
Their Broken Lady
Tanner and Bryan believe in love at first sight, and Amber is it for them. She doesn't plan on falling in love again. Her past experience with men says she is a lousy judge of character. Amber tends to go for the strong, controlling types who end up being dangerous. They can't understand why she's so adamant about not becoming involved with them.
When someone tries to attack her for the second time, they convince her to stay with them while she recovers and her house is repaired. This gives them the chance to charm, woo, and seduce her into going out with them. Can they change her mind about them while they have the chance?
In the meantime, someone is out to get her, and the men are bound and determined to keep her safe. The problem is that Amber is thwarting their attempts at making her theirs forever.
Genre: Contemporary, Ménage a Trois/QuatreLength: 42,331 words
THEIR BROKEN LADY
Marla Monroe
MENAGE EVERLASTING
Siren Publishing, Inc.
www.SirenPublishing.com
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A SIREN PUBLISHING BOOK
IMPRINT: Ménage Everlasting
THEIR BROKEN LADY
Copyright © 2012 by Marla Monroe
E-book ISBN: 1-61926-352-1
First E-book Publication: February 2012
Cover design by Les Byerley
All art and logo copyright © 2012 by Siren Publishing, Inc.
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All characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual persons living or dead is strictly coincidental.
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Siren Publishing, Inc.
www.SirenPublishing.com
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THEIR BROKEN LADY
MARLA MONROE
Copyright © 2012
Saturday afternoon Amber stepped out to cross the street when it was free of cars. She had just gotten to the middle when a car came careening down the road heading straight for her. She ran for the other side, but twisted her ankle when her heel broke. She hit the pavement hard. She braced herself for being run over by the car, but out of nowhere, someone grabbed her and dragged her out of the street. They both ended up against the curb as the car sideswiped the car next to them and kept going.
"Fuck! Are you okay?" a man's voice asked.
She blinked her eyes trying to make sense of what had just happened. She'd had the light to cross and there had been no traffic when she looked.
"Lady, look at me. Are you okay?"
"Y--yes. I twisted my ankle, though. Damn high-heeled shoes."
The man immediately began checking her over.
"Move out of the way. Let me through." Another man that looked enough like the first one to be his brother pushed his way through the crowd of onlookers. "Bryan, man, are you okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine, but she's hurt," Bryan said.
"Let's look her over. Did anyone call the police?" he asked, looking around.
"I did," a man said, raising his hand.
"Good. Let's see how bad it is." He began checking her out.
"Hey, look. I'm okay. I just twisted my ankle." She tried to get up, but Bryan, the first man, held her down.
"My brother is a doctor. Let him check you out. You've got skinned knees as well as that twisted ankle."
"Name's Tanner Jordan," the second man said as he checked her ankle.
"I'm Amber. I really appreciate you both, but I'm okay."
"Did you recognize that car?" Bryan asked.
"Huh? Why would I know that car?" she asked.
"Because whoever was driving it was obviously after you. He pulled out when you started across the road and headed straight for you." Bryan took a cloth from someone and began to clean her knees.
Amber winced, but refrained from saying anything about the pain.
"Surely he was just some drunk driver. I can't imagine why anyone would want to run me over."
"You can't think of anyone who doesn't like you?" Tanner asked.
"Not enough to want to hit me with a car."
A police car pulled up alongside the damaged car. The officer got out, adjusting his utility belt as he did. Amber hated getting the police involved. She had dealt with enough of them in the past.
"Hey there, Tanner, Bryan. What are you two doing here?" Officer McKenny asked.
Amber knew him from the night she had called in a possible burglar at her house. She had just gone to bed when someone began jimmying her bedroom window. She had shouted that she was calling the police, and then did. The would-be intruder had left by the time the policeman showed up. He had left behind a footprint below her window, though. And there had been obvious signs of tampering around the window.
"Helping this little lady. Someone wanted to hurt her enough to try and run her down." Bryan stood up and shook the other man's hand.
"Ms. Reynolds. Interesting meeting you again," he said, squatting next to her. "Are you hurt?"
"Just my ankle, really. I'm fine. I think the whole incident was just some drunk driver."
"Let me be the judge of that. Tell me what happened."
Amber repeated the entire thing to him. Then he got Bryan's viewpoint, along with several other people's reports as well. By then, Tanner and Bryan had helped her up to sit on the curb. She found to her dismay that she couldn't put any weight on her ankle.
"It's badly sprained," Tanner said. "Plus you've got scraped knees, hands, and a bruise on your left elbow that worries me."
"What do I do about my ankle?" she asked.
"You go to the hospital and have it x-rayed to be sure there isn't something broken in there. I can only make suppositions at this point. You need an X-ray on it and your elbow."
"Really, is that necessary?" Amber asked. She didn't want to go to the hospital. She hated them.
"Yes, it really is," Tanner said with a wry smile.
"Ma'am, do I need to call an ambulance for you?" Officer McKenny asked.
"No, thanks. I can drive myself."
"I don't think so," Bryan said. "That's your right ankle. You aren't going to be able to put any pressure on it."
Tanner spoke up. "We'll take you. Our truck is right around the corner."
"Oh, I appreciate it, but it's okay. I'll manage." Amber didn't want to put anyone out.
"Nonsense. You can't drive, and you don't want to go by ambulance. We'll take you." He turned to Bryan. "Go get the truck."
"Got you." Bryan jogged off.
"I hate causing all this trouble," she fussed, wringing her hands.
"You didn't cause anything. The idiot who nearly hit you did it."
Amber resigned herself to going to the hospital with the two men. She didn't know them, but the officer appeared to. She hoped she didn't have a broken bone. That would cause problems with her job. She had time off available, but hated to take it. She didn't like being off work.
She worked as a teller at one of the banks in town. She could sit on a stool to work, but if it was broken and she had to be on crutches for any length of time, it could interfere with her work. She sighed as she waited for Bryan to bring their truck over.
Seconds later, a large black truck pulled up to the curb. Bryan jumped out and ran around to the passenger side to open the front door. Tanner unceremoniously picked her up before she could say anything, and settled her in the truck. He fastened her seat belt, then he and Bryan climbed in on either side of her.
She tried to make herself as small as possible so as not to touch them, but that was nearly impossible. They were both big men.
Bryan had light-brown hair that reached his collar, while Tanner's dark-brown hair was cut short. Both men had the same hazel eyes that had more green than brown in them. Bryan appeared to be around six feet two inches, and Tanner an inch or two taller. Bryan looked like he worked hard, with bulging muscles in his arms and across his massive chest. Tanner looked as if he hit the gym regularly with broad shoulders and smaller muscles that hinted at strength but didn't scream body builder. Both men had small waists and squeezable asses.
Amber realized she was looking at them as if she were interested. She wasn't. In fact, she wasn't interested in any man. She'd had her fill of them to last her a lifetime. She had come to the conclusion that she wasn't a great judge of character, so she would steer clear of them for now. At thirty, she had been in several relationships that had ended badly. She wasn't going to put herself through another one.
"How's your ankle feeling?" Tanner asked.
"It throbs a little," she said.
"They will give you something for pain once you get there," Tanner said.
"How long have you lived in Blue Springs? I've never seen you around," Bryan said.
"Only a little over a year." She didn't offer any more information.
Bryan continued to ask questions, though. "Where do you work?"
"First National Bank."
"We don't use them, so that's why we haven't seen you around," Tanner said.
"I don't see a ring on your finger, but are you married? Is there anyone you need to call?" Bryan continued to pry information out of her.
"Um, no. I'm not married." She left it at that.
Either Bryan got the hint she didn't want to talk about herself, or he ran out of questions. Either way, they pulled into the entrance of the hospital emergency room about that time. Tanner got out and unbuckled her seat belt before pulling her out and carrying her over to where a nurse stood ready with a wheelchair.
Tanner walked beside her as the nurse pushed her into the emergency room and straight to a room.
"Hi, Dr. Tanner. How are you doing?"
"Doing fine, Joyce. How are the kids?"
"Rough and wild as always. Do you need help getting on the table?" she asked Amber.
"I can manage, thanks," she said.
"I'll help her up," Tanner added.
"Dr. Quincy will be with you in a few minutes." The nurse left the room.
"Okay, let's get you up on the table." He helped her stand then once again picked her up and settled her on the exam bed.
"You don't have to keep picking me up. I can hop and stand just fine." She wasn't sure why she was being so waspish. Maybe because she didn't want his help.
"Easier for me to pick you up then for you to hop." He didn't seem to take offense by her attitude.
Amber sighed and resigned herself to having to deal with him for the time being. Once they dropped her off at her house, she would be rid of them for good. She doubted she would ever run into them again.
There was a quick knock on the door, and an older man of about fifty with graying hair at the temples walked in.
"Well hi, Tanner. What are you doing here?"
"Brought you a patient. She nearly got run over uptown today. Twisted her ankle pretty good."
"X-ray?"
"Yeah, that and her elbow to be safe. She's got a spreading bruise there, and decreased range of motion."
"We can certainly do that."
Amber was getting a little perturbed that they were talking around her when she was the patient. She was about to say as much when the older doctor turned to her.
"Let's take a look at your ankle, young lady." He probed around it and moved it making her wince and hiss out a breath. "Yep, definitely an X-ray."
He moved to her elbow and examined it, earning him an ouch this time. He nodded and checked her hands and knees where they were skinned up.
"Nasty fall there. Okay, we'll get some pictures and clean up those cuts and scratches so they don't get infected. I'll talk with you again once I've had a chance to study the films," he said, and patted her shoulder.
"Thanks."
He nodded and turned to Tanner once again. "Haven't seen you or Bryan at the country club lately."
"We've been busy at the ranch. Lost one of our hands and haven't replaced him yet."
"You be careful fooling with those horses. Break your fool neck."
"I hear you."
"Talk to you in a little while." The other doctor walked out the door, carrying her paperwork with him.
"Okay, they'll take you to radiology for your X-rays. Then the nurse will come in and clean you up."
"Thanks for all your help. I know I wasn't the nicest patient, but I can really take care of myself now. You don't have to wait around."
Before he could say anything, an orderly walked in with another wheelchair to take her to get her films. Tanner once again picked her up and set her in the chair. She sighed and didn't say anything. It obviously wasn't going to do any good. The man didn't listen. They never did.
Tanner walked out of the room after the orderly took Amber for her X-rays and headed for the waiting room where he was sure Bryan was cooling his heels. He wouldn't like being relegated there, but he couldn't go back, since he wasn't family. Tanner was an exception since he was a doctor there at the hospital.
"How is she?" Bryan asked as soon as Tanner walked into the room.
"She's doing fine. They just took her to X-ray."
"She's beautiful, Tanner. I don't know about you, but I'm already half in love with her."
"You just met her, Bryan. That's not like you. You don't fall for anyone. What gives?" Tanner had a feeling she was the one for them, but he wasn't going to say anything to Bryan yet.
"I can't help it. Almost as soon as I touched her, I felt it. She's special, Tanner." Bryan paced in front of Tanner. "We've got to figure out how to get her to go out with us."
"She's not from around here, Bryan. She doesn't know anything about us and the fact that we share. I'm not so sure she's going to go for it."
"So we date her separately for a while, then when she's used to us, we explain it to her."
"As soon as we start dating her, someone is going to talk to her. Not going to work like that." Tanner wasn't sure what would work, either. He needed to think about it.
Bryan ran a hand through his shaggy hair, obviously frustrated.
"Let's see what the doctor has to say about her injuries, and we'll go from there."
"Hell, you're a doctor. What do you say?"
"I haven't seen the X-rays yet. I'll know more when they get back." Tanner forced back a smile.
"Fine," Bryan said with a sigh. "I'm just anxious. I've never felt anything for a woman like this."
"They should have the films ready to read by now. I'll talk to you again in a little while."
Tanner walked back through the emergency room doors and headed for where he saw Dr. Quincy pouring over the X-rays.
"What do you think?" he asked when he walked up next to the other doctor.
"I don't see anything to suggest broken bones. What about you? See anything?"
Tanner studied the films, but he had to agree with is peer. "Nope. Looks clean to me."
"I'll recommend the usual treatment for her and send her home, then."
"Sounds good to me. Thanks for taking care of her." Tanner shook the man's hand.
"Don't be a stranger at the club. Nothing good to talk about without you two there stirring up gossip."
Tanner just shook his head. The other man walked off to talk to Amber about her injuries. He would give her time to assimilate her instructions, then go in and get her ready to go home. He looked once more at the X-rays, then headed for her room.
She was sitting up with her legs hanging off the table when he walked in. He frowned.
"Didn't Dr. Quincy tell you to keep that foot propped up for twenty-four hours?"
"Yes, but he dismissed me, so I'm waiting on my paperwork. I'll take a taxi home."
"Nonsense. We're taking you home," Tanner told her.
"I don't want to be a bother," she repeated.
"You're not a bother. Get that out of your head. Now the nurse will wheel you outside, and we'll pick you up and take you home. I'm going to stop by the nurse's desk and tell her myself."
She sighed and hung her head. She was obviously hurting despite the pain pill the nurse would have given her. She wasn't arguing with him anymore. Tanner was glad, though he hated she was in pain. He walked out to the desk and told the nurse that he would be taking her home. Then he headed toward the waiting room once more.
"Okay, she's ready. Let's move the truck to the door," Tanner said.
"Is anything broken?" Bryan asked.
"Nope, thank goodness. Bad sprain is all."
Bryan nodded and headed for the door and out to where he had parked the truck with Tanner beside him. They pulled up outside the emergency room entrance where the nurse already had Amber in a wheelchair waiting on the ramp.
Tanner hopped out of the truck and helped her stand before he picked her up and sat her between them once more. After buckling her seat belt and thanking the nurse, he climbed back in and Bryan took off.
"Where to, Amber?"
She reluctantly gave them her address and sighed.
Tanner realized she lived on the other side of Blue Springs in the run-down house on the road to their ranch. They had often talked about buying the house and having it torn down.
"What about your car?" Bryan spoke up.
"Oh, I forgot about it," she said.
"Drop me off at her car and I'll follow you to her house," Tanner said.
"Really there's no need to go out of your way like this. I can get my car later."
"It's not a good idea to leave it parked uptown overnight, much less several days. We'll get it and you'll have it when you are able to drive again." Tanner wasn't taking no for an answer.
"Where are you parked," Bryan asked her.
She sighed and let her head fall back against the seat.
"I'm on third. It's a mocha Nissan Pathfinder."
Bryan nodded and changed directions.
Her ankle was throbbing, and she had the beginnings of a headache. She figured she was better off giving in. She really didn't feel up to an argument. Amber reminded herself that once they dropped her off, they would be out of her hair.
Bryan pulled up beside her car and Tanner held out his hand for her keys. Amber dug in her purse and produced the keys for him. He smiled and stepped out of the truck. They waited until he had the Nissan started then headed for her house. Bryan followed directions without a hitch. Usually people had to ask twice where she lived.
"Here we are," he said as he pulled in behind where Tanner parked her Nissan. "You've done a lot to the house. We've noticed on our way back and forth to town. It was in really bad shape there for a while."
"You drive this way?" She realized now why they knew the way so easily. The lived out in her direction. That didn't bode well for her.
"Yeah, about eight miles further down the road is our ranch."
Tanner opened the door to the truck and unbuckled Amber's seat belt before she could do it.
"Let's get you inside and comfortable. You'll feel better with your foot elevated." He handed the keys to her car over to Bryan. "You can unlock the door for us."
Bryan jumped out of the truck and hurried around to get the door open by the time Tanner had her in his arms and walking toward the house. He stepped up on the little front porch and walked into her house. It wasn't much, but she loved the place. Now she looked at it through someone else's eyes and cringed. Sure, the paint had helped, but it still had cracks, and the wood floors needed refinishing.
"Which way to your bedroom?" Tanner asked.
"There's only one. It's straight through the kitchen." The house was an old shotgun house. The rooms were lined up one right behind the other. Her bedroom and the bathroom were all in the back. Tanner nodded and carried her through her dingy kitchen and into her little bedroom. Bryan followed behind them. With both of them in the room, it felt positively tiny. They took up all the space and most of the oxygen in the air. She felt her heart flutter in her throat.
Bryan pulled back the covers of her bed and Tanner laid her on the bed. He took off her one remaining shoe since the other one was broken in a garbage can somewhere. Her panty hose were of course ruined, and her skirt hadn't fared much better. She would probably be throwing it away along with the hose.
Tanner lifted her leg and placed her spare pillow under her ankle to elevate it.
"Would you like help getting undressed? I'll have Bryan step outside." Tanner said it with a straight face.
Amber honestly couldn't believe he had offered.
"Uh, no. I can manage on my own from here. I can never thank you enough for all you've both done, but I can handle it from here," she said with a strained smile.
"I'm going to write our numbers down on something. If you need anything at all, just call. We pass through here every day. We can always stop on the way and bring you something or help you with something." Tanner picked up her pad by the bed and quickly scrawled on it. "These are our cell phone numbers. You use them if you need us, day or night."
"Um, thanks, but I'm sure I'll be fine." She could almost feel the smile crack on her face. She needed them out of her house. They were overwhelming in such a confined space.
"We'll lock up on our way out. I left your keys on the kitchen counter," Bryan said.
"Thanks. I really appreciate it."
Tanner patted her shoulder and they turned to leave. She let out a breath once she heard the outside door close. Thank God they were gone. She had never been so uncomfortable in her life. They were bigger than life and bossy. It was a combination she would do well to steer clear of.
Amber tended to lean toward big strong men who also turned out to be mean. They always started off fine. Then, somewhere along the way they began to get bossy and from there, they got controlling. Before it was over with, they were beating her. She had just gotten out of such a relationship a little over a year ago and moved to Blue Springs, Texas, in an attempt to start over. Her last home had been in Memphis, Tennessee. Blue Springs was a welcome change from Memphis, with its high crime rate and dirty streets. She had fallen in love with it the minute she drove into town. She decided to stay if she could find a job. As it was, the teller position at the bank was open when she needed it. It worked out great.
Amber sighed and began the arduous task of undressing. She slipped out of her blouse first, and laid it on the other side of the bed. Next she rolled over with a wince and unzipped her skirt behind her, then shimmed out of it. Her panty hose were a mess, and proved to be difficult to get off. By the time she had them down to her ankles, she was worn out and her knees were burning. Her elbow felt like someone had hit it with a baseball bat, and her ankle protested the pressure of the hose until she managed to pull them completely off. She slipped out of her bra, but decided to sleep in her panties and nothing else. It wouldn't hurt for one night. She was exhausted from struggling with the damn clothes.
Amber settled down with the covers pulled up to her chin and her foot still on top of the pillow. It left most of her right leg exposed, but she would be fine. It wasn't cold at night.
As she drifted on the edge of sleep, Amber thought about the two men who had helped her. They had been very nice, but like she had surmised earlier, they were bossy. At least Tanner was. Of course, his being a doctor might have something to do with it. Bryan seemed to go along with whatever Tanner said. She guessed Tanner to be the older of the two men. Of course, they were not old by any means. They were probably in their early thirties. Tanner wouldn't have been out of medical school long.
She realized she was obsessing over them and willed herself to stop thinking about them. With that, she fell asleep.
"I don't like her living in that house. It's a disaster, and the lock on the door was flimsy. The damn roof probably leaks." Bryan started complaining to Tanner the minute they got back in the truck. He knew Tanner would ignore most of what he said, but he still said it. To his surprise, Tanner agreed with him.
"Nothing we can do about it right now, though. Let's stop by and see her several times a day to be sure she's okay, and to get her used to us."
"I like that idea. Only thing is that she'll have to get to the door to let us in." Bryan hated for her to have to hobble all the way into the front part of the house to answer the door.
"True, and she'll be stove up tomorrow from the fall. Damn!" Tanner popped his thigh with his hand.
"What?" Bryan turned to look at his brother.
"We didn't get her prescription filled for her pain medicine. She'll need that."
Bryan grinned. "Well that can be easily remedied." He turned the big truck around in the middle of the road and headed back to town.
"I can write a script for her pain medication," Tanner said. "That way we won't be getting her out of bed twice."
"We don't have to get her out of bed even once. I can open her door with just a credit card. I told you her lock was flimsy."
Tanner grinned and shook his head. "Do I want to know how you learned how to do that?"
"Probably not." Bryan pulled into a parking space in front of the drug store.
"I'll just be a minute." Tanner got out of the truck and headed for the pharmacy door.
Bryan thought about Amber's hourglass figure. She had the prettiest auburn hair and blue eyes he had ever seen. Her hair seemed to have a natural wave or curl to it and fell just past her shoulders. He figured her to be about five feet four inches, just the right height for him and his brother. His mouth watered to taste her breasts. Would she have pretty pink nipples, or rosy red ones? His brother was an ass man. Hers was definitely a keeper, nice and plump and heart shaped.
A few minutes passed and Tanner climbed back in the truck. "Got it. Let's drive through somewhere and get her something to eat."
"I'm all over that."
They picked her up a hamburger and fries then headed back to Amber's house. Bryan pulled in behind her Nissan, and they climbed out of the truck. Tanner carried everything while he pulled out his wallet to get out a credit card. He easily slipped the lock and let them in.
"Amber! We're back. I forgot your pain medication," Tanner called out.
"You what? How did you get in? You don't need to be here."
Bryan recognized panic when he heard it. She was in a tizzy. What was wrong? He and Tanner hurried to the back of the house to find her half in, half out of the bed with nothing but the sheets covering her.
"Are you okay?" Bryan asked, rushing over to help her back in bed.
"Don't! I can do it." She fought off his hands and the sheet slipped some, exposing her breast.
Pretty pink nipples. He pulled the sheet back into place and was rewarded for his effort with a scowl.
"What in the hell are you doing in my house? Get out!" she yelled as she finally managed to get back in bed. She held the covers up to her chin with one hand and pointed toward the door with the other one.
"Easy, Amber. We brought you your pain medicine and something to eat," Tanner said with a barely concealed smile.
"What medicine?" She frowned.
"Didn't Dr. Quincy give you something for pain?" Tanner asked.
"No, the nurse said that he said to take four ibuprofen every four hours."
"I'll be damned. I would have given you something more for pain since you were nearly mowed down by a car."
"I'm okay. My ankle only throbs when I have it down---mostly."
"Well, we also brought you something to eat. You need to eat to take your medicine. That includes ibuprofen," Tanner told her. He handed her the bag of food.
"I'll go get you a plate and something to drink. Have any preferences?" Bryan asked.
"Really, you don't have to do this. I can take care of myself." She ran a hand through her disheveled hair.
Bryan wanted to run his fingers through it and pull on it as he buried his cock in her cunt. Instead, he turned and headed for the kitchen. He could hear Tanner trying to soothe her ruffled feathers. He took advantage of being out of eyesight to readjust his cock. After seeing her breast and realizing she was naked beneath the sheets, Bryan was having a difficult time keeping his dick under control. It was swollen and pushing for somewhere besides his pants to go.
He fixed a glass of tea and found a plate in one of the cabinets. When he carried them back to the bedroom it was to find Tanner sitting on the edge of the bed talking to her. She still didn't look to be a happy camper, though.
"Okay, here is a plate for your hamburger and fries. I'll put the tea on the bedside table so you can reach it," Bryan said.
He fixed the hamburger on the plate then added the fries. He set the plate on her lap wondering if she had on panties, or if she was totally nude beneath the covers.
"Do you understand how to take your pain pills if you need them?" Tanner asked.
"Yes, thanks for getting them for me. I'll pay you back if you'll just hand me my purse."
"No need. They didn't cost much."
"Well, thank you. And thanks for the hamburger and fries. Please lock the door on your way out."
Bryan smirked. The little witch was throwing them out. He leaned over and kissed the top of her head.
"Remember, you need anything, call us. We'll be checking on you periodically."
He looked at Tanner when he turned around and walked out. Tanner followed him. He wondered what she would make of that.
Once they were in the truck and on their way home, he started chuckling. Tanner grinned.
"Think she's steamed?" Bryan asked.
"Oh, I know she is. You should have seen her face when you walked out. If looks could kill, I'd be doing CPR on you right now."
"She'll get over it, eventually. Until then, I, for one, plan to keep in touch with her. What are your plans?" Bryan took his eyes of the road to look over at his brother.
Tanner drew in a deep breath and sighed. "I'm with you. I've never felt as possessive of anyone as I feel toward her. I actually didn't want to let her out of my sight in the emergency room, even with Dr. Quincy."
"She's going to put up a fight. I can already see it. She isn't at all interested in us." Bryan wondered what was up with that. Most women ran after them. They did little pursuing.
"Did you see her face when we walked in and she was almost nude?" Tanner asked.
"Yeah, then when I handed her the rest of the sheet, I thought she was going to explode. Her face turned the prettiest shade of pink. Even pinker than her pretty nipples."
"Damn I'm having a hard time getting comfortable with my cock plastered to my damn zipper." Tanner adjusted himself.
"I know the feeling. When I caught sight of her nipple, I nearly jumped her right then and there," Bryan said.
"Okay, we've got to have a plan. She's going to be work." Tanner looked out the side window as they pulled into their drive.
"I plan to enjoy my work," Bryan said with a smile.
Amber woke up around six the next morning sore from head to foot. She had finally resorted to taking a pain pill at nine the night before, and it had put her right to sleep. She had known she would be sore, but hadn't really been prepared for it. She needed a bath. A soak in a hot tub with bath salts would go a long way to making her feel better.
After removing her night shirt that she'd put on after the men left, Amber downed her ibuprofen. Then she hobbled to the bathroom and started the water, sprinkling bath salts into it. She waited until it was deep enough and turned it off.
It took a considerable effort to manage getting into the tub. It wasn't until she was comfortably lying against the back of the old claw foot tub that she thought about how she was going to get out. Instead of panicking, she put it to the back of her mind for when she needed to worry. Right now, she was going to enjoy her hot bath.
The salts and warm water soon lulled her into a gentle doze.
About thirty minutes later, the water began to cool off, and she realized the time had come to figure out how to get out. Her left elbow was swollen and hurt to move. Her right ankle was almost useless. She tried to get to her knees, but couldn't stand any pressure on her ankle or even the lower part of her leg.
She tried to pull herself up using her right arm, but didn't have enough strength to do any good. Panic set in, followed soon by tears. She couldn't stay in the damn bath tub for the rest of her life.
She heard a noise through the bathroom door and strained to figure out what it was. Then the unmistakable sounds of footsteps reached her ears. She made a grab for the towel to cover herself and missed.
"Amber? Where are you? It's Bryan. I brought you some breakfast."
Aw, hell. She wondered if he would just leave if she didn't say anything. When he knocked on the bathroom door, she covered her face with her hands in defeat. He would come in whether or not she told him not to.
"I'm in the bathroom. You can leave it in the bedroom, but you really shouldn't have gone to any trouble." Even she heard the tears in her voice. He would know something was wrong.
"Amber? What's wrong, baby?"
"Nothing. Go away." Tears slid down her face.
The door opened and Bryan walked into the bathroom. Amber hid her face in her hands.
"What's wrong? Are you hurting?"
"I can't get out of the tub," she finally said in a small voice.
"Oh, baby. I'll get you out. Hold on." He reached for her towel. Then he pulled the plug to let the water out.
"Let's wrap you up in this." He bent over her and wrapped the towel around her body.
"How are you going to get me out?" she asked.
He reached down and picked her up without a hitch. Then he settled her on the lid of the toilet and grabbed another towel. He started drying her off where the other towel didn't reach.
"I can dry myself." She didn't try to stop him though. "Thanks for getting me out of the tub. I didn't realize until I'd already gotten in that I wouldn't be able to get out."
"No problem." He picked her up again, and carried her into the bedroom. "What did you want to put on?"
"I can handle it from here. I really appreciate all you've done."
"I'm not leaving until you're safely in bed again," he said, crossing his arms.
Amber sighed and hung her head. Then she resigned herself to having to put up with him for a little while longer.
"I was going to put on a T-shirt and a pair of shorts. They're in the chest over there." She pointed to the bottom drawers.
Bryan pulled out a T-shirt and shorts then searched until he located her underwear drawer and pulled out a pair of red panties with a mischievous grin on his face.
"I don't figure you need to wear a bra," he said.
"Look, I can dress myself. You can leave now." Amber could tell he wasn't planning on it.
Instead, he pulled the panties gently up her legs and stopped just shy of her pussy under the towel. Then he pulled the T-shirt over her head letting her poke her hands through the armholes and covering her towel-clad body. Then before she realized what he was going to do, he pulled the towel off under the T-shirt.
Amber yelped and quickly arched her back to finish pulling up her underwear. Despite her quick reaction, she was sure he got an eyeful of her pussy. When he pulled her shorts up her legs, she gave up and let him pull them over her underwear.
"Okay, I'm dressed and in bed. You can leave now."
"Let me set up your breakfast, then I'll leave you alone." He grinned down at her before walking out of the bedroom into the kitchen.
He returned a few seconds later with a sausage and biscuit with jelly on the side. He settled it on her lap with a smile.
"It's not much, but it's homemade."
"Oh, well, thank you. I appreciate you thinking about me, but you don't need to keep coming over. I'm fine. I can take care of myself." She felt foolish saying it since he had just helped her out of the tub.
"Think you might want to rethink that, Amber," Bryan said, looking over toward the bathroom.
She felt her face grow warm once again. Naturally he would point it out that she'd made a grave tactical error in getting into the tub in the first place.
"I'm sure you have somewhere you need to be," she said.
"Yep, probably, but I like being here right now." He hitched up his pant leg and sat on the edge of the bed. "Go ahead and eat it. I'm sure it's not hot anymore, but it ought to be warm."
With a sigh, Amber opened the biscuit and added some of the grape jelly on it before closing it and taking a bite. It was very good.
"This is really good. The meat has a good taste," she said.
"We make our own sausage and beef jerky from our ranch."
"I thought you only raised cows out here."
"We keep a little of everything on our ranch. Hogs, horses, chickens, and cows for the most part. Had a couple of emus, but they're mean birds, so we got rid of them."
"Wow. You must be really busy, then." She tried to urge him to leave again.
"Yep, and we're down one of our ranch hands, too." He didn't budge, just sat there smiling while she ate her breakfast.
"Why are you really here, Bryan?" she finally asked.
"To see about you. Why?"
"Because people just don't go out of their way to help someone like you and your brother have. I have to think you have an ulterior motive." She crossed her arms and watched his face.
He never changed his expression. "We might at that. We want to take you out when you're healed up."
Amber opened her mouth but couldn't think of anything to say to that. She closed it again. What could she say to that?
"You're wasting your time, then. I'm not looking for a date with either one of you. You can tell your brother that, too."
"Wouldn't be just one of us. It would be both of us, and we don't think we're wasting our time. We happen to think you're worth it."
"Only if I'm going to go out with you, which I'm not. I don't plan on dating at all. Thanks for the thought, though." She wiped her mouth, having finished her meal.
She set the plate on the other side of the bed. She'd put it up later. Right now, she needed to convince Bryan that she had no intention of going out with him and his brother. Both of them? She felt a flush spread over her face.
"Hmm, you just thought of something. Your face turned a pretty shade of pink." Bryan stood up and moved closer to the head of the bed. "What were you thinking about, baby?"
"Nothing, and stop calling me baby."
"Tell me why you're not looking to date anyone, Amber." He leaned over placing one hand on the wall over the headboard.
"I--I don't want to. That's all there is to it."
"I don't think so. There's more to it than that. I think you've been hurt in the past, and now you're running scared."
Amber drew in a quick breath. Was she that obvious?
"I think you need someone who will appreciate you and treat you right. Tanner and I will take good care of you, baby."
"I--I don't think so. Um, maybe you could..." she began.
"What, Amber? Kiss you like this?" He closed the short distance between them and covered her lips with his.
At first, it was a gentle kiss. Just the pressure of his lips against hers, then he licked along the seam asking to be invited in. Amber couldn't think with him so close to her. When he nipped at her bottom lip, she gasped, and it was all he needed to gain access to her mouth. His tongue explored her mouth with careful determination. When she moaned, he took it as an invitation to suck on her tongue.
She had no defenses against his onslaught of oral attention. Her already aroused body responded to his kiss like a thirsty sponge, soaking it all up and begging for more. She felt her panties grow wet with her juices. Why was she attracted to him? After what she had been through, why did she respond to any man at all?
Bryan sucked on her lower lip then pulled back. His eyes were heavy lidded. He hadn't been unaffected by the kiss, either.
"Fuck, you pack quite a punch for such a small thing." He stood back up and smiled at her. "I think you need to rest again. One of us will be by later on to check on you and bring you lunch. Try to stay out of trouble." He grinned when she scowled at him.
"Don't bother coming back. You're not welcome." She crossed her arms.
Bryan chuckled and leaned over her, picking up the plate. "I'll drop this off in the kitchen on my way out. See you later, Amber." He turned around and walked out of the room before she could think of anything suitable to say.
She heard the water run in the sink then his footsteps as he walked toward the door. Then she heard the creak of the door and the definite sound of it shutting behind him. She let out a shaky breath and rubbed her face with both hands. What was she going to do about them? They were not taking no for an answer. Face it, Amber. You don't want them to, either. You like them.
"Yeah, well I liked Ted, too. Look where that got me," she said out loud.
She readjusted her angle on the bed to get comfortable and tried flexing her foot again. It still didn't move much because of the swelling. Still, I didn't throb as bad, and she'd managed to put a little weight on it when she had been hobbling to the bathroom earlier. Surely that meant it was healing up.
She sighed. She had hoped it would be better by today, but it looked like she was going to have to call in at work after all. If she couldn't drive herself there, she couldn't work, either. She hated calling in sick.
Amber tried to get comfortable and take a nap, but she kept thinking about Tanner and Bryan. They were two very good-looking men, but they were bossy. Bossy led to controlling, and that led to abuse. She knew the pattern well. Why did she always like men like that? And what was with two men? Bryan acted as if he expected her to date both of them at once.
She shook her head and closed her eyes and fell into a restless sleep.
Tanner pulled up behind the Pathfinder at Amber's house with lunch and a smile. Bryan had filled him in on the morning's activities and how flustered she had gotten when he kissed her. He was counting on finding out for himself how good she tasted. He hoped his plan of slowly breaking down her walls of resistance worked. She was exactly the type of woman they were looking for.
Her feisty attitude proved it. They didn't want someone they could walk all over. Amber was definitely not a doormat. So what had happened in her past to lead her to decide not to date anymore? He wanted to find out so they didn't make that mistake.
He climbed out of the truck and walked up to the door. He slipped his credit card between the lock and the door and slipped the door open. He'd learned fast from his brother what to do. He didn't like that it was that easy to get in and out of her house. He planned to remedy that Monday morning. He would have a new set of locks installed, including a deadbolt.
"Amber? It's Tanner. I'm bringing you some lunch." He carried the bag through the living room into the kitchen and located a couple of plates, then he arranged the food on them. When he walked into the bedroom, it was to a very pissed off woman. She fumed at him from across the room.
"I told your brother to tell you not to come. I don't need for you two to constantly be in and out of my house bringing me food. I can take care of myself." She huffed out a breath and stared at him.
"Hi to you, too," he said with a grin. "We want to take care of you, Amber. Just give us a chance. Besides, where can you get a doctor to make house calls nowadays. Let me check your ankle while I'm here. Have you needed any of the pain medicine?" He set the plates on her dresser and hovered over her foot.
"I had to take one to get to sleep last night. It was throbbing. It's better today, though."
"It's still pretty swollen, though. You're not going to be able to walk on it for another day or two."
"That means I have to call in sick to work tomorrow."
"I'm sorry, Amber. It will just be for another couple of days, I'm sure. Then you should be able to tolerate some pressure as long as you sit down while you work. We can take you to and from work. You won't be safe to drive for a week at least."
"A week! I can't not drive for a week." Her face held an almost frantic expression.
"Easy, Amber. Bryan and I will make sure you have everything you need and we'll take you to work, like I said. Don't worry about it."
"I can't impose on you like that. I don't want to owe you for one thing. I already told your brother that I'm not going out with you---either of you."
"That has nothing to do with your needing help, Amber. We would never blackmail you into going out with us." He suppressed a growl at her insinuation.
"Then why are you spending so much time helping me?"
"Because we like you and you need help. We'd help anyone who needed it."
He watched as Amber digested that. Finally she sighed and nodded.
"Okay. It's really nice of you to do this, but you shouldn't go to so much trouble. I can get around some."
"Hmm, you shouldn't be on your foot any more than is absolutely necessary. Like bathroom only."
She rolled her eyes at him but smiled. Things were looking up. He turned back to the dresser and retrieved their food.
"It's probably cold, but hamburgers are usually fine even cold. The fries might not be, though."
"It should be fine. Grab a chair..." She stopped when he hitched up his pant leg and sat on the edge of her bed.
"I'm fine right here. Go on and eat. You need the food to fuel your healing process."
"Yes, doctor." She took a bite of her sandwich.
When they were finished, he took their plates back into the kitchen. There were several other plates in the sink. He quickly washed dishes and put them away. When he returned to the bedroom she was frowning again.
"What?" he asked.
"You washed dishes."
"They needed washing, or you wouldn't have had anything to eat on tomorrow."
She sighed and shook her head. "This being helpless sucks."
"Tell me about it. I had a three-wheeler accident about a year ago and was laid up for a week. I was a very bad patient. Just ask Bryan about it. He'll tell you." He chuckled at the memory of Bryan losing patience with him on several occasions.
"Now, how are you really feeling?" he asked.
"Fine other than being antsy to get out of bed and my ankle hurting occasionally."
"Good. Then I can do this." He leaned over and kissed her, planting a hand on either side of her head against the headboard.
She opened to him almost immediately. Encouraged by her capitulation, Tanner slid his tongue alongside hers and tangled with it. Then he explored her mouth, running it around her teeth then to tickle the roof of her mouth. When she moaned, he sucked on her lower lip before nibbling his way around her mouth to her jaw.
He wrapped one hand around the back of her neck, massaging it as he nipped and sucked his way along her jaw to her ear and down her neck. He stopped to suck gently on her neck, leaving his mark before continuing down her neck to her shoulder. He bit her lightly then pulled back. He was pleased to see her eyes heavy with lust. He bet she was wet between her legs and almost tested his theory, but held back. It was too soon to get that intimate with her. They would have to go slow.
His cock ached to get out of the dress pants he wore from work. Speaking of which, he needed to be getting back to the office. He stood up and ran the back of his knuckles along her cheek.
"I've got to get back to the office now. If you need anything, use either of the phone numbers. One of us will help you. I mean it, Amber."
"Thanks, I'll remember that. You better go before your receptionist has a heart attack with how late you are."
He chuckled. "You're right. She's probably having a fit about what to tell people. I'll see you tonight, Amber. We'll bring dinner, so don't get up and get anything. Remember, bathroom privileges only."
He laughed when she stuck her tongue out at him. He just brushed a finger down her nose before walking through the house to the front door. He locked it. Flimsy locks. Then climbed back in his truck and headed for the office. The truth was, he'd had his secretary keep his lunchtime open for two hours for the next few days.
Tanner thought back over the kiss on his way to the office. She'd easily given in to his kiss. And Bryan was right. She tasted like sweet candy. He couldn't wait to taste her again. More than a kiss, he wanted to taste her pussy. He bet it was as spicy as the lady herself. He couldn't wait to find out.
Amber fumed at herself once Tanner walked out of the house. What was wrong with her? She'd almost begged him to take her. She would bet that either he or Bryan would be excellent lovers in bed, but what about afterwards? It would only be a matter of time before they tried to control her life. She had to resist them.
This was why she ended up in trouble all the time. Her body always betrayed her. Even now, she was soaking wet and needed to change her panties. Getting up proved to be a hassle, but she couldn't go around with wet panties. She finally made it to her dresser and pulled out a pair of white functional panties and pulled them on. Then she limped her way to her bathroom and dropped them into the laundry basket. She would need to do laundry in another day or two.
By the time she climbed back into bed and had propped her foot back up, her ankle was throbbing again. She tried waiting it out, but finally took a pain pill and fell into a deep sleep.
The dream started out as it always did, with her trying to reason with Ted. He told her she shouldn't be wearing the low-cut blouses out in public. Then he would tell her she looked like a whore with her short skirts and high heels. He didn't want her dressing like that at all. When she would try to defend what she wore, he would go off, and before it was over with, he hit her.
She begged him to not do it, but he would be on her before she could lock herself in the bathroom. She cried out for help but there was never any coming. But this time, Tanner and Bryan showed up and pulled him off of her. Then she woke up fighting someone in bed.
"Easy, baby. It's all right. No one can hurt you here. It's okay, Amber. Wake up."
She opened her eyes to find Bryan holding her wrists as gently as he could. She noticed she'd gotten a punch in by the blood on his lip.
"Oh---my---God. I hit you. I'm sorry." She tried to scoot up in bed, and covered her face with her arms.
"Hey, calm down. I'm not going to hurt you, baby." He pulled her arms away from her face. "Look at me, Amber. You're safe. It was just a dream."
Tanner hovered in the back ground. He looked shaken. She wasn't sure why. Slowly, her breathing returned to normal. What were they doing there? What time was it? She looked over toward the clock and realized it was nearly six o'clock. She'd slept the afternoon away.
"I'm sorry, Bryan. I honestly didn't mean to hit you." Her voice shook. She couldn't help it.
"It's okay, baby. I've had plenty of busted lips before. Have to say you pack a punch, though."
"You were dreaming about someone beating you, Amber. Weren't you." Tanner didn't move any closer.
He was probably worried she'd hit him, too. She shivered and wrapped her arms around herself. She didn't want to answer him. But they deserved an answer since she'd attacked Bryan.
"I have nightmares sometimes. It's no big deal. I just usually don't assault anyone when I do."
"When I said that you've been hurt before, I didn't realize you'd been physically hurt. I'm sorry, baby."
"I'm fine now. You don't have to stay if you don't want to. I wouldn't blame you if you'd like to leave now." She really didn't want them to leave her. She was still shaken up by the dream.
"We brought dinner," Tanner said. "Let's eat. I thought we'd eat at the table. You can prop your foot up on a pillow on the other chair.
"Um, okay. That sounds good. I'd like to get out of this bed for a little while."
"You stay right there while we set everything up. When we heard you scream, we left it on the counter and ran back here to see what was wrong." Bryan patted her upper thigh before he and Tanner left to set the table.
Amber cringed inside that they had witnessed her nightmare. She felt lower than a worm right then. Poor Bryan had a busted lip because of her. She'd had her share of them. They didn't feel good.
A few minutes later, they returned to take her into the other room. Before she knew what he was going to do, Bryan picked her up and Tanner took the pillow. They settled her in the kitchen with her foot propped up on the opposite chair while they each sat on one side of her.
Dinner turned out to be meatloaf, mashed potatoes, green beans and rolls. It was delicious, and she realized she was hungry. She wolfed it down and then realized the men were staring at her. She felt her face grow warm in embarrassment.
"I'm sorry, I was hungry." She bit her lower lip.
"Don't be sorry. We enjoyed watching you eat. It's not often you run across a woman who doesn't worry about her figure so much that they pick at their food or only eat a bunch of lettuce." Tanner grinned at her. "It was great to see you enjoy your meal."
"It was very good. Where did it come from?" she asked.
"I cooked it," Bryan said with obvious pride.
"You're kidding. Really?" She was genuinely surprised.
"Hey! I'm not just another pretty face."
Amber chuckled. He looked so hurt.
"How would you like to sit up a while and watch TV?" Tanner asked.
"Oh, that would be great." She started to get up, but Bryan beat her to it and picked her up.
Tanner followed them into the living area where Bryan settled her on his lap on the couch. Tanner picked up the remote, and picking up her legs, he settled them in his lap on the opposite end of the couch. He turned on the TV then flipped through channels until he found a movie.
"How about a western?" he asked.
"Sounds good to me. I like them," she admitted.
They watched the movie with Tanner massaging her good foot and Bryan running his hands up and down her arms. The movie finished at nine. Amber yawned, amazed that she could possibly be sleepy after having slept all afternoon. She guessed she was healing and it took more rest than usual.
"Looks like someone is ready for bed," Tanner observed.
"I don't know why I'm so sleepy. I slept all afternoon."
"Your body's healing." He said just what she'd been thinking.
"Let's get you back in bed." Bryan stood up with her in his arms.
Amber had to admit she felt safe in his arms. She had no fear he would drop her. He carried her back into the bedroom while Tanner snagged the pillow on the way by the kitchen and settled it on the bed for her.
"Let's get you into your nightshirt," Bryan said.
"Oh, no! I can do that myself if you'll just hand it to me."
"I don't want you out of bed again, Amber. Do you want me to do it instead of Bryan? I just figured you were used to him since he'd already seen you without clothes on."
"You told him?" Amber felt the color rise in her face.
"Sure, he needed to know you'd gotten out of bed on your own and might have reinjured your ankle trying to get in and out of the tub." Bryan didn't look the least repentant.
"Please, I can change my own clothes. Okay?"
"Don't be a prude, Amber. I've seen you naked. It won't take but just a minute."
He reached for her shorts and quickly pulled them down and off of her, being careful of her injured knees and ankle.
"See, that was easy. Now to change Tshirts."
"I'll just wear this one and change again tomorrow," she quickly said.
"Are you sure?"
"Yes. Thanks, but I'm fine from here." Thank God he was giving in on the shirt.
He bent over and took her lips in a deep, sensual kiss. Then he smiled.
"Good night, baby."
Tanner quickly followed him with a doozy of kiss as well. He held her face gently in his hands as he kissed her then smiled at her saying good night as well.
"One of us will be by in the morning to bring you breakfast," Tanner told her. "Oh, and I have a locksmith coming by as well to change the locks on your door. They're too flimsy. Bryan will be here to let him in and stay here with you while he's here."
"But--but I can do that. I didn't realize anyone could come in. I'll take care of it." She couldn't believe they were taking over her life already and she wasn't even dating them. No, it couldn't go any further.
"See you in the morning, baby." Bryan followed Tanner out the door.
A few minutes passed where she heard them cleaning up in the kitchen. Finally she heard the front door open and close. She sighed with relief. What was she going to do about them? She figured that no matter what she was stuck with them while she was laid up. She'd give them the boot once she could drive again.
Amber adjusted her T-shirt and realized her panties had been showing. Oh God! What if Bryan had seen them and remembered that she had been wearing the red ones earlier. What would he think?
Realizing there was nothing she could do about it, she pushed it to the back of her mind and concentrated on going to sleep. This time when she drifted off, she didn't dream.
"She's coming around," Bryan said once they'd made it home.
"What makes you say that?" Tanner asked with a frown.
"She had on red panties this morning. She was wearing white ones tonight. What do you want to bet she changed because she got wet when we kissed her earlier?"
"I wondered if she was wet when I kissed her at lunch. She really got into the kiss for a while."
"I guess I can see why she's reluctant to get involved with us considering her past. If I knew who had abused her I would teach him some manners." Bryan liked the idea of finding him.
"I think we need to focus our attentions on treating her right and not getting revenge," Tanner said in a dry voice.
Bryan huffed out a breath. Tanner was right, though. Making sure she was happy would go a long way in securing a spot in her affections. Now all they had to do was figure out how to make her happy and want to be around them more. He had a feeling that putting the new locks on the door wasn't one of those ways, but it had to be done. Neither he nor Tanner could stand the idea of her living there with those flimsy locks.
"Bryan, do you think we're coming on too strong for her considering her background?" Tanner seemed to have been thinking about it.
"Maybe, but I don't want her to be able to shore up her defenses against us by staying away some. I think we need to break down her defenses and then shower her with love and affection. I'm sure that guy whoever he was started out nice to her. We've got to prove we won't change."
"We've got a long way ahead of us, then."
"I think she's worth it," Bryan said.
"I do, too. I'm just worried she won't come around. Then where will we be? I know she's the one for us, Bryan. The idea we might lose her tears me up inside." Tanner stood up from where he'd been sitting nursing a beer.
"I'm beat. I'm heading for a shower. I'll see you in the morning."
Bryan carried his empty beer bottle to the kitchen and tossed it. When he returned to head upstairs, Tanner still stood in the same place. His brother was deep in thought. He left him there and climbed the stairs to his room. He had his own bathroom, as did Tanner. Neither of them used the master suite. That was reserved for when they brought their lady home with them. Hopefully that lady would be Amber.
He stripped as soon as he walked in the bedroom then turned on the shower and adjusted the water temperature to how he liked it. Then, as soon as it was warm enough, he climbed in. After soaping up and rinsing off, he thought about Amber and her luscious pink nipples. His cock had been hard all day and was steel-hard after having been with her for the last three-and-a-half hours.
He lathered up his dick and stroked it slow and easy after squeezing the shaft at the base. Bryan imagined her hot and eager to suck his cock in her warm, wet mouth. Her pretty pink lips would surround his cock and suck on just the head until he was wild for her.
She would lick along his shaft then nibble at the underside of the mushroom cap. He began tugging on his cock a little faster. A drop of pre-cum beaded at the slit on top of his cock. He rubbed it around the cap, then pulled on it harder.
Bryan would thread his fingers though her hair as she bobbed up and down on his dick. He would stop her before she made him come and get to his knees to taste her sweet pussy. He bet she would be spicy like she was. He would lick her slit up and down then stab her with his tongue until he was fucking her cunt with it.
She'd cry out, begging for him to let her come. His hand moved faster as he reached between his legs with his other one to fondle his balls. He rolled them in his hand and lightly squeezed them. He went up on tiptoes as he grew closer to coming.
Amber's sweet blue eyes would gaze down at him as he entered her with two fingers, then fucked her as he sucked at her clit. She'd explode around him, whimpering as she came. Bryan felt the electricity race down his spine and center in his balls as he tightened his grip on his dick and pulled harder. Cum shot out from his cock in ribbons that hit the back of the shower wall. He leaned against the wall with one hand as he slowly brought himself down, pumping his cock until he'd stripped every drop of cum he had from his cock.
He leaned against the ceramic tile for several minutes trying to catch his breath. He hadn't come that hard in a long time. Fuck, he wanted her. How was he ever going to stand waiting? Already he was antsy just to taste her sweet pussy. He just wanted to pleasure her. He could hold off actually fucking her if she would just let him lick her cunt. Somehow he was almost sure that would be later as well.
He wondered if Tanner felt the same draw that he did. He seemed to be totally taken with her, but he was handling keeping it slow much better than Bryan was. He wished he had Tanner's patience. Well, that was why he was a doctor and Bryan was a rancher. He grinned. He would push her, and Tanner would coddle her. Between the two of them, they should be able to keep her off-balance. Off-balance was good.
He crawled into bed and lay back with his arms crossed behind his head. He thought about her for a long time before he finally fell asleep to dream about her.
Amber tolerated the guys coming to the house for the next three days fairly well. She kept her strength up in trying to resist them, but the moment they kissed her, she lost it all once again. And they kissed her every opportunity they got.
Bryan pushed her by running his hand up her thigh and fingering her panties. She slapped his hand away but hesitated long enough that he got a finger under the edge of them. Tanner talked to her, massaging her neck as he kissed her and running a hand up and down her arm. Together they kept her off-balance.
She wanted to give in, but kept reminding herself of what would happen eventually. She didn't want to have to leave Blue Springs. She had made a life here and enjoyed the people and the small-town atmosphere. If she let herself get sucked into their bed, before she knew it, they would become mean and the entire town would know about her business when she called the police. At least in Memphis, no one cared. It would be different in a small town.
She was glad to have the new locks, but had thrown a fit over Tanner paying for them. She insisted he let her pay, and he'd huffed out of the room, obviously upset. She was just surprised he hadn't blown up at her for defying him.
Finally the day came she was able to drive herself to work. The men were like mother hens arriving thirty minutes before she was ready to leave. They hovered as she finished getting dressed and had brought her breakfast.
"I wanted to make sure you ate. You still need to keep your healing process going," Tanner told her.
"Thanks for the breakfast, but you two don't have to come over anymore. I'm well now and can take care of myself."
"Maybe we like taking care of you, baby." Bryan gave her a hug.
She didn't hug him back. That would only encourage him. Why did her arms ache to close around him? Because you're stupid. You're only going to get into trouble again, Amber. Put an end to it before it's too late.
"Really, you don't need to come back." I don't want you to hovered on her lips, but she just couldn't say the words.
"You need to keep these numbers with you in case you run into trouble." Tanner handed her a business card.
She flipped it over and found both of their cell numbers written there. She sighed and slipped it into her purse.
"Okay, I'm leaving now. Out, out, out." She made a shooing motion and they moved ahead of her.
Her limp was only slightly noticeable now, thank goodness. She found when she put pressure on the gas or the brake it ached, but she made it to work without a problem. She spent the day sitting down. Everyone was sympathetic, having already heard the news of how it had happened. They also seemed to know about Bryan and Tanner's interest in her.
"Really, they were just being kind because I didn't have anyone to help me." She tried to stop any gossip by talking to Elizabeth, her fellow teller at the bank.
"Honey, if those two men were paying attention to me, I'd be all over them like bees on honey. And they would be sweet honey, too."
"I'm just not interested in dating right now." She tried to make it clear that she wasn't interested.
"Just don't wait around long, honey. They're in high demand. I've never been lucky enough to catch their eye, but I hear tell they take real good care of their lovers, if you know what I mean."
Amber could guess what she was hinting at. She sighed already having a hard time keeping her mind off of them. Many more innuendos and she'd need to change her panties. She was glad when she was busy so that everyone stayed in their little windows.
Finally, the day ended and she could go home. Why wasn't she surprised to see one of the brothers' trucks sitting in her drive, minus the driver? She should have been furious, but she was only mildly irritated. She guessed she was getting used to them barging in. When they had the locks changed, they'd each kept a key. She wasn't even surprised.
She climbed out of her Pathfinder and huffed out a breath and walked up to the door. With an impish grin, she rang the doorbell. Bryan answered the door. His face broke out into a wide grin when he saw that it was her.
"What are you doing out there? Come on in. Tanner is cooking a celebratory meal for your first day back at work."
"He's cooking in my kitchen?" she yelped. "It's such a small thing for him to be comfortable cooking in."
"He's doing just fine. Come on. You need a nice hot bath to relax, and a change of clothes. It will be another hour before it's ready." Bryan led her through the kitchen where something smelled heavenly.
"I'll run your bath while you undress."
It took a minute for what he said to sink in, and by then she'd already pulled off her shoes and was unbuttoning her blouse.
"Oh, no you don't. You get out of this bedroom right now."
"Come on, baby. I've seen everything you've got already. There's no need for you to be shy around me."
"Yes, there is. We aren't dating. Much less married." She settled her hands on her hips.
"Well, that could be easily remedied," he said, waggling his eyebrows. "Anyway, the water is running. You better check it."
She watched him walk out and close the door behind him. She hurried to check the water and turned it off before it got too deep. Now what had he meant by that? What could easily be remedied? Their dating or marrying? She shivered and quickly finished undressing before he decided to come back. She climbed into the tub, remembering too late that she hadn't locked the bathroom door. Oh well. He wouldn't dare come in knowing she didn't want him in there.
The nearly hot water felt wonderful on her sore ankle. Despite trying to stay off it at work all day, she'd had to walk various places several times. Then there was driving, which had been harder than the actual walking and standing had been.
She quickly bathed and then rested for a few minutes before getting out. She bent over the tub to let the water out when the door opened and Bryan walked in. Yelping, she grabbed the towel and wrapped it around her.
"Good, you're out. I came in to help you if you had trouble," he said straight faced.
"Right. You meant to catch me naked. You're incorrigible, Bryan."
"Dinner will be ready in about fifteen minutes. Need help dressing?" he asked.
"No. I can manage all by myself, thank you very much."
Bryan sighed then chuckled. "I figured you would say that."
She watched him turn and walk out of the bedroom, once again shutting the door behind him. Amber quickly dressed in a pair of soft lounging pants and a T-shirt. She didn't bother with a bra since she hadn't worn on with them around the entire time they were taking care of her.
When she walked into the kitchen she was engulfed with the mouthwatering smell of something Italian. She hummed her approval and tried to take a peak, but Tanner barred her way.
"Nope, you have to wait. Go ahead and sit at the table. I poured you a glass of wine."
"All of this just because I went to work today?"
"Yep. We wanted to celebrate your return to work and the fact that you are just about healed." Tanner handed her the glass of wine while Bryan pulled out her chair.
They had manners. What did that say about them? Nothing, Amber. You're letting them get to you. So, what did it hurt to let them coddle her some? It felt good for a change. Just because they were strong men didn't necessarily mean they would be mean.
Amber seemed to be talking herself into letting them take her out. She sighed and took a sip of the wine. It was very good.
"How does it taste?" Tanner asked.
"Good. Very good."
"Great. It should complement the meal. I'll serve you." He took her plate and dipped something up on her plate. Then he added something else. "Here you go. The bread is on the table.
"Wow! Chicken tetrazzini. I love it." She looked expectantly at them.
"What?" Tanner asked.
"Aren't you going to eat with me?"
"Are you sure you want us to?" Tanner asked.
"Well, yeah. You cooked, you should eat. You too, Bryan."
They each grabbed a plate out of the cabinet and helped themselves to the food. Then they poured a glass of wine and sat down on either side of her.
"Dig in," Tanner said.
Amber took a bite and closed her eyes in enjoyment. It was wonderful.
"Mmmm, this is very, very good." She took another bite then sipped the wine.
Tanner was right, the wine complemented the meal perfectly. To think that both men could cook was amazing. She liked them more and more. That was the problem. She was getting in dangerous waters with them.
"Why the sudden frown? Did you bite into something that didn't taste good?" Bryan asked.
"No. It's all good. I was just thinking about something. Nothing important," she lied.
Bryan didn't look like he believed her, but he wisely didn't say anything. This surprised her, too. She expected him to push her about it.
Amber finished her meal and the glass of wine. Tanner poured a small amount in her glass and did the same in his and Bryan's glasses. It emptied the bottle. There was just enough to clear her palate.
"Now for dessert." Tanner got up from the table and pulled something out of the refrigerator.
"I don't think I can eat another bite, Tanner. Maybe later. You two go ahead, though."
"It's tiramisu," he said with a grin.
"You cooked that!"
"Nope, can't claim that. I had it made at the bakery." He cut a small piece and placed it in front of her. "Just eat what you want, but try it."
He proceeded to cut two normal-size pieces for him and Bryan. He watched her, obviously wanting to see how she liked it, so Amber took a bite and nodded her head.
"It's very good." She nibbled at it until she finally finished most of it. She couldn't eat another mouthful.
"You go relax in front of the TV while we clean things up." Tanner stood up and began to gather the dishes.
"Nonsense. You cooked. I'll clean." She eyed Bryan. "He'll dry," she said with a chuckle.
"Not fair." Bryan pretended to pout.
"I'll take you up on that just to see him dry." Tanner parked himself against the table while they carried dishes to the sink.
They made quick work of the dishes, and Tanner covered the tetrazzini and placed it in the fridge for her to eat later. She would definitely be eating that later. It had been unbelievable.
Once they had finished cleaning up the kitchen, she let the men lead her into the living room to watch some TV. This time, they all three sat up on the couch with Amber in the middle. Tanner draped his arm along the back of the couch, but it soon rested on her shoulders. Bryan rested a hand on her thigh. Soon he was massaging it.
It didn't take Tanner long to lean over and nibble at her earlobe, moving around to her jaw. Bryan leaned over and did the same thing on his side. Amber squinched up her neck and shivered. She should really stop them, but didn't. It felt too good. Bryan licked and sucked his way down her neck, then back up again. Tanner turned her head toward him with a finger to her jaw and kissed her.
Bryan's hand continued to massage her thigh, moving up and down her leg. When he moved up, he got a little closer to her pussy each time. Amber was soon anticipating his touching her there. When he finally rasped over it with the lightest of touches, she moaned into Tanner's mouth. Bryan took that as encouragement and lightly scratched over her pussy again and again. Soon she was rising to meet his fingers.
Tanner's hand brushed over her breast, and immediately her nipples peaked, giving him somewhere to focus his attentions. Soon, she was a bundle of nerves waiting to be stimulated. Arousal peeked and she began to rise toward an orgasm. She couldn't believe she could ever come just by stimulation of her breasts and pussy while still fully clothed, but she was quickly moving in that direction.
Amber whimpered, wanting out of her clothes so she could feel their hands against her bare skin. Tanner's mouth continued loving on her jaw, neck, and lips while she squirmed between the two men. Bryan leaned in and sucked her nipple into his mouth through her T-shirt. It was all she needed to come. His finger at her pussy pressed in the general location of her clit while he sucked on her nipple, and Tanner was rasping over the other one with his fingernails.
Fire traveled from her nipples to her clit and back again, sending her flying through ecstasy. Slowly the men let her down. Then Bryan was scooping her up in his arms and carrying her back through the kitchen to her bedroom. He laid her on the bed and began to tug off her pants while Tanner pulled off her shirt. Bryan removed her panties and climbed on the end of the bed to suck her nipples then moved down her belly to her pussy.
Just as Tanner latched on to one of her nipples with his mouth and the other with his fingers, Bryan licked up her pussy.
"Oh, God," she managed to get out.
Never had she felt so aroused. She'd actually come without ever losing her clothes, and now they were fast pushing her toward another orgasm. It didn't creep up on her like the first one had. It roared to life, taking her arousal higher and higher. She squirmed between them, trying to get closer to both of them at the same time.
Bryan licked up and down her slit, lapping up her juices. He hummed his approval against her pussy.
"Fuck. You taste like ambrosia, sweet and tangy all at the same time."
He gently pulled back her pussy lips and began to stab at her cunt with his tongue. The added stimulation soon had sparks shooting down her spine lodging at the base waiting to explode throughout her body.
Tanner was nipping at one nipple and pinching the other one gently between his thumb and forefinger. Then he twisted it while sucking the other one tight into his mouth. His free hand began molding her breast, forcing more of it into his mouth. She couldn't stop moaning and gasping from time to time.
When Bryan pushed two fingers inside her cunt, she groaned out loud, hissing out a yes as he pumped his fingers in and out of her wet pussy. He continued to lick his way around her pussy, sucking in her pussy lips only to lick around her clit a second later. When he curled his fingers and found her hot spot, she shuddered all over.
"Please," she whispered.
"What do you need, Amber. Tell us. We'll give you anything you need to come. You just have to tell us." Bryan lightly licked over her clit once. It ratcheted up her arousal another level.
"Everything. I need more of everything," she finally managed to get out.
They gave her what she asked for, nipping harder on her breast and twisting the other one. Bryan rubbed harder on her sweet spot while sucking in her clit and running his tongue over it. They only had to increase their ministrations for a couple of seconds before her orgasm ripped through her like a storm.
Amber screamed out her pleasure, tightening up throughout her body as nerve endings exploded in rapture. Tanner let go of her nipple with an audible pop and covered her mouth to take in the rest of her scream.
Finally Bryan let her down slowly, easily, until she lay gasping desperately for breath. He gently rubbed circles around her belly while Tanner kissed her cheek, jaw, and the corner of her mouth, all the while whispering in between how beautiful she was when she came.
As soon as she had calmed down, both men got up on the bed, one on either side of her, and held her between them. Neither of them had taken off their clothes, so they lay fully clothed beside her. She could feel their hard cocks pressed against her thighs. Still, they didn't move to fuck her. She lay there confused but sated.
When they eventually climbed off the bed and Tanner picked her up so that Bryan could pull back the covers, she protested. Bryan covered her up to her neck.
"But what about you?" she asked them.
"What, Amber?" Tanner asked as he smoothed her hair down.
"You didn't come. You brought me over twice, yet you didn't fuck me." She looked up at them.
"This was all about you, baby," Bryan said. "We wanted to make you feel good."
"Did we take good care of you, Amber?" Tanner asked, looking down into her eyes.
"God, yes. It was amazing. I've never come twice in one night before, but I can't believe you don't want to fuck me."
"Oh, we do, baby. I want inside that hot cunt of yours more than anything, but like I said, it was for you this time. We wanted to see you come. You're beautiful when you come." Bryan tucked the covers beneath her chin and leaned over to kiss her. "Sleep now, Amber."
She yawned as if his suggestion got to her. And maybe it had because she felt her eyes starting to close. She was aware of Tanner kissing her and saying good night, and then nothing.
Tanner locked the door behind them and walked uncomfortably toward the truck. Climbing into the cab and sitting down proved to be torture. He noticed his brother adjusting his cock in his jeans just like he was. They looked at each other and groaned.
"Fuck, I'm so hard I could pound nails," Bryan said.
"Tell me about it. I'm literally in pain over here. But seeing the pleasure on her face and the disbelief in her eyes is worth every second of it. At least until I get home and can jack off,"
"Damn she tasted good, Tanner. Next time I get her breasts and you get her pussy. You'll fall in love with the taste of her." Bryan put on his seat belt as Tanner put the truck into reverse.
"Do you think she's going to regret it in the morning?" Tanner asked.
"I think she'll beat herself up about it, but I don't think she'll regret it."
"Should we go over there in the morning again?"
"I think we give her time to think about it. I'll call her at work tomorrow just to say hi. We'll talk to her on the phone every day, then take her out Friday after work. What do you think about that?" Bryan asked.
"Sounds like a plan. I like your plans so far."
"They've worked so far. I'm not sure how she's going to react by the end of the week, that's why I want us to call her every day. We want her used to hearing from us, so that we are never far from her mind."
"Good idea. I'll call her tomorrow afternoon. You call her in the morning and tell her you hope she has a good day at work."
They pulled up outside of their house and got out of the truck, cursing their dicks as they did. Tanner's was rubbing a blister on his cock against his jeans. They climbed up the stairs and unlocked the door. As soon as they walked into the house, they each released the button on their jeans and breathed a small sigh of partial relief.
"I think I need a beer," Tanner said. "You want one?"
"Hell yeah."
Tanner went to get the beer and, after handing Bryan his, sat down and stretched out his legs in front of him to give his sequestered cock some breathing room. Bryan did the same thing. The first sip of his beer went down cold and refreshing. The second sip hit the spot. He looked off across the room at the quiet TV.
"She's going to balk about seeing us together out in public," Tanner said.
Bryan sighed and took a sip of his beer. "I know. We've got to nip that in the bud quick. If she sees that no one thinks anything about it, she'll be fine. That's why I think we should take her to the club first. Everyone out there is used to threesomes. Especially us." Bryan chuckled.
They had been going to the club for as long as Tanner could remember. They had grown up in a ménage family. Their mother had been married to both of their fathers. He couldn't remember a time where he and Bryan could ever say they were ignored. Between David and Matthew, their fathers, they always had someone to talk to about everyday problems of teenagers.
All three of their parents had been killed in a plane crash when they were on their way back from a vacation in Barbados. It had nearly killed them to lose them like that all at one time, but they both knew it was better that all three of them went at one time instead of leaving one or two of them to suffer alone. Tanner missed them at times like these. If they had been alive, he would have gone to them for advice.
"You're thinking about them, aren't you." Bryan said.
"Yeah. I wish they were here to ask what we should do."
"Me, too."
Tanner took another sip of his beer. "What do we do if she totally balks at the idea of a threesome relationship, Bryan? I don't think I could stand it. She means too much to me already."
"She won't. We just have to be careful with her. Get her used to being with us around people who don't care that we date one woman. Then when we go out in public, she won't be as nervous."
"You're probably right. I just can't help but worry that something will happen to screw this up."
"Don't think about it. We have to show a united front to win her over, Tanner." Bryan turned up his beer and swallowed the rest of it. "I'm going to shower, then head to bed. I've got to be up early in the morning to make a phone call." He grinned and left Tanner sitting in the living room.
Something still bothered Tanner. Bryan had insisted that the car that had almost run Amber over had been headed straight for her. That meant someone out there had wanted to hurt her at the very least. Who and why? Why would anyone want to hurt her? She was a sweet woman.
Finally he shook his head and drained his beer. He grabbed Bryan's empty can and dropped both of them in the garbage can in the kitchen on his way up to shower. His cock hadn't deflated one bit thinking about Amber.
Tanner climbed into the shower and cleaned up. Then he ran his hand up and down his cock, squeezing it as he did. A drop of pre-cum pearled at the slit on top. He ran it around the head to give him added lubrication. He hated to jack off when he'd left Amber needy and ready for them.
He thought about her pink lips that turned plump and red when he kissed her. He knew they would look good wrapped around his cock. He tugged on his dick slightly harder as he thought about plunging into her mouth between her swollen lips over and over. She would hold him at the base to make sure he didn't choke her, and let him pump his cock inside her mouth over and over again.
Tanner squeezed and tugged, pumping his hand up and down, remembering the feel and taste of her nipple in his mouth. Then he thought about plunging his cock deep into her hot cunt. He could just imagine how good it would feel to have her tighten around him as she came. He squeezed his dick again. Fire burned down his spine to settle in his balls. They boiled with his cum.
He reached between his legs and massaged them, knowing just how rough he could be and not hurt himself. He pushed it, needing the extra tightness to slow his orgasm down some. He didn't want to shoot off this fast. He wanted to savor it, thinking about Amber and her face when she'd climaxed.
Still, his balls burned, promising a doozy of a climax when he finally let go. He tightened his hold on his cock as he tugged on it. He tried to slow down, but couldn't. He had slipped too close to coming already. He tried to think of other things besides Amber, but couldn't. She dominated his thoughts. Slowly, he climbed higher and higher until the climax washed over him and his boiling balls erupted in streams of cum flowing through his hand.
He groaned and ended up holding himself up with one hand on the tiled wall. Once he had caught his breath again. Tanner cleaned up and climbed out of the shower. He dried off but didn't bother putting anything on. Instead, he climbed into bed and went to sleep with thoughts of Amber circling in his head.
Amber couldn't believe that the guys were calling her two and three times a day checking on her. It was sweet, but disconcerting. They were obviously serious about dating her. How could she convince them that she wasn't interested when she'd let them make love to her? Sure, there had been no actual intercourse, but what they had done was as intimate, if not more so.
She pulled into her drive Friday after work planning on a nice, relaxing bath and a night of watching movies on Lifetime. She knew someone had been there as soon as she walked in the house. Expecting one of the guys, she just sighed and dropped her keys on the little table by the door. What had they done this time?
There was nothing in the living room or the kitchen to suggest they had been there. When she walked into her bedroom, someone grabbed her from behind and pulled her arms up behind her back. She screamed, and he threw her down on the bed and slapped her. Amber wasn't going to just lie there. She struggled to sit up and tried to kick out at her attacker. He was wearing a ski mask, so she couldn't see his face.
He avoided her kick and pinned her to the bed, pinning both her hands by the wrists. He transferred one hand to his other hand and held both of hers over her head. Then he ripped at her blouse. She screamed again and tried to head-butt him, but all it did was hurt her head. He just grunted and ripped her blouse further open.
She heard someone crashing in her front door yelling for her. It was Bryan. Her attacker let her go and climbed out of her bedroom window where he had obviously broken in. Bryan ran into her bedroom to find her shaking and crying, holding her ripped blouse together.
"Fuck, baby. Aw, fuck. He hit you." Bryan grabbed her and held her close. Then he pulled out his cell phone and called someone as he held her.
"Tanner. Get over to Amber's, now. Someone attacked her." He listened then growled. "She's shaken up, and the bastard hit her."
Amber could hear Tanner's voice talking over the phone.
"Yeah, call the police for me."
Bryan hung up and stuck his phone back on its holder. Then he picked her up, carried her to the living room, and sat down with her on his lap. He pulled her hands away from her face and kissed her softly at her temple.
"Baby, it's going to be okay. Shh, don't cry."
Amber turned her face into his neck and held on to him for dear life. She couldn't believe she'd been attacked. The man had been going to rape her. For once, she was glad that Bryan and Tanner had keys to her house. If not for Bryan... She wouldn't let herself finish that thought. Fresh tears fell to soak Bryan's neck and shirt.
He rubbed circles on her back holding her until the police arrived. The front door was still standing wide open, so they walked on in. One of them was Officer McKenny, and the other one she didn't recognize.
"I understand someone broke in and attacked Miss Reynolds. Ma'am, do you need an ambulance?" he asked.
"She's basically okay. He hit her but my brother is on his way."
"He's here. Let me look at her." Tanner burst into the room past the officers and pulled Amber from Bryan's arms. "Hell. You're going to have a bruise on your cheek, Amber, but he didn't break the skin." He held her close and looked up at the policemen. "You find this asshole before I do."
"Don't go making threats, Doc. We don't need to hear them," McKenny said with a shake of his head.
"We need to ask her some questions," the other officer said, pulling out his pad.
"Amber, baby. Do you feel up to talking to them?" Bryan held her hand and squeezed it.
"I need to so they can find him." She hated going back over it, but knew she had to.
"Ms. Reynolds, it's possible all of this is connected," McKenny told her.
"What do you mean?" she asked.
"The attempted breakin last month, the car trying to hit you, and this."
"Someone tried to break in before?" Bryan cursed. "Why didn't you say anything, Amber?"
"I didn't think it was anything, and it was before I met you two."
"Let's go over what happened," McKenny said again.
Amber led him through her coming home thinking that one of the guys was in the house.
"They have keys to your house?" he asked.
"Yeah. They had better locks put on my door. Didn't do me much good, though."
"Go ahead."
She went over what happened and ended with Bryan coming to her rescue, sending the attacker back out the window. The officer she didn't know walked through the her house to the bedroom to look at her window.
"Was he wearing gloves?" McKenny asked.
"No, but he had a ski mask on."
"We might be able to lift prints off the window, then. If he's in the system, we'll find him."
"She's going to be coming home with us, while you process her house," Tanner said.
Amber didn't argue. She didn't feel up to arguing, and secretly was glad they wanted her to stay with them. She was scared to death to sleep in her house now.
"I need you to walk through your bedroom and let me know if anything's been disturbed or is missing so we know what to check for fingerprints."
Amber nodded her head and climbed out of Tanner's lap. She swallowed hard, then led the way to her bedroom holding Tanner's hand as she did. Inside her bedroom she found the other officer wearing gloves and checking her window out.
"There's footprints underneath the window, and what looks like a knee print. He must have had to scramble to get out," he said. "I'm going to call the crime unit to dust."
He squeezed past them and left the room to make the call. Amber looked around the room. Nothing seemed to be missing that she could tell, but her underwear drawer was partially open. She always shut her drawers when she got dressed. She pointed out the partially open drawer.
"I don't remember leaving that open."
Officer McKenny pulled on gloves and, using two fingers, pulled it the rest of the way open at the edges.
"Anything missing that you can tell?" he asked.
"Um, I'm not sure." She looked at the mess the intruder had made of the drawer. "I keep my clothes neat in stacks, so he must have gone through them. She shuddered.
"Okay, let's look at the other drawers. He pulled open each drawer to find that the only one to be disturbed was her underwear drawer. "Did you have dirty clothes anywhere?"
"Huh? What has that got to do with anything?" Bryan asked
"Um, the intruder might have taken a souvenir. Underwear that has been worn would be a possibility.
"Oh---my---God! I keep my dirty clothes in my bathroom." She started to go look, but McKenny stopped her.
"Wait. Don't touch anything, Miss Reynolds. Let me show you what to do." He followed her into the bathroom.
"I keep them in this basket." She looked inside and noticed everything seemed there, but her panties.
"Let me lift things up for you." He used one finger and picked up her clothes to let her look beneath them.
They weren't there. Amber thought she was going to be sick.
"Easy, baby." Bryan had followed them into the bathroom. "What is it?"
"He took my panties. He took my panties out of my dirty clothes."
"Are you sure, ma'am?" McKenny asked.
"Yes I wore black panties that matched the bra to work with my black slacks and sweater yesterday." She began to tremble all over. Bryan pulled her into his arms.
"Is that all you need her for?" he asked.
"For now, anyway. I know where to contact her if I need her."
"Can she take some clothes with her?" Bryan asked.
"No, I'm sorry, but we need everything to stay like it is to process the rooms."
"That's okay," Tanner said from behind them. "We can pick her something up in town. Let's go, Bryan."
Bryan led her back through the house where Tanner had her purse and keys waiting, with a jacket for her to put on to cover her torn blouse. He led the way out to their vehicles. The other officer nodded to them and moved the police car that was blocking Bryan's truck in. Tanner helped her into Bryan's truck then closed the door and walked over to get into his truck. They all pulled out and headed for town.
Once they arrived, Tanner led the way to a boutique on the corner of Main Street. When she would have gotten out, Bryan stopped her.
"He'll get you what you need so you don't have to go in, baby."
"He doesn't know my sizes or what I need," she argued.
"We know your sizes, baby. Remember, we undressed you the other night. And he'll know what you need. Trust me."
Amber just sighed and looked out the window. Everything was screwed up now. She had loved her little house, but now she didn't feel safe there. How would she ever be able to sleep there again, especially when the bastard was still out there?
"Don't think about it, baby. Everything will be okay. We'll make it okay, baby. I promise." Bryan reached over and squeezed her hand. "Just lean back and close your eyes and rest."
Amber didn't think she would be able to rest at all. Closing her eyes just ran the entire event through her mind again and again. She shuddered and opened her eyes to stare up at the ceiling in the truck.
A few minutes later, Bryan cranked the truck. She looked around and saw Tanner loading packages into the backseat of his truck. There looked to be too many for what she needed. She frowned, worried that he'd gone overboard. Well, they could take back what she didn't need.
Bryan backed out of the parking place and headed for their ranch. She watched the scenery fly past. Then when they passed her house again, she noted the extra vehicles around it with guys milling around. She hated strangers going through her things. She would have to wash everything she owned to feel comfortable in them again. Hell, that was if she could ever stay in her house again and feel safe.
"You're thinking too hard over there, Amber." Bryan reached over and grabbed her hand again. "Let it go for now."
"It's hard to. What if I can never stay there again? I'll have to move, and I loved that house."
"We'll get good locks put on the windows so you don't have to worry. Just leave it to us, baby."
"You've already done so much for me, Bryan. You and Tanner can't keep taking over everything." That was how it felt. They were controlling her life, just like her ex had done.
"We're not trying to take over, Amber. We just want to make things as easy as possible for you. That's all."
She didn't say anything because deep down, she felt like he was telling the truth. Her mind didn't want to accept it, though.
They pulled up in front of a two-story house that took her breath. It had a front porch that wrapped around the sides with rocking chairs and a swing on it. She unfastened her safety belt and climbed out of the truck before either Tanner or Bryan could get to her. Amber couldn't believe how perfect it was. She couldn't wait to see the inside.
"This is your house? It's beautiful."
Tanner put an arm around her and pulled her toward it. "Wait till you see the inside."
"I'll get the packages," Bryan said with a chuckle.
Tanner led her up the steps to the porch, then unlocked the door for her to step inside. It had a large entrance hall that led into the living area. She gasped at the huge stone fireplace. It took up most of one wall, with built-in bookshelves on either side. On the opposite wall was a built-in entertainment center surrounding a huge, wall-mounted flat screen TV. There were shelves and shelves of DVDs on one side, and a CD player and CDs on the other side. A couch faced the fireplace while two recliners faced the TV. She smiled, big surprise there.
"This way to the kitchen."
Tanner led her into a huge eat-in kitchen with new-looking black appliances and granite counter tops. There was a bar separating the kitchen from the eating area with three barstools. The kitchen table sat six easily.
"I put the packages in the bedroom, Tanner. She probably wants to get out of those clothes. We're supposed to put them in a paper bag and call for someone to pick them up." Bryan walked in and settled a hand on her shoulder.
"Yeah, I really want a shower, if you don't mind." She wanted to scrub off the feel of his hands on her and the memory of the attack if that were possible.
"Of course. I should have thought of that. Bryan, why don't you show her the way, and I'll call the police. By the time they get here, we'll have them in a bag for them. I'm sure we have a paper bag around here somewhere." Tanner walked around the bar to disappear through another doorway.
"You'll like the bedroom. It's perfect for you." He led her back through the living room and upstairs.
At the end of a long hall he opened a set of double doors that led into a large master bedroom with a giant four-poster king-sized bed and matching furniture. It was breathtaking. Soft maroons and greens decorated the room. Hardwood floors with throw rugs made the room warm feeling.
"Through here is the bathroom." He indicated a doorway between two other doorways. She figured those two were his-and-hers closets. This was the master suite she was positive. Surely they didn't plan to put her in there?
"Don't you have a smaller room for me? This has to be one of your rooms."
"Nope, no one stays in here. Tanner and I each have a room down the hall. I put all of the packages on the bed. You can go through them and find something comfortable to put on. Knowing Tanner, they're going to be very comfortable," Bryan said with a grin.
"He got way too much. He can take back what I don't wear, though."
She walked over to the bed and pulled off the jacket Tanner had given her to cover up with. Then she opened the bags and pulled out soft shirts and pants in every color. There were six pairs of matching underwear, and they were in her size. They really had paid attention to her sizes. Everything he had gotten would fit. There was just too much of it.
"Don't worry about it. Find what you want to wear and grab a shower. If you need me or Tanner, just yell. We'll hear you anywhere in the house." Bryan hugged her and kissed the top of her head before walking out of the bedroom and closing the door. Then he stuck just his head back in.
"Don't forget to leave your clothes---all of them---out for us to give to the police."
"I won't." She watched as he closed the door once more.
Amber laid everything out on the bed and chose a pair of soft lounging pants in navy blue, and a light blue T-shirt to go with it. Then she pulled out the underwear and sighed. They were sexy, not really utilitarian. Still, he'd selected every color that would look good on her. She picked out a navy blue bra and panty set and put everything away in the dresser drawers. After she finished that task, she carried her treasures to the bathroom and pulled off her ruined clothes. She dropped them by the bedroom door. Then she hurried into the bathroom and closed the door.
When she turned around, her jaw dropped at the sight of the opulent whirlpool tub that had to be big enough for three people. She would love to soak in that for hours. She walked further into the room to find a giant walk-in ceramic tiled shower. She could get used to something like this in a hurry. It was a good thing she wouldn't be staying there for long. Where would she go? She pushed that thought to the back of her mind for now. She would worry about that later.
Amber turned on the multiple showerheads and waited for the water to warm up. Then she stepped in the spray. It felt like a thousand tiny pinpricks all over her body. It felt wonderful. She scrubbed every part of her body, enjoying the soft smell of flowers from the soap. Interesting. Why would they have flowered soap in the master bathroom? She tucked away that thought to go over later.
As soon as she finished rinsing, she turned off the shower and stepped out straight into Tanner's open arms. He was holding a towel and wrapped it around her.
"What are you doing in here?" she gasped.
"Drying you off. I wanted to check your chest and be sure he didn't scratch you when he, um, tore your blouse."
"He didn't. I have a red mark or two, but nothing to worry about." She crossed her arms over the towel.
"Let me be the judge of that." He tugged on her towel.
Amber frowned. "You don't need to see. You're just wanting to see my naked body."
"As much as I do want that," he said, "I really am concerned and want to look at what he did to you, honey.
Amber licked her lips, then let go of the towel so he could open it and look. She felt exposed when he opened it. He didn't pull it all the way off of her, though, of which she was thankful. Instead, he checked the red line that marred her chest where his hand had grabbed at her blouse, then he looked at the bruise over her left breast. Afterwards, he covered her back up and hugged her.
"I'm so sorry you were attacked, Amber. I wish we had been there to prevent it."
"I'm just glad that Bryan showed up when he did. That's all that matters to me right now."
"Okay. I'm going to go and let you get dressed. Come on back down when you finish. We had planned to go out to dinner, but I think you would probably rather eat something here."
"Oh, I don't want to interrupt your plans. Go out. I'll be fine here." She had to force herself to say it, because she really didn't want to be alone.
"We were taking you out, honey. We can go out another night."
"Oh. Okay." She hadn't realized they had planned on taking her out. They hadn't asked her.
Once again, her mind and her heart warred with each other on how they were just assuming she would go along with their plans. Part of her wanted to balk at them taking over her life, while another part of her was thankful they had been there when she needed them both times.
She finished dressing and used the brush on the dresser to brush her hair. There had been a hair dryer in the bathroom. Maybe she should have washed her hair. Shrugging, she left the brush on the dresser where she found it, and opened the bedroom door to make her way downstairs.
Halfway down the stairs, it hit her that as much as she loved her little house, this one was perfect. It was too big for her, but it was perfect if she could have her dream house. So much of it reminded her of the house she'd designed as a teenager when she planned to get married and have a house full of kids. All of that had gone by the wayside now. She doubted she would ever get married. She had too much baggage and poor taste in men.
The men were in the living room talking about something when she walked in. They stopped talking and smiled.
"You look great in those clothes," Bryan said.
"I knew she would." Tanner gloated over his choices.
"Have the police been here yet?" she asked.
"Just left, baby." Bryan walked over and drew her deeper into the room. "Why don't you sit down while Tanner cooks something good to eat? He's the master in the kitchen."
"I can believe that after the meal the other night. It was fabulous." Amber meant it, too.
"Sit with Bryan until its ready, Amber. I'll call you in about an hour."
"Do you need help?"
"Don't even go there," Bryan said with a laugh. "He doesn't like anyone in the kitchen when he cooks.
"No, I don't like you in the kitchen when I cook. Amber I wouldn't mind at all. She's much prettier to look at than you are." Tanner chuckled when Bryan made a face at him.
Once Tanner had left the room, Bryan pulled her down to sit on his lap on the couch. He immediately wrapped his arms around her in a loose hold. She wasn't sure what to do, so she sat stiffly on his lap, looking at the fireplace.
"Relax, baby. Lean back and just chill for a while." Bryan urged her toward his shoulder with one hand. His other hand rested on her hip.
Amber slowly relaxed against him. It felt good to be in his arms. She felt safe and cared for. She couldn't fault either him or Tanner with that. They made her feel wanted and cared for. If they just weren't so bossy, manipulating her so that she followed their plans. You have to admit that there are other circumstances at play here, Amber. They didn't attack you, and they didn't almost run you down with a car. They're just reacting like you are.
Maybe, but she didn't think it was a good idea to get too attached to them anyway. She wasn't going to date them---or any man, for that matter.
Amber felt Bryan's hands rubbing her hip and up and down her arm. He rested his head on top of hers and sighed. What did that sigh mean? Was he content like she was? Or was he uncomfortable but resigned to holding her? She started to sit back up and get off his lap, but he held her firmly in place.
"Hey, what's wrong?"
"I figure I'm squashing you. I can sit on the couch."
"You're fine right where you are. I like having you on my lap, and you smell wonderful." Bryan nuzzled her neck and kissed her there.
Amber sure wasn't going to be able to relax as long as he was doing that. He nibbled at her ear then kissed a line from her earlobe across her jaw. When she turned into his kisses, he claimed her mouth. She opened to him almost instinctively. His tongue twirled with hers, then licked along her mouth and across the roof of her mouth. He thrust his tongue in and out of her mouth as if fucking her, then pulled back to suck on her lower lip. When he let it go, she felt almost bereft.
"Dinner is ready, you guys." Tanner called from the kitchen.
Bryan smiled and helped her to her feet. She swayed slightly and he grabbed her around the waist to hold her steady until she got her feet under her.
"It doesn't seem like it's been an hour," she said.
"Yep, time flies when you're having fun," he told her with a smile and a waggle of his eyebrows.
Amber couldn't help but laugh at his antics. He laughed with her, and when they entered the kitchen, Tanner looked at them with amusement.
"Let me in on the joke?" he asked.
"Naw, you had to be there," Bryan said.
Tanner just shook his head and indicated they should sit at the table where he had everything ready. He pulled out a bottle of wine and poured a glass for each of them. Then he sat down and started passing the dishes around the table.
"It's just baked chicken, rice, and lima beans with cornbread. Nothing fancy tonight."
"It looks delicious. I haven't had cornbread in years." Amber took a slice, then passed it to Bryan.
Once they had finished, Amber jumped up to help with the dishes only to have Bryan and Tanner both shoo her away.
"We have a dishwasher, so all there is to do is load it and turn it on. Go sit in the living room and relax. We'll be right there." Tanner gently pushed her in the direction of the other room.
She sighed and returned to the couch. They were entirely too bossy, but they were good to her at the same time. Neither of them had gotten exasperated or angry with her yet. Still, they weren't dating really. But you let them suck your breasts and lick your pussy, Amber. She shuddered remembering the exquisite orgasms they had given her. How could anyone who was that talented with their mouths and fingers be bad? Her ex had never been able to please her at all. He'd just fucked her until he came and rolled over to go to sleep.
She couldn't believe she was thinking about sex after what had nearly happened to her. How sick was that? She frowned and steered her mind toward what she needed to do to protect herself in her house when she went back. She needed new locks put on the windows. That was a given. What worried her was how much it was going to cost. She had a small savings account, but not a lot in it.
"Why the frown? You're supposed to be relaxing in here," Tanner scolded.
"I can't help but think about what I need to do to the house to make it safe. I have to live there, Tanner."
"I told you to leave that to us. We'll take care of getting the windows new locks." Bryan walked into the room and sat on one side of her.
Tanner took a seat on the other side of her. He squeezed her hand while Bryan squeezed her thigh.
"It's getting late, baby. Do you want to go to bed now?"
"Oh, what time is it? I'm so disoriented."
"It's nearly eleven," Tanner said.
As if just by hearing how late it was, Amber yawned. The men laughed. She frowned at them.
"I guess I better go, or I'll never get up in the morning."
"You don't need to get up anytime in particular. Sleep until you feel like getting up. We'll either be inside or outside in the stables. You can come out there and meet some of the horses." Tanner stood up and pulled her to her feet. "Let's get you settled in for the night."
The three of them walked upstairs and down the hall to the master bedroom. She wasn't surprised when they both walked in with her. Before she knew what they were going to do, Bryan was pulling off her T-shirt and Tanner had her pants off.
"Really, guys, I can manage from here." She still didn't do anything to stop Bryan from removing her bra.
Her arms came up to shield herself from them and Tanner pulled them down.
"Don't cover yourself, honey. We've seen you already. You're beautiful. Let's get you in bed and covered up so you don't catch a chill."
Amber hurried over to the bed, glad that they let her keep her panties on. She climbed up on the big bed, and Bryan pulled the covers up to her neck and tucked them in.
"Sleep well, baby. If you need us, we're the second and third door down the hall." He leaned down and kissed her forehead, then her nose.
Tanner leaned down next and lightly grazed her mouth with his lips, he smoothed down her hair and they turned off the light and closed the door.
Amber knew a brief moment of panic at being in the dark in a strange bed, but she quickly talked herself out of it. She was safe in Tanner and Bryan's house. They wouldn't let anything happen to her. A small part of her wished they had climbed into the bed with her, though. She would have felt safer with them by her sides.
With those naughty thoughts, Amber closed her eyes and fell asleep.
A blood-curdling scream woke Bryan with a start. He raced out his room to nearly bump into Tanner as he raced for Amber's room. They burst into the room to find her tossing and turning, fighting the bedcovers. She was in the throes of a nightmare. They both tried to calm her down and wake her up. She nearly landed a blow to Tanner's nose before they finally woke her up enough that she stopped fighting.
"Oh, God. I'm sorry. I thought..."
"I know, baby, shh. It's all right now. You're safe." Bryan climbed into bed with her and pulled her into his arms. Tanner climbed in on the other side and cuddled against her back.
Bryan felt her suddenly stiffen up. Fuck, they were nude, and she was nearly that way. They were scaring her.
"Amber, it's all right. Nothing is going to happen. We're just going to hold you and keep you safe so you can sleep."
"But you're hard," she whispered so low he almost missed it.
"We're always hard around you, baby. Don't worry about it. Just relax and go back to sleep." Bryan ran his hand up and down her arm to sooth her he hoped.
Tanner looked across her at him. He moved her hair aside and kissed her shoulder. Then he whispered good night to her. She slowly closed her eyes. Bryan kissed her forehead and waited for her to fall asleep. He knew the moment she did. Her entire body relaxed into theirs.
"I worried this might happen, but I knew she would balk at having us sleep with her even if we had worn pajama pants." Tanner nuzzled her hair.
Bryan knew how his brother felt. He wanted to rub himself all over her. His cock was rock hard and pressed against the soft skin of her belly. He had to grit his teeth to keep from pushing against her. If he didn't get inside of her soon, he was going to go crazy. Surely she was melting toward them by now.
"What are you thinking about, Bryan?" Tanner asked in a soft voice.
"That I can't wait to get inside her tight cunt. I'm having a hard time resisting the urge to bury myself inside of her. Every day it gets worse."
"I'm having the same problem. And God. Her ass feels perfect back here. My cock is resting right in the crease. I want to push so badly."
"Whatever her ex-boyfriend did to her was bad enough, she's still trying to resist us," Tanner said.
"I think we've already established that he abused her."
"I think it's more than that. I'm scared something about us reminds her of him."
"We're nothing like that asshole," Bryan said with a growl.
"Shh, don't wake her up."
"Well, something is going on in that lovely head of hers. We need to figure out what it is and figure out how to overcome it."
"There's nothing we can do about it right now. We need to get some sleep. Tomorrow is going to be a long day, I'm afraid." Tanner ran his hand through her hair.
"She isn't going to like it that we're getting the windows fixed for her." Bryan agreed with Tanner there. She would be furious.
What had she said? They were taking over everything? Was that part of why she didn't want to date them? He thought about it, turning it over and over in his mind. Maybe that was the problem. He would talk to Tanner about it in the morning.
Amber began to murmur in her sleep, growing agitated. He ran his hand up and down her arm and whispered that she was safe until she finally grew still. He wondered what she was dreaming about that upset her so much. Was it from her previous life, or was it from the attack that had just happened that day?
Bryan lay awake long into the early morning hours, unable to sleep. His mind was racing, trying to figure out what they could do to earn her complete trust. He finally fell asleep having never come up with a good idea.
Amber woke up with a start. Her eyes flew open and she started to sit up, but realized she was trapped beneath two men. Fear raced through her veins until the events of the night before returned, and she realized it was Tanner and Bryan sleeping with her. Their cocks were still hard, pressed against her on both sides. She had her arm wrapped around Bryan's waist, and Tanner had his arm wrapped around her chest.
Never had she felt so comfortable in bed with someone else as she did right then. Despite them all being essentially nude, she felt safe with them. She wasn't sure that was a good thing, considering that they wanted to date her. Looking down on Bryan's chiseled face, she wondered why she didn't give in and go out with them? Yeah, they were a little bossy, but they had been doing it to help her.
She realized Tanner had woken up, because he'd stiffened up for a second almost like she had. He hadn't been sure where he was, either. She grinned at that. Then Bryan woke and smiled sleepily at her.
"Morning, baby. Why are you up so early? It can't be more than seven." He brushed a lock of hair out of her face.
"Morning, Amber." Tanner pulled her over some to kiss her cheek. "How did you sleep after you went back to sleep?"
"Pretty good, I guess. I don't remember anything after that."
"Good. We wanted you to sleep in. Do you think you can go back to sleep?" Bryan asked.
"Nope. I'm awake for good." She moved her leg and Bryan moaned.
"What?" she asked, going still.
"Baby, honestly. I want you so damn much it's killing me, and you just rubbed your leg across my cock and made it worse."
"Bryan." Tanner's voice sounded tense.
"Tanner, she needs to know our intentions."
"I--I don't know what to say. Maybe I should stay at a hotel. I don't want to tease you." She lowered her eyes.
"There's no need to go anywhere, baby. We want you here. We can handle a couple of hard dicks. You just have a right to know how we feel. We want to take you out and wine and dine you. Will you let us do that?" He kissed the side of her neck then up her jaw.
"Oh, God. I can't think when you do that."
"Don't think. Feel." Bryan said.
Tanner nuzzled her neck and licked and sucked on her neck, then her shoulder. He whispered naughty thoughts in her ear as Bryan's hand snaked down to her panties.
"Fuck, you're wet, baby. You want us too, don't you."
"You're making me lose my mind." She couldn't breathe around the lump in her throat.
God, yes, she wanted them. She couldn't lie to herself, but was it the right thing to do? Would she wake up one day and regret trusting them? Or, would she wake up some day and regret not going with her instincts. Your instincts aren't always right, Amber. You got it wrong twice before.
Bryan's hand slipped into her panties and fingered her pussy. She moaned and spread her legs, giving him more room. It pushed her leg closer to Tanner's cock, rubbing against it. He pushed back with it and groaned in her ear.
"I want to fuck you so badly I can't think straight," Tanner said. "Can't you imagine both of us inside you, pushing you higher and higher, until you come harder than you've ever come before? We can give you that, honey, and so much more."
"Please." She couldn't vocalize what she wanted. It was too hard to get out.
"Please what, baby?" Bryan ran his finger up and down her slit dipping in just an inch then backing away again.
"I don't know. I need, Bryan. I need."
She groaned when Tanner began rubbing at her nipples. He plucked first one, then the other one. When he closed his mouth over one, she arched her back and cried out. It felt so damn good.
"Easy, baby. We'll take care of you. Just tell us what you want."
"Fuck me. I can't stand it. Fuck me." Her head thrashed from side to side as she tried to get closer to first one brother then the other.
"Are you sure, Amber?" Tanner asked in a strained voice.
"Please, don't make me beg." Her voice came out in a half sob.
Tanner moved away for a second. She heard a drawer open, then close, and he was back at her side. He handed Tanner something, then resumed licking and sucking and biting at her nipples. It felt so good she wanted to shove her breasts into his face, but Bryan's fingers in her cunt felt good, too. She couldn't concentrate on any one sensation, and it was driving her crazy. She wanted more, needed more. Just this once, she was going to take what she wanted. She would deal with the consequences later.
Tanner pulled back and shoved down the covers to the foot of the bed. Then he hooked his thumbs in her panties and pulled them down as well. When he had them off of her, he spread her legs and dived into her pussy like a child after candy. His tongue swiped at her pussy juices, then sucked in her pussy lips before returning to her slit. He shoved his tongue deep into her cunt in search of more.
Amber started to reach down and grab his head to hold him still in one place, but Tanner brushed her hands aside and latched on to one of her tits. He pinched and toyed with the other nipple while he sucked and nipped at the one in his mouth. She held his head to her breast and whimpered.
Together, they were driving her insane with pleasure. Her orgasm grew deep in her belly. Her clit ached for stimulation. Occasionally Bryan would run his tongue around it, but he wouldn't touch it and give it the relief it needed. Tanner twisted her nipple at the same time he sucked the other one flat against the roof of his mouth, and a tiny sparks flew through her system to lodge in her clit.
"Please, I need to come. One of you, make me come." She was demanding now. She couldn't take much more.
Bryan pushed two fingers into her cunt and curled them until he located her sweet spot. He brushed over it several times before latching on to her clit and sucking it. She bucked beneath them as she came screaming in ecstasy. They each petted her until she stopped coming, then rubbed her arms to sooth her shivers.
Bryan lay down on his back with his cock already sheathed in a condom. She realized he wanted her on top. Amber hesitated for a second then climbed over him. She'd begged them to fuck her. It was what she'd asked for. She rose up, and Bryan held his cock steady for her to sink down on. She moaned as she only made it halfway. He was so thick. She moved up him then slid down his shaft again. This time she made it to his groin.
"Fuck, aw, fuck, baby. You're so freaking tight." Bryan's voice sounded even more strained than before. It was almost as if he were in pain.
"Ride him, Amber. I want to see that pretty pussy swallow his dick." Tanner stood behind her now. She couldn't see him unless she looked over her shoulder.
She pulled up then dropped down slow then fast, over and over. Soon, Bryan was shoving his cock up to meet her. His hands held her hips as he pistoned into her.
"Bryan, hold her, man." Tanner slowly pushed her down against Bryan's chest.
Bryan wrapped his arms around her. He kissed her forehead as she rested her cheek against his chest.
Suddenly she felt something cold and wet at her asshole. She yelped and started to sit up. Bryan held her steady.
"Easy, Amber. He won't hurt you. He's going to prepare you."
"I--I've never had anyone there before," she said in a shaky voice.
"I know, baby. That's why he's going to loosen you up. We don't want to hurt you. Just push out when he uses his fingers on you. Okay, baby?"
She squeaked out an okay and nodded her head against his chest. She wasn't at all sure about this. She wanted to, wanted them both inside her, but she was scared at the same time.
Tanner's finger pressed the cool gel inside her ass. He dropped a little more there and pushed it as well. This time, his finger went with it. She didn't even have to push out for it. She let out a relieved breath. Maybe this wouldn't be so hard after all.
He pushed his finger in and out of her several times, then added more of the lube, and added another finger. This time it pinched, and she pushed out until he made it inside with them. He pumped them in and out of her back hole over and over until they moved freely. Then he added yet more lube, and another finger joined the first two. This time it burned, and she suppressed a cry. She remembered what Bryan had said, and pushed out while trying to breath through the burn. When the third finger made it inside, he grew still, waiting on her to get used to it she guessed.
Amber began to twitch. She needed them to move. It was too much. They needed to move inside of her. She tried to push back and pull off his fingers, but he followed her. Finally, he began pumping them in and out of her ass in a smooth rhythm that just wasn't fast enough for her. She whimpered and tried to speed him up, but he kept the same pace.
"More, Tanner. Faster. I need it faster." She finally told him what she needed when it didn't look like he was going to give it to her.
Instead, he pulled his fingers out and added more lube. Then he fitted the head of his cock against her back opening and pushed. Fire burned as he pushed his way inside of her. She pushed out against the burn. Finally, he popped through the ring of resistance and tunneled deep into her ass. He stilled and they all panted, trying to catch their breath. Amber looked up at Bryan's face. He was covered with sweat. His cock jumped inside of her occasionally as if chomping at the bit to be let go.
Finally, she couldn't stand it anymore and pulled back from them and shoved down, then shoved back. She heard Tanner curse then grab her hips while Bryan held her legs.
"Be still, honey. Let us do the work. We don't want to hurt you." Tanner squeezed her hips.
"Then move, damn you!" She couldn't believe that was her voice demanding they fuck her.
Tanner chuckled then began to move forward and pull back as Bryan pushed up and pulled out. They slowly gained a rhythm that was quickly driving her insane with pleasure. She held herself up some using her arms on the bed on either side of Bryan's chest. She wanted to help, but they held her steady as they fucked in and out of her. She squeezed down on them using her cunt muscles and ass muscles in an effort to get them to speed up.
"Aw, fuck, just like that." Bryan said. "God! Do it again, baby."
"Hell, she's going to make me come." Tanner cursed again and slapped her ass.
"God, yes!" she yelled out.
He spanked her again on the other cheek and she shoved back on him, squeezing for all she was worth. Tanner growled at her, then shoved his dick deep in her ass as soon as Bryan pulled out of her pussy. They took her hint and sped up. Soon they were plunging in and out of her dual holes sending her higher and higher. Nerve endings in her ass came alive with the constant stimulation. She felt as if she were on the verge of something monumental. When it hit her, she wasn't prepared for something so big.
Her orgasm exploded over her until she couldn't see anything but white light or hear anything but her racing heartbeat. Then she became aware of Tanner roaring as he shot his cum into the condom deep in her ass. A few seconds later, Bryan shouted her name as he filled the condom. Slowly things began to drift back to normal with her continued twitching as nerves fired off randomly, sending little shock waves through her clit and cunt. Every time one hit, the guys groaned.
Amber lay half alive and half unconscious across Bryan's chest. She didn't have the energy to open her eyes, much less move off of the top of him. She knew he had to be having trouble catching his breath with her on him, but she couldn't move.
Finally, Tanner pulled out of her ass with a soft pop and padded to the bathroom. When he returned, he began to clean her up. She whimpered at being disturbed. She was as comfortable as she could possibly be trying to catch her breath.
"Tanner. You need to get her off of me before this condom leaks. I've never come so much in my life." Bryan held the condom as Tanner lifted Amber off of his mostly flaccid dick. He rolled off the bed and hurried to the bathroom. Tanner laid her back on the bed and continued cleaning her up. Then he pulled the covers up over her and returned the cloth to the bathroom.
"Tanner, hold her while I check on the men and the horses. I'll be back as soon as I can." He bent over her and kissed her. "I've never felt anything like you, Amber. You drove me wild."
He kissed her again and walked out of the bedroom presumably to get dressed. Tanner climbed into the bed with her and pulled her into his arms. He wrapped a leg over hers and pulled her hair back so he could nuzzle her neck.
"You are the most amazing woman I've ever met, Amber. I just came so hard my eyes burned, and already I want you again. He pushed his hardening cock against her ass. She moaned.
"I've never come like that before. It was unbelievable." She wanted to do it again, but she needed to rest first.
If someone had told her she would enjoy having sex with two men at the same time, she would have told them they were crazy. Not so now. She loved every minute of it. She sighed. Hell, she might even love them. Maybe it was just the emotional reaction to all the endorphins. Amber couldn't believe she could possibly fall in love with two men, and fall so quickly.
Tanner mouthed her shoulder, then nipped at it. She leaned her head forward, giving him more room to explore. She liked the feel of his mouth on her body.
"How are you feeling?" he asked between nibbles.
"Hmm, good." She drew in a deep breath and let it out slowly. "Real good."
"I'm going to go run you a bath. I don't want you to be real sore. The warm water will help that." He kissed her neck then rolled off her and the bed.
Amber watched him disappear into the bathroom. A few seconds later, she heard the water turn on. She closed her eyes and was almost asleep when he came back and pulled the covers off of her. She yelped and tried to grab them, but he just laughed and picked her up.
"Warm water, Amber. Just a second." He carried her into the bathroom and climbed into the tub with her.
Tanner slowly let her slide out of his arms until she was standing up on her own. He kept a hand against her back until she knelt in the tub and sat down. He did the same thing and pulled her back into his arms before pushing the button for the jets to start. She moaned as the water began to froth around her.
"This feels so good." She would love one of these at her house.
"Told you it would feel good." He rubbed up and down her arms. She felt his cock jerk against her ass as she lay back against him. It brought a grin to her face.
"Tanner?"
"Hmm?"
"Do you believe the police that someone might be after me?"
"Honey, don't think about it right now. You're safe with us."
"But I can't stay here forever, Tanner. I have to go home."
He stiffened. "No you don't. You can live with us."
"You're asking me to move in with you? What would Bryan say?"
"That he would have already asked you, except he was scared you would say no."
Amber turned her head in time to see Bryan peel off his jeans and walk toward them. He stepped over into the tub and sat across from them.
"Guys, I can't move in with you. I have my own life."
"That includes us now. You can still do all the things you normally do. You'll just live out here instead of that house." Bryan seemed to censor his words concerning her house.
She knew it wasn't much, but it had been all hers. She loved that house. Well, she had loved it until a man had attacked her in it. Now she wasn't sure if she could actually stay there anymore. But that didn't mean she had to stay with them, either.
"What are you thinking in that amazing head of yours?" Tanner asked.
"That even if I can't live in the house anymore, it doesn't mean I can stay with you either. What will people say?"
"Why does it matter what people say, Amber?" Bryan asked.
"I work at a bank. They are pretty straightlaced there. It could cost me my job."
"Bryan." Tanner seemed to be trying to tell him something.
"Then quit the bank. You don't have to work. We'll take care of you."
Amber stiffened. He obviously hadn't listened to Tanner. She started to get out of the tub, but Tanner held her still.
"Let me go, Tanner."
"Not until you hear us out. Bryan didn't explain it right."
"I think he did a pretty damn good job of explaining it as far as I'm concerned."
"If you want to work, you can work, but if you don't want to, you don't have to. We can take care of you, but it doesn't mean you can't take care of yourself."
"So I can work if I want to. You'll let me work. Somehow that didn't convince me at all, Tanner."
"You're reading too much into it, baby." Bryan said with a desperate sound in his voice.
"I don't think I am. You've been taking over my life ever since you came into it. Yes, you've saved it twice, but that doesn't give you the right to tell me what I can and can't do."
"We're not trying to tell you what to do, Amber. We're just asking you to move in with us. We like you, a lot. We enjoy being around you, and the sex is fucking unbelievable. It's the next step most couples take," Bryan reasoned.
"First of all, usually couples date before they move in together. We've never been on one date, much less enough to warrant moving in together. Two, couple being the operative word here. You're talking about a ménage, not a couple. And three, you can't keep me here against my will."
There was absolute silence in the room. No one moved. She could hear her own rapid breathing and equally rapid heartbeat.
"I'm sorry, baby." Bryan stood up. "I didn't mean to screw this up. I just want you to be happy and safe." He got out of the tub and, grabbing a towel, walked out of the bathroom trailing water behind him.
Tanner released her and sighed. "You never gave us a chance to date you, Amber. We wanted to. Would have Friday night except you were attacked. It kind of put a damper on our plans. You're right, though. We're jumping the gun. Would you consider dating us for a while to see if you want to live with us?"
Amber could still feel her heart in her throat. She wrapped her arms around herself and stood up.
"I don't know, Tanner. We've done this all backward. I don't know if I can handle two men all the time. It's not a normal type of relationship."
"But you'll think about it?" he asked.
"Yeah, I'll think about it." She climbed out of the tub and started drying off, then padded into the bedroom to find something to put on.
She heard the tub shut off and then the sounds of it draining. A few seconds later, Tanner walked out with a towel around his waist. He looked at her for a second, then drew in a deep breath and let it out. He didn't say anything, just walked out of the room, shutting the door quietly behind him.
Tears formed in Amber's eyes and she brushed them away angrily. Why did she feel like the bad guy? She was the one that had been maneuvered into doing what they wanted. Only she wasn't going to do it. She was her own person and could make her own decisions. She didn't need them to run her life.
She quickly mopped up the mess Bryan had made walking out the door wet. Then she pulled on her clothes and straightened up the bed before walking out of the bedroom and down the stairs. She found Tanner dressed standing in the kitchen drinking coffee.
"Would you like a cup? I have cinnamon rolls in the oven."
"Some coffee, yes. Thanks. I'm not really hungry, though." She waited while he poured a cup for her.
She took it to the bar and got up on a barstool. He didn't look at her, just stared into his coffee.
"Where is Bryan?" she asked.
"He went to let the locksmith in to work on your windows."
"What locksmith? I haven't called anyone yet." She set the cup on the bar.
"We called one. We trust him to do a good job. I know you could have done it, but you were upset, and then we hoped maybe you would move in with us." He set his cup down and checked the rolls. "Anyway, don't get upset about it. Just live with it, Amber. If nothing else, I'm going to make damn certain you're safe."
She opened her mouth to fuss anyway, but closed it. They had been nothing but good to her. She shouldn't bitch at them over every single thing.
"Okay. Thanks. You can send me the bill and I'll pay it."
Tanner didn't say anything. He pulled out the cinnamon rolls and set them on top of the stove. He pulled down a plate and transferred them to the plate before spreading the glaze across them.
They looked good, but Amber really didn't have an appetite. In fact, she was a little bit nauseous. Too much had happened in a short time. She'd known them all of two weeks now. Watching Tanner, she realized she knew nothing about him other than he was a doctor of some kind, and that he and Bryan had this ranch with the amazing house.
"You're welcome to stay here as long as you want to, Amber. We'll take you home whenever you get ready once the house is secure."
"I think it's best if I go today once they finish the locks. I'm just causing trouble by being here."
"No you're not, Amber." He stood up straight from where he'd been lounging against the counter again.
"I've either made Bryan mad or hurt his feelings. You're not happy now, either. I'm disrupting everything. I need to go."
Tanner pressed his lips together and nodded. "Fine. When Bryan gets back, we'll take you home as long as the locks are all done."
He refilled his coffee cup but didn't touch the cinnamon rolls. Now she'd taken his appetite as well. She climbed off the barstool and took her coffee into the living room and sat on the hearth of the fireplace, wishing it were cold enough for a fire. Right now, she felt cold enough inside. A fire might have reached the recesses of her heart. Maybe.
A few minutes later, Tanner walked into the room. He stood in the doorway for a few minutes, then crossed the room to where she sat on the hearth. He bent down and took the cup form her and set it on the coffee table. Then he pulled her to her feet and walked her across to the couch. He sat down and pulled her down into his lap. She wasn't sure why she let him other than the look on his face. He looked sad and that bothered her.
"Just let me hold you for a while, Amber. Nothing sexual, just hold you."
Amber let him hold her. She wasn't sure how long they sat there, but sometime later, Bryan walked in the front door. He looked haggard and worn out. He took one look at them and sighed. He turned and headed upstairs.
After a while, he returned downstairs freshly showered dressed in clean clothes. He sat on the other side of the couch and stared at them.
"The windows are secure now, Amber. The locksmith guarantees them, short of breaking the glass. I started to get bars, but I figured you wouldn't like them. They would have been safer."
"Thanks, Bryan, for taking care of it for me. I told Tanner to send me the bill."
Bryan started to say something, but Tanner stopped him.
"Leave it, Bryan."
"Anyway, I cleaned everything up so your room didn't have fingerprint dust all over it. You'll probably want to dust again, but most of it's gone."
"Thank you. You didn't have to go to all that trouble."
"Had to do something while the locksmith was working. He didn't like me hanging around him.
"I told Amber we'd take her back once you were back and the windows were finished."
Tanner stood up and let Amber slide down his body. It did things to her insides. She shook it off and stood up straight.
"Yeah, sure. Where is your stuff?" he asked.
"I don't have anything, remember?" Amber frowned.
"Yeah you do. All the things we bought you. They're yours," Bryan insisted.
"I'll have my own things when I get back home. You can take those back, can't you, and get your money back? You bought too much anyway." She turned to look at Tanner.
"Take the clothes, Amber. We bought them for you." Tanner sounded defeated.
She swallowed and nodded. She wouldn't argue with them about it. Instead, she walked upstairs and folded everything up, then packed them in the bags they had come in.
Before she could lug them downstairs, Bryan walked in the room and took them from her.
"I've got them. Go ahead downstairs." He followed behind her.
When she got to the bottom, Tanner was there to meet her. He took her hand and led her to the front door then out onto the porch. Bryan closed the door behind them. They walked over to the truck. Bryan put the bags in the backseat. When she started to get in after them, he shook his head.
"You're riding up front with us. I don't want you to go. I'm sure not losing this opportunity to hold you one more time." He helped her up into the cab of the truck, then fastened the safety belt around her. When he climbed in, he did the same and grabbed her hand.
Amber took one last look at the beautiful house with its wraparound porch and swing then they were backing out of the drive and turning around to head to her house. Bryan didn't let go of her hand the entire drive. When they arrived, he unfastened their belts then helped her out of the truck. He held her hand all the way to her door. Tanner unlocked the door, and they all three walked inside.
They walked around with her to check all the windows and make sure she knew how to unlock and lock them. Then the guys stood with their hands in their pockets as if waiting for her to say something. What could she say? She'd said more than enough already. It wasn't so much that she regretted saying it. It was how she said it.
Finally, Tanner sighed and pulled her into his arms. He let her go, and Bryan did the same thing.
"You have our numbers. If you need anything. I don't care what it is or what time it is, you call us. Understand?" Tanner asked.
"I will. I'll be fine, though."
"We know you will," Bryan said.
They turned toward the door and opened it. They didn't look back. Tanner closed the door behind them. One of them knocked on the door above the lock. She threw the deadbolt, and a few seconds later she heard the truck crank, and they pulled out of her drive to go home. Amber sat down on a chair and cried.
Neither of them said anything on the drive back. Bryan wanted to hit something, but knew it wouldn't do any good, and he would probably break his fucking hand in the process. Why was she so stubborn?
Once they pulled into the drive at home, they just sat there, not wanting to get out. Finally, Bryan couldn't take it.
"She's so afraid we'll take away her sense of self. Why?"
"Evidently her previous boyfriend did somehow. I think he was controlling and told her what she could and couldn't do. Then he got abusive. She's scared we'll be the same way." Tanner still had his hands on the wheel.
"We would never hit her. Not in a million years. If she believes that, then she doesn't know us at all." Bryan started to get out of the truck.
"That's just it, Bryan. She doesn't know us. We did everything ass backward from day one. It's been exactly two weeks since she was nearly run down. In that time we've run her life for her because she was hurt and needed us. Then when we were finally going to get around to taking her out and getting to know her, she was attacked, and once again, we took over and took care of everything." Tanner rubbed his face with both hands.
"Then, we have sex with her and have still never taken her out. She's right. She doesn't know us at all. She has a point, Bryan. What would you think of a woman who moves in with a man after knowing them two weeks?"
"That she was a moocher." Bryan said reluctantly.
He really didn't like it that Tanner was right, but he was. He sighed.
"So, what do we do now?"
"We ask her out." Tanner said it as if it was the simplest thing in the world.
"You think she'll go?"
"Won't know until we ask her," Tanner said.
They climbed out of the truck and walked into the house. Both of them headed for the fridge and a beer. They popped the tops and stood at the bar in silence for several minutes. Bryan didn't think Amber would go out with both of them at once. They weren't willing to settle for anything but a ménage relationship. It was how they were brought up, and they knew it worked. When one husband was ill or out of town, the other one could be counted on to take care of everything. It meant their mom never had to worry about anything. They took care of her. She had a life. She attended clubs in town and he could remember her baking things for their bake sales.
It wouldn't be any different for them. If she wanted to work at the bank, that was fine with him. He'd rather she stayed at home, but he could understand that she wanted that. The fact that the people at that bank probably would look down at her for dating them both irked him. Only because it mattered to Amber, though. He didn't give a rat's ass what people thought about them. He only cared because of Amber.
He drew in a deep breath and slowly let it out through his nose. No matter how he looked at it, he couldn't see her changing her mind. His heart hurt at the idea of losing her. But they were losing her as surely as the sun rose and set.
"I say we give her a couple of days to adjust to being home then ask her to go out with us Friday night. We'll take her to the club. People there won't care one way or another." Tanner took another swig of his beer.
"Maybe she'll go with us." Bryan had little faith that she would.
"I think she will once she calms down. We blindsided her with taking over everything. It was necessary, but she was feeling smothered."
"If I had five minutes with the bastard that did this to her," Bryan began.
"You would end up in prison and force me to take care of her by myself." Tanner crushed his empty beer can and tossed it in the trash.
Bryan drained the rest of his and tossed it as well. He looked at the cinnamon rolls and sighed. He hadn't had anything to eat all day, and still the thought of eating didn't agree with him. He did want another beer, but because he wanted it, he wouldn't get one.
"I'm going out to the barn to check on everything. I'll be back in by dark."
Tanner nodded and left the kitchen. Bryan figured he would go to the office and bury himself in paperwork. It was how he normally dealt with a problem he couldn't solve. Bryan worked it out doing hard manual labor. He would see what the men were doing and help. He thought they were out riding fences.
He saddled up his horse and headed out in the general direction he was sure they had taken. By the time he found them, he desperately needed something to take his mind off of Amber. He had run the problem around in circles inside of his head until he had a headache.
The men welcomed him, and they spent the next four hours fixing fences and pulling barbwire. He had several small slices on his arms from getting too close to the wire while they were working with it. All in all, he'd worked hard enough he planned to sleep well that night. He didn't want to think or dream about Amber.
When he got back to the stable, Bryan brushed out his horse then headed back to the house. There was a note on the door that Tanner had gone in to the hospital and would be back later. Dinner was on the stove. Bryan sighed. He'd take a shower first then see what Tanner had left to eat. Now that he could smell it, his stomach rumbled unmercifully.
Bryan figured Tanner had gone in to work on his charts he always seemed to have to do something with. Then again, he might have actually gotten called out for one of his patients. He hoped not. Tanner already had enough on his mind without something going wrong with a patient.
Bryan finished showering in record time and helped himself to the roast, potatoes, and carrots on the stove. He spooned up some beans then pulled a roll out of the oven. They were a little hard, but he added extra gravy to his roast. That would do the trick.
While he finished up dinner, he thought again about Amber and hoped she was safe in her little house. They'd done all they could to make her that way. He would have preferred putting bars on the windows. Still, she was her own woman, and evidently needed to make decisions for herself. He realized that was true, and hated that they had screwed up so badly.
He looked at the window as he loaded the dishwasher. Maybe she would give them a chance to prove they could give her all the independence she wanted. He would do just about anything for that chance. He turned off the light in the kitchen but left a lamp on in the living room. He was totally washed out. It was time for bed. He hated that he would be going to bed alone.
Amber tossed and turned and started at every sound the house made. She finally got up at three and sat in the kitchen with a cup of coffee. Thank goodness it was Sunday. She needed rest, or she was going to be worthless at work on Monday. Every time she heard the house creak, she cringed. This was ridiculous. She was a grown woman. She shouldn't be afraid to go to sleep. Yes, she'd been attacked, but there were good locks on the windows now.
Somehow it didn't make her feel any better. Amber sipped the coffee and tried to talk herself into going back to bed. Finally, once the sun rose, she climbed back in the bed and lay down. She dozed off and on for several hours before she finally got up for good. She needed to finish washing her things. She still had a drawer full of Tshirts to wash, and her dirty clothes. She had hung everything up in her closet that Tanner had bought, and put away the bra and panty sets.
She knew she would think about them every time she wore any of it. She wasn't sure if that were a good thing or not. She'd about cried herself all out the night before.
Her phone rang and she jumped. She checked caller ID and found it was the police department.
"Hello?"
"Miss Reynolds, this is Officer McKenny. I wanted to check and see if you were doing okay, and let you know we're still looking for the guy who attacked you. He did leave fingerprints, but unfortunately, they aren't on record. Once we find him, though, we can match the prints to his."
"Okay. So he's still out there somewhere." She closed her eyes and rubbed her head where it ached.
"Yes, ma'am. Have you given any thought to who might want to hurt you? I still think these are all related." He hesitated. "Um, I did some research, and you had a restraining order against two different men at different times."
She sighed and sat down. "I made some bad choices in boyfriends. That's why I left, to start over," she said.
"Any chance one of them could be behind all of this?"
Amber stopped rubbing her head. Was it possible? Would they be that vengeful to want to see her hurt or even dead?
"Miss Reynolds? Are you still there?" Officer McKenny asked.
"Yes. Um, honestly, I don't know if they would come after me. I don't see why, but then, they were insanely jealous and controlling. I suppose one of them might have found out where I'm living and wanted revenge for my having left."
"Neither one of them did any time for abusing you." He made it a statement.
"No. I was scared of what they would do to me when they got out. I figured I was better off moving. They let me move without putting up a fuss. So I can't imagine them suddenly wanting to come after me."
"Well, it's a possibility. If you were to see either of them in town, let me know."
"Thanks, I will." She hung up and sat there thinking about the two men who'd been the biggest mistakes of her life.
What did they have to gain by attacking her? She couldn't guess what was going on in their minds when she lived with them. She surely couldn't now. There was no telling what they might be thinking at any given minute. Either one of them was just crazy enough to come after her out of some preconceived notion that she owed them something.
Amber shivered. Now she had more to worry about. If it were one of her ex-boyfriends, she knew she was in trouble. They wouldn't stop until they succeeded in whatever they wanted. She couldn't imagine what would be in their sick minds right now.
Getting up, she went back to washing clothes. Once she had everything washed and put away, she lay down to take a nap. Once again, sleep was elusive. Finally, an hour later, she got up and decided to go to town for dinner. It would do her good to get out. She had only been back and forth to work outside of going to Tanner and Bryan's house.
She carefully locked the door before getting in the SUV and cranking it. When she arrived at the diner that had great home-cooked meals, she realized she really wasn't hungry. Still, she needed to eat. She hadn't had anything other than coffee in twenty-four hours. Amber climbed out of the car and went inside. She chose a table near the back.
"What can I get ya?'" The waitress smacked gum as she stood there waiting to take her order.
"Um, I'll have a hamburger and fries with a Diet Coke."
"Got ya.'" She turned around and walked to the back to yell out her order.
She returned a few seconds later with her Diet Coke. Amber thanked her and took a sip of the soft drink. She noticed that several people watched her. She looked behind her to see if they were looking at someone else, but there was no one sitting behind her. Frowning, she sipped her Diet Coke. Why were they watching her? Then she realized they knew that Tanner and Bryan had shown an interest in her and were wondering if she was their girlfriend. Well, she wasn't, and they weren't coming in to meet her or anything. She glared at them and then ignored them.
Her hamburger came out hot and well done like she liked them. She managed two bites and a couple of her fries before she had to stop. She just wasn't hungry. After nibbling on it for about twenty minutes, she asked the waitress for a carryout and boxed up the hamburger. She ate another fry, then paid her bill and left.
She wondered what the guys were doing then chastised herself for thinking about them. She needed to put them out of her mind for a while. Maybe if they still wanted to date her later, she would think about it, but she doubted it. Even if they did ask her out again, she wasn't sure she was a strong enough woman to date them. Not only were they overwhelming, but she wasn't sure she could handle the talk that would erupt.
When she arrived home, Amber put away the hamburger for another meal and got ready for bed. She climbed under the sheets and prayed that she would sleep tonight. She had to go to work the next day. It was Monday. As it was, she managed a good four hours sleep before she woke in a cold sweat, unable to remember the dream. All she knew was that she wasn't going back to bed then.
Instead, she got up, took a bath, and dressed for work nearly two hours early. She would wait until time to go then go in a little early. With that, she took another sip of her coffee as she waited until time to go.
Thursday night after work, the phone rang as she was undressing. She checked caller ID and found that it was an unknown caller. She almost didn't answer it, but decided to at the last minute.
"Hello?"
"Amber, it's Tanner."
"Oh, hi, Tanner. How are you?"
"Doing fine. I wanted to ask if you're not busy tomorrow night, would you let us take you out to dinner?"
"Um, I," she hesitated.
"Don't say no, Amber. We really want to see you and spend some time with you."
"I guess that would be okay. What time?"
"We'll pick you up at a quarter to seven." Tanner's voice held a smile in it.
"Okay, um, what do I need to dress in? Where are we going?" she asked.
"The country club. Wear something you can dance in," he said.
"Okay. I guess I'll see you tomorrow night."
"Good night, Amber."
She hung up and stood there with the phone still in her hand wondering why she had said yes. Because she liked them and wanted to be with them. You're a glutton for punishment, Amber. Haven't you learned anything? Evidently not. She sighed.
Friday night arrived and Amber was so nervous she nearly threw up when she was dressed. She was wearing the red bra and panty set along with a slinky red dress that would be perfect to dance in. She wasn't sure about the color, but it was her best choice. She didn't have a lot of dressy clothes that weren't for work. She thought for a second that maybe she needed to buy a couple more dresses to wear out. Then she reminded herself she wasn't going to be dating them on a regular basis. It wasn't a good idea to get too comfortable with them when she had no intentions of getting serious.
The doorbell rang at seventeen before seven. She grinned, then settled herself and opened the door. Tanner stood at the door dressed in dress pants and a pullover shirt. He smiled and held out his hand.
"You look beautiful, Amber."
She took his hand and let him lead her out the door. Then he locked it for her. She'd forgotten that they had keys to her house. She briefly thought about asking for them back, but decided against it. They hadn't hurt her, and she might need them to have one again one day.
Tanner helped her climb up into the truck. Bryan was wearing something similar but in greens where Tanner wore blues. She guessed her red dress went well with both of them.
"Hey, Bryan."
"I love that dress on you, baby." He smiled an appreciative smile.
"Thanks. I wasn't sure if it was appropriate for where we are going."
"You'll wow them all, honey." Tanner squeezed her hand.
Bryan backed out of her drive and headed in the direction of the Blue Springs Country Club outside the other side of town. It took them about fifteen minutes to get there. Tanner made small talk about her job and his while Bryan remained quiet.
Once they arrived, he parked and they all got out of the truck. They each got on one side of her and held her hand as they walked into the club. She almost jerked her hands out of there for worry of what everyone would think, but she restrained herself and was surprised to note that no one seemed to pay them any mind. They were shown to a table by a window. And Tanner held her chair while she sat down.
"The steak here is excellent. If you like fish, they have great rockfish," Bryan said.
"Oh, I'm not very hungry. I might just get the fettuccine."
"You should eat something more than that, baby. I can tell you've lost weight."
"He's right, honey. Eat something more filling." Tanner backed Bryan up.
"I really don't think I can eat anything else."
"Try. You don't have to eat it all, but get something besides the noodles." Bryan seemed worried.
Amber didn't realize she'd lost any weight. Well, not really. She just hadn't had an appetite. Then she wasn't sleeping well, either. She sighed, and when the waiter came to take their order, she ordered the grilled chicken and rice. The men ordered steaks.
"You said work was going fine," Tanner said. "Tell us a little about you. Where are you from and do you have any siblings kind of stuff."
"Oh, um, I'm originally from Jackson, Mississippi, and I don't have any siblings. My parents are gone."
"Is that where you moved from? Jackson?" Bryan asked.
"No, actually I moved here from Memphis, Tennessee."
"What made you decide to move here of all places?"
"I, um, got tired of living in Memphis. There was so much crime, so I decided to come west. I drove until I got here and fell in love with it. I said if I could find a job, I'd stay."
"And you found the job at the bank," Tanner filled in.
"Right. I figured it was fate." She smiled.
"I know it was the best thing that ever happened to us," Bryan said.
He reached across the table and took her hand in his. He squeezed it and then let it go. She could easily see the sincerity in his eyes. It squeezed at her heart.
"Have you ever been married?" Tanner asked.
"No. What about you guys?"
"Nope. Never met someone we wanted to settle down with." Bryan stared into her eyes.
The until now was insinuated with his eyes.
Their waiter returned with their meals, setting their plates in front of them. Amber looked at hers, and though it looked and smelled delicious, she wasn't sure she was going to be able to take a single bite.
The men attacked their steaks with a vengeance. She envied their appetites right then. She cut a tiny bite off the chicken and stuck it in her mouth. She chewed without really tasting it and swallowed. She continued eating very small slices until she'd eaten half the chicken and a spoonful of rice. She sighed and pushed her plate aside.
"You're through?" Bryan asked.
"Yeah, I've eaten all I can eat." She waited for him to tear into her, but he just nodded and continued eating.
She relaxed some when Tanner didn't say anything either. They both finished their steaks and pushed their plates back as well. A bus boy stopped by the table and took away their plates. The waiter arrived next to refill their glasses and asked about dessert. No one wanted any, so he left them the check and disappeared.
"I'm full. I think I need to digest some before we dance," Bryan said.
"Good idea," Tanner agreed. "Let's go outside to the gardens. You'll like it out there, Amber."
"Okay," She stood up when they did and let Bryan lead her through to the double doors that opened out to the gardens.
The floral scents assaulted her nose almost immediately. They weren't kidding. It really was a garden. She could see roses and all sorts of native flowers to the area. They walked along a path that took them deep into the gardens until they came to a gazebo. Bryan walked her up the steps, and they took a seat with one on either side of her.
"It's lovely out here. There's even a slight breeze," she said.
"You're right. It is lovely out here," Bryan said, looking at her.
"I've never seen anything prettier," Tanner said, gazing into her eyes when she turned his way.
"Don't say things like that. You'll turn my head." She tried to laugh it off, but they continued to look at her as if she were the most important thing in their lives.
Tanner leaned in and kissed her. He kissed her deep but quick. Then Bryan took his turn. He licked at her lips then nibbled her lower lip until she opened for him. Then he slid his tongue alongside hers, tangling them together then pulling back to suck in her lower lip. When he stopped and moved away, they were both breathing heavy.
"I've missed the taste of you, Amber. You taste like sweet candy."
Tanner leaned in and sucked in her earlobe, then let go and whispered in her ear how much he wanted to taste her pussy. Just his mentioning it brought moisture to her panties. She wouldn't be able to sit down for fear of it staining her dress if she kept it up.
"Um, maybe we should go dancing now." She grasped at straws to get them away from this remote area. Much more and she'd be letting them undress her.
"Dancing, right," Tanner said.
"I'm looking forward to dancing with you, baby. Nice, slow songs." Bryan grinned and squeezed her hand.
"Come on, you two. I don't want to be without a table."
As it was, they had to wait for thirty minutes before one came open. Bryan went to get their drinks while they guarded the coveted table.
When Bryan returned, Amber sipped at her drink and found it was very strong. She'd have to be careful if they were making them that strong. She watched the couples on the dance floor and noticed there were several threesomes out there. She frowned.
"What's wrong?" Tanner asked, looking concerned.
"Nothing. I just noticed that there are some threesomes on the dance floor. Are they just all dancing together, or are they really together?"
"Two of them are ménage relationships. They've been here for about five years. The other ones, I don't know. I haven't seen them before."
"Come on," Bryan said. "Let's dance." He pulled her to her feet and headed for the dance floor.
When they got there, a slow song came on. She found herself enveloped by Bryan's strong arms. He pulled her in tight. She felt his cock pressing against her belly. Again she worried that she would leak fluids on her dress. Just being around them had that effect on her.
"You smell wonderful," Bryan said. He nuzzled her hair out of her face and began to kiss her temple and down her cheek to the corner of her mouth.
"I want to lick you from head to foot, Amber."
"Shh, Bryan. Someone is going to hear you."
"So, I'm sure they are in the same boat with who they are with." Bryan nuzzled her temple again.
"You're incorrigible," Amber said with a smile.
"I'll take that as a compliment, baby."
The song ended, and he exchanged her with Tanner. The next song was a slow song as well. She eyed the disc jockey with suspicion, but figured even that was too much to believe the guys had bribed him to play only slow songs for her. Maybe.
He nuzzled her neck and earlobe then kissed the corner of her mouth. She wasn't sure that she was any better off on the dance floor than she had been out on the gazebo.
"I could hold you all night, Amber. I love the way you feel in my arms."
"I like how your arms feel around me."
Amber wanted to take it back, but couldn't. It was true, but she hadn't meant to tell him that. She couldn't blame the alcohol for her loose lips. She'd only had a couple of sips, and nothing at diner. No, she was totally to blame for that one.
"Good, because I plan to have them around you a lot in the future. No, don't pull back, Amber. We've been honest with you about wanting to date from the beginning."
"I know. I guess I'm just still antsy about it."
"Don't think about it so much. Just enjoy it."
When the music ended, Tanner led her back to the table where Bryan sat talking to one of the guys from one of the threesomes that had been out on the dance floor.
Both the man and Bryan stood up when they approached. He held out his hand to Tanner.
"Good to see you again, it's been a while since you've been here."
"Clay, this is Amber. Amber, Clay." Tanner made the introductions.
"I better get back over to my two before they put me in the dog house. Good to see you back, and nice to meet you, Amber." He smiled and walked over to a table near the back where another man and woman were talking with their heads together.
"He's nice. I take it you haven't been here in a while," Amber said.
"No, the ranch has kept us pretty busy until lately. We just hired another ranch hand so that will take a lot of the pressure off of us," Tanner said.
"And then you were also taking care of me."
"Which we thoroughly enjoyed every minute of," Bryan said.
Amber sipped her drink. The men were right about that. They had all enjoyed it. Even when she had been hurt and didn't know them that well, she'd enjoyed their attentions.
They danced several more times before Tanner called a halt and announced it was time to go home.
"Amber looks asleep on her feet," Tanner said with a chuckle.
"Am not." She laughed when her eyes closed for the twentieth time in the last thirty minutes.
Bryan helped her up, and together, he and Tanner steered her toward the door. Once outside, the cooler night air worked to sober her up some. She wasn't drunk by any means, having nursed one drink all night. She was just very tired.
The guys urged her toward the truck and then Bryan helped her up and snapped her seat belt into place. Tanner started the truck and pulled out of the parking lot heading for her house. Amber leaned against Bryan, and when he began to kiss her cheek and ear, she turned her head so that their lips met and kissed him back.
Bryan sighed as she kissed him back. It was more than he ever expected. She opened to him without his having to coax her. He could taste the alcohol as it mixed with her tangy taste. He slid his tongue alongside hers and teased it into his mouth where he sucked on it. She moaned for him. There was nothing more arousing than a woman's moans of pleasure. His cock pushed against his slacks. He placed her hand over his erection, and she squeezed it.
"Bryan." Tanner's voice cautioned him.
He slowly pulled back from the kiss, panting as he did. She leaned back against the seat still holding on to his cock. She massaged it then racked her nails over it. He groaned and took her hand off of him.
"Baby, you keep that up, and I'm going to come in my pants. I'd rather not do that."
"I want you, Bryan."
"I want you, too, Amber. What is going on? You backed away from us, and now you're all over me." Bryan wasn't sure she was sober now, despite only having had one drink.
"I've missed you and Tanner. I want to spend time with you and everything. I just don't want to live with you right now."
Bryan looked over at Tanner. Tanner glanced his way and shrugged. He looked at where they were. They were almost to Amber's house. They needed to have a talk before things went any further.
Tanner pulled the truck in behind Amber's SUV. They all climbed out once they had their seat belts off. Tanner unlocked her door and they walked inside. She flipped on the light then slipped out of her shoes.
"I'll fix some coffee." She disappeared into the kitchen.
"Man, what do you think is going on?" Bryan asked.
"I don't know. Maybe she's made up her mind, and like she said, she doesn't want to live with us right now. That makes sense."
"Do you think she's drunk? She only had one drink, but they mix them strong there."
"I really don't think so, but the coffee will help, and we'll talk for a while to see where she stands with us." Tanner took a seat on the couch.
Amber returned a few minutes later with two cups of coffee, then she went and got hers and joined them sitting on the couch.
"Amber, baby. What do you mean that you want to see us but not live with us?" Bryan moved a strand of hair behind her ear.
"I realized how much I miss you, and that maybe we could work things out one day. I wanted to get to know you to see if we're really compatible before we take a more serious step."
"Sex is a more serious step," Tanner pointed out.
"One we've already taken," she pointed out.
"True," he said. "But intimacy takes trust, and I'm not sure how much you trust us."
"Enough to get naked with you," she countered.
"True," Bryan said.
"I take it you're okay with having sex with each other, but you're not sure about living with us." Tanner drew in a deep breath.
Bryan could tell his brother wasn't as happy with the admission. Yeah, he wanted to fuck her more than anything, but he didn't want to if she wasn't sure about it. She sounded damn sure to him. Where did Tanner stand now?
"Look. There are two of you. You're asking me to commit to both of you when you ask me to move in with you. People aren't going to be okay with the three of us living together. I'm not sure I can deal with being talked about.
"I'm not sure I can deal with your being ashamed of having a relationship with us," Tanner said. He stood up and walked toward the door.
Bryan groaned.
"I'm not ashamed, Tanner. I'm just scared that I can't handle the fallout."
Tanner shoved his hands into his slacks pockets and turned back around. His face was a study of control.
"Look, let's just take this one step at a time. We're dating right now. Not moving in together yet. Tanner?" Bryan waited on his older brother to make up his mind.
Amber stood up from where she'd still been sitting on the couch. She clasped an unclasped her hands as Tanner drew in a deep breath and let it out slowly.
"Fine. You're right, we're moving too fast, or I'm moving too fast. I'm sorry, Amber." Tanner walked over to where she was standing and kissed her on the forehead. "Bryan and I were raised in a ménage family. We're used to it, but I can understand that you wouldn't be. Pushing you into one isn't the way to go about it."
"Thanks. I just need some time to get used to the idea of there being two of you." She seemed to be pleading with her eyes that they understand.
Bryan pulled her into his arms and kissed her. She wrapped her arms around him and gave herself over to his kiss. He felt Tanner move in behind her. Tension seeped out of him when his brother joined him in loving on Amber. They could be perfect together if she would only relax and not let anyone else's ideas worry her.
Bryan already knew he had fallen in love with her. He suspected that his brother was in love with her, as well. Otherwise he wouldn't have been so upset that she didn't want to live with them right away.
Loving her felt right to him. He didn't want to imagine a world without her in it. Everything about her fit him from her rocking body to her spirited soul. She was everything he wanted in a wife. He knew Tanner had to feel the same way, or he wouldn't be acting like he was.
Bryan pulled away from their kiss and nibbled along her jaw to her shoulder. Then he moved his hands down her hips to hold her steady while he pressed his steel-hard cock against her belly. He wanted her so badly it almost hurt.
"Bedroom," Tanner rasped out from behind her.
Amber moaned as Bryan picked her up and carried her through the house.
She slid down Bryan's hard body to stand next to the bed. Tanner immediately began undressing her, starting with the zipper to her dress. When it began to slide off her body, Bryan caught it and carefully laid it over the back of the chair. Then he leaned over and mouthed her nipples through the sexy red bra.
Tanner slid his hands into her panties to slowly shove them down her legs until she could step out of them. He stood up with them in his hands and held them to his face. He closed his eyes. When he opened them, they were heavy with lust. The sight of him sniffing of her panties had her dripping wet all over again.
Bryan unfastened her bra and pulled it off of her, draping it over her dress when he did. Then he buried his face between her breasts, while Tanner dipped a finger into her pussy. The double onslaught of sensations was overwhelming, and her legs gave out. They caught her and moved her up on the bed.
Bryan focused on her breasts as Tanner made his way to her pussy. She cried out as Bryan closed his mouth over her nipple and sucked it tight against the roof of his mouth. He plucked at the other one sending needles of electricity straight to her clit.
Amber grabbed at his head to keep him at her breast when Tanner suddenly licked her slit from top to bottom, sending her spiraling higher. He lapped at her pussy even as he explored her slit with two fingers. When he slipped them inside her cunt, she hissed out a yes and tightened her hold on Bryan's hair.
She wanted to direct Tanner's mouth to her clit, but with Bryan at her breasts, she couldn't reach the other man. Instead, she tried to tilt her pelvis toward his questing mouth. His fingers pressed in and out of her cunt until she was begging for more.
"Please, I need you inside me, Tanner. I need more. Oh, God!" She gasped when he curled his fingers and pressed at her G-spot.
"Fuck, you're tight. I can't wait to get my cock inside your hot cunt." Tanner's voice came out gravely.
"More, more, more," she chanted.
"Bryan?" Tanner asked.
"I want her mouth, Tanner." Bryan let go of the nipple he was sucking on.
"Turn her over." Tanner pulled back from fucking her with his fingers and moved to flip her over on her belly.
"What?" she asked, confused.
"Baby, I want your mouth around my cock. I want to sink it to the back of your throat until you drain me dry."
Amber licked her lips in anticipation. She looked back over her shoulder and grinned, raising her hips up so that Tanner had a good view of her back side.
"On your hands and knees, Amber," Tanner demanded.
She got to her hands and knees and reached for Bryan's pants to unzip them.
"Wait, I'll get them, baby. Hold on." Bryan quickly stripped out of his pants after kicking off his boots. Then he pulled his knit shirt over his head and dropped it to the floor.
Amber looked over her shoulder once again to see Tanner's pants undone and his cock standing straight out as he rolled a condom over it.
She turned back to where Bryan knelt on the bed in front of her, waiting. She ran her tongue around the top of his cock and it jumped in reaction. She laughed and licked across the slit. He hissed out a breath and grabbed it at the base to hold it steady as she licked up and down the stalk. When she nibbled under the cap of his cockhead, he growled.
"Suck it, Amber. I want to feel the back of your throat around my dick."
She covered his cockhead with her mouth stretching her lips over the head until she was able to suck him down her throat. When he reached the back, she backed off.
"Relax your throat and breathe through your nose, baby. You can take more."
She did as he said, and he slipped that much farther down her throat. She swallowed around him, and he yelled out. She did it again, reveling in the fact that she could take his control. When she came back off of him, he cupped her cheeks with his hands.
Tanner took that opportunity to fit his cock at her slit and thrust his way into her pussy until she felt stuffed. Then he pulled out and thrust again, reaching her cervix deep in her cunt. When he pulled back and tunneled forward again, she shoved back, bumping her cervix harder against his hard dick. The slight pain turned quickly to pleasure. She loved it. He pummeled her over and over until she was so caught up with the pleasure that she almost forgot about Bryan.
He rubbed his dick against her mouth until she opened and took his cock once again. He held her head and began to slowly face-fuck her as Tanner fucked her pussy. Fire singed along her nerve endings as she grew closer to orgasm with each thrust of their cocks in her body.
She sucked hard on Bryan's cock, running her tongue around the stalk and letting her teeth graze him from time to time. He growled at her and dug his hands in her hair, his nails at her scalp as she sucked his cock deeper with each thrust. She reached between his legs and squeezed his balls when she swallowed around his cock.
"Fuck! I'm going to come, baby. Oh, God. Just like that." Bryan's voice grew weak as she manipulated his balls and swallowed hard around his cock deep in her throat. He came hard, shooting rivulets of cum down her throat. She swallowed as fast as she could then licked her lips when he pulled from her mouth.
Bryan collapsed against the headboard, breathing heavy, still holding her face in one hand. She sucked in his thumb and ran her tongue around it. His cock jerked in reaction and he groaned.
"Fuck, no more, baby. Not right now." He opened his eyes and she swore she saw love in them. Then it was gone.
Tanner ramped up his speed now that she was finished with Bryan and began to thrust harder and faster into her cunt. She squeezed down on his cock with each thrust until he was groaning as he pulled out of her. She used her cunt muscles to tighten around him trying to make him lose control. She wanted more.
"Fuck me harder, Tanner. I need more."
"Do that again, Amber. Yeah, squeeze me just like that. Fuck, that feels amazing."
"More!" she screamed as her climax hovered just out of reach.
He pulled out and slammed back into her over and over. Little electrical sparks shimmered along her pussy walls deep into her cunt, then back to her clit, but it wasn't enough. She thrashed her head back and forth, helpless to speed it up.
Tanner reached between them and pinched her clit just as he hit her cervix deep in her cunt. She exploded and tightened down so hard on him, he shot his cum deep into the condom, roaring as he came.
Amber didn't think she would ever stop climaxing as every tiny movement of Tanner's body set hers off again. Finally, he pulled out, and she curled up gasping for breath. He collapsed next to her dropping one hand across her pelvis. It fluttered at the feel of him so close again. They both lay there breathing heavy for several minutes.
Finally, Tanner got up and disposed of the condom while Bryan pulled Amber back into his arms. Tanner climbed up on the other side of her, backing up until she could wrap one arm around his waist. Amber felt contentment for the first time in a long time. She lay there for several seconds thinking about how right it felt to be between them until she drifted off to sleep.
Amber and the guys dated several nights a week over the next few weeks. She would cook for them sometimes, and they would go out sometimes. Mostly they went to the club. She felt fairly comfortable there with both of them, but still wasn't convinced that she could deal with how other people would view them all three living together.
The people at the bank didn't say anything to her about seeing the Jordan brothers, but she knew they whispered about her when she had her back turned. She could feel their stares on the back of her neck. It was a little unnerving, but she dealt with it just fine.
Thursday after work, she stopped at the grocery to pick up a loaf of bread, having run out the day before. She headed home thinking about what the guys might want to do the next night. They had talked about eating pizza out and then going to the movies. She hadn't really been out with them other than to the club, so this would be new for her.
Suddenly, she was rammed from behind. She looked at her speedometer. She was traveling the right speed. She looked back in time to see a huge truck barreling fast toward her again. She pressed down on the gas, but the truck caught up with her in no time and rammed her again. She nearly lost control of her little Pathfinder but managed to stay on the road.
The truck pulled up alongside her and started trying to force her off the road. She looked over to see a man in a ski mask glaring at her. He pulled the wheel to the left and banged into her once again. This time she left the road, but managed to pull back up before hitting a sign. The next time he shoved her over though, she lost control and sped off into the trees. She slammed hard on the brakes, but she wasn't going to stop in time. She desperately tried to steer around the trees, but couldn't avoid them all.
Her SUV slammed into first one, then another, and the world stopped around her as her airbag shot out and she cracked her head on the side window. She felt as if everything was spinning around her She tried to move the airbag out of the way. It seemed to fight back.
Then she saw the man with the ski mask leaning over the windshield. His eyes were wild in the mask. He began tugging on the door trying to get it to open, but it was stuck from hitting a tree on her way down. She moaned, trying to call out for help, but unable to move. The steering wheel had her pinned so that she couldn't reach her purse for her phone or climb over the seat to get to the back.
He growled through the window at her. She pressed down on the horn. Tears formed in her eyes when it actually worked. She held it while the man continued to look for a way inside. Thank God she had all the doors locked.
He disappeared from her sight then reappeared with a big rock. He began beating on glass with it until it shattered. He pulled it away from the door and reached in to grab her. Amber tried to scream but he managed to get his hands around her neck and squeeze. She held the horn down with one hand while trying to peel his fingers from around her neck with the other.
Just when she thought she was going to pass out, he stopped as if he had heard something and disappeared once again. This time, he didn't come back. Instead, a stranger showed up yelling as he got to her car.
"Lady! Are you okay? What was that man doing to you?"
Amber could barely open her eyes still gasping for breath. She just shook her head slightly.
"I called the police. They'll be here soon. You're going to be okay, just hold on."
She was barely aware of him talking to her while they waited. He kept up a steady stream of conversation until the police sirens could be heard.
"I'm going to show them where you are. I'll be right back. You hang in there, lady."
She wanted to beg him not to leave her, but he was gone. She still couldn't say anything. Her throat hurt too badly and she felt like everything in her body had been shaken loose.
A police officer she'd never seen before ran up to the car and looked in. He reached in and cut her seat belt with something, then pulled it away from her body. He started trying to get the door open, but had no more luck than her attacker had.
"We need a rescue truck out here!" he called to someone.
They answered back, but she couldn't understand them.
"Ma'am. Can you hear me?"
She opened her eyes, but nothing would come out of her mouth. Her head hurt too much to nod. God, why was this happening to her? Who wanted her dead?
"An ambulance is on the way. You keep looking at me so I know you're okay." He squeezed her hand that was on the steering wheel. "I'm not going to leave you until they get here."
He talked to her as the other man had, but when the siren came again, he didn't leave her. He stayed by the car until the others arrived. Then he let someone else take his place. She hovered in and out of consciousness until they got her door opened and started to move her. Then she passed out.
Bryan pulled up behind the emergency vehicles and stopped. They had the road blocked as a wrecker pulled an SUV out of the trees ahead of him. He couldn't see very well from where he was, but the thing looked in bad shape. He hoped whoever had been in it had lived. He couldn't figure out how they had ended up losing control. Maybe they had fallen asleep or had a blackout.
He waited along with several other people until the wrecker made it up on the road and headed toward town. He looked over just as it pulled up even to his truck and cursed. It was Amber's Pathfinder. He pulled off the road and ran up to where the police gathered around one of the cars.
"What happened to Amber? Is she alive?" he demanded as soon as he was close enough they could hear him.
Officer McKenny stepped out from the group and walked up to him.
"Bryan. She's on her way to the hospital. I don't know how bad she is. You should call Tanner and tell him."
"What the hell happened?"
"It looks like someone forced her off the road. A man pulled up hearing a car horn and saw someone trying to choke her and ran toward them, yelling. He scared the attacker off. We are in the process of going over the man's truck to figure out who he is. You should call Tanner and go see about Miss Reynolds."
Bryan shook his head and then nodded. Fuck! He pulled out his cell and punched in Tanner's number.
"Hello, Bryan. I can't talk right now."
"Amber's on her way to the hospital. Get your ass over there now."
"What happened?"
"Someone tried to kill her again. They ran her car off into the trees."
"I'm on my way." Tanner hung up, leaving Bryan listening to a dial tone.
He slammed the phone back in its holder and climbed back into his truck. He turned it around in the field and pulled back on the road, flooring it on the way to the hospital. Tanner had better be there to tell him what was going on, or he was going to piss some people off looking for her.
When he arrived, Tanner met him at the emergency room door. He pulled him to the side once they were inside.
"She's here and I've seen her. They're working on her, Bryan, but she is unconscious right now. She has a head injury, and they're checking her for internal injuries right now because the steering wheel was against her abdomen."
"The police said someone was there trying to choke her."
"Yeah, you can see his handprints around her throat. I don't know how bad she is yet, Bryan. I'm waiting for the surgeon to finish looking at her CT."
"Someone forced her off the road then tried to strangle her. It has to be one of her old boyfriends. I can't imagine anyone else going to all the lengths this guy has gone through." Bryan wanted a piece of him.
The police had better get him before he got hold of him. He might not leave anything for them to put in jail. God, let her be okay. He couldn't imagine losing her. He loved her more than anything.
"Tanner, I've got to see her. I need to see she's alive." Bryan tried to walk around his brother.
"I know, Bryan, but you can't right now. They're still examining her."
"You don't understand, Tanner. I love her."
"I know. I do, too. I want to be in there just as much as you do, but I know I'd only be in the way. We've got to wait here until they can tell us something. I can get the information faster as long as I don't interfere."
"Fuck! I can't just wait like this."
"Tanner." Another man walked up. "I've looked at the films. You want to step over here, and I'll tell you what I'm seeing."
"You can talk in front of Bryan, Mark. He's my brother."
"Um, I don't think," he began.
"Bryan is her boyfriend."
"I thought you were," Mark said.
"We both are dating her. Together. Just tell us what in the fuck is going on," Bryan said.
"Bryan," Tanner warned.
The other man sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Look she's got a bruised liver and spleen. I'm going to watch her spleen. If it starts bleeding, we'll take it out, but I'd rather not operate on her if we can prevent it. I don't see anything else inside her to worry about. She has a good lump on her head, but her CT looks fine. She's got a concussion, but nothing serious." He paused and huffed out a breath.
"The only other thing we're worried about is the fact that someone tried to choke her. With her being unconscious, we can't determine how much damage they may have done to her. We don't know how long she may have been without oxygen. As soon as she wakes up, we can assess that."
"What is next?" Tanner asked in a tight voice.
"We'll transfer her to ICU and watch her. That's all we can do. My major concern is her spleen. I'll be keeping a close eye on it. Once we get past the twelve-hour mark, I'll feel better about it."
"Thanks, Mark. When can we see her?" Tanner asked.
Bryan wanted to see her now. Forget fucking hospital protocol. Someone needed to be with her at all times to assure the bastard that tried to kill her didn't come back and finish the job.
"As soon as they get her transferred I'll make sure you can see her." The other man walked off toward one of the trauma rooms.
"Is that where they have her? I want to see her now, Tanner. Someone tried to kill her."
"I know, Bryan, but you can't see her right now. Once they get her into ICU, I can get us both in there."
Bryan could see Tanner's jaw working as he struggled to keep his cool.
"Look, once we get in, someone has to stay with her all the time. I don't trust that this guy won't try to get to her again," Bryan said.
"I'll figure out something. It will help if the police will corroborate that." Tanner looked up as someone walked through the double doors into the emergency room.
"Officer McKenny." Tanner held out his hand.
"Doc. How is she?"
"Holding her own right now. She's got some bruised organs and a concussion," Tanner told him.
"Tell them that someone tried to kill her. We need to be able to stick with her all the time to keep her safe," Bryan said in a growl.
"I'll do what I can. I would say we would stand watch, but we have two out right now. One with a broken collarbone and the other is on vacation."
"We can take care of her. I just need you to tell them it's necessary for us to stay with her." Bryan rubbed his face with his hands then shoved them in his pockets. He didn't feel like he was getting anywhere. He needed to see her. He needed to see her breathing and feel her warm skin.
"The witness described this man as wearing a ski mask just like the man that attacked her at home. He was leaning in the car doing something to her, but he couldn't tell for sure what. By the time we got there, the man was gone, but there were fingermarks around her neck."
"It has to be one of her boyfriends coming after her," Bryan said.
"I agree with you. We've got people looking for them now to verify their location," the officer said.
Bryan sighed. They had to catch the bastard first. Then they had enough to put him away. He'd been stupid and left footprints and fingerprints at her house. Maybe there would be fingerprints on her car as well. All he knew was they better find him before he got a chance at him.
"Bryan, don't even think it, son. You stay away from the man if you see him. Call us and let us take care of it," Officer McKenny said. He'd obviously seen the bloodlust in Bryan's eyes.
"Tanner!" the other doctor called out. "They're moving her if you want to ride up on the elevator."
Tanner looked over at Bryan. "Come on. I'll squeeze you on there somehow. Just don't touch her until they have her stabilized in ICU."
"Let's go." Bryan was already halfway across the ER.
He watched as they wheeled Amber out of the trauma room toward the elevator. Her white face with the lump on the side scared him. He wanted to reach out and brush her hair to the side. Instead, he kept his hands in his pockets and followed them as they wheeled the stretcher into the elevator.
Tanner squeezed in behind him. He was right next to her. They had a monitor on that followed her heartbeat. The soft beep, beep, beep was somehow comforting. It meant she was alive. That was all that mattered right then. He could see the bruised marks around her throat and nearly choked thinking about how scared she must have been. He owed that man who'd stopped a beer, a case of beer.
They stopped on the second floor where the ICU was located. He waited as they wheeled her out then followed as far as the double doors. Tanner clapped him on the shoulder and followed them inside.
Bryan walked over to the floor-to-ceiling windows and looked out without really seeing anything. All he could see was the bruises around her throat and the lump on her head. He would carry that sight with him always. Had it not been for the beeping of the monitor, he would have almost believed she had been dead. His heart skipped at the thought. He swallowed hard to keep the tears from forming in his eyes. When Tanner returned, they needed to agree on what was next, because he no longer wanted her to live with them. He wanted her to marry them.
Amber's head throbbed as she fought to open her eyes. Her throat hurt, her belly hurt, her whole body hurt. She couldn't remember what had happened, but she remembered that she needed a loaf of bread. Maybe she had fallen at the grocery store. She couldn't get her eyes to open.
"Wake up, Amber. We're worried about you, baby."
That was Bryan's voice. Why was he worried? She tried to speak, but her throat hurt.
"Look, she worked her mouth," Bryan said in an excited voice. "She's trying to talk."
"Squeeze my finger, honey."
Tanner. That was Tanner's voice. She felt something in her hand and squeezed. Had she squeezed it enough? She tried again.
"That's it, Amber. I can feel you. Do it again for me. Here, Bryan, put your finger in her hand."
Amber swallowed and moaned at the pain in her throat. She squeezed down on the finger in her hand. She was so tired.
"I felt it, baby. You rest now. We're right here with you. One of us will always be here for you."
Amber realized she was in the hospital. She didn't know why, but she recognized the smells and sounds now. She hated hospitals.
"She's going to wake up next time, Tanner. You wait and see."
She wanted to wake up now. Her head hurt. She wanted some Tylenol. Why couldn't she open her eyes?
She drifted for a while, thinking about things. She couldn't remember what happened, but she remembered how she felt about Bryan and Tanner. She loved them. Funny that she hadn't realized that before. She wanted to hold them and snuggle between them. They would make her feel better.
She wasn't sure how long had passed, but she tried opening her eyes again, and this time they opened some. The room was dim but lit. She could see a wall across from her with a chalkboard with a date on it. She looked up some and there was a clock. It was one, but was it in the morning or the afternoon. She couldn't remember what day it was, either. But she needed a loaf of bread.
She turned her head a little and recognized Bryan leaning against the bedrail of the hospital bed she was in. He had his arms crossed on the rail with his head down. She swallowed and tried to say hi, but it came out in a grunt. His head jerked up, and he smiled at her.
"You're awake! Hey, baby. How are you feeling?" He reached over the rail and pushed something, then took her hand in his.
She grasped it as tight as she could. Somehow she knew it wasn't very hard. He stood up and reached over the rail, pushing a strand of hair out of her eyes.
A nurse walked in and smiled at her. "Good to see you awake, Amber. Let's check you over."
The nurse had her squeezing her fingers and pushing her feet against her hand. Then she had her follow her finger with her eyes as she moved it around in the air.
"Can you say anything, Amber?" she asked.
Amber swallowed and grimaced. Her throat really hurt. She opened her mouth and managed to say, "Hurts" in a raspy voice.
"I know it does. I'll get you some ice to suck on. Nothing to drink yet, though." She whispered something to Bryan before leaving.
"Hey, babe. She's going to call Tanner and let him know you're awake. He was up here last night with you." Bryan held her hand and reached over the rail to kiss her on the cheek.
"Throat hurts." She tried again to talk.
Bryan's mouth grew tense then he relaxed. "I know, baby. It will get better. Just rest now. I'm not going to leave you. You're safe."
Amber wasn't sure why he said that, but decided it didn't matter right then. She was tired. She'd ask what he meant when she woke up again.
Tanner hurried through the hospital corridors to the elevator. He tapped his foot as he waited for it to open up. Once inside, he pushed the button for the second floor and shoved his hands in his pockets as it slowly moved up. He slipped through the doors as soon as they began to open again. He hurried to ICU. As soon as he walked in the big, open room, he honed in on Amber's room, number three. He heard Bryan talking.
When he opened the curtain and eased into the room, he was greeted with the welcome sight of Amber's brilliant blue eyes. They were slightly dull, but he could see signs of her in there.
"Hey, Amber." He walked up to the other side of the bed from Bryan and touched her cheek with his lips. He didn't try to hold her hand since it was the one with the IV fluids attached.
"Tanner," she whispered in a raspy voice. "I needed bread."
Tanner looked over at Bryan. His brother shrugged, looking worried. He moved around the bed to the other side, and Bryan moved farther down the bed to let him get closer to her.
"I'll get you some bread, honey. How are you feeling?"
"Head, throat, hurts."
"I know. You have a bump on your head where you hit it."
He didn't say anything about her throat. He didn't want to bring up that she was attacked. She needed to remember on her own if possible.
"Why am I in hospital?" she asked.
"You were in a car wreck, honey." Tanner looked up at Bryan who nodded.
"Oh. I don't remember." She tried to clear her throat and tears came to her eyes.
"Easy, baby." Bryan put a piece of crushed ice on her lips.
Tanner watched her suck it in her mouth and move it around. She looked at Bryan and he put another piece to her lips for her.
"How long has she been awake?" Tanner asked.
"About thirty minutes. The nurse called you as soon as she woke up."
"Has she said anything much?"
"She's mentioned the bread several times, but that's all. I figure she must have stopped to get a loaf of bread and that's the last thing she remembers."
"Bryan, she might not ever remember what actually happened," Tanner warned.
"I'm fine with that as long as she gets well. I don't want her to remember some." He stopped and looked at her as she watched him. "You know what I mean?"
Tanner knew exactly what he meant. He didn't want Amber to remember someone strangling her, either. She would have more nightmares, and she already had too many of those. Damn the police for not catching the son of a bitch that had done this to her.
"Go home, Tanner." Amber's raspy voice got his attention again.
"You want me to leave?" he asked.
"No, me," she said with a frown. "Go home."
"As soon as they let you out of here. You're still hurt, honey. Let's get you well first."
Amber sighed and closed her eyes. He figured she was tired by now. She would sleep again for a while. He looked over at Bryan and nodded his head toward the door. Bryan followed him outside the room.
"She's going to need rest, but anytime she's awake, tell her what day and time it is. She's going to be confused sleeping in little bits and pieces. Don't push her about what happened. She needs to remember that on her own. Have the police been by yet?" he asked.
"Not yet. I figure they will be here this afternoon. The nurses said they would hold off calling them until after her doctor has seen her. He's on his way." Bryan kept looking toward the door to her room.
"I'll stay and talk to him when he's finished seeing her. Then I'll have to go back to work. I have a waiting room full of patients." He sighed.
"You're going to have to sleep tonight. I'll stay with her, and you can get some sleep and stay with her tomorrow."
"We'll see. If they put her in a room tonight, we can both stay with her and sleep some. There are lounge chairs in the rooms."
Amber's doctor walked up and interrupted them. "I hear she's awake. How is she, Tanner?"
"She's disoriented, naturally, but she's awake and knows us. She's focused on the last thing she remembers, though. It probably has to do with going to the grocery store."
"I'll look her over and maybe we can transfer her to a room so I don't have to run interference with everyone about your brother here being in the room all the time."
Tanner smiled. "I appreciate your understanding."
The doctor disappeared into Amber's room along with a nurse. Tanner pulled Bryan farther away so he could talk to him, and Bryan wouldn't hear if the doctor made Amber cry out. He would be pressing on her abdomen some.
"That's good news. If he lets her go to a room, then she's out of danger for the most part. We can stay with her, and she's that much closer to going home."
"She's coming home with us," Bryan said.
"She's coming home with us," Tanner agreed.
"We can convince her to marry us once she recovers. By then, maybe they will have found that bastard and shoved him in jail."
"Let's take this one day at a time, Bryan. She's going to need time to recover even once they send her home."
"I'm not going to push her, Tanner. I know she's got to heal. But I want to make sure you understand that I plan to marry her."
"I'm marrying her, brother," Tanner teased.
"Same difference." Bryan smiled.
It was the first real smile Tanner had seen on Bryan's face since before the accident. He looked older now, though. The wreck had aged him. He had lines around his eyes he hadn't had before. He supposed he probably did, too. Neither of them had had any sleep in the last two days.
Amber's doctor walked up and smiled. "She's doing remarkably well considering what she's been through. I don't see any reason we can't transfer her to a room on the floor. Her abdomen is still soft, and the last X-ray looked stable. She'll get well faster in a more normal environment."
"Thanks, doc." Bryan shook the man's hand and immediately slipped back into Amber's room.
Tanner smiled then looked at his colleague. "Does she have any lasting damage from the lack of oxygen?"
He sighed and pressed his lips together. "Honestly, I can't say. With the head injury, we don't know how much of her memory loss is due to that, and how much is from the strangulation. We don't know how long she was without oxygen before he was interrupted. She can move all her extremities and she follows directions, so if memory loss is all she has, she's damn lucky. Don't ask for more."
"I'm not. I'm just concerned if there is anything we need to watch for," Tanner said.
"I think you're on the downside of the hill and heading in the right direction. I'll keep a check on her, but her regular doctor should follow her now."
"I'll find out who that is." Tanner hadn't even thought about her having a doctor.
Thanks." They shook hands and Tanner returned to Amber's room. Bryan was scowling.
"What?" he asked.
"He hurt her," Bryan said.
"He poked on her belly to make sure she wasn't bleeding, Bryan. Get over it." Tanner just shook his head.
"Amber, honey, who's your normal doctor?"
She looked confused for a few seconds then shrugged slightly. "You."
"Honey, I can't be your doctor and your boyfriend, too. Have you seen anyone since you've lived here?"
"No," she said.
"I'll find someone, then. Do you remember about the loaf of bread now?" he asked.
"Went to the store to get it. I didn't get back home, though, did I?" she asked.
"No, honey. You had a wreck."
"Someone was there." She squeezed her eyebrows down. "Someone hit me." She frowned harder.
"Don't worry about it now, baby." Bryan said, interrupting them. "You'll just make your head hurt more."
Tanner sighed. Bryan was right. She could remember more later. The police would be by soon enough to question her. He needed to get back to his patients.
"I've got to go, Bryan. When the police get here, remember that they have to ask questions, and don't get thrown in jail for interfering. I need you to watch over her when I'm at work."
Bryan smiled crookedly. "I'll behave. McKenny knows me."
"Yeah, he knows you all right, and will toss your ass in jail if you cross him." Tanner clapped Bryan on the shoulder and turned to leave. He looked one more time at Amber. She had her eyes closed once more. He went back and bent over the bed rail to kiss her. She opened her eyes and smiled.
"Let me know what room they put her in," he said, looking deep into her eyes. She was there. He could see her.
Amber sighed and pushed herself up in bed. Bryan was immediately there to help her. She didn't move a muscle that he was there waiting to help her.
"I'm okay, Bryan. I'm just ready to get out of this bed." Her voice was still raspy, but not as much as it had been. This was her second day in a regular room. They promised she could go home in another twenty-four hours. She was going to make sure they kept their promise.
"We'll sit you in the chair to eat your dinner. You did good at lunchtime," Bryan told her
A nurse walked in and smiled at him. Amber just shook her head. They were all jealous of her because she had both men looking after her. They weren't mean about it, though. When Bryan stepped outside so they could help her bathe, they giggled about her having two men to take care of her.
Amber realized that dating both of them really hadn't disrupted her life near as much as she had believed it would. Whoever was after her had caused more problems than anything. Maybe being part of a ménage relationship wasn't that bad. She could easily see herself living with them.
She decided that if they asked her again, she would really consider it. She knew she loved them. The idea of never seeing them again turned her heart upside down. She didn't want to even imagine not having them with her.
"What do you want to wear home, Amber?" Bryan asked. "I'll go pick it up when Tanner comes to stay with you."
"I have that green lounging pants outfit that Tanner got for me. I like the way that feels."
"I know the one. I'll bring that back," he said with a smile.
"No bra, though. I can't stand anything across my chest yet."
He frowned but nodded. She realized he hated thinking about anything that hurt her. He was so sweet to her.
"Bryan?"
"Yeah, baby?"
"Did I tell the police that the man who ran me off the road was wearing a ski mask and driving a really big truck?"
"Yeah, baby. You told them."
"I think he was there when I was stuck in the car, too. I think he tried to choke me. That's why my throat is so sore." She watched Bryan's face. He paled then swallowed.
"No. You didn't tell them that. Are you sure?"
"Yeah, I can remember him walking up to the car and breaking the window. I couldn't move, so I honked the horn. That's all I can clearly remember, but I think he choked me."
"We'll tell the police about it, baby. You just stop worrying about it. I don't want you upset."
Tanner walked in the room with a great big smile.
"Hey, Tanner!" Amber held out her arms for his hug and kiss.
"How are you doing, honey?"
"Ready to go home. Why do I have to wait until tomorrow afternoon? I'm ready now."
"Just one more night so they can watch you.
"Yeah, one more day to charge her insurance another night of room and board," Bryan said with a wink.
Tanner frowned at him but shook his head. He sat on the edge of Amber's bed and squeezed her hand.
"So, Bryan said you did really well sitting up to eat lunch today. Ready for dinner?"
"If you don't get me out of this bed soon, I'm going to scream."
Tanner chuckled. "Don't go stirring up the nurses, baby. They already think we make out in the bed."
"Tell me about it. When they help me sponge off they ask me what it's like to have two hunky men in my bed."
"You're kidding," Tanner said. "I was just kidding."
"I'm not. They are so jealous of me." Amber grinned.
"I'm going to steal Bryan from you for a few minutes. You behave while we're gone," Tanner said.
She waved them off and switched on the TV. She would catch the weather. It was supposed to get much colder over the next few days. She was secretly hoping for snow, but not before she got to go home. The doctor said that if the weather was bad he wouldn't let her go home.
When the weather was over, she switched the channel and found a movie that had just come on. She watched it for a few minutes, then closed her eyes. She was tired, but really wasn't sleepy. She would just rest her eyes for a few minutes.
The sound of the door opening made her smile. They were back. They'd be real quiet so as not to wake her up. She was used to them by now. A sound near the bed told her one of them was looking at her. When a pillow lowered over her face and pressed down on her, she realized it wasn't her men. She fought the hands trying to suffocate her. She tried to scream, but the pillow muffled her yell. She began grabbing at all the controls on the handrails in hopes she would press the nurses button. Finally, she grabbed above her on the wall and pulled something that made a loud noise.
The pressure was suddenly gone from her face and there were sounds of fighting. She tried to move the pillow off her face, but didn't have the energy. A loud crash followed soon after a grunt. She kept shoving until finally the pillow was off her face.
"Bryan, see about Amber. Bryan! Dammit. Stop it and see about Amber. Amber!"
She looked over to see Bryan hitting on someone familiar to her, then he was running for her. He threw the pillow across the room and pulled her up into his arms.
"Aw, baby. I'm so sorry we left you. Oh, God, be okay, baby." He hugged her and squeezed her until she was fighting him to breathe again.
"Bryan, you're choking her, man. Ease up." Tanner pulled him away from her. "Amber, are you okay?"
"Yes, he tried to kill me. Who is he?" she asked.
"Do you recognize him?" Bryan asked. He grabbed the unconscious man from the security officer and held him closer to her.
"That's Ted, my ex-boyfriend from Memphis. What is he doing here?"
"Get him out of here before I kill him," Bryan said.
Tanner pulled her into his arms and kissed her. "I never dreamed he could slip in right under our noses, honey. We were literally right outside the door."
"It's okay. I'm fine, and now he's going to jail." Amber sighed with relief that now maybe things would settle down in her life.
"The police will put him in jail and when his fingerprints match those on your car and the window at your house, they'll convict him of attempted murder," Bryan said.
"I want to go home, Tanner." Amber clung to him.
"I know, honey. We'll get you home tomorrow."
"This is your house," Amber said when she sat up straight after dozing on the ride from the hospital.
"You can't stay by yourself for a few days. You can stay with us until you're able to be on your own," Tanner said.
"Oh." She had hoped they were going to tell her she wasn't going back home.
She wanted to live with them now, but she wouldn't say anything. They had to still want her, and she didn't know if they did. Right now she was afraid that they were just being good to her because she had almost been killed.
"Do you mind staying with us?" Bryan asked.
"No! I like staying with you. I just didn't realize I would be, is all." She smiled and waited while Bryan unfastened her seat belt then picked her up and carried her up the steps to the porch.
"Let me down, Bryan. I want to walk."
"Tanner?" Bryan asked.
"She can walk. Just watch her in case she gets tired." Tanner unlocked the door and opened it for her.
They filed inside and Amber went straight for the fireplace. Sure enough, there was a fire going. She stood in front of it holding out her hands.
Bryan picked her up once again and sat down on the couch with her on his lap.
"I don't want you to get tired and fall into the fire. I'll hold you."
"You just like holding me," Amber teased.
"Yep, I like having your supersexy body up next to mine."
"Suck-up." She laughed at him.
"How about a sandwich with your soup, Amber." Tanner called from the kitchen.
"I'm not hungry right now, Tanner," she called back.
"You've got to eat to get your strength back, baby." Bryan stood up with her and carried her to the kitchen. He settled her on a barstool and took the one next to it.
"I guess I'll eat a half of a sandwich with a little soup." Amber really wasn't hungry.
"Sounds good to me," Tanner said, eyeing Bryan when he started to argue.
They ate and talked about the prediction of a snowstorm coming their way. Tanner and Bryan argued over how much snow they were likely to get, and Amber just laughed at their crazy predictions.
"You watch and see, Amber. We're going to get at least a foot of snow," Bryan said with a big grin.
She yawned and stretched, wincing as it pulled on her side. She was still sore.
"Looks like you could use a nap," Tanner said.
"I'm a little tired. I think I'll just relax on the couch."
"Nonsense, we'll go take a nap on the bed. It's more comfortable," Bryan said.
Amber rolled her eyes but let him help her down from the bar. She waved bye to Tanner as she was gently pushed out the kitchen door toward the stairs. She made it halfway up before she had to stop and rest.
"Want me to carry you the rest of the way, baby?" Bryan asked.
"Naw, I want to do it. I just had to catch my breath." She continued up the stairs and was secretly glad there were only a few left. As it was, making it all the way down the hall wore her completely out.
She didn't say a word when Bryan undressed her. She honestly didn't have the strength. He undressed as well and pulled her into his arms under the covers. She dozed off and on for nearly an hour before she realized that Tanner was in the bed with them. She hadn't remembered him getting in the bed. She rolled over and cozied up to him.
"You're awake," he said.
"I've rested enough. Kiss me." She poked out her lips.
Tanner laughed and kissed her.
"That's not what I want. I want a real kiss," she said in her sultriest voice.
"Honey, you're not well enough to get too frisky."
"Are you turning me down for sex?" she asked overdramatically.
"As much as it pains me to say it, yes. You're not healed enough, Amber."
"But I want you, Tanner." She pouted.
"Maybe by the weekend. Let's see how you do. The doctor said no strenuous activity for the next forty-eight hours."
"What does he know?" she asked, running her hand down his body.
He grabbed her hand just before it made contact with his cock. Then he shook his head and grabbed her other hand when it snaked toward Bryan.
"Don't tease us, Amber."
"I'm serious, Tanner. I need you. Please."
"Give it another day, Amber, and we'll see. Now are you ready to get up or do you need to sleep a while longer."
"I'm ready to get up. I'm tired of being in bed if I can't have any fun."
Tanner kissed her on the nose and helped her out of the bed.
"What about Bryan?" she asked.
"Let him sleep. He was up a lot watching you when you were in the hospital. He needs the rest."
Amber nodded. She grabbed her clothes, and they dressed outside the bedroom in the hall. Then he helped her down the stairs. It was a lot easier going down than it had been going up. She sat on the couch while he made coffee. Then they drank it, watching the fire without saying much of anything.
Almost an hour later, Bryan came running down the stairs. He looked frantic until he saw her sitting on the couch with Tanner.
"Damn, I was scared something had happened to you. I looked all over the bedroom and bathroom for you." He sat on the couch next to her and wrapped an arm around her.
"Sorry, I was wide awake, so Tanner and I came downstairs and let you sleep."
"Is there still some coffee left?" he asked, getting up again.
"Yeah." Tanner handed him his cup. "Fill me up again."
"What about you, baby?" Bryan asked her.
"I'm good."
When he returned, Bryan sat on the other side of her and took her hand in his. Tanner took her other hand. They looked at each other over her head. She looked from one to the other.
"What's going on, guys?" she asked warily.
"Amber, we know we asked you to move in with us before, but we want to change that now," Tanner said.
Amber's heartbeat roared in her ears. She had been right. They'd changed their mind. She fought to keep the tears from forming. She didn't want to cry in front of them.
"What he's trying to say, Amber," Bryan began.
"I'm trying to ask you to marry us," Tanner finished.
"What?" She wasn't sure she had heard him right.
"Will you marry us?" Bryan asked.
"Marry you? Like forever?" she asked, still trying to understand.
"Yes, forever," Bryan said with a grin.
"I--I don't know what to say." Hell yeah, she wanted to marry them.
Then why was she hesitating? She opened her mouth to say yes, but then she realized they hadn't said they loved her. She needed to hear the words to know they really meant it.
"What is it, baby?" Bryan asked with a frown. "Don't you love us?"
"I do. I love you both, but do you love me?"
Tanner cursed and got on his knees in front of her, pulling Bryan off the couch as he did.
"Amber Reynolds, Bryan and I love you more than anything in the world, and want to spend the rest of our lives with you. Will you marry us?"
Amber started crying. She slipped off the couch into their arms, saying yes over and over again.
"Come on, baby. We're going to be late!" Bryan called up the stairs to her again.
Amber mumbled to herself as she finished putting on her shoes. They were the most impatient men she'd ever met. Then she grinned. They catered to her every want instead of beat her, though. She was the luckiest woman in the world to have two doting men.
She hurried down the stairs into Bryan's arms. He kissed her, then hurried her out the door.
They were attending a party at the club given by one of Bryan and Tanner's friends. She couldn't wait to meet all their friends. They were all so nice and accepting of their relationship. She and Tanner had gotten married a little over a week ago. Afterwards they had a small ceremony where all three of them had exchanged vows at home with a few friends. It had hurt a little at first that she didn't have anyone to attend the ceremony, but she let it go. She had more friends now than she had ever had in her life.
Tanner waited for them in the truck. Bryan helped her up then followed her, and they headed to the club.
"Are you sure you don't mind, baby?" Bryan asked. "We hated to tell them no."
"No, I don't mind at all. I like your friends."
"They like you, too," Tanner assured her.
"I've been thinking," Amber said.
"Uh-oh," Tanner chuckled.
She popped him on the leg. "Anyway. I think I'm going to give my notice at the bank."
"Thank God!" Bryan said. "What made you decide that?"
"They really aren't supportive of me being married to you two, and I don't need people like that in my life," she said.
Bryan stiffened up next to her. "Did they say anything to you?"
"No. But they obviously don't approve. I was invited to the Christmas party, but they made it clear that I couldn't bring anyone with me."
"Those sons of bitches," Bryan growled. "I wish we did business there so I could move our money somewhere else."
Amber chuckled. "Good one, Bryan, but it doesn't matter. I'll be happy to stay at home and make your life miserable."
"You can't do that, baby, even if you tried."
They pulled into the parking lot of the club, and Amber let Bryan swing her down from the truck. They walked into the club and were directed to the bar. When they walked into the room, more than fifty people screamed surprise!
"What is this?" Tanner asked with a frown.
"A surprise wedding shower," someone said. "We didn't get to give you one ahead of time, so we're giving you one now."
Amber started crying. She couldn't believe it. They were so nice. Music started, and they were escorted to a table at the front of the room where there were tons of presents waiting to be opened.
Hours later, Amber rested her cheek on Tanner's shoulder as they slow danced to soft music. Bryan was behind her, holding her waist and kissing her neck. She couldn't remember ever being more happy or content in her life.
"I love you guys."
"We love you, too," they both said at the same time.
"You guys might want to cut your dance short and hightail it home before you get stuck here," someone said.
Tanner frowned and looked up. "What's going on?"
"It's snowing hard outside, man."
Amber squealed and broke away to run for the door. The men followed her. She stopped to look at the beautiful scene around her. Snow clung to every surface while icicles hung from the roof. She walked out into the blowing snow and turned a circle in it.
"Bryan, get her in the truck before she turns into a snowman," Tanner said with a sigh.
Amber laughed and ran for the truck. "Oh look! They packed the presents for us!"
The backseat of the truck was filled with boxes. She couldn't imagine ever having such good friends.
"Let's go snuggle, baby." Bryan helped her up into the truck as he and Tanner climbed in after her.
Once they were home, they decided to leave the presents until the next day and head straight to bed. Amber couldn't keep her hands off of her men. They had slapped at her hands and chuckled as she tried to undress them all the way home.
Once they were upstairs in the bedroom, she let them strip her then watched as they stripped in front of her. She loved watching them get out of their clothes. Especially when it meant she was going to get some. She went to her knees before them and grasped their cocks in each hand. Then she squeezed the base of them. They moaned as she licked around their slits. She moved from one cock to the other and back again as she licked and sucked at their cockheads. When she swallowed Tanner's back to her throat, he grabbed her head and pulled her up for a kiss.
"Bryan, on your back, man. I'm taking this tight ass tonight."
Amber laughed and climbed over on top of him. When she lowered herself over his cock, he grabbed her hips to stop her.
"What?" she asked, confused.
"I don't have a condom on."
She looked over at Tanner. "Does he need one?"
"That's up to you, honey." Tanner waited while she held on to Bryan's wrists.
"Let go, Bryan. You don't need a condom. We're married now."
Bryan let go of her hips, and she sank slowly down his cock. They both threw back their heads and moaned.
"God, you fill me up, Bryan."
"Your cunt has me in a vise." Bryan shoved upward and tapped her cervix.
She grinned. He knew what she liked. He would work to bump her cervix as often as he could. It felt so damn good when it stung like that.
Tanner pressed her forward over Bryan's chest. Then he spread lube across her back hole and entered her with one finger. He pumped it in and out of her ass over and over until he was satisfied. Then he added more lube and a second finger. The slight burn and pinch had her moaning as she pushed outward.
"Fuck! Tanner, hurry up. She's tightening down on me, man."
"Amber, be good. I don't want to hurt you by going too fast, honey."
"Please, Tanner. Hurry. I want you inside of me." Amber grazed her teeth over Bryan's nipple.
Tanner added more lube and fitted his cock against her back hole. She sighed and pushed back until he finally popped inside of her. She swallowed back the yelp from the pinch and relaxed so that he could make his way all the way inside of her. She lowered her head to Bryan's chest once again while they began moving inside of her. First Tanner pulled out and Bryan pushed in. Then they reversed, and Tanner pushed in while Bryan pulled out.
After a few seconds, they managed to set a rhythm that drove Amber crazy. It was just this side of being fast enough and deep enough to send her into an orgasm. She knew they were doing it on purpose. She wanted to come, but they wanted to make her wait. She knew it would be even better if she could hold off longer, but it didn't stop her from fighting it. She squeezed them with her cunt and ass muscles and smiled when they cursed above and below her.
"Aw, fuck, baby. Do that again. Yeah, just like that. God, I'm going to come if you keep that up." He plowed up into her, hitting her cervix, distracting her temporarily.
Then Tanner was tunneling in and out of her ass, singing nerve endings as her climax boiled up over her. She screamed, throwing her head back. She felt Bryan's cum fill her cunt as his cock tunneled deep into her. Seconds later, Tanner filled her ass with his cum. Amber floated between them for what seemed like hours. Then Tanner pulled out of her ass and went to get a cloth to clean her up. Bryan held her close even though neither of them could breathe that way.
When Tanner got back, he pulled her off of Bryan, causing her to whimper. Then he cleaned her up and settled her back against Bryan's body while he got rid of the cloth. When he climbed in beside her, she wrapped her arms around him and kissed his shoulder.
"I love you, Tanner. Even when you're bossy."
"What about me?" Bryan asked from behind her.
"I love you even when you're cranky in the mornings." She laughed when he bit her shoulder.
"Know what we love most about you, Amber?" Bryan asked.
"What?"
"That you said yes," Tanner said.
She snuggled between them and had to agree. That was the best thing she had ever done. She'd been broken, but now she was whole.
THE END
WWW.MARLAMONROE.COM
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Marla Monroe lives in the southern part of the United States. She writes sexy romance from the heart and often puts a twist of suspense in her books. She is a nurse and works in a busy hospital, but finds plenty of time to follow her two passions, reading and writing. You can find her in a book store or a library at any given time. Marla would love for you to visit her at her blog at themarlamonroe.blogspot.com and leave a comment or her email is themarlamonroe@yahoo.com
Also by Marla Monroe
Ménage Everlasting: The Men of Space Station One #1:
The Ranchers Take a Wife
Ménage Everlasting: The Men of Space Station One #2:
The Ranchers' Bride
Ménage Everlasting: The Men of Space Station One #3:
The Hired Hands' Dilemma
Ménage Everlasting: The Men of Space Station One #4:
Love Between the Hired Hands
For all other titles, please visit
www.bookstrand.com/marlamonroe
Siren Publishing, Inc.
www.SirenPublishing.com
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