Ruled

  She wanted this so badly and she’d never be able to have it.

  “Reese . . .”

  She looked up to see Rylan standing at her side. Her grip tightened and she turned her shoulder, shielding the baby from Rylan’s grasp.

  “Reese, sweetheart.” This time it was Sloan calling her name.

  The two men looked at her expectantly. So did Bethany.

  Rylan held out his hands for the baby and Reese reluctantly handed him over. She forced herself not to snatch the bundle of love back.

  Sloan bent over Bethany, stroking her forehead. “Your baby is so gorgeous, Bethy. Arch has gotta be wearing the biggest smile.”

  The new mother tucked herself under Sloan’s big arm and laid her head against his chest, as Rylan stopped on the other side of the bed and placed the baby into her waiting arms. Bethany pulled open one side of her shirt, and the little one turned his perfect lips toward her breast. Sounds of suckling were mixed with Sloan and Rylan’s low-pitched voices praising Bethany and exclaiming over the perfection that was little Archer.

  Reese burned with jealousy. She’d never be able to give Sloan that. Or Rylan, for that matter. She’d never be able to put that awe into their faces. She bit back a hundred bitter, stupid words and spun on her heel. She had to get out of there.

  Downstairs, she found nearly a dozen people waiting for her. “She had a boy,” Reese announced. “Everyone’s doing well.”

  Clapping and cheering broke out. People hugged each other. Some cried. None noticed that Reese had left.

  She thought she’d be able to breathe once she was outside, but even the fresh air couldn’t drive away the choking fog of jealousy.

  She ran to her building, not even bothering to shut the door behind her. She made for the kitchen, wrenching open the cabinet that housed the liquor. With shaking hands, she pulled the bottle down, but it caught on the edge of the shelf, flipped out of her slippery hands and crashed to the floor. The sharp smell of booze filled the air as Reese cried out in frustration. She couldn’t even pour herself a damn glass of whiskey.

  Cursing wildly, she grabbed the remaining bottle and managed to tear off the cap and gulp down a healthy swallow before giving in to the tears. Salty drops rained down her face and the wracking sobs shook her body with such force that she couldn’t stand up. She sank to the floor, not even feeling the sharp bite of glass in the palm she flattened in an effort to keep herself from face-planting into the booze-covered tile.

  “Reese, sweetheart, what’s wrong?”

  She glanced up to find Sloan in the doorway. “Get out,” she growled.

  Worry creased his handsome face. Behind him, she could see Rylan. They were both looking at her like she was nuts.

  She hated that. Hated that they were seeing her like this. She was the strong one, damn it. She was the one with the vision and the plan. She did not fall apart because she couldn’t have a damn baby. Yet here she was, sitting on the floor with a whiskey bottle dangling between her fingers.

  A sudden burst of anger coursed through her. She threw the bottle at Sloan’s head.

  He ducked, and it hit the wall with an explosion of glass and liquid. “What the hell was that for?”

  “I can’t give you that!” she yelled.

  “Give me what? A cracked skull?”

  “A baby! I can’t give you a goddamned baby!”

  Sloan turned around to seek help from Rylan, who raised both shoulders in wordless confusion. Then he turned back to Reese and softened his voice. “Come away from there, sweetheart.”

  She looked at the wreckage—the broken glass, the spilled whiskey, her fucking life—and gave a mutinous shake of her head. What would either of these two men, these two gorgeous, capable, amazing men, want with her?

  She was defective—part woman, part nothing. She was a good lay, but when it came down to it, she wasn’t worth keeping. A flawed vessel. Pour all the shit you wanted into her and she’d be empty by morning.

  “I told you to get out.” The command sounded more like a plea. She kept her gaze fixed on the bottle, teetering between hating herself for this uncharacteristic act of self-pity and anger toward them for witnessing it.

  Glass crunched under someone’s feet. “Heard you the first time.” It was Sloan who picked her up, and she didn’t have the energy to fight him.

  “The whole town probably heard you.” Rylan, cracking a joke as usual.

  “You coming?” Sloan asked the other man.

  “Yes.”

  She should have protested. She should have reminded them that she was an utter waste of their time. She should have. But she didn’t.

  And without another word, Sloan carried her into her bedroom, and Rylan was right behind him.

  19

  Reese was hurting, and it broke Sloan’s heart to see it. Years ago, he’d vowed to be this woman’s shield, to stop anyone and anything from hurting her, but there was no outside threat to battle right now, only an internal demon that Sloan feared he couldn’t reach.

  He brushed the tears from her eyes as he kicked open the bathroom door. “Rylan, start the shower,” he ordered without turning around.

  While the other man cranked the hot water, Sloan quickly and methodically stripped off Reese’s clothes. She stared straight ahead, but when his fingers slid under the waistband of her panties, she started to protest.

  “I’m fine.”

  They all heard the shakiness of her voice. “You’re not fine,” he said quietly. “You’re ice-cold, sweetheart. Let’s warm you up, okay?” He nudged her toward Rylan and began removing his own clothes.

  Once he was naked, he gently lifted Reese into the tub and under the shower spray. As the water coursed over their bodies, Sloan wrapped both arms around her from behind so his chest was supporting her trembling back.

  From the corner of his eye he saw Rylan undressing too. A moment later, the big blond man stepped into the shower. Sloan twisted Reese around while Rylan came up behind her, and she seemed to sag in defeat when she found herself sandwiched between the two men.

  Not a word was spoken as Rylan grabbed a bar of soap and lathered it up in both hands. He soaped up Reese’s back, her shoulders, her arms, before kneeling down to get her legs. Then he rose to his feet and handed the soap to Sloan, who wasted no time running it over the front of Reese’s body.

  He ignored the slippery curves and smooth wet flesh gliding beneath his fingers. He ignored his hardening dick and the sudden quickness of his pulse. As much as he wanted to get inside her, he couldn’t erase the image of her grief-stricken face, her wild eyes as she’d hurled that bottle at his head, her anguished words—“I can’t give you a goddamned baby!”

  He knew Reese had been raised in the city, but some mental malfunction had prevented him from recognizing the implications of that. If a female citizen wasn’t chosen to breed, then she was sterilized. He knew that. But he’d never thought about it in relation to Reese.

  And it didn’t matter to him, damn it. His heart ached because she ached, not because he harbored silly fantasies about being a father. He didn’t want a baby. Never had, probably never would. Holding Bethany’s tiny newborn had flooded his chest with warmth and affection, but not because he wanted a kid of his own. He was happy for Bethy, that was all.

  He didn’t ever want Reese to think that she was lacking. That there was something, anything, she couldn’t give him. Because he already had everything he’d ever wanted.

  Her.

  His hand brushed Rylan’s as they both caressed Reese’s hip, and Sloan faltered for a moment. He had more than he’d ever wanted, he realized. He hadn’t exactly sat around dreaming about sharing Reese with another man, but he couldn’t deny that having Rylan here felt . . . right.

  “What do you need, sweetheart?” Sloan’s gruff question was muffled by the rush of water, but he kne
w Reese heard him, because she stiffened slightly.

  “I don’t know,” she mumbled.

  “You want to talk?” he pushed.

  She slowly shook her head, causing damp strands of dark red hair to slither over her full breasts.

  He gently cupped her tits and rubbed her nipples with his thumbs. “You want us to make you feel good?”

  After a long beat, her head dipped in a weak nod.

  Sloan met Rylan’s eyes over Reese’s shoulder, and he tipped his head in an unspoken question. Rylan nodded as if to say he was up to the task, then slipped his hands to Reese’s thighs and gently spread them apart.

  As his heart hammered erratically, Sloan sank to his knees in front of her. Something akin to wonder floated through him. This was the first time he was going down on her. He wanted to memorize the sight of her, the taste of her, but Reese needed a swift, powerful release that would extinguish her sorrow and replace it with something sweeter. Something hotter.

  His lips tingled as he brought them to the glistening pussy he’d fantasized about for years. Reese’s entire body jerked hard when his tongue made contact with her clit. Sloan glanced up briefly to see Rylan wrap one strong arm around Reese’s waist. His other hand was cupping one breast, squeezing and fondling as he rested his chin on her shoulder.

  “I’ve got you, baby,” Rylan murmured. “Close your eyes and let him taste you.”

  Sloan didn’t wait to see if she obeyed. He was already dragging his tongue down her slit toward her opening, groaning roughly as he lapped at the moisture pooled there.

  Damn, he wanted to savor this. He really, really, really wanted to go slow. But he’d save that tantalizing option for later. Right now, he would help Reese release all the tension coiled up inside her. He licked his way back up, wrapped his lips around her clit, and sucked hard enough to make her cry out.

  “That’s it, just let go. We’ll take care of you.”

  Sloan was barely aware of Rylan’s soft words of encouragement. He finally had his face buried between Reese’s shaking legs, and it was making his head spin with desire. He slid two fingers inside her wet channel, glorying in the way she clenched and squeezed him in return.

  Her moans bounced off the tiled walls, fueling Sloan’s own urgency. His cock was heavy between his legs, leaking from the throaty sounds escaping Reese’s throat. He curled his fingers and stroked her as he lashed her clit with his tongue, over and over again until she began to convulse.

  “There you go,” Rylan rumbled. “That’s a good girl. Come all over our man’s face.”

  Sloan relentlessly stroked and licked her hot flesh, filling himself with her flavor until she spiraled out of control. He stood up only when Reese’s body finally stilled. The taste of her was imprinted on his tongue, the sweet evidence of her orgasm coating his fingers.

  Rylan’s look of approval when their gazes met triggered something hot and primal inside of Sloan. Without a word, he brought his fingers to the other man’s mouth. Reese gasped, and the heat blazing in Rylan’s eyes as he sucked on Sloan’s fingers sent a bolt of electricity right to Sloan’s dick.

  Jesus.

  The water had grown cold. Sloan lifted Reese into his arms, and she looped her hands around his neck as he carried her out of the bathroom. The faucet creaked as Rylan turned the shower off and joined them in the bedroom a moment later.

  Neither man said a word as Sloan deposited Reese’s wet, naked body on the rumpled bedspread. He and Rylan didn’t need to speak, because they both had the same agenda. They also had massive erections that throbbed in need as the two men stretched out on either side of Reese.

  “I’m sorry I lost it.” Her shamed voice broke the silence.

  “Nothing to be sorry for,” Sloan murmured before flicking his tongue over a pink puckered nipple.

  “Nothing at all,” Rylan concurred, then captured her other breast with his mouth and sucked hard.

  Her hips shot off the bed. “Fuck,” she moaned. “That’s . . . oh God, don’t stop. Keep doing that . . .”

  Rylan gave a husky chuckle, and Sloan felt the vibrations of it against his mouth. “We don’t stop until you tell us to stop,” Rylan promised.

  Sloan wholeheartedly agreed. He worked that perfect nipple in his mouth, licking and suckling while his palm drifted down her flat stomach toward the juncture of her thighs. When his hand bumped Rylan’s, it was his turn to laugh. Looked like they both had the same idea.

  In perfect synchronicity, they toyed with their woman, Rylan spreading her delicate lips open so Sloan could rub her clit. After a few teasing strokes, Sloan covered Rylan’s knuckles with his palm and slid both their hands lower, pushing their fingers inside her tight sheath.

  She made a low, desperate sound. Sloan lifted his mouth from her breast to find that her brown eyes had completely glazed over. She was mindless with lust, squirming on the bed, rocking against his and Rylan’s fingers as if she couldn’t get enough.

  “Christ, baby, you’re so wet,” Rylan groaned, pushing deeper inside.

  Sloan was well aware of how wet she was. She soaked their fingers and tested his restraint each time her inner muscles clutched them tighter. He couldn’t stop the urge to rub his aching cock against her leg.

  A strangled laugh flew out when he noticed Rylan doing the same. This woman got both of them so hot they were liable to shoot their loads before either of them even entered her. But not yet. First, he wanted to make her come again.

  “Eat her pussy,” he told Rylan. “I want to see the look on her face when you make her come.”

  The other man didn’t need to be asked twice. With a wicked smile, he crawled between Reese’s legs and started tonguing her clit. Sloan’s fingers stayed lodged inside her, and Rylan’s eager tongue grazed his knuckles with every long, lazy lick.

  Sloan shivered with arousal. He knew firsthand how good Rylan was with that tongue.

  So good, in fact, that Reese began trembling almost immediately. She clamped tightly on Sloan’s fingers as she moaned with abandon. “Coming,” she gasped, and holy hell, was she ever.

  He watched as raw ecstasy filled her eyes, making them hazy and heavy-lidded. His heart beat faster as he felt her orgasm rippling around his hand. There was nothing hotter than watching—no, feeling—this woman lose control. Reese was . . . fire. A fire that ran so hot it turned men into mindless, panting savages who existed only to serve her. To please her. To love her.

  And that was fine by him. As long as he had Reese in his arms, shuddering and coming and sobbing his name, he was happy to let her fire consume him.

  * * *

  More.

  That was the only thought that beat in her blood. She wanted more. More of Rylan’s tongue tracing her clit. More of Sloan’s harsh-voiced commands. More orgasms. More releases. Just . . . more.

  Reese sat up and watched in anticipation as the two men knelt on the mattress. She knew what was next. How the two of them would possess her at the same time.

  She could not wait.

  “Tell us what you want first,” Sloan ordered.

  Her body sang with delight at the word first. This was merely the beginning.

  “I want this.” She grasped Sloan’s hard shaft and circled it with her fingers. Then she reached for Rylan’s. “And this.”

  Rylan flashed a quick grin at her. He moved beside Sloan and positioned himself close to her face, holding his cock in one hand. She tongued the tip of it, enjoying his masculine taste, the velvety feel inside her mouth. Her other hand continued to pump Sloan, who watched for a few seconds before taking over for her, handling his cock more roughly than Reese would’ve ever dreamed of doing.

  Sloan stroked himself as Reese flicked her tongue along the underside of Rylan’s tip. Just when Rylan released a husky growl and tried pushing deeper into her mouth, she released him and turned her attentio
n to Sloan.

  He groaned the moment she swallowed him up, his fingers tangling in her hair, gripping the damp strands to the point of pain. It was Rylan’s turn to pump himself, his eyes greedily taking in the sight of her sucking Sloan.

  As tension began to build again in her core, Reese dropped a hand between her legs to rub the ache away. Before she could make contact, Sloan’s hand shot out.

  “No.” He gripped her wrist. “That belongs to us tonight. No touching.” He pressed her hand back on his hip and then slid his fingers back in her hair. He jerked her head up. “Now suck.”

  She sucked hard. First on Sloan, then Rylan, alternating between each man, summoning deep, desperate noises from both of their throats.

  Her pulse sped up when Rylan grabbed Sloan around the neck and kissed him. Sloan’s hand tightened in her hair as he returned the kiss.

  Fuck, that was the hottest thing she’d ever seen. Or maybe it wasn’t—the memory of Sloan’s cock in Rylan’s mouth was even hotter. She was so turned on she felt like she might self-combust. And if she couldn’t touch herself, then she was going to torture these two men. She took one shaft in each hand and stroked faster.

  When Sloan backed away, Reese voiced her disapproval. “No. Come back.”

  “Too close to coming,” he grunted. His chest heaved as if he’d run all the way out to the farm and back at top speeds, his lips glossy from his kiss with Rylan.

  Rylan wasn’t in much better shape. He licked his lips and gave her a hungry look. “My dick needs to be in someone right now,” he growled.

  Sloan gave an abrupt nod and slid in behind Reese. He stretched out his legs and placed her knees on the outside of his hips.

  It was an awkward position for her. Her center of gravity was off and she had to rely on Sloan’s broad back to support her. He lightly ran his hands down her sides. Ghost touches under her arms, fingers marking each separate rib while Rylan waited impatiently for his order.

  “C’mere.” Sloan gestured for Rylan, then cupped Reese’s breasts, thumbing her tightly-peaked nipples before holding them out for Rylan’s mouth. “Suck until she comes again.”