by Jane Jamison
“Nope. We’re good to go.” Rick thumped Henry on the shoulder. “In fact, we were just leaving.”
She grabbed his arm, wanting, needing to keep him, to keep them there. “No. Don’t go.”
Rick cupped her cheek. “We’ll be back. You can count on it. And when we get together the next time, nothing’s going to stop us.”
Davis leaned in and planted a quick kiss on her cheek. “Remember that.” Before Henry could kiss her, Davis snagged his arm and tugged him along with him.
They passed Doc and headed for the door. As they did, they congratulated him on hiring her then followed their praise with a warning to keep her in town. They were out the door and gone before she could think of a way to stop them.
She stood at the window where she’d seen them arrive. As they left, she couldn’t hold back a sigh.
“Sounds like someone’s got it bad.”
She blushed and turned toward the doctor. “I don’t know what you mean.”
“Sure you don’t,” he said, scoffing. He began cleaning the examination table, including disposing of Davis’s bloodied sleeve. “Looks like you patched Davis up pretty good.”
Would Doc have answers? “I think I did. But it was the strangest thing, Doc. I would’ve sworn his wounds were already healing on their own.”
“Is that so?” He kept busy, his gaze averted.
“Do you know how that could happen? I mean, it’s impossible, right?”
He washed his hands, dried them, then took her by the arms. “Mira, there are things in this world that can’t be understood. I’m sure you mean what you say, but think about it. How could his wounds heal by themselves?”
“I don’t know, but it was the same with Henry. One minute, his foot is black and blue, and then, in the next, he’s got his boot back on and walking without the limp he came in with.” She bit her lower lip and repeated what she’d said so many times that day. “It doesn’t make any sense.”
“I don’t know what to tell you. I wasn’t here.”
“But, Doc—”
“But I do know one thing.”
Did he not know anything? Or was he doing his best not to tell her? “What’s that?”
“Those boys are sweet on you.”
“Oh.” Should she tell him what they’d said? Should she tell him that she felt the same way?
“Judging from the look on your face, you’re sweet on them, too.”
Was she that transparent? Still, she liked that he thought so. “Look, Doc, about their injuries—”
“But don’t you go getting the same idea about Michael.”
She stepped back, surprised. “Why not?”
He looked at her as though trying to see something deep inside her, searching for a reason to tell her. “Shoot, I think I’ve already said too much.”
“No, you haven’t. Tell me. Why shouldn’t I be interested in Michael, too?” He was just as handsome, virile, and sexy as his brothers. So what was it about Michael that was different?
He thought for a moment then answered. “Because you being sweet on Michael would be like trying to row upstream without a paddle. It just ain’t going to happen.”
“Wait. What?”
Doc pivoted around and strode out of the room toward the back of the house and the stairs leading up to his personal apartment. “’Nuff said, Mira. You have yourself a good night.”
Trying to row upstream without a paddle? Could the man be more cryptic?
“I’m going to find out what’s going on,” she said to herself. “And soon. Real soon.”
Chapter Six
Mira stopped her car just outside the gate on the main road. Beyond the gate was the small one-lane road that led to the Fairland men’s home. She’d taken a risk by asking Miss Kitty for exact directions to the men’s ranch. Miss Kitty wasn’t known for her ability to keep a secret, but she’d hadn’t had many other choices. Liz and Kit weren’t exactly sure how to find the ranch, and the last thing Mira wanted to do was to drive around out in the country and have her rental car decide to give up the ghost like her other car. Rental car wasn’t exactly the right way to describe it. The mechanic Davis had called worked out of his home’s garage and had agreed to let her borrow his old Jeep.
Here goes nothing. Or everything.
Leaving her car parked on the side of the road, she pushed open the gate then closed it as she made her way over the cattle guard. As she turned toward the house, she could hear sounds coming from the barn in a nearby pasture.
Were the men in there? Or was it someone else? She doubted they had a ranch hand. Most of the ranches in Lonesome weren’t profitable enough to hire extra help.
Smoothing her T-shirt down then running her thumbs along the inside of her jeans’ waistband, she drew on her resolve and started walking toward the barn. The barn, like the house, wasn’t new construction, but it was painted a nice bright red color she liked. The house, a pristine white with black shutters, was well kept, too. She hoped the interior of the house would be just as clean, but who knew with bachelors? Men who would keep a barn in tip-top shape might not care if their laundry was strewn around the house. Not that they could count on her picking up after them. After all, she was a trained medical person, and they were grown men. They could learn to keep their place clean.
Wow. We aren’t really even together yet, and I’ve already moved in.
She was pushing things. Then again, they’d said they wanted her, not just for a fun time but for a real relationship. At least, that was what Davis, Rick, and Henry wanted. Who knew what Michael wanted? If he was attracted to her, wouldn’t he have shown up at Doc’s along with the others?
Could she and Michael develop a relationship once she and his brothers had gotten involved? Or would he back off even more? He’d always treated her with respect, and they’d gotten along well. Just like good friends.
Was that it? Did she think of him only as a friend? Could she change the way she felt? She faltered, suddenly unsure of her decision. Still, what else could she do? Miss Kitty, Liz, and Kit all seemed to think taking things faster with the Fairland men was the right way to go. As for Michael? She’d have to figure him out later.
She strode into the barn, hair pushed back over her shoulders and her chest thrust out. Determined to make this the day she found love, she followed the noise to a stall near the rear of the barn.
Michael was brushing a bay horse. His voice was low, soothing, and the animal responded with a lowered head, its eyes closed as though it was enjoying every stroke. She glanced around, but his brothers were nowhere to be seen. She cleared her throat, vying for his attention.
He pivoted away from the horse, and a smile burst onto his face. “Hey, there, Mira. What are you doing out here?”
No matter what happened, she was going to tell the Fairland men how she felt. “Are your brothers around?” She cringed inwardly. Why had she asked about them first? Especially when talking to Michael alone might help her understand him?
“Yeah. They’re somewhere around here. Can I help you?” He moved out of the stall and hooked the brush on a nearby peg, but didn’t get very close to her.
“Can you help me?” Why had he made it sound like he was a store clerk ready to help her find a new pair of jeans? “Yeah, you can. Your brothers came to see me at Doc’s.”
“I heard.” His smile went crooked, sliding into a smirk.
“I’ll bet. Especially since you’re the one who sent them there.” She hadn’t planned on being confrontational, but something about the way he held himself back from her just ticked her off. “Why in the world would you hurt Davis and Henry?”
He shrugged, a total lie. “We have our squabbles every now and then. But they’re fine now. Thanks to your loving care.”
“No. No, thanks to me. I didn’t even touch Henry.” They’d gotten off-track. “Look, that’s not why I came out here.”
“Then why did you?” he narrowed his mesmerizing green eyes.
; It was now or never. If things went well, she’d have three, perhaps four, incredible men to love and be loved for a lifetime. And if things went south? Well, then she’d have her answer about leaving Lonesome forever.
“I came to tell your brothers that I want to be with them.”
His eyebrows shot up. “So they told you how they feel, huh?”
“Yes.” Was he jealous? Did he care at all?
“That’s great. I’m happy for you. For all of you.”
The thing was she could tell that he was sincere. Still, she couldn’t resist asking. She had to know once and for all if there could be any attraction between them. “And what about you, Michael? What about us?”
His mouth parted just enough to show that she’d thrown him. “Us?”
She took him by surprise again. Moving quickly, she took hold of his shoulders then reached up and kissed him. He tensed and jerked back a little. Needing to give him everything she had, she kissed him harder and wrapped her arms around his neck.
A moan escaped him, giving her hope. Yet, she didn’t feel like moaning back. Instead, she didn’t feel anything at all. Confusion overtook her and was swiftly followed by crystal-clear clarity.
I don’t feel anything sexual. Nothing. I could be kissing my cousin.
Gently, he pulled her arms away from him and put them back to her sides. A light in his eyes shone both sadness and pity.
Oh, shit. I am a damn fool.
“Mira, please, let’s talk.”
Embarrassment flooded her. She’d been ready for him to reject her, but she hadn’t counted on seeing pity in his eyes. “No. It’s all right. I’m all right.” Tugging out of his hold, she whirled around, needing to get away.
“Mira, please, stop. We have to get through this.”
But she kept on moving, too hurt and embarrassed to look at him again. “No, Michael. I get it now. Seriously. I won’t do anything like that ever again.”
“Mira!”
She ran out of the barn and straight into Henry. “Oh, crap.”
Try as she could to get away, Henry had a good hold on her. “What’s wrong? What happened?”
“I happened,” said Michael.
“Please. Let me go. This was all a horrible mistake.” She struggled, but Henry held her to him. “I’m fine. I promise I am. Just let me go.”
Henry must’ve been perceptive enough to know she wasn’t fine at all. Did he know what had happened? Could he guess?
A sob escaped her as Henry wrapped his arm around her. “Come inside. Davis and Rick are there.”
The last thing she wanted to do was to face the men she wanted and tell them that she’d thrown herself at their brother. Even worse, she wasn’t sure why she’d done it. She didn’t feel anything except friendship toward Michael. “No. I want to go.” She tried again to get free and failed again.
“I’m not letting you go anywhere while you’re this upset.” Henry walked her toward the house. “Michael, how about you—”
“Yeah. I’ll be scarce for a while,” called Michael.
At least, he didn’t follow them into the house. She noticed the comfortable furnishings. Every bit of it was old and worn, but obviously of good quality. As soon as she saw Davis and Rick sitting on the couch, she lowered her gaze, once more humiliated.
“What’s going on?” asked Davis as he rose and paced over to them.
“Michael.” Henry gave her a squeeze.
Did they have to talk about it? “Look, guys.” She forced her head up. “I did a stupid thing, and all I want now is to leave.”
“What did you do?” asked Rick. He bent lower so he could stare into her face. “I know you didn’t romp in the hay with him.”
Davis whacked Rick on the shoulder in a not-so-gentle way. “What the hell, man? You know that wouldn’t have happened. Not with Michael.”
Because Michael’s not into me. He never was, and he never will be. Why in the world did I try to force something? Because my pride said that I have to have all four brothers?
She didn’t need to spell it out for them. They obviously already knew. “I don’t want to talk about it.” Thinking about it was hard enough.
“Forget about Michael.”
She looked Davis and saw the sincerity there. “But he’s one of you.”
“One of us?” Davis glanced at his brothers. “Because he’s a Fairland? Or because he’s—”
“Not now, man. It’s too soon,” interjected Henry.
Too soon? For what? Yet, she couldn’t ask. Asking might lead to talking more about Michael.
“Why did you come here, honey?” asked Henry. “Not that we aren’t glad to see you. We sure as hell are.”
“In fact, we were going to come into town today to see you.” Davis slid his hand along her arm, trying to comfort her.
“You were?” Hope that she hadn’t ruined everything took on a life inside her.
“You bet.” Rick used his thumb to wipe away a tear. “We’ve had a lot of work around the ranch to get finished first. We just finished up and were talking about going to town. I’m damn glad you came here, though.”
“You are?” She wanted them to tell her more, to make the pain of Michael’s rejection go away. Yet why was she hurt? Hadn’t she half expected Michael to turn her down? Hadn’t a part of her wanted him to do exactly that?
“Yeah, we are.” Henry took her by the chin, his eyes shining as he smiled. “Don’t you remember what we said? That we want you?”
“Y-yes.” Did they still want her? They hadn’t mentioned the word love, but hadn’t they implied it?
“And you want us, right?”
She nodded, still unsure of how much to tell them.
“Damn it. I can’t take much more of this.” Davis scooped her off her feet. “We can talk about all the other stuff later on. Right now, I’m going to break apart if we don’t get you into bed.”
She clung to him, her breath coming fast. The disappointment that had burdened her was gone, replaced by a swift rush of desire. Warmth flowed between her legs, along with another kind of warmth that filled her heart. They didn’t have to tell her that they loved her. As long as they showed her how they felt, she’d be all right.
“Then get her upstairs, man,” urged Rick. “Now.”
Davis bounded up the stairs, taking them two at a time. She held on, bouncing with his movements. A laugh broke free, dispelling all her earlier heartache.
They never made it to the bedroom. Halfway down the hallway, Rick bumped into Davis. Davis fell forward. Mira let out a squeal and felt herself falling. Mere inches before she would’ve hit the floor, Rick caught her, pulled her against him, and rolled, bringing her on top of him.
She shoved the hair out of her face, sucked in a breath, and stared down at the grinning Rick. The amber in his eyes flamed to life, and not for the first time since coming to Lonesome, she wondered where the amber came from. Was it a Lonesome thing? Was there something in the water? Yet, almost all of the citizens of Lonesome had the same quality in their eyes.
“Stop thinking,” Rick ordered.
“What?” she said, breathlessly.
“You’re thinking about something other than me. Stop it.”
She laughed, but the laugh changed into a small cry as Henry locked his arm around her waist and pulled her off his brother. She’d barely caught her breath before Henry faced her to the wall. His hands made quick work of her T-shirt as he tugged it over her head then flung it away.
She shivered as he put his mouth to her ear. “I want to take you your sweet ass, honey. That okay with you?”
Her nod was his permission. A groan followed as he reached around, undid her jeans, and tugged both her jeans and her panties to her ankles.
“Mine, brother. I had her first.”
She was sure the brothers would end up in a fight as Davis grabbed Henry and shoved him to the side. Henry came back at Davis, the sound of an almost animal-like growl erupting from him. Then Rick was by
her side, pushing at Davis.
She couldn’t think. Didn’t want to tell them to stop. Instead, she turned around and flattened her palms against the wall behind her. “I want all of you. All at the same time.”
“She’s right. Why are we fighting each other?” asked Henry. He slicked his hand over his shaved head. “Let’s not act like the animals we are.”
What did that mean? Yet, she had no time to answer as Davis tore her bra from her. She fought the urge to cover her naked body as the men backed up and studied her. Would they like what they saw? She shivered again, but this time it wasn’t born of need, but of worry.
“You’re fucking beautiful,” whispered Henry.
“The sexiest woman I’ve ever seen,” added Davis.
Rick drew his tongue over his upper lip then closed his eyes as he drew in a long, slow breath. “No more talking. I want to taste you.” He went to his knees in front of her then eased her pussy lips apart.
Her gaze was on Davis’s as Rick put his tongue to work. She gasped as he added teeth to the torturous pleasure, her hands still flat against the wall.
“You’re so amazing.” Henry pulled off his shirt, his attention focused on her breasts, then quickly undid his belt and jeans and put them to the floor along with his kicked-off boots.
She soon found it difficult to breathe with Rick eating at her pussy and Rick’s and Davis’s lustful stares locked on her body.
Henry cupped a breast then brought his mouth to her nipple. She moaned and clutched the back of his head, keeping his mouth where it was. “Oooh. That’s so good.”
“Nah, sugar-baby. Let me show you what’s really good.” Taking her other breast in his large hand, he slicked his tongue over her already taut nipple, twirled it around and around, then flattened his tongue and caught her nipple between his teeth. The bite turned into a suck as he drew a large portion of her breast into his mouth.
She whimpered as moisture flooded between her legs. The orgasm overtook her, weakening her legs. Rick took advantage of her release, adding lapping noises as he drank all he could. The sound of his pleasure increased her own ecstasy, and she grabbed hold of Davis’s hair, hoping he could help her stay on her feet.
