by Jane Jamison
She nodded and licked her lips, catching the flick of Ridge’s lips over her mouth. His deep chuckle reverberated along her flesh.
“Please me, baby.”
She did, opening her mouth wide for his cock. He pushed forward, taking it to the end then backing off when she gagged a little. No woman could ever take in all of him. He was too long and too wide. Hollowing her cheeks, she wrapped her tongue around him, circling over and over as he rocked his hips. He tasted so good, so rich, so powerful.
Adam eased into her asshole, spreading her as her puckered hole swallowed his cock. He moaned and kissed her behind the ear. “Fuck, but you’re tight. So fucking tight. Does it hurt?”
She didn’t answer. At least not with words. Instead, she answered by pushing her ass toward him, wanting him to go harder, faster. The initial pain splintered into her then, in the flash of a second, shifted into a feeling so amazing, so wonderful, tears sprang to her eyes.
“Are you all right, baby?” The lust in Ridge’s voice was now tinted with concern.
She nodded, barely.
Everything was a sensation. Actual thoughts were not possible as her primal instincts took over. Speaking words was beyond her capabilities. Her men would have her the way they wanted her, and in return, she would have them.
Colter pulled her leg over his and moved to press his cock at her pussy. Keeping her to him, he rode the movement of Adam’s thrusts and plunged his cock into her pussy. She moaned, the sound erupting from a low, almost inaudible sound into a full-out cry.
She opened herself to them fully. Whatever they wanted, she’d give them. No man, much less three of them, had ever touched her the way they did, not only with their bodies but with the very essence of who they were.
They pumped into her, filling her completely. Another climax built inside her, driving her wild. Elation filled her as she saw the steam, much as it had on the lake, rise around them, enclosing them in a circle of heat. She didn’t understand how it could happen, but she didn’t care.
The soft sounds of their union mixed together, soon forming a symphony of sexual music. Her gaze blurred as she sought out their red-filled ones. Sparks of light—flames?—danced around them.
As their roars of release filled the room, she turned her orgasm free to claim her. She lost control of her body, giving it over to them with wild abandon. She shuddered as her climax erupted. Lying on the floor with the men surrounding her, she stared up at the ceiling. Tiny puffs of smoke disappeared overhead.
I’m imagining it.
Mind-blowing sex. No. Smokin’-hot sex. That’s what it was.
She giggled and snuggled closer to Colter as Adam pressed his body against hers and Ridge placed a palm possessively on top of her head.
Where thoughts had been held at bay earlier, they now came rushing back, along with so many questions.
“How’d you get undressed?”
Colter smiled at her and rubbed his thumb along her lips. “The usual way. I guess you were too busy to notice.”
It was true. A bomb could’ve gone off and she doubted she would’ve paid any attention.
“Your eyes. I saw red in your eyes.”
Ridge sat up and pulled her into his arms. His not-so-limp cock rubbed against the small of her back. “I don’t know what you saw, but my eyes are silver like Colter’s.”
She checked out Colter’s eyes then Adam’s chocolate ones. “Huh. Now I’m not sure what I saw.”
“Well, I know one thing for sure.” Colter rose to his feet.
“What’s that?” asked Adam.
“Next time, we make it all the way to the bed.”
The ringing of her phone drifted down the hallway from her tote bag by the front door. As she rose, she snatched up her clothing. Adam was already striding toward the front door, his naked butt a terrific sight to see.
“Go ahead and get dressed. I’ll get it.”
She hurriedly pulled on her jeans and her blouse, not bothering with her underwear. Besides, she’d forgotten that they’d told her not to wear panties ever again. She wouldn’t forget again.
Her phone rang again and again. Not many people had her cell phone number, keeping the number of annoying calls down. She dressed, trying not to let the sight of Ridge and Colter getting dressed, their muscles rippling as they moved, distract her.
Adam came back, his hunk of a body catching her eye. She started unbuttoning her blouse. “How about we go ahead and try out the bed?”
He held out her phone. “I answered before they could hang up. You’d better take this.” His steeled expression stole her breath.
“What’s wrong? Who is it?”
“It’s about Kyle.”
Chapter Eight
Marlee’s chest was tight as she rounded the corner of the hospital corridor followed by Ridge, Colter, and Adam. She couldn’t breathe, hadn’t been able to breathe from the first moment she’d heard the nurse’s voice on the other end of the phone call.
“Where is he?”
Ridge took hold of her arm, stopping her from continuing down the hall. He pointed, making sure she looked in the correct direction.
“Kyle. Oh, thank God.” She was off and running again into the observation area of the emergency room. Two rows of beds with curtains to pull around them for privacy lined both walls. She rushed past the first six beds toward Kyle who was standing next to the seventh bed where Clay lay. Jerking him to her, she clung to him as relief swamped her.
Kyle’s alive. Nothing else matters.
“Marlee, you’re hurting me.”
She released him enough to lean back and get a good look at him. He had a bandage on his forehead, a split lip, and black-and-blue bruises were already starting to show on his left cheek and around his eye.
“Tell me what happened.” Although her breathing was easier now, it still took effort to drag in enough air. The nurse had said he’d been beaten but that no serious damage had been done. Yet she still needed to hear it from him before she’d believe he was all right.
“Isn’t it obvious?” Kyle placed his hand on Clay’s leg.
“Just tell me.” She didn’t have the patience to tolerate any hesitation. She had to know now.
“We were attacked by some homophobic assholes again.” Clay’s arm was in a cast, his face an awful mask of swelling, cuts, and bruises.
“Attacked? How? When?” Had she been in bed, making love when her brother and his lover were beaten? Although it didn’t make any sense for her to feel guilty, she couldn’t help but feel sick to her stomach.
“That bastard Max and his buddies did it. We were coming out of Secrets when they took us by surprise.” Kyle shook her hands off his arms. “We tried to fight back, but we didn’t get a chance to call for help this time. There were too many of them.”
“We’d be dead if another couple of guys finally hadn’t come out. When they called the cops, Max and his friends took off.”
“Then the police will get them.” She looked to Ridge. “Right?”
“We can’t prove it was them.” Kyle glanced at Clay. “They had ski masks covering their faces.”
“Still, they had to have left DNA evidence on you.” She couldn’t believe Max would get away with attacking Kyle and Clay.
“Maybe. Then again, we might have washed it off after the guys carried us back into the club. By the time the cops arrived, we’d cleaned up a bit.” Clay moaned and hit the button on his remote, summoning a nurse.
“Shit. You shouldn’t have done that.” Adam moved out of the way as the nurse came to the bedside and checked the instruments attached to Clay. He waited until she left. “Did the police take any samples?”
“Yeah. Not that it’ll do any good.”
“Sure it will, Kyle.”
He wiped away a tear. “No, it won’t. It’ll take forever to check out the evidence. Until they get something more substantial, all they’re going to do is question Max. And with them thinking Clay was responsible for the c
ar fire, they’ll probably think we started the fight. It’s all bullshit.”
“I need to talk to you.” Taking Kyle’s arm with a gentle pull, she led him several feet away from Clay’s bedside. She spoke once she was sure Clay couldn’t hear. “Are you sure Clay didn’t have anything to do with the car fire?”
She expected outrage. Flat-out denial again. At least confusion. Instead, Kyle averted his gaze. She had to fight back a wave of nausea. “Kyle, talk to me. Tell me the truth.”
“He didn’t do anything.”
“How do you know? I don’t care what you told the police, he wasn’t with you all day. Why are you covering for him?”
“I’m not.”
“Okay, let’s say you’re not. But will you cover for him when the police get around to asking him about the fire in the Dumpster?”
He jerked his head up. “What fire?”
“Someone set fire to the Dumpster beside Max’s apartment. Kyle, first there’s a house fire nearby, then Max’s car is set ablaze right in front of Max’s building, then more house fires, and now a trash fire in a Dumpster sitting against his building. It’s too much to believe they’re all coincidences.”
“And you think Clay did it? That he set all those fires?”
“At least the car and the Dumpster fires, yes. But it doesn’t matter what I think. Fire investigators have determined that all the fires were deliberately set. They’re investigating and will turn everything they find over to the police. Please, if you know anything, tell me. We’ll get a good attorney and go to the police. Maybe the law will go easy on you.”
“Sis, just leave it alone.”
Alarm set in. He wasn’t denying any of it. She gripped his hand. “Leave it alone? Until when? Until you or Clay wind up dead? This is getting way too serious for me to just leave it alone. Please, let me help you. If you’re in trouble, I’ll do everything I can to make it right.”
He jerked away from her. “I don’t want your help. Just leave me the fuck alone.” Whirling, he hurried out of the emergency room.
She was about to run after him when Clay called out to her.
“Don’t bother. You can’t stop us. I’m getting out of here soon, and I’ll finish what I started.”
Her first thought when she faced him was shock at the anger in his expression and the blazing hatred in his eyes. “I can’t stop you from finishing what? Tell me.”
“You can’t stop us from giving Max and those other dirt bags what they deserve.”
“Don’t involve my brother in all of this.”
Clay sneered, loving the pain he caused her. “He’s already involved. Don’t try and stop us, or you’ll get hurt.”
Colter eased closer to Clay. “What are you planning on doing, man?” His tone was level, but the intensity of it was frightening.
All three men drew near Clay. So far, they’d stayed out of things, but their body language had changed from relaxed observers to ready-to-take-charge tension.
“Don’t do anything stupid, Clay.” Ridge’s voice rumbled out of him, like thunder out of a storm cloud. “And don’t ever threaten Marlee again. You won’t like what will happen.”
The anger eased from Clay’s face, but the determination remained. “I didn’t threaten her. I’m warning her. We’re not going to take it anymore.”
“Take what?” asked Adam.
“Being persecuted. Being treated like we’re animals or perverts.” Suddenly the fury on Clay’s face vanished, replaced by pure, raw hurt.
She sensed the men backing off.
“We get how you feel.” Colter crossed his arms, even as his body relaxed. “But using violence, directly or indirectly, won’t help things.”
The anger came back, hard and fast. “Fuck you.” Clay spit out his words. “Fuck all of you. Nurse?”
The nurse hurried to Clay’s side, watching, leery, but not interfering. “Yes?”
“I want them to leave. Throw them out of here.”
“Clay—”
“Get out, Marlee.” Clay cast his gaze down, dismissing her.
She started to argue, but Colter took hold of her, forcing her to turn around.
“We’re not doing any good here. Let’s go.”
He was right. She could talk all night and she’d never be able to change Clay’s mind. Kyle was the one she needed to convince.
The men walked with her out to the parking lot. She searched for Kyle but didn’t see him.
“I know Clay’s involved in the fires.”
They surrounded her as though they were trying to protect her from all her worries. If only they could.
“My gut tells me you’re right.” Colter was solemn, his eyes darkening but not in the way she wanted. “And I think you’re right about Kyle, too. If he’s not directly involved in setting the fires, he knows more than he’s letting on.”
“Then what do I do? How do I keep him safe?”
Adam skimmed his palm along her arm, trying to comfort her where no comfort was possible. “There’s not much you can do until he wants help. I can’t say I understand how it feels to be a gay man and all the crap that comes with it, but it’s not a reason to set fires. If Clay’s setting fires with Kyle’s knowledge, then Kyle’s just as guilty. They have to be stopped before they hurt someone.”
“Or worse,” added Ridge.
“I know you’re right. I just don’t know what to do.”
“Keep talking to Kyle. He’s a reasonable guy, and judging from the way he reacted earlier, he knows what Clay is doing is wrong.” Colter shook his head sadly. “All you can do is to be there for him when the shit hits the fan. Because it’s going to. One way or the other.”
“We could kidnap him. Lock him up for a while until Clay gets caught on his own.”
At any other time, Adam’s joke would’ve made her laugh. But how could she find anything funny when her heart was breaking?
“We’ll take you home with us. Give Kyle a little space. In the meantime, we’ll put our heads together and find a solution.” Ridge slipped his arm around her shoulders.
She was too tired to do anything other than obey him. After a wonderful night with them, the trip to the hospital had worn her out.
* * * *
“Here’s another one for you, Marlee.” Ray waltzed into the break room with yet another basket filled with goodies. “These guys are going whole hog.”
She knew what Ridge, Colter, and Adam were doing. They were trying to make her feel better and take her mind off her brother’s problems. Even after talking to a friend on the investigation panel for the fires, she hadn’t felt any better. Especially when he kept asking her why she was interested. She hadn’t let on about Clay’s and Kyle’s possible involvement, making her feel as though she’d become an accomplice.
“What’s in this one?” She’d barely had time to check out their texts, much less all the other baskets and gifts they’d sent her.
“Looks like one of those edible fruit arrangements.” He set it on the table. “Tell them to send more chocolates. The boys and I have almost finished the first two boxes.”
“Sorry, but there’s no way. I’m trying to get them to stop.” Granted, their “assault” of gifts and emails had lifted her spirits a little, but every time she received yet another gift, Jack would complain, saying things like “those damn things are disrupting a man’s work” or “this isn’t a dating service, damn it.”
He’s lucky I didn’t turn his ass in. At least not yet.
She wanted to tell her superiors about Jack’s drinking and attack, but a sexual harassment charge could work against her. Instead, she’d decided to find another way to deal with him. If not, then she’d file a complaint even though it was her word against his about his drinking on the job. She didn’t think anyone else had seen him drunk. At least, as far as she knew. Yet no matter how she dealt with him, she’d make sure he wouldn’t be going out on any more calls. No way would she risk the lives of her fellow firefighters.
“Okay, but it sure seems a shame not to get more treats while you can.”
“Oh, is that right? So they’re going to stop sending them after today?” As if Ray could talk. He was known for sending his wife flowers for any reason, special occasion or not.
“I sure hope not.” He reached for an empty box that had once contained cupcakes. “I’ll toss this out back for you.”
“Nope. I’ll do it.” The last thing she needed was to have Jack complain about the men “cleaning up” after her. She snagged the box from Ray and headed toward the back door.
The sun was bright overhead, steaming the world with the high humidity. The air surrounded her, cloying and wet.
Once more her thoughts turned to Kyle. If she couldn’t get him away from Clay, should she find an attorney? One who would be ready if he needed help?
Something hit her from behind, throwing her against the Dumpster. Her breath burst out of her.
“You’ve got some nerve taking three guys between your legs.”
Jack grabbed hold of her and shoved her against the wall. The rough brick wall dug into her back.
“Get your fucking hands off me.” She struggled, doing her best to fight him off, but it was no good.
His ugly gaze slid over her then settled on her chest. “It’s my turn, bitch. You work here, you give it to me. Got it?”
“The hell I will.” She couldn’t stand to have him touching her, but she wouldn’t cry for help. Somehow, she’d get free on her own.
His hand cupping her mons startled her. When he started undoing her slacks, she couldn’t move, couldn’t think enough to react.
The air thickened around them as Jack fumbled with her zipper. Keeping her gaze set behind him, she listened as her mind shouted for her to scream.
No. This isn’t happening. Scream. Call for help.
She flattened her hands against his shoulders and pushed hard, but Jack grabbed her by the neck and shoved her back. “Knock it off, bitch.”
Suddenly, Ridge, Adam, and Colter were there. Their eyes flamed with red, swallowing all other color as they locked onto Jack. Their faces, furious and frightening, sent her heart racing even harder. Fangs, long and evil, peeked out from their mouths.