"Two feet?" I guessed, glancing out the window.
"Easily."
"Is everyone all right?" I asked. Ann was well after birthing Christopher and the lad was thriving, but it was a vulnerable time for both of them.
He nodded. "Besides being tired, everyone is well. I should be asking that of you. I heard a shot last night. You're the closest house and thought it would have come from here."
"It did. An interesting turn of events."
He ran his hand over his beard and watched me closely, unsure if it was good news or bad.
"Take off your boots and I’ll tell you."
I told him about Mason's trip to the woodpile, the discovery of Laurel and her predicament.
"I've never heard of a Hiram Johns."
"Neither have I," I replied.
"Then who the hell is she? She didn't just fall out of the sky."
I shrugged. "Based on the weather, she couldn't have been riding more than a few hours, so she had to have come from somewhere near Simms. Don't worry, the story will come out."
Andrew grinned. "I have no doubt of that."
I patted the man on the shoulder. "She's the one, Andrew.
His eyebrows went up in surprise. "You're sure?"
"We're sure. I'm not going to punish her for her secrets. That will gain us nothing. I want her biddable. If she's going to be ours, she needs to start her training now."
Andrew's eyebrows went up in surprise as he placed his boots in front of the cast iron stove to warm. "You've fucked her?"#p#分页标题#e#
I frowned. "Hell, no."
My friend held up his hands in surrender.
"We're honorable enough to wait until she's truly ours before we claim her. That doesn't mean we can't show her our ways."
MASON
There was no way in bloody hell I'd let her put her dress back on. Seeing her in just my shirt only made her even more mine. Ours. Knowing she wore nothing underneath, that her pretty nipples were poking against the material, that the red curls on her pussy were easily accessible, had me hard. Hell, even after I'd spent my seed on her I was still hard. She was marked. Besides her unique floral, sweet scent, she smelled of fucking. I couldn't wait to mark her on the inside as well by filling her delectable pussy with my cum. I knew Brody felt the same.
Before Andrew left, he'd invited us to their house for the evening meal, which was good because Laurel would see the dynamic Ann had with two husbands. Regardless of her past, Laurel was going to be our wife. She was a horrendous liar; every emotion she felt flitted across her face—indecision, wariness, even deceit. She was deceiving us by keeping secrets.
"What do you think?" I asked Brody, my voice low. Laurel was in the bath in the washroom. We were downstairs adding logs to the fireplaces and stoves to keep the house warm.
He glanced up at the ceiling as if he could see her through it. "I believe everything except her father's name. Never heard of him."
"Neither have I. If she ran away, she can't be protecting him. She's protecting herself. But why? We saved her from certain death. We wouldn't hurt her."
Brody shrugged. "She doesn't know that."
I frowned at the thought. We'd never hurt a woman. Never. Everyone at Bridgewater protected women. Cherished them. "Then we must show her. She's so bloody beautiful." I ran a hand over my beard. "Her hair is memorable. If she's been living around here, we'd have known."
Brody nodded. "Every man within a hundred miles would be after her."
"Good thing she ended up here."
"Where did she come from?"
I didn't have an answer. Only Laurel would be able to tell us.
"She's ours," Brody growled.
"No question. So we wait for her to tell us?"
Brody opened the door on the stove in the kitchen, stuffed a log in and shut it. He tossed the cloth he'd used to protect his hand on the table. "Does the past really matter?"
I shook my head. "I'd rather train her than question her, wouldn't you?"
"Hell, yes. I spoke to Andrew before he left. They'll help any way they can."
***
An hour later, I carried a bundled up Laurel into Andrew and Robert's house. Her coat was still damp and I'd cut the laces of her boots so we wrapped her in a blanket to keep warm on the walk. It was a short distance, only five minutes, but the air was crisp and the sun had set offering no additional warmth. The trio met us at the doorway and took our things, the scent of stew and baked bread filled the air. There was a roaring fire in the hearth and it was warm and comfortable. Since their marriage to Ann, the house had turned into a home.
"It is good to see you again, Laurel," Andrew said. "May I introduce Robert and our wife, Ann? Christopher is in the cradle near the fireplace, napping."