by Jane Jamison
Paul’s eyebrow shot up. If she didn’t know better, she’d have thought that he was jealous. “Good. We have something else we have to do first. Business first, then wine.”
She figured she should be happy that he’d said yes to the wine at all. “Okay, so what’s up?”
He opened the door to the Range Rover and reached into the glove box. She was stunned when he turned around with a gun in his hand.
“It’s time you learned how to use one of these. A bat’s just not going to cut it any longer.”
“You’re kidding?” She didn’t like guns. Too many people got hurt with guns in accidents. But with bats? A person had to want to hurt someone. Then they had to get damn close to use it, taking away the possibility of mistaking one person for another.
“Trust me, he’s not.” Troy lifted the bottles. “I happen to agree with him. Until things settle down, we’d feel more comfortable knowing that you had more to defend yourself with than a big stick.”
“First of all, it’s not a big stick.”
Wade edged away from her. “Yeah, it kind of is.”
It was a good thing that he’d ducked away or she might’ve whacked him one. “In the second place, I don’t like guns.”
“Girls never like guns.”
“Please tell me you didn’t just say that, Paul.” It seemed Kane wasn’t the only man whose ideas needed updating.
He shrugged. “Just stating the facts.”
“Hardly. That’s a load of crap. But that’s not why I don’t like them. Too many people who have guns shouldn’t own them. They’re irresponsible and wind up hurting themselves or someone else.”
“I agree.” Paul checked the gun to see that it was loaded but had the safety on. “Which again, is why we want to show you how to use it.”
“And for another reason, I already—”
“Daisy, will you quit working your jaw and just do it?”
At that precise moment, she was glad she didn’t have a gun. She might just shoot Paul in the leg to get him to shut up.
“Fine. Let’s do this.” She trudged past them, her hopes of getting to talk to them about their relationships, serious or otherwise, dashed.
She marched them into an open clearing behind her home. It was the idyllic location she’d wanted to take them, but it was also the best to shoot a gun.
Troy and Wade put the basket and wine on the ground then rounded up various items, including strips of tree bark, to use as targets. She was still irritated when Troy tugged on her arm and pulled her against him.
“Don’t be mad, Daisy.”
She glared up at him. “Just get even?”
He chuckled then tightened his arms around her. “We only want to keep you safe. Not only for now when Melissa’s still here, but for always.”
It was hard to stay angry when he said things like that. She let out an exasperated breath that took the last bit of her irritation with it. “I know. And I appreciate it.”
“That’s right, baby.” Wade came to stand beside her, then brushed his hand through her hair. “We couldn’t stand it if anything bad ever happened to you.”
If he touched her again like that, she’d forget all about her vow to keep her hands off them. Her body ached for them. They were her drug of choice and she was addicted and loving every minute of it.
“I’ve taken care of myself all these years. I think I can keep on doing that.” Not that she wanted to. She’d love to have three amazing men to take care of her. She’d become an even stronger woman with them at her side.
“We know you can, but let us take on some of that load for you.”
It wasn’t like she’d planned it, but maybe it was even better this way. “Why?”
“Why what?” Wade’s forehead crinkled in confusion.
She reached up to smooth it out. “Why do you want to keep me safe? So that you can leave and go back to your lives in Tulsa?” They’d gotten permission to be away from the station for a few days, but soon enough they’d have to return.
“Because we care about you.”
She met Paul’s eyes. He’d said care. Not that they loved her. Was having them care enough?
“We more than care.” Wade’s ever-ready humor was gone. “We’ve talked about this and we’ve come to the same idea.”
“What idea?” She’d go insane if she had to keep dragging their words out of their mouths. Why couldn’t they just say the word she wanted to hear?
“Do you remember our last time together? Do you remember what we said? That you’re ours and we’re yours?”
She could no more forget that than she could her own name. “Yes.”
Troy bent and placed a tender kiss at the corner of her mouth. “We want you as our woman, to share, to cherish, to protect.” He skimmed his thumb over the spot where he’d placed the kiss. “We want to love you for the rest of our lives.”
This was better than she’d dared to dream for. Her vision grew cloudy as her eyes filled with moisture. “Are you sure?” She turned to Paul. “Is that how all three of you feel?”
“It is.”
Paul had spoken in his usual matter-of-fact way, but he couldn’t have said it any better.
“What do you say, Daisy? Will you be ours? All of ours?”
She laughed, then wanted to take it back. “No, no. I’m laughing with joy. Not at you. But I’ve got to ask. Is this your way of asking me to marry you?”
Wade grimaced. “Yes and no. By law, only one of us can marry you.” He brightened. “Of course, if you had to choose one of us, you’d pick me.”
She knew Paul and Troy would understand her going along with his joke. “Well, of course I would.”
“But since we’re all in this together, we don’t want you to choose one of us over the other. Still, legally, to provide you with insurance and the like, you may have to pick one of us to make you an honest woman.”
Although it sometimes irritated her, she loved the fact that Paul was so practical. Even if he did sometimes say something very old-fashioned. Wade was the jokester and Troy was the level-headed, pleasant one. Together, they were the perfect men for her.
“You haven’t told us,” urged Wade. “How do you feel about us? Do you want all three of us?”
She drew in their aroma that was mixed with a little sweat. Looking up at Troy, she hugged her body closer still to Wade. All she needed was to have Paul join them, but she sensed he wouldn’t. Although he’d dropped a barrier since their time in the grocery store, he was still the last to let go, the last to reveal his emotions.
“This is crazy and I don’t pretend to understand it, but yeah, I love you, too.” She accepted another sweet kiss from Troy then turned to see that Paul hadn’t moved. Yet, unlike the times before, she knew it didn’t mean that he didn’t care. It was just his way. “All of you.”
“Forget about the damn gun.” Wade grinned and pressed his crotch against her stomach. His hard-on was unmistakable. “I’ve got a pistol of my own I want you to shoot.”
“Lame, man. Really lame.” But Troy was smiling when he stepped back.
“Naw. That comes later. She needs to learn to protect herself first.” Paul strode over to them and Wade released her.
As disappointed as she was that they couldn’t make love right then and there, she understood. Paul was showing her his love by insisting that she learn to fire a gun. She couldn’t take that away from him.
Paul got behind her and handed her the gun, putting his hands over hers. “First thing to know is to always check that the safety is on. Here.”
The last thing she wanted to do was to follow his directions. Not while she could feel the warmth of his chest against her back. His arms wrapped around her and he put his cheek close to hers as he showed her where the safety was.
“Then, once you’re sure you want to shoot…”
She couldn’t pay attention to his voice. Instead, she watched the muscles in his forearms. If she could have done so without letting h
im know that she wasn’t listening, she would’ve skimmed her palms over the dark hair there. She felt his warm breath against her skin and her pussy clenched thinking about feeling his mouth pressed against her as he sucked on her clit.
Damn, how she wanted him. How she wanted each of them. But she’d been the one to say that they had to keep their wits about them until the situation with Melissa was resolved. She couldn’t say differently now, could she? She moaned, filling the sound with every ounce of her frustration.
“Daisy?”
She blinked, suddenly aware that she was still holding the gun with Paul’s grip supporting hers. “Uh-huh.”
“I asked if you were ready to shoot.”
“Oh.” She concentrated on the piece of bark sitting on a tree stump. After checking the area behind and around the stump, she was ready. “Sure.”
If she hit the target, would the lesson end? Which meant, of course, that Paul would turn her loose. But it also meant that they could move on to learning something else. Like how she’d teach exactly what she liked them to do to her.
“Daisy, are you paying attention? This is important.”
She drew in a long, steadying breath. “Yes. I am.” She straightened up, determined to keep it together.
“Then just ease your finger on the trigger back, and fire whenever you’re ready.”
She did as he’d said and the shot rang out. As she’d expected, she missed the target.
“That’s okay. It was only your first try. Give it another shot.”
She should tell him she didn’t want to, but it felt too good to have him next to her. Wade and Troy stood behind her, giving her encouragement. Still, once they found out…She lifted the gun and pulled off another shot. The edge of the bark splintered away.
“Hey! There you go!” Wade’s shout of encouragement was followed by his clapping for her.
“Good job, Daisy. You’re a natural,” added Troy.
She cleared her throat and got ready to come clean. “Guys, I have a con—”
“Try it on your own. We need to know that you can handle the gun by yourself.”
She caught the indecision in Paul’s face. He probably thought the gun would pack too much of a retort for a girl to handle.
Oh, Paul, you think you know, but you don’t.
“Okay. Let me try it alone.” She lifted the gun, cupping one palm under the hand that held the gun, then squeezed off another shot. The bark shattered, blasted off the stump.
She paused, giving the realization of what she’d done time to sink in. When she turned around, she found all three men gawking at her. “How’d I do?”
Wade crossed his arms. “Boys, I think we’ve been had.”
“I’m sorry. I should’ve told you. I said I don’t like guns.” Her gaze settled on Paul. “I never said I didn’t know how to use one.”
“Hey! What’s going on?”
The men whirled around to find Kane standing at the edge of the clearing. His dark countenance reminded her of Paul’s as he skipped his attention from one man to the other, then finally came to rest on her.
“I heard shots.”
“Damn. I should’ve thought about that.” She lowered the gun as she walked past her men toward Kane. “Kane Kannal, I’d like you to meet my…friends. This is Paul Winchester along with Troy and Wade Chambliss.”
What else should she call them? Her lovers? Her men? “Kane is with Alex.”
Each man said his hello, but as soon as Kane started to step toward them to shake hands, she whipped the gun up and pulled the trigger. Troy shouted in surprise as they all jumped at the shot.
“What the hell, Daisy?” Kane had jumped to his left after the bullet had hit the target on his right.
She thrust out her chin. “Rattler.”
Although her men were used to danger, her abrupt action had left them jumpy.
“Damn. She’s a regular Annie Oakley.” Wade flattened a hand against his chest. “How about giving a guy a warning? I think my heart stopped.”
“There wasn’t any time. I don’t fool around with snakes.” She made a funny face and led them to her target.
The men crowded around the dead snake. Wade let out an appreciative whistle. “Like I was saying, guys. I think we’ve been had. She can shoot as good as I can.”
“Better,” added Troy.
“I’m surprised at you guys. Most girls growing up in the Oklahoma countryside know how to shoot a gun.” She arched an imperious eyebrow. “’Tweren’t no big thing.”
Handing the gun back to Paul, she took Kane by the arm and led him toward the house. “Guys, grab the basket and wine. We’d better get back. Alex and Melissa are probably worried to death right about now.”
The picnic and wine would have to wait for another day. But it didn’t matter. She’d gotten the answer she needed.
Chapter Nine
Daisy sat straight up in bed. Her heart pounded and she had trouble catching her breath.
What the hell?
Yet the screaming that she’d first thought came from a nightmare continued.
Melissa.
She bolted from her bed and rushed to her bedroom door. Flinging it open, it was still another minute before her sleep-fogged brain would function well enough to remind her which room was Melissa’s.
Wade and Troy burst out of their room and were by her side. Paul stayed inside his doorway, assessing the situation.
“Are you all right?”
She nodded at Wade as Troy motioned to Paul. Together, the men ran to Melissa’s room. Troy turned the knob, but the door was locked.
“Melissa, open up. It’s me. Troy.”
A cry, not as loud but just as desperate as the earlier ones, came again. But it wasn’t Melissa’s voice that shouted at them. “Stay out!”
“Who the fuck is that?” whispered Paul.
Daisy followed Wade to their side. She kept her own voice low. “I can’t be sure, but I think it’s Charlie.”
“The girlfriend?”
“Yeah.”
“Please, stop, Charlie. You’re hurting me!”
She’d been right. Charlie was the one in Melissa’s bedroom. Yet when she started to speak to her, Paul held up his hand, stopping her.
“Charlie, this is Paul. You don’t know me, but you’ve got to know what you’re doing is wrong. Open the door and let’s talk this out.”
“Back off. Leave us alone.”
There were murmurs, frantic and angry, as well as scuffling noises coming from the other side of the door. Daisy didn’t want to think what Charlie might be doing to the young girl. She didn’t understand why Paul would want her to remain silent, but she had to trust him. Although he was a firefighter and not a police officer, he still had to have had more experience dealing with life-and-death situations than she had.
“I don’t think talking is going to work, man.”
Troy made gestures that Daisy couldn’t interpret, but she gathered that they were coming up with a plan. Once they’d nodded at each other, confirming everything, Troy took her arm and moved her back down the hallway. He bent low and put his face close to hers.
“Stay here and stay out of the way. We don’t know what we’re up against. Until we say it’s all clear, you keep back. Do you understand?”
“No, I don’t. I have to help her.” She wasn’t sure what she could do, but she had to be there for Melissa. If anything went wrong, she’d blame herself.
“You’ll be helping her by staying out of the way. Please, Daisy, you have to trust us on this. Do you trust us?”
She did. As much as she wanted to get inside that room, she trusted their judgment. “Yes. I do. But please, be careful.”
“I always am.” He winked, then rushed back to Paul and Wade.
Exchanging a few more signals, the men stepped toward the opposite wall. Troy took another step back then lunged forward, landing his foot in the middle of the door. The door burst open and the men charged inside.
>
Daisy held her breath, fearful of what she might hear.
“Get back!”
“Please, Charlie, no!”
“Charlie, just put the gun down.”
Terror leapt to life inside Daisy. Fighting the urge to run to them, she inched down the hallway.
“I told you to leave us alone. Put your gun down or Melissa gets it in the head.”
Daisy plastered her back to the wall, then peered around the corner, using the crack between the door and the wall to spy through. Paul, his arms straight out as he’d taught her, pointed his gun directly at Charlie. Wade and Troy, weaponless, stood on either side of him. Charlie held Melissa in a chokehold and held a gun at the men.
“Look, Charlie, no one needs to get hurt. How about we both put our guns down and talk about everything. It’s you and Melissa who will make the decisions. Not us. How about it?”
“I’m making all the decisions. She’s mine and she’s coming with me.”
Melissa’s frightened gaze slid from one man to the next. Then, by chance, she saw Daisy peeping into the room. Daisy lifted a finger to her lips to warn the frightened girl not to let on that she’d seen her.
“Charlie, think about this. If you force her to go with you, every cop in the country’s going to come after you.” Troy took a small step forward, earning him a scowl from Charlie.
“Don’t get any closer,” warned Charlie. Her eyes were almost as round as Melissa’s. Although she was the one creating the hostile situation, she was just as scared as her victim.
“Look, if you turn Melissa loose, we promise we’ll sit down like rational adults. You and Melissa can decide what you want to do.”
Wade took a small step forward, too. “Listen to my brother. If Melissa really belongs to you, then you’ll be able to talk her into going with you. And if she decides to go on her own free will, then no one’s going to go to the cops. You two can live your lives in peace.”
“Do you think I’m buying this shit?” Charlie yanked backward, jerking Melissa along with her. Melissa let out a sob, then coughed as her assailant’s arm tightened around her neck.
“Come on, Charlie.” Paul lowered his gun a couple of inches. “We both put down our guns at the same time.”
