by Lynn Stark
Living in Silver 2
With Cherry on Top
When Cherry Malloy goes to Silver to visit her sister, Peaches MacMillan, after years of healing from an attack which nearly killed her, she has hopes of connecting again with the men she loves. Cherry knows after the way she treated them, throwing their love back in their faces during a difficult time, she doesn’t deserve their forgiveness, but Cherry prays Mick, Jake, Collin, and Cody Preston will find it within their hearts to give her another chance.
As they begin the healing process together, there’s an unexpected glitch. Another woman is in love with the brothers, and they decide they just might want her, too. When Cherry meets Gracie Harper, she finds she’s as intrigued by the possibilities as the men are. But just as they are exploring their newly formed relationship, someone decides that they shouldn’t be together at all. And the perfect solution for this unknown person seems to be to kill them all.
Note: There is no sexual relationship or touching for titillation between or among siblings.
Genre: Contemporary, Ménage a Trois/Quatre, Western/Cowboys
Length: 67,773 words
WITH CHERRY ON TOP
Loving in Silver 2
Lynn Stark
MENAGE AND MORE
Siren Publishing, Inc.
www.SirenPublishing.com
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A SIREN PUBLISHING BOOK
IMPRINT: Ménage and More
WITH CHERRY ON TOP
Copyright © 2013 by Lynn Stark
E-book ISBN: 978-1-62242-071-1
First E-book Publication: January 2013
Cover design by Christine Kirchoff
All cover art and logo copyright © 2013 by Siren Publishing, Inc.
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All characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual persons living or dead is strictly coincidental.
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WITH CHERRY ON TOP
Loving in Silver 2
LYNN STARK
Copyright © 2013
Chapter One
Taking a deep breath, Cherry drove the final mile to the ranch where her sister, Peaches, lived with her husbands and their children. She didn’t know if she was ready to be back in Silver, but here she was, for better or worse. It had been three years since she had last been here, though she had seen her sister, brothers-in-law, and niece and nephew many times since then.
Cherry smiled as she thought of her last visit. It was a very good memory. She had been there for the birth of her nephew, which had taken place less than three months after Peaches’s wedding, both truly spectacular events in her sister’s life.
Her sister had come to Silver after she had been involved in a shooting at the convenience store where she worked. She had shot two men, killing one. The gang members had come to the store to kill her, as she was the only witness to a robbery a few weeks before. The witnesses with her during the attack were Damien and Ryan. Peaches had met Damien hours before at a rodeo she had gone to with a friend. She hadn’t had any plans to see him again and the meeting was fortuitous. After the shooting she left town with them with the intent of keeping herself alive and to get to know the two men a little better. It hadn’t taken long for them to become lovers, but longer for the third man to accept her as anything but a very unwelcome irritation after they first met.
They could all laugh at Logan’s resistance now. But back then it had taken some serious effort and a near-death experience to bring them together. Now Cherry didn’t know anybody who was happier than Peaches and her three husbands.
She sure wasn’t, though she didn’t begrudge her sister her happiness. Far from it. Cherry was genuinely happy for her sister, but just wished she’d had that kind of success in her relationship.
As she turned into the long lane to the house Cherry wondered if she would have the nerve to see the Preston brothers during her visit. A shuddering breath escaped as a wave of pain washed over her. It was a familiar sensation, one she had felt so many times since she had made it known she no longer wished to see or speak to them. The pain, a dull throbbing which seemed to make her entire body ache at times, was now very much a part of her.
When the front door to the house opened and her family came spilling out, Cherry knew she had done the right thing by coming here, even if she had to experience any pain seeing the brothers might bring to her. Her body was all but healed. It was time to heal her spirit. She and Peaches had always been the closest of all the siblings. They had claimed it was because they were the only two named after fruit.
“Oh, you finally made it!” Peaches cried, handing off a child to her husband Logan before wrapping her arms around her to give her a heartwarming hug. “You should have let us come get you at the airport.”
“And trap Logan in the car with toddlers again?” Cherry chuckled, remembering the tales her sister had told about past incidents while the family rode in the car. Logan, a man who always needed control, couldn’t quite figure out how to get his children to be little angels all the time. “I wouldn’t do that to my favorite brother-in-law.” Grinning up at the tall, very muscular man standing beside her sister, she wrinkled her nose at his stoic expression. She knew he was a real teddy bear on the inside, and he had a sense of humor, but he rarely let either be seen.
Except when the man was playing with his children. Then he seemed to turn into one himself. “How are you, Logan?”
“Good, Cherry. We’re glad you’re here.” As if to prove it, he stepped forward to wrap her close in his arms, careful he didn’t squeeze her healing body too hard.
Cherry appreciated the care taken. There were still moments when her ribs and back protested rough treatment. Well, hell, about every part of her body made itself known every day. While some things were getting better, others were slow in their recovery. The flight and the drive from the airport hadn’t helped.
She turned her attention to the toddlers clinging to their parents’ legs. Huge eyes were peeping at her curiously. Lowering herself stiffly to her knees on the lawn, she waited until they were ready to come out to greet her.
“Don’t you remember me? I talk to you all the time on the computer. And you came to visit me when I was sick.”
“You all better?” their oldest, a boy, asked in a serious voice, finally stepping out from behind his father. He had dark hair and golden eyes.
“Yes, all better. Now, JJ, can you come give your Aunt Cherry a hug?”
Once he hurried forward to give her a quick hug, his little sister Merilee trotted over, not to be outdone. She fussed over both, again feeling a familiar ache as she held them close and inhaled their sweet scent.
If only…
If only she had told the Preston brothers yes.
If only she had quit her job and moved to Silver to be with them.
If only she had not filled in when another officer had called in sick to work that night.
If only…
Knowing Mick, Jake, Collin, and Cody Preston were all interested in having children, Cherry realized she could have had a baby close to Merilee’s age by now. She felt the pain keenly, as real as any pain she had suffered since the attack.
She had met the brothers through her sister, who had seen them at a pizzeria one night while she was out with one of the men she was going to marry. Her nutty sister had gone over to talk to them after she had, during a phone call, stated she wouldn’t mind finding three or four cowboys to call her own. Peaches wasn’t going to have all the fun. The brothers had agreed that they wanted to talk to her and later that night they had begun their relationship.
As they had gotten to know one another, they had discussed all sorts of topics, not the least of which was children. She wanted them. They wanted them. And they had been ready to take their budding relationship, consisting of a couple of visits and a lot of time on the phone and Internet, to the next level. When she left following Merilee’s birth, Cherry had fully intended to go back home to pack and to work out a notice as a police officer. Leaving her job was a big step toward commitment but not something she couldn’t do. A job was one thing. The love of the four wonderful brothers was something she had needed more than her next breath.
The plan had been to go to Silver to get to know her men better. Heck, they hadn’t even had sex yet, though they had gotten very close a time or two. Just the memory was enough to make her pussy quiver. Grimacing as she felt the creamy juices begin to seep into her panties, she knew she would be entertaining herself later that night.
Cherry was reminded physically of what she had experienced the past three years when she tried to rise up from the ground. Logan was there instantly to help her up, steadying her as her legs straightened.
Smiling up at him, she patted his broad chest. “Thank you, sweetheart.”
Logan growled, his golden eyes narrowing on her grinning face. She knew how much he detested mushy nicknames from anyone other than Peaches. The corner of his firm mouth twitched. “You’re welcome. Now come on in the house. We’ll find you a comfortable chair to rest your weary bones in. The drive here had to take it out of you.” When Cherry just stared up at him in amazement, he began scowling again. “What?” he growled, stepping back.
Shaking her head, Cherry laughed. “I’ve never heard you say so much at one time.”
Peaches laughed and handed their daughter over to him, saving him from having to utter even more words. Then she was taking their son’s hand in hers, wrapping her free arm around Cherry’s waist. “Come on. I’ve got your room ready. You can wash up and rest before supper, if you like. Ryan and Damien will be home by then.”
“I can’t wait to see them. Is Ryan still a goofball?” Besides being a sexy charmer, Ryan had a sweet, playful nature.
Logan growled. “Except for getting bigger, Ryan hasn’t changed at all since he was twelve.” He took charge of their son, knowing the two women would want to talk about personal matters, things not meant for small ears.
“You love him and you know it,” Cherry stated firmly, “goofiness and all.”
“Yes, I love him. There’s just times when I’d like to…”
“Logan, the children,” Peaches admonished gently, but was grinning from ear to ear.
Ryan was the lighthearted one of the three men. He also seemed to have a death wish, teasing and picking at Logan until the man snapped and retaliated. Though they tangled like two boys on a playground, they never did serious damage to each other. Both seemed to love it, which was always a mystery to any woman who happened to witness it. Men, she thought with a smile. They were so confusing.
Damien, the moderately tempered of the three men, tried to run interference, but didn’t seem to have much success in keeping Ryan from pulling the tiger’s tail. When things came to a head, he knew it and was smart enough to just get the hell out of the way.
Once Cherry was alone in the room with Peaches, she knew what was coming. It was just as well. She wanted to deal with the subject of the Preston brothers and move on.
“Are you going to call them?” Peaches asked as she opened one of the suitcases Logan had brought up for her. She began taking out neatly folded jeans, placing them in a dresser drawer.
“I don’t think that would be a good idea. Why go back? I can’t change things and I certainly am not interested in reliving the pain. Let it go, Peachy.”
“They’re crazy about you.”
Her heart slammed against her ribs. Those were words she didn’t want to hear. She wanted to leave the past in the past. She knew her sister only had her best interests at heart, but she had gone through so much when she let those beautiful men go. They deserved more than a broken and scarred woman. They deserved to have a woman who could help them with their day-to-day lives. They also deserved a woman who could provide children, something she wasn’t certain she was capable of doing. The damage to her body had been so severe. She was getting better, stronger, every day, but she still had a long way to go.
“You know it didn’t end well between us.”
Recalling the angry words they had exchanged the last time they had come to visit her in the hospital was enough to make her cringe in shame. At first they had pleaded with her. They had told her things only men in love could say. Then, as she closed up, building a wall to protect herself, their hurt had turned to anger and frustration.
Cherry couldn’t go through it again. She just couldn’t. She swallowed hard as tears stung her eyes. She would apologize for her harsh, hateful words, ask for forgiveness, but she wouldn’t go back. She couldn’t.
“Cherry, sweetheart…”
“No, Peaches. I can’t do it. Just leave it alone. I’ll be here for two weeks. It should be easy enough to avoid them.” She would have to seek them out to give the apology, but that would be it.
Though she hoped her sister would let it go, she should have known better. Peaches was going to get the final word in, no matter what. “Well, I think you’re making a huge mistake. Those men can make you happy. You need to give them a chance.”
Once Cherry was alone, she took a moment to look around the room, which was one of two bedrooms connected to a mother-in-law suite on the first floor. It had been added since she had last been there, providing a place for their parents or other family members to stay when they visited. Eve
rything was sleek, with a modern look, but still felt welcoming and comfortable. The walls were a soothing dove gray, the furniture a rich dark brown. Sleek and elegant, the oversized bed was something she would have gladly traded for a twin. When she was in it, she was going to wish the brothers were in it with her.
Just the thought made her nipples peak. The flesh between her legs began to ache and throb. Oh, how she wanted to be loved on by those four big men.
Walking across the plush carpet, she sat on the edge of the bed and took off her shoes. Her clothes were next. What she needed was a nice hot shower. It would help her relax and get some of the kinks out of her body. Too bad a shower couldn’t get rid of the pain in her heart, she thought dismally as she went into the adjoining bathroom. Her brows lifted in surprise.
If she had thought the bedroom soothing, it was nothing compared to the bathroom. It was large, the same gray walls as the bedroom, with three white porcelain, free-standing basins on a slab of black granite. Each had a dark, wooden-framed mirror above it. Brushed-nickel faucets were complemented by matching light bars and fixtures in the large, luxurious tub and a glass-walled shower which could easily hold four people. She particularly liked the shiny, charcoal-gray glass subway tiles on the back wall of the shower, around the tub, and along the back of the sink counter. The only color in the room was to be found in the fluffy turquoise towels hanging on the bars and tucked into cubbyhole shelves. Nice.
Choosing to soak in the huge tub, Cherry turned on the water, and then went to the glass shelf holding decorative bottles filled with liquid. Pulling the stopper on each she chose one that smelled like Lilies of the Valley. Soft and sweet, it was a gentle scent.
