Hearing the door ring, Cannon knew Ryder had entered the shop behind him.
* * * *
Amber saw Ryder Conti come through the door behind Cannon wearing a similar-looking jacket and a darker set of jeans, his black cowboy hat sitting perfectly on his handsome head. She gave a sigh, knowing it was time to get their coffee and shove them out the door. Why did they have to be so tenacious? It was maddening.
She had a list a mile long for why it wouldn’t work out. They were way out of her league, for one. Just looking at them made her feel unworthy. She was passably pretty from the waist up, but once people saw her limp, they knew she was damaged.
Both were over six feet tall, with Ryder being the taller of the two. Both still had their physiques from the Army and from working every day on their ranch. Ryder maintained his military haircut, accentuating what must be his Italian heritage. He had jet-black, silky hair with eyes that reminded her of the coffee she drank every day, and chiseled facial features that commanded obedience. Cannon was broader in the chest, with brown hair that was a little shaggy from letting his hair grow out, his face rounder with a scar on his upper lip that only made them look more kissable. He also had translucent green eyes that sometimes held a bit of pity that she couldn’t take.
Which brought her to reason two. Who wanted a cripple? She didn’t need pity. She was successful in every way that counted. She owned her own business, was financially secure, and reasonably content… alone. Four things she could live with.
Reason number three? Amber knew only too well what happened when you let people get close. Amber had lost enough people in her life to know that she was done with death. She couldn’t handle any more, and one would think the town would understand where she was coming from. But no, they had to keep pushing. How could a woman survive without a man, they asked. Easily, but did they listen to her? Of course not. Especially Earl and Lou, who seemed to have adopted her in their own way. They certainly had selective hearing when they wanted to.
Turning to get their coffee, Amber gritted her teeth when another spasm stole over her thigh muscle. Two steps. Make it two steps to the counter and don’t fall in front of them. Before she could reach the wooden surface, Amber felt solid arms lift her up and place her on one of the counter stools, being careful of her right leg. Brushing off the unwanted gentle hands, she looked up into Cannon’s eyes and saw the one thing she couldn’t tolerate. Pity.
“What do you think you’re doing? I’m fine,” Amber said in a clipped tone, almost regretting her words when he cast a hurt look her way. Ignoring the stab of guilt at being rude to him, she continued, “It’s just a twitch. No big deal. Move and I’ll get your coffee so you guys can be on your way.”
“Amber, you almost fell down. Just let me help you.”
“Is this how you treat Max?” Amber demanded, as she kept trying to brush his hands aside. Ryder walked over to Earl and Lou, but she noticed his eyes never wavered from her. Well, so be it. Let him overhear what she was about to say and maybe both of them would get the hint and leave her alone.
“What in the world are you talking about, woman?” Cannon said, exasperation evident in his voice. “Max is the best ranch foreman a rancher could ask for.”
“Exactly,” Amber proudly stated, glad she had gotten him to admit it. “Max’s shoulder injury doesn’t cause you to go running to his rescue every time he drops something, now does it? You don’t show him pity, so stop pitying me!”
Amber figured out too late that her voice had been rising with each word she said. The silence made her look around. Ryder, Earl, and Lou stared at them, Ryder with a blank expression she was coming to know so well, and Earl and Lou with something akin to glee. They were enjoying this way too much.
“Is that what you think? That we pity you?”
Just then, the spasm tightened up, causing her breath to come out as a hiss, and made her automatically grab for her leg. Cannon’s hands reached her thigh first and started to massage the muscle as Ryder came up beside her, his abdomen rubbing against her left arm as he leaned in close to her ear, his warm breath caressing her ear like a feather.
“Stop being insolent and let Cannon help you,” Ryder ordered in a low, gravelly tone, making a shiver go through her. This is so not good. Amber tried to get her scrambled thoughts back in order. It was very rare they physically touched her, and she was starting to think that had been a good thing.
“I don’t need your help, Ryder. Or Cannon’s,” Amber whispered back, closing her eyes at the feelings they were stirring within her.
“When are you going to realize that we care for you? It hurts us to see you in pain,” Ryder admitted.
“Is Amber okay? Anything we can do?” Lou asked, worry lacing his tone.
Ryder said assuredly, “No, Lou. We appreciate your concern, but we’ll take care of her. You and Earl head on home and we’ll help Amber close up shop.”
Amber didn’t know whether she was coming or going. On one hand, she wanted to argue, but on the other, the exquisite relief Cannon was providing made her want to melt. Cannon’s hands felt like heaven, giving a deeper massage than she was ever able to give herself. But she didn’t want to be caught alone with them. She didn’t trust them or herself. Ryder’s tone gave an indication of something she wasn’t ready for, and panic was starting to settle in. Right when she found her voice and was about to protest, Cannon gripped her chin with his right hand, forcing her to look into his eyes. Not lifting his left hand from her thigh, he said, “Not one word. Ryder doesn’t have the tolerance for your disregard of your health, and neither do I.”
Cannon waited for Amber to acknowledge him before lowering his hand and using both to continue massaging her tired leg. “Don’t push him too far tonight. His patience is wearing thin.”
Amber averted her eyes to watch Ryder place his hat on a random table, bid good night to Earl and Lou, then turn the sign over so that “Closed” showed through the window. His movements were assured, making her feel anything but. Hearing the lock click into place made her heart race, and she dragged her eyes back to Cannon, who had been staring at her the entire time, seeing things she didn’t want him to see. That would just give him ammunition she didn’t want them to use. Did he know how aroused she got around them? That her breathing quickened, her heartbeat accelerated, and her body trembled whenever they were around? The more Cannon touched her, the wetter she was getting, and that was something he couldn’t know.
“It’s better. You can stop now,” Amber said in a low, hesitant voice, afraid of what was about to happen. Their silence was starting to grate on her nerves. Why had she ever said anything about them pitying her? She knew better than to leave herself open like that. Amber needed them to leave before she did something she couldn’t take back. Arousal was something she hadn’t known until these two had walked into her life a year ago, and it was making her want to reach out and touch them back. A year was a long time to be sexually frustrated. “Let me get your coffee and then you two can head on home.”
Ryder deliberately ignored her comments as he went behind the counter while Cannon continued to knead her thigh. Ryder was always the quiet one and usually only spoke when he had something meaningful to say. He didn’t mince words and people took his promises at face value. His presence alone commanded respect, and having done business solely with the locals, the town knew he was an honorable man.
Looking underneath the wooden surface where Amber kept her medicine, Ryder moved for the bottles to see which ones were needed. She watched as he read the instructions, opened the caps to two of the three bottles, and took out the instructed amount of pills. He reached for a coffee mug and went to the sink to fill it up with cold water.
Without turning toward them, Ryder asked, “It says on the bottle that you’re to take your muscle relaxant every six to eight hours. When was the last time you took one?”
“I know what the directions say,” Amber said defensively, “and I also know my own b
ody. I take the medicine when necessary.”
“You obviously didn’t know your own body enough to know that you needed your relaxant a little bit sooner, now did you?” Ryder pointed out as he faced her with the medication in hand. Leaning over the counter, he placed the mug in front of her and held out the pills, making her be the one to reach for them. “It’s not acceptable to let your health go, sugar. What would have happened if your leg had seized up and only Earl and Lou were here? They wouldn’t have known what to do, and in all likelihood, you would have ended up on the floor.”
“I got caught up in paperwork and wasn’t thinking about it. I was about to take some before you came in,” Amber reluctantly informed him, nervously taking the pills from his hand. “And I would have managed just like I always have, by myself. I’ve had my leg give out now and then, and I’ve survived just fine on my own.”
“And when are you going to realize that you don’t have to handle things alone?”
Amber didn’t like the undertone of his voice. He seemed different than the other times they were around, and she didn’t know how to handle this side of him. As a matter of fact, she noticed that both seemed to have come to a conclusion, and she was the one left in the dark. She hated being the only one who didn’t know something. Not knowing how to respond, she looked in her hand to see that Ryder had also included one of her pain medications that she only took once in a while because of its effect on her system. They made her groggy and feel out of control, and that was definitely not a feeling she needed right now. She needed to maintain as much control as she could before these feelings Cannon and Ryder stirred in her made her do something stupid. Picking the bigger pill out of her hand, she held it out to Ryder and asked, “Would you please put this one back? I don’t need it.”
Blatantly ignoring her, Ryder directed his question to Cannon. “Cannon, has her thigh loosened up any?”
“It’s my leg, not Can—”
“No,” Cannon interrupted, talking right over her. “Her muscle is still tighter than a drum. It can’t be feeling too good, and the way I figure it, causing quite a bit of pain if her color is anything to go by.”
“My color?” Amber squeaked out in a high voice, dumbfounded at his audacity. “My color has nothing to do with my leg and everything to do with annoyance that you guys are not listening to a—”
“Well, then. That decision is made. Take the pain medication, Amber,” Ryder commanded. She had heard that tone of voice in him before when he would speak on the phone with one of the ranch hands and discerned that it broke no argument. He expected people to obey him, and who only knew what happened if they didn’t. She saw Cannon smirk out of the corner of her eye and wanted to hit him. What happened to his light banter that kept things on an even keel? She hadn’t realized that she counted on Cannon to maintain a balance between the three of them. It was like they had decided without her to up the stakes and expected her to just go along with them without argument. It wasn’t going to happen, she thought stubbornly.
Deliberately taking her time and laying the pain pill on the counter, she placed the muscle relaxant in her mouth and took a sip of water, aware that both men watched her closely. It was very erotic to be watched with such intensity, and she hoped they didn’t notice her nipples harden beneath her shirt, but she threw that thought out as quickly as it came to her. Ryder was declaring war, and she was not about to lose. Once the pill went down, she gradually placed the mug back on the counter and raised her eyes to meet Ryder’s.
“No.”
Ryder stood perfectly still and didn’t move except a small twitch of muscle near his jaw. She saw determination settle around his eyes. Her thighs tightened as she felt a trickle of wetness leak onto her panties. Really? Now that just made her angry. How could she get aroused by him just standing there looking so…dominant? Glancing down, she was mortified to see her nipples tighten into tiny pebbles in reaction to Ryder’s attitude and become visible. Even her body was betraying her, she thought in disgust.
“Amber,” Cannon cajoled, “after a year, surely you know that we have your best interest at heart. Ryder comes off as a little overbearing at times, but all he’s concerned with is your health and happiness.”
“Cannon, I can speak for myself. And you,” Ryder said, pointing his finger in her direction and pulling her attention back to him, “I’m going to ignore that word.” Unfolding his arms, Ryder put his hands on the counter and used his height to bend over. Placing his face nose to nose with hers, he gave her no choice but to look in his brown eyes. “Let me tell you how this is going to go, sugar. You’ve had a year to acclimate yourself with being ours. We’ve been patient and lenient with your ‘leave me alone’ attitude. It ends here. You will be ours, and you will get over this fear of getting close to us. Now, I’m going to say this one more time or I swear I will turn you over my knee and make your beautiful ass a sweet shade of pink to match those pretty cheeks of yours. Take. That. Pill.”
This time, it was Cannon who leaned over to whisper in her ear. “There’s nothing more arousing for Ryder than seeing a woman being spanked to orgasm. Especially when it’s given by his hand. Don’t worry, he likes to give his little warnings, but you’ll enjoy every second of it.”
Amber sat frozen at his words. Were her cheeks flushed? Absolutely. What woman’s wouldn’t be after that declaration! Amber would never admit to having secret fantasies about spanking. That would give them too much ammunition and she was already having trouble keeping them at arm’s length. The way they were talking to her tonight, it was as if they’d already decided she would be theirs. Were they too thick-headed to understand that it was her choice whether she got involved with a man? Or men, as the case may be? Did they not grasp the reasons it would be a bad idea to be with a woman like her? That she lived with pain on a daily basis and had trouble doing the simple things women loved to do with their men? Like going dancing on the town, taking long walks by the river, or even having a sex marathon all night long? Didn’t they understand that the feelings they invoked in her made her feel like less of a woman?
Unsure if Ryder would truly carry out his threat of putting her over his knee, she carefully reached out for the pain pill, ignoring the throbbing in her pussy at the image. Amber swallowed it down with a sip of water, letting them win that small battle. When she felt more in control, she looked in time to see Ryder rise back up and gave a sigh of relief at the much-needed space. She couldn’t take this anymore without saying or doing something she’d regret. Amber carefully turned to extradite herself from Cannon’s hands with every intention of winning the war these two had started.
Moving as if she were in front of a snake about to strike, Amber slid off the stool and walked toward the door, releasing the lock and turning to look at the two men who were threatening the safety net she had placed around her heart. Speaking as slowly as she could so they would hear every word, Amber stated, “Let me explain how this is going to go. You two are going to go home to your ranch, come up with some other woman who you think will obey your commands, and find some other place to get your daily coffee fix. I am not available. I certainly can’t give you what you want, and I definitely don’t need your pity. I am a twenty-eight-year-old woman who has no interest in being in any relationship, and you two, with your high-handed, ‘you will do as I say’ attitude, can shove it up your ass!” Taking in some much-needed air along with what little courage she had left, Amber finished with, “Get out.”
Stunned into silence by her declaration, they both seemed to struggle to find words. If they thought she was some shrinking violet because she had a permanent injury, they had another thing coming. Before either man could say a word, Earl pulled the door open behind her and entered the shop. “Sorry to interrupt, but you had me worrying so much about your leg, that I forgot my chess board. How are you feeling, honey?”
“Fine, Earl. Cannon and Ryder made sure I took my medicine like a good little girl. They were just about to leave beca
use those pills make me so tired, weren’t you, boys?” Amber directed the question to them in a false, sugary voice, knowing she had placed them on the spot. She could see them debating on whether they should come up with an excuse to continue to stay, or bow out gracefully. If she weren’t so mad, she would have laughed.
Ryder walked silently around the counter and fell into step with Cannon, making them both seem like predators stalking their prey. Ryder’s anger showed through like a beacon’s light. Tough. Sometimes it hurt to hear the truth. Maybe they would finally leave her in peace. Only she watched in amazement when Ryder shrugged his jacket off, tossed it on the table near his hat, and veered over to the side table to grab Earl’s game bag. Cannon sidled on up in front of her and leaned down, shocking her with the soft brush of his lips over her cheek. “Go straight upstairs and rest your leg, darlin’. We’ll be up in a few minutes.”
“What?” Amber whispered harshly back to him, not believing they weren’t going to leave after she had set them up. Her mind couldn’t even wrap around the emotion he brought to the surface when his lips touched her skin. Her cheek felt as if a flame from a match had brushed it leisurely. They were upping the ante again, and she wasn’t ready to play. She glanced over at Earl, who held a twinkle of merriment in his eyes at her apparently backfired plan. Shit, this was going to be all over town by morning.
Chapter Two
Amber roused from slumber slowly, trying to figure out why her mouth felt like it was stuffed with cotton. Struggling to swallow and trying to lick her parched lips, she carefully opened her eyes only to see that it was still dark outside. What time was it?
She lifted her head to glance at the bedside table and “3:45 a.m.” stared back at her in bright red lights. Her head hit the pillow and she groaned as the events from last night gradually made their way through the fog. Once the memories hit, she sat straight up in bed and stifled a scream when a set of strong arms tried to bring her back down.
Elizabeth, Peyton - Not So Common (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) Page 2
