“And what if he doesn’t want anything to do with me?” Jill asked in a small voice.
“Then you know,” Rose said, placing a hand on the young woman’s shoulder. “And you come home to the family that does. You come home to the family that loves you.”
Jill reached up and squeezed Rose’s hand, gazing at her with gratitude and forgiveness before turning a tremulous gaze to Luke. “Will you go with me?”
He reached up and brushed her hair back from her face. “I wouldn’t miss it for the world,” he whispered, kissing her forehead.
Romance vs. Passion
Luke picked Jill up the next day, glad to see she and Rose were getting along again. Luke could see why Rose had wanted to wait to tell Jill about their shared bloodline. Once word got out that Jill was Rose’s something cousin however-many-times removed, everyone in town would treat her differently. Rose had probably wanted to give Jill the chance to decide for herself if she liked the town and its people before thrusting the family legacy upon her.
“You do understand why Rose did what she did, don’t you?” Luke asked as they pulled out of the inn’s parking lot.
Jill glanced at him and sighed. “Yes,” she said reluctantly. “I was planning on staying mad for a little longer, but she makes it so hard to do that.”
Luke chuckled. “Quitter,” he teased.
“Do you always have to be so insufferable?” Jill replied, a small smile creeping onto her face against her will
“I wouldn’t be so much fun if I weren’t.”
“Oh, give me a break,” Jill muttered.
“Not a chance.”
Jill laughed. Without the constant pressure of choosing someone and the glaring betrayal of Rose sitting right in front of her, Jill relaxed, and by the second hour of their drive, she was laughing and joking with Luke. They slipped into their usual easy conversation, and the rest of the drive sped by, but the knot in Jill grew as they crossed into Arizona.
Before long, a sign on the side of the road said: Welcome to Kayenta.
They drove a few more minutes before Luke pulled up in front of a small trailer in the middle of nowhere. Jill looked around, her eyes wild with panic. She looked like she was itching to run away and find the nearest place to hide.
“I don’t think I can do this,” she squeaked.
Luke took her hands in his, piercing her with his gaze. “Inside that trailer, you will find all the answers you want and need about where you came from. I know you’re afraid of what those answers might be, but I will be there every step of the way.”
His gaze softened. “Jill, I don’t know how to be a lovey-dovey romantic type. I guarantee you I will make you so angry you want to pull your hair out. I’ll tease you before complimenting you, and I’ll always say the wrong thing at the wrong time. But I can give you the things in life that make you happy and complete, and I promise I will always do that for you, if nothing else. I think if you just give it a shot, this will make you happy.”
“Does he even know we’re coming?” Jill asked in a small voice.
“I called ahead,” Luke answered. “He knows who you are and that you’re coming, but that’s all we talked about. It’s up to you to get answers.”
Jill nodded and looked behind her at the trailer.
Luke jumped out of the SUV and walked around the front, opening her door and helping her out. He squeezed her hand. “I’m right behind you, Jill.”
Jill walked up the dirt path that led to the door in the side of the trailer. Someone had cared enough to plant cactuses down the length of the trailer, and Jill took a moment to admire the little plants before knocking firmly on the door. There was shuffling inside, and then the door swung open. Jill gasped as a Native American man with familiar russet brown eyes smiled down at her.
“Jill Martin,” Luke murmured. “Meet Niyol Hunt.”
“Come in, please,” Niyol said, his voice slightly accented.
Still a little anxious, Jill followed him into his trailer, Luke right behind her. Niyol chatted pleasantly as he motioned for them to sit on a small couch. He pressed glasses of lemonade into their hands and sat in a chair opposite them.
“I couldn’t believe it when this young gentleman called me the other day,” he confessed. “Your mother… I loved your mother very much. It devastated me when she left. She had battled with depression most of her life, and she struggled most when she was alone. I worked for the Nation then, and I went away on business for several weeks. When I returned, she had disappeared. I never even knew she was pregnant with you. If I had, I would have looked for you after hearing of her death.”
Jill stared at him.
Luke cleared his throat. “So, you never knew about Jill until I called you?”
“Never,” Niyol answered, gazing at Jill. “Believe me, if I’d known, I would have found you. Your mother and I weren’t married in the eyes of the United States government, so no one even notified me when she died. I searched for her relentlessly from the moment I discovered she’d gone. By the time I found her, she… she was gone. And there was no indication you’d ever existed. But look at you now. Look at who you’ve become. I couldn’t be prouder to call you my daughter.”
Jill shook her head. “I’m sorry,” she croaked. “I’m just… I looked for you after high school, but I couldn’t find you. No one knew anything. I had given up on ever finding you.”
Niyol grimaced. “Native American records aren’t easily obtained.”
“Well, I had very little to go on,” Jill admitted. “Just my mother’s name. I didn’t even have a picture.”
“Well, I can fix that,” Niyol said, standing and rummaging in a drawer. “Although your mother’s name was Josephine, I called her Haseya. And this is what she looked like.”
He handed Jill a photo album filled with a couple dozen pictures of himself and a pretty blonde woman with sparkling blue eyes.
“You have her nose and her mouth,” Niyol said. “But, to be honest, you look exactly like my grandmother.”
He handed her another photo album, this one opened to a picture of a woman who looked strikingly like Jill. Tears filled Jill’s eyes. A month ago, she had only her adoptive parents to call family, and, while she loved them, she had always felt something was missing. Now, she had a complete tree of ancestors to learn about. She had Niyol and Rose to tell her all about where she’d come from. She looked up at Niyol before shifting her gaze to Luke.
“Thank you,” she whispered to Luke, entwining their fingers.
He nodded, smiling, and squeezed her hand.
They talked for a few hours more about Jill’s life and how they’d discovered Niyol’s identity. Niyol was excited to hear about Rose living in Utah, and about Kate’s diary.
“You should come visit,” Jill told him as she shrugged into her jacket, preparing to leave. Luke was warming up the car, giving them some privacy to say goodbye. “Rose is very excited to meet you. She would have come today, but she thought I should meet you first.”
“I’ll do that,” Niyol agreed. “You just give me a call and tell me when.”
Jill thought for a moment. “I don’t work this weekend. Could you come then?”
He smiled and pulled her into a tight hug. Releasing her, he gazed down at her as if she was the most precious thing in the world. “I’ll be there.” Niyol glanced out the door at Luke waiting by the car. “Thank that young man for me. I owe him a great debt.”
Jill nodded, thinking the same thing. After one last hug, she walked outside and climbed into the SUV, waving to Niyol as Luke pulled away from the little trailer. It wasn’t until they exited onto the highway that Luke finally spoke.
“Jill,” he said, his voice tight. “I know I’ve already said this, but I want to say it again. I didn’t do this to win you over. Regardless of who you choose, I still care about you. That’s why I did it. You’re my friend, and I had to do my best to give you what you needed. I don’t want you to feel obligated to choose me ju
st because I found your father.”
Jill stared at him a few moments before nodding. “Luke?”
“Hmm?”
“Can we pretend there is no choice? Just for a little while? I want to enjoy the ride back with my very good friend.”
Luke glanced down at her and nodded, smiling. She smiled back and turned the radio up. Luke gave her what she wanted, joking with her and teasing her like always, masking his concern. This push and pull between him and Roger was driving Jill crazy, and he hated seeing her in pain. He needed to end it before she really got hurt.
“Damn it, Luke,” Roger growled later that night in Rose’s bar.
Luke had dropped Jill off with Rose and made his way down to the bar in search of a strong drink. Luke threw his shot of whiskey back and glared at Roger.
“What have I done now, Roger?”
“You found her fucking father? How the hell am I supposed to top that?”
Luke gave him a disgusted look. “I didn’t do it to spite you,” he snapped. “It had nothing to do with you or this stupid competition at all. I did it because I realized we had enough information to try. I didn’t know if it would work, but it did. What was I supposed to do? Sit on the information until she chose one of us?”
“Another month or two wouldn’t have mattered,” Roger muttered.
Luke glared at him, seriously considering bashing in Roger’s nose.
“You’re right,” Roger said, blushing. “That’s a stupid thing to say. How did she react?”
Luke shrugged. “Like you’d expect,” he said. “The whole idea freaked her out at first, but she agreed to go see him. Her nerves died down once she got to talking with him. I think he’s coming to visit her soon.”
Roger was quiet.
“I told her I didn’t do it as a romantic ploy,” Luke said. “Just as a friend.”
“I doubt that turned her off,” Roger sighed.
Luke shrugged.
“It’s your turn to teach me.”
“I’m sorry?” Luke said, raising an eyebrow.
“To be dominant in bed,” Roger explained.
“Really, Roger? You’re still thinking about how you can win? Anyway, we agreed not to have sex with her, remember?”
Roger snorted. “And you’ve stuck to that deal?”
“Actually, yes,” Luke said. “As much as I’ve wanted to pound her into oblivion, as much as she’s wanted me to, I have resisted the urge.”
“Well, she knows you can give her what she needs sexually. It’s me she doubts.”
“So?”
“So, how can I have a decent shot?”
“Have you even asked her if she wants to have sex with you?” Luke asked, motioning to Danny to refill his shot.
Roger gave him a look. “Of course, she wants to have sex with me.”
Luke rolled his eyes, pushing his jealousy down. “We still made a deal.”
“Then why don’t we both have sex with her?”
“And, supposing she wants to have sex with both of us, how do we decide who goes first? Flip a coin? Come on, Roger, do you realize how ridiculous you sound?”
“We could just do it at the same time,” Roger said, shrugging.
Luke choked on his drink. “Fuck, Roger. Have you lost your damn mind?”
“If she’s up for it, why would you care? We’ve done it before.”
That was true. He and Roger had shared one or two girls a handful of times over the years. And it would be easier to teach Roger how to be more dominant if he was actually in the room. But this was Jill they were talking about. He looked over at his best friend.
Can I watch him have sex with her? Luke wondered. Yes, he decided. Yes, he could. If it meant Jill’s happiness. Even if she chose Roger, Luke only wanted her to be happy.
“Fine,” he snapped, downing his drink. “If she agrees, I’ll do it.”
Three’s A Crowd
“You want to what?!” Jill screeched ten minutes later in the inn’s spacious kitchen. She had been waiting for Rose who—after hearing about Jill’s successful visit with her long-lost father—had run upstairs to personally invite Niyol for the weekend when Luke and Roger found her. Roger had quickly explained their idiotic idea and Jill had plopped into a chair at the table. “Are you drunk? Or just crazy?”
“It might be a good idea, Jill,” Luke said gently. “You mentioned having certain sexual needs, and while we already know I can satisfy you—”
“I knew it!” Roger interrupted angrily.
“Oh, shut up, Roger. We haven’t had sex,” Luke barked.
Roger scoffed in obvious disbelief.
“Trust me,” Luke growled. “If we’d had sex, you would know.”
“Really?” Roger snapped. “How?”
“She would have already made her choice,” Luke said smugly. “You said nothing about pleasing her in other ways, however.”
Roger glared at Luke. He wasn’t an idiot. He could see how well Luke pleased Jill, and it was clear they had cultivated a friendship with each other. Neither of those things boded well for him.
Jill cleared her throat, her face red. “You were saying?”
Luke turned his green gaze to her. “We know I can satisfy those needs. Roger wants his chance to prove he can, too.”
Jill narrowed her eyes. “I am not a bone for you to fight over,” she said, her voice low. “And anyway, if Roger wants to have sex with me, why do you need to be there?”
Luke looked uncomfortable. “Because we made a deal that neither of us would have sex with you until you chose one of us.”
Jill raised an eyebrow. “I gathered as much from your little argument just now. Thanks again for consulting me about that, by the way. What I meant was why not just let Roger do what you did on his own?”
Luke shrugged. “He needs pointers.”
“So, you’re going to teach him how to have sex with me?” she asked, confused.
“I know how to have sex with you,” Roger interjected. “But you have certain sexual needs I’m not used to fulfilling, and the only way for you to know if I can meet them is for us to have sex. However, Luke and I agreed neither of us would have sex with you until you chose. This is our way of compromising. We’ve shared a girl before, so you don’t have anything to worry about. We know what we’re doing.”
Jill raised an eyebrow and opened her mouth as if she wanted to say something to that last part, but, instead, she turned to Luke with a questioning look.
“Jill,” he growled, lifting her out of her chair. “Stop fighting and trust me.”
He pinned her with that intense, focused gaze that made her legs weak with desire. She closed her eyes, struggling to gain a modicum of control. Giving up, she opened her eyes and met Luke’s fiery gaze.
“Fine,” she whispered.
The sound of a throat clearing drew their attention to the other side of the kitchen. Rose was standing in the entryway, leaning against the door jamb, her arms crossed over her chest and an amused expression on her face.
Jill’s face turned even redder as Luke released her and took a couple steps back.
“Sorry Rose, we were just talking,” Roger started.
“Oh, I heard you,” Rose interrupted. “I think it might be a good idea.”
Roger spluttered while Luke grinned. Jill just gaped at Rose in mortified shock.
“Boys?” Rose added, striding into the room. “Can I have a moment alone with Jill? I’ll send her on up to you in a moment.”
Nobody missed the word “up” in her request. Roger and Luke looked at each other.
“Third floor, last door on the left,” Rose said, giving them directions to Jill’s room.
Oh, fuck, Jill thought. We’re doing this here? Tonight?
With one last look at Luke, Roger left the room. Luke followed, stopping to squeeze Jill’s shoulder. She looked up at him and he smirked, leaning over to brush his lips against hers. He moved his lips to her ear.
“Trust me,”
he whispered.
She nodded, shivering at the promise in his eyes.
When both men had exited the kitchen, Rose walked over and poured out two glasses of amber liquid from a bottle under the sink. Handing one glass to Jill, she sipped from the other, regarding the young woman in front of her.
“I meant what I said,” Rose stated quietly.
“What?” Jill asked, sipping her own drink.
“I think you should go up there and enjoy yourself. Something like that only happens once in three lifetimes. Enjoy it.”
Jill raised an eyebrow. “I don’t even know what to do with one man, let alone two, in my bed. I’m no virgin, but my sex life was always pretty… boring, until—”
“Until Luke came sauntering into your life?” Rose interrupted.
“Well, yeah,” Jill said. “I mean, he’s definitely got the passion thing down.”
“Then trust him. Jill, your test showed me you’re a free spirit when it comes to your sexuality, and you need to embrace that.”
“I don’t know if I can,” Jill whispered.
“Why?”
“Because after this…”
Rose nodded knowingly. “You have to choose.”
Jill grimaced.
“Well,” Rose said. “That’s tomorrow’s dilemma. For now, go enjoy the incredibly handsome men you have upstairs in your room.”
Throwing the rest of her drink back, Jill nodded, stood, and, with one last reassuring look at Rose, strode out of the room. Halfway up the stairs, she ran into Luke waiting for her.
“Are you sure you want to do this?” she asked. “And Roger. Is he sure?”
“I think so,” Luke said, grabbing her hand and leading her up the rest of the stairs. “He’s the one who suggested it. And I… well, I just want to make you happy. If you want to do this, I want to do this.”
“You two won’t get jealous in the middle and start punching each other?”
Luke laughed. “No, we’ve talked it out. We also talked out a few details while waiting for you.”
Destiny: AN MFM Romance Page 12