Twice the Malone by Laylah Roberts

20

Beau walked through the door of the hotel suite. Hmm, it was quiet. Damn, he’d kind of hoped that Maddox would have gotten his shit together and be fucking their girl by the time he got back. He would have been completely down with getting in on that.

What was going on? Where were they? He placed his box of donuts and tray of coffee on the table in the living area and walked into the bedroom, to find Maddox pacing back and forth while their girl sat on the bed, looking far too worried.

“Snow? You okay?” If Maddox had hurt her feelings, he really was going to kick his ass.

“I’m all right. But I think I broke Maddox.”

“Huh, thought he was already broken.”

Maddox turned toward him, then pointed back at her. “She’s pregnant.”

“I told him,” she added pointlessly.

“Ah.” Beau leaned against the doorframe, crossing his arms over his chest. “Is that a problem?”

“A problem? A problem? It’s a problem that I only just found out. How long have you known?” Maddox growled at him.

“How long do you think I’ve known?” he snapped back, not liking the asshole’s tone of voice. “I found out the day before you got here.”

The tension eased out of his brother’s shoulders at those words. Then Maddox turned his glare on Scarlett. Oh, no, he didn’t. Beau tensed, ready to interfere if he hurt her feelings. He didn’t want her to cry again. He was running out of things to bribe her with.

“Scarlett? When did you find out you were pregnant?”

“I only found out about ten days ago when I took a test. I didn’t really think about why I might be feeling ill, and my period has never been that regular. I really have no idea how I got pregnant. I mean, we used protection, and I’m forty! I’m way too old for a baby!”

“It’s my super sperm, baby. They can’t help it.” Beau grinned at her.

“Oh, so you’ve got lots of babies out there, do you? With your super sperm?” she asked.

Oh, fuck. Oh, shit.

He opened his mouth to say something but had no idea what to say. Way to dig yourself a hole, there, man.

“I, uh, no, that’s not what I meant. There’re no other babies, I promise. Maddox, don’t you have some things to ask Scarlett,” he said desperately.

Luckily, Maddox was too engrossed in his own thoughts to rub in Beau’s mistake.

“That’s why you were at the medical clinic?”

“Yeah. I went the other day with my friend to see the doctor and get an ultrasound.”

“And you definitely don’t have some horrible disease?”

Oh, shit. Is that what Maddox had thought? Crap. They should have told him about the baby right away.

“Maddox, I’m fine. I promise. I’m so sorry, I should have told you when you got here.” Scarlett went to climb off the bed, but Maddox pointed a finger at her.

“Stay where you are.”

She flinched.

“Maddox,” Beau said warningly.

Maddox glared at him.

“You can’t blame her for not telling us. She thought I’d ghosted her and that you hated her. She didn’t have any way of contacting us.”

“I was going to come and find you,” she said quietly, sniffling.

Crap. Fuck. No more tears. He wasn’t going to survive this pregnancy, he swore.

“But I wanted to get some evidence on Richard first. I was worried he was going to do something to you for revenge. Plus, I thought you might believe me if I brought something to you about him.”

“Fuck. Fuck.” Maddox leaned against the wall and bent over, his hands on his knees, taking deep breaths.

Scarlett sent Beau a wide-eyed look, but he just shrugged. The guy was his twin and even he had no idea what was going through the fucker’s head.

“Maddox? Are you all right?” she asked gently, rising off the bed.

“Back on the bed,” he growled at her, pointing without raising his head.

Tears filled her eyes, and Beau’s hands clenched into fists.

“Maddox, if you’re going to be an asshole then leave.”

“What?” Maddox raised his head and looked at Beau.

“I said, if you’re just going to be a jerk, you can go.” He nodded his head at the door. “I’m not going to sit by and let you upset Scarlett.”

“Upset her?” Maddox turned his confused look to Scarlett, his eyes widening as he took in her pale appearance, the tears that dripped down her cheeks.

“Little one, you’re crying. Why are you crying?” His voice had grown soft.

Beau raised his eyebrows. He’d never heard him use that tone of voice before. Ever.

Scarlett let out a small sob, shaking her head.

“You won’t let her touch you,” Beau explained.

“What?”

“You k-keep telling me t-to stay over here. You don’t want me a-anymore.”

“Fuck. Fuck.”

Beau stepped toward her, but Maddox waved him away and walked over to kneel in front of her. “Little one, listen to me. Listen, please.”

Please? Holy. Shit.

Reaching up, he wiped at her tears. “Of course I want you. There will never be a day when I don’t want you. I wasn’t telling you to stay on the bed because I didn’t want you to touch me. You were just ill, and you look so pale, I wanted you to stay on the bed to rest.”

“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you right away.”

“No. Don’t be sorry. Sh, stop crying. You didn’t do anything wrong. Not about that anyway. We’re going to have a bit of a chat about the fact you tried to lift those boxes earlier.” He frowned. “And about why you went snooping through your boss’s stuff. Don’t you know how dangerous that was? Damn it, little one, never do anything like that again, understand me? Or you won’t sit for a week.”

Beau walked over to sit next to Scarlett on the bed.

Scarlett just nodded.

“Words,” he commanded.

“Yes.”

“Yes, Sir.”

Her eyes widened in surprise. “Yes, Sir.”

Maddox placed a kiss on her stomach. “That’s why you were just ill? Because of our baby?”

“Yeah. I’ve been nauseous most of this pregnancy. The doctor gave me some anti-nausea tablets, but I haven’t had any since yesterday morning. I feel more nauseous with movement or when I go for too long without eating.”

“Why are you going for too long without eating?” Maddox frowned up at her. “And how is it you’ve lost so much weight? What did the doctor say about your weight loss? Is there anything we need to know? Have they run tests?”

She opened her mouth to answer but he cut her off.

“You know what, let’s just make another appointment, and then I can talk to your doctor myself.”

“I’m not going to another doctor’s appointment. I didn’t want to go to the first one, let alone the second one. I’m not doing a third. Nope. No way. I’m putting my foot down.”

Maddox’s eyebrows rose. “Putting your foot down?”

She crossed her arms over her chest. “Uh-huh. The foot is down. I’m not going. I hate hospitals and the doctor is going to think we’re insane, the way I keep going back for ultrasounds with different men. Not happening.”

“First, I don’t give a shit what the doctor thinks. They’ll do their job and if they make one comment about both of us being with you, I’ll sue. Second, are you forgetting who is in charge right now?”

She bit her lip. Maddox reached up to pull it free, his face softening slightly.

“Your health is the priority right now. And that means I want to talk to the doctor personally.”

“But we won’t be able to get another appointment.”

“I’ll call Regent again, call in another favor with Knight,” Beau said to Maddox. “He got me a last-minute appointment. We’re gonna owe them both, though.”

Maddox just nodded.

“But Beau already asked the doctor a million questions. I can’t face her again. It’s too embarrassing.”

Maddox looked over at Beau. “He did?”

“Yes,” she wailed. “You won’t believe what he asked her. He wanted to know what sexual positions were off the table and if he could spank me.”

Maddox nodded at him. “Good man.”

Scarlett gaped at Maddox then over at Beau. “What? No. You cannot encourage him. He’s acting insane. He thinks I need to eat for two and that I can’t carry anything heavier than my handbag.”

Maddox frowned. “Your handbag?”

“Yes, tell him how crazy he’s being.”

“Her handbag could be too heavy,” Maddox said to Beau. “You know how much crap Mia carries in hers. Did you weigh it before letting her carry it?”

“Already on that,” Beau answered. “She’s barely got any stuff in it.”

“The two of you are being insane. You can’t treat me like I’m a delicate flower. I’m pregnant not an invalid.”

Maddox gave her a firm look. “We’ll take care of you the way you need to be taken care of. You can argue, but this is the way it’s happening. There will be no more risks taken, understand me? From now on, you are not to attempt to carry anything. That’s what we’re here for. There is no more keeping anything from us, and we promise the same, right, Beau?”

“Hey, I’m an open book. If I’m thinking it then I’m going to tell you.”

“And most of the time, it’s stuff we don’t even want to know,” Maddox said dryly. “No putting your health or safety at risk. If I give you a rule to keep you safe then I expect you to follow it.”

“I don’t get a say?”

“Of course you do, you always get a say. I know I’m intense and bossy. I like to be in control all the time, if that gets too much for you then you need to tell me. But I promise, I’m going to put you first. Always.”

“Same,” Beau added.

“We’re gonna talk about rules. And whether we’re here or back home, you’re going to be expected to obey them. But they will all be to protect you and our relationship. I like to be in charge, but I’m not an asshole.”

“If he is, I’ll smack him around a bit,” Beau added.

“I’m sure you’d hate to have to do that,” Maddox said dryly.

“It’s a sacrifice, sure, but I’ll do it for Snow.”

She shot him a look and shook her head.

“We can talk about limits, and you’ll have a safeword, and if anything gets too much. If you need me to back off, you can say the word. Whether we’re in the bedroom or not. This isn’t a side of me I can just turn off and on. It’s who I am. All the time. Can you . . . can you deal with that?”

“If I say the safeword, will you be mad at me?”

“Never, little one. I can guarantee I will never get upset with you over that.”

“We’re doing this? The three of us? In a relationship together?” She looked from him to Beau.

Beau put his hand out. “Together.”

She placed her hand on top of his then Maddox put his down.

“I feel like we’re going to do a sports cheer.”

“A sports cheer?” Beau teased her. “Don’t watch much sports, huh?”

She shook her head.

“How about we seal this a different way,” Maddox murmured. Placing a hand around the back of her neck, he drew her in for a kiss that had her toes curling and her clit throbbing. Then he released her, and Beau drew her toward him to kiss her. Her heart raced. She wanted more. Needed it.

When he pulled away, she whimpered, reaching for him again. She was horny as hell. They couldn’t just leave it at that.

“Don’t stop,” she begged.

Beau reached for her again.

“Beau, we have more important things to talk about first,” Maddox warned.

“Damn it, why did I want your bossy ass to get back to normal again?” Beau whined.

“I don’t know, but it’s too late now to complain.”

Maddox drew her face back to his. “Scarlett, we need to have a chat about what you did. I want to make it clear putting yourself in danger like that, even to get information that you thought might help me is not acceptable. Not to me or Beau, understand?”

“But it sounded like he was going to hurt you.”

“I’m a big boy. I can take care of myself. And I would always rather that he come after me than you, understand?”

“But I want to protect you as well. It shouldn’t be all one-sided.”

“In some things, yes, it will be more one-sided. You’ll always come first. Your protection. Your health. And there isn’t any negotiation on that, little one. It’s the way it works in this relationship. You don’t do dangerous things, especially for us. We can take care of ourselves and you, but we do need your co-operation. You have to promise that won’t happen again.”

“But there wasn’t any real danger. I mean, I did think he’d left for the weekend so when he arrived back it was a bit of a shock. But I covered my tracks. I had to stall him for a bit because I wasn’t sure if I’d turned off his computer. That’s when I blurted out I was pregnant. By Sunday night, I had an email from HR telling me I was fired. I’m sure it was because I told him I was pregnant and not because he knew what I was up to, though.”

Scarlett couldn’t understand why they were both staring at her like she had two heads. What was wrong with them? She’d been careful and she’d saved herself. Surely they could see how well she’d done.

“Why aren’t you talking? The information I got on Richard was good, right? It looked good. If we can find someone who isn’t corrupt to pass it onto then we can stop him from doing this anymore. Only I’m not sure who we can trust. Do you have any ideas?”

“No,” Maddox said. His voice sounded raspy, rough. Shit, she hoped he wasn’t coming down with something.

“You don’t know anyone? Okay, well I can do some research. Or maybe we could go to the press rather than the cops. That way, we know it will get out and not be swept under the rug. Multiple news stations could be the way to go, don’t you think?”

“No.”

“Maddox, are you all right?” She put the back of her hand on his forehead. “You don’t feel hot, but your voice sounds funny. Maybe you should go to bed and take a nap, you can’t have gotten much sleep on the couch last night. Beau and I can brainstorm what to do while you nap.”

“While I . . . while I nap?”

“Uh-huh.” She was really concerned about him now. He’d gone pale except for two bright patches of red in his cheeks.

“Come on, you can get into bed.” She tried to move, but he grabbed hold of her thighs. “Um, Maddox, you need to let go of me so you can get into bed and nap.”

“Yeah, Maddy, it’s nap-time,” Beau said in a strangled voice.

She frowned at him. Was he trying not to laugh? Then she looked back at Maddox, who looked like he was trying not to throttle her.

“What is wrong with you two?” she asked.

“There’s nothing wrong with me,” Maddox told her.

“Are you sure? You look funny. And your voice is all raspy like your throat hurts.”

“That might have something to do with the fact that he’s trying to hold back,” Beau suggested.

“Hold back from doing what?” she asked. “Oh, do you need the bathroom? You can use it first.”

Beau burst into laughter, rolling on the bed.

“Beau!” Maddox snapped. “This is not a laughing matter.”

“It so is, though. It really is.”

“Will someone tell me what’s going on!”

“Did you know?” Maddox asked Beau. “Did you know she nearly got caught snooping around by him? While she was pregnant?”

Beau sobered. “No, I didn’t know about that.”

“I’m going to fucking destroy him.”

“You looked through everything? There’s a lot of stuff we can use, right?” she asked.

“There is no we.”

“What?” Her heart sank. What did that mean?

Maddox cupped her chin, turning her face toward him. “You will not ever put yourself in danger like that again. You’re lucky you weren’t ours when you did that because if you were, you wouldn’t sit for a week.”

She gaped down at him. “What? But I got the information and nothing happened.”

“If he’d caught you then you could have been seriously hurt! Wait, the person who trashed your apartment, they took your laptop, right?”

“Well, yes, but why?”

“You think it’s related?” Beau asked seriously. “You think he knows she took information from him?”

“He can’t. That’s silly,” she said. “It was just some random person. Of course, they took my laptop. It’s easy to transport and sell.”

“They take anything else? Jewelry? Other electronics?” Maddox asked.

“Well, they took a bit of jewelry, but I didn’t have much worth taking.”

“A normal thief would take more than a laptop and a few bits of jewelry,” Maddox said seriously. “And they wouldn’t usually wreck a place like that, to me that says it was either more personal or—”

“They were searching for something. Shit,” Beau said, straightening. “Why the fuck didn’t I connect that?”

“So, what? You think Richard hired someone to mug me and search my apartment? Why not just take me?”

“Maybe they were supposed to,” Maddox said seriously. “And Beau interrupted them.”

“Oh, God.” She felt ill.

“Was the stuff on the flash drive also on your laptop?” Maddox asked.

“No, I wiped it from there and my email.”

“He could still come after you, if he thinks you have a copy of the file.” Maddox ran his fingers through his hair. “We can’t stay here. It’s too dangerous.”

“We need to get back to Haven,” Beau added. “I’ll pack everything up.”

“Good. I’ll get her dressed and call Alec. He might know what to do with this stuff. I’ll send it to him before we leave.”

“Wait . . . wait,” she said as they jumped up. “That’s it? We’re just leaving? Do you really think I’m in danger?”

Maddox knelt before her once more, placing his hand over hers. She realized then she was holding her belly protectively. “I think that we can’t afford to brush this off, little one. Maybe he doesn’t know what you did. Maybe that was a random robbery, but I’m not willing to take that chance with your safety. Yours or the baby’s. Shit.” He looked up at Beau. “We need to make sure it’s all right for her to fly.”

Beau nodded with a frown. “Yeah, maybe we should see her doctor before we leave.”

“Okay, now you’re being way too overprotective,” she told them. “Of course it’s fine for me to fly. Other pregnant women fly all the time.”

“Yes, but they’re not our women,” Maddox told her.

“And they likely aren’t pregnant with twins,” Beau added.

“Twins?” Maddox barked.