Theirs to Keep (15 page)

C H A P T E R     T W E N T Y - S E V E N

MERRICK’S NOSTRILS FLARED, AND CADE’S eyes ignited with quick fire. The two men stared intently at her, silent and assessing. They practically vibrated with anticipation. If she’d had any doubts about whether they wanted her in a physical capacity, she certainly didn’t now. In fact, they looked very much like they were straining to keep a tight leash on their response.

“Elle, are you sure, honey?” Cade asked.

“We don’t want to rush this,” Merrick said in a steady voice rich with patience. And love. “We have all the time in the world.”

“I want to try,” she said huskily. “I want it very badly. I’ve dreamed of having the two of you kiss me and touch me.”

“I’ve dreamed about it too,” Merrick admitted.

“Then make both our dreams come true,” she said.

Without saying anything further, Cade stood and held out his hand to her. Without hesitation, she slid her fingers over his palm and laced them with his, allowing him to pull her to her feet.

Merrick put his hand to her back and walked with her and Cade toward the bedroom.

The closer they got, the more nervous she became. It wasn’t that she was afraid. Or maybe she was. Just a little. What she feared most was not being able to go through with it.

They stopped just in front of the bed, and she simply stood there, uncertain of what to do next. If only she was bolder, more confident.

She needn’t have worried, because Cade and Merrick took the reins. Merrick pressed in close behind her, kissing her neck as his hands slid down her body to unfasten her jeans. Cade angled his head down to capture her lips, and he worked in opposition to Merrick, pulling up her shirt while Merrick divested her of her pants.

In a few seconds’ time, she was standing in only her bra and panties. The men’s hands were on her skin, their lips branding her flesh. Shivers of delight and anticipation licked over her body. She craved this. Craved them. She hadn’t realized just how much she’d wanted and needed this until now, when she was on the very brink of discovery.

She wanted to touch them. Wanted to please them. The instinct was deep and pressing, an overwhelming urge to bring them the ultimate pleasure.

Before she even realized what it was she was doing, she slid to her knees in front of them, her head slightly bowed. When she lifted her gaze once more, wanting to see them undress, she saw confusion in their eyes.

Merrick reached for her, gently pulling her upward once more.

“No way, baby. You don’t kneel in front of us. Ever. Come here.”

He tugged her into his arms and kissed her deeply, passionately. Before he’d always been so careful, always restraining himself, as if he always feared unleashing the full force of his desire on her.

Not so now.

She moaned softly under the bruising force of his kiss. She loved the power emanating from him. Needed it like a drug.

Cade’s hands coasted down her body, catching at her underwear and then pulling downward with a firm tug. And then his knuckles brushed her back as he unclasped her bra.

Merrick let her go long enough for Cade to pull her flush against his chest. Then Merrick reached forward to take the straps over her shoulders and down her arms until the bra fell away and she was finally naked in front of them.

She was molded tightly to Cade’s chest, her behind cradled in his groin. His erection bulged against her, and instinctively, she rubbed, enjoying the friction against her skin.

“You’re beautiful,” Cade whispered in her ear. “Do you have any idea how beautiful?”

She tilted her head back, allowing him access to her neck. His mouth slid warmly from her ear to her shoulder, his teeth grazing the sensitive skin in between.

“I want to see you and Merrick undress,” she murmured.

“That can be arranged,” Cade said as he pulled his mouth away.

He guided her toward the bed, turned her around and eased her down on the edge. Then he backed away and began to undress.

Her gaze was riveted to the sight of the two men stripping out of their pants and shirts.

Merrick reached down and pulled his shirt up and over his head, baring his lean midriff. The muscles in his chest rippled and bulged as he tossed the shirt aside, and then he went for his pants, and she forgot to breathe.

Cade was quicker and more impatient. Neither man spared the other a single glance as they undressed. Their gazes were focused on her and only her.

When they got down to just their underwear, they slowed. They both looked at her, almost as if making certain she was still on board. Merrick wore plain boxers while Cade wore boxer briefs. But the two men could make even the plainest underwear damn sexy.

Seemingly satisfied that she wasn’t going to bolt from the room the moment she saw their erections, they got rid of the underwear, and for the first time, she got an uninhibited feast for the eyes.

“Lay back, honey,” Cade said, his voice gruff. “Get comfortable, because we’re going to make you feel very, very good.”

She swallowed hard and slowly reclined, allowing her back to push into the mattress. Her legs still dangled over the side, and she slid her heels onto the metal frame lip.

The action spread her thighs, baring her to their avid gazes. And suddenly they both loomed over her, one on either side as they got onto the bed with her.

Merrick lowered his head, his lips closing warmly over her nipple as he sucked it between his teeth. She arched into him, her back bowing as she strained to get closer. She wanted more. God, she needed more.

Her breath escaped in a ragged puff, and Cade swallowed it up as he claimed her mouth in a primal, possessive kiss that had her blood surging hotly through her veins.

It was getting harder and harder to breathe.

The palm of Cade’s hand glided over her belly and lower to the juncture of her thighs and then lower still, until his fingers slid through the delicate folds of her pussy and over her clitoris.

She nearly disintegrated on the spot.

Merrick’s mouth on her breast. Cade’s fingers caressing her most sensitive spots. It was simply too much.

She let out a cry as her orgasm crashed through her in a split second, hurtling her over the edge and into the unknown. She was falling, falling, and then she slowed, floating and drifting like a leaf in autumn.

Merrick claimed her mouth the moment Cade pulled away. She could feel his smile against her lips.

“That was fast,” he murmured.

She groaned. “Too fast. I didn’t want it to be over so quickly.”

“Oh, it’s not over,” Cade said. “We’re only just beginning, honey.”

She let out a sigh as Merrick continued to caress and pet her flesh. Cade dropped down her body, turning his attention to her breasts. As soon as his mouth made contact with her nipple, pleasure seeped through her body, flowing to every nerve ending.

“We want this to be perfect,” Merrick said. “As perfect for you as it is for us.”

“How does this work?” she breathed. “I mean, with both of you…”

“How do you want it to work?” Cade murmured against her breast. “Tell us what you want.”

Erotic images flashed in her mind. She closed her eyes, chasing those pictures. Merrick behind her. Cade in front of her. Both inside her. Her on top of Cade. Merrick on top of her. Was it even possible the things she imagined?

“I want you…both,” she said. “I want you touching me. I want you both inside me.”

“Hell yeah,” Merrick growled against her mouth as he took possession once more.

“Are you sure you’re ready for this?” Cade asked, his tone cautious. “We can take this nice and slow and easy. We’ll only do what you’re ready for.”

Deciding the best way to convince them was just to show them what she wanted, she pushed upward. For a moment, concern darkened their eyes until she positioned herself on her hands and knees, her knees at the very edge of the bed, and she looked up at Merrick, an unspoken invitation for him to claim her mouth.

“Oh hell,” Merrick breathed.

Cade pressed a kiss to the cheek of her ass. “Let me get a condom, sweetheart.”

She shivered from head to toe, chill bumps dotting and then racing across her skin. Her nipples puckered and grew hard. She was one huge ball of anticipation.

Merrick got up on his knees and threaded his fingers through her hair, guiding her down to his cock. He was firm but gentle, and yet she craved more…power? She wanted him to assert his dominance. It was an odd thought, but at the same time, it felt so incredibly…right.

He slid into her mouth, and she sighed softly at the satisfaction of his taste. The feel of him on her tongue. The idea that she was bringing him the same pleasure he’d already given her.

He retreated slowly, dragging his length over her swollen lips. Then he pushed forward again, feeding her, inch by inch, his rigid erection.

Her pulse bounded when Cade’s firm hands grasped her hips. He smoothed his palms over her behind, spreading the cheeks in preparation for his entry.

She was tingling from head to toe, waiting, wanting. As soon as the head of his cock touched the mouth of her opening, she tensed and held her breath around Merrick’s dick.

Then Cade pushed inward, testing the snugness of her passageway as she stretched around him.

She moaned, vibrating against Merrick’s cock, causing him to groan in reaction.

“Feel good, sweetheart?” Cade asked.

She didn’t have to answer. Her body answered for her.

Cade pushed harder, and she could feel herself opening for him as he pressed deeper. His fingers dug into her ass. She loved the sensation of his hands on her, knew she’d wear the marks for hours after.

“God, she’s so tight,” Cade said, his voice strangled.

“Her mouth is heaven,” Merrick said.

Her skin prickled, and pleasure washed through her at the approval and satisfaction in both men’s voices.

And yet she wanted more. Less restraint. She wanted them to let go. The ghosts didn’t own her tonight. Her past was but a shadow in the corner of her mind. She wanted this more than she’d ever wanted anything else.

She pushed back against Cade, taking him deeper. The action sent her farther away from Merrick, and he pursued her, palming her head and reclaiming her mouth in a forceful rush that left her panting with excitement.

How could she want them to be so…powerful? Wouldn’t it frighten her?
Shouldn’t
it frighten her?

Nothing made sense to her. The mere thought of violence and assault, the very things that had happened to her, made her ill, and yet she wanted to feel the strength of these two men.

Not in a violent way. Even as she had the misgivings, she knew the answer. Their strength soothed her. Made her feel safe and cherished. Protected and loved. She reveled in the raw power they exuded.

They would never hurt her, and she knew it.

And that was the key to it all.

Faith.

Trust.

Love.

Merrick framed her face in his hands, cupping her lovingly as he thrust into her mouth. Cade’s hands were splayed over her ass, holding her firmly in place as he thrust rhythmically.

The gentle slap of flesh on flesh rose and flowed erotically over her ears. So soon after one bone-melting orgasm, she was already fast riding the wave of another.

Cade’s mouth pressed against her spine, eliciting another shiver. So very tender and loving. Her chest ached over it.

“I’m close, baby,” Merrick said. And then he began to withdraw.

Her protest was immediate. She tried to guide him back to her mouth, but he gripped his erection and began to work it up and down with his fist.

“Not this time,” he said quietly. “I’m on edge, and it’s been a long time. I’m going to come a lot.”

A hot burst landed on her shoulder. He held the tip close to her skin, and more jetted onto her flesh. Cade began to move faster and faster, and she threw back her head, closing her eyes, no longer focused on what Merrick was doing.

She cried out and then again. She called both their names. She was close. So very close.

Merrick’s hands coaxed over her shoulders and then underneath to her breasts. He cupped the mounds and toyed with the nipples, pulling gently and exerting steady pressure as Cade thrust forcefully against her ass.

She put her hand down, sliding it over her belly and below to her clitoris. She needed that extra edge. Just a little more…

As soon as her fingers made a tight circle around her clit, she burst into flames. Cade stopped momentarily, his hands stroking her back as he held himself deeply inside her. He seemed to be giving her time to gain her bearings before he continued on.

She was so overwhelmed that she could barely hold herself up, and it must have been evident because Cade withdrew, and she found herself being turned so she was once more on her back.

Merrick had her recline on a towel he placed underneath her shoulders and then he carefully wiped the stickiness from her skin.

When Merrick was done, Cade slid his arms underneath her legs and pulled her toward him until her behind rested on the very edge of the bed. Then he was back inside her with one powerful stroke.

She closed her eyes, but Cade’s voice commanded her, and she was powerless to resist the pull of his words.

“Look at me, Elle.”

Her eyelids fluttered open, and she stared into his glittering eyes as he claimed her over and over.

“Mine,” he said softly. “Mine and Merrick’s. Ours.”

“Yes,” she whispered. “Yours.”

Cade closed his eyes, his jaw tight and bulging. He leaned forward, his body pressing into hers, and then he went rigid, all his breath escaping in one forceful exhale.

He lowered his body to hers, until they were flush against each other, his weight anchoring her to the bed. He was warm and hard over her. She wrapped her arms around his body, holding him tightly to her as she reveled in his scent and the feel of him molded so tightly to her.

C H A P T E R     T W E N T Y - E I G H T

THE NEXT FEW DAYS WERE a whirlwind of endless activity. They guys met with every one of their clients to reassure them that losing the office in no way diminished the services they were able to offer, and fortunately, since their client list was small but intensely loyal, only one opted to go with another company.

Cade’s dad had pounded the pavement to find them office space to lease, and the men had worked around the clock to get the business back up and running. Elle restored their computer systems after the new equipment had been delivered to the house, and she soon had everything back in working order.

Merrick’s workouts had suffered as a result. Though he’d gone the morning after the fire, he’d skipped several after in order to help Cade. When Elle cautiously brought up the fact that his fight was bearing down on them, Merrick had grimaced and muttered that shit happens and he had to do what he had to do.

Still, she hated that she couldn’t do more to bear the load for Cade and Merrick. She put in long hours of clerical work. She took over all phone calls, whether it was making calls to reassure clients or taking calls from clients with concerns or needs.

She was a part of this. She
felt
a part of it. For the first time in so many months, she had a purpose, and she was part of something much bigger than herself. She had a family. Men who loved her.

After a week of no sleep for any of them, Elle drifted off at the desk of her makeshift office in their house. There were stacks of paperwork surrounding her, and she’d just completed doing manual updates from the back-up file to the brand-new computer the guys had bought to replace what had been lost in the fire.

And that was how Cade and Merrick found her. Cheek down on a stack of printouts, hair over her face, slumped over the desk, about to fall out of her chair.

“Hell,” Merrick muttered. “We’ve been working her way too hard. She’s exhausted.”

“We’re all exhausted,” Cade said. “It’s been a tough week getting back on our feet and keeping our clients. She’s been a big part of that. We couldn’t have done it without her and Dad.”

“She’s been nagging me about getting down to the gym,” Merrick said grimly.

“Someone needs to,” Cade said as he walked quietly toward the desk where Elle was sleeping so soundly.

Merrick’s brows drew together. “Don’t you start too. I couldn’t leave this on you, man.”

Cade looked up, pausing, his hand in midair as he’d reached for Elle. “This fight is important. You can’t lose an entire week of training and expect to win. Dad and Elle have been invaluable in helping. We’ll get back on our feet. But it makes no sense for the fire to take not only our office and part of our business, but your career as well.”

“I’ll get back,” Merrick said in a determined voice. “I just needed to make sure we were going to be okay.”

“We’re going to be fine.” He glanced back down at Elle, who hadn’t stirred the entire time the two men had been talking. “Right now, what we need to do is get her to bed and make sure she stays there for about twelve hours. None of us have slept worth a damn in the last week, and we’re all suffering for it.”

“Amen to that,” Merrick muttered. “Let’s take her to bed and tomorrow… Tomorrow I’ll head into the gym to start catching up. But I don’t want Elle picking up my slack with the business. She’s at the end of her rope.”

Cade went to his knees by Elle’s chair and pulled her gently into his arms so her head rested in the curve of his neck. He looped one arm underneath her knees and then pushed himself upward.

It was a testament to her fatigue that she never even stirred. She lay limply in Cade’s arms as he carried her out of the office and toward the bedroom.

Despite the stresses of the past week. The fear of losing Elle in the fire. The utter devastation to their office. The missed workouts and the shift in focus from his upcoming fight to the preservation of their security business. Despite it all, Merrick was calm and centered, and he felt a bone-deep contentment.

Dallas was working on the paperwork for Elle, and it should be ready in the next couple of days. All that was left was for her to then marry Merrick and keep Cade’s name as well as Merrick’s on all her legal documents.

They’d already decided to circumvent any complicated, time-consuming steps and make a weekend trip to Las Vegas to tie the knot there. In Vegas, no one was going to blink an eye if Cade stood in the marriage ceremony and took an actual part.

Yeah, the legalities would be between Merrick and Elle, but Cade would be a part. She’d say vows to both men and they in turn would give them back to her.

It was the final step in not only giving her back an identity and a fresh start, a new lease on life, but also binding her irrevocably to them. And if Merrick was honest, the latter was what concerned him more. He wanted that knowledge, that
reassurance
that she was his. Not just as some private agreement between the three of them, but to the rest of the world as well.

He wasn’t going to breathe easy until the “I dos” were said and their signatures were on the dotted line of a marriage certificate.

Cade eased Elle down onto the bed, and then both men worked to get her out of her jeans and shirt so she’d be more comfortable. Merrick unhooked her bra and left her in her panties before he lifted her and moved her to the center of the bed.

She still hadn’t even so much as flinched, and it stirred the guilt inside him that she’d worked so tirelessly over the last week. He was going to make it up to her. A good night’s rest. Breakfast in bed tomorrow. And then she was going to take it easy for the entire damn day.

“I’m going to grab a shower, and then I’ll be to bed,” Cade said in a low voice so he didn’t wake Elle.

Merrick stripped down to his boxers and climbed into bed next to Elle, pulling her into his arms. She gave one of those contented, breathy sighs that he loved so much, and she snuggled into his body like a kitten seeking warmth.

He loved that about her. How affectionate she was and how she sought out his touch even in her sleep. Though he and Cade hadn’t pressed the issue of sex since that first night they’d finally consummated their relationship and taken things to a whole new level, Elle had still slept between them every single night.

And with the fire and the fallout afterward, they were simply too damn tired at night to focus on the physical aspects of their relationship.

Merrick wasn’t wholeheartedly convinced that Elle was ready to take on a normal, healthy physical relationship with one man yet, let alone two. The first time had been just fine. But who was to say that she wouldn’t have issues the second or third time?

It was something he was already mentally preparing for because he knew Elle still had a long way to go in order to completely heal from her ordeal.

But she was his. And soon he’d have all the loose ends tied into a neat bow. Her past would no longer be a worry. Who she was no longer mattered. Because who and what she was…was his and Cade’s. Their wife. Their woman.

She mumbled something in her sleep and then threw her leg over his. He smiled in the darkness and then tucked her leg between his so that he covered the lower half of her body.

He pressed a kiss to her forehead and barely whispered, “I love you, baby.”

Merrick forced himself out of bed at five a.m. He didn’t bother with a shower yet. He’d save that for after his run. He needed to get in at least five miles and hope to hell he wasn’t sucking serious wind after having worked out so sporadically over the last several days.

He was dressing quietly in the dark and reaching for his cross-trainers when he saw Elle rise from the bed.

Cursing under his breath that he’d awakened her when he’d wanted her to sleep in this morning, he started to move toward her when she walked toward the door.

It was an eerie glide, as if she had no care of stumbling in the dark. It wasn’t the careful walk of someone finding her way in a dark room. She walked boldly forward, out the door and into the hall.

Son of a bitch. It was happening again.

“Cade, get up!” Merrick called out as he made a run for Elle.

He heard Cade’s feet hit the floor as he sped down the hall. This time he caught up to Elle before she left the living room. She was standing in the middle of the floor, her expression completely blank as she stared into nothingness.

Then her forehead wrinkled as though she were in pain, and her lips tightened.

“Elle. Elle!” he said louder as he approached. “Baby, it’s me, Merrick. You’re sleepwalking again, baby. Wake up for me.”

“I trusted you,” she said in an accusing tone.

“Huh? What was that, baby? Come on. Wake up for me. Let’s go back to bed so you can rest some more.”

His hands closed over her shoulders, and as soon as he touched her, she jerked to awareness. The cloudiness left her eyes, and she blinked rapidly, and then she lifted her gaze to Merrick.

Then she crumpled on the spot, as if all her composure fled. She sagged precariously, and Merrick caught her against him before she fell. Cade stalked forward, flanking her other side.

“Let’s get her back to bed,” Cade said grimly.

“It happened again, didn’t it?” Elle asked in a small voice.

Merrick sighed. “Yes, baby, it did.”

She closed her eyes as Cade led her gently back toward the bedroom. A moment later, she was sitting on the edge of the bed while Cade rubbed warmth into her hands. She was visibly upset and shaken by the events. And whatever she had dreamed.

“Who did you trust, honey?” Cade asked. “Who betrayed you?”

She raised startled eyes to Cade.

“In the living room, while you were still out of it, you said, ‘I trusted you.’”

Her brow wrinkled, and for a moment, she seemed to fade out again. Then she simply said, “Him.”

“The man who attacked you?” Cade asked gently.

“I think so. I don’t know. Maybe?”

The frustration in her voice ate at Merrick. He hated that this caused her so much pain and heartache.

Merrick eased down on the bed beside her and pulled her into his arms, rocking her carefully back and forth.

“It’ll come, baby. Don’t rush. When you’re ready, it’ll come. When you’re able to cope with the knowledge of what happened to you, then you’ll remember. Until then, your mind is protecting you from what it believes you aren’t ready to deal with.”

She nodded mechanically and then buried her face in his chest. He pressed his mouth to her hair, inhaling her scent. Closing his eyes, he took in a deep breath and tried to still her quivering body.

He wanted to absorb the fear and darkness that invaded her soul. Take it from her so she never suffered again.

Damn it, but every time it seemed they were making progress, her past reared its ugly head. It wasn’t that he and Cade had discounted her past. Or that they were stupid enough to think it would never matter.

But the selfish part of him wanted to make damn sure she was tied to him and Cade, emotionally and legally, before they dealt with whatever ghosts haunted Elle.

It made him sound like a manipulative asshole. No better than the bastard who’d abused her trust and hurt her physically and emotionally.

He curled his hand into a fist. Fuck that. He loved her. He wanted only the best for her. He knew damn well that Cade felt the exact same way. They wanted to be there for her every step of the way. Even if it meant the end result was having to give her up.

It sure as hell wouldn’t be without a fight. But there was a small part of him, his deepest, most dreaded fear, that she could already belong to someone else. That one morning she’d wake up, remember her old life and realize she was in love with someone else. That she’d leave him and Cade and return to the life she’d once lived.

But he also knew that part of loving her was wanting her to be happy. It would gut him to have to let her go, but could he honestly ever try to manipulate her emotionally in order to make her stay?

Hell no.

Someone in her past had hurt her. Had betrayed her trust and made her the wounded, fragile woman they’d discovered in the gun shop so many months ago.

If Merrick had his way, that man would never have another chance to hurt Elle. He hoped like hell that Elle hadn’t been in love with the bastard who’d raped and then tried to kill her.

All evidence pointed to a dirty cop, which meant that they couldn’t just barge ahead and do a wide-open search for her identity or her past.

“Merrick, ease up, man,” Cade said in a low voice.

Merrick looked down, realizing how tightly he was holding Elle and how fierce his expression must be. Rage had clouded his mind. And gut-wrenching fear of losing Elle.

“Go for your run,” Cade said. “I’ll take care of Elle. Go clear your head. You’ve got to get back into your routine.”

Elle stirred in his arms and pulled her dark head away, her eyes finally reflecting calm…and determination that had been lacking moments earlier. It was as if she’d pulled out of the fog of sleep and was now fully aware and in the present.