Acres, Natalie - Sex Club [Cowboy Sex 5] (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour) (53 page)

Ansley smiled weakly, looking up at Graham with admiration pouring from her gaze. A huge sigh of relief fell from her chest, and Tristan released a heavy breath as well.

Immediately, Ansley ran into her mother’s arms and wept. Both women held on to one another. Kimberly soon joined them, placing her arms around her mother and sister as they embraced. Her fathers took turns saying their farewells, too.

“What about my place?” Ansley said, dabbing her eyes.

Braden was on his cell phone, texting like mad, and jerked when she made the inquiry. He pressed his lips together, and his nostrils flared. Alarmed, Tristan walked over to Braden and peered over his shoulder.

“We’ve got a problem, Tristan. Your people from New York are already at Ansley’s house. Kane and I will go over there, but they’re already inside. If you’re going, you have to leave now. Pete is afraid they’ll be here next.”

“What do you mean, they’re at my place?” Ansley asked, nearly squeaking out her question.

“It’s all right,” Kane said. “We’ll take care of everything over there.”

She whipped around and looked at her mother. “My jewelry is in the safe here. I’m never home anymore so—”

“We’ll take care of everything,” Peyton assured her. “Your fathers tell me this is only temporary. You’ll be home soon. There’s a bag of your things in Graham’s backseat. I brought what I could find of yours from our house. Hopefully, you’ll be able to come home soon.”

Ansley searched Tristan’s eyes until he looked away. “Will we be back or not?”

“You gotta go now,” Braden said, fiddling with his phone again. “It’s not safe here.”

Tristan had realized once the farewells began the good-byes would happen very quickly. That was one reason why he and Bailey had left right after they discovered the dirty cop. They knew Asheville would be swarming with hit men and mob guys within hours. Unfortunately, they were right.

As everyone walked outside, Ansley said, “I’ll never be able to go back to that house, will I?”

“We’ll see if we can’t at least stop them from ripping the place to shreds,” Braden told her. “Pete has cops from several counties headed out there now.”

As the men rushed her to the nearby vehicle, Ansley looked panicked. Doors opened around the automobile. Good-byes were exchanged between the men.

“Mom?” she cried out, looking at Peyton.

“I think you should go, honey. It’s best for your safety right now and your heart.”

Tristan witnessed a mother’s hurt, heard the agony in Peyton’s voice.

What had he done? What had he brought down on these innocent people?

“You go, honey. Be happy,” Peyton said. “You hear me? You be happy, little girl. That is all I ever wanted for you.”

Evan Cartwell suddenly hung back, staying a few steps away from the other parents. Ansley looked at Evan, and in that moment, Tristan saw which dad was the favored father. Their gazes held until Evan had to turn away, quickly stuffing his fingers in the corners of his eyes.

Before they entered the Killians’ Jeep, Ansley rushed to his side once more. “I’ll always be your little girl, Dad Evan.”

He held her head against his chest and sobbed. “And I’ll always be your daddy, Ansley.”

After everyone was in the vehicle, Elliott rolled down his window. “Braden, are you sure you have everything handled for us?”

“I jotted down what you told me. Your employees will think you’re back in Texas for another six months. We’ll see you sometime around Thanksgiving and hope to talk to you next week.”

“You got it,” Elliott called out.

Graham punched the gas and immediately slammed on the brakes. “What the hell?”

Brock wheeled in front of them, cutting them off before they headed out of the parking lot. He jumped out of the vehicle.

“They made it, too!” Ansley exclaimed. “Mom must’ve called them.”

Bailey, Elliott, and Tristan stretched their necks. Trixie Cartwell barreled out of the back of the vehicle with baby Winter in her arms and Cazeron at her side, still in his pajamas.

“Oh my God!” Ansley hurried to them, throwing her arms around Brock and then Trixie. Tristan stepped out of the car and leaned over the doorframe, watching as Ansley faced what was probably her most difficult challenge.

“You’re weavin’ me, Aunt Anzzley?” Cazeron asked in a low tone, keeping his head bowed while he dug the toe of his superhero slip-ons into a gravel mound. Tiny rocks scattered about, but the child seemed unmoved. “Like right now, you’re weavin’ me now…Aunt…Anzzley?” The child’s voice broke.

Ansley looked away. Tears streamed down her face, and she finally shook her head. Kneeling in front of the little boy, she said, “I’ll never leave you, honey. You’re always in Aunt Ansley’s heart.”

Cazeron hugged her until Tristan thought Brock or Trixie might have to peel his little arms away from her. Brock walked over to the vehicle and said, “I’ll give you boys one warning. Only one. Break her heart, and I don’t care where you are—I’ll find you.”

After a round of handshakes and polite, but rather strained, good-byes, Brock walked away. Tristan stood by the passenger-side door. “We have to go, baby. It’s time.”

She glanced at him once and then hugged Trixie again. Peering over Winter’s blanket, she said, “I love you, Winterland.”

Trixie laughed through her tears. “There you go, giving nicknames already.”

Ansley kissed Cazeron on the forehead again and started toward the Jeep. “Wait!” Cazeron yelled. He jumped back in his father’s SUV and retrieved something from the seat. Then, he sprinted toward Tristan.

“I have something for you.”

“What’s this?” Tristan asked, bending down to accept the trifolded papers.

“’S a map of North Carolina. You keep it safe for Aunt Anzzley. In case she ever gets lost, she’ll always be able to find her way home.”

“Thank you, Cazeron,” Tristan said, extending his arm and shaking the little man’s hand.

Covering her mouth too late, a sob left Ansley’s lungs as she gathered the little boy in her arms one final time and wept as she held him. They waved good-bye again, and this time the gesture marked the final farewell. Minutes later, they were racing toward the airport, and Tristan questioned himself as a man, as a human being.

He’d been selfish, greedy, and so crazy in love that he’d never considered the consequences. He’d never stopped to think about the sacrifices of others, what Ansley would forfeit in order to be with him and Bailey, what the Killian brothers gave up so they wouldn’t know what it felt like to be the lovers left behind.

Graham glanced at him in the rearview mirror, and for a second he felt as if he could read the other man’s mind. While Graham may have encouraged Ansley to make the ultimate decision on short notice, he wasn’t so sure he’d pushed her in the right direction.

Tristan glared out the window until he saw the airport. A jet was awaiting them, fully equipped with state-of-the-art effects. Soon, they’d reach cruising altitude and sit in the lap of luxury as if material things even mattered. And while they were flying in style, his woman, his lover, his beautiful Ansley Cartwell would sit beside him and likely crave the simplest pleasures only found at home.

Chapter Thirty-Four

They’d had a few rough days and nights, but it would be a great morning. Tristan awoke with a new determination. Ansley had made a choice or allowed Graham to make one for her. He planned to make sure she didn’t regret the decision.

“Good morning,” Tristan said, greeting her on the bow of the boat before sunrise. “You’re up early.”

“I couldn’t sleep.” Ansley shot him a smile before tucking her feet under the skirt of her translucent gown.

“How come?” he asked, pulling a chaise next to her lounger before sitting across from her.

“Lonely, I guess,” she replied.

He studied her face intently. He felt the weight of the world on his shoulders. They’d been at sea for nearly three days, and Ansley had cried more than she’d smiled. And he’d itched to hold her for more than a minute. Unfortunately, whenever he bracketed his arms around her, she made an excuse to slip away from him. Now, she’d just said quite possibly the worst thing she could’ve said.

She was lonely. With four men ready to dote on her, prepared to console and help her through her difficult hours, why was she feeling detached, perhaps even isolated?

Well, he hated to tell her this, but the pity party was over.

He’d practiced patience and tried to understand, but the fact was, he needed her and he knew she needed him. He leaned on his elbow and thought about how the day ahead could potentially unravel. Turning his body toward hers, he said, “What would you like to do today?”

“Sail,” she said softly.

“We’re at sea already, so that shouldn’t be a problem.”

She pointed. “Over there I think. Yesterday we were closer to land and I could see the sailboats. I’d like to rent one and go sailing.”

“You don’t want to sail, Ansley. You want to be on land so you can call home. It’s too soon. We have to wait.”

She thinned her lips and looked away.

After a long silence, he finally asked her, “Why did agree to come with us?”

Her eyes filled with tears. The lampposts that lit up the upper deck cast a glimmer on her sorrowful gaze, and he caught his breath. She was gorgeous sitting there, her body exposed under the loose gown, her hair cascading over her slender shoulders, and her face natural, no makeup applied.

“You know why.”

“Do you love me?” he asked, peering under the mop of hair she tried to use to conceal her moist cheeks.

“With all my heart,” she replied, looking up at him.

“I don’t feel that love right now, Ansley,” he admitted.

Startled, apparently, she jerked. “Then I’ve failed all the way around.”

“No,” he said, gathering her hands in his. “But I’m beginning to think I have.” A beat later, he said, “Braden is working on an itinerary we can follow. We hope to return to Asheville in a few months, but if not, you will see your family several times a year, probably more than most people who move away with the military or go away to college. We’re working out a solid plan so you can even return home monthly, after this initial threat subsides.”

His news brought a smile to her face. “And what about you?”

“What about me?”

“Will you go with me when I return home?”

“It depends on what your fathers work out. If they find you could be in danger because of us, we won’t. Bailey and I may need to stay out of sight, but if your fathers convince everyone you’re only involved with Graham and Elliott, you should be able to come and go as much as you want.” A second later, he added, “As hard as your dads are working, I believe we’ll all return to Asheville within a few months. Your fathers are determined men, and they want their little girl home.”

“Little girl,” she whispered.

“I’m sure that’s what you’ll always be to them.”

A lingering silence passed. Billows crashed against the boat as the vessel careened its way through the ocean, almost following a woven pattern through the breaking waves.

“Is anything else bothering you?”

“I miss the country,” she finally said, sighing. “And I don’t like the water.”

“And here I could’ve sworn someone just asked to go sailing. Those babies will capsize before this yacht will.”