by Marla Monroe
“Too long,” both Benton and Travis said at the same time.
* * * *
Several days later, another foot of snow had fallen, and they were hard pressed to get to one of the coolers they’d buried in the snow. Both men cursed as they shoveled snow off the steps, then down to the side of the house. Travis wanted to slam the snow against the house but didn’t want to upset Gail. She’d donned her coat along with a scarf and gloves to watch them from the front porch.
“Go back inside, Gail. You’re going to get sick if you stay out here.” He wished she’d listen.
“I’m fine. If I get cold, I’ll go inside. I want to watch you guys. What if one of you falls into a snow bank and the other doesn’t notice?”
“Not going to happen, hon. We’re fine, or we will be once we find that stupid cooler.” Benton scooped out another shovelful of snow.
“I hit something. Hope it’s the damn cooler and not the house.” Travis started scraping off the snow and cheered once the green of the cooler could be seen.
“Bingo. Good work, Travis. Let’s take up on the back porch. No need to keep it buried now that it’s freaking ten below out here.” Benton took one end of the cooler while Travis carried the other end.
Once on the back porch, they opened the lid and handed a chunk of frozen meat to Gail. Travis smiled when she jumped up and down, then raced inside.
“She didn’t kiss us for all our hard work,” Travis complained.
Benton chuckled. “It would have been a cold kiss if she had. I’ll take a warm one inside later.”
Travis agreed. It was too fucking cold to linger outside, even out of the wind. He grabbed a couple of sticks of firewood to carry inside. They’d learned not to waste any effort and do as much as they could when they were outside.
He found Gail in the kitchen running water over the meat before she placed it in the Dutch oven to cook.
“Never thought I’d say this, but I’m a little tired of roast of moose,” he said.
“Bite your tongue. We’ve got meat. Live with it.” Gail stuck her tongue out at him, then grabbed him and planted a warm kiss to his ice-cold lips.
“Ooo, talk about kissing a cold fish.”
“Sorry, but I haven’t warmed up by the fire yet.”
“Go, shoo. I’ll be in there as soon as I get this ready to cook.”
He smiled before joining Benton on the couch in front of the roaring fire.
“Get your kiss?” Benton teased.
“Yep. Her lips were a lot warmer than mine.”
“Does she seem to tire out faster to you?” Benton asked.
“I haven’t noticed. You don’t think she’s sick, do you?”
“I don’t know. She isn’t coughing or sneezing. Maybe she’s just tired with all the work she’d been doing cooking and patching our clothes. Lugging that heavy cast iron oven around is probably too much for her when it’s full. We should carry it for her from now on.” Benton got up. “I’ll get it.”
Travis sat back, thinking. He hadn’t seen anything to make him worry, but Benton was more observant than he tended to be. It bothered him that he hadn’t noticed. All of them had been too tired to actually have sex much in the last few days. It wasn’t that he wasn’t as attracted to her, but Lord they’d been busy and just plain worn out.
Benton returned with Gail behind him carrying the lantern. He set the Dutch oven in the fireplace off to the side and added a stick of wood to it before sitting down next to Gail. She’d instantly collapsed on the couch and sighed.
“Tired, hon?” he asked.
“No more so than usual. I think the winter weather saps the energy out of me. All that cold air tends to drain me. How about you guys? Do you feel more sluggish than usual?”
Benton shrugged. “Some maybe. Are you sure you aren’t coming down with something?”
“I don’t think so. I don’t feel bad, just tired. I think it’s winter time in general. There isn’t much sun. We need the sun for vitamin D. I remember reading something about it in one of the magazines we had where I used to live,” she said.
“I want you to rest more when you don’t have to be up cooking. We can handle the day to day stuff. Not like we can go anywhere in all this snow.” Benton took one of her hands in his.
Travis picked up the other one and squeezed it. “We don’t want you to get sick, Gail. In this cold, it would be dangerous. Promise you’ll let us know if you feel bad.”
“I will. I don’t feel bad. I don’t have the sniffles or anything. I’ll be better once spring shows up. I just hope it won’t be too much longer.”
Travis nodded but wasn’t convinced she was really being honest with them. They’d watch her for any sign of illness from then on. She was too important to them to let anything happen to her, even getting sick.
“Why don’t you take a nap? You can put your head in my lap and your feet in Benton’s,” he suggested.
“Hey, why do I get her feet? I want her head,” Benton groused.
Gail giggled and promptly put her head on Travis’s lap. “I’ll change around in a little while. I doubt I can sleep. I’m not that tired.”
To Travis’s relief, she soon fell fast asleep. He looked over at Benton and the other man nodded. They were of the same mind. She needed more pampering.
“Wish I knew what was wrong. I don’t like this,” Benton whispered.
“Me either. She worked really hard when you brought home that moose. Maybe she overworked and she’s still feeling the effects of it.”
“We’ll watch her closer. Let her work with the pups, but we take them out every time from now on. I don’t like her going outside anymore. She’s run down for some reason and could easily catch cold and end up with pneumonia.”
Travis nodded. “She’s really doing well with the little wolves. They mind her now and follow her everywhere.”
“I’m just happy they’re housebroken now. I never would have believed that you could housebreak a wolf.”
“No kidding. Do you think they’ll protect her if something happens?” Travis asked the other man.
“I honestly don’t know, but they sure love her. I’ve never seen a dog beg for attention as much as these wolves beg for hers. How she managed to teach them not to climb the stairs and stay downstairs is beyond me. Now that they’re free to rove around the house, they huddle near her all the time.”
“They didn’t even try to get at the meat she was getting ready to cook,” Travis pointed out. “I’m impressed.”
“Me, too.” Benton wrapped a beefy hand around one of Gail’s feet. “Ever think you’d be so attached to a woman before?”
“No. I love her, Benton. She means the world to me.”
“Me, too. I love her so much it hurts to think about losing her.”
“Just means we can’t. We watch over her and make sure nothing happens to her.”
Travis nodded and brushed a strand of hair behind Gail’s ear. He’d do anything to protect her. If he died trying, he knew Benton would carry on taking care of her.
“She’s that important.”
“Yes, she is.”
Chapter Twelve
“Looks like it might get above freezing today,” Benton said early one morning.
“I’m all for that. I’m sick of the cold. Will it melt any of the snow?” Gail asked.
“Maybe some, but not much. The ground is frozen, so it’s insulated against warming up yet.” Benton continued looking out the window.
“You look worried about something, Benton. What is it?” Gail hated to see the furrows between his brows. They’d been like that a lot lately.
“Nothing, hon. Just thinking about all the work we’ve got ahead of us this spring.”
“Who’s talking about work? I’m allergic to that word.” Travis joined them in the kitchen.
“Something’s bothering Benton. Do you know what it is?” she asked.
“I told you, it’s nothing. We’ve got a lot to do once the
ground thaws.” Benton turned away from the window and pulled Gail into his arms.
“Travis?” She wasn’t leaving it at that. “Both of you have acted odd lately. Have I done something wrong?”
“No!” they both said in unison.
“Then what is it?”
Travis and Benton looked at each other, then Benton sighed. “We’re worried about you, honey. You’ve been overly tired for the last month. Are you sure you don’t feel bad?”
“No. I’m fine. I guess I do get tired faster than I did, but I still think it’s the winter weather that saps my strength. You guys worry too much.” She reached up and gave Benton a warm kiss.
“I still don’t like it. I want you to spend more time resting for now. No more following us around. Work on the pups more but don’t let them jump on you. Their claws are tough. You’ve got bruises on your thighs.” Benton grabbed his coat and gloves.
“Don’t stay out too long, guys. I’ll worry about you.” Gail sighed as she waved the men out.
She was tired all the time, and had been feeling a bit queasy lately. She hadn’t told the guys, because she didn’t want them to worry. As she sat on the couch and petted the wolves when they climbed up next to her, it hit her square in the chest. She was pregnant. She realized that she hadn’t had a period in a long time. It hadn’t seemed that long ago until she counted back to when they’d had moose. It had been right before that. That made her about six or seven weeks along.
Excitement coursed through her body followed by worry. What did that mean for them? What about when it was time to harvest and put up the vegetables? She counted and decided that she’d only be about five to six months along during that time. She could still handle the canning and such.
The fear set in with how to tell the guys. They’d be floored just as she’d been, but would it be in a good way? How would they feel about having a child to raise? Surely, they’d thought about it. Without any form of birth control, it was bound to happen, right?
Gail clutched and unclutched her hands as the wolves picked up on her mood and snuggled in close to her. With their warm bodies and loads of fur, she soon got hot and shooed them away. They settled around her feet instead. How could she broach the subject with Benton and Travis? She couldn’t just shout it out without leading up to it, could she? No, she needed to feel them out first so she’d know how to break the news.
An hour later, the guys returned to stand in front of the fire to warm up.
“It might be above freezing out there, but it’s still damn cold,” Travis said.
“How far did you shovel snow?” she asked.
“All the way to the barn this time. Checked on everything inside and it looks fine. Nothing out of place.” Benton held his hands over the screen in front of the hearth.
“Got a piece of meat out of the cooler. After you have it ready to cook, let me know and I’ll carry it in here to put on to cook.” Travis reached down and rubbed Max’s head when the wolf leaned into him for some affection.
“I will. You guys warm up while I season it up.” Gail stood up and walked into the kitchen.
They still had a few herbs she could use to give the meat some flavor. They would have more next winter with having a garden. She planned to plant onions and garlic, as well as rosemary and thyme. She also planned to plant sunflowers around the outside edge so they could make sunflower oil for the lamps. The contraption they’d found in the barn would be a lifesaver. It was too bad they didn’t have chickens or cows to feed the mash too once they’d finished squeezing the seeds.
Once she had the meat ready to cook, Gail called into the living room that the Dutch oven was ready for the fire. Travis showed up and carried the heavy cast iron into the living room and settled it in the fireplace when Benton moved the screen aside.
“Sit with us, Gail. How are you feeling?” Benton asked as she sat between them.
“I’m feeling fine. What about you guys? Are you worn out from shoveling snow?”
Travis sighed. “No. It was hard work, but once we had time to rest, we’re just fine. We’re more worried about you.”
“You don’t need to worry about me. I keep telling you that.”
“We think you’re pregnant,” Benton spit out.
Gail opened her mouth to agree, then thought better of it. This was the best way for them to know. She didn’t want them to think that she’d kept anything from them.
“I guess I could be. It has been awhile since had my period. We’ve been so busy, I never really thought about it, but now.” She paused. “I think you’re right.”
“We should have figured it out by now. You’ve been so tired and it never dawned on us that you hadn’t had your period until we started thinking about it while we were clearing the path to the barn,” Travis said.
“So, you think it’s possible?” Benton asked.
“Yeah. I guess it is. I mean, we don’t have protection, and we’re pretty active sexually. It was bound to happen sooner or later. Are you all right with that?” Gail held her breath, waiting for their answer.
Benton and Travis exchanged glances. Neither man looked overly excited, but they didn’t look angry.
“Yeah. We’re good with it. I mean, I wish it had happened a little later when we were a little more established with the house and garden, but we’re happy about it, Gail.” Benton smiled and the lines between his brows smoothed out for the first time in days.
“What about you, Gail? This is happening to you. You’re the one who’ll carry the baby and have it. How do you feel about it?” Travis asked.
“Happy, worried, a little scared. Having a baby is scary with everything like it is. The idea of a little Travis or Benton running around is kind of fun, though. Just think, you’ll have someone to teach and watch grow up.”
“What if it’s a little Gail instead?” Travis teased.
“We’ll dress her up in frilly dresses.” Benton grinned, tugging on her hair.
“We’ll have to find baby stuff when we go to town this spring,” Travis said.
“We’ve decided that all three of us need to go together since we might not know what to get,” Benton said.
Gail squealed in delight. “Oh, boy. I get to go shopping.”
“Thank goodness it won’t cost anything,” Benton said with a mock frown.
“Don’t count on it. We’ll be carting boxes of stuff to the truck with her in tow.” Travis leaned over and kissed her. “Think you’ll feel up to it?”
“I’ll be fine. From what I remember from the childbirth books I read a while back, I’ll have a lot more energy in a couple of months. It’s all part of the nesting thing that females do.”
“Nesting, huh?” Benton reached over and pulled her onto his lap. “We’ll take good care of you, hon. I don’t want you to worry about a thing.”
“I’m not. I know you will.”
“Tonight, we celebrate,” Travis said.
“I agree. I’m ready for more, guys.”
“More?” Benton looked at Travis then back at her. “More what?”
“I want you both—at the same time.”
“Honey. You don’t have to do that. We’re fine like we are.” Benton hugged her tighter, placing one hand over her belly.
“No. I want it. I want to feel you both inside me before I get too big to be able to do it.”
“Sweetheart. I don’t want to hurt you. It’s going to hurt a little at first,” Travis said.
“It’s fine. Don’t say no, guys. I really want this.”
“We’ll see after supper tonight. Don’t think about it anymore for now. We’re going to take the wolves out for a while. You rest on the couch. Until you feel that burst of energy you say you’re going to have, we want you to take it easy for now.” Benton scooted her over to the middle of the couch after giving her a warm, sexy kiss.
Travis bent over and nipped her nose before following up with a steamy kiss, as well. She sighed as they called up the wolves and disa
ppeared into the kitchen. It had gone better than she’d expected with them coming up with it on their own. She just prayed they really were okay about her being pregnant and weren’t just putting on a front to keep her from worrying.
It hit her square in the heart. She loved them and wanted them to be happy. Why she hadn’t thought about it before then, Gail wasn’t sure. It was a solid love that reached out to both men equally. While Benton was sturdy and seemed to project stability to her, Travis was more fun-loving and kept her smiling. Still, she loved them both, and she should have told them before now. She’d remedy that tonight.
* * * *
“Are you sure, hon? You don’t have to do this. We’re fine like we are,” Benton said.
“I’m sure. I want you both, Benton. Together. It’s how we should be.” Gail looked from Benton to Travis. “Don’t say no.”
“If at any time you want to stop, Gail, all you have to do is say it,” Travis said.
“I won’t need to stop. I knew what to expect. The older girls talked about it a lot when I was there. Everyone knew that if you found someone, there would be two or three men. It’s the only way to stay safe unless you’re in a commune like we were.” Gail wanted to assure them that she was fine with it.
Deep down she was, but she was also a little scared. She prayed she could do it without asking them to stop. Somehow, Gail knew that if she asked them to stop, they’d never let her try again.
Benton walked over to stand in front of her. He slowly pulled her long-sleeved T-shirt over her head, then turned her so that Travis could unfasten her bra. Most days she went without, but she’d put one on that morning for some reason. Probably because her breasts were overly sensitive now.
Next, they sat her down and each man removed one of her boots, then her socks. When they let them drop, Travis unfastened her jeans and started pulling them down her legs while Benton undressed next to him. When she was naked, Benton took Travis’s place and had her scoot up the bed.
“You’re so sexy like that, hon. I’m going to eat that pretty pussy of yours until you scream.”
“You and Travis always make me scream. It’s a good thing there’s not anyone close by to hear me. They’d be sure someone was being tortured over here.” Gail laid back as Benton settled between her bent legs.
