The drive home was quiet. Too quiet. Tia should have been raging at them or crying or doing something other than just sitting there staring out the window.
Ryder had tried to get her to put her head on his lap and rest, but she just shook her head.
Sam even tried to bring her out of it by reaching back and running his hand up her thigh. She just put her hand over his and pushed it away.
Once they arrived at the house, they all got out and walked to the door.
Punching in the security code, they walked in. The minute they entered, Tia started to head for her bedroom.
* * * *
Tia wanted to get away from them for awhile. Her temper was about to explode, and she was far too tired to get into it with them tonight.
“Whoa there, sweetling.” Dan grabbed her around the waist from behind.
“Where do you think you’re going in such a hurry? We need to give you a nice hot relaxing bath and then tuck you in.”
Without turning around she unhooked herself from his arms and continued walking upstairs, saying, “I can give myself a bath, and I can tuck myself in, too.”
Once inside her suite, she locked the door and headed for the bathroom, thanking whatever higher being there was Shay wasn’t around tonight. Her daughter would probably hear about what happened at the club but Tia needed tonight to get herself together.
She was angry. Angrier than she’d ever been before not at the triplets really, but mostly at the crazy man who put a gun to her head and shot one of her men. After everything was over they had told her the story about their cousins’ wife, Sienna, and her ex, Eric, and what his family had put her through. But they never thought that Jack would want any sort of revenge on them. If anything they thought he’d go after their cousins.
If she was honest with herself, she would admit that she was also angry at the triplets, she thought. How dare they stand in front of her and risk their lives? If something were to happen to one of them she would have been to blame, and she never would have been able to live with that.
Stripping her clothes off, she started the shower and climbed in, letting the hot water soak into her tired and sore muscles. After only a few minutes she could feel the tears starting to fall down her cheeks. Within no time she was curled up on the floor with her back against the shower wall, bawling like a baby.
All she could think about was what if one of her men had been seriously hurt tonight. They would never know how she felt about them. She couldn’t believe that after such a short time with them just how strong her feelings were for all three of them. She loved them. But how could she love three men who she’d only know for a few days? And what about Shay? She’d been through so much and then to be rejected by her own father. She knew that the triplets liked kids, but to take on another man’s child may be too much for them.
Since she’d spent so much time wallowing in what-ifs and self-doubt, the water had started to run cool. Finishing quickly, she stepped out of the shower to grab a towel and was startled to find all three men sitting in the bathroom waiting for her.
“How the hell did you get in here?” she snarked at them.
None of them said a word. Ryder stepped forward, wrapping her in a towel while Dan used another to dry her arms and legs. Sam grabbed a third one and rubbed her hair gently and squeezed the ends just like she always did.
Sam gave her a little grin and held up a set of keys. “We had an extra set made yesterday for Shay. But they came in handy for us tonight!”
She couldn’t help but smile at these three wonderful men and the attention they were giving her. When they were through, Ryder picked her up and carried her through her room and into the one she hadn’t seen before. The bed in it was as big if not bigger than the one in her suite with Shay and even larger than the one at the club. Ryder gently placed her in the center and moved to one of the beautiful antique dressers, pulling out her favorite red satin nightgown. Sam headed to the bathroom as Dan went into another room. She could hear the shower running and closed her eyes for a minute, picturing Sam soaping his naked body. She opened her eyes when she felt the towel around her body being removed. Ryder lifted her up carefully and set her on his lap while he slid the nightgown down over her body. Sam and Dan both came back into the room within minutes of each other wearing only pajama bottoms. Sam picked her up and placed her back in the bed so that Ryder could go and have his shower.
Once she was calm and settled into bed, Dan asked softly, “Are you going to tell us why you were crying, little one, or do we have to wait you out?”
“It’s just everything that happened tonight caught up with me and I was overwhelmed. I’ve never had a gun pointed at me before, and I guess it was just my adrenaline crash.” She was trying desperately to steer the conversation in any direction other than the one she feared the most, her feelings for them.
Tia heard Ryder’s quiet laugh as he walked out of the bathroom, He knew that what she was telling them was utter bullshit.
Looking around the room Tia couldn’t believe the size of it. She could almost fit her old bedroom, bathroom, and half the kitchen in it.
“Whose room is this?” she asked curiously.
“This is our room, Tia. It’s the master bedroom and had been left unoccupied until the day we found the woman that the three of us would love forever.” Dan smiled and climbed up beside her, taking her hand.
Ryder moved to the other side and lay facing her. “This room has never had another woman in it. We have saved it for that special person that we would share our lives with. That’s who you are to us, Tia. As odd and as strange as it may seem, all three of us fell in love with you almost from the first moment. And Shay, she’s just the icing on the cake. That girl is gonna be a handful once the boys start sniffing around, and she’s gonna need us to weed out the duds for her. We can’t have her dating idiots now, can we?”
Sam crawled up from the end of the bed and rested his head on her lap like it was the most natural thing to do. She started running her hands through his hair. He sighed, and said, “See, you know us already. You know what to do to calm me when I worry too much.” Lifting his head to look at her, he continued, “And you‘re the only one that can keep Ryder from bullying those poor boys, and, Dan, well you keep him from acting the idiot that he is sometimes, and you’re the only one that can get him to say more than a sentence or two at a time.”
Tia laughed when Dan hit him in the head with a pillow.
She looked at all of them and couldn’t believe how lucky she was that on her day of freedom she met a wonderful woman who had three gorgeous brothers.
“I don’t understand it myself, guys, but I love you, too. Even though you are going to drive me crazy at times with your possessiveness I know that this is where Shay and I belong. This is home.” Tia leaned over and kissed each of them gently on the lips.
Frowning, she slid back a little. She knew that the call that she had received from James earlier was something that she needed to tell them about. She just wasn’t sure that now was the time.
“Out with it, kitten,” was all Ryder said.
“Before you three arrived to pick me up tonight I got a call from James. He wants Shay back. He said that Lacey’s parents wanted to meet his daughter, and I know that he is going to do whatever he has to do to get his parental rights back. I’m afraid that with his money and the backing of Lacey’s parents he just might be able to do it and then he’d be able to apply for custody.” Tia couldn’t help it, but the tears just started to fall.
“Oh no, little one, don’t you cry again. There is no way in hell we’re going to allow any man that can give up such a wonderful gift as Shay anywhere near her or you for that matter. You have to trust us on this one, sugar. We are going to have to talk to Simone about this, though. She’ll know if he has a leg to stand on and what to do if he does. Until then there are no tears allowed in this room. This room is for loving only. And soon, when you’re rested and feeling better, w
e are going to make good on the promise we made you at the club and show you what it means to submit to us.” Ryder smiled at her and lay down, pulling her to spoon against him. Dan snuggled up to her front and Sam crawled up and rested his head on her hip, wrapping his arm around her.
“Now it’s time for sleep, little sub. You’ll need to rest up and eat lots over the next few days because you’re gonna need all your strength.” Dan turned and shut the light off and smiled when he felt their woman sigh and snuggle in closer to them.
Chapter 5
The sun shone through the slats of the shades that had already been pulled down when they came into the room the night before. Tia stretched and realized that she was alone in this huge bed. Snuggling down under the quilt again, she couldn’t help but smile at how happy she felt. For the first time in her life she loved someone, not just one but three someones, and they loved her back. She didn’t have to question or worry about how they felt. She just knew from the deepest part of her that they loved her and that they already loved Shay, too. She was so wrapped up in her happy thoughts that she hadn’t noticed or heard Ryder come into the room.
She squealed when she felt a warm tongue on her ankle and giggled as it slid up her calf to her thigh.
“Ryder Kinsey”—she giggled—“will you get up here and give me a good morning kiss please, Sir?”
Pulling his head back out from under the quilt, his light blond hair all mussed from being under the covers, he smiled and jumped at her.
“Your wish is my command, my lady,” he said and then slowly lowered his mouth to hers. It was a sensual awakening of sorts. His tongue stroked along the seam of her lips as if asking for her to open for him. His teeth gently nipped her lower lip then soothed the little pain with a swipe of his tongue. Opening her lips completely for him, he groaned and rolled her on top of him, never breaking their kiss.
The door burst open and Dan and Sam came waltzing into the room as if they didn’t have a care in the world. They pushed a cart ahead of them that was filled with wonderful-smelling food.
“See I told you if we sent him up to wake her without us that he’d start snugglin’ with her before we got here,” Sam whined as Dan rolled his eyes.
“You guys spoil all my fun. I was just waking kitten up with a good morning kiss. She asked me for it,” he said innocently. Placing his hand on his heart he sat up, laying Tia gently back on the bed and looked down at her. “Now how could I resist our little sub’s request?”
Tia burst out laughing and threw a pillow at him. “Maybe if you had given me the kiss right away instead of starting at my ankles I wouldn’t have had to ask.” She giggled. “Oh sorry…Sir,” she quickly added.
“Baby, you are the best thing that has happened to us in a long, long time,” Dan said leaning down for his morning kiss. “Mmm...You taste good, sweetling. I bet if I kissed you a little more I could have some of your cream.” He winked at her.
“Oh quit trying to get between her legs and get out of the way. I want my morning lovin’, too.” Sam pushed Dan and Ryder out of the way and snuggled down beside her on the bed.
He nuzzled her neck and kissed along her jaw until he reached her mouth.
“Damn, baby, but you’re better than the strongest coffee first thing in the morning.” He rolled away and walked over to the cart.
“We weren’t sure what you liked for breakfast so we made a little of everything. There’s scrambled eggs, poached eggs, bacon.” He smiled and winked at her. “It’s Canadian bacon of course. We have two types of breakfast sausages, beef, and pork. White toast, whole wheat toast, and if there’s something else you want and it’s not here, just name it and it’s yours.”
Dan held a plate in his hand and waited to hear what she wanted.
“I have never been served breakfast in bed before, and it feels very strange to me. How about you put some scrambled eggs, bacon, and white toast on a plate then grab one for yourselves and join me.”
Dan quickly loaded up her plate with everything that she asked for and then some and put it on a tray so he could lay it across her lap. Hurrying back, he had to push his brother out of the way to get himself a plate, but by the time he had everything he wanted and turned to the bed Ryder and Sam had already climbed up on either side of her.
Frowning he sat at the end of the bed and started eating.
“Dan, honey.” Tia smiled and moved her plate over on the huge tray. “Bring your plate up and share the tray with me. You can sit between my legs while we eat.”
Looking like a man who had just been given the greatest gift ever Dan placed his plate beside Tia’s and smugly smiled at his brothers while he settled in between her legs.
Tia smiled coyly at him and continued to eat.
* * * *
They spent the morning telling her about growing up with two dads and living in a small town like Kinsey. They told her how no matter what they were doing if they needed a parent there was always one available. Janice Kinsey ran the community center where most of the local kids hung out either before or after school. And in some cases both. She was the backbone of the family, and Tia could see in their eyes when they spoke about her that they loved her dearly. Their fathers had both been in law enforcement before they moved and opened up the first sex shop years ago. Back then it was a really big deal and there was some opposition to it, but with their openness and great attitudes they won most of their detractors over and now they’re all regular customers. Their dads met their mom when she went into their shop one day and shyly asked them to show her to the vibrator section.
Sam almost spewed coffee out when Dan started telling them how their dads took her to the vibrators and then, as she was wedged between the two of them, started showing her every vibrator and dildo in the place and giving a detailed explanation of how each worked.
When they realized they’d been sitting in bed talking for almost three hours, the men got up and started to put everything back on the cart.
“You have a shower and get dressed, no panties remember, and we’ll take you to the café in town for lunch. You can meet some of the locals so that when you start your job in a couple of weeks you’ll have a bit better feel for some of the place,” Ryder said, and then they headed out the door.
Alone in bed, her stomach still feeling full from the enormous breakfast that she’d consumed, Tia slowly crawled out and headed for the shower, grabbing some clothes on her way there.
Since Tia usually just jumped in and out of the shower, she decided that today would be a different and took a little longer than normal. Drying off, she pulled the sundress that she had grabbed over her head and was towel drying her hair when a knock came at the door.
“Baby, are you okay in there? Shay’s home and wants to know if she can come with us to the diner for lunch, I told her if it’s okay with you it’s great with us. So hurry up in there, will ya? Dan’s stomach is starting to growl and it’s not a pretty sight when he’s denied food.” The last comment was delivered in a laughing tone, and Tia couldn’t help but smile at how much Ryder and Sam loved to tease Dan.
* * * *
Opening the door, Sam stepped back to let her past him. Tia felt his eyes on her as she walked over to the bed and started pulling and tucking the sheets and quilt back in so that the bed looked decent again. Facing Sam, her face heating from the thoughts that had gone through her head about them taking her together in that very bed, she smiled shyly and walked toward him, stood on the tip of her toes, and gently kissed his chin.
“I’m ready when you guys are. Let’s go and make sure that Dan doesn’t chew a hole through the wall because of his hunger.”
Shay was waiting in the kitchen with Ryder and Dan when she came in. She jumped up and ran to her mom for a big hug. She was shaking and on the verge of tears and held on to Tia as if her life depended on it.
“Shay, honey, what’s the matter?” Tia asked kissing the top of her daughter’s head.
Shay didn’t answer
and just hugged her tighter and sniffled.
Ryder stood and walked over to where she held her daughter and placed a gentle hand on the little girl’s head.
“Shay was just telling us that James contacted her while she was at Simone’s and told her that she was going to be coming to live with him soon,” Ryder said, trying to keep as much of the anger from his tone as possible.
“How the hell did he get Shay’s new cell number?” Tia asked herself out loud.
Still sniffling a little, Shay leaned back and told her that the only persons that she had given the number to were Chino and her friend Darla.
The minute she said Darla’s name, Tia realized where he got it from.
Darla Drake’s father was good friends with James and would give it to him in a heartbeat if he asked.
“I told her not to worry about anything. That Sam, Dan, and I wouldn’t let him take her anywhere,” Ryder said, smiling down at the little girl.
“Uncle Ryder said that we could stay with them as long as we wanted and that ‘the biological’ wouldn’t be able to take me away from you.” Shay gave a small smile then and turned toward Dan and said, “At least not without a fight, right, Uncle Dan?”
“That’s right, pumpkin. No one is taking either you or your momma anywhere without going through the three of us first. And even then they’d have to go through my two very energetic and tough little nieces, both of whom could probably talk any man to death.”
Tia felt her daughter relax against her and mouthed a “thank you” to the men over her head.
“So let’s head out and get some lunch, and then we’ll go over to Simone’s and see what she has to say about this. I’ve already called her, so she’ll be expecting us,” Sam said.
They all put their shoes and light jackets on and headed out the door. The frown that marred Tia’s face worried Sam.
James would have to be dealt with and quickly, Sam thought to himself. Their girls didn’t need to be hurt by that man any more than they already had been. Sam smiled at how easily he not only thought of Tia as his but also Shay. James was a fucking moron to give up the chance to raise this incredibly bright and articulate little girl.
Bailey, Debbie - For Tia's Pleasure [Men of Kinsey 2] (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour) Page 9
