by Marla Monroe
Chapter Nine
The next several weeks flew by as Jessie taught all week and spent her weekends with the guys. They took her out to eat or cooked for her at their home. She was fast getting way too attached to them for her own good. She was afraid that something would change and they would go their separate ways. Jessie knew it would devastate her. She was falling for them. Falling for the way they made her feel like the most important person in the world to them and falling for their devastating good looks and sexy bodies.
She pulled on her boots just as she heard their truck pull up outside. They were going horseback riding and on another picnic. Saturday had dawned cool and clear. It wouldn’t be long before October rolled around. Jessie knew that this might be the last chance at having a picnic for the year. Hopefully the warm sun would make up for the cooler temperature.
“Hey, Jessie. You look great. Be sure and grab a coat just in case it gets colder,” Cole said as he stepped inside the house.
“Wesson in the truck?” she asked.
“No. He’s getting the horses ready for us,”
“Must have lost the coin toss,” she teased.
Cole smiled. “Yeah. One of us had to stay behind and saddle them up. Didn’t want to miss one second of spending time with you.”
She felt the blush heat her cheeks. “Me, too. You guys always make me feel good.”
He pulled her closer and dipped his head to claim her lips with his. She melted in his arms as he slanted his mouth across hers and probed at her lips with his tongue. The instant she opened to him he was sliding his against hers and pulling all sorts of moans and groans from her as he devoured her mouth.
When he pulled back, they were both panting with veils of lust clouding their eyes. Jessie knew that if they didn’t hurry up and get going, they’d end up being very late for their picnic. She cleared her throat and took a step back to grab her coat.
“We’d better go now,” she said.
“Yeah. I think you’re right.”
She let him help her into the truck then buckled the seatbelt as Cole started the truck and backed out of her drive. They rode in silence, but Cole took her hand in one of his and held it the entire trip out to the ranch. When they pulled up outside the barn, Wesson strode across the ground and helped her down.
“Was about to call and check on you two. I was going to ask what took you so long, but I think I can guess by the color in your cheeks, babe.” Wesson grinned down at her.
It still surprised her that the two men never got jealous over each other. The longer she spent with them, the more secure she felt that they weren’t going to suddenly fight over her. It made her spending time with them so much easier and more relaxing since she didn’t have to constantly think about who she’d last kissed or held hands with.
“Ready for a picnic?” Wesson asked.
“Can’t wait. What’s for lunch?” she asked.
“That’s a secret,” Wesson said with a wide grin nearly splitting his face in two.
“Please tell me Cole cooked and you didn’t,” she said with mock horror.
Wesson narrowed his eyes at her and shook his head. “You wound me.”
Jessie just rolled her eyes and allowed him to help her climb on the back of the horse then waited for them to mount up, as well. They rode for well over an hour before Cole stopped them to take a walking break. Jessie rode with them fairly frequently, but she still wasn’t as used to a saddle as they were. The brief walk always did her good.
“How are you feeling?” Wesson asked as she stretched her arms over her head.
“I’m good. You guys have just about put the cowgirl back into me,” she said.
Cole smiled. “She was never gone. Just waiting for her time to come back out and shine.”
Jessie loved how they were always paying her compliments. What woman could ever refuse them? Why hadn’t they found someone before now? They were amazing men with so much going for them.
“Ready to go?” Wesson asked.
“Yeah. I’m getting hungry,” she said.
They rode for another two hours before they stopped among a grove of trees where they spread out the blanket and began unpacking lunch.
“Yummy!” Jessie squealed with delight. “Homemade chicken salad. I can’t wait.”
Wesson laughed. And before you are allowed to eat you have to tell me how good I did.”
“What do you mean?” she asked.
“I actually boiled the eggs that went into it. Ask Cole. I did it without him even in the room.” He stuck his chin in the air and smiled.
“I’m proud of you, Wesson. What made you want to boil the eggs?” she asked.
“Just wanted to prove that I could do something in the kitchen besides clean up Cole’s messes.” Wesson grinned.
“I don’t make messes,” Cole said, his brows furrowed together.
Jessie and Wesson looked at each other and grinned. “Yes you do,” they said together.
“Whatever. Let’s eat.” Cole handed bread to Jessie, and the three of them made sandwiches and ate potato chips.
After they’d finished and put everything away, they laid back on the blanket and talked about what was going on in town or the latest gossip about someone. Before she knew it, Jessie had drifted off to sleep.
* * * *
Something tickled Jessie’s nose. She batted at it then finally opened her eyes to see Wesson leaning over her with a flower stem hanging above her face.
“’Bout time you woke up. You’ve just about slept the entire afternoon away,” he said with a wide grin.
“Why didn’t you wake me up sooner?” she asked, sitting up.
“Because we slept just as long as you did,” Cole muttered. “Can’t believe we fell asleep.”
“We must have needed it, or we wouldn’t have done it,” Wesson said.
“Hate that we missed so much time with you, Jessie,” Cole continued.
“I still had a good time, guys,” she said.
Wesson leaned over and kissed her, brushing his lips lightly over hers then deepening the kiss so that Jessie moaned into his mouth. He felt amazing covering her like he was doing and rocking her world with his lips on hers. Then she felt Colt kissing down her neck and one hand squeezing her breast as Wesson continued to tease her with his tongue.
“As much as I want to continue this, I think we need to do so at the house. It’s going to get colder soon, and it gets dark earlier every day now,” Cole reminded them.
She sighed as Wesson moved from over her to climb to his feet. He held out his hand to help her up.
Jessie stood and stretched then helped fold the blanket before carrying some of the empty containers to where Cole was packing them on his horse.
“We’ll watch a movie when we get back home,” Wesson said. “Cole has stew on the stove for us to eat. He just has to make cornbread to go with it.”
“That sounds great. What movie are we watching?” she asked as he helped her up on her horse.
“Pacific Rim,” Wesson told her.
“I love that movie,” she said with a smile.
They’d ridden for nearly an hour when Jessie felt something sting the back of her left shoulder. She tried to slap at it but couldn’t reach it.
“Damn.”
“What’s wrong, hon?” Wesson asked, riding up next to her.
“Something bit me on my shoulder. I can’t reach it to rub at it.
“Hey, Cole. Stop for a second.
“What’s wrong?” he asked, turning to trot up next to them.
“Let me look, Jessie,” Wesson said.
“Guys, I don’t feel so good.” Jessie’s vision was blurring, and her head felt weird.
“What’s wrong?” Cole asked again.
“Fuck! There’s a dart in her shoulder.”
Wesson’s voice sounded so far away. Why was there a dart in her shoulder? They weren’t playing darts. They were riding horses, right? Then everything went black.
<
br /> Chapter Ten
Cole and his brother paced in the waiting room of the emergency room. He hated not knowing what was going on with Jessie. They weren’t allowed in back until the doctor had seen her, and the waiting was killing him. He could see by the lines on Wesson’s face that it was having the same effect on him.
They’d managed to dismount and catch Jessie before she’d fallen off the horse but had to drape her over the horse to get her home and to the waiting ambulance. He’d called them to meet them at the house the minute they had her settled on the horse then led it back to their home as fast as they could safely go with her across the saddle like they had her.
“What do you think is going on back there?” Wesson asked.
“I don’t know. Where is the fucking sheriff?” Cole asked.
“He was out on a call. He’ll be here as soon as he can.”
“Something has to be done about this and soon,” Cole said.
“I’m not so sure we’re dealing with teenagers now. I can’t imagine them harming a woman. Cattle? Yes, but not a woman.”
“I think you’re right. This is some kind of sick bastard getting his kicks out of hurting animals and, now, people.”
Cole ran a hand through his hair just as the sheriff strode into the waiting room. His face was taut with rage as he joined them.
“How is she?” he immediately asked.
“We don’t know anything yet. The doctor is supposed to come out and give us an update, but he hasn’t yet,” Cole told the other man.
“This has got to stop. Where is he getting the drugs?” Wesson asked.
“I’m researching online to find out if you can buy ketamine without a prescription, but there are quite a few places. Did you know it’s used to treat depression? Hell, people even snort the stuff. You wouldn’t believe the chatter on the internet about the crap,” the sheriff said.
“If he can get it online, you might never find out who it is,” Cole said.
“That’s what has me worried. Catching this guy isn’t going to be easy,” the sheriff admitted.
“Well, fuck.” Wesson stuck his hands on his hips and frowned.
“I’m going to go out where it happened and see if I can find anything that the man might have left while he waited for you guys. I’m sure he was watching you and picked a spot to ambush you from. He might have left something behind I can use to find him,” the sheriff said.
“Until he is caught,” Wesson said. “No one is safe just doing their job. The hands might be safe out in the middle of nowhere, but any of them riding fences or near any trees where the man can hide are at risk.”
“Everyone needs to stay in twos so that if one of them get shot, the other can get help,” the sheriff said.
“Hell, he could shoot both of them just as easily as shooting one of them,” Cole pointed out.
“It’s the best I can do until I figure out who he is.” The sheriff shook his head. “I know it isn’t much, but it’s all I’ve got.”
“If all they used was the ketamine, why was she still unconscious when they got her to the hospital?” Cole asked.
“I don’t know. Maybe they increased the dose or changed to another kind of drug since they were planning to use it on people next,” the sheriff said.
“We’ve got to stop this sick bastard before someone dies,” Wesson said.
“I’m doing all I can do. We’ve no idea where he’ll strike or when. I don’t have the first clue how to identify him. I’m having a friend monitor Facebook and Twitter to see if someone boasts about what they are doing. I’m praying he’ll feel the need to gloat over what he’s doing and we’ll see it online.” The sheriff looked up just as the door leading back to the emergency room whooshed open and a man in scrubs stepped through them.
He walked over to where Cole, Wesson, and the sheriff were standing by the windows.
“Are you with Miss Winters?” he asked.
“That’s right. How is she?” Wesson asked.
“She’s coming around nicely. She’s going to be woozy and a little confused for a few hours, but the effects are wearing off nicely. The dart had to be coated with enough of the drug to knock her out for a good three hours. That’s a fairly strong dose,” he told them.
“Do you know what was used?” the sheriff asked.
“She tested positive for valium. I know that you suspected it to be ketamine, but it wasn’t. Valium was in her system,” the doctor said.
“Can we see her?” Wesson asked.
“Yes. Just remember that she’s going to be a little off for another hour or so. I want to monitor her for any side effects before I discharge her. She’ll be able to go home after that.” The doctor led the way to the back and the room where they were treating Jessie.
Once they walked into the room, Cole immediately felt a sense of relief. Jessie’s color was much better than when they’d watched her being loaded into the ambulance earlier. She turned her head toward them when they entered the room. The woozy smile that blossomed across her face had his heart flipping in his chest.
“Hey there, beautiful,” Cole said. “How are you feeling?”
“A little spacy, but fine. The doctor said I was shot with a dart. I don’t remember anything except going on a picnic with you guys,” she said.
“We are so sorry this happened, Jessie,” Wesson said.
“It wasn’t your fault guys. It was whoever shot me. Why would someone want to shoot someone like that?” she asked.
“I don’t know. He must be crazy to harm another human being. It’s bad enough to target animals, but he’s taking it a step further to risk hurting a person. The sheriff is looking into it, but catching this guy is going to be hard. No more picnics until the man is caught,” Wesson said.
Cole agreed with him. They weren’t about to risk Jessie getting hurt again.
He realized in that moment that he had fallen in love with her. She meant the world to him, and the idea of something happening to her had his stomach cramping and his heart racing to the point of making him dizzy.
What if it had been poison on that dart? The thought of her dying nearly brought him to his knees.
* * * *
Jessie’s mouth was parched as she listened to the guys go over the last few hours with her. She still couldn’t believe that she’d been shot and knew she’d been lucky. It could have been so much worse. The dart could have had poison of some kind on it. Why would someone want to hurt someone else? She knew that there were crazy people in the world, but she’d never believed that someone from her home would be capable of that.
I’ve forgotten that the town is growing and more people are moving here. I guess bad people are everywhere.
She hated to think that her idyllic home could possibly be home to someone so cruel and lacking in morals. What if it had been a teenager or someone even younger? Would it have hurt them even worse than it had harmed her?
Jessie could still feel the wooziness an hour later as the guys helped her off the stretcher to walk to the bathroom. She wasn’t sure she could have made it without them helping her to stand and walk. Her legs felt like spaghetti noodles.
“How are you feeling?” Cole asked her for the dozenth time.
“I’m okay. The fogginess in my head is almost gone,” she told him.
“That’s good. The doc said it would linger for a little while. Are you sure you’re ready to go home?” Wesson asked. “Maybe you should stay here for another couple of hours to be safe.”
“The doctor said I could go home now. I want my own bed. This stretcher isn’t all that comfortable.” Jessie tried to smile at the two men, but her face felt odd.
“We’ll get you home and make sure you’re comfortable. We aren’t leaving you tonight. I won’t be able to sleep worrying about you,” Wesson said.
Jessie liked that they wanted to take care of her. Still, she was going to be just fine. They didn’t have to hover over her. It would get to be annoying after a while.
She hoped they weren’t going to do that. It would spoil some of how she felt for them. Right now, she was more than a little in love with them, and it scared her. They’d only known each other for a little over a month. That was too short a time to fall in love, right?
Maybe love at first sight does happen. I’ve just never known it to happen before.
Jessie realized that she wanted it to be true, wanted to really love them. Wanted them to really love her, as well. When had her mind changed about being with two men? She wasn’t even all that worried about her job now. Of course she doubted many people at school even knew she was dating Wesson and Cole. Yet so far nothing had come of her worry that they’d fire her on moral grounds. The town really did seem to be mostly accepting of the threesome couples that lived there.
I want this to work out. I want the two men in my life for more than boyfriends. I want it all.
And she did. Jessie smiled, unable to keep the thoughts inside any longer. She loved Cole and Wesson, but she wanted them to say the words to her first. She didn’t want to risk that they weren’t in love with her, as well, before she blurted out that she loved them.
The idea that they might not feel the same way helped her keep from blurting out the words when they focused their attention on her while she redressed. It took both men to help her into her clothes because she kept losing her balance in the process.
“Ready to head home?” Cole asked.
“Yes. Thanks, guys. I really appreciate you helping me and staying with me. I wouldn’t have wanted to lie here all alone with my head swimming like it was.” She smiled at both men.
“There was no way in hell we were going to leave you here while you were recovering,” Wesson said, frown lines appearing between his brows.
“Still, I appreciate it,” she said.
“I’ll pull the truck around,” Cole said.
Jessie accepted the ride in the wheelchair from the nurse, and with Wesson’s help, she climbed into the truck and settled in the front seat with Wesson taking the back seat behind her. They were silent all the way to her house. Each man seemed to be deep in thought, and hers were so muddled form the remnants of the drug that she had a difficult time just keeping her eyes open.
