Chapter Six

 

 

 

Kegan sat on the back porch steps waiting for Trevor to join him after he showed Charlie to the restroom, puzzled about what had just happened in the kitchen.

He hadn’t meant to be the bastard Trevor had accused him of. He’d just been beyond shocked to find them nuzzled together. It was the jealousy that had reared its ugly head when he’d seen them locked together that had come out as a gruff voice and curt statement. The thing was, he wasn’t so much upset at seeing them together as he was with the realization that whatever was beginning to grow between Trevor and Charlie, he could never be a part of it.

He’d had time to think on why he’d been so upset at the thought of the two of them together and had realized that as possessive as he felt about Trevor, he knew he had no right to be. He certainly had no right to consider those feelings about Charlie.

He and Trevor had been recently talking about how old the one-night stands were getting, not that they didn’t enjoy them. There wasn’t much they hadn’t done to a woman sexually.

They’d always picked up women who knew the score, one night with the two wild bachelors—they would fulfill her wildest, darkest fantasies, but that’s where it ended. No snuggling all night, breakfast in the morning, or promises that they would call.

Fuck ’em hard and leave ’em fast but sated. Now things were changing. They wanted more and had talked about wanting to find one woman who would want to settle down with both of them. Not that there was a real good chance of ever finding a woman who could not only handle the social stigmas of a committed ménage à trois, but to also put up with the challenges of two very stubborn, demanding men.

Then, as now, he knew it was a fantasy. The chances of finding that one woman they could share in a lifelong relationship was slim to none. It only made sense that he should back away from both Trevor and Charlie, stop being a selfish bastard with dreams of something that would never happen and let the two of them see where their relationship could go.

The back door slammed and pulled Kegan from his thoughts. He looked up as Trevor sat down on the steps next to him.

“You pissed at me?” He didn’t meet Kegan’s gaze, only stared into the glass of wine in his hand.

“Nah, nothing to be pissed off about. Well, other than the fact that you keep giving me heart failure.”

“Look, I’m sorry about that. I didn’t plan to bring her here, it’s just… I saw the way she looked and acted when she talked about you and I cracked. Next thing I knew, I was bringing her here. Figured you two needed to talk this out. Didn’t really give much thought beyond that. Then after talking to her, I realized that I may have gone about it the wrong way, but I did the right thing. She loves you, Kegan, and you two have to talk.”

“Trevor…”

“No, you shut up and listen to me. I’m sick of seeing you mope around here like a wounded puppy. Then I see her and she’s acting the same way when I mention your name.”

“Look…”

“Dammit, I said shut up. I’m talking now and you’re damn well gonna listen.”

Kegan ground his teeth. “Fine, but when you’re through I get to have my say, so careful what you call me.” Kegan figured it best to just let Trevor get whatever was bothering him off his chest or he wouldn’t give him a moment’s peace.

Trevor took a long, deep breath then blew it out in a huff. “I care a lot about you, and I can’t stand to see you hurting. I’m not sure what it is about Charlie that has me so tied up in knots, but I can’t stand to see her like this either. I want her, Kegan. Not for just one night, but for so much more.”

Kegan nodded. “I saw the two of you together in the kitchen. You’re beautiful together. You don’t need Charlie and I to kiss and make up before you go after what you want. It’s not your job to fix my problems. With what I did to Charlie, I don’t think it can be fixed.”

He rubbed his hand on the stubble starting to sprout on his chin. “I didn’t do right by her, Trev, and just because I screwed up doesn’t mean you have to pay for that. You two are both damn good people, you could have something special.”

“Christ, you’re a goddamn idiot, you know that? Didn’t you listen to a fucking word I just said? The woman loves you!” Trevor flung his wineglass on the ground, shattering it.

“Just what do you think you would do if I ran off with Charlie anyway, become a fucking hermit? I know you think you need me when you’re with a woman, maybe you do, but to be perfectly honest, I think I’ve grown to need it too. All I’m asking is that you just talk to her. If you can’t work it out, I’ll drop it and we can go back to being the most talked-about bachelors in the county.”

Trevor stood and slapped him on the back. “Just think about it, that’s all I ask.” He left and went back into the house without a backward glance.

 

* * * *

 

Charlie was ready to go when Trevor came back inside. She didn’t feel comfortable sitting in their house and had seriously thought about sneaking out of the front door and hitching a ride home. Curiosity had kept her planted in her seat.

“So did he talk some sense into you and you’re going to stop holding me here against my will?”

“Nope. Wouldn’t matter anyway since I’m too hardheaded to listen to reason most of the time.” He sat on the stool next to her and took her hand. “What is it you really want, Charlie? If you want me to take you home right now I will, but I’m hoping you’ll stick around for a while.”

Charlie snatched her hand away and glared at him as she stood. “I told you he wouldn’t want to talk to me. I’m not a fool, Trevor. I know what is going on. You told me that you and a friend liked to share women and were hoping to get lucky that night at Jack’s Place. It didn’t happen and it’s not going to. Why can’t you just accept that and find someone else to play with?”

Charlie heard the anger rise in her voice and didn’t even try to suppress it. She was pissed off that he had forced her to come here and to talk to Kegan. She hadn’t even realized until Trevor had walked back inside without Kegan that somewhere in the back of her mind she had hoped Kegan would want to talk to her.

Instead, she’d gotten a big helping of disappointment with a side order of humiliation. Oh whoopee!

Trevor stood so fast, his stool crashed to the floor behind him. Without even missing a beat, he stood over her, a dangerous glint in his dark eyes. “Is that what you think? That I brought you here today only with hopes to fuck you?”

Charlie didn’t back down. “You know what? That’s exactly what I think. You don’t know a damn thing about me other than the fact that you danced with me in a bar and you wanted me to be the meat in your sexual sandwich.” She waved her hands around in a dismissive manner. “Forget it. You’ve done enough to humiliate me for one day. I can find my own way back to town.”

She stormed out of the kitchen and into the massive living room, Trevor right on her heels. She sat on the bench in the foyer and started to put on her boots. “Would you just go away and leave me alone? God, what is wrong with you? I’m sure you can find a filly or two around here that won’t mind you sniffing after them. I happen not to be one of them.” She pulled her boot back in her clenched fist and planned to throw it at his too-damn-sexy face if he took one more step toward her. “Go away!”

Kegan’s deep laugh boomed behind Trevor.

Charlie jumped and dropped the boot.

Kegan then slapped Trevor on the back. “She always was a feisty little hellcat.” He gave Trevor an unapologetic smile. “Guess I should have warned ya, huh?”

That right there was enough! Charlie snatched her boot from the floor and stomped her foot into it. She seethed with anger that consumed her body like a match to dry brush. She was furious at Kegan for his broken promises and refusal to talk to her. She was even more enraged at Trevor for having such control over her body and for humiliating her by forcing her to come here.

Above all, she was mad at herself for hoping. Hope was like frogs praying for wings so they didn’t bump their asses when they hopped. But there weren’t any flying fucking frogs! Screw hope and these two cowboys with their little smirking faces.

She reached for the door and yanked it open. “To hell with you both! I can find my own way home.”

Trevor reached out for her. “It’s fifteen miles. Let us take you home at least.”

Before he could pull her in, she spun out of his grip. “Fifteen miles isn’t that bad. Besides, I have a thumb.” She held it up for emphasis.

“C’mon, Charlie! I’ll forgive you for insulting me if you’ll forgive me for kidnapping you.”

Charlie stopped dead in her tracks and turned on him. “Forgive you? Are you fucking kidding me?”

Two weeks of sexual frustration plus years of hurt and loneliness boiled to the surface, and the careful shield she had hidden it all behind broke wide open. Charlie jabbed her finger into his chest.

“Look here, you arrogant bastard! I’m tired of your damn roaming hands enticing my body into something that I shouldn’t be coaxed into. Keep your big paws off me or I swear I’ll press charges against you for kidnapping.”

“Now, now, bichito, he didn’t mean anything by it,” Kegan chuckled.

She turned that raw pain and anger on him. “And you! How dare you call me that! Don’t you ever call me that again!” she screamed. “I am not your little bug. I haven’t bugged you for eight fucking years. Eight years, Kegan. Eight goddamn years of me trying to figure out what the hell I did to make you leave.” She slammed her hands against his chest over and over.

“You promised me you’d come back and you lied. You left me, and Gram died and I was completely alone and you still didn’t come back!” The tears streamed down her face and she couldn’t catch her breath or stop the flow of words coming from her broken heart.

“I never stopped wondering where you were and what you were doing. Wondering if you were okay, if you were happy and praying you were just as miserable as I was. Then I find you here and your life is wonderful. You have a great home, a great job, someone who loves you, and a string of women in your bed.” She clawed at his chest, tried to rip his heart to shreds the way he had shredded hers. “You left me alone, scared and broken while you were off living the high life. Stupid me, I never stopped waiting for you, hoping that you’d come back, praying that you’d want me. Damn you, I tried to hate you but I never stopped loving you.”

Her hands flew over her mouth. Oh God, what have I done?

Charlie felt lightheaded and her body shook so hard she couldn’t stand. She was unable to catch her breath, the pressure on her chest a pain that was too hard to endure. Black dots swirled around her vision. Just before everything went black, she felt strong arms wrap around her.