“That sounds very nice,” Kristoff said, nodding. What were they telling him for?
“Also,” Geoff said very seriously, “I want to know if you’re planning on marrying Aunty Miriam.”
Kristoff’s eyes widened. Miriam flushed and Lucas laughed. Kristoff lowered his spoon. Where had that question come from? “We haven’t talked about it.”
“You should!” Rick came bounding over and climbed into his lap. “Then you can be our uncle and we can stay with you forever.”
This time, Miriam laughed. “Yeah, Kristoff. We can stay with you forever.”
Kristoff smirked. “Oh, but you are going to stay with us forever. Lucas and I are never letting you go, Miriam.” He winked as she flushed scarlet. “And where you go, these boys go. So, I guess we should start looking into a triple adoption then.”
“And getting married,” Geoff added, giving him a very serious frown. “Because if we’re going to live with you, you have to be married.”
“Geoff,” Miriam chastised softly.
“We’ll talk about it,” Lucas said, putting a hand on Geoff’s shoulder. “Right now, though, I want to hear more about the science museum. Do they have one of those spinny tables that does the kaleidoscope thing?”
As they started chatting about whatever Lucas was talking about, Kristoff leaned back in his chair. Normally all the talking and energy would have him running for the hills to get away from it. And he knew it wasn’t like he was just miraculously cured of his social aversion—there would be times when it would be too much to be with even this group, no matter how much he loved them.
But, he thought as he caught Miriam’s eye and his smile became wider, I really do love them.
Chapter Sixteen
The sun was beaming brightly through the trees as Lucas and the boys emerged from the well-worn deer trail back to the cabin. He’d been taking the boys out into the forest every day for the past month, whether it was for only ten minutes or a full hour or more. He taught them how to recognize trails and familiarize themselves with the woods. It wouldn’t be long now before they were wanting to go off and explore on their own, and he wanted them to know enough about the forest to stay safe and not get lost—especially if they decided to do so without permission.
“I had an idea,” serious Geoff said as he trotted up beside Lucas. “I think we should mark the path with orange ribbons. Then if we’re out in the forest and we get separated, we can find our way home without you.”
Lucas nodded. Geoff was always worrying about that sort of thing and coming up with solutions to what he thought the problem was. Even though the chance that they’d be separated was highly unlikely, Lucas knew it wouldn’t hurt to set his mind at ease. He had a lot of fears of being left alone—and with his past history it was easy to see why.
“That’s a great idea,” he said, putting an arm around Geoff’s shoulders. “And we can practice, too. Next time we go out, we can mark the paths and then I’ll pretend that I forgot the way home and you can lead us back. That way if it ever happens for real you’ll know what to do.”
Geoff puffed out his chest as Doug raced on ahead and slipped through the electric fence. They never had it going these days but kept it up just in case they needed it. Sometimes Angela’s sheep got loose from their farm and wandered up here, and they tended to flock inside the fence and make it easier for Tyler and Max to take them back home.
Inside, Miriam rested on the couch, sewing a blanket while Kristoff puttered around, packing snacks for the boys.
“Hey,” Miriam called as they boys pounded into the house. “Did you have a good walk?”
“Yup!” Doug raced by. “I got a new leaf!”
The last few months had been… strange, to say the least. It was a huge adjustment. Even though Miriam and the boys had been living with him for some time before this, it was a different sort of living with them now that Miriam was their legal guardian and they were going through the necessities for a three-parent adoption.
In the end, they had told the boys only what was appropriate for their ages while still trying to be honest.
Rick, being the youngest, only knew that his father had died. The circumstances would wait until he was old enough to understand. Doug was told that Charles had tried to hurt Miriam.
Geoff knew most of the story. That Charles had tried to kill Miriam and that Lucas and Kristoff had protected her. They hadn’t said outright that they killed his father, but Lucas was certain Geoff had figured it out. He was sharp as a whip that kid. He had spent several days withdrawn and quiet but had never seemed frightened of them.
Lucas knew one day they’d have to have a deep conversation about it—maybe several deep conversations—but for now, he was happy with how things were going. The worries that they had said too much and should have lied about everything had eased—especially since they knew that what happened was still the talk of the town.
None of the boys had spent too long mourning their father, at least not visibly. In fact, Rick became much more boisterous, loud, and demanding. Miriam was concerned for them, of course, and had gotten a child therapist to talk with all of them. Lucas had to wonder what was going through their heads. The therapist seemed to be helping, but only time would tell.
They were so young…
Kristoff had told him and Miriam late one night that when he learned his abusive father who’d abandoned him had died, he had felt nothing but anger for several days before it faded into relief. He thought that the boys might be going through something similar—Miriam certainly was.
Lucas wished he knew better how to help all of them, but there wasn’t much he could do except be there for them all.
Rick ran and jumped on Kristoff’s back. “Guess what?” he crowed as Geoff moved to Miriam’s side. “We found a dinosaur! It’s going to be my friend, but it can only come to see me when everybody else is sleeping because it’s magic.”
“Oh, really?” Kristoff laughed as he swung Rick around and held him upside down by his ankles. “Well, that is really good. I had a dinosaur friend like that when I was your age.”
Lucas shook his head as he headed to the fridge, getting water out for all of them. That was something that concerned him, the stories that Rick told. He couldn’t tell if he was just having fun or if he actually believed them. What was more concerning was when he turned his storytelling into outright lies. The therapist said that it was quite a common trauma response, a form of making themselves look more interesting because they were afraid that nobody would like them if they knew the truth.
Kristoff and Miriam both agreed with their own experiences. They were trying to encourage Rick’s stories into a more productive manner—like writing them down—and praising the good qualities they saw in him unrelated to his stories.
There was a lot to be done to show these boys that they were safe. That they were never going to be abandoned again. Lucas hated that they’d ever been hurt—and he also knew that Miriam had gone through that same sort of abuse. He and Kristoff had been working at helping her self-esteem, too. He just wanted her to be happy.
“Alright,” Miriam called as she got up off the couch. “Ricky, I want you to go get your suitcase, okay? You’re all packed for your birthday party. Geoff, can you go get yours as well?”
All the boys had sleepovers with friends that night. Miriam had been nervous about letting them go, saying she wasn’t sure they were old enough, but Kristoff had assured her that it was going to be fine. Lucas had dug out some old cellphones that had their numbers programmed in to pack with the boys in case they decided they wanted to come home early.
And the boys were excited about it.
Miriam kissed them all and made sure they knew that they could call home no matter what time it was, and Kristoff loaded them into the minivan and headed down the mountain. Miriam sighed as she leaned into Lucas’ side, watching them go.
“I know that they’ve already been through a lot more than sleeping overnig
ht at a friend’s house but all the same.” She shook her head. “The only reason I agreed to this was because they were all so excited about it. And I don’t want them to end up paralyzed by fear, too afraid to spread their wings and be independent. But am I doing the right thing?”
Lucas laughed and kissed her lightly. “Darling, they have been taking care of themselves more often than not whenever they weren’t with you. I think they’ll be fine. We know all the kids that are going to the parties and we know their parents. They’re good people. Trust me—I had background checks done on all of them.”
Miriam frowned at him. “Is that a joke or the truth?”
He winked at her. “You decide.”
Rolling her eyes, Miriam huffed and returned to the cabin. Lucas followed her in, keeping a hand on her elbow. The doctors had all said she had healed well and was fine to resume normal activity levels, but the scars left on her arm always made his gut clench. He just wished they’d managed to prevent it altogether.
“Well, we have a few other things to talk about anyway,” Miriam said as she settled back down on the couch with her sewing.
She was going to start going back to work as a midwife once she had recertified and had decided that she would be giving a handmade baby quilt to everybody she worked with. Keeping her clients limited to Deville meant she would still have time to work on her books. Lucas was eagerly looking forward to the next series.
“What do we need to talk about?” Lucas asked, raising a brow.
“Two things. First, we need to either expand the cabin or build a new house.”
Lucas made a face. “Why?”
Miriam gave him a look. “Because these walls aren’t soundproof enough for us to really enjoy ourselves at night, plus I want to have enough space for each of the boys to have their own room.”
“They can go outside for room.”
“Which only works if it’s nice enough outside,” Miriam countered. “I want them to have their own space so they can have their own responsibilities. Rick is starting to become a real slob and Doug is always stressed out by the mess. Rick needs to learn how to pick up after himself instead of expecting others to do it for him. And that attic is going to be too cold in winter for Geoff to keep sleeping up there. Which brings me to the second thing we need to talk about.”
Lucas nodded, sighing. She had a good point. They did need to have their own spaces. “What’s the second thing?”
“Last night Geoff was going through the boxes up there looking for those paints you promised to give him, and he found that box of sex toys you have for those parties you used to throw.”
Lucas’ eyes widened. He let out a short laugh even as he flushed. He should have thought about that! “Well… he shouldn’t be going through other people’s things. Fuck, I bet he was embarrassed! But he’s going to be having questions about sex soon enough, isn’t he? Wait, have you given him ‘the talk’?”
“Well, I didn’t have much of a choice.” Miriam’s brow furrowed, a troubled look on her face. “And he’s already got some strange ideas that he picked up from other kids on the playground. So, I want you to talk to him. His aunt is one thing, but you and Kristoff have experience being boys his age and can help him better than I can, I think. Also, I want us and Kristoff to talk to Doug and Rick, too. And maybe all three of them together. I don’t want them turning to things like porn to learn what sex is.”
Lucas hummed. “I did. And I understand why you want to head that off. Alright. We can arrange a time to do that. In the meantime, you want to go through those sex toys and get rid of the ones that we don’t want to keep for our own use?”
His gaze trailed down her form, heating as he thought about testing out each and every one of those toys to see which ones his Miriam liked the best. And with the boys gone for the night… well, tonight was the best time to do that, wasn’t it? He grinned at her and she gave him an annoyed look even as she blushed, desire entering her eyes.
“Well, yes. But that’s not the point. Well…” Miriam sighed and shook her head. “What I mean is, do you miss them? Having those parties?”
Lucas read in her eyes what she really was asking. Am I worth it? He moved to her side, pulling her into his arms and kissing her, lightly at first but with an increasing passion. She moaned into his mouth, making him harden, and he had to struggle to remind himself that they had to wait for Kristoff to come back.
“Why would I want sex with random women when I can make love to you?” he asked, brushing his thumb along her cheekbone. “I’m just glad that you can forgive me. For killing Charles.”
Miriam pulled him in tighter. Resting her chin on his shoulder. “It’s Charles I will never forgive. I’ll always forgive you. Always.”
By the time Kristoff returned, they had brought down the box of sex toys and washed them up, lining them on the kitchen counter to decide which ones they wanted to keep (safely hidden away in the closet in their shared room this time). Kristoff took a look at what they were doing and shut the door behind him, grinning as he stalked toward Miriam, lust dark in his eyes.
“I see what this is. When the kids are away, the Masters get to play?” He put his hands on Miriam’s hips and Lucas chuckled, pressing up against her on the other side.
“Yes.” Miriam put an arm around each of their necks. “Your wish is my command.”
Lucas didn’t need any more encouragement. His body hardening with his excitement, he let his hands explore Miriam’s curvy frame, already drinking in her heady scent and planning exactly what he was going to do with her.
Kristoff grabbed his arm and tugged him back. Lucas grunted with annoyance, but Kristoff only smiled at Miriam. “Take off your clothes, Miriam.”
Chapter Seventeen
Her masters stood shoulder-to-shoulder, arms folded as they watched her undress. Miriam blushed, even though they’d seen her naked plenty of times before this. There was just a difference between her undressing for them and them stripping themselves at the same time as they took off her clothes. The intensity of their looks now made her wonder if they were seeing all the flaws she saw in herself.
“You know,” Lucas said as he started to circle her, “our mate is fucking gorgeous.”
Miriam bit her lip and giggled.
“Agreed.” Kristoff rounded her to the left and grasped her ass with both hands. “Are you ready to do what Master tells you?”
She shook her hair out and leaned into his touch. “Yes, Master.”
Lucas chuckled as he retrieved a length of rope from one of the boxes. “What do you say, Kristoff? Should we tie up our slave and see which of these toys she likes best?”
Kristoff took a second length of rope. “Oh, yes. That does seem like a good idea. Does our slave have objections?”
“No, Master,” she replied meekly, fighting to keep the grin off her face. That would ruin the game.
She held her hands out, but they didn’t tie her that way. Instead, Lucas took one hand and Kristoff took the other, and they stretched her arms out to either side, tying her off on the wall. They did the same with her feet, leaving her all spread out like a starfish as she stood in the center of the room.
“Now… what shall we use on you first?” Lucas walked by the line of toys, then pulled something out of a box.
Kristoff remained where he was beside her, rubbing his hands all over her body in a way that made her desire deepen. She was starting to regret agreeing to be tied up—because she wouldn’t be able to hold them as they took her.
Lucas laughed, turning back. “Hey, it’s that old whip that I bought when I had that one girl up here. What was her name? Angel Food Cake?”
“That’s not much of a name,” Miriam said, wrinkling her nose.
Lucas shrugged. “Up until you, my slaves didn’t have names.”
Miriam snorted, trying to concentrate on Lucas and not Kristoff’s hand as it slid underneath her. “That’s gross.”
Lucas snapped the whip. It was only
about two feet long, made from braided cotton. “Take that back, Miriam, or I’ll have to use this on you.”
Miriam looked at the whip and considered it. Kristoff’s fingers were on her clit now, working her in a way that made it hard to think. The ropes tugged at her skin, and she remembered the way he had spanked her their first time together. They hadn’t done much more than vanilla sex since then. And it wasn’t that she didn’t like the vanilla sex, but she was hoping for something… spicier.
Getting tied up was a good start but the whip? Now the whip was something she had never considered. But didn’t she want to spice up her writing, too? What better way than to try it out herself?
She couldn’t stop her mischievous grin as she peered up through her lashes. “No. I’m not taking it back.”
Kristoff stopped his work and looked at her in surprise.
“What?” Lucas let the whip droop toward the floor. “Are you saying that you want me to whip you?”
“Master is gross,” Miriam teased. “Master can whip me all he wants, but he won’t get me to change my mind.”
Lucas and Kristoff glanced at each other and grinned. Miriam’s whole body tensed with excitement. Kristoff took his hand away, but her pout was quickly shocked away when he slapped her ass. The sensation stung, but her restraints kept her from going too far. She tried to pull her feet together more—there was no give in the ropes.
“It seems Master must punish his slave,” Lucas said circling behind her while Kristoff came around front. “You’re getting whipped until you apologize.”
“I won’t apologize,” she replied sweetly.
Kristoff laughed as he retrieved a vibrator and turned it on. “That master can punish you for being obstinate with him. This master will reward you. He needs to be taken down a few pegs, doesn’t he?”
Miriam couldn’t help but laugh, even as her insides squirmed. She wanted them to get on with it, but the buildup was also so delicious that she didn’t want it to start too quickly. She liked this part of the play, this teasing. “Both of my masters need to be taken down a peg. Or maybe given a pegging.”
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