Monroe Marla - Sharing Her with David [Men of the Border Lands 6] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) Read online

  Men of the Border Lands 6

  Sharing Her with David

  When black market raiders try to capture April, only her husband’s friend David’s timely arrival saves her from a life of slavery. Gary decides that he needs help protecting April now that the world has changed for the worse. Can he convince David to join them and April to accept him?

  David can’t believe that his best friend wants him to join him in protecting April as well as in their bed. As much as that would be a dream come true, David is worried that Gary will come to resent him and April will fear him. She’s always seemed nervous around him.

  April has fantasized about David ever since she met him, but she loves Gary and would never betray him. How is she going to handle David being around all the time? Then Gary drops the bombshell. He wants her to accept David in their bed as well.

  Note: There is no sexual relationship or touching for titillation between or among the men.

  Genre: Futuristic, Menage a Trois/Quatre, Western/Cowboys

  Length: 45,249 words

  SHARING HER WITH DAVID

  Men of the Border Lands 6

  Marla Monroe

  MENAGE EVERLASTING

  Siren Publishing, Inc.

  www.SirenPublishing.com

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  A SIREN PUBLISHING BOOK

  IMPRINT: Ménage Everlasting

  SHARING HER WITH DAVID

  Copyright © 2012 by Marla Monroe

  E-book ISBN: 1-61926-578-8

  First E-book Publication: March 2012

  Cover design by Les Byerley

  All art and logo copyright © 2012 by Siren Publishing, Inc.

  ALL RIGHTS RESERVED: This literary work may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, including electronic or photographic reproduction, in whole or in part, without express written permission.

  All characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual persons living or dead is strictly coincidental.

  PUBLISHER

  Siren Publishing, Inc.

  www.SirenPublishing.com

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  SHARING HER WITH DAVID

  Men of the Border Lands 6

  MARLA MONROE

  Copyright © 2012

  Chapter One

  “You can’t be serious, Gary.” David stared at his friend, not believing what he was suggesting.

  “I’m very serious. I can’t take care of her alone anymore. It’s just too dangerous. I need help. I need you to move in with us.”

  “No! Hell no.” David ran a hand through his hair.

  “Look, I know you’ve wanted her since day one. You’ve done a good job of trying to hide it, but I’ve always known.”

  “Fuck! You’re going to put me under the same roof as your wife, knowing I want her? What kind of game are you playing, Gary?”

  “No games, David. I wouldn’t expect you to live with us and not be with her.”

  When Gary dropped that bombshell David actually jerked. What was he saying? He expected him to sleep with his wife?

  “Have you even discussed this with April? Because I find it hard to believe you’re able to walk, much less stand there and offer your wife to me?” David shook his head.

  “I almost lost her the other day, David. If you hadn’t been coming over, I would have. Those men would have killed me and taken my wife. I need you, man.”

  David stared at Gary, searching his friend’s face for any sign that might help him understand. What he saw there was desperation, and perhaps resignation. He and Gary had been friends since grade school. They’d double-dated all through high school. When Gary had first started dating April during college, David couldn’t keep his eyes off of her. He found himself attracted to her and fought to hide it. He thought he’d done a pretty good job. Until now.

  Now with the world turned upside down, most families out there in the Border Lands were made up of two or three men and one woman. The year of catastrophes had changed everything in their lives. Tornadoes, floods, hurricanes, earthquakes, and tsunamis had nearly destroyed the United States. And then came the famines, and even more people died. Most of the people he and Gary had known had died. There was very little of the old nation left.

  Men began hunting women like wild game. They were scarce and a commodity now, much like food and gas were. If you weren’t careful, someone would steal your wife to sell on the black market or in Barter Town. That had almost happened to April twice now. He could well understand Gary’s fear, but this? This was more than he could comprehend.

  “David, at least think about it. I won’t share her with anyone else. I would never be able to trust that anyone else wouldn’t hurt her. I trust you.” Gary sighed and shook his head. “I’m going to go get April. We’ll go home and let you think about it.”

  Gary and David had left April in David’s little house while they had gone outside to supposedly look at his tractor. Gary couldn’t leave her alone at the house for fear someone would come and steal her away. David understood why his best friend wanted help, but this was April they were talking about. She would never willingly accept him. She had always been nervous around him.

  He walked the other man back up to the house where April waited on him. When they walked inside, she was at the stove cooking something. She always cooked for him when she came over. It was as if she didn’t think he could cook for himself. Well, he wasn’t a good cook, but he managed just fine on his own. Still, he appreciated her fixing whatever
she made for him.

  “What are you working on over there?” Gary asked as they walked inside.

  “Oh, you’re back. That was fast.” She stirred something in the boiler then cut the heat off the gas stove. “I have a meatloaf in the oven and green beans on the stove. You’ll need to take the meatloaf out in about an hour. Don’t forget it, David.”

  “I won’t. You always fix me up, April. Thanks.” He looked over at Gary. The other man seemed to be trying to tell him something, but David didn’t have a clue what it was.

  “I guess we better go. I need to check on the herd.” Gary held out his hand for April.

  David watched as the woman of his dreams took Gary’s hand and walked with him toward the front door where they had parked. They waved good-bye and backed out of the drive to head back to their house only a mile down the gravel road. They had a much larger home, with four bedrooms and fenced-in acreage for the small herd of cattle and horses. David helped them care for them by sharing the duties, and, as a result, the meat.

  When they had moved out to the Border Lands nearly two years ago, things were different. Still, Gary had wanted him to live with them in the same house. David had balked, knowing it would never work. There was no way he could live under the same roof as April without touching her. Then there was the fact that she was nervous around him. He didn’t want her to be uncomfortable.

  As much as he wanted April, he couldn’t see it working. There had to be another way to keep her safe. Maybe they could build a smaller house next to them and he could live in it. Hell, that wouldn’t be much different than living in the same one. He would still be too tempted to kiss her. No, it wouldn’t work. Gary would come to resent him and April would fear him. He couldn’t stand it if she were to become afraid of him.

  * * * *

  April stretched her aching back. Washing clothes was the one thing she really didn’t enjoy doing. It was backbreaking work without a washing machine and dryer. She sighed, then began hanging up the clothes on the clothesline stretched between the old oak tree and the corner of the house.

  Gary and David were out at the pasture with the horses and cows. She slipped her hand into her apron pocket and felt for the gun there. It had only been a week since someone had tried to take her. Without David’s intervention, she might have been whisked away from Gary. She rarely felt safe anymore. Even knowing how to shoot a gun didn’t make her feel secure. In fact, the only time she did was when both men were there with her.

  Gary was her husband and longtime love. They had been together through so much, and she was thankful every day for him. David was Gary’s best friend and had been all that had stood between her and being taken twice now. Without David’s help, someone would have taken her away from Gary long ago.

  Maybe that was why she felt so attracted to him. She must have a strong case of hero worship for his part in keeping her safe. April sighed. She knew better, though. She’d been attracted to him back when she and Gary had first started dating. Something about David had always called to her, but she loved Gary with all her heart.

  Guilt rode her for being attracted to Gary’s best friend. David had certainly never done anything to encourage the attraction, but she still felt it. In the world around them, families were made up of more than one man now. It wasn’t unheard of for a woman to have three husbands to keep her safe. Still, they weren’t living that way. She would never hurt Gary by admitting that she sometimes fantasized about David. It was just a sexual fantasy. Everyone had them. It didn’t mean that she would ever act on it.

  The two men were as different as night and day. Gary had sandy-blond hair with blue eyes and dimples in his cheeks. He was close to six feet three inches. Where Gary was lean and muscular, David was meaty and muscular. He stood over six feet five inches and had a head full of shaggy black hair that he kept pulled back from his face. There had been many a time she had trimmed his hair for him. His dark eyes missed nothing, and when he smiled, which was rare, he took her breath away.

  Shaking thoughts of the two men from her head, she continued hanging up the clothes. When she finished hanging up the last pair of jeans, April turned and walked back inside the house. She had a roast in the oven with new potatoes and carrots from the garden. Fall was fast approaching. She had most of the garden in, but there were still plenty of veggies to pick over the next few days.

  April didn’t work in the garden anymore without one of the men close by. That was how they had almost gotten her the last time. She had been so busy picking peas that she hadn’t heard them sneak up on her until it was too late. Thank God David came when he had. She was sure they would have gotten her that time.

  She shook it off and checked the meat. She basted it with the juice in the bottom of the pan before replacing it in the oven. Then she sat down to peel apples for an apple pie. The men loved her pies. She wasn’t sure if she would make one large pie or a dozen turnovers. They could take them with them when they were out checking the cattle.

  A noise sounded in the front part of the house. April couldn’t figure out what that could be. She sat the apples aside and walked back into the living room to check the fire. They had a small one in the fireplace since it got chilly in the afternoons. She didn’t see where a log had moved. Thinking it had been her imagination, she turned to return to the kitchen and stopped dead in her tracks.

  Standing in the doorway to the kitchen was a man with a gun pointed right at her. Without thinking, she screamed and turned to run. She didn’t get far. Another man stood behind her with a lecherous grin on his face.

  “What a woman. I love them feisty.” He grabbed her upper arm and jerked her toward him.

  April wasn’t about to give in without a fight. She raked the nails of her free hand down the man’s face and bit the hand that held her arm. The stranger roared and backhanded her. She flew across the room to land with a thump against the hearth. Her head hit the stone with a sickening thud. Stars raced across her vision as she fought to keep from passing out. If she did that, they would have her for certain.

  Hopefully the men heard her scream. It would be her only chance. She tried to back away from the man with her nail marks marring his face from advancing on her.

  “I’ll take care of you for that, bitch. Just wait till we have you at our place.”

  April backed into the other man’s legs. He laughed and jerked her up by her hair. She screamed again only to have it silenced by another blow to her face. She would have fallen again if the other man didn’t have her tight in his grasp.

  “Let’s get out of here in case one of her men heard her,” the first man said.

  They began to drag her toward the front door that stood wide open. Just as they got to it, David stepped inside. They turned to head for the back door only to run into Gary. Both men had guns pointed their way.

  “Drop them guns or we’ll kill her.” The man holding her tight in his grip pulled out a knife and held it at her throat.

  “I can put a bullet between your eyes before you could move a muscle. Don’t tempt me. Let her go.” David took a step closer.

  “I’ve got the second guy, David.” Gary pointed his rifle at the man standing next to April.

  “You’ll never get us both fast enough,” the first man said.

  “I happen to know we can. Just did this a week ago.” David settled his rifle on his shoulder and took aim.

  “Wait! Okay. I’ll give her back to you. Don’t shoot.” The first guy lowered the knife, but didn’t let go of April.

  “April, baby, walk toward David,” Gary said.

  April swallowed now that the knife was no longer against her throat and began to slowly walk toward David. When she got as far as the other man’s arm would reach, she jerked out of his hold and hurried to stand behind David.

  “You okay, April?” he asked.

  “I’m fine.” Her shaky voice belied her claim, though.

  “Okay, you two can walk out of here, and you better not ever show
your face around here again. Next time we’ll kill you and bury you out back with the other two.” Gary took a step toward them.

  “They hit her, Gary. I don’t think they need to just walk out of here like that.”

  Gary was silent a moment. “Maybe you’re right.”

  “Now, just a minute, it was an accident,” the first man began.

  David’s fist connected with the man’s jaw before he even knew what had hit him. He was out for the count. The second man tried to run, but Gary had him by the back of the collar. He hauled him around and knocked him out as well.

  “Dammit, David. You weren’t even going to be here today. If you hadn’t have been here and heard her scream, she’d be gone by now.” Gary kicked the man he’d just hit. “Do you see why I asked you?”

  “You stay with April. I’m going to go get rid of these two. I’ll be back in an hour. We can talk then.”

  “Fine. I’ll talk to April while you’re gone.”

  “Talk to me about what?” April asked in a shaky voice.

  “Come on, baby. Let’s get you cleaned up. I’m sorry they hit you.”

  “I’ll be okay. I’ve had worse.”

  “I’m sorry, April. I can’t take care of you by myself. It’s just gotten to be too dangerous. Besides the freaking black market, there are the wolves to think about. They’ve gotten to where they are attacking humans. David went and helped some of the others hunt the other night.”

  “What are you saying, Gary? Are you getting rid of me?” April couldn’t keep the panic from her voice.