Dakota Springs Read online

  Elizabeth started to get an uneasy feeling about this, making her almost afraid to ask. But she had to know. “Did Hayden and Chandler know that I wasn’t happy before they came to you?”

  Her mother shrugged and looked away. “I didn’t say anything to them, but I told Beverly.”

  Elizabeth finished her tea and stood. “And Beverly Scott told her sons.” Smiling sadly, she stared down into her empty cup. “Hayden and Chandler don’t really want me. They’re just trying to take care of me like they always have. They probably figured that it would be easier and give them both more free time if they shared the responsibility.”

  Her mother stood. “No, they really—”

  Elizabeth waved a hand. “If you don’t mind listening for Angie, I think I’ll go outside for a bit before I go to bed.”

  Her mother sighed. “Of course we don’t mind, but I think you’re wrong.”

  Ignoring the look that passed between her parents, she smiled sadly. “I won’t be long.”

  She headed to the kitchen and placed her empty mug in the sink before heading out the back door as her father turned on the news. Her mind racing, she walked down the steps to stand in the backyard and stared thoughtfully out into the darkness.

  Memories of the night of her eighteenth birthday assailed her, refusing to be held at bay any longer. Although it had been years ago, the events of that night had been branded into her mind, and she could remember every detail as though it happened yesterday.

  It had been a warm, humid night, much like tonight. She could still remember the butterflies that fluttered in her stomach and the smell of burgers grilling and mingling with the scent of her mother’s honeysuckle.

  Her father had painstakingly hung hundreds and hundreds of Christmas lights which turned their backyard into a magical wonderland.

  She’d deliberated over what to wear for days. She had finally gone shopping with her friends and bought a red tank top and the shortest white shorts she could find. Both had earned disapproving looks from her father, but she hadn’t cared.

  All that had mattered was that she looked good for Hayden and Chandler and showed them that she was no longer a child. If she dressed like the girls they dated, they had to notice her. They’d resisted all of her attempts to make them see her as something more than the daughter of a friend they felt obligated to look out for.

  She’d flirted outrageously, started wearing make-up, and did her best to spend as much time at the ranch as possible.

  They’d continued to treat her like a child, but they’d both started paying more attention to her, giving her advice, and acting possessive. They’d monitored her dates and tried to keep the boys in town away from her.

  She’d been so excited, thinking they finally saw her as a woman and had been jealous.

  When they’d arrived late to her birthday party, she’d done her best to look only mildly interested, while inside she’d become a bundle of nerves. Watching them mingle with the others, she’d been so excited she could hardly stay still. No one else had existed for her that night. She’d waited impatiently for them to separate themselves from the crowd before approaching them.

  She’d given them her brightest smile and sauntered up to them in a practiced move. “Hi, Hayden. Hi, Chandler. Thanks for coming to my party.”

  Hayden’s smile had sent her heart racing. “We wouldn’t miss your birthday party for the world.” His smile quickly disappeared as his eyes raked her figure. “Don’t you think those shorts are a little short?”

  Elated that he’d noticed, she cocked her hip, smiling flirtatiously and using her eyes the way she’d practiced in the mirror. “Do you like them?”

  Chandler’s scowl had made her feel even better. “What the hell are you doing dressing like that? Every guy here is imagining you naked.”

  “Including you?”

  Chandler, then twenty-eight, had kept looking at the way her nipples poked at the front of her tank top. He looked away suddenly as though embarrassed, his jaw clenched. “No. I prefer grown-ups.”

  She’d walked up to Hayden, putting her hands on his chest. “I’m eighteen now. You don’t have to push me away any more.”

  Hayden’s eyes had gone cold. “You’re a spoiled brat who can’t even decide which one of us she wants. What kind of girl throws herself at two men?”

  Even now, thinking about it made her eyes sting.

  She’d tried again, breathing through the indescribable pain and unable to believe he would say such a thing to her and really mean it. “Hayden, it’s not like that. I’m not playing games. I love both of you so much. I really do.”

  As long as she lived, she’d never forget the look of disgust on their faces.

  Opening her eyes, she ruthlessly pushed the image away.

  The question that Hayden had asked her that night had gone through her mind a thousand times since then.

  What kind of woman could love two men so completely?

  She couldn’t believe how incredibly naïve she’d been. She’d grown up in a hurry that night and clung to her dignity by a thread for the rest of the party.

  Hearing laughter, she came back to the present and turned her head toward the street. Saturday night had always been the night that everyone came out in Dakota Springs. Her parents’ house sat right on Main Street, enabling her to easily see and hear the couples as they strolled by. The sounds of their laughter and low conversation as they walked by in pairs only made her more aware of her own loneliness.

  After the couples passed and silence reigned again, even the sounds of the crickets singing sounded sad to her and made her feel even more isolated.

  She wasn’t alone. She had her daughter and her parents, but she wanted more. She ached to have a man who would hold her in the night, one who would love her and would speak softly to her in the dark. They would plan their future and talk about their dreams and their love for each other.

  A slight breeze, like a warm breath, blew the tendrils of hair at her nape but did nothing to relieve the oppressive heaviness of the warm, humid night. She really should go back inside and into the air conditioned house, but she couldn’t. Not yet. Tired, but still too unsettled to sleep, she couldn’t stop thinking about what had happened at the airport.

  And ask herself yet again the question that had plagued her for years.

  What kind of woman could love two men the way she loved Hayden and Chandler?

  It didn’t seem to matter how much time had passed. She’d known at eighteen that she’d always love them and in the eight years since she’d last seen them, nothing had changed. If anything, she loved them even more, and the last eight years proved to her just how rare her feelings for them were.

  Why the hell couldn’t she get over them? If she did, maybe she could fall in love with one man and have a chance for some happiness.

  Looking back over the dark yard again, she wondered what Hayden and Chandler had tried to prove at the airport. If it had been a test to see if she wanted one of them over the other she’d failed miserably. Again.

  Hard arms slid around her from behind, surprising a gasp from her as they pulled her back against a wall of heat. Warm lips grazed her ear. “You look so sad, baby. What are you thinking about?”

  The dark timber of Hayden’s voice washed over her, making her yearn for things she’d been trying to forget for eight years. He’d never used an endearment with her before.

  She’d never heard that silky cadence in his voice directed at her before.

  Together they combined into something totally irresistible.

  She tried to pull away, but he didn’t let her. “I was thinking about how selfish and naïve I was at eighteen. I’m glad I finally grew out of it.”

  Chandler moved to stand in front of her, his eyes gentle in the dim light. “We were just as naïve.” Reaching out, he caressed her cheek. “We made a huge mistake with you, but at the time we couldn’t handle what you offered so sweetly.”

  She blinked back
the tears that threatened, swallowing the lump in her throat. There hadn’t been a day in the last eight years she hadn’t thought about them, missed them, or loved them. Hearing him say that now both saddened and angered her. “Neither one of you ever even called me. I know I disgusted you. I saw it on your faces.”

  Hayden’s hand covered her stomach, gently caressing. “Never. It was an act. You’ve never disgusted us. If anything we were disgusted with ourselves.” With his other hand, he cupped her jaw, turning her to face him. “We promised ourselves we wouldn’t contact you until you came home from school. When you didn’t come home, we came to see your dad and ask him what the hell was taking you so long.” His voice lowered. “Your father told us that you were married and had a baby on the way.” His hand tightened on her waist. “I could have cheerfully strangled you that day, Lizzy. Why the hell did you marry him? Why didn’t you come home where you belong?”

  Elizabeth laughed humorlessly. “Where I belong? I didn’t belong here, Hayden. Not then. I was young and stupid and acted recklessly. What was I supposed to do, come home pregnant so you could think even worse of me?”

  Chandler took both of her hands in his, and she cursed the fact that shivers went up her arm at the contact. His eyes glittered now. “We regret everything we said to you that night, Lizzy. We’ve regretted it every day since then.” He sighed heavily and bent to kiss her forehead. “You scared the hell out of us, and we didn’t know what the hell to do with you. We didn’t figure it out for a long time.”

  Elizabeth pushed him away. “What to do with me? You don’t have to worry about what to do with me, either one of you. I’m not the same child that left here eight years ago. I won’t put you in any uncomfortable situations like that ever again.” She wouldn’t start the next chapter of her life making the same mistake she’d made in the past. “Let go of me.”

  Grateful that they released her, she moved away, glancing over her shoulder to find both of them staring at her. Turning her back, she took several more shaky steps away from them and looked out into the faintly-lit yard, stiffening when Hayden moved in behind her.

  He leaned close, his lips brushing her shoulder. “We both wanted you. Badly. But we didn’t know what to do about it. We knew you wanted both of us. A child’s want. What we need from you now is a woman’s love.”

  Having no idea what had come over them, or what kind of game they were playing with her now, she struggled to hide the urge to turn and throw herself in his arms. “You can’t have it. Like I said, I was young and stupid. You were right in what you both said back then. I was a little girl playing at being a grown-up. I was confused about what I felt. I’m not that little girl anymore.”

  Hayden turned her in his arms, lifting her chin. “No, you’re not. You’re a woman now, and we’re not about to let you slip through our fingers again.”

  More than anything, Elizabeth wanted to believe him, but the last time she’d thought they’d cared for her, she’d been wrong. She wouldn’t be able to survive it if she was wrong again, and now she had a daughter to think of. Over the last eight years she’d finally come to realize just how impossible such a relationship would be. Taking a deep breath, she kept her voice cool, not looking at either one of them. “It’s impossible. Please go away. And don’t ever come back again. Excuse me, I have to check on Angie.”

  Chandler grabbed her arm when she would have walked away. “What’s wrong with you? Angie’s fine. She’s sound asleep and your mom and dad are watching a movie. They can hear her. Stop trying to avoid us. Talk to us, Lizzy. I don’t want any more misunderstandings between us. They’ve cost us too much already.”

  Elizabeth snapped at him. “Do you even hear what you’re saying? I have a daughter to think about now, and what you’re proposing is impossible. I won’t have her ridiculed. Plus, I don’t believe you. A long time ago, I mistook your caring for something more. You took it upon yourselves to watch out for me because our parents are friends. I won’t make that mistake again.”

  Hayden gripped her other arm and pulled her against him, the anger in his eyes unmistakable even in the faint light. “Do you really think I would ever let anyone hurt you or Angie? We’ve spent a long time figuring out all of this. Just trust us.”

  Elizabeth smiled bitterly. “Now that I’m a single parent with a failed marriage behind me, I suppose you think I need to be taken care of. That’s what all of this is about, Hayden. Don’t try to pretend otherwise. I’ve got news for you. I know how to take care of myself and Angie just fine.”

  Hayden ran a hand over her hair. “Of course we want to take care of both you and Angie. If we have our way, we’ll spoil both of you rotten. But that’s not what this is all about and you know it.”

  With her hands on her hips, Elizabeth shook her head. “Nope. Not buying it. Did your mother put you up to this? Small town, divorced woman…no, she would have known that the town would never accept me being with both of you—”

  Chandler swore under his breath. “You are the most exasperating woman on God’s green earth! Our parents have nothing to do with this. You know damned well what this is about. You love us. Both of us. Stop playing these damned games. We want you to live with us. Bear our children. We’ll be good fathers to Angie and to any other children who come along. We’ll be good husbands to you.”

  Elizabeth shook her head, wondering if either one of them noticed that neither claimed to love her. “Husbands? I’m supposed to have two husbands in a town like Dakota Springs?” God, if it could happen, she would be the happiest woman alive. But not with men who considered her little more than an obligation.

  Chandler laid a hand on her back, gently caressing. “We’ve already taken care of everything, Lizzy. The town already accepts it.”

  Incredulous, she gaped at him. “You told everybody? Of course you did. Well, I don’t accept it. What’s gotten into you? We’ve never even dated. We’ve kissed once.”

  Hayden grabbed her shoulders and pulled her against him, his mouth hovering just above hers. “We’ll just have to fix that then, won’t we? Give me another taste of what I had at the airport. I’ve been hungry for you for too long.”

  Her arm lifted of its own volition to Hayden’s shoulder, kneading the thick muscle there as his mouth covered hers. In this, she could never fight either one of them.

  Hayden wrapped his hand around her ponytail and tilted her head back as his tongue pushed inside. Sweeping her mouth with his, he devoured her, setting off wild sparks throughout her body. He nipped her lips gently, making them sting, before sweeping her mouth again.

  Her lips felt swollen and ultra-sensitive as she tangled her tongue with his, reveling in the erotic taste of him.

  When he finally lifted his head his eyes appeared lit from within as he stared down at her. “You’re beautiful. You’re passionate. You’re ours.”

  Elizabeth swallowed heavily, trying to fight the arousal he’d ignited with so little effort. “No.”

  Chandler’s hands came around from behind to her to cover her breasts, pulling her back against him. He bent his head to nibble at her neck as Hayden watched, his eyes hooded.

  Her head fell back against Chandler’s shoulder as need clawed its way to the surface. She couldn’t tear her gaze away from Hayden as he watched her every reaction.

  Chandler massaged her breasts gently, cupping them and moving his thumbs over her nipples, each flick over them causing her pussy to clench.

  Her stomach tightened, the muscles quivering as Hayden’s hand covered it. Tightening her thighs against the throbbing of her clit, she arched, pushing her breasts more firmly into Chandler’s hands.

  Hayden’s lips twitched as he touched her, his hand moving in slow circles over her abdomen. “Your lips say one thing, but your body says another. You like having both of us touch you this way, don’t you, baby?”

  A moan ripped from her throat as he began to gather the material of her dress, raising it, inch by torturous inch. “It’s just chemistry.
Lust. It can’t work.”

  Chandler lightly bit her earlobe as punishment. “Bullshit. You’re not the kind of woman who can react this way with someone you don’t care about.” He lightly pinched a nipple through the material, making her cry out. “And it can work. You like that. Let’s see what else you like. Hayden and I have a lot to explore, don’t we, darlin’?”

  Chandler tugged her nipples again, surprising another cry from her and making her ache to feel his hands on her bare flesh.

  Gripping Chandler’s sinewy forearms, she squeezed her eyes closed. God, she’d never imagined anything could ever feel as good as having both of them touch her this way. Liquid heat pooled between her thighs as her clit throbbed steadily. Her body, hypersensitive to every touch, shimmered with need. She could no longer tell the difference between their warm breath caressing her or the warm breeze. Blending together, they surrounded her, touching her everywhere. Dazed and weakened by the little burst of pleasure wherever they touched, Elizabeth arched into their hands, needing more.

  Never in her life had she felt so needy, so desired.

  Having both of the men she’d loved forever touching her this way was something out of her wildest fantasies. Her eyes flew open when Hayden’s callused hand skimmed her bare thigh. Alarmed that he’d been able to raise the front of her dress completely out of the way without her even realizing it, she shuddered.

  His big body stood between her and the street, blocking hers from anyone who might be walking by. Somehow they’d maneuvered her closer to the house so that she couldn’t be seen from the windows. She could see Hayden’s eyes more clearly as he slipped his hand inside her panties. “Nice and wet, huh, baby?” He bent, covering her mouth with his and swallowing her gasp as his finger slid over her clit.

  Chandler released her breasts to grab her around the waist when her knees buckled. Holding her up, he buried his face in her neck. “That’s it, darlin’. Let go. I’ve got you.”