Coral Hearts (14 page)

“I would like to try, but I’m worried you’ll…” when she wasn’t able to finish, Sage was fairly certain he knew what direction she’d been heading.

“You’re worried I’ll become jealous? Or perhaps I will think less of you because you let another man touch you—even though I’ve set this in motion?” She didn’t even have to answer, he saw the truth in her eyes.

“Yes. I’m afraid I’ll ruin everything.”

“Baby, a huge part of a Dom’s job is to help his or her submissive explore their interests. But, even then, I’d never do anything I thought would come between the two of us—because at the end of the day, your happiness is all that matters to me.” He gave her a few seconds to process what he’d said before continuing. Sage enjoyed sharing a woman because it was easy to miss subtle shifts in body language when you were caught up in the moment, and there was no doubt he lost his mind the minute his cock slid into Coral’s sweet heat. “There won’t be any jealousy between us—ever. I assure you, Colt knows exactly what is expected and even though he’ll be taking cues from you, ultimately he’ll be taking instructions from me. I’ll still be in charge of your pleasure—because you belong to me, pet.”

Sage was thrilled to see the Coral’s shoulders relax and the spark of interest light her eyes. He didn’t think she realized he’d slowly turned her so Colt was now able to see her reactions, it would give him an idea of how to begin.
Information is always power in D/s scenes, but it’s critical with newbies.
When she nodded her head, he shook his own and suddenly her face was filled with worry that she’d made some sort of mistake.

“You need to
speak the words, sweetness. It’s important we are both completely clear on your agreement. I’m not going to lie, I hope like hell you agree because you are amazing. But remember, I’m here to strengthen your bond with Sage, not to replace it. This is all about your pleasure, baby.” Amazing wasn’t really accurate, the truth was Sage had found a remarkable woman, and Colt couldn’t wait to see how she’d blossom once the danger to her was taken care of. It was easy to see she craved the sense of belonging she’d find in their family, they just needed to convince her there were various roles to choose from.

As soon as she whispered, “Yes. I’d like to try.” Colt started pealing his softly faded Levis down his legs. They’d already been unsnapped and damn if he hadn’t enjoyed watching her pretty green eyes moving over his bare chest to focus on the gap at the top of his jeans. Colt never professed to having been a saint during his years on the rodeo circuit. He and his friends had elevated fucking beautiful women to an art form for more years than he cared to remember, but he already knew it wouldn’t be the way he’d be getting relief this afternoon.

Sage had been quite clear, his “nobody slides into her pussy but me” declaration hadn’t surprised Colt. Sage could be a possessive bastard when found something he really wanted, and there wasn’t any doubt this woman was exactly what the eldest Morgan brother wanted. They’d all known she belonged to Sage from the first day he’d told them about her. The disaster with Mackenzie had shaken Sage’s confidence, the worst of it being how he’d begun questioning his ability to judge people. Colt was thrilled to see the spark of self-assurance and purpose in his brother’s eyes again.

Walking into the pool, Colt looked up at his brother and grinned. “Have you taken her behind the falls yet?”

“No. I waited.” Colt heard the implied
for you
but he doubted Coral had.

Standing in front of Coral, he could almost hear the wheels of her mind spinning wildly as she tried to figure out exactly what she was supposed to say and do. Pressing a chaste kiss to the center of her forehead he whispered, “Don’t overthink this, sweetness. We’ll take care of everything. It’s one of the joys of being a submissive—all you need to do is enjoy the pleasure and follow instructions. No need to worry endlessly about what you should be saying or doing.” Colt loved the look of relief he saw in her soft green eyes. Taking her hand in his he turned her toward the open area of the pool. “Come on, swim with me.”

C
oral was having
such a great time swimming with Sage and Colt she’d almost forgotten the fact she was naked—
how on earth did that happen?
She’d rarely gone swimming as a kid, her parents had considered it a waste of money. The few times she’d gone she’d been forced to wear something she’d picked up at a second-hand store. Just remembering how
creepy
she’d felt wearing someone else’s swimsuit made her want to shudder. She could feel the sexual tension growing between the three of them, but she was taking Colt’s advice and letting them set the pace. There was definitely something to be said about not worrying over all the details of social niceties. After struggling for so long to survive day-to-day, Coral was surprised how relieved she felt to let someone else shoulder the responsibility…even if it was only for the afternoon.

Colt’s fingers brushing along the side of her face brought Coral back to the moment. Startled, she looked around and was surprised to find Sage missing. “What put that look of sadness in your eyes, sweetness?”

“I’m sorry. I was thinking about how nice it felt to not have to worry about anything for a while and it reminded me how temporary this might be.” Taking a deep breath she decided to take a leap of faith and trust Colt with one of her greatest fears. “I’m worried I’ll have to leave. I’m not sure I could live with myself if something happened to Sage or one of you because of me.” Coral felt her entire body react—just the thought made her almost ill. Looking around, she felt her voice crack when she asked, “Where’s Sage?”

Colt didn’t hesitate, he wrapped her in his arms. Coral was shocked and knew her spine had gone ramrod straight, but when Colt simply held her close, she slowly began to relax. “Sage wanted us to spend a few minutes alone while he sets up something special for you.” He leaned back pressing kisses to both cheeks. “You’re not going anywhere, sweetness. We’re going to teach you all about how families are supposed to work. We all understand your concerns but we also we have the advantage of knowing adversity actually makes us stronger. What you haven’t experienced is strength in numbers, but I promise you it’s a lesson we’re going to love teaching you. And you need to remember who you’re dealing with, sweetness.”

He’d obviously seen the question in her face because he chuckled. “Baby girl you wear your heart on your sleeve. And thank God for small favors, because even though we’re all Doms, we’re still men and sometimes the inner workings of a woman’s mind can baffle even the most astute men on the planet.” He gave her a quick hug before leading her to one of the benches built into the side of the pool. Sitting down beside her, he explained, “Sage is a problem solver—he always has been. I swear he would have been the one to take over for dad even if he hadn’t been the oldest and led in that direction from day one.”

She understood that he was really telling her Sage would
fix
this for her, what she couldn’t help but wonder was
at what cost
? “As for me,” Colt continued, “I spent the better part of two decades riding on the backs of two thousand pounds of pissed off bulls who not only wanted to buck me off, they wanted to steamroll me once I hit the ground. Sorry if I don’t seem terrified of some two bit drug dealer who wasn’t smart enough to know what a treasure he had.” Tapping her on the tip of her nose to emphasize the fact he’d been talking about her, Coral could feel her cheeks flush with embarrassment.

“Now we’ve come to the family bad-ass. Brandt’s years as a Navy SEAL didn’t leave him without any skills, sweetness. And just in case you wondered, nobody uses our home gym more than Brandt—hell, I’ll bet you he is in as good or better physical condition now as he ever was during his time in the Special Forces. The man is lightning fast and fiercely protective of the people he cares about.” Coral knew everything Colt had said was true, but what she alone seemed to know was Brandt Morgan not only didn’t trust her, he didn’t even seem to like her.

“Now, Phoenix is insanely smart—hell, he was accepted into Mensa before he was old enough to drive, and on a ranch that’s saying a lot since we all learned to drive long before the great state of Montana thought we should.” She was surprised to see a tinge of pink on his cheeks, when she bumped her shoulder against his to show she understood the message, he laughed. “Hell, Sage and I used to tease Phoenix and Kip they weren’t taught to drive until middle school because they were dim-witted, but honestly with three older boys it just wasn’t necessary.” He shook his head as if it would bring his thoughts back in focus and strange as it seemed, that action endeared him to her even more. “Anyway, Phoenix is not someone your ass-hat ex wants as an enemy. With the limited information he was given about Sanders, I can promise you the man is already suffering the consequences. His credit has likely been destroyed, he won’t be able to rent or buy anything. I’m sure he’s suddenly found himself
persona no grata
at all his usual haunts because little brother would have scoured his credit card and bank history to find all his favorite hangouts.” When he turned to her, his expression was almost evil. “In short, it sucks to be him.”

Coral giggled, “I know this probably makes me a terrible person, but I can’t tell you how happy it makes me to hear this.” The mocking look of shock on his face made her laugh. “It’s one thing to meet violence with violence, but knowing he’s already being held accountable makes me want to jump up and down clapping my hands like a three year old.”

Colt’s eyes narrowed slightly, their usual deep green going impossibly darker. “Oh baby, I’d love to see you jumping up and down. Not only would be I love to see you that happy, but seeing those beautiful breasts bouncing would be enough to make a grown man weep.” His words sent a flood of desire racing through her so hot it made her gasp. When his gaze lowered to her breasts Coral felt her nipples draw up into tight peaks—hell, you’d think he’d actually touched her.

Clearing her thought, Coral ducked her head trying to sort through her conflicting emotions. How could she be so attracted to Sage’s brother? Did it make her disloyal? Trying to bring the conversation back to a place she felt more comfortable, Coral asked, “What about Kip?” The knowing grin Colt gave her let Coral know her attempt to change the subject hadn’t gone unnoticed.

“Everyone thinks Kip is a goof-off who doesn’t care about anything but his next sexual conquest, but I think there is a lot more to Kip than what is on the surface. There is a reason women love Kip—he understands them better than most men because he has the ability to hear what people aren’t saying.” As strange as Colt’s words might have sounded, Coral understood exactly what he meant. Pointing toward the waterfall, Colt grinned. “As much as I’ve enjoyed our chat, I’m looking forward to seeing how you like the surprise Sage has for you. Let’s go.” Pulling her back into the deeper water, Colt led her to where the water fell from the rock ledge above. “It’s easier if you swim through under the water, come on.”

Coral barely had time to gulp in a breath before Colt pulled her under. She followed him under the pounding water and was surprised to see an open area with twinkling lights along the sides of the pool. The water was also considerably warmer and she’d no sooner surfaced when the water started to bubble around her. “Oh my God, a hot tub? Really? Oh, I’ve died and gone to heaven.”

When she looked up she was surprised to see Sage leaning against the rock wall smiling at her. There was a small table with what looked like a bottle of champagne, glasses, and a bowl of strawberries. There were two lounge chairs to the side and she noticed what looked like a black leather duffle bag on the floor beside one of the chairs. But the thing that really caught her attention was the look of hunger in Sage’s eyes. Even though the lighting was subdued, there was no way be mistake the look on his face. He didn’t say anything, he simply held out his hand and without even thinking about it, Coral swam to him.

As she walked up the narrow steps out of the water, Sage wrapped her in a warm bath sheet. Colt was already filling the champagne flutes, and grinning at her as he popped a whole strawberry into his mouth. The sexual energy surrounding them was almost crackling and Coral felt her body responding before either of them had a chance to actually touch her. Pulling the towel from her, Sage tossed it to the side and pulled her against his chest. “Tell me the safe word system we established, pet.”

By the time she’d finished reciting what she’d learned, Coral could have sworn every single cell in her body was vibrating with the need to be touched. When she shivered Colt grinned. “Cold, sweetness?” He nodded in understanding when she shook her head, but he didn’t say anything else.

There was something different about Sage, almost as if he’d been infused with a new sense of purpose and Coral instinctively knew she was about to see the sexual Dominant side of Sage in a whole new light. When she’d finished her champagne, Sage took the glass from her hand and set it aside. “I’m going to ask you one more time, pet—are you ready to play?”