Tangled (Steele Ranch 3)

While I didn’t mind the rodeo pro’s presence, he wasn’t a snuggler, preferring to spread out to sleep. Archer, though, was the opposite. A piece of paper wouldn’t fit between us. In the darkness and in the curve of his arms, I felt sheltered and protected. Not that Lee had neglected me by falling asleep two feet away instead of two millimeters, but I was the type of woman who liked to be held, to sleep in someone’s arms. With both of them in bed with me, wrapped up tight with one and the other within arm’s reach, I felt…content. The only thing missing was Sutton.

My mind turned on and I rolled in Archer’s arms so I could look up at him, I saw the outline of his head, the whites of his eyes. “I’m glad you’re here,” I whispered back. “I just thought you might be him.”

“It’s not you, baby,” he replied.

I didn’t want to talk about Sutton or why he’d rather sleep anywhere but with me. Not now, and not with Archer. This wasn’t seventh grade; I’d talk with Sutton directly and when the time was right. I’d technically only known him for three days, not enough time to see a trend, but there was definitely a start of one. He wanted me, desired me. He even respected me, but he refused to share a bed with me.

“Did you catch him?” I asked, referring to Schmidt and Rocky.

Archer stroked back my hair, then slid his hand down my arm, over my waist and settled on my hip. “Yes. Damon Schmidt and Richard Blade are now in custody of the Missoula County Sheriff’s department.”

Relieved, I sighed, leaned forward and kissed his bare chest. His skin was heated, the short hairs tickled my lips. Schmidt and Rocky were off the streets and wouldn’t bother me anymore. They wouldn’t show up at my apartment, harass me and threaten me. And I wouldn’t have to wear the stripper nurse’s outfit. “Good. Thank you.”

“You’ll have to give a formal statement, but that’s it. Tomorrow, we’ll do that and I’ll take you to your apartment.”

I stiffened and his hand began to slide over my hip and thigh, caressing me.

“You…you want me to go home? This house, the ranch, it’s mine and I can—”

“Shh, don’t rile yourself or wake Lee. I don’t want you to go. But you probably want to pack a bag, get some clothes, maybe even a phone charger or something.”

I relaxed. Realized he was right. I couldn’t wear the jeans and t-shirt a third day in a row and while the men seemed to like me going commando, it wasn’t my favorite. “Yeah, I do.”

I had to head back to Missoula for the beginning of the semester, but that wasn’t for two more weeks. Since I didn’t have to work, I didn’t have to rush back.

“Baby, this thing between us, between all four of us, well, we went about it backward.” He leaned forward, kissed my forehead. His breath smelled minty, as if he’d recently brushed his teeth.

I lifted my hand, ran my fingers through his hair, felt that it was slightly damp, probably from a shower.

I smiled, but he couldn’t see it in the dark. “Very backward.”

I’d been into Sutton right from the start. He’d easily picked me up and had me in his hotel room bed within an hour. Then Lee and Archer had joined us the next night and…we hadn’t done much talking. I knew them intimately, on a level I didn’t understand, but I didn’t know much about them. I knew Archer lived in Barlow, but did he have any brothers and sisters? Was he allergic to anything? Did he like horror films? And what about Sutton and Lee? Most women dated one guy and that was hard enough to negotiate. I’d taken on three.

I wanted three.

“What this is though, is real. You just met your sisters, but their relationships with their men were fast, too. I thought Cord and Riley were crazy for being so whipped by Kady, but then I saw they were crazy in love. The same happened to Jamison and Boone with Penny. They all knew. Instantly.”

My hands stilled in his hair. “Are you saying this is love at first sight?” I whispered.

“For them? I can’t say for sure, but you’ve seen them together. It’s intense. The love is obvious.”

True.

“For me?” he added, then paused, as if he were thinking of the right words. “Hell, it was dark like this the night we met, but I knew I wanted you. I knew when we woke up and you were gone that you were the one.”

“You woke up angry because you were in bed with two other men,” I countered.

“How did you know that?” he asked, and I heard humor in his tone.

I smiled, thinking of the three very male, very straight guys waking up side by side. “Wild guess.”

“Sutton was in the other double bed. Alone. You see how Lee sleeps, so it wasn’t as if he and I were snuggling. But yeah, we were like three cranky bears when we found our dark-haired Goldilocks gone.”

I hated that I’d hurt them, but I hadn’t known, hadn’t expected them to actually want me for more than a wild weekend. I knew better now. “I’m sorry.”

“I know. And it’s not your fault.” With his hand cupping my hip, he pulled me in closer, sliding me easily over the smooth sheet. “We should have told you how we felt.”

Lee stirred behind me, moved close so he now spooned me. His hand settled on my thigh below Archer’s. Obviously, he hadn’t been asleep.