Page 35 of Her Three Rangers

She had long since changed out of the short black dress in favor of sweatpants and a t-shirt, and she groaned as she propped herself up on her elbow and looked over at us.

We had been talking quietly among ourselves, half-joking, half-serious as we discussed the things we would have liked to do to that jackass Garrick Windram. We had to be careful to keep our voices down, though. It was past two in the morning, and I had no doubt Grace’s grandmother would happily kick all of our asses if we woke her up.

“I just don’t understand it,” she said, sighing. “Why do people have to be so shitty?”

“People like Windram have a lot to compensate for,” Cody said.

It would have been funny if it wasn’t so fucking true.

“But do you really think people are saying those things around town?” she asked. “Surely, Jenny would have told me if she’d heard anything like that…”

“I wouldn’t worry about it too much, babe,” I said. “He was probably just trying to get a rise out of you.”

She shook her head. “Except that woman had hinted at it, too, and I don’t even know her. I just…”

We all waited for her to continue, but she didn’t. I could see the tears forming in her eyes, and I wished for the millionth time that night that I could have gone back in time, could have gotten her out of that bar just a few minutes earlier, so she wouldn’t have had to deal with that bastard or his woman.

“Does it really matter if people are talking shit, though?” Jaeger asked, his expression dark. “Fuck them if they can’t mind their own business. None of us here are doing anything wrong.”

“I agree,” she said. “Or I would agree, except…” She dashed at her cheeks and I scooted over next to the couch, reaching up to hold her hand as she continued. “Except it’s my reputation on the line, and my reputation affects my business.” She looked at me. “That’s why I haven’t taken it upon myself to call out Garrick for being a disgusting pig before now. As repulsive as he is, he knows a lot of people around here, and they listen when he talks.”

Her words made me feel a pang of guilt for losing my temper back at the bar, but only for a second. That guy still deserved to get socked in the mouth for talking to her like that, reputation be damned.

Except, like she said, it was her reputation that was taking the hit.

Not mine.

Not Jaeger’s or Cody’s.

She was taking all the heat for an idea we had sprung upon her. That wasn’t cool at all.

“We should have the kennel finished in a couple of days,” I said. “After that, we’ll pack up and get out of here, and then this whole thing should blow over.”

Everyone looked at me in stunned silence. Jaeger opened his mouth to speak, but Cody cut him off with a look. He understood that it was the right decision—the only decision that would hopefully salvage her reputation.

Grace was the first to speak. “No,” she said, simply. “I don’t want you to leave.”

I looked up at her, studied her. She looked like she was feeling rough—no doubt all the things that had been good about those margaritas had worn off completely by now—but she still had that beautiful fire inside her, and it was on full display now as she matched my stare.

“It’s the only way,” I insisted. “It’s not what I want, either. It’s not what any of us want. But I know I speak for the three of us when I say that we’d rather leave than cause you any trouble or embarrassment.”

“You don’t embarrass me,” she said, raising her voice. “That’s not what I meant at all. I just… I’ve been so caught up in what we’ve been doing here—the fun, sweet, great things we’ve been doing—that the thought of having to deal with gossip around town never even crossed my mind. It’s not like we’ve taken any pains to hide the fact that I’ve been out on dates with all three of you this week.”

“So, do we need to be more… discreet?” Cody asked. “I think we could probably—”

“No,” Grace cut him off, shaking her head. “I mean… I don’t know. That’s not what I want, either. I don’t like the thought of living in fear of what people might think or say. I’ve been judged for things all my life, and I’ve never hidden myself away from those people before. But this feels… different. It feels more personal, I guess.”

I hated seeing her like this. The night had started out so great, just like the rest of the week had been. She had really been enjoying herself, feeling free and sexy and fun. It had been written all over her face.

Now, though, all I could see there was pain and confusion and a bunch of conflicting emotions—none of them good.

“What do you want us to do?” I asked. “We want to stay, but we want to do the smart thing, the right thing, too.”

“I’m not sure,” she said, laying back against the arm rest on the sofa with a heavy sigh. “I don’t think we should make any decisions tonight, though. I’m tired. We’re all tired. Let’s just…” She yawned, emphasizing her point. “Let’s just sleep tonight and see how we feel tomorrow.”

“I can tell you how we’ll feel tomorrow,” Jaeger said. “It’s the same way we feel now. We care about you and we care about what happens to you. We want to stay, but this has to be your decision. We’re good with sharing—great with sharing, and if the time comes that you want to explore more with us than what we’ve been doing so far, we’re good with that, too. But if you decide we need to go, we won’t hold it against you. We won’t blame you. We’ll just go.”

She nodded, and I could tell she was still on the verge of tears. There was nothing I could say to Jaeger, though. He had only spoken out loud the words that the he, Cody, and I had been thinking.

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