Dawn, Dakota - Blessed Times Two (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour) (12 page)

Their eyes roamed his chest then zoned in on his neck. Their mouths went slack, and their gazes flew to Branda with an appreciative gleam.

Turning away from the gawking women, Troy made up two cups of coffee. He handed one to Branda and took a sip from the other one. Turning back to her friends he asked, “To what do we owe the honor of your visit?”

Sienna piped up. “Shopping.”

At that reminder, Trey placed his credit card in Branda’s hand and curled her fingers around it. He murmured in her ear, “I like thongs. Troy likes lacy matching bras and panties. Some ass-hugging jeans would be nice, too.”

While Branda was busy trying to mentally cool down the heat in her cheeks, Sienna asked Rain, “Did you get all that?”

“Sure did. Now we know just what we’re looking for.” Focusing on Branda, Rain ordered, “Hurry up already. I’m dying to remake you. Go brush your hair and slip on your shoes so we can go.”

* * * *

Coming out of the dressing room stall for the fifth time, Branda turned around as Rain indicated.

“I believe we have found her brand,” Rain told Sienna then asked Branda, “How do they feel on? They look great.”

“They actually feel really good. Let me try to sit down in them first, though.” Taking a seat next to Rain, she commented, “Still feel fine. No pinching. I hate it when jeans pinch my stomach when I sit down.”

“Awesome. This brand has several pocket designs to choose from. You’ll need to try them all on. You can never have too many comfortable, curve-showing-off jeans. These jeans show off your assets extremely well. Go take those off and I’ll be right back.” In a flash, Rain was heading out of the fitting room.

Facing Sienna, she sulked. “She’s going to make me try them all on, isn’t she?” Branda hated trying on clothes for hours.

With no pity in her voice, Sienna replied, “Damn straight. You look hot in that brand. Go ahead and take those off. I’m going to go belt hunting. Accessories make the outfit, you know.”

In the dressing room, Branda had to admit that although it had been a real trial finding and trying on all those different brands, she was glad now she found some that fit her so well. The guys were going to love them.

Thinking back to the lingerie store, she knew they would love her in those purchases even more. Sienna and Rain were extremely helpful in guiding her toward clothing that enhanced her body. Not big on thongs, she only bought three of them. The store had a lot of matching panty and bra sets. With her friends’ help, she’d picked out five sets, all lacy and sexy. Two in red, one in black, one in emerald green, and one in a blue floral print. She was pretty sure the twins were going to love them.

She had felt funny about using Trey’s credit card, but Sienna had insisted he had plenty of money. Another deciding point Sienna had made was that Trey would be mad and his pride would be hurt if she didn’t use it. Sienna also said she’d been taught a man should dress his woman, and she knew Trey had been taught the same thing. He would be insulted if she didn’t let him dress his woman. The men in both their families were old-school in the matter of men taking care of women.

By the time she used his card a second time, it had gotten easier, but it still made her uncomfortable. The only way she could continue was with the knowledge that she would take good care of what she bought, so they’d all be able to get years of pleasure from her purchases.

Looking at herself in the mirror, she knew she had to be totally truthful with herself. The main reason she had for letting him buy her clothes was because of the look in his eyes before she left. It had been intense, passionate, and possessive. He had kissed her tenderly then crooned in a husky timbre, “Do as I ask,
tesoro mio
. It’s my duty to take care of you. I would have it no other way. It is a privilege to take care of one’s
vero amore
. Use the card I gave you. Get whatever you like. Plus I want you to use it to pay for lunch for all of you.” Pulling her tightly to him, he kissed her passionately, leaving no doubt about how he felt about her.

As soon as he released her, Troy pulled her into his arms and kissed her until she melted into him. The way their tongues stroked and plundered her mouth always lit a fire in her blood.

Sienna honking her car horn had brought her out of her sexual haze. Troy brushed his lips lightly once more across hers then said, “Don’t forget the matching bras and panties.” Releasing her, he turned her toward the door and ushered her out. “Have a good time, babe. We’ll see you when you get back.”

Jeans and a few tops were tossed over the dressing room bar. The clanking of hangers brought her back to reality. Part of that reality was that Trey and Troy expected her to come home with clothes. Bringing the clothes into the tiny room, she tried on another outfit. Let the fashion show continue. Her elbow hit the wall, and she winced in pain. Why did they have to make these stalls so small?

“Are you okay in there? What was that noise?” Rain asked.

“I’m fine. I just hit my elbow on the wall. These damn stalls are too small.” Branda walked out, rubbing her elbow.

Rain scrutinized the clothes. “We’ll take them. That outfit looks great on you. Next.”

“All right, already. I’ll be glad when we’re done, I’m getting hungry.” Branda’s growling stomach had her moving quickly to the tiny stall. The sooner this was over, the better.

* * * *

Branda dipped a bite of bread in the restaurant’s seasoned oil and wondered what all was in it. She’d love to be able to make it at home.

Swallowing a bite of lasagna, Rain said, “Great pick on the restaurant. This is the best lasagna and garlic bread I’ve had in a long time.”

Sienna agreed. “Yeah, I love it. Teddy and I are going to have to come here. Oh, and that’s so sweet of Trey to pay for it. I’ll have to tell my mom, then she’ll tell his mom, and his mom will proudly tell his dad how well he turned out.”

“Wow, does it really work like that in your families?” Rain asked incredulously.

Taking a sip of her drink, Sienna rolled her eyes. “You better believe it. These people are major old-school. The whole family knows what everybody does.”

Rain’s brow furrowed. “That sounds horrible.”

“Oh, it’s not that bad. On the upside, every time a family member needs help, twenty people jump in to lend a hand,” Sienna answered proudly.

“How is the job going for your dad in Paris?” Branda asked Sienna.

“Actually it’s going way smoother than planned. He’s amazed at how much progress has been made.” Sienna took a bite of her food, closing her eyes to relish the flavor.

“How is Tamrisk?” Branda asked Rain.

“My sister is doing good, real good. Two weeks ago she called and told me she’d sent me a scarf in the mail. I received it this week. It was a damn red feather boa. When she comes back to town, I swear I’m going to wear it when I pick her up at the airport. All I need now is a T-shirt that reads:
My sister made me wear it.”
Rain smiled.

“I love your little sister, she’s a hoot. Is she still a fashion reporter?” Branda questioned.

“Yes. She seems to love it, and it does help out the family business sometimes. All we have to do is ask her if we are iffy about some clothing line. If she doesn’t know the answer, she will dig it up.” Rain’s tone was filled with pride.

“Speaking of clothes, I love your new clothes. You don’t know how happy I am to see you in clothes that show off your curvaceous bod,” Sienna replied, ending with a happy squeal.

“Yeah, you look great. I’m glad you went along with us and bagged your old droopy jeans for those kicking jeans. The new belt even makes that dragon shirt look good. See, accessories make the clothes,” Rain complemented as she looked around the restaurant.

Hawk-eyed, Sienna noticed. “What are you looking for, Rain?”

“Any hot guys to buy us drinks. I figured with Branda’s new look she would probably draw at least a few in. Why not let them? Who knows? Maybe I’ll find a regular love-fest partner,” Rain replied in a sultry voice.

Branda burst out laughing. “Did you take your meds today? There is no way I’d draw any attention. I just got lucky with Trey and Troy. I hope they never come down from the cloud they are on.”

“You two stop. We’ll say we’re all hot. Maybe not to all males, but we surely are to some of them. Branda and I are taken. Now all we have to do is find the right man for you, Rain.”

Rain was fast in her retort. “You can stop it right there. I have no intention of ever settling down with a man. They are sooo high-maintenance. Once the quintessential rush of lust wears off, the woman is left with a broken heart while the man happily moves on to his next conquest.”

Sienna took Rain’s hand and looked her in the eyes. “It’s not always like that. When the right one comes along, he won’t leave.” Sienna must have seen the disbelief in Rain’s blue eyes, because she sighed. “I know you don’t believe it right now, but please don’t discount all men. It would break my heart if you never settled down at all because you refused to give a man chasing you a fair chance. Promise me you’ll give a man a chance if you feel a bond between the two of you.”

With a disgruntled expression, Rain agreed. “All right, already. If such a wonderful man comes along I’ll give him a chance.”

Feeling a need to retrieve her friend from the fire, Branda changed the subject. “How’s it going with Eloise? Is she doing better on the job?”

Rain latched onto the subject change with both hands. “She’s starting to get the hang of it, thank goodness. You know how many times I wanted to strangle her. To top it all off, she’s been looking all lovesick at one of the smarter managers in the company. Unfortunately, the dum-dum hasn’t noticed.”

“That’s terrible. Do you think he doesn’t like her?” Sienna asked, her voice full of concern.

“No, no. Nothing like that. He’s just extremely dedicated to his job. I don’t think he even realizes she’s interested in him. He’s no head turner, not bad, but no head turner. He’s not used to a lot of attention from the ladies, so he pours his heart into his work, and he’s damn good at his job.”

“I can understand where he’s coming from,” Branda said with sympathy.

“You’ve got to do something, Rain.” Distress colored Sienna’s words. “What if they’re meant for one another and he doesn’t know it because he quit looking a long time ago?”

“Already on it, my little match-making friend. You know I can see that optimistic look in your eyes. Don’t get your hopes up. I still have no intention of looking for Mr. Right.”

“If you say so. You said you were already on it. What do you plan to do?” Sienna asked, a look of hope in her eyes.

Rain scowled at that look, but went on and answered her question, “I’ve set up a few luncheons for them this upcoming week. Work related, of course. Otherwise he’d never go. If it’s meant to be, Eloise will snag him.”

It was Branda’s turn to question Rain. “Is Eloise in on it? She does know what you’re doing, right?”

Rain rolled her eyes. “Of course not. I have a reputation to maintain. Especially with people like Eloise. If she thought I cared about her at all, she’d try to dominate all of my time with things like pedicures and luncheons. I don’t have time for that every day, so instead of misleading her, which would hurt her feelings in the long run, I’m just going to give her the opportunity to win her man. Subject change. Branda, does your mom know about the hot twins?”

Now it was Branda’s turn to scowl. “She thinks I’m dating Troy. Yesterday, after I’d finished getting the party bouquets done, we lay down and took a nap. My phone rang, and Troy groggily answered it, not realizing it was mine. From the sound of our voices, my mom knew I’d been napping with a man. So, I had to come up with something, and that something was that I am dating Troy. Of course, she gave me the fifth degree about being in a strange man’s house instead of the one I was supposed to be staying at. She droned on, giving me a guilt trip until Troy hung up on her.”

“Holy cow. He hung up on her?” Shock was evident on Sienna’s face.

Branda nodded. “Yep. Click. Just that fast. I couldn’t believe it. The mean part of me wished I could have seen her face when she realized she’d been hung up on.”

“Hell yeah.” Rain’s voice boomed with excitement. “I would have bought a ticket to see that.”

Branda knew Rain had never liked her mom. Shelia McFalls was too self-absorbed, and she was hateful to Branda most of the time. Shelia’s flaws had always made Rain and Sienna mad.

“How did she know you weren’t home?” Sienna asked in confusion.

“She called your parents’ house, and when I didn’t pick up, she called my cell. She knows I always pick up the home phone if I’m home. I feel really sick about all this. My parents are never going to understand my living with two men. I’m pretty sure they’ll disown me when they find out,” Branda answered glumly.

The ever straight-shooting Rain told it like it was. “I hate to state the obvious, especially when the obvious is so painful, but the truth is your parents are not very supportive of you. We all know they never have been. I’m sure they love you in their own twisted way, but you can’t let them block your path to happiness. And, girl, you’ve been happy ever since the twins entered your life. Don’t let your parents take that happiness from you.”