“Hell of an accident,” he murmured, shaking his head. “I thought you were smarter than that, Cade.”
At least he had the grace to look ashamed, Marly thought coolly. As though the lie these three men had conspired in was actually believable.
“Yeah, well—“ He met Marly’s gaze and she almost smiled as she saw the worried expression on his face. “Shit happens, ya know?”
Dr. Bennett merely grunted.
“I thought something smelled,” the good doctor muttered beneath his breath, but Marly caught the words, as did Cade.
Once again, his gaze came back to hers, cool and probing, as though she couldn’t see the lie in those stormy depths.
“Thanks for patching me up, Doc.” Cade cleared his throat as he broke Marly’s stare. “I knew I could depend on you.”
“Just wait till you get the bill. Pulling me out of bed after midnight is extra time, young man. I need my sleep,” the doctor grumbled as he closed the old fashioned black bag he carried as he moved for the door. “I’m going home now. Try to stay away from rabid animals in the future.”
“I’ll walk you down, Doc.” Brock moved behind the older man, and Marly noticed he still hadn’t removed the gun belt he wore, or the lethal pistol encased in it.
“Thank you there, young man. No telling how many of those critters are lurking outside the front door.” The doctor’s voice was definitely mocking this time. He didn’t believe them any more than Marly did.
Marly looked back at Cade, then at Sam. She stared at the younger brother coolly, arching her eyebrow curiously as he began to shift nervously beneath her regard.
“Are you feeling any better, Marly?” Cade’s tired voice drew her attention from his brother and back to him.
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“A bit,” she answered him carefully. “The headache’s gone now.”
“Good.” He closed his eyes, then opened them again. The injection the doctor had given him earlier must be knocking him out. “I’ve been worried about you.”
“I could tell.” She tilted her head, watching him as his eyes grew dark with weariness.
She watched as he sighed deeply.
“You’re angry.” He shifted uncomfortably on the bed, wincing at the pain in his shoulder and ribs. “It was an accident Marly.”
Marly glanced at Sam as he shifted nervously while Cade spoke. He stood with his rear braced against the dresser, watching Cade and Marly silently.
“Was it?” she asked him as she continued to watch Sam.
Sam avoided her gaze, and Marly’s eyes narrowed. Sam was too open for the lies they were trying to pull over on her. Marly’s only question was why they were lying.
“Stop trying to intimidate Sam, Marly,” Cade sighed.
“Stop trying to lie to me, Cade.” She leaned back in the chair once again, crossing her legs as she adjusted her robe. “What happened out there?”
He looked at her, his eyes heavy-lidded.
“Wolf.”
“My ass,” she snorted.
“You have a fine ass, darlin’. So pretty and tight it’s enough to make a man come just thinking about it.” Marly sighed in exasperation as Cade’s voice slurred. It was more than obvious she would get nothing out of him tonight.
“Sam, go help Brock.” Cade glanced over at his brother, and Marly saw the edge of concern in his expression.
“Sure thing, Cade.” Sam nodded, then looked over at Marly.
“Marly, keep me warm.” Cade patted the bedside him. “Come on honey, I need you tonight.”
Sam blinked in surprise. Then he shook his head as he smiled and walked from the room.
“Please, Marly,” Cade whispered when she stood, turning on the table light and turning off the bright overhead light. “Sleep with me.”
Marly trembled at the sound of his voice, the husky bass, like a deep, sensual rumble. It stroked over her body like a physical caress.
“You should rest.” She stood at the side of the bed, watching his eyes darken, like dark heavy clouds amassing for a storm.
“I need to hold you, Marly,” he whispered. “Help me undress, then get in here with me.”
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He indicated the socks and jeans he wore. Marly looked at his flat, hard stomach, then swallowed deeply at the erection beneath his jeans. She licked her lips, her gaze returning to his face. She flushed as she saw his awareness of where her eyes had been.
“Come on, Marly.” With one hand he released his belt, then the buttons on the fly of his jeans. “Help me get them off.”
Marly moved slowly, her breathing almost a whimper as she exhaled. Her hands gripped the waist of his jeans, then she pulled them slowly from his body, dragging his underwear carefully with them.
“God, Marly,” he groaned weakly as her fingers trailed down his thighs. “Damn you. I’m too drugged up to do it right, and you’re just making it worse.”
“Poor baby,” she whispered as she dropped his jeans on the floor then allowed her robe to join them.
She was naked now, her hair flowing around her body, teasing her back in a way that made her feel sexy and alive. Her breasts were swollen, her nipples hard and peaked. She needed him. Needed him desperately. And there was no way in hell he could take her tonight. The pain was easing due to whatever Doc had injected him with, but he knew he was in no shape for what he wanted to do to his Marly.
“Come here.” He indicated his side as she drew the blankets over him. She moved into the bed, hesitant and unsure as he drew her close to his side.
“I’m sorry, Marly, about the other day,” he whispered against her hair. “I was like an animal. Hell, I still am. I’m so hot for you, it’s killing me.”
“You could have had me,” she told him sadly. “At any time.”
Cade sighed roughly. “You don’t know me, Marly. You’re so damned young and tender, and I’m rough, baby. Rougher than you know.”
“You think I haven’t heard about your affairs, Cade? I told you I have. Everything,”
she bit out, anger coursing through her at the thought of it. “I shave myself there because I heard about Lisa Gilmore, and how you made her and every woman you sleep with shave there. I heard about the hours upon hours you rode your women, and the different ways you took them. Trust me, Cade. They were more than eager to let me know about it, especially after I got older.”
She felt him tensing beside her as she spoke. Rising up, she stared him straight in the eye.
“Do you think I wasn’t more than aware of the significance of where your finger went the other day? Do you think I don’t know what you wanted? What you will want if I come to your bed? I’ve known for years, Cade.”
His hand tangled in her hair as she watched his face flush, his eyes becoming heavy lidded. Slowly he drew her down, until her lips almost touched his.
“I’ll fuck you there. Is that what you want, Marly? And it won’t stop there. There will be no going back to school, no girlish nights out, no flirting with other men, nothing but me fucking you day after day, night after night. Do you understand that?”
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Her stomach clenched, her thighs weakening at the thought of it.
“I don’t accept no for an answer when I want something sexually, baby,” he whispered tightly. “I told you I was rough, and I meant it. I won’t deliberately hurt you, but I’m not a virgin’s lover. I’ll shred your innocence, not just your virginity.”
“You think you didn’t do that on the floor of that stall, Cade?” She was breathing harshly as his breath caressed her lips. “Did you consider that romantic?”
“As romantic as I get,” he growled. “Candlelight and your mouth sucking me like you’re starved is my ultimate idea of romance. That or my mouth on you, licking every drop of honey I can find from between your smooth little thighs.”
Marly gasped, heat curling through her body as his words stroked her. She could feel her body preparing itself, heating and growing wet at the need flowing through her.
“You’re in no shape—“
“Damn doctor and his shots,” he muttered drowsily. “If I weren’t ready to knock out, Marly, I’d show you what I want.”
Marly shivered at the sensual threat in his voice. Lying against his side, feeling his body hot and tense, knowing how hard he was, was the worse torture she could think of. Only part of the dream, her mind whispered, she needed it all.
“It can wait.” She was breathing harshly, her body humming with desire. Between her thighs, she could feel the growing moisture on her bare flesh.
“Are you wet for me, Marly?” His arms bent beneath her neck, his fingers sinking into her hair.
“Don’t, Cade,” she whispered weakly. “I need you too badly.”
“Like I’ve needed you this past week. So hard I was nearly bursting my jeans, and you were flaunting that pretty little ass all over the house anyway?” His voice was tortured.
“I was willing. And able,” she reminded him tartly.
“Damned if I ain’t willing as hell right now. Able…” he sighed roughly. “Dammit. I’m going to be asleep in five minutes flat.”
Marly smiled at the disgust in his tone, despite the heat radiating in her body.
“Go to sleep then. We’re both tired. Maybe tomorrow you’ll tell me what really happened tonight.”
His big body tensed.
“That wolf is dangerous, Marly,” he whispered, his voice so dark and haunted she shivered. “Stay close to the house, and don’t go out alone anymore.”
“A wolf wouldn’t come into the ranch yard, Cade,” she reminded him.
“A rabid wolf will show up anywhere,” he muttered. “Just do as I say. Just for now.”
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Marly frowned. There was more to it than a wolf, and she knew it. But she knew Cade was not yet willing to tell her whatever was actually going on.
“You hear me, Marly?” His voice was slow, almost slurred as sleep caught up on him.
“I hear you, Cade,” she told him softly. “Go to sleep, we’ll talk about it tomorrow.”
* * * * *
He was sore, aroused, and pissed. Cade stood at the French doors of his study and listened to Sam and Brock arguing behind him.
“You didn’t have to call them,” Brock bit out furiously, not for the first time. “We can handle this ourselves.”
“Oh yeah, you handled it real well last night,” Sam assured him sarcastically. “Cade got shot, and you twisted your ankle, and the bastard got clean away without even knowing who he was.”
“It was dark—“ Brock began.
“It was a damned stupid move and you know it,” Sam bit out furiously. “We’re not trained for something like this. We need help.”
Anger. It pulsed and throbbed between the three of them, a remnant, not just of the danger the night before, but of the past. There was no longer the illusion of control. It had slipped dangerously through their fingers. They had to find their way back into the structured stability they had built for themselves.
“He’s right.” Cade turned from the doors and faced his brothers now. “We need to concentrate on protecting Marly. That means someone trained at tracking bastards like this is needed. We can’t fight this alone.”
He watched Brock snarl an obscenity.
“When will they be here?” he asked Sam.
“Tomorrow,” Sam told him in relief. “I talked to their boss this morning. Their names are—“
“Rick and Tara Glaston,” Brock growled.
Cade glanced at Brock, knowing his fury was directed at the situation, not the bodyguards.
“I want this kept from Marly,” Cade warned them both quietly. “Sam, you meet them before they get to the ranch, I don’t care where. They’re friends, and they’re just visiting. I don’t want Marly to know what the hell’s going on.”
Sam rolled his eyes.
“Cade, we can’t keep this from her,” he warned him quietly. “Marly’s not stupid.”
“I’ll take care of Marly, and I’m very well aware of the fact that she’s not stupid. I want her protected from this.”
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“You think she doesn’t know we’re lying to her about that damned wolf?” Sam bit out. “Get serious here.”
“You heard me.” He moved slowly back to his desk, lowering himself to it slowly.
“What about her bedroom?” Brock asked. “He has a clear view into her room from several different angles. And Marly keeps those damned shades open on her balcony doors.”
“Not anymore.” Cade leaned back in his chair tiredly. “She’ll be sleeping with me. She’ll be staying with me. She’s mine now.”
Silence thickened in the room. Cade knew that the other two men were well aware of the implications to his statement. He ran his fingers through his hair and sighed wearily.
“Uh, Cade,” Sam ventured.
Cade shot him a warning look.
“You two were so hot to convince me how much I want her. Well you were right. I did, and I still do. Starting today, Marly will find out just how much.”
It wasn’t a decision he was entirely comfortable with. To be honest, becoming Marly’s lover scared the hell out of him. He was terrified to take her, walking a precipice he wasn’t certain he could maintain. He loved her, loved her enough to try to give her what she needed first, and to pray to God nothing pushed him over that thin edge that separated the man and the monster.
He watched as Brock and Sam exchanged a speaking look. They too understood, and Cade was furiously aware of the fact that they had most likely been looking forward to this for a while.
“She’s mine. No games,” he warned them both quietly. “She can’t handle them, and I won’t force it on her. I’ll give her what she needs for as long as I can. Then, it will be Marly’s choice.”
Marly’s choice. He wanted to bite his tongue, because truth be told, he may not have the strength to give her a choice at all. Marly had heard tales of his sexuality, but not the more explicit, damning stories that only hinted at the truth of a lifestyle that he shared with his brothers.
They had made a pact years ago, had sworn by it, and truth be told, found great pleasure in it. It was exhilarating, seeing a woman he had claimed being touched by the brothers he loved. Sharing in the ultimate intimacy of bringing a woman to peak together, often despite her hesitancy in accepting it. Cade had never questioned that aspect of their sex lives, until now. He had protected Marly from it all her life, and he knew she would never accept the act of affirming his bond with his brothers in that way. She would never lie before the three of them, accepting the pleasure they could bring to her body.