Lipstick 'n Lead (8 page)

“What brings you to this side of the arena, darlin’?” Quint drawled.

She tried to sidestep, but Carter hemmed her in against the fence while Quint used the rope to bind her hands to the fence rail.

Fire glinted in her eyes, making them a stormier gray than usual. The freckles on her nose stood out beneath her flush.

“Just passing through,” she said.

“Uh-huh. Looking for a good hard fuck, I say.” Carter ripped open her top. Buttons flew every direction. Back in one of the stables, a horse whinnied.

Bella’s eyes widened. “What am I going to wear out of here?”

“My shirt. We can’t let anybody see these beautiful breasts but us. You’re ours, Bella,” Carter said.

Her head fell back at his words, and he realized how affected she was by him. By both of them.

Quint sucked her nipple through the cloth of her bra while teasing her other nipple with his fingers. Small, squeaking noises escaped her—gasoline to Carter’s fire. He captured her braid in his fist, yanked her head back and kissed her.

For long minutes nobody surfaced. But when they did, he and Quint exchanged a knowing look. If she wanted to watch, they’d give her a damn good show. After all, they were professionals in the area of entertainment.

Carter released her and turned to Quint. They fell on each other. Rough hands, bruising kisses. Teeth grazing necks. When Carter flipped his lover’s belt open and opened his fly, Bella moaned.

“Aren’t you going to untie me so I can join in?” she whimpered, chest rising and falling.

“Not yet. You need to see what keeps bringing you back.” Quint reached into his boxers and pulled his thick cock free. Without hesitation, Carter did the same. His swollen head was beaded with pre-come.

Using a hand on his nape, Quint dragged Carter close until their bodies bumped. Carter wrapped his fingers around both of their thick shafts and pumped.

Bella moaned and strained at her bindings. Quint’s mouth was scorching as he kissed a path over Carter’s chest. Then he dragged his beard upward until their lips collided in a crash of epic proportions.

“Oh God,” Bella murmured. There was a violent creak of the fence, and then she was free somehow. Carter barely had a chance to chuckle at the fact Quint had tied a half-assed rope so she could free herself and join in.

They opened their arms for her, but she dropped to her knees and parted her lips for their cocks. A growl of pleasure rushed up from the depths of Carter’s being as they took turns sinking their cocks into her sweet, hot mouth. A glow coated her skin, and he wanted nothing more than to strip her and bend her over the fence.

But he was too close. Quint too. Their breathing was fraught with need. Bella’s little whimpers didn’t help. When she opened her jaws wide and took them at the same time, her cheeks bulging with their cocks, he couldn’t hold back another second.

Come rushed up from his balls. Spurts jetted from him, and Quint’s primal groan let him know he was coming too. Bella tipped her head back to take them further. Gripping his cock at the base, Carter pulled free and finished on the crests of her round breasts. Painting her, marking her as his.

Quint followed suit, hips jerking with his release. He spurted over her breasts too, and she blinked up at them, a pleading in her eyes.

“Oh yeah, sweetheart. You’ll get your turn.” Carter gave his cock one last pump then drew her to her feet and kissed her, tasting their combined flavors. He never wanted to let either of his lovers go.

*

“Grab that rope,” Quint instructed Carter. He didn’t take his gaze from Bella’s. She was too lovely to tear his gaze away from, all soft and compliant. Her lips rosy and swollen from sucking their cocks. They’d cleaned up her breasts with her ruined top, but a sheen of their essence gleamed under the afternoon sun.

Carter held out the rope, and Quint closed his fingers over the end without even looking at it. He drew the frayed ends to Bella’s nipples, which had accidentally popped from her bra after Carter had destroyed it.

The garment lay in tatters on the dirt ground next to a few buttons. They’d have to be careful not to rip up any more pieces of clothing or she’d be going back to her trailer wrapped in a feed sack.

The idea held appeal, he had to admit. She’d look gorgeous in one.

Her rough gasps fed the fire of need inside him. She might try to run from them, but she kept running back into their open arms. Whatever was holding her up from investing emotionally, they’d work through it—together.

He unfastened her jeans and shimmied them down her hips. With her clothing around her ankles and her thighs spread as far as she could, he took the edge of the rope and skimmed her clit with it.

A light, teasing touch that ripped a cry from her.

“Shh, darlin’. We don’t want anybody to come running.”

“You’re going to…have to…gag me,” she ground out.

“Mmm, not a problem.” Quint took a clean handkerchief from his back pocket and fastened the gag around her mouth. Carter stared up at her wide, bright eyes and continued his torment.

Circling her clit. Each hemp strand catching on her swollen nubbin. Teasing the edges. Caressing the small hood covering her core. Using a forefinger, he pressed the hood back and grazed that spot.

She shook, juices squeezing from her pussy.

“She smells like candy. I can’t do this very long before I taste her,” Carter warned his other lover.

Quint started kissing her neck and reached around her body to pinch and twist her nipples. She rocked into both of their touches. Her body was strung as tight as an instruments, and damn, he loved playing her.

If ropin’ and ridin’ were his first loves, pleasuring Bella was vying for the top spot. A muffled moan left her, and Quint clamped down on her nipples. Carter dropped the rope and buried his face in her pussy. Dragging his tongue back and forth with more and more speed. She tensed, gave one shuddering sob…and came.

A wild noise escaped his throat as he sucked her pussy clean. Pulling on her clit until she grew too sensitive and then wagging his tongue through her slickness. When he raised his head, he caught movement from the corner of his eye.

Jeb Anderson, and he’d had seen them.

Carter licked his lips slowly like a beast who’d just gotten his fill.

Chapter Eight

Quint dropped into the booth of the diner and snatched the grease-coated menu from the holder at the end of the table. While he stared at the choices, his mind was far from his stomach.

“I can’t believe she won her race and hightailed it out of town without saying a damn word to us,” he said for the fifth time.

“I do. It’s Bella.” Carter, seated across from him, peeled the sticky pages of his own menu apart. Inside was a smear of maple syrup, and he gave up reading it and tossed it aside.

His partner’s words revolved through his head.
It’s Bella. It’s Bella.
Yeah, it was her personality through and through. Her independent and sassy ways were exactly what had drawn both of them to her. But it was getting difficult too.

“She isn’t as invested in us.” The words came out unbidden.

Carter looked up in surprise. “You know that ain’t true, man.”

“Do I? We can’t walk away so easily.”

“Who says it’s easy on her? But she’s trying to work it out in her mind. And you gotta admit that this game of hide and seek makes for some fun when we finally locate her.” Carter waved at the waitress, who sauntered over with a sway of her hips and a big Southern smile.

They ordered breakfasts and a pot of coffee, but a few minutes later when the platter of ham and eggs was placed before him, Quint couldn’t remember having ordered it.

He picked up his fork tines down and stabbed the ham with enough force to kill it a second time.

Carter’s rough fingers on his wrist stopped him. Their gazes met, and Quint’s chest walls flexed around his thudding heart.

“I know. You’re right. I can’t take it personally that she runs from us.”

“If we give her enough rope, she won’t feel tethered. The last thing we want to do is tie down a woman like Bella.” Carter was annoyingly calm about all of this.
And right.

Quint sliced off a chunk of ham and stuffed it into his mouth. All of the hours spent with her were the best of his life, and he didn’t want to live through the hours when they weren’t together.

“I’ve fallen for her.”

Carter gave him a crooked grin. “Me too. Feels good, doesn’t it?”

He found himself smiling back, his heart more buoyant than it had been minutes before. “Yeah, it does.”

The door opened with a tinkle, and he glanced up automatically. The ham stuck in his throat and he choked as he saw the expression on their cowgirl’s beautiful face.

He got to his feet, coughing. Carter whipped around and jumped up too when he spotted Bella. Carter reached her first. “What happened?”

Her features were twisted in pain and her cheeks tracked with tears. Quint placed a hand on her waist and felt a slight tremor within her. “What’s going on?” he asked.

With a wild look around, she said, “Outside.”

They started out the door, but the waitress hollered, “Hey, you haven’t paid!”

Quint swung back and tossed a bill on the counter and then followed his lovers out of the diner. The sunny morning didn’t reflect the devastation on Bella’s face. He caught her by the shoulders and forced her to meet his gaze. “Tell us what’s wrong.”

“It’s Josey. When we came out of that last turn at the race, I felt her shift. I knew something was wrong and sure enough, she’s favoring that leg. The tendons were hot and swollen almost immediately.”

“Oh shit.” Carter wrapped an arm around her middle.

“What can we do? Where is she?”

“I took her out right away and tracked down the first vet I could find. He looked at her and said it’s beyond him. So he sent me to another guy. But they need to do surgery, and I don’t know.” Her voice broke and fresh tears splashed down her face. “I didn’t know what to do and I had to find you guys.”

“Take us to her,” he said.

She nodded and led them to her truck. When Quint got behind the wheel, she started to protest, but he said, “You’re in no condition to drive safely. You came after us for a reason. Let us help you.”

With supreme effort, she sucked back her tears and Carter put her into the passenger seat before he jumped into the back seat. She gave them directions to the next town over. As Quint drove, he realized what it really meant that she’d tracked them down at the diner. It showed just how deep she was entwined in their unorthodox relationship too.

Reaching across the console, he rested his hand over hers. She blinked back more tears, but the love shining in her eyes was enough for him even if she was never able to voice it without a hell of a lot of attitude and a smart comeback or two.

He squeezed her fingers. “You trust this vet?”

“I-I don’t know what to think. I have to admit I’m not good at this sort of thing and I’m sort of…emotional.” She gulped a sob. “If they fuck up her leg, she’s done racing. I don’t want to put her out to pasture and find another horse.”

“We get it,” Carter said. In the rearview mirror, he met Quint’s gaze. Understanding snapped between them. They were in this for the long haul—all of them. Quint wasn’t letting either of them go.

“We won’t let that happen. I have some experience with vets. Let me talk to him?” he asked her.

She nodded and gave a sniffle. Carter gave her his clean hanky, and she mopped her face. Half an hour later they were pulling into a clean-looking animal hospital. Quint parked her truck and trailer and each of them took one of Bella’s hands and together they went to see what could be done for her horse.

“Whatever happens, you have us, all right?” he whispered against her ear.

She nodded. “I know.”

* * * * *

With as much strength as she could muster, Bella tried to focus on what the veterinarian was saying to her. He’d seen such injuries in the past. He wasn’t the top man for the job, but he felt the tear was simple and his skills were adequate.

Her brain was too fogged with worry for her prized animal, and thank goodness Quint and Carter started plying the man with questions she couldn’t even begin to think of asking.

Leaning against Carter, she listened to their deep, soothing voices. Things would work out. They had to.

Something was decided between the guys, but she’d missed it. She watched Carter walk away with the vet while Quint led her to the seating area. She cleared her throat and wiped her eyes, but they wouldn’t stop streaming.

“I’m sorry. I’m acting like a drama queen. The world only needs one Wynonna Calhoun.”

Quint’s eyes were dark with concern. “You’re fine. It’s understandable that you’re upset. Our livestock are our best friends as well as our livelihood.”

“Yeah. I’ll be out of commission for a while without her. Or I’ll have to go home and get another horse that I’ve worked with in the past. I wouldn’t expect to win, though.”

“Maybe not. What’s the real story behind you and Wynonna’s rivalry?” He entwined their fingers.

She had a feeling he was trying to take her mind off the fact that her animal was about to go into surgery. Drawing a deep breath, she said, “Wynonna’s okay, I guess. We just got off on the wrong foot, and I suppose neither of us are willing to make peace.”

“What happened?”

The waiting area was cozy and nobody else was around, since it was a Sunday. She couldn’t even imagine what the bill for an off-hours surgery would be, but she’d worry about that later. If she had to, she’d turn to her family for help. They’d always supported her.

But after discovering that Josey Wheels was injured, Bella had stared at her phone and struggled with calling her father. In the end, she’d pocketed her phone, gotten in her truck and gone to find the two men who she’d become so close to recently.

Quint stroked her hair behind her ear and drew her head down on his shoulder. “You don’t have to tell me about Wynonna if you don’t want to.”

“No, it’s okay. I’m just gathering my thoughts. It started my first year racing when her brother started hanging around me.”

She felt Quint’s shoulder tense and she shifted to find a comfier spot to rest her head. “We were just friends, or so I thought. I was with Frazer at the time, so I didn’t have my eyes open to things like flirting from other men.”

He turned his lips against her temple, and she issued a soft sigh, snuggling closer. “Wynonna didn’t like you hanging out with her brother?”

“No, and when he found out who I was dating, he got grumpy. He told me that my boyfriend had come onto Wynonna, but she was only seventeen at the time and he was going to have him arrested for corruption of a minor and all that.”

“Did Frazer touch her?”

“I don’t know. Maybe. Probably. He was an ass. Either way, things got tense between all of us because I didn’t know better and I defended Frazer. Nothing ever came of the allegations, but we never discussed it further. I guess we agreed to disagree, and we’ve kept a wide berth of each other ever since. She is a diva, though. You have to wear sunglasses when she’s in the arena because she’s so shiny.”

He laughed out loud. “Shiny?”

“Yeah, all those sparkles and rhinestones.”

“She’s pretty young still.”

“Yeah, she’ll learn you don’t need all that crap to make a statement out there. All you need is skill, a prayer and a good horse.” At the mention of her horse, she welled up all over again.

Carter returned, tucking a slip of paper into his pocket. When he took up the chair next to her, she tipped her head from Quint’s shoulder to his.

“Everything’s going to be all right, sweetheart.” He kissed her other temple. “I feel confident in this doctor’s abilities.”

“And I Googled him.” Quint’s statement made her straighten.

“You did?”

“Yeah, we couldn’t let some chest-thumping vet with a god complex touch your horse.”

Melllllt.
Every hard edge inside her melted when she was with these guys. As strange as it might be to give herself to two men, she couldn’t imagine being happier.

“Thank you.”

“Now it’s a waiting game. But in the meantime, I’d like to bring up the subject that you’ve been running from for too long.” Carter looked over her head at Quint.

Oh no.
She couldn’t run anymore, though. She pushed back her shoulders and nodded. “I’m ready for it.”

Surprise crossed his rugged features.

Quint brushed his fingers beneath her chin, drawing her face his direction. “We need to know who hurt you and why you won’t commit to us.”

She shook her head. “That’s not the case really. I…I mean, Frazer was a dick, yeah. And I don’t really understand what he said to me when he left, even now.”

“What
did
he say?” Quint’s hard tone meant if he didn’t like it, he’d probably hunt down Frazer and kick his ass.

“He said, ‘You’re never gonna be better than me, Bella. Don’t think you can do better.” She looked between her men. The crinkles that appeared between each of their brows echoed her thoughts all these years. “Okay, so I’m not out of my mind. You don’t get it either.”

“Sounds as if he was jealous of your wins. You’ve always been a strong competitor and he’s hit and miss.” Carter’s jaw worked—a sure sign that he wasn’t as calm as he appeared on the surface.

Quint clenched his fist on his thigh. “And he might have been warning you that he was the best thing to ever happen to you. But we know that isn’t the case.” He wagged his brows.

She gave a soft laugh. “Not remotely.” She cupped each of their jaws and divided her attention between each set of dark eyes.

“Don’t get hung up on his words, sweetheart.”

“I’m not,” she said and realized it was true. Somehow sharing Frazer’s words made her understand how little power they held over her now. That man was nothing, and she had two very strong and viral lovers supporting her. And sometimes you just couldn’t understand someone who was nuts and had to let it go.

“We don’t want you running from us ever again,” Quint said. “What we have between us…it’s not going away, Bella.”

“I know,” she said softly, a deep stirring of passion inside her.

“We love you for your spirit,” Carter added.

Love?
She latched onto the word and when she searched his gaze, noting the golden flecks around the rim of each iris, she saw the sentiment reflected there. Staring at him in awe, she searched her own heart.

He loved her. Quint had fallen too. No men could touch her the way they did and not. And she didn’t want to ignore the feelings that were beginning to grow in her own heart. She wasn’t ready to say the L word yet, but maybe in time.

Maybe if she stopped running.

“We’ll give you plenty of room to run,” Carter said.

“What am I—a wild horse?” Her tone sounded with attitude.

They grinned. “There’s our Bella.” Quint tugged on her ponytail.

“We like you a little wild, as long as you don’t bite us too hard.” Carter winked.

She embraced each man. “I’m so glad you’re with me.”

“We won’t leave your side.”

“I need to put in a call to my father and see about him paying for the vet bill. I don’t have a lot of cash—”