Love Under Two Wildcatters (13 page)

Coldplay’s
Viva La Vida
began to play. Colt stopped in his pacing, pulled his cell phone out of his pocket. “Evans.”

Ryder’s focus shifted to his partner. Susan wondered if the call was from Matthew. She’d been pleased her brother had volunteered to accompany them to the drill site—a private field outside San Angelo. When it became clear her men needed to get to the hospital, to be there for their friend, Matt had volunteered to stay behind and act as a liaison between them and the investigators.

No question the site had been crawling with cops and emergency personnel from the moment the explosion occurred.

Colt’s expression turned hard, and Ryder’s body tensed next to hers.

“Son of a bitch. I knew it had to be something like that. Murph—” His voice caught, and he closed his eyes. Susan already knew him well enough to understand he had to reach deep to suppress the emotion running through him.

He cared so much about her after such a short time together. How much more would he care for a man he considered his father?

“Murphy’s middle name is ‘safety,’” Colt continued. Then he listened, nodding his head. “If you could, I’d appreciate it. Thanks, Benedict. I owe you one.”

“Sabotage?” Ryder’s one word sent a chill down Susan’s spine.

“Looks like. The investigation is still in the early stages, but one of the firemen combing the scene found evidence of an explosive device. From what they see so far, they think it was set to go at a specific time, and it was right there in the manager’s trailer.”

“A bomb? Someone set a
bomb
at your work site?” Outrage warred with fear inside her. Ryder held her hand tighter, and Colt squatted in front of her.

“That’s what it looks like. Matt said the fire department investigators were notifying federal authorities.”

“Who would do such a thing?” She wanted to ask other questions but didn’t. She wondered if their company had been the target or if Mr. Murphy had been the intended victim of the blast.

Colt stroked her cheek, bringing her gaze back to him.

“That’s the question, and until we have some answers, I think it would be a good idea if you went home.”

Everything inside Susan went still. “I beg your pardon?”

The men proved they were adept at reading her mood. She could tell they knew she was pissed by the look that passed between them and the gentleness with which they each touched her.

“Sweetheart, we were supposed to be there today, the both of us. We changed our plans a couple of days ago—more or less at the last minute—and sent Mike in our place.”

“I’m sorry your friend has been hurt. But you don’t have to feel guilty about that. It’s not your fault. It’s the fault of whoever did this. Sending me away might feel like a just penance, but…”

“Susan.” Ryder squeezed her hand. “Sweetheart, we’re not asking you to go home as penance, and certainly
not
because we want to be without you.”

Then she got it. She shook her head, because usually, she wasn’t quite that slow. “You’re sending me away because you think someone’s out to get you—the two of you.”

“Damn right. There’s no way in hell we’ll tolerate your being in the line of fire.” Colt’s voice was as hard as she’d ever heard it. “There is no doubt at all. That trailer is where we go each morning at the start of the day, where we go over whatever analysis came in overnight, where we have our first cup of joe and set the game plan for the day.”

“And you think it would be a good idea for me to disappear? I’m not some delicate miss to be set off to the side just because there might be danger about.” She folded her arms and gave them each a good stare so they would know she was serious.

“There’s no ‘might’ about it,” Colt said. “Most people tend to agree bombs are dangerous. It appears that Ryder and I have an enemy. An unseen, unknown enemy. The first thing we need to do is take you someplace where you’ll be safe.”

“Well, then, wildcatter, we have a problem because there is no way in hell I’m leaving either one of you. I’m here. I’m staying. Deal with it.”

“God damn it.” Colt got to his feet and likely would have given her a blast if the door to the waiting room hadn’t opened just then.

Colt spun on his heels, and Ryder got to his feet as the man dressed in green scrubs entered the room.

“Are you folks here for Mr. Murphy?”

“Yes,” Colt and Ryder said at the same time.

Because her men went over to the doctor, Susan went to them, stood between them, and put a hand on each of their backs. Both men shook, the tremors likely not visible to the doctor, but she felt them, and she understood them.

“I’m Doctor Scott. Mr. Murphy is a lucky man. He came through the surgery and is in recovery.”

“Thank God.” Colt’s words emerged on a heavy sigh. She felt both of her lovers exhale with relief. She stayed silent and focused on just being there for them.

“The surgery was complicated, but for his age, he’s in good shape, and that helped. We had to remove his spleen. Additionally, we inserted a metal plate in his left leg—it was a very bad break. He also suffered a concussion in the blast, but he was responsive prior to surgery. I’m going to take the precaution of moving him into Intensive Care for twenty-four hours, once he comes out of recovery. We want to make certain that concussion was a minor one.”

“Anything Mike needs, he gets,” Ryder said.

“Does Mr. Murphy have any family?” Dr. Scott asked.

“He only has us,” Colt said. “When can we see him?”

“I’ll have someone come and get you once he’s settled in ICU,” Dr. Scott said. “You’ll only be able to see him for a few minutes. The nurses will explain visitation procedures to you.”

“Thank you, Dr. Scott.” Ryder extended his hand. “Mike means a lot to us both.”

“You’re welcome.”

The doctor left, and both men turned and hung on to her for a moment, saying nothing. When they straightened, she wasn’t surprised to see both of them had damp eyes. Colt and Ryder were as macho as they came, but they had both shown themselves capable of real caring and real emotion. Whoever said real men don’t cry didn’t know any real men.

“I’ll give Nancy a call in a minute so she can get the word out,” Ryder said.

“Good thinking.” Colt ran a hand through his hair. “I guess we should see about getting a room. We’ll want to stick around for a couple of days, make sure Mike is going to be okay, has everything he needs. Plus, the investigators are going to want to talk to us.”

“That’s already been taken care of. When I gave Kelsey an update an hour ago, I asked her to get us a room. We’re at the Governor’s Inn. That’s we, Mr. Evans. I’m not going anywhere.”

“Is that a fact?”

Something about the way Colt’s voice dipped when he got serious sent shivers through her, and not the bad kind of shivers, either.

“That’s a fact. I know that doesn’t make you happy. But I’m a Benedict, and Benedicts don’t hide, and we don’t run from trouble.” She stopped because there was so much she wanted to say to these men. So many things these two wildcatters made her feel, emotions she’d never felt before. Right now, first and foremost, was a fierce need to be with them, to be there
for
them. She had fallen in love with them both, and fallen fast. It wasn’t time to tell them that, though. She moved so she could turn and look at them both, speak to them both. “You have to know I’ll do anything you want, anything you ask. Except leave you. Please don’t ask me to do that.”

Colt and Ryder stared at each other for a long moment. Then they both looked at her.

“All right,” Colt said. “But if it looks like all hell is going to break loose, we’ll get you out of harm’s way if we have to lasso you to do it. Make no mistake.” He stepped forward, put his hands on her arms, and lifted her just enough to make his point. “We’ll do whatever we have to do to keep you safe.”

Susan carefully schooled her expression. Gloating wouldn’t go over well at the moment, and she felt pretty certain a whoop of glee wouldn’t be welcome, either. Neither would telling these two macho hombres that she’d been champion calf roper three years running back in the day.

She could finesse a good piece of rope with the best of them and would do whatever she had to do to keep
them
safe.

* * * *

Kelsey had booked them the penthouse suite at the Governor’s Inn. Neither big nor splashy like some of the more well-known hotels, the Inn nevertheless featured top rate, luxurious accommodation geared to the busy and discriminating executive.

“Not as big as your bed,” Ryder said when he opened the door to the bedroom. Then he laughed. “I never thought I’d see the day when I considered a king-sized bed too small.”

Susan grinned. “When we get back to Lusty, we’ll stop in at the ranch just outside town, where my brothers and Kelsey live. Their bed is even bigger than mine.”

Ryder turned to face her, and Susan read the heat in his expression. He trailed his gaze down her body, instantly lighting her fires. She felt naked and raring to go. Colt came up behind her and put his hands on her shoulders. “I’m glad you’re here. I need you tonight. We both need you tonight.”

“I need you, too. I need you both.”

How could they have come to mean so much to her so soon? She’d known the touch of other men, but only these men possessed the touch that enthralled her completely. She’d shared herself before, but with these men, she felt as if she wasn’t sharing herself so much as finally becoming whole, complete.

“You look at me like that and everything inside me turns right. We’re in a hell of a mess, the one person who’s always been as important to me as Colt is in the hospital, yet you’re here, and somehow, I know everything’s going to be all right.” Ryder’s words kissed her skin even as Colt’s hands gently caressed up and down her arms.

“I never doubted my strength,” Colt said, his lips skimming her ear. “I’ve always been able to do what needed doing. But with you here, Susan, I feel damn near invincible.”

“You complete us, when neither of us realized we’d been incomplete.” Ryder said the words simply, yet Susan knew there was nothing simple about it. And weren’t their words an echo of the same sense of rightness she herself felt?

She’d oh-so-boldly declared that Benedicts didn’t hide, and she meant those words. But wasn’t she hiding, even now? Hiding her emotions from these men in the lust and the attraction between them. Hiding from being the first one to say the words because a part of her was afraid they’d throw them back at her. The other few relationships she’d experienced really had been nothing compared to this. This was real. This was it, her one and only.

“I love you.” Oh, God, totally scary stuff, especially when Ryder’s eyes widened and Colt’s hands squeezed her arms. “I love you both. And I’ve…I’ve never said those words to any man before.”

“Thank God.” Ryder cupped her face, bent to her, and laid his lips on hers. Hot and wet, deep and dangerous, he kissed her, his tongue claiming her mouth, coaxing hers into a tango as passionate as any ever danced.

Colt’s hand stroked her hair, and when Ryder broke their kiss, that hand gripped her head, maneuvered her so that his mouth hovered just inches from hers. He kissed her, lightly, reverently, and Susan felt tears sting the backs of her eyes.

“I love you, Susan Benedict,” Colt said. “I didn’t expect to ever fall in love. Not all the way in love, not like this.”

“I love you, Susie Q.” Ryder’s voice shook with his declaration. “I didn’t even know I could love, until you came along.”

“Please.” She nestled her head back against Colt and reached for Ryder with her right hand, pulling him closer. “Please, show me. I need for us to be together. I need for us to be
one
.”

“Don’t beg, baby.” Ryder leaned forward, this kiss as gentle as the one Colt had given her. “You’re everything. Absolutely everything.”

They moved as one, these two men she loved. Together, they freed her body from the confinement of her clothes, freed her and began to worship her. Their hands caressed her, their lips adored her, and for the first time in her life, Susan felt cherished.

You’re everything.

She’d never been everything to anyone before, but she understood the concept very well because Colt and Ryder had somehow become everything to her.

She needed more. Reaching out, she began to open the buttons of Ryder’s shirt. No longer content to just take, she wanted to give. With each new inch of flesh she uncovered, her need grew.