“Sugar, relax. We’re not going to bite,” Ryder spoke lowly, as the waiter left with his credit card.
“You did last night,” Amber retorted without thinking, then covered her mouth with her hand in astonishment. Did she really say that? Ryder’s deep chuckle caused her pussy to ripple. Shifting her butt on the seat, she tried to stop it only to feel Cannon’s hand touch her thigh to still her movements.
“What did you want to talk to us about? And if you think we are letting you go after last night, think again.” Cannon wouldn’t move his hand and caught hers when she tried to push it off her leg and just held on, not letting go. “Amber, it’s been over a year. You’ve gotten to know us little by little, and vice versa. It’s time to take things further.”
“Just because last night—”
“Last night was just the start of it. We want you in our life.”
“But I don’t want anything permanent,” Amber blurted out, noticing Cannon was the only one talking. Ryder sat quietly across from her, nursing his beer, making her a little nervous. Why wasn’t he talking? She didn’t trust the gleam in his eyes. “Look, I heard what you said last night, and I did a lot of thinking after you left, but it doesn’t change the fact I don’t think things will work out the way you imagined they would.”
A soft growl came from Ryder’s side of the table that made her jump. About to pull her hand from Cannon’s grasp, she felt him tighten his hold and gave up tugging. She was so botching this up. She needed to stop rambling and just get to the point.
“I want a temporary affair!”
A coughing sound made them turn to see the waiter was back with Ryder’s credit card and receipt, amusement obvious in his eyes as he looked directly at Amber, making her cheeks flush with embarrassment. Wanting nothing more than for the floor to swallow her whole, she averted her eyes and gripped Cannon’s hand hard, signaling him to fix the situation. How humiliating was it to be heard throwing yourself at two men? She felt relief when Cannon came to her rescue and dismissed the waiter with a thank you, took the offered credit card and receipt, and handed them over to Ryder. No one commented on her statement while all three collected their coats. Cannon helped her by holding her jacket open so she could slide her arms in the sleeves. They quietly made their way out of the restaurant, Amber blatantly ignoring the waiter who gave Cannon and Ryder a wink as they passed by.
* * * *
Cannon and Ryder walked back to the main house after having tended the horses for the night. They’d left Amber by the fire, telling her to give them fifteen minutes to feed the animals before they finished their conversation. Ryder had used the time to figure out how they could convince Amber they truly cared for her. He was pretty sure he had a solid plan. Now if he could just get Cannon on board with his idea, they would be good to go.
“I think we should give her what she wants,” Ryder said, his breath creating a mist in the night air while he waited for the outburst he knew was coming. It didn’t take long.
“Are you fucking kidding me, man?” Cannon stepped in front of Ryder to cut him off from taking another step, his hands giving Ryder a small shove. “Since when do we want her as a temporary lay, Ryder? You’ve been with me every step of the way, and now you go changing your mind? I know you love her as much I do, but now you’re saying you want a short fuck?”
“That’s not what I said, Cannon. I said we give her what she wants and in the end, get what we want. Her love.”
Ryder saw Cannon’s features slowly relax. He stepped around Cannon and continued on the path toward the house, seeing Amber standing at the living room window watching their return.
“We continue on as we are with only one goal in mind. To make her our wife. Let her think it’s a passing thing, but the more time we have to convince her we love her, the better for us.”
Cannon fell into step beside Ryder and followed his best friend’s stare to where Amber waited. It was a vision that Ryder would keep with him forever. Snowflakes had started to fall from the night sky, the usually windy air calm as the ground welcomed the snow like a blanket, and the woman they loved waited in their home with soft, golden light surrounding her, making the scene in front of him surreal. “Our wife. I like the sound of that.”
“Thought you would, bro,” Ryder replied softly, cuffing him on the shoulder as they got closer to the wrap-around porch and the woman that held their hearts in her hands.
* * * *
Amber heard the front door open and turned from the window where she had been watching her men walk up from the barn. Her men? Since when had she started calling them that? It was Lou’s fault, Amber decided, knowing he was always calling them her ranchers. It was wearing off on her. But would they want to be her men temporarily? They hadn’t spoken much on the trip back to town, although they had surprised her when, instead of taking her home, they had brought her to their ranch.
Amber had never been to their home or seen their property, but it was a beautiful sight. It was too dark to see how far their land extended, but the infrequent beams of moonlight peeking through the clouds seemed to show it go on forever. The one story house was lit from the outside when they arrived, the wrap-around porch with the hanging swing giving the place a welcoming feel. The inside was just shy of masculine. It had more of a warm, woodsy look, with an alluring open seating area in the living room. The furniture was surrounded by a charming old-fashioned stone fireplace. The room opened up into a huge kitchen that was enclosed by a cherrywood island longer than the one she had at the shop. Beautiful leather stools sat in front to polish off the open-hearted ambiance.
She heard Cannon and Ryder remove their coats and while Ryder moved to the kitchen to make some coffee, Cannon strolled into the room. “Fire burning okay?”
“Yes, thank you.”
Watching Cannon come to a stop in front of her, Amber felt her apprehension return. Had they spoken about her while they were outside? Had they come to a decision? Maybe she had made a huge mistake even asking for an affair.
Cannon took her hands and brought them to his mouth, gently kissing both palms. Leading her to the couch, he sat them facing the fire and tucked her into his left shoulder, his other arm coming around her waist. Resting his chin on the top of her head, he surprised her by asking, “Have you taken a muscle relaxant today? And before you get all riled up, we just want to make sure you’re comfortable before answering your request and move on to more…important things.”
Amber had tensed the minute he asked the question, but upon hearing his reasoning, felt her heart rate accelerate with the indication they would say yes. Were they taking her up on her offer? Was she ready for this? Ryder intruded on her thoughts.
“Coffee’s ready. Not as good as you make it, but since it came from your shop, it’s doable.” Ryder set down the tray with three steaming mugs on it, placing it in the middle of the big, square leather ottoman. Cannon not releasing her and declining his mug for the moment, Ryder handed her the one with two sugars and a dash of milk. She hadn’t known they knew how she took her coffee.
“Answer Cannon’s question, Amber,” Ryder commanded, picking up his cup of coffee. “Did you take your medicine today?”
A shiver ran down her spine at how deep Ryder’s voice had gotten and, remembering what had happened last night when she pushed him too far, felt the skin on her bottom tingle. As much as she had enjoyed that spanking, although she would never admit it to them, Amber didn’t think her mind could handle one right now.
“Yes, as a matter of fact, I took one before you came to pick me up.”
“Good girl.”
Those two words sent a tremor straight down to her core. Seeing their faces become serious and afraid of hearing their answer quite yet, she gave a small blow to cool the hot liquid in her hands and steered the conversation toward them. “I haven’t seen either of your parents recently. Are they due for a visit?”
“Cannon’s parents are coming for Christmas and mine will probably b
e visiting around New Year’s. Mom and Dad are spending the holidays with Liz in New York,” Ryder answered before taking a sip of coffee.
Amber had met both sets of parents a few months after Cannon and Ryder had moved to Common. Both mothers had wanted to help their sons move into the ranch house and had had a grand old time shopping the quaint stores that Main Street offered. They had stopped for coffee the few times they were in town and chatted about how proud they were of their sons and how beautiful the town was. Amber overheard them here and there talking about the women in town who might steal their sons’ hearts, wanting them to settle down, get married, and start a family. Amber had ignored the fact that she was never mentioned in those conversations, because she totally understood a mother wanting her son to have a woman who was healthy. Steering her thoughts away from that day, she asked, “How is your sister? She’s never made it out to visit, has she?”
“No. She’s finishing up her medical internship at a hospital in New York. She’s got another year to go. We’re really proud of her.”
They sipped on coffee, making small talk about the men’s families, letting her get to know them better. Whether that was a good thing or not, she didn’t know. Knowing more about Cannon and Ryder made her see that they were truly family men, and that was something she didn’t want. With each childhood story they told, she could hear the love in their voices and knew they yearned to make their own family. They made her giggle with stories from their tours overseas and the trouble they got into in their off-time. Another part of her wanted to shy away from their storytelling because she was afraid it would make her want more. She was shocked when Ryder questioned her about her family. Rarely did anyone bring them up, and she wasn’t quite sure she could talk about them.
“What was your brother like?”
Silence filled the room while Amber struggled to swallow a sip of coffee around the lump that formed in her throat. Could she bring up those buried memories? Did she even want to?
Amber formed her words carefully, as if by saying too much it might bring back the original pain. The school therapist the state made her see after the accident had said that by talking about her family, the pain would be replaced by a dull ache until finally she could recall the good times with fondness. She had never tested that theory and really didn’t want to start now, but she took a deep breath anyway and recalled, “David was a handful. He always kept my parents on their toes, the total opposite of me. I wasn’t shy by any means, but a little reserved. David was just so—loud. He was the class clown and always getting in trouble at school for disrupting lectures. He had just turned fourteen…”
Amber’s voice faded when the memories of that night surfaced. Wanting them to go away, she sat forward, away from Cannon’s arms, and used the excuse of setting down her coffee. This wasn’t how she pictured their night ending. Refusing to continue the path of conversation, she stood up to tell them it was time for her to leave and ask that they drive her back to town. Surprised when Cannon stood behind her, Amber let him turn her around with his hands and automatically lifted her mouth to his when his hands framed her face. She was already accustomed to how Cannon kissed, knowing he liked to cradle her face as if she might break. Ryder, she knew, kept one hand firmly behind her head, not wanting to give her a choice but to accept his kiss. Cannon’s touch chased away the cruel memories and she allowed him to, needing something else to replace the pain. She felt Ryder press himself against her back, bringing her thoughts back to the present.
Leaning slightly away, Amber gazed up at Cannon and in a hopeful voice asked, “So you agree? Temporary?”
Without saying a word, Cannon stepped forward, making Ryder’s chest press more firmly against her back, and kissed her eyes closed, grazing his lips across her cheek and down her neck, nipping at her collarbone. Ryder’s hands moved down to the hem of her sweater and with no hesitation, pulled it straight up, causing Amber to lift her arms and give Cannon access to her cleavage above her black, lacy bra. She was glad she had thought ahead and worn her best underthings. Good Lord knew she was limited in that area.
She never noticed Ryder moving away from her to slide the leather ottoman out of the way until Cannon walked her backward and gently leaned her down on the soft, beige rug that lay in front of the fireplace. The heat from the flames kept her warm while Cannon lifted from her to pull off his sweater, letting Amber get a visual fix of his broad chest. He was so striking, he took her breath away. His upper body was contoured with solid muscle and his skin looked smooth and inviting to the touch. She leaned up and placed her hand in the middle of his sternum, shocked at the amount of heat he generated.
“You are so beautiful,” Amber whispered.
Cannon chuckled. “Men aren’t supposed to be beautiful. I think you have it backward. You are breathtaking in black lace.”
Amber was so thankful they had agreed to a brief affair, she eagerly leaned forward and placed her lips above her hand and stuck the tip of her tongue out so she could taste his salty skin. Running her tongue down his rib cage, she continued to where his jeans lay beneath his hips.
Never having gone down on a man before, she hesitantly looked up at Cannon to see if he wanted to her continue or if she was clumsily messing things up. Cannon looked down at her with green eyes dark in encouragement, giving her the nerve to continue. Not sure her leg would hold her, she scooted forward until he straddled her thighs and with trembling fingers, pulled his button open and slowly unzipped his jeans.
* * * *
The feel of Amber’s fingers running across his abdomen made Cannon suck in a breath and glance at Ryder, who was now kneeling behind her, not doing anything but watching her. They shared a look that told one another to let her take the lead for a while until she was ready for more, each giving the other a slight nod in acknowledgement.
Cannon was floored that Ryder had led Amber straight into a conversation about her family and she had followed, to a certain extent. It made him feel more comfortable with Ryder’s plan to go along with Amber’s idea of an affair until they persuaded her to acknowledge her true feelings for them.
Letting Amber tug his jeans down around his thighs, he saw her eyes widen in astonishment at him being commando. His dick popped out, throbbing in anticipation of her lips surrounding its tissue. When her tongue timidly reached out for the drop of pre-cum on the end, it took all of Cannon’s strength to stay still and not move.
“Darlin’, have you ever sucked a cock before?” Cannon asked, seeing her hesitation. The last thing he wanted was for her to feel like she had to do something she wasn’t ready for.
Amber shook her head, but instead of stopping, she delivered another lick. Leaning his head back, he closed his eyes when her lips tentatively sealed over the end and gave a gentle suck with her warm, moist mouth. Holy shit, he was going to lose his load. Never lifting his head, he reached down with his right hand and enclosed his fingers around the sac, tightening them to hold back his orgasm. Since when did a touch of a woman’s tongue have him ready to blow? Obviously, it was Amber. He knew he couldn’t look down at the sight before him or he would explode like C-4. Tightening the hold on his balls and pulling them further from his body, he let her slowly engulf his dick until it hit the back of her throat. She moaned and the vibrations went through his cock straight to his toes. Pulling back, she spread her saliva all around with her tongue, down and up, repeating the process while getting into a rhythm.
“Fuck,” Cannon sucked in air when her teeth grazed his head. He quickly glanced down to see what had caused her break in pattern. He cracked a strained smile when he realized it was Ryder’s hands causing Amber to lose her concentration. He watched as Ryder removed her bra, using one hand to torment her breasts and the other hand to tease her cunt. The more Ryder fondled, the less Amber was able to focus. Releasing his balls, Cannon took Amber’s head in his hands and leaned down to press his lips to hers. He was never one to mind his flavor on a woman’s tongue and enjoyed her
fervor at returning his kiss. Looking down at her exposed breasts, Cannon knew he wouldn’t survive without another taste of those rosebuds.
* * * *
Amber felt wanton. Not used to the feeling, she let Cannon and Ryder reposition her until she was laying back on the rug with Cannon able to play with her nipples and Ryder going back down to where he seemed to enjoy the most. Cannon kept her mind off the fact that Ryder was tracing her scars with his tongue as he used his teeth to bring one nipple to hardness. He gnawed on her peaked pebble until she had to grab his head for something to hold on to, but he was totally ignoring the other nipple.
“Play with it, Amber,” Cannon instructed, murmuring against her breast. He untangled her hand from his hair and guided her fingers to her other nipple, placing it between her index finger and thumb. Showing her the pressure he wanted her to use, he closed his fingers around hers and pinched slowly, letting her adjust to the compression. Not letting up until she emitted a hoarse groan, he grinned at the sound.
Amber had never played with her own breasts when she masturbated in the privacy of her own bedroom. She just went straight to the source, rubbed her clit until she obtained release. If she had only known what she had been missing. As Cannon tweaked and nipped her nipple with his teeth and she tormented her other, Ryder slowly made his way from her scars to her trimmed pussy. Using his fingers to part her folds, he didn’t waste time like before and delved right in. Going straight for her clit, Amber arched her hips at the intense stroking and knew he wouldn’t let up until she came. Between the two of them, it didn’t take long, and she was flying.
Elizabeth, Peyton - Not So Common (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) Page 5
