Claiming Their Mail-Order Bride: A Cowboy Ménage Romance (Montana Ménage Book 2)

by Lily Reynard

  “Friday sounds lovely,” Sarah said. “Thank you again for the loan of your beautiful dress. You helped to make this day special for me…as did everyone else.” She indicated the tables, set with a variety of picnic foods as well as pies, cookies, and a lovely white-frosted cake decorated with fresh pansies.

  Abby gave her a hug. “We all want you to feel at home here, Sarah.” She cast a sly glance at Larkin and Walt, who were currently conversing with the Brody twins but who kept looking over at Sarah. “And I can’t wait to have a nice long talk with you in private about our men. I’m sure we have lots in common!”

  Sarah nodded cautiously. Between now and Friday, she would have to decide how much to confide to Abby about her unorthodox relationship with Walt and Larkin.

  That thought led to a stream of vivid imaginings that made her face go hot. Tonight, in the large upstairs bed, Sarah would have them all to herself…and there would nothing to stop her from having the spectacular, sensual wedding night she had been dreaming of.

  But first, there was one more thing that she needed to do.

  She looked around and spotted her father, who stood next to one of Emma’s denuded rosebushes. He clutched a glass of iced tea in one hand and was looking lost, tired, and very alone.

  He was the reason for her desperate flight across the country, but without the threat of Mr. Burgess, she wouldn't be here now, happily married to two wonderful men. A surge of pity moved through her, and she walked over to join him.

  “Father,” she said, then stopped.

  She had no idea what to say to the man who had been willing to sell his daughter to an awful, brutal criminal like Clyde Burgess.

  “Sarah,” Father choked out. He looked terrible, as if he hadn’t slept or bathed in days. He was unshaven and pale and had wide dark rings under his bloodshot eyes. His golden hair was graying, and his shoulders were stooped. “Thank God you’re safe! I am so very sorry for everything you must have endured so far!”

  To her horror, he began to cry. He turned away from her, his back heaving under his stained jacket.

  Pity overwhelmed her. She put a comforting hand on his shoulder, and he threw himself into her arms.

  Between sobs, he choked out, “Forgive me for having been such an abject failure of a father and a man! I never meant to hurt you, dearest girl.”

  She couldn’t bring herself to lie and tell him that it was all right, but she did embrace him and pat his back as he continued to weep and apologize.

  Finally, he regained control of himself. A few of the wedding guests were staring at him, but most people politely pretended that they hadn’t noticed his display of emotion.

  She drew one of her handkerchiefs from her sleeve and handed it to him.

  When he’d mopped his eyes and blown his nose with the same great honking blast that she remembered from her childhood, he straightened up and looked her soberly from his reddened eyes.

  “After you left, I gave up strong drink and card games,” he told her. “I realized, too late, that they had cost me everything I valued—not only my wealth and my business but my daughter and my self-respect.”

  Sarah nodded. “So you’ll work at rebuilding your import business?”

  He shook his head. “I can’t return to Boston, not after this. Mr. Burgess will kill me…or worse.”

  “Oh, I see,” she said, beginning to suspect what he might say next.

  “I’d like to stay here, with you.” He gave her a pleading look. “I’ve lost everything, Sarah. Won’t you take in your poor father?”

  No! A voice screamed silently inside her. She said nothing, appalled at the idea of her father moving in with her and living under her roof with her two husbands.

  But what kind of daughter would I be if I left my father homeless and alone in a strange place?

  “I heard that your new husband is a rich man, with a big ranch and a mine,” Father added.

  At his words, she was reminded that even sober, her father had always looked out for his own interests first.

  “I’m sorry,” she told him, as gently as she could. “But I don’t think it's a good idea for you to move out to the ranch.” She took a deep breath. “But if you find a job and a place to stay here in town, then I promise that we can meet for lunch every Sunday after church.”

  As expected, Father looked unhappy at this proposal. But he surprised her. Instead of protesting and trying to wheedle her into capitulating, he nodded wearily.

  “I swear to prove to you that I’ve turned over a new leaf, Sarah,” he declared.

  Sarah smiled, hoping fervently that he had indeed learned his lesson and would truly take this opportunity to make a fresh start.

  “Have you had lunch yet?” she asked him. “There’s plenty of food here. Help yourself.”

  She leaned in and kissed his stubbled cheek. “I’ll see you after church on Sunday,” she promised, then added, “The Hotel Bede has clean rooms and excellent food, if you need somewhere to stay tonight. Do you need a loan?”

  Father shook his head. “I have enough money with me to put a roof over my head for a few nights, at least.”

  Sarah spent the next hour circulating among the guests, accepting their congratulations on her marriage and renewing her acquaintance with those she had met at the dance. She exchanged fond hugs with Emma and thanked her for arranging the wedding reception and then went in search of Mrs. O’Sullivan to thank her as well.

  “Call me Lucy, dear,” said the Irishwoman, giving Sarah a hearty peck on the cheek. “And I wish you all the joy of your marriage to that strapping lad over there.”

  She winked and gave Sarah a gap-toothed grin before bustling away to refill the pitchers of iced tea.

  Sarah decided that she couldn’t wait any longer to start her marriage in truth.

  She made her way over to where Larkin and Walt stood, polishing off plates piled with pieces of fried chicken and mounds of vinegar-dressed potato salad flecked with bits of onion and bacon.

  “Having fun, Sarah?” Walt inquired.

  “I am,” she told them, smiling at them both. “But now I’m ready to go. Will you take me home, so that we can finish celebrating our marriage in the privacy of our bedroom?”

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Sarah went into the Kottinger house and with Emma’s aid, changed quickly out of her beautiful borrowed dress and shoes, loosened her corset to its normal dimensions, and donned a simpler shirtwaist and skirt.

  On the drive back to the ranch, she sat between Walt and Larkin and told them about Father’s plans to settle in Twin Forks and her promise to meet him for lunch after church on Sundays.

  “And you’re sure you don’t want him staying with us at the ranch?” Larkin asked, with a teasing glint in his eyes. “After all, we’ve got a spare bedroom downstairs now. I’m sure we could keep things quiet…” He glanced over at Walt and amended his statement. “Well, reasonably quiet upstairs.”

  Walt groaned, and Sarah responded, “You can’t convince me that you really want your new father-in-law staying in the house on our wedding night!”

  “Not with the plans we have for you tonight,” Larkin admitted. He reached over and squeezed her thigh through her skirts. “I don’t know about Walt here, but I won’t be satisfied until you’re screaming my name…and his, too.”

  Sarah giggled, welcome warmth blossoming in the pit of her stomach at the outrageous promise.

  Then a sobering though occurred to her. “Do you think those two men that Mr. Burgess sent will cause any more trouble?”

  Walt shook his head. “Nah. While you were in the house getting changed out of your wedding dress, Sheriff Plummer stopped by the festivities to toast your health with some of that beer. I told him the story about how Burgess lied about being betrothed to you, and your dad backed me up. The sheriff promised to personally ensure that those two gents board the mail coach for Salt Lake City tomorrow morning."

  Larkin added, "And Sheriff Plummer will spread t
he word for the folks in town to keep an eye out for any other strangers who arrive and start asking questions about you. They'll be sent packing, don't you worry, Angel.”

  Sarah inhaled deeply, relief flowing through her. She didn't think that Mr. Burgess would give up that easily, but knowing that the entire town was her side made her feel as though she might prevail if Burgess sent more of his men after her. “Oh, thank goodness! Once they’re gone, I don’t ever want to think about Mr. Burgess again.”

  “We’ll make sure to keep you occupied until those two are well on their way,” Larkin promised with a wicked smile and a wink.

  Once they arrived at the ranch house, Sarah paced around the kitchen in a frenzy of anticipation as Walt and Larkin drove the wagon around to the barn, where they unharnessed Toledo and tended to him.

  Finally, she saw her men striding towards the house.

  They entered through the back door, and she found herself sandwiched between their hard bodies as they embraced her, Walt kissing her lips with passionate heat, and Larkin’s mouth working delicious magic at her nape and the side of her neck.

  Laughing while they continued to exchange kisses and caresses, the three of them traced an erratic path from the kitchen and down the hall to the stairs.

  There, Walt boldly lifted her and tossed her over one of his broad shoulders before carrying her up the stairs, with Larkin opening the attic door to clear the way.

  More kisses and caresses followed when they reached the bedroom at last. Larkin deftly unbuttoned her shirtwaist, and she returned the favor with his shirt, fumbling a little as she tried to match his speed. Then she began to unbutton Walt’s shirt as Larkin skillfully set about unfastening her skirts and petticoats.

  A short time later, the bedroom floor was strewn with various articles of clothing.

  Larkin, magnificently nude, reclined on the bed, watching an equally nude Walt toss aside Sarah’s corset as she peeled off the final layer of her undergarments.

  This was the moment. The one she’d been waiting for. But now she was faced with a dilemma.

  “What happens now?” she asked, suddenly feeling shy. “How do we, ah, consummate our union?”

  Larkin chuckled. “Why don’t you start by coming over here, Angel? Walt and I will take care of everything.”

  She eagerly approached him, climbing onto the bed, and he rose to his knees before her.

  "Let's share her," Walt suggested. He got on the bed behind her and embraced her, his hands cupping her breasts.

  Larkin’s hungry kiss gave her no chance to protest, even if she had wanted to. Which she didn’t.

  And when Larkin pulled away from her lips and began to kiss her throat, working his way downwards in parallel with Walt, Sarah decided she wanted them both to continue what they were doing.

  Larkin put his hands on her waist, drawing her closer. He kissed and nuzzled the soft swell of her breasts, circling around her sensitive nipples but never quite touching them.

  Meanwhile, Walt had sunk to his knees behind her and was kissing a deliciously sensitive place at the base of her spine.

  Sarah whimpered in frustration at Larkin's teasing caresses, and he smirked at her. "Ask me," he invited. "Tell me you want me to take you."

  "I want—" Sarah gasped, and stiffened as Walt traced a delicate line down her buttocks with his fingertips. "I want…"

  As Larkin waited with visible impatience for her to continue her plea, Walt slid his hand between her legs and began to explore her with a teasing touch.

  "I want Walt to take me first," Sarah managed and grinned triumphantly at Larkin.

  Behind her, Walt laughed softly. "Looks like our sweet little wife is more than a match for you, Lark."

  Larkin scowled.

  "I'll have you singing a different song very shortly, Angel," he promised.

  Sarah gasped with pleasure as Larkin finally closed his lips around one of her nipples. He flicked his tongue around the tip, sending jolts of pleasure traveling to the place that Walt was currently teasing with a practiced touch.

  Her breath caught as she felt Larkin's teeth nip at the sensitive tips of her breasts, tugging and tormenting in a way that made her squirm with a mixture of pleasure and pain.

  Meanwhile, Walt's clever fingers, slick with her arousal, brought her up to the edge of climax. He kept her there for a while, tormenting her with exquisite skill as Sarah panted and shook between the caresses of both her husbands.

  "Please, Walt, I'm ready. Take me now," Sarah begged, just as Larkin switched his attentions to her other breast.

  Walt's touch vanished from her aching, sensitized folds, Sarah felt his hands on her hips.

  "Bend over," he commanded.

  Larkin sank to the mattress, and Sarah bent over him on all fours, bracing her hands against his shoulders for support.

  Larkin growled as she looked to see what Walt was doing, and her breast slipped away from Larkin's lips. Sarah kissed him in apology as she felt Walt move into place behind her.

  He slid both of his thumbs into her, opening her for his invasion.

  He felt just as large as Larkin as he penetrated her slowly, stretching her. It didn’t hurt, not in the way that she had expected, but it did burn a little.

  When he was fully seated inside her, Walt stilled, giving her flesh a chance to stretch and adjust to the invasion.

  Meanwhile, Larkin continued to kiss her, his hands doing delicious things to her breasts that reawakened the desire between her legs.

  She began to wriggle cautiously, moving herself on the length that impaled her.

  “Are you ready for more?” Walt asked.

  “Yes,” Sarah gasped.

  Walt grabbed her hips with a firm grip, his fingers digging into her soft skin, and pulled halfway out before sliding back into her.

  The sensation was overwhelming as he quenched nerves that had been screaming for just this treatment.

  "Angel," Larkin growled in her ear. "Why don't you put that pretty mouth of yours to good use while Walt has his fun?"

  Sarah looked down and saw the tip of Larkin's erection straining with desire. He raised himself on his elbows and moved up the mattress until his groin was level with her face.

  Dipping her head, Sarah gave his manhood a soft kiss, then eagerly parted her lips and licked him, a long, wet stroke that lingered and swirled around his tip as Walt continued to ravish her from behind.

  Larkin groaned in unabashed pleasure when Sarah closed her lips around the tip of his manhood and sucked, letting him slide against the hot, slippery roof of her mouth.

  After all of their tutoring, Sarah knew how to use her tongue to caress his sensitive slit as she cupped the heavy sac between his legs. He shuddered with pleasure as she filled her mouth with as much as she could take.

  Meanwhile, Walt continued ravishing her, his thick shaft sliding in and out of her, his chest pressed against her back and his breath hot on her neck.

  Sarah welcomed the sensation, bracing herself against Larkin as she continued to caress him with lips and tongue.

  Sarah felt Walt's arm slide around her waist, and then his fingers moved to her mound of Venus and began caressing the sensitive nub concealed there.

  Sarah screamed around Larkin's manhood as a climax rocked through her, the ripples of pleasure gripping Walt’s shaft as he buried himself inside her.

  Larkin groaned and shuddered beneath her, and Sarah tasted his thick, salty seed. She swallowed eagerly, caressing him through the pulses of his release as he panted and combed his fingers through her long hair.

  Walt's thrusts lost their rhythm and became short, rapid, and even harder. Then he shuddered against her back, and Sarah felt him fill her with his seed.

  "I didn't hurt you, did I, sweetheart?" he asked, withdrawing from her.

  He patted her hip with apologetic gentleness and urged her upright, slipping his arms around her and cupping her breasts in his hands. His thumbs stroked her nipples, wet and sensitized from
Larkin's mouth, and the pleasure was exquisite.

  Sarah relaxed against Walt and turned her head to kiss him. She was astonished to find that although she was sore from the unaccustomed invasion, she was more than ready for him to bend her over the bed again and resume his efforts.

  Sarah wriggled against him encouragingly. "No, you didn't hurt me at all. I really liked that."

  "Oh, good." Walt moved away from her and climbed on the bed, collapsed on the mattress next to Larkin.