Dante’s voice shook when he said, “Yes, Master.”
Dante took my hand, tugged me toward the living room. When he went to sit at one end, I sat beside him, getting as close as I could.
We remained just like that when Ransom Bishop knocked on the door.
IAN
I greeted Ransom at the door. “Thanks for coming, man.”
“I brought backup,” he said before stepping through the doorway and into the foyer.
Behind him was Zeke Lautner. A few steps beyond, Liam Murphy stood sentry, their keen gazes scanning the street before they stepped into the house.
I shook Zeke’s hand, then clasped the hand of my fellow Irishman, pulling Liam into me and slapping him on the back. It was good to see him, though I wasn’t fond of the circumstances.
“Let’s see the damage,” Ransom said, his tone flat and even, a no-nonsense guy when it came to business.
With a wave of my hand, I directed them toward Dante’s wing of the house. I pulled up the rear when Isaac appeared and led the way.
All three men were silent as they took it in, walking through the bedroom, the bathroom. Ransom went into the closet, glanced around.
“Let me see your computers,” Zeke said, his deep voice booming. “I’ll do a quick scan, ensure he didn’t plant something there.”
“Sure thing,” I replied. “They’re in the basement.”
He gave a backhanded wave, signaling he would find the way.
“He’s lost it,” Ransom mused, staring at the destruction.
“Yeah,” I agreed, nodding toward the pictures. “Those were all taken here. He’s definitely been watching the house. Not sure the last time, though. Heaven’s been gone for a few days, but he doesn’t seem to know that.”
“She safe?” Ransom asked.
I nodded. “At her sister’s. Probably wouldn’t hurt to put a man on her house, though. Keep an eye out.”
Ransom nodded.
“Probably tracking Dante’s GPS,” Liam said. “Could’ve hacked all their phones.”
I’d already thought about that. Too little, too late, but whatever.
“We needed to gut the room anyway,” Isaac said, the venom in the words only slightly masked.
“Upgrade the security,” Ransom said, not bothering to ask what we currently had. Since the bastard had overridden it, it didn’t matter.
“Could you do a second sweep for me?” I asked Ransom. “Need to ensure I didn’t overlook something.”
Liam was the one who grinned. “I brought some new toys. Won’t miss anything.”
“How’s Dante holding up?” Ransom asked when Isaac took Liam through the rest of the house.
“He’s pissed.” I glanced toward him when we went back to the kitchen. “Can’t blame him.”
“No.” Ransom thrust his hands in his pockets. “Good thing you’re in town.”
I’d thought about that at least a dozen times since we walked through the door. I didn’t want to think what might’ve happened if they’d been alone when this happened. Or worse, if that sick bastard had come in while they were asleep.
“Any reason you didn’t call the cops?” Ransom asked, his dark eyes pinning me in place.
He missed nothing, I knew.
“Don’t need their help,” I said simply.
“Because you’re relying on mine, correct? Only mine?”
“For now,” I said quietly, holding his stare. I wasn’t above reaching out for help if necessary. Not when it came to their safety.
“I don’t want any blood on your hands, Ian.”
“Don’t have to worry about that.” That much was true. I would call in the ghosts who passed in the night before I would risk that.
“Need more eyes here?” he offered.
“Nay. Got it covered.”
“That’s what I’m worried about.” He glanced toward the living room. “The girls know what’s going on?”
I shook my head. “Everly saw the room, but no, Dante hasn’t told them his story.” I was hoping he would, but it wasn’t my place to push him. Not yet, anyway.
“I’ll put someone on the other girl’s house.”
I nodded.
We turned toward the basement stairs when Zeke came stomping up them. He glanced my way, gave a slight shake of his head. “Nothing. I even scanned the network. Found the back door he came in through the security system. Plugged it. He’s not too savvy, but he’s got some knowledge.” He smirked. “Can’t say the same for you. Quite talented.”
“All Isaac,” I assured him.
“Perhaps he needs to come work for me.”
“Perhaps not.” I couldn’t see my brother jockeying a desk for the rest of his life. He’d go insane.
Zeke smirked again. “Figured as much.”
For the next half hour, the five of us moved through the house, going through every room, closet, and bathroom several more times to ensure we hadn’t missed anything. By the time I watched them walk out the front door, I felt better. No way we’d missed anything.
It was only a small comfort, considering.
“I’ll get someone in to redecorate,” Isaac noted, pouring his favored whiskey into a glass.
“Yeah. I’ll tear out the Sheetrock in the morning, toss the rest.”
Footsteps sounded, drawing my attention. Dante appeared, hands in his pockets, his face expressionless save for the glint of anger in his blue eyes.
“You all right?” I asked, squeezing his shoulder when he came closer.
“I need to be part of this.”
Yeah, I had a feeling he was going to say that. Dante was damaged from years of abuse, but he wasn’t going to risk those he loved.
“I’ll agree to that,” Isaac told him. “Once you tell Everly what happened.”
Dante’s head shot up. “All of it?”
“Yes.” He sipped his drink. “She loves you. Don’t you think she deserves to know what she’s risking?”
“And Heaven?”
Isaac shrugged. “She deserves to know, too. But that’s up to you.”
Dante’s eyebrows lowered. “I won’t let him hurt them.”
I stood tall, glared at him. “And we won’t let him hurt you. Ever again.”
“It’s a small price to pay,” Dante mumbled.
“What did you say?” I got right up in his face, nose to nose.
Dante didn’t flinch. “If that’s what it takes…”
“Bullshit. You’ve tried that already. It’s our turn to take care of the problem.”
Dante’s hardened gaze scanned my face before he finally nodded.
Isaac cleared his throat. “I need you to watch Everly. Dante and I have some unfinished business.” He pinned Dante with a hard glare. “You. My bedroom. Shower first. Then do as I told you earlier.”
Something softened in Dante’s face seconds before he said, “Yes, Master.”
When Dante was out of earshot, I turned to Isaac, thrust my hand through my hair. “This ends now,” I growled. “I won’t tolerate that bastard walking into my house…”
“I know.” Isaac’s voice was low, his tone understanding. He glanced at his watch. “It’s early yet. Wait till morning to make the call.”
I knew he was referring to the time in Dublin. It was two in the morning there, and while I knew a few people who’d be up, it could wait a few more hours.
“Aye.”
Isaac nodded toward the bedrooms. “This won’t take long.”
“Yeah. I’ll sit with her for a bit.”
Isaac moved with purpose, disappearing while I joined Everly in the living room. When I went to sit beside her, the little fairy moved over easily.
“Stand up,” I directed, keeping my voice low, just between the two of us.
She got to her feet, wary eyes scanning my face, probably wondering what I was up to.
“Remove the butterfly,” I told her.
Clearly having figured out the contraption, Everly tucked her han
ds beneath her skirt, deftly removed the device, setting it on the coffee table behind her.
I patted my lap.
When she turned to sit, I grabbed her arm, shook my head. She stepped forward, straddled my legs.
Unable to resist, I slid my hand beneath her hair, pulled her mouth to mine. I wanted to feel her wrapped around me. I needed her to clear the evil out of my head. Otherwise, I wouldn’t be able to sleep. Nor would she.
When the kiss ignited, I released her head, working to free my cock from my slacks. With minimal movement, I shoved them down my hips, adjusted Everly so she was hovering right where I wanted, then guided her down on my cock.
I groaned as her slick, warm pussy sheathed me.
It was then I realized I wasn’t wearing a condom. And I hadn’t worn one when we were in the pool the other night, either.
Holy shit.
It didn’t matter because I knew she was on birth control, but I’d failed in that regard. I’d taken what ultimately didn’t belong to me. My brother and I had agreed, this was how it would work. Now … I wasn’t sure I could ever go back to having a barrier between us.
Feeling the overwhelming glide of her sex along mine, I got lost in her. Lips and tongues glided together as she rode me, working us both into a frenzy. I practically ripped her shirt from her body, her bra following. I filled my hands with her pert tits, squeezing roughly, inhaling her sighs and moans.
“A chroí…” I held her hips, jerked her down on me. “Fuck…” I dropped my head back, let the pleasure consume me. Her lips brushed over my skin, whisper-soft in response to the soft bites she trailed.
She was everything I’d ever wanted, more than I deserved. And I wanted her with a passion I couldn’t explain. The first thought in my head when I woke up, the last when I went to sleep. She was my heart, my nirvana, my absolute sanity, and in the short time I’d had her, she’d burrowed in deep. So fucking deep.
I wrapped my arm around her, jerked her to me, holding her still. “Fuck me,” I growled in her ear.
Her hips swiveled, trying to give me everything I asked for, but unable to move enough to get there. With a low growl, I grabbed her ass with both hands, lifted her as I stood, then pinned her to the nearest wall before fucking her ruthlessly.
This woman … my little fairy … she was what I needed, and I was tired of pretending otherwise.
Her arms wreathed my neck as she held on tight, urging me on with soft pleas, desperate moans.
“Mine,” I growled against her neck.
“Yours, Ian,” she whispered.
Her acceptance snapped the thread holding me together. My movements became frantic. The overwhelming need to mate, to claim fueled my blood, had me slamming into her as I crushed her to the wall. I nipped her flesh, slightly aware of the bruises that would mar her skin. It only made me hotter.
Her lips pressed to my ear. “May I come?”
“Come for me, a chroí. Fuck yes.”
Her pussy clamped down, milking my cock. My release slammed into me when she cried out my name again and again.
It was then I knew that I would never let her go. Never.
TWENTY-FOUR
Everly
When I woke up the next morning, I took advantage of being alone for a little while.
After brushing my teeth, I showered, letting the warm water pelt over my skin for long minutes. I washed, shampooed, shaved, conditioned, then climbed out. I’d noticed all of my things had been moved into Isaac’s bathroom. The necessities I’d brought with me, as well as a few things he must’ve picked up or ordered online.
My heart swelled, threatened to burst in my chest when I opened the closet door, saw all of my things hanging there. They hadn’t been there last night before we left for the club, which meant sometime in the night or early morning, Isaac had moved them.
With trembling hands, I pulled on a T-shirt and shorts, my heart overflowing.
Until I thought about Ian. Our encounter last night. Something had changed between us, something I’d always thought was there. For whatever reason, he’d been holding back from me. I’d given it considerable thought lately. Tossed around the notion that Heaven had been the cause, the distraction. But nothing had ever arisen from their time together. So not Heaven.
It wasn’t Dante because Ian had established a relationship with him from the beginning and they had something … special. Between only them. The same as Isaac did with Dante.
Which left me with only one though. Whatever was holding Ian back pertained to Isaac. The question was, was it between the two of them, some issue they needed to address? Or did Ian think I only wanted Isaac on those terms? We hadn’t discussed it. In fact, no one had ever given me the opportunity to tell them what I wanted. Hence the reason I was now taking every opportunity to show Ian, hoping against hope that they would figure it out.
I remembered the look in Ian’s eyes last night when he’d fucked me in the living room. Truth was, the more time I spent with him, the more I realized how deep I was in all this.
I loved him.
Not puppy love, either. Not some crush that would dissipate over time. This was a passionate burn, an ache in my chest that would cause both pleasure and pain over time, but ultimately, it would endure. I could feel it. I just knew.
It was the exact same love I felt for Isaac. For Dante.
Yes. That was the only explanation I had. I was in love with three men. Three very different men and I loved them all equally.
A knock sounded on the door, jerking me out of my wayward thoughts. I looked over, swiped the tear on my cheek as Isaac stepped into the room.
“What’s wrong?”
I smiled, knowing better than to tell him nothing. It would earn me punishment. Since I was already owed some from yesterday, tacking more on didn’t seem to be a wise choice.
Isaac came to stand in front of me, staring down, his glittering green eyes intense.
I stared up at him, and before I could stop the words, they came tumbling out of my mouth. “I love you.”
His expression didn’t change, eyes still fierce, affection in every line around his eyes. “I know.”
I made a sound, part laugh, part sob.
Isaac chuckled, urging me back on the bed as he crawled over me. His mouth feathered kisses over my lips.
“I love you, too.” He shifted from English to Irish, the words flowing right over my head. “With all my heart,” he whispered, clearing things up for me with the translation.
I threw my arms around his neck, buried my face there, and sobbed, the emotional release ripping through me. My heart felt too big for my chest, an ache growing there. The feeling wasn’t painful. No, that wasn’t the right way to describe it.
I wanted to tell Ian the same thing, but I wasn’t sure I could. Not when Isaac looked at me the way he did. It was as though I was betraying him somehow, though we’d all gone into this with our eyes wide open. Or I thought we had, anyway.
It was in that moment I knew something would have to give.
I just needed time to figure out what.
ISAAC
By noon, we had a Dumpster being delivered and the guest room stripped down to the studs.
By three, a contractor was scheduled for later in the week, a designer already tasked with decorating the space with Dante in mind.
And by five, Everly was putting the final touches on dinner. Everyone seemed to be on edge, and I couldn’t say I blamed them. We’d spent the entire day focusing on the destruction that bastard had wreaked, dealing with the havoc his threats had induced.
I wasn’t willing to allow that evil to settle into the house any more than it already had, so I decided to take the reins.
When Dante appeared in the kitchen, I addressed both of our submissives.
“Tonight, you’ll be eating dinner naked,” I said in passing.
“If that pleases you, my Liege,” Everly said sweetly, not blinking an eye.
“It’ll please me v
ery much,” I told her.
“Of course, Master,” Dante said, his shoulders still holding too much tension.
I joined Ian in the dining room, wanting to see his expression when the naked submissives arrived.
I wasn’t disappointed, his eyes darkening with approval as they came in, set the plated food on the table before taking their seats.
“Well, this is a nice surprise,” Ian noted, his eyes raking over Everly when I pulled her into my lap rather than letting her sit in a chair.
“Good to see you didn’t redden his ass too much,” Ian noted, a glint of humor in his eyes as he glanced over at Dante.
“I don’t think he’ll forget that punishment for a while.”
“Definitely not, Master,” Dante grumbled.
I gave them a few minutes to eat, feeding Everly myself. The conversation moved to mundane things. Dante brought up the fact that Everly’s birthday was in a few days, something we’d all started planning for. No one mentioned anything that had happened last night.
“I’d really like to thank Everly for continuing to feed us meat although she won’t eat it herself,” Ian said, keeping the mood light.
“I second that,” I told her, lifting my glass in a toast.
“Well, as much as I don’t like doing it, I love you guys more.” She chuckled.
With that perfect segue, I decided to broach the subject I’d been pondering all day. “Speaking of love…” I said, drawing all eyes to me. “We would like the two of you to move in,” I said, setting my glass on the table. “Permanently.”
Everly looked at Dante. Dante looked at me. I knew it came as somewhat of a surprise, but it couldn’t have blindsided them too much.
“If someone wants to raise an argument as to why they disagree, now’s the time to do so.” I stared at Dante, waited.
His eyes dilated and I noticed some of the tension ease out of his posture.
I glanced at Everly.
She had no verbal response, either.
“Since the day you got here, you haven’t been merely houseguests,” Ian said, taking the conversational baton. “And no, we’re not prone to making rash decisions. We certainly aren’t starting now.”
Still nothing from either of them.
Their Fairy Princess (Office Intrigue Book 7) Page 27