by Marie Tuhart
How long they stood there, he didn’t know and didn’t care. This was for Katie, for Jed and for himself.
When they broke apart, Ry saw her cell on the side table. He picked it up and flipped it off. “What happened?”
“I think we better sit down. This might take some time.” Katie blew out a breath.
Ry called in and let them know that everything was good, and he was going to take a very early lunch.
“Please, sit on the sofa,” Katie said, heading for the nearby chair.
“With us,” Jed said, taking her hand and guiding her to the sofa between them. Once she was seated, “Thank you for calling me.”
So that’s how Jed had gotten here so quickly.
“And me.” Ry took her left hand and squeezed.
“I was a little short with you, Jed.”
Jed chuckled. “Short but I liked hearing the words ‘Need you, now’ from those lips.” He glanced up at Ry. “How did she call you?”
“I dialed his number on my cell and left it open on the table.”
“Which means I heard part of the conversation,” Ry said. He still wanted to go after that man and beat the crap out of him, but he’d wait.
“Who was the guy?” Jed asked.
“Walter, my ex-boyfriend from New York.”
“And he’s here because?” Ry asked. His throat closed up at the thought of Katie leaving them again.
“Because he and my father cannot accept reality. I’m not going back to New York.”
When she said the words, the constriction in Ry’s chest loosened.
“Do you want to tell us why he thinks you would?” Jed asked.
“Because he thinks he’s God’s gift to women.”
Laughter filled the room, and Katie’s hand relaxed in his.
“I know my father isn’t anyone’s favorite topic, but I think it’s time you understood why I did what I did when I was eighteen.”
“I know we’ve discussed it a little bit, you said we didn’t really scare you off,” Jed said.
“I was scared, yes, but not of the two of you. Maybe of the lifestyle you led, but never of you as men.” She squeezed each of their hands. “I was chasing a dream, the one where my father actually thought I amounted to something.”
Ry stiffened, and Jed’s fingers tightened around hers. “Katie,” Ry started.
“Let me get this out, Ry, please.” She stared at him until he nodded.
Katie wanted to get this story out. Having Walter show up on her doorstep had her determined not to lose the two men she loved. Calling them had been an automatic response.
“Randall approached me a few days before my eighteenth birthday. He offered me a job in New York and everything. I thought maybe he was ready to be a father to me.” She pushed back the disappointment. “He came back the day after my eighteenth birthday with Peggy Morris in tow.”
Both men swore, and Katie gave a sad smile.
“I told you about what she had said. My father pushed me into making a decision right then and there. He gave an ultimatum—either I go with him, or I become a play toy for the two of you.” She let out a sigh. “But he never really cared about me as a person, only what he thought he could get from me.”
“And what did he want?” Jed asked.
“Someone who could take suspicion away from him and Walter.” She gave her head a shake. “I guess I wasn’t really paying attention. I missed Felton’s Creek, and I missed both of you. Even if I didn’t realize it at the time.”
“Did he hurt you?” Ry’s voice was low, and she squeezed his hand.
“No. He never touched me.”
“There are other ways to hurt, Kitty Kat,” Jed said.
“I know.” She gave him a little smile. Her fear of not being enough of a woman for the two of them was fading. “Anyway, Walter and I went out, but I knew he wasn’t right for me. I liked him, and I felt safe with him. But my father kept inviting Walter to events he insisted I be at. Things like that.” Looking back now, she realized she hadn’t put up much of a fight, either, and that had been her mistake. “After a while, I just didn’t care enough to argue with Walter or my father. About a year before I decided to come home, I started to notice things.”
“Like what?” Ry asked.
“Discrepancies in some of the accounts I managed. Small but they were still there. I talked with my boss, who talked to his boss, and I was told they were aware of them and not to worry about them.”
“But that wasn’t the end of it,” Jed said.
“Nope. They kept getting bigger and bolder, so I did some back tracking on my own.”
“That was dangerous.” Ry lifted her hand and kissed her knuckles.
“I didn’t think about it, I was just doing the job I was hired for. When I found out what was going on and who it traced back to, I knew what I had to do.” She took a deep breath. “I knew it was time to come home.”
“What did you do, Kitty Kat?”
“I had planned on confronting my father and Walter about my findings, but...” Her anger at her father and Walter returned as she remembered the night she confronted them. Anger, disappointment and the fear of her own wants and needs had clashed that last night in New York. “God, sometimes I wish I could forget certain things.”
The guys’ reactions were instantaneous. Their hands left hers, and they put their arms around her shoulders and on her waist, giving her as much comfort and support as they could with the way they were sitting.
“I’d gone to my father’s apartment. I had a key and let myself in.” She could still hear the odd noises coming from the back of the apartment. “At first I thought there was no one home until I heard a cry from the back bedroom. I followed the noise and found my father and Walter.”
“Oh, hell, they were fucking each other,” Ry said.
“If only,” she whispered. “They had a prostitute, and they were whipping her.”
Both men stiffened, and Katie tilted her head back.
“Not like you two, nothing like you do. This wasn’t for her pleasure but theirs. I could tell the difference from being at the clubs.”
“What did you do?” Jed asked.
“I screamed, and I scared the shit out of everyone. I marched up to the poor woman, helped her out of the X frame they had her tied to, and took her into the bathroom.” She remembered the poor woman flinching as she cleaned her up. “She had several cuts on her back from the whip. Her name was Judy. I talked with her as I cleaned her up and bandaged her wounds. I found out she had been a student but had fallen in with the wrong crowd and was now beholden to some pimp.”
Her anger rose as she remembered Judy’s story. No one had been around to protect her as a child and she had been so lost and confused. She was only two years younger than Katie.
“I left her in the bathroom with some of my old sweats and a T-shirt, told her to dress, and not to worry. Then I went out and faced my father and Walter.”
“That could not have been fun,” Ry said.
“Hell, those two deserved each other. My father was furious, but Walter just looked guilty. I told my father I was taking Judy with me when I left. I also yelled at him about being a hypocrite, and I quit. Then I marched back and got Judy, and we left.”
“And they just let you?”
“I think they were both in shock. My father because I actually told him off, and Walter from guilt.”
“What did you do with Judy?” Jed asked.
“We went to my apartment. I called Dr. Pam, and she came over. After a few hours, she had a place for Judy to stay where she’d be safe. Pam started counseling Judy the next day.”
“What about you?” Ry asked.
“Me? I packed up my apartment, arranged for my stuff to be shipped here, got in my car, and came home.” She kissed Ry’s jaw and then Jed’s. “It was time. I was tired of New York, of my father and Walter, but I also missed Gran.” The fluttering in her stomach encouraged her to continue. “And I missed
both of you. I missed your voices, your strength and your attention.”
The room went silent, and Katie peeked at the men from beneath her lashes. The surprise and love on their faces caused the last of the tension to drain out of her body.
“What you saw didn’t color your views of us and our lifestyle?” Jed asked.
“No. There was nothing safe and sane about what my father and Walter were doing. What we do is safe, sane, and consensual.”
“We wouldn’t have it any other way,” Ry said.
“New York was just a place to live, and I missed home. Felton’s Creek was home. Gran is home. You are both home. I let my father convince me what I would have with you was nothing but violence and shame. But he was the one with the violence and shame issues, not me.” She snuggled closer to the men. “He made me doubt my feelings for both of you and doubt myself as a woman. But you’ve shown me real love. I will never doubt us or what we have together. I don’t.”
“Never,” both men whispered.
****
Saturday morning the sun was shining and not a cloud in the sky. Ry finished setting up the sheriff’s office booth then went to help Jed unload the horses from the trailer. This weekend was the annual Felton’s Creek Celebration.
There was everything from booths selling homemade crafts and foods, to Jed with pony rides for the kids, to small carnival rides. It was just a chance for the entire town to be out and celebrating.
Katie was going to be helping Miss Mazie at her tea booth, and then later, the three of them would find a spot on the grass to watch the fireworks. After what she told them the other night about her father and Walter whipping the young lady, Ry was still amazed how she reacted to him and Jed.
Her father and Walter only wanted to cause pain and degradation, whereas Ry and Jed wanted to give her pleasure, taking her to the next level of satisfaction and sexual release. Her submission was a gift one he would honor for the rest of his life.
“Hey, Jed, I’ve been thinking,” Ry said as he helped with the horses.
“That’s dangerous.”
“Watch yourself, sub.” Ry grinned, and Jed just laughed. “How do you feel about making us permanent with Katie?”
Jed stopped in his tracks and stared at Ry. “Are you serious?”
Ry nodded. He’d been toying with the idea in his head for a while, and after she told them about her father and ex, he wanted nothing more than to find a way to keep her in their lives. “It’s time. We’re not getting any younger.”
“How do you think we should handle this?” Jed moved the horse into the temporary stable.
“We have to ask her first?”
“I know that.” Jed shut the stall door and leaned against it. “Who does Katie marry?”
“I’ve been thinking about that, and I’m hoping you’ll agree. But there’s another issue.”
“And that is?”
Ry frowned. Usually Jed was the one to jump into things without thinking. “We’ll be coming out to the whole town.”
“Our parents never hid their relationship with each other.”
“No they didn’t.” Ry fondly remembered going out with his family and being proud of having two dads, and a special mother who kept him and Jed in line.
“You’re parents were married,” Jed said, leading the last horse into the temporary stabling. “But my dad never married your mom nor did he collar her.”
He rubbed the back of his neck. What he was suggesting wasn’t necessarily welcomed in most places. Alternative lifestyle was the current politically correct term. “True, but are you telling me you’d be willing to play a third without being committed to Katie and me?”
“I am committed.” Jed marched over to him. “But legally, only one of us can marry her.”
“True. Tell me how you feel about this.” Ry was putting a lot on the line here, but he wasn’t willing to lose Katie or Jed. He’d compromise if needed. “I’d like to marry Katie. If she agrees, we can legally have her name changed to both of our last names.”
Ry studied Jed’s face, his nerves stretched taut when Jed didn’t respond. But his features were bland, containing no anger or fear. Maybe he was receptive to this.
“And then we can have a collaring ceremony with her,” Ry continued. “We can both collar her, and the three of us wear rings.”
Jed’s eyes widened, and Ry blew out a breath.
A grin broke out over Jed’s face. “We need to tread carefully with Katie on this. But I like it.”
“I agree, but I love her, and it’s time.”
“Agreed. I love her and you, you big lug.” Jed pulled him into a hug, and Ry returned it.
“I love you too, sub. So let me tell you what I found in Monroe. Actually, we can run to Monroe right now and pick it up and be back before the celebration starts.”
“Let’s go.”
****
“Enjoy your tea,” Katie said as she handed the bag over to the older woman.
“Oh, I will.”
Katie put the money in the register and sighed. It had been busy most of the day at Gran’s booth. The Felton’s Creek Celebration always brought a lot of people in. While she had dinner each night this week with Ry and Jed, she’d only seen them in passing today.
Jed had a small ring set up for pony rides, and Ry would roam around, looking absolutely delicious in his uniform.
“Why don’t you take a break?” Gran asked.
“Are you sure?”
“Yeah, go.” She patted Katie on the shoulder. “Go find your men.”
Katie grinned and kissed Gran’s cheek before leaving the booth. Gran was such a wonderful woman.
She was halfway to the riding ring when little Tommy Miller ran into her, his blond hair sticking out and his shirt dusty.
“Oops, sorry, Miss Katie.”
“It’s okay.” After helping Tommy gain his footing, she straightened to see her father and Walter standing in front of her. Her stomach dropped. She’d hoped they left town. “What do you want?”
“We need to talk,” her father said.
Tommy wrapped himself around her legs. Katie knelt down. “Tommy, go to the riding ring right now,” she whispered in the boy’s ear. “Let Jed know I sent you. Nowhere else, understand?”
Tommy nodded, let go of her legs, and took off running. She could only hope he’d tell Jed what he saw.
Chapter Thirteen
“Sheriff, sheriff.”
Ry turned from the horse ring at the sound of the young voice. Tommy Miller came running up to him out of breath. “Easy, Tommy.” He knelt down and took the small boy by the shoulders. “Where’s the fire?” It was a question he always asked when kids were like this.
“Miss Katie,” he panted. “There are two scary men with her.”
Ry jerked his head up, trying to see to Miss Mazie’s booth but he couldn’t. “Good job, Tommy.” He stood. “Jed, we’ve got a problem.”
Jed hopped the fence and marched over to him. “What’s up?”
“Katie’s in trouble.” He looked down at Tommy. “Where was she, Tommy?”
“Over there,” he waved his hand in the direction of the tea booth.
“Thanks, buddy.” Ry smiled.
“Go get your ride.” Jed turned Tommy toward the ring and gave him a pat on the head.
Together they sprinted in the direction Tommy had waved. It didn’t take a genius to guess that her father and the ex were here and harassing Katie. Well, it was time to show them a united front. It didn’t take them long to find her. Katie was standing with her feet apart, her hands on her hips as she gave the two men standing in front of her hell.
“What’s going on, sweetheart?” Ry asked as he and Jed encircled her. His arm went around her waist, and Jed’s went right above his. Ry brushed his lips against her right temple.
Jed did the same on her left. “Okay, Kitty Kat?”
“Better,” she whispered, melting into their embrace.
The older
man in front of Katie made a noise, and Ry looked him over. Lines creased the man’s forehead, his hair gray and his lips pinched. He must be Katie’s father. The man standing next to him was younger, and his expression of distaste made Ry want to laugh. He had to be the ex.
“I told you to leave,” Katie said, steel running through her voice.
Ry was proud of her. She wasn’t going to take any crap from these two.
“Not until you agree to come back to New York.”
Ry squeezed Katie’s waist, and Jed did the same.
“I’ve already told you, Father. I’m not coming back.”
“Maybe this will change your mind.” Ry didn’t like the gleam that came into her father’s eyes. The man was up to something. “You come back to New York, and I won’t expose these two to the entire town.”
Ry started to remove his arm from Katie’s waist, when she wrapped hers around his waist, tightening it to let him know she supported him.
Katie lifted her chin and stared at her father. “First off, I don’t know what you’re talking about. I’m happy, and I don’t plan on leaving Felton’s Creek.”
“How the hell can you be happy in this little hick town?” the younger man asked.
Katie took a sharp breath. “It’s not a hick town, and you stay out of this, Walter.”
“It comes down to choices, Katherine. Either come back to New York with Walter and me or I expose these two to the entire town.”
“Expose what?” She shook her head.
“How about I tell everyone here how these two have been with my daughter, together, and doing unspeakable things to her, against her will?”
Ry and Jed took a step forward, and Katie latched onto their belts. Ry glanced down at her, but she was staring at the two men. Her grip on their belts didn’t ease up.
The carnival music, ringing bells, and the voices from the celebration were more prominent at Katie’s silence. Damn. He was the one who told her they didn’t flaunt their relationship in front of the town. But he wasn’t going to keep it a secret, either. It was time to take a stand.
