Chapter One
“What the hell kind of name is Arthur Paddington the Third for a man?” Hank asked in pure disgust, slapping her gloved hand on the dusty top of her desk. “And what the hell is he doing coming out here to live?”
“He does own the Bar P Ranch, Hank,” Dorothea pointedly reminded her older sister.
“Owning a ranch is one thing; running it another! With a name like that, he’s got to be some citified dude that don’t know one end of a steer from the other!” She jumped to her feet, and came around the large desk to pace the floor in front of her pretty, blond-haired sister. “I don’t need the likes of some doddering old fart poking his nose into my business. Lenny was doing okay running the Bar P!”
“Lenny Adamson is drunk ninety percent of the time, Hank!”
“Yes, and he’s not sticking his nose into my business.”
“Hank, you’ve got to stop before you get caught,” Dorothea said, her soft voice pleading.
“Not in a million years,” Hank stated forcefully, her hand automatically going to rest on the butt of the colt she wore strapped down low on her right hip. The gun was as much a part of her as her long red hair, which she wore in a single braid down her back.
“So, what are you going to do if Mr. Paddington gets curious and starts snooping around?” Dorothea asked, her blue eyes expressing curiosity more than genuine concern for her sister.
“I’ll cut his nose off and send him back East,” Hank replied, and without another word she turned on the heel of her boot and headed out of the ranch house. She had work to do, the kind that was best kept to herself.
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“What the hell kind of name is Hank Matthews for a woman?” Arthur Chase Paddington the Third looked at his lawyer in disgust.
“I am told her given name is Henrietta Josephine, but she apparently prefers that rather odd, masculine nickname, sir. She is a twenty-five year old spinster, and she was named owner of the Winding Creek Ranch after her older brother died suddenly four years ago.”
“Well, if that isn’t just exactly what I need! A spinster who thinks she is a man for a neighbor. A nosy, bossy woman who will need to be put in her place rather firmly before I can attempt to run my business without her snooping around!” It was obvious the tall man was not the least bit happy.
“Sir, perhaps it would be wise to simply offer to purchase the Winding Creek Ranch from Miss Matthews?”
Chase looked at the older man and then nodded. “It is an option, and one I will consider, William.”
“Sir, are you positive you want to remain here? It is not too late to change your mind…?” William asked as he looked at his client, his blue eyes unwavering behind the glasses he wore.
“I am not going to change my mind, William. The Bar P is the perfect place… as long as I can keep my neighbor from snooping like a nosy woman.”
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Hank had no qualms whatsoever about stripping down to the buff and sliding into the creek that flowed through several of the ranches in the area. It was a well-known fact that she owned over seventy-five percent of the water way, and she went swimming nearly every day, when the weather was suitable. It was hard to tell who was more surprised when she surfaced and came face to face with a stranger, herself or the handsome man with the smiling brown eyes.
“Oh!” Hank splashed furiously, putting some distance between the two of them before looking at him to demand, “Who the hell are you and what the hell are you doing here?”
“The name is Chase, and I suspect I’m doing the same thing you are, trying to cool off with a swim.”
“This is private property!” she announced, annoyed. The water was clear, and she could see every inch of him, not that she was trying to look, but he was so large she couldn’t resist peeking below the water to see if he was large ‘there’, too. He was! And, if she could see him, he could see her… all of her! She tried to cover herself, and he grinned. “This is not funny, Mister. Turn around and get out of here before I shoot you!”
“I am rather enjoying myself,” Chase told her. Her hair was a glorious shade of red, and he longed to free it from the braid. He started to reach for her to do just that and the vixen swung back and in the next instant kicked him… hard… and he thought he was going to pass out cold in the water! While he was gasping and trying not to drown, she was hauling her butt out of the water and running into the bushes. By the time he managed to get to the bank and pull himself out of the water, he could hear a horse racing away. “If I ever set eyes on that she-cat again I will make sure she doesn’t sit down for a month!” His only response was the soft nicker of his mount.
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It was too close for comfort, Hank fumed as she paced her bedroom that night. No man had ever seen her naked, and she sure as shootin’ hadn’t seen any man without his clothes before. She’d seen lust in his eyes, too. It was probably just some outlaw passing through, and decided to take a swim, like he said. Still, she was going to have to be more careful in the future. She couldn’t simply assume that her special place was hers alone. No, she would have to be more careful. If she hadn’t caught him by surprise, he might have taken her by force. She was the equal of any man as long as her gun was strapped around her slender body, but she couldn’t very well wear a gun in the water, now could she? He was a handsome man, though. She would have to give him that. She’d long ago stopped wondering what it would be like to find a man worth marrying, but her fantasy man looked a lot like the stranger from today.
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The woman was truly beautiful, Chase admitted. He was going to have to find her… and apologize for frightening her. It wasn’t until he’d had some time to think that he realized how it must have appeared to her when he reached for her. They were strangers, and she was probably afraid he was planning to take advantage of her. He needed to apologize before some father came looking for him with a shotgun. His lower regions protested again when he moved and he once again fantasized about turning her up and spanking her bare bottom. He was darn sure he would enjoy that almost as much as he would enjoy burying himself inside her sweet body.
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“You need to eat something, Hank,” Dorothea insisted.
“How can I expect to keep food down when that dandy is planning to come here?” Hank demanded. She kicked the table leg in frustration. “Why can’t he just keep to his place and leave us alone?”
“Maybe you should put on a dress and not shock the old man? After all, it might be nice to have at least one neighbor on friendly terms with us?”
“What is that supposed to mean?”
“It means that I would like to have some company once in a while, Hank! How am I ever going to find a husband when you are so mean to everyone all the time?”
“You are too young to be thinking of finding a husband!” Hank was truly shocked.
“I am eighteen!” Dorothea exclaimed, her pride wounded.
“Much too young to get married,” Hank said firmly. “Besides, The Third is too old for you.”
“Maybe he is, but he might invite us to his ranch if you are nice to him, and maybe I could meet someone there. I’m tired of being stuck on this ranch all the time, Hank. You are gone most of the time, and I don’t have anyone but Maggie to talk to. And she only talks about the past. Please, put on a dress, Hank, and try to be nice just this once!”
There was a polite knock on the front door and Hank was relieved. The sooner she got this little neighborly visit over with the sooner she could get to work. She hurried across the entry and threw open the door, only to have her jaw drop to the floor. “What the hell are YOU doing here?” she demanded angrily, her right hand automatically going to rest on the butt of her gun.
“I might ask you the same,” Chase returned, his face turning red.
“I live here, and I’m not hiring, so move on before I lose my temper and put a few bullet holes in your hide.”
“I’m not looking for a job. I am Chase Paddington; I came to make you an offer to buy this ranch.”
“What?”
“You heard me. I want to buy this ranch.”
“The Winding Creek isn’t for sale. Now get out and get off my property.”
“You are a female in spite of the way you dress and the way you talk. I would think you would welcome the opportunity to move into town and live an easier life.”
“Well, you ain’t me, and I don’t think no such thing. You’d best be on your way before I forget it’s against the law to shoot down someone who didn’t draw first.”
“You try drawing on me and I’ll take your gun away from you and set your britches on fire,” Chase promised.
“You really do have a death wish.”
“If you weren’t a female, I swear I’d…” He broke off suddenly when he saw a young girl standing in the doorway, looking at him with wide blue eyes. It was obvious she was frightened. “Don’t worry, little girl, I’m not going to hurt anyone. I have better manners than some people I could mention.”
“I am not a ‘little girl’ and I will look for a husband if I want to! You are just as bad as Hank, and I am never going to get off this horrible ranch!” Dorothea burst into tears and ran up the steps to her room, slamming the door behind her.
Chase saw the horrified look on Hank’s face and he said, “She is too young to get married.”
“Yes, she is.”
“I didn’t mean to make her cry.”
“She’s eighteen. Everything makes her cry.” Hank suddenly squared her shoulders and said, “You should leave, Mr. Paddington. This ranch isn’t for sale and it never will be as long as I have breath in my body! I don’t like trespassers, either, so stay on your own land and off of mine.” She put her hat on her head and gave him a false smile. “Thank you for coming by, sir,” she mimicked a lady to perfection, but the smirk in her eyes told him she was laughing at him.
“You and me are going to tangle, aren’t we Miss Matthews?” He didn’t brother to hide his anger.
“We sure are if you don’t leave well enough alone, Mr. Paddington the Third.”
“Maybe we should get this over with right now?” Chase took a step toward her only to find himself looking down her gun barrel.
“Perhaps you should leave?”
“That’s twice, Miss Matthews. If there is a third time, I guarantee it will end differently.” Chase jerked open the door and left, riding out at a brisk pace.
Hank closed the door and then put her gun back in her holster. She took a deep breath and then headed upstairs to try once more to talk some sense into Dorothea. She knocked and went inside. Her pretty little sister was sitting at her vanity brushing her hair.
“I can’t believe you, Hank!” Dorothea’s blue eyes filled with tears once again. “I asked you to be nice to him, and he didn’t even get inside the door before you two were yelling at each other and insulting each other!”
“I met him yesterday,” Hank admitted. “He sneaked up on me and I didn’t know who he was.”
“That’s not a good excuse… And, he insulted me by calling me a little girl! I’m not! I’m old enough to go to dances and have beaus come calling. I want to get married and leave this ranch, and if you won’t help me, I’ll find a way on my own.”
“That is just silly talk, Dorothea Matthews. If Clay was living he would turn you over his knee for talking like that!”
“I’m too old to be treated like a little girl!” Dorothea started crying again and Hank gave up trying to talk to her. She stomped out of the room, down the stairs, and out the front door to get to work. A ranch didn’t just run itself, and she knew for a fact the ranch hands would slack off if she didn’t stay on them each and every day. She paid them more than they could make elsewhere, but they took a lot of ribbing working for a woman. Still the money and the food were good, and she made sure they gave the Winding Creek a fair day’s work.
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Chase heard a noise downstairs and decided he’d better go and investigate. He pulled on his pants and slipped his feet into a pair of moccasins before picking up his gun and slowly and quietly moving through the house. His attorney had headed back home that morning, and no one else should be near the house. Whoever it was wasn’t even trying to be quiet. He heard pacing back and forth and tiptoed down the steps. To his surprise it was the young girl he’d met early that morning. “What are you doing here at this time of night?” he asked and she jumped as if she’d been shot.
“Oh dear! I woke you!”
“It’s nearly midnight, young lady. You should be home and in bed.”
“No. I am not going back there!” Dorothea exclaimed emotionally. “Hank loves living on that stupid old ranch. I don’t! I want you to help me get away from here. I have an aunt in Boston, and I am sure she would help me find a husband.”
“Girl, this is not my problem. You need to get yourself home.”
“I’m not leaving. And if you don’t help me get away, I’ll tell Hank you did unspeakable things to me!”
“Oh really? What sort of unspeakable things?” he asked, almost amused, but at midnight his sense of humor was sound asleep, where the rest of him should be.
“Oh the kinds of things that cause a man to have to get married,” the little imp replied. “So, Mr. Paddington, what will it be? Will you help me get to Boston or do I tell everyone that you made improper advances?”
“What I am going to do, little girl, is load you into my buggy and take you home and tell your sister to lock you in your room until you grow up and get some sense. You sit down right now and do not move from this room.” Chase was perilously close to losing his temper, and he did his best to calm down while he put on a shirt and grabbed his holster and his hat. What on earth did he do to deserve having these two females for neighbors? The one he would like to have throwing herself at him wants to shoot him dead, and the other one is too young to realize what she is doing. It was lucky for her he was a gentleman.
He went downstairs, just to find the brat missing! Chase searched the house, but there was no sign of the pretty little blonde. The thought of her out there alone, riding in the dark, gave him chills. It just wasn’t safe, especially if she came across the wrong people. They would use her without a qualm and then kill her. He hurried outside to saddle up his horse and thought he heard someone in the distance. He was going to find that girl and if she gave him one more bit of nonsense about marrying him, he was going to turn her over his knee and spank her. And, when he got her home, he was going to give her sister the same damn thing for permitting her to run wild. The two females had been on their own without a man’s guidance for far too long. He rode in the direction of the horse he heard, but when he didn’t catch up he figured she was riding for the ranch, and taking some sort of shortcut that he wasn’t privy to, yet.
He rode straight to the Winding Creek and stepped up on the porch. The door was thrown open immediately, but to his surprise it wasn’t the little blonde who answered. It was Hank, and she was dressed in nothing but a nightdress with nothing on her small feet. She held a gun in her hand and looked at him questioningly. “What the hell are you doing here at this time of night?”
“Looking for your little sister. Did she make it back here all right?” he asked, only to have her haul off and punch him as hard as she could with her left fist. His head snapped around and the pain in his jaw exploded, as did his temper. “That tears it, you little hellion. I’ve had it with you Matthews sisters.” He did something quick and sneaky and Hank’s gun hand went numb. Chase took the gun and backed her inside.
Hank ran for the study. She kept extra weapons in there, and she could shoot with her left hand almost as well as with her right. However, Chase overtook her before she could reach the desk drawer or the gun cabinet. He sat on the desk and before she could stop him, she was dangling over his knee. “No!” she whispered, shocked to find herself in such a predicament.
“Yes. You’ve had this coming since you kicked me the first time we met.” Chase started spanking and he put some real effort in making the spanks count. He fully intended to set her backside on fire, and then he was going to give her sister the same exact thing!
Hank clenched her teeth. There was no way she was going to let the bastard make her cry. She wouldn’t give him the satisfaction. Nothing he could do would make her give up her ranch. It belonged to her and Dorothea and she would protect it with her life, just as Clay had after their parents died. “Are you ever going to stop?” she finally demanded, not sure how much more she could take before bawling like a baby.
“Not until my hand falls off,” he answered, and she prayed that would happen soon. Chase finally did stop whaling her and he put her on her feet and looked into her blazing eyes. “Do not strike me again, Miss Matthews, or I will bare you and cut a switch.”
Hank looked at him and said, “Get out!”
“Not until I deal with that little blonde hoyden. Where is she?”
“Dorothea went to bed hours ago!” After another argument, but that was none of his business! “Get out!”
“She was at my place just before midnight. I went upstairs to put on my shirt and hat to bring her home, and when I got downstairs, she’d left. I was sure I heard her ride in this direction.”
“What was she doing at your place?” Hank asked, looking at him suspiciously.
“She either wanted me to help her run away to your Aunt’s home in Boston, or she intended to tell you that I forced myself on her in order to force a shotgun wedding.”
“She wouldn’t do something like that!” Hank denied. She headed for the doorway and then ran upstairs, positive she would find her sister in bed, sound asleep. But, to her shock, Dorothea’s bed was empty! “You’re right! She isn’t here! I’ll get some clothes on!”
Chase was amazed at how quickly Hank threw on some clothes, and he ran with her to check the barn for Dorothea’s mare. It was missing, of course, and Hank cursed as she saddled her mount. “I have to find her. Stupid kid!! It isn’t safe for Dorothea to be out here alone at night.”
“I know. That is why I tried to make sure she got home all right.” Hank felt bad for hitting him. He’d done nothing to deserve her temper. She refused to think about the spanking he gave her and preferred to concentrate on finding Dorothea. Just as they started to ride out, Dorothea came into sight. “What on earth are you thinking, Dorothea?” Hank pulled her off her mare and hugged her tightly. “You scared me!”
“That man seduced me, Hank. He made me do all sorts of terrible things. You need to make him marry me!”
“Really? What sorts of things did he make you do?”
“You know.”
“No, I don’t know. Tell me.”
“He touched me… inappropriately.”
“Show me where and how. I can’t file a legal complaint without more information. Perhaps I should have Doc examine you?”
“Perhaps you should let me show her what happens to little girls who lie?” Chase offered.
“You are just upset because we are going to be married, darling. Don’t worry, I will make you a good wife.”
“Wife? You need to grow up before you even think about getting married, and this will help you do just that.” Chase grabbed the girl, pulled her over to a bench inside the barn and gave her bottom ten really hard spanks. She was bawling when he stood her on her feet. “That, little girl, is what happens when you play silly games. You’re lucky you didn’t get attacked between here and my place. Now go on to bed and stop giving your sister grief. If you pull something like this again, I’ll make sure you can’t sit down for a month.”
Hank watched her sister leave the barn and run for the house, rubbing her backside as she went. As much as it hurt her to admit it, Dorothea had earned the lesson. “I’m sorry for the inconvenience, Mr. Paddington, and for slugging you when you were only trying to help. Thank you for your concern.”
“Are those tears in your eyes, Miss Matthews?” Chase asked, and then said, “Yes, they are.” Before he knew it, he was holding the redhead and offering comfort. “Your sister is safe, and hopefully she will think twice before she pulls another stunt like tonight’s.”
“I hope so. She is the only one I have left and I couldn’t bear to lose her, too,” Hank admitted.
Chase lowered his mouth to hers and kissed her softly, persuading her to kiss him back. Hank felt her body flush with heat at the touch of his lips on hers, and she found herself remembering how he looked in the water. Chase was all man, and she’d wondered for so long what it would be like to lie with a man like him. She kissed him thoroughly and when his hands started to wander, she didn’t try to stop him from caressing her. It felt too good. She pressed her body against his and learned that he was reacting to her in the same way she was to him. He was hard and full, and she was soaking wet and aching for him to take her. She suddenly remembered where she was, and that it would be impossible for her to lecture her sister about morals if she didn’t have any herself. She pulled away and said ‘goodnight’, and then took off running for the house.
To be continued…
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