“So you both... you had considered marrying her.”
Forrest shrugged. “She’s a widow and of the right age. Not many available women in Gold Sky,” he said, his tone matter-of-fact.
“Why didn’t you suit?” Julie pressed. “They seem to get on very well.”
“Not the woman for me.”
“So you were the one that didn’t suit her? She was accepting of the arrangement? I mean...” Julie hesitated then, as she stumbled over her words. How was it Rosemary and Forrest hadn’t suited? The blonde was everything she supposed a man with the marrying inclination should desire, and yet they hadn’t suited?
“Rosemary knew that a marriage included the both of you and was amenable to it?”
Forrest rocked back on his heels. “Yes, she was... amenable to it.”
“Oh.” Julie looked away.
The niggling feeling that she had pushed down when she had seen the couple dance the night before, the way Rosemary had looked at Will, and the companionable way they had shared breakfast that morning all suddenly made sense. Will and Rosemary had suited just fine. It had been Forrest who hadn’t meshed with the couple for a triad marriage. And that had her feeling uneasy about where Will’s true affections lay despite Forrest’s assurances.
“Let’s talk about something else, little bird.”
Julie nodded, knowing that Forrest was doing his best to take her mind off of the train of thought that had taken off with her little discovery that Rosemary had been their first choice.
Their. First. Choice.
Julie Anne Baptiste had never been second in anything. Funny that it should happen with such a permanent arrangement as marriage.
Clearing her throat, she tried to put a smile on her face, but she found that it was no use. She pushed away from the counter and attempted to run through a list of things she could do to keep her hands busy now that dinner had been prepared. She could settle into their bedroom more than she had with her hasty unpacking of her trunks that afternoon when they had returned home.
Anything but dwell on her place as Will's second choice as a wife.
“I’ll just be upstairs,” she said, already starting for the stairs.
“Julie, look at me,” Forrest called to her, a pained note to his ordinarily warm voice. Julie didn't have to turn around to know that her husband was upset. Reluctantly, Julie raised her eyes to his. She saw that he was upset. In fact, he looked nearly as unsettled as she felt.
“I don’t want you making too much of this.”
“I’m not,” she said quietly.
“You are. I can see it.”
“You don’t know me that well, Forrest.”
He smirked. “I know you well enough. Tell me that I’m not right about what’s running through that pretty head of yours.”
She looked away at that with a frown but said nothing in rebuttal. Damn him and his ability to read her.
Forrest sighed. “She was not our first choice. Never was, little bird.”
“But she and Will get on.”
He shrugged. “Don’t mean she was the woman we wanted.”
Julie arched an eyebrow. “Because she isn’t a teacher?”
Forrest scrubbed a hand over his face. “That isn't why we chose you. We fell in love with you. The both of us, Julie. Your letters made us do that. Every last one of them put you in our heart. Now, I know Will can be short, but he cares for you. There’s a lot that’s happened to him that makes it hard for him to show that side of himself to new people.”
“Not Rosemary,” she said with a barely concealed pout.
“No, not Rosemary.” Forrest came up to stand beside her. He slipped his arms around her in a hug. “But that doesn’t mean what you think it does. They’ve always been close.”
“Why is hard for him to show his feelings?” Julie asked, choosing to focus on something else other than how much she disliked Rosemary’s relationship with Will.
“The war,” Forrest replied without hesitation. “I wrote to you about it briefly.”
“You served when you were just 13.” Julie looked up at him. “So young.”
Forrest shrugged. “Not so young in the grand scheme of things.” He cleared his throat and led her over to the small table she had taken her breakfast at that morning. “I didn’t share too much because I didn’t want you to get the wrong idea about Will or me. About who we are now. But that doesn't mean things weren’t hard. We lived in Kentucky, as you well know, and it saw a lot of the bad days of the war with them passing through us like paper every few weeks.” He looked down at his hands, his knuckles white from how tightly he clenched his fists.
Julie put her hand on his and gave them a gentle squeeze. At her touch, Forrest forced himself to take a breath and slowly uncurled his fingers.
“Will and I joined young to send wages back to our families. You have to understand there was nothing to eat, nothing at all. And when there was, you couldn’t afford the prices from the gougers. We had to do something to keep our families fed.”
“You lied about your ages,” Julie guessed.
“Of course we did. The Union never would have taken two boys into the same regiment. Passed me off as 17 and Will for 19 though he was only 15. We got the wages we needed but…” Forrest’s voice went soft, and he looked away from her, his eyes trained on something she was unable to see. “We lost a lot of people we knew along the way. The things we saw were—well, no one should ever see what we saw or do what we had to do."
"What d—"
Forrest raised a hand, stilling the question in Julie's mouth. “I know what you're going to ask me, and I won’t tell you the particulars of it all because I won’t have that filth running around in my wife’s head. Don’t want it anywhere near our family. Understand?”
Julie closed her mouth and nodded. She wanted to ask, but she would respect Forrest’s wishes. Instead, she threaded her fingers with his and asked, “What happened in the war made Will the way he is?”
“It did. He shielded me from a lot, being the older one of us. Always has taken care of me like a brother, though he never had any of his own. Will has a hard time letting people get close because of all the ones we lost. I think...I think that he’s scared if he does that, that it’s only a matter of time before he loses them.” Forrest squeezed her fingers and smiled sadly at her. “I know him, and I know he cares for you, but he’s a man with demons. It’s why we came all the way out here. I—we, well, I thought if we had enough distance from Kentucky that he’d be able to quiet them for good.”
“Did coming here help?”
Forrest nodded. “For a time, but it isn’t so easy to get rid of a demon once it’s deep in you. Something like that leaves a stain. Never leaves you."
“You have them too?” Julie asked she blinked back tears, thinking of Will and Forrest, boys leaving home out of necessity only to experience the horrors of war. How had two boys survived all that and gone on to become the men she now knew?
“No way a boy sees what we did and doesn’t have ‘em when he’s grown.”
“Oh, Forrest.” Julie scooted closer to him, but he reached out and gently took her hands in his.
“Don’t be sorry. I’m happy here in Gold Sky. Things are different with us because of the war, but it doesn’t make life any less good. Having Will close by helps a great deal. It’s why we knew we would have to find an exceptional woman who would have us both.”
“I don’t know how special I am,” Julie whispered.
Forrest rubbed the back of her hand with his thumb. “Little bird, you are the most special thing to happen to me in a very long while. You’ve been here a day, and this place already feels more like a home than it ever did before.”
“I hope...I hope Will feels the same way.”
“Be patient with him. He can be an idiot, but he’ll come around in his own time.” Forrest kissed the tops of her knuckles. “Promise me you’ll never doubt how special you are to us. I don’t care how man
y Rosemary Stantons think they can show you otherwise. You’re the one for us. That’s a fact, Julie. Promise me you won’t forget that.”
“I promise,” she whispered.
Chapter 7
Julie let out a strangled gasp, her cries cut off short by Will’s mouth, his kiss swallowing the moans. She leaned back against his muscular chest, and his hands tangled in her curly hair, turning her face to kiss him while Forrest’s hands and mouth roamed over her.
They were in bed, all three of them, and bed was a place Julie witnessed Will become an entirely different person with her. Here among their soft sheets and pillows he was caring, passionate, tender, and most important, he wanted her. Of that she was sure. With her husbands' hands and mouths on her, no one else existed besides the three of them. It had been nearly a week now with just the three of them, and when they were in bed Will couldn’t get enough of her.
Neither could Forrest.
The bed had become Julie's favorite place.
Forrest had just finished playing her body like an erotic instrument. She shuddered in the aftershocks of her orgasm underneath his gentle touch.
“My little bird,” he murmured, leaning over her to paint her chest with gentle kisses. Her breasts ached, nipples puckered from the attention both of her husbands had given them. She wasn’t sure if there hadn’t been a part of her that hadn’t been stroked, kissed, or bitten by them.
It was heaven.
Will lifted his head and gave her a tender smile. “Beautiful.” He kissed her forehead.
Forrest reached forward, running a hand through Will’s dark hair, his fingers tangled in the long strands. “Now this is a sight I’d like to get better acquainted with,” he said, bringing up his other hand and cupping Julie’s cheek. She hummed, content and relaxing back against Will. If these were the precious few moments that he felt comfortable enough to let her close, well, then she was going to make the most of them.
Forrest slipped out of bed with athletic grace, and a thrill went through Julie that she was able to stare at him freely. The man certainly wasn’t ashamed of his nakedness. Neither of the men were, and after the discipline of finishing school and polite society’s expectations of a young lady, Julie found it quite liberating.
Why should there be any shame in marriage? If they were tied to one another in mind, body, and soul for the rest of their days, then she intended to get her fill of looking at her beautiful husbands.
Will shifted to the side, pulling her close to him, a hand going down to caress her stomach. She looked up at him to see that he gazed at his hand against her bronzed skin, which was accentuated by the stark white of the sheets tangled around her.
“What is it?” she whispered.
He looked at her with as open a look in his eyes as she had ever hoped to see since her talk with Forrest earlier in the week. Lord, she hadn't thought he would favor her with a look like that for another month, but here it was ahead of schedule and so much more than she could have ever imagined.
"Thinking about how you'll look carrying our baby."
Julie swallowed hard, her hand joining Will’s. It warmed her, filled her with hope for the future about him opening fully up to her when he said things like this. Though she hoped her husbands would see fit to put her in a position where she would actually have a chance to become pregnant.
The men had spent every night since her arrival exploring her body and giving her pleasure the likes of which she had never dared to imagine in her wildest fantasies. She knew they did it for her sake, making sure she felt at ease with what was happening before they proceeded further, but Will’s confession a moment before and the talk of a cradle with Stark earlier that week had her eager to push her husbands to the next step.
Forrest joined them back on the bed and pressed a kiss against her midsection. “Gonna look even more beautiful than you do now with our little one in there.” He tapped his finger against her skin.
“You make me seem like an oven.”
“The most beautiful oven this side of the Mississippi.” Forrest winked at her.
Julie rolled her eyes at the playful expression on her husbands’ faces. Deciding that the moment of levity was perfect for her next question, she pushed ahead.
“And when exactly are we going to get to the making part, hmm?”
Forrest pushed himself up on his elbow with an interested look. He shifted his eyes over her shoulder to Will, who still had a possessive hand over her stomach.
“Little bird wants to go further.”
Will grunted but said nothing.
“What does that sound mean?” Julie angled her head to the side to look back at her husband, seeing that his eyes were on the ceiling above them.
“Just want to make sure you’re comfortable with it all. Comfortable with the pair of us,” Will said, lowering his eyes to look at her.
“I’m perfectly comfortable with you both. I knew what I signed up for when I agreed to your arrangement and I wish—”
Forrest cut off Julie’s words with a sudden kiss. “When you get worked up it makes me want to put you on your back and give Stark a reason to get that cradle done on time,” he said against her lips.
Julie’s eyes widened, and she threw her arms around his neck, pulling him close for another kiss. She surprised herself when she swiped her tongue across his bottom lip in a mimic of the move he had demonstrated on her before. Forrest’s arms tightened around her as he kissed her back, a strangled groan in his throat when one of Julie’s hands wandered down to stroke his manhood.
He pulled back, blue eyes dark with passion, and gave Will a dazed look. “She’s ready.”
Will raised an eyebrow at his friend. “Oh, is she?”
Julie was still trying to kiss and touch every part of Forrest that pushed up against her. She blinked in confusion at his statement. “What are you talking about?”
His eyes darted back to her. “I was just testing the mettle of your words.”
Julie’s eyes widened, and she let out a gasp of outrage when she understood his meaning. “You were testing me?!”
Will huffed out a laugh when she swatted at Forrest, and he wrapped his arms around her, dropping a kiss on her shoulder. “Shhh, Jules. He’s always been like that. You’re going to have to get used to it. Always pushing things.” He tugged the sheet over their bodies while Julie gave Forrest a sharp look.
The blond held up his hands. “I needed to be certain you—”
“That I wasn’t lying? Hmm?” Julie frowned at him, crossing her arms over herself, a difficult task given how Will still held her close.
“I didn’t think you were lying, sweetheart.” Forrest sighed and touched her hand. “Just didn’t want you to feel like you had to take us both to bed, not so soon, just to please us.”
“What do you mean by ‘have to’? I was raised a Baptiste! I’ve never had to do a thing I didn’t want, and this marriage is no exception to that. I’m here because I want you both, you pigheaded man!”
Will laughed. The rich and melodious sound of it rumbled against her back, and the sensation warmed her through and through. Forrest paused in speaking, his eyes taking on a soft look at hearing Will laugh, and before long he was chuckling along so that Julie was the only one still frowning.
“What’s so funny?” she demanded, twisting to look back at Will, who grinned at her.
“You when you get riled. Have to make a note not to let it happen too often,” Will replied. Forrest hummed in agreement, slipping beneath the sheets on her other side.
“I didn’t mean to make you feel I doubted your honesty. I'm sorry,” Forrest apologized.
“He meant well, Jules. Go easy on him, hmm? Forgive your idiot husband this time?” Will asked her, fingers stroking her arms.
Julie blew out a sigh. “This is not fair.” She looked between the men and rolled her eyes at the puppy dog looks on both of their faces. “Most women have just one man to endure, but the Lord has seen fit to bless m
e with two. I’ll never have order or a moment’s rest with you two.”
Her husbands smiled in unison at her. There wasn’t anything she wouldn’t give to have those smiles directed at her.
“That sounds about right, little bird,” Forrest replied. He kissed her forehead, smoothing away the furrow of her brow. She opened her mouth to protest, but Will shushed her and reached for the quilt Forrest had begun to unfold over them.
“You need rest. Tomorrow is your first day teaching,” he said.
Forrest nodded, his arm going over her waist. “He’s right. We’ve kept you up long enough as it is.”
“Oh, all right.” Julie smiled in spite of herself. She closed her eyes, the secure and warm feeling of being between her men and the promise of their future more than enough to send her to sleep with a smile on her lips.
* * *
“Eat.”
Will’s terse voice pulled Julie’s eyes away from the book she had open in front of her. It was a titillating gothic romance, which prompted her to clasp the book to her chest when Will leaned close, trying to see the pages. Tilting her book so that it was angled perfectly for her eyes only, Julie lowered her gaze back down to read the last sentence on the page, prompting an exasperated sigh from Will.
“Eat. Now, Jules.”
“I just needed to finish the page. If I don't get to, it'll be absolute mayhem when I pick it back up, since I was in the middle of a scene. You just cannot leave your novel willy-nilly. There must be continuity!” She put down the book, well out of his reach, and picked up her fork.
Will rolled his eyes and sat down beside her at the table with a cup of coffee for each of them. She had just taken a bite of her pancake when Forrest walked into the room, still buttoning his shirt.
“You about done? If we leave in a few minutes, I can take you in the buckboard if you like.”
Julie brightened at that and took a hasty sip of her coffee. “Just let me get my things!”
“She’s not done eating,” Will replied, putting an arm out and barring the way.
Heart and Hand: Gold Sky Series Page 10
