"Ah, the workmen are through for the day," Paige thought as she watched the men loading their pickups and preparing to leave. They were working to create a studio and large bedroom with attached bath out of what had been three small bedrooms upstairs in the big barn of a house she bought for a song because it was so far from town. They had been working for over a week, tearing down walls and running new wires and plumbing for the project. They were even going to reinforce the roof and install a skylight before they finished. She turned back into the barn and finished putting the tack away before giving her buckskin mare a treat. It was getting dark by the time she headed for the house.
Today it was Dan's turn to clean up and she noticed his pickup was still parked by the front door as she entered the house. That was odd. It didn't usually take long to put away the tools and tidy up. She thought she'd have the house to herself by now so she could take a shower and indulge her passion for reading with the new best seller she'd picked up the last time she was in town. She could hear Dan moving around above her as she kicked her boots off and tossed her well-worn Stetson onto the couch. She listened and heard the sound of metal on metal followed by a curse. Maybe he was having trouble getting everything done so he could leave. She knew he didn't have a date because she'd overheard the guys talking about their weekend plans and Dan had said he was planning to do some maintenance on his pickup. He wanted to get to the parts store before they closed tonight so he could get an early start in the morning.
When she heard another angry burst of cursing she decided to see if she could lend a hand. As she neared the top of the stairs she saw him standing by the scaffolding they were using to build the skylight. His back was to her and he didn't appear to be doing anything but standing there with his arms in the air. As she started into the room, he quickly turned to look at her. He was visibly angry and one glance at his wrists explained it all. They were securely fastened to the top bar of the scaffolding by two sets of metal handcuffs.
"What on earth happened?" she asked looking for an explanation for this bizarre twist of fate.
"Tim," Dan spat out. "That son of a bitch has been dealing drugs and he didn't pay his supplier or something so they came looking for him."
Paige glanced quickly around the room again even though she had already seen for herself that no one was there but Dan. Tim was one of the workmen, a kid she knew was one step away from being fired for reasons Jerry, the crew foreman hadn't shared with her. Paige thought she knew why now.
Dan said he was shocked when two guys grabbed him from behind and locked his arms onto the scaffold bar but they told him they were just going to look through Tim's stuff to see if he'd left anything that belonged to them. Worried that they might hurt Paige if she came back into the house while they were still there, he'd quickly told them which toolbox was Tim's. The men didn't care and had searched all the boxes without finding anything. They told Dan they were going to look for Tim but if he saw Tim first he could give him a message for them. "Tell Tim he can run but he ain't smart enough to hide from us for very long." To keep Dan out of their hair they'd left him chained to the scaffolding when they took off. Paige's search of the room revealed they hadn't left the keys to the cuffs.
"It'll take bolt cutters to get me loose," Dan said.
"I have some in the barn," Paige said. "Do you think they'll come back?"
"I don't think so. As empty as this place is, it was pretty obvious there wasn't anyone here but me. They're probably in town by now looking for Tim. I'll call Jerry and tell him what happened and Tim won't be working for us anymore. You don't need to worry about this happening again," he assured her.
"I'll be right back." Paige ran down the stairs and yanked her boots back on. As she ran to the barn for the bolt cutters, she found her mind going back to a conversation she'd overheard earlier in the week. The guys hadn't known she was in the kitchen when they were sitting on the stairs taking a break. They'd been talking about the recent scandal in town over the mayor's affair with a local woman. The woman told reporters the affair had been going on for over a year because the mayor had needs his wife didn't fulfill. Apparently those needs involved bondage and fetishes the newspaper would only hint at. The group had laughed and teased one of the guys who admitted his wife liked to be spanked while they were having sex. Dan had been quiet during the discussion until they started talking about bondage. She'd heard him say that tying someone up could be exciting but he couldn't see just anyone going for it. Then he'd walked into the kitchen and caught her standing there listening. All she could do was stare back at him. Without revealing she was there he'd put his empty water bottle in the trash and walked back out telling the guys he might be interested with the right woman.
Paige rummaged through the toolbox in the tack room and found the bolt cutters. The sky was getting darker and she wondered if they were in for a storm as she ran back to the house. She hurried up the stairs after leaving her boots by the door. She put the bolt cutters down and stood in the doorway looking at him. Her mind kept going over that conversation and the opportunity now presented to her.
"You know I heard you guys talking about the mayor earlier this week," she said as she walked toward him. "You didn't seem to think his wanting to be tied up was all that strange," she remarked. "I wonder how you feel about a little bondage during sex?" She reached out and put one hand on his forearm. She felt the muscles tense and she could see redness on his wrists where he'd struggled with the cuffs after Tim's dealers left. "I wonder if you ever thought it might be you who'd be the one tied up?" She heard his sharp intake of breath as she brushed against him stretching herself up to reach his left hand so she could assure herself that the cuffs weren't hurting him.
"Did you know I've been watching you?" she continued as she ran her hand down his arm to rest against his chest. She put her palm flat over his heart and wondered if it was just her imagination when she felt it speed up. "Would it thrill you to know I've fantasized about you?" she whispered. Her fingers spread out and she brought her other hand up so both of them rested against him. Having a man completely at her mercy while she played with him to her heart's content had been one of her earliest fantasies. Tim's henchmen had presented her with the perfect opportunity to play it out if Dan was game for it.
"Today might be a good day to play it out," she said.
Dan couldn't believe he was hearing what he thought she was suggesting. "Are you kidding me? You really think this is any way to get me to help you with your fantasy?" he asked as he rattled the cuffs against the bar. He couldn't decide if she was just teasing him or if she really wanted to play a sexual game with him. Ever since he'd seen her riding the buckskin the first day he worked for her, he'd wanted to see her naked, riding him instead.
Paige was an intelligent, attractive woman in her mid thirties with an athletic body from working with her horses. She wasn't much shorter than his 5'11" frame with clear brown eyes and full red lips with a ready smile. She kept to herself when the men were working but he'd caught her watching them a time or two. He knew she had a sense of humor because he'd heard her laughing one day when the guys were telling risqué jokes. Her breasts were full and had bounced a little the day he watched her ride. She had short brown hair that was chopped off so it looked unkempt. He knew it was the way women were wearing their hair, sort of a Meg Ryan look. He thought it made her look like someone had just finished running their fingers through it. He remembered how tight his jeans had gotten the day he watched her astride the horse.
"Oh yeah," she answered. "This is just what I want," she purred at him. She walked around behind the scaffolding viewing him from all angles. It was becoming harder to see in the gloom created by the dark skies outside. "Wanna hear my fantasy?" she asked.
"No, I really don't. I want you to let me go so I can go home." He really didn't want anything of the kind but if this was a true bondage situation he figured she needed to think he was uncooperative.
"Really? Hmmm, that's a pity. I was really hoping I could entice you to play with me." She reached out and ran one hand down his thigh then jerked back, startled when he renewed his efforts to pull his hands free.
"You know, you could just give in and let this play out and you might actually enjoy it," she continued.
"Really?" he questioned sarcastically. "I should just give in to this. Not very damned likely," he said shortly. "Why don't you just let me go and I won't have you arrested for kidnapping. How 'bout that?" he asked continuing to play the tough guy.
"Uh... no. Not an option," she stated. "I'm not the one who kidnapped you. Tim's dealers did. I'm just delaying letting you go." She smiled at him as he tried to look angry.
Paige turned and left the room. She flipped on the light in her bedroom next door to dig through her dresser drawers. She found the scarf she wanted but left the light on. It dispelled some of the darkness around the scaffolding when she stepped back in the room. She saw Dan toss his head and his longish blond hair flipped back away from his face. He looked like a stallion standing there, his legs slightly spread, his face proud and defiant as he stared at the spot where she was standing. He really was magnificent. His shoulders were broad, his arms well muscled, his chest strong and manly tapering down to a trim waist and tight ass. She continued her survey over the slight bulge at his crotch and down over his thighs to his calves and finally his feet encased in worn cowboy boots. She licked her lips as her gaze lifted to his face. She knew his eyes were green even though it was too dark to see them.
