Yours and Yours Alone

by Marilyn Lee

  “Kissing?”

  “Yes. Of course I wanted more, but after what happened yesterday morning, she’s even shyer than normal.”

  He sat at the kitchen table. “Shy and beautiful. An irresistible combination, Bray.”

  “I know. The power should be restored at my place by seven and we’ll get out of your hair.”

  He shook his head. “Stay as long as you like. I’ll take the sofa in the study and you two can have the bedroom.”

  Braden shook his head. “I told you she’s shy. She’s not making love in your bed again.”

  “I didn’t mind.”

  “I couldn’t convince her of that. She’s embarrassed that you saw her nude.”

  “That woman has nothing she needs to hide.”

  “Yeah I know, but she wishes you didn’t know that.”

  He met Braden’s gaze and they laughed.

  “I’m glad you’re both amused by my discomfort.”

  He looked up to see Kania standing in the kitchen doorway, glaring at him but not Braden. He rose and walked across to kiss her cheek. “If you ever get tired of Braden, give me a ring.”

  “Don’t hold your breath waiting for that to happen,” she said sweetly and stepped away from him.

  He glanced over his shoulder at Braden. “Damn, dude, you’re lucky.”

  Braden nodded. “Lucky and head over heels in love.”

  Her face softened and she leaned down to kiss Braden, who pulled her onto his lap.

  “If I walk in on you two going at it again, I’m going to want to join the party.”

  “Not happening, chief.”

  “Then use the damn bedroom,” he said and left the kitchen with his beer.

  Minutes later, he heard his bedroom door open and close. And he knew damn well that Braden would soon be sliding inside her and spending what was left of the night making love to her. Although he and Braden sometimes shared lovers, he knew that would never happen with Kania. Because she was special, and they didn’t share the special women in their lives.

  Chapter Three

  KANIA WOKE THE NEXT morning with a feeling of well-being she hadn’t experienced since Hank had stopped making love to her. For a moment she wasn’t sure why she felt so hopeful, then she remembered the night before. Raven’s arrival had put a welcome spark in her evening. And apparently in her morning.

  She showered and then spent more time than usual doing her face before going to her closet. Resisting the urge to put on a new, pastel-pink sun dress she knew would complement her skin-tone, she slipped on a pair of pants and a short-sleeved blouse before walking down the hall to Raven’s room.

  The door was open.

  She knocked twice and then looked inside to see the empty bed. She knocked on the door again and walked into the room. The bathroom door was open and the light out. But recalling that morning seven years earlier when she rushed naked out of another bathroom to find Raven standing in the bedroom holding her thong, her cheeks burned.

  He had stared at her naked body for what felt like an eternity before she’d turned and rushed back into the bathroom, slamming, and locking the door. Almost as if she’d expected him to follow her. She frowned suddenly. She couldn’t recall if she’d ever seen it again. If not, he must have kept it. The thought made her burn with remembered...what? Humiliation? Forbidden excitement?

  No. Yes Raven had always flirted outrageously and she had encouraged and enjoyed it. Still, at the time she had been firmly and deeply in love with Braden. And only Braden.

  “Raven?”

  Greeted by silence, she walked across the room to peek into the bathroom. Empty. She returned to the bedroom. Standing next to the made bed, she remembered laying in another bed with him. And her sinful actions. Once she was certain he was asleep, she had sat up and watched him. He was almost as sexy and handsome as Braden. Without giving herself time to think, she had done something of which she’d always been ashamed and never admitted to anyone. She leaned over and pressed what she had planned to be a light peck on his cheek.

  Then, as she remembered the look of desire in his dark eyes as he held her thong, she decided to give him what he wanted under a controlled environment. Tossing her inhibitions aside, she gingerly lay on top of him. When he gave no sign of waking, she cupped his handsome face between her palms. He was gorgeous and she loved the scent cologne almost as she did Braden’s.

  Lowering her head and pressing her lower body between his legs, she licked his lips. Almost as nice as Braden’s. Maybe even a little sweeter. She slowly ground her hips against his and kissed him again and again until she felt his cock starting to stir. Then, resisting the urge to reach between their bodies to free it from his pajama bottoms, she had fled from the room, with her heart pounding and her pussy wet. She had spent years assuring herself that it had only happened because he looked so much like Braden and she had still been slightly hungover from the previous night. However, kissing him and rubbing against him until he started to harden had not felt like being with Braden. It had felt different...deliciously forbidden. And definitely taboo.

  Now, the memory of how greedily she had kissed him as he slept, filled her with renewed shame. She hurried from the room before she surrendered to the impulse to inhale the scent of his cologne remaining on the pillow.

  She walked through the house and into the living room. Raven, bare-chested and wearing a pair of shorts was doing pushups on the patio by the pool. Apparently, he’d been at it for a while because a fine sheen of moisture coated his skin.

  She told herself the sight of his rippling muscles aroused her because she was lonely or that he looked so much like Braden. But she knew both were excuses. He didn’t look any more like Braden than he ever had. Yes, she was lonely, but there was something about Raven that had always set him apart from his brothers—including Braden. She’d just never been sure what that something was. She still wasn’t, but one thing she was sure of and that was the certainty that seeing Braden exercising would no longer have aroused her.

  But then, although she’d never admitted it, there had always been a forbidden aspect to her relationship with Raven. Yes, all Braden’s brothers had flirted with her. But Raven had always pushed the boundaries of decency. And no matter how much she had protested, something inside her had loved every second and tacitly encouraged new excesses with and from him.

  She stood watching him for another ten minutes until he rose and stretched his shoulder muscles. Lord, what a sight. He was about 6’ 3” with wide shoulders, washboard abs, long legs, and all the allure of a handsome, confident Native American male.

  After having dated Braden for over eight years, she’d seen his brothers bare-chested on countless occasions. They were all handsome men. And while she was in love with Braden, despite all the flirting she encouraged in Raven and her one lapse, none had gathered more than a passing glance. Until now. Now when she was horny as hell and her marriage was in shambles. Yes. That was the reason she was feeling this way with Raven. Except it wasn’t.

  She had kissed him almost until she couldn’t breathe while he slept when she was in love with Braden and now she found it difficult to dismiss thoughts of sex with him while married and supposedly still in love with Hank. God help her, but she was her mother’s daughter. And like her mother, she feared she was destined to be a cheater who broke her husband’s heart and destroyed her marriage.

  He reached down to the patio to pick up the towel lying at his feet, draped it over his shoulders, and turned.

  Caught watching him, she made the best of it. She smiled and crossed the living room to stand in the open doors. “’Morning.”

  “Yes, it is,” he said, smiling. “What are your plans for the day?”

  “Aside from two hours I need to spend at the animal shelter this afternoon, I’m totally at your disposal. How long are you in town for?”

  “Three weeks. I have to be back in Philly for Mother’s Day.”

  “And how much of that time have you
promised to Tasha or Kia?”

  “Why do you ask?”

  “Because you came back to see them. Didn’t you?”

  “Yes,” he admitted. “But that was before I realized Hank had left you alone and at the mercy of any ruthless man who came along.”

  “You mean like yourself?”

  “Just like me,” he said, smiling again. “My ruthlessness knows no bounds—as you should know by now.”

  “You’re not the source of his concern.”

  “More fool him then, fearing the wrong brother.”

  “He’s not a fool.”

  “I beg to differ. Anyone who’s seen Braden and Neida together and still thinks there’s a chance in hell of him straying is an idiot and a fool. He more than loves and adores her. He worships the ground she walks on.” He brushed his hand against the back of her cheek. “As I do you.”

  She met the fire in his gaze and found it difficult to look away. Finally, she shook her head and stepped far enough away for his hand to fall to his side. “You’re going to want to be careful, Elkhorn. I’m feeling a little...vulnerable and I might take you seriously.”

  “You should,” he said. “Because I actually do worship the ground you walk on.”

  “I never saw any indication of that.”

  He laughed. “That’s not what you said when I wrestled you down onto my bed and insisted you talk me to sleep,” he reminded her. “I told you then that I wanted to kiss you, but we both knew I wanted to do a lot more than just kiss you.”

  “Except you didn’t.”

  “Of course I didn’t. Braden was in love with you. And he’s not just my brother, he’s my best friend. Do you think anything would make me betray him? But you had to have known that he wasn’t the only Elkhorn brother who was yours for the taking.”

  “Except he wasn’t really mine. Was he?”

  “Oh, I assure you he was. You gave up on him too soon.”

  “You call four years of flirting followed by nearly eight years being his lover too soon? Just how long was I supposed to wait after it became painfully clear that he was never going to propose?”

  “He would have proposed. As will I.”

  “It seems to have escaped your notice, Elkhorn, but he never did. And as for you...I’m already married.”

  “Not a problem that I am going to allow to stand in the way of what I want, need, and am determined to get this time.”

  She frowned. “So what? You want an affair?”

  “No, damnit! I haven’t waited all this damn time for an affair.”

  “Then what are you suggesting?”

  “I’m suggesting you divorce your undeserving husband and marry me. What else?”

  As she stood gaping at him, he moved around her to walk into the living room.

  Unsure how much of their conversation she could afford to take seriously, she followed him inside. “Are you hungry? Should I cook breakfast?”

  “No. I don’t want to make work for you. Give me time to shower and change and we’ll go out to eat.”

  “It wouldn’t be work. Although I do my own cooking, I have a cleaning service in twice a week. And anyway, it’ll be nice having a man around the house again.”

  He turned at the door leading into the hallway. “Oh?”

  She shrugged. “I mean for however long you can stay.”

  “I can stay as long as you’ll have me.”

  “I know you have plans to see Tasha and Kia, but—”

  “I’ll cancel them,” he said.

  She shook her head. “Don’t do that. I’m sure they’re both looking forward to seeing you and I’ll take whatever time you have left.”

  “You do realize that you don’t have to settle for anyone’s leftovers.”

  “I don’t expect you to put my wants ahead of theirs.”

  “You can say that after all I’ve just admitted?”

  “I don’t know what I’m expected to feel or believe.”

  “Don’t you? Sees fairly straightforward to me.”

  “Well, it’s not to me. I’m married and I don’t cheat.”

  “How would it be cheating when he left you with the intent of your getting Braden out of your system? How did he expect you to do that without sleeping with him?”

  “I have no interest in sleeping with Braden.”

  “That’s good because he feels the same way. Me? I’m very interested in sleeping with you. Substitute one Elkhorn for another, and we have his blessing. What could be easier?”

  “Did you not hear me when I said I don’t cheat?”

  “Yes. I heard you.”

  “Then we’re on the same page?”

  “Absolutely not. I want what you had with Bray only with more devotion, passion, and marriage. And I won’t ask you to wait any longer for that to happen than it takes to divorce dipshit.” He turned and left the room.

  While she stood trying to convince herself that she had to tell him to leave, her phone rang, playing a That’s What Friends Are For ringtone. Smiling, she answered. “Girlfriend!”

  “Hey girl,” Rena answered. “I don’t have much time to talk but I wanted to check to see how you are.”

  “I’m not sure.”

  “No? Things didn’t go well with Ray?”

  “I don’t know what’s going on with him. He spent the night in the guest room, but he’s been flirting with me.”

  “He always flirts with you. All Braden’s brothers do.”

  “I know, but something feels different this time.”

  “In a good way?”

  She glanced over her shoulder and moistened her lip. “I think he might...really be flirting with me. He implied...”

  “What did he imply?”

  “Actually he didn’t imply much. He came right out and said some things that...I wasn’t expecting or...”

  “Or what? Want to hear?”

  “He implied I should divorce Hank and marry him.”

  “He implied that?”

  “No. He came right out and said it.”

  “A little strong, but I can’t really say I’m surprised.”

  “What?”

  “I always knew he wasn’t just flirting.”

  “What? And you never mentioned it to me?”

  “What would have been the point? You were in love with Braden and when you ended it, you were so raw and hurt. Then Hank came along and again, what would have been the point? But let’s keep it real, girl, his flirting has always been over the line.”

  “I invited him to stay here instead of going to a hotel. Had I known—”

  “If you really didn’t know, Nia, it was because you didn’t want to know. No man flirt’s the way he does without meaning it. And don’t tell me it’s an Elkhorn thing because then I’ll ask if Shane or Seneka are anywhere near as outrageous as he’s always been with you. And we both know the answer wouldn’t be just be no, but hell no.”

  “Rena—”

  “Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth.”

  “He’s not a horse.”

  “Maybe not, but I’ve heard he’s hung like a donkey—a very skillful donkey. Now, I know what you’re thinking.”

  “I doubt it.”

  “You’re thinking if he’s larger than Braden then he really is hung like a donkey.”

  “And just how do you know how well-hung Braden might or might not be?”

  “You mean besides the fact that you were sore after the first weekend you spent with him?”

  “Rena—”

  “Besides that? Hey, a girl’s got eyes. A girl’s seen him on the beach in skimpy briefs, getting long and hard as he watched you shake your money maker. And a girl might have heard that Raven is even more well-hung than his sexy big brother.”

  Kania inhaled slowly. “And where might a girl have heard that?”

  “I was at a party with Tasha and Kia. They were in their cups and trading tales of the lusty nights they spent with him. Apparently, not only is he extremely well-hung,
but he’s skillful enough to satisfy the most voracious slut. And let’s face it, those two are pretty slutty.”

  “They’re single and can have as many lovers as they like.”

  “Yes, but they get drunk and brag about how they share the cock of a man who’d never marry either one of them. They’re slutty. So much so that I half expected one of them to whip out her phone and start showing dick pics of his ‘weapon’ as they call it.”

  “Did they?”

  “No. And let me tell you, I have to admit I was a little disappointed that they didn’t.”

  “Rena!”

  “Oh, come on. The way hubby fills all my nooks and crannies makes my back arch, my toes curls, and makes me holler. I’m more than good. Okay? Still, that doesn’t mean I can’t appreciate an occasional dick pic. Amirite or amirite?”

  She laughed.

  “Maybe you’ll take some and share them.”

  Her smile vanished. “What makes you think I’d want to even look at them, much less share them?”

  “Girl, please.” She could picture Rena waving her hand in front of her. “Hello! Best friend here. I’m happy to do all the heavy lifting so you have plausible deniability and can pretend that butter wouldn’t melt in your mouth. And that you don’t enjoy good dick just like the rest of us happily heterosexual hos.”

  “Sometimes I just don’t know about you, Rena.”

  “And other times?”

  She smiled. “The rest of the time...most of the time, I realize just how lucky I am to have you as my life-long friend.”

  “Forever. But.”

  “But?”

  “But, don’t think I’m going to let you use flattery to change the subject. After all the years of flirting and crossing and redrawing boundary lines each time he crosses them, it’s time you two got to know each other better.”

  “He said you told him it was harvest time.”

  “I did.”

  “Yeah, well, I already know him as well as I need to.”

  “Yeah. Right. And I’m not as much in love with Ryan as I was when I chased his slippery ass down and dragged him kicking and screaming to the preacher man.”

  “First, he’s the one who had to run your slippery, slutty ass down.”