by Marla Monroe
“Why not? We’re just talking and all of us are off this afternoon. I know you were enjoying your book by the way you were smiling then blushing,” Dalton teased.
She felt heat creep up her neck once again. The fact that he’d pointed it out proved they’d been watching her for a while and she hadn’t even noticed. It also rang home the fact that they affected her enough to have her blushing like some innocent school girl. She hadn’t been innocent in a very long time.
“Your face is so cute when your cheeks turn rosy.” Bo touched her cheek for a split second before dropping his hand again.
She finally looked up and couldn’t miss the quick flash of pain before he hid it from her. Why? What caused that instant of hurt he hid so well? She wanted to comfort him but wasn’t sure how. She hadn’t been around men much in the last few years of being on the run. She’d been too scared to trust anyone. But Bo’s pain appeared so deep and soul searing despite the brief glance she’d had.
When she turned to look up at Dalton, she caught him watching Bo with an almost wistful expression on his face. Did he have feelings for Bo? He’d never appeared to be attracted to the other man, but since they’d been together for a long time according to everyone, she’d wondered. Then when both men had approached her, she’d written it off as being close friends. Since she didn’t really have much experience with having close friends, she wasn’t really sure how close two people could become and not be involved with each other on a more intimate level. She wasn’t even sure she wanted to find out. Fear was a good motivator for her to stay apart from everyone.
She thought about Billy Jean and how nice she was. The other woman wanted to be friends and included Shelby anytime she was around and doing something fun. They’d made a batch of cookies one night when the other woman was waiting for her men to come back and pick her up. It had been fun joking around with the woman. Not to mention the woman could cook. Melt in your mouth and slap your momma good.
Dalton looked down at her and smiled. “What just crossed that amazing mind of yours, kitten? It looked positively sinful.”
His words came out in a low growl as if he couldn’t control himself. All over whatever her face had looked like when she was thinking about Billy Jean’s cooking. Not good.
“Um, nothing really,” she managed to get out.
“Didn’t look like nothing to me,” Dalton teased.
“She’s holding back from us, Nis’kun. I think she is worried that we will see that she is attracted to us,” Bo said with a small smile.
“That’s not true, and what did you just say to him?” she asked, her chin tight and tilted up.
Bo chuckled. “I just called him brother, anaohkitsi.”
Shelby frowned. “I thought you weren’t related.”
“We are blood brothers,” Dalton said in a much more serious tone. “Our blood has mingled and we pledged our lives to each other.”
“So does that mean you’re like, um, lovers, too?” she asked, her face heating once again.
Bo frowned and made a choking sound while Dalton burst out laughing, slapping his knee with one hand. She thought Bo might burst a blood vessel the way his face tightened down, but Dalton just seemed to see the humor in her assumption.
“What? You two are so close and there’s nothing wrong with it,” she huffed out, annoyed that Dalton was laughing at her.
“Sa, little one. We are not lovers. Very close friends who would do anything to help the other, even die,” Dalton said, sobering as he explained. “His fight is my fight. His needs are before my own. It is our way,” Dalton said matter-of-factly.
“She is distracting us, Dalton.” Bo had calmed down again. “I think it would be nice to walk down to the barn to see the horses.”
“What?” Were they going to get up and leave now out of the blue?
“Good idea, anaohkitsi. We will introduce her to our onoka-mitta, our horses,” Dalton drawled.
“You want me to come with you?” She hadn’t expected that.
“Of course, kitten. We see our horses every day. Sometimes more than we want to.” Bo shook his head with a droll expression on his face.
“Did you just make a joke?” she asked, amused that he’d relaxed enough.
“Only spoke the truth.” He stood up and held out his hand. “Come napi.”
“Napi?”
“Friend. We are friends, Aa?” Bo asked.
“Yes. I suppose we are.”
* * * *
Bo wasn’t sure how he felt about Dalton’s plan to slowly seduce Shelby. They were supposed to woo her first, until she become comfortable around them. Then they were to begin courting her in earnest, seducing her until she couldn’t help but agree to be their shared wife. His friend was right. Bo already cared about her a great deal, having fallen to her sweet manners and gentle ways. He’d liked how she’d helped Billy Jean slowly get used to being around the horses some without pushing the other woman or teasing her.
Of course, he’d be dishonest if he didn’t admit that her physical beauty appealed to him as much as the beauty of her heart and soul. She had the most amazing golden hair and grass-green eyes that he’d ever seen. Her pale skin stood out so white next to his own that it mesmerized him when she was near. He would have to make sure she took proper precautions when out in the sun.
He watched as she looked up at him with just a hint of trepidation before she slowly placed her much smaller and softer hand into his callused and scarred one. Her expression changed from uneasy to confident as she gave him a broader smile and stood up.
“Well, let’s go see your horses, guys.”
Dalton stood up next to her, and while Bo held her hand, his friend placed his hand at the small of her back. He nodded at him before turning to guide Shelby back through the tables to the stairs leading from the deck to the grass below. This felt right. For the first time in a long time, Bo wasn’t empty inside and didn’t ache to be alone out in the wild somewhere right then. Maybe it wouldn’t last long, but for now, he savored it, closing his eyes for a second to breathe in the scent of peace.
“How are you liking living out here, Shelby?” Dalton asked.
“What do you mean?” she asked.
“You’re from Wyoming, right? There’s not a lot of difference, but there is some,” his friend continued.
“Oh, well. I like it well enough. Ennis isn’t far if I need anything. I really like Billy Jean and the twins. Mr. and Mrs. Marshall are really nice, and so is their daughter, Lacy.” She sounded like she was avoiding Dalton’s question to Bo. Why?
“Seem like somewhere nice to settle down for a while?” Dalton asked.
“Settle down?” Her head turned to look at the other man so that Bo couldn’t see her expression. But by the look of his friend’s face, it wasn’t a happy one.
“Yeah, build a home, start a family. It’s a good life out here with good people you can count on,” Bo added.
Her head whipped around to look up at him this time. Yep, there is was, a hint of panic and just a hint of longing that disappeared just as fast as it showed up. She wanted a home and family, but something had her running scared.
“M–maybe one day, but I’m not in any hurry.”
“Nope. I reckon not. You’re still young, I expect,” Dalton drawled.
She wrinkled her forehead as if miffed at being called young. “I’m the same age as you, Dalton Crazy Bear.”
Dalton chuckled. “Maybe in years, little bit.”
“What is that supposed to mean?”
Bo cleared his throat. He didn’t want Dalton to push too hard before they’d managed to make any headway with her. She’d run hard and far if his friend wasn’t careful. There was definitely something behind her skittishness. An abusive lover? He wasn’t sure.
“Nothing, kitten. Dalton fancies himself a man of the world since his stint in the marines. Careful here. The ground is uneven here. I don’t want you to fall and injure yourself.” Bo sent a glare toward hi
s friend, warning him to back down.
To his credit, Dalton backed off and didn’t push it again. Once they reached the barn, the horses took over the conversation. Both he and Dalton were surprised to hear that Shelby had never really ridden before. Admitting that her only experience had been when she was just a young girl seemed to embarrass her. The way her cheeks heated always got his cock hard. Just something about the innocent air around her had him wanting to be her knight in shining armor.
He almost snorted at that thought, tarnished, maybe, but definitely not shining. He hadn’t been anyone’s savior in a long, long time. Maybe he never had been.
“This is Sagebrush, my horse,” Dalton was telling her. “He’s what we call a red dun.”
“He’s pretty. The color is warm feeling,” she said.
“Pretty? Don’t let him hear you say that. He’s handsome,” Dalton insisted with a smirk.
Bo just shook his head. “You can pet him if you wish. Sagebrush is basically gentle.”
He watched as she gingerly held out a hand and let the big gelding sniff her hand. It snorted over it then nuzzled, looking for a treat. Dalton quickly handed Shelby a sugar cube. She smiled at him before holding her hand out to let the horse’s wet muzzle snatch it from her palm.
“Ugh, nasty. He slobbered on me,” she said with a light laugh.
“Just wipe it on your jeans, kitten. That’s what jeans are for,” Dalton teased.
To both his and Dalton’s surprise, Shelby wiped her hand down Dalton’s thigh to clean the horse’s slobber off of it. Her eyes suddenly flew wide as it dawned on her what she’d just done. Bo quickly distracted her before she bolted from the barn.
“Better check out Apocalypse before he gets jealous. I’d rather not have to separate the two from fighting just because you ignored him.” Bo tugged lightly on Shelby’s hand until she followed him across the aisle to where his horse stood proud with his head over the stall door.
When they approached, it shook his proud head and whinnied before giving a loud snort. For some reason, the animal’s obvious display of pride amused Shelby and she laughed.
“Full of yourself, aren’t you boy,” she said as she slowly held out he hand to him.
“Careful there, Shelby. He might nip at you. He’s fine once he gets to know you, but sometimes he’s picky around strangers,” Bo cautioned.
“What color is he?” she asked, withdrawing her hand.
“His coloring is called grullo. He’s a pale version. The silvery gray color is almost smoky. See the darker areas around his head, hips and legs?” He liked teaching her about his horse.
“Why Apocalypse? I get Sagebrush. He looks about that color, but what about him made you name him that?” she asked, looking up at him with her bright eyes.
“He was causing all kinds of trouble at the ranch I found him at, and they were ready to put him down. He was even too wild to use him for breeding and planned to try gelding him if they could catch him again to take him to the vet to get cut. When I asked to buy him, the owner laughed and said if I could tame him, we’d all better be ready for the apocalypse because it would be the beginning of the end if that happened.” Bo couldn’t help but chuckle at the look on that man’s face when he’d finally been able to ride the big stallion.
“Really?”
“Yep. Took a while and a lot of patience, but he was just waiting for someone who understood him. We get along fine.”
“His horse is one of the smartest I’ve ever been around, too,” Dalton said. “Bo can actually ride him bareback and use just his knees to guide him. He trained him in the old way using a lot of the old methods.”
“Here, kitten. Offer him a sugar cube. I’ll help you.” Bo took a cube from his friend and holding her hand palm up with his own, dropped the sweet in her hand and helped her hold it out to the massive beast.
She stayed very still and didn’t squeal or squirm when Apocalypse nudged her hand before showing his teeth. Then he gently picked the cube up with just his fleshy mouth without even slobbering on her hand–much. He snorted and nodded his head up and down before pawing the ground beneath his hooves.
“He said thank you,” Bo told her with a grin.
“Really?” She asked, her face awash in amazement.
“Really,” Dalton agreed. “Here give him another one.”
She took the cube Dalton offered then looked over at Bo expectantly.
“You do it by yourself this time. He knows you and approves or he wouldn’t have taken the gift you gave him,” Bo told her.
As he watched, keeping a close eye on his horse’s tells, Shelby slowly lifted her hand with the cube sitting in the flat of her palm and stepped forward to place her hand within easy reach of the big stallion. When Apocalypse lifted his head over the stall door and gave them a short nod, Bo relaxed. The horse did like her and wasn’t going to harm the human providing him such sweet gifts. In fact, to his and Dalton’s astonishment, the silly horse leaned forward and licked Shelby’s hair before gently nuzzling the sugar cube from her palm once again.
“Eww. First horse slobber on my hand and now in my hair. I’m going to need a shower after this,” she said with an enormous grin on her face.
“Sorry about that. I’m not sure why he did that,” Bo said, frowning.
“It’s probably my shampoo. It smells a little like apples. Doesn’t matter. Thanks for letting me feed your horses, guys.” She ran her hand lightly over Apocalypse’s muzzle before stepping back.
“Would you like to go for a short trail ride the next time one of us is free when you are?” Dalton asked.
“Oh. I’m not sure if I can do that or not. I mean, the horses are so tall, and I’m a little afraid of heights,” she hedged.
“There are several much smaller horses, Shelby. Will you trust us to pick out one we think will fit you just fine?” Bo asked.
He watched as she argued with herself, the obvious struggle that was going on inside of her apparent on her expressive face. How she managed to keep whatever secret she hid from everyone with the way her eyes and face gave everything she was thinking away, was a mystery to him.
Finally, a reluctant smile flitted across her face and she nodded. “Sure. Maybe one day when we’re all off. I could try it anyway. I might not be cut out to ride.”
“I’m betting you’re going to be a born rider, little bit,” Dalton said in his lazy drawl.
“Um, I better get back. It’s getting late and dinner will be ready soon.” She turned and started back toward the stable doors.
Bo wasn’t about to let her get away without one taste of her sweet lips. Just a quick taste to dampen the fire her mere presence had fanned to life in his groin. He didn’t bother looking at his friend. Either the other man was with him or he wasn’t. As much as he’d planned to take their courtship slow and easy, Bo didn’t have the patience he’d had when dealing with his horse several years ago.
Just as she reached the barn doors, Bo reached around her and pressed his hand against the wood to keep her from opening it. She turned to frown up at him, and he caged her in with his other hand just above her shoulders on the other side of her. Her eyes widened then settled with a knowledge that they wouldn’t hurt her. Good. She might not want them to kiss her, but she trusted them not to hurt her.
“What are you doing?” she asked anyway.
“Kissing you, sweet kitten,” he said before slowly lowering his mouth to hers and sipping lightly at her soft plump lips.
Chapter Seven
Watching Bo kiss Shelby had Dalton’s dick knocking on the zipper of his jeans. How in the hell was he going to be able to sit down to dinner with a damn hard-on? It took all his control not to groan at the way her breasts heaved as she struggled to breathe despite Bo’s light kiss. It wasn’t his friend’s interference with her breathing that had her almost panting, but her own arousal sapping her control.
As soon as his friend stopped caressing her sweet lips, Dalton planned to steal
a taste as well. Just knowing that she wasn’t fighting her attraction for his blood brother gave him hope they would be able to woo her into their arms and then their lives. She was so different from his first wife and so much more. He didn’t feel the wandering attention Dancing Doe had seemed to have. If he’d been older, more experienced, he would have recognized her needs and addressed them. But that was in his past and he vowed not to make the same mistakes twice. It had cost him his wife and almost cost him his best friend as well.
“You taste like pure honey, kitten. I could kiss you like this forever,” Bo whispered to Shelby.
She just stared up into Bo’s eyes, her busty chest heaving as she tried to catch her breath. Bo hadn’t kissed her very deeply, but their little wildcat had felt it much deeper than that. He smiled.
Bo looked over at him and nodded before turning her in Dalton’s direction. Her eyes followed Bo’s for a second as if unsure why he was pushing her away. Then she focused on Dalton and a jolt of fear tinged her eyes before she settled and shyness replaced it. He moved slowly, not wanting to startle her when she was barely settled. He wanted this to be perfect so she would trust them enough to let them spend more time with her.
Dalton took a step in her direction, then another. When his chest was almost touching her, he stopped and leaned down to leave butterfly kisses at each corner of her mouth. He longed to see her lips swollen from their attentions, but that would be later. Right now, they were taming a frightened filly and that took patience. Lots of patience.
“Ahnuts. Beautiful,” he said softly. He punctuated that with a light kiss to her lips.
“Just like a little natáyo, little lynx. Just looking into those pretty green eyes feels like I’m looking to a bit of heaven.” Dalton lifted one hand and gently brushed back a lock of her hair that had escaped the band she’d pulled her hair back with.
He pressed his lips to hers once more then licked along the seam of hers experimentally to see how she’d react. To his delight, she opened to him, allowing him to sweep inside and take a deeper taste of her. He didn’t push it though. Instead, he sucked on her lower lip before lifting his head away from hers. Again she panted as if she’d run a race.
