Sidney’s Triple Shot [Apache Crossing] (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour) (30 page)

She spun back to the bar just as Tyce came out of the back, freshly showered. He pulled her in for a quick kiss before stealing the beer she had just put on her tray and heading for the stage. She stood mutely watching him as he swaggered into the spotlight, getting the crowd’s full attention without even trying.

His costume fit his personality perfectly, and she giggled as she realized how accurate all of their costumes were. Tyce really had done a great job picking them out, even if she would have preferred that hers cover a little more skin.

“What’s up, Sid?” Anna said, moving close as she poured a tray of shots.

“Nothing, just thinking.” She responded too quickly, and Anna’s knowing grin made her blush.

“Uh-huh. Do me a favor and delay mooning over your hotties until after closing time. Kara and I can’t keep up tonight!” Anna said, adjusting her thigh-high stockings before pushing her way back into the crowd.

A friendly face caught her attention, and she turned to the small woman who was trying to get her attention. “Hi there, what can I get for you?”

“Hi! I’m Marie Anderson, and you seem to be the talk of the town, Miss Sidney Rowe.” The woman’s smile was warm, but her eyes were assessing, and Sidney felt like her entire being was stripped naked under the older woman’s gaze.

“Excuse me?”

“Well, it does tend to get attention when a gorgeous woman manages to snag three of the hottest and most eligible bachelors in town in one fell swoop,” Marie said, cocking her head to the side.

“I’m sorry, Ms. Anderson, but was there something I could get for you? I’m working, and I don’t discuss my personal life at work,” Sidney said with an irritated note to her voice. This woman’s words raised her hackles and her self-doubts. There were probably multiple women here tonight who had set their sights on one of the Dawson brothers, so the fact that they were now very clearly off of the market had to push some buttons.

Marie shook her head, and her smile widened. “Good, you have a backbone. You’ll need it with Xavier. I’m sorry to offend you, but I wanted to see how you handled yourself. I wasn’t about to stand by and watch them get hurt if you were a weak one. Like I said, my name is Marie Anderson, and I’m married to Ridge and Zane Anderson.”

Sidney felt her cheeks warm. “Oh, I’m sorry, umm…look, I’m really new to town still, and I don’t know everyone. I didn’t mean to come off so bitchy.”

“No worries, my dear. I get protective of my men, too. Sometimes I have to put someone in their place, but that rarely happens in Apache Crossing. We’re all just too open around here.” Marie shrugged her shoulder and fixed her nurse’s cap so that it sat jauntily on top of her gray-streaked brown hair.

“I love it here,” Sidney said wistfully.

“Yeah, I bet, if I had those three studs in my bed, I would love it, too!” Marie said with a laugh, and then she placed her hand on Sidney’s. “Sidney, I just wanted to introduce myself and invite you to stop by the salon for a free wash and trim. I would love to spend time chatting, and I’m guessing you could use a girls’ day out.”

“Thank you. That would be wonderful! I would love a little pampering,” Sidney said with genuine pleasure.

“How about Monday? Around ten in the morning?”

“Absolutely, I’ll be there,” Sidney said, feeling confident in her answer. “And, Mrs. Anderson, thank you.”

“Marie, dear. Call me Marie. We’re going to be close friends, I just know it.” With that, Marie spun off into the crowd, leaving behind a gaping Sidney.

Anna approached the bar with a tray full of empty glasses and threw a questioning look at Sidney. “Everything okay?”

“Yeah, I think so. Marie Anderson just introduced herself,” Sidney said as she helped empty the tray and then began filling drink orders for Anna’s customers.

Why would Marie Anderson be so protective of the Dawson brothers? Had something happened in the past that Sidney didn’t know about? Until just recently, she had always felt like Xavier was less trusting of her, and she figured that he had been hurt by someone. Perhaps she needed to have a heart-to-heart with her men and figure out just how many other protective mama bears she would be faced with.

Anna turned surprised eyes to Sidney. “Uh-oh. Marie is checking you out. This thing with the guys must be more serious than you let on. Did she approve of you?”

Sidney blushed. “I’m not sure, but she did ask me to come into the salon Monday for a haircut.”

“Perfect!” Anna cried out, clapping her hands together in excitement. “If Marie approves, then the rest of the town will accept you no matter what. I even heard Darcy Scott talking about you guys earlier after you sang. You seem to be winning hearts everywhere.”

“Darcy is the waitress from The Bop, right?” Sidney could feel the heat in her cheeks, and her stomach fluttered. If people were talking about her, then she would be easier to find for Robert.

“Yeah, she’s married to Melanie Scott. They actually own The Bop. Melanie is the cook, and the mayor of Apache Crossing. Have you met her yet?” Anna said as she expertly made a tray of drinks in no time flat.

“No, but I met Darcy.”

“Don’t worry, you’ll get to meet everyone now that you’re staying. The boys will want to show you off,” Anna said, and she spun on her heel, her navy blue skirt flaring out just a bit to show an expanse of her thighs that drew some sighs of masculine approval from the men seated at the bar.

The reminder that she had customers drew Sidney’s attention back to her work. For the rest of the night she poured drinks, flirted, cleared tables, and dodged questions about her relationship with the Dawson trio. It was clear that the citizens of Apache Crossing had taken the three brothers into their fold and made them part of their family over the last year since they opened the bar. Now Sidney just needed to figure out where she fit in.

She was terrified that if she stayed here, Robert would find her, and then Xavier, Tyce, and Noah would be at risk, too. Running meant giving up the first taste of honest happiness she had ever had in her life. Not to mention she was tired of running. She loved them, and they loved her, but was love enough to overcome her past completely?

Monday morning Noah dropped Sidney off at the salon to be pampered by Marie while he went to work at the bar. He and the other two had seemed very out of sorts all morning, and she was feeling edgy by the time she settled into the creaky vinyl seat. She surveyed the small shop with open curiosity.

It was bright and airy and smelled like chemicals, but it was the pretty women chattering away that filled it with vibrancy. Marie Anderson was smartly dressed in tailored, dove-gray slacks and a pale-pink blouse that draped perfectly on her slight form. Her graying hair was pulled up in a twist at the base of her head, with a few soft curls framing her round face.

Friendly hazel eyes seemed wise beyond their years as they looked over Sidney’s pale-blonde locks. “I’m going to shampoo you, and then we’ll get started, dear. You’ve got very pretty hair, and the length is great on you, so I think just a trim would be all right if you don’t want more.”

Sidney took a deep breath. “Actually, I was thinking maybe I needed a change. I saw a picture recently in a magazine. The woman had her hair cut in a short bob that framed her face. It ended right at her jaw, but the back was just a little shorter. What do you think?”

Marie’s eyes lit up. “Oh, I love experimenting! As beautiful as your hair is, I hate to cut much off, but you would look fantastic with short hair.”

Staring at her own image in the mirror, Sidney took a deep breath before smiling back at Marie. “Let’s do it. I need a change.”

With that, Marie led her to the washing station. As she washed Sidney’s hair, they chatted away. Within minutes Sidney found herself opening up to Marie like she had never done with anyone before.

“You’re telling me that he beat you so badly you lost your baby?” Marie said, freezing in the motion of cutting Sidney’s hair. Their eyes met, and Sidney was stunned to see tears on Marie’s cheeks.

“Yeah, he did. He didn’t want kids, and to be honest I’m not sure how I got pregnant. I was on birth control, and I took it religiously until I left Greenville. I wanted to believe it was a miracle baby, but apparently it just wasn’t meant to be. God just made a mistake when he let me get pregnant in the first place.” Sidney’s breath caught in her throat, and she choked slightly as she fought to hold her emotions together.

Marie spun the chair around and took both of Sidney’s hands in hers. “Oh no, dear. Don’t you ever think of your baby as a mistake.” Sidney’s mouth dropped open in shock. “No child is a mistake. Look, I want you to forget about that monster that held you captive for the last year, and open yourself up to the possibility that you could be happy here.”

“I wasn’t—”

“Yes, you were. You were thinking about leaving, because you’re scared that that abuser is going to come looking for you. Well, let me tell you something about Apache Crossing. We protect our family, even the extended ones. You became family the minute you took on the Dawson brothers and fell in love with them. If I know those boys, they are already holding meetings with the rest of the men in town discussing how to protect you and how to get revenge on your asshole ex.”

“I don’t want them to get hurt,” Sidney said softly. Tears were falling from her cheeks and dripping onto the vinyl apron over her chest. Her heart was racing, and her mind couldn’t keep up.

“The only way they would get hurt now is if you left them,” Marie responded, and Sidney’s stomach flip-flopped.

“I don’t want to,” she whispered.

“Good. We need more women around here. All of these men just have way too much testosterone. It’s like their brains have been poisoned. Give them a beer and a handful of peanuts, and they revert back to cavemen,” Marie said with a wink as she spun the chair back to face the mirror and went back to work on Sidney’s hair.

“Have you lived here all your life?” Sidney asked, trying to get her emotions under control.

“Yes, my parents owned The Yellow Rose ranch just east of town. Now my nephews run it, Nathan and Jaxon Blake. I think they were the only two that didn’t make it to the party on Saturday. Like I told you before, I’m married to Ridge and Zane. They own the hardware store next door.”

Sidney’s eyebrow lifted. “You’re really married to two men?”

Marie winked at her and smiled. “Yep, Ridge and Zane came to town after they lost everything they owned in a fire back in Austin. They decided that it was a sign from God that they were on the wrong path in life and needed to start fresh. They bought the empty space next door, and before I knew it they had opened a hardware store and swept me off of my feet. We’ve been together for more than thirty years now.”

“No way!” Sidney gasped. “You don’t look old enough—”

“Aren’t you a doll! I’m going on fifty-two this winter. I have had three babies that are all grown and moved on,” Marie said wistfully. “My oldest son, Camden, is married to a sweet woman and has a two-year-old daughter. They all live in California. My second son, Logan, is in the Air Force. He’s overseas right now, and I miss him like crazy. And then there is my baby girl, Jessica. She just turned twenty-four, and she’s up in Kansas going to college to learn web design and marketing. She comes back home more often than the other two to visit.”

“Wow, you must have had your kids young,” Sidney said, feeling a sharp pang of envy. Marie seemed to have had a gloriously rich life, and she had a family to show for it. Sidney had always wanted babies of her own, but the one that God gave her, Robert stole away. It was clear proof that life was unfair, and it sucked.

“I was twenty-two when I had Cam. I was way too young, but I’m so glad I had them early. I get to enjoy being a nana to my sweet grandbaby, Lexi.” Marie set the scissors down and fluffed Sidney’s hair. “There you are, dear. You look even more gorgeous if that’s possible.”

Sidney stared at the woman in the mirror dumbly. Instead of gray shadows under her eyes, she only saw cheeks that were softly pink and slightly rounder after regular meals. She could see her own brown eyes sparkling with joy, love, and longing. Her blonde hair was cut just below her jawline, and it framed her face perfectly. She was a new woman, and with that came a sense of control that she hadn’t had for a long time.

Turning back to Marie, she smiled. “Thank you so much, Marie. I definitely needed an hour of being a woman.”

“My pleasure, Sidney. In fact, we should make it a weekly date. We’ll just wash and style your hair or give you a mani-pedi on the weeks that you don’t need a trim.”

“That sounds great! Now, I need to call Xavier. He made me promise to call him when I finished so that they could pick me up,” Sidney said, reaching for the cell phone that Tyce had gotten for her.

“Oh, don’t bother him. The bar is only a few blocks away, and I can walk with you if you would like,” Marie said, taking her apron off and setting the neatly folded fabric on the countertop.

Sidney waited while Marie locked the door behind them and then while she popped into the hardware store to let Zane know what they were doing. When they were finally on their way, Sidney turned to her and asked, “So, tell me, why is Apache Crossing the way that it is?”

“You mean, why are we so tolerant of alternative lifestyles?” Marie asked with a raised brow.