Page 9 of Theirs to Have

“Well, if you didn’t run out of there, with your tail between your legs, she would have let you get to know her too. You didn’t give her that chance and that’s on you.” Cash was right, but Callan would never admit that to him.

“You’ll excuse me for needing to take a break from the two of you cozying up together in the parking lot. You made me feel like a third wheel and that’s not my thing Cash. I wanted to be an equal partner, not an afterthought,” Callan growled.

“You want to be an equal partner then step up and be one. But you’ll treat Mercy with respect, or you’ll leave her the fuck alone. I won’t let you hurt her like you did tonight.” Cash walked past Callan into his kitchen and came back into the living room with two beers, handing one to him.

“What the fuck do you think you’re doing?” Callan asked, taking the offered beer.

“We’re going to sit here until we work this shit out because Mercy deserves that from us. We were the ones to fuck up, Cal. We didn’t protect her that night, that’s on us. Now, the three of us are going to figure our shit out because we have a baby coming in less than three months.” Cash took a long swig of his beer and Callan set his on the table.

“You mean that one of us has a baby coming in less than three months. One of us will get the girl of our dreams and a baby—hell, an instant family. The other one of us is going to be sent packing and will sit around wondering what might have been.” Cash shook his head and took another drink of his beer. He seemed way too confident for a man that stood a fifty-fifty chance of losing.

“How about you shut the fuck up and let me talk for a change. I spent time with Mercy tonight.” Callan couldn’t help his grumble; he didn’t want to hear about their evening together. “Let me finish, Cal.” Cash waited Callan out as if asking permission to go on.

“Fine,” Callan barked.

“We talked, nothing else happened. Okay, we kissed some but what you’re thinking happened didn’t. I got to know her unlike our first night together when we all just fell into bed and she’s sweet. She’s a true submissive and she wants both of us.” Callan picked up his beer and took a long drink. He needed to get his mind around everything that Cash just told him.

“Did she say that she wanted both of us?” Cash cringed and Callan knew that Cash was reading into the situation, seeing things that might not be there.

“No,” Cash whispered. “Listen, I know that Mercy wants you just as much as she wants me. She talked about you, wishing that you were there with us. I think that this might be an all-or-nothing thing for Mercy.” Cash finished off his beer and wentback to Callan’s kitchen for another. Callan had to admit that he hoped what Cash was saying was true.

Cash sat back down and popped open his beer, “Tell me you don’t want her or that she hasn’t been all you have thought about for the past six months,” Cash barked. “Tell me, and I’ll walk out of here and it’s every man for himself. You can do whatever you want—either win Mercy for yourself or walk away from her. But I won’t give up on her—I want her more than I care to admit and the thought of having to share her is tearing me apart. If that’s what’s going to win her back then I’m willing to put her between us.”

Callan sat back, going over Cash’s words in his head. What if they could make a threesome work? They would be happy, even make Mercy happy, and then what? Where would the baby fit in? He had so many questions he wasn’t sure where to even begin. He decided to start with the truth.

“I want her, man. I’ve wanted her since I watched her walk out of your place the next morning and I want her now. There hasn’t been anyone else for me since we were all together,” Callan admitted.

Cash smiled, “Same here man. I thought you had fewer groupies hanging around Manholes.” Callan threw a pillow at Cash causing them both to laugh. It felt like it had been forever since they laughed like that, and Callan hoped that they could one day get back to being as close as they once were before that night with Mercy. Callan worried that putting her between them would stir up issues again and drive another wedge between him and Cash. He wasn’t sure if their friendship could take that. But he knew for certain that he couldn’t walk away from Mercy. Leaving her tonight just about killed him, he wouldn’t be able to do that again.

“So, what’s the fucking plan, man?” Callan barked. Cash flashed him a wolfish grin and Callan was sure that he was going to like whatever Cash had planned for their Mercy.

Cash

Cash and Callan watched Mercy get into her old beat-up Toyota to head to work. Cash had made a few phone calls and with a little help from her friends, he and Callan knew just about everything they needed to initiate their plan. Cash didn’t care if Mercy wanted to keep him and Callan a secret. A part of him felt bad outing her to her friends, telling Regan and Emily about their night together and the baby but he had a feeling that they both already knew the whole story. Emily told him that she guessed that Callan and he had a threesome with Mercy the night they were all at his bar. She also reminded him that she was an OB doctor and could pretty much guess that Mercy was about six months pregnant. He laughed at the thought of his little girl trying to cover her tracks and hide what the rest of the town already knew—she was pregnant and now, she was theirs.

“How long is her shift?” Callan looked at him and Cash could see the worry on his friend’s face. He saw what Cash was seeing every time he looked at Mercy—she was tired and that worried them both.

“Twelve fucking hours,” Cash grumbled. “This has to stop. Emily said that Mercy is taking care of her grandmother, and shesuspects that our girl is taking extra shifts to save money before the baby comes.”

“Fuck,” Callan spat. “If she’d just fucking let us in we would help her.” Cash nodded.

“I know man, but I don’t think that she’s ready to accept our help or let us in. But we’re going to change all of that, starting today. Let’s go meet Mercy’s grandmother,” Cash barked. They both got out of his truck and walked across the street to Mercy’s house. Cash hoped that her grandmother had an open mind because what they were about to tell her might come as a shock.

Mercy’s grandmother answered the door after his second knock. She opened the door, and he had to admit, she looked surprised to see the pair of them standing on her front porch, who wouldn’t be? He suspected that he and Callan were quite a pair judging by just their size alone. Add in his long hair and tattoos and Callan’s boy next door charm and good looks, anyone would be stunned to find them at their front door.

“Hello, my name is Cash Harrington and this is Callan McAllister. We are—” Cash wasn’t quite sure what he should call himself and Callan, concerning Mercy. Mercy’s grandmother seemed to be enjoying watching him squirm. She stood in the doorway with a knowing smile on her face, waiting him out.

Callan barked out a laugh, “Man, I think she’s screwing with us. You know exactly who we are, don’t you?” Mercy’s grandmother’s smile broadened, and she nodded, even giggling as she ushered them into her home.

“Sorry boys, I like to have a little fun. I’m Mary and my granddaughter has told me all about the pair of you,” Mary motioned to the back of the house and they both followed her. Cash could tell that Mary was making breakfast and his stomach growled.

“Well, it sounds like I’m going to have to make some extra,” Mary clapped. “Oh, it’s been so long since I’ve had good-looking boys around to feed. Make yourselves at home and I’ll make you some breakfast.” Cash and Callan sat down at the kitchen table not arguing about the fact that they were both hungry. They skipped breakfast to get to Mercy’s house before her grandmother headed to the senior center. Emily was like a walking personal assistant, even knowing Mary’s weekly schedule.

“You boys are just in time. I was going to get ready for my date, but I have a feeling that you already know my plans. You’ve been talking to Mercy’s friends, haven’t you?” Cash nodded. He caught some shit from his friends for interrupting their time with Emily last night. Travis and Jack gave her exactly ten minutes to talk to him and then they confiscated her phone and told him to fuck off. He couldn’t say that he blamed them. If it was him he wouldn’t untie his new wife from the bed. A picture of Mercy tied to his bed flashed through his mind and he almost groaned out loud. He needed to cut that shit out, now wasn’t the time or place for his dirty thoughts.

“Yes, they were quite helpful. Although, I don’t think that Em’s new husbands were too happy with me interrupting their evening last night.” Mary laughed and flipped the pancakes.

“No, I would think not,” she piled the pancakes onto a plate and set them on her kitchen table next to a plate of bacon that was already there. Mary grabbed the fresh pot of coffee and poured them both a cup. From the looks of it, Mercy’s grandmother was expecting company, and he wondered who tipped her off that he and Callan were going to visit her.

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