Jake looked at Tim, waiting for him to say something, but Tim remained silent. His eyes penetrated Jake’s soul. He knew what the giant of a man wanted to say to him. Tim had always been a gentle man who soothed all of them with his kindness and understanding. He didn’t want to let him down any more than he wanted to let Spence down. But more than anything, he didn’t want to let his mate down.
“I’ll respect Claire’s wishes for now,” Jake said finally, putting on his hat and pulling down on the brim to settle it on his head as he turned to walk out of the diner. “But the next time I see her, all bets are off. We’re going to get this settled once and for all, damn it.”
He pulled open the door and walked out to go to his truck. He had some thinking to do. He wasn’t giving up his mate without a fight.
“What about you, Rafe?” Spence asked him calmly. “What’re you going to do?”
“I’m not sure, Spence,” Rafe answered honestly. “I think Becca would be better off without me.”
“Bullshit,” Tim interrupted him.
Lainey stepped forward until she was standing directly behind Tim and wrapped her arms around his waist, leaning against his back and kissing it lightly. Reaching out, she grabbed for Spence’s hand and connected the three of them. The love and support that traveled between the three of them was instantaneous.
“Rafe, do you know how long it took Spence and me to get up the courage to approach Lainey?” Tim asked him calmly.
Rafe shook his head, looking first at Lainey and then at Spence. Seeing the way the three of them held onto each other, and the way they melted together as if they were one, made him long for the same closeness with the woman who was meant to be his mate.
“Two years, Rafe. Two damn years.” Tim’s voice held the frustration that filled him at the memory of how long they had held back from claiming their Lainey. “We should have had the courage to claim her long before now. We wasted two years when we could have been living with our lives filled with the gentle touch and love of our mate.” He looked at Rafe evenly, never wavering in his conviction. “Don’t waste any more time living without your mate, Rafe. Life is short and too precious to give up even one second of time with the woman who is meant to be yours.” He covered Lainey’s hand with his and squeezed it lightly, loving that she was so comfortable touching him. “Every moment you’re away from your mate is another moment of isolation and regret for both of you. Don’t let that happen, Rafe. Don’t let whatever is bothering you keep you from taking Becca in your arms and telling her just how much you love her and need her. She deserves a fated mating just like you do.”
Rafe was silent as he thought about the heartfelt words Tim had spoken. He knew Tim was right. He knew he was meant to be with Becca. He just wished he could get over the fact that she deserved much better than he had to offer her. So far, he had caused her nothing but pain.
“Tim is right, Rafe,” Lainey spoke up. “I know my sister. She loves you more than her own life. She doesn’t want you to leave her even if that’s what she’s telling you to do. She’s saying that because she’s in pain. And I don’t mean the pain in her hip.”
Rafe nodded, doing his best to remain calm as he thought through Lainey’s words. He had to think things through rationally. “I’m the one who has to make this right,” he said finally, turning and leaving the diner without another word.
Spence surrounded Lainey with his arms, pressing her tighter against Tim and successfully pinning her between them. Leaning down he nuzzled against the back of her neck, tenderly pushing aside her hair and kissing the beautiful mating mark that graced her soft skin.
“I love you, Mate,” he whispered, kissing the rose gold link that bridged the yellow gold links—just as she always bridged Tim and himself.
Lainey giggled as Spence’s lips tickled the back of her neck. She squirmed against Tim, grabbing his shirt at his waist as she tried to get away from the soft caresses Spence was torturing her with.
“I’m going to head home now,” DelAnne interrupted them, picking up her purse from behind the counter. “I have to get ready for my night class.”
Lainey looked over at the young woman and nearly panicked as she realized that the three of them had been acting as if they were alone in the diner. Why hadn’t she remembered that her employee and friend was still there?
“Sorry, DelAnne,” Lainey apologized sincerely.
“No need to apologize,” DelAnne stopped her, smiling. “You guys are adorable, and you’re still on your honeymoon.” She walked toward the diner door and pulled it open. “I’ll see you at ten tomorrow morning. Maybe you and Becca should consider opening only for lunch and an early dinner. We get most of our customers between eleven and four anyway. Why should you stay open for longer?”
Lainey nodded, agreeing with her. She and Becca had already talked about doing that exact thing. They had also talked about expanding the diner to include a small bakery shop, but that might not be such a good idea if Becca’s hip was acting up. The added stress of the extra work might be too much for her sister. They would have to talk about it when Becca felt better.
“See you in the morning. Thanks, DelAnne.”
DelAnne waved, pulling the door closed behind her. She winked at the three of them through the glass, turned, and walked away.
“She’s such a good kid,” Lainey said softly, turning to look up at both men.
“She is,” Spence agreed, leaning down to kiss her forehead lightly. “What else do you need to do before we go home, kitten?”
“I’ll just check the kitchen and make sure everything is shut off. I’ll close out the register and put everything in the safe. I can work on the deposit in the morning. We need get Claire and Becca and go to my apartment,” Lainey told them, pulling away from them and walking toward the back of the diner.
“Lainey?” Tim called to her.
She turned and saw the concern on Tim’s face. “What’s wrong?”
“You’re coming home with us, aren’t you, baby?”
Lainey smiled slowly. “Of course I am, Timmy,” she assured him. “It’s where I belong.”
* * * *
Lainey sat between her two men as Spence drove his truck toward the home she would share with them for the rest of her life. Her hands were resting on her thighs as she sat lost in thought, looking out the front window. So many things raced through her mind, and the worry was nearly crushing her. She didn’t even realize that she had dropped the bag that held the two giant chocolate bars she had purchased to give to Melanie. It was exactly what Melanie had made all of the women promise to get her when her premonition of their future matings came true.
Her mind was wandering, causing her to stare ahead unseeing as she thought about all the women who had yet to commit to their mates. She knew Claire was meant to be with Jake. She sensed that Gracie’s friend Madison was meant to be with John’s cousin Marc. Her heart broke at the thought of her sister Becca’s pain that the man she loved didn’t want her. Rafe was the man she had loved forever, and Lainey knew that Becca would spend the rest of her life alone if she couldn’t be with him. Just the thought of her sister’s loneliness and heartache made her want to cry. She was such a warm and loving person who deserved to have a future with a loving and accepting mate.
“Kitten, what’s wrong?” Spence asked, not happy when she jumped at the sound of his voice.
“Geez, Lainey,” Tim whispered. “What the heck is going on?”
“I’m sorry,” she apologized. “I was thinking about Becca.”
“Everything will work out for her,” Spence told her gently.
“I don’t know, Spence. She was pretty down when we left. I think she’s given up. Her hip is really hurting her. When she’s in that much pain, she tends to give in to the sadness that fills her.”
“What’s she sad about?” Spence asked quietly.
“Rafe,” Lainey answered. There was no need to say more. That one word explained it all.
&n
bsp; “I can have a talk with my brother to make sure he does the right thing,” Spence offered.
“Absolutely not.” Lainey’s voice was adamant, her eyes flashing with anger as she turned to face him. “I won’t have my sister have a mate who will only be with her because his big brother convinced him to claim her. If he’s going to be an ass, he’s going to suffer the consequences alone.”
“She’s right, Spence,” Tim offered, smiling at the fire in their mate.
“I know,” Spence admitted. “I just don’t want Rafe to lose something before he’s had the chance to accept the gift that’s right in front of him. He’s going to regret waiting. Becca needs him with her just as much as he needs to be with her.”
“That may be true, but he has to want her as a woman. Becca doesn’t want him to be with her just because she needs help because of her hip,” Lainey told him, anger lacing her words.
“Is that what she thinks?” Tim asked, astonished.
“It is.”
“Well, hell, that’s not good at all.”
“No, Tim. It isn’t.”
“But that’s not true, Lainey,” Spence told her gently.
“How can you be so sure?”
“Because my brother has loved Becca for a long time. He’s never looked at another woman the way he looks at her.” He paused for a moment, thinking about the proof he had of his brother’s love for Becca. “I’ve seen his paintings.” His voice was firm but gentle as he offered the information to Lainey.
“What paintings?”
Spence looked across her to see Tim nodding his encouragement. “Rafe has always been a quiet man. You know that,” Spence explained. “He would rather sketch in his sketch pad than talk. My mother took him to counseling when he was ten or so to make sure he was okay. The counselor said that Rafe was one of those people who had a hard time expressing his feelings. It wasn’t that he didn’t have feelings, in fact, the counselor said that Rafe felt things deeper than most of us could ever understand. She suggested that he might be able to express himself through his art. So, Ma brought him to the teacher at the local high school that she had heard about who was good at guiding new artists.”
“I didn’t know that,” Lainey whispered, reaching out and touching Spence’s hand as it rested on his leg. At the same time she reached out and touched Tim, unconsciously needing the connection.
Spence smiled as the peace she afforded both of them immediately settled within him. He saw the relief on Tim’s face and knew that he felt the same instant connection.
“Rafe didn’t want anyone to know,” Spence explained. “He said he didn’t want everyone to know that he was different.”
Lainey snorted. “You mean different like Melanie has premonitions of the future, Claire can feel emotions, and Gracie’s touch is able to soothe children and animals and shock away any man but her mate?”
Spence smiled. “Yeah, like that.”
“Don’t forget how you can bridge mine and Spence’s feelings and emotions, Lainey,” Tim reminded her softly.
“Oh, yeah. That, too. And Becca…” she stopped short, realizing that she had almost revealed what Becca had made her promise never to tell anyone.
“Becca what?” Spence asked.
“I’m sorry. It’s not my secret to tell. Becca will tell it when she’s ready.”
“Fair enough,” Tim said, nodding. “We don’t have any right to intrude. That’s for Becca and her mate to share.”
“It is,” Lainey agreed.
Spence grasped Lainey’s hand tighter as it rested on his thigh and brought it up to gently kiss the back of her knuckles, holding her hand against his chest as he drove. He smiled when he felt her squeeze his hand lightly to let him know she appreciated his touch.
“Over the years, Rafe has filled up more sketchbooks that you can count,” he continued his explanation. “When he was about sixteen, Ma encouraged him to start painting. The art teacher said he was the most gifted student she’d ever had. There’s a room at the back of the barn that he uses as his studio. Sometimes he would let me, John, Tim, and my brothers go in to see his work.”
“Lainey, his stuff is incredible,” Tim spoke up. “You should see his scenes he painted of the land and the horses. You would swear if you touched them, they would feel real.”
“I remember one painting he did that he hid from the rest of us,” Spence said softly. “Ma told us to let him be. Pa was pretty upset when he saw it.”
“What was it?” Lainey asked, her voice barely above a whisper. Worry filled her as she felt the concern in both of her men.
“He painted a painting of himself looking at Becca,” Spence told her, his voice wavering with emotion.
“And that was upsetting?”
“If you saw it, Lainey, you would understand. Becca was absolutely beautiful, but she was incredibly sad. He had painted her wearing a pink dress, and her right hand was covering her hip.”
“What else, Spence?” Lainey knew there was more. There had to be.
“Rafe was looking at her. You could see the love in his eyes but you could also see the agony he was feeling. He had painted himself standing behind her. His hand was reaching out to her, but he wasn’t touching her.”
“That sounds like he wanted to be with her.”
Spence nodded. “I think so, too. But he also painted himself wearing a shirt with an intricate design on it.”
“What kind of design?”
“Well, if you looked at it quickly, it just looked like a complex pattern, but if you looked closely you would see the bleeding heart that was in the center of the shirt.”
“Oh, my goodness.”
“Yeah. Ma tried to get him to talk about it, but he never would.”
Spence looked at the road ahead of them as he remembered how his father had finally confronted Rafe and had taken him on a long trail ride so he could talk to him. When they had returned home, Rafe had been determined to keep his feelings closed off, and he never spoke to anyone about his paintings again.
“I think he’ll only be able to be free of whatever is bothering him when Becca is permanently in his life as his mate,” Spence said finally.
Lainey was quiet for a long time. She had never known about Rafe’s paintings, and she was damn sure Becca never knew about them either. Maybe if she found out about them, things would change. She said a silent prayer to the Great Spirit to help guide her through whatever she could do to help her sister unite with her destined mate.
“I think we may have to step in and help the Great Spirit with the mating of my sister and Rafe,” Lainey said finally. “Will you two help me?”
“Of course, baby,” Tim answered without hesitation.
“Absolutely, kitten,” Spence answered. “What do you have in mind?”
“I’m not sure. I’ll have to think about it. But it might involve making sure Becca is naked,” Lainey said, smiling.
Tim’s bark of laughter was equaled only by Spence’s snort.
“And just how are you going to manage that, kitten?”
“Um, that might be the difficult part of the plan,” Lainey said, an evil grin gracing her delicate features. “Just be prepared to do what we have to do to get them together, including kidnapping your brother.”
“Oh, this is going to be fun,” Tim spoke up, laughing. “Do you have plans on kidnapping me and Spence and getting naked for us, too?”
“Oh, I have definite plans for both of you,” Lainey told them. “And I am most definitely going to be naked for all of them.”
She reached down and palmed the bulges in their pants lovingly, squeezing and caressing with just the right amount of pressure to bring them both instantly to the level of desire she wanted. The grunts that escaped both men made her smile.
“I plan on having you both deep inside of me at the same time tonight. Are you ready for that?”
“Hell!” Tim muttered.
“Damn!” Spence echoed.
Lainey just smi
led and continued her sweet torture. She couldn’t wait to get home and love on both of her men.
Chapter 15
Spence pulled up in front of their home, shut off the truck engine and turned to face Lainey. He smiled gently at her as she slept snuggled against Tim’s left arm, her hand resting trustingly in his.
“So much for a night of torrid sex,” he whispered, making Tim chuckle softly.
“We didn’t exactly give her a lot of time to sleep last night, Spence,” he reminded him.
Spence nodded, reaching out to touch the long length of Lainey’s dark brown hair. He marveled at the gentleness of their woman. Over the years she had been more than their bridge, she had been their foundation.
“How did we ever get so lucky, Tim?” he whispered.
Tim smiled. He knew exactly what Spence meant. “I don’t know, but I’m not going to question it. I’m just thankful that she’s accepted us both. I was worried that she wouldn’t.”
“Yeah. Me, too,” Spence agreed. “But she has and that makes me know that what we have is meant to be. Our mating marks prove it.”
Tim grinned. “Damn right.” He leaned toward Lainey and kissed the top of her head. “I was sure relieved to see that the Great Spirit had blessed our mating.”
“Maybe tonight we’ll be blessed again,” Spence offered.
“With a baby?” Tim asked softly. The thought hadn’t been far from his mind since yesterday when they had been at Lainey and Becca’s diner, and she had told them that she was ovulating.
“I’m hoping we’ll get her pregnant tonight,” Spence said softly, reaching up to touch Lainey’s cheek lightly. “She’s going to be a great mom.”
“She is,” Tim whispered, covering her belly with his large hand and caressing it tenderly. “I can just imagine how beautiful she’ll be pregnant.”
Spence smiled at Tim over the top of Lainey’s head. “I think she’s going to be gorgeous. It’s going to be amazing feeling our kid kicking.”
The instant image of Lainey’s belly big with their child filled Tim’s mind. All the years of loneliness made him ache for the family he knew he and Spence would have with her. He longed for the babies they would create and knew they would love each child completely. He wanted that family, and he knew he would love every moment of their children’s lives as they were born and grew to maturity.
Claiming Lainey [Cowboy Mates, Psychic Connections 3] (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour) Page 18
