More, just a little more. The words sang through her mind, but with the fast, panting breaths and the pulsing need rocking through her, she couldn’t form the words. She surged back against him and tried to force some kind of sound from her lips.
“Please.” She strained to find that extra something that would send her over the edge. Her voice barely rose above a whisper.
His fingers firmed over her clit. He stroked the bundle of her sensitive flesh. Her entire body tightened as the pleasure burst. The powerful sensation washed over her. Each stroke of his cock caused a frisson of heat to ripple through her, which extended the searing orgasm.
Teague continued to thrust into her. She arched into his driving hips, savoring the intensity. His chest brushed against her back, and he spread kisses over her shoulder. The feel of his teeth grazing her skin sent a shiver rippling down her spine. He pulled her body tight to his while he came with a low groan.
The strength and warmth of his embrace delighted her. She wished this could last all night. His body shook with the force of his climax. He continued to move against her, as if he didn’t intend to give up the feeling. His arms tightened, holding her against him. He panted.
“You undo me. I planned to play with you more than this.” He pressed kisses to her shoulder and neck.
She understood what he meant. He did the same to her. She’d never been so ready so fast with any other man. Well, anyone other than Berenger, Kassius, and him. Her body seemed so sensitive to their touches, but she knew the connection went deeper than sex. The deep attraction and lust simmered between them, but for her, at least, strong emotion combined with the desire.
“You make me wild for you, and it’s more than I ever expected.” She tried to will strength back into her legs. The only things that kept her from hanging by her wrists were the table and his body pressing her against it.
“Now, that gives me incentive to make it better for you. I aim to keep exceeding your expectations.” Teague reached up and untied one of her hands.
She pulled both of her arms down and unfastened the cloth from around her other wrist. His arms came around her. He hugged her tight for a moment. She leaned back against him, savoring the feeling of having his body next to hers.
“We’d better get dressed and go back to the grove. Kassius will be looking for us if we don’t return soon.” Teague released her and stepped back.
“I’m sure he’ll know you lured me off to have hot sex in the nearest private spot you could find.” She looked over her shoulder and smiled while he went to get her shirt. “There isn’t a bathroom or sink here, is there?”
“Not in this building. This is strictly machinery. Next time, I’ll take you to the winery. Wherever we go, I’ll bring something to clean up with.” Teague shrugged but handed her the strip of cloth he’d used to tie her hands. “Use the cloth to clean up. There is a water spigot where you can wash your hands and wet the cloth if you want.”
After she’d finished, Sephanie pulled up her pants and fastened them. Teague waited with her shirt. She took it and slipped into it. It didn’t take long before she was ready to go with him. Even though she yearned to be with Kassius too, she’d love to stay here and play. Teague didn’t linger. He led her out of the shed.
Teague held her hand while they strolled through the orchard to where men still worked at the harvest. No one seemed to notice when they arrived, and Kassius stood on the platform, busily filling a crate. He turned toward them as they walked up to the platform Teague had been using.
“Come here.” Kassius pointed at her.
She stopped and blinked. She didn’t know what to expect from him. It was the first time she’d had sex with only one of them. She had no idea how he’d react. Would he be jealous? She’d thought she was prepared for a relationship with two or more men, but suddenly that certainty disappeared. She didn’t want to cause trouble between them.
Teague sent her off with a push in the small of her back. She studied Kassius as she eased over to him. The moment she arrived at the platform, he held out his hand. She let him pull her up in front of him. His arms came around her, and he held her tight.
“I missed you, baby.” He inhaled deeply. “You smell so good. I can’t believe he beat me to it.”
She frowned up at him, not quite understanding. Between enjoying his embrace and relaxing after worrying what he’d think about her going off with only Teague, she couldn’t focus on his words.
“Beat you to it?” She hugged him back and breathed in the fresh woodsy scent of his soap or maybe cologne.
“I planned to steal you away later during a break and give you a tour of the property that might not have gotten past the first building we came to.” He laughed. “But don’t worry, baby. I haven’t changed my mind. I’ll still take you away during our first break.”
* * * *
Sephanie looked at the array of tools spread out on a cloth beside Berenger’s legs. She sat on the floor beside him. After he’d returned to the vineyard, he’d come straight to the grove where she was still helping Kassius and Teague.
She’d jumped from the platform to hug him. Berenger caught her close and held her tight. When he’d said something about going to fix some harvester in an equipment barn, she’d been sad she wouldn’t be able to see him longer. After he lowered her to the ground, he didn’t release her. He took her hand and led her away with only a call back that she was going to help him.
She’d half expected him to get her into a building and for the clothes to come off. Not that she would have minded that at all. He hadn’t done anything except hug her and cup her ass before gathering his tools.
“I saw you looking at skimmers last night. Do you know what you want?” Berenger’s voice sounded muffled.
She’d viewed some of the latest models of skimmers on vid last night. Since the accident had been caused by someone’s sabotage, her insurance coverage would pay for most of a new vehicle.
“Something sporty like my last one.” She shrugged, reached over, and switched two of the tools.
“I’ll help you pick out something safe,” Berenger said as he reached for one of the tools.
She held back a chuckle at the word “safe.” He was so like her brother and father in that way. They’d both tried to steer her to sedate models before she’d bought her first Duce. She loved that he wanted to keep her safe, but she wasn’t getting some old-lady skimmer.
His hand moved across the cloth. He grabbed one of the tools that she’d switched. She heard a clink and a mutter before he put it back and took the other one. She grinned.
He was ultraorganized when it came to his work. She did understand that. At her bakery, everything had a place. She couldn’t stop from messing with him.
“That would be nice, but I still want something with power.” She ran her fingers over one of the tools.
“Not again.” Berenger clasped her wrist.
She leaned over so she could look at him. He scowled at her. She gave him a big smile to show she wasn’t intimidated.
“Have you always been able to fix things?” she asked as she straightened.
“Yes. My mom said I started taking things apart to see how they worked almost as soon as I could walk. Probably an exaggeration, but I do remember taking apart toys when I was young. I learned to fix them; otherwise my parents took the broken toy away.” A clank sounded just after he spoke, followed by a curse.
“Did you get that scar on your leg trying to fix something you took apart?” She ran her hand over his thigh. The scar was hidden by his pants, but she could visualize the straight path of it.
He laughed softly. “No, I got that one while I was out with my brothers. We were messing around a construction site. I was interested in the tools, but they were all put away.”
He had two brothers and a sister. “Three boys at a construction site. That sounds like a recipe for danger.”
“Well, it was dangerous. We were running around that construction s
ite, playing tag. I ended up falling onto a piece of pipe sticking up. It ripped through the skin.” He reached down and laced his fingers with hers while he scooted out from under the equipment.
She winced at the thought of the pain he must have felt. “Why did it scar so badly?”
“We were scared to tell my mother what we’d been doing. It did bleed some, but by the time we got home, it stopped. We were more afraid of her reaction than what would happen with the wound.” Berenger’s mouth curved up in a wicked grin. “Needless to say, by the time I did tell her, it was infected.”
“If she’s anything like my mom, you were in more trouble for hiding it than for going to a construction site.” She tightened her hand around his.
“Very much true. Believe me, we got yelled at for going to the construction site.” Berenger grinned. “Come here. Let me hold you before I feel obligated to crawl back under there and finish the work.”
“You had a pretty normal childhood, didn’t you?” She glanced over at him. From his expression when he’d spoken of his mother, she could tell he loved her.
“I had a great childhood. Teasing my sister, roughhousing with my brothers, and my mother and father there to stop the chaos before it got out of hand.” He lifted her into his lap. “I want that for my children. Someone always there for them, but also to guide them. And a place they can come home to, even when they have a home of their own.”
“I’ve always wanted something similar. I was surrounded by a protective wall of aunts, uncles, overprotective brothers, and a strict father. I like the idea of passing on that feeling of security and frustration.” She leaned into him.
“I know what you mean. You can hardly get away with anything, but in some cases, looking back, it’s a great thing.” His palm settled on her stomach.
“Yeah, I can remember hating it a few times.” She let her hand roam over his chest, enjoying the opportunity to be close to him and share part of her life.
“We can build that for each other. I know Teague wants a home exactly as you described.” He dropped a kiss on top of her head.
“And what about Kassius?” She looked up at him. Did he want something completely different? Did he not want a family?
“Sephanie, in some areas of life, Kassius can be demanding. He’ll require things be just so, but that’s mostly to do with his business. In regard to our relationship, he’ll be thrilled if you’re in our lives and are happy. He wants you. Everything that comes after is a bonus,” Berenger said.
“Then I guess we need to focus on our relationship, because you have me dreaming of the future.”
“We definitely will. Kassius, Teague, and I aren’t the kind of men to let what we want slip away.” Berenger cupped her cheek. “We’ll show you we belong together.”
Chapter Sixteen
Sephanie let Berenger walk into the bakery ahead of her. His dark gray shirt stretched over his shoulders, but it was the way the tight black pants cupped his ass that held her gaze. He carried a small pad computer so he could get some work done and stay in touch with Kassius, Teague, and his shop. He walked around the bakery, glancing at the few customers. After he inspected the kitchen and looked over the people working there, he returned to her.
He’d been the one delegated to accompany her that morning. It hadn’t been easy to get them to agree to her going to work in the first place. She’d persisted. She couldn’t take off indefinitely. Her employees needed days off, and she had ordering and managerial duties if nothing else.
But the men hadn’t been content to bring her to work. They’d insisted one of them had to stay with her while she worked. Well, one of them or someone else. Berenger had come with her today because he was free. Teague had a meeting with his superiors at the Planetary Defense Headquarters, and Kassius had two of his best buyers coming. If it weren’t for that, all three men would be sitting in her bakery.
With a smile on her lips, she thought back to the discussion. She’d agreed to work in the front of the store today unless there was some sort of emergency in back. It was a compromise she was willing to make. She’d intended to open the bakery, but Berenger had nixed that idea the moment he’d heard how early she normally woke to do that. He insisted adamantly he had better things to do with her in the middle of the night than get up and go bake cakes and bread.
“Why don’t you sit, Berenger? I’ll bring you something to drink.” She pointed to one of the tables at the end of the display case. It was situated near the opening to get behind the counter.
He walked with her and sat at the gleaming dark-blue table. She went around the white display case and through the waist-high swinging door. She left the latch off for the moment since she would be taking him something warm to drink. He watched her while she worked. She fixed him a cup of one of her favorite teas and took it to him.
“Tell me if you want anything to eat or more to drink.” She trailed her hand over his shoulder.
“I will, baby.” Berenger put the small pad on the table and picked up the tea.
She wiped the counters and tables, cleaned the display cases, checked the baked goods, and refilled the hot-drink makers. The nutty scent of hot jalic made her mouth water. She liked the thick, spiced drink. When she noticed a spot of dust on her blue shirt, she brushed at it. She gave a quick look around to make sure she’d done everything.
By the time the next customers arrived, she’d finished her prep work. After lunch, a string of men and women wandered into the bakery. The stream of patrons eventually dwindled until she had a few moments to breathe. She set about the routine again of cleaning and making sure there were enough goods available as well as hot drinks for whoever stopped by.
“What’s that?” Berenger stood and headed for the front of the bakery.
She followed his movements, looking for whatever he saw. At first she didn’t see anything that would cause alarm, but then she saw a dark box sitting right against the outside of the door. When had that been placed there? She frowned.
The automatic door slid open when Berenger approached it. The box turned as the door brushed against it. Then the package exploded with a loud boom that rattled the doors and the cups on the tables. Something burst from the top and flew into the air. She gasped but noticed that after it shot up, the material didn’t fly outward. It almost seemed to hang in the air. The colorful mass separated and fluttered downward.
Sephanie put a hand to her chest. Her heart raced from the scare. Berenger had stumbled back at the loud noise but didn’t fall. She took stock of the situation. The door still hung on the frame. It rested at an odd angle, but the glass remained in place. Nothing else seemed to have been damaged.
Other than her shop’s reputation as a quiet refuge. Sephanie grimaced when she noticed the scared customers. Damn. The men were right. She should have stayed away from here.
She checked on Berenger first. He stared at the mess beyond the door. She tried to move in front of him to see any injuries, but he pulled her back. She hesitated. He probably thought there might be more danger, and she had to admit she was nervous herself. She knelt at his side and did the best she could. There wasn’t a mark on him. Relieved, she exhaled. At least no one was hurt. She couldn’t help wondering what the goal of this surprise was.
She wished she could stay near him and run her hands over him to be certain he hadn’t been injured. In spite of that, she went to the holo-comm and contacted the police, her brother, Kassius, and left a message for Teague. Her gaze swept over the strips littering the floor. Is this some over-the-top prank?
Determined to focus on the present and the necessary tasks, she moved the customers away from the front of the shop. She wouldn’t take the chance of anyone getting hurt if that box exploded again. Although she wanted to get everyone out of here, she knew they needed to stay as witnesses.
“Are you all right, Berenger?” She walked back over to him. A few of the colorful strips that had burst out of the box were scattered across the floor near t
he tables.
“I’m all right. The noise startled me.” He smiled at her and moved toward the door.
Sephanie nodded. It had scared her too. She looked at the rectangles on the floor. She thought she could make out letters or words on the pieces. She stepped forward and bent, intending to pick up one of them. Berenger pulled her up and back.
“Let the police see those first before you touch them.” Berenger put his arms around her. “I’d like to see what’s on them, but not until we know if there’s any type of information they can get from them.”
“All right, but they better catch whoever did this. They did this where someone else could get hurt. If this is about me, then they need to come at me, not people around me.” She eased out of his hold and walked away from him.
The police didn’t take long to get to the bakery. They came in through the service entrance. She smiled as she recognized Officer McCord. Relief flowed through her the moment she saw his familiar face. She didn’t want to explain everything to someone who didn’t know about all the other incidents.
“This is getting to be a habit.” Officer McCord strode over to her.
Berenger joined them. He put an arm around her shoulders. “One I’d like to stop. I don’t appreciate someone coming after her.”
“We’ll see what we can learn from this, but from first look, this is different from what was done to her Duce.” McCord walked to the door and bent to look at the bright scraps.
One officer began interviewing witnesses to see if he could find any answers from them. When he finished with each person, he ushered them out the back of the bakery. She folded her arms under her breasts, suddenly feeling cold. Berenger slipped behind her, and his arms wrapped around her.
Sephanie watched the officers near the door. They gathered evidence, including the box and pieces of debris that had been flung from it. Officer McCord brought one of the rectangular pieces over to where she and Berenger stood.
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