by Dances
With a quirky grin, Jada strolled out of her room and headed to the dining hall. She saw Larissa give her shirt a pointed look and just chuckled at her, giving her a wink that confirmed everything Larissa was thinking. She headed to the food table, where the breakfast dishes lay waiting for her to gorge on. Grabbing a plate, she took two potato scones, added the square Lorne sausage, some black pudding and scrambled eggs to her plate. She seated herself quickly and tucked into her meal. The richness of the blood sausage combined with the soft potato cake was a match made in heaven. She stuffed herself because she couldn't help it then returned to the table to grab a cup of tea and some of the more continental items that Martha added to the breakfast table. There were the traditional croissants and other pastries, but there was something for the yanks alone, the cinnamon rolls. Quickly placing two on to her plate, she returned heavy handed to her table to see that the three men were already seated and had plates of food in front of them. It gave her a warm sense of completion to see that they'd taken seats at her table and wanted to share their breakfast with her.
Sitting down, she smiled a greeting, took a sip of tea and ignored them after that, focusing all her attention on the fat, carb, and calorie laden rolls of heaven that she was about to eat. Taking a bite, she sighed deeply and groaned as the soft yet pungent cinnamon hit her tongue. She squirmed happily in her seat then looked up to see all three men watching her in amusement and ... lust. Their mouths were smiling but their eyes told the real story. She was secretly pleased but merely raised an eyebrow, as if to say, 'So what?'
Phelan, who was closest to her, leaned close and laved her left cheek with his tongue. "You had icing on your cheek," he commented when she looked at him oddly. Shaking her head, she took another bite as they, keeping an eye on her, discussed the events taking place at the festival. Apparently, the last two events were the Stone Put and the Scottish Hammer. Shrugging her shoulders, she took a sip of tea. "What's the Stone Put?" she asked.
Lucas gave her a soft smile. "It's a little like shot put but there are two games within this one event. The open stone is the first with a 17 pound stone, then the Braemar stone with a 25 pound stone. The first event is exactly like shot put, but with a stone. The second event, you have to stand behind a slat of wood, so no run up. More about strength and technique than speed," he said.
She nodded in understanding. "What about the other one? The hammer?" she asked.
This time, Caden replied. "Competitors have to throw a 'hammer', which is basically a metal ball attached to a rattan cane. After lifting it, you then have to whirl the hammer overhead, gain sufficient momentum to release it so it lands at a good distance. There are two different weights with this event, too, sixteen and twenty-two pounders."
"Are the winners announced today?"
"Aye."
"Who's on course to winning?"
"Each of us, lass," Phelan teased.
She rolled her eyes then focused once more on her breakfast, consuming the delicious buns with relish. "Do you still have my cagoule in the car?"
"Aye, we left it there yesterday for you."
She nodded in thanks and took a sip of her tea quickly when she noticed that the other people in the hall were starting to pack up and were obviously on their way to the games. The three men stood up and waited for her to finish, then escorted her to their car. It was rather amusing to be so surrounded by three walls of man-meat. They were like bodyguards protecting the queen on all sides. Smiling inside, she said nothing, just watched Phelan open the door to the Rolls for her. When she climbed in, Jada noticed that Lucas was beside her. "Why does Caden always drive?"
The man himself grunted. "Because it's my car!"
"Ah, soft spot, I see!" she teased, smiling at Phelan as he turned around to wink at her.
"Well it is!" he added defensively. "I'm not going to let these two amadan drive my car!"
She chuckled and tongue-in-cheek stirred the mud. "Are Lucas and Phelan bad drivers then?" Watching as Caden drove away from the castle gates, she noticed he didn't answer. She looked at Lucas. "Are you?"
"Nay, Caden has more experience though, used to race cars as a young lad. Can be a bit anal about his motors," Phelan said easily, ignoring the glare the driver tossed his way.
It was amazing how easy it was to converse with these three men, wonderfully refreshing and in a way, enlightening. She didn't have to talk to fill the silence, but she could joke and pass comments without being judged. What was also incredible was that she saw past the masks, somehow saw beneath them and in the strangest way, they'd become a part of them. Even when she saw them without a mask, because she had no doubt that there would be a time when she did, Jada knew that the masks would always be special. Because of them, she'd opened up for the first time in her life and for that, she was immensely grateful.
As with yesterday the drive passed quickly and in relative silence. They all jumped out of the car on arrival and Lucas retrieved her cagoule from somewhere, placed it around her shoulders and wrapped an arm around her waist, hugging her close to him. "Where're you sitting, Jada?"
"With Larissa." Over a foot taller than her lousy 5''4, he could see a lot more than she could, so walking forward with him wrapped around her, albeit unexpectedly, was an additional pleasure.
"Are you alright, gaol? After this morning …." He sounded so concerned that she reached for his hand and squeezed it.
"Of course I am, Lucas. Stop worrying, I feel fantastic!" He nodded once, but kept his hand tight about hers. That this immensely masculine man was worried about her made her heart pitter-patter in her chest. She pasted the knowledge into her brain, pasted the feeling of this man, who she cared about so much, reciprocating those feelings. With a happy sigh, she nestled against his side. "Aren't you cold?"
"Nay, used to it. Soon gets warm during the games anyway." On reaching Larissa, he left her with a kiss and another nod, this time in greeting to her friend. Plopping down on the ground beside her, she watched him walk away with a sigh. God, his butt was perfection on two legs!
"Stop drooling. Enjoy breakfast?"
"Which one? The potato scones and cinnamon rolls? Or the climax that pushed me into a dead faint?" she teased naughtily.
"You bitch! You fainted?" Larissa asked, astonishment evident in her voice.
"Yup," she sighed, "It was heaven."
"I'm jealous. I've never fainted!"
"Gonna make you more jealous, this is the second time," Jada retorted with glee. "I can't believe I've actually done something before you have!" She laughed heartily at the look of annoyance on Larissa's face-she hated to be beaten. "Do you think I should warn Alex that you're on the warpath? You want a fainting orgasm or no sex for a month?"
Larissa grinned and shook her head. "I'd cave in before he did! So that wouldn't work. What did he do? I'm assuming it's golden boy that just walked away?"
"Yup, I was sucking his cock. He told me to look at him and something happened. This weird charge flashed through my body and I climaxed, but it wouldn't go away, you know like it does? Just kept sort of bouncing around inside, gaining momentum until I passed out." She shrugged her shoulders complacently.
Larissa's narrowed brows told a different story. "What kind of charge?"
"I don't know." She hesitated. "As strange as it sounds, it was like it came from his eyes. They flashed when I looked at him, but I'm just being stupid. Probably looking into his eyes was the final straw for me. I was ready to hump his leg!" she joked. Noticing that the Stone Put was ready to start, Jada shifted attention from her friend to the event, so she didn't see the look of concern on Larissa's face. "Phelan says one of them is on course to win."
"Yeah." Larissa paused for a second then cleared her throat. "All hangs on the scores here."
Both women sat in silence as the first competitor stood and walked over to the stone he had to toss. Placing the stone against his neck, with his elbow crooked, he hopped on to one foot, leaving the other leg limp and rea
dy to jump on. Taking a leap back, he spun around three times and released the stone. The crowd clapped and cheered accordingly as each competitor threw their turn, a smaller cluster of people cheering harder for someone they obviously were close to. As her three men each tossed their stone, she clapped hard for them, wishing them luck, wanting them all to win. There was something so sexy about this competition, something so primitive about it that it was a turn on. Watching them in their kilts, different to the other men's here since they belonged to the same family, their bodies trained and strong, handling the events with aplomb and great ease, she felt a thrill go through her. Yes indeed, there was something sexy about the whole thing.
The Braemar event came up next. The same man stepped up for the first throw. This time, he walked up to the trig, or the starting block, and kicked his toe against it. Lifting his arms in the air, the right one holding the stone, he bent his arms then fit the stone to his neck, tweaking the position slightly by flexing his arms once more. Kicking his right leg out, he leapt upwards a little, pushed against the trig and flung the stone forwards into the air.
Jada could easily see the difference between the two sets within the one event. Although they were essentially the same event, the difference in technique was huge. One used speed, the other strength-both major components and measured more effectively in two separate games rather than the one.
Sighing as her men walked up to the trig, Jada couldn't help but think that there was no better way to spend a late morning than sitting with her best friend and admiring her men.
She was on edge as the games progressed and the competition for winner tighter. Lucas had just picked up the hammer. This was the heavier of the two and the fate of the winner all really balanced on this throw. If he could beat Phelan's throw, then he would beat Caden in the overall score. On the other hand, if Phelan could win this event, then he would beat Lucas and Caden. It was any of the three's game at the moment. He had to throw the hammer over two hundred and seventy two feet to win, which according to Larissa was a pretty impossible distance to reach. This was the third of his three throws.
She watched him dig the blades on his boots into the ground. She'd wondered what the hell the men were doing squirming about on the ground at first, looking like dogs wiping their butts on the ground for a moment or two! Then Larissa had informed her that because the momentum of the hammer could cause them to fall over, the competitors were allowed to wear blades in their shoes to keep them stationary. He was about ten inches away from the trig and with his back to the field when he picked up the hammer, swung it in front of him for a second, then rested it on the grass in front of the trig. Heaving it up in a similar swing to a golf club, just in the opposite direction, he swung it over his head, once, twice then released it with a loud grunt.
"It's going to be close. Looks like it almost measures up to Phelan's best throw," Larissa muttered.
The crowd watched as the attendants conferred and the commentator was given the slip of paper with the measurement on. "271.88 feet. Phelan O'Connell wins this event by just under a foot." Jada watched as Phelan grinned and walked over to Lucas, smacked him on the back, and gave him a bear hug. He did the same with Caden. She knew the moment he stopped focusing on the win and searched her out in the crowd. On seeing her, he moved away from his cousins and headed over to her. He didn't run, but his pace was fast and urgent, causing some of the other people to turn and stare at his strident walk. When he reached her, he hauled her to her feet and kissed her roughly. She could literally feel the triumph surging through his limbs, feel the ensuing lust as his hard cock pressed into her thigh. She responded to his kiss, unable to help herself. It felt like a long time since she'd last touched him, since she'd run her fingers through his hair, kissed his lips, touched his skin. She smiled against his mouth and whispered, "Congratulations, Phelan."
He grinned, pressed his cock harder against her and said, "I'll expect my winnings later."
She chuckled and shook her head, "I can't be a feminist around you, can I? Winnings?"
His grin turned sheepish, but his eyes sparkled and she knew that although he'd taken the hit, it wasn't going to stop him from thinking of her as bounty. "Nay, you can't. Be yourself, Jada. That's all I want."
Leaning on her toes, she kissed him on the lips once more. "Do you want some food? And not me!" she added when she saw the glint in his eye.
"Nay, I'll wait for my dinner." He grinned as he tapped her on the butt and she spun around to glare at him. "Did you wear that shirt to torment me, luaidh?"
"Well if it's working, then I'm glad I did," she retorted haughtily and plopped down beside Larissa once more. She sat in the Lotus position, but as Phelan sat beside her and dragged her on to his lap, Jada couldn't stop the blush that worked its way over her cheeks. "Phelan, what the hell are you doing? People are looking?" she hissed.
"Jada, what does it look like I'm doing? I want you to sit close to me. I've missed you, mo gradh," he said, nuzzling his face against her jaw. What was it with these men and nuzzling her? It didn't exactly piss her off, how could it? But there was something very odd about it. Whenever they did it, they were drawing comfort from her presence. It wasn't just an affectionate touch. There was deep meaning behind it. What was even stranger was that she'd started to do it herself!
She said nothing, just sat in his lap, ignored Larissa's raised brows and the question in her eyes, ignored the glares that were pointed at both Phelan and her from Caden and Lucas, just tried to act as though nothing unusual was happening. Easier said than done!
* * * *
Having been steered from field to car, car to castle, and now castle to bedroom by Phelan, Jada found that she was pretty sick of being driven like a damned car. Halfway down the corridor to her door, she spun around angrily. "What makes you think I'm so easy that you can just walk in and expect sex, huh?"
Totally taken aback by her attack, obviously thinking about what he wanted to happen within the next few hours, he stumbled slightly and looked at her in confusion. "I'm sorry, luaidh, pardon?"
"I said," she gritted her teeth, "What gives you the right to steer me about like I'm a damned puppet? In fact, go away! I may decide that I would like to share my bed with you later on, but that will happen later on and not now! Dammit Phelan, I'm not some easy tart, you know! I may be here at this damned party and wearing this damned mask, but it doesn't mean that you can just expect me to lay flat on my back because you want some ... some …." She paused, searching for the right phrase, she settled with, "Triumph sex!" Glaring at him, she stomped off and slammed her door shut.
Practically growling in anger, she stripped of her clothes, shivering a little as it had been pretty cold on the field and until Phelan, damn him, had sat her on his knee, she'd been freezing practically the entire time. That cold had now settled into her bones and she was determined to sink into the tub and forget about Phelan.
What a damned nerve! Talk about thinking she was easy! Hell, it didn't matter that she practically rolled over when they came through her door, it mattered that he thought he could just move her about like a doll so that she would do whatever he wanted!
Sinking into the now-filled bath, she practically vibrated with anger. Small waves rippled the surface of the water from her constant movement. They were treating her like a damned prize! He'd even had the nerve to call her his winnings! This was the twenty-first century, not the sixteenth! She was her own woman, not some damned trophy.
With a deep sigh, she tried to relax. Perhaps she was over-reacting, but it didn't feel as though she was. Telling herself to calm down and stop being silly, she lay back more fully in the bath and closed her eyes.
Ten minutes later they popped open when she heard someone in her room. Sitting up, she placed a hand to her breasts and covered herself downstairs with the other hand just in time for Phelan to walk in. Glaring at him, she removed her hands and lay back in the bath. "What the hell are you doing here?"
He sig
hed. "I'm sorry. You're right, luaidh. I was wrong to treat you so cavalierly. My only excuse is that I have longed to touch you again. However my cousins also needed you." He shrugged. "I can only apologize and hope you accept that."
"I may have overreacted slightly, Phelan, but the way you treated me, it was like I had no say in the matter. You were the boss, that's that. Jada's wants didn't matter."
"I'm sorry, lass. I never wanted you to feel that way. I never intended for you to feel that way." He sat down on the side of the tub. "I'd hoped that you would want me as much as I want you."
"I'm not saying I don't," Jada replied bluntly. "I just don't like being handled."
"Now, I know not to handle you, don't I?" he said positively.
"Want a bath?" she asked sourly.
"If you're in it, then aye."
She looked at him and thrust out her chin as if to say, 'You know damned well that's what I meant.' He quickly removed his kilt and shirt. She watched with hooded eyes as he stripped before her. It was surprising how similar they all were yet so different. She knew that they were three different people, but because of their frames and the masks, they all came together as one in her mind. She huddled up to give him space, already knowing that he would drag her into his lap for comfort this time. The bath was big but not big enough for two of them and one as big as he! Jada settled along his body, relaxed into his slippery hold and damned herself for feeling better in his arms. When said arms wrapped around her waist a few moments later and his cock began prodding her hip, she knew that quiet time had disappeared.
He was subtle, though. Jada would concede that. His hands drifted over her stomach, splashing the water gently against her breasts, which he'd cup, perhaps tweak the nipple here and there. His touch was undemanding, seemingly meaningless, touching for the sake of touching as it were, but she knew his intentions. Just as she knew other things about all three of them that she'd never known about any of her other boyfriends before, even after months of knowing each other and eventually living together!
