Samantha shook her head. “It’s not like you to pussyfoot around, Mom.”
“They’ve been so kind to you, I don’t want to repeat what else I heard, just in case it was gossip, and not truth. Your father was quite impressed with what he learned of them when he made his inquiries. I thought if there was anything to what I’d heard, why, he’d have found out and most definitely, he would have told me.”
“Come on, Mom. What did you hear?” Samantha had a feeling she knew what it was.
“Well…I heard that they’re kind of like…hippies. You know how those flower children out there in California, in Haight-Ashbury are—all free love, and the like. Why, we even have some communes of them right here in Connecticut.”
Samantha had never before realized that a blush could be communicated over a telephone line. Her mother was blushing. Samantha sighed. She’d never been in the habit of not being completely honest with her mother. She wasn’t going to start prevaricating now. “No, Mom. The Kendalls are absolutely not into free love. They are in a very solid, committed relationship.”
“Well, that’s a relief.”
“It just so happens that Mrs. Kendall has two husbands.”
“Well, that’s a…she what?”
“And so does her mother-in-law, and her cousin-in-law. Her aunt-in-law did, too, but sadly, one of Grandmother Madeline’s husbands passed away a year or so ago.”
“They all have two husbands?”
“I guess you could say it’s a family tradition.” For the next few minutes, Samantha told her mother about the history of this unique little town in the middle of Texas.
“Well…I suppose the important thing is that they have been very kind to you. And it really isn’t for me or you to judge anyone. The Good Lord knows I had enough of that when your father brought me home to the bosom of his family.”
It didn’t surprise Samantha that her mother would take that tact. Most of the time, Doreen Kincaid was the most easygoing woman she’d ever met.
“Sweetheart?”
“Yes, Mom?”
“I think we should probably not tell your father about the whole…hmm. What would you call that sort of thing, anyway? The way they live down there?”
“They refer to their lifestyle as ménage marriage. Miranda—Mrs. Kendall—is actually legally married to Martin Kendall. But his brother Nicholas is also her husband.”
“I see. Well, let’s just not tell your father about that.”
“All right. If you think that’s best.” Actually, Samantha thought it was best, too.
“And after all, you’re only going to be there for another few days. And then you’ll move on to Austin, and the Kendalls will be nothing more than a very fond memory.”
Samantha opened her mouth to agree with her mother, but instead of the words she meant to say, a sob escaped.
“Oh dear.” Her mother sighed.
Samantha struggled to get her tears under control. She hadn’t expected this—not just the sobs, but the very real sense of conflict that mushroomed up inside her when she thought about leaving here in so few days.
“Which one have you fallen for, baby? I guess I shouldn’t be surprised. You’ve rarely dated, but I didn’t think it was because you were too focused on your education. I just thought it was because you hadn’t met that special one. So tell me, is it Preston, Taylor, or Charles?”
“Yes.” Samantha sniffed. There was a box of tissues on the corner of the desk. She helped herself and cleaned up her tears.
“Oh dear.” From the tone of her mother’s voice, Samantha knew she’d figured it out. “We definitely won’t tell your father that,” she said.
“No, let’s not tell Daddy. Besides, what would I say to him? Just because I think I’m falling in love with all three of them doesn’t change anything, does it? I’m still going to Austin. I’m still going to clerk for Patterson, Virgil, and Knox. I wouldn’t not, especially after all the trouble Uncle George and Aunt Kimberly went to on my half. I’m still going to enroll in UT come January.” Samantha thought she did a pretty good job of reassuring her mother that there was nothing to be concerned about. She would have thought that Doreen Kincaid would have agreed with her. Her feelings really changed nothing.
Instead, over the phone line, she heard her mother sigh. “Darling, girl, I love you.”
“I love you, too, Mom.”
“Samantha?”
“Yes, Mom?”
“You know I’m all for you having the career you’ve always dreamed of having. But darling? That career won’t keep you feeling warm and loved in bed at night. Sleep well.”
“You too, Mom.”
For a long moment after she hung up the phone, Samantha sat quietly and just let her thoughts run. Her mother had graduated college and then met her father. And then she’d married him, and moved from Texas to Connecticut.
There were no doubts in Samantha’s mind whatsoever that Doreen Kincaid was a happy woman. She’d made a life for herself, making her home and her family her career.
That was the example of wedded bliss she’d grown up with, and while she knew her mother was happy, Samantha could honestly say that a similar life would not feel very fulfilling for her.
And then she thought of Miranda Kendall. Yes, she was wife and mother—wife times two, actually—but she was a teacher, an educator whose love of teaching knew no bounds. She’d retired recently, but until she had, she’d taught in the public school system in Benedict county, as well as at the school right here in Lusty.
Samantha had grown up believing that being a homemaker and being a career woman were mutually exclusive, yet her hostess had shown her that such was not the case.
Maybe she didn’t have to choose between the two. Maybe she could have them both.
And maybe I’m just getting way ahead of myself here. She shook her head. One afternoon of passion, and she was thinking of changing her life. Hell, she didn’t even know if those three Kendalls felt the same way, or not. Maybe they were looking forward to her leaving next Sunday. They certainly hadn’t indicated by words or deed that they wanted her to stay.
Maybe what they had between them was all just propinquity.
A knock on the door preceded it opening. Preston stood there, the light behind him making him look like an angel—or a demon—and she felt her heart give a bit of a thud.
“Are you all right, kitten?”
“Yes, I’m fine.” She thought that he might be able to see her red eyes. She shrugged. “Maybe I’m a little tired.”
“Are you ready to go, then?”
Her nipples beaded and her pussy leaked. No one had said anything until now. It was really hard to contain her excitement. “Am I going somewhere?”
He came into the room, and as he approached her, she noticed his brothers were there, behind him, and letting him lead. By the time he reached her, they were all standing close to her. She hadn’t moved since hanging up the phone, and still stood at the corner of Martin Kendall’s desk. His sons surrounded her, and she felt…good.
Preston cupped her face. “We want you with us. One taste wasn’t enough. We know we’re rushing you. But we don’t have a lot of time.”
“Where is this going?”
“That’s up to you. In charge outside of the bedroom, remember?”
She loved the way the corner of his mouth turned up into that little half smile. “I still want my career.”
“Darling, we would never stop you from doing anything you wanted to do.” Charlie picked up her left hand.
“We’ve only had one day,” Taylor said. “Let’s see what’s here, Samantha. Commuting between Austin and Lusty isn’t impossible, or even difficult—not for any of us.”
“For the rest of this week let’s spend our days trying to thwart a carpetbagger, and our nights making love.” Preston cupped her face and kissed her lips lightly.
She didn’t have to ask what their parents would think of her staying with the three of them for the
next several days. Hell, it had been their idea, really.
“Yes,” she said. “I guess I’m ready to go.”
* * * *
They’d thought it best that they be the only ones to accompany Samantha to the cottage. He and his brothers had first needed to face the grandmothers—Madeline and Chelsea, together—and then, of course, Aunt Kate and his mother had been there.
They’d had to promise that their intentions toward the lovely Samantha Kincaid were indeed matrimonial. They’d never before allowed the family—meaning the women—to know they were “seeing” a woman. What happened at college stayed at college, thank you very much, Uncle Patrick. Besides the two women they’d spent time with, Vanessa and later Greta, had not been at all interested in forming a long-term, let alone permanent, relationship.
The two women had one thing in common. They had, quite frankly, wanted to take their first very personal steps in the women’s liberation movement. Preston and his brothers had been horny young men, so of course, they’d been happy to lend themselves to the effort.
Each woman had left their bed completely satisfied, so it had been a good experience all the way around.
Samantha Kincaid was different.
He and his brothers were already in love with her. The deadline of next Sunday was looming very large. They’d been completely honest with her, too, when they told her they had no intention of interfering with her pursuing her career.
But they were determined to get her commitment to them—in one form or another—before she had to take herself off to Austin. Only a hundred miles would separate them. Having her there through the week and them here, or in Houston, wouldn’t be ideal. But if they were committed to each other, it would be workable.
Fortunately the first hurdle had been cleared. The grandmothers and Aunt Kate and their mother had given their nods of approval. But his grandmother Chelsea had given them all a stern warning.
“Hurt her, and you’ll answer to me, the three of you. I like Samantha. I think she’ll make you a wonderful wife. I also have faith that she can handle the three of you. Don’t disappoint me, boys.”
Preston pulled his Buick to a stop in the driveway. They’d left a couple of lights on in the living room. It hadn’t taken Samantha long to gather her things and vacate Northrop’s room. He’d watched her after their mother had spoken softly to her. They had no idea what Mother had said, but their woman hadn’t looked embarrassed or uncomfortable, so that had been fine.
They all three of them had felt that if she’d come over when everyone—not just his parents and grandparents and aunt and uncles, but his cousins, too, had been there—well, it would have really made her feel awkward.
They were all about making Miss Samantha Kincaid feel, but awkward wasn’t the desired state. They wanted her to burn for them. They wanted to become a craving in her blood, and a need in her soul.
They wanted, quite simply, for her to love them and need them as much as they already loved and needed her.
“You’ve added a few things since this afternoon.”
Charlie closed the door behind them and locked it as he had that afternoon. Not because they were concerned about intruders. This was Lusty, after all. Most of the residents of town likely were aware of who Samantha was and what she was to them.
No, locking the door was strictly a part of their own personal ritual.
“We had things stored,” Taylor said. “Everyone pitched in and we got things moved in in a matter of a few minutes.”
“Yes, I heard when I was on the phone with my mother.” Samantha took a few steps toward the kitchen. The great room had been opened during renovations so that, standing just inside the door, one could see the kitchen, dining area, and the living room.
They followed her silently when she looked in the cupboards and peeked in the fridge. “Your family moves fast.” Then she came to them, stopping a couple of feet short. “I told my mother about…about us.”
Preston couldn’t prevent his one eyebrow from arching. “Is that why you were crying? Did she give you grief over us?”
Samantha licked her lips, and Preston knew she was more than a little nervous. One of the things he loved about her was her “damn the torpedoes” attitude. That, and her lack of guile.
“My mother loves me, and aside from the embarrassment she felt, thinking of my being with three men, I think she was happy. My failure to show any interest in affairs of the heart until now had worried her, I guess.”
“Is that what we’re having, darling? An affair of the heart?”
Her cheeks turned red and fire lit her eyes. “We’re not in the bedroom, I will point out. So I will tell you that at these odds—three to one—it’s completely unfair for you to try and get me to say it first.”
“God, I love this woman,” Charlie said. He stepped closer to her, on her left, and ran a hand down her back.
“Me, too.” Taylor took his position on her right. “And we do mean that, Samantha.”
Despite his brother’s vows, she still seemed to be holding herself in tight.
“That makes it unanimous, then. I speak for myself and my brothers when I tell you that I am hopelessly, completely, totally and irrevocably in love with you, Samantha Kincaid.”
“I love you, too, and it scares the crap out of me. I had a plan, damn it! And I don’t understand how I can be in love like this after just one day!”
“It wasn’t just one day for us,” Taylor said.
“Or even one hour,” Charlie agreed.
“It was the moment I saw you, so totally pissed off, talking to the engine of your car. Then I wrapped my arms around you and I knew.” Taking pity on her, he stepped into her, cupped her cheek with one hand, and lifted until their gazes met. “Darling kitten, we have no intention of preventing you from reaching your goals. We’ll do all we can to help you achieve them. We swear.” He bent down and placed a gentle kiss on her lips. “We don’t want to take you off course. We want to travel your life’s path with you.”
“I don’t know. I don’t know right this minute that this is forever. How can I know that?”
“Shh.” Charlie turned her face toward his. “One day at a time. All we ask is that you don’t pull back, and don’t throw any obstacles into the path.”
“We can make this work, baby,” Taylor said. “I know we can.”
“And until you do know it, kitten, we’ll have enough faith for all of us.”
Samantha closed her eyes for one long moment. When she opened them again, Preston could see a new calm—and a new fire.
This one had absolutely nothing to do with temper.
“Take me to bed, please. I need you. I need all three of you.”
“Yes, ma’am.” He lifted her into his arms, and felt a wonderful kind of peace fill him when she wrapped her arms around his neck and laid her head on his shoulder.
In that instant he knew that he didn’t care if they had to move heaven and earth—he and his brothers would make this work—for all of them.
Chapter 12
They took the time to light candles in the bedroom and put sexy music on the stereo.
Darkness had fallen hours before. Dinner was in the past, which left but one hunger as yet not sated.
The flickering of the gentle little flames and the soft music of pop instrumentals transformed the bedroom into an almost magical place.
The scent of their bodies, the masculine musk of them, stirred her arousal and whet her appetite.
“What do you need from us, sweetheart?” Taylor cupped her face and kissed her. In his eyes she saw such shimmering emotion that her throat ached with the beauty of his gaze.
“You. All of you. I…” She let her words trail off because she didn’t know if she could find the spine to tell them what she now knew she needed, and what she so desperately wanted.
Spine had never been a problem for her before, and she wasn’t concerned that it was now. In such a time and such a place as this, a woman open
ed herself at her most vulnerable core. No matter how strong she was, the act of making love demanded feminine surrender, to a certain extent.
Or more than to a certain extent, as she’d discovered earlier.
“Kitten? This is our place, here. There’s nothing you can’t ask us for, and nothing you can’t say.”
She recalled the words Preston had said to her just that afternoon as he carried her up the stairs. So she met his gaze and said, “I want that initiation you promised me. I like the idea that y’all are in charge here. I–I guess that’s what turns me on—that you’re in control and I’m not. I never knew that about me, until today.”
“We happen to like that, too. All right, kitten. I have one more question for you.”
Preston was stroking her chin with his finger. Just that light, nonsexual touch had her unbelievably aroused.
“What do you want to know?”
“This afternoon when I breeched your ass with my finger—how did that feel?”
She couldn’t prevent her face from coloring with his question. She’d heard of anal sex before today. She was a woman of the seventies, and had made it her duty to learn all she could about how the female body worked, and about all the different ways people could make love.
That was her personal women’s liberation movement. A student of history, she’d become incensed at the way, in all of the generations past, such knowledge had been kept from women.
Women used to get married and know nothing of their own bodies or even what to expect on their wedding night!
She kept her gaze focused on Preston. “It turned me on and that came as a surprise. I knew that if I wanted to accommodate all three of you at the same time, then I would have to endure anal sex. Judging from how it felt this afternoon, I don’t think that’s going to be any kind of hardship at all.”
“We’ll work up to that, Samantha—your accommodating all three of us at the same time. I can promise you that we’ll do our best not to hurt you or frighten you. You’re safe with us.”
That was something she didn’t even have to think about. “I trust you all. I know I’m safe, here.
Their Lusty Little Valentine [The Lusty, Texas Collection] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) Page 12
