But Talib had only come in to make sure she didn’t need anything. He hadn’t slept with them at all.
“You could get me a schedule of meetings.” She tried to give him a brilliant smile.
He frowned. “I think not.”
Fine. She could frown right back. “Rafe, you won’t let me work. Is this how you view a marriage?”
A long sigh escaped his chest. She could see the weariness on his face. “No, Piper. I am simply trying to take care of you.”
And he’d done a wonderful job. She let her hand slide over his. “I can’t stay in bed forever, Rafe. You have to let me be me. If all you want is some sweet little thing you can keep in bed, then you don’t really need me.” She let her lower lip pout out because she remembered the previous night. “Not that you seem interested in doing anything fun in bed.”
His lips curled up, his hand cupping her cheek. “Is that what you’re upset about?”
Kade was suddenly awake, his arm curling around her waist. “I don’t think we should upset Piper further. I believe you were right, Rafiq. We should give her everything she desires.”
She could feel the hard length of Kade’s erection nestled against her hip. Her whole body heated up, her core turning warm and soft. But she needed more than sex. For two days she’d toyed with the problem of Talib, and she needed answers.
“I think I desire a little talk.” But she let her head drift back so she was in Kade’s arms. Intimacy. It was her new favorite word. After years of deep loneliness, she reveled in their touch, surrounding herself with them. She should probably still be angry with them, but it was damn hard when they made her feel so adored.
Kade’s lips brushed her cheek. “What do you want to talk about, habibti?”
Rafe joined them, though he had dressed for the day. He crowded her other side, his nose brushing against her hair. He sighed as though the scent of her settled something deep inside him. “We will talk about anything with you.”
“Talib.”
The name seemed to be a landmine between the three of them. The brothers stopped but didn’t pull away. Even though there was no physical distance between them, Piper could sense the emotional divide that had just opened up.
“I think you should talk with Talib,” Kade offered.
“Yes, because Tal is just going to open himself wide to me.” Frustration welled. “Look, I’m trying to give this a chance, but it’s hard when Tal will barely look at me. I don’t expect him to be in here every minute of the day. He’s busy. I get that. But is this the way a marriage would be? I’ll be married to you two and Tal will just join in the sex?”
Kade groaned a little. “No. You will be married to Tal. I assure you he’s going to take that vow seriously. He won’t cheat on you if that’s what you’re worried about. As for Rafe and myself, we don’t want another woman. We’re too busy trying to get inside you.”
And they weren’t really hearing her. “I didn’t say I’m worried about him cheating. I’m worried about having three husbands, one of whom doesn’t really know I exist unless he’s on top of me.”
Most women wouldn’t care. They would count themselves lucky that all three were rich, handsome, and good in bed. But Piper couldn’t stand the thought. She’d gone through one engagement where her groom hadn’t really wanted her. He’d just been trying to please his parents, and Piper had possessed a sterling reputation. Piper also suspected that her almost mother-in-law thought she would be easy to control.
How was Tal any different? He was marrying her because his country needed him to get married. She’d been selected because she had the right education and the right ideals, and his brothers thought she was kind of hot. She was crazy about Tal. She had been for many months before she’d met him. Even when he was just a low, sexy voice over the phone or a bunch of smart words and a quick wit coming over her computer, she’d been mad about him. She hadn’t needed to see his face to know how much she liked him. That man was buried somewhere inside him.
But he, it seemed, just wasn’t that into her. And she wasn’t sure she could live like that for the rest of her life.
“He needs time,” Rafe urged.
“I don’t have any time. I have to make a decision,” Piper replied. Every time she thought about it, her heart constricted because she was pretty sure there was no real decision to be made. She’d been placed in a terrible position, but Tal was right. Was she really going to subject the men she loved to the chaos of being forced to find a new bride in mere days or lose their throne? Was she willing to plunge a country into chaos because she wasn’t being loved the way she wanted to be?