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  “Well, I can guarantee that you won’t run off again!” He pulled her roughly to her feet.

  Confusion filled her eyes. He felt his anger wane so he reached down into himself and dragged it back to the surface. This was no time for weakness. He glared at her, forcing a chill into his gaze.

  “Now strip.”

  “What?”

  “I said remove your clothing.” Her wide eyes scanned his face. Her coral lips fell open.

  “Charlie…is there any need for that?” Etu appeared at his side.

  Charlie faced his lover and placed a warning hand on his chest. Etu’s heart pounded against his clammy palm. He was torn. He was confused. He didn’t know what was right or wrong, real or a product of his feverish lust-fuelled thoughts.

  “Only one way this little lady ain’t gonna run off.” He swallowed hard, forcing steely determination into his voice. “And that’s if she ain’t got her clothes on.”

  Chapter Three

  Layla’s heart threatened to leap from her chest and bounce off into the fire where it would surely shrivel and blacken. She almost wished it would in order to spare her the pain and shame that she was feeling right now.

  She had been excited by what she’d seen. Charlie and Etu had shown one another such tenderness. But now, Charlie was mad at her for breaking free and for witnessing their intimacy. It made her feel like an intruder. Like she’d invaded their space when she had observed them uninvited. Perhaps she shouldn’t have stayed and watched them but she’d been unable to leave. It had been emotional, sexy, enchanting.

  But Charlie just didn’t seem to believe her. And why would he? All she’d done so far was show him that she couldn’t be trusted.

  So much so that he now wanted her to remove her clothes. To shed the exterior layer of protection that she had erected around herself.

  Shame tingled in her toes and crept up her whole body like a swarm of angry red ants.

  “Do it, Layla, or I’ll do it for ya.” His voice was dark and dangerous and she knew that he meant it.

  She had no choice.

  Charlie and Etu were still naked. Their finely honed bodies were within reach and it was all she could do not to touch them. But to show them her flesh…would be so embarrassing. Henrik had made her promises. He had persuaded her to let him touch her intimately. But it hadn’t been good. Not really. She hadn’t minded his kisses but when he’d gained access to the rest of her, he’d acted as if she were a hole for his convenience. She’d lain on her back with her legs open while he humped her like a randy dog. Though with less urgency, less finesse. It had all been about the money. Her money. Which he had taken.

  She’d felt numb. Vacant. Worthless. Used.

  What had transpired between her and Henrik had been nothing like the lovemaking between Charlie and Etu. They shared the type of closeness that she’d give a limb to possess.

  She had blamed herself for Henrik’s abandonment. She had womanly curves and believed that men were supposed to appreciate them. But if a man like Henrik hadn’t stayed around to see her naked again then perhaps there was something wrong with her. Was she too curvy? Were her bosoms too big? Was the hair beneath her arms and over her mound unusual? She didn’t know. It made her stomach clench. What if she undressed before these men and they laughed at her or found her repulsive?

  “Layla.” Etu stepped towards her. “Please. Do what Charlie told you. You’re safe. I promise.”

  Safe?

  How could he make such a promise? He had no idea what she’d been through. How alone she felt. When had she ever felt safe, loved, comforted? Well, dammit all to hell! She would show them her body and find out once and for all if Henrik had found her so ugly that he had to rush off and leave her after taking her innocence.

  And she really had no choice. Charlie didn’t trust her. Probably didn’t even like her. What did she have to lose?

  Layla raised trembling fingers to her shirt front and began to fumble with the buttons. She was acutely aware of the two sets of eyes that watched her intently.

  “Could you maybe…turn around?” she asked.

  Charlie glared at her. “Turn around? So as you can run off again?”

  She hung her head.

  “I’m waiting,” Charlie whispered.

  Layla shrugged out of the shirt and let it fall to the ground. The cool night air washed over her exposed skin and her nipples hardened. Etu gasped.

  Please don’t let it be in horror.

  She must keep going.

  She undid her trousers and stepped out of them then stood before the men in her chemise and bloomers.

  “And the rest.” Charlie’s voice was husky. What did he think of what he could see? She glanced at him. His cheeks were flushed and his eyes dark as he roamed them over her flesh. Catching her looking at him, he averted his gaze.

  “Let me help you.” Etu approached her.

  She shrugged. What did it matter anymore? Besides, Etu seemed gentler, more understanding. She wanted to believe that he wouldn’t hurt her. Tears welled in her eyes and she had to fight the urge to throw herself into his arms, to seek the comfort which she sensed that he could offer.

  He untied the waist of her bloomers and slid them down her legs then he helped her out of her stockings. She bit her lip as he reached for the hem of her chemise.

  Her breath came in shallow little gasps. Her head felt light and detached as if it would soar off into the black sky. She put out her hand to steady herself and found Etu’s silky black hair. She filled her fingers with it. Holding on. Needing him to ground her.

  Her legs trembled as he lifted the chemise. It seemed to caress every inch of her body as it travelled upwards. Her skin prickled with sensitivity.

  Layla closed her eyes as Etu lifted the flimsy garment over her head.

  And then she was completely naked.

  She kept her eyes closed. She was afraid to look. Terrified of their reactions.

  Etu stood so close to her that she could feel his body heat and his breath stirred the hair that fell around her face.

  She knew that she should be concerned now. But it was what they thought of her that worried her most.

  Her mind shouted that she should try to run. Try to escape.

  But her body betrayed her. It blazed with need. Every inch of her skin yearned to be touched. Her nipples were hard and she longed for a hot mouth to suckle them. Her cunny tingled as it longed for a tender caress.

  And her heart beat out the rhythm of her loneliness, begging her to finally let someone in.

  ****

  Charlie had to stop himself from taking a few steps forward and grabbing hold of Layla. The sheer beauty of her naked form was playing havoc with his body and mind. Sure, he’d seen a woman’s body before, seen a few in fact, but none of them had been this perfect, this beautiful, this desirable.

  He dragged his eyes away from her creamy flesh.

  “Etu?” He nudged his lover’s shoulder but Etu didn’t move. He stood in front of Layla like a statue, his eyes glued to her body. He watched as Etu hovered his hands over her form, tracing her curves without actually making contact. Etu had fallen hard.

  Charlie knew that he would have to take charge.

  He grabbed the rope that Layla had escaped from and ran it through his hands. If he wasn’t so confused by the feelings running through him, he’d have found the situation funny. Here they were, the three of them, in the woods at night, naked. Charlie, his lover and their mail-order bride.

  Who’d have thought that an advert in a paper would come to this?

  He had to tie Layla up. He just had to. He couldn’t risk her escaping again. Especially now that she’d seen him with Etu.

  “Put your hands behind your back, Layla.” He used the voice he reserved for calming a startled horse. Low, deep, commanding.

  Layla opened her eyes and stared at him. She cleared her throat as if to speak. Her bottom lip quivered. He felt his gaze drawn to her breasts again then lo
wer. Lower. To the auburn curls at the apex of her thighs. He knew that if he parted her legs he would see the shiny pink folds of her sex. Glistening. Inviting. Encouraging him to penetrate her feminine flesh.

  Dammit! He had to stay strong here.

  Etu turned to him. “Charlie…is this really necessary? She won’t try to run off now. Look at her.” Etu gestured at Layla and Charlie swallowed hard. He couldn’t stop looking at her. It was driving him crazy the way that her beautiful auburn hair fell over her shoulders and her green eyes shone. If he hadn’t known better, he’d have thought that she even looked aroused.

  But that would be ridiculous, right?

  He moved towards her and she stiffened. He pulled her hands behind her and looped the rope around them. This close, he could smell her sweet musky scent. It made him want to pull her against his chest. His whole body was responding to her proximity, her femininity. It was so different from Etu’s. It made him want to run his tongue over every inch of her flesh in order to taste her sweetness.

  His erection brushed the backs of her thighs as he tightened the rope. She gasped. He bit hard on his lip and breathed deeply. He had to regain his control. But it would be so easy to press his cock between the soft flesh of her buttocks until he found a way inside.

  “Now kneel.” His voice was husky. He ached with the strain of denying his desires.

  He helped her to lower to the ground. Etu knelt also. Watching. Hardly blinking.

  Charlie knew that Etu was overwhelmed too. It was as if something had sparked between the three of them and it wouldn’t take much to set the three of them on fire. But the ensuing blaze could make charcoal of them all.

  He put his hands on Layla’s shoulders and pushed gently, to make her lie on her side. Her skin was warm and smooth beneath his fingers. It reminded him of velvet. He began to wind the ropes around her, tying her like a hog, all the while repeating to himself that she was a swindler. She was not the sweet, innocent young woman that her letters had suggested. She did not need his protection and a place in his life. She would not be good for him and Etu. It would not be wise to open her rounded thighs and to nuzzle her wet pink flesh, to suckle her bud until she shattered against his tongue. Time after time until his mouth filled with her heady juices and he found the ultimate fulfilment that he could now admit that he craved.

  But as he moved his hands deftly around her flesh, accidentally grazing her as he did so, he realised that he was not fully convinced.

  The softness of her skin. The fullness of her breasts. The soft auburn curls that covered her mound. Her sweet vulnerability that seemed to reach out to his protective instinct. Her scent, such a contrast to Etu’s yet just as good. Just as intoxicating.

  All these things about Layla invited him to believe that she was who she had said she was. What he wanted her to be. All these things made him want to believe that she could be the woman to complete what he had with Etu. And all these things aroused him in a way he had never expected to be aroused around a woman.

  There was something special about Layla Powell. No doubt about it.

  ****

  Etu’s chest was about to explode. He felt sure of it. Watching as Charlie tied up the beautiful Layla was almost too much to bear. He wanted to stop Charlie yet beg him to go on. He’d seen the way Layla’s eyes had flashed whenever Charlie’s hands had brushed against her skin and he knew that she was aroused. Her milky white breasts were ripe and ready for handling. Her nipples pointed from their centres, hard fuchsia nubs that begged to be licked and sucked. Her curves were perfectly formed; from her shapely shoulders to her rounded calves, she was a woman worth fighting for.

  And the way that she looked at him made his heart swell.

  There was no scorn or condescension. Just curiosity and even, if he was reading her correctly, desire. The way that she had roamed his body with her bright green eyes had roused him further. Her gaze had been so intense when it had reached his cock that he had been able to feel her touch there, fondling his erect shaft and pulling him towards her.

  He had battled his urge to reach out and caress her. Wanting to so very badly yet afraid of upsetting the scene. Afraid of being rejected. Afraid of getting it wrong. Rejection from Layla would be devastating. Rejection had left him deeply scarred and he feared it more than being pierced by a dozen arrow heads.

  “Etu.” Charlie beckoned to him from the fire. “I need a word.”

  He walked over to his lover, casting Layla a glance. She lay still on the ground. The rope caressing her flesh where he would gladly run his tongue. Her creamy skin was illuminated by the moonlight and she looked as if she had fallen there like an ethereal being cast out of heaven. Her beauty was otherworldly and he was in awe.

  “What do we do now, Charlie?” Etu scanned his lover’s face, hoping desperately that Charlie had a plan, a way to make this work.

  Charlie shook his head.

  “You like her don’t you?”

  Charlie chewed his lip. “How I feel about her…how you feel about her is irrelevant here. If we set her loose, she’ll likely run off. And after what she’s seen…” Charlie ran a large hand over his face.

  Etu’s heart ached to see his concern. All Charlie had done, he had done for him. Etu knew this. Charlie had sworn off women after Mary, believing that it would never work to bring a woman into their relationship. And for a while, Etu had tried to convince himself that Charlie was right. But the passing of the seasons brought with it his stark awareness of their mortality. Of how short a time human beings actually lived. It reinforced his belief that life had to be lived to the full.

  And for Etu, loving Charlie filled his heart and soul. Almost. He wanted to share the love he felt for Charlie with a woman. And hopefully with children that they could father together. Finding a woman to fulfil these desires was, he knew, an incredibly long reach. Yet if they didn’t try, he would always be left wondering…What if? When Layla had answered their advert, he had been convinced from the tone of her letters that she would be the one. She would understand them and immerse herself in their life and their love. He had fallen for her sweetness, her honesty and the loneliness that he sensed between the words on the paper. At times, it was what she hadn’t said that told him more about her.

  So he’d been surprised when she had run off.

  He’d been cautious with Charlie, watching him closely and constantly asking if Charlie was sure that this was what he had wanted too. But Charlie had reassured him each time. As he always did. He was Etu’s rock. His compass. His everything.

  Arriving in Deadwood earlier than expected, Etu had been full of fear and excitement. He knew that they couldn’t tell Layla outright about their relationship and that it was something they would have to introduce her to gently, but his heart told him that she would understand and that they could offer her so much that she would be glad of it. If she could just see past the colour of his skin. Past prejudice. And look deep into his heart. To join at a different level. One where nothing at all mattered other than loving and being loved. Giving and accepting pleasure. Enjoying the simple things that the world had to offer. Heartbreak was always close, threatening to destroy happiness like a storm cloud on a sunny day. But finding true love could banish the threat, or at least keep it at bay for a significant duration.

  So when they’d gone to her lodgings to find that she’d disappeared, he’d nearly fallen apart. His mind had screamed irrationally that she must have found out about his love for Charlie. That she had somehow known about their relationship and, like Mary, been outraged at what she’d discovered. But they had been nonsense thoughts. Layla Powell had run off with their money. Run off to escape marrying a man she didn’t know. Run off with a heart full of fear and a pocket full of coins.

  He knew that now.

  What made the disintegration of his dream worse now was knowing that Layla didn’t actually look at him as if he were dirt. She wasn’t like other women. She did not carry the air of prejudice about her l
ike the scent of burning hair. The way she looked at Etu made him feel like a man, a warrior; warm and desired.

  And he wanted her. To be with them.

  “Charlie. I don’t think that she is a swindler. I believe that she was telling the truth about panicking. It was a big decision to make, agreeing to marry you when you’d never even met.”

  Charlie shook his head. “You’re too soft for your own good.”

  “No, Charlie.” Etu stared hard at his lover. “You’re wrong on this. She is different from other white folks. She looks at me differently.”

  “That may be, Etu. But we just can’t risk it.” Charlie kicked a ball of moss across the ground.

  “I have an idea…” Etu held his breath. What would Charlie think? If he agreed to this, it was risky. But he wanted it with every fibre of his being. And what did they have to lose?

  “Go ahead then…tell me…” Charlie smiled his old familiar smile and Etu’s stomach flipped. He loved that smile so much.

  “Don’t say no straight away.”

  Charlie rolled his eyes. “Just tell me.”

  “Okay. We seduce her.”

  “What?” Charlie’s eyebrows shot up his forehead. Etu reached out and stroked his face.

  “She wasn’t repulsed by what she saw. She’s a warm-blooded woman. Inexperienced perhaps. But the way she reacted when she saw us making love wasn’t with repulsion. She watched rather than fleeing. I saw her eyes when you tied her up and you touched her accidentally. She’s responsive, Charlie. She’s not like Mary. Not all women are so…cold.”

  Some were. He knew. But then so were some men. That was just folks for you. Women responded to Charlie when he passed them in the street. They blushed when he raised his hat or bade them good morning. Whereas, Etu was usually ignored. An employee, neither white nor Sioux. But Charlie had never treated him as a lesser man. And now, this beautiful Layla Powell had surprised him too with her own attitude towards him. Maybe he was wrong and she was that good an actress that she’d fooled him with her wide green eyes and voluptuous body. But there was only one way to find out. The flesh couldn’t lie. If he could encourage Charlie and Layla to be intimate with him, to explore each other and engage at a physical, primitive level, then maybe their connection would develop and deepen and Etu would find what he had been looking for.