Love Under Two Quarterbacks [The Lusty, Texas Collection] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting)

by Cara Covington

  “Thank you for telling me. I’m glad I didn’t know beforehand.”

  “Do I need to tell you that what happened to you was criminal? That no blame whatsoever belongs to you?”

  “No. I know that what my mother’s husband did to me was a crime. It was assault. But I forged my identity and have been living that lie for many years.”

  “There are mitigating circumstances. You’re not to worry about that. We’ve already made inquiries. There will be no charges filed against you. Now, I have something for you.” Kate handed her a business card.

  “Doctor Angela O’Connor is a psychologist who works with abuse survivors. I want you to promise me that if you have nightmares, or if you just feel the need to talk, and you don’t want to talk to me, or your men, that you’ll call her.”

  “All right. But you’d be my first choice, Grandma Kate.”

  “That is a lovely thing to hear.” Kate gave her a hug. “Now, shall we call those men back in from the kitchen?” Kate grinned. “My daughter-in-law brought some of her delicious peanut butter cookies over yesterday. I’m hoping there’re some left.”

  “Yes, please. I need some coffee and cookies—but mostly I need to know what happens next.”

  * * * *

  “What time is it?”

  Cord looked over at his brother, then up at the midday late September sun beating down with an August intensity. “Nearly three.” They’d finished moving some of the cattle from the old pasture to a new one. The herd was small, not a hundred head. When the vet arrived the next day from Gatesville, they’d give him a hand examining the bull they’d separated during the move and had put into a stall in the barn. It was nearly of age, and Chase wanted to be certain it was healthy before letting him have his way with the heifers.

  “Barn’s gonna stink like bullshit,” Brian Benedict said.

  Cord hadn’t seen his cousin approach. He had to laugh, because aside from being a hard-working cowboy, Brian was a real card at times.

  “Shit is shit,” Jackson said. “Though I can tell the difference between cow, pig and chicken.”

  “Chicken’s the worst,” Cord said.

  “Stink is stink, isn’t it?” Brian asked. “I mean, I prefer the particular aroma of horseshit, but stink is stink.”

  “The man has obviously never smelled chicken shit,” Jackson said.

  “Obviously. But he’s young yet, and not what I would call a man of the world.” Cord said that and then ducked when Brian made as if to punch him.

  “Ari’s coming out in a bit,” Jackson said. “We’re going to go for a trail ride.”

  “I saw her the other day. She’s doing well on horseback for a novice.”

  Ari was doing well, period, as far as Cord was concerned. In the two weeks since they’d sat down with Grandma Kate and Jake, discussing the past and making plans for dealing with things and getting her some closure, Ari had seemed like a new woman. She smiled more, and the chip she’d been carrying for so long on that shoulder of hers was practically nonexistent.

  The more time they spent with her the more certain they were that she was the woman they’d grow old with. They wanted her to get a little more settled before they asked her, but he and Jackson had already been looking at engagement rings and discussing when and how to “pop the question.”

  He and his brother had grabbed their showers and just finished saddling the horses. Now they were more or less just waiting for Ari to arrive. She was bringing a picnic with her. Cord was hoping to have her for dessert.

  “Can you suggest any particularly nice spots to stop and have the picnic she’s bringing with her?”

  “There’s that little grove of trees about a quarter mile out, toward the creek,” Brian said. You’ll have some shade, and the ground is just a bit softer there for your…picnic.”

  Jackson shook his head. “Shade needed in the last week of September. Seems surreal to me.”

  “What, you were expecting snow?” Brian’s sneer was likely meant to rile them, but Cord just found him comical.

  “It snows in the mountains in September,” Cord said. “Of course, we’re not saying we miss it, necessarily.”

  “Especially with our banged-up knees,” Jackson said. “Snow comes with cold, which can make them ache like hell.”

  “There ya go. I might be a young’un, but y’all are a couple of crippled-up old men.”

  “We’re going to have to take issue with that opinion at a later date,” Cord said. His gaze was on the small car coming toward the barn.

  “Yeah, yeah, that’s what all my elderly cousins and brothers say, too.” Brian laughed. “Hasn’t happen so far.”

  “We’ll be sure to let them know that opinion, as well,” Jackson said, “and see what we can all come up with—later.”

  Brian chuckled as he left them and headed toward the house. Cord was thinking the young’un did need a bit of an attitude adjustment. He looked at Jackson and grinned.

  Montana Benedicts knew how to wait for their moment to deliver proper comeuppance. Cord nodded, and then with Jackson, headed toward their woman.

  Jackson reached her first and locked his lips on hers at the same time he relieved her of the picnic basket. “Mmm, mmm, I do love the taste of you, woman,” he said.

  Cord took her hand and eased her into his arms. He took a moment to meet her gaze. She definitely was a much happier woman since that meeting. He didn’t think he could put into words how happy that made him.

  He covered her mouth with his and let himself sink into her kiss. Everything inside him turned right and perfect once she was with them. Her flavor had a tremendous restorative effect on him.

  “How was your day, Red?”

  “It was a good day. Rebecca came in for a manicure. That means she and Cody and Greg are back from their quick trip to Colorado to help with the flood relief efforts there.”

  “They’re the ones who are building one of the houses out by the larger creek, aren’t they?”

  “Yep. Greg is Chase and Brian’s brother. He’s older than they are, and the only one of the brothers without a womb mate.”

  “Older brother, huh? Sounds like a man we should talk to about his bratty little brother.”

  Ari giggled. “I sense some sibling trouble coming down the pike for Brian. He’s a huge kidder, but I’ve heard Carrie say more than once that sometimes he skates a very thin line. She’s often mused aloud that it’s pure lucky, the way he’s escaped being pummeled so far.”

  “If you don’t mind, I don’t want to talk about the runt of the litter right now,” Jackson said. “What say we take us a little ride down toward the river…or in this case, the creek?”

  Ari laughed. “You going to be bringing a blanket with you, slick? So we can get all nice and cozy while we eat?”

  “Tinker Bell, it’s already tied to the back of my saddle.”

  There was no mistaking the light of interest in their woman’s eyes. Jackson took the picnic basket and secured it to his saddle while Cord helped Ari onto the horse.

  “Do we have to go far?”

  Jackson shook his head. He held up his hand, fingers splayed. “Not five minutes. But we won’t be seen from the house or the barn or the road, where we’re going to be. We’ll be alone.”

  They both knew the glade that Brian had been talking about. It had just a few trees, not very tall, that grew together in a clump not far from a small stream. It was a very short ride, which suited them fine. Until Ari became more accustomed to riding, they’d keep their excursions with her limited. It would take her a while before she would be able to tolerate a long stint in the saddle. But the way he and Jackson figured it, they had nothing but time.

  They’d have to see about going on an overnight excursion when she was ready. Maybe there was a line shack or a cabin somewhere close by that the family used for camping out. He’d have to remember to ask.

  They set off at a walk. Ari had become more comfortable in the saddle. That pleased them
both because riding was one of their favorite pastimes.

  “I think Sunrise likes me.” Ari sounded pleased by the possibility.

  It was true. She and the mare had bonded. Whenever Ari came out to the ranch, even if they weren’t riding, she made a point of going to the small corral next to the barn just to say hello to the horse.

  It was usually a mutual greeting.

  “What’s not to like?” Cord pulled up by the trees and looked around. It was a good spot for a picnic. He maneuvered his horse to the other side of the small shaded area, downwind and away from where they planned to pitch their blanket.

  Jackson helped Ari down, and then he took her horse over to where Cord had tied his. The animals could reach their own dinner, and he and his brother would water them before they headed back.

  Jackson brought the blanket back with him and laid it out on the ground. Cord set the basket down on the edge of the blanket. The sun hung low in the sky. They only had a few hours until sunset. It would be plenty of time for what they had in mind.

  Ari was looking around the area, and brought her gaze to him when he stepped in front of her.

  “There’s nothing fancy in that basket. Just a salad I made this morning before going in to work, and some fried chicken I bought from Kelsey. The, um, pastries that Tracy threw in were free.”

  “That sounds like bountiful fare, sweetheart. And we’ll get to it, eventually.”

  “Eventually? Aren’t you hungry?”

  Jackson pressed up against Ari’s back, and Cord could see how their nearness affected her. Her nipples had formed hard little peaks beneath her bra and T-shirt. He’d bet when they peeled her jeans down, her panties would be soaked.

  “Yeah, we thought it might be an idea to work up a bigger appetite, first,” Jackson said.

  “And how do you propose to do that?”

  She was leaning against Jackson and had that saucy little fuck-me twinkle in her eyes.

  Cord gave her a big grin. “I think we’re past due for our first round of ‘naughty dog,’ don’t you?”

  “Hell, yes.” Ari’s eyes turned golden and he knew her fires were already lit.

  “Ah, Red, I love your spirit of adventure.” He reached forward, gathered her shirt, and whipped it up and over her head. Jackson released her breasts from the bra, dropping the undergarment on top of the shirt. Then he moved his hands around to the opening of her jeans. He had them down her gorgeous legs and off her—along with her shoes and socks and her tiny miniscule scrap of a thong—in under two minutes.

  Ari seemed to really like being naked outside. Cord knew there was no chance anyone would see them. They were on Benedict land, and despite the fact that Brian liked to kid, he’d make sure neither his brother nor Ricoh, the ranch foreman, would come out this way.

  “So how do we play ‘naughty dog,’ exactly?” Ari looked over her shoulder to catch Jackson’s gaze, then faced him again. “You sniff my crotch and then hump my leg?”

  Cord burst out laughing. Trust their woman to make them laugh at the damndest of times.

  “Actually I think this particular rendition,” Jackson said, “will involve you getting down on your hands and knees. Cord is going to fuck your cunt from behind, doggie style, while you suck my cock.”

  Ari nearly purred in response to his brother’s suggestion. “That sounds like fun. But for this to work, you guys are going to have to get naked, too.”

  Cord met his brother’s gaze. “That sounds like a hell of a good idea, Red. Why don’t we just take care of that little thing?”

  Together, he and Jackson made quick work of stripping off their clothes. The way their woman looked at them had Cord’s cock getting even harder by the second. Yep, he sure did love Ari’s spirit of adventure.

  * * * *

  Dwight Gilmore was sick and tired of waiting, sick and tired of camping out, and really sick and tired of watching those fucking wonder twins play at being cowboys.

  It had only been a few weeks. He’d stalked celebrities before for longer, but from the relative comfort of his car and with the added perk of drive-thru burgers.

  He’d actually been on these bastards’ tails since before they came to Texas. The new football season was underway. Gilmore would have thought they’d have made their move by now. What the hell are they waiting for?

  He hated to think he’d been wrong about those two Benedicts. Okay, so maybe they weren’t in secret negotiations with another team. That didn’t mean he couldn’t still make their lives a living hell.

  He’d watched them come out of the house, all cleaned up. They’d driven off after work just about every night lately and hadn’t returned. He vowed if they did that again today, he’d drive through that pissant little town just to see where they’d gone to.

  He had their plate number. That town was small. It wouldn’t take that long to find them.

  He’d promised an exclusive to the National Tattletale—a story that he’d guaranteed would be explosive—and he was nearly out of time. They’d paid him a handsome advance. He had to come up with something or he was going to have trouble ever working again.

  Hell, at this point, he’d settle for anything…

  His gaze was caught by that tiny little blue car that zipped into the driveway. It was the same car that had come calling on a regular basis, starting just after he’d arrived. Thoughts of what he’d seen later that first day—what he’d snapped a couple of pictures of—had him setting aside his grumping, and paying attention. Every time she arrived, each of those horndogs gave the little lady a kiss.

  He pulled out his Nikon, with the special zoom lens already attached. He was close enough, and the light was good enough today, that this time he could see their faces. Jackson sure as hell looked healthy as he made his way to the car. He grabbed that woman—yep, the same one as before—into a nice hot lip-lock. Sure enough, so, too, did Cord Benedict.

  Gilmore snapped a couple of pictures, and then used the camera as a kind of binoculars as he watched what happened next. They went into the barn and came out a few minutes later on horseback.

  Fuck. How was he supposed to follow them when they did that? He kept his gaze tuned in. He saw Jackson gesture. “Five? Five what? Miles or minutes?”

  The trio rode off, but they weren’t moving very fast. He knew they’d just taught her to ride, because he’d seen that first lesson and the few since. Then they’d ridden off but had been gone a while. He’d at first been worried that they’d been riding out to have the very meeting he needed to catch on camera. Except, of course, no self-respecting headhunter would meet potential hires out in the middle of nowhere. Even if the hires in question were The Wonder Twins.

  He’d bet Jackson had been assuring the woman—a city girl if ever he’d seen one—that they were only going five minutes away.

  Maybe if he followed, he’d get something juicy. There was only one reason he could think of to take a woman out into the woods, so to speak, and eating a picnic dinner wasn’t one of them.

  He kept them in the sights of his camera. As he watched, they rode through the field, on a direct path for a copse of trees he could see close to the horizon. He couldn’t be sure, but as he continued to watch, it seemed to him as if they stopped there.

  Dwight Gilmore took a gamble. He kept hold of his camera, grabbed a bottle of water, and followed.

  Chapter 17

  “You seem happy.”

  Ari looked over to see Carol Ashwood standing just inside the doorway between the reception area and the main room of the spa. Her comment, spoken very softly, reminded Ari that until recently, she’d walked around with a big chip on her shoulder that everyone had seen.

  She also knew that her coworkers had tended to walk on egg shells around her at times. She thought now that they had all been amazingly patient, and her boss had been wondrously kind.

  Ari smiled, her facial muscles getting more accustomed to the workout with each passing day.

  “I am happy. It’
s a really nice feeling.”

  Carol sighed. “Yeah, me, too.”

  Ari’s smile widened. Carol was so typical of a woman in love. “So, have you and those paramedics set a date, yet?”

  “They want us to go on a really nice honeymoon. They’re not telling me where. And, they want to make sure that Brad and Mandi are fully ready to step in, seamlessly, to replace them.” Carol shrugged. “We’re not in a real hurry, but I’m hoping it’ll be early spring.”

  “Springtime is a good time of year to get married in Texas. Not so hot here, then.”

  “That’s what I was thinking. I really wanted to ask you before this, but I didn’t know if you’d still be here then. I think maybe now, you will be. I’ve already asked Tasha, and she said yes. I’d like you to stand up with me. I want you and Tasha to be my co-maids of honor.”

  Ari had never been asked to be a maid of honor—or a bridesmaid. She’d never really made any close female friends because she’d lived her entire life closed in and closed up. Isolated.

  She wasn’t sure why she felt teary in response to Carol’s request, but she did. “I would be so honored to do that. Thank you for asking me.”

  Carol gave her a grin. “You better prepare yourself. I’m going to hug you.”

  Ari burst out laughing. When Carol stepped up to her, she hugged her back. “Yeah, I’m not too good at all this touchy-feely stuff. I–I kind of missed out on that portion of the program, growing up.”

  “I missed out on a lot of things, too. I think we have that in common, as well as the fact that neither of us have been in the habit of making close friends. At least I wasn’t, until I came to this wonderful little town.” Carol said.

  “You’re right.” Ari had lived her life keeping everyone at arm’s length. But all the reasons she’d had for doing that no longer really existed. It was time for her to turn over a new leaf. And who better to do that with than the woman standing in front of her?