by Liliana Hart
“Something heavy weighs on your mind,” Holly said.
They were sitting propped up in the bed—Holly against the carved wooden headboard with a pillow against her back and Victoria leaning back against Holly. A white sheet covered them to their waists. Holly brushed Victoria’s Goldenrod hair with long, slow strokes as they watched the sun dip down behind the trees.
“I’m engaged to be married,” Victoria blurted out.
The hairbrush only paused for a moment, but Holly continued her soothing strokes.
“Then we need to get the information you have on the Blackstone Gang to Cole and Dillon as soon as possible so they can be captured and you can be safe with your fiancé.”
“No, you don’t understand.” Victoria turned so she and Holly were face to face. “I don’t want to marry Harold. But for all intents and purposes, he bought me to be his wife. And if I don’t marry him he’s promised my family will suffer.”
“Shh, love. If you don’t want to marry him then we’ll figure out something to save you and your family. I don’t know who this Harold is, but I promise you Cole and Dillon can buy and sell him a thousand times over. Their parents were very wealthy and left them everything after their deaths. It’s how we can afford to isolate ourselves as we do.”
“I won’t take your money,” Victoria said vehemently. “I, or my family, won’t be beholden to anyone else.”
Holly nodded and smiled. “Trust me, Victoria. We’ll figure this out. Now it’s time for both of us to get some sleep. Cole is supposed to be back tomorrow. It was his job to get the registry of passengers from the wagon train office. He’ll be sending wires out to the lawmen from every passengers’ town so families can be notified of their loved ones deaths.”
“Ohmigod,” Victoria cried. “My family is going to think I’m dead. I’ve got to contact them.”
“Victoria,” Holly said sternly. “You can’t contact anyone until this is over. The Blackstone Gang has eyes and ears everywhere. Your family thinking you’re dead will keep them safe and you hidden.”
Victoria nodded, knowing Holly spoke the truth.
“It could be several more days before Dillon gets home. He and a few other marshals followed the gang’s trail while it was still fresh. If they’re lucky, the rain will hold off until they get close enough to corner them. He’ll head back here and get your statement as soon as he can. For now, I think both of us need to get a good night’s sleep.”
Victoria lay in bed for hours, listening to Holly’s even breathing, but she couldn’t go to sleep. Her mind wouldn’t turn off. There were too many possibilities. Too many players in this deadly game. There had to be some way to trap The Blackstone Gang.
The bedroom windows were open, letting in a cool night breeze, and the moon was full and bright, casting shadows around the bedroom. But there was something in the air that kept Victoria alert.
The sound of a lone horse, riding at a quick trot and trampling over limbs and leaves, soared across the breeze, paralyzing her in fear. She listened for other riders, sure they were out there and surrounding the house, but her heart was thudding too hard in her chest for her to make out any other sounds.
It was the middle of the night. Nothing but trouble ever came in the middle of the night. She shuddered as she remembered Harold’s visit to her room. Whoever these riders were had to be worse than Harold. She would fight back this time. She’d never lie there helpless again.
“Holly,” she whispered, shaking the woman in her arms gently. “Wake up. Someone’s here. Someone’s coming.”
Victoria saw the whites of Holly’s eyes as they snapped open and her body tensed. Before she knew what was happening, Holly had the rifle she kept beside the bed in her hands and she was standing by the window, peeping out carefully so she couldn’t be seen.
Holly’s body relaxed and she put the rifle down. “It’s Cole. He’s home early. I hope nothing’s wrong.” She rummaged around in a chest and threw a thin robe at Victoria before donning one for herself. “Come on. We’ll fix him something to eat while he tends to his horse and washes up. He’ll want to meet you.”
“I need to dress,” Victoria said, looking down at her scantily clad body. “I can’t meet him like this. It isn’t proper.”
“Now’s not the time for your genteel sensibilities to get in the way, Victoria. Cole is going to want to see what you’re made of. Not only because he’ll be judging whether or not you’ll make a worthy partner for his brother, but because he’ll also want to see what kind of courage you have when you’ll have to face the Blackstone Gang in court. Don’t let him bully you. I promise, he’s really a very kind and loving man.”
Victoria nodded and followed Holly to the kitchen where they prepared Cole’s meal in silence. She didn’t know what was happening to her. She didn’t even know Cole Behr, but she was willing to give him her body because his brother might be exactly what she’d been looking for her entire life. All she knew was that she wanted to belong to Dillon mind, body and soul.
Victoria barely contained herself from jumping when the back door slammed open. Cole Behr was massive in size, tall enough that he had to duck under the door frame and his shoulders so wide they almost grazed each side. His hair was dark blond and wet from washing up, and his face was stubbled with a couple of day’s worth of growth. He was older than when the portrait had been painted, but age had only made him more handsome. His grey eyes narrowed when they saw her.
Holly let out a relieved sigh when she caught sight of her husband and ran into his open arms, kissing him so passionately that Victoria felt she should look away. Cole grabbed Holly and lifted her so she could wrap her legs around his waist, and their kiss lasted for several minutes more.
“You’re embarrassing our guest, wife,” Cole said, squeezing Holly’s behind as he released her.
“I doubt that,” Holly said, giving her a wink. “There hasn’t been much in the past twenty-four hours that I’ve found could embarrass her.” Holly’s robe had fallen open, revealing one plump breast before she closed it and went back to putting food on the table.
“Is that right?” Cole asked, looking Victoria up and down with interest. His eyes darkened as he took in her state of undress, and his gaze lingered on her breasts as her nipples hardened beneath the thin fabric of the robe.
“I’m Cole Behr. I assume you have a good reason for breaking into our house and making yourself at home?”
Victoria refused to break eye contact and straightened her shoulders, causing her breasts to press harder against her robe. He was distracted by the movement and she gave him a small, challenging smile.
“My name is Victoria Goldenrod, and I’m sorry to say I’d do it again. My life was at stake, and quite frankly, it still is. Your wife has been kind enough to offer me refuge until I can testify against the Blackstone Gang.”
“And will you testify against them, or will you run the other way the minute you think you’re in danger? Haven’t you heard what happened to the other witnesses?” Cole took his place at the table and dug into the food they’d laid out for him, and she and Holly took the other chairs across from him.
Victoria narrowed her eyes. “I’ll do what I have to do to make sure those men pay. I can’t live in hiding the rest of my life. If you don’t wish for me to stay here, I’m sure I can find another place. I’m not without means.”
“You’ll stay here. For now,” Cole said, pushing his plate back when he was through. “I’m assuming my wife has spent the last day or so telling you about our family and trying to convince you that you could be a good match for my brother. From the first moment she saw you sleeping in our bed, she seemed to think there was something about you that made you one of us, but I’ve yet to see anything about you that makes me think you belong here. You’re a little high and mighty for my taste.”
Victoria scooted her chair back abruptly and stood. “It’s not your taste I have to worry about, now is it, Mr. Behr. So if you’ll excuse me, I thi
nk I’ll go back to bed.”
Victoria leaned down so she was eye level with Holly, nipping at her lip before soothing it quickly with her tongue. Holly gasped at the feel and Victoria took advantage of her open mouth by kissing her with every ounce of passion and desire she could muster. Their tongues tangled and they were both breathless as Victoria finally pulled away.
“You’re welcome to join me,” Victoria told her. “I’d hate for you to go to bed unsatisfied. I might be high and mighty, but at least I’ll warm your bed. He seems a little cold for my taste.” She glanced at Cole out of the corner of her eye and found his stare electric as he took in the sight of her and Holly together.
“It’s hard to refuse an offer like that,” Holly said, taking Victoria’s hand as they made their way back to the bedroom.
Victoria heard the sound of a chair scraping across the floor and looked back to see Cole following close behind them. She was the aggressor this time, taking Holly into her arms the moment they walked into the bedroom. She kissed her again, sliding her hands inside the thin robe Holly wore and pushing it off her shoulders.
Victoria watched Cole as she kissed and caressed his wife, just as he watched her. Their eyes locked as Cole unbuttoned his shirt and tossed it over a chair, and their gazes didn’t waver as Victoria laid Holly back on the bed and kissed her way down to the dusky rose tips of her breasts.
Cole kicked off his boots and slid off his trousers before taking a seat in the rocking chair against the wall. His chest was covered in soft goldenrod hair that trailed in a line down his muscled stomach. His cock was long and hard and thick, and it strained against his belly.
Victoria watched his breath hitch as she flicked Holly’s nipple with her tongue, and she watched him take his cock in his fist and begin pumping it slowly up and down as she kissed her way down Holly’s stomach to the soft thatch of auburn hair between her thighs. She was locked in a battle of wills with Cole and there was no way she was going to be the one to back down.
Victoria kissed the hidden nub between Holly’s folds and swirled her tongue around it, tasting the sweetness of her honey as it flooded into her mouth. Sweat glistened on Cole’s skin as she skimmed her hands up to Holly’s breasts and rolled her nipples between pinched fingers. Her tongue lapped at Holly’s juices and slid into her moist heat, and Victoria could feel her own desire pooling between her legs as the need built inside of her.
Cole must have read the need in her eyes because he got up from the chair and walked slowly around the bed so he stood behind her. Victoria felt the mattress dip behind her and closed her eyes so all of her senses could be heightened. She purred as Cole’s finger traced down her spine, causing Holly to writhe against her mouth faster and faster. Holly’s mewls of pleasure grew louder as Victoria slipped a finger inside of her, and Holly’s inner walls clamped around her as spasms tore through her body.
Victoria lapped at her juices as they flooded her mouth just as she felt the broad head of Cole’s cock probing at her entrance. Victoria’s fingers dug into the mattress for purchase as he slid inside of her, and her breath caught as he filled and stretched her to the point of pain. He stilled behind her as she slowed her breathing and her body adjusted to his size.
“Are you all right?” He asked, leaning over her and trailing kisses up her spine.
“God, yesss—”
Victoria didn’t notice as Holly moved off the bed. She could only feel as Cole began to slide in and out of her. She’d never known it could be like this—the way his cock touched the deepest part of her womb or the way she could feel every ridge of him as he stroked in and out. His fingers bruised her hips as he held on tightly, but she didn’t care. Sensation bombarded her so everything about the act was clearer—the feel of the sheets against her skin and the scent of their lovemaking as it clung to their bodies.
The bed dipped again and she whimpered into the sheets as she felt Holly slide beneath their straddled legs so she could reach Victoria’s clit with her mouth. Every thrust Cole made moved her against Holly’s mouth, and it wasn’t long before the dual sensation was too much for her to handle.
Her pussy clamped around Cole’s cock like a vise as her orgasm shook her to the core. She screamed incoherent words, digging her fingers into the mattress as his thrusts became frenzied and one orgasm rolled into another. And then another.
He leaned over her back and held her around the waist as he pounded harder and harder inside of her, and at the last minute, when she was sure she couldn’t take any more pleasure, he pulled out of her and spilled his seed across her back.
All three of them fell to the bed in a tangle of arms and legs and drifted into sleep.
Chapter Five:
A Decision Must Be Made
Victoria told Cole everything she remembered about the Blackstone Gang the next morning. As soon as she mentioned that they had plans to visit the whore house in Oak Hollow and the comment Curtis had made about her having more baubles and gold than the bank in Grand Junction, Cole had grabbed his hat and left to saddle his horse. Before he rode off, he told her that the bank in Grand Junction hadn’t been hit yet, and the only way they’d know how much money the bank had was if they planned to rob it. He had to find Dillon and the other Marshals and pass on the message.
It took almost a week before Cole returned. Then another week passed, and they still hadn’t heard any news from Dillon or about the Blackstone Gang. Victoria could tell Cole and Holly were growing more worried every day Dillon didn’t return. She’d been worried as well, and she’d been having trouble sleeping. She knew there was something wrong. She couldn’t explain it, and she didn’t want to worry Cole and Holly any more than they already were, so she didn’t say anything.
The three of them had formed a close bond, and Victoria felt as if she was already a part of the family. They’d spent their nights in endless pleasure, giving and taking from each other in ways that Victoria had never thought possible. Holly and Cole accepted and loved her in a way that made thoughts of ever being without them seem impossible to bear.
Victoria loved the Behr’s home. They raised horses to sell at auction, and she found that if you kept going past the house and trees, no further than a five minute walk from the house, the trees opened into fields of green pastures. There was a large barn and fenced areas on one side of the property and a lake on the other. It was the most beautiful place she’d ever seen.
Victoria had taken quickly to donning men’s trousers and loose shirts similar to those Holly wore. They were so comfortable and considerably cooler in the heat, and she didn’t miss wearing her corset at all.
Victoria had also asked Holly to assign her chores to do. It didn’t matter that her hands were soft and she’d gotten blisters the first time she’d mucked out the barn. It only mattered that she was making a place for herself. She belonged with the Behr’s. It just felt right.
But while Holly and Cole’s bed was comfortable, it wasn’t where she belonged. She often caught herself up on the second floor, staring at the large bed that dominated the room. Where Holly and Cole’s was pure white and as soft as the driven snow, Dillon’s bed was black as sin and made of a silk so fine she’d only ever seen the material once in Boston—when her father had brought back a shipment of silks from China to sell to merchants.
It was obvious the upstairs belonged to Dillon, and she couldn’t wait to share the big black bed with him. She ached for Dillon in her sleep, and her dreams of him had become more frequent, until she was almost sure she would recognize the touch of his fingers across her breasts or the taste of his lips on hers.
The dreams always started out the same—with her wrists tied above her head and her feet bound to the posts at the foot of the bed. Dillon was already inside her, his cock stretching her as he thrust with a force that shook the bed in its frame. His weight felt right on top of her, and he’d laugh as her frustration of not being able to touch him mounted. They were connected, body, mind and soul, and she knew the
Dillon of her dreams as well as she knew herself. They were too real to be anything but truth.
There was only one problem: she didn’t know why the dream always started in the middle of their lovemaking, so she never felt that glorious moment when he first slipped inside of her. Just as she didn’t know why the dream always ended just before she reached her climax, so she woke with her skin dewed with perspiration and her loins throbbing for release, leaving her with impossible need ready to burst from inside her.
But Cole was always there beside her when she woke, feeling her distress, and pushing inside of her quickly so she could find her release. Victoria was grateful for his generosity, but Cole wasn’t Dillon. The need for him was growing stronger with each passing day, and their connection was almost cosmic—something the universe had deemed right and good—and her moods shifted from one end of the spectrum to the other as the other half of her soul was left incomplete.
***
Cole had been teaching her some of the things that Dillon liked to help her pass the time and to feel closer to Dillon while he was away—teaching her the darker things that Holly had once told her of—and she had to admit she preferred it when their lovemaking was a little harder—a little edgier—a little different.
Cole tied her into her corset one afternoon, so her breasts were presented plump and full, practically bursting from the top, and her waist appeared small. He blindfolded her and carried her to the paddock where they trained the horses, bent her forward and tied her hands to the pole in the middle of the ring, much like he did the horses he was trying to break.
Victoria couldn’t see anything. She could only feel the smooth wood beneath her hands and the soft grass beneath her feet. The smell of the water was clean and clear and the sun beat against her back. She was bent over and exposed so anyone might see, and the thought gave her chills even as a soft breeze blew across the damp curls of her nether lips.
