N. Walters - Strands of Love

Jace pulled the stallion around in a tight circle until he was facing her. “The tapestry brought you to us. If you are willing, we will compete sexually for your favor. If you decide to stay you will pick one of us to be your husband, but the other brother will also share in your bed.”

Her imagination exploded with images of the three of them naked in a huge bed. Heat suffused her body and her pussy clenched. Oh God, it was all too easy to imagine Jace on top of her, plunging his cock into her pussy while Darian suckled her breasts. She’d read about ménage à trois scenes in some of the romance books she liked, but never had she really imagined being part of one.

She shook her head and Jace’s scowl deepened.

He spun the horse back around and continued to ride. “We will not force ourselves on you.”

Once again, she felt as though she’d hurt him somehow. But what did he expect her to say? Let’s get it on . She’d just met them. Yes, she was attracted to them, but they were practically strangers.

“It’s only for three days.” Darian’s quiet voice came from her right and she turned to look at him, trying to gauge if he was telling the truth. “The tapestry always returns in three days and it is the woman’s choice. She can stay or go.”

“And women have stayed?” She couldn’t imagine anyone giving up their life to live with a couple of strange men after only three days.

Darian nodded. “Many of them. Most, in fact. In all our history, only a handful of tapestry women have chosen to return home.” The path widened and he rode alongside her now with Jace still in front of them.

Sam was uncomfortably aware of Darian watching her and the desire smoldering in his pale-blue eyes.

“It would not be so bad, Sam.” Darian stroked one rough fingertip over her cheek. “Belonging to us. You would want for nothing, in bed or out.”

Before she could catch his intention, he leaned forward and captured her mouth with his. His tongue traced the seam of her lips before slipping inside. He was seducing her with his words and touch.

Did he have any idea how appealing the idea was to lay all her troubles down and have someone else take care of them and her? To forget about the much-needed bank loan, the money she already owed the bank, the drought and poor crops and the worry of bills and simply allow herself to sink into the sensual spell he was spinning. It had been months since a man had kissed her. The last one had been George “The Snake” Rawlins and she wanted to forget him.

Darian’s lips were warm and tender as he drew back, leaving her slightly bemused and more than a little aroused. “Give yourself some time with us.”

Sam sucked in a deep breath and shook her head. As appealing as it was, she was the kind of woman who stood on her own two feet and dealt with whatever life threw at her. And right now she was trying to save her family farm.

“We are home.” Jace’s voice cut through her thoughts and Sam jerked her head in his direction. Heat crept up her cheeks. She’d kissed his brother even after everything he’d told her about the two brothers competing sexually. What kind of woman did that make her?

A horny one for sure. She fought the urge to squirm in her saddle and did her best to ignore the ache in her breasts and the dampness between her thighs.

She rode up alongside Jace. “Where exactly?”

“Home.” Jace pointed and she realized they’d left the woods behind them and open land lay before them. “Welcome to Hunter Keep.”

Her gaze followed his hand and she gasped. There before her was a small stone castle, like something out of a history book. She blinked, but it didn’t disappear.

The castle rose up out of the base of the mountain that loomed behind it like a hulking protector. Dark-gray stones shone in the afternoon sun. A huge wall ringed the castle. Beyond it were smaller huts with thatched roofs. There were fields in the distance with some sort of crops and several pens with sheep and chickens.

Wherever she was, she sure wasn’t in Texas.

Jace did his best to hide his disappointment and anger at Sam and his brother. Maybe he was being too hard on her, but he’d hoped in his heart she’d give his world a chance. He wasn’t sure she even believed either him or Darian when they’d explained about the tapestry and Javara.

And who could really blame her? It would seem a lie, nothing more than a story to her. To him, it was all the hope he had of ever having a family with his brother.

At least Darian had managed to kiss Sam. It was more than he’d done. He longed to know her taste, to feel the softness of her lips beneath his. But he’d given his promise he would not force himself on her. She would have to come to him and that was as likely as the sun rising at night and the moon at dawn.

He watched Sam as they rode toward the stables. She hadn’t been lying when she’d said she could ride. She sat on the back of the horse with an ease that told him she’d been doing so for years. And Morning Star eagerly responded to her easy commands. Sam had a light hand on the reins, which came only from years of experience and a confidence in her own skills.

Rex, the stable master, hurried out to greet them. Whatever he’d planned to say died on his lips when he caught sight of Sam. He glanced at the brothers before nodding to her. “Welcome to Hunter Keep.”

Sam nodded. “Thank you.” She looked around. “Where’s the phone? I need to call Tim.”

The sound of another man’s name on her lips angered Jace. “Who is this Tim?” He swung down off the back of the new stallion and handed the reins to Rex.

Sam dismounted before either brother could help her. “He’s my father’s best friend and the closest thing I have left to family.”

Jace frowned and wondered what had happened to her family. Once again, he was reminded of just how alone she’d been when they’d found her. “He will worry about you?”

She shrugged. “Both he and his wife Mary will. I’m supposed to go to dinner at their place tonight. If I don’t show, yeah, they’ll be worried.”

There was nothing they could do about that now. When she returned home in three days they would discover Sam was fine. Putting the matter from his mind, he turned to his brother. “Take her to meet Mother.”

“Where are you going?” Darian asked him.

“To work.” Anything to get his mind off Sam’s soft skin, her full lips and distressed blue eyes. He wanted to scoop her into her arms, carry her to his room and spend the next three days with her in his bed. And if he did that, she’d hate him. And, while she might not be planning to stay, he couldn’t bear the idea of her thinking of him with fear and possibly hate in her heart. He’d told her he wouldn’t force himself or his company on her and the only way to keep that promise was for him to stay far away from her.

Otherwise, he might compromise his honor and love her until she screamed his name. He turned his back on all of them and walked away, heading toward the fields.

It was a first for him. Jace had been born responsible. A good thing since his sire and uncles were anything but. It had been Jace and his mother, and later Darian, who’d kept their people fed, sheltered and clothed, who’d kept the storage rooms filled with food and goods for consumption and trade.

But, for the first time in his life, he didn’t care about responsibility or about Hunter Keep. All he cared about was Sam and the fact she didn’t want him, didn’t want to stay and didn’t even seem willing to give them a chance.

His chest ached and he looked ahead to all the lonely years that loomed ahead. He knew in his heart this was their one and only chance for a bride.