by Vanessa Vale
All that just came to me. It made so much sense. All of it.
“I don’t believe you.”
I stood then. There was nothing else for me to say. She wasn’t going to believe me. Not her sister. No, she would believe the lies David Briggs fed her instead. She was gullible, vulnerable and like Archer said, brainwashed.
“You don’t have to believe me. Sheriff, would it be all right if Beth listened in while you talk with David Briggs?”
“That can be arranged.”
With that, I walked out. Beth was on her own. From my talk, Archer could easily see she was just an unwitting accomplice. But she needed to see the truth about the man she married and she’d have to learn the hard way.
Consequences were a bitch. But I couldn’t save Beth from them. She was on her own.
As I walked out the door, my men were there, pulling me into their arms. God, they smelled good. Felt good. So big, so strong. So mine. I wasn’t on my own. I had Cord and Riley. I wouldn’t be alone again.
14
RILEY
“You think I had anything to do with this?” David Briggs asked, his voice clear through the speaker.
We stood in the small office once again, this time with Kady. I stood behind her, had a hand on her shoulder as we watched Archer talk with the asshole. The hug we’d shared wasn’t enough. Just watching her with her sister…fuck, that had been rough. It was obvious the kind of shit her sister had put her through. The lack of appreciation, the selfishness. I’d wanted to go in and hug Kady and throttle Beth in equal measure. But Kady had held her own. She was so fucking strong, but that didn’t mean I didn’t want to toss her over my shoulder, get her the hell out of the station and home. Our home. Not Steele Ranch. Kady’s home was with us. I wanted her naked and beneath me. No, naked and between me and Cord. Our cocks buried deep, making her truly ours. Proving to her that she was what brought us together, made us a family. The three of us were one.
A little sappy, yes. I didn’t care. My father found the love of his life with my mother. While I was young when she’d died, I remembered them together. The connection, the devotion. They were the example I used for what it should be like. And while sharing Kady with Cord was completely outside of the norm, it was still the same. I was devoted to her. I’d protect her with my life. I’d…I’d love her for the rest of my life.
This fuck-all with her sister and Briggs brought it into quick focus. I didn’t want to lose her and as soon as we were done here, I’d prove it.
“She’s a druggie,” Briggs continued, breaking me from my thoughts. “Beth’s desperate and with a rich bitch sister, it was an easy way to score the next fix.”
Archer had been letting Briggs talk for the past few minutes, being the Good Cop. Letting Briggs relax, continue to think his shit didn’t stink, let him trap himself with his own words. Archer’s assessment had been right. He was a dangerous sociopath, easily lying to push the blame right off his shoulders. I could only imagine how many times he’d done it in the past.
The takedown had been simple. Too simple. I hadn’t been sure what to expect, but after having a guy break in the main house and try to kill Kady, I’d envisioned guns. A standoff of some kind like Kady had said. Stun guns and Tasers at a minimum. But no. One of the deputies had seen their rental car, the one that had a BOLO on it. It wasn’t too hard to be on the lookout around here. Especially on the county road heading to Steele Ranch. That road catered to a dually or durable pickup trucks, not a two-door hatchback with rear-wheel drive.
I was glad the deputy got to them first. Cord wanted to kill Briggs. So did the others. Me, too. But I wanted the fucker in jail, not any of my friends.
When we arrived, both Briggs and Kady’s sister had been standing by the hood of the car, handcuffed. No bullets. Hell, Briggs hadn’t even had a gun on him. Archer said one had been in his suitcase, but it wasn’t anywhere convenient to be used right away.
It hadn’t been dangerous. Not that we’d have let Kady come either way. And now Briggs was spouting shit and Beth stood right in front of the one-way glass, her wrists handcuffed together, her mouth open in stunned silence. I never would have guessed they were sisters. Half-sisters. Where Kady was vibrant and full of life, Beth was dull in comparison. She was several inches shorter with dark hair, lean physique. It was obvious she’d lived a hard life. She looked…worn down. And listening to her new husband’s words had to hit her hard. She’d been conned and conned hard. He’d used her need for love against her and it made me feel a little bit sorry for her. A little bit.
“So you planned it all,” Archer said.
“Me?” Briggs pointed to himself, then laughed. He even leaned back in his chair, slid his legs out long in front of him, as if he were at a bar, not in jail. “It’s Beth. She’s the crazy one. She talked about her sister’s inheritance and approached me.”
If I were a woman, I’d think him to be attractive, and I could see why Beth fell for him. His dark hair and eyes combined with the sociopathic personality could get practically any woman out of their panties—and their sisters’ fortunes. But he was also cocky and a total asshole. He all but looked down his nose at Archer, as if he were better and that once the small-town sheriff was done with his little chat, he’d be out the door.
“Did she hold a gun to your head when you got married?” Archer asked.
Briggs studied the sheriff across from him for a moment, assessed the conversation and answered accordingly. “A few kind words and she spread her legs. If she wanted to kill her sister, that was fine with me. I was content just helping her spend all the cash. Murder?” He shrugged. “That was all Beth’s planning.”
“No. God. No,” Beth murmured. “That’s not true. None of it is true! I didn’t know anything about it. He’s lying!”
Beth was crying now. Hard. The deputy reached up, turned off the sound from the other room because that was more than enough for her to see the true man she married. It was bad. Really fucking bad. Briggs would do anything to get out of hard time, even pinning the murder rap on Beth. He might be a drug addict, too, but he was high-functioning. I had to guess he had some money of his own that could feed his habit and keep him from being desperate. Keep him out of lockup. It didn’t keep him from being greedy though.
“You’re going to jail, Beth,” Kady said, her voice soft, but even. “You can decide if you want to go to prison rehab or a cell. It’s up to you. You’re on your own.”
Beth’s face was turned down, looking at her cuffed wrists, the floor. Tears dripped down her pale cheeks.
“I love you,” Kady added. “I always will, no matter what you do. But I can’t protect you anymore. If you choose to turn your life around, get clear of drugs once and for all, you know where to find me. Right here in Barlow.”
Beth just nodded, but didn’t glance up. Didn’t even have the decency to apologize for what she’d done, for what her actions had almost done to her sister. Until she was clean and looked Kady in the eye, stated what she’d done and apologized, she wasn’t getting back into her life.
Perhaps Kady thought that too, because she didn’t say anything else. She turned and took my hand. “I’m done here.”
That’s right. It was over. All of it. I had no doubt Archer would continue to interrogate Briggs and have him officially charged before too long. We didn’t need to stay and listen. As for Beth? Her sister would always be a strain for Kady. Even if she went to prison rehab, Kady would still worry. That was the kind of woman she was. But she’d let go of making her a responsibility and it was time for her to move on. With us.
I led her out of the office and out into the night, Cord right behind us. It was late, close to midnight. The stars were like a blanket across the inky black sky. All was quiet. While the air was cool, it wasn’t cold. A perfect night.
“I love you,” Kady said. No, she blurted it out, as if she’d been holding it back for so long it just popped out.
Cord froze. I tugged on her hand so she
spun about to face me. Even under the harsh parking lot lights, she was so beautiful.
“What?” I asked, even though I’d heard her the first time.
She looked up at me, then Cord, tucked her hair back behind her ear.
“I love you.” This time, the words were said with less conviction and quite a bit of doubt.
“Sweetness, we know,” Cord replied.
“You…you do?” she frowned.
He cupped her jaw, stroked his thumb over her cheek. “In everything you do, say. In the way you look at us. The way you give yourself to us so beautifully.”
“Completely,” I added. “You don’t hold anything back.”
It was true. She loved with her whole heart and we were two fuckers lucky enough to have it. That was why it was so damned scary. We had her perfect, fragile heart in our hands.
“Is it true what you said?” Cord asked. “That you’ll be here in Barlow?”
She nodded. “Yes. God, yes. There’s nothing for me in Philadelphia anymore. I’ve kept my parents’ house because it’s always been home, but without them, without Beth in it, it’s not the same. And Beth…well, she won’t be there. Obviously. I’ve been lucky with my job, but I can teach anywhere.”
“Archer did mention they had an opening at the school,” I reminded, feeling even more hopeful by the second.
“I’d like to look into it. I’d like to stay.”
“With us?” I added.
She rolled her eyes. “Of course, you. No one else has given me jewelry.”
“You want a sparkling jewel on your finger to go with the pretty one we got for your ass?”
She laughed, then quickly stopped. Went still. “Was that a proposal?”
“You’re ours, Kady. We don’t need a ring to know that,” I told her, glancing around. “But if we’re going to propose, it’s not going to be in the sheriff’s department parking lot.”
“I think right here is perfect,” she replied, her voice breathy. “Something to tell our grandchildren about.”
Cord looked like he’d been hit by a Mack truck.
“You want kids?” he asked.
“Yes.”
“Now?” The Mack truck was quickly barreling toward me because everything out of her mouth was surprising me more and more.
She tilted her head to the side, bit her lip. “Well,” she replied, drawing it out into long syllables. “Maybe not tonight, since you’ll be, um…fucking my ass instead of my pussy.”
The Mack truck ran me right over. Fuck.
She stared up at us, waiting for us to respond. I couldn’t. My brain had literally short-circuited. She loved us, wanted to get married and have us put a baby in her belly. Oh, and fuck her virgin ass.
Worked for me.
CORD
Thank fuck we were in town and not out at the ranch. Because when I all but dragged Kady to Riley’s truck, tossed her up into the front seat and put on her seatbelt, it was only a three-minute ride to our house and another thirty seconds to having her standing in front of my bed.
We hadn’t said a word since Kady told us she wanted us to take her ass. Not just that, that she wanted to marry us and make our babies. There was nothing to say, especially not in the damned parking lot.
I dropped to my knees before her and I had to look up her. “Sweetness, I love you. I fell in love with you the second I saw your picture. My heart’s been yours ever since. I know it’s been three days since we first met, but fuck it. You said you loved us and there’s no taking it back.”
“Here,” Riley said. We both watched as he tugged the gold signet ring from his pinky finger, held it out. “It was my father’s. He’d love knowing you’d wear it.”
I took it, lifted Kady’s left hand, slipped it on her ring finger. It was a little big, but we’d get her a real engagement ring later. Something with a big fucking rock. But knowing Kady, she’d want this impromptu one, just resized. That was what I loved about her. “Marry us.”
Tears formed in her eyes, slipped down her cheeks. “Yes!” she cried, palming my face and leaning down for a kiss.
It was searing, hot, with a whole fuck-ton of tongue.
When she finally lifted her head, she looked to Riley, went over to him, kissed him, too. Fuck, just watching the two of them together made me hot.
I pressed my palm against the front of my jeans trying to ease the ache in my dick. It was so hard, so damned eager to get inside our woman and show her just how much she meant to us.
“You sure you want us to fuck your ass? That plug’s done a good job of preparing you, but you have to be ready up here, too.” Riley tapped a finger gently to her head.
“I am. I’m ready. I-I liked the plug and the way you play there. I liked your fingers, too, so I know I’ll like something bigger.”
“We’re not just going to take your ass, sweetness,” I clarified. “I’ll take that tight, virgin hole while Riley’s buried deep in your pussy. Tonight, we’re taking you together.”
She whimpered and I watched as her eyes became soft with need. “I know you’re going to make it really good. You always do.”
I grinned, my cock swelled and the caveman in me practically growled. “The lady always comes first. And more than once.”
Riley stroked her hair back, slid his palm down her neck and lower still to cup her breast. “As for that baby…I know you’re on the pill, so you’ll go off that and we’ll see what happens. Fuck knows we fill you with enough of our cum for it to take.”
She licked her glossy lips, stepped back until the backs of her legs bumped my bed and curled a finger, Riley’s ring glinting in the light.
We approached and she undid my jeans, then Riley’s, until our dicks were out and pointing straight at her. Glancing up at both of us through her gorgeous red lashes, she whispered. “I want all that cum. Gimme.”
I almost came then and there. Fuck, I would never get enough of this woman. She was mine. Ours. It was time to show her just how much. And if she wanted our cum, we’d give it to her. As much as she wanted. As much as she could take. Because from now on, we were the only ones who were going to give it to her. Ever.
15
KADY
I wasn’t spontaneous. Anyone who knew me in Philadelphia would agree to that. But ever since I’d stepped foot in Montana, I was a new person. I’d fallen in love with two men. Immediately. I went from being indifferent about a baby to wanting one immediately. I’d gotten engaged. Engaged!
I hadn’t debated, questioned, pondered or any other Scrabble word for it. I went with my gut, and more importantly, my heart. And now I had a ring on my finger and two men stripping me bare.
“I love this little patch of red hair,” Riley murmured, as he knelt at my feet and kissed right on my landing strip. My clit, just below his lips, tingled and throbbed, eager to be next. The hands I had on his shoulders moved to his hair and I guided him that way. I saw his ring on my finger, knew this wasn’t just a wild romp. It never had been. Not even that first night on the porch. This was forever. I heard Cord’s clothes fall to the floor, his belt clinking as it landed.
“Want something?” Riley asked, a teasing lilt to his voice.
“Your mouth,” I murmured, looking down into his pale eyes.
Cord went around behind me, sat on the edge of the bed and reached his hands around to cup my breasts. I was surrounded by men. Just as they said I would be. Soon, I’d have their cocks inside me. Until then, I’d feel empty.
“Where?” Riley continued.
I whimpered as he placed another kiss, this time to the inside of my thigh, making me step wider.
“My clit,” I breathed.
As soon as Riley stopped teasing me and put his mouth right where I wanted, Cord took my nipples between his fingers and tugged, pinched and played. The combination had my eyes falling closed, my mind going blank. I felt Cord’s lips kiss up and down my spine, Riley’s mouth hot and wet, learning every inch of my pussy.
Everyt
hing about Beth just went away. Not completely, for what had happened couldn’t be forgotten, but I’d realized all I could do was love her. Nothing more. And that I could do, no matter her choices.
And so it was time to move on with my life, and that meant, at least for the rest of the night, to get well-fucked by my men. When Riley slipped a finger inside of me, curled it perfectly over my g-spot, I came on a breathy cry. Just like that.
“God, I’ve never been like this before.”
Riley slipped his finger from me, sucked it clean. As he did so, he glanced up at me, eyes hooded, mouth glistening with my arousal. “Like what?” he asked when he licked his lips.
“Been so easy to come. It was like, what, thirty seconds?”
Cord pulled me back so I sat on his lap, my legs settled over his. I could feel the soft hairs of his chest against my sweaty back.
“Sweetness, you were meant for us. We know your body, know what it needs, what makes you hot.” His hand went around my waist and as he widened his own legs, mine parted so I was completely exposed. His hand slid between my parted thighs and over my slick—and sensitive—folds and one blunt finger slid deep. “What makes you come. My turn.”
He moved his hand gently, the heel of it rubbing over my clit, so sensitive from Riley’s mouth. Riley was still on his knees, watching. “I can see how you take Cord’s finger nice and deep. Soon that’s going to be my cock.”
Riley stood, but didn’t shift his gaze as he stripped. I kept my eyes open, watched his hard, muscled body be exposed one inch at a time. And his cock, when it bobbed toward me, it was eager and ready, the broad head dripping pre-cum as if it couldn’t hold off a second longer.
“That’s right, sweetness. See that? Riley’s balls are so full of cum they can’t hold it all. Take him in your mouth. Suck him down.”
I licked my lips at the idea of feeling that hard length deep in my mouth, feel the heat of it, taste it. Riley stepped closer, gripping the base in a fist and put the crown gently at my lips.