Bound to Them

by Lorna Jean Roberts

  Well, at least she was on the Pill. There was little chance of her getting pregnant.

  He tried to ignore the small pang of regret he felt. Because he really liked the idea of her pregnant with his baby.

  * * * * *

  “Are you going to tell me what’s wrong?”

  Nash glanced up at Quinn’s words. He’d been so deep in his own thoughts he hadn’t even heard the bedroom door open. He glanced behind Quinn.

  “She’s still asleep,” Quinn said gruffly, easily interpreting Nash’s thoughts. “Think we wore her out.”

  Nash shook his head. He glanced down at his now warm beer. He didn’t really feel like it, but he’d been unable to sleep.

  Crista had practically collapsed in their arms. They’d snuggled into her as she slept, but Nash’s mind hadn’t allowed him any rest.

  “Well?” Quinn asked as he sat across from him

  “Condom broke.”

  He raised his gaze at the extended silence. Quinn stared at him, his face displaying no expression.

  Well, that wasn’t good.

  “Quinn?” he prompted, wondering why that had upset him so much. Quinn only got that blank look when he wanted to hide some extreme feeling.

  “I’ll leave. If she’s pregnant then you’ll want a normal family. I’ll pack up my bags and go now.” Quinn rose.

  Nash sighed. “Sit down, shut up and listen.” His hard words seemed to shock Quinn out of his head as he sat down immediately.

  “You know, you have a really bad tendency to jump to conclusions. You just react without thinking.”

  Nash rubbed his forehead.

  “But if she’s pregnant—” Quinn began.

  “If she’s pregnant—and that’s a big if considering she’s on the Pill—we will stick together and work out what we are going to do. You can’t just run off at the first hurdle thrown our way, Quinn. Or am I not important enough for you to stick around during the tough times as well as the good?”

  Quinn’s head slammed back with shock. “Of course you are. I just—”

  “What?” Nash snapped. “Wanted to play the martyr? Well, don’t. The role doesn’t suit you and I need you here, supporting me. Not running away because you think it’s the right thing to do. It isn’t. I am not expendable, do you understand? I want you forever, not until things get too difficult. And I thought you finally felt the same way. Obviously I was wrong.”

  Nash stood to storm past. Quinn stepped up in front of him, blocking his way. Nash growled.

  “I’m sorry. I’m sorry, all right? I’m a fool. And you are not expendable. Don’t you know leaving you would rip my heart out? I love you. You’re right. I’m like a bull—I storm around without noticing all the damage I do. Usually Joe smooths over my edges, but without him around…” His voice trailed off.

  “I am not living with your twin brother just so he can mediate between us.” Nash’s lips twitched.

  Quinn’s face lightened. “You sure? He’s real good at it.”

  “Come here, you big bastard,” Nash said with a groan, kissing him.

  Leaning back, he clasped Quinn’s face between his hands, feeling the roughness of a few days’ growth against his palms.

  “I love you. You love me. Unless those feelings change, we’re stuck with each other. Got it? We’ll fight, argue and then we’ll make up. That’s just who we are. But no matter what, we stick it out.”

  Quinn nodded. Nash kissed him again.

  “Jeez, you two have some energy. You didn’t have to come out here though,” Crista said sleepily.

  Both men drew apart to look at her.

  “Come here, darlin’.” Nash held his hand out to her, palm up. She frowned at him, her gaze darting between the two of them as she obediently stepped forward and grasped his hand with her cold one.

  “You’re freezing,” he scolded, sitting and drawing her down onto his lap.

  “I’ll grab a blanket,” Quinn said, turning to go back into the bedroom.

  “I’m sorry,” she said.

  Nash looked down at her in surprise. “For what?”

  “For interrupting. I should have just stayed in the bedroom.”

  “Hey.” He raised her face so he could stare into her eyes. “You are never interrupting. You can seek us out anytime, understand? I was just telling Quinn he has the bad habit of acting without thinking.”

  She nodded. “Yeah, I’ve noticed that.”

  “Hey, what is this? Pick on Quinn day?” Quinn joked as he entered the room, a fluffy blanket in his hands. He tucked it around Crista.

  Crista giggled and relaxed. Nash smiled his thanks at Quinn.

  “You are a little, umm…”

  “Abrasive? Abrupt? Always jumping to conclusions? Bull in a china shop?” Nash supplied with a large grin.

  Quinn growled but Nash could see the humor in his eyes. Crista obviously could too as she just laughed.

  “I told you, Joe got all the smooth manners and charm, I was left a bit rough ’round the edges. Something you two obviously find attractive.”

  “Ahh, the arrogance has returned. And you cannot live with your twin forever, so maybe you want to learn some of those manners.”

  “Twin?” Crista asked.

  “Nah, I’ve got you now. You’ve got even more smooth charm than Joe has,” Quinn replied before looking at Crista. “I have a twin brother, Joe.”

  “Who is, luckily, nothing like Quinn, even though they look alike.”

  “I knew you had brothers, but I didn’t realize you had a twin.”

  “Yep. Luke’s my oldest brother. Kayla’s our only sister, the baby of the family. And I have another older brother, Jed. He’s overseas on deployment at the moment. ”

  “Your poor sister, having to deal with four overprotective brothers all her life.”

  Quinn frowned. “Yeah, well, she’s got her husband Cord to look after her now.”

  “Cord and I were in the same unit together,” Nash told her. “I met Quinn when Cord asked me for some help when some bastards were terrorizing Kayla.”

  “Is she okay?”

  “Yes,” Nash replied. “So now that Kayla has Cord to take care of her, does that mean you’re going to ease back on the protectiveness?” he asked Quinn.

  “Of course not, she’s still my sister.” Quinn looked affronted by the idea.

  “See what I mean?” Nash looked down at Crista, grinning. “Kayla’s screwed. Four older brothers and an overprotective husband. The girl’s lucky she’s allowed to leave the house without an escort.”

  Quinn shook his head. “We’re not that bad.”

  “Maybe Joe and Luke aren’t. But if you had your way she’d have been locked in a convent until she was forty.”

  “Damn straight. She’s my baby sister. No one’s good enough for her.”

  “I see what you mean.” Crista smiled up at Nash.

  He winked down at her. “It’s a wonder she hasn’t killed him. I think that’s why he still lives with his brother. Joe protects him from Kayla’s wrath.”

  Quinn sighed. “It was easier just to live with Joe after…”

  “After what?” Crista prompted.

  Quinn fell silent. Nash sat back and cuddled Crista in close. He rested his feet on the coffee table, settling them both in.

  “After what, Quinn?” she asked.

  “After I broke up with Caroline.” Quinn closed his eyes briefly then reopened them, staring at them both. His amber-colored eyes appeared reflective and slightly sad.

  Crista stirred. Nash helped her stand, giving her a smile of encouragement as she stepped over to Quinn and settled herself on his lap, ignoring his surprised look.

  Quinn pulled her in close. Crista was working her way into Quinn’s heart. Nash hadn’t thought it possible to love someone as much as he loved Quinn. Hadn’t realized there would be room in his heart for two people. But he knew he didn’t want to be without either of them.

  Only problem was, how would Crista re
act to the idea of making this permanent? How would Quinn? He’d made a huge step in admitting his feelings for Nash; could he handle a permanent ménage?

  Crista was such an innocent and this had all happened so quickly. Would she believe he had already fallen in love with her? Or would she run scared? Could she handle more? He’d love to take her to Sinfully Yours and show her off.

  Nash wasn’t really into pain—he preferred bondage and submission. But the idea of tying her to a St. Andrew’s Cross and watching Quinn flog her until her skin glowed made him decidedly hot.

  “Tell me about her?” Crista spoke quietly. Nash looked over at Quinn, saw the way he glanced down at Crista and knew he didn’t have to worry about the other man’s feelings.

  Quinn loved her.

  Damn, he loved her. Quinn gazed down at the small bundle of woman in his arms and knew his feelings for her were very real. Didn’t matter that they hadn’t known each for long. He loved her.

  Guilt assailed him and he glanced quickly over at Nash.

  But he needn’t have worried. Nash was staring at her with the same look of love on his face. The other man raised his head and nodded at Quinn.

  Quinn instantly relaxed and nodded back. Well, all right then. They were both on the same wavelength. There were times that being in a relationship with a man had its real upsides. He knew how Nash thought—most of the time—and they didn’t need to constantly talk about feelings.

  But being with Crista only made things sweeter. He loved the way she curled in his arms. So trusting, so soft. Her sweet scent. Her gentleness. Yes, being with her was special in a way that was different from being with Nash. Knowing how delicate she was in comparison to him brought out every protective instinct.

  He’d fuck up for sure. But he wouldn’t run out. On either of them. And they’d work as a team. Nash could be the charmer, the talker. Quinn could be the one to chase away her demons.

  As long as she agreed to let them.

  He tightened his arms, scared she’d just disappear.

  “Quinn?” she asked.

  He sighed.

  “I met Caroline three years ago. I thought she was everything I wanted. She was beautiful, smart, elegant. I fell head over heels. I thought she was the one. I’d been in the BDSM scene for a few years but I didn’t do a lot of public scenes. I wasn’t ready yet to tell my family and I didn’t want any rumors getting back to them. So when I played in public I wore a mask. But I intended to tell them.

  “Caroline was divorced and wanted to do some renovation work to her house. When the job was over, I asked her out. I didn’t really expect her to say yes. But she did and we started dating. About the same time, a friend of mine opened up a BDSM club. He wanted me to act as a dungeon master a few nights a week. I couldn’t do that without talking to Caroline, of course. Our sex life was very vanilla. And I knew I couldn’t continue on without telling her what I really wanted.”

  “How did she take it?” Crista asked.

  “A bit shocked and scared. She told me if this is what I wanted she was willing to try. However, she’d rather I didn’t do anything in public. She said she wanted to keep me to herself and that she’d be jealous to think of me touching other women. I told her it wasn’t like that, but her eyes welled with tears, she just looked so upset at the idea that I caved.”

  “She manipulated you.”

  “Yeah.” Quinn sighed. “We went out for a few months. I tried introducing things, tying her up, spanking her, but it wasn’t working. She acted as though I was trying to harm her. Like everything I tried was sick. Gradually I just gave up.”

  “So you broke things off?” Crista asked.

  He laughed, a sound filled with sadness. “I blamed myself. Here I was trying to push my perversions onto a woman who clearly didn’t want it.”

  “She had her chance to get out. You were honest with her,” Nash interjected.

  “Not from the start,” Quinn replied. “I should have been up front from the beginning and then maybe we wouldn’t have both ended up so miserable.”

  “What happened?” Crista asked.

  “I tried to change, to suppress what I really wanted. I knew she thought it was disgusting. I turned up at her apartment one night. We’d had a fight that afternoon and canceled our plans. I let myself in with my key. And found her fucking our accountant.”

  He took a deep breath. “Of course I lost my temper. Punched the guy and threw him out. She was screaming at me. Asking what I expected when I was so perverted. That she couldn’t be with someone who was defective. That she’d only wanted my money. Apparently the guy she was fucking didn’t earn enough money for her. But the accountant knew my financial situation. I’ve made a few really good investments over the years. She threatened to tell my family about my illness unless I paid her off.”

  “What did you do?” Crista asked.

  “Told her if she mentioned a word of it that I’d spread the word that she was a gold-digging bitch. That I had a lot of resources and friends and I could make it so she never found a man to marry and keep her, which is what she wanted. She believed me. But after that I was never comfortable about telling my family or letting anyone see me at the club.”

  “She made you feel ashamed of who you are,” Crista said.

  Quinn glanced down at her. “I guess so. Silly, huh?”

  “Yep.”

  Quinn jolted, surprised by her agreement. He narrowed his gaze. Crista stared back at him calmly.

  “If your family loves you they won’t care. Didn’t you both tell me that BDSM is all about safe and consensual play? You’re not doing anything wrong, Quinn. And you’re definitely not defective or ill. Because if you are, then Nash and I must be as well. Are you going to sit there and tell me that what I feel is wrong?”

  She challenged him with her gaze.

  Quinn’s dick hardened. “You’re right.”

  “I know,” she said smugly.

  “She was a stupid, money-hungry bitch,” he said, something tight inside him loosening.

  “Yep, yep and yep,” she agreed.

  Quinn bent down and kissed her. Leaning back, he realized he felt lighter, happier than he had in a long time. “Thank you,” he whispered.

  “No, thank you. I know that couldn’t have been easy to tell us.”

  “No.” He looked over at Nash. “But it needed to be said.”

  Nash crooked a finger. “Come over here, both of you. I feel a little neglected.”

  Crista tried to climb off Quinn’s lap but he held her tighter and then rose, carrying her over to sit beside Nash on the sofa. Nash placed his arm over Quinn’s shoulder and drew him close, kissing him. Then he leaned down and ran his thumb over Crista’s cheek.

  “Sugar?”

  “Hmm?” she asked, yawning. It was getting late.

  “Do you realize the condom broke tonight?”

  Crista stiffened and looked up at Nash in surprise. “I’m on the Pill,” she said.

  He brushed the hair back from her face. “I know, honey. But we hadn’t discussed going without condoms. I’m sorry.”

  “Not your fault,” she told him, her lips slightly numb. When was the last time she’d taken her Pill? With everything going on, it had kind of been the last thing on her mind. She remembered taking it the morning Andrew broke into her apartment. That might have been the last time. Surely the odds of her getting pregnant were low.

  She glanced up to tell them her slipup, but held back as she noticed the way they were frowning. They obviously weren’t happy about the possibility of her being pregnant and who could blame them? She was just a one-weekend stand.

  “Even if I there was a chance I could get pregnant, I wouldn’t expect anything from either of you.”

  Nash grasped her shoulder firmly, shaking her a little. “If you were pregnant,” he said sternly, “you would tell me immediately. Do you understand?”

  There was no denying him when he used that voice.

  “Yes Sir.�
��

  His hold gentled and he looked somewhat sad. “Good girl. Now how about we get some sleep? I don’t know about you two, but I’m exhausted.”

  She nodded, still deep in thought.

  “Crista? You okay?” Nash asked her.

  Crista plastered a smile on her face, not wanting him to suspect her inner turmoil.

  “I’m good, just tired.”

  “Come on, let’s tuck you into bed. You’ll be asleep as soon as your head hits the pillow.”

  Yeah, she wasn’t so sure.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Urgh. Crista tried to shake off her horrid Monday morning blues. She should have felt refreshed after the weekend. But three nights filled with sex as well as worry over Doug had left her absolutely exhausted.

  Half-asleep, she moved through her morning routine before stumbling into the small kitchen area in search of coffee.

  Lots and lots of coffee.

  It was her only hope.

  Both Quinn and Nash turned to stare at her as she entered the room. Immediately she felt self-conscious. She knew how she looked—pale with dark circles under her eyes, dressed in an old t-shirt of Doug’s and baggy jeans.

  There’d been no sign of Andrew so she supposed she should move back into her own room. After all, he was probably long gone.

  Hopefully. Maybe. Yeah, probably not. Her luck wasn’t that good.

  “Morning, sugar,” Nash said cheerfully. “You want toast for breakfast?”

  She glowered at him. It should be a crime for someone to look that good in the morning.

  “Not an early morning person, are we?” he asked, smiling. They’d been sleeping in each morning so she hadn’t had a chance to see how sickening he was before 9:00 a.m.

  “You look terrible,” Quinn added. She narrowed her gaze warningly. He did not want to start with her this morning. “You should go back to bed.”

  “Bite me,” she snarled. Maybe not the most mature reply, but it made her feel better.

  She marched past him to the coffeepot, pouring herself a large cup. Breathing deep, she let the heavenly scent stir her senses before she took that first delicious sip.

  “Christ, I think I came a little,” Quinn groaned. She glanced up to find both men staring at her.