by Becca Van
“Delicious.” Shyann smiled at him, but it didn’t reach her eyes.
He and his brothers had already finished their food. Shyann had eaten the soup but hadn’t touched the sandwich. Brigg decided that enough was enough. While he was across the table from her, he could still hear the low rumbling of her belly. Just before he could tell her to finish eating her dinner, Raiden beat him to it.
“You need to eat that.” Raiden pointed at the sandwich. “I can still hear your belly growling.”
Shyann shook her head as she met Raiden’s gaze. A flash of some sort of emotion hazed over her eyes, but it was gone too quickly for Brigg to figure out what it was.
“I don’t want to.”
Raiden shifted in his seat so that he was facing her more directly. “You’re not trying to lose weight, are you? Because if you are, I have to tell you that you have no need. You’ve got the perfect little body, baby.”
Shyann frowned as she crossed her arms. The fire in her eyes nearly had Brigg smiling. “No, I’m not trying to lose weight,” she hissed angrily. “I have to be careful with my money.” Her lips parted into a gape, and she turned away from Raiden, her cheeks pinkening with embarrassment. Obviously, she hadn’t meant to blurt that out.
“You don’t have to be careful, today, sweetness,” Tane said. “We invited you to join us. What sort of men would we be if we made you pay for your own dinner?”
“The typical sort,” Shyann snapped as she uncrossed her arms and placed a hand on the table. Her fingers were curled so tightly, her knuckles were white.
Brigg reached out, covering her hand with his, slipping his thumb against her palm before gently uncurling her fingers. He laced his fingers with hers, not surprised by the heated desire shooting up his arm, through his blood, and centering in his cock, but he made sure to keep his reaction hidden from her. He didn’t want to give her any other reason to be trepidatious with him and his brothers since she was already skittish enough.
“What sort of men have you been hanging out with, darlin’?” Brigg shook his head. “A man should always pay when dating a woman.”
Shyann shrugged as she tugged her hand from his. He was pleased when she picked up a sandwich half and bit into it. She was so graceful and feminine, taking such a dainty bite and chewing thoroughly with her mouth closed. He couldn’t help his gaze wandering to those sexy lips when she licked them, the tip of her pink tongue sliding over the lush line causing his hard dick to twitch.
He and his brothers kept the conversation casual, talking about work while Shyann finished eating. As soon as she was done, Tane stood, walking toward the cashier to pay for their meals.
Shyann thought she was being surreptitious as she gazed at him and Raiden from beneath her lowered long, black eyelashes, but Brigg felt every place she touched him with her eyes. His skin tingled with warmth, and he had to swallow down a moan of need when she eyed him over.
“Are you ready to go, baby?” Raiden asked as he rose and held his hand out to her.
Tane, who’d come back to the table, stood aside, giving Brigg room to get out of the booth. As he scooted across the bench seat, he kept his gaze on Shyann and held his breath as he waited to see if she’d accept his brother’s offer of help.
She stared at Raiden’s hand for what seemed like forever but was probably only a few seconds, and then she placed her hand in Raiden’s. His brother smiled as he helped their woman out of her seat. As soon as she was standing next to Raiden, she pulled her hand out of his. Raiden wasn’t deterred, however, and wrapped an arm around her shoulders and guided her toward the exit.
Tane and Brigg fell into step behind them.
Raiden led Shyann away from the doorway toward the edge of the pavement.
Brigg turned when he heard tires squeal and was moving before he consciously thought about what he was doing. He roared with anger as he shoved Raiden aside with what felt like herculean strength as he dove at Shyann. His arms wrapped around her waist, and while he tried to turn them both in midair, he wasn’t quite fast enough. They hit the sidewalk on their sides with a hard thud, but thankfully he was quick enough to get one of his hands under the side of her head to cushion her face. If he hadn’t done that, her cheek would have slammed into the solid concrete.
“Fuck!” Tane shouted as he hurried over to them, kneeling as he ran his hands over Shyann’s arms and legs to make sure she hadn’t broken anything.
“Is she okay?” Raiden asked as he shoved to his feet before sinking to his knees near Shyann’s head. He gently ran his fingers through her hair and over her scalp, looking for bumps and cuts.
Brigg cupped her cheek as he stared at her pale face. Her eyes were closed, and she hadn’t taken a breath. “Shit! Open your eyes, darlin’! Did I hurt you? God, I’m so sorry. I tried to roll so you’d land on me, but it all happened so fast.”
He felt like a fucking asshole when her lids fluttered open and he saw the pain and fear in her eyes. Tears had pooled, and a couple trickled down her face. He sighed with relief when she finally gasped in a deep breath of air before releasing it and sucking in another lungful of oxygen. Hitting the pavement so hard had winded her. The shock left her gaze and was replaced with anger.
“What the hell?” Shyann shoved her small hands against Brigg’s chest. “Are you crazy? Are you trying to kill me?” She panted shallowly as she tried to sit up.
“Stay where you are, baby.” Raiden placed his hand on her shoulder to hold her down before he glanced around at the gathering crowd.
“Is she all right?” Brax Rhodes asked as he hurried up to them. “We saw the whole thing. Ajay tried to follow the bastard, but he sped away. We got the license plates though, so you can be sure we’ll be arresting the idiot for dangerous driving.”
“Shyann, are you hurt?” Jaylynn, the Rhodes brothers’ fiancée, asked.
“I’m okay,” Shyann answered before glaring at Raiden. “Let me up.”
Brigg, Raiden, and Tane helped Shyann to sit up. Brigg eyed her body over when she winced. He snarled when he saw a tear in her denim jeans and the blood soaking into the material. “Shit, she’s fucking bleeding.” Brigg maneuvered to his knees, stuck his fingers into the hole, and tore the material. He growled when he saw the abraded skin.
“Bring her inside. There’s a first aid kit in the office,” Jaylynn ordered.
“No.” Shyann pushed up to her feet before Brigg could stop her. Luckily, Tane grasped her elbow to help keep her steady. She glanced about, and her cheeks turned pink when she saw all the people surrounding them. “I’m okay, just grazed. I’ll clean up when I get home.”
“No, you won’t.” Raiden didn’t give her a chance to argue, sweeping her into his arms and hurrying toward the door to the diner. Tane raced around him, holding the door open for Raiden. Brigg followed his brothers and their woman through the diner, past the counter, down the hallway toward the office.
“Shyann! What happened? Are you hurt?” Enya asked from the kitchen doorway.
“No,” Shyann answered brusquely.
Enya gasped as she glanced at Shyann’s disheveled appearance and stared wide-eyed at the blood on her jeans and skin. “You’re bleeding. Do you want me to call one of my guys?”
“We’ve got it, but thanks, Enya,” Tane said as they hurried by.
Raiden strode over to the sofa on the far wall of the office, sitting with Shyann in his lap.
Jaylynn rushed to the storage cupboard before handing a first aid kit to Brigg. He nodded his thanks before heading over to Shyann and Raiden.
“Can you give us a bit of privacy?” Tane asked Jaylynn and her men. “We’ll let you back in and give you our statements as soon as we’ve checked Shyann over.”
“Sure.” Brax Rhodes nodded to his brothers and Shyann, before closing the door after them.
“Let me help you get your jeans off, baby.” Raiden tugged the button of Shyann’s jeans open and started to lower the zipper.
“Stop it!” Shyann
slapped his hand away, then scrambled from his lap.
Brigg clasped her elbow when she swayed on her feet with her eyes closed. She bit her lip, he suspected to hold in a groan of pain as her face paled.
“Geezus, but you’re stubborn.” Tane ran his fingers through his hair.
“Am not,” she snapped, opening her eyes to glare at Tane.
“We need to clean your wound and check you for other injuries, darlin’,” Brigg said in a firm voice.
“I can do it when—”
Raiden rose, clasped her shoulders, and turned her to face him. He stared into her eyes as he shook his head. “It’s our job, baby. We aren’t about to let you out of here until we know that you’ve been taken care of. What sort of paramedics would that make us? Please, Shyann? We need to do this.”
Shyann sighed and nodded.
“Do you need help removing your clothes, sweetness?” Tane asked.
“I can do it.” Her hands shook as she lowered the zipper on her jeans. After kicking off her shoes, she carefully pushed her pants down over her hips. She sat on the edge of the sofa cushion before removing them totally.
Brigg sighed with relief to see that she wasn’t as hurt as he’d first thought. However, the anger simmering in his gut grew with each scrape he catalogued. He wasn’t sure he’d be able to keep his rage contained when he saw the rest of her.
“Take your shirt off, baby.”
“I don’t need—”
“Do as you’re told, sweetness,” Tane ordered as he moved closer to Shyann.
Brigg walked over, set the first aid kit on the sofa beside her, and opened it. He grabbed a few disinfectant wipes and some bandages, laying them aside. “We need to make sure you’re not hurt anywhere else, darlin’,” Brigg explained. “You can leave your bra and panties on. Okay?”
She lowered her eyelashes as she undid the buttons on her shirt and then slowly removed one arm from the sleeve. When she winced as she tried to pull her other arm out, Brigg couldn’t remain still any longer. “Let me help you, darlin’.” He grasped the end of her sleeve and waited for her response. As soon as he gave him a nod, he gently tugged the sleeve down her arm and pulled her shirt away.
“Motherfucker,” Tane growled.
Brigg glanced at his brother and followed the direction of his gaze. He sucked in a breath when he noticed that Shyann’s side was already bruising. There was a red and blue already discoloring her hip bone, her shoulder, and the side of her ribcage.
“I’ll see if the kitchen has an ice pack,” Tane said before he rushed toward the door and disappeared.
“I don’t need any ice.”
Raiden knee walked closer to her, grasping her chin between his finger and thumb, bringing her gaze to his. “You do need ice, baby. You’ve got bruises from landing hard on the ground. Putting an ice pack will help the swelling and the bruising. We know what we’re talking about.”
Brigg tore the packs of disinfectant wipes open, and when she met his eyes after Raiden released her chin, he said apologetically, “This is going to hurt, Shyann. I’m sorry, baby.”
He didn’t give her time to reply but started cleaning her grazed skin. He went through five wipes before the dirt, grit, and blood were all gone. Shyann was a tough little thing. After her first initial gasp, she hadn’t made another sound. She’d endured his painful attentions like the tough cookie she was. He lowered his head and blew over her wound, hoping to take the sting away. She lifted her lids, locking eyes with him. If he hadn’t been staring so avidly, Brigg might have missed the flash of desire that hazed her gaze. It was there and gone so quickly, he thought he might have imagined it, but knew he hadn’t when he heard her breath hitch in her throat.
Shyann might think she’d hidden her reaction to him, but he was used to reading other people’s body language and the noises they made. He wouldn’t be such a good medic if he couldn’t read people. He and his brothers couldn’t always ask someone where they were hurt, especially if they were unconscious or in too much shock to take anything they asked in.
Determination surged into his heart and soul. Shyann was perfect for him and his brothers. She was beautiful, smart, and sexy. Her hourglass-shaped slim frame was enough to drive a saint to sin. She was also kind and courteous.
He and his brothers had visited with her a few times when she’d been the hospital. They’d heard her talking to Jaylynn and Enya. His heart had ached for her when she’d told the other women she didn’t have any friends and he’d been pleased when they’d instantly told her they’d loved to be friends with Shyann.
Their woman had gracefully thanked Jaylynn for stepping in when that asshole had been beating her. Jaylynn had brushed her gratitude aside and told Shyann that she had nothing to be sorry for before telling her the bastard who’d hurt them both had been responsible. As quick as lightning, Shyann had retracted her apology with a giggle which had quickly turned into a moan when her head had hurt. That was the moment Brigg knew she was the right woman for him and his brothers. He’d met his brothers’ gazes and seen the speculative attraction and humor in their eyes. Brigg hadn’t realized he’d been smiling until his lips had straightened out before turning into a frown as Shyann had told the other woman what had happened to her.
He’d been so full of ire that a red haze had sheened his gaze. If Raiden hadn’t clasped hold of his shoulder, he would have stormed into her room and grilled her further. After he’d gotten himself under control, he’d decided to inform the sheriffs, but thankfully, he hadn’t had to. One of Jaylynn’s men had entered the room, nodding at him as his brothers as he’d passed by. Enya and Jaylynn repeated Shyann’s story to Brax who’d immediately gone to get Deputy Sheriff Wilder Sheffield. The women’s statement had been taken, and the deputy had arranged for Shyann’s protection while she’d been recuperating in hospital and for when she was released.
Brigg had wanted to tell her to come and stay with them, but she hadn’t known them from Adam. She might have looked at him like he was a creepy stalker or something if he had.
Now that she was here, he didn’t want to let her go. He was also concerned over her injuries and how stiff she was holding herself. Shyann was hurting a lot more than she was letting on.
Maybe this time if he offered her the use of their spare room, she’d take them up on it, but he still wasn’t sure.
She was so wary around people she didn’t know and rightly so, but the men in this town were renowned for protecting those weaker than they were. Surely, she’d heard about all the men’s protective tendencies?
Maybe it was time for him and his brothers to explain a few things to her.
Chapter Three
“Fuck!” John Watt cursed as he sped away from Slick Rock. He couldn’t believe he’d missed the fucking bitch. If only those three men hadn’t been with her. He was thankful he’d decided to try and hide his face with a hat as well as stealing the truck and number plates so that cops couldn’t trace him.
The bitch’s dumbass stepbrother owed him a shit load of cash for drugs, but when the fucker had started rambling about an inheritance when he was high, John had started to listen. He’d even given the prick more drugs on credit just so he could ask him pertinent questions to get the information he needed. As far as he knew, the dick’s sister had no idea her parents had left her and the ass money, but since Danny Bradley was under investigation and wanted by the police for the murder of his father and stepmother, the inheritance hadn’t been released. At least as far as he knew anyway.
John had put his second in charge on the slut’s trail. Don had found her easily enough, and they’d followed her to the small hick town in Colorado. Don had offered to take the cunt out so he wouldn’t get his hands dirty, but he wasn’t averse to violence and wanted to do the deed himself. Once he had that slut out of the picture, he was going to get Danny to sign over everything to him. When he had the legal binding contract in his hand, he was then going to lead the cops to the stupid fuck. He’d seen t
he house that Danny’s parents owned and wanted to move into it. It was in a great neighborhood and was big enough to suit him and his bodyguards with room to spare.
Now he was going to have to lie low for a bit. Maybe he’d send one of his men after the bitch. John slowed the stolen truck to the side of the ride, pulled over into a wayside stop, turned the truck off, and pulled his cell phone out of his pocket. “I need you to pick me up.”
“Sure, boss. Where are you?” Tiny asked.
“About three miles outside of the next town. I’ve had to ditch the truck. Meet me in Egnar at the café.”
“Okay. See you soon,” Tiny said.
John disconnected the call, shoving his phone back in his pocket, and began wiping the truck down. Even though he’d never been arrested, he’d been brought in for questioning a few times about dealing and violence and his prints were probably on the feds’ database. There was no way he was leaving anything behind which could end up with him being indicted.
Once he was sure everything was clean, he closed the truck door and walked toward the trees. He wasn’t about to let anyone see him as he hiked the three miles to Egnar. He’d caught a glimpse of some of the Slick Rock deputies, and they hadn’t looked in the least as if they were dumb country town hicks.
John was going to have to be more careful, but he wasn’t about to change his plans either.
He needed to get rid of the slut so he would be the sole beneficiary of the Bradley Estate.
* * * *
Shyann was aching all over. It had hurt like hell when Brigg had cleaned her scraped and bloodied flesh, but she’d endured it silently for the most part.
As soon as Brigg started blowing on her wound to take the sting away, goose bumps had raced over her exposed skin. Her breasts were achy and swollen, and her nipples had pebbled into hard points. Her pussy moistened, and her clit throbbed. She kept her thighs squeezed tightly together because her panties were soaked, and she didn’t want the Tremaine brothers seeing any wet spots.
