“Shit.” Cord looked grim and nodded. He couldn’t deny what he saw.
“Let me up,” I said. My blood was boiling, and I felt like I was coming out of my skin.
Wade pushed to his feet and I slid out of the booth, heading right for the door. Once out in the parking lot, I took a breath. All these years, I’d wondered.
No, that wasn’t true. All the time growing up, I’d been content with my grandparents. They had been good people. Kind. Strong members of the pack. Excellent examples of what mates should be. That was one of the things that made me wish they were still alive. I was lost here with Cord and Rachel. I looked up at the cloudy sky. My grandparents had known I had two fathers, that my mother was matched and mated to two shifters. They’d known I had one of their genes, so why not tell me that?
Now I knew. I looked exactly like Harlan Fisher. The evil one. The one who was aggressive and angry. Uncontrolled. Oh fuck. Oh fates. It sounded way too fucking familiar.
11
RACHEL
So far, I had only dropped one plate and thankfully, it had been empty. Nothing with spaghetti sauce to mop up like the last time, only a quick sweep with a broom. Not only was I the usual bumbling waitress, but I was distracted.
Two hot guys did that to a girl. Two hot guys whom I’d had sex with not once, or twice, but three times—if having Cord eat me out as my alarm clock counted.
It so counted.
“You okay, hon?” Bessie asked, skirting behind me with a stack of laminated menus. I was at the counter, rolling silverware into napkins. The lunch rush was over and we only had one customer who was nursing a coffee and slice of pie.
“Sure,” I replied.
“Your hand okay?”
I glanced down at the Band-Aid I’d put on this morning. I’d forgotten about the cut. “Doesn’t hurt at all,” I reassured her.
“I bet.”
I looked up from what I was doing and saw her grin. Then she winked.
“I heard what happened at the barbecue. I don’t know Nash, but Cord’s a good man,” she said.
I wasn’t sure if she was trying to reassure me or what.
“They’re both nice,” I replied neutrally.
Nice and big. And bossy. And dominant. And possessive. And sexy. And… skilled.
I squirmed, my pussy awakened by the two, and eager for more. I had no idea what we were exactly, but I’d go with it. Take it one day at a time. It was easy to think that, but my heart was already involved. They’d had lunch with Wade. I’d seen Nash leave, Wade and Cord following soon after.
I missed them as soon as they were gone, which was weird, because I rarely thought about Chester. Not like this, wondering when I’d see them again. Craving the feel of their lips on mine, and other places.
Bessie laughed. “Nice.” She leaned against the counter. “Honey, you got questions about all this? Two men being interested in you has got to be a little different.”
My mouth fell open and I sat the silverware roll down. “You know about that?”
She set her hand on my shoulder and her shrewd gray eyes met mine. “You know I’m married to Pete.”
I nodded, glancing through the passthrough window to the cook who whistled while he worked, and winked at me when I picked up my orders.
“I’m also married to Travis.”
I frowned. “Who?”
“My other husband. He works our ranch. Rarely comes in.”
I stared at her, dumbfounded. When Caitlyn and Shelby had said that the polyamory thing was a way of life here, I didn’t think it would include my boss.
She squeezed my shoulder, then let her hand drop. “Don’t look at me like that. I was young and pretty like you back in the day.”
I blushed. “I’m sorry. I think it’s great.”
She grabbed a cloth and spray bottle and got to work spritzing and wiping down the menus. “That’s good because both Cord and Nash are interested in you.”
“Yeah, I figured it out.”
“And?”
She kept her eyes on her work so I went back to mine. “And?” I repeated.
“Got questions?”
I shrugged. “I like them. A lot. Both of them. I wouldn’t know how to pick one if I had to.”
“That’s good. You told me you ran away from home because of a pushy boyfriend.”
“You make me sound like a six-year-old,” I muttered, except I had run away.
“If a man bothers you enough to leave the state, then he isn’t the guy for you.”
I didn’t say anything, only rolled more silverware into napkins and stacked them in a container.
“There’s a difference between pushy and how Cord and Nash feel for you.”
I turned and glanced her way.
“I’d say they’re… dominant. I don’t like that word… pushy. Those two will never do anything you don’t want. Your needs come first, hon, with them. Doesn’t sound like the ex felt that way.”