Loving Lacey

*** All persons engaged in sexual activity are depicted as being over 18 years of age.***

***Not much sex in this one, but the next one has promise***

Early October

Year 4 of Us

Tuesday

We were heading out to the ranch of our neighbor Bert's younger brother. The van was full. From front to back, Lacey was in the front passenger seat; the twins were in the next row, with Mir in between them; the next row had Cathy, Roni, and Tina. In the very back was something covered in a tarp that every adult was curious about. I had been asked about it multiple times, but I put off answering.

As I pulled out of the driveway, Lacey muttered something.

"What's wrong, Beloved?"

"I need pumpkins. Tiny ones." She looked at me and smiled. "It's that time of the year, you know."

I grinned at her. "Going to film on the upper deck again this year?"

She laughed, which of course got the twins to laugh, making everybody smile, at the very least. "Of course!" She leaned closer to me. "If I did it in the hot tub, a couple of someones would be wanting to join me."

I nodded. "Yep. Thanks to you, they love water." I winked and she straightened up.

"Okay. There's the vegetable stand just off Kimber."

"Oh, they're perfect. They always have a great selection!"

We pulled in, and there were already several customers at the stand. Several of them stared as we all climbed out. I got Sam and Lacey took Duncan. As we headed in, Duncan turned to Cathy and reached for her. "Mama Catty?"

"No, little love. Mama Cathy's tummy is getting a little big to carry you." She looked at him and pouted. "Don't you love mommy?"

"Duncan love mommy!" He hugged her and kissed her cheek. "Duncan love Mama Catty!"

Cathy calmed things by moving next to Duncan and holding his hand.

"Good morning!" The proprietor was a short man with an enormous mustache named Joe. He looked at Lacey and grinned. "Is it pumpkin season already?" She nodded and he pointed to one side. "Lots of little ones and big ones, too."

"We do have to be at the ranch by noon, my princess," I reminded her as she moved in the direction of the pumpkins.

"Mr. Roy?" I looked and it was one of the sons of the owner. "Why do you call her that?"

"What? My princess?"

He nodded.

"Because she *is* my princess. And this," I bounced Sam a bit, "is my little princess."

"Oh. Cool." He leaned closer. "I've seen her videos, and so has my brother."

I looked at him and he glanced away. "That's okay, I guess."

"You might want to stay close to her. He may try something stupid."

I clapped him on the shoulder. "Thanks. I'll keep an eye out." I looked around and saw Mir coming towards me. "Mir, take her, please."

"Why?"

I grinned. "I have to go play scary bodyguard for two of my lovelies and my little cowboy."

She took Sam, who giggled and kissed her. I wandered over towards where they were examining the pumpkins. I watched while Lacey and Cathy picked up little pumpkins, examine them, and then either place them in a basket, or back in the bin. There was a young man beside them, talking with them, and trying to keep his eyes on Lacey at all times.

I stopped a bit behind them, and the young man didn't react to my presence. A couple of times, his left hand moved towards Lacey's ass, hovered for a moment, then returned to his side. A third time, his hand moved towards her ass until I stepped behind her and gently took his wrist in my hand and held it firmly.

"If you touch her like that, pal, one of two things is going to happen."

The guy froze after turning his head. "Huh?" was all he said.

"Thing one: I cut your hand off right past my pinkie finger." I looked into his eyes. "Thing two: she steps to the side and away before putting at least two rounds into your midsection."

His eyes were wide, and I felt Lacey move back. A glance told me that she had put her body between Cathy and the young man. Luckily, Duncan was on her left hip, so he was covered, too.

"She ain't got no gun, and you ain't got no knife," the guy sneered. I shook my head, so Lacey's hand came out from under her coat. I pulled the Bowie knife out and tapped his wrist.

"No?" I looked at him again, and I heard Joe the stand proprietor running towards us, swearing.

"Abel! What the heck have you done, boy?" The man was breathing hard. "Please don't hurt him, Mt. Roy. He's my oldest, and he can be stupid at times." I told him what had been going on, and he sagged. "Are you really that stupid?"

"She makes porn, Pop! She wants people to touch her!" That earned the young man a back hand from his father. Only my continued grip on his wrist kept him upright.

"*I've* seen some of her videos! You moron! Jest because she makes those videos don't mean she wants random strangers touching her!"

The rest of the family had gathered around, and some of the customers had, too. I looked at the young man's father.

"I'll release him to you, then." When I let go, the young man stumbled away. "We all do stupid things when we're young." I looked at Lacey, whose face was completely still as she comforted Duncan, who was whimpering. "Make your choices, Beloved?"

She shook her head a bit and indicated the basket. "Yes, we finished just before..." she waved her free hand around, "this happened."

"Take them, please!" The proprietor looked scared and worried.

"No, sir," I said softly. "We'll pay for them, as I see that most of my group have full baskets, too." I smiled. "I don't blame you, or your folks, for this."

When we got to the cash register, I grinned. "Full price, too."

He smiled back. "Of course!"

We carried all the fresh fruit vegetables back to the van, and I loaded everything in beside the tarp covered item. Mir looked at me and reached for the tarp. I spanked her once and she squealed, then giggled.

She leaned into me and whispered, "Okay, Daddy, I'll be good."

"You better," I grinned and kissed her cheek quickly.

"We're waiting, Wyatt!" I heard Lacey call and when I looked up, I saw that she was sitting between the twins. "Let Mir sit up front!"

I nodded, walked Mir to the front passenger door, and helped her into her seat. She smiled at me as I closed the door. Walking around the front of the van, I saw Lacey looking at me with a big smile on her face. Once inside, I asked her, "What's the smile for?"

"Just loving the sight of you being the gentleman that you are."

I snorted and we headed out. Less than ten minutes from the fruit and vegetable stand, Mir spoke up. "Would Lacey have shot that kid if he *had* grabbed her ass?"

She was looking at me, but I just shrugged. She turned slightly and Lacey answered her. "Possibly. To protect Duncan and Cathy? You bet." When I looked at Lacey through the rearview mirror, there was a very firm set to her expression.

Roni spoke up from the rear. "Wyatt, would you have really cut his hand off?"

I snorted, and Mir answered for me. "You can't see his face, Roni. He would have."

There were whispers from the back row, then, "Wyatt, will adopt me?" Roni's voice was serious. Tina giggled, then I heard Cathy join in. I looked at Lacey again, and she rolled her eyes, then smiled. As the giggling continued, one of my favorite sounds started -- the twins joined in. I smiled and then Mir patted my thigh.

"Feel calmer?"

I simply nodded, then Lacey added. "Sometimes, that's the best medicine for him."

"What's that?" called Tina.

"There are times when the best thing for Wyatt to hear is his children being happy."

Cathy said, "There *is* something about the laughter of little kids."

I simply nodded and the conversation moved on to other things. Shortly after, we arrived at the ranch, and I saw Bert's truck parked by the house, so I pulled in next to it. As I did, four dogs came barreling out of the stable, barking and jumping. Once out of the van, I realized that they were just excited, so I waved for the family to come on out. As the doors opened, I heard a shout from inside the stable, "Knock it off, you goofballs!"

At that, all four of them sat and got quiet. Bert came out, and so did his younger brother. They looked almost identical, despite Bert being older.

"Glad you could make it!" Bert said, grinning, as he shook my hand. "This is my younger brother, Herb."

"Please to meet you." His handshake was firm and his grin nearly matched Bert's.

I watched as Bert made his rounds, getting hugs from all the ladies, including Sam.

He gave Duncan a handshake, and my son grinned as he looked over at me, so I grinned back at him.

After introductions were made, Lacey looked at the two brothers. "Bert and Herb? Two Herberts or two Alberts?"

Bert shook his head. "Nope. I'm Albert and the kid here is Herbert."

Herb rolled his eyes and Lacey giggled. "C'mon, let's get you mounted and out for the ride."

"How many head?" I asked Herb as we trooped through the stable.

"We've thirty horses and about two hundred head of cattle. Some are dairy cows, but most are beef."

Once through the stable, we found six horses waiting, all saddled. I looked them over, then looked at Lacey. "Wait here. I'll be right back."

"What are you...?"

I was already heading back to the van. Bert caught up as I went through the door, walking towards the van. "She's annoyed, you know."

I grinned and shrugged. "Not the first time."

"So, did you bring it?"

I nodded and opened the back of the van. Flipping back the tarp, I pulled out my saddle and hat. "Hat looks good. The saddle looks well used."

"It was, long time ago. I take care of it, even if it hasn't been used in decades."

I rested the saddle on my shoulder and Bert closed the van for me. Once we made it back to the horses, I asked Herb, "Which one is mine?"

He pointed to a black with two white stockings and a starburst on his face, which was turned away from the rest. "Skinny," Herb called, "take that saddle off of the black."

A tall, slender hand deftly stripped the saddle but left the blanket on when I asked him to do so. I tossed my saddle onto the horse's back and settled the cinch into place. I tapped his side as he started to draw in a breath. "Don't even think about it." I said as he expelled his breath.

"Okay, let me try this guy out." I climbed into the saddle and sat there for about a second when the horse went wild. That horse spun, crow-hopped, jumped high, and nearly sun-fished. I held onto the reins, pulling them back at times, letting the horse work it our for himself that I wasn't leaving the saddle.

Several minutes later, the horse stood panting in the middle of the corral. I clucked at him and steered him over to where the group was standing at the rails. Herb looked furious and Bert was grinning. The two hands were stunned. I pointed at the one called Skinny.

"If there is any other horse like this one, intended for any of my ladies, you and I are going to have words."

Skinny looked at me, then at Bert. "You said that he was a cowboy back when he was a kid."

"And that made this okay?" Herb was still furious.

"It was just a joke," came the weak reply.

"Well?" I asked.

"No, sir! All the rest are easy-going! I swear!"

I nodded, then swung out of the saddle and walked over to where Duncan and Sam were standing on the rails of the corral. She looked a little scared, but he was fascinated. "Samantha, will you ride with Mommy? She'll take care of you. I promise."

Lacey nodded and hugged her as Sam nodded uncertainly. "Before we get on them, let's meet them, okay?"

"Duncan, will you ride with me?" My son nodded eagerly and almost jumped from the fence. "Hold on," I laughed. Herb opened the gate, and everybody trooped in to meet the horses. Sure enough, every one intended for a lady was sweet-tempered.

Four of them were mares and one was a gelding. Lacey and Roni got the smallest mares, mainly due to their height.

Once they were all mounted, we checked their stirrups for fit and adjusted them as needed. Herb, Bert, and I swung into our saddles, after I handed Sam up to Lacey, who snuggled her and settled her behind the saddle horn.

Once I was up, Skinny reached down and handed Duncan to me. "I'm really sorry about that. I didn't realize your kids were going to be here." He looked from Duncan to Sam. "We've got a couple of small ponies and tack for them. Would it be okay if we set them up after you get back?"

I nodded and stuck out my hand. Skinny took and grinned. "You have a great ride with your Pa, young man!"

Duncan nodded excitedly. As we rode away, I told them about Skinny's offer.

"Should have thought of that myself," said Herb, nodding in approval.

It turned into a very pleasant ride, with lots of excited chatter amongst the ladies. I had been at the rear, but I trotted my horse until we caught up with Lacey and Sam. I couldn't tell who had the bigger smile on her face: my daughter or my Beloved.

"Having fun?" I asked, as Duncan and Sam waved at each other and laughed.

Lacey nodded. "How's he been?"

"Excited. Talkative. Pointing at things and wanting to know what they are."

Lacey sagged a bit. "Thank God."

I looked at her, and she shrugged. "The past couple of days he's been a bit... subdued."

"How so?" I reached over and tickled Sam, making her giggle.

Lacey tightened her grip on Sam a touch, making Sam pat her mommy's arm and smile. "Just extra quiet, I guess."

Duncan turned, leaned over, and pointed at those behind us. "Mama Catty!" He waved and when I saw Cathy wave back, he grinned. "Mama Miryam!" The same thing, waves exchanged.

Something struck me, so I asked him, "Do you love Mommy Cathy, Duncan?" He nodded and acted very excited, laughing while I struggled a bit to hang onto him.

"Duncan! Stop wiggling so much!" Lacey was splitting her attention between Sam and Duncan and staying on the gently walking horse.

"Kay, Mommy!" He chirped.

I snickered, and Sam giggled. "Let me see... Duncan, do you love Mommy?"

Vigorous nod. "Mama Catty?" Another nod. "Mama Miriam?" Same thing. "Aunt Roni?" Happy nod. "Aunt Tina?" This time there was a nod, but it was very small.

I realized that we were headed back to the stable. "Is there something wrong with Aunt Tina, Duncan?"

He lowered his shoulders. Lacey looked at him, then up to me. Her eyes went wide.

"Duncan?"

"Mama?"

"Are you scared by the green thing on Tina's arm?"

A nod. "Green thing hurt head."

"The cast hurt your head?" A nod. A light came on in Lacey's eyes. "Oh! Last Sunday, while you were checking the fence, he scooted around the end of the couch and bumped into Tina's cast. She reacted in pain, and he cried a bit."

"Duncan, is that when you got scared?" A nod, and then Lacey was trying to reach out to him, but I shook my head.

"Your hands are full, Beloved." I hugged my son a little tighter. "Duncan, you know that Tina would never hurt you on purpose." A little nod. "That was an accident. If Aunt Tina apologizes for scaring you, do you think you'll be okay?"

He shrugged and Lacey giggled. We both looked at her. "He looks like you when he shrugs," she said with a smile. Sam giggled, and then Duncan did, too.

I looked at Lacey. "Let's see if this has solved the issue." We had walked the horses into the corral, and Skinny walked up as Bert and Herb dismounted.

He reached up for Duncan, saying, "Howdy there, little cowboy!"

I dismounted as Duncan said, "Hi! Hi!"

I helped the others dismount, helping Cathy first. She slid down into my arms, giving me a kiss as I settled her onto her feet. She smiled and I moved to Miriam, who nearly jumped out of the saddle, before giving me a deep kiss. Roni I just lifted off her horse while she giggled. Tina was looking concerned.

"Having issues?" I looked at her, trying to hide my grin.

"Yes, I am, smarty-pants! How do I do this with one arm broken?"

"Between us, we can help her off that horse," said Bert. "Go help your two princesses."

"Is it okay, Tina?"

She nodded. "Of course it is!" As Bert and Herb started to help Tina, I walked over to Lacey and Sam.

"Did you have fun, my little princess?" I asked Sam as I lifted from Lacey's saddle.

"Horsie! Horsie! Horsie ride!"

I smiled as I held her and gave her a kiss. "I'm glad you enjoyed it, Sam!" I handed her to Mir, who had followed me over. When I turned back to Lacey, she had already taken her right foot out of the stirrup, and both of her feet were on the same side of the saddle. She smiled at me and then gave a slight jump at me. I caught her as her arms went around my neck and her legs around my hips.

She kissed me fiercely, her tongue insistent as it moved into my mouth. We stood like that for a minute or so when I heard a voice clear behind me. Lacey broke the kiss and looked past me. She grinned. "I think Herb has something to say, love."

I nodded and turned around, keeping my hold on her. "Let me down," she whispered into my ear.

"I'll never let you down. Never." She sighed at that. "But I will set you on the ground." She nodded as I did so.

Herb looked at us, shaking his head as he smiled. "Skinny has the surprise for your twins ready."

"Surprise for the twins?" Lacey looked from Herb to me.

I grinned. When I looked around, Mir was still holding Sam, and Roni was holding Duncan. I nodded to Herb, who whistled.

Skinny came out of the stable, leading two very small horses, both of which were tacked and saddled. There were squeals of excitement from everybody in our extended family. There was a mass movement towards the horses.

"Are they ponies?" asked Mir.

"No, miss," answered Skinny. "They're miniature horses. We figured the little ones might enjoy a few circuits around the corral on horses their size."

I walked over to Duncan and Sam. "What do you think? Do you want to ride the little horses?"

They were both excited, so we got them in the saddles before I led them around. I glanced around and saw that all five of the ladies had their phones out, either taking videos or pictures. I kept sneaking looks at the twins and both had exhilarated expressions, which just made me smile.

After the second circuit, I brought them to a stop, turning around to look at my children. "Okay, guys. It's time to go home. The little horsies are tired and Daddy is exhausted."

It took Lacey and Cathy a few minutes to get them off the horses and I looked around.

"Hey, where's my saddle?" I saw the horse standing in the near end of the stable where several hands were giving all those we had ridden rub downs.

"Oh," Herb said, "we cleaned it off and set it on a stand near your van."

I smiled. "Thanks, Herb! Skinny, it turned out great, and the small horses were perfect."

They both grinned and we shook hands.

As I led the family through the stable, one of the hands hurried out before and snagged my saddle. "If you'll unlock it, I'll put it in back for you!" Before I could do anything, the van was unlocked. The hand waved, opened the back and placed my saddle inside. Lacey grinned at me.

"Love you," she said softly. I reached out and she took my hand.

"Love you, too, my princess." I looked around. "I'm going to sit in back with Cathy and Tina. I'll let Tina know about Duncan. Okay?" She nodded.

Lacey drove us home while I was snuggled in the back, between Cathy and Tina.

"Why are you back here?" asked Tina.

I looked at her. "Have you noticed Duncan the past couple of days?"

"Not really. Why?"

"He's afraid."

"Afraid?"

"Yeah, he bonked his head on your cast, and he's scared of it."

Her expression was terrified, a hand to her mouth. "Do you think that I can fix it?"

"I sure hope so," my voice was low.

The rest of the ride home was quiet, with Tina holding my hand. As we got close to the house, I asked Roni, who was with the twins, "Are they asleep?"