by Avery Gale
“Oh I’m sure they both had weapons with them, but I’d like to talk to whoever was there. Phoenix might have managed some restraint if the adrenaline didn’t kick his control to the curb. But Kip? Hell, he probably wouldn’t realize what he was feeling was an adrenaline rush, and he damned sure wouldn’t feel a moment’s remorse. You pull him out of a woman’s bed at this hour, that boy is gonna shoot first and ask questions sometime next week.” Brandt’s sly grin assured Ryan the ornery kid he’d once known was still inside the morose man they’d all worried about for the past year and a half. Relief flooded him as he realized their crazy plan to share a woman might actually work.
He’d always worried he wouldn’t find a woman who would be willing to put up with the brutally demanding schedule of doctors in rural areas. But, Ryan had never wanted to specialize in some boring peripheral branch of medicine just to ensure he rarely worked anything but normal office hours. After spending several summers in Pine Creek, he’d always dreamed of settling into a small town—there was something about the intimacy of knowing everyone in the community that seemed right to him.
A single trip to the Pine Creek Emergency Room when he’d been sixteen was still burned in his memory. He and his cousins had been racing dirt bikes up the mountain trails behind their home when Ryan rounded a corner ahead of Kip to find a couple of hikers directly in front of him. Despite the fact he knew they were trespassing, his instinct to protect the young couple kicked in making him jerk the bike sharply to the left. The move sent him tumbling end over end down the rocky embankment.
His injuries had been serious enough the first responders on the scene hadn’t wanted to take a chance transporting him to a larger hospital in Missoula or Billings, taking him instead to the much smaller facility in Pine Creek. The medical center would more accurately be described as an elaborate clinic. Their equipment had been dated, but the elderly physician who’d treated him had been top notch. The old man hadn’t missed a thing, he’d even properly diagnosed Ryan’s lacerated liver. And, rather than following the old standard treatment recommendation for emergency surgery, the well-read physician opted to stall and monitor Ryan’s lab tests vigilantly giving his body time to heal the wound on its own. The move had saved Ryan weeks of recovery time and impressed the specialists he’d seen after returning home to Texas.
Doc had stayed at his bedside for thirty-six hours straight, not trusting anyone else to notice the subtle changes he’d assured Dean and Patsy Morgan he was watching for. His dedication to a teenager who’d been driving recklessly and over-reacted causing the fall had been a turning point in Ryan’s young life. Late one night after Doc had finally agreed to release him the next morning, Ryan tried to thank the physician for all he’d done. “Sir, I don’t know how to thank you, well, for everything. But mostly for assuring my mom and dad I’m going to be okay. I didn’t want them coming home from their trip—they’d been looking forward to this for a long time.”
The old guy hadn’t responded, he’d just looked at Ryan over the top of his glasses for long seconds. He’d finally folded the half-moon spectacles and slid them into his pocket before leaning back against the small sink in the corner of the room. “The best way to repay someone for a kindness is to pass it along three-fold. It’s just another take on the Rule of Three, which says everything—both good and bad, that you do comes back to you times three. So if you repeat my kindness three times and each of those people do the same—the world becomes a better place in a real big hurry.” It had been a defining moment and from that point forward, Ryan’s life had changed direction. He’d always assumed he’d join his father in the energy industry, but everything had been different after that summer.
Bringing his thoughts back to the moment, Ryan glanced over his shoulder, he smiled. “She captivates me. She did the first time I met her, but work kept me from following up after we were introduced.”
“Don’t take this the wrong way—but I’m damned glad. If that hadn’t happened, I might not have ever met her.” The sincerity in Brandt’s expression only served to reinforce what Ryan had already seen—if his cousin wasn’t already in love with Joelle, he was definitely moving in that direction. The next time Brandt spoke, his words were much quieter, as if he didn’t want to wake the woman sleeping quietly behind him. “Both of us have chosen careers that will keep us away from home more than we’d like. And, we’ve already discussed sharing. I know it was a long time ago, but…”
“Yes.” He let the one word response sit between them for several seconds before continuing. “If you’re asking if I’m still interested in a polyamorous relationship, the answer is an unequivocal, resounding yes. I don’t know how Joelle will feel about it, but I’m damned anxious to find out. I’m sure you feel the same way I do about her safety. I’d like to see this mess resolved before we add any unnecessary stress to her life.”
“Agreed.” Brandt paused so long, Ryan thought the conversation was over. But then he saw a knowing grin spread over his cousin’s face. “I assume this means Pine Creek is going to have another Doc soon?”
Ryan didn’t hesitate, laughing he answered, “Hell, your dad sealed this deal weeks ago. This visit is just a formality. I was going to try to find a place while I was here, but now I’m thinking maybe we ought to all stay at the ranch—at least for a while.” God knew there was plenty of space in the main house. He’d also heard several of his cousins’ homes were finished or nearly so, there should be plenty of options available.
“Joelle definitely needs to stay at the ranch until we get this sorted out. Phoenix is probably ramping up the security system he installed at her place, but nothing beats layers of protection and she’ll have it at the ranch. And we might actually get spend some quality time with her without being interrupted if we have your brothers watching our backs. Hell, I want to shoot the bastard who tripped the alarm for fucking up our time with her if nothing else.” Ryan didn’t care if he sounded petulant, he’d been looking forward to spending some time with Joelle between them even if it was just to sleep for a few hours. He’d been intrigued by her when they first met and now—knowing they shared an in interest in dominance and submission? Hell, he could hardly wait to explore the lifestyle with her, and adding Brandt into the mix the frosting on the cake.
Brandt looked at his cousin and grinned. “Understood. I have a lot of pent up frustration waiting on the fucker trying to hurt her myself. And screwing up my aftercare plans didn’t do anything to improve my mood. As you know, my team’s last mission, well, it went so far south I saw a penguin sporting a Timberwolf C14.” His favored sniper rifle might not be as recognizable as some others, but it had never failed him. It didn’t matter his Commanding Officer taunted that he’d chosen it simply because of the name—hell, maybe there had been a thread of truth to his accusation. But when his life and those of his team depended on him being able to feel as though the rifle was an extension of himself, he didn’t question why something worked—he just used it.
“The whole operation was FUBAR from the time we hit the ground and I’m itching to set a few things straight with the Universe.” Fucked up beyond all recognition was a gross understatement, hell, the enemy had been waiting for them. Brandt never was able to find out all the details, but he knew clear to his toes they’d been set up.
As they neared Joelle’s home, he turned to wake her and saw she was already looking out the window. He hated seeing the forlorn look in her eyes and wished like hell he wasn’t sure he knew what she was thinking. “Joelle, Phoenix and Kip have already cleared the yard, but they’re waiting for me to get there before entering the house.” It was several seconds before she met his gaze—she didn’t respond, just waited patiently for him to continue. “Is the alarm system the only thing we need to contend with?”
She blinked at him in confusion for a few seconds before he saw understanding dawn in her eyes. “Are you asking me if I’ve booby-trapped the place?” When he nodded, her soft laugh didn’t reflect eve
n a hint of humor. “No. I know Coral said she’d done that in her apartment, but with Phoenix’s security system in place, glassware in front of the door seemed like overkill.” He was glad to see she was, at least, pretending her sense of humor was returning, even though he could see the resignation in her eyes. Damn, he hated knowing she thought running was her only option. It wasn’t—not by a long shot, but he was equally convinced it wasn’t going to be easy to persuade her otherwise.
Before stepping out of the vehicle, Brandt gave Ryan a knowing look—the message clear. Take care of her. He joined his brothers and listened as they relayed what they’d found. After listening to Kip describe where he’d heard a vehicle roar to life, there wasn’t any question the perimeter breach had been intentional. No one accidentally ended up in the rutted woods behind Joelle’s home. The area was covered in thick brush and riddled with treacherous washouts tourists wouldn’t find and locals didn’t have any interest in dealing with. Hell, everyone knew it had been part of the reason Joelle’s reclusive uncle had liked the property so much and he assumed it was also a factor in Joelle staying in Pine Creek. She’d probably felt safer in a location knowing she only needed to secure the house itself.
It didn’t take long to determine Phoenix’s security system had not been compromised, but it didn’t mean Brandt wanted Joelle to stay there alone. Even with Brandt and Ryan staying with her, Joelle wouldn’t be as safe in her home as she’d be at the ranch. Not only was the ranch house secured by a state of the art system including a safe room with a secondary escape route, more importantly, but there were also more people around. At any given time, there were probably a dozen people milling around the area surrounding the house.
Ryan helped Joelle out of the car when they saw Brandt headed their way—she surprised him by stepping forward and meeting his gaze. “I’m not going to be able to stay here now, am I?” Well, at least, it looked as if they were going to be able to skip the first part of the argument he’d worried about.
“No, sweetheart, I don’t think that would be wise.”
Before he could finish, she turned to Ryan. “After your meetings today, do you think you could take me back to the club to get my car? I’ll spend the day packing and hopefully I can find a moving company with a temporary storage facility.” Neither Brandt nor Ryan interrupted her, she needed a chance to vent, even though she was wasting energy trying to sort through everything. He’d seen a lot of reactions to trauma and learned a long time ago to let victims work through the bursts of emotion that followed whatever way they could. Logic could wait now that the imminent danger had passed.
Chapter Six
Joelle looked around the massive kitchen in the Morgan family home marveling at how a room so large could still feel so cozy. She’d been in the Morgan’s home for their annual New Year’s Eve party…which turned out to also be night Sage Morgan proposed to her friend Coral. She also visited their home several times during the wedding festivities, and she was always in awe of the earthy elegance of the space. The Morgan’s mountain mansion was such a contrast to the home Joelle had grown up in…her father’s home was a marble and gilded gold monstrosity. It was beautiful in its own way, but it had always felt more like a museum than a home. Even as a child she’d known it wasn’t a place she could relax.
Taking a deep breath, Joelle tried to sort through the quagmire of emotions she’d been swamped in since she’d realized the Dom Master Nate had assigned to punish her was none other than Brandt Morgan. God in fucking heaven…had it been less than twenty-four hours ago? How in the hell had her life completely derailed so quickly? Taking a deep breath, Joelle tried to focus her attention on the steaming cup of tea in front of her. She wasn’t a fool, she knew Kip Morgan had used decaffeinated tea. She’d wanted to laugh at his attempt to dupe her—hello there, sweetie, but I’m a chemist, and we notice things like our drug of choice missing from a beverage.
After Ryan and Brandt politely explained they had no intention of helping her move from Pine Creek she’d tried to reason with them, but a couple of sharp swats to her tender behind served as a poignant reminder of why arguing with Doms was never a good idea. They’d promised to provide her a with a world class paddling right in her own front yard if she didn’t stop babbling about moving and start packing whatever she’d need for the next few days. Joelle appreciated the fact they hadn’t followed her around her house while she gathered up everything she needed. They’d probably known she had things hidden in her home…things she’d need to take with her and their respect for her privacy had gone a long way in convincing her to follow their damned edicts. Yeah, and the fact they are both hot former Special Forces operatives trained to keep entire countries safe didn’t play into it at all—get a grip, Joelle.
One of the flash drives containing her information about the formula was nestled inside her purse. It wasn’t an ideal hiding place, but it was better than taking a risk and leaving it behind. Joelle was still grateful for her uncle’s series of clues that had eventually led her to the small safe hidden beneath the floorboards in her bedroom. Without the clues he’d left her, Joelle doubted she’d have ever found the in-floor safe. Her mother’s only brother had obviously been more than a little paranoid, but he’d also been brilliant in his own way. The historical fiction books he’d written were so full of detail she knew he had to have spent years researching each of the novels he’d penned. And leaving the royalties from those books to the history department of a local college had been a gift she knew would fund several scholarships for years to come.
Joelle leaned her chin on her hand to keep from laying her head on the Morgan’s kitchen table. She blinked her tired eyes in an attempt to bring her surroundings into focus while trying desperately to stay awake as five Morgan men discussed what she was going to do. What the hell am I, fucking invisible? God save her from a roomful of alpha males. If they kept yakking much longer, she was going to be comatose. Damn, she was tired. There was a small part of her that knew she was straddling a blurred line between being fully asleep and alert, but it seemed like too much effort to nit-pick so she let it go.
She felt her chin slip from her palm and yelped when it hit the table with a solid thump. Damn, damn, damn, that hurt. She was on her feet before she realized she’d even stood. The thump of her chin on the wood and the scraping of her chair across the floor drew the attention of the men across the room. Ryan was the first to reach her, his strong hands cupping her shoulders as she shook her head in an effort to push the exhaustion aside. Brandt stepped up to her, concern etching his gorgeous features…or at least, she thought it was concern. It was hard to tell because her vision was blurry from exhaustion. God, she needed to get some rest, since she couldn’t even see clearly. Her attention shifted between Brandt and Ryan as she asked, “Can someone please show me to my room? I’m really tired.”
Ryan tipped her chin up and running his fingers along the underside, and frowned. “Christ, at least, you didn’t split it open. Stitching up this pretty face definitely wasn’t in my plans for tonight.”
Colt Morgan’s voice sounded from across the table, “Yeah and it’s all about you, Doc.” The sarcasm in his voice was tinged with enough respect and humor to make Joelle smile. When she looked up at the second Morgan brother, his smile was sweetly indulgent. “Sweetie, please sit down before your knees fold out from under you.” When she dropped back into her chair, he nodded. “Better. Now, if one of these jokers doesn’t take you to Brandt’s suite in the next couple of minutes I’ll take you to one of the guest suites—how’s that sound?”
“Thanks, I appreciate your hospitality.” She saw the corners of his mouth turn up in a grin, and knew he was deliberately taunting his brother and cousin, but if it helped her find a place to crash she didn’t care. She’d barely gotten the words out before Brandt scooped her up in his arms. Before they were out of the room her eyes were already drifting closed, but she heard him tell his brothers he’d be back as soon as he helped Ryan get h
er settled. Her curiosity flickered briefly but was quickly lost in the darkness of blessed sleep.
Ryan followed Brandt down the hall even though he knew exactly where they were going. The Morgan brothers had chosen their suites years earlier and the only one of them who’d moved was Sage. The eldest brother had taken over his parents’ master suite in the other wing of the house when they moved into a house in town. Ryan knew his aunt and uncle planned to spend most of the year traveling so the smaller home in Pine Creek worked out fine. He knew they’d hoped their moving would bring a woman into Sage’s life and damn if it didn’t seem to have worked. It was just one more example of how intuitive Patsy Morgan had always been.
Ryan hadn’t been able to attend Sage and Coral’s Valentine’s Day wedding, so he was looking forward to their return to Pine Creek in a couple of weeks. He hoped things were resolved with Joelle by that time. Not only was he anxious to know she was safe, but he also knew Sage wouldn’t be happy knowing his new bride could be in danger because her friend was staying under the same roof. All four of the Morgan brothers had expressed similar concerns downstairs and even though he knew Joelle hadn’t heard that part of their conversation, Ryan knew she’d come to the same conclusion herself soon enough.
Brandt set Joelle on the marble counter in the en suite bathroom while Ryan readied the shower. Moving her into the small room Brandt called a shower, Ryan was amazed at how much the water seemed to revive her. He’d hoped it would sooth the worry he sensed weighing heavily on her mind, but it seemed to have had the opposite effect. Ryan was working conditioner into her long hair when he heard Brandt growl a warning. “Minx, you keep that up and you’re not going to get to sleep for a while, and my brothers are going to be left cooling their heels down in the kitchen longer than they’ll appreciate.”