Page 38 of Their Virgins Secret

She had a life to build. She turned. She wouldn’t talk to her aunt yet. The gallery owner had made her a very interesting offer. One she’d turned down because it would take her to Scotland, and she had been waiting for them.

No more waiting. They had left. They had lied. They were out there somewhere, and it was a good bet they had moved on with their lives, found another woman or two.

It was time to build her own life—and one for her baby.

CHAPTER SEVEN

Present Day – Dallas, Texas

Jessa finished drying her hair and stared in the mirror. She wasn’t sure she recognized the woman staring back at her. She looked tired and older than she really was. She sniffled. She’d cried in the shower, the pressure just too much to handle. Her whole world had upended in the course of a few short hours, and it was damn hard to handle.

She missed Caleb. His absence was a gaping wound in her chest. It was mid-morning, the time she usually brought her canvas into the living room to catch the soft, pure light that came through her windows. She would hum and talk to Caleb while he played and napped in his blue and white playpen. The hours would fly by as she mixed her colors and brought the pictures in her head to life. But she wouldn’t work today. And her latest series was gone, destroyed by a man she’d met for less than a minute over a year ago. Five large canvases all burned. Two smaller ones, too, meant for a gallery.

She tried to shake it off. She didn’t need the money now. Her bank account was healthy. And she would never have sold the large works. She wouldn’t have put them out there on the off chance that someone would recognize the men she’d painted with bold lines, broad strokes, and vibrant, vivid colors. Her agent had seen them and called them modern and erotic. She’d said she could sell them in a heartbeat for a pretty penny, but Jessa had refused.

Now the point was moot. They were gone, like her pictures and her videos, like all of Caleb’s toys, and the crib she’d had to put together herself.

She wasn’t just tired. She was angry, too. Furious.

Jessa pulled the robe she’d discovered in her small bag around her body. The bathroom, despite the hot water she’d used, was chilly. She’d forgotten to get her clothes, but the robe was large and warm. Not as warm as she’d been when she’d awakened in the middle of the night with Cole’s big arms around her. She’d heard Burke working quietly nearby, his hands tapping at the keys of the computer. She’d felt his eyes settle on them.

And she’d cuddled closer. Despite all the trauma of the night, with Cole enveloping her, she’d felt safe enough to go back to sleep almost instantly. When she’d awakened this morning, Burke’s arms had been wrapped around her.

There was a knock on the door outside, and Jessa nearly jumped out of her skin. She took a deep breath as she heard Cole greet a man he called Kade.

Their friends from Bezakistan. The ones with whom they had wanted her to go into hiding. Jessa opened the door and walked into the cramped room. If she let Burke and Cole, they would completely steamroll her, and she wouldn’t have any say in her own protection. She wasn’t about to let that happen.

Two insanely gorgeous men with dark hair, dark eyes, and golden skin sauntered in, one carrying a duffel bag stuffed full. She stared. They could have walked off the pages of a magazine. Tall and lean, both men were dressed impeccably. One was slightly broader than the other, with a hawk-like air about him. The other man seemed a bit younger than his brother, his solid face handsome. He wore a faint, mischievous smile.

“Hello. You must be Jessa,” the younger man said smoothly, somehow instantly setting her at ease as he crossed the room in two long strides. “I am Kadir al Mussad. It is my greatest pleasure to meet you. ”

Oh, she believed him. He was one of those men who could just make a girl feel like the only woman in the world. He took her hand in both of his, surrounding her. “Hello. ”

He smiled, his lips curling, making his whole face come alive. “You are most beautiful. ”

“Cut that shit out now, Kade. ” Cole yanked her away from Kade.

Damn it. Even as beautiful as this man was, she found herself attracted to two goddamn men who looked exactly alike, one a smooth talker, the other this Neanderthal glaring daggers at his friend.

“She’s not going to Bezakistan with you,” Burke said.

The taller man frowned. “Pity. She would do well there. I could give her between three and five husbands very quickly. In fact, Talib would love her. He has a thing for redheads. She could save our kingdom. We only have another year left, you know. ”

“She’s ours,” Burke said with a little growl.

“Between three and five men?” Jessa gaped. “I can’t handle two. ”

The older brother’s lips curled up, but she wouldn’t exactly call it a smile. Instead, the expression promised all manner of decadent delights. “I think you would be surprised what you could handle if you were properly prepared. Trust me. I know how to prepare a woman. ”

“And I know how to prepare a body for burial,” Cole scowled.

“He really does,” Burke added, his voice deep and dark. “I do, too. ”

The other man ignored them. “I am Prince Rafiq, second in line to the throne of Bezakistan. And because my brother owes Cole his life, I regret that we must forego carrying you off to my country to seduce you. ”

Kade raised a brow. “Seducing her is a tempting thought, but she is the mother of their child. We will honor our debt. ”

“Indeed. ” He turned to Cole and Burke. “Reconsider sending her with us. We will keep her safe and make certain no one touches her. She can disappear into the palace. Our jet is fueled. ”

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