“You have children?” Trey’s brows shot up. “You don’t look old enough for that.”
“I am,” she said flatly as she whisked drops of moisture from her glass, wondering if this revelation about age and children would have both men walking out the door. “Clay is nearly twenty-four and in med school in New York. He is my husband’s and my only child. A great guy, too, I must say.” She lifted her glass in a toast. “To great men.”
“Carla tells us you were crazy about your husband,” Gage said.
“I was. Walt was a sweet man, a hard-working rancher and when he died, I thought I had lost all my passion for living.” She tried to smile and failed. “But I am still here and loving my life.”
“You never thought of leaving Winterhalter?” Trey asked.
“Never had a reason to. It’s certainly small, and I know everyone, which is good and bad. But don’t get me wrong, I love to travel, too.”
“Really?” Gage looked intrigued. “We do, too. Where do you go?”
“Every six months or so since my husband died, I pick a city in Europe and go alone for two weeks. I do the ruins and the cathedrals. I shop ’til I drop. And wow, do I eat!”
Both men grinned.
“Can’t prove it by us,” Gage praised her.
“You are one terrific-looking woman,” Trey told her, his green gaze caressing her face and drifting ever so deliberately down her throat to the vee of her white cotton blouse. “So what are you? Forty-two? Three?”
“Five. Forty-five.”
“I’m thirty-three,” Gage told her in a hushed voice.
“And I’m a year younger.”
Her lips parted. Each man sat silently looking at her, waiting for her reaction. What could she say without sounding like a predatory female? You are both stunning specimens of manhood? I want each of you? “Seems like age has nothing to do with how successful you both are.”
“It hasn’t.” Gage nodded and took in a huge breath. “The three of us went to Texas Tech together and from our folks we were each fortunate enough to inherit some money. We pooled it after we graduated, bought a ranch outside Dallas ten years ago and turned it into a shopping mall.”
“We built from there. Now, we are committed to finding a piece of land in an area where we can develop a five-star resort.” Trey finished his margarita. “We’ve done some research of this area. Jed and Gage and I think Carla’s ranch and some adjacent acreage might be the right place. But we need more help. Someone who knows the land. The ecology. The politics. The people. Gage and I hoped you would ride around with us for a few days. Show us the sights. Tell us about the town.”
Belle didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. They wanted her around not for good loving, but for her knowledge? Wow, had she gotten this all wrong. She felt like a fool. Did she look like one, too?
Gage seized her hand. “Belle? Darlin’, look at me.”
She felt Trey stroke her arm.
She gulped and trained her gaze on Gage.
“We had the research planned before we came. Before we met you. Before we enjoyed being with you. And now that we have and we see how lovely you are, how sweet and smart, we want to stick around. We want to be with you.”
“Belle, cara,” Trey crooned. “We thought you’d like the idea of being with us. Helping us. But we want your company. You.”
She bristled with excitement. Beneath the table, Gage’s foot slid over to stroke hers.
Trey’s knee pressed hers. “Belle, with all your long auburn hair. And those pink lush lips. And your dreamy purple eyes. Honey, you are a vision. A ripe and delicious-looking woman who needs good company. And we want to show you how we treasure you.”
With compliments like that, what was a girl to do? Say no? Not likely. Say absolutely? Darn right! Say…
“I would love to help you. Be with you.”
“We don’t want to rush you,” Trey said. “But if you prefer one of us, the other would be disappointed, but good with that.”
If I prefer one of you? If? Her mind whirled. There was no question in her mind now about the topic they really discussed. With a few teensy issues left barring the way, she knew she was now ready to take the Challenge. “You don’t have relationships back home in Dallas with anyone who might get jealous? I wouldn’t want to damage—”
“No,” Trey replied. “I need a woman who gets in my head, first. Not any like that I’ve met in years.”
“And I meet too many women who are looking at my wallet, first,” Gage said.
“Where are their brains?” she wondered, then collected her own. “Have you both been attracted to the same woman before?”
“We have. Once.” Gage played with her fingers. “Trey and I know we have the same tastes. We don’t let jealousy become a problem. We know how to share.”
Wow. Two men who share. Had she ever dreamed of such a thing? She squeezed her thighs together. Her pussy was getting all swollen and juicy just imagining the fun she was about to have.
Trey fiddled with her wedding ring. “But the last time we shared was years ago. We haven’t found a woman in a very long time who is fascinating. And you, Belle Sterling, are one rare and exciting lady.”
The waiter appeared at Gage’s elbow. “Have you had a chance to look at the menu?”
“We certainly have,” Gage told him, checking Trey’s face and then Belle’s.
The waiter nodded in deference to Belle. “For starters, we have the soup or the salad. What would the lady like?”
She considered the possibilities. With a knowing smile at Trey and then Gage, she looked up at the waiter and told him. “Both.”
Enjoy it all Wednesday!
(Copyright 2010, Cerise DeLand. All rights reserved.)
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