by Maya Banks
She smiled and patted his cheek. “Yes, you are. Come in. Your fathers will be thrilled to see you.”
She tucked her arm through his and herded him inside. His dads were sprawled in the living room, and the television was on. Adam punched the mute button on the remote and tossed it aside while Ethan and Ryan both stood.
“It’s about damn time,” Ryan said as he walked toward Seth, his arms outstretched.
Ryan hugged him and then scrubbed his hand over Seth’s head. “How are you, son? How’s the shoulder?”
“Good. I’m good. Should be back on the job soon.”
Ethan enfolded him next and caught him in a headlock. Seth laughed and allowed himself to be led over to the couch. Adam stood and locked arms with Seth before yanking him into a hug.
“Damn good to have you home,” Adam said gruffly.
Seth pulled back and frowned as he stared around the room. “Where’s Lily?” he demanded.
“Callie took her riding,” Adam said.
Seth’s mouth fell open. “Have you lost your minds? You let Lily go riding? Hell, she’s been shot!”
“Calm down,” Ryan said. “Callie’s not stupid. She put her on a good ride. Adam tended her arm.”
Seth grabbed the back of his neck and shook his head. “You all are crazy. Would you have let Mom on a horse right after she was shot?”
Ethan scowled. “Of course not.”
Holly rolled her eyes.
“Then is there any reason you let Lily go riding?”
“Relax,” Adam said. “I lifted her onto the horse. She’s got the gentlest mount we own, the one we reserve for kids when they come with their parents hunting. She can totally hold the reins one-handed and Callie’s horse will lead. They’re just going down to the meadow and back. Lily was so damn excited about the prospect of riding, I couldn’t tell her no.”
Seth sighed. “How did she take the family? Was she overwhelmed?”
Ethan chuckled. “A little nervous maybe, but not overwhelmed.” He paused for a moment and then looked up at Seth. “I like her, son. Ryan told us about her situation.”
“Yeah, it sucks. I don’t want her out there. I want her with me.”
Adam raised an eyebrow. “As does Michael, apparently.”
“And Dillon,” Seth murmured. “It’s so crazy I can’t even wrap my brain around it. I left Dillon and Michael in town because we were getting nowhere. I get so pissed off at them because they only just met her, so how the hell can they be so convinced? But then I have to remind myself that I only met her two days ago.”
His mom looked at him with worry in her eyes. “She means a lot to you already.”
“Yeah, she does.” He moved toward his mom and then sank onto the couch in front of her. “Tell me something, Mom. We’ve all heard the dads’ version over the years. We know they knew you were the one and that they took over, took charge, all that not very politically correct stuff men aren’t supposed to do. Did it scare you? Did you ever think about walking away? I’m scared to death of pushing Lily too hard, and yet I can’t let her just go back to her life without showing her what her life could be like with me—us.”
She sat beside him and wrapped her arm around his waist. “I don’t know that I was frightened. I never got the idea that your fathers would ever hurt me. Quite the opposite. I felt very safe with them. They made sure I felt safe. I was nervous and confused, though. I didn’t understand what they wanted from me, and when I did, I didn’t know how it could possibly work.”
“So how did you get through all that?”
“It came down to trust. And they simply asked me to give them and us a chance. It sounds so basic, but when put like that, what else could I say but yes? They weren’t making demands of me. They weren’t forcing me to make decisions I didn’t want to. They just wanted to take care of me and for me to give our relationship a chance. And so I did.”
“You do make it sound simple, like I’ve completely over-thought every aspect of this,” Seth said ruefully. “Maybe that’s all anyone can do is ask for a chance.”
“I just want you to be happy,” his mom said in her gentle, sweet voice. “I want all my children to be happy, no matter how it has to happen. I don’t doubt for a moment that the three of you could make Lily happy. But I want you to make sure you’ll be happy with this kind of arrangement.”
He leaned over and kissed her cheek. “I love you, Mom. And thanks. It helps to get your point of view.”
“Where are your brothers now?” Adam asked.
“Probably right behind me. Michael’s pissed. Dillon isn’t much better. Dinner ought to be interesting tonight.”
His mom rolled her eyes. “Like the three of you bickering and carrying on at the dinner table is anything new?”
“I was your good child,” Seth reminded her. “Michael and Dillon were the demon spawn.”
“We can’t even argue that point,” Ryan said wearily. “Those two. I hope to hell Lily knows what she’s getting into.”
“How long have they been out riding?” Seth asked. He tried not to be anxious, but he was eager to see her again and see for himself that she was all right.
“Walk with me out to the barn and we’ll wait on them,” Adam said. “I need to talk to you anyway.”
Seth followed his dad out to the back, and they leaned on the fence so they could see the path the girls would take back up from the meadow.
“Have you given any more thought to taking over Lacey’s term as sheriff?”
“Hell,” Seth muttered. “I haven’t thought about it at all. This thing with Lily happened so fast. I mean one day I was looking forward to next week, getting my psych evaluation done with and getting back to the job. The next thing I know, I’m bowled over by a woman who’s in the worst sort of circumstances, and worse, I don’t know anything about her. And yet, she’s mine. And if that’s not crazy, I don’t know what is. So no, I haven’t given any thought to Lacey’s job.”
“Well, it seems to me it might be a godsend and fell into your lap at just the right time.”
Seth’s brow furrowed as he stared back at his dad.
“Think about it. Dillon and Michael are here. They both have businesses here. You’re three hours away in Denver. How the hell is that going to work if you’re all trying to work things out with Lily?
“I know enough about your brothers to know they’re tenacious as hell. No way they’ll let Lily go back with you. They’ll want her here with them. Your only choice might be to compromise.”
Seth swore long and hard under his breath. “You’re right. I mean, I know you’re right. But sheriff? That’s always been Lacey’s job. I can’t even imagine her not there. She’s well liked and respected here. She’s got tough shoes to fill.”
“If anyone can, it would be you. The folks around here would need a familiar, friendly face. They get nervous when outsiders come in and take over the job of protecting their interests. You lived here all your life. You grew up with these people. They trust you.”
Seth settled his elbows on the wood railing and pondered his dad’s suggestion. Leave his job on the force? Even after being shot, he hadn’t considered leaving, even for a moment. It seemed cowardly to quit at the first sign of adversity and come home to take a sheriff’s job that for the most part never involved anything more serious than livestock disputes or the occasional disorderly conduct.
“Let me ask you something,” Adam said. “What would make you happy? Staying in Denver in your current job, or coming home where your family lives, where you’ve lived all your life?”
Put that way, it was pretty much a no-brainer. This was home no matter the years he’d spent away. This was his life. His family. The people he loved. And now Lily. He didn’t want her back in Denver. She could have a fresh start here. With him. With his brothers if she so chose.
“Think about it and go talk to Lacey tomorrow. She’s going to be pissed when she finds out you were in town and didn’t stop by to see he
r.”
Seth grinned. “Yeah, but she’ll forgive me.”
“Here they come now,” Adam said, gesturing toward the trail.
Callie appeared first, keeping her horse to a sedate pace while Lily bobbed into view a few moments later, a ridiculous smile plastered across her face.
It hit Seth right in the stomach, and for a minute he forgot to breathe.
“Now you know why I couldn’t tell her no,” Adam murmured. “She’s beautiful, son. But skittish as a newborn colt. You’re going to have to tread a very careful path with her.”
Seth nodded. “I know, Dad. Believe me, I know.”
Chapter Thirteen
When Lily and Callie hit the top of the trail that ended at the Colter barn, Lily saw both Adam and Seth standing by the fence waiting for them.
“Uh oh, you’re busted,” Callie muttered. “Seth looks like he swallowed a lemon.”
As they approached, Seth’s gaze found Lily, and his lips twisted into a slight frown. Her horse came to a halt behind Callie’s and Callie slid easily from the saddle. Seth walked up and put his hands on Lily’s waist.
“You ready?” he asked. “I don’t want to hurt you.”
She smiled and reached down for his shoulders as he gripped her hips. She landed in front of him, nearly swallowed by his much larger frame.
“Where the hell is your sling?” he demanded.
“I asked your dad to take it off,” she said. “I didn’t need it, and I wanted to be able to move my arm.”
Seth cupped her shoulders and stared intently down at her. “Honey, you were shot. You need the sling and you need not to be out riding horses. You should be inside on the couch.”
Her nose wrinkled and she squinted up at him. “It’s a cut. If I’d hurt myself on a tree branch, or maybe a piece of glass, you wouldn’t be freaking out over this minor a wound. But because it was a bullet, it’s more dramatic. The end result is the same. I’m fine. I don’t need a sling. It actually feels better when I can move it around.”
“Michael’s going to have a cow,” Seth muttered.
She smiled. “No, he’s not.”
Seth framed her face in his palms, his thumbs brushing over her cheekbones. She had the crazy idea that he was going to kiss her, right here, right now, with his sister and father looking on.
She realized she didn’t mind at all.
This time she kissed him back. His lips slid over hers, feather light, and then he came back, harder this time, his tongue probing at her mouth to open.
She sighed and allowed her lips to part. His taste flooded over her tongue just as his warmth seeped clear to her bones. He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her so close into his body that she felt absorbed by him.
One hand splayed over her back, holding her against him, while the other cupped the side of her neck and jaw as he tilted her head for better access.
Where before he’d given her soft kisses, almost teasing, or restrained even, now he possessed her mouth. There was no other word for it.
Chill bumps raced down her spine and back up again, spreading over her shoulders and down until her nipples tightened and pressed into his chest.
Desire was a thrill ride she hadn’t been on in a long time. She’d forgotten the joy in a single kiss or touch, how her skin reacted to the gentle coaxing of a man. How her breasts swelled and tightened, and how much she liked to be touched there.
Or how much she simply loved to be kissed. And held. Some comforts were never forgotten no matter how long they were denied.
“You taste so damn sweet,” Seth murmured against her lips. “I want you so much, Lily.” He pulled away and then rested his forehead against hers. He ran the tip of his finger over the line of her jaw and let it linger over her lips.
Forgotten was his father and his sister, though when she glanced sideways she saw they’d already taken the horses into the barn, leaving her and Seth alone.
She raised her gaze to meet Seth’s, her thoughts jumbled by the morning’s events.
“Seth, Dillon kissed me earlier. I don’t understand why. I mean, he’d only just met me. But I also kissed him. I don’t know what’s going on. I’m confused by…all of this. But I thought you should know, that you had the right to know.”
Seth pulled away, his eyes troubled. But she didn’t see anger. Or jealousy.
“Come walk with me, Lily. There are a few things we need to talk about.”
He put his arm around her and led her away from the barn down a stone path that led through a cluster of aspens. There was a bench in a small clearing, and he settled her onto it, but he remained standing, his body language tense and unsettled.
“You probably think we’re all crazy,” he said. “My family. My brothers. The way things are with my parents.”
She shook her head. “Not crazy. Just different. It’s obvious your fathers love your mother very much. It works for them.”
“I want it to work for us,” he said bluntly.
She stared back at him, sure she hadn’t understood. He ran a hand through his hair and blew out his breath.
“Something happened when I met you, Lily. Something powerful I’m at a loss to explain. All I can say is that I knew you were meant to be mine. The problem is, the same thing happened with Michael and then Dillon.”
She looked down, uncertain how to respond. What did anyone say in a situation like this?
“You felt it too, Lily. I watched you with my brothers. You responded to them like you responded to me.”
“I don’t know what to say,” she murmured.
He knelt in front of her and took her hands in his. “I’m going to ask you for the same two things my fathers asked my mother when they met her. Your trust and a chance.”
She met his gaze, her heart beating so hard, it made her lightheaded.
“There are things you don’t know.”
“And we’ll get to them. In your time,” he said softly. “I want you to be able to trust us, and more than that, I want a chance. Give us a chance to make it work.”
The past still had her firmly in its grip, but what if this was her chance to change her future? She couldn’t change what was done, but she could not spend the rest of her life paying for her mistakes over and over.
But what if when they knew the truth they no longer wanted her? It was natural that they’d want a family. They’d grown up in a large family. That was the one thing she couldn’t give them. Could they accept that?
And then it sank in. She was sitting here calmly considering a relationship with three men. Three men she barely knew. There were so many unanswered questions her head hurt.
“I know you’re overwhelmed,” Seth said. “Hell, who wouldn’t be? But this is where the trust and the chance come in, Lily. We have a lot to work out, and it won’t be easy. But we can do it.”
“Can we?”
He stroked the side of her head, the curls springing back after he flattened them.
“I’m falling in love with you, Lily. I feel stupid even saying it, but it doesn’t alter the inevitable.”
Her breath stuttered and hiccoughed until she thought she’d choke. Love? Even as she shook her head in mute denial, he was nodding, reaffirming his words.
His eyes were so serious. An intense blue that seemed to sear right into her soul.
How could he love her, or think he loved her?
“Oh God, Seth. You don’t know. You just don’t know.”
“Then tell me,” he said gently. “When you’re ready, I’ll listen, and we’ll face it together.”
“Something tells me that if I agreed to…try…that it would be taking the easy way out.”
“Easy?” He laughed. “I don’t expect any part of this to be easy. Easy would be walking away. Hard is going to be staying and making it work.”
Walk away. Could she do it? It was what she’d done before and it hadn’t been easy. But maybe it had been easier than facing her reality. She’d been a coward for too long.
Maybe it was time to grow a backbone and start living again. Maybe it wouldn’t be with these men, but how would she know if she didn’t try?
She frowned then, because Michael and Dillon had said nothing to her of this.
“Are you speaking for Michael and Dillon?” she asked hesitantly.
Seth rocked back and then rose. “No. I’m speaking for me. I can’t and won’t make their decisions for them. I didn’t pull this out of my ass if that’s what you’re asking. They’re aware of the way I feel. Michael…he was the first to bring this up. I’ll be honest, I fought it. I wanted you. I still want you. But it’ll be up to them to speak their minds and up to you to accept or reject what we’re offering.”
“Oh.”
He reached for her hand again and pulled her to her feet. “I’ve given you a lot to think about. I don’t want to overload you. For right now, I only want you to promise me you’ll stay. No more running. Let’s see where this takes us. Okay?”
She took a deep breath and curled her fingers tightly around his. Anticipation and fear curled within her chest and fluttered around in her stomach like a crazy amusement park ride.
Then she met his gaze and saw the hope reflected. And the same mirroring fear. She let out her breath in a long exhale and said, “Okay.”
Chapter Fourteen
Lily was a little dazed when she and Seth returned to the house. It hadn’t settled in. Yes, she’d told him she’d try it. But how innocuous did that sound? It was as if she’d told him she’d try some new dish. But what she’d agreed to was a relationship—a relationship—with three men.
Nervous laughter bubbled and fizzed in her throat like a shaken-up soda. She was out of her mind. She had no business entering a relationship with one man, much less three. And while she had at least gathered some idea of Seth and Michael, she knew nothing of Dillon. She’d spent all of half an hour in his presence. He’d kissed the daylights of her, but a kiss did not a relationship make.
She shook her head as she and Seth entered the kitchen through the back door. She hadn’t agreed to a relationship. She’d agreed to give them a chance, and she’d agreed not to leave.
