Defensive Zone (The Dartmouth Cobras #2) (60 page)

"Tell me." He bit her bottom lip and his hot
gaze lit a fire, deep within. "Tell me, Silver."

Any willpower she had to hold back evaporated
in the mist around them. She stared up at him and tears joined the
droplets of water on her cheeks.
Please don't hate me.
"I'm
having your baby."

His gaze grew even hotter as he smiled,
laying a softer kiss on her before whispering. "I know."

"You do?"

"I do. I figured it out when you turned down
the wine at dinner." He went to work on removing her skirt, cursed
when the wet material stuck to her hips, and cast a glance towards
the shower entrance, using one hand to swipe the water from his
face. "You want to help me out with this, Dean?

"Gladly." Dean approached her from behind as
Landon pulled her away from the wall. He pressed his bare chest
against her back as he unstuck her zipper and rolled her skirt
down. Water gathered where their flesh touched, spilling as he
shifted to kiss between her shoulder blades. "Do you want me to
stay, dragonfly?"

"You confuse the hell out of me when you
ask." She tongued her bottom lip. Landon sucked on the side of her
throat and she moaned. She fought to stay on track "And you—you're
not mad?"

Landon shook his head and grazed his teeth
over her collarbone. "Why would I be mad?"

"I forgot my pill."

"You weren't expecting the condom to break.
And neither was I. It happened." He dropped down to his knees and
kissed her belly, hovering there for a moment before whispering.
"I'm scared to death, but happy. Are you?"

"Scared? Happy?" A gasping laugh of relief
escaped her. "Yes to both! But are you sure we should still—?"

"Yes, we should." Landon gave her a
lust-filled grin as he kissed the top of her mound with his moist
lips. "We'll just have to be a little more careful." He nudged her
thighs apart, forcing her to lean on Dean as he spread her folds
and closed his lips over her clit. His tongue circled the tip her
knees shook as a soft electric pulse rode up her nerves, causing
her cunt to clench with need. "And very very gentle."

You're going to drive me insane for the
next nine months?
She thunked her head back into Dean's
shoulder, grateful for his support, because she couldn't have stood
on her own. His muscles rippled as he drew her arms up so she could
hold on to his neck. Then he molded her breast in one hand and
curved the other around her throat. His fingers dug into her jaw,
turning her head to the side so he could kiss her.

Landon licked around her clit, the tip of his
tongue putting pressure on first one side, then the other. He
avoided the tip, lapping between her parted labia, exploring her
with long strokes, stirring a pool of heat that flowed from his
mouth up to the hand on her breast, the fingers pinching her
nipple, and Dean's tongue plunging between her lips.

The sensations rushed together as Landon slid
one finger inside her. Pleasure flared in her core and Dean
swallowed her tiny whimpers, twisting her nipple so pain skidded
along the edge of everything she felt. Another finger and Landon
pressed his tongue down hard on her clit.

Close, so close . . .
she panted into
Dean's mouth.

The corner of his lip slanted up. "Don't
come."

"I can't stop! I can't . . . ."

Suddenly empty. Everything stimulating her
gone.

Landon rose up and caught her chin, pulling
her away from Dean to brush his lips over hers. "We've proved
otherwise. I want to be inside you. I want him inside you. Then you
may come."

Asshole! If you don't—
but he did.
Picking her up, he held her while she wrapped her legs around his
waist. As she clung to him he filled her and she threw her head
back. Ready to burst, ready to let go. Behind her a condom wrapper
tore and soon the pressure of Dean against her back hole grounded
her, forcing her to relax and let him in. Snug, burning, carnal
pleasure. In this position, she had no power. No control.

Their strength enveloped her as they lifted
her together, thrusting up in a smooth, steady rhythm. Never too
hard, but faster and faster, holding her right on the brink until
the ground gave out beneath her. She came, trembling, biting into
Landon's shoulder to hold back her screams. He grunted and jerked
inside her, almost losing his balance. But Dean held steady and
braced Landon with a solid grip on his shoulder.

Dean growled out his own release, his free
hand on her hip jerking her down hard. She heard his back slap the
wall as he used it to keep them all from collapsing to the
floor.

Pinned between the men, Silver had no choice
but to wait until they regained their bearings. Landon moved first,
easing out of her with a wince. He cupped her cheek, kissed her,
then pulled her away from Dean.

She smiled at him, glanced back at Dean, and
frowned. He was favoring one knee.

"Damn it, why didn't you say something?" She
reached for him.

Landon pulled her back again and shook his
head. "I've got him."

Ignoring Dean's grumbled protests, Landon
threw the other man's arm over his shoulder and helped him into the
locker room. Silver bit back a smile. The men didn't seem to notice
that they were both still naked, but she certainly did. She took a
minute to enjoy the view, her mind wondering to all kinds of
naughty things that would probably never happen.

"What was that look?" Landon asked as he took
three towels from a table by the lockers. He handed one to Dean and
brought the other to her.

"Oh, nothing." She batted her eyelashes, then
yelped when Dean grabbed her wrist. She tried to look innocent as
he studied her face, but let out a sigh at his I-don't-buy-it look.
"Fine. You sure you want to know?"

"Yes," Landon said.

Dean rolled his eyes and shook his head.
"No."

Scrubbing his face with his towel, Landon
arched a brow at Dean. "Why not?"

"Trust me. You don't want to know."

Since her clothes were drenched—
you
thought that out real well, Silver—
she had to borrow a spare
jogging suit and t-shirt from Landon. Her heels hurt her
waterlogged feet as they made their way to their cars, but his
smelly old runners would have looked like big old clown shoes on
her. They all drove to her place so she could change, then decided
to take Dean's car to the harbor.

Sipping a decaf iced latte, Silver rested her
elbow on the railing and absorbed the peaceful darkness of the dark
ocean, spread out endlessly before her. Dean stood at one side with
his arm around her shoulders, Landon at the other with his arm
around her waist. Utter perfection.

Dean gave her a little squeeze. "We have a
lot to discuss, love."

"Yeah, but do we have to do it now?"
Discussing anything might ruin the moment. "There's nothing that
can't wait until tomorrow."

"There's one thing." Landon stepped back and
squared his shoulders. "I'd like to marry you."

Her heart skipped a beat. Her stomach
flipped. And all her blood washed cool as the ocean below.
Marriage? A baby freaked her out less. Marriage meant living
together, which meant seeing each other all the time, which meant
he'd see her at her worst. Grumpy in the morning, probably moody
from hormones . . .

"Breathe, Silver." Dean squeezed her again.
"Marrying Landon isn't the only decision you have to make. I want
you both to move in with me."

Breathe. Yeah, it would be swell if I
could.
She covered her mouth with her hand. "Move in with you?
But . . . ." There were a million excellent reasons why it was a
bad idea. No doubt about it. But she could only think of one.
"Jami—"

"Will be living with her grandmother. My
house is bigger than either of yours. There's an extra room that
can be fixed up as a nursery." Dean massaged her shoulder. "I can
help you while Landon's away on road games."

Away . . .
her bottom lip quivered.
Hell, one second, she was panicking about the thought of living
with Landon, and the next she was ready to cry because he would be
gone. If this was how the baby was affecting her already, she was
seriously not looking forward to the next nine months.

Calm down. Use your brain woman! Your condo
is no place for a baby.

True. But was she ready to give up her
independence? To live full time with a man who made her want to
hand over control with a great big bow on top? And another who
would find whatever she held back? Did she want to make a life with
them?

The answer to the latter came without a
second thought. Absolutely. But the rest? It was too much, too
fast.

She put her hand on her stomach and looked
from Dean to Landon. "Do I have to answer now?"

Dean grinned. "I'd rather you didn't. There's
no rush."

"Right." Landon brushed her still damp hair
away from her face. "I want you to be sure when you give your
answer. And I want to do this right. I didn't mean to blurt it out
like that. Next time I'll have a ring, and take a knee—"

"Good things usually happen when you're on
your knees." Silver giggled when he tugged her hair. Then she
leaned into him as he took his place at her side. "Let me get used
to the idea of the baby first. Then we'll talk some more. I've just
got to warn you, I'm not easy to live with."

Landon grinned and glanced over at Dean.
"Neither am I."

"I am well aware of that." Dean smirked. "I'm
thinking of putting a lock on the kitchen door."

They all laughed and went back to staring out
at the ocean. Like her, the men were probably thinking of the
future. But did they see what she did? Something vast as all that
water, filled with the unknown? Children hadn't been in her short
term—or long term plans. She had no idea what a normal family was
supposed to be like. Not that they'd have one, exactly . . .

But they'd be able to give her baby something
she'd never had from the adults in her life. And damn it, as much
as both men drove her crazy, she loved them. They made her happy,
made her feel like she was worth something.

What more do you need?

Time. Just a bit of time to make sure this
was real.

February

Landon dropped his suitcase by the door and
rolled his shoulders, still sore from the long plane ride from
Florida. The sound of meat sizzling came from the kitchen and his
stomach growled. After three weeks of room service and takeout, he
could use some of Dean's cooking.

"Don't leave your shit by the door, Silver's
liable to trip over it when she comes in." Dean called out.

Frowning, Landon left his things and went to
the kitchen, resting his shoulder on the doorframe and folding his
arms over his chest. He smothered a grin as he took in the sight of
Dean, bent over the stove with an apron covering his suit.

"Need some help?"

"Thanks, I'm good," Dean said, dryly. "And
not a fucking word. I got back late. Ford fired the new PR and I
had to find a replacement. Silver won't be happy when she finds
out. She liked the woman."

"Ford's still making trouble?"

"Of course he is. The old man is still
hanging on, which means all Ford can do is make life difficult for
the rest of us. I get a pile of folders on my desk every day for
players the team doesn't need, who he's approached with crazy
offers." Dean slammed a wooden spoon down on the table and a glob
of gravy soaked into the soft yellow placemat beside it. "Which
means I'll have a hard time getting anyone to take any offers I
make seriously when the deadline comes. We need defensemen, Mason's
injured and Ramos is playing hurt. The rookies won't carry us to
the playoffs."

"Why don't you talk to Delgado?" Landon took
a bun from the bread basket in the center of the table and took a
big bite. He chewed, swallowed, then gestured vaguely with his
empty hand. "He'd stop the little shit if he knew what he was
doing."

"If only." Dean shook his head and went back
to the stove to turn the steaks. "Last time I tried to talk to him,
he went on about how his son is the future of the team. How he's a
true
Delgado."

"He still won't acknowledge Oriana, even
after the DNA test?"

"No." Dean's brow furrowed. "It makes me sick
that she had to do that. That she
agreed
to do that. She
still wants him to accept her. Silver hasn't told her what he said
. . . ." His face broke into a smile. "But she gave the old man
hell the last time she visited. Told him if she had to put up with
Ford, then he better let Oriana get involved with the team. He
finally gave in. And damn, Oriana is a fucking godsend. She's
gotten Silver to back off some of her more . . . ambitious
projects. And she's the only one Ford listens to. Not always, mind
you, but she's gotten him to put more Kingsley money into the team.
Silver would have had to cancel the last renovations otherwise and
she'd worked so hard on them—"

Landon went still. "She's not stressing too
much, is she?"

"No. I got her to cut down on her work hours.
She's good."

Yeah, I'll believe that when I see it.
Remembering what Dean had said about his bags, he went back to the
hallway and brought them up to the room he shared with Silver and
Dean. Took some time to put everything away so Dean wouldn't nag,
then returned to the kitchen and grabbed a beer from the fridge. He
checked his watch and thrummed his fingers on the table.

Where is she?

Finally, he heard her at the door and
practically knocked his chair over as he shoved away from the
table. He froze in the hall as she came in, her arms full of bags,
Oriana right behind her with more.

All he could see was her stomach, straining
against the buttons of her long, pale pink coat. She'd hardly had a
belly when he'd left, but now . . .