Read Adams, Eve - Patience is Their Virtue [Brides of Bachelor Bay 3] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) for Free Online Page A

that.”
    The Gallagher brothers all exchanged glances.
    Adam brought his hand up. “Enough. I’ve given you my terms. The offer expires as soon as I lose my temper, and, by damned, I’m close now.”
    “Miss Weber,” Logan said. “You could do far worse than a marriage to the town’s most prominent man.”
    “Offer me a contract,” she whispered, desperate to find anything else but marriage to a man she hated. Logan shook his head. “That is not the offer. You will either marry Mr. Steele and have him repay your debt, or you will go to jail for stealing from us.”
    “Please make the right choice,” Andrew said softly.
    Her shoulders slumped as desolation overtook her. She melted down into the chair and stared at the splintered wood floor. This couldn’t be happening. She had no choice. It was either marry Adam Steele or…What? What else could she possibly do?
    “So it’s decided?” Logan asked. “You agree to this arrangement?”
    She couldn’t bring herself to say it, so she gave him a single nod. “I hate you,” she whispered to Adam. “I hate that you are forcing my hand.”
    She watched his eyes darken as they narrowed in on her. But something else flickered in that gaze, something that surprised her. Emotion, thick and full of sorrow, softened his expression. He stood and approached her, a steady throb in his gaze that had her heart pounding in time with it.
    “I do wish you’d watch that sharp tongue of yours, my dear. As my wife, it is your duty to uphold the perfect image of the ideal woman.”
    “I’m not your wife yet.” She hoped the hiss in her voice conveyed how she felt about this arrangement. “I will speak my mind, whether you approve of it or not.”
    Adam released her hand and marched to the threshold of the parlor before turning to address the room. “I will return within the hour, at which time I fully expect Miss Weber’s bags to be packed and her waiting for me. Logan, see that the reverend is here upon my return. I’ve already wasted enough time on this. Good day.”
    Patience covered her face with her hands as the first of her sobs exploded. The front door slammed, announcing her future husband’s departure.

* * * *

    What an inglorious bastard.
    He’d seen his brother perform some of the most reprehensible acts as a ruthless businessman, but the way he’d just treated his future wife was inexcusable.
    Raven glanced up at the sky as gray clouds rolled in. Port Steele’s hint at spring had come to an end. Soon the rain would return and with it, mud, mud, and more mud. He missed the plains of the Dakotas. It rained, but only enough to feed the land and keep it lush. The rain here seemed unending and did nothing more than drown the land instead of nourish it.
    Raven cleared his throat.
    Adam thinned his lips and set his jaw, the stubborn bastard. “I don’t want to talk about it.”
    Raven then growled.
    “Don’t judge me, brother. She pushed me too far.”
    Raven shook his head. He knew better than to say anything. When Adam got in one of his moods, he held entire conversations with himself.
    “What I’m offering is far better than any life she’d get with any other man in this or any of the surrounding towns. Why can’t she see that?” He stopped and motioned at the inn with one hand while shoving his other hand deep in his pocket. “She’s being completely unreasonable. Forced her hand? Ha! I could have let her go into a life of servitude, but I didn’t. And why is that?”
    “Because you love her.”
    Adam took a breath to protest but stopped short as his shoulders slumped. He blinked at Raven, over and over, as Raven watched those words sink in.
    “Because I love her,” Adam repeated, clearly stunned at the epiphany.
    “Why don’t I return to the inn and help Miss Weber pack? I may be able to straighten out this mess you’ve created with her.”
    “Me? I didn’t do anything more than offer her a new life.”
    “And I will do my best to help