by Erin Osborne
“Not so fast,” they both say at once. “I don’t know what the fuck else these men were thinkin’, but they missed out on an amazin’ woman. You’re not fat, you’ve got amazin’ curves in all the right places. Why are you greedy? Because you won’t give them your money? That’s not greedy, that’s makin’ the right choices for yourself. We’re goin’ to prove to you what you mean to us,” Trojan tells me.
“You’re going to find that I’m boring and all I do is work and spend my time at the house. The most I’ve gotten out of the house is since I met the old ladies in Clifton Falls. There’s no one here that I associate with outside of the salon.”
“I don’t care if you’re the most borin’ person on this planet,” Crash tells me. “You’re the sweetest girl, you care about those around you, you take the awkward moments you find yourself and make it funny, you can laugh at yourself, and you don’t put up with our shit.”
“You two are cavemen and you think you can control me,” I sass back.
“We don’t want to control you,” Trojan says, making sure I’m facing him, so I can fully understand what he’s telling me. “There’s a difference between controllin’ you and protectin’ you. I don’t care what you do as long as you come home to us at the end of the day and you don’t cheat on us. You’re our woman and we want to make sure that every stupid fucker knows that.”
“If I’m yours, then I expect you to be faithful to me. There won’t be anyone else and I don’t know that you two can do that. And you lose your shit every time Wood and I are in the same room together,” I tell them, thinking of the trouble that poor man has gotten into because of me.
“That’s because of the circumstances,” Trojan tells me. “What if every time you saw one of us, we were face down in some bitch’s lap? You wouldn’t like that too much would you?”
“Not to mention that we haven’t been with a club girl or anyone else since we met you. Neither one of us want to fuck this up. We want you to give us the chance to seriously be with you. I’m not talkin’ about a night or a week, but for good. You have somethin’ that we want, somethin’ that we crave,” Crash tells me, pulling my face towards him so I can see the sincerity in his eyes.
“No, I wouldn’t,” I admit. “But, it’s not his fault I’m a total klutz. I lose my shit and he just happens to be the unfortunate victim when I do.”
“Rationally, we know this firecracker. It doesn’t help anything though when we see it firsthand,” Crash tells me.
I can honestly see where the guys are coming from. Even though I don’t want to admit it, I would hate having to see them all over some girl. Thinking back, the few times we’ve been around club girls, they haven’t paid them any attention at all. They’re too busy following me around. Can I honestly trust them not to cheat on me if it did last more than a night? But, I still know that this isn’t going to be more than one night for them. Do I take that one night and expect nothing else from them?
“What’s goin’ through that head of yours, firecracker?” Crash asks me.
“That I know anything with you would only last one night. I’m just not sure that I want to take that as what happens my first time. I think I’d rather be in a relationship with someone when I lose my virginity.”
“What makes you so sure that all we want is one night?” Trojan asks. “You’re livin’ in our house for the time bein’ and I want to make it permanent. Crash, I’m sure, is on the same page as I am.”
“I am.”
I can feel my jaw drop in awe and shock at hearing these two gorgeous men want more than one night with me. So, I take a minute to truly look at them. Crash is tall and built from his time in the service. I don’t know much about it, just that he’s done his time and still gets called out from time to time. He’s got short dark hair that he keeps shaved close to his head and eyes that look like the color of warm chocolate with the hint of golden flecks sprinkled throughout them. Trojan is taller and bigger than Crash by a little bit. I’m not sure if he was in the military, but he’s got the attitude of someone that has served. He also has dark hair that’s a little longer than Crash’s and eyes the color of melted chocolate. You could drown in his eyes and still be left wanting more. Both men have tattoos for days and I’ve often found myself wanting to trace them with my tongue.
These two could have any woman they want, and I’m sure they have. Why they want me is something that I’ll never begin to understand. Part of me is tired of fighting it and the other part of me wants to keep running. The voice in my head continues to tell me that I’m just setting myself up for heartbreak and to run as far away as I possibly can. I’m tired of running from them though. Honestly, if they break me after giving them one night, I have no one to blame but myself. I think I’m ready to take that chance though.
“What are you thinkin’ right now firecracker?” Trojan asks me.
“I’m thinking that I’m tired of fighting what I feel for you two. I think that there’s still going to be issues that creep up for me, but I don’t think I can keep pushing you two away,” I tell them honestly. “I will just protect myself and guard my heart when someone you truly want to be with turns your head.”
“Not gonna happen, firecracker,” Trojan tells me. “There’s no one else we want. Hell, it’s been a long ass time since we’ve even looked at a club girl or any other woman. You’re the one we want. Only you!”
Trojan leans in and places a hand on each side of my face, whispering that I don’t know how happy I’ve just made him. Before I can register what he’s about to do, he places a gentle kiss on my lips. I give him a small opening when I gasp, and he deepens the kiss. Crash doesn’t give me the chance to catch my breath as he turns me and gives me the same treatment as Trojan. Man, these two men know how to kiss and make a girl lose her breath completely. Fuck, I’ve been missing out. The few kisses I’ve had in the past have been nothing like this.
Crash
Even though Darcy has finally, after months and months of waiting, agreed to be ours, nothing is going to happen tonight. We can’t push her since we found out that she’s a virgin. The only thing that’s going to do is make her run the other way. I’m wondering if we should arrange for her to spend a day with Skylar. Not all the girls, just Skylar. She’s used to being with two men and can open Darcy’s eyes as to what’s going to happen between us. I don’t want our girl to go in this with a blind eye. She’s going to be more comfortable hearing it from another woman first. Then Trojan and I can talk to her.
I look at my brother and communicate that we need to talk later when she’s gone to bed. Before I can do anything else, my phone rings and I pull it out seeing Skylar’s name on the screen. Is she reading my mind now? I answer it before handing it to my girl. Now, I can pull Trojan aside and tell him my idea. The sooner we get this in motion, the better it will be. We’re still going to take this at Darcy’s pace, but at least she’ll have an idea of what to expect and it will be one less thing for her to get in her head about.
We both head into the kitchen so Darcy can have a little bit of privacy. I pull out steaks, stuff to make salad, and two beers. Trojan stands behind me, waiting to see what I’m going to say.
“I think we need to let Darcy have a day with Skylar. Just the two of them. Now that she’s agreed to be ours, I don’t want her runnin’ scared. Skylar can gently let her know what to expect with bein’ with two men,” I tell him, sitting down at the island to hear his thoughts.
“I was actually thinkin’ the same thing. The sooner the better, but I still don’t want to rush her into anythin’.”
I nod my head in agreement and we hear Darcy heading our way. She hands me the phone back and lets me know that Skylar is planning a trip down to see her in the next few days. Trojan and I look at one another and smiles form on our faces. Skylar doesn’t need any convincing to help our girl out. I’m sure she jumped right on talking to her as soon as Darcy told her she finally stopped pushing us away.
“Um. I do
n’t know what I can do about it, but Riley is going to be coming down with her. She’s going to be working in the salon and I need to find her an apartment, or house, and make sure that she gets settled in,” she tells us, completely unsure of herself.
“That’s fine firecracker. I can talk to Gage and see if we have any place that will be suitable for her. I know she’s got some shit goin’ on that he’s already neck deep in,” I tell her, pulling her in between my legs. I breathe her in and get the familiar scent of hair products and something that is uniquely her.
Darcy looks back and forth between us. I’m sure she’s wondering how this is supposed to work. Right now, I’m guessing that she feels like Trojan feels left out. Based on the look on his face, he doesn’t feel that way at all. He’s happy as fuck that we can do this with her. Finally. He’ll get his turn when I’m on the patio grilling the steaks and potatoes. The salad is for Darcy. She had potatoes last night and I’ve noticed that she’d rather have a salad a few days a week with her dinner. So, that’s what she’s going to get.
“Help me make salads while Crash is outside?” he asks her, pointing towards the salad fixings on the counter.
“Sure. Is there anything else I can do to help?” she asks, pulling away from me.
“Not right now. We’re pretty much set until we need to set the table. Do you want to eat outside tonight?” I ask, grabbing what I need for outside.
“Yeah,” the two answer in unison.
Trojan and Darcy get everything they need to start making the salad while I make my way out to the grill. It’s peaceful out here and I’m glad that we decided to eat outside tonight. The air is warm enough and the only sound around are the birds chirping in the distance. There’s always been a peaceful quality to our house, today it seems to be even more peaceful. I’m sure that it has to do with Darcy being our woman now. The day just seems brighter now. She truly is the light to our darkness.
I can hear the sweetest sound coming from the kitchen through the open door. Trojan has Darcy laughing her ass off about something and I wish I were in there with them. If I’m honest with myself, I want to be the one to make her laugh like that. And I’ll spend the rest of my days striving to make her laugh and be as happy as we can possibly make her. Trojan will be the same way. We’ve waited so long for her to be ours and we’re going to make sure that nothing ever takes her happiness away from her.
Trojan
Working in the kitchen with Darcy has got to be one of the best things I’ve ever done. She’s wormed her way into our hearts and now we don’t know what to do without her in our lives. Thankfully, she put us out of our misery and finally agreed to be ours. This has been a long time coming. I know that we’re going to have to work through her fears and the thoughts that run rampant through her head, but we’ll do that.
We’re preparing the salads and she’s making some fruity drink while I grab another beer. I go to turn back to the island we’re working at and almost knock her out of my way. Darcy starts giggling and the sound is music to my ears. I have my hands on her hips, to steady her, and letting go is the last thing I want to do right now. But, we need to get the food ready when the steaks are done. So, I guess we go back to work.
“Are you sure that you guys know what you’re getting in to with me?” she asks suddenly, the shyness and trepidation written over her facial features.
“What do you mean, firecracker?” I ask, intrigued, and confused at the same time.
“Well, all I do is work and read. I never really go out and do anything. I’m sure you guys are used to going out and being around a lot of other people. I’m nervous and we all know I’m really clumsy when I’m around a group of people.”
“We can deal with your clumsiness as it comes up. As far as bein’ nervous around large groups of people, you’ll get used to everyone the more that you’re around them. We’ll take it a day at a time and at your pace. Just knowin’ that your ours at the end of the day is what we care about. Everythin’ else will fall into place. And don’t even worry about anythin’ happenin’ until you’re ready. Talkin’ to Sky is goin’ to help you get ready for that,” I tell her, making sure she’s looking at me the entire time.
“Okay,” she responds hesitantly. “I don’t know when I’ll be ready to give you guys what you want though.”
“For now, it’s enough that we get to go to bed every night holdin’ you. Because you will be in bed between us each and every fuckin’ night,” I tell her, meaning the words coming out of my mouth.
Darcy gives a slight nod to acknowledge what I’m telling her. Other than that, she puts her entire focus on what she’s cutting up for the salad. I take her lead and get back to work on what I’m putting together. She’s cutting up the cucumbers while I work on cutting up the eggs and cheese. I’ve never been one for eating salad, but I’m going to suck it up for Darcy. She’s already getting us to do things we’ve never done before. I wouldn’t change anything about it though.
Dinner has been a huge success. We’ve got our girl sitting between us and she’s laughing and eating. At first, she was shy about eating in front of us, but we assured her that we like our woman to have an appetite. Crash may have also told her that when we get to that point, she’s going to have to eat to keep her energy level up for us. I swear he has no filter sometimes. Darcy didn’t go running for the hills though, she took it in stride and continued eating.
“What’s the plan for tonight?” she asks, shyly.
“What do you mean?” I ask, even though I have a pretty good idea.
“I know you said that we’d take this a day at a time and at my pace, I just know that you two can’t go very long with waiting. And I don’t want to lead you on,” she answers, repeating what she told us earlier.
“We’re not goin’ to cheat on you, firecracker. You’re in our bed and we’re goin’ to sleep. After you talk to Sky and you decide you want to take that step, we’ll figure out the best way to go about it. Until then, we’re goin’ to climb in bed, wrap our arms around you, and go to sleep,” I tell her.
Crash nods his head in agreement, while finishing off the last of his beer. I can see that there are more questions floating around in her mind, but I’m not going to push her. My brother might not feel the same way, but we’ll find out soon. He’s only going to hold his tongue for so long. If he doesn’t push her away and gets her to start opening up without us prying the information from her, I’m all for it.
“Ask what you want to ask,” he says suddenly. “You can ask us anythin’ you want, and we’ll always answer you as honestly as we can. The only thing we won’t talk about is club business.”
“What happens if this person finds out I’m here? I don’t want to bring this shit to your doorstep,” she answers, looking down at her lap. I want to kill the person that took all her confidence away from her.
“If this comes to our doorstep, we deal with it,” I tell her. “You’re not bringin’ this to us when we’re steppin’ up as your old men. It’s our job to protect you.”
“We’ll do whatever we have to in order to find this fucker and make him pay for what he’s doin’ to you,” Crash adds in.
“We’ll do whatever we have to in order to find this fucker and make him pay for what he’s doin’ to you,” Crash adds in.
“And what if it’s a female?” she asks, thinking of all the possibilities.
“Then we call in a female to deal with her,” Crash says matter-of-factly. “There’s one in Clifton Falls. I’m not sayin’ who, but she has no problem takin’ care of females that are causin’ shit.”
“Okay. Well, I’m going to clean up and get ready for bed,” she tells us, standing up and starting to grab plates.
“I’ll help,” Crash tells her. “Then we’ll all go to bed.”
“Um, I usually read for a while before I settle down,” she tells us.
“That’s okay. We can get a hold of Gage and find out what’s goin’ on for tomorrow. I know that you have
to look at a few places for Riley. We’ll get the information you need and meet you in the room,” I tell her, following her into the kitchen with an armload of dishes.
I go out to finish gathering everything up and make sure the grill is off, leaving her with Crash. They’re talking and I’m glad that he gets to have a little bit of time with her. I may not be the most sensitive man, but she’s bringing that side out in me. Crash is softer when it comes to females. There’s going to be times he can give her what she needs, and I’ll have to step back. At least for now. Eventually she’ll get used to both of us and decide which one she needs more in that moment.
Chapter Three
Darcy
TODAY IS FINALLY THE DAY THAT RILEY gets here. She’s riding here with Skylar and a few guys. I’m not sure who all is coming, but I’m excited. Skylar already told me the rest of the girls are pissed that they don’t get to come on this trip. That tears me up because I don’t want anyone mad. Sky assured me that once she told them why, they were happy. I know that eventually I’ll be getting grilled by them, but for now, I’m happy keeping this semi quiet.
“We’re meetin’ them at Riley’s new house. Gage is goin’ to be there too,” Trojan tells me, coming in the bathroom attached to the room we all share now.
“I figured he’d be there,” I respond, getting a smile on my face.
“Why is that, firecracker?” he asks, leaning his delectable body against the counter as I finish my make-up.
“He’s liked her since he first met her. You watch them together and you can tell,” I tell him, like it’s some big secret. In reality, these men just can’t see what’s in front of their face when it doesn’t involve them.
“And you’re goin’ to stay out of it,” he answers. “Let them figure out their own shit.”
“Is that an order?” I ask, letting my sass come out to play. “Didn’t we already establish that you can’t control me?”
“We did. I’m askin’ that you let Prez figure his own shit out. They’ve both been through some shit and I want them to make their own decisions.”