Brokenhearted Beauty [Divine Creek Ranch 19] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting)

by Heather Rainier

  “Oh my goodness.”

  “What?” Grace asked.

  “What’s the matter?” Presley Ann asked as she craned her neck. “Who are they talking to?”

  Leah just grinned happily and said, “I’ll let the guys tell you, but it’s a nice surprise.”

  James and Vincent returned and Adam helped them quickly get the entire group’s attention. The faces and friends all looked over expectantly, and with curiosity, at the two newcomers. James had to clear his throat a couple of times and finally said, “We want to introduce two new friends to everyone. This is Kendry and Jared McCulloch, from Abilene. They’re firefighters there. Kendry was the recipient of Patterson’s heart, back in April.”

  Leah saw surprise register on faces as everyone took that news in. She skirted Jack and Grace and went to both men and hugged them in turn. “Welcome to the Dancing Pony, guys. I’m so glad you could come tonight.”

  Kendry and Jared both hugged her back and the conversation gradually rose to a normal level as members of the group began coming forward to introduce themselves. She snickered when she heard Violet quietly say, “Lawd, have mercy, girls. I need to go set my house on fire.” The others giggled but Leah noticed that beyond smiling in a friendly fashion at the men, Presley Ann didn’t approach them or flirt at all.

  She went over to her sister and said, “They’re single, just so you know. In a roundabout way they asked about you last time they were here.”

  Surprise registered in Presley Ann’s eyes. “They did? Why?”

  “They asked if I had a sister.”

  Amusement sparkled in her eyes and Presley Ann chuckled. “I think that had more to do with you than with me, sis.” She flapped her hands out in front of her and said, “I’m not here to flirt. I’m here for you, and to get to know some of your friends. That’s all.”

  “Okay,” Leah said as the changing song on the sound system got her attention and she said, “But you’re dancing at least one dance with your big sister. Come on.”

  Thomas Rhett’s “Get Me Some of That” began to play and Grace winked and nodded in approval when Presley Ann looked at her uncertainly. Grace said, “Come on, my friend. Rose Marie and Grant both spent plenty of time on this dance floor before they were born.”

  “You’re sure?” Presley Ann asked softly, looking at the girls surrounding them.

  Rachel winked at her, too, and said, “Getcha ass out there, girl. You’re with us now.”

  “Oh,” Presley Ann said, pressing her lips together, trying to hide an uncertain smile. “Okay. I’m not sure…”

  “Yeah, ya are,” Lydia said with a wide smile. “Get out there with us and I’m sure it’ll come to you.”

  Leah had never been the type to let loose on the dance floor, especially in a group like that, but she went for it nevertheless. It felt awkward at first but then she found her own rhythm in the steady beat of the song and discovered she was moving with the girls rather than just among them. Then that her hips and shoulders got in on the action and she started feeling sexy as she shook her ass and peeked over her shoulder…to find that her men’s undivided attention was centered on her.

  As the songs switched, the heavy beat and electric guitar caught her attention, and then she noticed Grace giggling. When she asked her what was up, Grace said, “Charity must be here. This is one of her favorite rock classics.”

  Rachel came over and nudged her friend. “Journey’s playing. Where is Charity?”

  The rest of the girls laughed, half of them returning to the table while the others were joined by their respective husbands. Steve Perry’s vocals for “Lovin’, Touchin’, Squeezin’” began as Val Teller cut through the middle of the crowd, winking at Grace and leading his wife Charity onto the dance floor.

  Leah thought when God made Charity, He broke the mold. That fact was actually true of both her and her sister, but Charity was in a class all by herself, dressed in her black leather corset, miniskirt, sky-high boots, and her hair straightened and flowing down her back like a waterfall, instead of with its usual bouncy curls.

  Immensely tall, like her other two husbands, Val was dressed in his leathers and a black T-shirt. His olive skin glowed golden from spending time in sun and his long black hair was loose around his shoulders.

  Grace giggled and put a finger under Leah’s jaw to close her mouth as she watched the two of them come together on the dance floor.

  “Sex on a stick. I know,” Grace said, watching the pair with a wide smile. Her searching gaze scanned the club and then she said, “Val must’ve taken her out for a date night. I don’t see Justin and Ransome anywhere.”

  Leah was a little awed by their ménage but thought that if anyone could handle three totally badass, uber-sexy men, it was Charity.

  “Can I be her when I grow up?”

  “Not before me,” Grace replied with a chuckle. There was practically steam coming off the couple as they looked into each other’s eyes and moved to the beat, never leaving each other’s arms. Charity even proved exactly how limber she was as Val dipped her way back and kissed her.

  Leah startled when warm, strong hands settled on her hips, and Vincent whispered, “You keep grinding your hips like that and I’m going to have my way with you before we ever get home tonight.”

  A sizzling shiver rippled through her as she imagined him taking her in the dark backseat of his truck. Then reality set in.

  “I can’t. I don’t want to leave my truck here.”

  Vincent growled, and a hot tingle zipped down her spine and settled in her pussy at the feral sound. “I want you. If I can’t have you the way I want you, then at least dance with me.”

  “O–Okay,” she replied as she turned to him. He wrapped his arms around her and grinned at Grace before carrying Leah back to the dance floor as the Journey song ended. She listened for the beat of the next song and looked up at Vincent in surprise. “Did you request this?”

  Vincent shook his head but his eyes widened a little and he smiled as the song registered with him. “Marina Del Rey” by George Strait. “No, fluff, but I’ve heard there’s no such thing as coincidences. You okay with this?”

  “Very,” Leah replied as he set her on her feet and began to move with her to the beat. “It feels like Patterson is here with us.”

  “He sort of is, isn’t he?” he said. Both of their gazes were drawn to Kendry and Jared, where they stood near the tables talking with her sister. “Presley Ann finally let me introduce her to them while Charity and Val were dancing.”

  Leah watched Presley Ann as she chatted amiably with both men and smiled as Kendry pulled out one of the unoccupied tall bar chairs and helped her into it. Presley Ann continued talking to them, about what, Leah couldn’t guess. What stood out most was that she didn’t flirt. Violet walked up and spoke to Jared, and Presley Ann smiled at him as he made his excuses and joined them with Violet on the dance floor.

  “I think Kendry and Jared fit in well around here. Violet seems to like them.”

  Vincent chuckled and gestured with his chin farther down the bar where newcomers had just entered the bar.

  “We’ll see what Josh and Lucas Abbott think of that.”

  “Josh and Lucas…and Violet? Really? Do tell.”

  “I’m no gossip. I just heard she’s giving them a run for their money. Thinking she’s too busy with her business to settle down. Sound familiar?”

  Leah snickered. “Bless her heart. I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

  “You don’t, huh?” he asked.

  “Nope. Not to change the subject, but Emma said my birth control pills should’ve taken effect by now, so we won’t have to use condoms anymore.” Even though she’d told them she didn’t mind going without, the men had decided to use condoms until the pills had taken effect so that they could plan for children down the road.

  “That is good news, fluff.”

  “You sure you’re not disappointed?” Her period had arrived a little ove
r a week before, right on schedule, allaying her concerns.

  “About you not being pregnant? No. It wouldn’t have made me unhappy if you had been but I want it to happen when it’s something that you’re completely invested in as well.”

  “I will be someday. I want a few years to enjoy my time alone with you and James first.”

  “I’ll take as much of that time as you’ll allow,” he murmured, brushing his lips against her throat and kissing her as the song ended. She raked her fingernails lightly over the back of his head. He smiled and his eyelids slid shut as he groaned softly. She did it some more, knowing how much he loved for her to scratch his head. She giggled when gooseflesh broke out all over his arms and he shuddered.

  Another warm hand slid around her back as Justin Moore’s “Lettin’ The Night Roll” began to play. “I feel like holding my woman and two-stepping,” James drawled as she turned into his arms after giving Vincent a kiss.

  “Pleasure’s all mine, handsome.” All mine.

  Epilogue

  The flickering candlelight gave the satiny sheen of Leah’s wedding gown an iridescent quality as she removed the antique cloisonné comb holding her veil and her hairdo in place. James and Vincent took their time loosening their ties and undoing the top buttons on their shirts before turning down the fluffy comforter and sheets on the giant bed in the bridal suite of the Hourglass Inn. In the morning, they would fly out of San Antonio to their honeymoon destination in Hawaii but their wedding night would be spent in Divine.

  “Tired?” James asked as he caught her watching him.

  “No. Not even a little. But I’ll let you put me to bed.”

  Vincent chuckled and said, “Not much sleeping is happening in this bed tonight, I don’t think.”

  Her reply was forgotten as they both straightened and approached her, unbuttoning their shirts.

  “My ‘something old,’” she said as she carefully placed the comb, which had been her mother’s, and the veil in James’s hands.

  James laid them aside for her and stood in front of her, caressing her bare collarbones and her throat. A tiny smile bowed his lips as he leaned down a little and kissed her as Vincent drew close behind her, his callused hands raked lightly over her shoulder blades, making her shudder. His lips were warm on her shoulder as he undid the small buttons that lined the back of her simple, strapless satin wedding gown.

  “My ‘something new,’” she murmured before drawing a shuddering breath as his hands worked their way down.

  She’d wanted something with sleeves but Grace and Presley Ann had cajoled her into the strapless just for grins and she’d known it was the one the second she set eyes on herself in the mirror.

  The princess seams and plain bodice drew the eyes upward and instead of cutting her hair back to her usual pixie style, she’d had Danielle at Madeleine’s give her a simple updo and then had set the ensemble off with the comb and the veil. It’d been perfect. She’d known that because James and Vincent had both been teary-eyed by the time she’d reached them at the makeshift altar before the grand fireplace in the ballroom of the Hourglass Inn.

  Reaching behind her, she unclasped the double stranded choker of pearls that Presley Ann had loaned to her that morning. “My ‘something borrowed.’” The pearls had been left to Presley Ann by her mother and Leah knew they were one of her most prized possessions, which had made the surprise offering even sweeter.

  She gasped as Vincent raked his teeth lightly over her shoulder and she felt the tug of the zipper in the back of the dress and he lowered it. “What have we here?” he murmured as he slid his hot hands inside the dress and his fingertips slid over the white satin and lace of her bustier.

  She would’ve been perfectly content buying lingerie at Stigall’s but Grace had taken one look at the selection of bridal lingerie in plus sizes they offered, shook her head, and said, “You deserve to at least see a better selection than this. I’m taking you shopping.” Leah had balked at the idea because she knew her friend already had her hands full but Grace had chuckled and said, “Jack and Adam are giving Rose Marie riding lessons today and Ethan took Grant to his parents’ house for the day. I don’t have any pressing deadlines so don’t worry about it anymore. It’s not like shopping at Discretion is a hardship or anything.”

  They’d made the trip out to Summer Webster and Margot Redman’s naughty little boutique in Morehead. After taking her measurements, Summer had helped her and Grace pick out items for Leah to try on. A few hours later, Leah was outfitted not only for the wedding but also for the honeymoon and for everyday lingerie as well. Lingerie shopping had never been so much fun.

  A shudder rippled up her spine when Vincent’s voice rasped in her ear as he slid a finger down the blue satin ribbons at the lace-up back of her sexy garter belt. “I think I found her ‘something blue.’ Damn.” He growled softly as he slid his hands into the dress and eased the bodice down so James could see.

  A full, gorgeous smile broke over James’s face and his sensual green eyes hooded with interest as he stared at her, dressed in her sexy lingerie.

  “Damn,” he said, echoing Vincent as the dress slipped to the floor in a satiny puddle, revealing the white lace-edged stockings she wore with the garters. She’d felt gorgeous in the wedding gown on her big day, but standing in front of the men she adored with all her heart, clad only in her luxurious lingerie, she felt truly beautiful. Love and desire radiated from their eyes as she looked between them and she reached up to stroke their cheeks, glorying in the moment. Grace had told her she’d be glad she invested in something besides just the limited basics at the department store. She’d said Leah deserved more.

  Another gasp was torn from her as Vincent knelt behind her and kissed the back of her thigh, right below her ass cheek, and he murmured, “Step out of the gown, fluff, and I’ll put it away for you. Get comfortable.”

  A rumbly sound came from deep in James’s chest as she stepped away from the gown, still wearing her bridal pumps. “Damn, I like that even better, honey.”

  “You like?” she asked in a sultry whisper as they both stared at her, lustful heat glittering in their eyes. She’d nearly gone with basic white pumps but Grace had stopped her and challenged her to be adventurous. The dress was so simple. It begged for a dramatic pump. The moment she set eyes on the white satin-rose-embellished platform pumps she knew they were the ones. Wearing them with just lingerie made her feel decadent and sexy.

  Vincent let out a breath and whispered, “Yes.”

  Leah giggled softly, one shoulder scrunching up as she turned her back on them and sauntered to the bed. “I’m happy to hear that because I had a special boudoir portrait made for you in this exact outfit.”

  Their jaws dropped and Vincent said, “You did not.”

  She winked at him over her shoulder and nodded. “Oh, but I did.”

  Thank you, Grace!

  “Could someone help me with the garters?” she asked as she climbed onto the edge of the bed, arching her back and wiggling her butt just a little to entice them closer.

  The men smiled, and elbowed each other trying to get to her faster as she giggled at their antics. “So eager.”

  “How could we not be, fluff?” Vincent asked as she looked up at him beside her. He’d never quit calling her by his brother’s endearment for her and somehow over time, it’d become his.

  James sent gooseflesh racing along her back as he slid his hand down the back of her thigh and undid the first garter. He kissed her shoulder and said, “You amaze us, honey.”

  “It’s just because you’ve never really seen me in lingerie.”

  Vincent slowly shook his head as he slid loose the garter at the back of her other thigh and fiddled with the one in front. “I know you think that but it’s so much more. You’re ours, Leah. Ours. I never want to let you go, fluff.”

  The back of the bustier came loose as James freed the hooks from their loops. Vincent slipped each shoe from her foot and then helped h
er out of the white lace G-string that matched the bustier.

  “Somehow I thought you’d want to make love to me with the lingerie and shoes on.”

  James gave a definitive shake of his head. “We love it, make no mistake about that. But we want the woman beneath it all.”

  “He’s right, fluff. We want to see you in this lingerie again but it’s you that we want.”

  “White. I don’t know,” she said, the practical side of her questioning where she’d ever wear those shoes again. “The shoes, at least, are impractical.”

  Vincent said, “I’ll take that as a challenge, fluff. I’ll bet one of the girls can take me shopping just so we can see you in them again. They make your legs look so damned sexy. I’m hard as a rock just looking at you kneeling on the bed in them with that luscious ass on display. You let us worry about that. For now, we want you naked.”

  The sensual ensemble came off, one piece at a time, and they tantalized her every step of the way.

  James turned off the lamp on the bedside table so the only light was from the candles set out around the room. Vincent stroked her shoulder with one hand, while feathering his fingers through the brown curls drifting around her shoulders. He pulled back and gazed into her eyes as he said, “I’ve loved you a long time. I’m so glad you trusted us.”

  “I’m sorry it took so long to trust you, Vincent. I love you, too. I almost can’t believe we’re here.”

  “You’re ours, honey,” James whispered as he climbed onto the bed with them and slid a warm hand over her other shoulder and down her bare back to her ass. His touch was gentle, so much like him, and her eyes tingled with unshed tears.

  “I love you, James. If you hadn’t come to get me that night at the store I’d still be so…broken. You couldn’t have convinced me back then I’d ever be happy again, stuck in the same old pattern of pain and nightmares. This is my dream come true.” She looked down at her hands, resting on their arms, and the wedding bands sparkling on her left hand.