by Eileen Green
Storm got out quickly and opened Lyndee’s door. “Yeah. Amanda here is a nurse. You may remember her from several of our visits here in the past. She was out at the ranch with her brother at the equine therapy, and Lyndee felt better if she came with us.”
The large man who was helping Lyndee out of the truck, well, he just reached in, scooped her up, and then carried her the few feet to the wheelchair Trey had brought out.
Trey nodded Amanda’s way before saying, “Hi. Thank you for easing our wife’s mind.”
Still a bit in shock at what she had observed on the ride into town and then seeing Trey, Amanda nodded. “No problem,” she said softly.
It had surprised her that the men were so attentive to Lyndee. Storm had explained that he was the one officially married to Lyndee, and then they had a bonding ceremony that had her bound to Austin and Trey. The three men had in a sense married each other, for their bond had to be one and the same as with their wife. Amanda had to wonder how exceptionally rewarding and beautiful it was to be doted on by multiple men.
When Erin Masters had come in last July to the hospital after being viciously beaten by her then-boyfriend, Amanda hadn’t really watched the ménage relationships that seemed to be popping up like toast. Five men had shown up to watch over and protect her from the asshole who had hurt her so badly. Conducting her nightly duties kept her from watching too much, but there had been a bit of envy in her as she watched the men come and go.
Now, she was experiencing firsthand how these men operated. Amanda was going to have to talk to a few ladies to get some advice.
The brief awkward pause was broken by a groan from Lyndee. She tightened her hands on the arms of the wheelchair as she tried to breathe through the contraction that was preparing her baby to make her way into the world.
“Why don’t you guys go ahead and get her checked in and see how soon this baby is going to make an appearance?” Amanda suggested. Another moan caused Lyndee to double over as water began to trickle down from the seat of the chair. “Well, at least you know now you won’t be leaving here without a bundle of joy.”
Three sets of different colored eyes went wide, emotion revealed in them. Surprise, worry, and amusement was evident, Trey seemingly the fun guy since he was the one with twinkling eyes.
Storm tripped on his feet as he tried to take the wheelchair from Trey, catching himself before he fell. Austin rushed to the doors of the hospital, leaving his truck running in the no parking zone. As Trey and Storm jostled for position behind the wheelchair, a voice sounded from behind Amanda, causing her to jump slightly.
“I’ll park your truck for you, Austin. We’ll be in in a moment!” Jimmy shouted out.
Austin stopped in his tracks, surprise registering on his face. With a wave of acknowledgement, the large Native American opened the door and stepped aside as Storm and Trey tried to get through one of the double doors.
Amanda didn’t let her amusement be silent, a small giggle escaping. She had worked in a hospital long enough to see how foolish fathers-to-be acted. These three were mild compared to some.
Austin’s pickup was already being driven away, Jimmy looking for a free parking spot. Amanda turned to Terence and gave a nervous smile.
He was sitting in the passenger side of Jimmy’s pickup, easily identified as The Lazy R Ranch by the sign on the door. Amanda had to wonder why she had never noticed that when Jimmy had been watching her every morning.
“Do you want to go in to see what’s going to happen?” Terence asked her through the open window. Looking up at him, he looked at her with a smile. “We can take Jasper home, or even take him out to the ranch. Jimmy said he could show him around.”
The sky was dark above them save a few pink and orange clouds over the mountains to the west of them. Night time had arrived, heralding a cold breeze that shook Amanda.
Looking at the backseat, Amanda moved to open the door. Jasper was sitting there, his cell phone in his hands. Technically, the only person he talked to on it was her and Genny, by text of course. However, in moments like these, she knew he was playing games.
“Do you want to go home, Jasper?”
Amanda wasn’t expecting her brother to look away from his phone. When he turned his head to look down at her, there was a war taking place in his eyes as they shifted here and there, as if moving with his thoughts.
He gave a shrug, but it spoke silent volumes. Before, he would have demanded to go home.
Amanda didn’t know what happened in the truck on the way into town, but she knew she would need to talk to Jimmy and Terence about it later. “We can go to Jimmy’s ranch if you want,” she suggested.
“Jimmy promised us a tour of the ranch,” Terence coaxed, although he did look around at the darkened sky. “Well, perhaps that’ll have to wait for another day. We could take you to dinner.”
A small smile tugged at Jasper’s lips. She had to wonder what that was about as he returned his gaze back to the small screen.
“Um…why don’t we go back to my place? I can order pizza to thank you for bringing Jasper here when you didn’t have to,” Amanda spoke as Jimmy came around the front end of the pickup.
“You don’t have to do that,” he said as he touched her arm. “It was our pleasure.”
“No. I want to. It’s too dark to drive all the way back to your ranch. We can do that another day,” she suggested.
The disappointment in the two men’s faces touched Amanda’s heart. Had they thought she wasn’t interested? To get those looks off their faces as fast as possible, she went on quickly. “There won’t be much to see in the dark. Why don’t we arrange to go out there another day when we have more time? Perhaps one that gives us time to see the animals and stuff. We’ll order pizza or Chinese at my place and get to know each other better.”
She glanced up at Jasper. His attention was still on the cell phone, but his lips twitched.
One thing she had never discussed with her brother was her need for a life of her own. Sure, working gave her satisfaction and a living. However, every night she wasn’t working was spent at home. When the people from work invited her out for drinks, or breakfast in the mornings after their shifts, she declined them.
Becoming Jasper’s guardian had thrust a responsibility onto her that was stifling to an adult just beginning to make their way in the world. She never regretted doing it, but she longed for a life of her own. Now that the young man was older, perhaps he would understand that she needed to move on.
The first day he had horse therapy out at the Circle G, he had drilled her about Jimmy after they had gotten home. He wanted to know what Jimmy meant to her, and Jasper had expressed concern about what would happen to him once she fell in love and got married. Did it mean that she was going to ignore him? She told him that wouldn’t happen, but they did discuss her loneliness as an adult. He seemed to have gotten it, and now that Amanda, Terence, and Jimmy were in the beginning stages of, well, she didn’t know what, Jasper found it amusing.
Turning back to look at Jimmy and then Terence, she informed them, “Monday would actually be the next day that would be good for me as tomorrow I’ll be sleeping half the day. I have to work tomorrow night.”
Jimmy smiled, his eyes twinkling. “As much as I want you to see the ranch, I don’t want to disrupt your work and sleep patterns. Monday, it is.”
“But we’ll still take you up on the Chinese food,” Terence teased, even though Amanda knew he was serious.
Somehow, these two men had whittled their way into her life, and they weren’t leaving.
“All right,” she said gleefully.
“Here,” Terence offered as he climbed down from his seat. “You sit up here. I’ll ride in the back with Jasper.”
Again, Amanda glanced at her brother, who, this time, made no acknowledgement of what was taking place. Oh, well. Baby steps.
Before she could step on the running board, Jimmy placed his hands on her waist and lifted her as if she we
re a feather. He settled her in the passenger seat and proceeded to put her seat belt on for her. Never in her life had Amanda experienced a chivalrous man, let alone two. For a moment, she pondered what she had done to deserve these two men.
“All snug?” Jimmy inquired as he rested his on her thigh.
The touch was light, but the heat it generated zipped through her veins up to her cunt. Moisture gathered there, causing her to shift a bit in her seat. Her nipples contracted within her thin lacy bra, and she had to hope he didn’t notice them. With it being so cold out, she could blame the reaction on the briskness in the air.
“I’m good,” she answered, her voice cracking a bit in her nervousness.
“Great!” he exclaimed as he took her hand and kissed the palm. “I’m going to run in and leave Austin’s keys with the front desk, and then I’ll be back.”
“Okay.”
For a brief moment before the large cowboy strode away quickly, dressed in what she was finding was his typical uniform—blue jeans, a plaid flannel shirt, and today he was wearing a parka—his eyes lit upon her breasts. A small smile had curved up the corners of his mouth, letting Amanda know what he was seeing.
Heat touched her cheeks as embarrassment swept through her. As Jimmy closed the door, Terence leaned forward and whispered in her ear, “There’s nothing to be embarrassed about, honey. We love looking at your body.”
A gasp escaped her as she whipped her head around. She had to see if Jasper had heard what had been said, but instead, she came face-to-face with Terence. His luscious lips were only inches away from hers. She let her gaze move up to his eyes, and she was able to study them.
Terence’s eyes were a light gray with a dark ring around them. Within the depths of his eyes were tiny flecks of blue. I could get lost in those eyes.
Lower, his nose was straight over his slight mustache. His mouth was wide when he smiled, which he seemed to do a lot when he was around her. A light scruff graced his jawline, and looking at it so close caused her to wonder what it would feel like along her skin. Jimmy had it also, and she liked it on both men. Some men couldn’t carry the look.
Before she knew it, Terence leaned in and pressed his lips against hers. They were warm as they sipped a couple of times around her mouth before he pulled away. Again, heat consumed her entire body at the feel and the intimacy of the innocent kiss.
As Terence moved to resume his seat, Amanda could see Jasper out of the corner of her eye. He was looking out the window, suddenly interested in the sky. She could only imagine how uncomfortable he must feel with the entire situation, not just the kiss.
Jimmy arrived back all too soon. When he slid into his seat and looked at her, his left eyebrow crooked up as if in a question. “Must have been good by the looks of you,” he teased.
After closing the door, he put the pickup in gear and headed off to Amanda’s house.
Expertly maneuvering his way through the city streets, Amanda had to wonder how he knew where he was going. It took a few minutes before she realized he had already been there, many, many times.
By the time she relaxed, they were pulling up in her driveway. It was then she remembered that her car was still sitting out at the Circle G.
“What about my car?” she asked anxiously. “I’ll need it tomorrow evening to go to work.”
“We’ll get it tomorrow, baby. Terence’s SUV is out at my place, too.” Jimmy smiled as he put the truck into park.
Jasper was out the door before the three adults opened their doors and heading to the front door. Jimmy looked worried. “Is he really all right with all of this?”
Watching her brother walk up to the house and then disappear through the front door, Amanda thought about him. He had seemed amused that she was the center of flirtations. Hopefully he was accepting of the guys.
Thankfully, Genny had left the porch light on as the city was now encased by the night. No more beautiful streaks of color lit the western sky. Glancing up out of her window, she could see stars above them.
She remembered the question. “I hope so.”
Looking down at the expanse between the running board and the driveway, she was a bit hesitant of getting out of the pickup, especially with snow on the ground. She had nothing to worry about, for both men were out of the pickup and around the front end in a few seconds. Terence reached up and helped her down.
Her body slid down the front of his as he let her down. She felt the hard muscles of his chest and then his abs. Lower, the steel shaft that was his cock was evident. He was aroused already. Taking a chance, she looked up at him and found his gray eyes now dark with his arousal.
“My body knows what it wants, Amanda,” he whispered breathily. “I’m not ashamed of it.”
Amanda was nervous. She was in a position she had never been in before, and she was at a loss for what to do. Desire for both men sang through her veins. Her body was responsive to them, but she was still nervous.
Loneliness had taken over her life, especially since she was in her midtwenties. Men were a conundrum to her, but she had a feeling these two men weren’t going to let her hide behind her uncertainties.
A giggle sounded, something that surprised her. She had realized that these two brought out the girl she had used to be, before everything stopped her personal world.
The cold seeped into her bones as they stood there looking at each other. When a chill racked her body, Terence offered his elbow. Slipping her hand through the crook of it, she decided she intended to see how far this was going to go. She needed her life back, and Jasper would have to accept that.
* * * *
Amanda’s house was small yet homey. There were three bedrooms, an eat-in kitchen, and the living room. Two bathrooms, one in the hallway, and the other in the master bedroom were the only ones in the house. The two-car garage was down one car, and the other space had shelves for storage, a weight bench, a top of the line treadmill, and a heavy bag.
As she had given the small tour, Terence took in all that was Amanda’s meager possessions. She had given up the master bedroom to her brother, for he had a desk in there along with his video gaming system set up in there.
His room consisted on everything that Terence would have loved for his room, but his parents wanted him to play outside. Terence understood that Jasper was pretty much a shut-in by choice and that Amanda wanted him to feel as normal as possible.
Amanda had whispered to him that she also didn’t want to share a bathroom with a boy, so this way, he had his own.
When they had entered the house, a young woman was putting on a jacket in the living room and stopped when she had seen him and Jimmy. Her eyes grew large as she sized them up from bottom to top, a smile appearing once she had finished.
“Oh, my,” she whispered into thin air. With a giggle and turning her head toward Amanda, she announced, “Wow. Aren’t you the lucky one!”
Terence looked over at Amanda, who was a nice shade of pink, as her gaping mouth indicated her shock.
“I’m outta here,” the woman declared as she made for the door. She was out into the brisk night air with the door closing behind her before anyone could say anything.
“Um,” Jimmy began in humorous awe. “What…who…”
His new friend was at a loss for words as much as Terence was.
Amanda turned toward the small desk that was in the corner of the living room. She picked up a paper that looked like a takeout menu.
“That was Genny. She sits with Jasper at night in exchange for her room. Sometimes she can be a bit direct,” Amanda explained as she brought the menu over to Terence and Jimmy. “Aren’t you guys going to sit? Or have you changed your minds about staying?”
There was an anxiousness to her, a bit of unsurety. Was she scared to be left alone with both of them? Jasper was down the hall, so Amanda wasn’t alone.
With a glance over at Jimmy, Terence saw the sheepish look on his face and had to wonder if he wore the same expression on his face
. Looking around the room at the couch and love seat that occupied the room along with a coffee table and a TV stand with a small twenty-four-inch TV on it, Terence finally decided on the love seat.
“We aren’t going anywhere, honey. No matter what happens, you’re stuck with us,” he said as he took his seat. Jimmy sat on the end of the couch nearest the door.
“So, what do you guys want to eat?” she asked as she sat on the coffee table. “We can get individual meals, or we can get the à la carte and share.”
“I’m partial to sharing myself,” Terence chimed in. If he was going to be sharing her with Jimmy, they might as well begin here and now.
Amanda blushed at his words, her face, neck, and chest turning a bright pink. Terence found she was cute when she did that. He would have to tease her more often just to be able to revel in her beauty.
“You choose what you want first,” Jimmy offered as he leaned back and crossed one leg over the other.
“I think I’ll get the Mongolian beef and the chicken chow mein.” Amanda handed the menu to Jimmy.
“We’ll need some pork fried rice and sweet and sour pork,” Jimmy added, not looking at the menu before stretching out and handing it to Terence.
Terence didn’t need to look at it. “Orange chicken and hot and sour soup. What about Jasper?” he asked as he too didn’t open the menu.
“He’ll eat whatever we order. He’s not too picky when it comes to food,” she spoke as she dug in her purse for her phone.
Terence was already dialing the restaurant before she could find her device. When the man on the other end answered, Terence put in the order, requesting double on a couple of the items. Amanda looked panicked when she heard him.
“I can’t afford all that!” she tried to protest.
“Did you really think we were going to let you pay for your own dinner?” Jimmy inquired. He looked hurt.
“I was supposed to be paying you back for bringing Jasper into town,” she countered.
“It was never going to happen that way, baby girl,” Jimmy assured her with a smile. “We’re going to show you that we are both real men who take care of their woman.”