by Leah Brooke
That hadn’t ended well for the other man, and he wondered if this would have the same outcome.
Maggie stood talking to Savannah under the watchful eyes of the two men they’d seen the night before. She turned slightly at their approach, frowned, and turned her back to them.
A red haze blurred Jeremiah’s vision.
Eb glared at the two men, his fists clenching at his sides. “This is the second time finding you with our woman.”
Hayes had a scar down his cheek Jeremiah hadn’t noticed before, a scar that made him look even more sinister as he nodded grimly. “Can’t say I blame you for being fired up. I’m Hayes Hawkins. My interest isn’t in your woman, but mine.”
Jeremiah didn’t make a habit of butting into another man’s affairs, but this was Maggie’s friend. “It appears to me you both have more than a passing interest in Savannah Perry.”
The other man stepped forward. “Wyatt Matlock. I know what you’re thinking, but for Savannah’s sake, I’d appreciate it if you could keep this to yourself.”
Hayes seemed to have a hard time keeping his eyes from Maggie’s dark-haired friend, who’d also grown up to be a beauty in their absence. “Don’t take offense, but from what I hear in town, the two of you both want Savannah’s friend.”
Jeremiah narrowed his eyes. “It’s none of your business.”
Eb folded his arms across his chest. “I got the feeling last night that both of you have an interest in Savannah, and you’ve just confirmed it. Although I’m glad she’ll have someone to look after her, you’ll never be able to live that way with her here. She’s been Maggie’s friend for a long time. I won’t have her hurt.”
Wyatt stared over to where Savannah and Maggie stood talking, his expression grim. “We have no intention of hurting her.”
Inclining his head, Eb kept his voice low. “See that you don’t. Tell Savannah that her uncle’s marrying us today. I’m sure she’ll want to be there for Maggie.”
“Your Maggie probably already told her.”
Eb chuckled, his expression softening for the first time. “Maggie doesn’t know.”
Wyatt and Hayes both turned. Wyatt shared a look with his friend before turning back to Eb. “Oh?”
Jeremiah glanced at them, but his focus stayed on Maggie. She usually braided her hair but apparently hadn’t taken the time this morning, so her long blond hair hung in a disarray of tangled curls down her back.
Shrugging, he reluctantly dragged his gaze from her to the other men. “Maggie’s having a hard time accepting that both of us want to marry her. Except for when she greeted us at the train station, she’s done nothing but argue and defy us since we got here.”
Eb narrowed his eyes in Maggie’s direction. “She was told she could no longer come to town without permission but sank spurs first thing this morning and came anyway.”
Maggie hugged Savannah and started over to where the four of them stood. Lifting her chin, she narrowed her tear-filled eyes at both of them. “You promised you would take care of her. I’m trusting you to be men of your word.”
Wyatt smiled tenderly. “Yes, ma’am. We’ll take good care of her. I promise.”
With a glare, she started past Jeremiah, who whipped out an arm to stop her.
Despite her struggles, Jeremiah pulled her back to stand in front of him, taking in her stony expression. “You’re in a heap of trouble, little girl.”
Hayes and Wyatt didn’t spare them another glance, instead rushing over to stop Savannah when she tried to sneak away around the other side of the building.
When Maggie tried to pull away from him, Jeremiah tightened his hold and started back toward their horses.
“Where’s your horse?”
* * * *
Maggie tugged again, alarmed when she couldn’t shake his hold. She hadn’t expected them to find her as quickly as they had. “Hell and damnation. Let go of me.”
Eb grabbed her other arm. “I already told you I don’t like you swearing. Now where’s your horse?”
Embarrassed at the looks she was getting, Maggie stopped struggling. Even those who didn’t know Eb and Jeremiah stepped aside. After a glance at their angry faces, she couldn’t blame them. “In front of the saloon. I figured you wouldn’t look for me there. Hey, did you see Hayes’ scar? I didn’t see it last night. I told him it makes him look like a pirate.”
Jeremiah’s eyes narrowed, his lips thinning. “How the hell would you know what a pirate looks like? Have you been flirting with other men?”
Maggie shrugged, enjoying his show of jealousy and flare of temper. “I read about one in a book and it all sounded so romantic. Savannah’s a lucky woman. Hey! Stop pulling me.”
Neither one of them loosened his hold as they led her to their horses. Once in the saddle, Eb reached down, plucking her from Jeremiah’s grip and setting her in front of him.
Aware of the curious stares, she forced herself to sit still, not wanting to make any more of a scene than they already had. Every wiggle moved her against the hard bulge pressing against her bottom and sent her senses reeling. At Eb’s answering groan, she did it again.
Memories of the previous night wouldn’t be kept at bay, no matter how hard she tried to ignore them. Her breasts felt hot and swollen where they rested on his forearm, her nipples tingling with remembered pleasure at his and Jeremiah’s ministrations.
Trying not to think about the answering pull to her clit, she turned her head, keeping her voice low.
“You’re acting like a brute and I don’t like it.”
Eb tightened his arm, sliding it back and forth under her breasts in a way that no longer left her in any doubt that he did it on purpose. “I’ve got news for you, sweetheart. I’m not acting.”
Shivering at his tone, she wiggled against his cock again in retaliation. She smiled up at him over her shoulder, knowing it would infuriate him. “You can’t come back after all these years and tell me what to do. Go back to that ranch of yours and just leave me alone.”
Eb’s jaw clenched, making him look even more menacing. “We already told you many times, when we go back to the Circle T, you’re coming with us.”
Jeremiah leaned closer, his expression one of impatience. “If you hadn’t run off the ranch at the crack of dawn, you’d know we’re getting married today and could have worn a dress.”
Maggie looked away, the pain of having her dream of a life with them so different than she’d planned it.
“You could have told me last night. Maybe I don’t want to get married today.” She just wished she had a little more time to get to know them again before standing in front of a preacher.
It probably wouldn’t matter anyway. She knew she would be miserable without them.
Eb’s hand flexed on her stomach. “You’ve been defying us ever since we got home. It’s time we took care of that.”
At his matter-of-fact tone, a cold chill went up her spine, turning to sizzling flames when his lips brushed against her ear. Eb’s voice always went quiet when he was at his most threatening, something she’d learned long ago.
But his tone now held an erotic intimacy to it that made the threat dangerous in a far different way.
Something inside her thrilled at it, something feminine and vulnerable that ached to give in to his dark masculinity but feared that if she let him see how easily he could get to her, he would never think of her as anything more than an easy conquest.
She wanted to challenge him—them. She wanted to make them conscious of her in a different way, and she had to admit a part of her wanted to make them pay for leaving her five years ago.
Let them stay awake at night thinking of her the way she’d stayed up most of last night thinking of them. Let them wonder what she was thinking or feeling.
Let them need her to want only them as much as she needed them to want only her.
They’d barely touched her and already her body needed more.
Her nipples pebbled and became so sensitive
that even the brush of her shirt over them became unbearable. The rub of Eb’s hand over her belly pulled the material of her pants tighter against her so that the movement of the horse rubbed them against her clit.
When they stopped at the saloon, several people surrounded them, tossing questions at Eb and Jeremiah, mostly about how long they would be staying.
Eb kissed Maggie’s shoulder. “We just came back to get Maggie. We’re on our way to the preacher’s to marry her right now. You’re all welcome to join us.”
Keeping her smile in place had to be one of the hardest things she’d ever done. She looked over her shoulder at him. “I already told you—”
He bent his head until the brims of their hats touched, his faint smile and the intent look in his eyes making her forget what she’d been saying.
“I want you wearing my name as soon as possible. I won’t leave here without you, Maggie. Dad and Esmeralda are both worried about you. Can’t you ease their worries a little?”
Feeling a tug of remorse, Maggie squirmed, her breath catching at the hardness beneath her bottom.
“Damn it, Eb. That’s not fair. You know I’d never do anything to hurt Esmeralda or your father, but can’t you see that it’s too soon?”
Eb’s eyes sharpened. “Nothing’s better for you than being with us. It’s already been far too long.”
Angry once again at his arrogance and the fact that he and Jeremiah could come and go as it suited them, Maggie set her jaw. “Then why did you stay away?”
Lifting his head, Eb turned his horse to follow Jeremiah.
“Because that was the best thing for you then.”
Maggie turned away to stare in front of her, blinking back tears. “You don’t even want to marry me. It’s just a way of having control over me.”
Eb chuckled, the deep sound ominous. “Honey, you have no idea how much control I’m going to have over you. You’re marrying me if I have to paddle your ass and carry you into the church over my shoulder. Or, you can behave and walk in like a good little girl and marry me without raising a fuss. Your choice, Maggie, but either way, you’ll marry me today.”
The image of being over his lap for a spanking leapt into her mind, making her clit swell, demanding attention. Making her tone as firm as possible, she glared over her shoulder at him, doing her best to hide her reaction. “Ebenezer Tyler, you’d better not even think about spanking me.”
Her words ended on a gasp as he pressed his cock against her bottom.
He nipped her earlobe, his hands tightening on her waist. “You’ve already got one coming for disobeying us and coming to town without permission. I’ll take care of that as soon as we get back to the ranch.”
Gulping in air, Maggie involuntarily tilted her neck when his lips moved lower. God, it felt so good when he touched her this way. Hell, it felt good when he touched her any way. “You expect me to marry you after you threaten to spank me?”
Eb chuckled at her question, which came out in a breathless whisper. “Something wrong with your hearing, honey? I didn’t threaten anything. I told you that you’ve already got one paddling coming, and if you give me any trouble about getting married, you’re gonna get another.”
It took tremendous effort to remain stiff in his arms when she wanted nothing more than to slump against him. “You can’t just issue orders and expect me to fall in line. I’m not one of your damned ranch hands.”
Eb scraped his teeth down her throat, the underlying threat in his deep voice sending a wave of longing through her. “There’s something you’d better get through that hard head of yours, Margaret Mary. You belong to me and Jeremiah. I can do whatever I want with you.” He stopped his horse in front of the church and gestured toward the doorway where Mr. Tyler and Esmeralda stood, both wearing their Sunday best and grinning from ear to ear.
“You gonna do this the easy way or the hard way, Maggie? It doesn’t matter to me. It’ll all come out the same in the end.”
Forcing a smile for Mr. Tyler and Esmeralda, she spoke softly through gritted teeth.
“You’re a heck of a lot meaner than you used to be.”
Inclining his head, Eb slapped her thigh. “Have to be. I’ve never been mean to you, so you have nothing to worry about.”
“You said you’re going to spank me. That’s mean.”
Eb gripped her chin and forced her to meet his eyes. “A spanking is my way of getting you to obey me. Your life could depend on doing what you’re told. It’s for your own good.”
His lips brushed her ear, his tone both amused and decadent. “Besides, honey. Your spanking is gonna make you so wet you’ll be begging to come.”
Jeremiah dismounted and came to stand beside them, holding out his arms for her. “You ready?”
Maggie jerked out of Eb’s hold and glared at him. “You could just talk to me instead of threatening me all the time. And no one would ever like to be spanked.”
Raising a brow, Eb slid his hand over her stomach, sending a wave of heat to wash over her. “You’re going to eat those words, Maggie, and I tried to talk to you and you don’t want to listen. Won’t always have time to explain things to you, and I shouldn’t need to. When we tell you to do something—or not to do something, you need to listen. If I have to beat your ass to get you to behave, I will.”
His hands tightened on her hips. “Now be a good girl and go with Jeremiah, or I’ll paddle your ass right here in front of everyone.”
Jeremiah circled her waist and pulled her from the horse, holding her against his body a good foot off the ground. His hooded eyes held a promise of retribution and, by the twinkle in them, one he would enjoy immensely.
“I don’t know what’s put a burr under your saddle, but you’re going with us. In the meantime, you’ll convince Dad and Esmeralda that you’re happy and looking forward to your new home.”
Lifting her chin, Maggie held on to his wide shoulders, barely resisting the urge to pull herself even closer and rub against him. “And if I don’t?”
Jeremiah slid her down his body with deliberate precision, his eyes full of the knowledge of what it did to her. “Once you get the spanking you have coming to you, you’ll have your answer. Now let’s go get married—and remember that you’re marrying me, too. I’ll be just as much a husband to you as Eb. Now put a smile on that pretty face, and let’s go make you a married woman.”
* * * *
Standing in front of Savannah’s scowling uncle, a sense of inevitability and destiny calmed Maggie at a time when she should have been really nervous. It was as though everything in her life led to this moment, and even with the distance Eb and Jeremiah kept between them, she knew marrying them was the right decision, the only decision she could have made.
Confident that over time she could make them see her in a different light, she hid a smile at the look of confusion on the reverend’s face when Jeremiah came to stand next to her instead of standing next to his brother.
Reverend Perry’s usual sour expression was noticeably absent, amusing her further. He’d always been scared to death of Eb and Jeremiah, but now he looked downright terrified.
What a wonderful wedding present.
Eb and Jeremiah each stood holding an arm as though afraid she would flee. Turning her head, she saw the happiness on Mr. Tyler and Esmeralda’s faces and smiled back at them reassuringly.
With her father’s death, she felt more out of place on the Shenandoah than she’d expected, still uneasy about living in a home that no longer felt like it belonged to her. Although she appreciated Mr. Tyler and Esmeralda being there for her, she needed to start a new life.
She knew it would take time for Eb and Jeremiah to see her as a woman and not the young girl they’d left behind. Once she explained to them that only concern for her friend had led her to defy them, they’d realize she hadn’t done it out of immaturity and perhaps they’d have a chance to talk.
She was dying to know everything she could about her new home and longed for t
he easy camaraderie she’d so desperately missed.
To Maggie’s surprise, Savannah walked out from behind a curtain that led to the back and came forward, avoiding her uncle’s glare. She came to stand behind Maggie and leaned close. “Don’t worry about me anymore, Maggie. I’ll be leaving here tonight. No, don’t turn around, and don’t say anything, and for God’s sake, don’t worry. I’ve saved up enough money to get away.”
Maggie bit her lip, scared for her friend and lifted her gaze, meeting Reverend Perry’s assessing one. When Eb and Jeremiah each reached for a hand and squeezed, Maggie wanted to cry. Their support reminded her too much of the Eb and Jeremiah she’d grown up with and crumbled the last of her defenses.
Thrilled that Savannah would soon be able to escape her uncle and relieved that she had men like Hayes and Wyatt to look after her, Maggie couldn’t hold back a smirk.
Reverend Perry’s expression turned even colder, his face becoming an angry red.
Until he turned his harsh gaze to Eb.
Eb stepped forward, his eyes narrowed into slits. “You ever look at Maggie that way again, Reverend, and I’ll forget you’re supposed to be a man of God. Hurry up and marry us before I shoot you.”
Alarmed at his ice-cold tone, Maggie stared at Savannah’s uncle, shocked when the older man swallowed heavily, all color draining from his face. Turning, she looked up into Eb’s face and froze as what felt like an icy finger traced her spine.
His eyes glittered and became impossibly darker, making him look positively lethal. It told her without a doubt that he’d changed even more than she’d suspected.
He wouldn’t really shoot him, would he?
She tried to pull her hand out of Eb’s, but he squeezed threateningly, never taking his eyes from Reverend Perry.
If possible, Savannah’s uncle paled even more. Averting his gaze, he turned to Jeremiah and cleared his throat, his fingers clumsy as he flipped through the pages of the Bible he held. “Uh, which one of you gentlemen will be marrying Miss Simms?”