A Bride for Two Brothers (2 page)

She was completely shaken, and he never let her get her balance back. From that day on, he had forced her to be naked in the apartment and to indulge his every whim. He had allowed her to continue working, but he took all her earnings. She had been totally enslaved.

Tears were streaming down her face by the time the bus groaned to another stop. A kind faced girl around Kelsey’s own age was standing next to her. “Please excuse me for asking, but are you alright?” the fresh faced girl asked.

Kelsey wiped her tears away with both hands and vainly struggled to force an unconvincing smile. “I’m okay. I’m just trying to get away from a guy.”

“My name is Ashley. Would you mind if I sat with you after the rest stop?”

Kelsey nodded. Most of the passengers crowded off the bus and into the restrooms provided at the stop. When she got back on the bus, she had found Ashley sitting in what was now
their
seat.

“I’m sorry I was such a mess,” Kelsey said as she slipped in beside her new companion.

“Hey, I understand. I’m sick of guys. They take what they want and then they’re through with you. You don’t need to apologize. Are you going far?”

“I paid to ride to Seattle. I want to find a job in a quiet place where I can settle down for a while.”

“What kind of work are you looking for?”

“I’m trained as a cook.”

“You’re in luck. The ranches between here and Seattle have had to hire extra hands because they have so many calves. It’s been a good year. Good cooks are in more demand out here than in the city. You should ask when we stop.”

Ashley’s suggestion was one that Kelsey had not considered. She might be able to hide out on some isolated ranch even better than a big city. It was worth a try. The two young women chatted for a couple of hours.

“I will be getting off at the next stop,” Ashley said.

“Will somebody meet you?”

“No, my folks are too old to come. I don’t have the cash to rent a car, so I’ll have to hitch a ride.”

Kelsey reached into the pocket of her jeans and pulled out five twenty dollar bills. “I hope this will help. We sisters of the road need to stick together.”

“You can’t. It’s too much. You’ll need your money.”

Kelsey placed the bills into Ashley’s palm and closed the girl’s fingers over the small roll. “I have all I need. Talking to you has made me feel a lot better.

Ashley’s eyes filled with tears, and she whispered “Thank you” an embarrassing number of times.

When the bus pulled next to a dingy station at some town called Havre in Montana, Ashley wished Kelsey “good luck” and got off. Kelsey had enjoyed the company, but she was also glad for a little solitude.

Carl would be home in a little over three days. How many times had he called? Did he know she was gone yet? She had asked the manager at Club 24 to say she was on vacation when she turned in her resignation. That might work until someone showed up and flashed a badge. One thing was sure, as soon as Carl found out that she was gone, the hunt for her would be on. Then cops everywhere would be looking for her. That thought chilled her to the bone.

Kelsey had no way of knowing that Carl was not thinking about her at all. He was spending his time with a comely brunette that he regularly rendezvoused with when he was at Quantico. His little slave at home was the last thing on his mind.

The constant vibration of the bus’s big engine began to make Kelsey feel some unexpected passion. She looked around and was pleased to find no other passengers nearby. Kelsey closed her eyes and let warm thoughts fill her mind. A vision of a strong and handsome man quickly materialized. Unlike Carl, her dream man was more interested in loving her than dominating her. No other passengers were nearby, so she considered stroking herself. Carl never allowed her to engage in self-pleasure. The last time he caught her in that forbidden activity, he had forced her to… That memory was too dreadful to recall. The bastard had taken everything from her including the ability to enjoy her own body. Would she ever be able to bring herself to pleasure again? Captain Carl Barker could go to hell! Somehow, some way, she would get free of him!

A woman walked by and entered the bus’s tiny lavatory. Kelsey could hear every sound emanating out of the small compartment so the door provided no real privacy. Of course, Carl never allowed her any privacy either. He regularly forced her to leave the bathroom door open so he could humiliate her by watching her do her business. “I need to keep an eye on you all the time.” She had heard those hateful words so often that she wanted to scream.

Time passed slowly, and her body had begun to ache. Riding the “silver dog” was proving to be almost as much of an ordeal as living with Carl. She relished the too infrequent rest breaks that allowed the passengers to get off the bus and refresh themselves. After too many long days, she was still only in Montana. Seattle still seemed very far away indeed. The bus pulled into a very small town, and the driver announced a forty-five minute lunch break because the bus was ahead of schedule.

Inverness, Montana was tiny. It had a handful of unpaved streets and not a single traffic signal. Rusty signs rattled in the relentless wind. Like many other small hamlets, this place had nearly vanished when the new interstate highway had passed it by. No one came to Inverness unless they had business in Inverness.

The bus had stopped at “Beth’s Kitchen”.
The sing proclaimed “home cooking” and “bottomless cups of coffee.” It reminded her of her parent’s old place. She staggered into the tiny roadside diner on numb legs. Would her butt every feel normal again? The smell of strong coffee revived her a little. A few minutes later, she emerged from the ladies’ room both refreshed and relieved.

She took a seat at a tiny table. The menu offered the usual greasy diner fare. She ordered a grilled fish sandwich and a tossed salad from a stout woman in a stained pink uniform whose name tag identified the server as “Beth.”

Kelsey leaned back and surveyed the room’s occupants, and what she saw almost sent her bolting back to the bus. Less than twenty feet away, a deputy sheriff and a state patrolman were enjoying cheese burgers and French fries. How could she have overlooked them? Worse yet, the younger man of the duo, the deputy, was looking directly at her. She could not breathe! Was he going to arrest her? Was she about to be shipped back to Carl? The thought never crossed her mind that the young cop was just a single guy who was checking out a pretty girl.

The policemen left just as Beth brought Kelsey’s order to her. “Can I get you anything else, hon?” the portly woman asked cheerfully.

“I’m looking for a job as a cook.”

“Oh hon, I don’t need any help. Sorry.”

“I don’t want to work in town. I would like to work on a ranch.”

“I might be able to help you out there. One of the local ranchers, Quinton Whittington, stopped in for coffee this morning. His cook quit, and he said that he needed a replacement quick. He put a note on the bulletin board. He and his brother Marcus run the Rocking W. Ranch. It’s a good sized spread, and I’ve heard that the Whittington brothers pay well. The only problem is that the place is pretty far out of town.”

Kelsey thought that was no problem at all. She hurried to the board and took the note before walking to the pay phone and dialing the number.

The connection was scratchy but adequate. “Rocking W., this is Marc. What the hell do you want?”

She was surprised by his brusque manner, but she forged on anyway. “I’m here at Beth’s Kitchen. I saw that you wanted a cook. I have experience, and I’m available as soon as you want.”

“Let me give you directions to my place.”

“I came into town on the bus. I’ll have to find a ride.”

“That’s no problem. My brother Quint is in town picking up some parts for one of our tractors. He’ll give you a ride. Let me have your cell phone number so he can hook up with you.”

“I lost my phone last week.”

Marcus laughed. “I can help with that too. Tell me what you look like, and I’ll send Quint to the diner for you.”

Kelsey described her clothing and gave an unflattering description of herself. “I’ll watch for him.”

She hurried to the bus, got her bag, and had the driver give her a voucher for the rest of the trip. She understood that there was no guarantee this would work out. He told her that there would be another bus almost every day. She hoped she could find a motel if the job did not pan out.

She felt anxious as she watched the bus pull away. A few minutes later a huge double cab pickup truck roared up. One of the biggest men Kelsey had ever seen climbed out. Quinton Whittington was amazing. He was very tall, muscular, and had curly brown hair peeking under his dirty red baseball cap. His brown eyes captivated her immediately.

“Are you the gal who’s looking for a job?” he asked. She nodded nervously. He grabbed her suitcase before she could react and tossed it onto the truck’s back seat. An instant later he picked her up and set her on the front seat as if she were light as a feather.

He drove out of town to the north. The road was covered with gravel at first, but it slowly turned to rutted dirt. At one point along the way, they passed a pickup that had been badly battered. It windows were shattered, and its body was covered with dents. The cab’s roof was flattened.

“What happened there?” Kelsey asked.

“Our neighbor had a visitor from out east,” Quinton said as he wiped the back of his hand across his mouth. “She didn’t know how bad the weather can get around here.”

“What kind of weather wrecks a car like that?”

“Hail. If you see a really dark cloud in the northwest, get out of your car and hide under it. That girl would still be alive if she’d just done that.”

“You mean she died because of hail?”

“Some of the stones were as big as soft balls. She didn’t have a chance. Take cover right away if you see a bad storm blowing up. You will not get a second chance.”

Kelsey shivered as she looked at the wreck and tried to imagine how terrible it would be to be bludgeoned to death by huge hail stones. “Thanks for warning me,” she whispered.

The thirty five mile trip took well over an hour. During nearly all that time, Quinton remained almost completely silent. At first, Kelsey was worried that he was unhappy about something or other, but his happy smile belied that possibility. Later she grew to understand his laconic temperament. When the truck finally passed a weather beaten sign identifying the property ahead as “The Rocking W. Ranch”,
Kelsey was relieved. The truck bounced for another eight miles before it finally reached the ranch house.

The building was large, but very plain. Clearly the Whittington’s had no interest in decoration of any kind. Quinton retrieved Kelsey’s bag before she could hop down from the truck’s high seat. A moment later a shorter man stepped onto the porch. He introduced himself and Bonnie, the energetic ranch dog that panted beside him. Bonnie rubbed against Kelsey’s calf and seduced her immediately. Marcus Whittington was six inches shorter than his brother, but he was much more powerfully built. His hair was coal black, and his piercing eyes were hazel. He wore leather boots, jeans, a flannel shirt, and surprisingly, a flowered apron trimmed with ruffles.

“I am glad to see you, missy. I hate cooking!” Quinton and Kelsey both laughed. “If you’re willing to get started now, you can have the damn job! We’ll show you your room, and then you can get to work.”

She followed the men into the house and up the wide stairs. Her “room” was actually a comfortable small suite. She smiled. It needed a woman’s touch, but she would be very comfortable.

Kelsey followed Marcus and Quinton back downstairs to the kitchen. It was large, well equipped, and very much in need of a good cleaning. The room would be a joy to work in once she got it into shape. Steaks and fried potatoes were sizzling on a huge grill. No salad, vegetable or desert was anywhere to be seen. A big coffee urn filled the room with its rich aroma.

“The crew will be in from the field in less than an hour,” Marcus announced. “They’ll be starved. What can Quint and I do to help?” Kelsey asked how many men would be eating. Fortunately there would just be eight. Marcus had eighteen steaks on the grill. It was clear that these boys liked their meat. A quick inspection of the pantry revealed enough canned peaches to pass for a side dish. The few gallons of ice cream in the freezer would provide desert.

“I’ll have to go to town tomorrow to get some more supplies,” Kelsey said.

“That’s good. I have enough bacon and eggs for breakfast and stuff for sandwiches for lunch but not much else. I’ll drive you into Inverness tomorrow morning and introduce you at the mercantile.”

Dinner passed Kelsey in a blur. The men seemed to be delighted to have a new cook. They lavished great praise on her for the meal that Marcus had actually prepared. She hoped to give them something the next day that would be much more worthy of their commendation.

Kelsey stepped outside the hot kitchen to catch a breath of cool air. She was enjoying the landscape when something rubbed against her calf. Bonnie looked up at her with an expression that stole Kelsey’s heart again. The energetic border collie was twenty seven pounds of pure irresistible energy. The girl squatted and allowed the dog to sniff her hand.

“Hello, aren’t you a nice girl.” The dog wagged her tail and nuzzled the young cook. Kelsey had passed inspection.

“Let me get you a snack,” Kelsey said. She walked into the kitchen and found a steak that had been deemed too small by the hungry ranch hands. It served the eager dog very well. “I have to get back to work, but come by tomorrow morning and I’ll get you some bacon for breakfast.” Bonnie looked up as if she understood every word.

Kelsey cleaned the kitchen for several more hours, but fatigue finally got the best of her. She stumbled up the stairs to the room the brothers had showed her earlier and fell asleep in minutes.

* * *

Just before first light, she woke. Free from the relentless sounds of the city, her room was amazingly quiet. For the first time in years, she thought back to her childhood. Her bedroom had been quiet like this, and she had felt very safe. She switched on a light to assure herself that she had not been magically transported back in time. It was true; she was in living on the endless prairie of Montana.