by Ramona Gray
With one last anxious glance at Dane, I followed Mason out of the kitchen.
* * *
Dane
“You need to chill out around her, Dane.”
Mason poured himself a cup of coffee before sitting next to me at the table. It was early the next morning. Naomi had spent the entire evening in her bedroom and wouldn’t eat dinner. I had spent the entire evening drinking whiskey and contemplating how to get away with murdering her father.
“I’m angry,” I said.
“Yeah, I am too. I’d like to beat the shit out of her father for what he’s done to her,” Mason said. “But Naomi thinks you’re angry with her.”
Frustration rolled off of me in waves. Mason said, “You know we can’t have sex with her. She’s submissive because her father beat or bullied it into her. She needs therapy, not two Doms in bed.”
“I want her.” Even to myself I sounded like a petulant child. Before Mason could say anything, I said, “Yeah, I know what I sound like. But I think we should at least talk to her first. We can tell her that we’re Doms, explain what it is to her and she can make her choice. She’s sheltered and naïve, but she’s smart and capable of making her own decisions.”
“I don’t think it’s a good idea.”
“I don’t care!” I said. “I need her, Mason. I don’t know why, and I don’t fucking understand it, but I need her. I can’t eat, I can’t sleep, I can’t fucking think about anything but her. We have to at least talk to her.”
“What if she says no?”
“Then I’ll tell her we won’t be dominate. We’ll just have vanilla sex with her.”
“We?” Mason cocked his eyebrow at me. “Can you even do vanilla sex anymore?”
“Yes,” I snapped.”
“What if she still says no?”
“She won’t.” My confidence was only half faked.
Mason stared thoughtfully at me and I took my own sip of coffee. “When she says yes to fucking us -”
“If,” Mason said.
“Fine. If she says yes to fucking us, I want to be her first,” I said. “It’s important to me.”
“Why?”
“I don’t know,” I said honestly. “It just is. It’s special and…”
Fuck, I sounded like a goddamn pussy.
Mason thought about it for a moment before nodding. “Yeah, okay. If she even agrees to have sex with us.”
“She will,” I said.
“She may not want you to be her first. You know that, right?”
I stared into my coffee. “Yeah, I know.”
“Just try and be a little gentler around her,” Mason advised. “She’s attracted to you, that’s obvious, but you’re too intense for her.”
“I’ll try,” I said. “If she’ll ever come out of her bedroom and -”
“Good morning.”
Naomi’s soft voice made my cock stiffen immediately. She stepped tentatively into the kitchen, and Mason jumped up and pulled out the chair next to him. Afraid she’d see the obvious tent in the front of my pants, I stayed where I was.
“Thank you,” she said.
She sat down and Mason said, “Do you want coffee?”
“Oh no, I can’t,” she said. “My father says that coffee is for weak-willed people and…” She cleared her throat. “Yes, please. I would love some coffee.”
Mason poured her a cup of coffee and brought it to the table along with milk and sugar. He set it in front of her and she gripped the handle of the mug with obvious apprehension.
“Sweetheart, you don’t have to drink the coffee if you don’t want to,” Mason said.
“I want to,” she said. “I want to – to start trying and doing new things.”
Her gaze landed on me and when I spoke, my voice was low and filled with obvious need, “You can try or do whatever you want, baby.”
“Dane!” Mason said.
I could hear the exasperation in my best friend’s voice, and I tried to reign in my lust. I seemed to lose all control when I was around Naomi.
“Sorry,” I muttered.
“It’s fine,” Naomi said. She took a sip of coffee and both Mason and I grinned at the look on her face.
“It’s so bitter,” she said.
“Try putting in some sugar and milk,” Mason said.
She added both and sipped at it again before adding another two teaspoons of sugar. She stirred, sipped, and then smiled at us. “That’s better.”
“You like it sweet,” Mason said with a laugh.
“How did you sleep?” I asked.
“Not great,” she admitted.
“Why don’t you try and get some more rest after breakfast,” Mason said.
“What? No, I have to go to work,” Naomi said. “I already missed yesterday and it’s busy this week and -”
“You can have the rest of the week off,” I said.
“No, I can’t do that.”
“Yes, you can,” I said. “You can use vacation.”
“I don’t have enough vacation days to -”
“You’re taking the week off.” My voice was irate.
She immediately leaned back and stared into her coffee mug. I sighed inwardly. I was trying to be nice, to be “gentle” like Mason suggested by giving her time off, and I was already fucking it up.
“Sweetheart,” Mason said, “you deserve to take the week off. You need some rest and, besides, you don’t have any other clothes. You need to go shopping before you can come back to work.”
She pulled self-consciously at her too-big top and skirt. “I should have packed some clothes but I – I just wanted to leave, and I hate my clothes.” She said the last in a defiant little mutter.
“We hate your clothes too,” I said.
“Oh my God,” Mason said. “Dane, try and -”
He was interrupted by Naomi’s adorable laugh. “My mother made them for me, and she hates that I’m fat, so she made my clothes really big to shame me.”
“You’re not fat,” I said. “You’re beautiful and I love your curves.”
She blushed and took another sip of coffee. “Thank you for saying that.”
“It’s true. So, you need to buy some new clothes then?”
“Yes. Jemma at work asked me to go shopping with her on Saturday. I was going to say no because of my father but now I don’t have to say no.”
“No, baby, you don’t,” I said. “You can do whatever you want. In fact, I’ll let Jemma know she has the day off as well. You two can go shopping today instead of waiting until Saturday.”
“Oh, that’s okay,” she said. “I can pick up a few things this morning and then go shopping on Saturday. I have to go to my parents’ place today anyway and -”
“What?” I shouted. I shouldn’t have shouted but even just the idea of Naomi going anywhere near her father made my stomach twist.
Naomi’s hands were clamped around her mug, her face pale and troubled. I was fucking this up so bad.
Mason stroked her arm. “Naomi, you can’t go to your parents’ house.”
“I have to,” she said.
“No, you don’t.” My voice was still too loud, too hard and angry, and I tried to soften it. “Baby, you can’t go back there.”
“I need my car,” she said. “I left it there and I need it to get to work.”
“You don’t need a car,” I said. “I’ll drive you to work and anywhere else you need to go.”
Little frown lines appeared on her forehead. “I need my car.”
I realized what an idiot I was being. Naomi had spent her entire life being controlled by her father and even though I had the best of intentions, I was doing the same thing.
“You’re right. Of course you need a car. I’ll buy you a new one tomorrow,” I said.
She gaped at me. “No, you’re not.”
Before I could argue, Mason said, “Sweetheart, Dane and I will take care of getting your car from your parents, okay?”
“You’ve already
done enough for me,” she said.
“We want to help you,” Mason said. “Now, let’s get some breakfast into you and then we’ll go to the office and ask Jemma to go shopping with you today. All right?”
“All right,” she said quietly.
Mason stood and kissed her on the forehead before moving to the fridge. Unable to resist touching her, I reached across the table and took her hand. She smiled at me and even squeezed my hand a little, and my fucking heart immediately started racing like I was running a marathon. God, I was in so much trouble.
“You’re safe with us, Naomi,” I said. “I promise you.”
Chapter Five
Naomi
“Okay, so exactly how controlling was your father that you just left without any clothes or anything?” Jemma parked her car in the north end of the mall parking lot.
“Pretty controlling,” I admitted. “He made me give him my paycheque and I was only able to keep a little for myself. He didn’t really let me have any friends and he told me what I could and couldn’t wear. It’s why I wear such terrible clothes and put my makeup on in the car. He joined a religious cult years ago and dragged me and my mom and my sister into it. I finally had enough when he tried to get me to marry a guy who was, like, thirty years my senior.”
“Holy shit!” Jemma said. “That’s fucking crazy, Naomi.”
“I know.”
“So, you left your house, realized you didn’t have anywhere to go and went to the office?”
“Yes,” I said. “I thought maybe I could just sleep on the couch in the staff room for the night and come up with a plan in the morning but Mr. Wilson, uh, Dane, came back to the office too and caught me sleeping on the couch.”
I tried to keep my hands from twisting in my lap. I was a terrible liar and I felt really guilty for lying to Jemma, but I couldn’t tell her the truth. I couldn’t. If she knew that my boss and his best friend had bought me from my father, I would die of shame. Jemma seemed kind and sweet, but I didn’t know her that well. What if she told everyone else at the office that Dane basically owned me now?
“It’s really nice of Mr. Wilson to let you stay at his place,” Jemma said.
“Uh, yes, it is. He has a really big house so, um, you know…”
“He likes you,” Jemma said.
“No, he doesn’t.”
“Bullshit,” she scoffed. “I saw the way he was looking at you this morning. Hell, I can’t believe I didn’t see it before this. Not to mention, he’s letting you live at his house, he gave you the rest of the week off, and he practically demanded that I take the day off to go shopping with you. Your boss has it bad for you, sweetie, which means that Mason Shaw has it bad for you too.”
I turned bright red and stared out the window of the car. “You’re wrong. Dane just feels sorry for me, that’s all. He would do the same for you or any other employee in the office. He’s, uh, a really nice man.”
Probably would have been better if I could have said it with more conviction. It wasn’t that I didn’t think Dane was a nice man, it was just that he made me so nervous. I hated that he made me anxious, but I didn’t know how to fix it.
“I don’t think he would,” Jemma said. “Anyway, we’re not here to argue about whether your boss wants to bang your brains out or not. We’re here to get you some clothes that show off your kick-ass curves. But if things do go weird with living at Mr. Wilson’s house, I rent a room in a house full of college kids that you can crash in. They party every goddamn night, you’ll have to share a bed with me and a bathroom with about ten other people, but it’s there if you need it.”
“Thank you, but I’m good for now,” I said. “Now that I can keep my entire paycheque, it shouldn’t take me too much longer to save up for my own place.”
Jemma smiled at me. “Well, as much as I hate the circumstances, I’ll admit I’m kind of enjoying having a day off from work to go shopping with you. I’ve been dying to do a makeover on you since the first day I started. No offense, girl, but your clothes aren’t great.”
“I know, but I’m going to change that. I’m going to,” I hesitated, “start living life to the fullest.”
“Well,” Jemma eyed my breasts critically, “I think living life to the fullest means wearing a bra that hikes your boobs up to where God intended so let’s hit the lingerie store first.”
* * *
“I really shouldn’t,” I said.
“Why not?” Jemma opened the trunk to her car. It was nearly six hours later, and we were both laden down with bags. I hadn’t actually bought that many new clothes. I didn’t have a lot of cash, and I wasn’t sure what Dane would be charging me for rent and groceries, so I hadn’t wanted to spend too much money. But after we picked up a few new work outfits and casual outfits for me, we finished up Jemma’s birthday shopping. It was fun to go shopping with her. I almost felt like a normal person. I was just a regular woman out with a friend and shopping for some new lingerie to wear for her boyfriend.
Don’t you mean boss and his best friend?
I put the bags in the trunk and Jemma slammed it shut.
“I don’t think Dane would like it if I went to a party with a bunch of college students,” I said.
Jemma frowned at me. “He’s not your boyfriend, and he’s only your boss during working hours. It’s nice of him to give you a place to stay but that doesn’t give him the right to tell you what to do.”
“He doesn’t,” I said immediately. “He wouldn’t. I just…”
Part of me wanted to go to the party with Jemma. I had never gone to a party before, never drank alcohol or flirted with men. I wanted to try all of those things, so why was I hesitating?
Because you know what you really want is to drink alcohol and flirt with Dane and Mason.
My inner voice was really starting to get on my nerves. Even if Dane and Mason were crazy or weird enough to actually still want me, my first time couldn’t be with two men. Normal women didn’t do stuff like that, and I desperately wanted to be normal.
“It’s just a party,” Jemma said encouragingly. “It’s at the house I live in for goodness sake and I know most of the people going to the party. They’re all good people, I promise. You said you wanted to live life to the fullest, right? This is the perfect opportunity to go to a party for the first time. I won’t let anything bad happen to you, I promise. I have to work in the morning so it’s not like I’m going to get crazy tonight.”
She put her arm around my shoulders and gave me a quick squeeze. “You can even try a couple drinks if you want and just crash in my room with me tonight.”
“I’ll do it,” I said.
“That’s my girl!” Jemma said. “C’mon, we’ll stop and have a quick bite to eat – my treat – and then we’ll head back to my place to get ready for the party. You’re going to be popular with the guys, honey, I promise.”
“I don’t know how to flirt,” I said.
“I’ll give you some pointers over dinner,” she said with a careless wave of her hand. “Let’s go”
“I just need to give Dane a quick call.” I pulled my cell phone from my purse. There were three missed calls from my mother, but I didn’t feel even a twinge of guilt. She had gone along with my father’s plan to sell me to the horrible Deacon Dennison and I had nothing left to say to her.
“He’s not your boyfriend,” Jemma reminded me.
“I know,” I said, “but he was expecting me back for dinner and it would be rude not to let him know I had a change in plans. It’ll take me one minute to call him.”
“All right, but don’t let him talk you out of it,” Jemma said.
“Why would he?”
She rolled her eyes. “It’s almost adorable how clueless you are to the fact that your boss wants to bend you over his desk and fuck you silly.”
I turned scarlet and scowled at her. She laughed and climbed into the car. “Go on. Give Mr. Wilson a call while we’re driving to the restaurant. Let’s see what he s
ays about you going off to party with a bunch of college boys.”
* * *
Mason
When Dane’s cell phone rang, I snagged it from his desk. I didn’t recognize the number. “Dane, your phone’s ringing.”
“Answer it,” he shouted. He was sitting outside his office at Naomi’s desk, searching her computer for a file. I was about to suggest he either give up or give Naomi a quick call.
I hit the answer button. “Good afternoon, Mason Shaw speaking.”
“Mason?” Naomi’s soft voice held surprise. “Why are you answering Dane’s phone?”
“Hi!” I sounded like an overexcited schoolboy and I cringed. I had a feeling I was on the verge of falling for Naomi just as hard as Dane had.
“Hi,” she said. “Is Dane okay?”
“He’s fine,” I said. “Just looking for the Garret file on your computer. Any idea off the top of your head where it is?”
“Yes, it’s under the new proposals folder.”
“Perfect, thanks, sweetheart. How was your day of shopping?”
“Um, it was really good. I got some new clothes. Clothes that fit.” Her voice turned shy. “Jemma says they look really good on me.”
“I can’t wait to see them tonight,” I said. If my growing cock was any indication, I also couldn’t wait to see her out of those new clothes.
“Uh, that’s actually why I’m calling. Jemma invited me to go to a party at her house tonight and I said yes.”
My stomach dropped. I wanted to immediately drive to the mall and snatch Naomi away from Jemma. Instead I said, “That sounds like fun.”
“Yeah, I think it will be,” she said. “I might just crash at Jemma’s tonight too. Just because, you know, we might have a couple of drinks.”
Every part of me wanted to tell her no. Tell her that she wasn’t allowed to go to a party without us, and she certainly wasn’t allowed to drink alcohol when we weren’t around.
“Have you tried alcohol before?” I asked.
“No.”
“Don’t have more than one or two drinks,” I said. I sounded as harsh as Dane, but I couldn’t help myself. The thought of Naomi being drunk around other guys made my blood boil. What if they took advantage of her?