Passion, Victoria 2: Toni's Reluctance (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) Read online

  “Going somewhere, Toni?” he asked with a raised eyebrow.

  Toni backed into the room, frustrated at being caught running. She glanced over her shoulder to make sure she wouldn’t back into anything. That was her mistake. Jack moved in lightning fast and had her by the waist before she had a chance to turn her head back. He hauled her into the shop section of the building to see Ben standing there waiting for them, his arms crossed over his chest and a scowl on his face.

  “Tasha, I’ve arranged for one of my girls to come and help you out for the rest of the week. Ben and I are taking Toni away for a few days.” Jack continued to look into Toni’s eyes.

  “You are not. I’m not going anywhere with you two Neanderthals. What gives you the right to organize my life for me? Let me go.” Toni pummeled Jack’s chest with her small fists.

  “Stop it before you hurt yourself.” Jack grabbed her wrists and held them in one hand with ease.

  “Oh we have every right, sweetheart. We’re not letting you run away from us anymore. We’ve been patient with you, Toni, but our patience is at an end. You are coming away with us until we have a few things sorted out. Tasha will have all the help she needs to run the shop while you’re away. We’ve organized some of our staff to take over the running of our store as well as organized for two of our employees to help your sister. Time’s up, Toni.” Jack started walking toward the door.

  Sean and Jason had been watching and listening as Jack laid down the law. Toni gave them a pleading look but they didn’t seem inclined to help her. They had grins on their faces and didn’t seem to be the least bit worried.

  Jason got to his feet and walked toward them, but didn’t look at her again. He kept his eyes on Jack and Ben. “I’m Jason Gallagher and this is my brother, Sean. We’ve just moved from Bendigo and we would be more than delighted to help Tasha out while you take your little vacation. There is no need for you to use your staff.” Jason offered his hand to Ben and Jack.

  “Thanks, Jason, Sean, we’d appreciate the help,” Ben shook Jason’s hand.

  “Now wait just a cotton pickin’ minute. What gives you the right to just barge into this town and try to take over my life? Of all the bloody nerve. I am not working with you two in my store,” Tasha yelled then stamped her foot in a fine display of temper.

  “Yes we are, honey. You’re our woman. If we want to help you out, then that’s what we’re going to do,” Sean replied calmly.

  “Wait a minute! Did you just say you’ve moved here? To live?” Tasha asked breathlessly.

  Jason moved in behind Tasha grasping her around the waist and hauling her up against his body. “That’s what we said, baby girl, so you’d better get used to having us in your life, because we’re not letting you go.”

  “Fuck off.”

  “Oh we intend to, baby, you just have to get used to the idea first,” Jason stated with a grin as he looked down into Tasha’s upturned face.

  “We’ll be back in a few days,” Jack said and then he released Toni’s wrists, put his shoulder into her stomach, hefted her over his shoulder and began walking toward the door.

  “Put me down right now, you bastard,” Toni yelled as Jack walked out the shop door and headed to his truck parked across the road.

  “I’ve had enough of this, Toni. You can’t keep fighting your feelings, sugar. It’s time to sit down and talk to us and if this is the only way then so be it. If you try to run from us again, I promise, I will punish you.” Jack slapped her arse.

  “I don’t give a fuck. Ouch.” He’d slapped her again. Jack stopped beside his truck and lowered Toni to her feet. He took her face between his hands and gazed into her eyes.

  “If you really don’t want this, we’ll let you go, but don’t think we won’t know you’re lying to us and yourself.”

  Ben moved up behind her, his front pressing into her back. Toni nearly moaned when she felt his hard cock push against the top of her arse and the small of her back. She shivered when his arms wrapped around her middle and he splayed his palm on her lower belly in a possessive move. If she stood up on tiptoes his fingers would be touching her mound. Her pussy clenched and cream dripped out to soak her panties.

  “Please give us a chance, Toni. We care for you and want to see where this thing between us can go.”

  Toni was scared of how they made her feel but she couldn’t walk away. She wanted to be with them more than anything. She usually wasn’t such a coward so why was she running scared now?

  “What’s it going to be, Toni?” Jack asked. “Are we going to call this whole thing off or are you too scared to want to know how we could be together?”

  Toni knew Jack was baiting her, challenging her. She’d never been one to back down from a dare before and she wasn’t about to do so now.

  “Yes.”

  “Yes what?” Ben’s breath caressed her ear.

  “Yes, I want to go with you.”

  She thought she heard both men mutter, “Thank God,” but she couldn’t be sure. Toni took another deep, fortifying breath and then exhaled on a squeak because Jack opened the passenger side front door to his ute, clasped her around the waist and plopped her butt onto the seat and pushed her across into the middle. Ben walked around the truck and got in the driver’s side.

  Toni sat mutely in the middle of the two men, sandwiched between them. Their shoulders were so wide they were touching hers and she had nowhere to move to escape from their warmth. Her breasts felt full and heavy and her nipples were hard and aching. With both men inside the constricted space she felt like all the air had been sucked out of the cab. Toni’s heart was beating a rapid staccato and she couldn’t seem to get enough air into her lungs.

  She froze when Jack reached across her to buckle her in, his arm brushing against her breast, causing her to suck in another lungful of air. She tried to relax when Ben turned the key in the ignition, but gasped when his arm brushed against the side of her breast, too. She had a feeling that both the men were playing with her and when she glanced at his face she could see the smile on his mouth, confirming her suspicions. She tried to pretend she was immune to them but had a feeling she’d failed miserably.

  She had already indulged making love to them once but hadn’t been able to handle facing them afterward. How the hell she was supposed to accept a relationship with the men in a polyandrous relationship she had no clue. She’d already seen the media hype because of the four people on the Triple R farm who were involved in a ménage and didn’t want to have to deal with such a circus. Toni was worried what her parents would think if they got wind that she was involved with more than one man. She gave a mental shrug and pushed her thoughts aside. She didn’t even know if this thing between them would work, yet, so why buy trouble before it came calling? For all any of them knew, it wouldn’t work out and she wouldn’t have to worry what her parents thought after all.

  Not a word was spoken between them as Ben drove the truck to their place. She had been glancing at them surreptitiously every now and then but they hadn’t taken their eyes from the front. She wondered what they were thinking, if they really cared for her or if they just wanted her for sex now that they’d had a taste of her body. She crossed her arms over her chest and felt her lower lip pout. Toni sat beside them mutinously. If sex was all they wanted then they could go to hell. She could get that anywhere. These two men were going to have to convince her that they were worth spending time with. She wasn’t about to give into them too easily. Ben and Jack were going to have to prove that she wasn’t just a convenient fuck.

  Toni hid her joy when Ben pulled the truck onto a long driveway. The house was gorgeous. It reminded her of an old homestead set back amongst the native eucalyptus and gum trees. Grevillias lined the driveway with color of every kind from red, yellow and pinks. As they traversed the length of the dirt road, the vibrancy was eye catching. She breathed in the scent of the plants through the slightly open window as they passed. The wattle trees were a riotous array of yellow,
their branches hung down with heavily weighted blossoms.

  Ben stopped the ute up in front of the long house on the circular driveway, removed the keys from the ignition, pocketed them and got out. He reached in and offered her a hand. Toni accepted his help and shivered when his large palm and long, thick fingers enveloped her flesh. She scooted over the seat as he pulled and she was in arms before she could blink. He lifted her up and walked toward the front steps.

  Toni knew it was useless to fight him as he was way larger and stronger than she was plus she had already accepted being here with them. But that didn’t mean she wasn’t going to stand her ground. She kept up her silent mutiny as he entered the house and took her straight down a long hallway to the bedroom at the end. He dumped her gently onto the bed and stood over her with his hands on his hips as his eyes wandered the length of her body.

  Toni glanced around the room noticing the decor. The bed was so large it was big enough for four people and the colors of the room were in neutral shades of cream and beige. The only color was the silky navy blue comforter across the bed with matching pillows. Toni watched as Jack stalked into the room with a decidedly predatory look on his face as he walked toward her. She finally regained some senses and scrambled to the other side of the large bed.

  “There are a few things we need to sort out, Toni, and you won’t be leaving until we are satisfied. Why don’t you have a shower, sweetheart, while Ben and I start dinner? I’ll leave a robe for you to put on when you’re done.” Jack walked toward the built in robe to retrieve the gown.

  Toni didn’t move from her stance next to the bed but kept her eyes on Jack. He laid the robe over the end of the bed then the two men left the room closing the door behind them.

  * * * *

  “You know she’s going to try and run, don’t you,” Ben said.

  “Yeah,” Jack replied with a grin as he rubbed his hands together, “She may have agreed to come here but she is going to fight what she feels for us all the way.”

  “Should make things more interesting.” Ben ran his hand over his face. “She is so stubborn and feisty, she’s likely to try and walk out of here naked.”

  “Well, we’ll just have to keep a close eye on her. Why don’t you get dinner started? I’m going outside to wait for her. If I know Toni, and I think I know her pretty well, she’ll be climbing out the window right about now.” Jack left through the door.

  * * * *

  Toni retreated to the bathroom after she tried the bedroom door and found thankfully they had left it unlocked. She wouldn’t have put it past those two to have locked her in. Although she wanted to be here she still had some misgivings about her decision. Her mind and body were warring against each other. Her thoughts were scattered and going round and round in circles. When they’d made love to her in the back of their shop, she’d been so overwhelmed with need and sensation all her preconceived ideas about a relationship had flown out the window. That’s what scared her the most. One touch from them and she went up in flames. How the hell was she supposed to think rationally if they touched her?

  She used the facilities then washed her face and hands, deciding she would shower when she got home. Decision made, she quietly unlocked the bathroom window and slid it open. She held her breath as she pushed out the fly screen as it clattered to the ground. She stuck her head out the window cautiously glancing around, then swung one leg then the over the sill. She jumped down to the ground and gave a scream as she ran into a hard wall.

  “Where do you think you’re going, Toni?” Jack scowled down at her.

  “Home.”

  “Sorry, little one, but no, you’re not,” Jack scooped her up into his arms, walked back into the house to the kitchen and deposited her onto a stool against the counter. “You agreed to come out here and talk with us. We’re going to hold you to that.” Jack gave her a ‘don’t move’ stare and left the room.

  “You know we’d never hurt you, don’t you, baby?” Ben frowned.

  “Of course I know that, Ben.”

  “Then why were you trying to leave?”

  “I changed my mind and decided to go home. I’m a grown woman for goodness sake and can change my mind if I want to.”

  “You could have asked us to take you home instead of trying to sneak away. We’ll take you back if that’s what you really want. Can you at least stay and have dinner with us?”

  Toni shrugged and then gave a reluctant nod.

  “Thank you, baby. We only want to talk with you, get to know you a little better. What’s so scary about that?” Ben asked quietly then turned back to the meal preparations. Toni lowered her eyes to the counter without answering as she thought over what he’d said. She was scared shitless of the way they made her feel and didn’t know how to handle it. Toni cared for them and knew if she spent any length of time with them that her feelings would only get deeper. They were strong, forceful, dominant men and she was worried if she got too involved with them that she would let them take her over and like it. She’d worked hard for her independence and didn’t want to have to answer to anyone.

  Jack was more physical when dealing with her. That was the second time he’d picked her up and carried her back to where he wanted her. Ben was more of a conversationalist than his brother and in her mind she could see herself sitting and talking to him for hours on end. That is if she decided that a relationship with the two Landon brothers was a good idea. She would have to wait and see what they talked to her about first, before she could even think about making up her mind.

  Jack walked back into the kitchen and was she surprised when he began to help Ben prepare their meal. It was something she’d never pictured either of the two alpha males doing. She listened with curiosity as Jack and Ben discussed some of the new adult toys they’d just had delivered to their shop.

  “Those vibrators with the rabbit ears will sell like hotcakes.” Jack snickered.

  “Yeah, they will. What do you think about those new nipple clamps?” Ben asked.

  “They are very pretty. I love the gold heart weights on them. I could just imagine how much pleasure a woman would have with those swinging off of her nipples.”

  Toni shifted in her seat as her pussy clenched and wept cream. Having them talk about their stock was turning her on big time. She could imagine being spread out on their bed for their delectation as they applied those clamps to her nipples and fucked her with a vibrator. Her face felt hot and she kept her head lowered hoping they wouldn’t see how their talk affected her if they turned to her. Schooling her features into a scowl, she stared at the countertop.

  “Are you okay, baby? You’re very quiet.” Ben glanced at her.

  “Would you like a glass of wine? Jack asked.

  Toni looked up to find them both watching her, glancing from one to the other she quickly lowered her head when tears pricked the back of her eyes and she had no idea why she was feeling so emotional. Taking a deep breath she raised her head when she was feeling back in control.

  “Wine would be nice, thank you.”

  Jack opened a chilled bottle of chardonnay and poured it into three wine glasses. It wasn’t long before they were seated at the table eating a meal of chicken and salad. There was no conversation throughout their meal but the silence was comfortable, not at all awkward.

  When she pushed her plate aside she noticed both men watching her intently.

  “Why are you scared of your feelings for us, Toni?” Ben asked.

  “I’m not.”

  “Bullshit,” Jack snapped. “We aren’t teenagers, sugar. We can see the fear and desire in your eyes when you look at us. Are you scared we’d hurt you physically? Is that why you keep running from us?”

  Toni didn’t like how they were able to read her so easily. She’d thought she kept her fears and emotions pretty well wrapped up. It seemed she’d been wrong, but it was too soon to open up with them. Sure they’d had sex once but other than them lusting after her, she had no idea how they really
felt. She wasn’t about to put herself out there only to get her heart stomped on for her effort. She’d been there and done that before and there was no way she was going to do it again. But she knew deep down that these two men would never hurt her physically. It was her heart that made her trepidatious.

  “No,” she finally answered. Toni couldn’t let them go on thinking that she was afraid they would abuse or injure her.

  “Were you a virgin?” Jack asked. “Is that why you’re scared? Did we hurt you when we made love to you?”

  “No.”

  “Then what the hell are you so scared of?” Jack yelled with frustration.

  Toni didn’t answer verbally but shrugged instead.

  “God, it’s like pulling teeth to get you to open up to us.” Jack crossed his arms over his chest.

  “Do you think we go around chasing women just for the hell of it?” Ben asked.

  “No.”

  “That’s something at least.” Ben sighed. “Why don’t you go and have a shower while we clean up. You work too hard and need a break. Go and relax, baby.”

  Toni didn’t hesitate and took off for the bathroom, eager for the reprieve she’d been given, but she knew that they weren’t going to quit until they had what they wanted. She just wasn’t sure she could give it to them.

  She stripped out of her clothes and stepped into the large shower cubicle, sighing as the warm water ran over her head and down her body. She’d just about finished when she felt cool air swirl around her feet.

  She looked up to see Ben and Jack eying her body and couldn’t hide the fact that her respiration sped up. Both of them were looking at her with such hunger she couldn’t help but respond in kind. They were so damn sexy and caring and she didn’t think she could hold them off for much longer. She wanted them so badly she could almost taste the salt on their skin. When they both reached for their shirts and hesitated as if they were waiting for her protestations she licked her lips with anticipation and then felt herself giving a slight nod. She shifted on her feet bringing them closer together and pressed her thighs against each other when they pulled the shirts over their heads. She watched mesmerized as they stripped out of their clothes and inhaled raggedly as she perused their muscular bodies with her eyes. Closing her eyes didn’t help. The image of their nakedness was burned into her retinas for all time.