“And if they don’t tell us?”
“They’ll tell us,” Dane assured him as he scooped up his wallet and keys from the dresser. “They will tell us.”
* * * *
Jenna loved Sundays. Taurus closed Esoteria Saturday nights so she could fall into bed and sleep as late as she wanted. The phones were turned off, and Taurus knew his life was in danger if he disturbed her. Sundays were her time to unwind and simply be. Though she loved being his mistress, even Antony understood that on Sundays, Jenna needed loving care with no demands.
Sunday rituals involved sleeping until noon and then watching the women’s channel or the classic movie network while curled up on the couch or on the bed. She didn’t dress, she didn’t shower, and she didn’t care.
When the pounding came at the front door, punctuated by the piercing ringing of the doorbell, Jenna frowned. Who the hell had the balls to bother her before noon on a Sunday?
“Shall I answer it?” Antony asked as he headed toward the foyer, picking up the bath towel kept draped over the coat closet doorknob for just such occasions.
“You’d better. Sounds like they’ll be breaking it down in a minute. If Taurus ran out of coffee, you have my permission to kick him anywhere it will hurt the most.” Jenna turned toward the closet to find a robe.
She returned to find three large men in the foyer with Antony. “Taurus, what’s the meaning of this?” she asked her cousin who looked rather amused.
“These two woke me up demanding information about Sloan.”
“Oh? And why is that?” Jenna crossed her arms over her chest and leaned against the closet door.
She forced down a smile when Dane growled and took a step in her direction. “She’s ours, and we want her back.”
“So what’s stopping you?”
Merlin stepped in front of his partner before the bigger man tore the Domme in two out of frustration. “She never told us her last name. All we know is that she works at home and at a coffee shop downtown and writes under a pen name.”
“Maybe she doesn’t want you to find her.” Jenna straightened from the wall. She read the love shining from both men’s eyes but did not want to make it too easy for them. After all, they had disturbed her on her day off.
That statement had the two men exchange a glance before turning back to her.
“Then she needs to tell us that. We need to see her, talk to her, tell her things we didn’t tell her before we dropped her off here last week,” Dane said.
“Like you love her?” Taurus asked. “Or do you just want her as a subbie for another weekend? Someone for pet here to play with once in a while? If that’s the case, I’ll make it so you never find her.”
This time Merlin growled. “What we feel for Sloan is between us and her. Please, just tell us how to find her. Give us her last name, phone number, address, something so we can see her, talk to her.”
Jenna saw the love shining through his anguish and pain. A glance into Dane’s bright blue eyes showed he felt the same way. After a look toward Taurus, who nodded, she sighed. Pushing from the wall, she crossed to her antique secretary’s desk. Taking one of her business cards, she jotted down the name of the coffee shop where Sloan worked. Slipping the card into an envelope, she sealed it and returned to the foyer.
“Here. Don’t open it until you’re outside. And if you ever disturb me on a Sunday again, I promise someone will need first aid.”
Merlin accepted the envelope then leaned in and kissed her cheek. “Thank you.”
Dane kissed her other cheek. “We’ll treat her right.”
“Make sure you do, or I’ll sic Taurus on you.” She nodded for Antony to show them out.
* * * *
As soon as the elevator doors closed, Dane snatched the envelope from Merlin’s hand and tore it open. He ignored Taurus’ amused expression.
“She said to wait until we were outside.”
“We are. Outside her apartment,” Dane said as he pulled the business card from the envelope. He shoved the envelope in his pocket as he flipped the card over then turned it so he could read the back. “The Java Stop?”
He looked at Taurus whose smile broadened as the elevator stopped and the doors opened. “Might I suggest you go and have a cup of coffee?”
Gritting his teeth to keep from punching the other Dom in the nose, Dane nodded. With a low, throated growl, he left the elevator and stalked to the service entrance where they’d come in. He didn’t look to see if Merlin followed. He didn’t have to. His pet would be two feet back and just to his right, where he always walked, until Dane pulled him up to walk beside him.
As they crossed the parking lot, he pulled out his cell and called information. His dark mood deepened once he heard the address of The Java Stop. Why was Sloan working in one of the roughest neighborhoods in town?
“I’ve never heard of The Java Stop,” Merlin said as Dane drove.
“That’s because you live in the nice part of town.”
Chapter 12
Twenty minutes later, Dane parked and turned off the engine. The two men looked across the street, then at each other.
“No way,” Merlin whispered.
The only thing that identified the coffee shop was the metal sign hanging drunkenly above the entrance. That was all that was left of The Java Stop. The walls and sidewalk were still wet from where the fire had been put out. No fire trucks, police, or other public services workers remained. Yellow crime tape had been strung across the front of the building. Except for the brick walls, the building had been consumed by fire. Thankfully, the fire had not spread to the businesses on either side of it, or the entire block might have been destroyed. The only sign of life on the block was a woman sitting on the curb in the middle of an empty parking space between an old pickup truck and a sedan.
The woman’s face was hidden, resting against her knees, but Merlin recognized that hair. Strawberry blonde, short and flirty, he would be able to pick out their woman anywhere.
* * * *
Sloan didn’t know how long she’d sat on the curb and couldn’t make herself care. It was Sunday, and except for walk-in traffic, the street would remain quiet until after church let out. But today there would be no after-church crunch which often lasted through the lunch rush. No more Java Stop. No more job. How the hell was she going to pay her rent and keep her phone turned on now? She needed her paycheck, even if the tips weren’t the best.
“Angel? Are you all right?”
She stiffened as the deep, dark voice wrapped around her, offering comfort even in the horror of seeing her here at her lowest. She didn’t answer. She didn’t lift her head. She couldn’t. She was too embarrassed, too humiliated, too weary from struggling just to survive.
She felt them sit, one on each side of her, then hands turned her body to the right and began to massage her shoulders. Only then did she realize her shoulders had knotted as hard as rocks. She tried to relax as the fingers dug into the muscles, but it was difficult.
“Tough day, huh?” Merlin asked, leaning forward and brushing a kiss on the back of her neck.
“Tough life,” she admitted in a distinctly watery voice as tears continued to fall.
She didn’t fight when a large hand worked its way between arm and cheek to cup her chin. She held firm when Dane tried to lift her chin. She couldn’t face him. Not now. Not when she was losing everything.
“Talk to us,” he ordered in a gentle voice.
“And say what?”
“Tell us how we can help.”
The laughter burst forth before Sloan couldn’t stop it. It was sharp and bitter, much as the remnants of her life that lay shattered at their feet.
“Can you turn the clock back ten years so I can take things seriously in school? Or how about seven years so I can choose to stay in college and get a degree in something that pays real money? Or how about three years so I can change my mind about going out on my own so I could spend more time writing and not so muc
h time working? Or even to last year so I don’t trade in my old car for a newer one that just got stolen with my purse inside? Or just twelve hours so Marcie could make sure to unplug all the electrical equipment last night at closing so the coffee shop doesn’t burn down? Can you do that for me?”
Sloan could feel herself growing hysterical, but couldn’t stop. She couldn’t fight the bitterness and self pity any longer. She couldn’t even stop the tears that ran in a steady stream down both cheeks. This was it. Life had won. The challenge of simple survival had sent her over the edge. Now she would end up in a padded room somewhere. They’d talk about her as the woman who went crazy when life kicked her in the teeth once too often.
“Or maybe you and Merlin can…can…” Sloan broke down, unable to finish a crazy offer to prostitute herself. She couldn’t do that. She loved what they’d shared with each other too much to ruin their relationship by putting herself in the middle.
She tried to push him off when Dane wrapped his arms around her middle. She tried to fight when he pulled her into his lap. She tried to remain strong when he cuddled her into his chest and Merlin moved closer to kiss her hair.
Problem was, she was tired of being strong. Tired of fighting to survive. Tired of scraping by, of struggling to get a little ahead only to be shoved back down again. She was just plain tired.
“Shh, sweet Sloan. Don’t worry. We’ll take care of everything. We’ll take care of you from now on,” Dane whispered softly as he nuzzled her temple.
Merlin murmured his agreement as he rubbed a hand up and down her arm then tangled their fingers together.
Their gentle kindness ripped away the last of Sloan’s defenses. They were saying all the right things, but she could not give in and believe them. No one would step in and take care of another one for no reason, would they?
Sloan lifted her head. “Why?”
“Why what?” Merlin asked, looking at her with the dark chocolate eyes of an angel.
“Why are you here? This isn’t anywhere close to your house. What do you want? I don’t have anything.” She sniffed, trying to keep from crying any more.
If she kept this pity party up, she would make herself sick, and that was the last thing she needed.
“We’re here looking for you, sweet angel. We’ve missed you so much this week, but you didn’t leave us your name or phone number. So this morning we went to see Taurus and Jenna.”
“You spoke to Jenna on a Sunday? And you’re still alive?”
“She wasn’t happy, but we left there unscathed. But she only gave us the name of the coffee shop. Which is why we are here,” Dane continued to rub his cheek against her hair, reminding her of the dog she’d had as a child who loved to rub his face against her hand.
Merlin pushed in to lick a trail up her neck before saying, “I wouldn’t turn the clock back for anything. If you’d changed any of those past decisions, we might never have met and fallen in love with you.”
“That’s right,” Dane agreed. “Just think if we hadn’t met last week… No, I don’t ever want to think about that.” He shuddered and tightened his arms around Sloan, pulling her closer into his broad chest.
“You love me?”
“Yes, Sloan, our sweet angel. We love you.” Dane replied.
“But, we were only together two days.”
Merlin smiled and licked a line up her jaw. “It may have only been two days, but I knew you were the one for us when you wrapped your pretty fingers around the headboard when we played at the club.”
“Mmm, yeah, that was about when I knew, as well.” Dane took her earlobe between his teeth and nibbled. “Do you feel anything for us, angel?”
Sloan swallowed hard before nodding. “I love you, too. Love you both. From the moment Dane pulled me into his lap right after you bought me.”
“Will you come home with us now? Will you be our woman and let us take care of you? Let us be your Master and Sir?”
“Only if I can take care of you, as well.” Sloan smiled and took a deep breath, feeling the burden of surviving life alone drop from her shoulders. “I don’t have much, but I’m a hard worker, and I can get another job.”
“No,” Dane stated flatly.
Merlin stood and offered Sloan a hand. “We want you to spend your days writing. You are an artist with words and need to nurture your creativity. You will be a best-selling author if we have to buy ten thousand copies ourselves and give them away. We’re also willing to help with any inspiration you might need or research you’ll need to do.”
“Come, loves, it’s time to go home,” Dane said as he stood and wrapped an arm around each of his submissives. “I have a hankering to play.”
“Before we go, I have one last question for Sloan,” Merlin said.
“Yes?” she asked, wondering what else they could possibly want to know right now.
“What is your last name?”
THE END
www.coopermckenzie.webs.com
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Cooper McKenzie always thought she had been born a hundred years too late, but appreciates air conditioning, computers and other conveniences of modern day living. She enjoys the slower pace of New Bern, North Carolina as well as the history and small town community found there. In addition to dreaming up her next story, Cooper enjoys reading everything except scary books, singing in her church choir and needle-weaving.
Also by Cooper McKenzie
Claiming Their Dream Weaver
Loving Their Dream Weaver
Marrying Their Dream Weaver
The Billionaire’s Mate
Available at
BOOKSTRAND.COM
Siren Publishing, Inc.
www.SirenPublishing.com
His Sub's Submissive Page 8