The Ranch Ch. 02

Cory was raiding the scotch at the lobby bar when Mark burst through the doorway.

"Did you find her?" he panted, coming up to the bar and sitting alongside Cory, who eyed him stonily.

"What? What now?" Mark demanded, slightly taken aback by Cory's glaring silence.

Cory's scotch glass when flying as he suddenly seized the front of Mark's shirt and punched him. The hit was half-hearted; angry as Cory was with his friend, he didn't want to seriously hurt him. Not yet. Looking up from the ground, astounded, Mark pushed himself up into a sitting position.

"What in the-" he began, but Cory cut him off.

"What the hell has gotten into you?" Cory roared, kicking the wall of the bar.

"What?!" Mark picked himself up from the ground with surprising agility and dusted himself off. "You better have a good reason for knocking me."

"Why'd you do it?" Cory asked heatedly. "Because she rejected you? Is that it?"

"What the fuck are you talking about?" Mark demanded. Then he remembered Katie, lying on the road, and held up both hands in protest.

"Whoa, Cory, that wasn't me. You think I roughed up Katie?"

Cory stared at him, fists clenched by his sides, fighting not to lay into Mark.

"I never- I mean, I wouldn't," Mark said firmly, lowering his hands. "I got the guy, and Katie took off. I couldn't find her."

"What guy?" Cory questioned disbelievingly. "God, Mark, it'd be more convincing if you told me she ran into a tree!"

"I'm serious!" Mark thundered. "Jesus, don't you know me better than that?"

He sat down at the bar, and poured himself a scotch with slightly shaking hands. "I only deal with women in sex, not violence. You know that." He cast a scornful glance at Cory. "How could you think I'd stoop to that level, with my history?"

Cory's face softened at the recollection of that one night many years ago, both blind drunk, when Mark vulnerably opened up and spilled his guts about his childhood.

"Look at my hand." Mark held up his fist, knuckles swollen, cut and bloodied. "If this was from Katie, she'd be unrecognisable. Where are you going?"

Cory was striding toward the doorway. "Where is he?" he asked angrily, turning to look at Mark.

"Easy, Romeo," Mark replied gently. "We have a problem with that. You might want to sit down."

"What? What is it?" he asked harshly, not moving.

Mark stared at the glass in his hand and inhaled deeply. "I think I might have killed him."

He looked up at Cory, and though his handsome face was masked in confidence, Cory knew him well enough to recognise the glimmer of fear in his eyes.

Cory approached the bar and sat next to Mark, amazed. "What do you mean?" he asked slowly. "You...? He's definitely dead?"

"I'm not sure. I didn't mean to. I mean, I wanted to but..." Mark shook his head. "It gets worse."

"How?" demanded Cory.

Mark watched Cory carefully for his reaction. "The guy was a cop."

"Fuck."

"A pretty fucking dirty cop," Mark said disgustedly, tossing back his glass in one gulp. "That guy definitely wasn't on a policeman's salary."

"I wonder who he was to Katie," Cory pondered.

"Well, I take it you haven't spoken to her about it, since you assumed I was her attacker," Mark observed dryly. "From what I saw and heard, I doubt he meant anything to her, besides misery."

He went to pour himself another glass, but set the bottle down, thinking better of it.

"Is Katie ok?" Mark disinterestedly peered into his empty glass, but Cory knew he wasn't as indifferent as he was making out. "Our bet still stands, you know."

"You've got to be joking."

"I know I was a dick before, but I really thought she'd be into it. I'll apologise, and it's true. I really am sorry."

Cory held up a hand. "Stop, Mark. Think. You've assaulted a girl, possibly killed a guy, and now we're talking bets?"

He stood wearily. "Let's go and see what you've done. Thank God the ranch is out of business right now."

"Where's Katie? Is she ok?" Mark asked again, standing with him.

"She's passed out, and I don't blame her. I bandaged her feet, cleaned the scratches on her arms, legs, and face, but I left everything else. I'm sure she'll take care of the rest when she comes to."

Cory felt his cheeks warm guiltily, recalling how he'd brushed her hair aside and gently lowered his mouth to hers, briefly tasting her lips for the first time in a stolen kiss, before applying a cold towel to her bruised cheek. He'd been tempted to open the robe, see her naked. But he'd clenched his teeth, fought his desire, and covered her in the blanket, quickly leaving before he changed his mind.

Although it was the only reasonable explanation at the time, Cory really struggled to believe that Mark could commit such unprovoked violence on a woman. He was excessively relieved that he'd given Mark a chance to explain himself, because when he'd seen the bite mark on Katie's neck he'd almost overturned the bedside table in a rage.

Mark gingerly pressed his fingers the side of his head where Katie had slugged him, and the top of his cheekbone where Cory's punch had landed. "Two hits in one night, geesh."

"You deserved both of them. Come on," Cory sighed, standing. "Where did you leave him? What exactly happened out there?"

"I moved his car first, I didn't like the idea of the road being blocked," Mark answered grimly. "But on the way back I heard her scream, and I just reached them as they were leaving the woods. Then after that I... I left him on the road, and I looked for Katie. When I couldn't find her, I went through the vehicle and found out who he was."

"Shit," Cory swore. "We're in a heap of shit." He looked at Mark from the corner of his eye, "But I'm glad you stopped him. I really hope you haven't killed him, though."

They walked through the doorway towards the front entrance. The light from the lobby poured into the darkened ground floor area, illuminating their path to the exit.

Leaving the ranch, the sound of their heavy footsteps cut through the quiet as they retraced the path Katie had taken across the gravelled area toward the dirt road.

After a long while, Mark stopped, grabbing Cory's arm. "Wait!" he said sharply. "Somethings wrong."

'What?" Cory asked, narrowing his eyes at him in confusion.

Mark looked up and down the road, then at Cory, with a startled look in his blue eyes.

"We... we've passed the point. I mean, where I left him. I'm positive."

Cory watched him closely, "Are you sure? Are you absolutely certain?"

Mark nodded vigorously.

Cory looked frowningly down at his shoes for a few long seconds. "So...I guess this is good news and bad news?" Not waiting for an answer, he brushed past Mark, back towards the ranch.

Mark half-jogged to catch up to him "What now?"

"Now, we check that Katie is ok," Cory answered firmly. "He can't get into the property, but I want to be sure."

"The guy probably has a gun. How far are we going to take this, with a girl we've just met?"

Cory glanced back at him, not slowing his pace. "With that nut on the loose? We're involved already, thanks to your uncontrolled hormones. It's not like we don't have our own weapons if he wants to play Wild West. What do you think we should do?"

"I don't know. Look, I don't want her to leave either," Mark confessed, "but it's probably for the wrong reasons. I don't want that bastard to get his hands on her, but it's hard being around her without putting hands on her myself."

"What are your thoughts on this guy?" Cory asked. After all the years they'd known each other, Cory had learned to implicitly trust Mark's aptitude in character judgement.

Mark's face darkened, and he shoved his hands into his pockets as he walked, considering his answer.

"My instincts tell me that this guy isn't the type to just admit defeat and retreat. And he's in no position to call his buddies in blue - that wouldn't be in his best interests at all, because not only has he done the wrong thing, it'll wreck his future plans.

"I don't know how to explain it, but I saw it in the guy's eyes - he's obsessive, a violent control freak. I left him in a pretty bad state, but I doubt he's going to leave without Katie. He'll either get what he wants or he'll get revenge, even if it kills him."

"So what would you suggest?" Cory inquired.

Mark exhaled heavily. "Katie obviously knows what he is, which explains why she ran instead of phoning the police. She's scared. We can keep her here, protect her. If she'll let us, after what I did," he smiled grimly. "But she'll have to come clean, tell us everything there is to know about this guy. When you go into battle for anything in life, it's important to know what you're up against."

********************************************************************

Katie moaned as she slowly woke, feeling strangely both comfortable and sore. As her eyes blinked open, she tried to focus on her surroundings. She was looking up at a flawless ceiling, her head cushioned on a pillow, her aching body enveloped in an incredibly soft bed.

Sitting up, she squinted around the room trying to focus in the dark. It was quite large, with a bedside table, a tall, wide, window with the curtain's drawn. A floor to ceiling mirror, an ornate cupboard and chest of drawers. She couldn't see into the darker corners of the room, but could vaguely make out the outline of a large armchair. Where was she?

"Don't panic," a male voice quietly spoke to her from the armchair. Leaning to the side, he clicked on a corner lamp and Katie gasped as she recognised Cory's large frame in it, watching her.

"W-What..." she breathed, not knowing what was happening.

"Nothing weird. I was just keeping an eye on you, in case your friend tries to pay you a visit," Cory murmured raising an eyebrow. "You didn't mention at dinner you were expecting company."

"Oh," she gasped, remembering everything. "Was- was that you who...? No..." she shook her head, remembering Cory had found her on horseback. "It wasn't you, who was it?"

"The person who interrupted your boyfriend? That was Mark," Cory confirmed, watching her reaction. "And I know he owes you quite an apology."

"He's not my boyfriend," she stated firmly, frowning at the prospect.

"Then who is he?" Cory leaned forward in his chair, unable to conceal his interest.

Katie made a hopeless gesture. "I...I don't like to talk about it. It's not to my credit."

Cory stood and approached the bed, sitting on the edge of it.

"You should know that he's gone, but he'll probably be back," he informed her. "Mark wasn't himself at the time, and left the keys in the ignition when he moved the car. So we know for now he's off the land.

"We have a lot to talk about," he continued, with a thin smile. "But it can wait till morning. Details aside, I'd like to propose that you stay here until we sort this mess out, given you're afraid of the police."

Cory smiled sympathetically as her eyes widened in surprise. "Yes, we figured that out. Well, Mark did. So for now, you should stay here."

As she opened her mouth to object, Cory cut her off with an angry sigh.

"Mark will be on his best behaviour, he won't touch you unless you wish it. The same goes for me," he added wryly. "One of Mark's greatest flaws is arrogance. He was cocky, confident that you'd succumb to his charms. And even if you did, it's no excuse for what happened. But I'll let him tell you himself."

Cory gave a small shrug of his broad shoulders. "He...he's an asshole, but he's not a bad guy. Not like the one who's after you."

"Are you going to stay here all night?" Katie asked mildly, and he couldn't tell whether her green eyes were protesting or curious.

"No," he replied flatly. "I just wanted to wait until you woke, and let you know you're in safe hands."

Katie didn't know what had gotten into her, but Cory actually did make her feel safe. Reaching forward, she tentatively laid her hand on his.

"I don't want to be alone," she murmured, dropping her eyes as a tell-tale blush crept across her cheeks.

Cory took a deep, shaky breath, trying to halt the flow of X-rated thoughts that accompanied her words. Knowing the girl was terrified, he couldn't help visualising her plea for company in the light of a sexual proposal.

Katie watched as he suddenly sat up straight, his body tensing. Had she said something wrong?

"I have to leave," he said heavily, and stood up awkwardly.

Katie was confused. There was no disapproval in his light eyes, but his fists were clenched by his sides, and he spoke as though the words had hurt him when he uttered them.

"Did I do something wrong?" she ventured, voicing her thoughts.

He shook his head, but his jaw had tightened.

"What then?" she queried, now knowing she had nothing to fear from Cory.

"Nothing. I can't stay," Cory insisted, but he didn't move. He couldn't take his eyes from her.

The lamp cast the room in a mix of light and shadow, accentuating the dip between her breasts where the robe slightly parted, the perfect angle of her cheekbones, her soft, tussled hair, the medieval green in her eyes. A hundred years ago she'd probably have been burned at the stake for being so unnaturally beautiful. The cut on her lip and the bruising on her face didn't take away any of her charm. If anything, her vulnerability made him want to kiss her even more, which he didn't think possible.

"Why not?" she pressed curiously, innocently tilting her head at him.

'Get out of there!' A voice in his mind warned, as the blood rapidly left his head and moved to his lower body.

He snapped his eyes shut and turned away. "If I stay, I can't just keep you company. That's why." Not waiting for a reply, he strode from the room.

A few seconds later Katie heard her suite door slam shut. "Oh," she breathed, comprehending.

*******************************************************************

Almost 40 minutes passed, and Katie couldn't sleep. She couldn't stop thinking about Cory. Over and over, her mind replayed their conversation, what he'd said about Mark.

'He won't touch you unless you wish it. The same goes for me...'

So, he'd felt the same way. She saw how he'd looked at her during dinner, but it was all speculation, intuition and innuendo, he'd never actually done anything inappropriate, like Mark had.

Katie eased out of the comfort of her soft bed, suppressing the army of second-thoughts that attacked her spontaneous resolve. Feeling the pain in her steps, for a bewildered moment she looked down at her bandaged feet. The cuts and scratches on her arms and legs were superficial, but had been cleaned, and some kind of ointment glistened around the sore areas.

She dropped the tarnished robe to the floor and opened the cupboard, again slipping into the black dress.

When she stepped out into the bright hallway, she again glanced left and right, remembering how she'd done the same only hours ago. In the elevator, heart racing at her reckless behaviour, she selected two floors up.

It chimed, and she walked into a short, wider hallway. The carpet was elaborately patterned, though her feet were bandaged, she could feel its soft texture. There were only two apartments on this level, and she walked along the hall until she stood before two bronze-coloured doors. Katie felt like a protagonist in a novel, encountering a number of obstacles and tough decisions on the journey to a fateful destination.

Left or right? Or should she turn back, before she made a terrible mistake?

Katie stood staring between the two doors for a full five minutes. Even though she had forgiven him, she didn't want to see Mark. She was well aware that if it weren't for Mark, she'd be in Dom's car at that moment being subjected to God knows what, but she wasn't ready to face hm yet, not after what had happened.

For the hundredth time, she asked herself the question - left, or right? If she knocked on Mark's door, she knew it'd be unpleasant. Even though he might not pounce like he did earlier, he'd mockingly wonder why she was there. Perhaps she'd be asking for it. In a way she was... but not from him.

Swallowing her pride and trepidation, she gave herself a little shake and pressed the bell on the left door.

From within, she dimly heard the chime sound throughout the inside of the suite. Part of her would be relieved if no one answered, but within ten seconds the door swung open, and she stared up at Cory's worried countenance as he looked around the hall, then down at her, confused.

She smelled the fresh scent of soap and skin, he had obviously just showered. He was dressing in nothing but trousers. Katie gaped at his smooth, muscled chest, feeling the blood begin to pound in her head at the sight of him, half-naked.

"What's happened? Has Mark-" he began heatedly.

"No." Katie shook her head. "I just...I just thought...I...I..." she watched, speechless, her emerald eyes widening as his expression quickly morphed in front of her like magic, from concern to desire.

"I don't understand," he said sharply, pulling himself together with an effort, his face pinched with frustration. "what are you doing here?"

When she didn't answer, Cory's mind entered into a tumultuous state, and his chest expanded as his breathing quickened. After thinking about her relentlessly, he thought he was dreaming when he'd opened the door. But there she was, right in front of him, gazing up at him expectantly with those amazing eyes. How much could a man take?

Katie was meekly idle as he suddenly pulled her into his arms, and kissed her desperately, like she was his oxygen. Loving the heat of his bare skin against her, she sighed into his mouth as his hands feverishly roamed all around her body over her dress, squeezed her buttocks, slid up her waist to cup her breasts while his tongue mingled with hers.

Cory groaned in her mouth as he brushed a thumb across her nipple, and katie felt a deep desire pool between her legs as he tightened an arm about her waist and lifted her against him, turning into the apartment and kicking the suite door shut behind him.

When he'd heard the doorbell ring, Cory never dreamed it could be Katie. He'd expected Mark, with news about their fugitive, wanting company, or something frivolous as was his humour. When he opened the door to see Katie staring up at him, he'd assumed the worst. It would never have occurred to him that she'd have wanted to see him for himself.

Katie barely took notice of her surroundings in Cory's embrace. Nervous and unsure as she was a few minutes ago, she didn't feel any regret as he carried her down a hallway, past a large kitchen, through the large lounge-room, down another hall into his bedroom. She imagined this was like the 'one night stand' she'd never experienced, the sudden overwhelming excitement that overrode the awkwardness of being so intimate with a man she barely knew.

He didn't toss her onto the bed as she expected, but turned and sat down upon it, pulling her into his lap. Automatically she went with his movements and crawled forward, dressed hitched about her waist, running her hands all over his toned upper body.

Knees on either side of his thighs, she pressed her hips against his, feeling his body shudder against her in excitement. She didn't feel the cut on her lip as she returned his fierce kisses, one arm around his neck and the other gripped his bicep as she writhed against him.

Katie gasped as his clutching hands reached up between them and ripped at her dress, tearing the straps and pulling the silk downwards, exposing her perfect breasts to him for the first time. He tore his mouth from hers and lowered his lips to her chest, eager to taste her soft flesh as she tipped her head back and arched against him, feeling his erection move between her legs as she straddled him, building her own desire.