“What’s wrong, honey?” Tim asked her. “We were worried when you didn’t come home.”
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to make you worry. I love you.”
“Love you, kitten,” Spence answered without hesitation.
“Love you, honey,” Tim told her, his heart heavy with concern.
Lainey took a calming breath and held their hands as they rested them on her thighs. She ran her thumbs across their knuckles and smiled as they squeezed her hands in return.
“I took a pregnancy test today,” she told them softly, looking up to face them.
“Did you pass?” Spence asked, his blue eyes twinkling with merriment.
“Spence, this is not funny,” she told him, trying very hard not to smile. She looked at Tim and saw the way his brown eyes softened as he enjoyed Spence’s teasing. “Timothy, don’t you start, too.”
“Lainey, just hearing you say that you took a pregnancy test makes us both very happy,” Tim told her, his grin widening, the deep dimple on his right cheek becoming more noticeable.
“Yeah, well, stop teasing because I’m really nervous about this,” she told him firmly, trying very hard to ignore how adorable both men were.
Tim and Spence exchanged worried looks then leaned in to settle against Lainey’s shoulders. She sighed contentedly, their strength and warmth soothing her immediately.
“There’s no need to be nervous, kitten,” Spence whispered, kissing her neck. “Tim and I have been looking forward to starting a family with you for a long time.”
“Lainey girl, you have no idea how much we love you,” Tim told her gently. “We love every minute we’ve been given with you. Having a baby together would be wonderful. Don’t you think so, honey?”
Lainey could hear the worry in his voice. She hated that she was the cause of it. Reaching up, she threaded her fingers through both of her men’s hair and massaged their scalps lightly.
“I’m pregnant,” she whispered, squeaking as both men’s arms tightened around her. She couldn’t help but laugh as they rained kisses across her neck, face, and lips.
“Thank you, kitten,” Spence told her happily as he leaned back and looked at her with complete joy on his face.
“Thank you, honey,” Tim whispered, smiling just as hard as Spence was.
As if it was rehearsed, both men reached out and grabbed for the bottom of her T-shirt. They pulled it up and over her head and threw it to the floor.
“What are you guys doing?” she asked, giggling as they both immediately grinned at her. When they reached up and gently placed their hands on her belly, she was shocked into silence.
“Need to feel the warmth of our baby,” Spence told her quietly, leaning forward and placing a chaste kiss on her stomach before placing his open hand on her.
“Can’t wait to feel the baby moving,” Tim added, looking up at her and winking before leaning forward to kiss her belly and cover it with his large hand, crowding Spence’s hand, which he didn’t mind doing at all.
“You’re both so sweet,” Lainey whispered. “I don’t know how I ever got so lucky to have you as mine.”
The smiles that filled their faces made her love increase. How could she not love them that much more when they were so happy?
“Gracie told me, Becca, Claire, and DelAnne that when a woman is pregnant, the Great Spirit attaches the marking of a small, golden link to the original mating mark. I guess Gracie, Melanie, and Jamie just found out about it and wanted to make sure that all of us women knew what to expect.”
“I’m glad she told you,” Tim said quietly.
Lainey nodded, rubbing her hands over his and Spence’s as she looked at them. They were so completely calm, it amazed her.
“I saw the marking this morning when I was getting ready to go to work.”
When both men remained silent, she shored up her courage to finish what she had to say. Not only was she worried about one of them feeling left out, she was worried about how they might take the news that it wasn’t just one baby. She really should have been more prepared, and she should have given them the knowledge that it was a good possibility that they might have twins since multiple births ran in her family.
“I actually saw two links,” she said quietly. “I guess that means we’re having twins.”
When she saw that their smiles never wavered, she relaxed even more. The newest revelation didn’t upset them at all. These men were definitely keepers.
“Gracie also told us that only the parents can see the links that represent their children.”
“And that bothers you, kitten?” Spence asked, his eyebrows furrowed in confusion.
Lainey nodded, tears filling her eyes as she tried desperately to control her emotions. “Yes,” she finally whispered.
“Why, honey?” Tim asked, reaching up and wiping away one of her tears with the pad of his thumb.
“Because I want you both to see the links.”
“Kitten, we already have,” Spence told her gently.
“What?”
“Tim and I saw the two links a few days ago,” Spence admitted, winking at her.
“You mean you both knew I was pregnant already, and you let me get all worried that you would be upset that I was carrying twins?”
She picked up the two small pillows on either side of her that were tucked into the corners of the couch and hit both men square in their heads. The oomph that escaped both of them gave her great satisfaction.
“Lainey!” Tim sputtered, laughing as he reached out to grab for her swinging arm.
“Don’t you dare Lainey me!” she muttered, pulling her arms back and swinging at both of them again.
Spence’s black hair fluttered from the impact of the second hit, making Lainey glad she had hit him hard enough to make that happen. She avoided both men’s hands as they tried to contain her. Pushing at their chests, she had the advantage of surprise as they lost their balance and toppled over backward. She was on top of them within a heartbeat, continuing to pummel them with the soft weapons. Hearing their laughter, Lainey couldn’t help it—she started to giggle.
“I thought we had an understanding that we would never keep secrets from each other,” Lainey said finally as she calmed down.
“Your pregnancy was something Tim and I wanted you to discover on your own,” Spence explained. “We wanted you to want the baby.”
“Babies,” Tim corrected him.
“Right. Babies,” Spence amended.
Lainey’s gaze softened as she pushed herself up so that she could rest comfortably on both men’s chests. She was silent as she looked down at her mates and was completely amazed that they were looking at her with the softest, loving expression she had ever seen.
“You guys are really okay with me having twins,” she told them, amazed by their complete acceptance of her pregnancy.
“We’re more than okay with it, honey,” Tim told her, reaching up to touch her face and drag his knuckles across her cheek. “It’s been difficult for us to keep this secret from you. Spence and I both felt the warmth of our babies when we touched your belly the morning after the night you conceived, Lainey.”
“You did?” Lainey’s voice was barely a whisper. “How is that possible?”
“John and Deuce told us it was the same for them when Jamie and Gracie conceived,” Spence told her, carding his fingers through her soft hair as he pulled her closer. “The Great Spirit seems to allow the men to sense their mate’s pregnancy first.”
“Well, that doesn’t seem fair,” Lainey protested.
“I think it’s a good thing,” Tim told her, laughing at her outrage.
“Why would you think that, Tim?” Lainey asked him, shocked.
“Because, sweetheart, it gave Spence and me a connection to our children that most men never get,” he explained softly. “Women are lucky to bond and love their babies sooner because they can feel them growing and moving inside of their bodies.”
“Lainey, you can
’t know how much it meant to us to feel the warmth of our babies’ life forces,” Spence continued softly. “We both loved them instantly.”
“From that very second,” Tim whispered.
She had never thought she could ever love her men more than she already did, but she was so very wrong. The love that they had for their babies made her cherish them even more than she already did.
“Wait,” she said suddenly. “You said you saw the two links on my neck?”
“Yes, kitten. We saw them the next morning,” Spence told her. “Why?”
“Gracie said only the parents could see the links,” Lainey explained.
“That’s what John and Deuce told us, too,” Tim said, not understanding what was confusing her.
“But, if you both saw the links then you’re both the father,” Lainey explained. “How is that possible?”
Tim looked at Lainey and smiled. “That’s because we both are the father,” he said firmly.
Lainey was silent for a moment, trying to understand and accept what Tim was saying. She knew that biologically, it wasn’t possible.
“Gracie said that the men also had the same little links on their necks once their mate was carrying their baby,” she told them after a moment. “Did you check your mating marks for the new links?”
Spence looked at Tim in shock. “I’m going to have a serious talk with my brothers and John,” he said angrily. “They really need to be more thorough in telling us what to expect with our mates.”
“I agree,” Tim said gently. “But we really can’t be upset. It’s not like we admitted that Lainey was pregnant.”
“You didn’t tell them?”
“No, kitten,” Spence answered quickly. “Your pregnancy was something we wanted to keep a secret until you became aware of it. We wanted you to share the news with us before anyone else knew.”
Lainey smiled at the fact that her men held their secret. She grew serious as she thought about the links that were on her neck, and she wondered if they would be on her men’s necks. She had a moment of worry as she realized that she would see which man was the biological father of her babies when she saw the links on only one of their necks, but she knew that it was something that was inevitable.
“I want to see your mating marks,” she said quietly, pushing herself off of them and kneeling between them, sitting back on her feet, and waiting as both of them sat up before her.
Tim turned around and waited while she reached out and lifted the hair off his neck to look at his mating mark. He shivered slightly as her warm hand touched him and closed his eyes in happiness that she affected him so deeply whenever she did.
Lainey’s breath caught in her throat as she saw the tiny, golden links hanging from the rose gold link in the middle of his and Spence’s yellow gold links. Tim was her babies’ father.
Spence turned and presented his back to her, waiting for her to look at his mating mark. Her hands shook as she lifted his black curls off the back of his neck to look at his mating mark. She knew what she would see—or wouldn’t see. Since she had already seen the two, tiny links on Tim’s neck, she knew Spence would not have the links on his neck, and it broke her heart.
“Oh, my goodness,” she whispered, shocked beyond belief when she saw that Spence’s mating mark had the same two, tiny links hanging from her rose gold link.
“What, kitten?”
“You have the two links that represent the twins,” she whispered.
He turned around to face her and smiled. She looked at Tim as he turned around and reached out to take his hand in hers. She did the same with Spence’s hand and brought both men’s hands to her mouth and kissed their knuckles tenderly.
“Tim, you have the two links that represent the twins, too,” she told him gently. Tim smiled and winked at her. “Spence, look and see if you can see the links on Tim’s neck.”
Spence lifted Tim’s hair and looked at his neck. “Yes, I can see them.”
“Tim, see if you can see the links on Spence’s neck,” Lainey whispered.
Tim did as she asked, lifting Spence’s hair and checking out his mating mark. “The two links are there,” he told her.
“I don’t understand,” she told them. “Shouldn’t only one of you have the links?”
“Why should only one of us have the links?” Spence asked gently. “We’re both our babies’ fathers, Lainey. You’re our mate. You belong to both of us and our babies belong to both of us.”
“But that’s not possible, Spence,” Lainey protested.
“Baby, don’t question it,” Tim told her softly. “The Great Spirit blessed us with a mating that is already unique. We’re the only mated trio that I’ve ever heard of. Don’t you think the Great Spirit would somehow give us another miracle of all of us being the parents to all of our children?”
“But it’s not scientifically feasible,” Lainey pointed out.
“Since when does a miracle have any basis in scientific fact?” Tim asked. “Just accept the miracle, Lainey.”
“The babies belong to both of us,” Spence said firmly. “I have no doubt in my mind that this is not only possible—it is.”
Lainey looked from one man to the other and back again. She didn’t know how they could be so certain that such a thing was not only possible, but it was a fact.
“You know what I think?” she asked them finally.
“What, kitten?”
“I think I need my babies’ fathers to take me to bed and make love to me.”
A squeal of delight was pulled from her as both men were on their feet in a heartbeat, lifting her into their arms and carrying her up the stairs to their bedroom. When they settled her gently onto their bed and climbed up to lie beside her, she reached out and touched their faces gently.
“After we make love, I may want some ice cream and pickles,” she told them, smiling.
Their barks of laughter made her giggle. The smile never left her face as their strong arms surrounded her, and they kissed her soundly.
Chapter 30
“Lainey, sweetheart,” Tim’s soft voice kissed against Lainey’s cheek.
“Timmy, I’m sleeping,” Lainey whispered.
Tim chuckled softly, kissing her mating mark, paying close attention to the two links that represented their babies. “I know, baby, but I need to tell you something before Spence and I leave for work.”
Lainey turned over, stretching and arching her back as she lay so relaxed below him. “Okay, I’m awake,” she said softly, never opening her eyes.
“Looks like you’re still sleeping to me, kitten,” Spence teased as he leaned forward and kissed her cheek lightly. “Wake up lazy bones.”
Lainey reached up and grabbed Spence’s curly black hair, tugging him closer to her. “Do I have to beat you for bothering me when I’m sleeping, Spencer McKade?”
Spence laughed softly, nuzzling into her hand and kissing her wrist. “How come you threaten to beat me when Tim is the one who woke you up?” he asked, humor evident in his voice.
“Because Timmy was gentle and soft when he woke me up,” Lainey explained, trying very hard not to smile. “You, on the other hand, called me lazy. Not nice, Spence.”
“Sorry, kitten,” he apologized softly. “I just couldn’t resist teasing you. You know I don’t think you’re lazy. You’re one of the hardest working women I’ve ever known. And you’re carrying two babies that have to be making you tired.”
Lainey opened her eyes and looked up to see both of her men looking down at her with the most incredible expression of tenderness on their faces. She smiled softly and reached up with her free hand to thread her fingers through the softness of Tim’s brown curls.
“Goodness, but I love you both so much,” she told them gently. “I’m a lucky woman to have such kind and handsome men as my mates.”
“Think so, honey?” Tim asked, his warm, brown eyes sparkling with happiness.
“Yes,” she whispered. “And you’re also amazi
ng lovers.” She winked up at them and laughed as she saw the pride that filled both of them. “But you know what else I know about you both?”
“What, kitten?”
“You’re both going to be wonderful fathers. Our babies are very lucky to have such tender and loving daddies.”
The smiles left the men’s faces as the words she just spoke touched their souls. Lainey melted at the way they looked down at her with such open longing and tenderness.
“Don’t you think you’re going to be wonderful daddies?” she asked hesitantly, worried for a moment that the men might be having second thoughts about their future.
“Actually, I would prefer it if the kids called me Pa,” Spence told her softly. “I would really like that.”
Lainey’s blue eyes moistened with tears as she thought about the significance of what Spence had requested. “I think that would be a wonderful idea,” she said finally. “You know what, Pa? You’re going to be as good a pa as your pa was.”
“I hope so,” Spence said softly.
She turned to face Tim and smiled at the sweet expression of happiness that she saw. “What about you, Timothy? Is it okay if our kids called you daddy?”
“Nothing would make me happier,” he said gently. “I promise I’ll be a good daddy.”
“I know you will, Timmy.” Lainey’s voice was whisper soft. “How can either of you be anything but wonderful? I know our babies are going to be as crazy about you as I am.”
“You just earned yourself a night of pampering,” Tim told her, laughing softly.
“I’m going to hold you to that, Timothy.”
“Any time, baby.”
“So what did you want to tell me?”
“Tell you?”
“Tim, you woke me up to tell me something,” she reminded him gently.
“Oh, yeah. I did,” he admitted, smiling sheepishly.
“What did you want to tell me?”
“Spence and I are going to talk to Deuce this morning. We need to have a family meeting so we can tell everyone about our babies.”
Claiming Lainey [Cowboy Mates, Psychic Connections 3] (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour) Page 35