“Sydney.”
She heard her name but tried to ignore him. Then she felt the hand on her shoulder.
“Syd, what’s wrong?” he asked as she stopped to turn around and face him. She stared up into his blue eyes, the Stetson slightly covering his face, and she felt her legs weaken from the sight of him in uniform. He was gorgeous, and he was drawing the attention of people passing by just like he drew the attention of those two young women. She couldn’t complete with all of that. She needed to stay focused.
“Oh, hi, Atlas. I didn’t hear you. What’s going on?”
He looked at her strangely.
“I saw you back there at the boutique. You looked right at me.”
“Did I? Hmm, I don’t know I must have been daydreaming. Sorry. How is everything going? Did you need something? I’m kind of in a hurry.”
“What’s the rush?” he asked, taking her by the elbow and leading her out of the pathway of the sidewalk.
“No rush, just running errands.”
“Want to grab a cup of coffee or maybe lunch? I have a break coming up.”
“I don’t know. Listen, I’m not looking to get involved with anyone, and I really don’t have time to waste on playing games,” she said and started to walk back the other way. He touched her hip and she stopped walking. The top she wore was raised slightly above her waist, revealing her semi-flat belly.
“I was only talking to those two young women and giving them information about the upcoming festival in town.”
She wondered why he told her that. Did he figure out that she was jealous and that she really did like him but was freaked out and scared about this whole ménage thing? She lowered her head and gripped the bags she held. “I don’t know why you’re telling me this. Why should I care what women you talk to and flirt with?” she asked with an attitude.
She looked up and then away from him, but caught him scrunch his eyebrows together then he stepped closer. With her hands gripping the bags, she couldn’t stop his next move.
He cupped her cheeks and stared down at her lips then back to her eyes.
“Baby, don’t you realize that my brothers and I only have eyes for you?”
She went to reply, to stop this insane situation from progressing when his lips covered hers. He kissed her sweetly then pressed his tongue between her lips and tasted her more intimately. When he slowed the kiss down then pulled away, he smiled slightly at her.
“Damn, I’ve been wanting to do that for a while,” he whispered. She was shocked and nearly dropped her bags. She gripped them tighter and then looked away from him, embarrassed that someone might have seen them kissing and she didn’t even really know him.
“Why did you do that?” she asked, her voice cracking. He took the two bags she held in one hand, leaving her to carry only one of the bags of clothing.
“Because I couldn’t resist. Because I wanted to taste you, to let you know that those two girls meant nothing to me and that I’m interested in getting to know you.”
He started walking, nodding his head for her to follow.
“Wait, you shouldn’t have. I mean, you’re confusing me, Atlas,” she said, following him all the way to her car. She hit the unlock button on her car keys and they put the bags inside.
“Close the doors, lock it up, and come with me to lunch so we can talk. I want to learn more about you.” He took her hand and gently squeezed her finger over the key lock. As the sound of the doors locking echoed through the air, he wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her closer. He pressed his lips to her temple and kissed her softly then whispered into her ear, “Please don’t push me away. It will hurt so much. Have lunch with me so I don’t have to eat alone?”
He took her hand and squeezed it to his side and brought her along with him, crossing the street and heading into Francine’s. How could she say no to him? It would be mean and make her feel guilty. She could do this. She could have a nice casual lunch with one of the local deputies in town. No big deal.
As they arrived the locals greeted them, all calling her by her name and her none the wiser of their names.
“I don’t even know all those people,” she whispered to Atlas.
“You will,” he said as he pulled out his cell phone and texted something as the waitress showed them to a table in the back.
He pulled out the seat for her to take and she did, and then he sat right across from her.
He reached out and took her hand into his own.
“You have such soft skin, and your perfume is intoxicating,” he told her. She could say the same thing about his cologne and the appeal he had in uniform. She especially liked his military haircut. He gave her a wink.
They ordered sweet tea and she ordered a salad as he ordered a burger. He told her about Francine’s and it being the original restaurant in town.
“You’ve been a deputy long?” she asked, taking a sip of her tea with her free hand. He had yet to let go of her other hand. He gently played with her fingers then caressed her palm, making her almost giggle.
“I’ve been a deputy in Pearl for three years. I took the position when it came available about six months after I retired from the Marine Corps.”
“Your brothers were in the Marines, too, weren’t they?”
“Sure were. We didn’t serve in the same units or anything. Each of us had a very special involvement in the Corps.”
“How old are you?” she asked him.
“Old enough to take care of a woman, provide for her, and cherish her.”
“That’s not what I asked. I mean you seem older, and so do your brothers.”
“Does the age, us being older bother you?”
“Kind of, I guess.”
“How so?” he asked, seeming to really want to know. Was it her, or did he seem worried that she might not be interested in an older guy. It made her pause before answering him. He really was very attractive, and those blue eyes were so appealing.
“You’re more experienced, had more time to work through mistakes and get through major decisions. I’m trying to set and achieve personal goals, working on making money, supporting myself so I can find an apartment or cottage to rent.”
“Why would you want to move out of your dad’s place? There’s plenty of room there and it’s rent-free. And in regards to figuring out what your goals are and achieving them, now is a good time to have such supporting, caring men around to help you,” he said and caressed her hand. She felt the goose bumps travel over her skin and she couldn’t help but blush from his words.
“I take care of myself,” she replied.
He caressed her hand and held her gaze.
“Your dad mentioned that your mom was sick for a while. That must have been hard.”
“A lot of things needed to be placed on hold. My mom was and still is priority in my life.”
“Rightfully so, and Ella, too. She seems to need looking after.”
Sydney smirked. “You don’t know the half of it.”
“Heard you got home this morning at four.”
She was shocked and tried pulling her hand away.
“What are you and your brothers spying on me?”
“Slow down there, darling. No one is doing any spying. The ranch hands are up at the crack of dawn. Hart was in the barn early checking on one of the sick horses. He saw you pull up and practically carry your sister into the house through the back door.”
“Yeah well, twenty-first birthdays only happen once.” She took a sip from her ice tea.
“Must be hard looking out for everyone all the time and not having much time for you?” he said.
She licked her lower lip and he watched her tongue and a series of erotic thoughts scattered through her head.
He squeezed her hand and held her gaze.
“I want to know what your dreams and goals are. I want to know what you want in life, Syd.”
She took a deep breath and released it. She stared into his blue eyes and saw the hon
esty in his eyes and in his expression. He was charismatic, sexy.
“I’m just trying to survive right now, Atlas. Trying to live a normal life in a new place with different ideas and ways of living than what I’m used to.”
He smiled softly.
“Then what better than to have four men who know the ways of this town and this community to guide you and be there if you need anything at all.”
The waitress arrived with their food, interrupting the intense moment and stopping Sydney from telling Atlas how she felt and that she was just scared. Instead, the topic was dropped and they talked about the town festival coming up and some of the other touristy places in nearby towns.
* * * *
Atlas had texted Orsin to meet him at the restaurant so that he could then spend some time with Sydney, too, since Atlas had to get back to work. He arrived just as Atlas was arguing with Sydney about paying the bill.
“What’s going on here?” Orsin asked, and Sydney looked up, her cheeks turning a nice shade of red, and she smiled wide at Orsin. The instant happiness at seeing his brother was real as she said hello to him.
“Hi, Orsin. I was just telling your brother that I would pay for lunch. But I guess I’ll pay next time.”
“That’s a deal. How about same time tomorrow?”
“Sorry, I have plans this week, another time maybe.”
“I look forward to it.
“Would you like to take a walk by the lake, maybe grab a coffee or something?” Orsin asked her as she and Atlas stood up from their chairs.
“I don’t know, I should probably head back to check on Ella.”
“She’s probably still sleeping it off,” Atlas said as he placed his hand on Sydney’s shoulder leading her outside along with Orsin.
Once they were by his patrol car, he pulled her close and placed his hands on her hips. When she didn’t pull away, he felt encouraged.
“Enjoy your walk with Orsin, and be sure to let me know when we can do lunch this week.”
“Atlas, I told you I have a lot going on this week. Besides, I mentioned trying to get my priorities in order,” she reminded him, and he had to chuckle at how cute and sexy she could be at the same time.
“Baby, we won’t be able to stay away. Give this a chance.” He leaned forward and kissed her. When he released her lips, he saw the excitement in her eyes as well as in Orsin’s.
“I’ll take good care of her. You’d better get back to work,” Orsin said then took Sydney’s hand and led her down the sidewalk.
Atlas watched them go, a feeling of happiness filling his soul. He could imagine many days like this one, sharing lunch with Sydney then Orsin, Juno, or Hart meeting them and taking her for a walk, or back to their place to make love to her. She was so sexy, and she had all the right curves in all the right places. He wanted this relationship to work, for all of them. His fast forward type of thinking caused a bit of sickness to hit his gut, and he was feeling vulnerable. Atlas didn’t do vulnerable. He liked to remain in charge. He had to make sure that Sydney was nothing like Tara.
* * * *
Sydney walked closer to the water then felt Orsin take her hand.
“Be careful, those rocks get slippery,” he told her and she stepped back. When he didn’t let go of her hand, she figured it was his way of trying to make a move.
She glanced at him. His expression was firm and he kept his eyes forward but would glance around them as if he were keeping watch.
“No work today?” she asked him.
“It’s Sunday.”
She pulled her bottom lip between her teeth. He was so hard to read. She liked the way his hand felt holding hers. He had a big hand. That thought made her gulp. Why wasn’t he trying to make conversation with her? The first time they met he spoke a mile a minute and gave Atlas hardly any time to add his own comments or thoughts.
She tried pulling her hand a little. Not that she wanted to let go but she started thinking that he thought of her as a package deal. Like if she were to reciprocate Atlas’s advances that then Orsin, Juno, and Hart could automatically have her, too. She freaked a moment and pulled her hand free. She crossed her arms and stared out at the water.
“Sydney, what’s wrong?”
She remained silent a moment. Her temper was rising, her mind jumping to conclusions.
She turned to look up at him. He was just as big as Atlas and he had scars by his eyes. She was curious about them and wondered if they were the reason why he wore glasses sometimes? But what did she know? Why should she care? This was ridiculous.
“What do you and your brothers want? Why are you interested in me when you don’t even know me? Why do you want to share the same woman? Aren’t you worried about making a mess of things?”
He placed his hands on her shoulders and stared down into her eyes. “Slow down. Take a deep breath and slowly release it.” She gulped. He sounded just like Atlas, commanding, in charge, he was a military man a soldier until the end. Her father was a Marine, a soldier who put all of that first, and all before her, his daughter. Why would she even consider taking a chance on these men, strangers she didn’t know but was attracted to? Maybe this was just the first of many cowboys, soldiers she would find attractive? Maybe she was just so damn inexperienced she really hadn’t a clue when it came to men and how they work.
“God, I can see the fire in your eyes and smoke practically coming from your ears. Don’t overthink things. We like you. We want to get to know you because you interest us.”
“Why? How so? You don’t really even know me.”
“That’s the point. We want to get to know you. Come here.” He took her hand and led her to a bench. They sat down and she turned to face him as he turned to face her.
“I’ve never been able to freely talk to a woman before. I mean feel comfortable doing so. That day we first met I couldn’t stop. Atlas made fun of me for it.” He shook his head.
“But today you haven’t said a word. You took my hand and acted like just because Atlas kissed me that you automatically had a right to do whatever you wanted and things were settled. I’m not like that. I won’t be used or just some object so you can engage in some sexual fantasy or power trip because you’re all used to that.”
“Whoa, what in God’s name are you talking about?”
“You tell me. This is your way of doing relationships around here. Is it just about the sex?”
His eyes widened and she felt embarrassed for blurting that out. He might think she was a slut or some easy chick.
“I’m not like that. I don’t sleep around. I don’t play sexual games, and I don’t mess with people’s feelings and emotions. If that’s what you and your brothers are up to, you should leave me alone.” She stood up and he grabbed her hands and pulled her between his legs.
“You’re making my head spin. God, you’re so beautiful when you’re confused and angry.”
She stared at him as she breathed through her nose, unsure whether to laugh or be angry still. He raised one of his eyebrows up at her then caressed her hip with his hand.
“We’re not in this for games. We moved back to this area and not too far from our hometown a few years back. As we saw our friends, fellow soldiers trying to adjust back into civilian life and find difficulty doing so without their team members, their brothers, men they trusted, we saw the relationships coming from that combined need. The men in the ménage relationship with the woman didn’t have the pressure of feeling like they weren’t good enough, or couldn’t provide for their woman solo and completely. They didn’t want to fail and by having a team share in that experience it built up confidence and made those men stronger. We’ve seen it with so many of our friends. The woman is well loved, well taken care of and provided for. It helps us to not feel so vulnerable, which is something us soldiers aren’t used to.” He lowered his eyes, looking away from her.
“I guess I personally never realized that I had given so much of myself to the Corp that I didn’t feel ca
pable of giving a woman everything she deserves. But with my brothers, I’m stronger, and I feel more confident and capable of giving all of me to a woman, but I also know it’s okay to be and feel vulnerable.”
“Why is that?”
“Because they have my back, like I have theirs.”
She thought about her father and how he left her as a baby and left her mom to raise Sydney on her own.
She felt Orsin’s hands caressing her hips then press against her skin under the shirt she wore. The singe of heat ignited her body. He pulled her closer between his legs.
“Talk to me, Sydney. Getting to know one another will help us to learn if this is right. God knows, the way I feel right now with you in my arms, the feel of your soft skin against my palm and the scent of your perfume are driving me wild.”
She pulled her bottom lip between her teeth.
“I’m afraid, Orsin. I don’t know if this is right, or if what you say and believe this relationship to be can work.” She looked away from him and out toward the park she faced.
“You know my dad. He put the Corps first even when he knew my mom was pregnant with me.”
“And he regrets it. He’s been trying to get over his own personal issues all this time.”
She shot him a look. “That’s great. He was getting over his own personal issues while my mom was trying to raise a baby alone. His best friend stepped in, and even Drake, Ella’s dad, put his own dreams and desires before my mom, Ella and I. He was a Marine, too.”
She went to step from his hold but he pulled her closer as he stood up.
“I promise you that I’m going to give this a hundred percent effort this time because this is different, and you’re different. You’ve felt that betrayal and disappointment, and gaining your trust is going to be my top priority.”
Sing Me a Song Page 8
