Oak, Sophie - Siren Beloved [Texas Sirens 4] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) (22 page)

Aidan had always known he would have to jump this hurdle in the end. He just hadn’t expected it to happen so damn soon. And certainly not when he was five minutes from heaven. Lexi had agreed to let him make love to her. Oh, she had called it sex, but he would be making love. If Karen hadn’t noticed the Barnes-Fleetwood family asking for directions and decided it was a perfect way to see him again, he would be balls deep inside Lexi and one step closer to getting her back.

At least Karen had run off in tears. It had been suitably dramatic. She’d cursed Lexi’s name and completely ignored the fact that Lucas was there. Maybe she would finally get the picture.

Jack stared out the window, his eyes widening. “Um, I think I better go save your brother. He offered to show our daughter around. She’s trying to ride your dog. I don’t see your brother. I hope she hasn’t killed him. Or tied him up. We all know you have a lot of rope around here.”

Jack took off running, the front door slamming behind him. Sam kept up his rocking, and Abby closed in on Aidan. Apparently Olivia Barnes-Fleetwood wreaking havoc wasn’t anything new.

“My husband might think you have good intentions, but I don’t care. I was there after you dumped my daughter. I remember how hurt she was. She wouldn’t even come home for nearly six months. She was devastated. Did you dump her for that blonde bimbo?”

“No, Momma,” Lexi said, walking somberly into the room. Aidan wanted to scream his frustration. While they had been in the barn, she’d been alive again. Now she was shut down. “He didn’t leave me for Karen. Karen was his high school girlfriend. He didn’t exactly dump me.”

“What?” Abby asked.

Now Sam’s eyes were open, and he watched the scene in front of him.

Lucas walked into the room looking like he’d never gotten caught with his pants off. Lucas was smooth as silk. It intimidated Aidan sometimes. Lucas always seemed to know what to say, to do, in order to make things run like clockwork. Aidan fumbled so often.

“I’m afraid this is mostly my fault, Abby.” Lucas slid an arm around Lexi, giving her his support. “You see, Aidan asked Lexi to choose between him and me.”

Sam snorted. “Didn’t look like she was choosing a while ago. And Aidan’s obviously bi. I believe I mentioned that back when I met him a few years ago. He was looking at Lucas back then, too. What’s up with all these guys not realizing they’re bisexual? Here’s the clue, buddy, when you’re around another dude and you get a hard-on, you might be bi.”

“Sam!” Abby turned on her husband.

But Aidan actually didn’t mind. He laughed a little. So much of dealing with his sexuality had been wrapped in endless drama. It felt good to laugh about it. He did owe Abby an explanation. “I had never, um, loved a man before Lucas. I fought it for a long time. I thought that wanting Lucas made me gay. And I didn’t understand how I could want Lucas when I loved Lexi so much.”

“And being around her family made you believe that wasn’t a workable relationship?” There was no mistaking the offended air pouring off of Abby. Aidan knew her story. She’d been surrounded by small town judgment all her life. “I will admit that I wondered if you left Lexi because you disapproved of her mother’s lifestyle.”

“No.” He said it, but it rang untrue. He had worried about it. Damn it, he had to be honest. “Yes, Mrs. Barnes. It’s why I never invited you to meet my father or even told him more than the fact that you were married to Jack Barnes. I never mentioned Sam.”

Sam shook his head. “The best looking one is always the dirty little secret. Although I’m not little. I’m a big secret, if you know what I mean.”

“Sam,” Abby scolded him again, but her lips had curled up, and she shook her head with affection. She leaned over and brushed her lips against his. “I would never keep you a secret. I want the whole world to know about us. Jack feels the same way. It’s you and me and Jack forever.”

“I hope you still feel that way next weekend, baby.”

“I’m not afraid of Jack.” She stood back up and crossed her arms over her chest, going from adoring lover to pissed off momma in an instant. “So you’re telling me that now you’re fine with your sexuality—or are you trying to make Lexi choose again? I warn you, she will choose Lucas. Lucas is good for her.”

“No, he’s not. Not entirely,” Aidan said.

Lexi opened her mouth to speak, but Lucas’s hand came around, closing neatly over her lips.

“Agreed,” Lucas said. He was the only one who seemed completely at ease. “Lexi needs a firmer hand than I like to give. I greatly prefer to be the indulgent one. And I also like a nice little discipline session from time to time. I’m a switch, but Lexi has never enjoyed playing the Domme. Though she does like to play the brat. You can lick my hand all you like. It’s not going to make me stop.”

“Don’t you dare bite him,” Aidan barked, anticipating her next move.

Lucas pulled his hand back. Lexi was shaking her head. “You wouldn’t take it from me, babe. I get that we need a Dom.”

“Well, it doesn’t have to be him.” Abby reached out and took her daughter’s hand. “Come on, we’re going home. Lucas, you can come with us, but I’m not terribly happy with you, either. You let this happen.”

Lucas stepped out from behind Lexi, his face going hard. “Be as unhappy with me as you like, Abby, but we made this decision together. We decided to come out here, and we’re staying out here. And I might be a switch, but I top your daughter, and I expect you to respect that.”

“Mom, I’m not going anywhere,” Lexi said, holding on to her mother’s hand.

Abby didn’t give up easily. “We can protect you better at home. Julian said he has a couple of detectives looking into whoever shot at you. Jack can hire security.”

“And so can Aidan and I,” Lucas replied. He looked over at Aidan, his green eyes clearly expecting something more from him.

“We can,” Aidan said, stepping up. He squared his shoulders. Abby Barnes might be his future mother-in-law, but on this he wasn’t going to indulge her. He didn’t have the money, but he could borrow it. He had things he could sell if he had to. He would go bankrupt if it meant Lexi was safe. “Lucas can look into it this afternoon. Look, we chose to come out here because it’s isolated, and everyone notices a stranger. I have a security system, but more importantly, I will die before I allow anything to happen to Lexi, and I know Lucas feels the same.”

“Damn straight.” Lucas relaxed back a bit, seemingly happy to let Aidan take the lead. “Besides, we don’t have to worry about Olivia and Josh out here. At least we didn’t until you brought them with you. Out here we only have to worry about Bo and some ranch hands.”

“And Karen,” Lexi sniped. “She seems to love it out here.”

The brat was back. Aidan replied with a sharp edge. This was a conversation for private. “Alexis, I did not invite her.”

Lexi shrugged. “Just so you know, if someone takes another shot at me, I’m ducking behind her.”

Aidan felt himself smile. “You do that, baby.”

Lucas’s phone rang. He answered it as Jack opened the door. A small red-haired girl ran in. Olivia was wearing overalls and bright pink cowboy boots. Ike followed behind her, his tongue lolling out.

“Daddy, Momma! I made a friend. His name is Ike, and he ain’t got not tail because they chopped it off, but Aidan didn’t chop it off. Tourists chopped it off. But then Aidan went and fought the tourists. I hope we don’t get no tourists here. We would have to hide all the dogs.”

Abby laughed for a moment, but then got on one knee so she was talking on her daughter’s level. “First off, young lady, the dog doesn’t have a tail, and you hope we don’t get any tourists here.”

Jack put a hand on his daughter’s head. “She spends a lot of time with ranch hands.”

Abby glowed as she looked at her daughter, the dissension of before vanishing. “And I believe it’s ‘terrorists,’ though I doubt they chopped off that poor dog’s tail. I believe it’s the culture in some parts of the world. Even here in the States, for some breeds, it’s considered very common.”

“It would terrify me if someone tried to chop off my tail,” Sam replied.

Bo was standing in the doorway. His face was red, and he was out of breath. “I’m never having kids. My heart can’t take it. She never stops. Never.”

Aidan took a long look at his brother. Was Lucas right? Was Bo just putting on an act? Why would he tell a little girl that terrorists cut off a dog’s tail, but his brother had fought them? Since the day Aidan came back and announced that he was going after Lucas and Lexi, Bo had acted like he had a disease. Maybe he just needed time—or a little kindness.

Lucas hung up his phone. “I hate to break up this intriguing political discussion, but the Dawson brothers are waiting for us in town. They want to talk to all three of us about the case. They’re at some place called Patty Cake’s.”

Aidan knew it well. “It’s a diner. Is there a reason they won’t come out here?”

Lucas shook his head. “Apparently they don’t believe in places without Wi-Fi.”

Patty Cake’s was the only place in town for wireless internet. It looked like they were headed into Deer Run. Aidan just wasn’t sure Deer Run was ready for them.

* * * *

Lexi perked up as Aidan pulled into the parking lot of Patty Cake’s Diner and Pie House. The afternoon was not going the way she’d expected. What had she been thinking? If her mother hadn’t interrupted them, she would have let Aidan climb up on that table and fuck her senseless.

But it was only sex
, that mocking inner voice said.
You only want the sex.

She didn’t want anything else. She didn’t love the way it felt to be squeezed into the cab of Aidan’s truck. She didn’t adore how small she felt surrounded by Aidan and Lucas. She wasn’t even vaguely enamored of the idea of being their girl. Aidan had lost his chance when she’d lost their…

“Lexi?” Aidan looked down at her, concern in his brown eyes. “Are you all right? You don’t have to be here. I can handle this, and Lucas can take you home.”

Oh, she really didn’t like the way he said “home.” The thought of a home with Aidan and Lucas did nothing for her. The idea of taking Aidan’s ramshackle house and turning it into something they could be happy in—it did nothing for her.
Who are you fooling?
“No, I don’t want to go back to the ranch. I want to talk to them.”

Lucas opened his door and hopped out, turning to help her out. That was Lucas’s way. She had never, ever been allowed to let herself out of a car when Lucas was around. He treated her like she was precious. Lucas held his hand out, but his eyes fell. Lexi turned to see what had him upset. Aidan stood there, his hand out to help her down. Aidan’s hand came down as he obviously believed she would prefer Lucas. Lexi looked back at Lucas, her heart a little torn. Sure Aidan had been an asshole, but she still felt his pain.

Lucas winked at her and walked away. The bastard left her with no choice but to take Aidan’s hand or get out on her own and look like a bitch. She could hurt Aidan. She could choose to scoot out and stand on her own two feet, proving she wanted nothing from him. Lexi turned and let her hand find his. In the end, she couldn’t hurt him that way. He helped her from the truck and set her on her feet.

“Just say the word and I’ll take you home, Lexi.”

“I’ll be fine.” She tried not to think about how nice it was to stand close to him. Lucas, that manipulative weasel, had moved in behind her, reminding her of how amazing it was to be surrounded by them. Lucas’s hands were on her hips while Aidan’s cupped her shoulders.

“Of course you will be. We’ll make sure of it, baby,” Lucas murmured in her ear.

“I want waffles, Momma!” Olivia ran by, her booted feet tearing up the sidewalk.

Her mom chased after, and Lexi couldn’t help but laugh. Her sister was an adorable ball of chaos. Jack walked by, cradling her baby brother, and she had to look away. Lucas’s hands tightened around her.