Cattle Valley: Fool's Gold Part 1

Fool's Gold.

Jenna Byrnes.

Dedication.

To the wonderful Cattle Valley readers who support the ladies as well as the men!.

Trademarks Acknowledgement.

The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of the following wordmarks mentioned in this work of fiction: Pontiac: General Motors Corporation.

Nash Rambler: LLC Rambler Internet Holding.

Mazda: Toyo Kogyo Co., Ltd.

Chapter One.

Adeline Murphy squinted at the bright sunlight s.h.i.+ning in on her and yawned. She fumbled around the backseat of her ancient Pontiac Le Mans before clutching the pa.s.senger headrest, attempting to sit up. "Is it morning?" She glanced around.

"Hmm?" The woman sleeping in the front seat mumbled something unintelligible and rolled over, away from Addie.

"Hey, Chloe." Addie reached over and nudged her shoulder. "It's morning. Want to grab a shower before we leave Casper?"

"Don't want to be in Casper," Chloe muttered, trying to bury her face in the pillow.

Addie yawned again. "Tough. You didn't have to come with me, you know. I'm sure you can catch a bus back to Colorado Springs."

Chloe opened one eye. "Maybe I will. What's the name of this town we're going to, again?"

"Cattle Valley." Addie grabbed the badly refolded map of Wyoming and peered at it.

"Somewhere near Sheridan which, in that state, is about as far north as you get."

"Great." Chloe threw an arm over her face. "Okay, whatever. I got nothing left in Colorado, I'll tell you that much. Might as well see what Cow Village has to offer."

"Cattle Valley." Addie bopped her companion with the map then tossed it on the wide front dashboard. "Come on, grab your stuff. They have showers in the back part of this truck stop. Then we can get some breakfast."

Shoving her pillow and blanket aside, Chloe sat up. "How about a little nookie? That's how I like to wake up in the morning."

Addie smiled at Chloe's dishevelled, spiked blonde hair and smeared makeup. She ran her thumb under Chloe's left eye, wiping away a black mascara smudge. "Let's check out the showers, see if there's any privacy."

Chloe's face lit up, and they both crawled out of the car.

Addie unlocked the large trunk and rummaged around in one of her suitcases for clean clothes and a couple of towels. She watched Chloe dig through an old military-style duffle FOOL'S GOLD *

6.

bag and pull out two equally rumpled s.h.i.+rts. Chloe sniffed one and shrugged, throwing it over her shoulder. She shoved the other one back into the duffle.

"I have shampoo in here somewhere." Addie dug deeper. She found soap and the other necessary supplies then looked at Chloe. "Anything else?"

"Oh, yeah." Chloe grabbed a small make-up kit.

Addie slammed the trunk, and they headed inside. Most of the actual truck drivers had left before dawn. She'd heard their diesel engines rumble to life, one by one, but tried to ignore them and sleep as long as she could. They only had a couple of hours left of their eight hour trek, but she'd been too exhausted the night before to attempt going the whole way.

A large crowd had gathered in the dining area for breakfast. Addie's father used to tell her, if she wanted a good meal when travelling, eat at a truck stop. Over-the-road drivers, who went back and forth regularly, always knew the best places to eat.

She did some quick mental calculations and knew they couldn't spend much on their meal. They'd splurged on a big dinner when they'd arrived the previous night then spent the rest of the evening fending off truckers who didn't realise they were gay. Chloe didn't help matters-she had a habit of letting men buy her drinks before eventually dropping the bomb.

Most were p.i.s.sed that they'd wasted their time and money, a few got downright angry.

They'd met a couple of nice ones, though, who'd given them the free shower coupons most drivers acc.u.mulated with a tank fill-up.

After following the signs to the shower area, Addie turned in their coupons and was given two towels and two paper floor mats. She and Chloe glanced at each other-the towels were dingy and stiff. "I think we'll take a pa.s.s on these." She set them on a bench and entered the showers.

"Not bad." Chloe peeled out of her clothes.

"I'm leaving my flip-flops on, just in case." Addie motioned to her rubber sandals.

"What the h.e.l.l. I've probably been exposed to everything possible, anyway." Her friend kicked her shoes across the room and stepped into a stall. "Care to join me?"

Chuckling, Addie chose the shower next to Chloe, pulling the plastic curtain closed. "I don't think so. Let's get in and get out. We'll have time to relax when we arrive at Cattle Valley."

"No fun." Chloe's voice sounded pouty, but her water turned on.

7.

"Here." Addie pa.s.sed the soap and shampoo over when she was done with them then hurried to towel off. She wasn't sure about the privacy level, and didn't want to get caught naked in a truck stop shower.

She dressed in a T-s.h.i.+rt and cut-off jeans. There was a hair dryer attached to the wall, and she was able to dry her short, black hair. There was no way to actually style it, but she was going to be driving for crissakes. Who cares?

Chloe was still in the shower, and Addie was completely dressed and ready to go.

"Come on, girl!" She finally called. "What are you doing in there?"

"Wouldn't you like to know?" A teasing voice came back.

"Actually, I'd like to get the h.e.l.l out of here. Think you'll be done anytime soon?"

The water stopped, and Chloe threw the curtain back. "b.i.t.c.h, b.i.t.c.h, b.i.t.c.h. All right, I'm done. Shall we go?" She held up her hands.

Addie gazed over Chloe's naked body. She had firm, perky t.i.ts with perfectly shaped round nipples. They were deep brown in contrast to her fair skin. The left one was pierced, and the small, silver hoop matched the ring that hung from her totally shaved l.a.b.i.a. Addie glanced at the tempting flesh then looked away quickly. Chloe didn't need any encouragement. A suggestive glance might have them groping each other right then and there. Addie was anxious to get going. She handed over one of her clean, dry towels. "Come on."

"Yes, ma'am." Chloe sounded cooperative but she dried off as slowly as possible. She stood naked in front of the worn, scarred mirror and dried her hair then paused to examine her face up close. "I need makeup."

"You look fine. Maybe you could do your makeup in the car." Addie looked at Chloe's reflection in the mirror. A s.h.i.+ny stud punctuated the end of one eyebrow, and eight earrings adorned each ear. She knew the exact number. She couldn't help counting them when kissing in that vicinity on the s.e.xy blonde.

Chloe snorted in disgust but moved away from the mirror. She wandered around the small, steamy room, apparently unconcerned that someone might come in at any time.

Moving at a snail's pace, she gathered her things and finally began to dress.

It didn't take long. A small blue thong, tiny cut-off shorts and a sheer white top were all she had. Addie bit her lip. Luscious brown nipples poked right through the thin s.h.i.+rt. I'm *

8.

going to have to look at those all day? s.e.x might not be able to wait until they got to Cattle Valley.

"All right, I'm ready." Chloe slipped into her sandals and picked up her stuff. "I look like s.h.i.+t, but I guess I can do my makeup later."

"Sure you can. We have two more hours, at least. That's if I don't get lost." Addie couldn't resist and placed a light kiss on Chloe's mouth.

Taking full advantage, Chloe clutched the back of Addie's head and drove her tongue forward. They kissed pa.s.sionately for a minute, sucking tongues like there was no tomorrow.

The delicious tingles running down Addie's spine were almost enough to make her give in and shove Chloe up against the wall, but she held firm. They had somewhere to be.

She broke the kiss regretfully. "Come on, babe. Let's grab something to eat and go."

Chloe rubbed the back of Addie's neck and stared deep into her eyes before releasing her. "I'm not hungry."

Addie knew she didn't have any money. "I'll cover it. Get whatever you want that we can take with us."

At the counter by the cash register, she chose a granola bar and a small carton of milk.

Chloe opted for cheese crisps and a can of soda. Without comment, Addie paid, and they returned to her car. "A couple of more hours." She patted the chipped paint on the dark green bonnet. "Get us to Cattle Valley is all I ask."

"Think this tub might not make it?" Chloe tossed her things in the back seat and climbed in front.

"It's been a good car. It's just really old. Some day, I expect it simply won't start."

"Not today, I hope." Chloe kicked off her shoes and propped her feet on the dashboard.

She grabbed her sungla.s.ses from the visor and put them on.

Addie smiled to herself. Her friend certainly made herself comfortable wherever she went. Personally, she never felt that laid back. Her upbringing-or something-kept Addie from really feeling at ease anywhere.

She shoved her clothes and the wet towels into the back seat, figuring to deal with them later. Then she climbed behind the wheel and drove, following the signs that would again take her north on I-25 to Buffalo. From there it was I-90 to Sheridan and the Big Horn Mountains.

9.

Chloe crunched her crisps as she spoke. "You've really never been here? You bought the place sight unseen?"

"That's right." Addie ate her granola bar and polished off the small carton of milk. "I know, it sounds weird." It sounds f.u.c.king nuts, even to me. All Addie knew was that she'd been floundering in Colorado. If she hadn't invested the money she'd inherited upon her father's death, it easily would have been squandered away.

"It's a bed and breakfast, right? How big is it?" Chloe wiggled her toes, the small painted nails catching Addie's eye.

She tried to keep her attention on the road. Thinking about the place she'd recently purchased would keep her mind off the s.e.xy toes on the dash next to her. "Yeah. It's, um, called the Apple Valley Inn Bed and Breakfast. It looks big from the outside. There are six rooms to rent, not including the attic. The owner said she was always planning to convert that s.p.a.ce to another room but never got around to it."

"Six rooms, wow. Must be a big place. Where will you stay?"

"I'll have a room on the main floor." Addie motioned to the glove box in front of Chloe.

"There's a picture in there. Pull it out if you want."

Chloe lowered her feet and rummaged around until she found the photo. She looked at it and gave a low whistle. "Nice. That must have cost a bundle."

Addie glanced at the large, white house with red trim. It was Victorian style with a huge front porch and a round turret with a window. Her heart lurched with pride each time she looked at the picture. It already felt like home. "It was reasonable. The owner was motivated to sell. I understand she was from Jamaica. Her mother got sick, and she needed to go home and take care of her."

"Jamaica, cool." Chloe shoved the picture back and closed the small compartment door.

She crumpled up her empty crisp bag and rolled down her window enough to toss it out.

"Hey!" Addie muttered, surprised. "There are fines for littering, you know. I think they're expensive. So watch it."

With a small grin, Chloe leaned in close and cupped one of Addie's b.r.e.a.s.t.s. "If you have to pay a fine, I'll make it up to you. I promise." She kneaded the flesh through the T-s.h.i.+rt.