The Cowboy From Down Under (Cowboys After Dark: Book 2) Read online

  “But what?” she interrupted.

  “I thought you were talking about…” he began, but unable to find the words he let his voice trail off.

  “Oh, my gosh,” she stammered, dropping her gaze, deeply embarrassed. “You know what happened at the hotel, with your partner?”

  “He told me he caught you breaking into the pool,” Derrick said quietly, “and you suggested he whip your butt instead of calling the police. Is that what happened?”

  “I didn’t know what else to do,” she groaned, still staring at her feet. “I couldn’t get arrested.”

  Not finding anything else to say, she absently ran her fingers through her hair and shuffled her feet.

  “Well, Emma, I’m glad it’s out in the open, and I know he just scolded you and left you hanging, but I have to ask, what were you thinking?”

  “That taking a swim is no big deal. I didn’t think anyone would know, let alone care,” she confessed.

  “You’re a bad girl, and you were right, you deserved to be spanked for ferreting out that key and letting yourself in,” he declared. “What if something had happened?”

  “Nothing would have happened,” she argued, darting her eyes up at him, an unexpected surge of defiance bursting forth.

  “Don’t take that tone with me, young lady,” he scolded, “and that’s hardly the point.”

  “Sorry, I know. Sometimes I just get these ideas in my head, and I have to act on them,” she admitted.

  “Lack of impulse control,” he muttered.

  “I guess, well it’s over now, so…”

  “But the thing is,” he continued, “Fred and I had arranged a barbie for you at his house, and it was supposed to be tonight. This was before you arrived of course. He and his wife are fans of yours, and they wanted to meet you.”

  “That would be really weird,” she muttered.

  “It doesn’t have to be.”

  “It doesn’t?”

  “Emma, Fred is like me. He and his wife have a DD relationship.”

  “What’s a DD relationship?”

  “Domestic discipline.”

  “Really!” she exclaimed, raising her eyebrows.

  “Jennifer, that’s his wife, knows exactly what happened, and she’s fine with it. I’m fine with it too. There’s no weirdness about it at all, and I’m sure you’ll find Fred to be very welcoming.”

  “You think?” she pressed.

  “It might be a bit awkward for the first five minutes, but after that everything will be fine. Fred’s a great guy, and Jennifer is a lovely lady. Fair dinkum, I wouldn’t lie to you.”

  “Fair dinkum?” she laughed. “What the hell is fair dinkum?”

  “Honestly, it means honestly,” he chuckled. “You think about it. I told him I’d let him know this afternoon.”

  “Derrick?”

  “Yes, Emma?”

  “If we, um, were in a relationship, is that what it would be? I thought it was called D/s, you know, Dominance and submission.”

  “Let’s get on our horses and take that ride,” he smiled. “I think this is a conversation for another time.”

  “Sorry, you’re right,” she nodded.

  “No need to apologize. Come on, I’ve got something special to show you. Kind of an appetizer for tomorrow.”

  The horses had been brought in from the fields and cleaned up, and were standing quietly in large stalls in the big red barn.

  “That’s Josie,” Derrick declared, pointing to a roan mare with a black mane and tail.

  “She looks adorable,” Emma smiled. “So I guess that’s Max.”

  She was nodding towards a larger, heftier black horse in the adjacent stall.

  “Yep, been my best buddy for a long time. Hang on, I need to call Bounder and Bonny,” he grinned, and quickly stepping outside he let out a loud, shrill whistle.

  “Who are Bounder and Bonny?” she asked as he walked back in.

  “My other best friends, brother and sister cattle dogs. They’re a must when we go out.”

  “Why?”

  “They let me know if there are snakes around, if there’s something ahead, all kinds of things.”

  He’d barely finished speaking when two black and white dogs bounced joyfully into the barn. One immediately ran around Derrick in excited circles, while the other raced across to Emma and sniffed her legs.

  “That’s Bounder, he clearly likes you,” Derrick remarked.

  “How can you tell them apart? They’re identical,” she asked, kneeling down to meet the dog who had decided she was more than all right, and was trying to smother her with kisses.

  “Bounder is bigger. You’ll see it when we’re out,” he replied, walking across the barn aisle and into the tack room.

  “Oh my gosh, is that a stock saddle?” she asked. He had returned carrying a dark brown, odd-looking saddle. “It’s really weird looking.”

  “You won’t believe how comfortable it is,” he smiled. “It’s a combination of an english saddle and a western saddle, if you don’t mind the generalization.”

  “The panels are long, like a dressage saddle, but it’s…doesn’t matter. I can’t wait to get on.”

  “Just stand back for a second, and I’ll have these two saddled up in a jiffy.”

  “In a jiffy? Works for me,” she giggled.

  She watched as he swiftly tacked up both horses, admiring the ease and expertise he displayed. Pulling Josie from her stall first, he handed Emma the reins and gave her a leg up.

  “You make me feel like I weigh an ounce,” she laughed.

  “You do,” he chuckled. “How does that saddle feel?”

  “Fantastic, it’s like sitting in an armchair.”

  Moving his horse out, he swung himself into the saddle, and they walked from the barn, Bounder and Bonny excitedly running ahead.

  “I’m so happy right now I don’t know what to do with myself,” Emma beamed.

  “You look it,” Derrick remarked. “This totally suits you.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Riding a horse, dogs running around, out in the open, you look like you belong.”

  I do, I do belong. I feel that way.

  “Now remember, who’s in charge?”

  “You!” she exclaimed, rolling her eyes.

  “Don’t go getting your knicker’s in a twist. Just want to make sure you don’t forget.”

  “My knicker’s in a twist? Seriously?” she laughed.

  “Let me know when you’re okay to trot,” he grinned. “Josie’s got a very smooth gait.”

  The dogs knew exactly where Derrick was headed, and they bounced ahead, running up a slight hill. It only took a few minutes for Emma to feel confident on the gentle mare, and they were soon trotting, then cantering along the well ridden trail. It was about twenty minutes later they began to wind down into a valley, and Derrick pulled his horse to a stop.

  “Look over to your left,” he said.

  Peering across the valley, Emma saw a group of gigantic rocks, but they weren’t like anything she’d ever seen.

  “Whoa. What are they?”

  “Boulders, but very odd shapes, and as you can see they’re huge.”

  “Thank you so much for bringing me here,” she exclaimed.

  “The ones you’ll see tomorrow will put these to shame.”

  The closer they rode the more awestruck she became, and by the time they’d reached them she was virtually speechless.

  “There’s a saying for the expression on your face,” he chuckled.

  “I’m sure there is,” she replied. “Go on, tell me.”

  “Gobsmacked.”

  “What? What’s a gob?

  “A gob is your mouth, and a smack, well, you know what that is,” he winked. “It means you’ve smacked your hand over your open mouth in shock.”

  “It fits,” she nodded. “I’m truly gobsmacked.”

  The rocks were mammoth. Some were round, some egg-shaped and others looked almos
t square, with some appearing to be precariously perched on another. Climbing off their horses, Derrick took the reins as Emma retrieved the camera she’d safely stowed in her saddlebag. The two dogs were busy running around the area, sniffing the ground and lifting their noses to the air.

  Derrick stood quietly as Emma went to work, moving around the various rocks, positioning herself to find the best angles from which to shoot. She had dropped to one knee to aim her camera between two boulders that were leaning against each other at a bizarre angle, when Bounder, a short distance away, began to bark.

  “Emma, don’t move,” Derrick shouted.

  The alarm in his voice sent a cold shiver down her spine, and she froze.

  “Stay exactly where you are and don’t move a muscle,” he repeated. “Bounder, Bonny, back.”

  Bounder immediately ran across to him and sat down, and Bonny, off in the distance, raced quickly to join them. Derrick looped the reins over the heads of the horses tying them to a low bush, and grabbed a long stick with a thicket of thin branches covered in leaves.

  Emma, terrified and afraid to move, shifted her head just enough to gaze across to the area where Bounder had been barking; a brown striped snake was resting on the ground, unmoving, but its head was raised.

  Okay, stay calm. It’s a snake, not a spider, and you have Superman with you.

  Derrick walked carefully towards her, and laying the long branch out in front of him, he pointed it towards the snake, slowly sweeping the leaves across the ground. The snake moved slightly, away from the branch, and Derrick continued the sweeping motion, carefully pushing towards the snake until it slithered away, disappearing into the cluster of rocks.

  “You okay?” he asked, reaching down and helping Emma to her feet.

  “I’m not sure, yes, just a bit shaky,” she breathed. “What was that?”

  “That was a Tiger Snake. It’s got a nasty venom.”

  “Oh, my gosh,” she sighed, leaning against him. “My hero.”

  “You were great,” he declared, hugging her. “You did exactly the right thing. Most snakes only attack if they’re provoked. They’d much rather slink away and hide.”

  “Wow…you were amazing,” she breathed, still feeling a bit shaken, “and thank goodness for Bounder. He gets an extra treat tonight, and I really understand the whole ‘you’re in charge’ thing now.”

  “We’re getting somewhere,” he chuckled. “Have you got enough pictures?”

  “I want just a few more, if I can keep my hands from trembling. Can I get a photo of you and the crew?”

  “The crew?”

  “Yes, you, Bonny, Bounder, Max and Josie.”

  “Sure,” he laughed. “We’ll be waiting.”

  She snapped her last few shots of the astounding rocks, then wandered back towards him. He was kneeling down petting Bonny, Bounder was rolling in the dirt in front of him, and the two horses appeared to be napping; the scene was tranquil and serene, offering no indication of the threat that had just passed.

  She began shooting. Hearing the clicking of the camera the horses pricked their ears, and simultaneously Derrick glanced up at her; it was a moment frozen in time, a great shot, and she knew it the second she pressed the trigger.

  On the ride back to the barn Josie was on automatic pilot, and Emma felt like a passenger more than a rider, so was able to pay more attention to the beauty of her surroundings. Derrick was chatting about his ranch, the work it took to keep it running smoothly, and how he had to balance it with his hotel and tour business. She was listening, but she was also deep in thought about the man he was.

  Not only was he a unique blend of many qualities, he wasn’t the least bit intimidated by her, but it was how she felt around him that was taking her by surprise; like a feminine, sexy, girl, with no desire to be tough, or, startlingly, in charge.

  When they returned to the barn and untacked the horses, to Emma’s great joy Derrick allowed her to brush off Josie while he was taking care of Max. The cherry on top of the proverbial cake was that Bounder didn’t want to leave her side.

  “Thank you for letting me do this,” she smiled, as she ran a thick steel comb through the mare’s mane. “I really love it.”

  “You’re a natural. Why don’t you own a horse?”

  “I travel too often,” she sighed. “If I had a horse, or an amazing dog like Bounder here,” she laughed, bending down to pet him, “I’d feel guilty leaving all the time. It wouldn’t be fair.”

  “Doesn’t it get tedious, living out of a suitcase so much?”

  “It’s starting to. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve been very fortunate and I love my work, but I was thinking on the trip down here that it was time I thought about cutting back a bit.”

  “On another subject, have you made up your mind about the barbecue tonight?”

  Taking off Josie’s halter she stared across at him, then walked out of the stall and sat down on a bale of hay.

  “Yes, and I’d like to go. It will be weird for me, but I think you’re right, only at first, and you said this couple are very good friends of yours.”

  “Too right!” Derrick declared.

  The response made her giggle, and Derrick broke out in a broad grin.

  “Sorry, definitely,” he chuckled.

  “So then, let’s go. Besides, I can’t visit Australia without going to a barbie,” and I really want to see if they’re as blissfully happy as they appear to be. I want to be around a DD couple. This is all so interesting.

  “I’m really pleased about this,” Derrick smiled. “I know you’ll really like Jennifer. I’ll call Fred when I finish with Max here.”

  Emma grinned, and walking over to him, put her arms around his waist and hugged him.

  “What this for?” he asked.

  “Just because,” she answered.

  “Now that,” he smiled, leaning his head down and kissing her lightly, “is the best reason of all.”

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  After finishing with the horses, Derrick had made them a welcome cup of tea and a light lunch, then taken her on a walking tour of the nearby area, during which Bounder wouldn’t leave her side. Once back at the house she’d spent the rest of the day reviewing the pictures she’d taken and catching up with her online world, while Derrick was in his office working.

  It was soon time to ready themselves to join Fred and Jennifer for the early evening barbecue, but Emma wasn’t sure what to wear.

  “You’re sure it’s definitely casual?” she asked nervously, still in a bathrobe.

  “For sure. We’ll be sitting out in the backyard watching the mozzie’s getting zapped.”

  “Mozzies?”

  “Mosquitoes. You don’t have to be so worried.”

  “It’s not like me,” she sighed, shaking her head. “It’s because of what happened at the pool.”

  He watched her for a minute, then a wry smile crept across his lips.

  “I have an idea that might help take your mind of things,” he murmured.

  What he had in store was a roll of the dice, but he wanted to see how she would handle it, and it would be a true test of her submissive nature.

  “You’ve got a glint in your eye,” she remarked.

  “I’m not surprised,” he chuckled. “What’s under that robe?”

  “Nothing,” she replied, tilting her head to one side. “Why?’

  He didn’t respond, but walked to a chest of drawers retrieving two long pieces of wide ribbon. Emma’s stomach did a tap dance as he moved slowly towards her, and when his hands undid the belt of her robe, then traveled up to her shoulders to push the sleeves down her arms, letting the robe drop to the floor, a warm shiver sent goosebumps dancing across her skin.

  “You’re not cold are you?” he asked softly.

  “No, just…”

  “Just what? Apprehensive?”

  “Yes,” she breathed, “apprehensive, and I feel weird standing here naked like this.”

  “You’re
gorgeous, you have nothing to feel weird about, but apprehensive I can understand.”

  “What are you going to do with those ribbons?” she muttered.

  “I told you, I’m going to give you something to think about,” he smiled, quickly tying one around her waist.

  “I don’t understand,” she frowned.

  “You will in a minute,” he promised.

  Knotting the second ribbon to the center of the one he’d tied around her midriff, he carried it between her legs, nestling it into her sex, but as he reached around, tugging on it to move it between her bottom cheeks, she let out a gasp and began squirming. Quick as a flash he landed his hot palm against her backside, swatting her smartly several times in succession.

  “Ow, stop, I’ll be still,” she wailed.

  “See that you are,” he said sternly, landing two more smacks on each cheek for good measure. “You need some training.”

  “Training?” she squeaked. “What do you mean?”

  “Haven’t you ever had a Dom?” he frowned.

  “Um, kind of,” she replied, thinking about Marcus.

  I guess he wasn’t, not really. It sure didn’t feel like this.

  “We’ll talk about this later. Please stand still and let me finish.”

  “Sorry,” she apologized, and to show she would cooperate she shifted her feet apart.

  “That’s better,” he remarked, and picking up the trailing ribbon he yanked it between her cheeks and tied it off, then turned her around to face him. Her eyes were sparking, and her face was as scarlet as her freshly spanked bottom.

  “Do I have to wear this all night?”

  “Only if you want to, but it would please me,” he replied softly, his stern demeanor vanishing as quickly as it had surfaced.

  “I, uh, do want to…I think,” she stammered.

  “That’s good to hear,” he smiled. “How do you feel?”

  “I feel, uh, I don’t know how I feel,” she confessed.

  “When you figure it out you tell me,” he said, and taking her face in his hands, he kissed her warmly. “Now get dressed and we’ll go.”

  Emma moved across to her suitcase. He’d placed it on an antique steamer trunk against the wall, and as she opened the lid she could feel the insistent rubbing of the satin ribbon.