Three to Ride

Chapter Five

Rye spent the night at Stefan’s. Callie was there, and they shared a couple of bottles of wine. He knew what his friends were trying to do. They were trying to get his mind off the fact that his brother was spending the night with the girl of their dreams, and Rye was not.

Late in the evening, after Callie had headed off, Rye sat back in a huge Adirondack chair on Stef’s porch and watched the sky. Even though it was summer, it was cool at night. The brisk air felt good, reminding him that there was absolutely nothing to be hot about.

“You know it might not work out,” Stef said, taking the seat next to him. He had a light jacket on, but Rye was enjoying the cold.

“I hope for Max’s sake that it does.” At least Rye wanted to hope that. Damn, he loved his brother. Max was the other half of himself. He should be thrilled that Max had found what he wanted. His fists clenched. A normal brother would feel that way, even if he was attracted to her, too. Of course, a normal brother couldn’t sense what his brother was feeling. Max’s passion for Rachel was seeping into Rye’s blood like a poison. It would ruin him for other women if he let it.

Stef shook his sandy blond head. “It won’t, not if it continues this way. Do you think you’re the only one who feels the connection between you and Max? I assure you, Max feels it, too. Do you remember how he was when you were in that car accident when we were…how old were we?”

“Seventeen.” Rye remembered it like it was yesterday. When he closed his eyes, he could still see the oncoming car, still hear the tires squealing in a desperate attempt to stop what was happening. He still felt the way his heart clenched when he knew nothing would stop the impact. Sometimes his leg still ached from where he’d broken it.

“I was with him when it happened,” Stef continued. “No one called us to go to the hospital. We were walking to Callie’s to get some notes she took in chemistry, and he stopped and fell to the ground. I thought he was dead. He seemed that way for a good ten minutes. Then he came to, and he couldn’t stop crying. He felt you, Rye. He felt you die, and he felt the paramedics shock the life back into you. I don’t know or even claim to understand it, but you’re more connected than the rest of us. I know I envy the hell out of the both of you.”

“Yeah, well the grass is always greener, buddy. It can be hard knowing how someone feels almost all the time. And I can always tell when he wants someone. Usually that’s just fine, because he’s willing to share. Now that he isn’t, I have to wonder how much of what I feel is really me and how much of it is Max.”

Stef leaned over. The gravity in his eyes matched the feeling hanging over Rye. “Does it matter?”

That was the million dollar question. Did it matter why a person loved another person? He was pretty damn sure it was love. He’d felt it in little doses before. He’d certainly cared for women before, even enough to think he wanted to marry them. What if what he’d felt before had been small because he’d felt it alone? Max hadn’t loved any of the women they had been with before Rachel. He’d liked some of them, wanted most of them, but love hadn’t been in Max’s vocabulary until Rachel walked into town. What if Rachel was the one?

Rye ran a frustrated hand through his hair. Damn, he was jealous of his brother. And fucking pissed off, too. Max had two weeks with her, to get to know her and let her feel comfortable with him. Where was his equal time? If he’d been the one to meet Rachel first, would he be fucking her right now? He damn straight wouldn’t be doing it alone. He’d convince her that they could be good for her, both of them. “He’s such a selfish bastard.”

Stef laughed a little and leaned back. He let his head rest against the chair and closed his eyes. “He’s not and you know it. Max is gruff and obnoxious, but he would give anyone who needed it the shirt off his back. He’s just scared.”

“Scared? He doesn’t seem very scared to me. He seems ridiculously sexually satisfied.” Even as he said the words, he knew Stef was right.

“Max is deeper than you like to admit. He’s only going to fall in love once. You, on the other hand, could be happy with any number of women.”

“Bullshit.”

Stef’s eyes came open. “I’m serious. If Max weren’t around, if you didn’t have a twin, you would have gotten married a long time ago and started a family. I’m not saying you would have found the right girl. I’m just saying that you’re impatient when it comes to stuff like this. You would have been happy the way most people are. You would have found a restless contentment in your life. Max could never settle for that. Max saved you from that.”

Rye wanted to argue. He wanted to point out that he was the mover when it came to their love life. He was the one who made the decisions, but Rye always pulled back in the end because something held him back. It didn’t mean as much without Max involved. He knew most people would think it was strange, but it was their love life. Hell, it was their life, and it always had been. He’d accepted it and never really questioned it. He had a second piece of himself, and that was the way it was.

Rye felt weary to his bones. He let the silence stretch between himself and Stef. He remembered back to the night he told Max he wanted to marry Nina. He’d felt Max’s panic and now he recognized it for what it was, pain. Max had swallowed his pain at the thought of never finding the woman he could love. He had done it for his brother.

Rye would do it, too. He would stand by and let Max have his love, their love. He would smile and be her friend. Maybe later, he could find that restless contentment Stef had talked about. He could marry and be the best husband and father he could be. He would never let anyone know that he would love his brother’s woman to his dying day.

“Hey, Rachel!”

Rachel looked over the counter and saw Jen waving at her from the back booth. She grinned and motioned her over. Rachel could see another woman sitting in the booth though her back was to Rachel.

“Go on, hon,” Stella said with a nod. “I’ll bring your lunch out. You go sit and have some girl talk.” Stella’s eyebrows went up suggestively. “Maybe you can tell them how you tamed that man of yours last night. He was all sweetness and light when he came in for coffee this morning.”

Rachel felt herself flush. She untied her apron and laid it down before walking across the dining room. She couldn’t help but think about the night before. They had moved to Max’s bedroom after enjoying the lovely dinner he had made. Max had fed her while she sat in his lap, alternating between bites of lasagna and sips of rich wine. Rachel sighed as she remembered. Neither one had worn a stitch of clothing. She’d curled up against him skin to skin, and they’d talked while they ate. It had been the most intimate evening of her entire life. Despite promising to keep all the conversation light, she’d found herself telling him about her childhood, while Max had talked about his brother.

He was so close to Rye. Sometimes he would talk about his brother almost like Rye was the other half of him. She’d never been as close to another person as Max was with his brother. She was an only child, and now her whole family was gone. She knew Max’s parents were gone and his sister was off in college, but at least he had his brother.

“Hey.” Jen was scooting off the bench when Rachel made it to the booth. “I’m so glad you’re going on break. I have to go on the clock. I didn’t want to leave Callie in the lurch.”

She was leaving? Rachel stared at the woman across from her. She was a pretty woman, roughly the same age as Rachel. Callie Sheppard. She placed a name with the face. She’d seen her around a couple of times, but heard her name almost every day. Callie was the shoulder everyone in Bliss cried on. She was also Rye’s administrative assistant.

Callie turned her wide brown eyes up. There was something disarmingly innocent about Callie Sheppard. “I don’t like to eat alone. I’m afraid I was running late for my lunch date with Jen. Do you mind?”

Jen bounded away, her ponytail bobbing. Did she mind? Hell yeah, she minded. The last thing she wanted to do was sit down and talk to someone so close to Rye Harper. Everywhere she turned, it seemed Rye Harper was there waiting like a forbidden piece of fruit. She could still feel his hands surrounding hers, even after a full night in his brother’s bed. God, what kind of a woman was she?

“Or not,” Callie said with a sad twist of her mouth. “It’s okay. I can survive one meal by myself.”

Rachel slid into the booth. She wasn’t about to be rude. She could survive a thirty minute break. “Not at all. I’d love the company.”

Stella chose that moment to arrive with Rachel’s lunch. It was a very nice turkey sandwich with a bowl of minestrone soup and a glass of iced tea. She greeted Callie with a kiss on the cheek and then left the two alone. Rachel picked up her spoon. “Who wants to eat alone anyway? I’m glad for the company.”

Callie sat back and seemed to get lost in thought for a moment. “Would you change your mind if you knew I was here to plead Rye’s case?”

The spoon clattered to the table, and Rachel found herself taking a deep drink of her tea. She quickly composed herself. “Rye’s case? I don’t know what you’re talking about. I’m dating Max.”

“Yes, that’s the problem,” Callie replied.

It certainly was. Rachel forced herself to pick up the spoon. She could talk about this, or she could walk away and tell Callie it wasn’t any of her business. She knew she should do the latter, but she was so interested in talking about Max and Rye and how they used to conduct their affairs that she found herself staying put. “It’s not like it’s a grand love affair. Max and I are just having fun.” She had to keep it that way.

Callie huffed a little. “Max doesn’t have fun. He’s serious about you, Rachel. If you aren’t serious, it would be better if you broke it off now.” Her head tilted slightly to the side. “But I think you’re either lying to me or yourself. You’re in love with Max.”

“After knowing him a few weeks? I hardly think so.” Rachel kept her tone nonchalant.

A sad smile crossed Callie’s face. “You don’t believe in love at first sight?”

Callie did. Rachel could see that plainly. She softened a little. From everything she understood about the other woman, she was probably lonely. Bliss was a small town. There probably hadn’t been many prospects. From the stories Rachel had heard, Callie had been the only girl her age. She’d grown up with the Harper twins and Stef as her only real companions. They had been kids and then teens together. With so few suitable males her age, Callie had probably fallen in love with one of her friends. She couldn’t see Callie with the artist, so that left Max and Rye. Rachel’s heart ached a little. Callie wasn’t doing the whole “stay away from my men” business. She was watching out for two men she loved.

“I’m not trying to hurt anyone.” Rachel watched as the other woman looked away.

“I know. I just don’t think you understand them.” Callie took a long drink of her coffee. The salad in front of her went untouched. “I know it seems weird, but two men can be really nice.”

Now Rachel was the one leaning in. “Did you date them?”

Callie’s eyes widened. “God, no. I wasn’t talking about them. Look, I grew up with them. I’ll admit that when I was a kid I had a crush on them, but really, I’m over that. I love them, but I’m not in love with them anymore. Now they’re like my obnoxious brothers. My question is, are you even vaguely attracted to Rye?”

Was she attracted to Rye? Yes, but she shouldn’t be. She thought about the way it had felt to sit next to him in the truck the night before. His very presence had pulled at her. She’d wanted so badly to scoot over and sit next to him, their hips brushing each other as the Bronco bounced down the road. It was different than what she felt with Max. Despite her every instinct telling her to stay as far away from Rye Harper as she could, she couldn’t get the image of him standing over her out of her head. Max, for all his bluster, was sweet and so tender when it came to sex. Rye would be a different story.

“Okay, that answers that question,” Callie said. She had a big grin on her face, and Rachel felt herself flush. She’d given away way more than she thought she had.

“Fine, I find him attractive. That doesn’t mean I’m going to jump his bones.” She wasn’t going to do that. Even if she wanted to, it would hurt Max. She wasn’t going to cheat on Max.

“Are you fundamentally opposed to the whole idea of a threesome?”

Again, Rachel felt every inch of her face flood with blood. She looked around to see if anyone was watching. “How can you talk about this?” Something Callie had said earlier suddenly made sense. “You’re in a threesome, aren’t you?”

Finally, Callie showed some discomfort with the very intimate subject. Her hands twisted together. “No, not on a permanent basis. I mean, wow, that makes it sound like I’m going to an orgy every weekend. I’m not. My life would be way more interesting if that was happening.” She stuttered a little. “I only did it the once, but that was enough.”

“Enough for what?”

“Enough to make me think about it for the rest of my life.” Callie took a deep breath and visibly forced her hands to be still. “It was one weekend with two amazing men. At the end of the weekend, we went our separate ways. I haven’t seen them in years now. They were friends of Stef’s.”

But Callie hadn’t wanted the weekend to end, Rachel knew suddenly. It was written all over her face. Rachel felt a rush of empathy for Rye’s assistant. “What was it like?”

Rachel wasn’t necessarily talking about the sex, and Callie seemed to understand. A dreamy look came over her face. “I’ve never felt safer than I did with them. It was like I was their whole world. When I was with Zane and Nate, I was something more than just me. Maybe it works that way with just couples, but I was surrounded by them. I was the center of the whole world for a little while. I wouldn’t trade it for anything.”

“But your heart got broken.” And that was what Rachel was terrified of.

Callie shrugged and shook off the fine sheen of moisture that coated her eyes. “You can’t make someone love you. I wouldn’t take back loving them, either. Loving makes us better. And you won’t have the same problem. Max is already in love with you. Rye can’t help but follow. It just works that way for them.”

“Always?”

Callie nodded. She seemed more comfortable getting back to the subject of Max and Rye. “Ever since we were kids. You know that connection thing a lot of twins have? Multiply it by a thousand, and that’s Max and Rye. I swear one can tell what the other one is thinking most of the time. When they started dating, they dated the same girl. At the same time. And then her father came after them with a shotgun, and they ran away together.”

Rachel felt a smile split her face. What must it be like to have someone to share your soul with? How hard would it be to suddenly stop? She frowned. “Max hasn’t broached the subject with me. I don’t think he wants to share me.” And she wasn’t about to suggest a threesome. Even if she wanted to. Which she didn’t.

“I think he’s afraid of scaring you off. They’re both afraid of scaring you off. If you really care about Max, please think about giving Rye a shot. He’s a great guy.”

All thoughts of food were put on hold. What was she doing? She couldn’t stay here, could she? She couldn’t think about giving a relationship with a sheriff an honest try. He didn’t even know her real name.

“I mean he’s paranoid,” Callie was saying. “But you’re good. You passed the background check. Once your plates clear, and he’s sure you’re not a serial killer, you’ll find him to be the nicest guy ever. Of course, Mel might still think you’re an alien, but I have a test for that, too.”

Callie continued, but Rachel’s vision had shifted. Everything was a little blurry as she realized Rye Harper had already proven her point. She couldn’t trust him. God, what did he already know? Had he called around? Her current license listed her address as Houston, but cops shared info all the time. Was Tommy already on his way?

Rachel stood up, ignoring Callie’s surprised look. She walked to the counter and picked up her keys. Stella called out, but Rachel didn’t respond. She walked out the door and got into the Jeep. She would leave. No goodbyes, no last paychecks. She would point her Jeep to the north and head for Wyoming. She would drive past Denver because it was too close to the Harper twins for comfort. She would dump the Rachel Swift ID. When she had enough cash, she would make her way to Chicago and lose herself in the city. She wouldn’t make friends. She wouldn’t talk to anyone unless she had to. She sure as hell wouldn’t fall for another man. She turned the car around. She felt tears running down her face. How could he have done that to her?

She stopped at the red light. Something made her turn her head. She wanted one last look at Bliss. And then she saw him. Rye Harper was walking out of the sheriff’s office. He stretched and yawned, pulling his big body this way and that way. His eyes caught sight of her and lit up. There was a wide smile on his too sexy mouth, and his hand came up in greeting.

Suddenly, she just had to wipe that smile off his face. Jerking the car into park and pulling the keys out, Rachel opened the door and descended on the man who had just wrecked her life.