His Twisted Choice

by Amelia James

  “You did what?”

  A giddy grin spread across her face. “It’s the perfect place. Third floor with a view of the mountains from the balcony, two bedrooms so I can use one as my office….”

  “Sounds great.”

  “It’s right between your house and Will’s.” She looked straight at me, waiting for my reaction.

  I played it cool. “That’s convenient.”

  The grin faded and she took a slow sip of her beer. “I didn’t plan it that way. This place just happened to fit all my criteria. If it bothers you, I can keep looking for something closer to you. Would you like that?”

  Splitting the distance between us didn’t bug me as much as not having her around when I got home every night. “I like having you here… in my house.”

  “I do, too, but we agreed this was just temporary, right? We’re not ready to live together.”

  “I thought it was going well.”

  “It’s been easy so far because you haven’t been home much.”

  I shrugged and kicked at the floor. “Did you put a deposit down?”

  “Not yet. They’re waiting for my credit and background checks to come back.”

  Maybe I could pay someone to fuck up her reports. I still had questionable connections. Don’t screw her over, asshole. Instead, I pasted a smile on my dry lips and hugged her. “I’m happy for you, babe.”

  She clapped like an overexcited circus seal. “Yay!”

  Let’s redirect that enthusiasm. I squeezed her thigh and leaned in for a kiss that would’ve melted her panties if she hadn’t gotten distracted by something behind me.

  Her eyes narrowed. “What the hell is she doing here?” Talia growled in my ear as I turned and spotted Will and Claire. I waved them over to the table. “You were supposed to invite him, not her.”

  Well, shit. I never thought Talia would have a problem with Claire. They got along fine at the office.

  “Hi, you two. Sit down.” Talia’s unnatural pitch made me shudder, and I turned to make sure that phony voice had actually come from her. Her fake smile didn’t quite reach her eyes as she stood to hug Claire. She hugged Will too, and Claire’s gaze lingered on them as Talia cooed in his arms.

  My assistant looked around, gritting her teeth as she carefully perched on her seat. “Nice place.”

  I raised my glass. “Good beer.”

  Will put his arm around Claire. She cuddled against him, and he nuzzled her hair. “I’ll protect you. I brought my gun.”

  She patted his thigh. “I did, too.”

  He laughed and she smiled. They kissed, and Talia’s plastic smile melted as they fondled each other under the table.

  Ah… she has a problem with Claire and Will. Noted.

  I ordered a round for everyone, and we all winced as the ancient juke box suddenly decided to blast some rigor mortis country song across the room.

  Talia took advantage of the interruption to snare Will. “Are you ready to take me on?” She nodded toward the pool table, but the smirk in his eyes told me he’d caught the double entendre too.

  “I’m ready for anything you’ve got, darlin’.”

  Claire’s jaw clenched as he stood and let Talia take him away. I scooted closer to her and watched my girlfriend flirt with my assistant’s date.

  Will racked up the balls then moved aside. “Ladies first.”

  Talia stepped up. “Big mistake.” She wiggled her ass as she bent over and lined up her shot. I’d seen that move before—she’d done it in nothing but a red bra and boots, exposing that tempting pussy while I tried to keep my hands off my dick. I’d failed, and would’ve again if my paralegal hadn’t been sitting beside me drumming her fingernails on the table. Instead, I took my pleasure in watching Talia tease my friend.

  Will walked around the table, moving Talia’s sweet ass out of his line of sight, but her shirt gaped open when she leaned down to take another shot. He shook his head in my direction, and I laughed, knowing exactly what the little slut was up to.

  She focused her gaze on the cue stick, following it across the table and over the edge to linger on Will’s crotch. She grinned and missed her shot.

  “Whoa.” Will stepped up. “How’d that happen?”

  Talia rubbed her hand over his chest. “I got distracted.”

  Claire crossed her arms over her chest. “Don’t let her get to you.”

  Talia glanced at us and backed away from Will. “Sorry.”

  He smiled and took his shot. “You will be.” He made two in a row, then missed.

  She laughed and cleared the table. “Two out of three?”

  “You’re on.”

  Their sexual tension smoldered under the surface while they played like old friends who hadn’t seen each other in years. A genuine smile lit Talia’s eyes, and Will looked more comfortable than I’d seen him since he’d moved here.

  “Try and make this shot.” He smacked the butt of her cue with his, causing her aim to go wild. She missed the cue ball entirely. “Hey, that’s dirty.”

  “Pay attention, babe.” He lined up a shot, and she slammed her hip against the table, barely shifting the balls.

  “Ow!” She groaned and rubbed her sore leg.

  “That’s what you get for trying to fuck with me.” He sank the eight-ball in the corner pocket.

  “No cheating this time.” Talia racked up the balls for game three.

  “That’s the only way I can beat you.”

  She drew the cue stick back and smacked the balls, sinking two off the break. A third bounced off the bumper and rolled into the side pocket. “Not my problem.”

  I shook my head, trying to recall when we’d ever spent an evening together without any conflict or tension. Even before Will and I had made her into our sexual plaything, my attraction to Talia created an underlying rift between us. But now, with all our emotions and perversions out in the open, we could enjoy each other’s company. Simple as that.

  “Doesn’t it bother you to see her so happy with him?”

  Their laughter echoed off the dingy walls as Claire’s question snapped me out of my musings. “No, it doesn’t. I like seeing her happy.” Wow, really? Watching a woman I loved have fun with another guy did not make me jealous. I loved it, and the fact that my friend—our friend—caused her happiness made it even better.

  After Talia whooped his ass, they strolled over to the table, Will’s arm around her shoulders. She slumped a bit when he sat down beside Claire and stroked her leg.

  “Got some sympathy for the loser?” Will asked.

  Claire smiled and tucked her hand between his thighs. “I’ve got more than that.” She leaned over and kissed him, parting his lips with her tongue while he moaned into her mouth.

  Talia sucked in her breath. “Enjoy it while it lasts, Claire. I was just about to claim victory.”

  Claire gasped, Will choked, and I jumped up, snatched Talia’s arm, and dragged her down a dark hallway, past the restrooms. She stumbled as I flung her into a shadowy corner. “What the hell were you thinking?”

  An awkward smile stretched her lips. “I was just… it was supposed to be a joke.”

  “You thought that was funny? Nobody else did.” I crossed my arms and leaned back against a closed door marked Employees Only.

  Her smile faltered. “I was teasing. She knew that, right?”

  “And what about Will? How do you think he feels knowing you’re a spiteful bitch?”

  She slapped her palms over her flaming face. “I didn’t mean… oh my God, I’m so embarrassed. Am I awful?”

  I was inclined to agree with her. “You’re selfish, and I can deal with it, but don’t inflict it on others, especially Claire.”

  She cowered and threw herself into my arms. “I couldn’t help it. When I saw them kissing, I just snapped. Jealousy is an ugly thing.”

  “Yes it is.” But the connection between me and Talia and Will had the potential to become much stronger because we had the power to eliminate the d
istrust between us… if we chose to take the risk. “But the funny thing is I wasn’t jealous of you and Will at all.”

  She looked up at me. “Really?”

  I brushed a strand of hair from her cheek. “Watching you tempt him turned me on. And seeing you so happy….” A lump formed in my throat, choking my words …is all I ever want.

  “We had so much fun. I hated to see it end.”

  “I could tell.” And it wasn’t fair to ask her to give that up. “It doesn’t have to end. You and me and Will… we’ll hang out together.”

  She nodded. “And if he has a girl with him, I’ll be nice to her.” A big stupid grin, all teeth, flashed over her face. “See how nice I am?”

  I laughed and backed her into the shadows. “I’d rather feel how nice you are.” I slipped my hand under her skirt and pulled her panties aside.

  “Mmm….” She kissed me, flicking her tongue in my mouth as she wrapped one leg around my ass.

  I plunged my finger into her pussy, stroking the wet heat from the inside out while I sucked a nipple through her shirt. She grabbed my dick through my pants, and I groaned. “Wanna fuck?”

  “Am I being too subtle?”

  I laughed and unzipped my pants. She slid her panties to the floor and held onto my shoulders while I picked her up and eased my dick into her wet flesh. My cock tingled inside her, aching for the release my workload had kept me from all week. “I missed you.”

  “You missed my pussy.”

  “Mm-hmm.” I kissed her, promising myself I’d make it up to her if I came too soon.

  Something wacked me across the shoulders. “Hey.”

  “What the fuck?” I set Talia on her feet and zipped, then turned to face a brawny, snarling waitress wielding an empty tray.

  “No fucking around here. I’m calling the cops.” She lumbered about and gripped the doorknob to the Employees Only room with her man-hand.

  “Whoa.” I grabbed her arm and she jerked back, nearly knocking me on my ass. “I’ll give you a good tip if you forget you saw us.” I pulled out my wallet and waved three twenties in her garishly made-up face.

  Her ruby red lips curled. “Add a couple more and I’ll bang you myself.”

  She’d snap me in half. “Um….” I gave her two more. A hundred bucks! “No banging necessary.”

  She stuffed the bills in her greasy apron. “Thank you. Go back to your table.” She shuffled into the Employees Only room.

  I shuddered and turned back to Talia, who’d slunk back into the corner. “Let’s go.” I picked up a pair of panties and handed them to her.

  “Those aren’t mine.”

  “Ew.” I flung the questionable fabric into the dark.

  “Where’d mine go?”

  “Forget them. I don’t think you want to put them on after they’ve been on that floor.”

  “Yuck.” She took my hand and we slipped out of the dark.

  Will stood and pulled out a chair for Talia. “Are you okay?”

  She smiled and nodded. “I’m so sorry, Claire. I didn’t mean to be rude.” She sat down beside Will’s date.

  Claire nodded. “Will told me you have a history. It must be hard to see him with someone else.”

  Talia bit her lip. “Yes, it is, but I need to deal with it.” She sighed and rested her elbows on the table, her chin in her hands.

  “Give it time.” Claire rubbed Talia’s shoulder.

  “Now this is what I like to see—Ow!”

  Will had smacked me upside the head.

  “I was just showing Talia how to make a joke.”

  She flipped me the bird.

  “Come on, babe.” Will beckoned Talia. “That dartboard’s calling us.”

  “I can’t play darts.”

  “No shit.” He grinned at me. “She throws like a girl.”

  “I am a girl. You should know—” She winced, but Claire forced a smile.

  Time for another joke. “Yep, last time I checked she had girl parts.”

  Will polished off his beer in one swallow, then slapped the glass down on the table and stood up, eyeing Talia. “Are you afraid of losing?”

  “Fuck, no.” Her chair screeched across the floor as she jumped up and followed him to the dartboard.

  I sat down beside Claire and picked up my unfinished beer. “Double dating with me is an adventure, eh?”

  She laughed. “Never a dull moment. I’d be disappointed with anything less.” Her gaze stuck to Will while he and Talia played their game.

  “You like him.” Leading the witness, but I was going somewhere.

  “Yeah. He’s so charming. I can see why Talia can’t resist him.”

  Not where I wanted to go, but she’s right. “Think you have a future with him?”

  A hint of bittersweet hope touched her eyes. “I’m enjoying the present. I don’t think past the next date.”

  “Probably a good idea.” I was doing the same thing—loving Talia in the moment and anticipating the next with a stiff cock and a hopeful heart. The future appeared cloudy at best. This is not where I wanted to go either. “If he started seeing someone else, how much would that hurt?”

  “Do you know something I don’t?”

  “No, I’m just theorizing, trying to see where the facts might lead.”

  She smiled and shook her head. “Do you ever take off that prosecutor mantle?”

  “Only when I’m cornered.” By a hulking waitress with a lust for cash.

  “Right. Because those facts might lead you someplace you’ve never been before.”

  “Huh?”

  “Theorize that.”

  Before I could further question my too-perceptive assistant, Talia plunked down on my lap and gloated. “I won! I beat him throwing darts.”

  Will slumped into his seat next to Claire. “She got lucky.”

  “I spanked your ass.”

  “Anytime, darlin’, anytime.” He winked and tried to nudge her foot under the table but kicked mine instead.

  Claire finished her drink and stood. “I should go.”

  “What? No.” Will pulled her close. “It’s still early.”

  “I know, but my boss gave me a ton of research to do tomorrow and he wants the facts,” she gave me a pointed stare, “by noon.”

  I ran my finger around the lip of my empty bottle. “Your boss is a real ass.”

  Will laughed. “No shit.”

  Claire smiled. “He’s gotten used to rules and deadlines. He wasn’t always procedure’s bitch.”

  Fucking hell. When had I become a slave to routine? I’d managed to evade ethics’ grasp, but somehow I’d become… responsible. My throat went dry and I searched the table for something—anything—to wash away this sickening, grown-up burden. Damn it. Who drank all the beer?

  Talia stroked my hair. “Are you okay?”

  No. I slipped my hand under her shirt and fondled her boob. Doing it in front of our friends and a few other gawking patrons resurrected the bad boy who’d made her come in her boyfriend’s bed, in public, and in her ex-boss’s fancy bathroom. “I am now.”

  She breathed hot in my ear. “Mmm… so I see.”

  And if I kept it up, she’d come on my lap.

  Will stood and caressed Claire’s hair. “I’ll drive you home.”

  “No, I’ll take the Light Rail. There’s a station near my house.”

  Talia squirmed on my lap as Will gave Claire a lingering goodbye kiss.

  He walked her out the door then came back a few minutes later. “Did you scare her?” He sat down and scowled at his empty bottle.

  No, but she freaked me out. “She’s right. I gave her a mountain of research to do.”

  “So….” Talia slid half her ass onto Will’s lap, claiming both of us. “What do we do now?”

  He inclined his head toward me and shrugged.

  “Let’s play pool.” I pushed her over to him and stood up. “I’ll take on the both of ya.”

  Will grunted as Talia wiggled on his c
rotch. “How’s that gonna work with three players?”

  Procedure’s bitch trembled as the morally ambiguous defense attorney approached the witness stand. “We’ll make our own rules.”

  No Limits

  Ringing phones, relentless emails, and now a knock at my door. Why did I send Claire to the law library again? Oh, right. More research for me to read. I let Will in and we sat at my desk to go over the particulars of our new case. His ‘transfer’ had gone smoother than either of us had hoped.

  “Did you ask Captain Brewer to work with me on this case or is that a coincidence?”

  I grinned. “There’s no such thing as coincidence. You know that.”

  He laughed. “True. Fill me in.”

  “Two men found shot in their bed, an apparent hate crime. The defendant,” I grabbed the file Claire had created, “Steve McCane, pleaded not guilty. His attorney claims there’s no motive since his brother is gay and they have a good relationship.”

  Will put his feet up on my desk. “The brother’s going to testify for him?”

  “Yeah. Get your dirty boots off my notes.”

  “Get your notes away from my boots. These are new.” He brushed dirt off the toe, then sat up, knocking my legal pad to the floor. “I found blood residue in another bedroom, the one the police designated as the guest bedroom. Forensics confirmed the second victim was shot there and placed in bed with the first.” He picked up the pad and tossed it on my desk.

  I shook the dirt off the yellow paper. “Spooning each other. They were posed?”

  “Yes. The first victim’s body was arranged after he was shot. Forensics also found sheets in the dryer with blood stains on them.”

  I picked up the file Will had assembled and flipped through it while I paced the room. “So the killer stuck around long enough to move the victims and clean up.”

  He put his damn feet up on my desk again. “Uh-huh, but the interesting thing is the third bedroom. It has definite feminine décor, women’s clothes in the closet and dressers.”

  I smacked him upside the head as I walked by. “What makes it so interesting?”

  He rolled his eyes and sat up. “It doesn’t look like a room that was only used on occasion.”

  “You think a woman lived there?”

  “Yep. There are photos in the living room of the two victims with a woman matching the description of Valaria Merek. A missing person’s report was filed on her a few days after the murders. Her address is the same as theirs.”