“Dad! She means more than that to us,” Blake stated.
“Kenny feels the same way, too?” Abigail asked then smiled.
“Yes, he does. We’ll eat dinner but then we’re going to get Lena,” Quinn told them as he and his brother sat back down at the dinner table.
* * * *
Lena walked out the front door and took a deep breath. She had survived the first day with soldier boy. She had left his dinner on the counter for him to eat. She had a feeling he would attack the chicken cutlets and pasta salad the moment she left the house. She didn’t want to go overboard the first night, but tomorrow she would make some nice Cornish hens for him to eat with sweet potatoes and fresh corn. A trip to the store wasn’t necessary. Doc and his brothers had stocked up the freezer out back, and she took out the hens before she left.
She walked around the large tree that separated the two houses. Her cottage sat a few yards away, and she immediately noticed the truck sitting out front. It was big and black with tinted windows. Blake.
After the eventful morning a couple of days ago, she wasn’t sure she was ready to be alone with Blake, Kenny, or Quinn. She definitely couldn’t handle being alone with all three of them. Besides that, she was hungry and tired. Soldier boy’s house was a mess.
As she approached the cottage, she saw Blake and Quinn sitting on the patio.
“There she is. We’ve been waiting for you,” Quinn stated, and both men rose from their chairs to greet her.
“You didn’t say you were dropping by. I wasn’t expecting company,” she replied as she ignored them and climbed the stairs.
Blake got to her first as she unlocked her front door.
“You okay, baby?” he asked as he caressed her arm. She felt the tingling sensation straight to her soul. These men were powerful.
“I’m tired, but I survived.” She opened the front door.
“Can we come in?” Quinn asked.
“I think you should stay outside. Let me grab a drink and a granola bar,” she told them, and they looked at her as if she were crazy.
She grabbed a bottle of water and the granola bar then walked back onto the front porch.
“Want to sit for a while?” Quinn asked, and she nodded her head. They walked toward the patio, and she took a seat on one of the cushioned chairs they had brought for her. Quinn sat to the side of her while Blake sat directly in front of her.
“So, how did it go?” Blake asked her. She looked at him and had a feeling that he was forcing the question. They disliked their brother Bryant and his treatment of them. It was understandable.
“What do you mean?” She took a sip of water.
“Bryant? How was it?” Quinn asked.
“Did he say anything or do anything to hurt you?” Blake asked as he moved his chair closer to her and held her legs between his legs. He caressed her thighs, and she locked gazes with him. Blake’s blue eyes held a seriousness she was getting used to recognizing. He was concerned.
“He’s a bit rough around the edges. but it wasn’t terrible.”
“Did he try anything?” Quinn asked.
“Quinn, he’s your brother, and no he didn’t try anything aside from a few insulting comments and his failed attempts to get rid of me.”
“If he upset you, you don’t have to go back. Matter of fact, we would prefer if you didn’t,” Blake told her as he inched closer so now his hands rubbed farther up her thighs.
“I’m a big girl, Blake. He needs the help. The place was a mess, and he hasn’t been eating well. I think this will do him good.”
Blake shook his head.
“We don’t want you there. We don’t know what he’s capable of,” Quinn stated.
They were being bossy again, and she wasn’t in the mood. She stood up, and Blake held her hips so she couldn’t move.
“Blake, I’m tired and I’m really not in the mood for your whole bossing-around attitude.”