Diane [The Town of Pearl 6] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) Page 2

  She took in the sight of her curves and how she kept her pussy so nicely shaven just in case she had the guts to lose her virginity once and for all. But even as she had gone out tonight and danced with the cowboys who were mighty fine looking, she didn’t feel that connection, or powerful desire she wanted to feel.

  Yet, as Mark helped her with the tire, appeared out of nowhere and spoke to her so firmly and with authority, her body spasmed, her pussy throbbed and the thought of asking him into her home flashed through her mind, arousing her more than the touches from those cowboys at the dance hall. I’m obsessed, but because I’m so stupid, I’ll never have a chance with Mark or his brothers. Never.

  * * * *

  Mark and Drake Santos stood by the concession stand. The park was crowded with so many residents of Pearl. He spotted Melissa Mercury pushing her son in a stroller. Melissa’s three husbands, Hank, Paul, and Willie, were walking along with her.

  “Do you see Diane?” Drake asked as his brother continued to look at the scene before him.

  Mark swallowed hard. He hadn’t caught sight of Diane at all and they had been there for over an hour. He told his brothers about finding her on the side of the road the other night, drenched with her see-through dress on. He also told them about her night at the dance hall and about hooking up. It pissed him off. He would have loved to have pulled her into his arms and kissed her breathless on the side of the road. But God knows he wouldn’t have been able to stop himself from having all of her. Hell, he imagined taking her in the rain up against the side of her Jeep. He thought about getting out of his car outside her home and seeing if she would welcome him in.

  “Do you see her? What’s wrong with you?”

  “No, I don’t see her,” Mark said and continued to watch Diane’s sister with her men. It was a sight that tugged at his heart. Two years ago he never would have thought that watching three other men care for their loving woman while pushing their child in a stroller was the greatest thing. But now things were different. He had his brothers back safe from the service, he was working for the government less and less, and they were finally coming to terms with their attraction to Diane, and the need to start making their feelings known.

  That was easier said than done. He traveled often for work. The government job wasn’t supposed to be full time anymore. Mark was sick of the gruesome crimes, dealing with the evil criminal minds, and mostly, being away from his family. He wanted to set roots. That was why he talked his brothers into moving out here to Pearl. They needed to slow down and enjoy life after years of living on the edge and in the midst of danger. After coming to Pearl to help with a case and meeting Diane, he knew the time had come.

  He thought about Lucas. He was his biggest concern now. Despite the man’s need to remain so closed up and lost in thought even as he hand carved the wooden clocks he made, their bond as brothers was still there. Meeting Diane had changed all of them, and now that they were on the same page and making the necessary changes in their lives, it was time to take action.

  How the hell could they just stand by and watch her go out to dance halls, perhaps hook up with other men, when she was meant for them. There was still that concern that her shy act was just that, an act. But now that they wasted nearly a full year watching her, they pretty much knew she really was shy. More importantly, she didn’t date at all.

  “Oh shit. I see her, and I don’t like what I’m seeing,” Drake whispered. Mark’s heart immediately started to race, and when he spotted Diane, their woman, she was walking with a group of young men from town. All single, all interested in Diane.

  Her long brown hair was pulled to one side, and she was wearing an off-the-shoulder white blouse with a slim-fitting skirt that flared right above her knees. The tan mid-calf cowgirl boots were embellished with sparkles along the trim that matched the trim on her skirt and her blouse. From here Mark could see she was wearing one of those sexy halter tops beneath the blouse, yet the buttons were too high to expose the abundant amount of cleavage their woman had.

  She was shy, reserved, and classy, but most importantly, she didn’t date or at least that they knew of. He was glad that his brother Lucas wasn’t here. The man would tell them to forget about Diane and just let him live his life alone.

  Things were going to change, and that would be sooner than later.

  “If that asshole Colin puts his hand on her waist that close to her ass again, I’m going over there,” Drake whispered. Mark felt the same way, but they were at least five years older than those men, a good nine almost ten years older than Diane’s twenty-six years of age. Fighting potential competition off in front of her was not exactly going to win over a woman like Diane. She was built with curves in all the right places. She was gorgeous, a real looker, but seemed oblivious to it. Every single guy in town and out who met her hit on her and flirted. Mark and his brothers knew they needed to do things differently, or they could lose their chance to make her their woman.

  “She’s headed this way,” Drake stated.

  “Good, let’s get her away from those assholes. See if she’d like to join us for some lemonade or something.”

  “Good afternoon, Diane. You look amazing.” They both turned to hear Sage say to Diane. Dale and Virgo gave them a tap to their shoulders and they turned to greet their friends.

  “What’s going on?” Virgo asked Mark and then nodded his head toward Sage and Diane who were smiling and talking.

  “Not much,” Drake said, and then they turned toward Diane and Sage.

  “Hey guys, what’s going on? Is Lucas here, too?” Sage asked and then kissed them on the cheek hello.

  “No, he’s working on some things at the house,” Drake responded and then looked at Diane.

  “How are you doing today, Diane?” Mark asked and moved closer to her. The guys she had been walking with remained a few feet away as if they were just waiting to resume where they left off with Diane. Well, that wasn’t happening.

  “I’m good, and how are you two?” She smiled and then shyly looked away toward Sage.

  “We’re walking over to grab some drinks. Do you want to come along?” Sage asked them.

  “Definitely.”

  “How about you guys?” Virgo asked Mark and Drake.

  “Sounds good,” Drake replied, and then they all headed over to the lemonade stand.

  Mark and Drake immediately took position on either side of Diane. Every chance they had to bump her, rub against her, inhale her perfume, or ask her a question, they took advantage of. Mark couldn’t believe how nervous, excited, and just so damn attracted he was to her.

  “Did you get the other tires checked out on the Jeep?” Mark asked, trying to make conversation.

  Diane looked up toward him to answer his question. “After you called Willie, he had the entire jeep checked over,” she replied with a little bit of attitude. Was she angry with him for calling Willie? Well, she shouldn’t be. He was looking out for her safety.

  “I’m glad to hear that. A young woman shouldn’t be out so late at night to begin with, never mind in a vehicle that isn’t in top condition,” he added, holding her gaze.

  “The Jeep is three years old. I was handling the flat tire fine.”

  He raised his eyebrow at her.

  “I was, Mark. I’m not some teenager, I’m a grown woman,” she added.

  “Are you here on your own today or did someone bring you?” Drake asked her, interrupting the potential argument. She pulled her lip between her teeth. It was a nervous habit he found adorable. Hell, she wasn’t a teenager, anyone with fucking eyes could see she was all woman.

  “I came alone, how about you guys? No special lady friends today?” she replied again with a bit of attitude that wasn’t Diane at all.

  “Why would you think that?” Drake asked, sounding insulted.

  Diane cleared her throat. “I didn’t mean anything. I just figured since Mark frequents the boutique and picked out some nice things the other day that you m
ight be here with someone special.”

  Mark leaned closer, reached up, and moved a strand of her long brown hair away from her cheek. “We’re checking out the prospects.” He held her gaze.

  “I see,” she said, and then Sage interrupted, passing her lemonade.

  “Thank you.” She took a sip as she looked around the area.

  They all continued to walk together and Virgo brought up the new dance floor that Sage, Lena, and Abigail were opening up in the back of the bed-and-breakfast.

  “That is going to be awesome. So many people are going to love hanging out there on the weekends and enjoying the activities you have planned,” Diane said.

  “Well, I can’t wait to see you out there. I know how good you are at dancing. You’ll have the cowboys lining up outside of the boutique,” Sage teased.

  “No, not me. You know how shy I am.”

  “Honey, you can dance. I’ve seen the videos,” Dale teased Diane and she blushed. Mark found the information interesting. Not that he was much of a dancer, but the kind of dancing he’d want his woman to do would be fun for all of them.

  “That’s interesting information. Maybe you’d like to show us what sexy moves you’ve got, Diane. I know I’d love to see them,” Drake teased, and then he gave her shoulder a little nudge with his own.

  She looked so sweet and shy. “I don’t think so.”

  Virgo and Dale teased Diane some more and then Sage started in on her men as Melissa and her men came over to join them. Immediately Diane bent down to say hello to the baby giving Mark and his brother the perfect view of her breasts. They were full and round, overflowing from the sexy top she wore beneath the blouse. He wouldn’t be able to resist the attraction for much longer. Mark needed to set his brothers straight and get them on board.

  “Hey, Diane, we’re going to meet the others by the bed-and-breakfast to see how the dance hall is coming along. Want to join us?” Colin asked.

  “I’ll see you guys later. I really want to see what it looks like.” Diane headed toward the group of guys and Mark looked at Drake.

  “When are you two and Lucas going to ask Diane out and let her know how you feel?” Willie asked them.

  They looked at the crowd of friends around them.

  “When the time is right,” Drake said.

  “I’d hate to tell you guys this, but you’d better make it soon. She isn’t going to keep saying no to all those offers much longer,” Paul told them.

  “No way. She’s too beautiful, and if they keep asking, eventually they’re going to break her down,” Paul added.

  Drake looked at Mark. “We need to talk to Lucas. Today.”

  Mark watched Diane disappear with a group of young men and he knew that time was running out. They wanted her. They thought about no other woman for the past year. It was time to stake a claim and let Diane know she was theirs. They just needed Lucas to finally agree to take the chance. It was time to overcome their fears and go after the woman they wanted.

  Chapter 2

  Lucas was staring at the clock he just finished staining. The details he added to this one were so complex, he had obsessed over the design and pattern so much that he dreamt of the clocks instead of having nightmares. Moving out to Pearl, developing his love of carving combined with his appreciation of cuckoo clocks were the best decisions he had made.

  He thought about how he started liking the clocks after a stint in Germany during his military career. They intrigued him, and he was lucky enough to meet a craftsman who taught him all about creating the clocks from scratch. He wondered if his brothers were enjoying the event in town, yet he didn’t feel guilty for not attending, too. As much as he wanted to see Diane, especially after Mark finding her on the side of the road late at night and alone, he feared socializing.

  He was a quiet man, and liked his privacy. He heard what people said about him and the rumors about him not being right. Well, if going through the experiences he did, and not acting like life was perfect made him strange, then so be it. When had he ever cared what anyone else thought except for his brothers? They were his life, his reasons for not taking up his friends’ offers of living off the land out in the middle of nowhere. There was a time, when he first returned from serving, that he thought about moving to those places. He questioned the way people looked at him, the way he reacted to sounds and normal events around him, and he questioned his own sanity.

  It had taken Drake’s equal experiences and stronger confidence plus Mark’s persistence to get Lucas to hold on and stay with them. He looked above the clock at the desk wall and the various things he had posted there. Diane’s picture, Drake had taken a few months ago was sitting in the center. How many times had he looked up at that picture and wondered if he were good enough for her? Whole enough for such a beautiful woman?

  He didn’t think he could ever be intimate with a woman again where he could release himself fully. Sure, he had needs and he took care of those, out of town, hell, out of the area entirely. He wondered if there was something wrong with Drake, Mark and him for seeing Diane, deciding that they wanted to share her, yet not asking her if that was what she wanted.

  They hoped that she was interested and just as attracted to them, but what if she wasn’t? Her attitude toward Mark was not so positive the other night despite Mark’s interpretation. As they were getting closer to telling Diane how they felt, Lucas wondered if he should back out now. He wasn’t good at talking, at showing his affection, and Diane could feel like she had to settle and accept him when she accepted his brothers. It didn’t sit right. The more he thought about it, the more he realized what he had to do.

  His chest tightened and he felt that guilty, worthless feeling inside. It was time.

  * * * *

  Mark couldn’t believe the phone call he received from Blaze Weathers. Brenda’s commander called to let Blaze know that Brenda was missing and was presumed dead. Mark ran his fingers through his hair. He felt terrible. Hell, he couldn’t believe that she was dead, and until there was concrete evidence of that, he wasn’t going to mourn her.

  He felt a slight tightness in his chest. It was kind of a guilty feeling even though there was nothing between them anymore. But they worked together. They shared one or two lonely nights in the field, and she had just called him recently. That bothered him more. She wasn’t working on any special cases. Her commander said she was taking time off and was about to embark on a two-week vacation.

  What the hell happened? This wasn’t like Brenda.

  He thought about the case they worked on a couple of years ago. He was in charge of extricating a certain wanted killer from Argentina, back to the United States. Mark had tracked him, thanks to Brenda, to Wyoming, where she just happened to be working undercover to try and snag a team of smugglers. Their cases crossed, and they worked hand in hand to bring down a pretty large organization. They were all under the command of some unknown individual in Persia. But that wasn’t Mark’s job. He got his man and aided the agents, including Brenda, with arresting over a dozen men. The worse part of that case was how close they got to identifying and capturing the Persian. But something went down back at headquarters and Brenda’s commander called them off. It never sat right with any of them.

  * * * *

  “What’s that serious expression for, bro?” Drake asked Mark as he walked into the kitchen. Mark was staring at some papers and glancing at his laptop computer.

  Mark didn’t respond.

  “Hey, Mark,” Drake repeated, and Mark looked up, appearing rather preoccupied.

  “Hey, sorry, what’s going on?” Mark asked but then looked back at the computer screen as he used the mouse pad to scroll down.

  “Working on something for the big man?” Drake asked, referring to all of Mark’s secret government jobs in such a way.

  Mark released a sigh and then looked back at him. Drake could tell right away that something was bothering him.

  “What’s up?”

  “I don�
�t know. I mean I’m not sure,” Mark said as he reached up and rubbed the back of his neck. He still looked bothered and upset at something.

  “You seem preoccupied with what you’re reading on the screen.”

  “Well, I am actually. Do you remember that case I was working on two years ago, when I headed out of the country and then to Wyoming for a few months?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Do you remember Brenda?” Mark ran his hands through his crew cut hair.

  “Sure, she was one of the agents from out there. You guys got close.”

  Mark licked his lower lip and then took a deep breath and released it.

  “Wait, you got more than close. You were sleeping with her?” Drake asked.

  Mark leaned back in his chair. “It was a quick fling. We weren’t right for one another, and most importantly she wasn’t right for us. But she was a good person.”

  “I could tell that you cared for her. Hell, Mark, there’s nothing wrong with the fact that we’ve all had our share of women. Lucas and myself especially were on a rampage of self-destruction when we returned from serving. So what’s the deal? Did Brenda send you something?”

  Mark looked up at him. “Brenda’s missing.”

  “Missing?”

  “There’s a group of us that more often than not turn to one another because of our specialties. It’s not an official announcement yet, but it seems that she’s either been taken or is dead. They don’t know and the team has been working diligently to find out more information.”

  “I’m sorry, Mark.”

  Mark looked away a moment. “She’s been seeing a guy in the bureau, Carter, for the last few months. I’m sure he’s freaking out. But then my commander heard from hers, and he said that Brenda was about to take a two-week vacation.”

  “Well what happened? Where was she last? Was she working a case?”

  “That’s the odd thing. No one knows. It’s suspicious. Her commander just e-mailed me and wants to talk. He knows that we’ve kept in communication. They’ve gone over her phone records and saw that we talked last week.”