by Cara Adams
The three men stood beside the bed. They all looked much more tired than she felt now, and she was embarrassed because they hadn’t had any sleep at all yet were still looking after her.
“Mrs. Davey thought you might be hungry,” said Naftali.
“I am.” She wiggled into a sitting position, and Nahum laid the tray over her lap.
She took a huge bite and then remembered her manners. “Did she make food for you as well?” Her voice was rather muffled from the food, but they seemed to understand her.
“Yes, thank you. A couple of hours ago, after the carpenter and glazier finished work. She fed them as well,” said Nelson.
Naftali added, “The Alpha sent a fresh group of panthers to guard this property and the brownstone, but Lutterworth and the kids are all still under lock and key, so there shouldn’t be any danger. The kids’ attorneys have been working feverishly to release the teenagers on bail, but Zebulun has some powerful friends who’ve implied they might be linked to a case being dealt with by Homeland Security, so the boys aren’t going anywhere for a while yet.”
“What time is it? What’s happening now?” she asked, remembering her manners and swallowing her mouthful before speaking. Although the aroma of the burger was so delicious, and she was so hungry she took another bite the moment she’d finished speaking.
“It’s one o’clock. As soon as the fresh panthers arrived to guard the farm, Jake and Sam went with Mr. Davey to the ER to have his ribs X-rayed. One has a hairline crack, and two others are badly bruised. They’ve strapped his chest up again and given him some pain medication, but the ribs will heal themselves in a few weeks,” said Nahum.
“Although he might feel uncomfortable moving around for a little while,” added Nelson.
“I don’t understand what’s driving my father. He’s always been self-centered and loved money, but why is he doing this?” Judith was sad and confused. She knew she sounded like a whiny baby, but she genuinely didn’t understand. Her father had never been violent. Even when he was angry, he was far more likely to stomp off and yell and sulk if he didn’t get his own way than to smash doors and windows and people’s ribs.
Naftali sat on the bed beside her and wrapped his arms around her. It felt so good to be hugged and cared for that some of the tension dropped away from her.
Judi shut her eyes and rested back, absorbing Naftali’s calm strength into her own body. She’d deal with this just as she’d dealt with living in the snow for six months.
She sighed and straightened up, taking another bite of her breakfast. Or lunch. Or whatever it was.
Nelson spoke slowly and carefully, and Judi looked at him, aware he was trying to explain something without hurting her feelings but still tell her the truth.
“You said it yourself. Your father has always enjoyed having money and spending it. He likes his new cars and fancy clothing and other expensive toys. As his own business dried up, he found other ways of accessing money. My suspicion is that he’s gotten himself involved with some people who are engaged in seriously illegal activities. As you said, his crimes aren’t evil. His stealing offered pain and hurt and the breaking of trust to people who invited him into their homes, though, and those people are now going to be perfectly happy to stand against him if he asks for their help to get out of the mess he’s gotten himself into.”
“That’s why there are various agencies interested in interviewing him,” added Nahum.
“Agencies that can send helicopters here on a moment’s notice. Yes, I wondered about that. Mom and I know people with private helicopters, but usually the pilot is off somewhere doing something, not standing ready to fly off with no warning,” Judith said, chewing slowly.
Okay. She could deal with that. He was her father, and she’d loved him once, but she didn’t love him now. Hadn’t loved him since he’d arranged to have her killed. Not that she wished harm on him, but a few years sitting in jail might help him get his head on straight and find a better way of living when he got out.
“What are we doing now?” she asked.
“Your mom is in a hurry to check the brownstone to ensure nothing has been stolen from there. Her attorney will be meeting us all at the house. As soon as you’ve finished your lunch, we need to leave,” said Naftali.
Judith sighed and swallowed. Another few hours’ sleep would have been nice. And then maybe more sex. Judith wigged her ass on the bed. It was a little bit tender but not enough to prevent her playing any games these men suggested. Well, it looked as though that wasn’t going to happen. Then she thought. “Oh, fuck. Dad hasn’t sent some of his kids to trash the brownstone, has he?”
“Not while the Alpha has had people watching it,” Nelson said carefully.
Yeah. Right. But what about the rest of the time?
* * * *
They were all still quite tired, and Cherise and Judith napped most of the way back into town. Naftali would have been more than happy to snooze as well, but he was determined to protect his woman and her mother, even though there shouldn’t have been any danger to them now that Lutterworth and his gang of adolescents were all locked up.
But he refused to relax his vigilance. Nelson was driving with Nahum riding shotgun and Naftali in the back seat with the women. His thigh was pressed against Judi’s, but she was asleep, her head resting back against the seat and her mom leaning against her. Touching Judith, even in the most deferential of ways, would have been almost obscene right now, with her mom there. Naftali noticed the similarities between the women—their fine-boned bodies pressed together, their heads the same delicate shape, although Cherise’s hair was light brown compared to Judith’s blonde.
Elsie and JJ, Judith’s half siblings, were also blond. Although Lutterworth’s hair was a gray now, Naftali supposed he must have originally been blond. And Judith had his eyes. Unusual eyes, blue with darker flecks in them. Closed now, of course, as she rested.
Naftali made himself stop looking at her and thinking about her and turned his head to check out the windows of the car. Both sides, in front and behind them. But there was no sign of any trouble at all, and his mind wandered again to the thought of mating with her. Just thinking about biting and claiming Judith made his fangs appear, and once again, he ordered himself to concentrate on his work. Nonetheless, the issue of their mating was a conversation they needed to have and soon. Although not with her mom right there, of course. In bed, just before the three of them fucked her would be much more appropriate.
Naftali’s dick stretched and thickened at the thought. He wanted Judith again. So much that he had to surreptitiously ease his cock and balls inside his jeans. No matter how much he tried to work, he couldn’t stop thinking about her. She was theirs. His and his brothers, and it was time to explain all that to her. The past few days had been one crisis after the other, but they’d waited six months for her, and that was quite long enough.
By the time the car stopped in front of the brownstone in Richmond, the women were awake. Naftali could tell how nervous Cherise was about going inside.
“You don’t think your ex-husband will have set any traps for you inside, do you, Cherise?” he asked.
She shook her head. “Oh no. It’s just I can’t help wondering if he’s taken anything I particularly liked. I’m so glad Judi noticed the Monet at the farm. I didn’t even glance at it. I simply saw the painting hung in the correct place and didn’t examine it properly. However, I’ll be inspecting everything here very carefully. You can be sure of that.”
“I know where his hiding place is here, too,” said Judi.
Nahum snorted, and Nelson coughed. Naftali hid his own grin. Several of the panthers had been inside this house. They’d found a few of Lutterworth’s hiding places as well. But still he asked, “Where’s that?”
“Yes, where?” asked Cherise.
“He’s got one of those wheeled luggage bag things for his bowling balls. He puts smaller things in the inner pockets of it.”
“W
ouldn’t he have taken that with him when he left?” asked Naftali. They’d been separated for a long time. Not quite long enough for the divorce to be final, but getting toward that time.
“I only rented him a small apartment and sent his clothing and personal possessions, not anything else. I’ll get all his stuff moved out in the next few days. I’ll rent a storage locker for him if I have to, if he won’t accept delivery of his property,” said Cherise.
“Since he’s likely to be in jail for several years, that could be the wisest thing to do,” said Nahum.
“What about bigger things like a painting? Where did he hide them?” asked Nelson.
“I don’t know. If something is missing, we’ll just have to look,” said Judith.
Just then a sleek Porsche pulled up behind them. Naftali guessed that would be Cherise’s attorney. As soon as a debonair, silver-haired man in very expensive-looking navy blue suit stepped out of the Porsche, Cherise opened her door as well. Nahum jumped out to help her out of the car, and Naftali did the same thing, wanting to be right there to protect both women.
Nelson locked the car and followed them to the stoop.
Cherise handed her keys to the attorney, who unlocked the door and ceremonially bowed to the women. Naftali wasn’t happy about that.
“Let me go first, just in case,” he said, pushing past them all and scanning the entry hallway.
Nelson said, “I’ve been told the building is safe.”
That meant whichever panther was on duty had texted him. But it wasn’t a gold-plated guarantee, and Naftali needed to be here, needed to be watching out for Judith, needed to be sniffing the air and pacing around looking for any sign of trouble. Fortunately, all appeared to be untouched.
The attorney turned to him and said, “Gavin Argylle.”
“Pleased to meet you. I’m Naftali Meyer, part of the security detail for the Lutterworth women. These are my brothers, Nahum and Nelson.”
“I’m very glad you’re all here. I feel much safer knowing we have trained professionals with us. Now, let’s get started, shall we?” Argylle took out his cell phone and a tiny pen and said, “The living room first.”
For the next hour, Naftali, Nahum, and Nelson trailed around after the women checking every painting, piece of furniture, and ornament in the house. Naftali was bored to death long before they reached the second floor. The best part was when they finally arrived at the attic and he saw Judith’s domain. It had a number of similarities to her apartment at the farm, but this building had dormer windows, and she’d fitted them with benches and soft cushions so she could sit there in the sunshine and look out. She also had a wall of bookshelves blocking the entry so no one could see in from the doorway.
One day he’d ask her about that. Why had she done it in both places? Had someone once seen her half undressed and embarrassed her? It was a gap in his knowledge of his woman, and he had to have the answer. He wanted to learn everything about her over the coming weeks and months.
Meanwhile, the attorney left, satisfied that nothing had been stolen or replaced with copies, and Cherise said, “I’m going to bed. Don’t bother to wake me for supper. I’ll send for takeout when I’m ready.” She hugged Judi, gave them all a tiny wave, and headed back upstairs.
Naftali looked at his brothers and received two nods in return.
“Judith, would you like to go out for dinner?”
Judi waited until her mother had disappeared and then smiled at them. “Yes, I would. To a dungeon.”
Naftali’s dick hardened so fast that he was almost left gasping. Dammit, he couldn’t think of anything he wanted more than that right now.
* * * *
Nahum wished he’d brought nice clothes with him to change into so he could dress up appropriately to take his woman out somewhere special for a meal before they look her to the dungeon. Nelson was already on his cell phone, likely booking them a table. He wondered if they could take Judith to the panther warehouse and their apartment to get changed but decided that wasn’t really appropriate. But maybe if she stayed in her jeans, it wouldn’t look so bad. The BDSM club had a dress code, but it certainly didn’t prohibit jeans.
Nelson said, “I’ve booked us a table and a dungeon at the BDSM club. We can go there any time in the next hour or so. I thought maybe we should eat and talk first and then play and fuck.”
Nahum thought he was unwise using the f word when Judith’s mom might still be listening in, but he had no problem at all with the plan for the evening’s entertainment.
But Judith was smiling and Naftali said, “Let’s go then.”
“Shouldn’t I change into a dress?”
Nahum’s breath hitched, and he licked his lips at the thought, but he shook his head. “I like the idea of you sitting between us with a slinky dress on and no panties so we can touch and tease you throughout the meal, but we don’t have any good clothes with us. Our luggage is still at the farm. If we’re all in jeans, it looks more appropriate.”
Naftali shook his head. “She can wear a dress. I like the idea of our Judith in no underwear. As long as the three of us are wearing jeans, we shouldn’t be embarrassed.”
Judith whirled around and raced for the stairs. “I’ll be back in ten minutes.”
Nahum doubted that. He didn’t think any woman could put on a pretty dress that fast. But being alone with his brothers was also good. He opened his mouth to mention about mating their woman, but Naftali spoke before he could begin.
“Over dinner we tell Judith about mating and ask her to mate us.”
Naftali said it as a statement, not a suggestion, but Nahum didn’t have any problem with that. It was what he wanted above everything else. He loved her so much that not being with her forever wasn’t a thought he was willing to consider.
Faster than he would have believed possible, he heard steps on the stairs, and Judith appeared. She was wearing the slinkiest of dresses. It was red and made of some fabric that clung to her skin from breasts to hips. It had a plunging neckline that exposed the tops of her breasts and left her shoulders bare, showing off her creamy flesh, and a hemline that ended several inches above her knees. And on her feet were matching red shoes with a strap around her ankle and heels so high he would never have been able to walk in them.
He was pretty sure he was standing there with his mouth open in shock when Naftali began clapping, and Nelson joined in. Nahum swallowed and said, “You’re beautiful, Judi. You look amazing.”
Naftali bowed. “We’re honored to have you join us for the evening.”
Judi grinned widely in return. “I’m looking forward to it.
Nahum opened the door and then unlocked the car for her. He wished he was sitting in the backseat, able to touch her bare flesh, but it was his turn to drive, and anyway, he knew his brothers wouldn’t act without him.
He heard Nelson calling the panthers on duty to ensure they’d keep watch over Cherise while they were gone.
The BDSM club was in the entertainment district, near the river, but the brownstone was situated in a nice neighborhood, not too far from the heart of the town, so it was only a matter of twenty minutes before he pulled into the underground parking lot.
Nelson had booked them a booth on the upper mezzanine level of the restaurant. They would still have an adequate view of the stage when the live show began later, but what they had an abundance of was privacy to speak to and touch their woman during the meal.
The server brought them a carafe of water and four glasses, as well as the menus. Nahum didn’t care what he ate. Mrs. Davey was a good cook, although he’d eaten that burger quite a few hours ago now, so he ordered salmon fettuccine with Parmesan cream and lime sauce. Mostly he was interested in what Judith would choose. She took her time reading the various items, and he hoped she wouldn’t just choose some dieter’s salad. He wanted to know the things she truly enjoyed. Not the sort of food a woman chose to be socially acceptable and fit a narrow image drawn up by idiots who didn’t
appreciate real women with genuine curves.
Nahum shook his head as both his brothers ordered steak and French fries but then smiled again when Judith chose the amatriciana, rigatoni pasta with tomatoes, prosciutto, and chilies.
“That’s a good choice. The salty prosciutto is offset by the spicy tomatoes and chili,” said the server.
“I like to try different things sometimes,” replied Judi.
Nahum wondered if she considered sex with the three of them as trying something different as well.
They grouped themselves around her, and Naftali spoke softly, although the high backs of the booth acted as soundproofing and privacy shields. “You know about panther matings, don’t you, Judith?”
Nahum was watching her closely, and she didn’t appear to be surprised or worried by the conversational topic.
“I’ve talked a little with Elsie. We kept in touch over winter, even though we were apart. It’s weird to have found out I have a half-sister years older than me, and a younger brother as well. I don’t know what our father was thinking of leaving Elsie’s mom, living with my mom, leaving my mom, going back to Elsie’s mom, and then returning to my mom again. It’s all too crazy for logic.”
“Tell us what you know about panther matings?” asked Nahum, not wanting to get involved with Lutterworth’s inability to choose a partner between two perfectly lovely women.
“You fuck, you bite, and there’s no changing your mind,” said Judith.
Nahum thought she’d summed it up very succinctly indeed.
All three of them reached for her hands together, their six hands cupping and holding her two between them all. “This is how your life would be. All of us with you, loving, cherishing, and protecting you forever,” said Nelson.
“When we mate, we fuck you bareback. The sex will be even better than before when you feel our naked dicks fucking you deep and hard, filling you, stretching you, possessing you,” said Naftali very softly. Naftali spoke right beside her ear, but Nahum’s panther hearing was sharper than human hearing, and he had no trouble distinguishing the words.
