“You want to move that car, Ms. Swift?” He crossed his arms over his chest and gave her his best lawman stare.
It made her stop in her tracks, but only briefly. “What are you going to do, Sheriff? Give me a ticket? Lock me up?”
He could think of a few things he would do. None of them had anything to do with jail. Adrenaline thrummed through him, anger and desire welling into a nasty mix that had Rye forgetting all his good intentions. “Maybe I’ll just spank that ass of yours, sweetheart.”
He shouldn’t have said it, but the words were out of his mouth before he could think twice. It was exactly what he’d do if she was his woman. If she belonged to him and she’d pulled this shit, he would lay her out over his knee, and she wouldn’t get up again until she’d nicely apologized.
“What did you say?” She practically growled the question at him. Her eyes narrowed, and she held her ground.
Rye towered over her. “I said I would spank that sweet ass of yours red, darlin’.”
“I think Max might have something to say about that.” She shot the words at him, but there was a telltale trembling to her voice. He would bet everything he had that she wasn’t entirely put off by the prospect of getting over his knee.
Max would watch if their relationship was on a normal footing. For all his anger issues, Max was softer than Rye when it came to sex. It didn’t mean Max didn’t enjoy playing a few games. He’d spanked a perky ass on more than one occasion. “You push Max like you’re pushing me, and he’ll understand.”
Her eyes flared briefly before she hardened them to flinty green stones. “Yeah, well, you don’t have to worry about it. I’m leaving. Don’t worry about me screwing up your perfect world anymore.”
She started to turn, and Rye’s arm shot out. He was running on pure emotion. She was leaving? Not on his watch. “Where the hell do you think you’re going?”
She pulled against him, setting her sneakers solidly against the road. “It’s none of your fucking business, Sheriff. Let me go.”
Not on his life. Rye looked around and realized they were stopping traffic. Rachel’s car could wait. He needed to figure out what the hell had turned her into a raging maniac, and he couldn’t do it in public. Without letting go of her arm, he leaned down and slid his free arm beneath her leg. He hauled her up against his chest and strode back toward the sheriff’s office. No one was in there. They could yell at each other in perfect privacy.
“Let me down,” she growled at him. Her voice had gone low as though she knew they were drawing a crowd and that gossip would flow.
He kicked the door open and walked her back to the small confines of his office. He set her down and swiftly blocked the door. “Now, do you want to be reasonable about this or should I get ready to administer a little discipline?”
Her face was red, and her small hands were clenched into fists at her sides. “You let me go right now or I swear I will sue you for everything you’re worth.”
“Feel free,” Rye shot back. She obviously assumed he had something worth taking. “Take me for everything I’m worth. You’re not leaving.”
“You can’t keep me.”
“Watch me.” He leaned back against the door. “And watch your language, Rachel. You curse me one more time, and I won’t give a damn that you belong to Max. I will pull those jeans down and leave an imprint of my hand on your ass.”
“You’re a big man to threaten a woman, aren’t you?”
Rye laughed. “Yeah, poor Rachel. You’re incredibly downtrodden.”
“And you’re a massive asshole.” Tears filled her eyes and there was a quiver to her stubborn words.
Rye practically melted. He took a step toward her, his hands curving over her shoulders. “Baby, I didn’t mean it. I wouldn’t hurt you. It’s a game. Fuck, I’m sorry. Please tell me why you want to leave. I promise I’ll make it all right. I’m sorry.”
He was willing to say anything to make her stop crying.
Her hands came up across her chest as though she couldn’t stand to be close to him. He would call Max. She only wanted Max. His heart hurt. And then her arms wound around his waist, and she sobbed against his chest. A great sigh of relief left Rye’s lungs. He let his head sink down against her hair. His hands soothed over her back.
“I’m sorry.” He said it over and over. He wasn’t even sure who he was saying it to. He was sorry something bad had happened to her. He was sorry he’d done something to piss her off. He was so, so sorry she wasn’t his. He wanted nothing more than to call Max and drive her home where they could take care of her. She would be their princess, their partner, their perfect lover. God, he was so sorry she didn’t want that.
After a long while her head came up, and she pulled away slightly. “I apologize for yelling at you, Sheriff.”
A veil had come down over her eyes. Rye’s chest constricted. She was shutting down the intimacy between them. It was good one of them had a lick of sense, but he wished she was still in his arms. “Please tell me what’s wrong.”
She shook her head. “It’s best I leave.”
“Baby…Rachel, I know something’s wrong. I’m not stupid. I also know none of it’s your fault.”
“How can you possibly know that?”
He sighed and brushed back a piece of hair that had fallen out of her previously perfect ponytail. “I just know. And even if it was your fault, I would take care of it.” He cleared his throat. “You’re my brother’s girl. I would take care of you. If someone’s after you, I’ll move heaven and earth to stop him. If you got caught up in something bad, I’ll take care of that, too.”
Her face contorted, and for a moment, he worried she would start crying all over again. Then she shook it off, and that wall of mulish strength she had came down between them. “No, I’m fine. But stay out of my business.”
Shit, she’d found out about the trace he’d run on her. Damn Callie’s big mouth. And Rachel’s reaction did nothing but make him even more suspicious. “I don’t know if I can do that, Rachel.”
Her chin came up stubbornly. “All right. Then I’m leaving, and there’s nothing you can do. Unless you intend to put me in jail, I suggest you let me move on.”
He wanted to punch something. His gut rolled with anger, need. He wasn’t sure what he was feeling anymore. “Goddamn it, Rachel. You want to put me in a corner, don’t you? I know something’s wrong, but if I pursue it, you’ll leave, and then my brother will hate the very sight of me.”
Her shoulders slumped. “It would be best if I left, Rye. I’ll let Max know you didn’t have anything to do with it.”
He forced her chin up to look into those green eyes. He couldn’t help but touch her. “Don’t go. I’ll stop looking. I’ll leave it alone. I promise.”
He wouldn’t promise not to protect her. He wouldn’t promise not to come between her and anything that came her way.
Her lips trembled. They were close. All he had to do was lean down, and he could press his mouth to hers. One inch and he would know how it felt to kiss Rachel Swift.
There was a loud bang as the door to the station house opened.
“Hey, bro, you here?” Max’s voice rang through the building.
Rye and Rachel jumped apart like there was a blazing fire between them. Rachel’s back was against the wall when Max opened the door to the office.
“Hey, what’s Rachel’s Jeep doing parked in front of a stoplight?” Max’s face lit up when he saw Rachel. “Hey, baby.”
Rachel shouldered her way past both of them. “Your brother’s an asshole. I have to go back to work.”
Max watched her stalk out. There was a dippy grin on his face when he looked back at Rye. “Damn, you pissed her off but good. Glad it wasn’t me for a change. She should watch that language, though. I just had the most insane urge to spank her. I was walking out of the Trading Post and I could see the whole scene play out in my head. Crazy, huh? You want to go get lunch?”
It took everything he had
not to scream. “Yeah, sure. Anywhere but Stella’s. I don’t think I would like what Rachel would do to my food.”
Rye forced himself to follow his brother out the door.
Chapter Nine
Rachel woke up smiling. There were lines of early morning sunlight cascading through the curtains. She turned over and reached out for Max.
The last week had been damn near perfect. Since her near miss with Rye in his office, she’d managed to avoid him for the most part. She’d spent her days working and her nights with Max. Rye had worked the night shift or stayed with friends. She knew Max missed him, but it was for the best. It was still a worry in the back of her mind that she was coming between them, but she wasn’t sure how to fix it. Max seemed so happy. For once in her life, she was going to live in the moment. Everything went bad eventually. She would enjoy Max while she could.
She rubbed her eyes and sat up as she realized she was all alone in the huge bed, though she could see where Max had lain beside her. The sound of water running came from the bathroom and she stretched languorously. Max was in that shower. Every muscle hummed with satisfaction as she really looked around the bedroom. They hadn’t spent much time in the master bedroom. There were five bedrooms in the house. Both Max and Rye had their own bedrooms, and, until last night, she and Max had stayed in his room. Max had made the decision to move them into the big bedroom the night before. He’d been serious when he told her to get her stuff, as though moving into this room meant something to him.
The bed was enormous. It had to have been custom-made. It was bigger and longer than a king and would easily fit three people. She sat up and got out of bed to look around. The large dresser across from the bed was built with three rows of drawers. There was a small dish where Max placed his keys and his watch. There was a second, matching dish that was empty on the other side of the dresser, and in the middle, an empty jewelry box. A wistful feeling hit her as she opened that lonely jewelry box. Rye and Max had shared this room with a woman at least once. She’d heard the name Nina mentioned. How long had Nina stayed with the brothers as their shared woman? She tried to imagine what would cause a woman to leave.
The dresser seemed sad with only Max’s watch and keys sitting there. It wasn’t like she had a ton of stuff to add. Her pitiful collection of clothes occupied one of the nine drawers.
Where had Rye spent the previous evening? She’d heard him come in after midnight, but he’d made himself scarce. He’d given them space for the last several days, just as he said he would.
She closed the jewelry box. Max was her boyfriend and he knew what he was doing. He hadn’t brought up the possibility of sharing her with Rye and that was that. Not that she would. God, Max was her boyfriend. It had been at least two years since she’d had a boyfriend. She couldn’t deny it. A woman didn’t get intimate and emotional over a short-term affair or a booty call. The mirror in front of her revealed something shocking. There was a lovely woman in the glass, and she was practically glowing. She wasn’t scared or worried. She looked well loved.
She looked like a woman who knew what she wanted. A month in Bliss had transformed her. Rachel winked at the woman she barely recognized as herself and decided that it was time to go get what she wanted. Without bothering with her clothes, she strode into the bathroom. It was a gorgeous monstrosity of a master bath. There were three sinks before the long mirror and an oversized jetted tub, but what caught her attention was the man in the large glass shower. The heat from the water had steamed up the entire bathroom, but she could see his shadowy form through the opaque glass. It didn’t matter that she couldn’t see him clearly. She’d memorized every inch of that hot body of his, from his broad shoulders to his strong legs. Now it was time to greet the day properly.
She quietly opened the shower door and slid in behind Max. He was facing away from her, his arms carefully soaping his muscular body. Rachel took in the sight of his toned backside for a moment before cuddling up behind him. She pressed her breasts against his back and wound her arms around his waist.
“Good morning, gorgeous.” She let her hands wander down. She grasped his cock and was not surprised to discover it was already hard and long. It seemed to be his permanent state. “Is this for me?”
“God, yes,” he said.
His cock swelled in her hand, and she could feel the heat in his skin.
“Rachel,” he groaned as she stroked him from bulb to base.
“Hush. Let me take care of you this morning,” she whispered, trailing kisses along his strong spine. She let her tongue find his skin. She loved the taste of him. “You took care of me last night. It’s your turn.”
He had. Four times. She fully intended to pay him back, with interest. She had hours and hours until she was due at the diner. There was no reason at all they couldn’t spend those hours in bed.
Max’s hand went out to steady himself against the wall of the shower. “Rachel, you have to stop.”
“Not until I get what I want.” Rachel slowly cupped his balls. “I’m going to put my mouth on you. I’m going to suck your cock until that moment right before you explode, and then I’m going to bend over and let you fuck me from behind. Will you do that, babe? Will you fuck me hard from behind?”
“Rachel, please stop.” There was a desperate quality to his voice.
She felt his cock pulse in her hands. “Not on your life, Max.”
“I’m Rye,” he choked out.
Rachel nearly fell over as she jumped away from him.
Rye turned and steadied her, his hands the only reason she didn’t fall. “I’m sorry, sweetheart. You were asleep, and there’s no hot water in the guest bathroom. Max is out in the pasture working with some of the horses. I thought it would be okay.”
She stumbled out of the shower, looking for a towel. She hit the marble of the floor and quickly found herself on her ass. What had she done? She’d practically stroked her boyfriend’s brother to orgasm. Oh, god. Her whole body had to be red with embarrassment.
Rye rushed to help her. He reached out and pulled her up. “Are you okay?”
She closed her eyes. “No, I’m not. You’re naked.”
“It’s how I shower,” Rye explained academically.
She opened one eye. He was so gorgeous. His broad shoulders gave way to a lean, ripped chest and a six-pack that made her mouth water. “And do you always shower with a raging hard-on?”
He’d been rock hard before she’d gotten her hands around him. She knew simply from the feel of him that he and Max were perfectly identical twins.
He shrugged and blushed. “Lately, yeah.”
Rachel caught him looking down at her breasts. “Stop.”
He looked away. “I’m sorry. You’re fucking beautiful and it’s all right there. I can’t help it. I’ll get you a towel.” He turned and treated Rachel to a view of his perfect ass. It was lovely. He grabbed a big white towel and wrapped it around her. “I’m sorry.”
She backed up. “You keep saying that, Rye, but you’re still naked.”
She grasped the towel around her and stalked back out into the bedroom so she would stop ogling her boyfriend’s brother. Because she wanted to ogle him a lot. A whole lot.
Rye followed. “Well, you took my towel.”
But he already had another one in his hands, and he wrapped it around his lean waist. Covering up didn’t make him any less delicious. Where were her clothes? Someone needed clothes. She opened a drawer and pulled out a T-shirt. The dresser was loaded with T-shirts and sweatpants and boxers and socks.
“You should have told me who you were the minute I stepped into the shower with you,” she complained, shoving a blue T-shirt over her head.
Rye ran a frustrated hand through his wet hair. It was so much longer wet. “I couldn’t breathe enough to talk. I’m sorry. I should have locked the door. I should have skipped the damn shower. Hell, I should have spent the night somewhere else. I knew something like this would happen.”
Sh
e calmed down as she noticed Rye looked a little tormented. When she thought about it, it kind of was inevitable. Maybe not the stroking him part, but certainly the seeing him less than clothed. “Rye, we didn’t do anything we shouldn’t have. It was a mistake. I’m sure this isn’t the first time a woman got twin brothers confused and ended up seeing more than she should. It’s your house. I’m the one who should be more careful.”
Rye turned away from her. He placed both hands on the dresser. His head fell forward as though he was very tired. “We’ve shared a room all of our lives until a year ago. Even after our parents were gone and we could have, probably should have, taken our own rooms, we didn’t. We moved in here and, when we had the money, renovated to suit our needs. We built this room and that bathroom for the future. I don’t know, Rachel. I just always expected him to be there.”
“I am not trying to take your brother away from you,” Rachel said quietly. Was all this drama worth it when she knew she wasn’t going to be able to stay? Her heart hurt at the thought, but sooner or later, she would have to move on. Until Tommy was caught, she was in danger and so was everyone around her.
Rye sighed. “Oh, Rachel, I’m not jealous of you.” He turned to her, and the intensity in his blue eyes made her heart speed up. “I’m gut-churningly jealous of Max. All of our lives, I’ve been the one to find our women. He’s a charmless bastard who went along for the ride. I’m the one who wanted to get married. I’m the one who wanted to have kids. He just wanted to fuck. Now, he’s the one who finds you? How the hell is that fair?”
She stood there, watching him at war with himself. She wanted to wrap her arms around him and soothe him, but she didn’t have the right. From everything she knew, Max had decided to go straight. He wanted a normal one-on-one relationship. He would probably be upset if he knew how attracted she was to Rye.
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