“Actually, Butler, she doesn’t know us at all,” Alex told him, laughing as he bent over to pick up his discarded clothing and pulled on his jeans.
Both men looked at each other and smiled. They knew Nikki was going to try to push them away, but she didn’t realize just how hard they were going to fight to keep her.
The bathroom door opened slowly, drawing their attention. Nikki stepped out slowly, tying the belt around the long, pink, fluffy robe that Laurie had thought to leave for her on the hook behind the door. Alex smiled at her, loving the adorable picture she made all clean and fresh, with her wet black hair slicked back away from her face. He wanted to pull her into his arms and kiss her senseless. Butler’s growl from behind him made him know his partner was in agreement with him.
Nikki looked at both men hesitantly. They stood before her clad only in their jeans that weren’t zipped up or buttoned. She followed the line of their abs, licking her lips absentmindedly as their sculpted muscles led her to the place she wanted to explore. The men’s growls brought her attention back to their faces, and she couldn’t help the blush that covered her cheeks. She looked away from their knowing grins. Bad move. Now she stood looking at their chests. Their very naked, muscled, sexy chests with just the right amount of hair sprinkled across them. Oh, she was such a goner! How was she ever going to convince them that she didn’t want them when everything about them drew her to them? If they showed her one bit of kindness, she knew she wouldn’t be able to keep up the pretense of indifference and anger.
Walking past them, she made her way to the front room of the suite, glad to be away from the bedroom so she could calm herself. The small living area was just what she needed to get as far away from the men as she could. She carefully sat down on the couch and tucked the robe tighter around her legs. She needed to calm down and pull herself together. She couldn’t cave. She had to be hard. She had to be mean. Even though the very thought of hurting these men made her stomach hurt.
Both men followed her out of the bedroom and into the living area. Alex took a deep breath, inhaling Nikki’s scent, growling softly as he smelled her arousal. His eyes flashed golden, his wolf fighting to get out and claim what was theirs. He turned to Butler and saw that his triad partner had scented Nikki’s need as well.
Butler looked at him briefly, nodding slightly before turning his attention back to the luscious woman who kept her distance from them. He took another deep breath and drew in the scent of their mate. He smiled and took a step toward their woman. He had every intention of making her realize that they were going to love her and care for her for the rest of their lives despite her reluctance to be mated to them.
A hard knock on the door to their suite drew him up short. Both men turned to look at the door, knowing they had to deal with whoever was there, but not really appreciating the interruption right then.
In four long strides, Butler reached the door and pulled it opened, surprised to see Jace and Jackson standing before him. Without hesitation, he took a step back and gestured with his hand to allow them entrance into the room.
Jace nodded to Butler, then to Alexander, before turning to walk toward Nikki as she sat on the oversized brown suede couch against the far wall of the living room.
Nikki’s eyes widened in surprise as the two mountainous men made their way toward her. She saw the pure pain and concern in their eyes as they looked down at her, and she became worried immediately.
She was pulled from her thoughts when she heard the warning growls emanating from Alexander and Butler as they took their place on either side of her on the couch. She turned to them and was surprised to see that both men’s eyes were flashing golden, and it looked like their canines had elongated as they looked at Jace and Jackson.
“Down, boys,” Nikki told them, patting their legs reassuringly before turning to face Jace and Jackson. Their expressions told her something was very wrong, and her heart seized at the thought that it could only be because of Laurie. “What’s wrong?”
Jace nodded abruptly at the men to acknowledge their claim before centering his attention on their mate. “Nikki, I know you need to rest, but we need to know if you can help us get in contact with Laurie.”
“Why? Where is she?” Nikki asked worriedly.
“We don’t know,” Jackson told her quietly.
“Give me my purse, Alexander.” Nikki pointed to the end of the couch where her bag sat next to him. “Laurie wouldn’t just leave like that. Something has to be wrong.”
Jace nodded, glad that Nikki affirmed his suspicions. He waited silently while Nikki pulled her phone from her purse and turned it on, pushing the first number on speed dial to connect to Laurie’s phone.
Nikki looked up at the two men, her forehead creased with concern. “It’s going straight to voice mail. She doesn’t have her phone on.”
Jace handed Nikki his phone. “Program her number in for me.” His voice brooked no room for refusal.
Nikki didn’t even hesitate, taking his phone and quickly programming Laurie’s number into it. Turning to Jackson, she put out her hand to take his phone to do the same for him.
“What happened?” Nikki asked them, trying to stand but wobbling a little. Both Alexander and Butler were by her side immediately, reaching for her arms to grip them while wrapping their arms around her waist to hold her steady.
“Mate, you need to be careful,” Butler warned her gruffly.
“Oh, shush.” Nikki pushed at him, not budging him an inch. “And stop that
mate
crap.”
“Nikki,” Alexander warned her.
“You be quiet, too,” Nikki warned him, ignoring both of them to focus on Jace. “What happened?” she repeated.
Jace rubbed his hands over his face, taking a deep breath to try to calm himself. “She was upset by what happened at the mall. She blames herself for what happened to you and Julia.”
“She is
not
responsible for what Pigface did!” Nikki nearly shrieked.
Jace stared at Nikki in shock. Then a smile crept over his face.
“Pigface?” Jackson asked, his voice tinged with humor.
“Her ex,” Nikki explained, waving her hand to dismiss the name she had always given him. “For as long as I’ve known Laurie, he’s had her convinced that every bad thing he did, every bad thing that happened, was her fault. He’s been harassing her for the last fifteen years that they’ve been divorced, and for the entire five years that they were married. God, I hate that guy!”
Nikki looked up at Jace and Jackson, and her eyes narrowed as she sized them up. “I’m only going to warn you both one time,” she told them quietly, raising her index finger to point at them both. “If you disrespect Laurie in any way, if you hurt her in any way, if you crush her spirit and make her feel worthless again, I will rip your dicks off.”
“Nikki!” Alexander and Butler both gasped at the same time.
“Honey, you can’t threaten our alpha and beta,” Alexander told her sternly.
“Watch me!” Nikki nearly shouted at them. “I’ll do the same to you if you think you’re going to tell me what to do or what to say!”
“Alpha.” Butler stepped forward and lowered his head. “Please accept our apology.”
Nikki grabbed Butler by the shoulder and pushed with all her strength. Her eyes flashed in fury as he stood with his back to her, facing Jace and Jackson.
“Don’t you dare apologize for me, you big Neanderthal!”
Butler turned to face her and reached out to hold her tightly against his chest. “You will calm yourself, woman, before you injure yourself further,” he warned her angrily.
“You will get out of my face before I show you just how I’ll injure you, you big jerk!” Nikki struggled against Butler’s chest with no results. When Alexander stepped up behind her and encircled her in his embrace, she lost her fight, exhaustion overtaking her.
“Please, Mate,” Alexander whispered against her neck. “Please don’t tire yourself. I couldn’t bear to see you suffering again. It rips my heart out.”
Nikki stopped struggling immediately. Alexander’s genuine concern for her took her by surprise. No one except her grandfather, Laurie, and Laurie’s children had ever cared if she was ever hurt in her entire life.
His kindness was her undoing. All fight in her disintegrated with that one moment of honest caring. In the space of one heartbeat, she was lost. She couldn’t cause them any more pain from her insults. They deserved respect and kindness.
She turned slowly to face Alex, reaching up to take his face in her hands. Pulling him gently toward her, she placed a loving kiss on his lips. She would leave them so they could find a better suited mate to their triad, but she would leave with kindness and gentleness. She wouldn’t be able to walk away with guilt on her conscience, knowing she had been cruel to both men.
The taste of him exploded on her lips, and she pulled back, afraid of the desire she had to continue this exploration of his mouth. She felt a gentle touch on her head as Butler ran his hand down the length of her hair as he caressed her. The feel of his body leaning against her back and his face buried in her neck as he nuzzled her shoulder and breathed in deeply made her knees weaken. She suddenly felt like her legs were made of rubber.
Turning, she reached up to gently frame Butler’s face with her hands and leaned up to tenderly place a soft kiss on his lips, unable to keep the moan from escaping as she tasted him. Between the two men who held her so gently, she was powerless to stop the feelings of yearning she had to truly belong to them. And if that didn’t scare the hell out of her, nothing would.
Pulling away from both of them, she admitted to herself that she really didn’t want to move away from these two men. She wanted to stay exactly where she was. Turning, she faced Jace and Jackson again. “I will not apologize for what I said,” she told them, her voice strong and sure. “I will not allow you to hurt Laurie.”
Jace smiled down at Nikki. “You have nothing to apologize for, Nikki,” he told her honestly. “Laurie has a good friend and protector in you. But you don’t need to worry. Jackson and I would never hurt her. We want to protect and love her for the rest of our lives.”
Nikki remained silent for a moment before nodding when she accepted what he had said. “All right then. See that you do.”
“We will,” Jace promised, smiling. “We both like our dicks exactly where they are.”
Nikki laughed despite her worries. “I’ll bet Laurie does, too,” she teased.
With a curt nod to their lieutenants, Jace and Jackson turned to leave, closing the door firmly behind them. Nikki looked at the closed door for a moment, thinking about the two men who had just left. She knew Laurie had good men that cared about her. They would be there for her for the rest of her life. She smiled as she thought about the confrontation Laurie would experience when the men caught up with her. She had to admit to herself that, for once, she would not take Laurie’s side if she was foolish enough to walk away from the love that those two men willingly offered her.
Turning to face Alex and Butler, she couldn’t stop the blush that covered her cheeks or the sorrow that filled her heart as she looked at the men who she knew without a doubt offered her that same unconditional love. She didn’t understand why she felt it down to her very soul, but she did, and it scared her. She didn’t want to disappoint these two wonderful men.
“I’m sorry,” she whispered.
They were beside her immediately, engulfing her in their embrace. She closed her eyes, loving the feel of them surrounding her. She wanted them closer. She wanted them to hold her tighter.
“There is nothing to apologize for,” Alex’s gruff voice answered her. He kissed the top of her head as he squeezed her tightly against his chest.
“Yes, there is,” Nikki told them, sniffling. “I didn’t mean what I said.”
“Would that be calling me a jerk or calling me a Neanderthal?” Butler teased, looking down at her with a sparkle of mischief in his eyes that stunned her.
“Both,” she whispered, looking down in shame. “I don’t know what to say.”
Butler looked at Alex and smiled. They could feel the walls Nikki had surrounded herself with beginning to crumble. They just needed a chance to prove to her that they would be a good triad—one that would give her support and kindness and love.
“You don’t have to say anything, sweetness,” Butler assured her. “We understand that this whole situation is a lot to accept. You don’t have to worry about trying to be anything but who you are. We will cherish every moment with you.”
Nikki took a step away from them, wincing at the pain that shot through her back. Both men reached for her immediately. As one they gently lifted her into their arms and carefully carried her back into the bedroom and settled her on their bed, removing their jeans quickly before climbing in to lie beside her. She cuddled against Butler’s chest as Alex pressed against her back, supporting her firmly and embracing her waist. Butler settled his hand between Alex’s chest and Nikki’s back, pulling her tightly against him. He wasn’t about to take a chance that she would move and cause more pain to herself.
“Nikki, if you would allow us to claim you, our mating bites will help you heal quicker,” Butler told her, his voice deep with desire as he kissed her forehead gently.