Endangered Hearts

by Jolie Cain

  Much later, Abby sat on the couch, Jack's head cradled in her lap as she stared into space, her mind again reliving the last few days and her feelings of helplessness and terror. She would not live like that. Jack was right. It was time to do something about it. “When will your friend arrive, Jack?"

  "He should get here sometime before noon. He'll probably stop at the sheriff's office to talk to him and read over the official report before he comes up the mountain.” Jack's eyes were closed, and Abby's fingers stroked lazily across his forehead through his hair.

  "What's he like?” she asked, curious about Jack's friend now that she had agreed to let him help.

  "Who, Clay?” Jack grinned. “He's a great guy. I think you'll like him."

  "Where did you two meet?"

  He waited a moment before answering, and she couldn't help but notice the hesitation. “What? Is there something you're not telling me?"

  "Well, sweetheart, the truth is that Clay and I met through a mutual friend—a woman.” The uncertain tone of his voice piqued her interest, and she sat up. “Yes, and..."

  She studied him closely and prodded again. “So? I am aware that there have been other women in your life, Jack. I'm not a moron. What else? I can tell you're trying to hide something."

  "Not hide, exactly. I'm just not sure how to say it."

  "Oh, just spit it out, Jack. Now I'm really curious."

  He sighed and then said, “The truth is that a woman we both knew was curious about what it would be like to have sex with two men at once. She wanted to have a ménage and asked us if we would like to try it with her. We both agreed. I had never done anything like it before, and neither had Clay. Anyway, that's the first time we met."

  Whatever she had been expecting him to say, that wasn't it. She was dumbfounded.

  "You shared a woman with Clay? All three of you—at the same time?” Abby didn't know quite what to think about it. One the one hand she was shocked, at least she felt like she should be, but she couldn't deny that the idea of such a forbidden experience was a little titillating, too.

  "So ... did you like it?” She was curious.

  "Abby, really, I..."

  "Just tell me, Jack. I know that you like your sex a little wild. Even though I haven't been with many men, I do have a little bit of an idea what goes on. And some of the things that we've done, well, they're not exactly typical missionary position, are they?"

  He laughed. “No, they're not. Okay. Yeah. I liked it. I enjoyed sharing a woman with Clay. There's nothing like it, angel.” His voice grew serious. “To know that the woman you're with is going to experience so much more pleasure than she could with one man alone—that you're going to give her something unlike anything she's ever had—it's a very heady experience. A real turn-on."

  "You wouldn't ... you wouldn't want to share me, would you, Jack?” she asked in a small voice, uncertain of her reaction to what he was saying.

  "Only if you wanted to, baby.” He sat up and drew her across his lap. “I'm not going to lie to you and say I wouldn't enjoy it. In fact, when I decided to ask Clay to come here, I did think about the possibility of our sharing you, but only if you felt comfortable doing it. I would never force you to do anything you didn't want to."

  She stared into his eyes. “I just don't know if I could, Jack. I mean, don't you want us to be faithful to one another?” Her eyes reflected her confusion.

  "This has nothing to do with being unfaithful, baby. I would never want you to be with another man unless I was there and an active participant.” He reached up to tuck a lock of hair behind her ear as he continued. “But I think that you would love it, sweetheart. And I know I would. Would you at least think about it?"

  Abby felt herself becoming lost in his beautiful blue eyes. Could she do it? Could she let another man touch her like Jack did? She didn't know. But what she did know was that the thought of it wasn't as repugnant to her as she had imagined it would be. Just listening to Jack talk about the pleasure that the woman received from having two men focused on her pleasure caused a tingling in her core that she could not ignore. Jack had already taken her to places she'd never dreamed of before. Would this be another? She couldn't believe that she was actually considering it, but she was.

  "I'll think about it, Jack,” she promised him and then he leaned down to place a gentle, loving kiss on her mouth before cuddling her close to his warmth.

  Chapter Nine

  Clay arrived on the mountain just after noon the next day. Abby was hard at work on her book when Jack heard the truck pull up in front of the cabin. Clay climbed out of the pickup and strode toward Jack with a confident step. Wearing a pair jeans so faded it was a miracle they held together and a t-shirt reading What are you looking at, asshole?, Clay conveyed a no-bullshit attitude.

  He grinned, a wicked glint in his brown eyes, and held out his hand in greeting. “Hey, man. How's it hanging?"

  Jack grasped Clay's hand in his own. “Thanks for coming, Clay."

  "No problem. I wasn't involved in anything very interesting. I just turned over another cheating wife case I was working on over to one of my assistants and came up as quickly as I could."

  "My God, assistants? Business must be really good."

  Clay laughed. “Can't complain, man. So, where's your lady?"

  "Abby's inside working. I wanted a chance to talk to you privately before she realized you were here.” They turned and went up the steps. Jack walked over and sat on the porch swing while Clay leaned against a post. “Did you speak to the sheriff?"

  Clay got serious. “Yeah, I just left there. I read over his file and talked to him a bit. He's a good man, but he can't really do much without more to go on."

  "That's what I thought. What do you think?"

  "Well, I did a little digging after you called me. This Davenport guy's pretty low-key. No priors. Everyone who knows him speaks well of him. He really doesn't seem the type to stalk anyone. Then again, a lot of people who do this kind of shit don't seem the type. Something sets them off, and bam, they lose it."

  "Did something happen to set him off?” Jack asked.

  "Well, funny you should ask. I found out from a buddy of mine in Gulf Shores that Scotty boy just broke up with a long-time girlfriend a few weeks ago. Seems she left to go to college at the University of North Alabama and decided that she didn't want to be tied down to some guy in Gulf Shores. So she gave him the old heave-ho. He took it pretty hard. Not too long after that is when he started putting the moves on your lady."

  Jack considered what Clay had just told him. “So do you think it's him? And do you think he's dangerous?"

  "I don't know, man. It sure seems to fit. Maybe a little too well, if you know what I mean. I don't like things to be this easy. I've got one of my guys driving over to UNA today to see if he can find the girlfriend. He's going to see if she's heard from our boy."

  Jack agreed. “There's something else, too.” Then he proceeded to bring Clay up to speed about the dead raccoon.

  "That's not good, man. Sounds like he's escalating. We need to get this thing resolved as quickly as possible."

  "I agree. I won't be able to relax until I know Abby is safe."

  Clay looked at him questioningly. “So tell me more about Abby. How serious are you two?"

  "I've asked her to marry me.” He grinned at the astonished expression on Clay's face.

  "No shitting? My god, who'd have ever thought it? I mean, after that crap with Lauren and your dad..."

  "I know. But Abby is nothing like Lauren. Nothing at all."

  "Good. If anybody deserves it, man, it's you.” He paused and Jack knew something important was coming from the serious expression that crossed Clay's face. “Speaking of your dad, Jack, I heard that he had a heart attack. A pretty bad one. He's in the hospital."

  Jack's eyes widened. “Hell."

  "Lauren didn't contact you? I was afraid of that."

  "That bitch? Hardly. I wasn't exactly on her list of fav
orite people when I left."

  "True, but still, man, it's your dad.” His eyes narrowed. “You need to know that things between your dad and Lauren haven't been going too well."

  Jack froze. “What do you mean?"

  "I heard he caught her in bed with some guy."

  "Fuck, why am I not surprised? So she screwed around on him? I'd like to say I can't believe it, but I'd be lying."

  "There's all kinds of rumors floating around Atlanta. Some are even saying that there might be divorce papers in the works. You realize that you lucked out when Lauren broke things off with you, don't you?"

  "Hell yeah. Believe me, I know. And now I have Abby."

  "So, what is she like?"

  "Sweet and funny. Gorgeous. And crazy about me.” He grinned. “Plus, she's open to all sorts of ... well, let's just say new experiences. In fact, right now, she's considering one idea that I asked her about last night after I talked to you."

  Clay's eyebrows rose. “Really? Can I guess what that idea is?"

  "Probably, especially since it includes you.” Jack smiled wickedly at his friend.

  "Hell, are you sure, Jack? I mean, she's your lady now."

  "Oh, yeah, I'm sure. And I think she's going to say yes. So be sure to turn on the charm when you meet her, buddy. I've got big plans for later on tonight.” With that, Jack turned to lead Clay up and into the cabin to meet Abby.

  * * * *

  Abby had not noticed the visitor when he arrived, so into the story that she was working on that a bomb could probably have gone off in the next room and she wouldn't have flinched. But when the door opened, she looked up to see Jack entering with a drop-dead gorgeous guy following behind him. The stranger stood at least six-foot-three and had shoulder-length blonde hair pulled back in a ponytail. A silver cross glinted in one ear, and a tribal tattoo banded the bicep of his left arm, barely visible below the stretched arm of his t-shirt. A little uncomfortable at the interested perusal the man was giving her, she stood hastily and crossed to greet them. Jack threw his arm around her shoulders and introduced them. “Clay, this is my fiancée, Abby Montgomery, otherwise know as A.J. Montgomery, horror novelist. Abby, this is Clay Gentry, the P.I. I told you about."

  Abby held out her hand managed a weak smile. “It's nice to meet you, Clay. Jack has told me a lot about you."

  His eyes swept over to Jack before returning to Abby's. “Not too much, I hope. A guy likes to keep a little mystery.” He grinned down at her, and she could feel a stirring of attraction in her body. Bad boy, she thought to herself. It's a good thing she was already crazy in love with Jack because Clay would be hard for a girl to resist. She could feel Jack's eyes on her, and she knew he was thinking about the three-way he had suggested. A blush crossed her features. Clay's eyes lingered on her face before dropping down to take in her slim but curvaceous figure. He turned to Jack. “I must say you've got great taste, Jack. You're a lucky dog."

  Jack squeezed Abby's shoulders before releasing her. “You're right about that. Come on in and sit down. How about a beer while we talk about our little problem?"

  "Sounds great."

  Jack crossed into the kitchen to get the drinks while Abby led Clay to the sofa. She sat down and he took the chair across from her. Clasping his hands together to dangle between his muscular thighs, he leaned forward. “So, how's Bear?"

  "He's doing great. We'll probably run down the mountain to pick him up in a little while."

  Jack sat beside her and handed Clay his beer. “Yeah, he was lucky it was just a flesh wound. It would have been a lot worse if the bullet had been in him all night long."

  "That's good.” Clay proceeded to fill Abby in on all that he told Jack earlier. “So I called and told one of my associates to run over to the UNA campus at Florence and see if he could locate this Missy Crawford."

  "What do you think she can tell you?” Abby wanted to know.

  "Well, she might know Scotty's current location. If she does, it'll make it a whole lot easier for me to track him down and find out if he really is the one causing all your problems."

  "Who else could it be?"

  "When I talked to Sheriff Tyrell, he gave me a list of some of your weirder fans that he'd gotten from your agent. I'm having some of my guys run the names to see if anything pops up."

  She leaned closer to Jack. “You know, I kind of hope it is Scotty. I don't like the thought of some unknown creep out there following me around and doing all these horrible things. It would be better if it were someone I'm actually acquainted with. At least I know what Scotty looks like. If it's not him, it could be anybody."

  Clay agreed. “Better the devil you know, as they say. But don't worry. Whoever it is, we'll catch ‘em."

  She smiled weakly. “Yeah, I hope so. The sooner the better."

  Clay and Jack decided to check outside and see if they could find any trace of the intruder that Jack might have overlooked when he had searched earlier. Abby stayed in the cabin, trying to work on her book some more, but having difficulty concentrating. Between the stuff with Scotty and Jack's suggestion that they have a threesome with Clay, her thoughts were in a tailspin.

  Eventually she gave up, and just sat in the living room, sipping a cup of coffee. Her thoughts wandered to a scene she had witnessed back when she was fifteen years old, one she hadn't thought about in a long time. She and her best friend Annalise had been spying on Beau because Annalise had a crush on him. He was twenty years old and major hot. The girls had followed him and a buddy down to a secluded spot by the creek that ran near Beau's home. The guys had met up with a couple of girls. When the two boys had started putting the moves on the girls, one of them had gotten mad and left.

  What had happened between the remaining girl and the two boys had remained etched in Abby's mind for years. It had been one of the most erotic things she had ever seen. Perhaps that was why she wasn't quite as shocked by Jack's suggestion as she should have been. But the truth was that once the initial surprise had passed, the idea of the three of them in bed together was exciting. Abby shivered at the thought of herself sandwiched between the two hard bodies of the men. She was getting wet just thinking about it.

  From the way Clay's eyes had studied her earlier, she didn't think it would take much to gain his cooperation. Was she crazy to be considering agreeing to this? As she examined her own feelings, she knew that deep down she wanted to do it. She made her decision. She was going to do it. She was going to allow the two men complete control over her body, but she knew that she would never be able to do it without Jack there. Her trust in him gave her the courage to dare anything.

  * * * *

  After examining the area surrounding the cabin, Clay found nothing except for some bushes that had been pushed around and a section of ground where someone had stood, apparently watching the cabin. He showed the spot to Jack whose expression grew more worried. They decided not to tell Abby what they had found. She already had enough on her mind as it was. Clay would keep an eye on the area in case whoever had been there came back.

  Jack went back inside, letting Clay do a little more exploring. He found Abby sitting in the living room, lost in thought. He bent down and kissed her head, then walked around the couch to sit beside her. “How are you doing in here? I thought you were going to work on your book."

  "I couldn't concentrate. I have a lot on my mind,” she confessed.

  "Oh, yeah? Like what?” he asked, thinking he probably already had a pretty good idea.

  She glanced up at him. “Truthfully, I've been thinking about what you said earlier, about Clay and us. You know ... together.” She looked down at the hands she'd clasped in her lap.

  "Yes, angel?” He tried to sound reassuring.

  "If you ... if you still want to, well ... I'm willing to try it."

  He put his hand beneath her chin and nudged it up. “Are you sure?"

  "Yes. I'm just a little nervous about it."

  "There's no need to be. I promise if you start
to feel weird or uncomfortable, we can stop."

  "Okay.” She took a deep breath, and Jack hid his smile at the betraying action. He could plainly see the apprehension in her expression, but mingled with it, was a hint of excitement.

  "Well, when would we ... you know ... do it?"

  "I thought tonight would be perfect. Is that okay?"

  She nodded and smiled hesitantly at Jack. “Okay."

  He gave her a reassuring hug. Just then, Clay walked in. “I'm going to run back to town to use the phone. I'd like to check in with my office and see if they've found out anything yet."

  Jack nodded. “Okay. We'll follow you down. The vet's letting us pick up Bear this afternoon."

  When Abby got up to put on her shoes, Jack followed Clay out onto the porch. “Do you think your agent has learned anything yet?"

  He shrugged. “We'll know soon enough.” He turned to walk to his truck, but Jack stopped him.

  "Clay, about what we were talking about earlier..."

  "Yeah?” Clay's expression lit with a gleam of anticipation.

  "Abby said yes. If you still want to, it's on for tonight."

  "Fuck, yeah, I want to.” Clay grinned.

  Jack paused for a moment. “I just want to warn you, she's pretty nervous."

  "No problem. We'll ease her into it.” Clay nodded his head in understanding.

  Jack tucked his hands in his pockets and met Clay's eyes. “I haven't taken her anally yet, but I want to do it tonight. Her ass is mine, understood?” His determined eyes met Clay's.

  "Understood.” Clay agreed easily. He nodded his head and then turned to get in his truck.

  A few minutes later, Abby joined Jack and they got in the Jeep, following Clay's vehicle down the mountain and in to Stone Hill.

  After getting Bear from the vet's, Jack and Abby loaded him into the back of the Jeep. Then they crossed over to Lila's to meet Clay. He occupied one of the booths next to the window.