Depression sapped Sephanie’s spirit. She’d wanted to go home and be normal. She was so tired of hiding and living in someone else’s house. The thought of sleeping in her bed for even a night or two seemed like an impossible dream. Sephanie hadn’t been afraid of Derek Malone, but Cooper didn’t want to take the chance the man could arrange for an attack or another accident while he was on the run.
She’d only gotten the facts secondhand and later than most people. Lillie probably wouldn’t get much prison time. She was talking quite a bit about her father’s dealings, and that would help her case.
Then there was Lillie’s father, Derek Malone. For a while, Sephanie had been afraid it would take years to find and bring the man back from wherever he’d run. She hadn’t wanted to stay away from home that long.
About a week ago, it seemed Derek Malone was traveling through an area with friendly relations with Darmain. He’d tried to board a shuttle, been identified and detained. It hadn’t been long before Malone was sent back to Darmain.
Sephanie wasn’t so trusting as to believe it was that simple. She didn’t think Malone was stupid enough to travel through friendly space with his own identity. Someone had given him help getting there. She suspected that someone friendly with either her brother or Teague had taken Malone from wherever he was hiding and put him somewhere he’d be captured so there wouldn’t be as many questions asked. However he was caught, Sephanie was glad she could finally be back among her family and friends.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Sephanie finished locking the shop after her brother finally left and went home. For the past few days, she hadn’t spent much time at her home. Barely enough time for Kassius, Teague, and Berenger to contact her there, but she’d said she would give them a chance. She’d keep her word to talk to them, but nervousness and anticipation made her jittery. They’d been so persistent about trying to come to her, she didn’t know if they’d try to have someone bring her to them today, perhaps one of their friends.
After she arrived home, she fixed herself a drink and tried to relax. She wondered if they’d contact her tonight or if they’d wait until tomorrow. Keeping her distance from them hadn’t been easy. Her emotions pulled her toward them, but they had to talk first. She wanted to kiss and touch them, but even more, she longed to talk, work, and play with them.
Only the memory of the pain she’d felt when she’d realized they weren’t going to tell her about Berenger kept her from putting aside her pride and going to them. They had to realize she needed to be part of the important decisions.
Her holo-comm chimed. For a long moment, she stared at it. After a slow, deep breath, she transferred the call to the big screen in front of her couch. She had a camera set up there so they’d be able to see her.
Berenger, Kassius, and Teague sat on the couch in their home. They all looked tense. She smiled. It was good to see them, even if they didn’t look all that happy. From the frowns on their faces, she guessed they were probably sulky because they hadn’t gotten their way.
“You could look pleased to see me.” She ran her fingers over the chain of her necklace. She hoped they couldn’t see how anxious she was.
“I’d be happier if you were here with us.” Teague scowled.
“Maybe I’d agree to meet with you in public if you hadn’t been trying to ambush me.” She resisted the urge to rub her clammy hands on the couch or her pants. “You three are trying to skip steps when there’s too much we have to clear between us.”
“How can we clear anything between us if we haven’t been together?” Teague leaned forward. His hands clasped together as he watched her.
“I have to know you can listen and be honest with me.” She sighed. “I know why you had my brother take me away, but that doesn’t make what you did right.”
“Don’t blame them for that. I told them we needed to get you away.” Berenger’s shoulders slumped and he exhaled loudly.
“And they are so meek and mild they went along with every demand without question. They have minds.” She glared at him and folded her arms across her chest. It might be easy to blame only one man, but they’d all had a choice in the matter.
“All right, yes, they can think on their own, but I’d already arranged for your brother to come get you.” Berenger grimaced and nodded.
“I don’t know what you think I’m angry about, so I’m going to tell you. You weren’t going to tell me about Berenger being hurt. It made me feel as if I wasn’t part of your life. You didn’t trust me. Do you know how furious that made me? How much it hurt me?” She clenched her hands into fists. Anger rose from thinking about it.
“Are you willing to listen?” Kassius sat forward, and his eyes narrowed.
“I’ve had to live with the frustration, hurt, and anger over what you did for weeks. You didn’t let me say good-bye to him.” She pointed at the screen. “I want to know I’ll be included in all of your life. The bad and the good. The joyful and the painful.”
“We share our lives with you.” Berenger’s eyebrows lowered, and he looked confused.
“Do you? So you told me about the vandalism, and I simply missed being brought to the hospital before you sent me to safety with words of love.” She tried to keep her voice steady when her throat tightened with emotion.
“No, but we didn’t know how the vandalism on our equipment could be connected. We suspected Malone with the harvester, because he wanted Kassius’s land. As for Berenger’s injury, we wanted to make sure you went somewhere safe. We thought breaking up with you and telling you about the danger would be the easiest way to get you there.” Kassius’s eyes were an icy blue as he watched her.
“Look where easy got us. I can’t be sure of you. Until I know you’ll give me the full truth instead of only part of it, there will be no sex.” She stared at them defiantly.
“Do you plan to keep the contact to merely talking, or are you willing to go out with us so we can earn your trust back?” Berenger smiled at her.
“I’ll go out with you, but remember, no sex.” She gave a small nod. She couldn’t walk away without discovering if they could fix their problems. A lump in her throat made it hard to swallow. She hoped they could rebuild this relationship because she missed them so much.
“We’ll respect anytime you decide to call a halt, but we will try to convince you you’re ready. All you have to do is say no.” Berenger lifted one shoulder, and she could immediately see the relaxation in his body.
He probably thought they could easily convince her to forget everything and renew their relationship. If they caught her in the right moment, it might be possible. She ached to be with them, but she had to be strong. If they could work this out, she wanted marriage and everything that went with it.
“Good, then we should have some nice dates before we tumble back into bed.” She knew they might consider that a challenge, but she had to make her position clear.
Kassius laughed. “We might. What time should we pick you up tomorrow?”
“I can’t tomorrow. Julie and Cathy are taking me out to cheer me up.” Sephanie wished she could go out with Kassius, Teague, and Berenger, but she wouldn’t cancel on her friends. Her friends had worried about her, not only because she’d been sad. They’d been cut off from her, as she was prevented from contacting them. “They’ve planned this girls’ night for days.”
They were silent for a moment. Kassius glanced over at Berenger and Teague. They looked back at him. None of them seemed angry or in any way upset, but Berenger did frown. The expression appeared more concerned than angry, but she didn’t know why they would feel anxious.
“I’m sure they’ll cheer you up. Is there any way you can meet for lunch?” Teague asked.
“I wish I could, but I have meetings planned to discuss catering with clients tomorrow, and I doubt I’ll have time to do more than grab something in between them. I’m not trying to put you off. Tomorrow will be busy.” She bit her lip. Maybe they thought she was trying to de
lay the meeting. It wasn’t the case.
“We know you wouldn’t.”
Kassius smiled. “We’ll talk to you later, baby.”
* * * *
Kassius strode into the bar. He looked around for Sephanie but didn’t see her immediately. He’d gotten her location from Cooper. She’d agreed to begin dating them again. Although he’d hoped to avoid it, he had to talk to her during her night out with her friends.
Kassius, Berenger, and Teague intended to give her all the time she needed to work through the anger. Weeks or months, if necessary. They’d been talking about their plans for courting her. Kassius could see only one way to regain her trust and prove they would make her a full part of their life. Once the idea was in his head, he knew he couldn’t wait until morning or whenever they could catch her to tell her about it.
The three men split up and began moving through the patrons to find Sephanie or her friends. He hadn’t guessed the women would come here after she’d said a night out with her friends. He’d thought they would take her to a restaurant and maybe go to a spa afterward. She might be angry at them, but he knew Sephanie wasn’t looking for a man or other men. He trusted her.
He found the black-topped bar but didn’t see her there, and made his way to the tables near the edge of the dance floor. He saw Berenger standing and headed to him. Berenger wouldn’t have stopped unless he’d found Sephanie.
Kassius finally spotted their gorgeous woman sitting at a table, but she didn’t look happy. Sephanie wore a low-cut blue dress that showed off her full breasts. She scowled up at Berenger, and her arms folded across her chest.
Kassius didn’t blame her for being angry. She probably thought they would try to convince her to go home with them. Although he’d love to do that, he knew she had to make that decision. He arrived at the table at the same time Teague joined Berenger.
“What is this, Kassius? Berenger wouldn’t say anything except you had to talk to me. I told you I’d talk with you, and if you’d asked, I would have agreed to a date tomorrow.” She leaned forward and braced her hands on the table.
“I asked him to let me tell you. Go easy on him.” Kassius tried a smile. Maybe it would relax her.
“You track me down while I’m out with my friends and think I should go easy on any of you.” She tapped a finger on the table, and one brow arched.
Kassius kept his mouth straight with effort at the expectant expression. He wanted to kiss her. “We didn’t track you down to interrupt your date with your friends or to take you away from them.”
“Then why did you find me?” She exhaled heavily and watched him suspiciously.
“We were talking together tonight. You don’t think we trust you and that you’re not a full part of our lives. We know the trust is going to take time, but the only way we’re going to be able to show you that you’re a full part of our lives is if you’re with us.” He took a seat on the opposite side of the table.
She tilted her head and stared at him. “And you three think you can stick to the no-sex rule if I’m in the same house?”
“We’ll give you all the time you need.” Teague put a hand on Kassius’s shoulder.
“We just want you to think about it. You don’t have to give us an answer.” Kassius rose to his feet.
“You’ll hear from us soon.” Berenger stood.
Although Kassius didn’t want to simply walk out, he did. This was her night with her friends. He wasn’t going to ruin it.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Sephanie opened her eyes when the scent of berry tea teased her awake. She felt the corners of her lips pull up once she saw Berenger standing beside the bed. This had become familiar over the past few days.
She’d taken a night to think over their request. Her first impulse was to say yes right there in the bar, but she’d held back. She’d needed to think. To weigh their words. She could come to trust them without moving in with them, but to see that they’d make her a full part of their lives, she would need to be with them.
She’d accepted and moved in the next afternoon. She hadn’t regretted it.
Berenger held a mug of berry tea. She slowly sat up and looked around for Kassius and Teague. They weren’t there. Not yet. She had no doubt they would be there soon with breakfast.
Her three men had pampered her relentlessly over the past three days. Breakfast in bed, massages, and long talks. They’d talked about the plans they’d made to ensure that, even if danger threatened her again, she wouldn’t be going anywhere without at least one of them. If one of them also happened to be hurt, she’d get to see him in person.
They hadn’t pressed for sex. The carnal drought was going to end soon, even if she had to seduce them. She loved the attention and felt treasured, but she missed the feel of their hard bodies.
“Hey, baby, it’s nice to see your gorgeous eyes open.” Kassius strode into the room. He wore only a pair of pants.
“Morning, Kassius.” She stretched and swept her gaze over the tray he carried. Fresh fruit and a cup of fola, a milled-grain porridge. Yum! “Where’s Teague?”
“Right here. I was bringing you some fresh juice.” Teague strolled into the room. “Sit back and eat.”
She scooted back and waited as Kassius put the tray over her lap. Berenger put the tea down on the tray. Kassius went around the bed and eased onto the corner of it. She took the juice from Teague but caught the intense focus of Kassius’s gaze on her. Maybe she wasn’t the only one who was more than ready to get this relationship back to normal. Perhaps they were waiting on some kind of signal from her.
She ate the food, but the weight of their stares did keep her attention squarely on her three men. As she looked at Kassius, she tilted her head. The jaw on his muscle twitched. He was nervous.
“I think you three want to talk about something.” She swirled her spoon in the fola.
Berenger took the few steps necessary to her side and lifted the tray. After he’d put it safely out of the way, he turned back to her. He knelt by the side of the bed. His hands clasped around one of hers.
“Baby, you know we’re sorry we sent you away without telling you everything. It’s never going to happen again.” His fingers tightened.
Sephanie bit her lip. She did know that. Their attentiveness and the way they acted proved that to her. They truly valued her.
“We love you. We want to make our life with you.” Teague strode over to stand beside Berenger.
Tears burned her eyes. If someone didn’t lighten the mood, she was going to start crying. She didn’t want to cry. She wanted to hug and laugh with them. Maybe talk about the future.
She took a deep breath. “I don’t know. Do I get breakfast in bed at least once a month if I say yes?”
Berenger stared at her for a moment before a grin pulled his lips upward. “I don’t know about once a month. Are you sure you’ll be worth the effort?”
“I’m definitely worth that and a fully-body massage every two weeks.” She lifted her chin.
“Baby, anytime you want me to massage that body, all you’ve got to do is ask.” Teague chuckled. “I wouldn’t mind a little reciprocation.”
“I’ll be more than happy to get my hands on you.” She tried to keep the innuendo out of her words, but it definitely ran through her mind. She’d love to do more than massage them.
Kassius laughed. “We’ll find plenty of ways and moments to pamper you, baby. Are you ready to forgive us? To move our lives forward?”
“I do forgive you.” She didn’t want to bring it up, but she wanted to savor the fun and romance before saying, Let’s get married now. “Can we have a few more dates, though, before we talk about the serious stuff?”
“If you forgive us, we can do that for a while,” Berenger suggested.
“I always enjoy going out with you.” She squeezed Berenger’s hand as she leaned forward to kiss him.
* * * *
Sephanie strolled through the orchard, inhaling the sweet scent of ri
pe berries floating on the breeze. She let the warmth and peace of the groves soak into her. After a hectic afternoon, it felt good to come home. Kassius’s house was that and so much more.
If only she could find her men. Dates, quiet nights talking—she’d enjoyed the past few weeks. She longed to do more than live with them.
She searched the house first, but Kassius, Berenger, and Teague weren’t there. That left the fields. It was harvesttime, berries in this case.
Kassius would be overseeing the process, with Teague helping. Berenger could be in any of the workshops, checking the machinery. She was tempted to poke her head into the shops to look for Berenger but decided to focus on the two men whose location she knew. After she managed to get her hands on them, she could go after the other man.
A few afternoons of lazy sex with her three men had quickly spoiled her. When she returned home after work, she always wanted them. She’d have loved to find one of them in the house. Even though the walk and the quiet were welcome, she yearned to see her men and wrap her arms around them. More to the point, she ached to press her body against them and peel them out of their clothes. She sighed. First she had to find them.
She strolled out of the trees and swept her gaze over the field. A large machine slowly made its way between rows of berries, harvesting the ripe fruit. She saw a small group of men in one corner and one man standing at the end of the row that was being harvested. The sight of a golden head among the group of men decided it for her. She ambled along the fence around the edge of the field.
When she drew closer, she saw Teague clearly. The wind tousled his black hair. Her fingers itched to run through it as she kissed him. Her steps quickened. After one of the men of the group moved, she got a glimpse of Kassius. He must have seen her, because he waved.
The group broke up, and Kassius and Teague made their way to her. Teague managed to edge in front of Kassius. He took her in his arms and pressed teasing kisses on her lips and cheek. She hugged him back, enjoying the heat and hardness of his body, but she wished she could strip him out of his work clothes. His touches left her aching for more and clinging to him.
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