Her stomach knotted, rolled, tightening until she knew she would vomit. She glanced around in panic, looking for a place to hide. Somewhere he couldn’t see her.
* * *
Ethan frowned as the BMW pulled into a parking spot across the street. Unusual vehicle for this part of the world. If it wasn’t four-wheel drive, the locals had no use for it.
He glanced back to where Ryan was looking at boots and then at the racks where Holly was. Only she wasn’t there. He scanned the store, looking to see where she moved, but she wasn’t anywhere to be seen.
“Ryan,” he barked.
Ryan turned around, his eyes searching for Holly as well. His features hardened when he saw no sign of her either.
They fanned out, darting between the clothes racks. Ryan walked to the back toward the fitting room, and Ethan scoured the front by the window.
He found her huddled behind a clearance rack, only her feet sticking out from under the clothes. When he parted the hangers, she flinched, as if afraid of who had come.
“What’s wrong, doll? Who’s scared you so bad?”
“He’s here. Outside. He’s come for me. He knows I’m here,” she said with a low moan.
She rocked back and forth, abject terror in her eyes. She hugged her knees tightly to her chest, a protective measure. Ethan wanted to march into the street and kill the bastard on the spot.
“I’ll kill him.”
For a moment, Ethan thought he had spoken his thoughts aloud, but then he realized Ryan had walked up behind them.
“No!” she protested. “Please, take me home. He can’t see me. Please!”
“We won’t let him hurt you, doll,” Ethan soothed. He turned to Ryan. “Pull the Rover around back. I’ll take her out that way.”
He turned his attention back to Holly and gently picked her up. Cradling her to his chest, he strode toward the rear of the store, careful to keep her hidden from view.
He stopped at the counter for the briefest of moments when he caught the storeowner’s curious stare.
“Riley, I need a favor,” Ethan murmured. “There’s a mean son of a bitch outside, and he’s looking for this woman. If he asks you, you haven’t seen her.”
Riley’s gaze hardened, and he fingered the shotgun he kept behind the counter. “Don’t worry, Ethan.”
Ethan nodded then hurried out the back. Ryan was there, holding the door open. “You drive,” he ordered as he climbed into the back, still holding Holly.
A few seconds later, they pulled onto the main street. Holly lay in the seat, her head on Ethan’s lap. He stared at the BMW on their way past, committing the license plate to memory. Not that it was hard. California plates. Personalized. MASON. Arrogant bastard to boot.
He stroked Holly’s hair, his rage building as he felt her tremble beneath his touch. When they were out of town, he pulled her up beside him.
She clung to him, her face buried in his chest. She felt better than he had ever imagined a woman could feel. That the woman who would complete them all was finally with them was incomprehensible. And he sure as hell wasn’t going to let some abusive bastard take her away from them.
“How is she?” Ryan asked from the front seat as he sped up the mountain, taking the switchbacks as fast as he dared.
“Good question. How are you, doll?” he asked, smoothing her hair from her face.
“I’m okay,” she said in a shaky voice. “He didn’t see me, did he?”
“No, doll, he didn’t. I promise. You’re safe.”
He continued to caress her, running his hand up and down her back. “We’re almost home.”
He nuzzled the top of her head, pressing kisses to her hair. Gradually she ceased shaking, but she held him tightly, a fact he wasn’t complaining about. Whether she wanted to admit it or not, she trusted him. She trusted all three of them. It was a start.
Chapter Six
Adam was furious when Ethan and Ryan arrived with a visibly shaken Holly. He scooped her up in his arms and hugged her tightly against his chest. His eyes flashed over her head, demanding to know what happened from his brothers.
“Her h—the bastard was in town,” Ethan spat.
“Did he hurt you, baby?” Adam demanded.
She shook her head against his chest.
He looked up to his brothers for confirmation.
“He didn’t see her,” Ryan said. “At least we don’t think. He was parked on the street. Holly saw him from the store window.”
“Fuck.”
This certainly complicated things. He exchanged glances with his brothers. All silently agreed. Something would have to be done about the bastard. They couldn’t allow Holly to be terrorized any longer.
Adam pulled Holly away from him slightly and framed her face in his hands. “Listen to me, baby. We won’t let him hurt you, I swear it.”
She stared at him for a long moment then slowly nodded.
He let out a growl of satisfaction. “Go run some bathwater, Ryan.”
Ryan left for the bathroom, leaving Adam and Ethan in the room with Holly. Adam ran a hand down her cheek, down the curve of her slender neck and down to the neckline of her shirt.
“Let us take care of you,” he murmured. “First a bath…” He let his voice trail off suggesting there was more to come.
She shivered in his arms. But she didn’t look at all worried about the idea of more to come.
“Adam, there’s something…there’s something you should know.”
He lifted his brow at her nervous statement. He looked over at Ethan who shrugged.
She pushed away from him, and he allowed her space. She stood up and moved several feet from both him and Ethan.
“I feel so stupid saying this,” she began. She wrung her hands in front of her, her agitation increasing.
“Holly,” Ethan said. “Whatever it is, just tell us. It can’t be so bad, no matter what you may think.”
She took a deep breath and looked between them. “I thought you should know, I mean I don’t even know how this whole thing works. Between us, I mean. About sex.”
She broke off, her cheeks pink with a blush.
Adam waited patiently for her to come around to her point. The fact she was entertaining thoughts of sex was promising, but she wasn’t sure how it would work between them. He smiled. She was delightfully innocent.
“It’s just that I’ve never done this before,” she said awkwardly. “I mean sex in general.”