* * * *
“These are a lot of decisions to make in one night. I agree that Gutry has to go. He’s costing us money and ruining our reputation,” Charlie complained as he shook his head and covered a yawn.
“You’re telling me. He isn’t going to take this lightly,” Ben replied.
“That’s why Max and I are going to handle it. As the law in town and part owners of the Triple C, it is our obligation and right. Plus, he may be less likely to lash out at us,” Wyatt suggested.
Mumbles of agreement went through the room.
“I swear I don’t know where we are going to find a good cook to replace Tex,” Eric stated.
“There are plenty of people looking for work. Lots of women who might be good,” Ben suggested.
“There might be someone we can ask,” Max added, and his brother and cousins looked at him.
“There’s this young woman staying at Marie Lemorte’s place. She supposedly knows how to cook,” Max said.
“You mean Stacy?” Eric asked as he and Max stared at one another.
“Oh shit. Looks like a brothers’ quarrel is about to take place,” Charlie added with a chuckle.
“You mean the sexy little thing with those big green eyes that was in the diner tonight?” Wyatt asked, and both Eric and Max stared at him with daggers in their eyes. Their cousins laughed.
“She’s not the one favored to win against Betsy, is she?” Ben asked.
“Oh shit, I heard about her before I got here tonight. The guys were saying how hot she was and what a sexy body she had on her. When they heard she could cook, they were calling dibs on her,” Wyatt announced.
“What?” both Eric and Max asked in unison as they rose from their seats. Their cousins started laughing.
“You both met the same woman and both are interested in her?” Ben asked.
“Well?” Max asked Eric.
“Well what?” Eric replied.
“How do you want to handle this? I mean she’s from New York, and she looked shocked to the core when she saw Melissa with Frank, Willie, and Paul.”
“Let’s not jump the gun. Let’s see what happens, and if she can cook and is interested, we can give her a whirl with lunch and dinner then take it from there.”
“A whirl, huh? Just be sure you two take your time. You both have made the decision to share one woman and settle down with her. Maybe this Stacy is the one,” Charlie stated.
Eric and Max looked at one another and released heavy sighs.
“We don’t even know her,” Eric stated.
“She’s real sweet. Kinda shy, too. I liked that about her,” Max added then cleared his throat, trying to hide the fact that he just admitted that in a room filled with guys.
“Aww…Ain’t that nice. She a sweet little thang, and the two of ya both want her. Should be interesting to see how this pans out,” Ben stated, teasing them.
“Don’t forget about the competition. If we’ve already heard about the new beauty in town and the reaction from other men, then you two should stake your claim fast. I ain’t seen her yet, but I may just have to take a look myself. If ya ain’t interested,” Charlie stated then tried to hide his chuckle as both Max and Eric grunted.
“I don’t know about the rest of you, but I need a drink,” Wyatt said then walked over to the bar and began filling five shot glasses with whiskey.
Chapter 4
It was a big difference getting up at five o’clock in the morning compared to six. Stacy had always been an early riser, but for some reason, she was both mentally and physically exhausted. Her bed was really comfortable as well, so that added to the lounging around she did. It wasn’t like she was responsible for any farm chores, but she just felt like she shouldn’t be lounging around all day. This was a new beginning. The sounds of the roosters in the morning and the bright sunlight were so different. In fact, Marie had said she needed more secretarial work to organize the camper’s paperwork and make sure everything was in order before the camp started in two weeks. That, Stacy could definitely do.
She took a quick shower and threw on a pair of blue jeans and a short-sleeve shirt. It was soft and from a designer in New York she loved. It was a V-neck that dipped a little low for her, but she thought it didn’t reveal much cleavage, so it would be fine to wear. After Millie’s comments last night, she didn’t want to look like she was advertising. She ate some toast with jelly, had a quick cup of coffee, and admired her little back porch. When she went into town today, she would buy some painting supplies and maybe rent a power washer if Marie didn’t have one. Then she would fix the broken shingles on the roof and paint the cottage. She wanted to work from the outside in. That way she could take advantage of the milder weather this week. She spent a few hours in Marie’s office organizing a mess of papers and disposing of garbage left around the room. It was disgusting, and she was rather surprised since Marie’s house was immaculate. Of course she was reamed out by Marie for organizing her clutter.
“Why don’t you go into town and get the supplies you need for the cottage? My power washer is at the hardware store. It should be ready, and I have an account there. Tell Lewis to bill me for it,” Marie told Stacy.
Twenty minutes later, Stacy had a shopping cart filled with painting supplies and other materials to fix the cottage and had made friends with the young woman, Lisa, who worked behind the counter.
“I’ll need some help getting that power washer into Marie’s pickup truck,” Stacy said to Lisa as she paid her bill.
“No problem, I’ll get Lewis to help you. He’s in the storage room,” Lisa said as she walked toward the back of the store. Stacy thought that everyone in town was really friendly. It was a nice change from the city streets of New York.
As she walked outside to place her bags in the truck, she absorbed the floral smell from all the planters surrounding the hardware store then the numerous other planters that lined the streets of Pearl. It was a gorgeous town, like something out of a fantasy.
“Hey, darling, you need some help with them bags?” someone asked, and when she turned around, she saw some man she didn’t recognize. He looked dirty and scruffy, and her gut instincts kicked in, telling her to be careful.
“No, thank you. I’m fine,” she replied, and he scowled at her before taking an aggressive step closer to her.
Instinctively she clutched the bags tighter and stepped away.
“You’re the new girl staying with Lemorte, aren’t ya? I bet you’re just shy not knowing anyone in town. Why don’t you come for a ride with me, and I can give ya a real nice welcoming sugar,” he stated then reached for her. Automatically Stacy turned to run and smacked into what felt like a solid wall of steel. As she gasped in shock, an arm of muscle went around her waist. The man lifted her then deposited her behind him. All she saw was a dark-brown uniform shirt, and she realized that it was the deputy.
“Are you bothering this woman, Gutry?” Deputy Cantrell asked, and Stacy tried to peek around his large frame to see Gutry’s reaction. As she moved to the side, she felt another set of hands land on her waist, and she froze in place. She was really scared now and didn’t know who the third person could be.
“It’s okay, honey, my brother will handle this. Don’t be afraid,” he whispered next to her ear. She sensed the large presence behind her and felt the heat of his body against her back. She was wedged between two very sexy men, and boy, did her body know it.
She tried to focus on the banter going on between the guy named Gutry and the deputy, but Eric had yet to release her hips and Max still held a hand against her right thigh. For the life of her, she couldn’t believe how turned on she was, being touched by both brothers at once. It was shocking and scared her almost as much as Gutry.
“I was just introducing myself to the new girl in town, and she was just about ready to go for a ride with me.”
Stacy was shocked and outraged. “I was not!” she exclaimed as she attempted to get around Max. Eric held her firmly, and Max pressed against her thigh then looked over his shoulder at her. One look into those dark brown eyes and she froze in place.
Suddenly she felt real uncomfortable. This wasn’t good at all.
“You heard her. She ain’t interested so move along,” Max stated firmly.
“I didn’t hear her say that. I think you two are scaring her,” Gutry responded, sounding cocky and not the least bit intimidated by the deputy.
“Come on over here to me, honey. You don’t want to mess with these two. They like to share women and have their way with them. You’ll only need me in your bed.”
Max stepped forward, but Stacy beat him to it. She shifted under Eric’s hands and stepped aside. “Just leave me alone!” Stacy yelled. She felt herself shaking as the fear and reminder of what happened back in New York entered her mind. Why couldn’t men just leave her alone?
“Get the hell out of here, Gutry. Keep away from this woman or you’ll be dealing with us,” Max yelled as Gutry placed his hands palms up in the air and back stepped out of there.
Stacy remained next to the truck trying to control her breathing. Between the confrontation with that creep Gutry and the sexual attraction she felt being sandwiched between the two brothers, she felt as if the wind had been knocked out of her.
“You okay, honey?” someone asked as Stacy kept her head down and her hands on her thighs as she tried to relax. A panic attack seemed to be looming, and she prayed she didn’t get one right now.
She felt the gentle touch of fingers against her cheek then pushing strands of hair behind her ear.
“I think she’s having a panic attack,” one stated.
“Just breathe, darling. That guy won’t bother you again.” Then the other one spoke. She thought it was Max who added that statement. She felt so embarrassed but also grateful and annoyed. Why did these things keep happening to her? Why were there always men around who felt they could harass her?
“I’m okay. Please just leave me alone. I don’t want any trouble,” she whispered as the dizziness lessened. Now she was trying to deal with the warm, tingly feeling invading her body from the gentle touch of masculine hands caressing her.
She slowly began to stand when Eric took a hold of her elbow.
“Take it nice and slow. Don’t move too fast.”
She took a deep breath then opened her eyes, locking gazes with a hunk. Her stomach tightened, and her insides did some sort of flip-flop thing she was not the least bit familiar with. Trying to ignore his beauty, she turned away only to lock gazes with his almost identical twin brother. The gold star on his brown uniform shirt, the holster on sexy hips, and a flat stomach all led to a solid muscular chest, a tan, thick neck, and a face that knocked the breath from her. It appeared they realized what effect their good looks had on her as Max raised his eyebrows at her and Eric placed his hands on his hips, looking amused. She needed to think fast and get the heck out of here.
“Hey, Stacy, Lewis is bringing the machine around. He’ll get the power washer in your truck for you. Hi Deputy, hi Eric,” Lisa chimed in, breaking up the awkward moment.
Stacy began to walk back toward the store when she felt a hand grab her hand to stop her. She whirled around, pulling her hand from Eric’s grasp.
“Don’t touch me. I’m fine and I don’t need your help.” She saw their puzzled expressions then the two of them standing side by side looking down at her. That’s when the reality of their height hit her hard. Boy, were they something else. Quickly she headed up the steps to the store and met Lisa at the doorway. “I’ll take that. Thank you for everything.”
“No problem, honey. I hope you have help to unload that stuff,” Lisa suggested.
“I can handle it. Thanks again,” Stacy replied then met Lewis at the back of the truck. Eric helped him lift the power washer into the bed of the truck.
“Was that Gutry I saw out there bothering Stacy?” Lewis asked.
Eric nodded, and he looked really angry. What did he have to be angry about? She was the one being harassed.
“You make sure you stay clear of that man, Stacy. Especially if he’s been drinking. He ain’t nothing but trouble,” Lewis stated. The man was almost as tall as Eric.
Stacy went to lift the tailgate up so she could get the heck out of there when Eric did it for her. Their hips touched, and she jumped to the side, right into Max.
“Excuse me,” she stated then tried to move around him. He was so big, and the scent of his cologne invaded her nostrils. She felt that tingling sensation again and knew she was sexually attracted to him. She was to both brothers. What woman in her right mind, seeing two cowboys as sexy and good looking as the Cantrell brothers wouldn’t be turned on? Her pussy actually ached. What the hell? Then she thought about her vibrator and Millie’s comment about orgasms. Shit. She didn’t need this.
“You have help back at the farm?” Lewis asked her as he stood on the opposite side of her. She needed to get away from the deputy.
“I’ll be fine, Lewis, and thank you so much for your help. It was nice meeting you and I’m sure I will see you again real soon,” she replied.
“Anything you need, honey, you just come see me and I’ll take care of you,” Lewis stated then winked. She smiled, but then she saw both Max and Eric’s facial expressions. They looked downright angry.
Quickly she ran around the side of the truck, waving to Lewis as she said good-bye. The men moved out of the way, and she got the heck out of there.