Page 5

Mina

Rawhide Ranch was real, and it was even more impressive than she’d realized, even after poring over all the information she’d been given access to once her application had been accepted.

She’d been a good girl and hadn’t tried to go beyond that access, even though she was pretty sure she could hack through if she really wanted to.

But it seemed rude. Especially after Vicky had vouched for them, plus Amanda and Layne would have spoken up if they’d heard anything bad, so she couldn’t even claim safety concerns.

“Wow,” she muttered under her breath as the taxi drove up the drive. The gate and guardhouse she’d had to pass to get to this part had given her reassurance that she was safe here. That or it was a way to keep people in.

On the plane, she’d been practically bouncing in her seat in excitement the entire flight. Now that the moment was here, she was feeling a little more trepidation.

What if this was all a big joke?

What if she walked in and they thought she’d been joking?

What if everything was real but the Dom they’d chosen for her was a dickhead?

Though, as far as she could tell, it was all real.

People came to Rawhide to get what they needed.

Period. And she’d been sent the name of the Dom she was going to be paired with after the initial pre-auction scene.

Patrick Ranallo. She’d looked him up, of course.

He trimmed cow hooves, which had sent her down another rabbit hole of research because she hadn’t known that was a thing.

She watched the many videos he had uploaded online about the subject and she’d learned more about cows and their hooves in the past week than she had in her entire life.

From his videos she knew that his voice was deep, soothing, and kind of sexy, but she didn’t have a clue what he looked like.

Even on his social media pages, pictures of him were just of the back of his shoulders and head, which were covered with a flannel shirt and a cowboy hat.

The most she got to see was his hands in the videos as he was doing knifework to deal with some of the more delicate procedures that the cow hooves needed. Sometimes he took the gloves off.

And then she lusted over his hands like he was some kind of Victorian lord in a historical romance novel where he got to unbutton a lady’s glove (yeah, that was her second favorite scene in Lord of Scoundrels , so what?).

Who knew that hands could be so sexy?

Hopefully, it was an indication that there would be some kind of chemistry between them. Obviously not like, relationship chemistry, but like yes, I’m happy to hop on your dick chemistry.

Though, if there wasn’t, she was pretty sure she’d be turned on enough by the situation that she’d make it work. She could always close her eyes and picture Thor, God of Thunder, milking his hot little hucow, just like she did with her vibrator.

She did understand there wouldn’t necessarily be sex.

It wasn’t like Rawhide Ranch provided sex on demand, but she still had her fingers mentally crossed that sex would be had.

It would be nice to have an actual dick instead of her well-used educational tools.

Maybe she could stock up on some sex toys while she was here.

It would be fun to buy something in person without having to fill out a form or waiting for a parcel wrapped in plain brown paper to arrive on her doorstep.

The taxi pulled to a stop in front of the main building—easily recognizable because it was the first building she saw and it was gigantic.

Like, when they said “main building” they meant main building.

She pressed a hand against her stomach to settle her nerves, which were jumping up and down inside her belly.

Was it her imagination or did her breasts tingle?

She had her pumping equipment in her suitcase, which was the main reason she’d checked her baggage because she would have died if they’d searched her carryon and found it.

So far she hadn’t produced even a drop of milk, but she hadn’t given up yet.

At least, that’s what she told herself. But she was also starting to accept that if it never happened, it never happened.

Getting out of the car, she took a deep breath.

Wow. Even though it was hot, the air felt really different from Alabama.

So much less humid for one. She’d noticed it at the airport, but it was an even starker difference out here on the Ranch.

The air felt a little cooler too, though maybe it was just because she didn’t feel like she was trying to swim through a swamp.

It was quieter as well without the screaming buzz of cicadas filling her ears.

Peaceful. That’s what it was.

She could hear a cow mooing, birdsong, and laughter coming from somewhere, all of it faint but audible as the taxi driver pulled her suitcases out of the trunk.

Thanking him, she grabbed the handles and headed for the steps that led up to a porch.

As she moved, the front door of the building opened and a big, blond man came trotting down the stairs to greet her.

“Hello, welcome to Rawhide. Miss Kim, right?”

“That’s me.” She smiled at him, wondering if he was going to be her Dom for her stay. He was pretty hot. Kinda Thor-ish.

“I’m Tiago. I’m on the security team. Here, let me help you with your bags.”

“Thanks.” She could have handled them herself, but who was she to stand in the way of chivalry?

Besides, he definitely had what she thought of as a “bossy Dom” vibe and she didn’t want to get in trouble before she’d even stepped through the front door.

“So, security team huh? Do you guys have a lot of problems?”

“Definitely nothing you should worry about,” he replied cheerfully, manfully carrying her bags as if they weighed nothing. “Unless you’ve got someone following you, in which case, you still don’t have to worry; we’ll handle it.”

He said it with such confidence that Mina kind of felt like if she ever did have trouble following her, this would be the place to come to for refuge. Which was nice to know.

Despite carrying her two bags, Tiago managed to hold the door open for her when they reached it, tucking her carry-on under his arm to manage the feat. Damn. Color her impressed.

“Thank you.” She beamed at him as she went inside and then immediately started looking around.

“Over here,” he said, escorting her to the front desk on the left.

Two women were standing behind it, one who was built like Mina–petite and pretty, though her dark brown hair was much shorter than Mina’s wavy black.

The other was taller than Mina, though probably not considered “tall” to most people.

Her brown hair was up in pigtails and she wore a dress with pink bunnies printed on it.

Between Vicky’s description and the information Mina had read, she understood that there was an impressive Little presence here at the Ranch, but she was fascinated to see one of them behind the front desk. Was it her job? How did that work?

Both of the women brightened when they looked up and saw Tiago and Mina. He was already moving to greet them, so Mina quickly caught up, though it took two of her steps to match one of his so she practically jogging by the time they’d reached the counter.

“Hello! Mina Kim, right? I’m Erika–”

“She basically runs the Ranch,” said the Little with a mischievous glint in her eye, interrupting her, but Erika continued without missing a bit.

“And this is Sadie, our Ranch hostess. If it’s okay, Tiago will take your bags and Sadie will take you to see Master Derek to talk over a few things before you get started.” Erika smiled reassuringly, as if she could see how nervous Mina was.

The fact that the women were obviously cheerful and relaxed made Mina feel a lot better about the place.

“Sure, that sounds good.” Though she didn’t let go of her purse, and no one asked her to give it over.

“We’ll take you to your cabin eventually,” Sadie said, coming out from behind the desk, which was when Mina saw that she had on bunny slippers that matched her dress. That decided it right then and there–she liked this place. “You know, after the auction.”

She winked at Mina, but it felt like a truly friendly wink, like she go t it even though she was clearly a Little and not a hucow. Then again, being a Little and being able to just be herself here versus how she would have to present herself in the rest of the world, she probably did really get it.

Mina relaxed even more.

“Are you supposed to tell me about that?” Mina teased. “Should I consider you my Warden?”

Sadie cracked up into infectious giggles that echoed around the big room as they walked across it. There was so much to see just in here, Mina hoped she got to explore later. Especially the store that had been behind the front desk. That looked super interesting.

“Warden Sadie. Oh, I like that. By the way, thank you for the book recommendation. It’s not something I think I’d want to try in real life, but I am loving reading about it.”

“I get that. I feel the same way about Daddy Doms. I love reading the books, but I never wanted to try it like I wanted to actually try being a hucow,” Mina admitted, feeling like she could since Sadie had basically done the same but in reverse.

“I hope it’s everything you’ve dreamed it would be,” Sadie replied, twirling right before they got to the office, the skirt of her dress fluttering around her. “I know my dreams came true here.”

Very similar to what Vicky had said about her visits. There was just something magical about Rawhide. Mina hoped that it wasn’t just for the Littles.

Sadie knocked on the heavy wooden door and then opened it without waiting for an answer, prancing inside.

“Mina’s here!” she announced, practically skipping over to the huge desk, behind which sat a handsome older man.

Dark hair with some gray sprinkled in, stern eyes that softened when he looked at Sadie, and broad shoulders that filled out his button-down shirt, he looked like he’d stepped out of a cowboy romance novel.

The only thing he was missing was the Stetson.

He looked at Mina, his gaze turning considering. She felt oddly naked, like he could see right through her down to her very bones.

Sadie was obviously very comfortable with him, she perched right on the edge of his desk like a cute little bunny-bird, beaming happily. That helped Mina feel a little less intimidated.

“Hello, Mina, welcome to the Ranch.”

The rush that went through her when he said those words… there really was something kind of magical about the place.

The next little bit of conversation was about what she would have expected, though made slightly surreal by Sadie’s interjections and her perch on the desk corner.

Master Derek wanted to go over exactly what she wanted, especially since there was a bit of consenting non-consent play happening with her fantasy.

He also made sure to reassure her about all of the safety measures in place.

She could say “red” at any time and stop everything.

If she wanted to return to “human” at any time, all she had to do was say so.

He did request that she use the human bathroom facilities, regardless of which headspace she was in, which Mina was happy to agree to. She hadn’t even thought about that for some reason, maybe just assuming that it was a given… so she appreciated that he was so detail oriented.

“If, at any point, you decide you want a different Dom to scene with, you can come speak to me about that, though I think the one I’ve picked out will suit your needs.

” His lips twitched, almost like he was about to smile.

“Matching people has been a pastime of mine, though it’s been a bit since I’ve gotten to practice. ”

“He’s very good at it,” Sadie chimed in, swinging her bunny-covered feet as she beamed at him. She turned her sunny look to Mina. “I think you’re going to have a great time.”

Her confidence was infectious and Mina found herself smiling back. She really hoped so. The fact that Master Derek and Sadie had both read the book and weren’t judging her had made her feel a lot better. She was going to owe Vicky big for this recommendation.

“Okay then.” Master Derek looked at Sadie. “Get the blindfold, angel, it’s time to get this sweet little cow to auction.”

Holy shitballs. It was actually happening.

Gulping, Mina closed her eyes before Sadie gently wrapped the blindfold around her head and then felt her purse being taken from her as she was stripped down by gentle hands. She really hoped she wasn’t making a massive mistake.