Cowboy Double-Decker (28 page)

Though it had hurt a bit to take both men, it was a satisfying hurt.

The sort she used to get when she wiggled a loose tooth until it finally fell out of her mouth. Her bottom was sore and she didn’t want to do it again for a bit. The massive explosion that came at the end of the experience made any discomfort more than worth it.

The men pumped Candy up and down, forward, and back. Kaela fit her hand between Bryan’s chest and Candy’s breast. She pinched her nipple as Adam thrust deep and erupted. He pushed Candy onto Bryan’s chest as he pounded, roaring his possession. He’d barely slowed when Candy, grinding against Bryan, cried out. She set off the man underneath who fought to thrust up in spite of Candy and Adam’s bodies above him.

Candy collapsed onto Bryan’s chest, and he automatically wrapped his arms around her. Adam lay against them, holding them together. Candy sighed, a fully satisfied smile on her face.

Kaela scrambled off the bed and ran to the bathroom, holding back sobs. She pulled the lid from the hot tub and poured in a few handfuls of Epsom salts.

It was an excuse to escape. The three on the bed looked as if they didn’t need her. As she’d told Adam, she was envious instead of jealous when she watched Candy ride her man. But was Bryan hers after all? They’d all worked so hard lately that, unless she was feeding him, having sex, or passing in the hallway, she and Bryan rarely spoke anymore.

Aunt Delia said marriage was a contract between a man and a woman before God. In return for the husband’s protection and
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provision, the woman must meet all his needs and nurture any children of the union. Nowhere did it say the man had to speak to the woman other than giving orders. Nor did it say the woman had to like the man or his behavior. Once married, he did as he pleased as long as he protected his property from outside dangers. Wife and children were part of his property and he could do to them as he chose. These days, only a woman unsure of herself would put up with it.

Kaela now knew her aunt was wrong, but her words lingered.

Freddy had destroyed her romantic illusions as he neither protected nor provided for her or Scotty.

And now she lived with Bryan. He provided food and shelter for them, as was right. Though Candy had asked her to stay longer, Bryan could toss her off the Double R whenever he wanted. Adam wouldn’t let him do it physically, but Bryan could make life so miserable that she’d run.

She’d given him her labor, her body and her heart.

The first two were as temporary as the food and shelter she received. The last she’d never escape. She refused to be a handmaiden like Candy had been to her first husband and she’d not be an emotional and economic prisoner like Aunt Delia.

Thank God her money was coming soon. She could escape before anyone realized how deeply she’d fallen for Bryan. She placed a hand on her still flat belly. She had to leave before he knew about the unintentional gift he’d given her at the club during Mardi Gras. In a few weeks, she and her little family would be safe, far away from Bryan’s temptation.

She wanted the baby growing inside her, a reminder of how much she’d enjoyed living on the Double R. She thought she received the total amount of interest earned on her inheritance each year. A few days ago, she phoned her trustee to make sure the money would go into her account and discovered some had been diverted into high-risk stock. The trustee had done well and she had way more money than she expected.

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Enough to find a nice three-bedroom home with an office for her business. She couldn’t tell Bryan about the baby—he’d insist that they marry, even though he didn’t love her. He’d want to raise his own child, even if living here without his love destroyed her.

No, if Bryan didn’t want her just the way she was, to heck with him. After she was settled, she’d tell him about the baby. She wouldn’t keep him away, but she wouldn’t let him take her baby. Two men, two babies. Freddie didn’t want her or the child, and Bryan only wanted the product of his seed.

Too bad. They were
her
children, and she’d keep them safe.

Bryan could find another wife, one who could live without needing his love. A love he would not allow.

She blinked quickly and stepped into the shower. No one would see her tears there.

* * * *

“What’s up with Kaela?” asked Bryan. “She rushed out of here like a barn’s blazing and she’s the fire boss.”

Candy lay like a blanket over him, warm and cozy. Adam flopped to the far side a few minutes ago and now snored softly.

“You think she’s jealous?” continued Bryan.

“Nope,” said Adam in a sleepy monotone. “She said she’s envious.”

“Thought you were asleep,” said Bryan.

“Was until you woke me with your jabbering.”

“Envious of what?” asked Candy. “The sex or the bond?”

She pushed on Bryan’s chest to sit up. He groaned as if her weight crushed his ribs. She gave him a nipple twister and rolled off. He yelped and clutched his chest.

“Does it matter?” asked Adam.

“Of course it matters,” said Candy. “Sex is easy to get. The bond is something she’s never known and may think she’ll never have.

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From what she’s told me, Scotty’s the only one she trusts to love her.

Everyone else just wanted to use her one way or another.”

“What are you staring at me for?” Bryan rubbed his chest and frowned at Candy’s look of disgust. “I’m not using her. We’re all enjoying her. Just like she’s enjoying us.”

“And I want to keep it that way,” said Candy. “We’ve proven that Kaela’s compatible with all of us. She loves it here, and the girls and Scotty get along great. What are you doing to make sure she wants to stay?”

“I’m thinking about it,” grumbled Bryan.

“Candy’s last class is the first week of April,” said Adam. “After that, Kaela has no reason to stay. Unless, that is, you ask her a question she won’t want to refuse.”

Bryan rolled off the bed and stood up. “Not dealing with that now.”

“If you don’t deal with it, you’ll lose her, Bry. And I love her like a very special sister.”

“Me, too,” murmured Adam. “But what I feel for her isn’t at all brotherly. I love Candy to bits, but there’s something about the way Kaela’s blue eyes glow when I part her golden red curls and lick—”

“Let’s keep this serious, lover,” interrupted Candy.

“I am serious,” replied Adam in a huff.

Bryan escaped into the hall. He closed the door on the married couple’s bickering. They used it as foreplay, and he wasn’t up to listening. Kaela wouldn’t be coming out the bathroom any time soon, so he’d shower in his own room, dress, and head out to the barn. Hard work always cleared his head.

* * * *

Candy rolled her eyes at Adam when Bryan closed the door with a snap. “He’s running scared,” she said. She lay back on the bed.

“So’s Kaela,” agreed Adam. He rolled until she was beneath him.

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“How ’bout we join her in the shower? We don’t want her to feel left out, do we?”

Even if she hadn’t felt his cock stir, Candy knew that smile.

“You think this is your chance for two hot women to seduce you, huh?”

“Would be nice,” he replied, “but I don’t think so.” He pushed himself off her then scooped her into his arms. She held on, nibbling wherever she could reach, as he carried her into the bathroom.

Kaela lay in the tub with her eyes closed. Splashes on the shower floor proved she already cleaned off. They quickly did the same, hands straying as they washed each other.

“Ah, you remembered the Epsom salts. Thank you.” Candy released a hum of contentment and settled in the tub to Kaela’s right.

Wanting quiet, she didn’t turn on the jets.

Adam, like a well-trained husband who wanted to get laid, poured each a glass of orange juice from the thermos on the counter. He put the drinks to the right of each woman and settled far from Kaela, saying nothing. He closed his eyes to mere slits and pretended to sleep, all senses alert.

A few minutes passed before Kaela moved. She sat up just enough to drink the whole glass and then slid neck-deep again.

“Want to talk?” Candy didn’t open her eyes or move as she spoke.

“No thanks.”

“Bryan’s running scared,” said Candy, ignoring Kaela’s resigned sigh. “Adam says he’s never seen him like this. Even when Grant was at his worst, Bryan hung tight.”

“Sorry to be a nuisance.”

Candy sipped her juice and let the silence hang.

“Nah, the man obviously loves you. That’s what scares the crap out of him.”

Kaela sat up with a whoosh, water sloshing. “If he loves me, why doesn’t he say anything?”

“Because the poor bastard won’t admit it, not even to himself.”

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Candy slipped lower in the hot water. “He’s a man. He’ll figure it out eventually.”

“Maybe.” Kaela emptied the thermos into her glass and turned to Candy. “But he’s running out of time. In a few weeks, I’m history.”

“I really hope not. I don’t know what we’ll do without you. And I don’t mean all the work you do or the fact you’re a fantastic playmate. I love you, Adam loves you, and so do the girls. If you leave, you’ll rip a hole in our hearts.”

“I’m sorry about that, too.” She shook her head, blinking hard.

“But I can’t stay and become my aunt.”

“What?” Candy bolted upright. Kaela had to lift her chin, so the resulting wave didn’t go up her nose. “We don’t tolerate abuse. From the little I’ve heard, Grant did enough damage with his fists to last too many lifetimes.”

Kaela waited to speak until Candy settled again, still grumbling.

“I don’t mean physically. My aunt never hit me, yet her abuse was in many ways worse than bruises. She beat at me, heart and soul, every day. Wearing me down until I believed I didn’t deserve joy, passion, or love.”

“That won’t happen here,” declared Candy.

“No? Even if Bryan and I marry, what if he takes me for granted, happy to use my services in bed and around the ranch, yet won’t speak to me of what is deep in his heart? There’s sex and there’s intimacy. He’s all about sex, but won’t let me into his heart.” Her voice roughened. “You say he loves me. Well, I love him and always will. But if he won’t admit it to himself, he’ll never tell me. And without his heart, the rest is sawdust. He’d make it so miserable that I couldn’t stay. Again, I’d be homeless. Never again.”

Candy had no answer. She watched, heart pounding and chest tight, as Kaela pulled herself from the tub, wrapped herself in a thick towel, and swept into the bedroom.

“Well, that went well,” growled Adam when they heard the hall door close. “Com’ere.” Candy crawled onto his lap. Adam wrapped
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his arms around her in a bear hug and held her gently.

“They’re both hurting,” said Candy finally.

“And we can’t do anything but support them,” replied Adam.

“At least we know that she loves Bryan and that she wants to share his heart. If we can get him to talk openly with her, tell her he loves her, and—”

“—and nothing, Candymine. They are adults and must work out their own problems.” He kissed the top of her head. She twisted around to look up at him.

“We aren’t allowed to do anything to smarten them up?” He shook his head. “Dammit, Adam, she’s the best thing that ever happened to the man. And if he’s too macho to admit it, we could all lose.”

“No interference.”

Candy sighed her disagreement but quietly snuggled against him.

His cock responded to her touch as if on automatic pilot.

“If Kaela leaves,” said Adam, “he’ll be worse than a bear with a dozen bees up his butt.”

“If Kaela leaves, Bryan might as well take a vow of celibacy because he’ll not get any action from me again.” She caught his eye.

“And you can tell him that. No Kaela, no sex. With two upset children to chase and all the chores to do by myself, I’ll have little patience and no time for fun and games. And if I’m tired, you can sleep alone, too.”

“Then I’d better get what I can right now,” Adam murmured. He skimmed her breast with his palm. Her well-trained nipple responded immediately. His fingers slid between her legs, finding her slippery with need. He stood up, pulling her with him.

“Use the towel to lean on,” he said, voice tight.

He helped her kneel on the step and lean her elbows on the floor, a thick towel as a cushion. Her heart-shaped ass, cheeks divided like a peach, always turned him into steel. He wanted to take her hard, to force her to cry out loud as he claimed her. But not here, not now.

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This time was for slow and gentle.

He lay another towel down and sat on it. He patted his thigh, and she smiled. Candy loved riding him this way. She climbed on his lap and slid herself down his pole. He used his hands to support her but let her move as she wanted. He wouldn’t come this time, but it was almost as good to give her pleasure.

Tonight, after she’d slept a few hours, he’d wake her. He’d tell her she was his unwilling prize, won in a card game in the saloon downstairs, and he’d woken her to claim what was now his.

She’d fight the stranger he’d pretend to be, loving the way he mastered her. He’d force her to take him deep in her mouth, though her hand, fisted around his cock, would allow her to control the depth.

He’d pull out and toss her on her back on the bed. He’d pull her legs apart while she tried to kick him. He’d hold her hands over her head and slam deep, proving who was boss.

Then he’d roll her onto her hands and knees and run his cock between her cheeks, teasing her as to what he wanted. Letting her think he’d ream her ass. But not tonight. He’d hold her down and put in her butt plug before rolling her on her back. This time, when he entered her pussy, the plug would make his cock rub against her G-spot. She’d fight him, but he’d take her hard, in control. Her body would betray her, driving her insane with the pleasure she tried to refuse.