspers got away, don't be surprised if you get hit again. Once a rustler finds easy pickings, he usually strikes twice. They've found your ranch is a good one to hit. I wouldn't be surprised if you lost half your herd by spring."

"Thanks for the warning, Clayte,” Belle said. “Like Black says, we have fences to mend and you have cattle to get back to your herd."

"You know, if you took me up on my marriage proposal, you wouldn't have to worry about rustlers. You could leave that to me."

"I'd rather ride herd on my own beeves than to do the same on that passel of younguns of yours. Find yourself another wife somewhere else. I'm not interested."

"You'll be sorry you said that, Belle Barton. I'll be the one to laugh at your funeral when you die a dried up old maid when you could have been doing what a woman is meant to do ... raising children."

Black could see the anger flashing from Belle's eyes as they rode back toward the Double Bar B.

"How dare he?” she asked of no one in particular as soon as they were out of earshot. “I don't care if I do end up an old maid, I would never lower myself so much as to say ‘I do’ to that piece of scum."

"I doubt that you'll have to. I'm certain he's behind the rustling that's been going on. He's the only one who knew where you took the cattle yesterday. How else would the rustlers been able to find them if they weren't in the East pasture?"

"You've got a point there. He was at the house quick as scat when he found out that the cattle had been moved."

"If I'm not mistaken, he got the others all riled up so that they would be wanting to check the brands on the cattle you have in that canyon. He thought that they'd wait until morning and he could get the men responsible for it to drive the stolen cattle up to your place last night. The last thing he expected was to have us waiting for them. Didn't you see how white his face went when I told him we'd met up with the rustlers?"

"I certainly did, and when you told him that three of them were dead and the fourth got away, the relief was evident. He's scared, and with good reason. How long do you think it will be before you can arrest him?"

"He's had a scare. I doubt that he'll do anything more before spring. Things have gotten too hot for him now. Besides the outsiders he hired for this job are either dead of long gone. He'll have to come up with a new bunch and no one is going to venture this far north during the winter. I think things will be quite quiet. If that's the case, then I'll be able to get more evidence on both Clayte and the sheriff."

"But how? You know no one is going to cross either one of them."

"That's why I'm the U.S. Marshal and you're the ranch owner. I have my ways and believe me, when this does come to a head, it will do so very quickly."

By the time they reached the cut in the fence, the sun was directly overhead. It was Belle who suggested they eat before mending the fence. She could tell that Black was tired and thought if they ate first, he might fall asleep so that she could take care of the fence while he got the rest he so needed.

She unpacked the sandwiches Annie put in her saddlebags earlier in the day. Thick slabs of fresh bread complimented the thin slices of cold roast beef topped with tangy horseradish. Since she had planned they would eat in this pasture, she'd packed nothing to drink. The spring-fed stream that ran through her property would be enough to quench their thirst.

"After that breakfast Annie fixed, I didn't think I'd be hungry,” Black commented, “but those sandwiches look damn good to me."

She handed him one. He took a big bite. From the look on his face, he had gotten a good helping of horseradish along with the meat.

"What's on this beef?” he asked, once he swallowed what he had in his mouth and followed it with a good healthy drink of water.

"It's horseradish."

"It can't be. I've had horseradish and it's never this strong."

"That's because it's fresh. Annie made Roy take her somewhere to get it last spring. He always puts up a fuss, but in the end they go there together and she spends the next several days putting it up for use in the winter. When I first tasted it, I thought it was some sort of poison. After a while, it sort of grows on you."

Black laughed. “Guess it does. It's not that bad, but it was a shock when I first tasted it. After a couple of these sandwiches, I'll be ready for something sweet."

"Annie packed some of her apple pie,” Belle replied.

"That's not exactly what I had in mind.” He took her in his arms and kissed her.

Any control she had over her body the night before was completely gone. Here in the middle of the east pasture, there was on one to see them, no one to pass judgment. When his tongue darted between her parted lips, she realized that she wanted more than just his kisses. Kate was right; he was different. She wanted him in the way a woman wants a man. Her dildo could never produce the spasms of excitement that ran through her body until they reached the sensitive area between her legs the way Black's kiss did.

She reached up to put her hands on the back of his head and pull him closer to her, but he was even quicker. His free hand was working the buttons on her shirt. Without breaking their kiss, he untied the ribbon that held her camisole shut, completely revealing her breasts. The cool September air against her sensitive nipples made her gasp.

When she didn't protest, he manipulated her nipple between his thumb and forefinger, trailing kisses down her neck. His lips caressed first the top of her breast and then captured her nipple between them. As he sucked, she worked the buttons on his shirt and long johns until his chest was exposed to her view. She ran her hands over the mat of black hair that peppered his chest and rubbed his male nipples until they were as hard as her own.

She hardly realized that he had unbuttoned her britches until his hand touched the mound covered by the V of hair that guarded her womanhood. Even if she had wanted to turn back, it was too late. His fingers found her clit. Until now, she had been the only one to touch that sensitive place. Ronald had shoved his cock into her, leading her to believe that this was the only way to have sex. His own pleasure had been first and foremost in his mind.

It wasn't until after the girls arrived at the ranch and told her about the pleasures of sex did she find her little toy. Once she bought it, she began exploring her body and learning about the things they told her. It always amazed her that something so small as the nub the girls called their clit could give her such erotic pleasure.

As Black rubbed her in a circular motion, she realized she'd only skimmed the surface when it came to giving and receiving sexual favors. Within her mind, colors exploded like the fireworks that she remembered watching on the Fourth of July with her aunt back in Ohio. The sensation also did wonderful things to her body until she whispered, “Take me, Black, take me now."

With the expertise that could only have come with practice, he removed her boots. As each foot was exposed, he massaged her from her toes to her heels, again bringing about unexpected shockwaves of delight. With her boots off, he removed her britches and bloomers, leaving her naked from the waist down. The only garment remaining on her body was her shirt and camisole and they were open, exposing her breasts. Nothing about her was hidden from his view.

Before returning to the business of loving her, he took off his shirt, boots, pants and long johns. As he did, she gasped at the sheer size of him. In full erection, he made her dildo look like a small stick.

"Are you certain you're ready for this?” he asked, once he positioned himself over her.