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fragile features. Everything about her was feminine and alluring, and even though he‘d kidnapped her and dragged her up to the secluded cabin, he had the distinct feeling he was the one who was a prisoner. “For instance, I‘d take money on it your father would like to lynch me ‘long about now.”
    Considering his cock was still buried deep inside her; that was undoubtedly true. In fact, if Gerald Evans saw them as they were in bed right now, Parker would be a dead man. Celia didn‘t deny it either. She said softly, “He likes you. My mother does, too. The reason I was laughing is because she took me aside a couple of days ago and gave me a pretty frank talk about what we just did. It was almost like she knew this was going to happen.”
    “Really?” Parker tried to seem bland. He gave her what he hoped was a questioning look, still braced on his elbows above her. “This I‘m dying to hear. What did she say?”
    “Actually, she told me the absolute truth in pretty accurate anatomical detail.” Celia‘s dark blue eyes were amused. “I was horrified, if you want to know, and I really didn‘t believe her. I have to say when described, the whole process of sex sounds rather disgusting.”
    Considering she lived on a working ranch, she couldn‘t have been completely ignorant even before her mother‘s lecture. Parker gently slid free from between her legs and rolled over on his back, settling next to her. He really couldn‘t remember being more content in his life. “You‘ve seen the stallions cover the mares. Not to mention the bulls with the cows.”
    “That‘s not a particularly gentle act and not at all the same thing.”
    “I wasn‘t exactly gentle a few minutes ago, either.” He felt a little guilty, for she surely had to be sore from the night before. “I hope I didn‘t hurt you in any way.”
    “No, you didn‘t. Or if you did, I didn‘t care at the moment.”
    “You‘re sure?”
    Celia, as usual, had the ability to unsettle him. She rose up on one elbow and brushed his mouth with a light kiss. Lush and gorgeous, with his sperm gleaming on her pale thighs in glistening rivulets, she whispered against his lips, “I liked it.”
    God help him, he was completely at her mercy.
    “Me, too,” he said in husky response and pulled her into his arms.

Chapter Four
    The fence had been cut. This wasn‘t the first time, either.
    John Evans swung off his horse and studied the tracks with a practiced eye. There had been about five of them as far as he could tell, and a good amount of cattle had been herded through the gap.
    Parker West, when he got back from his little impulsive outing with Celia, was going to be livid. They were all losing stock, but their own operation and the West ranch had borne the brunt of the rustlers‘ attention.
    True, the Wests ran more head than they did, but they were definitely both targets.
    John wondered if he didn‘t know why, for he‘d be damned if he didn‘t have a pretty solid suspicion of just who might be behind the recent upsurge in stolen cattle. He‘d been thinking about it for some time but had been reluctant to say anything.
    Joshua trotted up on his bay and swore softly, taking in the damage. “Fucking lowdown thieves. Parker is going to be pissed as hell.”
    Out looking for a stray mare that had escaped their pasture, they‘d ridden all over the West ranch to see if she might have ended up there. This wasn‘t the only place that had been used to steal stock.
    Taking out a paper and his bag of tobacco, John deftly rolled himself a cigarette with one hand, pouring the tobacco with the pouch between his teeth. He tucked the pouch back in his pocket. “I‘ve got a theory about all this,” he drawled.
    “Oh yeah?” Josh slid off his horse, squinted at the tracks with an expression of disgust, and shook his head. “Enlighten me whenever you‘re ready, little brother.”
    “Colter‘s doin‘ this. Well, not him specifically, but he‘s backing