Van, Becca - Slick Rock Cowboys [Slick Rock 1] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) (9 page)

“Sit down, Clay. I can get my own breakfast. In fact, I’m supposed to be doing all the cooking around here,” Tara replied as she went to the toaster to make herself some toast.

“Is toast all you’re gonna have, Tara? That’s not enough food to start the day,” Johnny opined as he pushed his plate aside.

“It’s enough for me since I’ve only been eating once a day.” Tara could have bitten her tongue off for revealing that little tidbit of information.

“That is going to change right now, Tara. You are to eat three meals a day. You’re way too skinny as it is. If I find out you’re skipping meals, I’ll put you over my knee and tan your ass,” Clay stated.

“And I’ll help him,” Johnny advised.

“Ooh, I’m so scared of the big, bad, mean cowboys,” Tara replied with a smirk.

Tara saw Johnny and Clay look at each other and knew they didn’t know what to make of Tara’s statement. She was back to feeling more like her sassy self but knew by their expressions and body language they weren’t willing to push her too hard, too fast in case she had a relapse and broke down again.

Tara brought her toast to the table and began to eat, aware of the two masculine, sexy cowboys eying her. She couldn’t help the grin that spread across her face, and then she was laughing out loud at the two astonished men. It looked like they didn’t know how to treat her anymore. Maybe they were too scared she would burst into tears again. Hmm, she might be able to use that to her advantage.

“Are you goading us, little girl?” Clay asked with narrowed eyes.

“Would I do that?” Tara replied with a smile that wouldn’t melt butter.

“I do believe you would. Just remember, we are bigger, stronger, and a lot meaner than you’ll ever be, sweet,” Johnny replied with a smile. And Tara knew he was happy to see the life back in her eyes.

Tara finished her toast, collected all the dishes, put them in the dishwasher, wiped down the counters and the table, and turned back to Clay and Johnny.

“So, which horse do I get to ride?”

“Come on out to the barn and take your pick. Actually, how long has it been since you’ve ridden, baby?” asked Clay.

“The last time was with you two.”

“Okay, we’ll give you Pepper to ride, since she’s more docile. No, Tara, don’t argue. Until I know you’re back up to par with your riding, you get Pepper,” Clay stated.

“Okay. Let’s go, time’s a-wasting,” Tara said as she grabbed hold of Clay’s hand to drag him from the house.

They rode out of the yard to the west of the property. Tara hadn’t felt so free and alive in a long time. She loved the scents of the cypress trees, animals, and wildflowers growing sporadically in the paddocks. She kicked Pepper into a canter, and with the exhilaration flowing through her veins, she upped the pace until she and Pepper were galloping across the fields. She laughed out loud. She had missed the freedom of riding a horse in the country. She was finally free from the hustle and bustle of a city. She never wanted to go back to that horrible, lonely place. She slowed Pepper to a canter and then a walk as she cooled the animal beneath her down, Clay and Johnny on either side of her.

“You have no idea how much I’ve missed this. Thank you. Both of you,” Tara said gratefully.

“It’s our pleasure, Tara. We just want you to be happy,” Clay replied.

“You know what? For the first time in eight years, I am happy, and it’s thanks to you two. Let’s go paddle in the stream, then we’d better head back so I can make you two pigs some lunch. Oink, oink, oink.”

“Oh, you are so going to pay for that, sweetheart,” Johnny said with a grin.

“Yeah, yeah, I know. You’re gonna put me over your knees and tan my ass. You have to catch me first,” Tara said over her shoulder as she nudged Pepper into a gallop once more.

Tara rode into the yard to see a car parked near the house. The woman that got out of the small, expensive car made Tara feel really dowdy. She wore a feminine, sophisticated dress, which hugged her voluptuous curves, and the heels she teetered on across the yard were so high it was a wonder she didn’t twist her ankle and break it. Tara ignored the woman and rode Pepper into the barn. She dismounted, removed the saddle, and backed Pepper into her stall. She removed the bridle and then began the process of rubbing Pepper down and currying her with the specialized comb. She made sure Pepper had water and then left the barn to head for the house. Tara was halfway across the yard when she heard the woman speak.

“I’ve missed you so much, Clay. Why haven’t you been to see me?”

“I told you before, we’re done, Celia. Why do you keep coming out here?”

“Come on, Clay. You, me, and Johnny had such a good thing going. Why do you want to throw it away?”

Tara didn’t wait around to hear the reply. Just when she was feeling on top of the world again, that bitch had to turn up. She knew Johnny and Clay were healthy, sexual men and wouldn’t have waited around for her, but having the situation right in her face made pain stab into her heart.

Tara washed her hands at the sink and set about making omelettes and salad for lunch with warm crusty rolls from the oven. By the time Clay and Johnny entered the kitchen, everything was set out on the table ready to eat.

Tara sat and ate quietly. She wasn’t interested in making small talk to the two men seated at the table with her. She kept her eyes on her plate, not willing to have the confrontation she knew would come if they could discern her thoughts. When Clay spoke, it seemed that wasn’t necessary anyway. He seemed to be able to read her mind.

“Celia meant nothing to us, Tara. We used her and she used us. She knew from the start nothing would eventuate from a relationship with us. She was a means to scratch an itch, to fuck. You mean so much more to us than that,” Clay stated as he leaned over the table, placed a finger beneath her chin to make her look at him.

“And that’s supposed to make me feel better? You have a lot to learn about women if you think that explanation is supposed to make me feel better,” Tara stated with ire, rose from her chair, and left the dining room.

Tara couldn’t believe how callously he had treated that woman. Didn’t that mean they treated all women the same? Including her? She waited until she heard the slam of the back door then went to clean up the kitchen. She gave a sigh of relief to find it empty and set about putting the kitchen to rights and preparing food for dinner. Once that was done, she went on a cleaning frenzy. By the time she had to put dinner in the oven, the house was spotless. Tara had cleaned the whole house from top to bottom, including the bathrooms and the floors. She put the chicken casserole in the oven and set the rice boiler to start in about forty minutes, and then she went to shower.

Tara was back in the kitchen ready to serve dinner when Clay and Johnny entered the back door.

“You’ve got five minutes to clean up. Dinner’s ready, and if I hold it off any longer it will start to spoil,” Tara stated without turning around. She heard their footsteps as they left to shower and change.

Tara served dinner and was just placing the plates on the table as Clay and Johnny returned. She wanted nothing more than to pick up her plate and hide in her bedroom, but knew she would be hauled back to the dining room, so she didn’t bother. She sat down and picked at her food, listening as Clay and Johnny talked about the ranch. When Tara couldn’t stomach the thought of another mouthful of food, she picked her plate up, stood, and took it over to the kitchen. She was just about to scrape the food into the trash as a large hand plucked the plate from hers, put it down on the counter, and turned her around gently by the shoulders.

Tara felt Johnny’s finger beneath her chin, lifting her gaze to his. She knew he could see the pain and sadness, which was not there this morning, back in her eyes and face. He picked her up in his arms and carried her back to the table, sat down with her on his lap within the circle of his arms.

“Talk to me, Tara. What happened between our horse ride and now to make you so sad?”

Tara kept her eyes on the table, not wanting him or Clay to know she was envious of their previous and or current lovers. She’d felt as if her heart was breaking all over again when she had seen Celia hanging off her men and talking to them.

“Celia,” Clay stated from next to her. “That’s what this is about, isn’t it, baby?”

“Is Clay right, sweetheart? You have nothing to worry about, Tara. You are the one we want. The women we had previously in our lives, before you showed up again, meant nothing. They were just a fuck, Tara, they didn’t mean anything,” Johnny explained.

Tara pushed Johnny’s arms from around her waist, rose to her feet, and moved a few paces away. She turned back to face Clay and Johnny head-on. She’d had enough of this shit.

“So was I just a fuck, too? Another warm body to relieve an itch?” Tara asked with a sneer on her face, trying to cover the pain inside her.

“Is that what you think? God, Tara, don’t you know how much you mean to us? We love you, baby. We have loved you since you were fifteen years old. But there was nothing we could do about it. Don’t you understand that? We were so much older than you. We still are, but at least you’re of age now. Nothing will ever stop us from loving you,” Clay verbalized as he rose from his chair, moving toward her with a predatory glean in his eyes, Johnny following close behind him.

“Do you really mean that? You’re not just saying it to make me feel better?”

“No, sweetheart. We never say anything we don’t mean. You should know that, Tara. How could you think we didn’t love you?” Johnny asked, anguish evident in his voice.

“I thought you liked me like a sister. How was I to know it was more than that? You never told me.”

“Oh, baby. We wanted to. So damn much, but we couldn’t. You were way too young. We were waiting for you to grow up, and then nothing was going to hold us back,” Clay stated as he drew Tara into his arms. Tara sighed as he pulled her up against the length of his body, holding her tightly against him. She glanced over her shoulder when she felt Johnny move in behind her, leaning his body against Tara’s back, sandwiching her between them, and felt his brother wrap his arms around Tara’s hips.

“I love you, too. I love both of you so much. I thought I’d die not being with you when Mom and I had to move. And when I came to say good-bye, found you both fucking that woman, it broke my heart. I felt like I would shatter. I wanted to get in touch with you, but I didn’t think you cared anymore.” Tara sobbed. She clutched Clay’s shirt in her hand and let the warmth of their large, muscular bodies seep into her cold frame. She felt her heart open wide and fill with joy and happiness. She had finally come home. She was complete for once in her life. Complete like she never had been before.

“How about you go and strip off your clothes and lay on the bed, sweetheart? Clay and I want to give you a massage so your muscles don’t freeze up after riding this morning.”

“Okay. That would be nice.”

“Go on then, baby. We’ll be in in a minute,” Clay said as he released Tara, turned her toward the hallway, and popped her on the ass.

Tara exited the kitchen with a smile and an extra sway in her hips. Her smile broadened as she heard Clay and Johnny groan behind her.

Chapter Ten

Tara grabbed a large, clean towel out of the bathroom cupboard, stripped her clothes off, and settled on top of the towel on the bed. She gave a sigh and let the tension in her muscles drain away as she rested her head on the back of her hands She heard footsteps in the hall and knew Clay and Johnny were about to enter the room.

“Wow, do you know how sexy you are, Tara? You take my breath away.” Clay growled as he walked to the side of the bed.

“I’ve never felt sexy before, but you two make me feel beautiful and sexy. I love you both so much,” Tara replied with a hitch in her voice.

“We love you, too, sweetheart. And you are the sexiest little thing I’ve ever seen. You make me so hard, Tara,” Johnny stated in a deep, husky, passion-filled voice. “Now we are going to give you a nice massage and then we’re going to show you how much we love you. We want you to just lay back and relax, let us give you some pampering, honey. Okay?”

“Okay.”

Tara heard the pop of a bottle, and then the sweet scent of avocado and honey filled the air. Large, warm, oily hands connected with her shoulders and ran down along her back and spine, massaging the tight knots of muscle until they released. Another pair of hands began to massage her thighs and legs and slowly crept up to her buttocks. Tara couldn’t help groaning at the pleasure-pain of her muscles being massaged. She could have lain there for hours, floating in and out of a doze as they eased her tension.