Rocky Mountain Freedom (13 page)

Ashley peeked through the double doors of the kitchen, smiling as she caught Vicki licking a spoon with something close to ecstasy on her face.

“You got some of whatever you’re having for me?” Ashley asked.

Vicki whipped toward her, spoon held out defensively for a second before she lowered it and laughed. “Missed you at lunch. You know the rules—no dessert until you’ve had your vegetables.”

“Screw the rules. Life’s uncertain—eat dessert first.” Ashley hopped up on the tall stool beside the workstation. “I was working on a project and forgot the time.”

“You want something real to eat, then?”

“Don’t want to make more work for you, but yeah. I’m starving.”

Vicki opened the oversized fridge and grabbed a plastic container. “Not a problem, if you don’t mind leftovers.”

“Love them.”

Vicki nodded and put a pan on the stove, working quickly while Ashley looked around the cookhouse. She should probably take a couple pictures for Karen’s brochure. Plus a few artsy shots of the food.

Vicki had a plate in front of her in no time, savoury potatoes and slices of ham making Ashley’s mouth water. “Oh, girl, thank you. I could kiss you.”

A tiny snort escaped the other woman, and Ashley looked up in the middle of cutting into the meat. Vicki’s face was far redder than it should have been from simply rewarming a few items on the stove.

Vicki cleared her throat. “You already did, or don’t you remember?”

The outing Ashley and Travis had taken with his youngest brother, Joel, flashed to mind. Vicki had been along. One night under the stars—sipping moonshine and getting wild. They’d never talked about it afterward, and Ashley had wondered what had gone on in Vicki’s mind. “I remember. I didn’t know if you did. You were a little intoxicated—the liquor and all.”

“We were both a touch tight.” Vicki sat in a chair across the table. She forced herself to look Ashley in the eye, crimson with embarrassment. “I don’t usually kiss girls.”

“I do,” Ashley admitted, trying not to laugh at the dismay spreading over Vicki’s face. “Well, I kiss women not girls, because
ick
. And lately I’ve been kissing a lot more men since I’m seeing Travis.”

“I don’t understand.”

Ashley silently ate her meal while Vicki worked it out. It was amusing to see the moment the light bulb went off in her brain. It was as if she literally lit up.

“Oh my God, you’re gay.”

Ashley licked the potatoes off her fork so she could wave it in the air without flinging food around. “You know, Travis has this same deep, dark desire to brand everything. Which, I don’t know if you feel that makes it easier to put stuff into pockets or whatever. But if you’re going to use labels, get them right. Gays are guys who like guys. Lesbians are women who are attracted to women. Bisexual like either, and just because you kissed me, it doesn’t mean you have to hand in your heterosexual card. Well, not unless you want to.”

Vicki grinned. “I’ll stick with Joel, thanks, but I did wonder what the hell was going on. I mean…I know why I did it. Wasn’t sure what you were up to.”

Ashley shrugged. “Moonlit campfire on a cold night. You were dancing and looking hot. Travis got my motor going, and Joel was being a bit of a stick in the mud. I figured it wasn’t going to hurt anyone.”

“No. It certainly didn’t.” Vicki pushed a glass of juice her direction. “In fact, Joel turned the corner that night. So, thanks.”

“But don’t kiss you again?” Ashley teased.

Vicki wrinkled her nose. “Right. I’m sticking with my guy.”

Ashley smiled. “No problem. I don’t judge. I mean, I still think you’re hot, but if you’re happy, I have no intention of trying to convince you otherwise.”

She took a long drink and waited for Vicki to spit out whatever else she was dying to ask. That she still had something on her mind was written all over her.

Sure enough. “You going out with Travis again?”

Ashley nodded. “He’s sexy and fun, and most of the time he gets my kinks, so that’s good.”

“You got a lot of them? Kinks, I mean.” Vicki wasn’t shy anymore, leaning her elbows on the table. “You’re not like anyone I know in Rocky.”

“Is this a good thing or a bad thing?”

“Oh, trust me, it’s good,” Vicki assured her. “You don’t seem to have a lot of the small-town biases I’ve seen my entire life. Where did you grow up?”

“If you think it was the big bad city, you’ll be disappointed. I grew up in smaller towns than you. Well, usually outside small towns. We had a bit of a commune thing happening. Artists, growers. Back-to-the-earth folk. We traveled from one place to the next for most of my childhood.”

“Really? That’s kind of cool.”

Ashley shrugged. “I learned a lot about accepting all kinds of people. And the fact my dad is good friends with my mom and her girlfriend kind of sums up most of the sexual norms I grew up around.”

Vicki paused. “Your mom had a lover while your dad was around?”

“Actually, Mom and Tina have been together for years.” Ashley cleaned the rest of her plate before finishing her answer. “Mom wanted a kid, and Dad didn’t mind being a dad, and they all liked each other enough they figured they could deal with each other during the process. So—Dad stepped in and helped them out, and they had me. Over the years, all three of them chipped in to raise me best they could. It worked out okay.”

The other woman was shaking her head. “You’re right. Not at all like what I had growing up.”

“It was normal to me. I like that I’m okay with being with whoever—sex is fun, and if it feels good, I don’t see a reason to not. I mean,” she reassured Vicki again, “I don’t cross the lines in relationships, so don’t worry about me trying to seduce you or something.”

“Thanks for that.” Vicki tossed her a grin. “Your family sounds like fun.”

“Pretty much, except I wish they hadn’t bounced around so often. We were as bad as those military families you hear about. No home base—always on the move.”

“But Travis said you’re hoping to settle in Rocky?”

“God, yes, I want that so bad. Somewhere to unpack my things and not have to pack them up ever again if I don’t feel like it.”

“I hear you. Joel and I are going to stick around—once I’m done this cooking job for the summer.” Vicki gave a sheepish laugh. “It’s weird to think I tried so hard to get away from Rocky, and now that I’m gone, all I do is wish I were back.”

“It’s because you’ve got Joel,” Ashley pointed out. “He’s the one who makes it home, right?”

Vicki nodded.

Ashley rose to her feet and gathered her dirty dishes. “Thanks for the late lunch. Can I help with anything?”

Vicki shook her head. “Got everything ready for dinner. What about you?”

“This afternoon I’m breaking out the paints and doing some actual art.”

“Sounds exciting, if you know how to draw a straight line, which I don’t.” Vicki winked. “Have fun. If you get distracted again, I’ll save you some supper.”

“Thanks.”

The younger woman paused in the middle of stirring something in the massive pot, offering a smile. “I hope you do find a place in Rocky. I’d like to get to know you better.”

The rush of happiness that struck nearly made Ashley giddy. “I’d like that as well.”

Out of consideration, she gave Vicki a smile instead of a hug then slipped back outside. Her projects called, but there was a hint of something warm inside. A tiny feeling of putting down roots.

It felt pretty damn good.

Cassidy stepped into the shadows by the cookhouse as Ashley passed, her face shining with happiness. He didn’t usually eavesdrop, even though he seemed to be doing a lot of it lately. But once the girls had begun talking he’d remained frozen in one spot, unable to walk away.

Their conversation explained a lot, from Vicki’s earlier reaction to some of the questions Cassidy had about Ashley.

Explained more about Travis’s torturous offers.

Since they’d gotten back from the embarrassing overnight at Second Camp, Cassidy had done everything he could to avoid the other man. He’d done all the paperwork possible, but mostly spent way more time caring for the horses than was needed.

The camp was slowly taking shape around them. Travis had turned out to be a good overseer. Cassidy had to admit Travis’s work ethic was one of the best he’d seen. His push to get the job done motivated the younger hands, and yet the whole group seemed to be having fun.

The enjoyment of working in the beautiful mountain setting was made that much better by things going well, if not for the frustration that rode Cassidy.

The desire and the need he felt would kick him in the guts at the strangest moments. Coming across Travis pulling bales, biceps fully flexed as he manhandled the weight to the ground. Rounding a corner and discovering Ashley with her face turned to the sunshine, body looking all soft and warm as she relaxed on a pile of building supplies.

And that was the hell of it. One side or the other, he was tempted. He was getting damn tired of jacking off in the shower.

But if that was what he had to do the entire goddamn summer, then he’d do it. Travis thought he was stubborn? Cassidy could be just as pig-headed.

He had reason to hold out.

After the crew knocked off for the day and headed to the cookhouse for dinner, Cassidy once again found his feet leading him to the shower house for a little relief.

He draped his towel on one of the wall hooks and cranked on a jet of water, stepping under the stream before it had a chance to warm. The rush of ice on his skin jolted his heart and picked up his breathing, but a cold shower wasn’t going to be enough. Not today. Cassidy lathered his hands and stroked his torso as steam began to rise.

He’d barely wrapped a hand around his cock when the door opened, a creak of hinges warning he wasn’t alone anymore. He muffled his curses and faced the wall, reluctant to stop even now.

A loud crash rang out followed by a not very quiet feminine voice. “Fucking hell.
Ouch
.”

Drat. “Ashley?”

“Oops, sorry. Didn’t know you were in here.”

Cassidy resisted banging his head on the wall in frustration. That was it—he was moving
finish the ladies’ shower house
up the list to the next day’s chores. “Maybe you can come back after dinner for your shower.”

Another crash. “
Shit
. Damn toes. Well, Cassidy, I would, but that might be awkward. I won’t be long, never mind me.”

A bucket rolled past the open door of his shower enclosure followed by more curses, and Cassidy couldn’t stand it anymore. “Ashley, what are you doing?”

He stuck his head around the corner and froze.

Ashley was completely naked. She was also covered from head to toe with all the colours of the rainbow. A thin layer of paint turned her body into a canvas, every curve fully defined in living Technicolor. “Holy shit.”

She glanced up as she toed off her sandals. “See, I can’t wait.”

Cassidy should have looked away, but he couldn’t. Not only were the colours mesmerizing, her body had him trapped.

Full, high breasts, curving waist. Her hair poofed from the top of her head like some seventies disco diva, probably knotted up there in an attempt to keep the long blonde strands clean. She hadn’t succeeded—the hanging tail ends of her ponytail were frosted blue and gold.

All of her made his mouth water, and the hard-on he’d been about to deal with simply got harder. “Jeez.”

She glanced down at herself. “Fun, hey?”

He pretended they weren’t holding this conversation while naked, him halfway hidden around the corner to keep his fully erect cock out of sight. “You look as if you were rolling in paint.”

A full grin burst out. “I was. I dropped canvas in the backfield, then did a few rolls over the fabric. That’s the first step for this project. I have to go back out once I’m clean to hang it to dry, then—”

“You need to wash that off,” he interrupted, because standing and talking while she was naked—
God
.

“Right.” She winked then vanished into the first open stall. Cassidy gasped in a couple breaths to stop the spinning in his brain.

He must have done something truly shitty to be tormented like this—he had no idea what, but he’d get down on his knees and say a thousand apologies to whatever gods necessary to make the punishment stop.

Another curse. “Fuck. Cassidy, can you come turn on the water for me? Stupid tap is too tight, and my fingers are slippery with paint.”

The gods of karma tossed his apology back in his face.

What could he do? “Sure. Just…one minute.”

He wrapped his towel around his waist and knotted it tight. For all the good it did as a barrier between them—didn’t hide his dick or how turned on he was one bit.

She stepped aside as he leaned past her. The tap took a definite hard touch to get it started, and he was doused in cold water before he could step back. “There you go.”

“Thanks.” She ignored him and stepped under the spray. Eyes closed, she tilted her head and let the water pour down her torso.