by Marla Monroe
“I’m really kind of tired. Do you guys mind if I go ahead and go to bed?” Celina asked.
Abe opened his eyes. With the mattress between the fireplace and the couch and chairs, she was probably colder sitting there than she would be in bed. He should have thought of that and suggested she go ahead and get in bed earlier.
“Of course not,” Russell answered before he did.
“Um, I need to change into my pj’s. Would you mind, um turning your backs for a minute?”
Abe could hear the uncertainty in her voice. He stood up and nodded toward the kitchen at Russell.
“We’ll wait in the kitchen for you.”
Without a word, Russell followed him into the other room. He didn’t miss the soft sigh of relief from Celina as he passed the couch. He guessed that though it had only been a couple of days, she was still uncomfortable around them to some extent. That was to be expected considering she was a rare commodity to some men.
“She told me you took her coffee privileges away from her.” Russell grinned at him.
“Coffee’s not good for the baby. You should know that. You’ve had kids.”
Russell’s eyes dimmed some. “Yeah. I just didn’t think about it to say anything. She was pouting about it.”
“She’ll get past it. We need to make sure she stays as warm as possible. I’m going to look through the mess upstairs to find some thermals that might fit her.”
“Good idea. I’m sure there are other things we need to be thinking about concerning her pregnancy. Too bad we don’t have a book on it.” Russell ran a hand over his face.
“Hadn’t thought about that. There’s a bunch of survivalist books in the office. There might be something in there. You look through the books for one in the morning. I guess if we’re going to be birthing a baby, we need to get ready.”
Russell smiled once again. “Going to be different having a baby around here. You went from recluse to a full-fledged family almost at one time.”
“This isn’t a family. It’s just a bunch of people living in one place. Don’t go making this into something it isn’t. No doubt she wouldn’t appreciate it. She’s still mourning her husband.”
“It was just a figure of speech. Besides, what is wrong with becoming a family anyway? We watch out for each other and help take care of each other. That’s a family. Just because there’s no intimacy doesn’t mean we can’t still care about each other.”
“Russell, you take that attitude and you’re going to end up fucking up. You’re going to start assigning feelings to her she’ll never return and that leads to pain and disappointment. Don’t go there, man.” Abe walked over to the door and knocked on it. “You decent out there? It’s cold in here.” He knew he was growling when he spoke.
“Come in. I’m sorry. I just figured you would come back.” Celina’s voice from the other side of the door was muffled, but it conveyed her guilt at having kept them in the cold.
Abe felt low at having instigated her anguish in the first place. They hadn’t been that cold. He’d taken his annoyance from Russell’s comments out on her. That wasn’t fair. He needed to apologize, but he didn’t know how.
Celina’s concerned expression peeked up at him from where she was snuggled with the covers pulled up to her chin on the bed. He sighed before stepping to the end of the mattress and tending to the fire. It was late. He might as well go to bed, too. He was sure Russell would agree. They had another few days of the icy snow to deal with before the weather warmed up enough it would melt some.
After adding a log and assuring the screen was in front of the fire, Abe walked back around behind the couch and began shucking his clothes without a word. He wasn’t worried about Celina seeing him. He had no modesty, and from her position on the mattress on the other side of the couch, she couldn’t see him anyway. Russell joined him and shed his clothes as well. They left them draped over the back of the couch before hurrying to the mattress and climbing under the covers. Even with their thermals, the cold air was enough to shrivel his balls.
Celina didn’t say anything and neither did he, but Russell, ever the positive one, wished them both good night. Celina answered him. Abe just grunted.
Chapter Nine
“Crap!” Celina shook her hand before hurrying over to the sink to run cold water over where she’d burned it on the stove.
“What’s wrong?” Abe grabbed her wrist and pulled it toward him.
“I burned my hand getting the biscuits out. It’s fine. Just a little one.”
“We don’t have medicine. Nothing is minor, Celina.” He looked closely at the small blister that had formed on the heel of her right hand.
“It’s not too bad, Abe. I’ll be careful with it. It will heal in no time.” She tried to pull her hand from his grasp.
“Be still.” His rumbly voice stopped her from trying to remove her hand from his grasp.
While he looked it over, she watched his face. Usually devoid of expression, there was one of intense worry now. It startled her. They had all been living together for almost three weeks now and this was the first time she’d really noticed him showing anything other than a blank expression or anger. It was hard to look away from the beauty of his face with emotion in it. Warmth flooded her body at the feel of his hand on her skin.
“I think it will be okay, but try not to break the blister. Don’t wash the dishes. We’ll take care of them.” He looked up and caught her staring at him and not her hand. “What?”
“Nothing.” She looked away. “I’ll be careful.”
He seemed to suddenly realize he was still holding her hand and let it go. Taking a step back, she tried to reign in the blast of heat that traveled over her body. Awareness of him as a man tickled her senses, making her uncomfortable with where her thoughts were taking her. She took another step back.
“Um, the food will be ready in about ten minutes. Would you tell Russell?” she asked turning away from him.
Celina was sure her face had turned red by the heat she could feel in her cheeks. What was going on with her? She hadn’t felt this flustered around a man since her husband. Lately, being around either Abe or Russell seemed to stir her up, and that wasn’t a good thing. She was pregnant, for goodness’ sake.
The sound of the kitchen door swinging shut let her know that Abe had left the room. She instantly felt a sense of loss. The man had a commanding presence as well as the fact he seemed to fill a room with his huge body. She often felt as if he sucked all of the oxygen out of the room when he was in it.
Fanning her face, Celina hurried to finish preparing the meal. They were bound to be hungry after working all morning. Even with a good bit of the snow gone, the resulting slush and mud made walking outside almost dangerous. One or the other of them had shown up several times in the last few days covered in mud and cursing a blue streak after having fallen in the mess. She knew they were miserable, and the threat of catching their death of pneumonia scared her. She didn’t know what they would do if that happened. With no medicine, getting sick in any way was almost a certain death sentence.
“Hey, sweetness. Something smells wonderful in here.” Russell walked over to where the stew was bubbling on the stove.
“Have a seat, and I’ll bring it to the table.” She picked up the pot holders and tried to move him out of the way.
“Naw, it’s too heavy for you. I’ll get it.” He reached for the pot holders.
Celina reluctantly gave them up, even though she knew she could handle the pot. If it made Russell feel good to help, she would give in. He was always so sweet to her and tended to tease her mercilessly. Sometimes she wasn’t so sure it was mere teasing for him. He would get this look in his eyes that made her think he wasn’t playing around, but then it would be gone and she would tell herself she’d imagined it. That look was happening more and more often, though.
“Thanks, Russell. There’s already a place on the table for it. Is Abe coming?”
“Yeah, he’s on hi
s way.”
She followed Russell with the plate of biscuits and a bowl of rice. She had planned for them to spoon the stew over the rice. She hoped there was enough. She was still trying to get used to feeding two men with as big of appetites as they seemed to have. Roger had never eaten as much as these two men could put away.
As soon as Abe appeared, they settled down to eat. The men talked about the weather and their chores while she watched them. What was so different about them that she couldn’t stop looking at them? It bothered her that she couldn’t put her finger on whatever it was that drew her to them like a moth to a flame. All she thought about when they were outside was if they were okay and when they were inside, she could barely manage to stay away from them.
Even though the weather wasn’t as bitterly cold as it had been, they were still sleeping on the mattress in front of the fire. Every evening she almost held her breath that they would decide they didn’t need to continue sleeping together. She’d gotten used to being between them, and the thought of going back to sleep in her bed all alone started an ache inside of her. She felt safer between them and if she were being honest with herself, she enjoyed the tiny bit of intimacy it gave her.
“How is your hand feeling?”
Celina all but jumped out of her chair at the gruff sound of Abe’s voice. She dropped her hand from where it had risen to cover her heart.
“It’s fine.” She held her palm up to show him.
“You were a thousand miles away over there. What were you thinking so hard about?” Russell’s wry grin told her he had his suspicions.
Celina didn’t want either man to know how much she had come to care about them and depend on them. While Russell would probably only tease her about it, she was sure Abe wouldn’t appreciate her attentions.
“Nothing really. I guess I was just thinking about what spring would be like here. I’ve never really been this far west or north before.”
“Work. That’s what it’s going to be like. Lots of work.” Abe got up and gathered some of the dishes.
Russell winked at her. “Bet the trees will be pretty as they bud out and the grass will probably be an amazing shade of green in the pasture.”
“Stop painting some kind of pretty picture for her and help me with these dishes.” Abe all but growled from across the kitchen.
She stood up and started to pick up her dishes as well. Russell stopped her and took them away from her with a broad grin.
“Go relax for a while. You probably need to put your feet up. You’ve been on them all morning.”
“But you’re the ones who’ve been outside in the cold, working. I don’t feel comfortable sitting around while you do my dishes.”
Russell opened his mouth to answer her, but Abe beat him to it.
“Don’t be ridiculous. I used to do all of it by myself. The two of us can handle a few dishes. Do what Russell said and put your feet up.”
Celina bit her lips but hurried into the other room. Truthfully she was grateful for a few minutes alone before they joined her. She needed to get control of herself. Just the sound of Abe’s deep voice had her juices flowing. The way Russell looked at her sent heat searing through her bloodstream. It had to be the pregnancy hormones. It was the only thing she could think of. Surely she wouldn’t be this attracted to two near strangers like this.
As she relaxed on the couch with her feet warm under a blanket, scenes from the last few days played over and over in her mind. Again and again, evidence of just how much they affected her played out to mock her. By the time the men walked in, Celina had come to realize that she was quickly falling under their spell. Not love, but most definitely lust. The only thing she could do now was figure out what she was going to do about it, because there was no ignoring the low burning that was slowly making its way through her body.
* * * *
Russell knew he was pushing Celina, but he couldn’t help himself. There was something about her that was thawing the cold shell that had encased his heart since losing his wife. He wasn’t dumb enough to believe that she would return his feelings, but he knew she wouldn’t throw a little honest caring back in his face. She needed it now more than ever with a child on the way.
He gently lifted her feet off the couch and sat down before easing them back onto his lap. Her soft smile brightened the room. Russell slipped his hands beneath the cover and massaged first one and then the other of her tiny feet.
“Mmm. That feels so good.”
Abe’s frown and disapproving glare didn’t stop him for even a second. The other man needed to relax and go easy around the pretty little female. She needed softness and gentle touches, not gruff words and hard looks.
Russell sighed and continued caressing her feet. Maybe she would enjoy a full back rub later. He was sure that as the baby grew and moved around in her body that she had new aches and pains she’d never had before. He could remember… Russell cut those thoughts off. Remembering would do no good. He wanted to concentrate on Celina and being friends. Maybe over time, they could become closer than friends. All he knew was that her laughter made him happy.
“Are her feet swollen?” Abe asked.
Russell looked over to where the other man was standing to the side of the fireplace, watching them. The guarded gaze didn’t fool Russell. He could tell the other man did feel something for Celina.
“Maybe a little bit. Not much, though. It’s still early in her pregnancy yet to worry too much about that.”
“Worry about what?”
Russell winced. He hadn’t wanted her to worry about anything. He would do the worrying for her.
“Sometimes during pregnancy if your feet and ankles swell a lot it can be a sign of high blood pressure. You don’t need to worry about that right now. Just make sure you continue to drink plenty of water and rest when you’re tired. Leave the rest to us.”
He watched as she looked from him to Abe and back. “Why would you worry about me? You’ve got enough to worry about with all of the work outside.”
“You’re having a baby, woman. That means the closer you get to your time, the more we’re going to have to watch out for you. Your job is to take care of yourself so we can concentrate on the rest.” Abe’s rough voice did little to soften his harsh words. “I’m going back out to deal with the horses.”
“I’ll be out in a few minutes.” Russell ground his teeth, annoyed at his friend’s lack of sensitivity.
He heard her soft sigh and knew she felt like a problem they had to deal with. That wasn’t the truth. She wasn’t a problem to him. She was a gift amid the horrible life they’d had to endure. All he could think when he was around her was how precious she was and that he would do whatever it took to keep her safe and make her happy.
With that thought, he stood up and stepped toward the other end of the couch, where she sat propped against the arm. He urged her with one hand to sit up, and he scooted her into his lap as he took her place. Resting his cheek against her temple, Russell let the warmth from her body seep deeper into the coldness that had lived in his heart for the last year.
“You feel wonderful, Celina. I could sit here holding you all day.”
“I imagine that wouldn’t win you any points with Abe, though,” she said with a chuckle.
He could feel her laughter vibrate across his skin. The welcome feeling soon had his cock hardening beneath her. He wanted to curse his body’s reaction since it meant he needed to get up before she noticed it. The fact of the matter was that he was to know he could still get hard after his wife’s death. For so long guilt over having been such an arrogant ass, thinking he didn’t need help to keep her safe, had kept him from feeling any sort of arousal.
“I’m sure you’re right, but I’m going to hold you for a few more minutes. I like holding you.”
“I like it when you hold me. I like it when you smile at me, too.”
Russell watched as she looked away when she said that. Hope took root in his heart that maybe she r
eally did feel something for him more than just caring for another human being in a bad situation.
“Good. I plan to hold you and smile at you every chance I get.” He squeezed her lightly before kissing her temple.
Her soft intake of breath told him she’d felt his kiss. He hadn’t really meant to do it, but now that he had, Russell wasn’t going to apologize for it.
After several more minutes, he knew he was pushing his luck. They really did have a lot to do outside. He needed to get up and help Abe. Standing up, he turned and carefully settled Celina back on the couch, drawing the blanket closer around her.
“Rest for a while longer before you get up to do anything else. I’ll see you later, Celina.”
“Be careful out there, Russell.” She smiled up at him.
He had to fight to keep from pulling her back into his arms and kissing her breathless. Instead, he nodded and turned away to stalk over to the door where his coat, hat, gloves, and boots were.
Making sure to close the door firmly behind him, Russell strode across the packed snow to the check the cow’s water trough to be sure ice hadn’t formed over it again. It wasn’t long before he was lost in thought as he worked. He didn’t even hear Abe walk up until the big man had grabbed his arm.
“Fuck!” Russell jerked back before he caught himself.
“You need to stop daydreaming about the female and stay aware of everything around you or you’re going to end up getting hurt.”
“You can’t look me in the eyes and tell me you haven’t been thinking about her, too. I’ve seen the look on your face when you watch her.” Russell glared at his friend.
“I’d have to be blind not to be aware of her when she’s under my nose every day.”
“She deserves to be treated better than you treat her, Abe. She’s pregnant and living with two strange men. You need to let her get to know you better.”
Abe cursed under his breath before he spoke again. “She’s a new widow, Russell. If you want to get mixed up in her hormones, fine. Just don’t say I didn’t warn you to steer clear of that mess.”
