Luring Robin [Pleasure, Montana 7] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting)

by Melody Snow Monroe

  Bella wrapped an arm around her waist. “Don’t worry about them. They’ll be back.”

  “I’m leaving tomorrow.”

  “Maybe they’re trying to distance themselves so they don’t feel the hurt as much.”

  “They could at least ask me to stay.”

  Bella shrugged. “I asked you to think about staying, and you turned me down. Maybe they know what you would say. It’s hard to put your heart out there for someone to stomp on.”

  She wouldn’t have stomped, but she probably would have given them a lot of excuses. “I see no purpose uprooting my life unless I know that I have something to come back to.” She guided Bella over to the sofa. Poor woman was probably miserable standing. “I’ve put a lot of thought into this. I have a great job and make a lot of money. I get to windsurf, run on the beach, and enjoy the warm weather.”

  “We have nice people here.”

  “There is that. But let’s say Clay and Matt did beg me to stay. Clay is gone a lot taking photos of Trent. Matt wants his own ranch and to raise Arabians. What would I do? I can’t just sit around. You know that’s not me.”

  “Look at me. I thought outside the box. But if you love your job that much, ask for a transfer. Matthew Williams Agency has an office in Bozeman. I bet they would love to have you do their marketing in Montana.”

  “Maybe for half the pay.”

  Bella blew out a breath. “I said you could run my Internet café until I get on my feet. Hell, it could be a year before I get the urge to go back to work. By that time, I’ll probably be pregnant again.”

  “I don’t just want to come here just to be a broodmare. I need love and companionship.”

  Bella rubbed her hand. “I can see there is nothing I can say right now to make you change your mind. Go back to Miami and take a good hard look at your life. See if being here might not suit you better.”

  She gave her friend a hug. A cheer went up in another room. “I’m guessing someone won the dart game.”

  “Help me up. I better go referee.”

  For the rest of the party, she got to know the women of the town. Each was delightful and rather inspirational in her way. Tammy was doing wonderfully with her jewelry-making career, and Lydia, who’d married the sheriff and the deputy, had finished her degree in nursing.

  Brittany bubbled. “Lydia is going to take over my job at the clinic while I’m on maternity leave, which won’t be for another few months. In the meantime, I’m going to have a lot of fun training her.”

  Lydia smiled, looking incredibly happy. Around midnight, Brittany’s three husbands, Brody, Sparks, and Evan whisked her home. They said she needed her rest. It was so sweet the way the men looked out for their wives.

  Matt and Clay were the last to leave. Matt shuffled his feet then gave her a hug. Clay at least kissed her lightly.

  “What time is your flight?” Clay asked.

  Maybe they’d volunteer to drive her to Bozeman. “I leave early. The flight is at ten.”

  “Who’s taking you?”

  Her heart fluttered. “Clete said he’d drive me.”

  Clay’s shoulders seemed to sag. “Okay then. You have our numbers. Don’t be a stranger.”

  Her smile faltered. “I’ll walk you to the back.” She didn’t want to have this conversation in front of Bella even though she’d probably repeat every word to her after she spoke to the men. “I can’t thank you two enough for what you’ve done for my self-confidence. You went above and beyond taking care of me.”

  Clay looked to the side for a minute. “I’ll e-mail you some of the photos if you want.”

  She wasn’t sure she wanted such a visual reminder of her time here, but on the other hand the photos would be a memento of the grand time she’d had. “That would be great.” She kissed each one in turn, but the spark wasn’t there. “Thanks again.”

  The two men she loved walked out the door. She inhaled to keep from vomiting. How had things gone so badly? The last time she’d been with them, they’d loved her deeply. Maybe she was overtired and misread their actions.

  When she got back to Miami she’d go over every word they’d said and analyze her actions. Life just couldn’t be this unfair.

  Chapter Twelve

  Miami was humid, full of traffic, and crazy fast. Work was even more insane now that she’d been promoted. Why she agreed to take on more responsibility she didn’t know. Oh, yeah. Her pay went up. She sorely missed sleeping in late and having Clete or Raven have a delicious breakfast on the table when she got up.

  Now when she awoke, she might hear a neighbor shout or something, but pretty much the place was silent. Every time she walked around her condo, she expected to hear someone’s voice. The saddest part was that every time her cell rang, she held her breath, praying that maybe Matt or Clay actually missed her. Just hearing their voices would have cheered her up so much.

  It was only 6:30 a.m., a most uncivilized hour, and yet here she was carefully putting on her makeup. It was much simpler in Montana where going au naturel was the norm.

  Oh, shit. Maybe that was why Clay and Matt had turned distant. She was back in her Miami-style clothing. No. They couldn’t be that shallow. Surely, they could tell she was the same person. Then why did she try so hard to impress them with her black dress and high heels? Hell, if I know.

  She tugged on her straight skirt but had a hard time zipping up the back. “Shit, shit, shit.”

  The last thing she needed was to gain weight. What had she expected? She’d eaten with abandon and gotten what she deserved. She probably gained five pounds during her two weeks in the frozen tundra. Right after work, she was going to hit the gym hard. She would lose her vacation weight if it killed her.

  She gave up on the straight skirt and threw on her fat dress. It was the one where two of her could fit into it even on a bad day. After she drank her black coffee and sucked down a hard-boiled egg, she trotted off to work. Being out of the office for two weeks had been hell. Not that it wasn’t an ego boost that she’d needed, but she would have given anything if someone else could have picked up the slack. She bet the Bozeman, Montana office wasn’t this busy.

  The image of her two men blasted her for the umpteenth time. She’d been back in Miami for all of six days, yet it felt like a lifetime. As soon as she got to work, Brian rushed into her office. “Mr. Sanchez wants to see you in his office.”

  The boss was always on a rant about something. “Do you know what he wants?”

  “It’s about the spread in the Miami Today magazine.”

  She thought she’d taken care of that before she left. “Fine.”

  “Remember, there is a staff meeting at ten. Lunch is being catered today because Arthur wants to go over the new ad campaign for all of Florida.”

  “Thanks.”

  The hectic schedule was giving her a headache. What she wouldn’t give for a few hours to work on her layout.

  By the time she got home, it was dark and raining. So much for getting the chance to skate and work off her fat. She probably could have gone to the club to work out, but by the time she got changed, it wouldn’t be worth it.

  She stopped at the mailbox on her way up to her condo. The prints she’d ordered from the online photo lab had arrived. She almost didn’t want to view the eight-by-ten glossies. The memories would come rushing back, which would only make her feel worse.

  Heart pounding, she let herself in the apartment. The air smelled a bit stale. She clicked on the air conditioning and set down her purse. The first thing she did was check for messages.

  Nothing.

  Damn.

  Would it have hurt for Matt or Clay to call once? Guess so.

  After dropping onto the sofa, she opened the photos. Clay had e-mailed her about thirty images, but she’d only blown up five of them. She flipped through them. The photos took her breath away. Even knowing she posed for them, she almost didn’t believe these were of her. She looked so…well, good and downright sexy.

/>   Her pulse raced as she looked at the shots over and over again. Tears welled in her eyes. Who was this woman in the picture? She looked relaxed, fun loving, and yes, almost in love. Clay had captured the real her. Not only did she feel great on the inside during that trip, but the outside looked pretty damned good, too.

  Maybe it was the Miami humidity that turned her into a workaholic shrew. Everyone seemed to think she could do the job of ten people. “Shit.”

  She tossed down the photos onto the coffee table only to pick them up again. Her face looked pretty in these photos. She looked happy and relaxed. That was even before she’d made love with either of the men. Maybe if she’d stayed one more week, she’d have been able to convince them she was the right one for them.

  She tried to keep the tears at bay but failed. She’d already cried herself to sleep this whole week. What was one more miserable night? Calling them made sense, but too often she’d ask out a guy only to be told he wasn’t interested. Clay and Matt had their chance to suggest she stay. She got nothing but cool kisses when she left. Why subject herself to the humiliation?

  Bella had offered the apartment above the café as a place where she could live, but if she ran into either Matt or Clay, her heart would break even more. It was better to let what happened in Montana stay in Montana. Even if she chose to live in Bozeman and work at her current employer’s branch office, things wouldn’t be the same. She loved Pleasure because of Matt and Clay.

  Whatever. It was too late now.

  Needing a bath, she poured herself a glass of wine and turned on the water nice and hot for a good soak. If she thought long enough, maybe she’d be able to figure out what it was she really wanted in life.

  You know.

  A man with ambition was a must. A man who had passion for life would fit her style perfectly. Except for Matt and Clay, she couldn’t think of a single man who matched her criteria. Maybe if she lost some weight, some man would find her attractive. Miami men were used to women in tiny bikinis. They liked women who wore a size two or even a size zero. Her large breasts and big ass were hindrances, or so she told herself.

  She poured bathing salts into the water and watched it foam. Stepping in, she waited a minute to get used to the temperature. If this tub had been in Montana, her two men would try to join her. That at least made her laugh.

  Starting tomorrow, she would skip lunch and give up her café latte. If she worked out in the gym an extra hour each day, she could lose ten pounds in the next month.

  Happy with her new resolution, she sunk down into the warm water and let her mind return to the four wonderful hands that had caressed her body and her mind.

  * * * *

  “Why hasn’t she called?” Matt had been looking at property all day, but nothing seemed as good as the land he’d set his heart on.

  Clay strolled over to the refrigerator and pulled out a beer. “Why should she? We never asked her to stay. Besides, you decided she’d changed too much.”

  “Me? I didn’t think you were ready for her. When she acted all sophisticated like we weren’t good enough for her, you went off and played darts.”

  “Maybe I was wrong.

  That stopped him. “You? Wrong?”

  “Listen. I’ve been thinking. Maybe she was trying to have a transition between Montana and Florida. We had no right to judge her by how she acted the last night she was here. During most of her stay, she became happier and happier.”

  Clay was right. “She was more herself.”

  “Exactly. Only I think she was afraid to stay that way. I remember Bella telling us that Miami can be brutal. She and Robin would go into a bar and men would hit on Bella and never on Robin.”

  “I see the light. Bella was stick thin and Robin, according to Miami standards, was overweight.”

  “Precisely.”

  Everything made sense, but there was a flaw. “Maybe Robin was trying to push us away.”

  Clay paced in front of him. “She most definitely was. That way when we didn’t beg her to stay, she could always rationalize and say it was because of her weight.”

  “I’m not so sure that’s it. She’s an achiever, but look at us. You take photos and I work for Clete.”

  “You saying she didn’t think we were good enough for her?”

  He shrugged. “Maybe. Yeah, that’s what I’m saying.” It was a hard thing to admit.

  Clay finally sat down. “Would it make a difference if we had our own land?”

  “Sure, but we don’t.”

  Clay smiled. “I might have your solution.”

  Clay was a dreaming. He didn’t see reality the same way others did. “What?”

  “You know that land you’ve wanted forever?”

  “Of course I know the land. What about it? You said it was sold.”

  His brother grinned. “To me.”

  His gut turned over. “Now’s not the time to fuck with me. I’m not in the mood.”

  “I signed the papers yesterday. I was waiting for the right time to tell you.”

  Matt deposited his empty bottle in the trash and pulled another one out of the fridge. He plopped down on the chair opposite the sofa. “You get a bank loan?”

  “Haven’t you been listening? Trent Stafford is huge.”

  “So?”

  “Don’t you know anything? Sometimes I make fifty thousand dollars for one photo. Occasionally, as much as a hundred grand.”

  His brain couldn’t understand what his brother was saying. “You’ve taken thousands of photos.”

  “Right. Which means I’m richer than sin.” He held up a hand. “But I’m smart enough to know that Trent won’t be a star forever. He could quit tomorrow and then where would I be? That’s why I haven’t spend hardly any of the money, until yesterday.”

  His pulse sped up. “Are you shittin’ me? You’ve had money all along while I’ve been working my ass off to get by?”

  “Hard work builds character. Besides, don’t even think that I’m just giving you the land.”

  “Why not? We’re brothers. We’ll own the land equally.”

  Clay took another hit off his beer. “You said it. We own it equally. Fifty-fifty. I’m having Tank at the bank draw up a mortgage agreement. You can pay me monthly for the next thirty years and eventually you’ll own your half.”

  “You want to loan me the money.” It was a statement, not a question.

  “You are a dense dumbass. If I just gave you the land, you’d never forgive yourself. You have to earn what you have or you aren’t happy.”

  He was speechless for a few minutes. “I always did say I don’t want to enter the lottery because I don’t want to win millions of dollars. There would be no pride associated with that.”

  “Exactly.”

  His brother was a pretty smart man. “Here I thought you had no money sense. Turns out you’re a bright one.”

  Clay grinned then sobered just as quickly. “Now that the land issue is solved and we can run the ranch you’ve always wanted, we need to do something about the woman we love.”

  Love? “I do love her. Too bad she thinks we’re shallow sons of bitches.”

  “Yeah.”

  “What do we do? Call her and ask her for forgiveness?”

  Clay drank the rest of his beer. “Nope. We go to Miami.”

  Just when he thought his brother had a lot of sense, he lost it. “Why?”

  “I want to be convinced that Robin would be better off with us. We need to do what’s best for her.”

  “I agree.”

  “Here’s what I propose. We go down to Miami but not contact her at first.”

  Matt could almost see the wheels churning in his brother’s brain, but he didn’t understand the concept of going to Miami but not talking to Robin. “Why?”

  “This is thing. We need to determine if Robin is truly happy in Miami. If she is, we turn around and head home.”

  “How can you determine her level of happiness?”

  “W
e basically follow her.” Clay held up a hand. “See what time she leaves her condo and when she gets home at night. Maybe we can ask the doorman, if she has one, about her routine. Maybe Bella knows the name of a friend we can ask to help us.”

  The idea had merit. “If you see she’s working twelve hours a day, doesn’t date, and basically is a shut-in, then we go get her.”

  Clay rested back on the sofa. “You got it.”

  They’d been so miserable these last few weeks without her, and he could only hope she missed them as much. “I say we do it.”

  Chapter Thirteen

  Clay was more convinced than ever that Robin’s life in Miami wasn’t that great. They’d been in contact with a woman named Monique, who worked with Robin. She’d actually swooned when they told her why they were in Miami. She told them she’d report in each night with Robin’s comings and goings.

  “When are we going to contact Robin?” Matt and he were walking barefoot on the beach.

  “I want to see what she does during the weekend.”

  They’d only been there four days. So far, Robin had gone into work by 7:30 a.m. and gotten home around 8:30 p.m. if she worked out in the gym. They’d seen her twice go out to lunch at a nearby restaurant. Once was with their snitch, Monique, and once by herself. She looked beautiful, even though she was a lot sexier in jeans and cowboy boots.

  “If by Sunday, we see she doesn’t go to any parties or does anything other than skate or windsurf, then we announce we’re here and beg her to come back. Right?”

  “Right.”

  “I can see why she likes it here. The sand between the toes can be an allure.”

  “Sure, but without friends and lovers, what’s the purpose of life?”

  Matt smiled. “Aren’t you being philosophical? She gets fulfillment out of achieving a goal she’s set for herself. Look at the condo she lives it. The outside, at least, is magnificent.”

  Clay had traveled to a lot of places with Trent and stayed in the best of places. Nice hotels were just that. Nice. They lacked warmth. “Living in an upscale condo is fine, but there is nothing more fulfilling than having someone around to share your achievement.”