Page 54 of Harbor (The Wanderers 3)

Chapter 23

For the first time in days, Maya felt like she was on her game, being useful. When Alan and Jed returned, she spent a while with them, explaining where the safehouse was located, how to get there, and what to say to the occupants.

By the time Ana left in the caring arms of her men, Maya thought the woman looked stronger, at least emotionally. She even smiled a few times and thanked Maya profusely.

As soon as the hatch was shut, silence filled the living space. The three men were standing at the bottom of the stairs while Maya sat on the couch with her ankle propped up.

Dario approached her from behind, set his hands on her shoulders, and leaned over to kiss the top of her head. “You were amazing, sweetheart.”

Maya sighed. “I wish I could have done more. It’s hard to convince someone they will survive an attack like that so soon after it occurred.”

“You’re right, but she seemed much better than when she arrived, and we owe all of that to you. If you hadn’t been here to step in…”

Maya shook her head as Dario rounded the couch and took a seat next to her.

Advic sat on her other side. Keanu settled in the armchair.

“You three are amazing doctors. You didn’t need me to stick my head into your business.” She felt bad for intervening like she had, but her instinct had told her to act.

Keanu shook his head. “Don’t downplay your importance, hon. We needed you. We’ve been in situations like this many times when we’ve known it would have been helpful to have a woman on our team. In this case, your help was even more important because you’ve been through a similar attack, but there have been days when we’ve all wished we had a woman in this clinic.”

“He’s right,” Dario agreed. “Sometimes a woman needs another woman. Especially if she’s lost a baby or can’t get pregnant or has a female issue of any kind she doesn’t want to discuss with a man.”

Maya glanced from one man to the next, slowly smiling.

“What are you looking at us like that for?” Advic asked.

“Because I get the feeling you’ve decided to try to convince me to stay. As if you can’t manage without me all of a sudden.”

Dario shook his head as he grabbed her hand. “Nope. Just pointing out the obvious. You did great today. Thank you.”

She met his gaze. “I can’t stay. It’s not going to happen.”

“We understand,” he responded.

“Do you?” She glanced around at all of them. “I know something is happening between us. Or at least between me and each of you. I can’t explain it, and I’m not going to try. But you’re all aware of the chemistry. It’s totally unexpected and I’m blindsided, but it’s there. We’ve proven it time and again.”

“We feel it, hon,” Keanu said as he leaned forward, elbows on his knees.

She drew in a breath. “You cannot overthink this. If any of you have some ulterior motive here and think you can convince me to stay by fucking me, you need to check yourself.”

Dario reached for her face and met her gaze. “We’re well aware.”

She eyed him skeptically. “The only reason I’m indulging myself and letting myself get involved with you guys is that I’m intrigued, and…well, horny. No reason to sugarcoat it.”

Dario chuckled. “You don’t mince words, do you, sweetheart?”

“Why bother?” She grabbed his hand and lowered it from her face. “I think you’re all three aware of what I’m facing. Before I was captured five years ago, I’d had sex with a handful of men. Bad sex. Nothing worth getting excited about. Those assholes who kidnapped me and raped me didn’t really steal anything. They solidified my belief it wasn’t worth it. Sex, I mean. I didn’t feel the need to go down that road again.”

“And now?” Dario asked.

“Now, I’ve fallen into some sort of weird vortex where my libido has gone into overdrive and won’t slow down. I don’t understand why, and I don’t really care. I’m willing to indulge my new sex drive but only if it’s perfectly understood that it’s temporary and finite. If any of you thinks for even one minute you’re going to wow me to the extent that I’ll change my mind, that isn’t happening.”

She stared at Dario to make sure he was hearing her loud and clear. Sure, she was rattled by what happened today with Ana. She was glad she’d been here to help the woman, and the truth was Ana had helped her too.

Today was the first day Maya had ever mentioned her abduction to a total stranger. It was a breakthrough. The sky didn’t fall. A crack didn’t open up in the ground and swallow her whole. She knew there was a chance she could face her demons out loud again one day too. Not that she was planning to become some open book, crying all the time and oversharing. But if she found herself in situations where a woman needed her understanding, she could provide an ear and a shoulder. She’d learned she could do so without the world coming to an end.

“We all know where the cards lie, baby,” Advic promised. “No one is going to use sex to pressure you. We’re simply planning to use sex to make you scream,” he added with a teasing look in his eyes.

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