Maya's Triple Dare (8 page)

* * * *

As Maya walked along, lost in her own thoughts, Boone and Richard walked on either side of her. Watching them in her peripheral vision, she acknowledged to herself that this was really going to happen. She was going to know what it felt like to be with three men, surrounded by them, making love with them. Maybe soon.

She smiled to herself, remembering the looks on their sinfully handsome faces when she’d taken the bull by the horns on the creek bank. She’d dared herself to go for what she wanted, and she’d been rewarded. And those kisses had practically melted her bones.

There was no question in her mind that she wanted these brothers.

She wanted to play and laugh with Kendall, she wanted to cuddle with Richard and soothe their shared pain, and she wanted Boone to tie her to the bed and do whatever he wanted to with her. He was dominant, like Morgan had been, and that was what she’d recognized in him earlier.

Looking up at Richard, Maya pondered his quiet nature, wondering at the best way to approach him. She decided she wanted quiet time alone with him first. He seemed most uncertain of the three of them, and she contemplated how to lay both their fears to rest so they could move forward.

He smiled down at her and slid his fingers across her palm and entwined their fingers. His hand was big and rough, making her own seem small in comparison. He gazed at her, his pale blue eyes triggering a pounding reaction in her heart at his sweet gesture. She stumbled, and they both reached instantaneously to steady her. After her whispered “thank you,” they continued until they were within sight of Kendall’s truck.

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Maya offered to help them finish up the chores, but all three men dismissed the idea, and she busied herself picking a bouquet of wildflowers. There was an antique rose bush near the sad remains of the house, and she made a mental note to bring shears, rooting hormone, and potting supplies on her next visit. A flowerbed filled with bushes grown from cuttings from the original rosebush would be lovely after the new house was built. Maybe they’d let her dig up the heirloom bush before construction started.

Maya squatted down in a thick patch of yellow daisies and reached out to gather some for variety in her arrangement. A horrific chill raced over her skin as her ears were filled with the telltale warning of a rattlesnake close by. The sound seemed to come from directly in front of her, and she didn’t have time to retreat before the snake struck.

She stared in shock at the wound on her left hand then traced the source of the stinging bite to the agitated rattlesnake coiling in the tall grass, preparing for another strike. Powered by adrenaline, she flung herself backward as far as she could, rolled to her knees and crawled to the bare dirt, screaming and holding her hand to her stomach.

She no longer knew where the snake was and struggled to her feet to put as much distance as she could between herself and it. She tripped and lurched forward, straight into Richard’s arms. He hit his knees with her and sat her down after looking around the yard.

Gasping in deep gulps of air, Maya whispered, “Snake.”

“I know. We heard it.”

She sat, leaning back against his inner thigh and tried to slow her breathing. The pounding rhythm of her heart made her feel like she was suffocating, and so she panted shallowly.

Richard tilted her chin so she’d look at him. Calmly, he said,

“Listen to me, Maya.” Kendall and Boone both skidded to a stop beside them and crouched down at her side. “Kendall is going to look at the bite. I need you to calm your breathing and your heart rate as
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best as you can. The calmer you are, the slower the venom will move through your bloodstream.”

Her hand tingled fiercely as she did her best to settle down. Boone wrapped his bandana around her wrist snugly but not so much the circulation was cut off completely. Kendall checked his watch and looked closely at the bite, careful to not raise her hand as he did so.

“I see venom. It’s not a dry bite.” He placed her hand against her abdomen. “Keep your hand there. We’re going to take you to the hospital.”

“How far?”

“Not far. Divine has a hospital and ER. We’ll be there inside of ten minutes.”

“More like five. I’m driving,” Boone said as he held her hand to her abdomen.

Richard lifted her in his arms and carried her with little outward effort to the truck Boone and Richard had arrived in earlier. It had a backseat, and Richard lifted her in then climbed in behind her and drew her into his lap.

“Doing okay?” he asked in a reassuring tone.

Still trying to breathe calmly, Maya rested her head against his chest and nodded. She could hear his heart beating against her ear. It sounded like it was about to pound out of his chest. She wrapped her right arm around his middle and squeezed. Richard responded by holding her more closely. She felt safe in his arms.

Kendall turned in the seat in front of her and asked, “Did you get a good look at the snake?”

Shuddering, she recalled the threatening rattle of the venomous reptile. “Yes, it was a diamondback. I saw the markings clearly. It was as big around as my wrist. It didn’t rattle until I was practically on top of it.”

She knew they had plenty of time to get to the hospital, which would more than likely have the antivenin for that particular pit viper’s venom.

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“Sorry, guys. I should’ve been paying more attention to where I was reaching. I ruined the day.”

Boone looked back at her and quirked an eyebrow before turning his eyes back to the road. “Yeah, Maya, what’s up with that? You sought that big rattler out and pissed him off
just
so he’d bite you.”

Preparing to make the turn onto the highway, he added, “Hold on.”

Richard’s arms tightened momentarily around her, and he braced himself as Boone turned, flipped on the hazard lights, and nailed the accelerator.

“Well, I should’ve been more careful. I’m sorry.”

Kendall reached back and stroked her knee and said, “No need to apologize. I’m sorry it happened, but I’m glad you weren’t alone, like earlier.”

Richard shuddered and held her closer. His lips were pressed together in a straight line as he looked into her eyes.

A smile came to her lips as she watched him watching her, and he said, “I’ve never noticed before that your blue eyes have a hint of green to them. They’re beautiful.”

“Thank you,” Maya whispered. “Your eyes are, too.” She spoke quietly because she didn’t want the guys to hear her complimenting his unusual eyes and give him a hard time. She had a feeling he was self-conscious about them.

He shrugged. “Most people are put off by them. I know they’re kind of strange to look at.”

Maya shook her head and said, “I love them.” He closed his eyes, and she reached a fingertip to his lightly bearded jaw. She tilted his face so he would look at her again and kissed the center of his chin.

He kissed her lips lightly and asked, “How does your hand feel?”

“The bite is throbbing and my hand is a little tingly and hot, but that might be from binding it. How much farther?”

Kendall turned and said, “Just a couple of minutes.”

* * * *

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Richard held the door for Maya several hours later as the four of them emerged from the Divine Hospital Emergency Room. He shuddered again at the memory of her scream of fright and pain, and the way she’d tumbled to the ground after she’d been bit. She’d struggled to her feet to get farther away but had tripped, and he’d done everything in his power to make sure she didn’t hit the ground again. The pain and shock in her angelic blue eyes had fired every single one of his protective instincts. He hadn’t been able to let her go until it was absolutely necessary at the emergency room so she could be treated. Even then he’d held her hand every chance he’d gotten.

Proving that news traveled fast in a small town, a reporter from the
Divine Courier
had come by to interview her and asked if they’d killed the snake so he might take a picture of it. Kendall had handled the nosy reporter and sent him on his way.

The doctor had determined the envenomation was mild and she’d needed an antivenin injection and a sterile dressing for the bite itself.

After blood tests and multiple checks for her respiratory function and blood pressure, the doctor discharged her with instructions on how to care for the wound and what to watch for. Her hand was discolored and the bite looked swollen, but otherwise she’d said she felt fine, if shaken up.

Richard had found himself watching her anxiously all evening for signs of complications or side effects from the antivenin. Every time she’d caught his eye, she’d smiled at him reassuringly, but Maya appeared as though the experience had wiped her out.

As he helped her into the truck, Richard asked, “Maya, are you hungry?”

She’d sent them to eat supper while she was observed in the ER, telling them she was slightly nauseated and didn’t want anything.

They’d gotten something from the hospital cafeteria and immediately returned.

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“Maybe for a piece of toast. I’m so tired,” she said, her voice soft as she leaned against him. He tucked her to his side in the truck as Boone drove them home.

Richard caught the smile Kendall and Boone shared as he lifted her from the truck cab and carried her inside. He placed Maya on her feet and set about making her toast. He brought the plate to her, and she smiled in thanks and took it from him. She ate quickly and took a shower.

Boone and Kendall left her in Richard’s care and drove out to the ranch to bring back the truck Kendall had left there. Wondering what else he could do to help her feel better, Richard looked in the kitchen cabinets. He spotted tea bags and decided to make her some tea, which might help settle her stomach.

She emerged from the bedroom dressed in a pair of snug knit pants and a T-shirt. Her hair was wet, and she was blotting it with a towel. Richard thought she looked paler and brought her to the dining room table. After boiling the water, he put the cup of tea together and set it before her and joined her at the table.

“I wish this night was different,” she said as she dipped the tea bag in the steaming water.

“I know, honey. Me, too. How does your hand feel?”

The doctor had warned her she’d have some pain and swelling in her hand and possibly nausea and fatigue from the antivenin injection.

“It hurts. My stomach still feels wobbly,” she murmured as she blew on her tea after stirring honey in it.

Richard knew of something that might make her feel better but waited until she was through with her tea. They sat in comfortable silence while she sipped the hot brew.

He hoped she wouldn’t think he was crazy for suggesting it as he said, “Would you like me to rock you?” He gestured with his thumb to the big rocking recliner in the living room.

Maya looked up at him, and her eyebrows knit together. She seemed pale and fragile to him, but his heart leaped in his chest when
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she smiled and nodded. He put her empty mug in the sink and walked over to the big recliner and sat down. She followed and didn’t hesitate when he opened his arms to her.

He eased her gently into his lap, barely suppressing a groan as she cuddled up to him. He knew she didn’t feel good because she was usually playful and talkative. He sometimes didn’t know what to say for fear of sounding like a dunce, whereas conversation seemed to come easily for her. She rested her cheek against his chest and melted into him as he began rocking her and stroking her back. She was like a kitten curled in his arms.

“I don’t think I’ve been rocked since I was a little girl.”

“Am I going too fast?”

“No, it’s perfect.” The drawn-out, expressive tone she used in the last word made him smile, and he was glad now that he’d suggested it.

Richard made a vain attempt to distract himself and keep his swelling cock from turning into a full-blown hard-on, which she must’ve been aware of beneath her hip. Her body was warm and pliant, and the delicate scent of her just-shampooed hair was making him harder by the moment. He was painfully aware of how velvety her fingertips were as she stroked his biceps.

“Do you miss her, Richard?” Her soft-spoken voice was hesitant and had a poignant quality to it.

He shut his eyelids, not sure he wanted to go there yet. “Yeah.

Sometimes I miss her very much.” In his mind’s eye, he could still see Michelle’s face, the way her eyes would light up whenever she looked at him.

“I’m sorry she was taken from you.” She stroked his arm in a soothing fashion.

“I’m sorry about Morgan, too, honey.”

“Richard?”

“Hmm?”

“Do you ever feel lonely?”

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“Well, I have Kendall and Boone, so no, not lonely but…” If he said he missed physical affection she would think he meant sex. He did, but not under these circumstances.

She slid her good hand around his back and squeezed lightly.

“I’ve missed the simple, physical connection and intimacy.”

Richard nodded. “Yeah. Having someone to touch and hold.”

Maya looked up at him, and the vulnerability in her eyes made him feel protective of her. She asked, “Do you think we’ll ever get over losing them?”

Rocking slowly, he lifted a damp lock of her golden-blonde hair and caressed its silky length between his forefinger and thumb. “I remember when they told me she’d died on the operating table. I wanted to die, too. I felt that way for a long time.”

“Me, too,” she whispered, and he saw her lip tremble before she pressed her face to his chest.

Hoping the words came out right, Richard said, “I know she and Morgan would want us to live our lives and be happy. I want, I mean, I’m ready—”
Shit.

“To try and love someone else?” she asked, stroking his pectoral muscle. “Even though it hurts to think of it?”

“Yeah.”

She sat there with him, asking no more questions, just stroking him until her movements gradually stilled and she fell sound asleep.

Richard would’ve gladly sat there holding her until morning, but Kendall and Richard arrived a short while later.

“She okay?” Boone asked, fingering a lock of her drying hair.

“Wiped out. I don’t think she feels well,” Richard whispered.

Kendall pressed the backs of his fingers to her forehead and said,

“Her temperature feels normal. You want to put her to bed?”

Richard didn’t say it, but in his heart he didn’t want to part with her when she was like this. Her sweet, solid weight against him was the most satisfying thing he’d felt in years.

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Proving his uncanny ability to read his brothers, Kendall said,

“I’m dog-tired, but if you’re worried, you’re both welcome to bed down with us. It might be a little crowded, but the offer stands.”

Boone looked at Richard and smiled, saying, “I think she’s in good hands. Richard, I’ll switch with you during the night, so you can get a little shut-eye.”

Richard nodded and carefully rose from the recliner with her in his arms. She stirred slightly and shifted so that her nose and lips were pressed against his neck. She made a barely perceptible happy-sounding noise. A pleasant shiver raced down his back at the contact.

They put her in bed and propped her freshly bandaged hand on a pillow then got themselves ready for bed. Boone said goodnight, and Richard got comfortable on his side facing her while Kendall took the other side.

He looked up from Maya’s peaceful face to find his brother watching him.

Kendall asked, “You okay?”

With his head resting in his palm, Richard nodded as he lifted the blanket higher over her shoulder. He held his breath as she turned on her side in her sleep and cuddled close to his chest. She tucked her hand under her chin and schooched closer until her head was under his jaw and she was touching him from nose to toes.

Richard finally let his breath out slowly and met Kendall’s eyes again. Kendall grinned and said, “Don’t look so shocked, Richard.

She feels safe with you, with all of us.”

Damn, she felt good against him. He didn’t know what to say.

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