Monroe, Marla - Their Bartered Bride [Men of the Border Lands 4] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) (5 page)

“Thanks,” he said, taking the proffered glass of tea.

“I figured you would be thirsty by now. Is it going to rain?” She looked up at the darkening sky.

“Probably. I want to get as much plowing done as I can before it does.”

“If you get muddy, remember to take your boots off at the back door.” She took his empty tea glass and smiled.

Before he knew what she was about to do, she had reached up and pulled him down for a quick kiss. Then she turned and left him standing there. He felt like an idiot. Why hadn’t he stopped her before she kissed him? Joel shook his head and returned to plowing.

He managed to work four more rows before the rain began to dampen his coat. He cursed and put the tiller up in the toolshed. Then he sprinted across to the back porch, where he dutifully removed his now-muddy boots at the back door. When he walked in, the room was toasty warm.

The scent of something good drew him to the stove, and curiosity had him removing the lid on the pot simmering on the stove. It looked like stew to him. Smelled even better, he decided.

“It’s almost ready. I figured with the rain you could use something warm in your bellies today. We’ll have it with a sandwich for lunch and then over rice for dinner tonight. I’ll make biscuits to go with it.” Leigh walked up behind him and wrapped her arms around his waist with a squeeze before stepping back.

“I’m wet. You shouldn’t have done that.”

“I’ll dry. I guess Jonathan will be soaked by the time he gets here. He’ll probably want to change clothes before lunch.” Leigh crowded him when he stepped away from the stove.

“Probably want to take a shower to warm up.” Joel moved away from her toward the door.

He watched her follow him out of the corner of his eye. She was definitely pushing. He was about to turn around and confront her when he saw Jonathan heading toward the barn on his horse.

“Jonathan’s here. He’ll be in as soon as he’s seen to the horse.” He turned around to find that Leigh had snuck up on him and was directly in front of him now.

“Leigh. We need to talk about this.”

“What is there to talk about? You want me. Your cock is rock hard.” She ran a hand down the length of it.

Joel groaned, then stepped back again and grabbed her wrists. “Wanting you isn’t enough, Leigh. I want you to want us for who we are, and not just because you think you have to.”

Leigh jerked her hands out of his and stepped back. “If I thought I had to, you would be waiting the rest of your life.”

“Remember that, Leigh. You don’t have to. It’s important that you make that connection. I don’t want you to ever feel like you were forced into anything.” Joel advanced on her.

Leigh backpedaled and ended up against the kitchen cabinets. Her eyes got big when he didn’t stop, but continued until he was looming over her. He wanted to impress on her how important it was that she think it through. Still, looking in her wide eyes, he didn’t want to see fear. He wanted to see lust and need. He never expected to see love, considering their circumstances, but he could dream of it.

Joel bent low over her and smelled her skin at her neck. He wanted to nip her there and suck on it until he left a mark, his mark. Her breath hitched as his mouth hovered over a perfect spot.

“Fucking rain.” Jonathan slammed into the kitchen.

Joel jerked back and noticed that his brother hadn’t taken his boots off and the floor was muddy where he had walked in. Leigh noticed it at the same time and huffed out a breath.

“Jonathan, take your boots off on the porch. I just mopped this floor.” She opened the back door again and pointed.

“Oh, sorry.” He slunk outside, if that were possible for someone his size.

A few seconds later, he walked back inside in his sock feet and looked guiltily at the floor.

“I’ll clean it up if you’ll tell me where the mop is.”

“I’ll take care of it. You go upstairs and shower off. Lunch will be on the table when you get back.” She turned her back on both of them and disappeared into the washroom.

His brother hurried through the kitchen, dripping water along the way. Joel grinned, then sobered up at the realization he had almost succumbed to her allure as surely as his brother had. There was something about Leigh that called to him. He wanted her, sure. But it was almost as if he needed her to be complete inside. He shook that thought off. He didn’t need anyone to be complete. He was complete.

When Leigh returned with a mop and a bucket, he stepped out of her way. She moved gracefully despite being a large-boned woman. Again, he was drawn to the curve of her neck as she mopped the floor. He wanted to taste her skin, her mouth, her pussy. Shaking his head, Joel walked out of the room and temptation’s way. He owed his brother an apology.

* * * *

Leigh fumed as she finished the dishes from lunch. She knew what was going on with Joel. He was trying to get her to back off, but why? He obviously wanted her if the state of his cock was anything to go by. And he had a cock about the same size as his brother if what she felt was real.

The men were in the living room discussing the rain. She wanted to join them and tease them some more, but wondered if maybe he was right. Maybe she wasn’t really attracted to them after all. Maybe she just felt like she had to have sex with them. It stopped her for a few minutes. Then she remembered the dream with Jonathan. No, she wanted them. Maybe there wasn’t anything deeper in it than lust, but with time, they could become more than just lovers.

Was that what he was wanting, for them to care about each other first? She already cared about them some. They rescued her from her stepfather and had been kind to her. They hadn’t insisted on sex the first night and treated her with respect. Was she expecting too little?

Leigh sighed and dried her hands on a towel before walking into the other room. The men were in the recliners across from the fireplace on either side of the couch. She resigned herself to sitting alone and curled up in the middle to enjoy the fire.

“I’m sorry I messed up your floor earlier, Leigh.” Jonathan had a cautious expression on his face.

“That’s okay. You’re used to doing what you want. It’s your house, but if I’m going to keep it clean, you have to wipe your feet, or take your boots off before you come in.” Leigh smiled at him.

“I’ll remember next time.” He leaned back in the recliner and closed his eyes. “Think I’ll take a nap. Nothing like a nap on a rainy day.”

Joel had been quiet for a while. Leigh peeked over at him and found he had his eyes closed as well. She waited until she heard Jonathan’s soft snores before she climbed off the couch and tiptoed over to where Joel lay stretched out in the recliner. She eyed the contraption and decided the best approach would be the side.

With some luck and well-placed hands, she managed to climb up on top of Joel before he woke up. When he did, he grabbed her by the upper arms and held her still.

“Don’t move.”

“What?”

“Your knee is on my cock.” He stiffened.

“Then don’t I need to move?”

“I’ll move you. Hold on.” He lifted her up and sat her crossways in his lap. “What are you doing?”

“I was cold.” She leaned into him.

“Be still and you can stay here.” He wrapped his arms around her.

Leigh let her head rest on his shoulder and closed her eyes. She wasn’t in the least bit sleepy, but she would gladly lie quietly in his arms while he slept, if he would just keep them around her. She felt safe in his arms. She could pretend to be loved in there.

She wasn’t sure how much time had passed, but after a while, Joel began to snore. She smiled and slowly relaxed deeper into him. He smelled of manly sweat and a woodsy scent that she supposed could have been from his soap. Or maybe it was just him. She liked it. It was comforting in a way, nothing like the stench of unwashed bodies.

After another few minutes, Joel’s hands moved, and he cupped her ass cheek with one hand. He held her across her back with the other. He didn’t squeeze or pinch her ass, just held it cupped in his hand. Leigh remained still, not wanting to wake him up and give him a reason to put her down. Before she knew it, she had drifted off to sleep.

Chapter Five

Joel woke to the feel of soft curves under his hands and the smell of woman in his arms. He sighed and relaxed into it, then remembered it was Leigh, and this was a different time. This wasn’t seven or eight years ago when he and Jonathan kept a submissive between them. This was almost six years after the year of catastrophes, and Leigh was a woman they had bartered for. She deserved time to adjust to them before he introduced her to their way of life.

Now fully awake, Joel looked down at her and found that she was sound asleep. He hated to wake her up, so he continued to hold her and enjoyed it for as long as it would last. Her hair spread out around her shoulders with some of it lying across his arm. The silky feel of it there stirred things deep inside of him that he didn’t want to deal with right then.

He must have moved or made some sound because she started and pushed against his chest with her hand to sit up.

“What?” Her eyes were still heavy-laden with sleep.

“It’s all right. You were sleeping,” he told her quietly, so as not to wake up Jonathan.

“Oh.” She yawned, then stretched and lay back down, curling her hand beneath her chin like a child.

“Don’t you want to get up?” Joel asked her.

“Um, not really.” She snuggled into his arms and closed her eyes.

“Fine. We’ll sit here a little longer. Jonathan’s still snoozing anyway.” Joel settled back in the chair again and tried to relax.

He realized after a few minutes that it wasn’t going to happen. Her womanly curves and the smell of her sweet skin had his dick rising in his jeans. He knew the second she realized he was growing hard. She drew in a quick breath and let it out slowly. Then he felt her shimmy just a little against his cock. He struggled not to moan in response.

He knew she was wet by the scent of her pussy juices. He wanted in her hot cunt so badly now, he didn’t know how he was going to resist her if she pushed the situation any further. His cock was rock hard now and throbbing behind his zipper. The pressure of her body against it only kept him on edge.

Joel finally couldn’t stand it any longer and pushed up against her body. She moaned and pushed back.

“You two awake over there?” Jonathan’s voice, scratchy with sleep, jarred Joel back to reality.

“Yeah, you ready to get back out there and tend to the herd? I want to be sure they stick close to the gate in case we need to move them tomorrow. That field gets water sodden quickly.” Joel picked Leigh up and moved her off of him.

He stood up but kept a hand on her arm to be sure she had her balance before he let go. She huffed out a breath, but didn’t say anything.

“If you go with me, we should be able to get back in under two hours,” Jonathan said.

“Leigh, will you be okay here for a couple of hours?” Joel looked at her sleep-tousled hair.

“I’ll be fine. I can take care of myself. Remember to take off your boots when you get back. I’m going to be cleaning the master bathroom next.” She rubbed her face with both hands then turned and headed toward the stairs.

“You two were getting pretty close over there,” Jonathan said with a smug smile.

Joel frowned at him. “She’s pushy. Not very submissive, really.”

“You said things have changed. Maybe you’ll have to change a little, too.” Jonathan walked past him into the kitchen.