To Mend Fearful Hearts Read online

  When they were done, Rome and Landon were there, wearing only jeans, no shirts, their pectoral muscles delicious-looking and the desire in their eyes arousing her once again. They dried her off.

  “Not yet. You need a little break and some food. We don’t want you feeling any pain.”

  “Pain, Landon? Not going to happen. I enjoy making love to you guys way too much to feel pain,” she admitted.

  He smiled and caressed her ass as Rome held a shirt in his hands. “Arms up,” Rome ordered.

  She raised her arms up, and as Rome placed the T-shirt over her head, Landon sneaked in a suckle to her nipple and she gasped. Rome slid his palm along her hip and then down over her mound, stroking her pussy, teasing her as he nibbled against her neck.

  “Later, angel,” he said.

  She closed her eyes and leaned back against him, but took Landon’s hand into hers and kissed his knuckles. “Torture. You’re torturing me,” she said on an exhale.

  Smack.

  She jerked as Eric slapped her ass.

  “Move it, woman, or it’s back to bed,” he said fiercely as he and Kenny stood there with jeans on and their hair still wet.

  Kenny was drying it off a little more with a towel, but then Rome lifted her up into his arms and carried her out of the bedroom and downstairs to the kitchen.

  They were all starving, and Rome and Landon had cooked up a lot of food for a late breakfast. Eggs, pancakes, bacon, and thank God, they had chocolate chip muffins. She reached for that immediately as she sat on the chair by the island.

  “Eggs, bacon?” Landon asked her.

  “In a second. I was craving something sweet,” she said.

  “By the way you sucked my cock before and told me it was better than dessert, I thought I satisfied that sweet tooth you have,” Eric asked her and winked.

  She felt her cheeks burn, and his brothers chuckled.

  Kenny reached out and stroked her jaw. “By the taste of her sweet cream and luscious breasts, I think she more than satisfies my sweet tooth.”

  “Kenny,” she said and lowered her eyes.

  His brothers laughed. She glanced up at them a few seconds later, watched them eating their large plates of food, and took in the sight of them. Each man was big in size, in attitude, and in presence. All four were over six feet three, were capable in more ways than she probably could imagine, and that aroused her as usual. She licked her lips as she looked at Rome’s chest. The scars, the tattoos, how he winked at her when meanwhile he was the most serious of the brothers. She heard they were all pretty fierce instructors at the gym they owned.

  “What are you thinking about?” Rome asked her as he caught her eyes.

  She leaned forward and took the spoon to grab some eggs, a piece of bacon next, and then some berries. “Just thinking about all your muscles and capabilities, and your reputations as being fierce instructors at the gym,” she said to him.

  “We run a serious training facility. Teach what is required to help men and women survive in the field and in civilian life,” he said and looked her over.

  “You should take some classes. Maybe we can show you some things to help you handle any situations while working. That guy Larkin would have never been able to lock his arms around you the way he did,” Eric said to her.

  “He was drunk, Eric. It wasn’t like he tried to feel me up,” she said and then took a bite of eggs.

  “He was practically drooling on your breasts,” Landon added sharply.

  She rolled her eyes. “It’s over and done. Don’t you worry, I’m fine and I know enough,” she said and then took a sip of her sweet tea.

  “What do you know?” Kenny asked her.

  She swallowed hard. She didn’t want them to be jealous or feel like they were in competition with Ben and Eagan.

  “I learned a few things over the years. I can do some moves if necessary,” she said.

  “Like what? Who taught you moves? Ivy?”

  “No,” she said and then took a bite of a berry.

  “I don’t want to explain.”

  “Don’t tell me—Ben and Eagan did?” Eric asked and crossed his arms in front of his chest.

  She held his gaze and nodded.

  “I don’t want you to be jealous or angry. Just be realistic about it, okay? Just like you’re asking me if I know any self-defense, and the fact that you want me to be safe and know some moves, well, they were my boyfriends, and they wanted the same things. Eagan, Ben, and Case taught me a lot in the two years, that’s two years that we were together. Don’t be angry,” she said and then stood up to take her plate to the garbage.

  Eric grabbed her around the waist. She placed her plate onto the island so it wouldn’t fall.

  “I can’t stand to think about them with you. About other men getting to love you, to love this body and take from this body.”

  She felt his fingers glide down the crack of her ass and squeeze her closer. His teeth were clenched. She cupped his cheeks.

  “I can’t stand to think of you with other women. With them getting to drool over all these muscles, over the fact that you all are so capable, strong, and sexy, and have big cocks that would drive a woman out of her friggin’ mind, so I think we’re even.” She raised her voice.

  “Fuck, she needs an ass spanking,” Rome said and stood up.

  “She needs us like we need her,” Eric said and gave her a little shake. “Kiss me, baby,” he said.

  “With pleasure, lover,” she replied and kissed him.

  Eric lifted her up and carried her out of the kitchen and right back to bed. Their lovemaking started all over again, and boy, she didn’t mind one bit at all.

  The weekend was a blur, and even now, sitting here at the gym getting ready for a class to start, Landon felt uneasy. He and his brothers didn’t want to let Cherise spend time with Ben and Eagan, but they were her friends too. They did share that relationship, and she cared about their well-being. Of course now that they said it was okay for her to have lunch with them today, he was uneasy and antsy to hear from her. He wasn’t too thrilled that they were doing lunch in Central Valley and not in Cherry Hill. So as he glanced at the clock, he hoped that the class would keep his mind off his concerns, and that soon enough he would hear her voice, or even better, see her face as she walked through the door, missing them as much as he missed her.

  He thought about her body, her beauty, her sweet personality. She was so caring and giving. She truly let go with them when they made love to her. When they talked, she was open and honest, and even Rome seemed to let down the walls he had up and explained more about his friends who died, and how he was handling it. It seemed to Landon that Cherise was helping Rome with all of that. She was the one. They found their mate. The woman they would spend the rest of their lives with. Now if only he could get rid of the jealous feeling he had about her ex-lovers.

  They asked her questions about the relationship and where things had gone wrong. If he were honest with himself and could get past the jealousy, he would admit that those men had loved her and they tried to commit to her fully. Being active duty wasn’t easy for loved ones or for the soldiers who had to leave and be away for so long. People grew apart, marriages failed, and that was probably the case with her exes. They took her for granted. She was hurt, being made to feel like an object. He and his brothers would never do that to her.

  He wondered how Eagan and Ben would be with her today. Would they hug her or try to kiss her? He was instantly hot under the collar. He ran his fingers through his hair. He was older and had had plenty of lovers, women he screwed, so it was sort of fucked up for him to be pissed and jealous about Cherise’s old lovers. It had been real and meaningful for her. There was nothing wrong with that. He and his brothers hit the jackpot with Cherise. She was gorgeous, smart, sexy, and he felt protective and possessive of her big-time.

  “Yo, ready?” Eric barked at him. His brother was feeling it too.

  “Yeah, man, ready. Let’s do this,�
� he said and joined him as they walked down the hallway and greeted the class of soldiers. He could do this. He could get lost in the hour-long class, and when it was over, Cherise would call, or he would see her, and everything would be okay.

  Cherise laughed as Ben told her a story about them screwing up some sort of recipe they were trying to make last night.

  “Don’t laugh. I was afraid there was going to be a fire and we’d set off the alarm,” Eagan told her, and she chuckled.

  “You two never were very good in the kitchen,” she said and took a sip of her sweet tea. Both men stared at her, smiling.

  “You and Case did most of the cooking. You two were great at cooking things up in the kitchen,” Eagan told her and licked his lower lip.

  “We were all good at cooking things up in the bedroom,” Ben said to her.

  She felt her cheeks warm, and she looked away. It was getting late. “Well, I’m glad we got to talk and that you both are doing well. When are you heading out again?” she asked.

  “Don’t know yet,” Ben told her, staring at her. They were both being so intense suddenly.

  Then Eagan exhaled and looked away. “You sure they love you?” Eagan asked her, glancing back.

  She was shocked, but she held his gaze. “Yes, and I love them, Eagan,” she told him.

  “This sucks. It hurts, sweetie,” Ben said to her, and she felt badly.

  “It hurt when you both cheated on me,” she said, reminding them that it hadn’t been her that screwed up their relationship, but them.

  “Goddamn it, Cherise, don’t keep bringing that up. We know we screwed up. We were all fucked up after losing Case.”

  “That’s such a bullshit excuse, Eagan,” she replied.

  “How so? It hurt losing our brother and what we all had.”

  “I lost him too, but I didn’t go out screwing every guy who wanted me in his bed. You chose to go elsewhere and not confront your emotions or share them with me after all we had together. That’s the difference. I would have been there for both of you. Would have helped you mourn. Instead, I mourned alone, not only about losing Case, but also losing a relationship with the two of you. You made that decision. Live with it,” she said and then took her napkin off her lap and placed it onto the table. She reached for her bag.

  “Don’t go. Can we talk more? We need to get things out on the table,” Ben said to her and covered her arm with his hand.

  “You had ample time to get things out on the table, Ben. You chose to take off. You’re doing this now because you want control of me, of my emotions and my body. You knew what you were doing when you used me as an object to come home to. I finally got you both out of my head and my heart. You’ve been replaced,” she said and stood up. She placed money down on the table.

  “We got it, and don’t leave,” Eagan said and stood, too.

  Ben gave her the twenty back as Eagan paid the bill. She walked out with Ben, and a few seconds later Eagan was there. They walked with her toward her jeep parked behind the restaurant.

  Ben took her hand, and she tightened up. “Ben, don’t,” she said and pulled back, but he stepped closer as she pressed her back against the jeep.

  He stared down into her eyes. “I’m not going to kiss you, even though I want to. I understand that you’re seeing those men. That you’re sleeping with them,” he said, and his face turned red, the veins by his temples pulsating.

  “We’re jealous as hell,” Eagan said to her and looked her over. “We never truly stopped loving you, Cherise. We didn’t,” Eagan told her.

  “Stop. Don’t do this to me. We had a nice lunch. We talked.” She lowered her head and pulled her hand free.

  Ben slid his hand around her waist, up her back, and under her hair. She turned before he could kiss her. He pulled her against him her. Inhaled as he held her body snuggly. “We will always love you. Always remember the feel of your sexy body as we held you between us,” he said to her. Tears filled her eyes. “Always remember your cries of pleasure too. Goddamn it, baby, I’m hard right now just remembering those nights with you,” Eagan said and stroked her jaw.

  She shoved his hand away, and tears spilled from her eyes. “How dare you? How dare you try to come between me and my men? Try to manipulate me and screw with my emotions? You have no right, and you know what? I don’t ever want to see either of you again. Understand me? It’s over. We aren’t even friends anymore. We can’t be. My life is with Rome, Eric, Landon, and Kenny.” She pulled her door open, hitting Eagan in the process.

  “It isn’t over. We won’t let it be over. I know you still think about us. I know you remember how it feels to have both of us making love to you. Our bodies bound forever. We were your first lovers ever. Ever, Cherise,” Ben stated.

  She looked at them through the open window, tears streaming down her face. “And you fucked it all up. Live with that,” she said and put the jeep in drive and sped out of the parking lot. She didn’t look back. She cried as she drove through Central Valley.

  She couldn’t believe this. It hurt so badly. She had loved them at one time in her life, and here they were, over a year of no real contact, and because she was involved with other men, they wanted her. She couldn’t help but to believe that they just wanted sex. Wanted to have that hold on her forever, and that was her fault for allowing their relationship to be like that when they were lovers. She was long past that time with them. Past that pain, that betrayal, and she was lucky enough to meet Eric, Landon, Kenny, and Rome. Lucky enough to have the courage to take a chance and open her heart up to them after feeling so hurt and betrayed. She loved them with all her heart. They were her everything.

  She dialed Kenny, knowing that he should be out of class by now.

  He answered on the second ring as she sniffled and felt emotional still. “Hello?”

  “Hi,” she said, and hearing the sound of his voice made her cry even more.

  “What’s wrong? Are you okay? What happened?” he asked, and she chuckled.

  “I’m fine. I’m heading back to Cherry Hill. You don’t need to worry. I’m done with them. Done ever talking to Ben and Eagan again.”

  “What did they do, Cherise?” he demanded to know.

  “I’ll talk to you about it when I get to the gym. I’ll head straight there, okay? I need you guys. I love you so much. I want you to know that. You’re my world, and you’ve shown me what true love really is.”

  “Jesus, they tried something, didn’t they? Fucking assholes. I’m going to beat the piss out of them.” He raised his voice.

  “No, you aren’t. No need to. They didn’t try anything. They said things, that’s all. I’m fine. I’ll be perfect when I’m in your arms.”

  “Be careful driving. We’ll be waiting for you.”

  “I love you all.”

  “We love you, sweetie, but no promises about not kicking your exes’ asses.”

  She snorted. “See you soon.”

  She ended the call, and anger began to form now, instead of feeling hurt. She continued down the main road through the open fields on either side of the roadway that connected Central Valley to Cherry Hill by several long miles. She turned on the radio and tried to drown out her thoughts. She heard the rev of an engine, saw the van behind her, and wondered how it got there. She hadn’t seen it a moment ago, but then again, she really wasn’t paying attention. She was focusing on Kenny’s voice. It was too late when the van sped up and hit the side of her jeep. She screamed and gripped the steering wheel tight and slowed down, but the van crashed into her again. She lost control, went down the short dip in the side of the road, and the van hit her again. The jeep tumbled. She cried out. Her head hit the steering wheel, and she lost focus.