Bound For Love

Chapter 9

"I think you'll find everything you need in the cabin," Jenna told the woman who had just registered. "If not, there's a house phone you can use to call me, and I'll take care of it."

"Thank you so much." The woman took the key. "This place is so beautiful. I'm so glad I decided to do this." She leaned a little closer to Jenna and lowered her voice. "And the cowboys I've seen are to die for."

Uh oh.

This was the one problem Jenna was learning to tiptoe her way through. The unattached female guests - and sometimes the attached ones - seemed to think bedding the hands was one of the activities the ranch offered. She's tried to talk to Dylan about it, but he just told her he was sure she could handle it.

Now she gave the woman - Mary Woolfolk - her professional smile. "Yes, they are. But they - "

"I swear," Mary continued, "I don't know how you keep away from them."

Jenna gave her practiced laugh. "Believe me, they're too busy working for anything else. They work very hard, and Mr. Acosta is a very tough boss."

"But, surely, they must get some free time," the woman persisted.

"Not much. And truthfully? They're pretty boring when they do. Now, you just go and get settled." She made a show of looking at her watch. "We'll be having drinks and snacks in the reception area for everyone at four so y'all can meet each other and I can go over the schedule of activities. Then we kick off the festivities with a campfire dinner tonight."

"Ooh, that's so exciting." Mary winked at her. "And I'll bet those cowboys just need the right person to show them how to have fun."

Time to switch gears. "Let's get you some help with your luggage." She picked up the radio that connected her to the barn. "Ned, can you come up to the reception center? We have a new guest who needs help with her luggage."

Mary Woolfolk watched the door with an avid look in her eyes. Jenna had to stifle a laugh when Ned came through the door and the woman got a look at him. Barely seventeen he was the son of one of the hands, working over the summer to make money.

"Ned will take good care of you," she told the guest.

"Yes, ma'am, I surely will." The teenager bobbed his head and lifted the two large suitcases. "Right this way. Just follow me."

Jenna watched the woman reluctantly trail him out the door to the waiting golf cart that would ferry them to her cabin. Then she blew out a long breath and rotated her neck to relieve the kinks.

"Another greenhorn hot to trot?"

She jerked at the sound of the familiar deep voice. And pressed her hand to her heart. The man was constantly sneaking up on her. How did he do that? Had she been so busy with the horny guest she hadn't heard the back door open and close?

"Holy crap, Dylan. You scared ten years off my life." She scowled at him "How do you do that? Sneak up on me like that?"

"Probably because you were occupied keeping our guest out of the jeans of every cowboy on both sides of the ranch."

Jenna laughed. "You're right about that."

She headed into the office behind her, aware Dylan was close on her heels. Safely behind her desk, she took a moment to drink him in. Even slightly grubby from whatever he'd been doing, he was the center of every one of her erotic dreams. And that was a situation she needed to remedy as fast as she could. But, holy hell, just look at him. His jeans and work shirt clung to his rangy body as if they'd been hand tailored for him. Dark blond curls of hair where his shirt was unbuttoned tempted her, and the devil himself had designed that grin. Sometimes she even caught herself wondering what he looked like without his clothes on.

He had an air of quiet confidence about him, as if, no matter what, he was always in charge. Occasionally she wondered if he was a Dom. He gave off many of the same vibes as the men she'd played with at Club Magique. But there seemed to be something more to him, a sense of total and absolute control, as if nothing ever happened without his permission. Ever. In and out of the bedroom.

She liked a man with power, but one disastrous relationship had taught her that acceding to that power in short doses was the only way she really enjoyed it. A therapist she'd met once had told her she was too strong a personality to submit completely to a man. That it would take a very special one for her to make a commitment to him. She'd figured that out a long time ago. She hadn't yet met the man who could break down the barriers she now had firmly in place.

Anyway, getting hot and heavy with Dylan Acosta was most definitely not on her schedule. He was her boss, and she never mixed business with pleasure. Besides, she liked this job too much to consider it. Instead, she relegated herself to the satisfaction of erotic dreams that starred the man of the hour and private sessions with Mr. Pink.

"Jenna?"

"Yes?" She blinked then was embarrassed to realize she'd zoned out watching him. "Oh, sorry. Just running over some things in my head."

"Damn. I didn't realize I was that boring." He grinned, that devilish curve of his lips that had her thinking of her naked and him standing over her, holding that piece of rope he played with in his hand.

Holy crap!

"Um, no, it's not you. I think I'm just on horny guest overload at the moment. We do seem to have a lot of them this time."

"Must be something in the air," he told her. "I've noticed it with some of the hands, too. I told Rob we need to ride heavy herd on them. Hell, I'll hogtie them if I have to."

Hogtie? Oh god, here came another image of him with the rope again.

"Well." She pushed away from the desk. "Did you want something? I think I'd better go check on the refreshments for the little welcome gathering." She looked him up and down. "You are planning to be there, right? They want to see the head cowboy himself."

Dylan nodded. "I do. I just came in to see if you've got everything you need. I've been out with the cattle all day, and I need to go home and shower."

She chuckled. "Actually, I think some of those women might prefer you a little sweaty and dirty, carrying the scent of horseflesh." She glanced at the length of rope coiled in one hand. "They'd probably even beg you to tie them up."

Oh, s**t. Had she just said that?"

Something dark and heated flashed in his eyes.

"And what about you, Jenna Clary?" He walked around the desk and stopped so close she could feel his breath on her skin. "Would you like that, too?"

"Um, I - "

Jenna was stunned by the abrupt s****l tension that flared between them. It was so hot, she was surprised the air around them didn't ignite. A lot of men had appealed to her sexually, but none of them had elicited this combustible reaction. Did he feel it, too?

Apparently so, because something blazed in his eyes, something stronger than pure need. Something like the look she'd seen in the eyes of Masters she'd been with. Had she been right? Was Dylan Acosta a Dom, but one whose power could almost frighten her? Submerge her?

Careful, she told herself. This was a man who would demand everything on his terms, and that frightened her. Still, she remained where she was, waiting despite herself to see what he'd do next.

With a movement so quick it stunned her, he snapped the rope open and pressed it against the base of her spine. His gaze held hers with a look so intense, she was powerless to look away. It was a swirling mixture of hunger and demand and dark eroticism. When he lifted one of her hands and wrapped one end of the rope around it she couldn't find the words to object. Not even when he did the same to the other. Then he snapped the line taut, and she was trapped between him and the wall, her hands behind her, wrists bound together.

Move! Step on his foot. Do something.

But she could only stand there, mesmerized by whatever she saw in his eyes. She wanted him, wanted to drop to her knees and bow her head and beg him to do whatever he wanted with her. But she couldn't give him that power, because he had a strength that would devour her.

"Do you like being bound this way?" His voice was pitched even lower than usual, thick with something she refused to identify. "A good cowboy always has his rope handy, you know. Just in case he might have need of it."

"Is-is that so?"

What the hell was going on here? She wondered if he knew exactly how much he affected her. And this was about more than just a man who wanted to f**k a woman. She was sure of that. They were dancing around something very dangerous. She tried to tell herself to move, but pictures flashed into her brain of herself, naked, the rope wound around her in some very complex pattern, exerting just the right pressure in just the right places.

"If you were mine, I'd do this all the time." He ground the words out. "On my time, at my pleasure."

Oh god!

As she tried to think of something to say, without warning, he yanked the rope and that quickly she was free. He stepped way back from her, coiling the rope again.

She blinked. "Wha - ?"

"You have no idea the things I want to do with you." Tension edged every word.

She stared at him, shocked as much by what happened as the fact that he was at a loss for words

"We can't do this," she told him in a shaky voice. "I work for you. Besides - "

"Besides what?"

She just shook her head.

"Fuck." He gave her another of those undecipherable hard looks then turned toward the door, calling over his shoulder, "I'll see you at four."

He was gone, as if nothing had taken place. For a moment she wondered if she'd actually dreamed the entire episode. He was so strict about his ranch hands not fraternizing with the guests or any of the help that she could not imagine him doing what he'd just done to her. Maybe she was hallucinating. Or going crazy. Either solution was more acceptable than the reality.

She wanted to get naked with Dylan Acosta and let him bind her with that rope. Her thoughts gave new meaning to the phrase "tied up in knots." Every inch of her felt as if it was on fire, the throbbing in her cunt had escalated to jungle drum level, and she stood there, frozen, staring through the empty doorway.

With superhuman effort, she snapped herself out of whatever this was. For one thing, just as she'd said, she worked for him. She liked this job. No, she loved this job.

For another, that little episode in her office, lasting barely a few seconds, was enough to convince her she'd been right earlier. If indeed he was a Dom, he would be the kind who would swallow her whole, and that was not the kind of sub she was. Ever. She couldn't be with a man who demanded so much subjugation she lost who she was. She'd never do that again. No matter how strong the connection she felt with Dylan Acosta, she had to resist her feelings for him.

Besides, she had just managed to escape a work situation where the boss wanted things from her she didn't want to give. Had she fallen into the same frying pan again?

No, no, no. This is different. Tim Bergmann is a repulsive ass. Dylan Acosta is an erotic dream come true.

Besides, when she said no and Dylan just walked away, that told her a lot about who he was and how different he was from Tim. She felt relieved, because she was finally in a good place. Tim Bergmann and The Sam had receded to the category of fading nightmare. Every day that passed without any sight or sound of him was another day her inner tension eased. She'd done everything she could to wipe away her San Antonio identity. He might try to browbeat Toni into giving him information, but she knew how to get around him. For one thing, she could outright lie and send him on a wild goose chase. No, she was pretty sure she'd safely removed herself from the jerk.

The staff here was great, and the hands that worked with the guests were warm and unfailingly polite to her. In the three weeks she'd been here, they'd spent some time teaching her about the horses. She was even learning to ride, each time hoping she wouldn't fall on her ass and make a complete fool of herself.

Toni had come out for a day, and they'd spent some time in El Segundo, possibly the tiniest town she'd ever seen. But it had a colorful rustic saloon and two restaurants with surprisingly good food. With satellite television and Internet and an occasional trip to the city - if she wanted one - this was a place she could stay for a long time.

As long as she didn't f**k it up and do something stupid.

Like sleep with the boss.

That would be idiotic on so many levels, not the least of which would be the aftermath.

Shower. She needed to check on the food for the meet and greet and the dinner then take an ice cold shower. Really cold. Then, maybe, tonight, after she tucked everyone in, she'd schedule a long session with Mr. Pink, who was as undemanding as they came.

More than that, she needed a night off and a trip to Club Magique.