Monroe, Marla - Their Reluctant Submissive [Knights in Black Leather 1] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting)

by Marla Monroe

  Still, she wasn’t totally happy, and she was sure it was because she could sense that they weren’t satisfied with the situation. That scared her. If they wanted more, how long would their relationship last? Even though she had admitted to herself that she craved a closer connection with the two men, she didn’t think it was wise to risk trying it.

  Friday afternoon Kelly struggled over a particularly difficult piece she was working on for a special order when Steve walked back to retrieve some merchandise to restock a shelf. He looked especially distracted to her since he had come back from lunch. She hesitated to ask him what was wrong. Despite their being friends, she still felt like as her employer some things were just off-limits.

  When Ben showed up just before close, she learned a little more about what had happened at lunch to upset him. He and Ben were talking in the office but hadn’t bothered to close the door. She didn’t intentionally eavesdrop, but short of walking out front or going out the back door, she had no choice but to hear what they said.

  “Why didn’t you call me and tell me?” Ben’s angry voice carried out the office door.

  “Because there was nothing either one of us could do about it.” Steve didn’t sound much calmer.

  “He’s a flirt, Steve. He’ll use her and drop her like a brick. I can’t believe you just let her leave with him.”

  “If you hadn’t interfered in the first place, she wouldn’t be going anywhere with him right now.”

  “Fuck it, Steve. I warned you what was going to happen. I tried to get you to…”

  The door finally shut and ended the uncomfortable situation for her. As much as she wanted to know what was wrong, it wasn’t her business. She hurt for Steve and now Ben since it seemed he was somehow involved. They were good men. Stacey was a friend. She hated to see anyone hurting.

  When it came time to close the store, Kelly took care of everything except handling the cash register. She knew Steve would deal with it before he left. Once her area was straight, she was ready to leave. She didn’t like just walking out without letting Steve know she was gone. Finally, she knocked on the office door and called out that she had locked up and was on her way home.

  Steve stuck his head out the door with a frown. “Hell, I’m sorry, Kelly. I didn’t mean to leave you hanging like that. Thanks for locking up for me.”

  “No problem. See you in the morning.”

  Steve nodded and closed the office door again. At least she hadn’t heard yelling coming through the door while they had been in there. Hopefully, whatever was going on would get cleared up before they left.

  Kelly let herself out the back door. It locked automatically when it shut. She hurried over to her car, thankful that Steve had security lighting in the back. At six at night it was already dark out. Once she was settled in her car with the doors locked and her seat belt on, she breathed a sigh of relief. Walking out to her car alone in the dark wasn’t one of her favorite things to do. Normally, Steve would have been with her, but he was preoccupied today and hadn’t thought about it.

  She turned the key, and the car started right up. When she drove out of the parking lot, Kelly argued with herself about stopping by the grocery store or waiting until the next day after work. If she hadn’t been so tired, she probably would have stopped but decided instead to wait. She would have plenty of time between when she got off work and when Jackson and Marx would pick her up.

  As soon as she made it in the door, Kelly locked it and started stripping. She needed a shower. She felt nasty from climbing through the inventory that arrived that afternoon. She had to count everything and be sure it all checked out according to the bill of lading. Normally it didn’t bother her to handle accepting deliveries, but for some reason, this one had left her irritated and uncomfortable. She chalked it up to the driver being unusually friendly and constantly invading her space.

  When she got out of the shower and had dried off, Kelly dressed for bed before returning to the kitchen to fix a quick dinner. She wasn’t especially hungry, but knew she would wake up in the middle of the night starving if she didn’t eat something.

  By the time she made it to bed, it was after ten. She hadn’t talked to Marx or Jackson but knew that they had been especially busy that week getting things ready for winter. The last thing she thought about as she drifted off was how much she missed sharing her day with them.

  * * * *

  Jackson’s cell phone dragged him from a deep sleep where he was dreaming about Kelly. He hated to leave the dream. It was a good one where they were all living together. Finally, Jackson grabbed the phone and answered it.

  “Yeah?”

  “Jackson? Are you awake? It’s Steve.”

  “Steve? What time is it?” He tried to focus on the clock.

  “Wake up! Are you with me?”

  Something in Steve’s voice finally registered with him. Jackson’s first thought was of Kelly.

  “What’s wrong, Steve?”

  “Tessa called me. The apartment building is on fire. It’s the one that Kelly lives in.”

  “Where’s Kelly?” Jackson already had his jeans halfway on. He ran to the door and called down the hall for Marx.

  “I don’t know. I’m on my way there now. Tessa was hysterical, and I couldn’t get anything out of her.”

  “We are on our way. Get her for us, Steve.” Jackson met Marx in the hall on his way to the door.

  “Hurry, Jackson.” Steve ended the call.

  “What’s going on?” Marx was pulling a shirt over his head.

  “Kelly’s apartment building is on fire. Steve was on his way there.”

  “Fuck. Is she okay?”

  They both climbed into the truck with Jackson driving. He started the engine and pulled down the drive as he prayed that Kelly would be fine.

  “I don’t know. Steve doesn’t know anything yet.”

  He drove way too fast down the long gravel drive and didn’t slow up to turn onto the road at the end. For once, Marx didn’t say a thing about his driving. He kept hoping Steve would call him back to tell him that she was okay. When the phone didn’t ring, he began to fear the worse.

  “Call Steve’s cell and see if he knows anything yet.”

  Marx pulled out his phone, and Jackson waited impatiently while they waited for Steve to answer. Finally Marx cursed and hit end on the phone.

  “It’s going to voice mail. He must be there and trying to find out what’s going on. He’ll call.”

  Jackson prayed that he would, but had a bad feeling that something was wrong and the other man didn’t want to call them while they were on their way. He glanced over at his brother. Marx was sitting sideways in the seat with one hand on the dash and the other holding his seat belt. There were white lines around his mouth.

  Before they even got to the street where the apartments were, they could smell the smoke and see the glow from the fire. Flashing lights alerted them that there were cars and trucks blocking the road ahead. Jackson pulled over behind Steve’s truck and jumped out of the cab. Marx was right behind him as they ran toward the fire.

  He heard shouts from the men blocking the road, but he didn’t bother to acknowledge them as he fought back the bile that rose in his throat. The closer he got the worse it looked. The apartments were completely engulfed. The firefighters were fighting to keep it from spreading to the other buildings. Heat washed over him as he tried to get closer. Someone grabbed him and held him back. He started to fight, but Marx grabbed him as well.

  “Jackson, stop it! Look at me.” He turned and recognized Ben’s sooty face.

  “Where is she?”

  “They took her to the hospital. Steve went with her. I was waiting for you.”

  The roar of the fire, along with the shouts of the firefighters as they called out to each other, faded to the background. He saw blood on Ben’s shirt and fought to calm down. Tessa stood next to Ben, just as sooty. He had met her once when he and Marx stopped by the store to see Kelly one day.<
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  “Is she…”

  Ben squeezed his shoulder. “She was alive when they left. She’s strong, Jackson.”

  He nodded and looked at his brother. Marx’s eyes glittered. He imagined his did, too. They ran back to the truck and headed to the hospital. A million thoughts rushed through his head as they rushed across town. In those few minutes, Jackson could feel his world tilting.

  When they finally arrived, Jackson parked the truck and along with his brother, hurried to the emergency room. Steve met them in the waiting room. He was just as dirty as Ben had been and also had blood on him. It was the blood that scared him the most. The expression on his friend’s face wasn’t comforting.

  “How is she?” Marx spoke first for once.

  “She wasn’t breathing when they pulled her out of the building, but they got her back before they transported her here. I don’t know what’s going on now.”

  “How bad is she hurt?” Jackson’s heart was in his throat.

  Steve drew in a deep breath then slowly let it out. “Evidently she woke up at some point from the smoke and tried to get out. They found her just outside the doorway of her bedroom. The ceiling had fallen on her. They were worried about internal injuries, and she had a head injury.”

  “That fucking building was a firetrap. We never should have let her stay there.” Marx paced off and slammed his hand against the wall in the waiting room.

  “I don’t think you had much choice where she stayed, Marx. She holds on to her independence like a shield.” Steve obviously knew her better than Jackson would have thought.

  He looked at the other man and wondered how much of her past his friend was privy to? The unfamiliar sting of jealousy flared to life. If she had confided in anyone, it should have been either him or Marx. Of course, Steve had known her for six months before they had even met her. There was no telling what she had shared with the man who’d given her a job when she needed it.

  Ben walked through the emergency room doors with Tessa by his side. The other woman looked frantic. Jackson knew that Kelly had a special fondness for the woman. He thought that she felt like they were kindred souls. He walked up to her and smiled the best he could.

  “Thanks for calling Steve like you did.”

  She turned tear-filled eyes up to him. “I didn’t know how to get in touch with you or Marx. I knew that you were important to her, so I figured Steve would know how to get in touch with you.”

  “Do you have any idea what happened?”

  Tessa shook her head. “I woke up to sirens outside my window. When I got outside, they were already working on getting people out of the building. I kept looking for Kelly, but no one had seen her. The firemen were working inside her apartment, and I knew something was wrong.”

  The young woman burst into tears. Ben held her while she sobbed into her hands. He felt helpless, and looking over at his brother, those same feelings were mirrored in his brother’s eyes. There was nothing they could do but wait now.

  More people arrived as they waited for word from the doctors on Kelly’s status. They found out that everyone had made it out of the building alive so far. Two others were in the emergency room for smoke inhalation along with a fireman. Her apartment building was a complete loss and still smoldering, but no other buildings had been involved.

  Marx and Jackson spoke with friends who’d come out to lend their support. Everyone was shocked and prayed that Kelly would come out of it with minimal injuries. Based on what they had been able to piece together, it would be a miracle if she survived, much less suffered no major problems. With a head injury and the smoke inhalation, they already knew she would be fighting for her life. It was all he could do to remain calm and not burst into the back and demand to know what was going on. He didn’t have much patience at the moment.

  The first hour they waited was spent talking with the many friends who had come to give their support. The next hour he and Marx paced the room on opposite sides. Neither man could look at the other without the chance of losing control. They had to hold it together for Kelly’s sake.

  Well into the third hour, the door from the back opened and a man dressed in green scrubs entered the waiting area. Everyone in the room hushed and cleared a path as Jackson and Marx zeroed in on him.

  “Kelly Baylor’s family?”

  “We’re her boyfriends, Jackson and Marx Callahan. How is she?” Jackson saw Steve move in closer as well.

  “Let’s sit down.” He led them over to a section of chairs that weren’t occupied.

  Jackson didn’t feel like sitting down and just the suggestion scared him. He knew it was serious. Glancing over at his brother as he took a seat hadn’t been a good idea. The other man’s face was stoic, and nothing showed in his eyes. He gritted his teeth and waited.

  “From what I understand, she wasn’t breathing when they pulled her out of the fire. They performed CPR on her and managed to get her back. She’s suffering from a head injury and does have a concussion. We had to put in six stitches to her forehead. Because of the smoke inhalation and her previous respiratory arrest, we have her on a ventilator to help her breathe. Pneumonia is a serious worry at this point. It’s even more serious because she has two cracked ribs.”

  The physician sighed and continued. “The good thing is that we can’t find any internal injuries, which is a miracle considering the ceiling fell on her. She has several first-degree burns on various areas of her body but only had one second-degree burn on her arm. How she managed to avoid getting more serious burns, I don’t know.”

  “Is she going to be okay?” Steve’s voice spoke from behind Jackson.

  “She’s a strong young woman. Her chances are very good. The most important worry we have right now is pneumonia.”

  Jackson struggled to speak. He was so overwhelmed that what came out didn’t sound like him at all.

  “When can we see her?”

  “They are moving her up to the intensive care unit as we speak. They will need to clean her up and get her settled so it’s going to be another hour or two. I would suggest you go home and clean up first. You can’t go back in the ICU covered in dirt and soot. You don’t want to carry an infection to her.”

  Jackson looked at Marx and realized that they were covered in ash and soot from being so close to the fire. Had the doctor not pointed out that they didn’t want to risk giving Kelly an infection, he probably would have argued with him about going home. He didn’t want to leave her even for one minute.

  “Thanks, Doctor.” Steve spoke again. It was obvious that he was the only one thinking straight at the moment.

  The man nodded and stood up to leave. “She’s a very lucky woman. The next twenty-four to forty-eight hours will be crucial. I suggest since there are two of you that you trade off in getting some sleep when you can. She’s got a lot of recovering to do and will need all the help she can get.”

  Jackson nodded and watched the doctor walk back through the emergency room door. He turned to Marx and hugged his brother. To his surprise, Marx hugged him back.

  Chapter Eighteen

  Marx stared at the ICU doors as he stood by the windows in the waiting room. They were waiting for the nurse to come get them to go see Kelly. He and Jackson were freshly showered and dressed in comfortable jeans and T-shirts, ready for the long hours of waiting in uncomfortable chairs. His brother paced in the center of the room. Both of them were anxious about what they would see when they finally made it back to where she was.

  He glanced over to where Steve, Ben, and Tessa sat waiting with them. They hadn’t been home to change yet, opting instead to stay while he and Jackson had gone home. Since they wouldn’t be allowed in the back initially, they were just waiting to find out what they thought once they had seen her. Marx dreaded the event but needed to see her, needed to see for himself that she was actually alive.

  The double doors opened automatically as a short blonde woman walked through them. She called out Kelly’s name and took a step
back when they all converged on her.

  “Um, okay, only two can go back at a time.” She looked over at Steve, Ben, and Tessa. “I’m sorry, but you will have to clean up before you can go in the back. We have to be careful of infections back here.”

  “We’re not going back tonight. We’re here for them.” Ben’s explanation seemed to meet with the nurse’s approval.

  Looking at Marx and Jackson, she motioned for them to come through the automatic doors with her. She waved a badge at the little black box on the wall, and the doors swished open for them. After they walked through and the doors had closed, the nurse showed them a hand-washing station.

  “Every time you come back here to see her, you will need to stop and wash your hands thoroughly, paying attention to the directions posted on the wall. It’s very important to prevent the spread of germs.”

  They nodded, and Jackson stepped up to start the process. While he scrubbed, she continued talking.

  “I want you to be prepared when you go back there. She is on a ventilator and has a tube down her throat to help her breathe. It keeps her lungs expanded. Kelly is still unconscious, and we’ll keep her sedated while she is on the vent so she won’t try and fight it. Until she comes off the vent, she won’t be able to talk to you. Understand?”

  Jackson was drying his hands. Marx nodded and stepped up to the sink. He listened as she continued while he scrubbed his hands up to his elbows.

  “With the first-degree burns, there would be a lot of pain since the burns are only as deep as her nerves are. It’s another reason she is sedated right now. Talk to her. She may be able to hear you, so don’t say anything that would upset her. Don’t let all the tubes and wires scare you. They are there to help us monitor her.”

  They followed the nurse as she led them into a small area where there were several beds arranged in a semicircle around a central desk. Each bed was separated by glass walls and had a glass sliding door. Even though curtains covered the walls on each side, it looked more like a prison to Marx, no privacy despite the curtains. He remembered believing he was going to prison all those years ago for what he had done. He hated that his Kelly was confined to this even though he knew it was necessary.