A Hard Choice for Hanna [Hardwick Bay 2] (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour) Read online

  “You were supposed to join us for church on Sunday and then dinner.” Her mother was clearly irritated.

  “I never agreed to that.” Hanna tried to keep her voice calm and reasonable. “I definitely said no to church and that I would think about dinner. I should have called to say no when I heard the weekend was supposed to be so nice. I really needed to get some work done outside.”

  “You only rent that house, why are you doing so much work outside? It doesn’t make sense to spend all that effort for someone else.” Hanna’s mother started on one of her familiar complaints about Hanna’s life. “And especially for those, those two women that own the place.”

  Hanna saw red. “Mom,” she said firmly, “I told you I was not going to hear any of your crap about Sasha and Stephanie. They are great women, they’re good friends of mine, and their sexual preferences are none of your concern.”

  “They are living horrible, sinful—”

  “I’m not having this conversation with you. Give my love to Dad,” she added, and she hung up.

  Now Hanna really did want to scream. Lately, almost any conversation with her mother ended this way. Her mom would start to rant on some sin or other and Hanna would either get tired of listening, or she would just get mad and hang up. Her mom’s rants ranged from how women shouldn’t hold jobs once they were married to draconian views on homosexuality.

  Hanna wasn’t sure what was going on. She had her suspicions, though. A few years ago her parents had retired and moved up to the area. They now lived in a larger city about an hour south of Hardwick Bay. Hanna had always been close to her parents, more her dad than her mom, and their presence had partly influenced her choice to accept the job at Three Pines. Her parents had always emphasized the importance of family to each other. Over the past year or two, though, her mom had started to spout this crap on how everyone else should live their lives.

  Hanna hated to think it, but she was pretty sure the church her mom joined when they moved to Port Seguin was the source. Her dad went to church, too, but he went to the local United Church, which was much more tolerant of how people chose to live their lives. The Church of the Way, her mom’s place of worship, seemed less liberal. A lot less liberal. Hanna suspected her dad was getting a little sick of her mom’s newfound prejudices as well from what little she could infer from their phone conversations. Her dad didn’t really talk about her mom and the stuff they did together anymore.

  Her mom was pressuring her to go to church with her on Sunday, but Hanna was really leery of going after what her mother had been spouting off lately. She remembered fondly the United Church services she had gone to as a child, but she had drifted away from organized religion since graduating college. She was certainly respectful of people’s choice of religion and glad everyone had the freedom to worship as they chose, but hadn’t joined a church after graduation.

  She snorted thinking of how her mom would have a cow if she really knew what went on in Hardwick Bay. It was a pretty sexually liberated town, though this was known only to the locals. The cottagers and vacationers that frequented the area seemed to remain blissfully ignorant, thank goodness. Hardwick Bay was accepting of straight, gay, ménage, and D/s relationships without much question. The only thing absolutely not acceptable was anything non-consensual and abusive.

  Hanna had really had her eyes opened to the various kinds of loving relationships that existed. Lisa married two brothers, one legally. The three pledged themselves together in a separate ceremony afterward. Cailynn was well on her way to something similar with the Harris men. Sasha and Stephanie were a whole other dynamic that Hanna didn’t fully understand. She hadn’t done any research into the whole dominant-submissive thing, but they seemed happy with each other. She wouldn’t have considered Stephanie “submissive” if they hadn’t been up-front about their relationship when Hanna was looking for a place to live. There were others that came into the clinic with their pets that Hanna knew had relationships that weren’t heterosexual vanilla, but she also knew they were good people. She wasn’t about to judge them unfairly because of who they slept with.

  Hanna thought to herself that if she wasn’t going to judge the people in Hardwick Bay by their sexual preferences, perhaps she shouldn’t judge her mom’s church by the crap her mom was spouting lately. If she wasn’t going to be a hypocrite, she should go and hear for herself what views the church had. She sighed and guessed that she had better get her butt to church next Sunday, but only if it was raining. After all, she could offer up thanks to God in the garden just as well as church.

  Chapter 3

  Friday night found Hanna at The Cottage, a local diner with great food. It was a homey sort of place, with wooden tables and chairs and booths along the sides. There were paintings by local artists on the walls. Scattered among them were bits of antique sporting equipment, like wooden cross-country skis and snowshoes. Describing it sounded kitschy, but it was more fun and eclectic. The place was scrupulously clean and always smelled of fabulous food.

  Hanna and her friend Karen had a standing “date” for dinner on Fridays and this week they decided to head to The Cottage. It was 6:00 p.m. and Hanna thought Karen should have been there by now. She knew the store closed at 5:30 p.m., and Karen’s Kandies was just down the street from the diner.

  She frowned and checked her text messages. Karen would have sent something if she knew she was going to be late. Just as she was about to text Karen, a message appeared on the phone from her missing friend.

  Big internet order came in. Have to stay to fill it. Sending you company though ;)

  Who the hell is she sending? Hanna wondered. She looked up as the door chimed and saw Kent and Carter VanLindt entering the restaurant.

  Hanna knew the men through Lisa. Kent and Carter were friends of Lisa’s husbands, Mike and Craig. They were part of the small group that had ménage relationships in town. She knew that Kent and Carter were looking for a ménage as well.

  She thought they would have found some woman to fit the bill by now. Heading into their mid-thirties, they were both handsome, well-off financially, and decent men. It was easy to tell they were brothers by looking at them, Kent being a year and a half older than Carter. They were almost the same height and had the same blond color to their hair, though Kent kept his shorter and tidier than Carter’s. The shape of their eyes was the same, but Kent had blue eyes while Carter had dark brown. Their eyes always seemed to sparkle with humor and their general good nature.

  They were both dressed casually tonight. They had on well-worn jeans that molded to their toned asses and legs. Kent had on a denim shirt with the sleeves rolled up a bit to show his fine biceps. There was a tiny dusting of hair peeking out of the front of his shirt. Carter was wearing a long-sleeved burgundy shirt with a couple of buttons at the throat. It hugged his torso enough to show off his muscled frame.

  Hanna found them both immensely attractive. A couple weeks ago they were at a party at Lisa’s together, and they seemed really attentive toward her. She was pretty sure they were just being nice since neither of them brought dates to the party. Or was it that both of them didn’t bring a date? She didn’t think the two very hot men could be attracted to her. The last woman she saw them date was a gorgeous blonde. She was tall and willowy, except for her large, perky breasts, with perfect hair, nails, and designer clothes.

  Hanna was of average height and definitely didn’t have perfect hair. Hers was a deep reddish brown, cropped to a medium length, and it had a tendency to get frizzy in the summer. Her nails were clean, but they were short, and she almost never wore polish. Her clothes were more often than not scrubs, which were made to get dirty, or gardening gear, which was almost always dirty. She lamented the fact that though she was in decent shape, she didn’t really have any curves. Her breasts were average, her tummy was a bit more than average, and her butt was the same size around as her belly. She felt like she was a thick pole. At least her skin was nice—pale, but blemish free and she w
ould tan up nicely in the summer. And right now she wasn’t wearing scrubs or garden clothes. She was in jeans and a long-sleeved green blouse that set off her coloring well.

  Carter and Kent made their way over to her as soon as they spied her in the diner, their long, lean frames winding between the tables. Hanna’s heart picked up speed as they approached. Karen couldn’t have sent them!

  * * * *

  Carter VanLindt smiled when he saw Hanna at the back of the diner. He was a lucky man and knew it.

  Carter and Kent had stopped into Karen’s store to pick up a gift for their mom. She loved Karen’s chocolates, so they had Karen make up a big box of her favorites. Carter had used the time to pump Karen for a bit more information on Hanna, not that it was a difficult task. Karen seemed to be happy to collude with them to get Hanna to start seeing the two brothers.

  When the Karen’s Kandies computer chimed to let her know an order had come in, Karen was almost delighted to be able to cancel her outing with Hanna. She actually begged Carter and Kent to go to The Cottage and meet Hanna. Like she needed to beg! Carter and Kent would have done just about anything to head to the diner in Karen’s place.

  So, here were the two men heading directly toward Hanna. Carter was pleased to see that Kent had just as wide and goofy a grin on his face as Carter was sure was plastered across his own.

  “Hi there, princess,” Kent greeted Hanna genially.

  Hanna eyed them a little suspiciously. “Hi yourself,” she said politely.

  Carter began, “We heard you needed company—”

  “I’m perfectly capable of having dinner on my own,” Hanna interrupted. She gave them a courteous smile. “If you’re doing this as a favor to Karen, consider yourself un-obligated. You are totally free to do whatever you actually had planned for this evening.”

  Carter raised an eyebrow. He found it interesting that Hanna didn’t sound pissed off or rude or snarky. She sounded like she was reciting facts about the weather.

  “Actually,” he said, pausing to see if she was going to interrupt him again. “There’s not too many things I can think of that I’d rather be doing than having dinner with you. How about you, Kent?”

  “Can’t think of a one,” he answered, looking intently at Hanna.

  “Well, that’s settled then,” Carter said as he slid into the booth with Hanna. He smiled at her again. “So, have you decided yet or were you waiting on Karen?”

  Hanna eyed Kent as he slid into the other side of the semi-circular booth before turning her attention back to Carter. “I was waiting for Karen,” she said. “How did she happen to send you here?”

  Carter thought Hanna didn’t sound like she was jumping for joy at their appearance, but she hadn’t ordered them to get lost. He was counting that as a positive at this point.

  “We were the lucky guys at the right time,” answered Kent.

  Hanna frowned just a little. “I think I need a little more info than that.”

  Carter looked at Kent. Kent stared silently back. Carter sighed. It seemed Kent wasn’t going to elaborate. It surprised most people to know that Kent was actually a bit shy. He didn’t really start to talk until he got to know a person fairly well. Carter was the more outgoing one of the pair. Kent covered his shyness by acting like the strong silent type, but he was actually really caring and sensitive. Of course, he could also still beat Carter in a fair fight. Carter grinned. Good thing he didn’t always fight fair.

  “He’s right,” Carter said to Hanna. “Why don’t you tell her the whole story, Kent?”

  Kent shot him a look that spoke volumes. “There’s not that much story to tell. We were in Karen’s when the order came in. She said she had dinner plans with you. We jumped at the chance to join you while she looked after her business.”

  Just then the waitress came over to take their drink orders and let them know what the specials were. When she left, Hanna spoke as she perused the menu, not looking at either man. “Jumped at the chance, eh? I find that hard to believe.”

  Carter gently pulled the menu from her fingers, ignoring her “hey” of protest. “First of all, I know you’re having the special, because you love Bruce’s chicken casserole and garlic mashed potatoes, so don’t ‘hey’ me about the menu. Second, why would you find it hard to believe that we wouldn’t jump at the chance to have dinner with you?”

  The silence hung at the table as Carter and Kent stared at Hanna.

  Before anyone spoke, the waitress returned with the drinks and was poised to take their order.

  Carter recovered first. “Hanna will have the special with mashed and I’ll have the Cottage burger with fries. Kent?”

  “Peninsula burger with fries,” he told the waitress. “Thank you,” he added as he handed her the menus.

  “I really don’t like it when anyone presumes to order for me,” Hanna stated firmly.

  “Ok,” replied Carter. He looked directly at her and said sincerely, “I apologize and won’t do that again. Did you want the special, or should I call the waitress back?”

  “No,” Hanna replied quickly. “I do want the special. You’re right, it is one of my favorites. How did you know?”

  “We heard you telling Lisa at the party.” Kent actually volunteered the information.

  “But back to why we wouldn’t have dinner with you.” Carter wanted to find out what the story was with Hanna’s apparent lack of insight into their desire for her.

  She shrugged. “I thought you were dating the blonde from the city with the big, uh, wardrobe.”

  Kent snorted. “Big wardrobe, eh?” He grinned conspiratorially at her. “Don’t you mean big boobs?”

  Hanna blushed. “Yeah, those, too,” she said, cocking her head to the side in a gesture that dared them to contradict her.

  “We saw Carolyn once, several months ago, and it became apparent rather quickly that we were not remotely compatible.” Carter attempted to be circumspect about the one-date disaster that was Carolyn.

  Kent leaned a little closer to Hanna. His voice was low, confidential. “She was a walking stick with big breasts and no heart. She had no interest in us aside from how big our wallets were and the novelty of bragging about having a threesome. I, that is, we, want a woman who is beautiful both inside and out. Someone like you.”

  Carter’s eyes just about bulged out of their sockets. That had to be one of the most lengthy and heartfelt statements he’d ever heard out of Kent on a first date. They had discussed how serious they were about Hanna, and he knew Kent felt the same as he—that the more they knew about Hanna, the more they thought she was the one they wanted to marry and have kids with. But he was blown away at Kent’s declaration to Hanna.

  * * * *

  Hanna’s mouth fell open at Kent’s description of Carolyn and the declaration that followed it. There was dead silence again for what seemed like ages. Then, of course, the food arrived. Service here was generally good, but why did it have to have to be this fast tonight?

  The poor waitress seemed to realize she had interrupted something but couldn’t exactly turn around and take the food back again. She served them quickly and quietly and disappeared.

  Hanna looked at her plate. She suddenly didn’t really feel like eating. Well, actually she did feel like eating, but she wanted to go home and stress-eat junk food. Which wasn’t going to do her health any good. It wasn’t exactly going to help her deal with Carter and Kent, either.

  “Look,” started Carter, obviously trying to restart some normal dinner conversation. “We really do have feelings for you. But I’m sure it’s a bit much to start in with declarations of undying love in a diner. Even if it’s the best diner in town.” He smiled at Hanna, and she didn’t miss the warning look he shot at Kent.

  “Yeah,” Hanna mumbled, staring at her plate. She didn’t know how to deal with all the thoughts running through her head at the moment. I’m going to kill Karen warred with Holy crap, the hottest men in town want to date me, which vied with I want
to get out of here and go hide, which in turn fought with I want to lick every inch of their hot, sexy bodies. Wait, where had that come from?

  “Hanna.” Kent touched her arm lightly. “Let’s just have dinner.”

  She looked into his eyes and was comforted by what she saw there. Here was a man, two men, who said they had feelings for her but had pulled back to give her a bit of space. She saw that they weren’t going to put any pressure on her to do anything other than have a nice dinner with them.

  “Okay,” she said quietly. She took a deep breath and let it out. “Let’s just have dinner.”

  She put her fork into her potatoes and savored the first bite of the creamy, garlicky carbs. They complimented the tomato-based chicken casserole perfectly. This really was one of Bruce’s best creations, in her opinion. She was almost ticked off that he wouldn’t give out the recipe, but it likely made such a huge quantity that she couldn’t eat it all in a year.

  Kent and Carter attacked their burgers with gusto. She liked to watch them eat. They so obviously enjoyed their meal. She found herself watching their mouths and strong jaws, wondering what their kisses would feel like. They were both clean-shaven but she bet in the morning the rasp of stubble along their chins would feel fabulous on her skin.

  Carter broke through the silence with a comment on a sitcom they all enjoyed. After that, the conversation flowed more freely. They spoke about TV and about local matters. The town was small, and most people cared about what happened in the area. There was a push to raise money for the local hospital, and with summer coming, registration was on for the local co-ed softball league.

  “You should join our team,” Carter encouraged Hanna. “We need more women.”