by Avery Gale
Ethan hadn’t been that crazy about his friend referring to his woman as “sweetie” but considering her entire body seemed to sag in relief and a slow smile swept over her face now that he hadn’t expected to see, perhaps he’d cut Grayson some slack this time.
Jamie stepped in front of Bree and took her hand. “Chère. Neither Ethan nor I will ever deny you the opportunity to have input in important decisions. And I promise you the only time your opinion won’t weigh in as equal is when we’re playing or when your safety is in question. Do you understand?”
“Yes, I understand. But I want to be kept informed about my parents. For what it’s worth, I would also like to help and I agree with your assessment of my dad’s involvement. I know you haven’t seen the real strength that is at the heart of me, you’ve only seen the ‘victim’ and the ‘recovering victim,’ you haven’t seen the pushy woman I can be. And while I love having you ready to catch me if I fall and having you go all Alpha-Male trying to protect me is wonderful…sometimes, well, most of the time. Please don’t coddle me so much that the strong woman I once was doesn’t ever resurface.”
As Ethan and Jamie closed in on her, their smiles eased her anxiety about having overstepped her bounds. But it was Zach Lamont’s laughing words that touched her heart. “Damn but I love spirited women. Hope those two knuckleheads know what a great gift they’ve been given.”
* * * *
Just as the meeting was breaking up, Bree looked up to see Kat and Jenna standing at the door of the office. Bree saw them waiting patiently, but she wasn’t sure exactly what they were waiting for. Before she could ask Ethan, she saw Alex’s almost imperceptible nod. Both women immediately rushed to her side and they must have read her look of confusion because Kat leaned forward and said, “Come on, girlfriend, time for a break.” Then leaning closer she whispered, “We’ll explain, I promise.” Before Bree realized what was happening, she was sitting at the bar in the kitchen between the two women watching as Selita whipped up a “snack” for the three of them.
Kat leaned over giving her a shoulder bump and said, “That was a ‘needs to know’ only meeting and as my loving husbands love to remind me, I don’t have the security clearance to ‘need to know.’ Neither does my bestie over there, so we’ve learned to just wait at the door for him to give us the go-ahead to enter. Keeps us from having to stand for several days, if you get my drift.” Both Kat and Jenna laughed, and it took Bree a few seconds to catch on they were talking about the spankings they’d obviously gotten before they’d learned to wait at the door.
Jenna spoke up then. “Yeah, I love an erotic spanking as much as anyone, but damn those punishment spankings can leave your ass tender for a couple of days. And I hate the smug look on Colt’s face every time he sees me wince when I sit down.” Her words were belied by the smirk on her face.
Selita raised her hands and starting waving them before saying, “Those men they think they are kings of the planet. They always putting their hands on your asses, they are clunkers if they think I don’t know, because I do. And those two I raised, they always trying to get the bunny points with me, but I not playing that game. I know they just wanting me to not tell their mama they taking an oar to their sweet woman. But I will be selling them to those gypsies that live up that river, you just see if I don’t.”
By the time Selita had finished her mini-tirade and turned back to her work, Bree, Kat, and Jenna were laughing so hard they all had tears running down their cheeks. When Bree recovered enough to speak, she gasped out, “Oh my God, I really needed that laugh. She is the absolute best.”
Jenna leaned over and patted Bree’s shoulder and grinned. “We have had so much fun trying to decode her slaying of American sayings over the years, I can’t even begin to tell you. It was always lots more fun to try to sort it all out than to correct her. And to see the looks on my brothers’ teammates’ faces the first time they would visit was always priceless.”
When the three of them had finally regained some sense of control over their giggling, Kat said, “We really did want to get you out of there for a couple of reasons, girlfriend. First of all, anyone who isn’t ‘one of them’ usually has a low threshold for dealing with my loving husband’s super-alpha self for very long and that length of time is directly proportional to the number of his alpha pals that are in the room at the same time.”
Jenna reached over and smacked her on the shoulder. “You are so getting your ass paddled if they hear you. And crap on a cracker, sister mine, you know the walls have eyes and ears in this freaking place since they took over. Hell, I’m betting the White House calls Colt and Mitch for surveillance tips.”
“No shit…oh damn and double damn, I forgot I’m not supposed to cuss. Anyway, we didn’t want you to have to stay in there past what we consider the saturation point for most normal people. And…well, our motives aren’t entirely altruistic, if you want the truth. We also wanted to talk to you about staying around after this mess is over. There seems to be a mini baby boom taking place in this area and—” When Kat glanced at Jenna, Bree was sure her earlier guess had been right. “Well, it doesn’t look like it’s going to let up anytime soon. And we could really use a good pediatrician. I hope you don’t mind, but I mentioned to Doc Woods that I might know of someone who would be interested and he practically begged me for your contact information. He’s been trying to hand off that part of his practice for some time. Would you promise to at least think about it?”
Bree leaned back and in a conspiratorial whisper said, “Please don’t tell any of the men, but Catherine has already called me about doing exactly that. I’d like very much to make my home here, but I need to see how it goes with Jamie and Ethan.” She tried to keep the hopefulness from her tone, but wasn’t sure she’d succeeded. “They haven’t really said anything about wanting more than to teach me about the lifestyle and I don’t want to push them into a relationship they don’t want. They are wonderful and quite frankly they deserve better than me.” Deciding it was time to change the direction of the conversation she quickly went on, “I’d like to go into town and look at the little dress shop I saw when I drove through. Who’s in the mood for a little retail therapy?”
“Hot damn! I’m in! Kat, can you get the nanny to stay over for an hour or so? I have a few things I need to pick up as well…oddly enough, none of my clothes seem to be fitting just right anymore.” Giggling like schoolgirls they all agreed to meet out front in fifteen minutes. Kat had called the garage to request someone bring up her SUV so they’d have plenty of room for their purchases. Bree felt a cold chill race up her spine and the hair on the back of her neck stood up, but she dismissed the feeling. Sure Climax was a small town, but honestly, what were the odds she’d run into her parents or Hiram at the little boutique?
* * * *
Cash Red Cloud had returned to ShadowDance a few days ago. His last mission had been a cluster-fuck from the get-go and he had been looking forward to a little playtime at The Club after his shift in the Crow’s Nest. When he’d caught pieces of the three subs’ conversation in the kitchen he’d texted all of their Doms so he was fairly certain the men would be monitoring the situation, but just in case he called the garage and put a stall order on the SUV. Sending a quick text to Alex, he updated him on the planned shopping trip and his boss’s one-word reply had made him chuckle. If he was a betting man, he’d put his money on there being some very sore asses at dinner tonight.
He let Alex know the vehicle request was on hold and that the women had evidently contacted Rissa Grayson because she had quickly closed up her small spa in The Club and was making her way in the back door of the mansion. Holy shit, this might be an interesting shift after all. Alex had replied his thanks and Cash watched as six Doms stormed out the front door of the mansion to wait on their wayward subs. He’d wondered about Bryant Davis’s location and with a few quick clicks discovered the bridge engineer was expected back from Denver at any minute. Oh indeed, it was going to be an
interesting evening for sure. Davis was the only one of the Doms at ShadowDance that was even close to being as hard-line a Dom as Cash and his younger brother Collin had always been so they enjoyed comparing notes. When they’d shared a training class for Doms he and Bryant Davis had discovered a mutual preference for the edgier end of the play spectrum. It was going to be fun to watch his reaction to his pregnant sub’s plan to go on an unauthorized shopping trip. Cash didn’t doubt for a minute his friend had come up with some creative ways to punish his sub without causing any harm to their growing child. Smiling to himself, he couldn’t help the wave of anticipation that washed through him. Damn, he was glad to be back home.
Chapter 24
Bryant had pulled up in front of the mansion to find the front entrance lined with pissed-off Doms. Just as he’d cleared the front gate, Cash had sent him a text saying to join them at the front for a fireworks display but he hadn’t elaborated. It didn’t take long for him to be brought up to speed, and even though Rissa hadn’t been privy to the reasons this trip was a train wreck looking for a place to happen, that didn’t mean his sweet wife wasn’t in just as much hot water as the other women. Each of their sweet subs knew better than to leave the mountain without letting their men know where they were going and from the sounds of things, Bree had been the ringleader this time. The fact that it wasn’t Kat or Jenna surprised him, hell, it seemed to surprise everyone. Oh indeed, it looked like the subs were inadvertently getting ready to throw a hell of a welcome home party for both he and Cash. There was nothing like a few great punishment scenes to make a Dom feel welcomed back into the fold.
Just as the women came barreling out the front door he heard their collective gasp at the sight of the men gathered there, but it was Rissa’s high-pitched squeal of delight that stood out. He was ready when she launched herself into his arms and started kissing his eyes, forehead, and cheeks before finally plunging her sweet tongue deeply into his mouth. He had to consciously hold himself back because he wanted nothing more than to strip her naked and plunge balls-deep into her right here on the front steps. He noticed that although she was quite a lot “rounder” than when he’d left a week ago, she felt lighter. They’d be having a discussion about her continued insecurity about her weight as soon as he got her alone. He’d be willing to bet she was lying through her teeth to Mitch about what she was eating and since she’d learned to block Grayson’s psychic gifts, she’d been regularly blindsiding them both.
Alex leaned over to Zach and groaned that he was worried he would be permanently deaf from the high-pitched scream Rissa had let out as soon as she’d seen Bryant. But he’d been proven wrong when they heard Katarina’s softly spoken “Oh shit” just as she crossed the threshold and saw them all assembled outside.
* * * *
Ethan had to laugh because seeing Alex Lamont standing with his legs shoulder-width apart and his arms crossed over his chest like the others would have been intimidating as hell to each and every sub in The Club. Kat had taken one look at her husband’s body language and known she was in more trouble than she was going to be able to talk her way out of this time.
Ethan had heard Alex complaining that they’d gotten too lax with Kat and that she was back to taking risks with her safety. Ethan didn’t doubt that on this one point he and Zach had always been completely unbending. She was to protect herself and their children above all else, she fucking knew better than this shit and he was about to blow a gasket. When she started to take a step back, Zach had leaned forward and said, “Don’t you dare move, kitten. You are in deep—very, very deep. Don’t compound the problem by trying to step away from us.”
Colt had wrapped his hand around Jenna’s wrist. He didn’t hear what she’d said, but Colt had turned about four shades of red and Ethan was waiting to see steam come out of the man’s ears. Jesus Christ, Jenna, use that genius IQ of yours to rein in your mouth.
Just as he and Jamie started to approach Bree he heard the alarms of each of their phones go off simultaneously. Whatever had happened it was big, they didn’t even take time to check their phones before they began herding their wayward women back inside. They had just gotten everyone turned when he heard the first rifle shot whiz by and watched in horror as it landed close enough to Bree that it had sent concrete chips spraying against her bare legs. Seeing the blood running down both of her calves had been just the catalyst the women had needed to scramble for the safety of the house.
The next shot hit Bree in the shoulder exactly where the chip had been. Someone was trying to make sure that chip wasn’t available. Unfortunately the fucker with the gun didn’t know it had already been removed and downloaded. Obviously all of the interested parties hadn’t gotten the fucking memo that the chip was on its way to Guatemala. Ethan watched as Alex slipped his hand into his pocket and retrieved his earbud comm-unit and tapped it once before saying, “Talk to me.”
Ethan knew Alex’s team would already be using the trajectory- and sound-tracing software Mitch Grayson had developed and would have a team on their way to the shooter’s location, but he wanted to find out if anyone in the Crow’s Nest had a visual on the bastard. When Zach handed him an earbud, Ethan heard Cash’s voice as he responded to the questions Alex was firing at him, “We’re on it, boss. He’s on the edge of Meadow Ridge. I’ve got cameras on him, but he’s a pro—all dressed for the Black Magic Dance of Death. You take care of the women, I’ve already sent a call to EMS and local law enforcement, their ETA is three minutes. I’ve reviewed the tape, that shot went through. I’ve got a guy down there now marking the bullets.” Cash’s pregnant pause got Ethan’s attention. “Fuck, the first wave breached the ridge just as two vehicles were leaving the scene. Both at high rates of speed and both driven by men. There is a dead woman up there, I’ll advise as soon as I have more.” Ethan continued to cradle Bree in his arms, but he could see Jamie’s torn expression. Ordinarily, Jamie Creed would be scrambling toward whatever weapon he had stashed closest. Ethan saw Alex quickly nod toward his friend and woman. He saw the relief that raced through Jamie’s expression. They all knew that if that had been Katarina, Alex wouldn’t have wanted to be anywhere but at her side, so he’d understood Jamie’s reluctance to give chase.
Ethan had caught Bree before she’d hit the ground and was following Zach’s barked instructions as he led them up to the mansion’s safe rooms. The nursery was already in lockdown and the only other two designated safe rooms on the second floor were the master suite and the smaller suite he and Creed had been sharing with Bree.
Zach directed him to Bree’s suite and moved the others to the larger rooms of the master suite at the end of the hall. Zach and Creed had both been trained medics and as soon as Zach returned with his med-bag the two had fallen into a well-choreographed routine. Ethan was grateful Jamie had been cross-trained as a medic as he watched as his best friend worked on their woman and while he knew she wasn’t actually in any mortal danger he was still scared out of his mind for her. Many snipers were cross-trained as medics because their positions are often so far from their teammates. He was glad Jamie had something to distract him because the man was as white as a sheet. That thought had just gone through his mind as his own knees threatened to buckle. Zach glanced up and his raised eyebrow was all it took for Ethan to find a chair before he woke up on the floor.
Through the black dots that were clouding his vision he saw Zach’s relieved expression and heard him say, “It’s a through and through,” so he knew the injury wasn’t nearly as bad as it could have been, but he was still trying to pull in a deep breath. Jesus, Jantz, get a fucking grip. You’re a damned sniper, for Christ’s sake. You never batted an eye at the sight of the damage a rifle shot did before, what’s your problem? But even as he asked himself the question he already knew the answer—none of those people had been the woman he was in love with. And just that quickly, the truth he’d been dancing around since he’d first laid eyes on Bree was staring him right in the face. He loved her wit
h everything in him. The thought that they’d heard her express her insecurity about his and Creed’s intentions not more than an hour ago tore at his heart. They would be remedying that problem immediately. When he heard the knock at the door he moved toward it but didn’t open it until he’d gotten confirmation that EMS had arrived and waited on the other side of the secured door.
Ethan watched as Jamie stepped back and let Zach and the paramedics work. Ethan understood his need for a minute to shift modes and knew Jamie was probably already feeling the adrenaline starting to ebb. And while they all knew it was something every soldier was trained to recognize and cope with, there wasn’t a doubt in his mind this one was going to be the mother of all crashes for both of them.
Watching as the paramedics and Zach prepared to lift Bree onto the gurney for transport he was shocked when she’d reached for he and Jamie then burst into tears. Hell, she’d held it together through the most painful parts and now she was sobbing? What the hell? When she finally managed to speak all she’d been able to choke out was, “Please don’t leave me there.” Ethan had heard Zach’s end of the conversation with the physician on duty at the local hospital and wasn’t surprised to see him reach into his bag and withdraw a small prefilled syringe. When he’d squeezed the contents into the IV the paramedics had started Bree went instantly silent. Jamie told him that the sedative Zach had given her was authorized, necessary, and in her best interest, but it still nearly tore his heart out to think her last thoughts had been of terror thinking they weren’t going to be right by her side.