The men went silent again, but she caught them exchanging weighted looks as if they were having a private conversation with each other.
“So,” she said, setting aside the empty paper then letting out a sigh of pleasure at the feeling of a full belly, “Care to tell me where we are? And what your plans are for me in Bridgewater? I will inform you right now, I won’t be any man’s mistress, so if those are the kinds of thoughts that are going through your head, you can just leave me at the next town.”
She ended her pronouncement with a coughing fit that left her with both men patting her back. Garret handed a canteen to her and she took a big drink, then almost dropped the canteen as pure fire burned down her throat. Her lungs seemed to clear from the shock, and she took a gasping breath as that warmth flowed from her belly out into her limbs.
“What is this?” she asked in a ragged voice.
“The medicinal tonic the doctor left for you. Said you’re supposed to drink a small sip once every four hours.” Garret said in a dry voice as he took the canteen from her, “I’d guess you just took a double dose with that gulp.”
She blew out a breath, surprised flames didn’t come out of her mouth. “That tastes like the potato vodka a Russian family two floors up from our apartment used to make.”
The wagon shifted as Edward climbed into the front seat, pulling his dark brown cowboy back as he stared at the sky. “Hold on back there. I’m going to pick up the pace so we make to the shelter by nightfall.”
As Garret made a little nest of sheepskins among the boxes and cleaned up the remains of their lunch, Rowan relaxed and watched him, feeling happy and warm. It was probably a side effect from the tonic, but she found herself relaxing as Garret pulled her into his side, cuddling her close. His large arm felt good around her shoulders, and she found the beat of his heart beneath her ear soothing. Warmth of a different nature began to curl through her belly as he slowly ran his fingers through her hair and began humming.
“What song is that?” she mumbled, content to let her arm wrap around his waist.
“Old English Army marching song,” he said in a low voice.
“Nice,” she whispered, snuggling deeper into her blanket as a brisk wind penetrated the canvas sides of the wagon. “What was it like? Being in the Army.”
Drifting in and out of consciousness, she listened to the men talk about growing up on different farms in England in large families and joining the Army to escape their tiny hometowns. They talked about visiting exotic lands she’d never heard of, and by the time they were making camp for the night, she was once again wide awake and incredibly curious.
“Two husbands?” she said in a shocked gasp as she watched the men in the shifting light of the fire.
They’d stopped for the night at what was obviously a frequently used campsite, complete with a firepit and a large rock overhang that provided enough shelter for them and the horses.
Edward looked over from where he was putting a thick blanket on one of the piebald mares. “Sometimes more.” He winked at her undoubtably scandalized expression. “One of Lady Uriel’s governors had five husbands.”
“Good God,” Rowan placed her chilly fingers on her warm cheeks. “Five husbands? How…I mean I know how, but…just…and they find it tolerable to share her?”
The flickering golden light of the fire threw deep shadows on Garret’s face as he settled on the sheepskin bed roll he’d set up next to her own. “Completely. In their culture, love is not limited, it is infinite.”
Edward finally joined them, taking a deep drink from a flask that he then handed to Rowan. “Whisky. A few sips will warm you up.”
“Thanks,” she said as she took a nip, the welcome warmth racing down her throat and into her belly.
“And to answer your question,” Edward said as he took the flask back, “They have no problem with sharing, because everyone’s needs are taken care of.”
Feeling more than a little tipsy, she frowned at him as she started to battle with the laces of her boots, ready to get beneath the heavy covers they’d provided her. The fire kept the air warm, but the occasional chilled breeze would sweep into their alcove and instantly make her feel like she was coated in in ice. As she fumbled with the knot, her mind wandered to the more intimate aspects of having more than one husband.
“But don’t they get jealous when one husband is…enjoying his marital rights with his wife and the others are left out?” Edward and Garret chuckled, and she stopped battling with her boot to scowl at them. “What?”
“No one is left out,” Edward said with a wicked grin that had her gaping at him.
She tried to ignore the pulse of heat in her belly as she said, “You mean…all at once? That’s sinful.”
Garret shrugged, then set the flask back into his saddlebag before turning to her. “Not according to their beliefs. They don’t demonize sexual relations the way a lot of western countries do. It is a sacred part of their culture, and the women are extremely happy. Wouldn’t you enjoy having two men see to your every pleasure? Two men to protect you and keep you safe, to provide for you and love you?”
“I…I…I can’t even imagine what that would be like. No decent woman would want such a thing.” She swallowed hard as Edward reached out and took one of her booted feet in his hand, then Garret the other. “What are you doing?”
“Showing you what it is like to have two men take care of you,” Edward rumbled, his big fingers making deft work of the laces on her boots.
When she tried to lunge forward to smack their hands away, her ribs gave an ache of protest that had her quickly jerking back. “I can manage on my own.”
“Of course you can,” Garrett said in a soothing voice that seemed to stroke over her skin like a purr. “But it is our privilege to help you. To pamper and indulge you.”
She let out a bitter laugh, surprised by the tears burning her nose. “I have never, not one day in my life, had anyone pamper or indulge me.”
“Then let us care for you,” Edward urged, now close enough that she could see the fire reflecting in his dark eyes. “For once, let someone else be in charge. Since you were but a wee lass, you have had to take care of yourself and your family. You deserve to be worshiped. You deserve to be cherished. Trust us to treat you as you deserve to be treated.”
Tears rolled down her cheeks as she nodded, leaning back onto her elbows as she watched each of them carefully unlace her boots, then pull them off. But they didn’t stop there. Once her boots were off, and her stockings still on, they began to rub her feet in a way that had her eyes rolling back into her head.
“Ohhhh,” she moaned as Edward dug his thumb into the arch of her foot. “Oh God, that feels so good.”
Both men laughed, that low, dark laugh that let a woman know what kind of carnal thoughts were on their mind.
“Shhhh,” Garrett swept his fingers over her ankle and began to rub, “let us care for you.”
The feeling of their hands on her had that fluttering in her belly going crazy. No man had ever touched her like this. Sure, she’d had her share of experimental stolen kisses and groping, but from a young age she knew the consequences of sex. Innocence was a luxury only the rich could afford. She’d seen the single mothers scraping out an existence with their bastard children in the slums. Besides, she’d always dreamed of finding herself a real cowboy for a husband, the kind her father read to her about before bed at night. Strong, brave men who carved their own path in the world.