“I know she does, Master.” Lucas didn’t seem to have Lexi’s problems with using his proper title, but then he’d always known Lucas would be the easy one to get to. Lucas understood what it meant to fuck up and need a second chance.
He groaned as he felt Lucas spread his cheeks and dribble lube onto his asshole.
“Cold, huh?” Lexi was grinning, a devilish smile.
“Don’t tease me,” Aidan begged. He was nervous suddenly. Everything he wanted was right here. What if he wasn’t good enough? What if he failed them again?
“Hey.” She pulled at his neck, dragging him down so they were face to face, inches away. “It’s going to be all right. It’s only uncomfortable. At least that’s what Lucas says. From what I understand, Lucas has lots of experience. Seriously, we could take a poll in several states, and they’ll tell you Lucas Cameron knows how to fuck an ass.”
“Thanks,” Lucas said, sarcasm dripping.
But it had the effect Aidan thought she’d intended. He laughed, the nervousness slipping away. One of the things he loved about her was that she always made him laugh.
Lucas’s hand smoothed over his lower back, as though trying to soothe the scars he found there. “Aidan, we don’t have to do this. This position could be uncomfortable.”
Never knowing what it felt like would be more uncomfortable. “Do it, Lucas. Don’t make me tell you again, and don’t you dare hold back.”
He immediately felt something pressing against his lubed anus. The pressure wasn’t pain exactly, but it wasn’t pleasure. He tried to relax as Lucas rimmed his asshole. Lexi’s hands found his hair.
“Kiss me,” she said.
He wasn’t going to deny her that. He kissed her with everything he had. His dick pulsed inside her, but he held still. His tongue plunged in a naked imitation of what he wanted to do to her pussy. Over and over he slid his tongue against hers as Lucas pressed his fingers into his ass. He’d taken a plug there before. He wouldn’t ask anything of his subs he hadn’t tried himself, but warm flesh was different. Warm flesh moved and made him ache in a way no bit of plastic could.
“There it is,” Lucas said, his voice breathy with wonder.
Aidan gasped as something utterly amazing happened deep in his rectum. Lucas rubbed a magic spot that had him ready to lose control.
“Prostate. I think he found your prostate,” Lexi explained with a wink. Her face quickly turned to a sweet grimace. Her hips pumped up. “God, Lucas, get this bus moving.”
“Your wish. My command.” Lucas moved between his legs.
Aidan felt something far larger than a couple of fingers at his anus. He heard Lucas groan as he started to breach Aidan’s hole. Firm hands gripped his hips as Lucas’s cock began to move forward. It was a monster, that cock of his. It was thick and long, with a plum-shaped head. Aidan had stroked him before, but he’d never tasted him. That would have to come later because Lucas was pressing ruthlessly inside. It stung and burned, but there was an intimacy to it that called to him. He was giving to someone he loved. It lit a fire inside him.
“Just a minute more, angel,” Aidan promised.
Lexi was biting her lip, obviously desperate to start.
“You feel so good, Master, so fucking good.” Lucas drove into him. “I’m all the way in. Fuck, I’m balls deep.”
Aidan was so full. He was full of Lucas, and Lexi looked up at him like he was her anchor in the world. It was utterly perfect. He pressed forward, trying to make sure he hit her clit.
“Oh, yes.” Lexi’s voice was filled with relief as he started to fuck.
He almost lost it when Lucas dragged his cock out. He pulled that dick right over Aidan’s prostate, lighting up every nerve in his ass.
“Fuck,” he managed to moan. It was low and from deep in his body as he utterly lost control. He plunged into Lexi, driving forward with single-minded intent.
Lucas took his lead. He found a pounding rhythm. Aidan was caught between them. Every time Lucas fucked into his ass, he plundered Lexi’s pussy. It wasn’t long before she was calling out his name. Over and over, he heard his name being called like a litany as she came around his cock. It sent him over the edge. Between the endless pleasure being forced on his prostate and the clench of Lexi’s tight pussy on his cock, he couldn’t hold back. He came in pulsing jets.
Lucas shouted behind him, surging in and holding Aidan’s hips as he came. He pumped into Aidan’s ass again and again.
Aidan dragged in air as he fell forward, his head finding the soft grace of Lexi’s breasts. Lucas pulled out of his ass.
“Are you all right, Aidan?” Somehow now that the sex was over and the world seemed softer than before, Aidan was happy Lucas had dropped the Master.
“My back may never be the same.” His back was in a vicious spasm, but he wouldn’t change it for the world.
Strong hands suddenly rubbed his muscles, easing the soreness.
“It’ll be all right,” Lexi promised. Her eyes had drifted closed. She didn’t seem to mind his weight pressing on her.
And that was how he fell asleep, caught between his loves, utterly safe.
Chapter Thirteen
Soft afternoon light filtered in through the thin, worn kitchen curtains as Lucas walked in from the yard. Sweat poured off his body, but the work was done. He’d left Aidan and Lexi sleeping, wrapped in each other’s arms. Lucas had never been a napper, but he did believe in getting the job done. They had left the day’s work unfinished, and that didn’t sit well with him.
“Damn, I need a shower,” Bo said as he trailed behind him.
“Yeah, that’s ranch work for you.” He’d found Bo on the east range, fixing part of the fence. It had surprised him since Dwight, the foreman, had gone on and on about how useless the young man was. Dwight and the rest of the hands were busy moving the herd from the south field north. Lucas had stopped the truck and given Bo a hand. After that, Bo had been like a puppy following him everywhere.
Somewhere along the way, Bo had dropped his tough-guy act and started to behave like a real human being. He’d asked about Lexi and been open to talking about his childhood on the ranch. It was exactly as he’d suspected. Bo missed his brother and was sick of being thought of as a fuckup.
“Damn, Lucas. I’m sorry,” a wry voice cut through the quiet. Dwight walked in from the office, a thick stack of papers in his hand. “If I had known he was going to bug you all day, I would have sent him into town or something.”
Lucas felt his eyes narrow. Something about Dwight didn’t sit right. Maybe Bo deserved Dwight’s scorn. Lucas had watched the younger O’Malley act like an ass when other people were around, but it didn’t fit with how he’d behaved this afternoon. “He was very helpful. He taught this city slicker a thing or two.”
Bo snorted. “Hell, you know a lot about ranching.”
“His brother is our new boss,” Dwight pointed out. “You know, the one you curse on a regular basis?”
Bo flushed, but Lucas had to laugh. “Hell, I curse Jack regularly, too. I worked for the bastard for a year, and every summer while I was in law school. I cursed him a couple of hours ago, too. You should know he’s in town.”
Bo’s eyes were on his boots. “I didn’t want to change. My dad did things a different way.”
“I understand,” he replied. “Change isn’t easy. Your brother is proof of that. He wasted years of all our time because he wasn’t ready to change.”
A loud shout slammed through the room with the power of a fist hitting flesh. It was a masculine scream for help, and then Lexi’s voice cut through the wail.
“Lucas!”
Lucas took off running. He burst through the bedroom door. Lexi had Aidan in her arms, trying to shake him awake. He was caught, seemingly in a fever, his body shaking, pulsing as though it was being hit over and over.
“Oh, god, he’s dreaming about it again.” Bo turned on his heels and left.
Lucas didn’t have time to worry about Bo, tho
ugh it pissed him off that he would leave when his brother was in distress.
“He needs to take his damn pills.” Dwight stared down at Aidan with a frown on his face.
Lexi had tossed on Aidan’s shirt, but Aidan was tangled in the sheets. Aidan was talking, but Lucas couldn’t make out what he was saying. He was pleading with someone to stop.
“Stand down!” Aidan said it over and over.
Lucas tried to shake him awake, hating both the way his Master was vulnerable and the desperate look in Lexi’s eyes. “Aidan, wake up. Wake up!”
“If only he took his pills. You’re his—whatever the two of you are,” Dwight started, sounding disgusted with the whole thing. “Make him take his pills.”
“Maybe what he needs is to remember what happened to him,” Lucas said resolutely. He couldn’t go on like this. Aidan was fighting invisible monsters. He needed to push past his mental block and figure this out.
There was a loud bark and then that enormous dog, Ike, was bounding into the room, Bo following after him. He jumped onto the bed. Lucas started to pull him off.
“Don’t,” Bo said. “Ike is the only one who can calm him down.”
The dog whined and licked his master’s face. Aidan’s eyes almost immediately came open. He blinked, his hand coming up to pet the dog. He looked around as though trying to remember where he was.
“I was dreaming again.” Aidan’s voice sounded gravely, as though the shouting had done damage.
“Yes,” Lucas said, his heart calming down.
Despite Lexi’s stubborn claims that everything between her and Aidan was sex, she was clutching him to her breast, talking to him in soothing tones. Aidan wasn’t trying to be macho. He let Lexi hold him.
“You’re a good boy,” Lexi said, patting the dog.
“The dog was with you in Iraq?” He’d heard stories of soldiers bringing back the dogs they found.
“Yes.” Aidan held on to Lexi like a lifeline. “He was the squad’s mascot. We all loved him.”
Dwight stood at the back of the room, looking out of place.
“Have you told him absolutely everything you can remember about that day?” Lucas asked, his eyes narrowing on Dwight.
Dwight’s brows came together in consternation. “Of course. What would I hold back? Our whole squad got cut down by insurgents. We only survived because I dragged him to cover. I thought he was dead, to tell you the truth. I was surprised when the medic said he’d survived.”
“I had something to live for,” Aidan murmured.
“Will you let me call Leo?” Lucas’s mind whirled with possibilities. Aidan obviously had some form of post-traumatic stress. “He would know something about this. Julian says Leo is an excellent therapist, and he served in Afghanistan. He might be able to help.”
“I’ve been seeing Leo for a while,” Aidan admitted. “Julian wouldn’t let me in The Club without Leo’s okay. Leo wants to me to go under hypnosis. I didn’t think it was a great idea, but I seem to be getting worse. And I hate those pills. They make me groggy all day, Dwight. Don’t mention them again.”
“I was trying to help. I can see you don’t need me now. I’ll get back to work.” Dwight slid out of the room, his boots quiet on the floor.
“Come on, Ike,” Bo said, slapping his hands together. The dog was reluctant, but Bo pulled out a stick of beef jerky. “You know you want it.”
Ike gave up his precious master in favor of flavored, dehydrated beef. A wisp of a smile traced over Bo’s face.
“I’m glad you’re feeling better, brother.” Bo’s smile turned distinctly wolfish. “And it was nice to see you again, Lexi. All of you. I mean, you are looking fine, darling. My brother is not good enough for you.”
Lucas glanced down and snorted a little when he realized what Bo was talking about. “Baby, you should pull that shirt down. You don’t have any underwear on.”
“Oh, my god!” Lexi pulled the covers up and tossed a pillow at Bo’s fleeing body. His laughter rang through the room as he opened the door to allow both him and the dog out.
He turned back one last time. “I am younger than him, you know. And way prettier.”
“You’re going to be way deader if you don’t stop looking at my girl.” Aidan shouted the warning, but there was a lightness to it. He was playing with his brother, and from the look on his face, Lucas could tell it made him happy.
“Everyone got a glimpse of my cootchie today,” Lexi grumbled.
“Naw.” Aidan pulled her back down and snuggled against her. “Just me and Lucas, and your mom, and Karen, and Sam and Dwight and Bo. That’s all. Jack was taking care of the kids. So not everyone. Oh, and yesterday it was everyone at The Club.”
She slapped at him playfully. “I’m going to be fully dressed from now on.”
Lucas wasn’t going to allow that to happen. He tossed his sweaty body right in the middle of the bed, covering both Lexi and Aidan.
“Lucas, you smell so bad!” Lexi tried to get away, but he and Aidan held her down.
“He smells like a working man, angel. Get used to it.” Aidan seemed to be on the same wavelength.
“Besides, we have a few hours before we meet your mom and stepdads.” Lucas leaned in for a kiss. “We can all take a shower.”
“After,” Aidan said, his hand pulling Lexi’s shirt off.
“After,” Lucas agreed.
* * * *
Lexi walked across the fairgrounds, the neon lights playing through the night. Blues and pinks and greens twinkled all around her. The smell of funnel cakes frying tickled her nose. Lucas and Aidan had wandered off to grab hot dogs. Olivia shouted her joy about everything. She loved the games and the food and the rides.
Lexi followed her family, feeling strangely out of place. She was intensely aware of everything moving around her. The world was flowing and changing, but she felt stuck in place. She’d spent the entire afternoon in Aidan’s arms. While she was there, she hadn’t thought about it. She’d simply let herself be. But now she was back to reality.
He’d left her. He’d walked out on her, blaming her for things that hadn’t been her fault. Aidan had been gone long enough that he’d changed in almost unfathomable ways. And when he came back, he’d done it under false pretenses. How was she supposed to forgive that?
And how would she ever tell him what had happened to her while he’d been off figuring himself out?
“Alexis?” Her mother slowed down to walk beside her. “Are you all right?”
She nodded and made her best attempt at a bright smile. “I’m great.”
“I want to ride the Ferris wheel!” Olivia motored by, making a beeline for the rides.
“I want to ride the bumper cars!” Sam yelled, winking at his wife as he ran after their daughter. Jack was more leisurely, walking with Josh on his hip. Lexi looked away from the sight of her baby brother.
Her mother’s mouth was tight as she crossed her arms over her chest. “Are you going to be able to forgive Jack?”
She sighed. That wasn’t the biggest question of the day, but she knew how much her mother was worried about it. “I can forgive him, Mom. I don’t want to cause trouble between the two of you.”
“He did that all by himself,” Abby said. “He’s not perfect, you know. His instinct is to protect.”
“By tricking me into getting involved with a man who ripped my heart out?”
Abby stopped, and she stared at the ground for a moment. “I’ve been thinking a lot about this, baby. You’ve been lost since Aidan left. My first instinct was to get mad at Jack for bringing him back into your life. You’ve been with Lucas and that was enough. But I’ve been fooling myself. I think I’ve seen what I wanted to see. I told myself that you and Lucas were happy.”
“We are happy.”
“Oh, baby, you’re not functional.” Her mother’s hazel eyes held a sheen of tears that threatened to rip Lexi’s heart out. “You and Lucas don’t work without someone like Aidan. I know the rest
of the world doesn’t get how this works, but some people have two soul mates. Could Jack and I have been happy without Sam? Maybe, but we wouldn’t have been complete. Sam and I would have been lost without Jack. I only know that I was lucky enough to find both of them. You and Lucas have been fumbling. I know you weren’t making love, and that’s so important. You are now, and I think Aidan had something to do with it.”
An uncomfortable feeling took a hold of Lexi’s gut. “We would have gotten there.”
“I know what Jack did was manipulative, but he did it because he loves you. He did it because he was scared. He spent a long time getting to know Aidan. He brought Aidan into the business. His herd is now affiliated with Barnes-Fleetwood.”
She felt her mouth fall open. That was a pretty permanent connection. “He did what?”
“He’s made Aidan a partner in Barnes-Fleetwood. Junior, but a partner. Jack believes in him. I know that man. I know his heart. He would never have done that if he thought Aidan wasn’t the best thing in the world for you and Lucas. I was mad at first, but I saw you today. You were more alive than you’ve been in years. God, Lexi, I want my daughter back. I spent the afternoon realizing I would have done much worse than Jack to get you back.”
Lexi looked at her and thought of all the ways her mom and her stepdads had tried to engage her in the last couple of years. Jack and Sam had moved her from Austin to Dallas. They were wealthy enough to have simply paid for the move, but they had shown up and carried out her furniture and boxes and loaded them into her rented truck. They’d driven her the whole way and hauled it all out again when they’d made it to her apartment. Jack had offered job advice. Her mother had tried to get her to come out to the ranch on weekends, and when she wouldn’t, had shown up on her doorstep claiming she needed to shop. They’d tried in a thousand different ways, and then Jack had brought the sledgehammer down because he wasn’t a man to give up.
And she’d felt more in the last two days than she had in two years.
It wasn’t that she didn’t love Lucas. God, she loved him, and he loved her. But they needed Aidan. Aidan pushed them.
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