KEANE
When I entered Rye's room, I found Lily huddled under the covers, her face pale and her brown eyes seemingly even larger and wider than I'd ever seen them before. Clearly, she was not accustomed to close encounters with the law.
Rye, unperturbed as usual, had rejoined her in the bed, holding her close against his body.
Had it been any other man, I'd have punched him in a fit of jealousy and offense at his touching my woman. But, not Rye. No, never Rye. Lily was our woman. We would see to her care and happiness all the days of our lives. Rye had her tucked up under his arm, her head resting against his chest, though she still clutched the bedclothes in her fingers. So tightly, her knuckles were white.
I yanked off my boots and slid into the bed on the other side of Lily. I took hold of her fingers and gently pried them from the blankets. When she resisted, I coaxed, "Lily, my sweet, you were so brave. You did a fine job. Now there's nothing for you to fear. Rye and I are here. You'll never have to be fearful again."
"No, never again," Rye said, placing a tender kiss to her temple.
Lily directed those big brown eyes at me and blinked as though she'd just noticed my arrival. That she was sandwiched between two men in a bed didn't seem to have registered or affected her, yet. I gave another tug on the blanket, and she let go. I allowed it to rest at her waist. Her blouse was open and pushed off her shoulders. I stared at her alabaster flesh and envisioned her entire body naked. My cock stirred in my pants.
Man was not meant to be in bed fully clothed, but considering the amount of trauma our Lily had experienced in the last hour, it seemed best to move slowly, no matter how uncomfortable.
We had decades before us to engage in all the tawdry games I had in mind that involved my cock buried deep in her mouth, her pussy and, eventually, her ass. My cock swelled again, and I shifted.
"Is-is it true? What you told the deputies?" She turned her head to gape at Rye. "A-are you really a l-lord?" She spoke the words almost reverently.
"Yes," Rye assured her. "It is true. I am the third son of the Earl of Rye. Third sons are rarely of much value to their family, and so I took the opportunity to travel here to America, to start anew. With my dear, lifelong friend, Keane." He nodded in my direction, and she turned to me.
"A-are you a l-lord, too?"
"Oh hell no," I said. "I'm a soldier. Used to be. Now I'm a rancher. Bridgewater Ranch to be exact."
"Bridgewater?" She sat up straighter. "I-I think I have he-heard about that ranch."
"We have some of the finest horses in the territory. Perhaps that is what you have heard about."
"No," she said, moving her head slowly from side to side, her brow furrowed as though she was working to remember something. "My employer—former employer—I-I overheard a conversation he had with several men. Actually many conversations. They called it a ranch full of debauchery, and that it ought to be burned down. A blight on society and the good people of Montana."
"That sounds about right," I said. Rye shot me a scowl. "I'm sorry, darling. I ought not to tease. Yes, we at Bridgewater do live an unconventional lifestyle."
"It's based on a tradition from Mohamir. Where two or more men share a bride. The better to protect and provide for her. In every way." Rye ran a finger along the opening of her blouse, pushing it aside.
Lily's pert mouth fell slack, and her breathing increased. Rye continued to work the blouse farther down.
"In fact, that's why we came to Butte this week. To find a bride."
"Oh!" she gasped and glanced around the room. "D-did you f-find one?"
"As a matter of fact," I said, brushing the hair back from her face, reveling in the silky feel of it, "we did."
Her face fell, and she reached for the covers again.
"Found her before we'd even gotten to the hotel," Rye added. "Right there in the park. Her hat came flying toward us, like divine intervention." He leaned forward and placed a kiss on her throat. She gaped at us.
"But then we found out she was married. Or so we thought." I opened the final buttons on her blouse and pushed it open while I placed a soft kiss on her forehead.
"We were so disappointed, we'd decided to go back home and stop looking," Rye said, then covered her mouth with his, pulled her close.
I finished removing her blouse, her flimsy corset the only covering on her torso. God, she was even more exquisite than I’d imagined. And I’d imagined a lot. Every night and most waking moments, too. Touching her, kissing her, listening to her moans of pleasure. And now, those dreams were about to come true.
When the kiss ended, Rye passed her over to me. She gazed up at me, mouth swollen from Rye’s kiss. I took my turn, tasting her for the first time. Her lips were soft and pliable, and her body responded to me. Her mouth moved beneath mine, and her fingers rested on my chest, gentle as a sparrow, and then slid up around my neck. God in heaven, it was the most glorious sensation I’d ever experienced. Her delicate body melted against mine. I slipped my hands around her tiny waist, holding her close, her tight nipples brushing my shirt. I ached to free her breasts and suck on the sweet nubs.
"And then she cried out. Needed our help," I whispered against her lips. I had to kiss her again. I couldn’t get enough.
Meanwhile, Rye removed the pins from her hair so it fell about her shoulders like a silky, fawn-colored wave.
"And now we have her right where she belongs," he whispered, pushing her hair aside and kissing her nape. "In our bed. Between us."
"Forever."
LILY
Though they were speaking slowly, sensuously slowly, I still had trouble grasping what they were saying.
They were Bridgewater men. From the ranch Mr. Garner had railed against so many times. And, if I heard them correctly, and I wasn’t certain I had, they had come to Butte to find a bride and—that bride was me. Me?
They surrounded me. Their touches were intoxicating, and their kisses—oh mercy, their kisses were otherworldly. My head spun, and sensations coursed through me, making it difficult to think of anything but more, more kisses, more touches, more of them.
Both of them.
"We would like you to do us the honor of marrying us. Be our bride and live with us at Bridgewater," Keane said, his gaze dark and sincere, penetrating to my very soul.
"You would want for nothing. We would cherish and love you, protect you with our lives, until our dying breaths." Rye pinned me with his blue eyes that seemed to change shade depending on his mood. If I were to guess, his current mood was —passionate.
I gulped.
"I-I ... what... um..." My mind had never been so befuddled. I glanced from one to the other and back again. Was this a joke? For what purpose?
"We aren't doing this properly," Rye said, releasing me and climbing from the bed, getting down on one knee on his side of the mattress
Keane repeated the process on the other. I felt their absence, and a shiver ran through me.
They each took hold of one of my hands. Rye kissed the top of my right, just as he had done in the park. It had only been a few days ago, but a lifetime of things had happened since then. My breath hitched in my throat.
Keane held my left between both his warm palms.
"Lily Snow," Rye spoke in a husky whisper.
"Will you marry us?" Keane finished, his voice full of emotion.
"B-both of you? 'Tis illegal." I knew that much. Of all of Mr. Garner's rantings about the sins of Bridgewater, that much had, in fact, been correct.
"Technically, legally, you would only be married to one of us," Rye answered, his gaze holding mine in a most distracting way.
"But spiritually, emotionally, you would be married to both of us, equally." Keane placed a kiss on the center of my palm, so gently and reverently, while his dark gaze locked with mine.
Oh lord. This was insanity.
Or was it?
Of course, the idea of it was scandalous. Shameful. Debased.
So why was my body alight, as though flames filled my veins? And why did their touches cause me to yearn for more. So much more. Things I could not adequately describe or define, but that my body sought. Eagerly. Passionately.
But, to say yes to such a thing?
What would... I stopped and caught myself. I was about to ask myself what would my father say? But I had no family. I had nothing. What few belongings I had were still in the room where Mr. Garner had assaulted me.
Thanks to Mr. Garner, I didn’t even have my good reputation anymore.
What I did have was free will. My life was mine to do with as I pleased.
Taking a deep breath, I looked from Keane on my left to Rye on my right. "Yes," I said, tentatively at first but as I spoke the word, my heart opened and swelled with jubilation. "Yes!" I cried louder. "A hundred times yes."
KEANE
For a stunned moment I gaped at her. Of course, I had told Rye I was sure we’d find a bride and even find a way to make Miss Lily Snow ours, but now that it had happened, now that she’d agreed, I found it hard to believe.
Merely two hours ago, Rye and I had lamented our failure to find a bride, or at least a marriageable bride and now, here she was, tucked up sweet as you please in our hotel room.
I could not resist and glanced over at Rye to say, "Told you so." Then I put Lily's hand to my mouth and kissed each finger, the center of her palm before I joined her in the bed again.
Rye had done the same, with an uncharacteristic grin on his face. He hadn't even minded my claim to have predicted our good fortune.
Love changed people. Even Rye.
The three of us lay there, beneath the covers, semi-undressed, and sort of stared at each other as we let the events of the last few minutes sink in.
"I-I can’t believe this," Lily finally said. "It is like a dream come true." Her eyes shone bright, and she gazed first at me and then at Rye. "I have a feeling my neck will get sore from turning from one to the other of you." She laughed shyly at her little joke.
My cock nearly exploded.
"You have made us both incredibly happy, Lily," Rye said. "We cannot wait to take you back to Bridgewater with us."
"Oh," I said, sitting up a bit straighter, "I nearly forgot." I glanced at Lily and smiled. "I was distracted." My gaze lingered on the opening of her corset, and she flushed prettily. "One of the deputies mentioned we ought not to stick around town too long. Apparently, Lily’s former employer is a man of some influence around here."
Lily gasped, and her eyes went wide. "Oh, yes. He is." She sat bolt upright in bed and tried to climb over me to get out. "We need to pack our things and leave right away."
"Woah, there, sweet Lily," I said, blocking her path and positioning her so she straddled my waist, her skirts—which I ached to remove to reveal the sweet cunny below—billowing out around her.
"B-but, you don’t understand." I could feel her quiver against my waist. "He’s extremely powerful. And vindictive. Oh dear, we must go. I have brought all this trouble upon you. I’m so sorry."
Rye and I exchanged a glance, and then he spoke. "We are honorable gentlemen and we hide from no man. We have already planned to leave in the morning, and that’s what we shall do. I’ll go and find a pastor or justice of the peace so we can do things up legally tonight before taking you back to our home at Bridgewater."
"But—"
I put a finger to her lips. "Do you trust us, Lily? For if you do not, then a marriage shall be quite a challenge indeed. You have not known us for long, but in that time we have conducted ourselves as men of character, have we not?"
"Ye-yes," she replied, her pink tongue darting out to wet her lips. Was she trying to kill me? How could I focus when my mind filled with images of that pink tongue lapping at my thick cock?
"And you have agreed to be our bride, and that means you will follow our instructions at all times, particularly when it comes to your safety and well-being. Do you understand?" Rye spoke in a calm but firm tone. This was a pivotal point in our relationship. If she did not trust us or wish to follow our leadership… well, we’d have to have a serious conversation about that.
"I-I… yes, I do. It is just … well, I have never… " She paused and looked away for a moment as if thinking before turning back to us. "It is difficult for me to rely on others. In my experience, they have always let me down."
I cupped her face in my palms. "I am sorry for all those wretched souls who let you down. And I will be even more sorry for them if I should ever encounter one for I will happily give them the same treatment I gave Mr. Garner, or worse." A corner of her mouth turned up a bit. "But Rye and I will never let you down. You will always come first for us, no matter what."
Rye reached over and took both her hands in his. "It’s the Bridgewater way. Two men to take care of a woman’s every need. I vow to you Keane or I would gladly give our life to protect yours."