Springer, Jan - In Her Bed [The Desperadoes 2] (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour) (9 page)

Liz plastered on a fake smile for her suspicious friend. “Weird? I am? Oh, um, I’m just sleepy. The thunderstorm kept me awake,” she lied.

Teyla frowned with puzzlement, her eyes sharpening as she studied Liz. “I thought there were just a couple of low rumbles.”

Oh great. She’d been up at the crack of dawn, too?

“Would you like some sugar with your coffee?” Liz said, trying to change the subject. She reached for the sugar jar she kept in the middle of the table and noticed her hands were trembling.

Oh darn.

Teyla’s gaze narrowed as she also caught sight of Liz’s shaking hands. “They’re here, aren’t they?”

“Excuse me?” Liz’s face flamed, giving her away.

Teyla’s mouth dropped open. “And you’ve had sex with them already, haven’t you? That’s why you’re acting so weird.”

“Keep your voice down,” Liz whispered, not wanting to wake up the men. At least not yet.

“With all three of them? I thought you said you weren’t going to give in to
Durango
if he ever came back?”

Shock mingled with glitters of amusement and excitement in her friend’s eyes.

“How did you know there were three? And how do you know he’s back?”

Teyla shrugged her shoulders. “They dropped by yesterday afternoon. They looked pretty beat. I wanted to help fix their wounds, but all three refused.
Durango
said he would wait until you patched them all up.”

All three? What?

“
Durango
was wounded, too?” She hadn’t seen any other injuries on him. Just the one in his arm. The one he said she’d put there. Or had she? Why would
Durango
make her feel so guilty if she wasn’t responsible? Anger flared, and Liz swore softly beneath her breath. So she would allow him to keep them here, that’s why he’d lied.

“Gosh, you really are rattled. You can’t even remember the wound to his arm?”

Liz shook her head, totally pissed at being duped.

Grabbing her coffee mug, she took a tentative sip of the scalding black bitter liquid and felt the heat zip down her throat. It reminded her of having Landon’s hot, pulsing cock in her mouth. Oh great, she was already addicted to sex with two men.

Suddenly Teyla squirmed with excitement in her seat and clasped her hands together with overly obvious delight. “Okay, you are really blushing now, Liz. What did they do to you?”

Liz closed her eyes and shook her head, feeling really embarrassed now. She didn’t make it a habit of talking about sex. She spoke to her clients about
their
sexual escapades, but she tended to keep her affairs a secret. Okay, affairs might not be the right word. Sharing wouldn’t be considered an affair if
Durango
was in on it and wanted it, right?

“I couldn’t refuse them. It was
Durango
and Landon. I thought I could, but they’re just so…”

“Sexy?” Teyla prodded.

Yeah, there was that. “Insistent,” Liz said.

“Hot?”

Liz nodded. “And so demanding.
Durango
put a plug in me.”

“Oh my gosh,” Teyla breathed and threw up her hands over her mouth, obviously excited that she’d spoken too loud.

“And he said they would take me whenever
they
wanted,” Liz confessed, remembering
Durango
’s dark, erotic words.

“You must have made him really hot if he’s assuming you’re going to go for that. What did you tell him? Did you set him straight? Tell him that they would take you whenever
you
wanted to?”

“No, I just…accepted it. The firm way he spoke made me even more aroused.” Was she a sick woman or what?

“Oh wow, this is awesome. I’m so excited for you. To have three men just taking you whenever…well, actually, that’s what my three men do, but you were supposed to be different. Stronger than me. Defiant. Professional doctor. Girl power and all that.”

Liz could see the sides of Teyla’s lips struggling to lift and realized her friend was kidding her.

“I want to experience more of it,” Liz confessed, totally not believing she was confessing this out loud and to Teyla.

“That’s good to hear.”

Liz forgot to breathe as
Durango
’s low voice rumbled over her like smooth black velvet.

“Hi, Ethan.” Teyla waved to an area behind Liz and then winked at Liz.

Panic snapped through her. Oh God.
Durango
was up already and he’d heard her confession? Oh sweet heavens. This was so not good. What about Landon? And the other one? Had they heard, too? Were they standing behind her as well? She dared not look.

Oh, she was so not ready to deal with them. Not now. Not when she had Teyla sitting here, her eyebrows raised with curiosity, obviously awaiting Liz’s next move.

“Hey, doll. Nice to see you. I thought I heard voices. Your guys around, Teyla?”

“They’re over in the west field. There’s some good grass for hay there,” Teyla answered, taking a nonchalant sip of her coffee, acting totally normal and pretending that what Liz had just told her didn’t affect her one way or the other.

Liz could feel him all around her, and the tension zipping from him to her screamed sex. When he walked into her view, her insides melted. He wore nothing but his hip-hugging blue jeans and those perfectly sculpted, tanned muscles…Liz swore she was hot flashing just looking at them, although she was nowhere near menopause.

“I see Liz took care of that bullet wound for you.”

Liz saw
Durango
stiffen, and obviously he knew the cat was out of the bag. He didn’t answer. He also averted Liz’s gaze.

Son of a bitch. She would deal with him the moment Teyla was gone. He could bet on that.

“I think I’ll get dressed and pop on over and give your guys a hand, Tey. I’ll go out the back way. Nice seeing you again.”

“Likewise, Ethan,” Teyla chirped. A bit too happily where Liz was concerned. But then again, Teyla was always happy these days with three men sexually satisfying her, protecting her, and loving her.

They both waited for
Durango
to disappear down the hallway before Teyla leaned over the table and whispered softly, “He is so hunky. And the other two are, too. My goodness, Dr. Liz, you certainly do have the hottest male patients, and I’m not only speaking of your guys, but the last three guys you sent my way,” Teyla gushed.

Then her mouth dropped into a quick frown. “I wonder sometimes what would have happened to me if Logan, Cass, and Spencer hadn’t arrived when they did. I love them all so dearly. I dread anything happening to them, especially if those vigilantes decide they want to go after them for their part in the Durango Gang. Has Ethan said anything to you about quitting?”

That last question hit Liz in the gut like a bullet, and she sucked in a sharp breath at the impact. With all this sexual tension between her and
Durango
, she hadn’t really thought about it. Yet, here it was, poised over her head like a guillotine.

Teyla’s brows furrowed with concern. “You have talked to him about this. I mean, you can’t just allow them to have sex with you and then just leave. That’s just not right, Liz. You deserve better. You have to demand better for yourself. When he leaves, it will hurt you just like the last time. Maybe you don’t remember, but I do. You were a basket case for weeks.”

“I can handle this. I will handle this. I want this. I
need
this.”

“Be practical, Liz. You don’t need to be a pleasure girl for them.”

“But you were one.” Those words escaped her mouth, and from the pained expression on Teyla’s face, Liz knew she shouldn’t have said anything. Besides being a friend, Teyla was also her client. She needed to remember to remain sensitive.

“It was different for me. I needed the money.”

I need the sex
. Masturbation was good and all, but she needed the sex with
Durango
and the others. Had been craving it like a drug ever since
Durango
had brought up the subject months ago before he’d left. Before even meeting him, she’d dreamt of having ménages with strangers, but she’d been too damned shy to follow through on anything.

Oh man, she must be twisted or something. No, actually, that wasn’t true.
Durango
wasn’t twisted, and he wanted the same as her.

“I can handle this,” Liz replied with renewed firmness.

“You love him, so I bet you can.” Teyla smiled, and Liz felt confidence burn through her.

Yes, I can
. She just hoped she wasn’t deluding herself.

* * * *

Ethan Durango found Logan Leigh working an iron pole as he tried prying a giant boulder from the clutches of the hard field. In the distance, Spencer and Cassidy led a couple of black horses that dragged a funny-looking contraption that seemed to mow down the tall, yellowing grass, spreading it over the land.

Ethan couldn’t help but grin. It looked like a sight right out of a pioneer movie. Old-fashioned harvesting with horses. Despite the icy bite of the wind blowing against them, he noticed perspiration drenching
Logan
’s shirt and his forehead. His hands looked red and cold as he gripped the metal pole and pushed this way and that way trying to dislodge the boulder.

Logan and the other guys worked so unwaveringly that, to Ethan’s disappointment and concern, none of the men took the time to look around to see if a lynching party was coming for them. Had the trio of ex-gang members relaxed so much they’d let down their guard?

Man, this farmer stuff just wasn’t like the men he’d come to know in the gang. As far as he knew the closest any of them had come to farm work was tilling the soil with a rototiller in their backyards. Teyla sure had changed them from alert men to relaxed farmers.

Amazing.

Ethan wasn’t sure if he could feel so relaxed if he was put into this same position. Running with the Durango Gang had made him alert, lean, and hungry for violence against the men and women who were taking advantage of the regular people in need. Yeah, sure, he could go into politics and run for office and change things that way.

Unfortunately there was no government to run for. People were fending for themselves since the Catastrophe. There were no social safety nets in place, no health care, and food was certainly lacking. The only thing that spoke these days was money, and that was where he came in by taking from the rich and giving to the poor. Not that he literally gave to the poor. He gave the money to soup kitchens that were opening up in the cities. He’d even helped dish out the food he’d bought and brought to these places.

His stealing was what made him a criminal, and he now appeared on most wanted posters pretty much everywhere. Truth was, he felt like he was making a difference, and to him that’s what counted. It beat feeling useless and fending for himself. The only problem was every time he sent money back with one of the guys who dropped in to check on Liz, she’d refused it.

Her refusal pissed him off, but he understood her principles and why she preferred to live the way she did, accepting whatever a client could give her for her services. She was a giver. Not a taker.

It had always impressed him that she was so giving. That was one of the reasons he’d fallen in love with her. Another reason, of course, was her pretty face and her concern for him when he’d sliced his palm open on that hot, humid day in the garage.

“Backbreaking work, is it?”
Durango
asked from where he stood watching.

Before
Durango
could blink
Logan
had palmed a gun from out of nowhere and pointed it right at Ethan’s chest.

Ethan swallowed as fear cleaved into him. Instantly he realized his mistake. The scenery had looked serene, but
Logan
appeared to have known he was here the whole time. Shit. The guy certainly hadn’t lost his touch, had he?

“Shouldn’t sneak up on a man like that, Ethan. You know better than that. Had you been anyone else we would have taken you down the minute you entered the field.”
Logan
chuckled and nodded to his right.

Realizing he’d forgotten to breathe, Ethan inhaled deeply and followed Logan’s gaze to where Cassidy and Spencer now stood not more than thirty feet away, their guns drawn, aiming at Ethan. Their faces were stern and tight. Obviously he should have announced his arrival. He wouldn’t be coming in quietly where these guys were concerned. At least, not anymore.

“Easy, boys. I come in peace,” Ethan said as he slowly lifted his hands in a submissive motion. “What’s gotten up your asses?”

Suddenly all three men started laughing and Ethan relaxed. The bastards were toying with him. He hoped.

In seconds, the men had surrounded Ethan and were back-slapping him and returning to their own jovial, if not uptight selves.

“Daylight is burning, my man. Have you come to lend us a hand?”
Logan
asked as Cassidy and Spencer quickly said their good-byes and headed back to their horses.