Van, Becca - Coming Home (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) (6 page)

Whoa.
Where had that thought come from? They weren’t her men, were they?

“You okay, darlin’?” Adam asked.

“I’m good,” Bella replied in a nervous, quavering voice.

“Good. Now you need to grip Star’s belly with your legs, just like you were doing to me earlier. That’s it. Good girl,” Adam said, holding Star steady by the reins. “By squeezing Star with your legs, you’re letting her know you want to move. To steer her, all you need is a light touch on the reins in the direction you want her to go. All right?”

Bella nodded, too afraid her voice would squeak if she spoke out loud. She heard the hooves of another horse drawing to a standstill close by and turned her head to see David had prepared and led Satan out of the barn for Adam. Adam drew her attention when he handed Bella the reins to her horse and showed her how to hold them. Then he moved away and mounted Satan with an ease of long hours in the saddle. He moved Satan in closer to Bella.

“Okay, now, I’m gonna stay close to you, darlin’. I won’t let anything happen to you. Squeeze Star with your legs, and we’ll be off.”

Bella bit her tongue to stop her shriek of excited fear from forming and grabbed hold of the horn with one of her hands.

“It’s all right. Star’s a gentle lady. She won’t throw you, and she’s the least skittish horse we have. Let go of the horn and hold the reins like I showed you,” Adam said. “Good girl. See, you’re doing fine. Just relax and let your body rock in the saddle. Don’t fight her movements, go with her. Ah, darlin’, I knew you would be a natural.”

Bella concentrated on what she was doing for the first half hour of their ride. Then when she was comfortable with the horse’s gait, she relaxed and sat back to enjoy the view. Adam pointed out various landmarks to her—a large, gnarled tree, the glint of water through a copse of thick bushes and trees. Adam eased them into a trot and finally a canter. Bella was surprised at how easy she found it to keep her balance and seat. By the time they got back to the barn, her thighs were tired and sore from her first ride, but she kept that to herself. They spent the afternoon behind the barn, where Adam taught her how to load his Colt and aim and fire the weapon with ease. She was beginning to think that maybe she had been born in the wrong century.

Chapter Five

Bella had another stew prepared and cooked by the time she heard Clint and Marcus return to the ranch house. When the three brothers entered the house, she tried to get up from her seat at the table but couldn’t contain the groan as her sore, tired muscles protested the movement. She felt like an old woman. She could barely stand upright.

“Sit back down, baby,” Clint said as he entered the room. “We’ll serve you dinner and clean up, and afterwards, we’ll drag out the tub so you can have a nice long soak.”

“Really? That would be heaven. I must admit that one of the good things about my time is the availability of hot water. God, what I would give for a shower right now.”

“What’s a shower?” Marcus asked.

“Well, in my time, water is piped into the house through hollow metal tubes, and a shower is like a bath, but you stand up in it. Water comes out of this thing called a showerhead and streams down over your body. It makes it easy to wash your hair and body, and we just turn a tap on, or lever, to get the hot and cold water to flow out of the showerhead. Bliss.” Bella groaned at the memory.

“Hmm, maybe if you can draw a picture of this shower, we might be able to make one eventually,” Adam stated.

“Really? You’d do that for me? Oh, but I can’t ask you to do that. The expense of buying the pipes would be astronomical, and how would you get the water heated?”

“Well, we’ll have to ask you lots of questions and see what we can do,” Clint replied, running a finger down her nose after he’d placed a bowl of stew in front of her. “Eat up, baby. The sooner we’re done with supper, the sooner you can have your bath.”

The four of them spent the next half an hour eating. Bella listened as Marcus and Clint updated Adam on the work they’d done and work still waiting to be done. Bella’s mind began to drift, and she wondered how the men had a cellar-type pantry full of everything they could need if they spent so much of their time working the ranch. She lifted her head and found three sets of male eyes looking at her.

“Where did you get all your food supplies from?”

Clint leaned back in his chair and gave her a smile as he answered. “We trade for some and buy some from the mercantile in Big Lake.”

“What do you trade?” Bella asked curiously.

“Beef,” Marcus replied. “We have quite a bit of land, and a hell of a lot of cattle. I know you’ve seen a few of our herd, but most of it is out on the western range, about half a mile from here.”

“Can I come out with you all sometime and see what it is you do?” she asked.

“I don’t see why not. You get through your lessons tomorrow and the next day, and I’ll see if you’re ready to ride out farther,” Clint stated.

“Okay, thanks.”

“Now, while Marcus and Adam clear up, how about I get that bath ready for you?” Clint asked, rising to his feet.

“Oh, yes please.”

Clint gave her a smile and a nod and disappeared into the pantry cellar. He returned moments later with a large copper tub in his arms. He set the tub close to the stove and pulled the large copper kettle forward until the nozzle was over the tub. He turned the lever-like tap, and hot water began to flow into the tub. When it was half-full, Clint turned the lever and pushed the copper kettle back into position on the stove, picked up a bucket Bella hadn’t seen off to the side, and strode out of the room. He was back in moments, the large metal bucket full of cold well water. He poured some cold water into the tub, tested the temperature, and then poured in a little more. He placed the bucket of water off to the side, bowed over the tub, and swept out his arm with a flourish.

“Your bath awaits, my lady,” Clint said with a grin and swept from the room.

Marcus strode into the room, bearing a towel, soap, and a clean shirt for Bella to put on once she was finished, and left again. Adam put the last of the dishes away, gave her a sassy grin and a wink, and left her to it.

Bella stood up, removed her dusty clothes, and groaned as the muscles in her thighs pulled. She carefully stepped over the tall rim of the tub and sank down into the hot water. Heaven, pure heaven. Bella washed herself with the soap and small washcloth and then set about washing her hair. It wasn’t easy, but she managed to work her hair into a lather using the lavender-scented soap. Once done, she reached over for the large bucket of cold water. She managed to pull it over to her, making a scraping noise, but she ended up sloshing water on the floor. She was in a dilemma. The bucket was too big and heavy for her to lift over her head. The only solution she could think of was to get out of the tub, find a small pan, fill it with water, and pour it over her head to rinse away the suds.

“Shit,” she muttered, wishing she’d thought her bathing procedure through before she climbed into the tub.

“Bella, are you all right?” Adam called out.

“Um, I need to rinse my hair. Can you get me a jug or something?” Bella asked in a loud voice.

“I can do better than that, darlin’,” Adam said as he walked into the room. “I’ll fill the bucket the rest of the way up with hot water and then pour it over you.”

“Adam! You can’t come in here. I’m naked,” Bella screeched.

“Yeah. Don’t be embarrassed, darlin’. I’ve already seen you naked. You have a body made for lovin’,” Adam stated with a lascivious waggle of his eyebrows. “Come on, Bella. We have to rinse your hair. It’s not like I’m going to jump on you.”

“I suppose I don’t really have any other option. Okay, pour away,” Bella said once Adam had added hot water to the cold water bucket.

“Take a breath, darlin’,” Adam said then poured.

Bella couldn’t help the small squeal as the tepid water ran over her head and body. After being in such warm water, it felt downright cold.

“All done, Bella. You can get out now,” Adam said, his eyes wandering over her exposed breasts.

Bella looked up to see Adam staring at her chest. She looked down and could see her nipples were hard little points peeking out of the water. Her eyes connected with his when he looked into her face, and she knew she was in trouble. She felt her breasts swell and pucker even more and knew Adam had seen her body’s reaction from his peripheral vision when he sucked in a deep breath of air.

“Out you get, darlin’. We’re going to give you a rubdown to help those tight, sore muscles.”

“I don’t think that’s a good idea. I’ll be fine now that I’ve had a soak.”

“You can argue as much as you like, Bella, but you’re getting a rubdown. Dry off and go lie on the bed,” Adam commanded then turned and left the room.

The size of Adam’s erection straining against the placket of his trousers hadn’t escaped Bella’s notice. She was very worried. She didn’t know if she could trust Adam and his brothers not to make a pass at her, but she was more worried about not being able to keep her own hands to herself. Bella got out of the tub, dried off, wrapped the towel around her body, and padded out of the kitchen and down the hall to her bedroom.

Bella hesitated in the door of her room. All three of the Aldridge brothers were waiting on her. Adam and Marcus were sitting on either side of the bed, and Clint was sitting on the end. God, they were so sexy. Her eyes drank in the tall, lean, muscular bodies. She could feel her clit throbbing, her pussy clenching, begging to be filled and releasing her juices to coat her thighs. She was in a world of trouble.

“Come here, baby,” Clint commanded, holding a hand out to her.

“Um, I don’t think this is a good idea,” Bella said, shifting from foot to foot nervously.

“Bella, if we don’t rub you down with some oil, you’re not going to be able to walk tomorrow. Come on, honey. Let us help loosen up those muscles,” Marcus said as he stood up, walked over to her, took her by the elbow, and guided her to the bed. “Climb on up, Bella.”

Bella knew what they were saying was right, but she also knew they weren’t going to stop with just a massage. She’d have to be stupid not to know why all three of them were in her room. It only took one person to give a massage. She resigned herself to the fact she wanted this as much as they did. Maybe she was turning into a slut, after all, the complete opposite to what she had thought of her own sexuality previously. She’d thought she was frigid. Wow, the sight of the three Aldridge brothers had been a wake-up call to her sleeping libido.

Bella settled onto her stomach on the towel which had been placed on the bed, her muscles tightening with fear and excitement. She placed her hand beneath her head and tried to will her body to relax. She felt warm, male hands tug at the towel wrapping her body and drew in a shaky breath when she was naked. She felt so vulnerable being the only naked person in the room, but the groans of appreciation coming from the three men made her feel a little more confident.

The scent of lavender permeated the air, and Bella realized they must have gotten hold of some scented oil from one of their bartering trips. She’d always loved the smell of lavender. It was such a relaxing, feminine scent. In her mind’s eye, she could see what she imagined a field of lavender would look like, the thin stems covered in purple waving in a gentle spring breeze.

Bella practically purred at the first touch of hands on her body. One of the men was massaging the oil into her legs, another was massaging and kneading the muscles in her back, and the other was working on her arms, now that they were stretched out to her sides. It felt so good, their hands sliding up and down her slick skin, working away the knotted muscles taut from unfamiliar use. She couldn’t help but tense up as Clint worked his way up her taut thighs. His hands were so close to her pussy, turning her on so much she could feel her own cream leaking from her body.

“Relax, baby. I’d never hurt you,” Clint crooned, working his way up higher on the inside of her thighs. “Just feel, Bella. We’re going to give you so much pleasure.

“She’s soaking wet. Her juices are coating her thighs. You’re really turned on, ain’t ya, baby? That’s it, just let me make you feel good.”

Bella didn’t know what Clint was doing to her, but there was no way in hell she was asking him to stop. And he hadn’t even touched her intimately yet.

Bella’s breath caught in her throat as Clint’s hands inched up higher along her thighs. The first brush of his fingers over her pussy lips had her arching her ass up, begging him to touch her more.

He complied with her unspoken demand. She sobbed in relief as his fingers slid through her slick folds. She never wanted him to stop. One of Clint’s fingers worked its way to the top of her slit and massaged her swollen, aching clit with a light touch. Bella couldn’t get enough. She arched up into his hand and mewled in the back of her throat as he played her body. She could feel her pussy weeping tears of gratitude as the pad of his finger rubbed light circles on her clit. The muscles of her womb and cunt gathered into a tight ball, and she knew she was only moments away from climax.

Bella yelled with frustration as the three sets of hands on her body withdrew, and then she was being gently turned over until she was lying on her back. Her body went up in flames at their heated stares.