Chapter Sixteen
Garrett kept his eyes on Madelyn, who rode in front of him. He knew she was a little sensitive this morning by the way she’d shifted in the saddle, but not enough to keep her from riding her own horse instead of with him. She insisted she was fine riding her horse.
A grin spread across his face when she awoke that morning to realize the men were in boxers and she was totally naked.
The two men enjoyed it when she tried to cover herself, but they held the blanket back from her. She started to complain until they reminded her that there were people in tents close enough to hear her. That made her freeze, making them both chuckle.
They got back to the barn, and he was beside her to help her down. He was glad he was because her legs gave out when her feet touched the ground, and she would have fallen on her ass.
He pressed his lips to the back of her head. “I’ve got you, Baby.”
She nodded and sighed before leaning against him.
He waited until she was steady.
“Thank you,” she said and straightened up.
“Are you sure?” Garrett asked.
“Yes.”
He loosened his grip slowly, ready to grab her if she started to go down. When he knew she was ready, he stepped back.
Garrett called out to one of his workers to grab her horse before leading her to the lodge.
“Take a long bath. It will help with any soreness you have. Trey and I will be up later to get you for dinner.”
She nodded but kept her gaze down.
He walked her through the front lobby, up the stairs, stopped in front of her door, and used his fingers to raise her face. “Why are you embarrassed?” he asked when he saw how red her complexion was.
Madelyn tried to pull away, but he just tightened his grip. “Tell me.”
“It’s just that last night … you know, the things we did?”
He nodded and bit the inside of his cheek to keep from grinning. How could a forty-nine-year-old still be so innocent? Her husband must have been a damn idiot.
“It’s just that … I’m not like that.”
He cupped the side of her face. “Everything we did last night was perfect. We loved being able to touch you and give you pleasure. There’s nothing wrong with that. We all care for each other, right?”
Madelyn nodded.
He was pleased she hadn’t hesitated to affirm her feelings for them.
“Why can’t we be affectionate with you when we want? It doesn’t mean you’re slutty or anything. We both know how innocent you are, and you’ve had next to no experience, and we want to teach you everything. We’re excited and honored that you trust us enough to let us close. Especially after the way you and I started off.”
Garrett waited for a minute to let her think and exhaled when she nodded. God, he’d wait to fuck her if he had to, but his palms were itching to touch her whole body, his mouth to taste her again, and his cock to be buried as far in her as he could go. He didn’t care if it was her mouth, cunt, or ass.
“Be ready in two hours. One of us will come and get you,” he told her.
“I can just meet you.”
Garrett shook his head. “No, you’ll let us take care of you.”
Madelyn nodded one more time.
He placed a quick kiss on her lips. “We’ll see you soon.”
He waited until she shut her door to go back out and help with the camping gear and horses.
“How’s she doing?” Trey asked as he brushed down a horse.
“Good. Sore and tired but happy.”
Trey nodded. “Good. In the beginning, it’s going to take time to win her trust, but we must be patient, or we will lose her before we’ve ever had her.” Trey stopped brushing and leaned against the horse to look at him. “That thought will keep me up at night.”
Garrett nodded. “Yeah. Me, too. Let me help with the chores. I told her one of us would come to her room to get her in about two hours.”
“Then we better get to work,” Trey said before he turned back to the horse.
Garrett finished his work, showered, and was ready to get Madelyn but waited on his brother.
He frowned when he saw Trey. “What took you so long?”
“A problem with the young filly we got. The one I’m going to have Madelyn help with training. She got a cut on her right front ankle, and I wanted to make sure it was taken care of.”
Garrett nodded and followed his brother. They turned down one hallway and then another before they were in front of her door. His brother knocked and waited.
When Madelyn opened the door, the emotion that bombarded him at that moment felt like it constricted his heart. He’d never felt so much love for a person besides his family. It was great but also unnerving.
He’d feel better when they got her into their place and under them, by then she’d know where she belonged and never leave.
He and his brother would do anything to keep her with them. They wanted to make a life with her, take care of her, and show her all the special places they had on their land. She’d only seen a fraction of it because she’d just been on the trails, but they knew every inch of the place. Besides that, they’d show her how much passion they could give her. There were so many things they could teach her and a few they had never tried before.
He’d take things minute by minute and remind himself there was still a chance they could lose her, and that wasn’t an option.