by Eileen Green
Earlier, when she saw Bradley hurting and then he told her about being shot, her heart sank. It was then that she knew she loved him. Both of them. That she could have lost him and hadn’t declared her love for them hurt her.
Did she want to continue to pretend she didn’t love them? They had come all this way for her, giving up their former lives to begin a new one with her. Bradley had given up his job, but then, if he hadn’t been shot, she had to wonder, would he still have done that?
Brooke couldn’t believe what less than a year could do to someone’s well-set plans. The kidnapping had caused not just a hiccup in her life, but also a total rerouting of it.
At first, when she went back home and the flowers began to arrive, she had to assess what was going on with her emotions. Were her feelings for the two men just there because they had saved her? Would she be that petty?
No. Day after day, her feelings grew, no matter how she had tried to talk herself out of them. Her heart ached when she hadn’t heard from them for the past week, and when she found them sitting in her office, her heart soared. She was so excited to see them, and to have them both hold her. Peace had actually settled upon her as they held her.
Brooke wanted more time on her own to get the business running smoothly, which for the most part it was. There were a few glitches, such as her PR guy’s urgent need to help with his mother’s convalescing. His job would be here if he wanted it, but Brooke needed to cover her bases.
Three people had applied for the position, but only Gigi was completely qualified. With her references backed up so well, she was a shoo-in. Yet, there was something that just wasn’t right. She had to wonder if she could have some of her new friends look into the woman’s background.
Turning in her chair, she picked up her cell phone and dialed Lyndee Dwyer’s number. She’d see what the woman came up with.
* * * *
The door to the hotel room opened, and Bradley walked in, a bag hanging from his hand. Frank, lying on the bed closest to the window, watched at the Brit walked over to the other bed and tossed the plastic bag onto it.
The bike ride out to Brooke’s office had Bradley’s wound bleeding again, something neither of them had expected to happen. Especially so long after the shooting. It was probably the way Bradley had to lift his leg up and over the seat to get on the beast.
Not wanting to get on and off so much, Bradley opted to come back to the hotel and then walk the two blocks to the pharmacy on Second Avenue. Frank stayed behind and thought about Brooke as he stared out the window at the building across the street.
Kalispell was a step back in time and a shock to the system of a city boy. He had never imagined himself living some place other than the big city. The main street was the highway that connected Hwy. 90 to Canada. The local mall was small, probably only a quarter of the size of an average mall in Denver.
Old and new were mixed here. The Kalispell Grand Hotel was proof of that. Built in 1912, it boasted fabulous woodwork in the lobby with a grand staircase as its main focal point. Period furniture sat in the lobby also, providing the ambiance of days of old.
Older buildings surrounded the hotel as did newer ones. Shops and restaurants lined the streets, attracting people to contribute to the downtown economics. No skyscrapers marred the skyline, which was a change. The ability to see the mountains was easy to do if you just walked a block or so. It was quaint—Frank had to admit that. His mother would love this place as she was from a small town in Missouri. He had to hope he could get used to the slower paced life that would come with living here.
“She seemed excited to see us. How do you think this is going to go?” Frank asked as he watched his friend pour out the contents of the bag, laughing when Bradley tossed him a Clif bar. “Ah, there is some civilization here.”
Bradley removed gauze rolls from their packages as it looked as if he was pondering Frank’s question. He finally answered as Frank opened the protein bar. “It appeared as if she was happy to see us, at least that’s the way I saw it. I felt her respond to my kiss—what about you?”
Feeling a goofy smile spread on his face, Frank chuckled. “She did respond to mine also. Her body was soft and warm, and she got my dick hard.”
Bradley paused as he was getting ready to step into the bathroom. “I’ll have to admit, she is a wonderful woman. But she has a lot on her plate right now, especially with having a house built. I don’t know why she didn’t tell us about that part though.”
“She’s an independent woman, which is something I love about her, but she’s going to wear herself down quickly if we don’t step in to settle her.” Frank took another bite of the protein bar.
“I was thinking the same thing,” Bradley said as he stepped into the bathroom.
Frank thought about what he had said. Brooke was a driven woman, and that was one of the things he loved about her. I do love her.
Being so young, Frank felt Brooke needed someone to help her with her life, especially being here in Kalispell where she was starting up a business while her only family was back in Atlanta. He wanted Bradley and himself to be the ones to stand beside her while she accomplished her career goals.
He had to wonder if she would accept their elevated goal of making her their own, or if she was going to push them away now that she had so much on her plate. God, he hoped not.
A hiss sounded from the bathroom, and Frank knew Bradley was removing the old bandage. With the latter pushing them so hard to get here, Bradley had compromised his recovery, his wound refusing to close with all the traveling. Sitting so much in a moving vehicle irritated the exit wound, and he was really paying for it. Perhaps it was time for him to see a doctor now that they were going to be a bit more settled.
As he waited for his friend to fix himself up and come back into the room, Frank let his thoughts wander back to when the two met.
His boss, John Drake, had called a meeting of several of his fellow FBI agents. They had a new case regarding some Irish mobster who was apparently in Denver. When they all met in the conference room, there were several new faces among them, Bradley’s being one of them. A couple of Interpol agents who had been working to take the gangster down were there here to help the FBI since the man was on American soil.
At first, Frank thought Bradley was a British snob. His accent was irritating to Frank when he spoke, and Frank felt as if Bradley was talking down to him.
The two ended up working together as a team with an agent from the Organized Crime Task Force of the Police Service of Northern Ireland. Mark Sullivan had a potbelly, probably from too much Guinness, and had a face that Frank didn’t trust. John Drake, Frank’s boss, added himself to the small group, and they made their way up to Kalispell when they found out their mark had headed in that direction.
Once their investigation moved along, Frank and Bradley became friendlier. Frank realized that Bradley wasn’t the snob he thought him to be. They both enjoyed soccer and rugby and the same types of movies.
Meeting the people of Kalispell and of Polson, both men had a front-row seat to the ménage relationships that their new friends were involved in. They talked a lot after they took down the mobster who was trying to kill one of their new friends and discussed having the same type of relationship.
It wasn’t until their next mission brought them together again when the Russian mob kidnapped Brooke along with six others and were heading for the Canadian border. As soon as they had seen Brooke’s picture in their file folders, they had felt something for her and both men wanted her. Long discussions bonded them both into becoming partners as they set about rescuing her and then to win her heart.
After she was rescued and then returned back to her home in Atlanta, they continued to court her even though Bradley had to go back to Europe for a mission. They continued showering their attention on her, and now, they were finally here. Their dream was within their grasp.
Bradley exited the bathroom, wearing a fresh pair of jeans and a dark
blue western-style shirt with a red embroidery design on it. A gray pair of snakeskin boots were on his feet, both the shirt and the footwear compliments of their small shopping spree at the Ronan Sports & Western. They had seen the red barn-shaped building when they were passing through Ronan on the highway to Kalispell, south of Polson. Since they didn’t want to have too many belongings until they got settled, they each got a couple necessities but promised the kind older woman behind the counter that they would be back once they had settled in to wherever they were going to be living.
“Bathroom’s all yours, mate,” Bradley said as he buttoned up the shirt. Frank had to admit the man could do western wear.
“Thanks.” Frank got up and grabbed his clothes from the small closet area near the door. “I think we need to find that doctor who helped out all those kids to look at your wound. We’ve been on the road quite a bit, and it needs to be checked out to make sure it’s not getting infected.”
“We’ll get his name and information from Andrew and Jake tomorrow when we get there. Tonight, my mind will only be on one subject. Brooke.”
There was a smile in Bradley’s voice as Frank stepped into the bathroom. Frank was glad his friend wasn’t taking this as bad as some people would. He was a very easygoing man.
Changing quickly, Frank didn’t want to miss any time with Brooke that they could. She was a busy woman, but both he and Bradley wanted to even her life out so that she could appreciate the good things and not work so much.
Chapter Four
Descending the massive wooden staircase of the Kalispell Grand Hotel, Brooke knew how Cinderella felt. With both men watching her, she felt a bit nervous. Once at the bottom, Brooke let them escort her out to Bradley’s Yukon. It was brand-new, a bit dirty from the journey here, but it looked like the man was trying to fit in here. The appearance was noticeable especially after seeing how he was dressed.
The sun had set behind the mountains, but there was still a tad of light left in the sky. Lights were beginning to light up the city as Bradley drove southbound. When they turned into the Tipsy Tavern, Brooke’s mind went back to her last meeting with her two men before her return to Atlanta.
They had sat on each side of her, watching her eat a burger like she hadn’t eaten in days. Actually, she had missed quite a few days of eating after being trapped in a cage by the kidnappers. At the time, it seemed as if she couldn’t get enough food.
Being welcomed back into the restaurant by Siobhan O’Hanlon and Ray Hawthorn was a bit like coming home. Brooke had taken an instant liking to the Irish beauty in the short time after her rescue. There was always a smile on Siobhan’s lips and her mood ever upbeat. To Brooke, she seemed to have grasped a hold of life and love and wasn’t about to let go.
Frank led the trio over to the half-circular booth in the rear of the dining area, letting Brooke slide in first so she was the middle of their little group. Brooke took a moment to take in the large room as the place was busy for a Wednesday night.
Most of the tables were occupied, some by couples and others by groups of men. A couple of families were at the larger tables near where Brooke and the guys were sitting.
A man was on the small stage singing karaoke, a monitor behind him displaying the words he was singing. He wasn’t bad, and he had the crowd clapping and singing along.
Siobhan was at the bar collecting drinks while Ray stood behind the bar pouring more. The latter spotted Brooke and the guys and gave a little wave. Siobhan, probably looking to see who her man was looking at, turned and gave a happy wave of her own. Brooke waved back.
Picking up the laminated menu that was lying on the table, Brooke perused the many choices listed as Bradley and Frank did the same. A steak, baked potato, and a side salad was decided on by her, and she had just laid down the laminated paper down when Siobhan arrived at their table.
Brooke pushed at Frank to move so she could get out, and when she did, she threw her arms around her friend, both squealing as they hugged. When they released each other, Ray was right behind Siobhan, shaking hands with Frank and Bradley.
“Oh my gawd!” Siobhan exclaimed. “What are ya doing here?”
When Gwen, Andrew, and Jake had the barbecue a few weeks prior, Siobhan and Ray along with Ray’s brother Brian, who were all in a ménage relationship, weren’t able to attend. The restaurant was busy on the weekends, and Erin, the woman who was going to take over for Ray when he quit, was out sick.
“I moved here about six weeks ago,” Brooke shared as she held onto Siobhan’s hand.
“Oh, that’s great!” Siobhan’s voice was lyrical with her accent, which Brooke loved. “We’ll have to get together for lunch.”
“Of course. I’d love that. Things are beginning to settle down at the warehouse, and the plans on my house are moving along, so I will have some downtime,” Brooke said as Ray motioned for them to resume their seats.
Siobhan sat on the seat next to Bradley, while Ray sat next to Frank, causing the triad to cozy up closely.
“Warehouse?” Ray asked quizzically. A surprised expression crossed his handsome features as if he realized something. “Are you SmartTab Computers?”
“Yes! How do you know about us?” Brooke responded, proud that news was getting out about them.
“I heard about you from some of the people who come in here for lunch. I actually went out there on Monday to take some flyers and coupons. Your assistant…sorry, can’t remember her name.” Ray shrugged.
“Raven,” Brooke prompted.
“Yes. Raven. She said you were out on the warehouse floor and that she would give them to you when you got back.”
“She probably just got busy and forgot to tell me.” Brooke hated to offer excuses for her staff, but she knew Raven was a bit overwhelmed with everything as they got up and running. Trusting the woman she had come to know as a friend, Brooke knew she had to give her the benefit of the doubt. “We’ve been extremely busy.”
“I can only imagine. All of us were putting out a lot of extra time in to get the new club up and running late last year, so downtime had been scarce,” Siobhan said. “We all work there now in one capacity or another, but we’ve been working the last couple of days because Erin had an accident and needed our help here.”
There was a bit of a sadness to Siobhan’s voice as she spoke about their manager, Erin, as if there were more to the story than she and Ray let on. Perhaps the woman was in worse shape than they made it out to be.
Brooke felt Bradleys’ hand slide over hers giving hers a slight squeeze. Curiosity got the better of Brooke, so she had to ask. “What club is that?”
Siobhan and Ray shared a glance at each other before Ray looked at them with a broad smile on his face. He leaned in slightly as if he had a secret to tell, causing everyone else to follow his lead.
“Anita and her guys opened a BDSM club outside of Polson.”
Brooke felt her mouth drop open, and she had to mentally tell herself to close it. She had read about the taboo kink in romance novels she read in college, but she never really thought that people would participate in it. Who would want to be spanked, or whipped? How did people get sexual gratification out of it?
However, she had gotten excited thinking about men whipping her or tying her up like what she had read about in the books.
Frank’s voice brought her out of her thoughts. “Brooke? Are you all right?”
“A…” She wasn’t sure what to say, but as she looked at Frank and Bradley, she knew that they knew a lot about it by the smiles on their faces.
“It’s okay, deary. I didn’t know about it when I met Ray and Brian, but they have helped me embrace it. I believe it’s helped me open up to others also. Any questions ya have that ya don’t want to ask your men, just come talk to me.” Siobhan was such a breath of fresh air, and after what she had gone through with her lunatic of a fiancé, she had an upbeat personality and was so friendly.
All Brooke could do at the moment was to nod her unde
rstanding. She was still stunned at the news, and now she had to have second thoughts about Bradley and Frank.
Silence shrouded the table for about thirty seconds, causing an awkwardness. Ray broke into everyone’s thoughts. “When did you guys get into town?”
“Last night, actually,” Frank answered quickly. “We didn’t go to see Brooke until this afternoon though. Bradley’s working off a gunshot wound, and the drive here kinda irritated the situation.”
“Perhaps you two can tell me how to get a hold of that kind doctor who helped take care of everyone when we were here last.” Bradley’s words caught Brooke’s attention. He hadn’t told her that he was having problems.
“Sure,” Ray said as he stood. “I’ll give him a call and set up an appointment for you tomorrow. Any special time?”
“No. Any time will be fine. Thanks.” Brooke felt Bradley’s nervousness in his hand that still held hers, but she also heard the anxiety there.
Ray extended his hand, which Bradley shook before he turned to Frank and they did the same. “I’ve got to get back to the bar. I’ll be back around to talk to you guys. Enjoy your meal. It’s on me.”
“You don’t have to do that, mate.” Bradley was well mannered. You were always supposed to say you don’t have to even though you knew not to argue. Ray laughed as he made his way back to the bar where a woman, who appeared flustered, was trying to make drinks.
Siobhan stood, her order pad in hand along with a pencil. “What can I get ya guys? And don’t skimp either.”
Brooke felt her face heat from embarrassment for that was exactly what she was going to do. A glance at her two men told her they had thought the same thing.
Siobhan let a little giggle escape, “I’ll bring out some appetizers for ya while you decide what ya want.” With that, the dark-haired woman sashayed away, still chuckling.
