Neil, Louisa - One Queen with Two Kings (Siren Publishing Ménage and More) by Louisa Neil Read Free Book Online Page B

then I’ll have you as my dessert.”
    It took them an hour to finally make it from the floor to the kitchen, but neither cared. Thea moved around the kitchen with a practiced flair, their meal mostly put together before he arrived. She grilled the steaks on the gas grill on the deck while he watched. She didn’t ask about his slight limp and figured he’d tell her in his own time why he was limping. They ate quietly at first, almost mechanically, until she finally broke the silence.
    “Dex, how much do you know?”
    “Alex played the tapes for Russ and I while we were getting cleaned up.”
    “Then you know I almost married him. I couldn’t go through with it, Dex. I knew I couldn’t let him touch me.”
    “Thea, you thought I was dead. I knew there was a possibility if we were ever rescued you would have moved on. It wasn’t a good thought, but I did think about it.”
    “Oh, Dexter, I’m so sorry. I should have pushed them to search longer, to look in other places. Even your mother knew something wasn’t right.”
    “None of it matters now. From what I can gather, Lloyd didn’t have you and , if anything , he came close to raping you. And don’t think I won’t take that up with him when we get back. Alex said you decked him. I’m proud of you.”
    “Dex, there was nobody else. Even though I thought I could marry Lloyd for Dad’s sake, I couldn’t let him touch me.” She closed her eyes as the revolting thought swam before her eyes. Dex stood quickly, his chair turning over as he did, to take her into his arms.
    “Let it go, Thea. We’re both here now, and I love you more than ever before , if that’s possible. Please, let’s just start from today.” She was only able to nod against his chest. “Thea, you’re not wearing my wedding ring,” he whispered. She pulled back and smiled at him as she loosened the chain that hung between her breasts. Pulling it off, she let the gold ring fall into his open hand.
    “I was waiting for you to put it on my hand.” She glanced up at him, hoping he understood. Dexter P. Norden took the ring and slipped it on her finger.
    “Forever, Thea.”
    “Forever, Dex. God, I love you so much. I went crazy for a while when we first learned you were…gone.”
    Dex laughed aloud. “Thea, I know you all thought we were dead. It’s okay to say the words. I’m not , and neither is Russ. We kept each other alive on that lousy island for over two years. I’m pretty sure he never wants to hear your name again. I was pretty preoccupied with dreams of you.”
    “Dex, tell me what happened.”
    “Later, my love. First, I’m going to take you for a long soak in that tub out there and then to bed for a few hours. After that, we’ll talk.” Thea took his outstretched hand and followed closely behind him, dropping the silk robe she pulled on while making their supper long before they reached the tub.

Chapter Four

    Time had no meaning for them. They moved fluidly against and with each other. Their joinings were slow and teasing one moment, then hungry and demanding the next. Only after they had exhausted themselves did he pull her against him and settle back against the pillows. With her hand moving against his chest for reassurance that he was still there, she listened quietly as he spoke.
    “Everything was normal at first. The preflight check seemed normal , so we headed to the meeting. The plane checked out and handled normally for the first thirty minutes or so. When we hit open water, Russ realized we were losing hydraulic pressure. We radioed the Mayday and started to turn back, but it was too late. The system failed and we lost control. We managed to make it to the island and crashed on the beach.” Thea pulled him tighter to her when she felt the shudder run through him. “Russ broke his arm and I broke my left leg. What a pair! He did the leg parts and I did the arm parts.” He laughed at a memory he didn’t share, and she didn’t push for him to reveal