by Brynn Paulin
“Let’s go home,” he said when she was on her feet again sometime later. “We need to celebrate. Robert will understand.”
Chapter Nine
Black billows of smoke tore through their happiness as they approached the house. Pete broke into a run while Moon fumbled with the phone in her pocket. She called Sun to have the ranch’s fire brigade get to the Red House then guessing that something more sinister than a simple but horrible house fire had happened, she dialed Deputy Martin.
When the authorities were on the way, she ran after Pete as fast as she could go. The strong smell of gasoline permeated the air as she drew closer to the place Pete, Cord and Sully had called home. The house was fully engulfed in flames when she got close enough to see more than smoke. The ancient red paint curled under the heat while windows shattered.
Too close to the blaze, Pete wrestled on the ground with another man—a man obviously taken by surprise because his truck idled nearby with gas cans in the back. One he’d apparently been carrying when Pete had tackled him was on its side near the front bumper. A single look told her it was the same person she’d seen skulking about. Sam. And this time he was caught in the act.
Knowing that would make him recklessly violent, she looked around for a weapon, determined to help Pete however she could. The two exchanged vicious punches while they rolled in the dirt and grappled. Pete’s head snapped back as Sam caught him in the jaw, but it was less than an instant before Pete returned the blow. Still, Sam seemed more cunning when it came to the brawl—or more dangerously desperate for escape.
Another punch stunned Pete, and Sam slipped away from him, leaping to his feet. Seeing Moon, he advanced on her. Murder lit his eyes, and she knew neither she nor Pete would live past this if the old foreman had his way. Behind Sam, Pete struggled to his feet. She knew he wouldn’t get to her in time.
Casting about again for a weapon, she spied a crowbar in the back of the truck and lunged for it. Sam grabbed her, laughing as he pulled her away from the tailgate before her fingers closed around the iron. He squeezed her hard as she struggled, forcing her air from her. Probably to make killing her easier, she supposed.
Not willing to go down without a fight, Moon reached up and grabbed two handfuls of his greasy hair, fisting her fingers in it so he couldn’t shake her free. One of his arms released her to yank at her wrist. Knowing that was her opening, Moon forced herself to go limp, becoming deadweight and dragging him forward. Swiveling as they fell, she tried to move so she was to his side rather than under him. The move didn’t work, but as they toppled, her leg jammed between his. She rammed it upward with all her might then as he screeched in pain, she leaned forward and bit his shoulder as hard as she could.
Pushing him over and off her, she leapt to her feet. Though he curled in on himself, she kicked him again and would have kept on kicking him but Pete grabbed her. He pulled her away, avoiding her thrashing when he startled her and she went on a panicked offensive against him.
“Don’t let him get away,” she gasped against him.
“He’s not going anywhere, baby,” he replied as the deputy’s truck sped up the drive, with the ranch’s fire vehicles on his bumper. His tires spewed gravel then dirt as he veered into the yard. He skidded to a stop a few yards away from them and seemed to leap from the truck before it had fully stopped.
“Caught him red-handed,” Pete told Kaleb. “He was putting the gas cans in the back of the Silverado when I got here.”
“That’s who I saw before too,” Moon added.
“Enough for me,” Kaleb said. “Sheriff’s on his way.”
As Kaleb went to Sam and pushed him on his belly then cuffed him, Pete pulled Moon tight in his arms. “Where the hell did you learn to fight like that?” he asked as the Miranda rights were recited in the background.
“When everyone thinks you’re stealing their boyfriends, you learn to fight. Oh Pete,” she cried as she looked at the house, “It’ll be completely destroyed.”
The crew continued dousing the flames with water, but it was obvious it would be a complete loss. The old wood had caught quickly with the aid of the accelerant. Already, the blaze leapt in the attic windows. Her heart stuttered as she caught sight of Cord and Sully outlined by fire as they worked with the team. Please God, let them be all right!
“It’s just stuff. My family will be safe from that—” His arms tightened around her then he let her go. “I need to go help.”
“What can I do?”
“Stay away from the fire so I don’t worry about you, okay? And call Sun so she can let Robert know what’s going on with Sam.” He was already running for the equipment.
Almost numb with her worry, Moon pulled out her phone. She fumbled with it, almost dropping it twice as she tried to dial.
Sun answered on the first ring. “What’s going on? Robert was on his way to Gillette, but he’s on his way back. I’ve got him on the other line.”
“We caught Sam in the act. He doused the house with gasoline and started the fire. Kaleb arrested him.”
“No! It really was him then… Thank goodness you guys caught him. Hopefully, that will be the end of this. Are you okay?”
“A little beat up, but that’s all.” She purposely downplayed Sam’s attempted murder. Her sister would freak out. “Hey, guess what?” she offered to deter Sun.
“What?”
“We get to plan a wedding.”
“We do? Whose—Moon!” Sun squealed in her ear. “When? Why didn’t you tell me? Oh damn it, Robert must have hung up and he’s calling back right when I want details.”
“Go answer him. We’ll have plenty to talk about later.”
“I will. You better come here straight after things are done there. And Moon?”
“Yeah?”
“Welcome home.”
Moon hung up the phone and looked at the smoldering house that would have been hers. Welcome home, indeed. Well, a house didn’t matter. They’d be together and they’d be fine.
* * * *
Putting out the blaze had seemed to take hours. The sheriff had cordoned off the area surrounding the truck. He’d done the same with the house once the fire was out. He’d questioned Moon and Pete and taken pictures of the cuts and bruises on them from Sam’s assault. Finally, Sam had been carted off to jail.
When all was done, Pete, Moon, Sully and Cord stood alone, just outside the yellow tape surrounding the ruins.
“Nothing that can’t be replaced,” Pete muttered. It wasn’t quite true. He knew they’d all lost precious belongings. His only pictures of his family had been in there, as well as journals he’d kept as he put his life back together. Sully and Cord had similar memories, burned away by Sam’s evil.
He hugged Moon close by his side, breathing in her light floral scent and ignoring the smoky tinge. The acrid smell of charred wood and wiring made the air almost unbearable.
Moon turned in his arms and squeezed him tight. Her face buried in his chest. He pressed his nose into her hair, reflexively curling his body around her. In his peripheral vision, he saw Sully and Cord embracing and finding consolation in one another. After a moment, they parted and wrapped their arms around Pete and Moon.
Warm comfort seeped into him. No matter what, this was his family. This was what mattered. Almost as soon as he thought it, pain invaded the peace. Half his family was leaving. He closed his eyes and pushed that knowledge away. They’d work this out…somehow.
“Let’s go,” he said, his voice muffled by the press of bodies. “There’s nothing left here.”
“Go where?” Sully asked.
Damned if he knew. Pete shrugged. “Moon can stay with her sister and we can stay at the bunkhouse, I guess. There are beds in there anyway. Maybe you two can shop in Gillette tomorrow before you go so you at least have some clothes.”
“Stuff’s no big deal,” Sully replied. “God knows I’ve had nothing but my car and the shirt on my back before. I can do it again. This time I have Cord
, too. Mostly, I wanted to spend tonight with all of us together. You know…before Cord and I leave.”
“Maybe we can get a room in the city,” Cord suggested.
“Sounds good,” Pete agreed. He broke away from the group and headed for the truck that had been left there for them so they wouldn’t need to hoof it back to the main house. He kept Moon’s hand tightly in his. For all he’d said about starting over and it just being stuff that had burned, he couldn’t forget that Moon could have been at the house when Sam started the fire. Based on Sam’s actions, Pete was sure it had been Sam’s intent, to kill her. To take something important from Pete.
“I want to be with all of you, too,” Moon said as they climbed into the vehicle. “I really don’t want to be alone tonight,” she added quietly.
Pete pulled her tight to him. “You never need to be alone,” he promised. “You’re mine and I’m yours. Together.”
“Hmm…” Cord said from the back. “Seems like we missed something, Sul.”
“Looks like,” Sully agreed.
Cord leaned on the back of the front seat so his face was inches from where Moon and Pete cuddled. “Something you want to share?” he asked.
She turned her head and kissed him. Pete watched as their lips moved together, the sight of their pleasure sending heat through him. Blood rushed to his cock as Moon knelt on the seat and wrapped her arms around Cord’s neck, deepening the kiss.
Pete’s possessive streak was a mile wide, and he supposed that was one of the reasons his senses had rebelled so much against her going back to LA. But watching her with Cord, sharing her with his two friends, yet knowing that ultimately she was his, did things to his insides he couldn’t explain. It turned him on so fucking much, and suddenly, he wanted to see her with Sully and Cord more than anything tonight.
With Cord and Sul, but no one else. He could never see himself sharing her with anyone but these two friends who were as close to him as brothers. He glanced around the couple to Sully. He seemed to be feeling the same thing about his man. He’d share with Moon, but no one else—and it made him damn hot too, judging from the lust in his gaze.
“A hotel, then,” Pete said as he caught Sully’s eye.
Sully nodded. “I think we all need that tonight.”
Moon broke away from Cord, dropped one more quick kiss on his lips then sat back on her seat, though she remained sideways with her back to the door so she could see Pete and the two in the back. “I promised Sun we’d stop at the main house,” she told them.
Pete nodded. “I’ll have to let them know where I am and probably give Robert an update, though I’m sure he’s already up to speed on everything. Still, he probably wants to hear it from me.”
The rest of the drive was silent, the men exhausted from the exertion of fighting the fire and Moon deep in her own thoughts.
Sully leaned forward as Pete parked next to the bunkhouse and placed the key above the visor for the vehicle’s owner. “So what exactly did we miss?” he asked. “You never said.”
Pete looked at Moon. Her face was flooded with joy as she smiled. She gave him a nod then he looked back at his friends. “Moon’s going to stay…and marry me.”
After a round of whoops, hugs and backslaps, Moon slipped out of the truck and headed for her sister’s office. On her way to the house, she noticed Ree’s car was gone. Apparently, he’d left in the middle of the commotion—thank goodness. She didn’t need to deal with him right now.
Sun rushed out before Moon had started up the mansion’s steps. She bounded down to the drive and grabbed Moon in a bear hug. “I’m so glad you’re all right!”
“I’m good. Just tired.”
“We figured you would be. I’ve got clothes set out for you and a bag packed. Robert got out some stuff for the guys, too. You can shower here then head over to the North Ridge house. It’s a little farther out than the Red House was, but Robert always keeps it stocked and cleaned in case of company. The other houses on the ranch are boarded up. I can’t even believe how many there are, but Robert’s family was pretty big at one point and with a spread like this, it’s good to have people spaced around it to oversee everything.” She reached in her pocket. “I’m rambling again. Sorry, I was just so worried then…” She shook her head. “You know how I get. All hyped up. Anyway, here’s the key. Pete knows how to get there, right Pete?”
Moon looked over her shoulder to see Pete, Sully and Cord heading their way.
“Right what?” he asked.
“You know where the North Ridge house is.”
“Of course. Oh, I hadn’t thought about that. That’s better than a hotel in Gillette.”
“Hell, yeah.” Sun explained to the men what she’d already said about clothes then let them know she’d gotten together food for them to take as well. She shook her head at the men. “You all should have known Robert would take care of you. His crew is his family, and he sees to his own. Now, let’s go in and get you all cleaned up.”
Moon stared at the steps, the thought of going up them almost unbearable as the weight of the day pushed down on her. It was ridiculous since it wasn’t even late, but the last few hours had just been too much. Maybe one of her men could carry her up them. No, they were as tired as she was. So, maybe she could just sit here on the bottom stoop and wait for them to come back outside. That sounded extraordinary.
“Baby, you look dead on your feet,” Pete observed.
“I’m just thinking about bed and wondering if we can shower at the house.”
Cord yawned. “That sounds like a really good idea.”
Sully glanced at his watch. “Yeah…time’s getting pretty short. We need to make a decision.”
Her stomach knotted in reaction to the reminder. In a few hours, two of her men would be gone. She could barely breathe, and she felt a little sick. Had they felt like this at knowing she was leaving them?
“Let’s go inside and get the supplies Sun put together,” she said, forcibly pushing aside the uneasy feelings. She had to make the best of the time they had and not dwell on the past and what was to come. She could feel bad later.
With a new burst of energy, she sprinted up the eight steps to the porch.
* * * *
Moon moaned as Pete’s hands slid up her slick torso while the hot water jetted around them from multiple showerheads. The North Ridge house had four bedrooms, each fitted with spectacular, luxury bathrooms. She and Pete had chosen this one, fitted with chrome and black marble. The enormous shower would have been big enough for all four of them.
Steam swirled around them as Pete stroked her body under the guise of them getting clean. She was pretty sure they’d passed clean awhile ago, but she wasn’t complaining. Her arm slid behind his shoulders as he lifted her against the wall, and she shivered at the cool tile against her back. Any chill disappeared when Pete stepped between her legs. His hand trailed up her inner thigh to reach her center then part her folds. She jerked as his finger rubbed over her clit.
“You like that?” he murmured into her neck, though she was sure he knew she loved it.
“Yes,” she moaned. She canted her hips into his touch, wanting firmer contact on the sensitive flesh. Instead, the long digit slid back to sink deep into her pussy. She closed her eyes, tilting her head against the side of the shower as perfection filled her. Having him touch her, having him inside her, even if it was just his finger, felt like home. It was the perfect belonging. She was his; he was hers; they understood each other. They were right. Together. Here or wherever they were.
She rocked into him, enjoying the sensation of his knuckles pressing her open as he thrust and retreated. Her nails bit into his shoulders.
“You’re so fucking beautiful,” Pete rasped. “So fucking beautiful. Come for me, baby. Come apart for me before I share you with them.”
“Pete,” she gasped then begged, “Fuck me. Please…”
“After,” he promised. He tipped his head forward and captured one of her ni
pples in his mouth. His tongue flicked over the tip while he drew, causing her to squirm and cry out as pleasure swept through her.
As Moon recovered from the orgasm, Pete shouldered open the shower door then carried her out to the small rug beyond the enclosure. He set her on the thick mat and grabbed a towel. Swiftly, he dried her, rubbing the nubby cloth over her sensitive skin.
“But…” she said. Wasn’t he going to finish this? She wanted that. After the wonderful and horrible events of the day, she needed the comfort of being with him. She knew he needed the same. They were alike that way.
“Shh,” he replied. “There’s more. Just wait.”
After tossing the towel on the counter, he lifted her into his arms once more and carried her into the enormous bedroom. Large windows on two walls overlooked the mountains in the distance and the view was quite similar to that at the Red House. A spike of sadness went through her, but Pete quickly squelched it when he placed her on the bed and straddled her. She giggled as he dripped on her.
“Stay right here,” he said. He placed a kiss on her lips then hurried back into the bathroom to dry himself.
He was just returning when Cord and Sully burst into the room. Both men were naked and carried dark sage-colored ropes in their hands. A tremor of anticipation went through Moon. Tonight would be all four of them.
“This is all we could find,” Cord told Pete, holding up one fist to show him the tiebacks from the downstairs curtains. “We’ll have to put them back later.”
Sully and Cord moved toward her, intent alight in their eyes, but she wasn’t frightened. These three would never hurt her.
Sully grabbed one of her wrists and wrapped the soft rope around it. Quickly, he fastened it to a spindle in the headboard. Cord repeated the action with her other hand. To the side, Pete watched. His arms crossed his muscular chest and a slight smile curved his lips. His cock jutted out, thick with arousal.
The two men on the bed moved toward her feet. They each looped together pairs of ties to lengthen them, then bound her ankles to the footboard. Heat burned through her at her spread-eagle and immobilized position—heat and unbearable anticipation. She was theirs, vulnerable and helpless to their will. There was no fear. She wanted this; she trusted them.