"There's someone else out there for you Lou. I know it." He still held her hands in his. So close.
"Out there?" He heard the surprise in her voice but dared not look up into her eyes. Lou felt her heart shatter in her chest and she yanked her hands from Jimmy's in one quick motion. "Then I better get out there and find him I suppose." That was the last thing she had said before she left, closing the door behind her.
He'd been trying to tell her, warn her really, about Kid.
"I know he can't make you happy and that life… Lou you shouldn't have to change for anyone. You don't have to. He's still mourning over Virginia and that damn war. Even he said that was the most important thing to him. You can't marry someone who only has half a heart in what he's trying to do. There's someone else…."
Ever since he kissed her he'd been struggling to deny what he felt, to protect her from him and his reputation. But he couldn't watch her make this mistake either. He knew her and he knew Kid and he also knew that it would never be what she wanted if she married him. Lou and Kid weren't exactly together but that didn't stop the Kid from making his plans. And when Jimmy caught him fingering that little ring he bought so long ago…. And then he'd led her on in his trying to explain things.
Led her on, yeah right. She was practically made for him and he for her. If protecting her was the right thing, why did he feel like he was in hell? Doing the right thing don't always feel good, he told himself.
That arrogant asshole! Telling her things like she didn't already damn well know exactly what Kid was thinking and exactly what life with him would mean for her, for her identity. She had thought, she really let herself think that he was going to tell her how he felt. He does have feelings for me, he must, right? Lou paced back and forth over the worn-out carpet of her hotel room floor, anger and doubt assailing her in equal force. He told you to find someone else, Lou. So you might as well.
She didn't have much in the way of seduction. She took her slightly less baggy shirt and folded it so she could tuck it tightly into her pants, keeping several of the top buttons undone she showed just enough to pique a man's interest. She combed back her hair and washed her face. Studying herself in the mirror, she frowned. Not much compared to the women who usually frequented bars in towns like these. Someone out there who wants this? It seemed impossible. The sudden desire to break down overtook her but she blinked back the tears and without another glance towards her reflection, walked out of the room.
The bar was dark and hazy from cigar smoke. Lou scanned the room for a target. Someone, anyone for her to take out her rage on for the night, just one night, free from Kid and Jimmy and everything but the feeling of being filled up by someone, someone she didn't have to give a damn about. There were plenty of men in the bar but her eyes settled on a rugged man sitting by himself and surveying the room. He seemed as disinterested in the other patrons as she was. He was nursing a whiskey, swirling the glass around in one hand. He was handsome and apparently well-built under his layers of clothing, broad chest, and shoulders. He'll do.
She didn't ask to sit down, just did it. She had her own drink which she'd purchased for herself from the bar. She didn't need this man to buy her drinks. There was only one thing she needed from him. He looked up at the person who had sat across from him and did a double-take as he saw her for who she was. A woman in pants with a whiskey alone at a bar being very forward. He smiled. The kind of smile that reached his eyes. He was even more handsome than she'd thought. She smiled back.
A half-hour later they were in her room, pawing at one another's clothes. They hadn't exchanged any names, just some playful banter and not-so-subtle hints before Lou led the man to her room. She had read him right. He was bored by the girls in the saloon but she was unique, intriguing, and that he desired. Lou groaned as she rubbed his hardness through the fabric of his pants, imagining him inside her. It wouldn't be Jimmy but he was a fair replacement, beautiful face, hard body, and not afraid to be aggressive.
At the moment he was working her belt in one hand, feeling her up with the other, all while kissing the hell out of her. She moaned again, hands pulling him closer to her, rubbing against him, as he trailed his mouth down her neck. He pulled her shirt off and gripped her breasts firmly, feeling their weight and shape in his hands. Then remembering her belt, he assigned both hands to the task, determined to get it off as quickly as possible. Her pants loosened, he fit his hand inside and palmed one of her ass cheeks, lightly dragging a finger between her folds. She opened her legs to him without hesitation and his finger slid inside her. "Yes, oh yes." She moaned as he spread her opening with his fingers.
"You're so fucking wet." Her stranger replied.
He was already pulling his rigid dick out of his pants when her belt and pants hit the floor. Lou kicked off her boots and stepped out of her rumpled clothes. Stranger, savior, she thought of him as both at this moment, wasting no time in hefting her into his arms, her legs wrapping around his waist, and pulling him into her. There was a crash as he backed her into the wall and began fucking her in earnest. She made no attempt to repress her cries as he drove into her again and again. He made no attempt to stifle her and only seemed to fuck her harder the louder she screamed. She came quickly and, shortly after, he pulled out of her and flipped her over to face the wall. She braced herself with her forearms as he rubbed himself out on her backside. Lou smiled to herself, reveling in her sense of fulfillment. It was unexpected when he wiped her clean with his own handkerchief. Even more surprising when he began removing his pants rather than buttoning them up. "I can go if you want." He said, obviously noticing her incomprehension. "But we could also do that again." He gave her that smile and she knew what she wanted.
Lou woke with a stretch, savoring the sex pains in her body. Her legs and core ached deliciously. Lou silently praised herself for finding the perfect antidote to what had ailed her. He had stayed in her room till the early hours of the morning, teasing her, torturing her, making her cum again and again. She had given as well as she got, riding him, sucking him, fucking him. She laid there in reverie until Jimmy knocked on her door.
Why did he have to be the one to wake her up? Last night was supposed to make her forget about Jimmy. But here he was, her co-worker, her partner on this run. Her friend? Bane of her existence? He knocked again. Sighing, Lou buried her head in her pillows. "Go away," she grumbled.
Jimmy stood outside Lou's door. After last night, he was uncertain of what her mood would be. Why wasn't she answering? He listened at the door. Silence. "Lou?" Maybe she had already checked out. She was probably mad as hell. Maybe she left without him. He tried the knob.
She was lying face down in her bed, limbs akimbo, bare skin peeking out of the tangled sheets. "Jimmy, what the hell? I'm just waking up."
"Sorry, I just…" The words caught in his mouth as he lowered his eyes from her figure. Clothes were strewn over the floor as if they'd been discarded eagerly. Lou's nakedness. The disheveled bed. Unlocked door. A handkerchief lying near her pants with what looked like… No. How? Who? No. Can't be.
"You mind? I need a few minutes." Jimmy looked back to where she was still lying in the bed. She was looking right at him with an irritated expression. He nodded, unable to speak at the moment, and shut the door.
Jimmy stood on the other side of Lou's door as she dressed. He was too stunned to move and just stood gaping. I did this.
He was startled from his thought when two women stepped out of the room next to Lou's, one young, one older. A mother and daughter, perhaps. The younger one blushed as she glimpsed Jimmy and the motherly woman glared at him. "Really there's a brothel across the street for that kind of thing." She locked eyes with Jimmy expressing her disapproval.
His gut wrenched. His eyes shot back to Lou's door. What happened last night? What did she do? What did he drive her to do? He couldn't stand there, so close to where she'd obviously enjoyed herself with someone. That's what you wanted her to do, idiot. He felt sick just imagining what went on on the other side of that door. Without a word, he turned and walked away.
A little while later, Lou found him in the livery. Jimmy's shock had turned quickly to jealousy and then anger. When I said out there I didn't mean right out there! I didn't mean now! I certainly didn't mean letting some stranger fuck your brains out while I slept. I definitely didn't mean having the kind of sex that makes your neighbors shake their heads at you the morning after! If I were fucking you the whole goddamn hotel would have known about it!
Jimmy was preoccupied with saddling his horse and securing his gear. He didn't look up at Lou when she came in and began doing the same with her own horse. "Thought you were gonna wait for me?"
"You knew where to find me." Would have known where to find me last night too! He replied without looking up. Lou rolled her eyes. Damn, he could be moody.
Lou groaned lightly at the twinge in her body as she mounted Lightning and Jimmy's body went stiff. That's what you get for acting like a whore! Jimmy knew that was unfair. Lou was a free woman, free to do whatever, whoever she wanted. Still, he couldn't help the anger that wanted to boil over. He wanted to yell at her. He wanted to make her tell him every detail about her apparent tryst and then he wanted to remember none of it. He wanted to fuck her and fill her until she couldn't remember, couldn't feel anything, not one lingering thing, of what that bastard did to her. Just him. She should just feel him.
So he had made her drop her pants, made her scream so loud she woke the precious slumbering old lady in the room next to her. Made her cringe when she mounted Lightning 'cause he'd fucked her so hard!
"You alright?"
Jimmy didn't realize that he'd growled out loud. He grunted in response. Strip her down, examine her for marks. Evidence. As if I need any more.
Lou sighed. Damn him. Last night he'd wanted to talk to her so badly. Made her sit down and held her hands while he told her all about how Kid wasn't the one. Got her hopes up. Made her think things were different between them. Made her feel like a fool. That's not what I want to think about. Think about the stranger instead. Those hands. That mouth. His tongue. Unknowingly Lou released a contented sigh, recalling the blissful sensations that had granted her some escape.
It did not go unnoticed by Jimmy. He stopped Sundance abruptly and turned to look at her for the first time. Lou followed suit and halted her own horse. "What's wrong?" Her eyes scanned the surrounding area for some sign of trouble. She saw nothing out of the ordinary and turned her attention to her fellow rider. "Jimmy?"
He snorted. "What's wrong? What the hell is wrong?" He exploded. If Lou hadn't been sitting on Lightning, she would have taken a few steps back. His anger sent shivers through her body, especially since she didn't know what had provoked it. She continued to stare at him, brow crinkled in confusion. He continued. "Guess you took my advice to heart, huh Lou? Definitely moved on from Kid, moved on quick too. Weren't too considerate of the other hotel guests though, not the ones sharing your floor!"
Lou exhaled as understanding dawned on her. He'd seen the inside of her room this morning. The guests, whatever happened with the guests. He'd put it together. And he was obviously mad about it. Jealous? No, she shook the thought from her head. Probably being overprotective like Kid. Thinking he knows what's best for her. You can't be with Kid, and you can't be with me, but not nobody else either. She was sick and tired of it.
"I don't see how that's any of your business." She said sternly. Lou moved to spur Lightning back into motion but Jimmy blocked her path. She glared at him.
"Well you acting all wanton reflects badly on me and the other riders! What happens if word gets back to the hotel that you were putting on a show for everyone with your...sex screams! Huh, what then Lou? Suppose they write Teaspoon! Suppose they don't let any Express Riders stay there no more! Maybe you need to think about how your actions, your salacious little actions, affect the rest of us!"
What the hell was he talking about? The company! He was mad about the damn Express and the hotel and, and, and he called her wanton and salacious! "So you're telling me you and Cody and none of the other boys ever engage in salacious activities on a run? I doubt that! I really doubt that! And in case you forgot, I'm my own woman Jimmy. I'll be as salacious and wanton as I damn well please! And I can sleep with whoever I please. And for your information, you and the others were the last things on my mind when I was making those sex screams you're talking about!"
Jimmy practically jumped off of Sundance and bolted to Lou, perched upon her steed. Lou looked at him, eyes wide as he began pulling her from her horse. "Jimmy, what the hell do you think you're doing?" She struggled against him. She wasn't scared. She didn't believe Jimmy would ever hurt her no matter how mad. But she didn't comprehend what he was doing either. She pushed against his chest as he grabbed her arms and made her face him.
"Who was it?" She looked at him blankly. "The man goddamn it! The man you saw fit to fuck!"
"None of your fucking business!"
He pulled her closer to him. "Some stranger then? Was it good fucking a stranger?"
He is jealous! She smiled. Looked him right in the eye and smiled. "Well, you heard what the other guests said, Jimmy. What do you think?"
His grip on her arms grew tighter. His jaw clenched. The jealousy in his eyes couldn't have been any clearer. Lou hated to admit that it sent heat to her center. She was wanton after all. "You want the details, Jimmy?" He snarled and pulled her face close to his. "Well, I met him in the saloon. Didn't get his name. Didn't need it." She cocked her head to the side, waiting for his reaction. He looked angry and maybe pained too. Lou only hesitated for a moment. "Was the fucking good? I'd have to say, definitely. The first time and all the times after that too."
"Slut." It came out softly. He didn't even mean to say it out loud.
So that's how it was gonna be then. "It was rough and satisfying. He was big and he filled me up and it felt so good. He made me scream. I couldn't help but scream. I can still feel him."
He wanted to slap her right across her pretty face. She stared at him, challengingly. For a while, Jimmy didn't speak. He tried to even out his breathing. Finally, in a gravelly voice, he asked her, "So you like it rough, Lou?" He loosened his grip on her arms but he still held her tight against his chest. She was forced to look up at him.
"I like it a lot of ways Jimmy." Like your way. You're too close, too hot against me. Making me feel…. The confidence fled her eyes and she looked down. "Anyway, I was just taking your advice." Suddenly the feel of Jimmy's hands on her body was unbearable. She tried to shrug him off but he wouldn't let her.
"Show me."
Lou raised her head to look at him but before she could ask what he meant, he was kissing her. Hard, rough, devouring kisses. Not the kind that asks permission. The kind that takes. His arms wrapped around her, pulling her flush against his body, hard and towering against her softness. It wasn't like the other time he'd kissed her. That was passion. This was anger, jealousy, control, possession. Her body responded. She wanted him. But her brain was telling her this wasn't right.
She pulled her arms in between them and pushed against his broad chest. "What the hell Jimmy?"
"I want to make you forget him. Forget how he felt." The words were like bile to him. Some man had been inside Lou. His Lou! Making her cry out in pleasure. "It should be me." He still held her to him but his kisses became gentle. He nuzzled her neck and drew in her scent. His teeth pulled at her delicate skin. He wanted to mark her. Make her his. Cum in her and claim her from the inside out.
Lou's sense of reality and her resolve were fading fast as she slouched against Jimmy's frame. She leaned into him as he kissed her neck, his hands wandering down her back until he pushed her by the waist into his hardness. The moans escaped her involuntarily as she felt the bulge pressing into her hip. Jimmy's grip on her waist became tight. She made the same sounds for someone else only hours ago, remember. Doesn't matter. Soon I'll be inside her and I'll make her forget him. His jealous anger and arousal were a potent mixture. He wanted, needed to fuck the memory of that other man right out of her. Needed to dominate her and show her she belonged to him. Should have thought of that before you told her that she belongs with someone else you fool!
Jimmy's hands fumbled with her belt as she turned to melted butter in his arms. She could still feel the evidence of being fucked by another man while currents ran over her body from Jimmy's kiss, his proximity, his hands on her hips, down her thighs, at the apex of her legs, rubbing her through too many damn layers. She was moaning into his lips but she couldn't stop herself. Each sound she made was eaten by Jimmy's hungry mouth. She should stop this. This is crazy! They shouldn't…
Goddamn Lou and her goddamn pants. With other girls, you could just tug their skirts up. Why did she always have to be so damn difficult? "Grrr." Jimmy had gotten Lou's belt and pants unfastened and he roughly turned her and began pushing them down. Lou noticed that Sundance and Lightning had run off. They must be close. She felt him push her down on her hands and knees. He fell to his knees behind her and pushed her legs as far apart as her pants would allow. She cried out as he splayed both hands on either of her hips and growled in a low voice, "This has been a long time coming Lou." She could feel herself dripping, her lips and entire tight warmth soaking wet. Her brain told her to stop this. Her body begged her not to. The hot center between her legs pulsed, wanting to be filled. Again.
Lou screamed then whimpered as Jimmy entered her to the hilt in one thrust. "Aw Lou. Oh, God. Fucking tight." He leaned over her so he could whisper in her ear. "You're awfully wet for someone who got it so good only hours ago, girl." She gasped at his lewd comment and at his largeness being pushed in and out of her. "I thought you were satisfied." How could she fight this? His words. His body on top and inside of her. The way he moved, back and forth inside her tight canal. She couldn't even control her own voice and body, moaning, whimpering, writhing. Cumming. God, she was cumming.
He felt her tighten around him, her head reflexively flew back, the noises she made as she came, as he made her cum. He almost released inside her right then. He wanted to so badly. This is her punishment, Jimmy. Make it last.
"Tell me Lou, was last night the first time you fucked a stranger, or is that a pastime of yours?"
She shook her head. She was still coming down from her orgasm and he could feel her body trying to collapse under him. He held her up, held her to him. He wrapped his arms snugly around her waist and kept her still as his cock throbbed inside her. He needed his own release soon.
The stars finally started to dissipate from the corner of Lou's vision. She wasn't sure how her body could even cum again after last night. She thought she'd been satisfied, then Jimmy. What was he doing to her? She was soaked, fucked raw, and still, he was inside her, not even done yet. Trying to teach her a lesson! After she'd been so willing and he'd sent her away! He was the one who needed to be taught a thing or two.
"I do what I want when I want. You tell me, Jimmy, is this another thing we should pretend never happened? I suppose you just ain't acting yourself." Lou stared at the ground, her body coming back to her. He was not going to win this, whatever this was. She tried to thrust her hips as much as she could with Jimmy's arms still holding her tight. She clenched her sopping wetness tightly around him.
"Lou! Stop…" He growled. He had been using all his strength to hold it in and now she was pushing him over the edge."Don't. Move. Lou…" He was pleading.
"I can't stop. I'm a salacious wanton slut, remember Jimmy?" She smiled to herself. She was regaining control over the situation and he knew it. "It feels too good to have you in me, so big and hard. God, you make me wet Jimmy." He shoved her off of him with force and she fell to the ground. A second later she felt him release on her, warm and then cool as the air hit the liquid dripping down her ass. His hands rested on the backs of her thighs and she heard his heavy breathing behind her. She waited to see what he would do. He drew his hands up her thighs and rubbed the wetness into her skin before slowly standing up.
"Clean yourself up. I'll get the horses."
Lou stood and pulled her pants up. Her backside and inner thighs were sticky with both their juices. She brushed the leaves and dirt from her front where he had shoved her to the ground and ran her fingers through her hair. By the time Jimmy came back with both Lightning and Sundance, she looked more or less normal, if a bit dirty.
Jimmy handed Lou the reins and looked at her briefly. He was still mad. He wanted to make her forget everything that came before him but instead, she made him lose control. "Are you hurt?" Did I hurt you?
A hundred snide remarks floated through Lou's mind but all she could manage was, "I'm fine."
"Just fine? You need some help getting up on your horse Lou?" Jimmy looked at her with mirth in his eyes.
He saw the fiery intensity in her eyes before she turned from him and mounted Lightning silently. The more furious she became, the more attracted he was to her. Why was she so fucking enticing when she was mad?