Verdria's Heart [Lush Valley, Tennessee] (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour)

by Robyn Reigns

  “Oh shit, Ry. Oh my God! What are you doing to me? ” His cock jerked at her words. The pleasure was seen as her eyes closed and her head tilted back with a loud all consuming moan.

  “I need to feel you come around my cock, baby.” Ryker’s balls grew even tighter as they tensed with his need to come. Painful pleasure from her snug pussy and the vibrating dildo still held him on edge. It was looking into her eyes and seeing the tears from their pleasure running free that was his undoing. Quietly, with all his emotions for her near exploding, he whispered against her lips, “Come for me, my love.” When he felt her orgasm around his cock, she drove him to burst. Ryker threw his head back and groaned with his release as her orgasm echoed through his cock. He burst his seed into her womb as her pussy continued to milk him dry.

  They both laid quietly as they tried catching their breath in the aftereffects. He loved how his sweat mingled with her sweat, while their bodies remained entwined. Ryker couldn’t resist tasting her sweet and salty skin as he kissed and licked her neck and shoulder. He removed the dildo from her ass before he pulled her in to his chest and spooned behind her. Cradling her body to his, he held her close to his heart as they both drifted to sleep.

  * * * *

  An hour later Verdria suddenly came awake, surrounded by heat from the hard masculine body embracing her. Ryker held her so firm and tight she couldn’t move from his arms. She tried shifting his arm from her waist and pulling her leg from the tangle of their combined limbs, but he held her so tight it was impossible to leave unnoticed. She could feel him stirring behind her. “Where do you think you’re going, baby girl?” He pulled her tighter toward his body as if afraid to release her. He started trailing kisses along her shoulder as he awaited her response.

  “My bladder is going to burst. I need the bathroom. Come on, Ry. Let me up.”

  Ryker finally loosened his hold, allowing her to leave the bed. She hurried to the bathroom before he could follow her. After quickly relieving herself, Verdria decided to run a bath. The stitches in her shoulder were a pain. She still couldn’t shower with them. As the tub was filling, she settled herself down under the warm, fragrant water. Closing her eyes, she sat against the wall of the tub, trying to relax. She wanted to reach that dark, peaceful blank space in her mind. Instead, thoughts of her men continuously swirled through her head. She couldn’t stop thinking about them.

  Making love with either of her men or both together was always a new experience. Each time she slept with them it was like the intensity of her pleasure and orgasms increased. She would never be able to get enough of them. She was already scared because she felt like she wouldn’t be able to live without them. Verdria learned from a young age that she couldn’t fully depend on anyone. If these men kicked her out of their life, she knew her heart would shatter beyond repair. She was so screwed she wanted to cry. Her mind kept telling her it would be better if she left them before they could leave her, but her heart was fully vested and bound.

  Especially after her recent experience with Ryker. The love and forgiveness he displayed amazed her. She couldn’t believe she spoke like that without thinking. Forcing herself to look into his eyes after even suggesting the possibility of being unfaithful hurt her down to her very soul. The pain and anger reflected from his eyes and that saturated his voice, nearly sobered her from her drunken desires. The malevolence she inflicted had definitely back lashed onto her.

  From that point on she feared their lovemaking would have turned bittersweet. But there was no stopping the man from his endeavor to inflict punishment. She had no choice but to give over to the pleasure he was awakening in her body, but she didn’t want it happening with any underlying guilt and shame. The mutual pain nearly besmirched the moment. Tears wouldn’t stop running from her eyes down her cheeks. But her body no longer had been in her control and she remembered how her pussy clenched and quivered from the burning pain elicited as the dildo stretched through her anus.

  The sensation was completely new and incredible. The dildo’s vibrations had traveled through her clenching pussy and stimulated her clit even more if that were possible. Ryker’s cock, filling and stretching her pussy, had such an emotional depth the tears wouldn’t stop running down her cheeks. She moaned into Ryker’s mouth as he sucked her tongue.

  At one point he pulled away and partially out of her. They looked into each other’s eyes. Her heart ached from the love she had seen overflowing from his eyes. In that moment, she knew his eyes were truly the windows to his soul. That was when his cock went so deep it nearly pressed into her womb. Verdria’s breath hitched at the recent memory. Too many sensations had mingled together, pushing her toward the need to come.

  The vibrating dildo, the muscles of her sheath clenching, and the friction to her swollen clit as Ryker plowed in and out of her kept her hurtling around the edge of her orgasm. It had been those soft simple words, come for me my love, and his warm husky masculine voice. They were what truly sent her over the edge. Just thinking of those words and that voice sent goose bumps over her body.

  With those words it was like the dam finally broke and the painful pleasure rushed and crashed through her body. He thoroughly kissed her as she moaned her climax into his mouth. When he finally found his own end, his cock jerked and quivered inside her. His warm seed crashed into her womb. After that, all she recalled was falling into that blissful post-coital sleep and waking up trapped within strong steely arms.

  Her thoughts traveled back to the present. Warm floral scented water cleansed her body. The bath turned out to be a good idea. It soothed her aching muscles, and gave her some space and time to think. It scared her beyond reason that these men actually wanted her and were making plans to keep her in their life. Other than Simon and Olivia, she never had anyone that she would call family. Before them, she was used to depending only on herself. Placing her trust in these men’s hands would be bigger than admitting her love. Tears renewed, they uncontrollably ran down her cheeks as emotions of fear and defeat churned through her belly.

  * * * *

  Ryker grew worried when Verdria didn’t return after a few minutes. After hearing Simon tell him and Owen about her history, he understood her motives in trying to fight against what he and his brother represented. But he couldn’t let her keep trying to pull away. She needed to learn that he and Owen wanted her for the long

  haul. If she hasn’t already figured it out, she needs to realize the Crawford brothers did not give up. He and Owen would continue working and fighting together to keep their woman.

  He quietly walked into the bathroom and saw her soaking in the tub. She was a beautiful sight. Her blonde hair was piled on top of her head, with curly damp tendrils hitting her neck. Creamy skin was pink and rosy from the warm water. Water kept rippling against her hard, puckered nipples. His cock already felt like it was reawakening. As he walked closer, his heart skipped a beat and started to ache as he saw tears trailing down her cheeks. “Are you okay, baby? Please tell me I didn’t hurt you?” Standing next to her, he wiped away falling tears with his thumb as he kissed her temple. When she still sat quietly without responding, Ryker began losing his patience because the pain in his chest at hurting his woman in anyway continued to grow. “Verdria. Baby girl, please answer me. Did I hurt you? Is your wound okay? I don’t see any blood.”

  If she didn’t answer soon, he knew his anger would get the better of him. He just needed to hear her speak. He needed reassurance. Finally, just when he thought his patience was near an end she answered. “I’m fine, Ry. You didn’t hurt me.”

  “Then what’s wrong? I thought you enjoyed our lovemaking.”

  “Is Owen around here somewhere?”

  He knew she was trying to evade his questions and probing. A small shiver passed down her body as he placed his hands on her shoulders and started to knead her tense muscles through her soft, smooth skin. Whenever he was near this woman, he always had a strong, compelling need to touch her. Even if it was just a simple h
olding of hands, or a quick graze of fingers tracing skin. It’s these small contacts that centered him and made him feel a soothing calmness. No other person had been able to harness his unsettled soul. “He’s out riding fences with Micah and Kai. I know you’re trying to distract me so you don’t have to answer questions, Verd. We both know it’s not going to work.” He grabbed the washcloth from her hand and started bathing her. “Now tell me what’s bothering you, baby. Why are you trying to hide and pull away?”

  “I’m not. Please, I just need some space.”

  Not wanting to ruin the moment and make her angry, Ryker decided to let things go for now. He figured Owen would be able to pry the answers from her better than he could. “I have to go help Owen and the men ride the fence lines. This isn’t finished, Verdria. You can have all the space you need, but when it comes down to it, both Owen and I will get answers to our questions. We won’t let you keep running and pulling away. You can either think of us as unbreakable walls that keep getting in your way, or you can give in and accept that we are strong enough to protect you and willing to conform to your needs. We’re going to win, Verdria.”

  Turning away from the tub, Ryker had to get in one last parting shot before giving Verdria the requested “space” she needed. “Just remember Owen and I want you for forever. You were meant to be ours, and we will do whatever it takes to keep you and make you happy.”

  They just had the best sex, no, not sex, but lovemaking, of his life and she had to pull away from him. Anger and frustration seemed to be the top two emotions surging through his body since meeting Verdria McKenna. He needed to work off some of these feelings before he took them out on undeserving bystanders. Maybe he would meet up with Owen out on the range to vent and discuss their challenging, stubborn woman. As he approached his favorite chestnut gelding, Ryker was glad one of the hands already had Umber saddled and ready to go for him.

  He would ride out to the west pasture and check on the fences lining the bull paddocks. It would be a nice peaceful ride and would give him time to gather his thoughts and get control of his anger. Owen would probably laugh at him and rile him up more because of his nonexistent patience. He knew Verdria only needed time. She would finally see the light where he and Owen were concerned, but the time it was taking her to travel from point A to point B was going to send him over the edge. His sanity was hanging by a thread because one woman had his body tied up in knots and his well-disciplined control cracked into shambles.

  The sun warmed his body, and he was perspiring before he even rode a mile. It would have been a nice day if his woman hadn’t gotten under his skin. He gritted his teeth and rode on, tipping his cowboy hat in greeting to the hands he passed by as he made his journey. Riding at a slow pace allowed him to check the herds as well as the fences. The cattle he passed looked healthy and happy grazing to their hearts content in the pastures. As he got closer to the few bull paddocks out this way, he noticed one of the major fence lines was damaged. The mean-as-sin bull occupying the paddock was nowhere in sight.

  Ryker butted Umber’s flanks to pick up the pace. He had to move quickly and find the bull. As Umber went into a trot and then a canter, Ryker felt his saddle move and slip. Before he knew it, he was flying through the air and landing with his face kissing dirt. His well-trained horse, which was normally calm and staid, must have gotten spooked from the saddle, disengaging and taking off at a gallop toward home. Ryker lay on the ground, pain shooting through his shoulder and the wind knocked out of him, trying to catch his breath.

  Once he could finally breathe normally, he took stock of his body. Unbelievable pain radiated over his left side and made it difficult to collect himself. His shoulder seemed to have taken the brunt of the fall. The pain was so bad any type of movement was making him nauseous. All he could do was lay back, close his eyes, and take deep even breathes through the pain. Without any choice, he gritted his teeth against the pain and stayed where he was. Hopefully someone would realize he was out here when they found Umber returned with some tack and no rider.

  The next thing Ryker knew he heard horses’ hooves beating against the ground. He must have blacked out. Gradually he came awake and moved to sit up. Pain shot through his body. He forgot about his shoulder. He lifted his head in the direction of the noise and saw his twin leading the cavalry toward him. As soon as Owen spotted him, he leaped off his mount and ran to examine him. “Ryker, are you okay? Can you move?” Owen trailed his hands over his body, looking for breaks or other injuries. “What hurts, bro?”

  “I think I only hurt my shoulder.” He gasped with pain as he again tried to move.

  “It looks like you dislocated it again.”

  “Fuck, Owen. Can you just put it back in place? It’s fucking killing me.”

  “I think you should go to the hospital and have it examined and X-rayed.”

  “Just help push it back in place to relieve the pain, and then we can worry about getting me to the hospital.”

  * * * *

  Owen shook his head, knowing how stubborn his brother could be. He signaled Mack and Sully over and looked to them for aid. “Can one of you get his shoulder back in the socket while the other helps me hold him down?” Being mercenaries, his friends were used to dealing with injuries far beyond the scope of a dislocated shoulder, so he knew that asking Sully and Mack for help wouldn’t be a big deal. His two friends stepped forward ready to give them aid.

  Owen’s heart had skipped a beat when Kai came running to tell him that Ryker’s gelding was caught racing back to its barn without his rider. For his horse to come tearing back the way his hands described, Owen knew something gravely wrong must have happened to Ryker. Like the majority of workers on the ranch, Ryker had more than enough experience to stay mounted through most catastrophes. A horse galloping back toward its barn without a rider was like an S.O.S. smoke signal. Before Kai could finish explaining that the saddle’s cinch was nearly torn through, Owen was heading in the direction Ryker’s horse came galloping from, with his buddies Mack and Sully on his tail.

  When he saw his brother lying on the ground barely moving, fear shot through his heart. Subconsciously, he realized Ryker was an experienced rider and he knew how to attempt to contort his body as it fell from a horse to protect his head and neck. But there were always variables to take into account, like the tampered cinch. He didn’t even want to think of a life without Ryker. If he lost his brother, it would be like losing the other half of his soul. Existing without him was too painful to even think about. Owen was glad his injuries didn’t appear life threatening.

  He knew his brother was going to try and avoid going to the hospital. The stubborn fool didn’t want to appear weak. Especially right now with the two of them trying to win over their woman. Ryker’s loud grunt from repositioning him and grasping his arm brought Owen back to the moment. After placing all his body weight on Ryker, Sully held down his upper body while Mack quickly manipulated his shoulder back into the socket. Ryker couldn’t hide the tremors secondary to the pain riding through his body.

  “Fuck, guys.” With the curse, Owen knew his brother couldn’t hide the pain that must be throbbing through his shoulder as his friends gathered round to support and help him. Once his shoulder was realigned, the pain should have been more bearable. At least he hoped the poor guy was a bit more comfortable.

  “If you wait a few minutes, Micah should be here with one of the trucks to give you a lift back to the house.” Sully placed his cell phone back in his pocket as he turned to check on Ryker’s progress. Ryker was standing and hugging his bad arm to his chest.

  “Did you say the cinch to my saddle was busted?”

  “Yeah, when Kai stopped to tell me your gelding came galloping back, he said it looked like the cinch was deliberately cut.”

  Ryker was so pissed off his cursing would have made a nun blush. “Damn it, Owen. I think that fucker Monty is screwing with us. I think this was a diversion so it would be easier to get to Verdria. We need t
o go check on our woman!” Everyone rushed to gather themselves and hurried back to the house while Ryker continued his tirade in the background.

  * * * *

  Verdria came to, dazed and confused. Her head ached and was all fuzzy. She didn’t know where she was or who she was with. Panic was starting to set in and take over her control. Keeping her eyes closed and her breathing even, she tried to collect herself. Still too afraid to open her eyes, she stopped letting her mind wander and tried to let it settle through the swirling confusion. As her world started to right itself, she tried to remember what happened before she ended up in what felt like a moving vehicle. She could feel her hands and feet were bound. The only thing she could hear was the vehicle’s noise as it traveled along the uneven road.

  As the vehicle ran over a bump, her head was banged against the floor, and a mildly sharp pain shot through her neck. The ache in her neck made her remember what happened in bits and pieces. Concentrating was very difficult because the headache was starting to feel more like a hangover. Fighting through the painful headache, she retraced her steps from her morning with Ryker, to after getting dressed and heading downstairs to start her day.