Stowaways: Reverse Harem Romance (The Challenge Book 4) Page 2

  The handle was a little stiff, and together they pulled it downward to lock it securely.

  “Oh, my God,” she said. “We did it…did we?”

  “Si.” Raul wiped his brow with the back of his hand. “It is in there.”

  The van rocked and shifted on its suspension as the creature within bellowed and hurled itself against the sides.

  “Bloody thing is trying to get out the roof,” Paul shouted down.

  “Throw that up, Raul,” Mason called, pointing at the skylight on the ground. “We’ll shove it back on.”

  Raul grabbed the heavy square of Perspex, then passed it up to Mason.

  “Cheers,” Mason said.

  Olivia stepped back and watched as Lucas and Mason secured the skylight. It took a few attempts as a big paw managed to bat it away a couple of times.

  “What the hell is going on?” Harry appeared at her side.

  Anya was with him, her eyes wide and her mouth parted.

  “The leopard,” Olivia said. “It’s in the van. We got it.”

  Chapter Two

  “It is?” Anya stared at the van. “In there?”

  Harry put his hand on his gun. “It was out here, just now, with you all.” He frowned. “Right next to you again, Liv?”

  “Yes.” Olivia pressed her hand to her chest and realized she was shaking. “But I’m okay, we all are, thank goodness.”

  “Ah, mi niña hermosa, you did great.” Raul wrapped his arm around her shoulders and tugged her against the length of his body.

  “I didn’t do anything.” She’d felt frozen with fear and hardly able to think straight. The thought of Lucas being mauled to death at any moment had been horrendous.

  “You helped me lock the van door, trap it in.” Raul rubbed his hand up and down her arm.

  “I guess.” She could hardly remember, it had all happened so fast. The stalking creature, the look of horror on Lucas’s face, and then how his brothers had clambered onto the roof and hauled him to safety.

  “Hey.” Lucas jumped down from the van roof, absorbing the impact by bending to a squat as he landed. He straightened and brushed his palms together. “You all okay?”

  “Lucas.” She rushed to him. “I was so scared.” She hurled herself into his arms. “I thought you were going to die.”

  “Shh, I’m fit and well.” He held her close and spoke against her ear. “My brothers would never let a damn cat get the better of me.”

  A sob broke free, and she closed her eyes as a tear escaped. If they hadn’t been so quick to think of an exit route, if the skylight hadn’t already been off. If they weren’t all so damn strong and quick…

  “Don’t cry,” Lucas whispered.

  “But what if…?”

  He caught her face in his hands and touched his nose to hers. “Don’t do that. What happened is what’s important. I’m okay, and we’ve got the leopard in there. It won’t cause us or anyone else any more problems.”

  She dragged in a deep breath and stared into his pale eyes. “Yes. You’re right.”

  “I am.” He kissed her gently as he caught her tears with his thumb tips.

  “Jeez, it’s still putting up a fight,” Paul said from the roof.

  “Aye, it’s furious.” Mason chuckled and gripped Paul’s shoulder. “Hungry, too, most likely.”

  “The sooner we take it to a sanctuary the better.” Raul turned to Anya. “Did you find out if there was one nearby?”

  “Yes, near Springbok. About four hours away, that’s near for this part of the world.”

  Raul nodded. “Yes, it is. I am willing to drive the van there, but I need someone to show me the way.”

  “I will come with you,” Anya said. “And my father, too. He will want to be part of the solution, plus it is not respectful for me to be alone with another woman’s husband.”

  “I could go,” Olivia said.

  “No.” Raul shook his head. “I do not want you near this leopard again. We have had too many close cuts.”

  “Close shaves,” Harry corrected.

  “Yes, and that.” Raul gestured to the tent. “I will pack us food and then we will go.”

  “Yes.” Anya nodded. “I will get my father now. He will be so pleased. You are all heroes.”

  Olivia clung a little tighter to Lucas and watched Anya stride back to the village, her long red skirt tightening around her legs with each step. Thank goodness they were heroes and not victims.

  Within fifteen minutes, Raul was driving the van north on the track that would lead to the main road and then Springbok.

  As the dust from the tires settled, Olivia hoped the journey would go without incident. She wished no harm on the big cat, but equally wanted her husband back safe.

  “Come on,” Lucas said, “let’s get a drink.”

  “Yes, I suppose we can all relax now it’s been caught.”

  “Not too much,” Harry said, rubbing at the thick layer of stubble on his chin, it was practically a beard. “There’s still a lot of dangerous creatures out here.”

  “Yeah, like those guys.” Paul pointed into the opposite direction Raul had gone.

  “Wow, they’re closer than usual,” Olivia said.

  Elephants had passed by before, but in the far distance, almost like mirages on the horizon. This herd was close enough for her to make out the huge bull at the front, followed by more males, and then at the rear females with three small calves.

  “They’re beautiful,” Harry said. “How could anyone want to hunt them?”

  “No idea.” Paul tutted.

  “Ivory looks much better on those guys,” Mason said, sipping from a bottle of water.

  “I agree.” For a full minute, Olivia stood with the twins, Paul and Harry, and watched the elephants fade into the distance. Like the van they left a dust trail, and they appeared to be on a definite route to some place or other, their focus straight ahead.

  “Drink,” Lucas said, stepping away. He returned seconds later with two water bottles. “Here.”

  “Thanks.” Olivia took her drink and quenched her thirst. “I’d still like to bring the Jeep closer to the tent,” she said, “but it’s not such a priority now. I think I’ll go and find Evan first.” She paused and glanced at Harry. “Let him know about the leopard.”

  Harry nodded, once, and pressed his lips together.

  “Where is he?” Mason asked.

  “The lake.” She set her water down. “I’ll be back soon.”

  “Oh no you don’t, hen.” Mason shook his head.

  “Oh no I don’t what?”

  “Wander off on your own.” Mason folded his arms, wrinkling the black t-shirt he was wearing.

  “The leopard is caught.” She frowned.

  “And as Harry just said, there’s lots of other wildlife out here that would have you for dinner.” He jabbed his thumb over his shoulder in the direction the elephants had been. “Or trample you, or jab you with antlers and horns or…”

  “Okay, okay.” She huffed but smiled at the same time. “I get the picture.”

  “So I’ll come with you,” Mason said.

  “But it’s not far.”

  “It’s far enough.”

  She sighed. “Okay, as long as you promise to entertain me with your witty and intelligent conversation.”

  He winked. “My conversation is always witty and intelligent.”

  “Yes, you keep telling yourself that.” She laughed.

  Mason suddenly bent, pressed his shoulder against her belly, then stood, raising her upward over his shoulder in a fireman’s lift. He set his hand squarely on her ass.

  “Hey!” She squirmed but could go nowhere.

  “You should be spanked for your cheek, woman.”

  “Mason! Put me down.” She grabbed hold of his waistband.

  “Yeah, give her a spank.” Harry laughed. “She’ll like that.”

  “Hey…ouch!”

  Mason had landed a thwack on her ass.

  “
You gonna let me walk you to the lake?” he asked, placing his hand over the stinging section of flesh.

  “I said, yes.” Her hair fell in front of her face.

  “You gonna cheek me.” She could hear the smile in his voice.

  “Not if you don’t…”

  “What? Do this again.”

  Another thwack.

  “Ow!” She couldn’t deny she enjoyed the swift sharp contact even through her pants. It sent heat to the place between her legs where arousal started.

  Harry chuckled, and she saw his boots next to Mason’s. Another palm spread on her buttocks, the opposite cheek. “Such a pretty ass, and positioned perfectly.” He massaged her flesh.

  “Put me down.”

  “Yeah, put her down now,” Lucas said.

  “Ah, and here was me going to carry you to the lake.” Mason set her on her feet, then kept hold of her arms as he straightened. “You’ve gone red, hen.”

  “Yeah, so would you if you got turned upside down.” She frowned at him and rubbed her butt. “And my ass is red, too, I should think.”

  He cupped her cheeks and kissed her. “Wanna show me?” he said onto her lips.

  She stared into his eyes. They were as wild as the land around them and full of life. She guessed adrenaline was still filling his veins. Fucking him now would be fun. Mason’s desire, his frenetic urgency to bury deep, was such a turn on. But she needed to find Evan. She hated the thought of him hurting out there alone. And also, until she’d made love to Lucas, she couldn’t be with any of the other men, even his brother. Lucas was the one husband she’d yet to consummate her marriage with. It was his turn to have her.

  “Hold that thought,” she said against his lips.

  “That won’t be hard, your sexy ass is rarely far from my thoughts.” He slid his hands over her butt and pulled her close.

  His body was so solid and strong pressing onto hers. She gripped his t-shirt. “Mason,” she whispered.

  For a moment she felt like he was staring into her soul. Looking to see how much she loved him, and if she really did want him.

  She did love him, and she did want him, so she held his eye contact, unafraid of any truths he might see.

  “Harry,” Paul said. “Those floorboards fixed?”

  “Sure thing, buddy.”

  “Good. I’m gonna head on over to the hospital again. I’ve got a few patients by the looks of it.” He nodded to where several people had gathered around the entrance.

  “Sure,” Harry said. “And me and Lucas will finish stacking this fire. Raul was in the middle of doing it.”

  “Aye, and then I’ll get rid of the metalwork I took out of the van.”

  “It’ll be good for something else,” Paul said. “Don’t waste anything around here.”

  “I don’t intend to.” Lucas nodded.

  Olivia slipped her arm through Mason’s. “Come on, the flamingos might be on the lake today, I’ve been hoping to see them.”

  “They were there yesterday.”

  “They were?”

  “So Anya said.”

  “Let’s hope they’re there today, too.”

  They set off around the fringe of the village. The ground was dry and dusty, though the path well trodden. The locals fished at the lake, and because the rains had been kind, there was plenty to catch.

  “That scared me back there, with Lucas,” she said.

  “Aye, me, too. But it worked out all right.”

  “Imagine if it hadn’t.”

  “No point in doing that, hen. Imagination can be the scariest thing of all.”

  “Yes, that’s true.”

  “What’s Evan doing at the lake? Fishing?”

  “I’m not sure.”

  They carried on walking, past several deep burrows. She wondered what lived inside them.

  “But you want him back at the village, the tent?”

  “I need to speak to him.”

  “About what?”

  She hesitated. “It’s private.”

  “Private?” He turned to face her but didn’t stop walking. “Should we have secrets from each other?”

  Olivia didn’t answer.

  “I’m your husband,” he said. “I have no intention of ever keeping anything from you.”

  “And I don’t want to keep anything from you,” she said, squeezing his arm. “And I won’t if it concerns you, us, but equally if you told me something in confidence I wouldn’t tell the other guys. It would be private between us as man and wife.”

  He was quiet.

  “Does that make sense?”

  “It’s just…” He paused. “Is Evan okay?”

  “Yes, I think so. But I want to check. The way I’d check on all of you if I was worried.”

  “I know you would. You’re one of the kindest most caring people I know.”

  “I try to be.”

  Mason was quiet for a moment then, “He doesn’t talk about his family much, does he?”

  “Evan?”

  “Aye. They’re in Australia, he said something about a family ranch once, sheep I think, and that he didn’t get on with his father.”

  “Oh, I knew about the ranch but not about his father.”

  Mason shrugged. “I don’t think he’s ripped up about it. Just said it matter of fact when we were having a beer once and he was talking about why he started going on walkabout with his mate.”

  “Yes, he did a lot of that. Sounds crazy to me.” She laughed softly. “His mother must have been terrified.”

  “The opposite childhood to Harry in every sense.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Harry gets on well with his father, he’s always had everything he ever wanted, hasn’t had to survive with only what the land will give him the way it is on walkabout.”

  “He’s learning to now.”

  “Since he met Evan, and us, aye.” He paused. “He seems to prefer it, don’t you think? Less of the material stuff around him, all that social media shit. Though its hard to know not having seen how he was before.”

  “He does prefer it, life feels real for him now. You guys mean the world to him. I think for the first time ever, and I’m not breaking confidences saying this because he’s said it, he feels he’s got real friends, not hangers on, or people interested in only what he can give them.”

  “We’re not like that, none of us are.”

  “Of course not, that’s why he’s happy with us. We allow the great Harrington Vidal to just be Harry.”

  “It’s not only Harry who’s benefitted from the group friendship, and your love.”

  Olivia was quiet.

  “Lucas has, too.” Mason pressed his hand over hers. “Truth be told, I’ve worried about him over the years. He was always content to let me take the lead while he stepped back. It was why he got bullied so badly at school.”

  “Until you took up karate.”

  “Aye, that turned it around, and telling Paul what was going on.”

  “You hadn’t told him?”

  “No. We thought we’d figure it out ourselves, but at thirteen, it took our older brother to make the difference, not just in the dojo and training, but in the school yard and out on the streets.”

  “I presumed you always told Paul everything.”

  “Most things, he’s our brother. But being a twin, it’s…intense sometimes, more than a sibling connection. The bond you feel with the other person is hard to describe if you aren’t one. But when we’re not together we feel like we are. Our minds go down the same routes when it comes to problem solving, planning things.”

  “Isn’t that because of a shared history, experiences in life?”

  “Partly, but it’s also genetic make up. We’re identical.”

  “Mmm. Almost.”

  He laughed. “Oh yeah, his dick freckle.”

  “Mason.” She shoved him.

  “Well it’s always been there, I couldn’t help but notice when we were bairns. And I can’t imagi
ne it’s gone anywhere.”

  Chapter Three

  Olivia laughed as the lake came into view, but the sound caught in her throat. The sight before her was stunning.

  Flamingos, thousands of flamingos, filled the huge expanse of water. A dusky haze of pink topped with shiny black beaks.

  “Wow.” She stopped in her tracks. “I never thought there’d be so many.”

  “What a sight.” Mason stepped behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist.

  “They’re beautiful.” She rested her hands on his forearms. “Don’t you think?”

  “Stunning.” He kissed the top of her head.

  “I’ve seen them in the zoo, when I was a kid, but like this, in the wild…” She laughed again. “This is definitely a sight worth traveling to Africa for.”

  “Aye, it is.”

  She gazed at the flamingos; their low hum of chatter rolled over the water toward her. In the distance, a few small round fishing boats were dotted on the lake, and reeds filled a large bank to her right.

  “I’m glad there’s no crocs around here,” Mason said.

  “Yes, me, too. Perhaps that’s why there are so many flamingos.” She glanced about. “Can you see Evan?”

  “Er…yes, that’s him there.” He pointed to the left.

  Olivia stretched onto her toes to see. “Oh yes.”

  Evan stood stock still, holding a slim rod. He had his back to them, and the sun shone off the surface of his golden skin.

  “Looks like he’s fishing,” Mason said.

  “Yes. I’ll go and see him.” She turned within his embrace. “Thank you for walking here with me.”

  “I enjoyed it.” He brushed his lips over hers. “I’ll wait until you’re there, with him, before I go.”

  She nodded. “Okay.”

  There was no point arguing with the guys about their need to watch out for her safety in Africa. Even with the leopard caught, it was clear the wildlife made them all anxious.

  And the witch doctors?

  She brushed that thought away. She’d rather contend with teeth and claws than crazy men with weird ideas about her organs’ healing qualities.

  She walked toward Evan; the dirt ground became sandy and damp, and she used a few smooth round rocks as steppingstones to navigate over a trickle of water, which emerged from the reeds.