Free Unbridled and Untethered [The Double Rider Men's Club 10] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) by Elle Saint James Page A

fascination with these two made her face go hot all of a sudden.
    If Clay noticed her embarrassment, he didn’t comment. He answered, “He wants to thank you for keeping Zeke from getting killed. The word is out that you stepped in front of his body to keep him from further bullet holes. And also scared the guy out of the bank with a barrage of bullets.”
    Good. Change the subject. “Wow. That’s such an interesting and different take on today’s events. The police weren’t as excited about my protective nature, but I’ll meet Zeke’s friend.” How could she decline?
    Emma Rae’s insides tensed at the very idea of meeting Luke. She understood what their close best friend relationship meant in the great scheme of the DRMC world. Luke and Zeke were partners in threesome sexual escapades.
    They got together in sexy, remarkable locales and took turns pleasuring lucky women to gasps of orgasm on top of release on top of climax. At least that was what she’d pictured over and over this past week nestled by herself between her lonesome sheets. The many positions she’d pictured starring two men she didn’t even know had delighted her repeatedly.
    Who in the world wouldn’t want two attentive men in the sack? A week ago, Emma Rae would have nominated herself for that category. Now she wasn’t so sure. Her curiosity level was definitely at an apex.
    Clay drove her to the hospital after the sun had long since set in the mountains. As late as it was, Emma Rae knew she’d feel better if she could just get a glimpse of Zeke. Even though it would likely be one where he was hooked up to machines with endless tubes inserted everywhere helping him breathe and live.
    As they arrived at the entrance of the hospital, Clay got a phone call. He remained in the lobby, where cell phones were allowed, but told her to go on ahead. He promised to meet her at the ICU waiting room in a few minutes.
    Emma Rae rode the elevator to the intensive care unit’s exclusive floor. She stepped out into the quiet of the evening shift. She searched the rooms along the way to the waiting room but didn’t see Zeke’s name anywhere. She finally asked a very young nurse and was directed to a room and told he could only have visitors for a few minutes. Surprised to even be allowed in the room, Emma Rae hurried inside before anyone discovered her nonfamilial connection and kicked her out.
    Zeke, with his tousled hair and even more pronounced five-o’clock shadow, rested on his back in the hospital bed with his eyes closed peacefully. There wasn’t any sort of bandage around his head, surprisingly. He seemed to be breathing on his own but had a small oxygen canula affixed beneath his nose.
    Beyond the bed was an IV stand with a bag of fluid hanging. A clear tube ran from the plastic and went under his sheets near his arm. She didn’t see any other machines keeping him alive. What a relief.
    Zeke looked very still. Very quiet. Very serene. Just exactly as he had resting on the floor of the bank vault. After the third robber had run off, Emma Rae had fallen to her knees and put her ear to his chest, taking care to avoid the excessive blood on his shirt.
    The steady heartbeat she heard calmed her. He was alive. She intended to keep him that way. After dropping the gun behind her, she’d removed her outer shirt, wadded it up, and pressed it to the bullet wound on his chest to stanch the flow of blood.
    The police arrived shortly thereafter. She asked for medical help, and then the ambulance crew soon relieved her minimal efforts to care for Zeke.
    Emma Rae shoved those memories aside and studied Zeke’s handsome features. The fleeting memory of their kiss before all the chaos registered vaguely in her mind. She walked around the far side of the bed to approach him and took hold of his hand.
    “Hi, Zeke, it’s me, Emma Rae,” she whispered in deference to the surroundings. “I know you want to sleep. And I don’t blame you. But please, could you