“We know nothing yet,” Major reminds all of us. “But in order to find Mirasol, we need to be open to every possibility. Prepared to investigate everything.”
“Right. Okay,” Veda nods, her eyes focusing on something beyond any of us. “I want my daughter back. I really do. I’m ready.”
This woman is so strong. I can’t imagine the pains she had to endure all this time in silence. I think back on our days feeding the chickens and laughing, and I wonder how hard it was for her to just do that. To wake up in the morning and fight. My admiration for this woman only grows until it doesn’t fit in my chest anymore. It becomes more than me, spilling through the seams of my soul, and when I least expect it, it turns into music.
Longing notes on a guitar as if all I feel for her takes the form of a melody. I don’t consider myself a musician, even if she called me that before. I’m a guy who enjoys playing guitar, but most of what I play isn't original. From time to time, inspiration comes rushing, and I’m always happy to open the door and let it happen.
My fingers strum over my denim-clad leg, and I don’t hide the silly smile coming to my lips. A woman so good that she can inspire music inside a fool’s heart. That’s my Veda.
twenty-six
Veda
The incessant knocking wakes me up, and I groan as I make my way to the door. It’s not locked. It never is, but they still don’t come in unless I let them in. For the past three days since we came back to the ranch, I've been treated like a queen. They cook insane meals multiple times a day, all according to the meal plan Anne prepared. A lot of sunflower seeds, and that’s something Wilde Ranch has in spades. They also insist that I sleep late, make sure I take naps, and are absolutely tyrannical about vitamins, which they purchased at Willow Ridge, and make sure I take the right ones every morning.
“Yes?” I open the door with a mocking flourish.
The three of them are there, looking at me with different smiles. Maybe not Major. He’s there glaring at me, but I’m getting used to that. It doesn’t bother that much when it comes with something nice attached.
“Can I help you, gentlemen?” I ask when they don’t say anything.
“The nest is here!” Jesse says as he shoulders his way to my bedroom.
I rub my eyes and step away, letting them invade my space. “What do you mean by nest?”
Derrick takes all the sheets from my bed as Major comes in with tools. A box of goddamn tools. He places it on the floor and opens the two-compartment lid, deciding on the right screwdriver before he starts taking my bed apart.
“Hey! I was using that! What’s going on here?”
I really don’t like that coming back to bed is not an option anymore.
“I always felt this room was the wrong choice.” Jesse sighs before taking a screwdriver too and choosing the opposite end of the bed to work.
“I like that bed. It’s a comfortable bed.”
“But you need a nest, darlin’.” Derrick starts working too.
“I don’t even know what a nest is, so I doubt that I need it.”
Now that three of them are working on it, the bed comes apart quickly, and they start to take it from my room. I don’t say anything but stand by the door, yawning and waiting for the nest I was promised.
When they all come back with a huge human-sized dog bed, I actually start laughing. It doesn’t look bad. On the contrary, it looks extremely comfy. It’s almost as high as the bed but much larger and round with a raised side. Unlike a regular bed, it doesn't need to be put together, so this means the moment it’s set, I crawl inside.
“This is huge,” I say for my spot in the middle.
“That’s because it’s supposed to fit you and your pack,” Derrick says with that sexy smirk of his.
Oh yes, this bed is made for group sex.
The thought leaves me red in the face, and of course, he can tell. I clear my throat and look away, but Derrick is not the kind of man who lets me stew in my shame. He jumps right in, making the nest feel smaller.
“Let’s see if it’s really that good.”
His big arms fold under his head as he kicks off his boots, not to dirty my new nest. He looks sinfully gorgeous stretched beside me, and my belly’s butterflies start with their regular havoc. Jesse and Major come back, arms full of pillows and soft blankets, which they dump over us before going out to get more.
“This is insane,” I say in awe, looking at a particularly cute cherry-shaped cushion. “Tell me how this is important for my health?”
I shake the cushion on his face with a laugh, and I’m not prepared when he yanks it from my hands, and I end up falling all over his chest. Derrick’s arms close around me, and before I realize, we are cuddling. I’m flabbergasted by how he managed to position me how he wants, but I’m not complaining. I want this cuddle too.
