Just One Kiss: A Holiday Story [The Town of Pearl 8] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting)

by Dixie Lynn Dwyer

  “Won’t that make the space too empty? What’s going to go there?” he asked.

  “I was thinking perhaps a specialty piece, like a rocking chair to enjoy the larger window when the sun is shining through,” Lucia stated.

  Salvatore squinted his eyes at her as he ran his hand up her back and under her hair.

  “A rocking chair?”

  “Yes, do you know anyone who makes anything so perfect that would fit in such an amazing room as this is going to be?” she asked and smiled. He tugged her hair playfully then shook his head.

  “No one comes to mind, Lucia, but we’ll talk about it over dinner,” Salvatore replied then stepped away.

  Mrs. Higgins couldn’t help but to smile. It seemed that some progress was made over the past week. Abigail was right. Lucia must have wound up spending time with the Walters brothers even after their lunch in town at Francine’s. It seemed she wasn’t the only woman in town hoping to get these five young people together. She cleared her throat and watched as Lucifer gave Lucia a kiss on her cheek.

  “Leave us to get things started, and leave those designs. I may need to alter a few things, but nothing drastic. We’ll talk more tonight,” he said and winked.

  Lucia shook her head and then looked at Mrs. Higgins.

  Mary smiled.

  “Shall we go over some ideas for colors? I love what the three of you have come up with so far. When did you go over all of this?” Mary asked as they headed out of the room and down the stairs.

  “I saw them in town on Saturday after the fall festival committee met.”

  “Oh yes, I heard they snookered you into the assistant coordinator position.”

  Lucia squinted her eyes at Mary. “I’m very good friends with Abigail Jones and her husbands. So, if you don’t mind me asking, it appears the Walters brothers are very interested in you.”

  Lucia lowered her eyes, and her cheeks turned a nice shade of red.

  “We spent some time together over the weekend. I met their brothers Maxwell and Gabriele too.”

  “Such amazing, honorable men. All of them. I don’t think I’ve seen Salvatore smile since he was a kid.”

  “Oh, that can’t be.”

  “I’ m not lying,” Mary told her as they walked into the home office to find Beth setting out some tea for them. Mary sat down, and Lucia and Beth joined her.

  “So you knew them all as children? Were they well behaved?” Lucia asked as the way she daintily took the teacup and prepared her tea bag like a person of class and sophistication would indicate more about Lucia then she let on. Seemed to Mary, Lucia came from an upper-class family, perhaps a very wealthy one.

  “They were a wild bunch. A handful in a lot of ways. I can remember Salvatore being the quietest and most attached to Lilly. That was their mom’s name, Lilly, and their dad was Benny. What a great couple. They were so in love. Those children of theirs were their everything.”

  “That must be nice,” Lucia replied then took a sip from her teacup.

  “How about your parents? Any siblings?” Mary asked her.

  Lucia looked away and then took a deep breath and released it. “No siblings. I’m an only child. My parents weren’t exactly the perfect couple.”

  “Lucia, if you don’t feel comfortable talking about it, it’s okay. I didn’t mean to overstep boundaries. It’s just that I can see the sadness in your eyes sometimes, and even a bit of fear. Except when you’re around Salvatore and Lucifer. They seem to calm you, maybe bring you security.”

  “They do have that effect on me. I guess because they and their brothers are so big and capable.”

  “Perhaps there’s more to it. You like them, don’t you?”

  “Of course. They’re very respectful and well mannered.”

  “And handsome,” Mary said and raised her eyebrows up and down, and Lucia chuckled.

  “Yes, very handsome,” she whispered then looked up toward the doorway and the staircase.

  “I can vouch for them, that they’re good reliable men. They like you. I can tell, and I bet Gabriele and Maxwell like you too.”

  “I think so. But to be honest, I’m not sure I’m in any position to date or whatever it is one does when they find they’ve gained the attention of four men.”

  Mary chuckled.

  “So it’s the ménage thing you’re worried about?”

  Lucia nodded. She leaned forward and whispered, “I don’t understand how it can work. I mean, I know that they’re brothers, and that this town has these rules about protecting women and children and being guardians, but still, I don’t understand it all.”

  “Have the Walters men requested guardianship of you?” Mary asked. She felt so excited but tried to hold it in.

  “They mentioned something about it. I’m sure by the end of the week they’ll make it official. But I don’t really know them. We’re working on it, but I have fears.”

  “Of course you do. What woman wouldn’t be a bit scared?”

  “It’s more than that.” Lucia looked away, and Mary was immediately concerned.

  She reached over and placed her hand over Lucia’s. Lucia looked at her.

  “What is it? Did something happen to you back home that makes you fearful now?”

  Mary felt compelled to care for Lucia. She was a sweet young woman, and obviously she didn’t have a good relationship with her family.

  “I know we’ve only known one another a short period of time dear, but I’d like you to know that I’m here for you. Just like I’ve been here for the Walters brothers over the years when they lost their parents to illness. It’s not easy to lose a parent, or to not have their support, at any age. But, if you need a friend, someone to talk to and trust, I’m here and I won’t let you down.”

  Lucia stared at her, and Mary could see her eyes well up with tears. Mary swallowed hard and gave a small smile.

  “Someone hurt me, Mrs. Higgins, and when I was finally able to ask for help, my own family betrayed me. I was forced to leave my home.”

  “Your own family? You mean your mother and father?” Mrs. Higgins couldn’t believe it. How terrible for someone so sweet and kind as Lucia to be hurt by her own parents.

  “Yes. I don’t really want to talk about what happened. I left six months ago and I’ve been so careful to not talk to anyone or get close to anyone because I was afraid that they would help him, them, find me.”

  “You’re running from this man that did you harm? You think he’s still looking for you?” Mrs. Higgins asked.

  “I know he is. He’s not the kind to give up. Especially now that he thinks he owns me,” Lucia stated and then stood up and rubbed her arms as she turned away and faced the window.

  “You dated him? He was a boyfriend?”

  “No. I always turned down his advances even though both my parents wanted me to accept them. There was just something about him. Something that made me scared and caused this protective shield to go up whenever he was around me. At parties, he would show up with friends and he would try to make it look like we were an item or that he owned me. He scared a lot of guys away, but I was too stupid to see it. I guess I’ve always given people the benefit of the doubt, and hoped that they chose to do right over wrong. My naiveté nearly got me killed.”

  “Lucia, honey, what did he do to you? You can tell me. I want you to trust me and to know I’m here for you.”

  Lucia looked at Mrs. Higgins, and Mary could see the sadness, the fear in her eyes.

  “I was at a party with friends. A private affair at one of the wealthy kids’ estates. We were all drinking, but I had two beers and saw that my friend Sarah who had brought us there was drinking more so I stopped drinking, worried that I would have to drive everyone home. I thought about it weeks later, after I got out of the hospital, how I had put down the bottle of beer to tug on Sarah’s sleeve. I told her to slow down on the beers and she said she would be fine. She got annoyed with me and I went back to grab my beer when I saw this guy and a fe
w friends of his standing there. I didn’t know until after I gained my memory back after being released from the hospital that it was then, when I left my beer unattended, that he put the drugs in it.”

  “No. Oh God, Lucia.” Mrs. Higgins covered her mouth, and Lucia looked toward the window.

  “I didn’t even know what happened. I woke up battered, with a concussion, and sore in places I shouldn’t have been sore.”

  “No. Oh God, he forced himself on you, Lucia?”

  Lucia nodded her head.

  “I knew something wasn’t right. Because of the concussion the doctors at the hospital told me I would eventually remember what happened. When I did, I knew exactly what took place, how I wound up with the concussion as well as what this man said to me. I told my parents. I wanted to press charges and go after him, and that’s when I found out about the contract.”

  “What contract?”

  “It doesn’t matter. I’m never going back there. He is never going to find me, and as far as I’m concerned, they’re all dead to me.”

  “But, Lucia, he could be looking for you.”

  “Oh, I know he is. I know he’ll never give up trying to find me.”

  “How do you know?” Mary asked her.

  Lucia lifted up her sweater and revealed a light pink scar along her ribs.

  “He did that. He said he was marking me so no other man would want to touch me.”

  “Lucia?” Mary and Lucia turned toward the door to see Beth, Lucifer, and Salvatore standing there. She fixed her sweater and Mary tried to ease things over.

  “We were just having some tea. Would you all like some? Beth, maybe make another pot?”

  “No thank you, Mrs. Higgins. I think Salvatore and I would like a few moments alone with Lucia,” Lucifer said.

  “Lucia?” Mary wanted to make sure it was okay. She felt terribly for Lucia. It was obvious that she was hurting and scared. She wanted to protect her, and the best protection she could provide would be to make sure the Walters men claimed her as their woman.

  Lucia nodded her head as she kept her arms wrapped around herself and stared out the window.

  * * * *

  Lucia’s heart was pounding inside of her chest. She hadn’t wanted the men to find out this way. That she had the light marking, that the man who had drugged her, raped her, and gave her the concussion would not give up until he found her, was now all out in the open.

  She felt the arm go around her waist, and then the large solid chest against her back. Lucifer pushed the hair gently from her shoulder and neck and kissed her skin.

  “He can’t have you, Lucia. You’re ours, and this man will not come between us. I know you’re scared, untrusting, and confused. We’re going to help you through this and to understand that we’re your guardians, your friends, and will be your true lovers.”

  She gasped and turned her head to look at him.

  The thought of someone touching her, of anyone touching her intimately, was scary. As attracted to them as she was, there were still issues to deal with. Even though she wasn’t conscious during the rape, she still knew she was assaulted. She remembered bits and pieces of the encounter.

  It was crazy, but over the past week or so she had learned to trust the men, and let them get closer and closer to her. When she was alone at night in bed, she thought of them. She wanted to feel their hands, their lips everywhere. But she was scared. She didn’t know if she could get past the fear Derek put into her. She also didn’t want to place these men in any danger. God knew what Derek was capable of. She wouldn’t put it past him to hurt these men if he ever found her.

  But at night, when she was sleeping and got scared remembering the attack, it was the Walters men who came to mind and eased her back to the present. She used their images to help her relax, calm down, and get the rest she needed. Whether she wanted to believe it or not, she was falling for them, and they had come to mean more to her than anyone in her life ever had.

  “Lucifer, I don’t know if I can be what you want me to be. I don’t know if I can let you and your brothers touch me like that.”

  He shook his head and turned her around to face him.

  “We’ll help you, baby. You come first from now on. Always you first, Lucia.” He leaned forward and kissed her lips then her nose and then her forehead before he pulled her into his arms and hugged her tight.

  * * * *

  It was difficult to go back to work upstairs in Mrs. Higgins’s house after overhearing more details about Lucia’s past. Lucifer’s heart continued to pound inside of his chest as he thought about her being a victim in more ways than one. Her own family betrayed her. Her parents. He was shocked and outraged. But to know that some asshole that drugged her, raped her, and assaulted her was still out there really pissed him off. And it obviously pissed off Salvatore, too, as he called Maxwell then Gabriele to explain the situation. Maxwell was going to meet them at the house as soon as possible. He was working on something for Wyatt.

  “I don’t want her out of our sights,” Salvatore said as he used the nail gun to post in and secure the Sheetrock to the beams of wood. The sound of the motor and then the air pump echoed through the room, but didn’t hide the strong tone and emotion in Salvatore’s voice.

  “This information does change a lot of things, Salvatore. She’s still in the healing process. She may be incapable of trusting any of us despite our honesty and verbal commitment to her. There’s a lot to consider right now.”

  Salvatore threw down the gun and stomped his foot as he took a step forward. “You backing out on her? On being her guardian? Her man and protector?” he asked. Lucifer knew Salvatore already had strong feelings for Lucia, and he had his own hang-ups with trust and being a survivor. But to see him react so forcefully and combatively concerned him.

  He raised his finger at him. “You need to calm down and get that attitude in check. Lucia sees you or hears you being aggressive and it could scare her away entirely.”

  “I wouldn’t hurt her.”

  “I know that. Just calm the fuck down. We need to really think this through. We need to discuss this with Gabriele and Maxwell and bring them up to speed. Then we need to make a plan of action. One that ensures Lucia’s safety while also gaining her complete trust so she lets us in and lets us protect her. She’s all alone. Or at least feels that way.”

  “I know exactly how she feels. I get it. I understand because I’ve been that way for some time now. It’s not easy to trust anyone, even blood, when you’ve been through such violence and faced death in the eye.”

  Lucifer thought about that a few seconds as Salvatore looked away, ran his fingers through his hair, then bent to pick up the nail gun. He looked at Lucifer.

  “I think we should get everything we can on this piece of shit that hurt her, and then take him out.”

  Lucifer swallowed hard. The expression on his brother’s face was so cold and dark. It made him wonder, like he often did before, exactly what his brother Salvatore was capable of. But then Salvatore winked.

  “Don’t call the loony bin just yet, Bro. I needed to get that off my chest. Let’s finish up then call it a day. Maybe we can get Lucia to come home with us so we can talk about all of this?”

  “I think we all need to discuss this first, then talk with Lucia.”

  “I don’t want her to be alone. Especially now. Especially after what she revealed to all of us, including Mrs. Higgins and Beth. They’re worried about her too.”

  “As will be everyone else once they hear about her past. She’s a likable young woman, special in so many ways. People have taken a liking to her in town too. We’ll work on helping Lucia heal. God knows, we all know how difficult it is to feel such deep pain and then to try and let down our guard and allow the help and love in.”

  Salvatore nodded then went back to work.

  Lucifer looked toward the door and the stairs thinking how badly he wanted to see Lucia and hold her in his arms, but knew she needed some space
to process everything. She looked so scared and unsure. Mrs. Higgins would calm her down and help Lucia to see that Lucifer and his brothers were good men that would protect her. Lucia obviously felt comfortable with Mrs. Higgins. The woman was a godsend in so many ways. Without Mrs. Higgins, he and his brothers may have wound up in a lot more trouble than they did after their parents passed.

  Their parents’ friend had been there for them during some tough times, helping them get through their parents’ illnesses and being there to assist them when they needed some guidance. Mary was like a surrogate mother, a guardian angel. Perhaps she would be one for Lucia, too?

  Chapter 8

  Gabriele was beside himself with worry.

  He parked the truck outside of the Anders place and walked across the way to the small barn that had been renovated into an apartment. It was dark out, close to dinnertime, and they had made plans to pick up Lucia and bring her to their place for supper. But then she declined, saying she needed time alone. Well, with everything going on, including her revealing what happened to her, having Lucia out of their sights wasn’t going over well.

  He knocked on the door and didn’t hear a sound. His concern grew as he turned to look toward the woods near the house, hoping that Lucia hadn’t decided to walk into town on her own. Maxwell found out that there was a connection between some robberies and assaults and individuals traveling on foot believed to be in the area.

  “Hey, Gabriele.”

  Gabriele looked over toward the Anders home and saw Dave and Shay. He gave a wave and headed toward them.

  “How are you? Come to visit Lucia?” Shay asked him as Gabriele shook Shay’s hand then Dave’s.

  “Yes, Sir. But she isn’t answering. Did you happen to see her leave to go somewhere?” Gabriele asked.

  “I thought I saw her sitting out back on the bench earlier. I asked her if she was going into town or needed a ride and she said she was staying put,” Dave told him. Gabriele’s concern grew stronger.

  “Maybe she fell asleep and didn’t hear you knocking? Want to try again?” Shay asked as all three of them headed toward Lucia’s place, the concern now spreading to the Anders men.