Jedidiah: Dragon’s Savior – Ménage Erotic Fantasy (Dragon's Savior Book 2) (12 page)

Her father playing a game of checkers with her. Mom standing in line with her to see a movie. Christmases with them in the big house on the hill, and her grandmother. Lindsey told them that they were here, and Jed came to stand beside her as the car pulled away and the couple stood there holding each other.

“I think I remember them. And when I was taken.” Jed nodded but said nothing to her. “I was almost eight. There was a man…two men that came to get me. I was supposed to have eaten this snack, but I wasn’t allowed to have any, so I didn’t eat it. When he came into my room, Dean Landon, I was sitting at my table coloring. He had a brother, his name was…Willie. They told me that I was going for a ride to my grandmother’s house, and I remember thinking that wasn’t right.”

“Did your grandmother…was she at the house?” Lindsey had to think. When she nodded, Jed did as well. “We all thought so. Did you see her that night?”

“Sort of. She was standing at the bottom of the stairs when I was brought down. Dean had me over his shoulder, and Willie was telling me to keep quiet, that Grandmother mustn’t know that I was awake. I was afraid of her, you see.” While they spoke quietly, a second car pulled up, this one a regular taxi. As the woman got out of the back, Lindsey saw her grandmother. “She was there. I think…I think she knew I was being taken away.”

“Don’t say anything just yet. We had a feeling that she might be in on it. Asher did anyway. He knows her, you see. It’s why we never gave their attorney too much information. We didn’t want her to run before this came to light.” Jed pulled her closer to him and held her as he whispered in her ear. “She killed Dean a few years after you were taken. His brother Willie died a few weeks ago, and his estate had an envelope in it that went to our attorney. It was to go to whoever asked about you, as Lindsey Decker.”

The door opened while she was still trying to wrap her mind around what he’d just told her. The fact that they’d known before this wasn’t what bothered her, but that her own grandmother could do this to her. Her dad walked in the door and Lindsey looked at him. Moving toward him, Jed close beside her, she put out her hand to shake his.

“Dad?”

He pulled her to him. Her father was a big man, not fat but tall and stout, and his hug nearly took her breath away. As he held her, sobbing about how he’d missed her, her mom came to touch her, her fingers dancing over her face, then her arms, as she, too, cried how much she’d missed her.

She had no idea what they were saying. It was mostly about missing her, and they had never given up hope. Lindsey was overwhelmed, and when a hand touched her on the back, she stepped back to him. Jed was there, and she knew that Zak was close too.

They’d already talked about how they would handle her having two mates. Zak would be close, but it would be Jed she was married to. It would set well, she’d been told, and that they couldn’t know that Zak or the rest of them were not human. It frightened her to think that there was someone out there looking for her and dragons, and she agreed readily to this plan.

“Mom? Dad? This is my husband, Jed Benson. Jed, these are my parents, Gabby and Donald Cartwright.” She introduced them to Jed’s brothers, and wished now that the rest of them could have met them as well. They were there, of course, but Zak was the only one she could pull from his host so far from the house and the magic there. Then she introduced them to Jacob and Elbert. “This is their grandda and father. They’re here for moral support.”

The door opened again and there she stood. Lindsey had never understood her grandmother, and now she knew why she’d never liked her. It had been a hate-hate relationship since she’d been a child. And now that she remembered everything, it was hard for her not to walk up to her grandmother and ask her why she’d done this.

“Gabriella. I see you managed to scare everyone needlessly.” Lindsey told her that she preferred to be called by the name she’d lived with for the last twenty years. “And I do not wish to call you such a common name. You are Gabriella Cartwright. And that is all you will ever be to me.”

“All right, but it’s not even Cartwright now. It’s Benson.” Her grandmother looked around the room and paled when she saw Asher. “I see that you’ve met some of my family. Jed, this is my grandmother, the one I was telling you about.”

Lindsey wasn’t sure if she got the dig or not, but her grandmother had to have a seat as well as a drink of water. It surprised her to see neither her mother nor father go to her aid, but instead seemed to distance themselves from her even more. Lindsey might have thought it funny had she not been so pissed off about her.

As if queued, the doors opened again and several of the wait staff came in to take their orders. Lindsey was seated between her parents, her grandmother at the end of the table, and Asher at the head. Jed and Zak sat across from her, and she looked at Jed now when asked what she wanted to order. Thankfully, Jed came to her rescue and ordered for her.

“So what have you been up to? I mean, we know that you’ve been married only a short time. How did you two meet?” Glancing at Jed, she had no idea how to answer her mom. She didn’t think telling her that she’d been doing nothing but trying to stay one step ahead of jail was a good thing. But she had to tell them something. Jed and Zak had told her to tell them what she was comfortable with. She supposed the truth was going to have to do.

“I’ve been mostly trying to keep out of trouble.” That made them laugh, and she shook her head. “No, I’ve seriously been trying to keep out of jail, and it’s been hard. Most of the time…for a long time I didn’t have anywhere to live. And more often than not, I was homeless.”

“No.” Her mom looked at her dad as she continued. “We tried to find you. We’ve never…every year on the anniversary of your disappearance, we’d renew the drive to find you. There was…I have no idea what happened that night. We woke in a fog and it wasn’t until the maid told us you were gone that we realized something had happened to all of us. Not like you, of course, but we were drugged.”

“I wasn’t.” Jed nodded at her when she looked at him. “In fact, until recently, like only minutes before you came in the room, I had no memory of what had happened that night either. But it came back to me when I saw you.”

Her grandmother dropped her fork, and wine spilled on the table when she tried to stand up. The waiter next to her stopped her by putting a hand on her shoulder. When Lindsey looked at Asher, he told her to go on.

“There was a man, Dean Landon, who came into my room that night. He was surprised to find me awake. I had been given a snack that night that I hadn’t eaten. I wasn’t allowed to have things like cookies and cakes at bedtime.” Her dad looked at her, then to the end of the table as she continued. “He told me that I had to be quiet, that if she found out I was awake there would be hell to pay. He also told me that if I screamed or made any kind of noise, the rest of his crew would kill my parents by cutting their throats. I never really understood why she hated me so much, but I guess even then I was afraid of her.”

“She’s confused is all.” Her grandmother tried to stand again, but the man held her there. “Unhand me, you fool. I’m not going to stand for you touching me this way. Donald, tell him to release me. I’ve a terrible headache and I need to go and rest.”

“Gabrielle, could you…Lindsey, could you finish your story, please? I think I’d very much like to hear it all.” Her father never looked at her as he spoke, but kept his eyes on his mother. “Mother, if you move from the seat, you’ll regret it for the rest of your days.”

“I was told that I’d be safe. That I’d never have to be beaten again. I’d never been hit, but I was afraid of what he meant by ‘grandmother.’ That was when I saw her. She was waiting at the door for us.” As she watched her grandmother struggle with the man, Lindsey turned to the men in her life that meant the world to her and always would. “When we got to the car—it was a dark van, really—Willie told me to lay down really quietly and that everything would be all right. I did as he said because I could see Grandmother standing there with her cane. As we drove away, they handed me a burger and I pretended to eat it as they talked in the front of the van.”

“You knew the men?” She told her mother that she hadn’t, but they’d told her who they were. “And this burger, you didn’t eat it? They knew that?”

“No, but when I lay down I could hear them talking. They were supposed to drop me off, you see. Take me to a part of town where there were…I remember thinking at the time that I had no idea what an undesirable was. But that was where I was to go. As I lay there I must have fallen asleep, because when I woke up the next time I was in the home, in a small bed that smelled.”

“Lindsey, honey. Was it your grandmother? Are you sure about that?” She nodded at her dad and looked down the table at her. “Those men, did you ever see them again?”

“Oh, yes. Landon came to the home where I was sometimes and made sure that I had more than the rest. He was caring for me, I suppose, in his own way.”

“Millicent Cartwright….” The man holding her grandmother down finally spoke. “You are under arrest for the kidnapping of Gabriella Cartwright, the murder of Dean Landon, and the—”

Her grandmother stood and slapped the man. As he stumbled away from her, she lunged at Lindsey and her parents. Before she could even get close enough to touch her, Jed had taken her down and Zak was standing there holding Lindsey. It was over that quickly.

Chapter 12

Gabby watched her daughter. She had no idea what she’d been doing with her life. The only information that they’d been given before coming here today was that she’d been found and that she was married. And Gabby really liked the family that she had married into.

“What will happen to her? I mean, will she go to jail?” Gabby smiled. Even after all that her grandmother had done to her, she was still concerned. “I don’t really care, mind you. But I’d hate to have her out seeking revenge on us.”

Gabby burst out laughing. “And here I was thinking after all she’d done to you, you were still sorry for her. Don’t be, even if you were going to be. She’s a nasty old woman, and I hope that she gets everything she deserves.” Gabby found herself admiring her daughter, something that she’d never thought she’d do. “I know nothing about you…what you’ve been doing, how you survived all this time. I know that you were in that horrid home, but nothing else.”

Gabby had also found out from Asher’s attorney that she’d been imprisoned, and he’d warned her, quite firmly, that if she had a problem with it then there was the door. She liked him as well.

“I’m happy now. That’s all that should matter. And you’re here.” Gabriella…Lindsey looked around the room and looked at the two men that could not take their eyes off her. They were in love, the three of them. It didn’t take a lot to see that. “You should know that I’m married to them both if you’re going to be around. I’d like for you to know them, but if that’s something that you don’t approve of, then I’m not going to tell you I’ll fix it. I’m in love with them both.”

“They’re not human.” Lindsey looked at her. “I’m not that dense. I don’t know what they are, but I’m assuming that they’re your…mates, I think they’re called.” Lindsey told her that they were. “I’m not sure how I feel about you having two men in your life, but it seems to work for the three of you. Asher and his wife, they have another male in their life too?”

“Yes. His name is Kiaran. They’re dragons.” Gabby felt her heart take a hard tumble. Dragons. “Not all of them are dragons. Just the…I guess you could call them the human part of them. Zak can change to his human here because of what I am. The other dragons are a part of the men you see here. Each of them have one that they can call to. And they’re old too. Extremely old.”

“I see.” She didn’t, but Gabby was trying. “And what is it that you are? I’m assuming that you’re like them…a dragon?”

“No. I can talk to them. Call them if I need them, or as is happening now, I’m a beacon for them to come to the land that is protected by magic and will keep them safe.” Gabby found her head bobbing as if she understood, but all she could think was her daughter was off her rocker. Not really, but it was difficult to take in. “Mom?”

“No more, please. I’m working through this right now.” Lindsey nodded and sat still while Gabby felt her mind roll in circles. “Tell me about your life before the men. I mean, what did you do?”

“I was a housekeeper for a man that had me chained to the floor for over a year. His plan was to kill me when I’d worn out my welcome, then put my things in a box on the wall near where the other women’s things were put. But he’s dead now; a dragon killed him by chopping him in—” Gabby said her name and Lindsey smiled. “I wanted you to get it all at once. That way when you go home and leave me, you’ll have something to think about.”

“Scaring me off, are you?” Lindsey only shrugged. “I’d rather not go just yet. I’m very…overwhelmed doesn’t even begin to cover what I’m feeling right now, but I’d like to get to know you again. This woman that you’ve become, I don’t know her at all.”

“I don’t know you either. I mean, I know who you are, but nothing more. And to be honest, I’m not sure what to do with you in my life now. Do you?” Gabby had no idea either. It was as if they were strangers. Mother and daughter, but strangers all the same.

“We can work on being friends. I’d like to have you around so I can…I don’t think shopping is something that you do, is it?”

“No. I have a house that is…it’s huge compared to what I have lived in. And while it’s furnished for the most part, there are things we still need.” She grinned, the first true one that Gabby had seen as yet. “I have a garden. And a tractor. I’m not sure what to do with either of them, but I’m excited. And Jed said I could try raising chickens if I wanted. Essie has her herbs and we’ll go mushroom hunting in the spring, but I’m excited to have things of my own.”

Gabby didn’t say that there were things at their house that were hers. And after they were both gone, it would all be hers. Now that Gabby thought of it, preserving a room for this long, hoping for the child to return, had been just silly. And stupid. She looked away when she felt her heart twist up in how long it had been.

“Mom? I’m not going to leave you if you don’t want me to.” Gabby nodded, then shook her head. “Tell me what you’re thinking. Maybe we can fix it.”

“Your room. It’s just the way you left it. All your school books are still on your desk. The bed is made, of course, but it’s all pink and flowers. I guess I never thought of you as a grown woman. I still…I have no idea what I was thinking, but you’re not going to want any of those things.” Lindsey pulled her hand to her cheek and held it there as Gabby thought of all she’d missed. “I have missed you so much, Lindsey.”

“Is Mr. Sham there?” It took Gabby several seconds to remember who that was. The teddy bear…the one that she’d gotten for her when she and Donald were on a business trip when Gabby had been pregnant with her little girl. “I’d like to have him if he’s there. And Miss Bear.”

“The skunk. You were the only child I knew that would name your stuffed animals the most ridiculous names.” Lindsey grinned again. “I have them all. The housekeeping staff goes in and dusts every week, and I think one of them finally convinced me to take all your clothing out of the drawers and closet, but I doubt you could have worn them anyway.”

“I’m pretty sure I’ve gotten taller.” Gabby nodded, still crying about all that she’d lost. “Mom, please don’t cry for missing me. We want to have babies, Jed, Zak, and I, and we’d very much like for you to spoil them rotten. You can make up for missing me by being in their lives. Too much if you want.”

“I’d very much like that.” Gabby looked over at Donald, who had been talking with the police. Millicent was gone, but her shrill voice was still echoing in her head. She was actually upset that they thought her involvement in the kidnapping of their daughter should get her into trouble.

“I’ve talked to the attorney. I can tell you what happened if you’d like to know.” Gabby looked at Lindsey and nodded. “She hired Landon to take me and he brought his brother along to help. When Willie, Landon’s brother, couldn’t find his brother after he’d gone to see Millicent to get his reward for taking me away, he figured she’d killed him. So instead of going to the police, because he had no proof and wasn’t really an upstanding sort of guy, he kept track of things and me over the years so that when he died or someone came looking for me, they’d know.”

“I’m guessing that whatever he had on her, it was a lot.” Lindsey told her mom it was the code to the house alarm and the instructions on which room that they could find her in. “I wonder why he didn’t come to us. I mean, we would have gotten you back and this nightmare would have been over with.”

“She told them that you two were drunks and that I was being abused terribly.” She didn’t tell her mom all of it. There was no reason for her to ever know that not only had the two men gone to see them sprawled out on the couch after the drugs, but that one of them had taken pictures of them and Willie had developed them.

Her mom looked at her dad, and she did too. Jed was talking to him now, and he looked broken. Lindsey knew that her dad and grandmother had never gotten along, but this would be something horrific to take in. His own mother had taken her only grandchild and given her away.

“Did she plan to kill you, do you think?” Lindsey looked at her mom, who was still staring at her dad. “Millicent, do you suppose it was in her plan to kill you?”

“She thought they had.” Her mom nodded and stood up to go to her husband. Zak sat beside her and took her hand into his warmer one. He asked her how she was holding up. “Okay. I told her about us. All of us.”

“She’s trustworthy.” It wasn’t a question, but she nodded to him all the same. “I’ve spoken to Jed, and we were wondering if you’d like for them to come and stay with us a few days. Not in the house with us, but close. Asher said that he could put something together for them.”

“I’d like that, but he doesn’t have to go to that much trouble. I think they’re just as happy in a hotel for now. I’m not sure…we really don’t know each other.” Zak held her hand and told her he loved her. “And I love you. But I was wondering if I will ever have something normal in my life. I’ve been kidnapped, chained up, in jail, and nearly shot. It would be nice to not have so much going on, don’t you think?”

After dinner was started again and the wait staff left them, it was much more relaxed. No one mentioned Millicent, nor did anyone comment on the fact that now she was sitting with Jed on one side and Zak on the other. They were her men, and her parents were going to have to get used to it.

~~~

The drive back to the house was made in silence. Jed was a little worried about Lindsey, but she’d told them several times that she was just fine. He knew that today had taken a great deal out of her, and there was the thing tomorrow that they were going to have to deal with as well. The bodies at the other property had been found in the cave not far from where Cox had lived.

“She’s asleep.” He glanced over at Zak when he spoke quietly. “I have to tell you something. But I don’t want you to freak out.”

“I do not freak out. I’m an old man who has seen a great deal, and have lived through more than my share of—”

“Lindsey is pregnant.” Jed nearly took them to the median. “Yeah, you don’t freak out, do you?”

“How do you know?” When Zak cocked a brow at him, he nearly snarled at him. “You know that she is, so the least you can do is share with me how you know. I’m sure she doesn’t.”

“No. She doesn’t. But she will soon enough. I’d say she’s not far along, about two weeks.” Zak turned in his seat to look at Lindsey as she slept in the back seat. “She’s going to be a wonderful mother. And the reason I know that she’s breeding is because I can smell it on her. I had no idea what I was smelling to be honest, but I asked Elbert. He told me.”

Jed continued to drive, trying to think what he was to do now. Tell her? Not tell her? She’d want to know, he was sure, but when did women want this kind of information? He glanced at Zak when he laughed.

“How long have you known? And for the record, this is sort of scaring the shit out of me.” He told him it was scaring him too. “Do you know what she’s having?”

“I don’t. But I do know that it’s like the three of us. Magical and some dragon in it. I’m not sure how much, but I can feel it calling to me.” Zak looked at him. “Do you think she’ll be okay with that?”

“I think she’ll be thrilled to death with a baby.” He knew what Zak was asking him, and tried to think about how she’d feel with having such a mix of a baby. “I think that if it had four heads and three legs, she’d love it. I’m still…pregnant. Wow, that’s great. We’re going to be fathers.”

“So you know, Essie is breeding too. I don’t know if they are aware of it yet, but I’m sure that Kiaran is. So when they tell us, we need to act surprised.” Jed nodded. Two babies coming into the world. Their family was growing. “Jed, do you think this will change things for us? With her, I mean?”

“I don’t know why it would.” He looked in the rearview mirror, adjusting it so that he could see her. “She’s been through a great deal and she still loves us. I think that says a lot, don’t you?”

“Are you two finished?” Jed should have known that she was listening to them. “I’m not sure what you think will change, and having a baby will be a lot of work. But I know for a fact that the two of you will be wonderful fathers, as well as caregivers. Not to mention, the entire family helping us raise them.”

She sat up and put her hand on her belly. Jed pulled to the side of the road and then off the highway all together. They were close to home, perhaps another ten minutes, but he needed to hold her now. And he was sure that she could use a hug as well. Getting out, she exited the car too and stood near him and Zak. The three of them held onto each other tightly for several minutes.

“I want you.” Jed rubbed his hand down to her ass and pulled her tightly against him even as Zak held onto her breast. “Christ, I need to fuck you.”

As they took her deeper in the woods, all he could think about was being inside of her, taking her right there in the wooded area. When they found an old picnic table, he took off his shirt and laid it over it. She was naked when she lay over it, her legs spread open for them.

Moving between her legs, Jed fisted his cock. His clothing, like hers and Zak’s, had disappeared almost as soon as they were out there. Zak moved to the seat at the table and began suckling at her breasts even as Jed entered her slowly.

She was wet and tight, her body slipping over his cock noisily as he pulled her legs up to his shoulders. Taking her slowly, he watched Zak as he stood up and fucked her breasts as Lindsey held his cock in her fingers. When she pulled him to her mouth and Zak moaned, Jed felt his balls tighten up as they filled. He loved watching the two of them together.