by Lara Jones
Mora froze, and her smile slipped. Her eyes went back and forth between the two men. It was blowing her mind how she somehow felt an instant connection to both. That didn’t happen in real life. Lust at first sight?
Both were extremely large, and just by the look in their eyes and the way they held themselves, they had more alpha traits than most men she’d ever been around before. Dylan looked a lot like his brothers with short dark hair and beautiful green eyes a shade darker then Clay’s. Liam also had dark hair, but a little bit longer and had lighter tones mixed in. His eyes were a piercing brown, almost black. They were both heavy with muscle, long thick legs, and strong hands.
Her breath stalled in her throat as waves of overwhelming sexual need raced through her. They took her ability to speak or move for a long moment.
Dylan was immobilized with a dark fervor he’d never experienced before that urged him to throw her over his shoulders and hide her somewhere, where no one, besides he and Liam, would ever be able to find her.
Liam couldn’t have gotten the smile off his face if he tried. She was perfect. Smaller than they usually looked for, smaller even than Isabel, a little on the thin side, but still had curves he needed to sink his fingers into and flushed skin that made his mouth water. Her lemony musky scent made his stomach cramp with a need so strong he was instantly as hard as he ever had been in his life.
“Hi, Mora. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
Mora’s eyes raced over Liam’s face as she let him grasp her hand. Her heart pulsated in her chest when she tried to pull away, only to have him tighten his grip. She gave up trying to get her hand back. “It’s nice to meet you, too, Liam.”
Liam reluctantly released her and took a step back to watch the fireworks. He knew the overwhelming feeling of need, excitement, and rightness when he saw Mora. He’d bet Dylan was feeling just as strong a reaction to her from the look on his face.
Mora cleared her throat and held out her hand to Dylan. A reddish flush crept over her face when he just continued to stare at her as if he’d never seen a woman before. Embarrassed, her polite smile dropped, and she started lowering her arm.
Dylan’s hand shot out and grasped hers.
“It’s nice to meet you, Dylan,” Mora said and tried unsuccessfully to pull her hand away a few times.
“It’s good to meet you.” Dylan dragged in a startled breath and dropped her hand abruptly and took a step back.
Isabel looked worriedly at Royce.
Royce shook his head a tad and bit back a chuckle. “Let’s go in and eat. Isabel, whatever you made smells wonderful, baby.” He grabbed onto Isabel’s hand and pulled her behind him into the house, leaving the three alone for a moment.
Liam’s hand shot out and caught the screen door before it closed. “Here you go, Mora.”
Mora looked apprehensively between the two and licked her lips nervously. “Thank you, Liam.” A shiver raced down her spine when she passed both men, taking in their masculine scent and staggering heat that seemed to wrap around her and settle her habitual chaotic emotions for some reason.
Liam followed closely behind her, asking questions about Dallas.
Dylan stayed outside for a minute and tried to get himself under control before going back inside. He didn’t understand and wasn’t going to question why he was instantly extremely attracted to this woman. He was questioning this vast streak of a possessive need for her that was scaring the shit out of him. When he got scared, it pissed him off. He prided himself on never losing his cool.
His eyes followed her delicate spine from her head to her round luscious ass. She was a little thin but had enough curves to make his mouth water. Her hair was a darker blonde and a little past shoulder-length, and her eyes had been a clear powder blue and showed a sharp intelligence. Her lips were full, and he knew he could spend hours tasting and nipping at them.
Clay and Royce had told him some of the things she’d been through in the last year and how she’d lived, although reckless at times, determined and tough, wanting to protect the people she loved. Her small size would have made him pause, but she possessed such a strong, fierce spirit, he knew she could handle them. They’d have to be a little careful of her until they learned what she liked and how much pleasure-induced pain she could take.
A suffocating sensation suddenly tightened his throat at the thought of letting himself care for her and her leaving. Then a spear of extreme fury as the thought of never seeing her again, never having her underneath him, raced through him.
Dylan sometimes was weighed down by the grief he had to deal with as his job as sheriff, but today was unusually horrific. Maybe he should just leave now because he couldn’t seem to control the intense feelings she brought out in him right then. The thought of not being able to watch her, even for an hour, would make his already rotten day too upsetting for him to sleep or function until he learned more about her and got to study her different expressions and the way she talked and especially if she planned to stay for a while.
A cold panic he’d ever felt tore at his heart. He didn’t know if he would be able to get over losing her before they ever even had her. He knew it would sound ridiculous if he told anyone this, even Liam, but Dylan knew if she left, it would be the end for him here. He would have to make the decision to leave the town.
Dylan gritted his teeth and crushed the can in his hand. His emotions were so chaotic at that moment he couldn’t prevent the unreasonable release of panic and anger. His control, as he knew it, was shattered before their relationship actually existed, if it happened at all.
Supper was a quiet affair. Isabel looked worriedly between Dylan, Liam, and Mora, while Mora tried to avoid looking at the men at all. Liam tried to pull Mora out of her shell by asking a lot of questions, which she would answer, but with as few of words as possible.
Royce and Clay looked at each other knowingly and tried to hide their smiles. Dylan didn’t even try to fight the need to stare at her. His body tensed whenever she said something or heated when she moved a certain way. By the end of the meal, he was about ready to jump out of his skin.
Dylan’s attention piqued when the conversation finally registered that they were talking about Allister’s upcoming trial.
“If they don’t plead him out, it’s possible that I’ll have to go to court eventually to give my testimony.”
“Oh, God, Mora.” Isabel reached across Tommy and held Mora’s hand. “Who will be with you?”
“No one.”
Isabel gasped. “You can’t go by yourself.”
Mora snorted. “The hell I can’t…”
“Language.”
Mora’s tired eyes widened dramatically. “Wow, all four at the same time. Do you practice that?”
Isabel cringed at Mora’s sarcasm. When her friend got overly tired or stressed, she let loose, sounding more like a sailor than a woman. Isabel knew it was her way of trying to protect herself, but she usually came off sounding and acting like a pit bull, aggressive and determined. Looking at the dark bruising under her eyes, Isabel would guess it had been a while since Mora had decent rest, and her life the last year had been pure stress. It was a volatile combination.
Dylan leaned forward over the table, bracing his weight on his elbows until he leaned as close to Mora as he could with the table between them. “Actually, we do. We practice on our women every day when they can’t seem to talk like ladies.”
Mora laughed and leaned in closer, resting her chin on her hand with her elbow on the table. “Ladies?” she scoffed. “I know several ladies back home that you might like them. They wouldn’t be caught dead saying the words I use on a regular basis. But then, they’re all about as cold as fish, too.” She bared her teeth at him. “Sound good to you, Sheriff?”
Dylan’s eyebrow raised. “Maybe I would like to meet them. They would certainly be better than tiny women with potty mouths.”
Mora hid the hurt with a chuckle, shrugged, and turned away to look down at he
r plate. “I’ll give you their numbers. Some I imagine are married, but I would guess a few are still single.” She shook her head, still keeping her gaze locked on her plate. “Although I’ve heard most of the married ones still like to test the waters, if you know what I mean. But then, why not? Their husbands are doing it, right?”
Isabel cringed at the reminder of what Mora had found out about the many affairs her parents had over the years.
Something about the way she said it made him think there were deeper issues. Dylan fisted his hands on the table and narrowed his eyes. “Where exactly are these women?”
“They’re our own Dallas socialites. Born and bred into the upper-class, rich people’s club in the city.”
Dylan nodded and ignored Liam’s bid for attention. He knew he was pissed at him for fighting with Mora, but at the moment he couldn’t seem to help it. “And how did you know them?”
Clay gripped Isabel’s hand when she opened her mouth to defend her friend.
Mora held up a hand as if to check her nails. “Well, dear, I used to be one of them. Born and raised in one of the richest families in town.” Her tone was a dramatic display of condescending and snobby.
Dylan snorted. “I can’t imagine that.”
Neither could her parents. Her brother looked like them, tall, blond, and gorgeous, but she hadn’t fit at all, much to her mother’s disgust. “Yes, well, I didn’t fit in very well, as you have probably already guessed, so I was an embarrassment to my family, especially my mother. But then she was about as perfect as a woman can be. Tall, blonde, gorgeous, soft-spoken, the perfect wife and hostess. She’d be perfect for you if she weren’t already married to my father, although that doesn’t seem to stop them.”
Dylan regretted egging her on as her face paled and her eyes dulled. “Hey, I’m so…”
Mora held up a hand to interrupt him. “No worries. My life changed for the better when I found Isabel, or she found me, and the rest is history.”
Eyes turned to Isabel when Mora didn’t say any more. She cleared her throat. “Um, I moved to the city when I was twelve. I met Mora in an all-girls school we attended. We were both considered rebels, and outcasts, and not worthy to be in the popular groups, but we had each other, so it didn’t matter.”
“She’s absolutely right.” Mora’s eyes burned with tears, but she pushed them back and smiled brightly. She wouldn’t show any weakness to these people. Isabel was the only one who knew what was truly inside her. She stood abruptly and grabbed up a couple of plates and headed into the kitchen.
Isabel stood to follow, but Royce pulled her back into her seat. He cleared his throat when Mora came back for more dishes. “Mora, sit. We have plenty of time to clean up,” Royce said.
Mora looked over the table, avoiding everyone’s eyes. She wanted nothing more at that moment than to run and hide and lick her wounds. Even exhausted, it wasn’t in her nature to give in or run from her problems. She would never give this prick the satisfaction of seeing her upset. Hiding her emotions would have been a little easier if she hadn’t been so tired. “All right.”
Mora shrugged, sat, and lifted her glass of wine. She immediately put it down when she noticed the fine tremor that she knew she wouldn’t be able to hide.
Isabel frowned. She hadn’t seen Mora this subdued since right after the accident. Mora had always been full of life and energy. She was smart and creative. She came up with ingenious ways to irritate and get back at the group of girls that terrorized them in school. The two of them had more fun writing horror stories about the girls, with cartoon illustrations and everything, and then setting them out for everyone to see.
Mora was so incredibly talented, Isabel was saddened by the fact she would never do anything with the passion for art because her family had crushed any confidence she had for her gift. Her parents inflicted more damage than Mora would ever admit to. But it was her marriage that had probably done the most damage.
“Hey, Mommy, why does Aunt Mora have tears in her eyes?”
Mora slid from her chair and knelt down by the boy’s chair that sat next to hers. “Oh, honey, they’re tears of happiness.” Mora pushed the hair from his face. “I’m just so glad to be here with you and your mom. I missed you guys so much.”
Tommy slid onto Mora’s lap and wrapped his arms around her neck. “I missed you, too. And I miss Uncle David and my friend Davey.”
A quiet stillness blanketed the room.
Mora swallowed several times, the burning in her eyes and throat almost too much to hold back before she leaned back to see Tommy’s face. “Yeah, little tugboat. I miss them, too,” she whispered in the boy’s ear.
Royce stood suddenly, capturing everyone’s attention. “Girls, why don’t you take your wine into the living room and relax while we clean up?”
Isabel understood what Royce was trying to do to help the situation. She seized Tommy’s and Mora’s hands. “Come on, Mora. “
Mora tried to chuckle, but it came out as more of a wheeze. She could only try to get air to move into her lungs because they were constricted by so much deep emotion. She followed Isabel and Tommy, making sure to keep her eyes lowered and away from the men.
“What the hell, Dylan?” Clay burst out in a harsh whisper as soon as they were alone in the kitchen. “What’s your problem?”
Dylan sat the dishes down he’d been carrying. “I don’t know,” he murmured with regret, then turned and started the water for the dishes.
The three other men looked at each other and hesitated.
Liam slapped him on the shoulder. “Man, I know you’ve had a sucky day, but this isn’t like you. I’ve never seen you treat a woman like this.”
“Were we wrong in thinking you were attracted to her?” Royce asked.
Dylan shook his head but stood facing the sink, slowly washing dishes. “No, you weren’t wrong,” he murmured.
Clay leaned against the counter next to Dylan and crossed his arms and ankles. “Then what’s the problem you have with her?”
Dylan threw down the washcloth he was using. “From the moment I saw her, everything in me wanted to possess her. The feelings were so overwhelming it scared the shit out of me, and you all know when I get scared, I get angry. All that keeps popping into my head was what happens if we give into our attraction and she leaves? She’s from Dallas, for God sakes. She’s a city girl. She’s not going to be happy living here, and there’s no way you’re going to get me back in a city. I spent six horrible years in a Chicago police department with moral beliefs swarming in my arrogance, thinking I could make a difference. I had enough of that rat race to last me a lifetime.”
Liam snorted behind him. “You’re making a lot of assumptions for just knowing her for a couple of hours.”
Dylan turned toward Liam and shrugged. “I know…you’re right. I’ll try to mellow out. But plan on leaving early, Liam. I don’t know how much I can take tonight. I’m feeling edgy already.”
When the men joined them several minutes later, Mora was back in control and laughing at Tommy making silly faces.
The women sat close together on the sofa. Liam and Royce took the rest of the sofa while Clay took a chair. Dylan stood leaning against a wall across from the women, drinking his beer, his eyes fixed on Mora, making no attempt to hide the fact he was watching her.
Mora listened to the conversation the men were having but kept her attention on Tommy.
“Mommy, can I go to my room and play with my trucks?”
Isabel kissed the top of his head. “Of course, baby. Call if you need me.”
A bolt of panic raced through her Mora as Tommy left. There went her excuse to ignore the others. Mora’s day had been a very long one, both emotionally and physically draining on her nerves. After the drive to get here and the intense conversation at supper, Mora was on her last scrap of energy. She fidgeted as the silence stretched, making her already shaky nerves tighten until she sensed they’d shatter. “Um, Isabel, have you guys decid
ed on a wedding date?” She kept her eyes on Isabel, trying to ignore the heated looks from Dylan and Liam.
“Yes. June third.” Isabel laughed at the shock and horror on her friend’s face.
Mora sputtered. “But that’s only four months away.”
“I think that’s too long,” Royce grumbled. “She’s lucky we’re giving her that.”
Mora looked wide-eyed at Isabel like she’d never seen her before. “And you’re going to let them…”
Isabel grabbed Mora’s hand with both of hers, knowing exactly what she was going to say. “I have to learn to pick my battles with these two. If I didn’t, I’d be pis…angry with them most of the time.”
Clay chuckled. “Good save, baby.”
Isabel rolled her eyes and smirked at Clay while talking to Mora. “Once again picking a battle.”
Mora couldn’t believe how much her friend had changed. She couldn’t, in all fairness, say it was bad either. Now, all Mora saw was contentment and serenity that these men brought to her life and was so thankful for Isabel. She deserved all the happiness she could receive.
“Mora!”
Mora visible jerked. “What?”
Isabel laughed, although a frown puckered her brows in concern. “I’ve asked you a question, twice.”
“Hell, I’m sorry. What did you need?” Her body tense when Dylan growled, but otherwise didn’t pay attention to him.
“I asked you earlier about the court. You’re not planning on going alone, right?”
“Why the hell not? I’m a grown woman. The FBI has most of Allister’s, your brother-in-law’s, people picked up.”
“Most? Some are still out there. One of them could be one of the men that have tried to hurt you. You can’t deny it either because it came from a reliable source.”
Mora narrowed her eyes. “I know exactly what source you’re talking about. Listen, Isabel, I don’t want you to worry. I’ve got everything under control.”
Isabel looked extremely doubtful and uneasy. “You can’t be blasé about this. What does Derek say?”