Lyndee's Saviors [Men of Montana] (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour) by Eileen Green

from the eighties.
    Through the awkwardness, she remembered the conversation her brother Connor, who was the sheriff, was having earlier with someone on the phone. He must have been talking to Trey about this woman. Triumph twinkled in Angela’s eyes when she realized this petite woman with her men was a hooker. “So this is the little hooker from the big city,” she purred evilly. “How is she in bed? Is she better than me?”
     
    * * * *
     
    Glares and growls emanated from all three men with the statement while a gasp escaped Lisa’s lips at the hateful woman’s statement. Embarrassment engulfed her fully as redness flooded her facial features. Tears stung her eyes as her feet began to move. The entrance to the store was blurred within her vision as she ran toward it. She had to dodge several carts and multiple people before she finally reached her destination, and once there, she searched out the black dual-cab pickup they had arrived in. Cursing when she found the doors locked, she climbed into the bed and lay down on a blanket in the back that had been placed there for whatever reason.
    Hidden from people in the parking lot, she cried quietly, hating that someone else knew the truth about her, and not just anyone, but a spiteful woman that apparently had slept with the men in the past. How was she supposed to look the trio in the eye again, knowing that other people now knew they were sleeping with a prostitute? Leaving was her best option. She wouldn’t subject them to the rumors and backstabbing that was inevitably going to surround them.
    After a while a man’s voice near the truck interrupted her pity party. It was authoritative and for some reason familiar. Leaning up a bit, she peered over the side of the tailgate and saw a tall man, a bit taller than her three, with long dark hair pulled back and tied in a leather piece. His back was to her so she didn’t recognize him but was intrigued on why he was so familiar. As people approached him walking to and from their vehicles, he held out a picture and inquired if they had seen the woman in the photo. Everyone who looked shook their heads and some even went as far as ignoring him or avoiding him altogether. She could tell he was extremely irritated when this happened. His shoulders tensed and his stance caused him to look like he was going to pounce on them. Evil emanated from his body and she ducked back down, knowing deep inside she couldn’t be seen by him but didn’t know why.
    Holding back her sobs, she lay quietly until she heard the three men approach the truck. The man had approached them. “Excuse me. Have any of you seen this woman?”
     
    * * * *
     
    Austin took the picture from the man, glanced at it, and held himself in check to avoid giving away his feelings. He handed the picture off to Storm, who responded the same way before passing it onto Trey, who spoke for the three of them, his lazy drawl tense. “Nope, can’t say that we have. I’m sure we would have remembered seeing a woman like that. Why are you looking for her?”
    “She is my niece and was kidnapped a few days ago by her boyfriend. We think he was trying to take her north of the border.”
    “Sorry pal,” Storm said, unfeeling at the bold-faced lie. “We haven’t seen her.”
    Pushing the cart full of plastic bags to the truck, Austin turned. “Why don’t you give us your number in case we see her so we can give you a call? I can’t stand it when men take advantage of a helpless woman.”
    Austin’s tone was flat and tinged with anger even though he tried to control it. He wanted to take this man down right there in the parking lot but knew that to protect Lisa they had to do this right. He accepted the business card from the man tersely, shoving it in the front pocket of his jeans before grabbing bags and quickly placing them in the truck bed. The slight movement at the tailgate caught his attention and he saw his woman lying there terrified.
    “By the way, what