Diane (The Town of Pearl 6)

Before Diane could take a seat at the table where Drake placed the picnic basket, Lucas pulled her into his arms.

He placed his hand against her cheek and stared down into her eyes.

“Are you okay?” he asked. She hadn’t expected that. She expected the third degree on the photos online, and perhaps a bit of anger and jealousy at the way the three men tried to come on to her, but not his concern.

She didn’t know how to answer him considering that her thoughts were so scattered. She literally was moving nonstop since she arrived at the boutique. The only reason why she knew about the photos online was because Elvira called her.

It was only lunchtime and she was exhausted.

She laid her head against Lucas’s chest and hugged him.

He in return caressed her back and her hair, and then Drake joined them. She felt him close in behind her and place one hand on her hip while he used the other to caress her back.

“It’s been this crazy busy since you opened?” Drake asked, and she nodded her head and then pulled back.

“I don’t understand why. I mean I get why a lot of the locals want to come in and look at the new lingerie line by Monique Parrinni, but not the guys.” She paused as she said the words. Lucas looked pissed, but it was Drake who grabbed her hips and turned her toward him.

He placed his one hand on her shoulder and the other he kept on her waist.

“Guys like the ones who we just saw bothering you have been coming in all morning?”

“Well, not too many,” she said, turning away and out of his hold.

Drake grabbed her hand to stop her before she sat down.

“Not too many?” he questioned.

“Can we stop talking about it and just enjoy lunch? I was looking forward to this all morning. I need a break.”

Drake looked at Lucas and Lucas still remained straight-faced as he walked closer to the table and took a seat. Diane sat down next and Drake started to take out the lunch they prepared when he stopped what he was doing.

Diane turned to look up at him as he straddled the seat, still standing, looking down into her eyes. He reached out and cupped her face between his hands, then lowered his mouth to hers.

As their lips touched, she closed her eyes and absorbed how safe and protected she felt being here with them. Drake explored her mouth as he lowered to the seat. She felt Lucas’s hand move under her skirt, over her thigh, and she jerked, only for Drake to hold her firmer as he explored her mouth deeply.

She was moaning into Drake’s mouth when she heard Lucas’s voice and felt his hand move between her crossed legs.

“Your skin is so soft.”

Her heart was pounding in her chest, her pussy felt swollen and needy and here she was about to let Lucas touch her so intimately. Was she losing her mind?

Drake pulled softly from her lips as he moved his hand down and over her thigh. “You smell so good. I missed you,” he told her as he held her gaze.

“I think I need you to slow down,” she said, voice quivering. Drake smiled and Lucas moved his hand from her inner thigh to her hand. She turned toward him as he brought her hand to his lips and kissed her knuckles. He smiled, and it was the first time she saw such an expression, such openness from Lucas.

“Are you hungry? We brought a few different things.”

“I’m starving. Thank you,” she said as Drake sat on the seat the right way and helped them to pull out some small sandwiches and salads.

“So, where’s Mark?” she asked before she took a bite of a turkey on whole wheat sandwich.

Lucas looked down at the sandwich and she turned to look at Drake. He seemed concerned.

“Is Mark okay?

Is everything all right?” she asked.

“He’s working. He wanted to be here, but he couldn’t,” Drake said, still appearing angry. She couldn’t help but wonder whether or not Mark still was interested in her. It was in that moment when she asked herself the question that she felt the disappointment. She liked Mark, just as she liked Drake and Lucas. Could he have been turned off by what happened this past weekend and the lingerie show?