Broken Surrender (15 page)

“Morning, sunshine.”

Tipping her head back, she looked at him
warily. “Morning. Where’s Si?”

“Cooking probably.” He paused, but when she
stayed quiet he added, “Are you feeling a little better after last
night?”

“Um, does embarrassed count as better?” she
asked with a snort.

“I don’t get it. Why are you so hung up on
being good enough? What’s good enough?” he asked.

“I used to think I knew, but now…”

Silas entered the room carrying a tray that
held a plate of biscuits, butter, jelly and coffee. “I figured we
could talk while we ate breakfast. I didn’t go crazy, but I know
you need food in your stomach to take your medicine.”

Sarah gave him a small, half-hearted smile
as she sat up, and Jeremy saw Silas stiffen as he realized she’d
withdrawn back into her shell this morning.

“Thanks. Coffee is good. I can’t stay long.
Mom’s still at my place.”

Exchanging a look with his brother, Jeremy
shook his head. “If you’re going, we’re going with you, Sarah. It’s
time to face this head on. Today you introduce us to your
mother—and not as old friends from your Army days.”

“Okay,” she said softly, catching them both
off guard. She grinned over her coffee cup. “What? Did you think I
was going to throw my coffee at you? Seriously, guys, I’m sorry
about yesterday. I mucked it all up. If I’d known she was coming I
might have handled it better.”

“Would you have told her the truth?” Silas
asked.

“I don’t know. But it’s a moot point now.
Mom was going to invite my dad down to meet you guys, too. So, if
my hysterical, girly moment last night scared you off, now is the
time to give me the boot.”

“Hysterical girly moment?”

“Give you the boot?”

Sarah laughed and shook her head, her dark
hair bouncing on her shoulders. “I’m just giving you an out. I know
I shared some stuff in the moment last night…”

“Like your fear that you can’t have
children?” Silas asked quietly.

She nodded, a guilty look crossing her face.
“Yeah, like that. That’s a doozy. The truth is they don’t know if
I’ll be able to have kids or not. I don’t really know if I want
them, but it sucks to be told I might not be able to make that
choice. I barely have the muscle strength to hold myself upright
sometimes, so there’s a chance my back won’t take a pregnancy.”

“That doesn’t mean you can’t have children,
baby,” Jeremy said. “There are plenty of ways to have kids without
actually being pregnant yourself.”

Silas murmured his agreement and added,
“Besides, we haven’t even taken you out as a trio yet. I’m not sure
any of us is ready to start talking baby names and nursery
colors.”

Her eyes grew wide, and she wrinkled her
nose, “Sorry, I guess after Jeremy mentioned walking down the aisle
yesterday I freaked. Everything happened at once, but that’s no
excuse for the freak-out. I’ve never cried so hard in my life. I
don’t know what came over me.”

“It’s actually pretty common for people
suffering from PTSD to have emotional outbursts,” Silas said, and
Jeremy rolled his eyes.

“What he’s trying to say, is that we’re not
bothered by the tears, baby. We’re only bothered by the secrets.
You have to talk to us.”

“You guys keep saying that, but—”

“No buts,” Silas interrupted. “Finish your
breakfast and get dressed. Instead of making you orgasm today,
we’re going to make you play girlfriend all over town. By the time
we’re finished, there won’t be a doubt that we’ve claimed you as
our woman.”

“Your woman? Like your property?” she said,
narrowing her eyes.

“Not property,” Jeremy corrected. “Gift.
Privilege. Reward.”

“All right, all right. Enough. I’ll give it
a try, but don’t be surprised if you get strange looks. You two
could do a lot better.” She hurried into the bathroom leaving the
two brothers to stare after her in frustration.

“She still doesn’t get it,” Jeremy said.

“Nope,” Silas agreed. “But she will. We’ll
make sure of it.”

~ ~ ~ ~

No matter how many times the guys assured
her that they were proud to be out with her in public, Sarah still
felt awkward. She felt like everyone was staring at them as they
tried to eat their lunch. Every time she lifted her head it seemed
she caught someone else’s eye, and even though most of them smiled
pleasantly at her, she felt judged.

What kind of woman dated two men at once?
And brothers no less? It sounded twisted in her head, yet when she
questioned which one she would give up if she had to, there was no
doubt that she couldn’t let go of her affection for either man.
They’d somehow attached themselves to her soul in the last couple
of weeks. The idea of not having them was almost scarier than
facing a judgmental society.

“You’re not eating.” Silas noted, gesturing
to her untouched plate of barbecue ribs and fries.

“It’s hard to concentrate on eating when
people are staring at us,” she hissed, not even trying to hide her
annoyance. “It might not bother you, but it’s driving me
crazy.”

“Who is staring, baby?” Jeremy asked,
turning almost one hundred and eighty degrees to peer at the other
patrons in the diner.

“Stop it! It will only make things worse if
I point them out.”

“I think you’re paranoid.” Silas said
simply. “If anyone is staring this way it’s because you look
absolutely beautiful in that dress.”

“Do you know how long it’s been since I wore
a dress?” She fidgeted with the low neckline of the sundress,
wishing she hadn’t gained those extra twenty pounds since her
injuries.

“You should do it more often.” Jeremy said,
giving her a brilliant smile. “Makes me hard just knowing I could
lift your dress and slide right into your hot pussy.”

Sarah glared back at him. “Only insane
people dislike underwear.”

“Then call for the straight jacket, baby,
because I definitely dislike underwear on you.” He said, winking
her way.

Their morning conversation had become a
battle of Dominance, which the guys had ultimately won. She’d had
no intention of following through with their instructions to go
pantyless under a dress, but when she came out of her bedroom
dressed, Silas had done a spot check on her. She was just thankful
that her mother was at the Mercantile getting a few extra supplies
she’d need for her extended trip, because that discussion would
have been a nightmare.

“Eat your lunch, Sarah,” Silas said
firmly.

Stabbing a fry with her fork, she stuffed it
into her mouth just as another woman caught her eye from across the
room. The disapproving frown on the other woman’s face set Sarah
off, and she dropped her fork with a loud clink.

“I’m done eating. Can we leave please?” she
grumbled.

Jeremy and Silas exchanged confused looks
before Jeremy asked, “What just happened?”

“Nothing. I’m just not hungry.”

Silas shook his head. “You were irritated
before, but now you’re furious. Talk to us Sarah.”

“That woman over there, the one with the
permed hair, she keeps looking this way and frowning. I don’t like
being scrutinized by someone I don’t know.”

Discreetly glancing over, Jeremy’s face
turned a bright shade of red. “Holy shit. Si, that’s Minnie.”

“Who’s Minnie?” Sarah asked, but Silas was
already standing and walking toward the woman with his arms spread
wide.

“Our aunt, come on, I’ll introduce you.”
Before she could protest, Jeremy was dragging her from the table
across the diner to Minnie’s table. He released her long enough to
embrace the small woman in his arms. “Hey Minnie! Good to see
you.”

“Hi boys. I’m good, and Walt is meeting me
here shortly for lunch. He had an appointment with Dalton this
morning.” Minnie held her hand out to Sarah with a polite smile.
“Hello dear, I’m Minnie White, and I’m sorry I interrupted your
date.”

“Nice to meet you Mrs. White.” Sarah said,
ignoring the second half of her statement. “I’m Sarah Bryant.”

“Are these boys taking good care of you?”
Minnie asked, giving both men a pointed look. “Because if they
aren’t, they’ll have to answer to me and their Uncle Walt.”

“Of course we’re taking care of her,” Silas
protested. “Isn’t that right, sugar?”

“As well as can be expected. They’re
certainly gentlemen when we’re in public,” Sarah said, just barely
resisting rolling her eyes.

Minnie laughed. “Well isn’t that what all
ladies want? A man who is a gentlemen in public and a badass in the
bedroom.”

Sarah felt her mouth drop open in shock at
hearing that particular statement come from the older woman, and
beside her, Jeremy and Silas both laughed.

“Oh shoot. I’ve gone and embarrassed you
now,” Minnie said. “Don’t mind me, Sarah. I’m just a doddering old
woman with foot-in-mouth disease. Walt swears the connections
between my brain and mouth are backwards. I’m constantly speaking
before I think.”

“No ma’am. I’m not embarrassed exactly—”

“Ma’am? Oh, no! Heavens, please call me
Minnie. Ma’am makes me feel ancient.”

“Minnie then, you just caught me off guard,”
Sarah explained.

“I do that sometimes. I figure it’s good to
keep people on their toes so that they don’t start thinking of me
as predictable,” Minnie said with a wink. The gesture was so
similar to one Sarah had seen Jeremy make that she smiled in
response.

“Hey Minnie, if you and Walt don’t have any
plans for the evening, why don’t you come over to our place?” Silas
offered. “Sarah’s parents are in town, and we’re going to host
dinner. We’d love to have you join us.” Sarah’s mouth dropped open
once again.

“That would be wonderful!” Minnie exclaimed
with a loud clap. “It’s been ages since we caught up. Are you sure
you don’t mind the extra people? I mean, if this is a private
dinner...” She looked at Sarah for approval, clearly understanding
that Silas had thrown her a curveball.

“No, no, that would be great. Um, I’d love
to meet Walt, too. I didn’t realize the guys had family here in
Stone River,” Sarah said, fumbling to cover her unsettled emotions.
It was bad enough she was going to introduce the guys to her
father, but to have the awkward moment happen in front of strangers
was significantly worse.

“Just Walt and I. What time should we be
there?”

Silas glanced at Sarah but she could only
shrug. “Let’s say seven. I’ll call you if that won’t work. Your dad
will be in town by then, right sugar?”

She nodded. “Mom said he should be here by
four.”

“Can I bring anything?” Minnie asked. “Pecan
pie perhaps?”

“Oh you don’t need to—”

“That would be awesome!” Jeremy interrupted
Silas before he could stop Minnie’s kind gesture. He grinned at
Sarah and wrapped his arm around her shoulders, pulling her in for
a side hug. “Minnie’s pecan pie is the best in the world.”

“I can’t wait.” Sarah said, hoping she
sounded enthusiastic. Inside, she was feeling rattled. When the
guys had talked about her going out with them as their girlfriend
she hadn’t really expected it to mean being introduced to family.
Now they were having a joint dinner party and she hadn’t even told
her father she was dating two men yet. Holy hell, this was
FUBAR.

Lost in her own thoughts, she didn’t even
notice when the conversation wound down, and the guys told Minnie
goodbye. She managed to smile at the other woman before they
hustled her back to their table. In spectacular fashion, they’d
managed to overwhelm her with new things, and now she didn’t know
how to respond to all of it. Loving them was easier when no one
else knew about it. How was she supposed to keep things the same if
they kept changing them?

~ ~ ~ ~

Silas was seriously concerned about Sarah’s
emotional state. Ever since lunch she’d been unusually quiet, even
when they’d taken her for ice cream at Dottie’s, and then for a
walk through the town’s one and only park. Each time they
encountered someone new, she seemed to clam up even more, and he
was afraid they’d pushed the limits with the dinner plans.

It was too late to change them, but it was
never too late for a distraction. So as soon as they made it back
to their place, he took Jeremy aside for a quick planning
meeting.

“She’s backtracking.”

Jeremy nodded. “Yep. Meeting Minnie seemed
to scare her.”

“I’m not sure if it was that, or being
forced out of her comfort zone all day long,” Silas said, frowning
in Sarah’s direction. She was sitting on the back swing in her
pretty sundress; the afternoon sunshine highlighted her dark hair
and pale skin. Her bare foot lazily pushed the swing, and he
couldn’t help his deeply emotional reaction to the image. “We have
to fix it fast, or tonight is going to be a clusterfuck.”

“Her dad should be in town shortly. I’m not
sure we have time.” Jeremy watched Sarah with the same intensity
that Silas felt, and his usually jovial spirit seemed sad. “Si, I’m
not sure she’s ever going to be the submissive we want.”

The air rushed from Silas’s lungs like he’d
been gut-punched. “What are you saying?”

“I don’t know. I’m head over heels in love
with the girl, but damn it, I always planned on marrying someone
who shared my kinks. If she hates being with us, how are we going
to make this work?”

“She enjoyed what we did. You and I both
know she’s a submissive,” Silas argued.

“Yes, but she’s not ready to admit it yet,
which means we’re going to be in a constant state of turmoil until
she is. On top of that, she doesn’t even want anyone to know we’re
seeing each other. It’s like she’s ashamed of being with the two of
us.” Jeremy’s body language was broken, and suddenly Silas felt the
impact of his brother’s words.

“I can’t let her go.”