Harper sighed. “Don’t let him kill me, if you don’t mind.”
Ascending to the top floor of a high-rise in Salt Lake City, he braced himself to face his most formidable business rival in a deal that benefited them both.
He’d arranged dinner afterwards to gauge the waters outside of the business realm.
The dozen people at the conference table stood when Elijah preceded him into the room.
Hudson Winters did not.
One of the rare men who had his respect in the world they inhabited watched him, absolutely still and unblinking. He’d be lying if he said it didn’t affect him on a gut level.
For several hours, Harper engaged in a financial battle of wits with someone who never failed to make it interesting.
When the documents were signed, they shared possession of a small abandoned town, forgotten in the fifty years since the last of the population moved away.
Set in a secluded valley in Utah, it would be the future testing site for educational, environmental, and sociological technology being developed through their own companies as well as those of their friends and colleagues.
As the others gradually made their exit, Harper found himself alone with Winters. Elijah hadn’t moved or spoken in hours. He barely blinked.
“How did this project come to your attention?”
“A conversation I had with Gabriella before she was hurt.” Harper hid his surprise as the man stood and walked to the windows. “She saw an article about abandoned towns around the world. Her idea was for several clean slate locations. Projects that focused on bringing out the best mankind had to offer in all areas. I purchased three of them in Europe, South America, and Australia.”
“The others?”
“Marciella Canfield now owns three in Canada, Central America, and Iceland. Owen Douglas purchased one in Oklahoma before I could grab it. I was displeased.”
He inhaled carefully. “I’ll send you a list of those that remain for analysis. This is the only other viable site of those available in the United States.”
“Why bring me in? You certainly didn’t need my money.”
“Gabriella suggested we attempt a joint venture with only positive and far-reaching outcomes. She said it would be good for us. I believe the phrase she used was bonding experience.”
He couldn’t hold back his snort of amusement and was shocked to hear a stifled one from Elijah as well.
Joining Winters to take in the view, Harper was silent for a long time before he murmured, “I fucked it up.”
“Yes.”
“I’m sorry.”
“Noted.”
The silence drew out between them. “Any suggestions?”
Winters didn’t answer for so long that Harper didn’t think he would. “Why should I help you?”
“I have no idea.”
“I warned you she was different.”
Nodding, he replied, “I didn’t realize how different.” Clearing his throat, he sought information. “The couple…?”
Turning to face him, Winters clasped his hands behind his back. “Gabriella ended their arrangement after two weeks.”
“The reason?”
“Their similarities to Natalia and myself. A deep love for one another without the capacity to include others in it.” Black eyes held his unsympathetically. “Your actions were childish and needlessly hurtful. She felt it deeply.”
Harper accepted the deserved reprimand with a nod. Even he could not deny the words.
“Joshua and Jessica’s youth and sense of adventure stopped her from spiraling into despair. However, it is another situation that ultimately left her without what she needed.” To himself, he murmured, “I hate seeing her unhappy.”
Unable to handle Elijah’s silence any longer, Harper made a decision. “Will you discuss it over dinner?”
“Within boundaries, yes.”
* * *
Elijah cleared the private room at the exclusive restaurant and took a position beside the door.
As Hudson Winters passed him, he stopped and said clearly, “Join us, Eklund. Your role is not that of employee when Gabriella’s name is involved.”
Meeting the man’s eyes, they took the measure of one another for the third time in twenty years.
The first involved Harper’s reputation. Winters proved himself a man of honor who could be trusted. Their interaction was a draw with an outcome of mutual respect.
The second involved Natalia Roman. Seeing the man’s love for a woman Elijah had always admired but did not love convinced him to concede. He could count the number of times in his life that he’d done so.
This time, the woman who stood in the space between them was Brie. It was critical Winters understood there would be no concession this time.
“You love her,” Elijah stated without animosity.
“Naturally. I won’t see her harmed. I see your desire to ensure she is not.” Gesturing to the table, Elijah nodded and all of them took a seat.
Winters wasted no time.
To Harper, he said clearly, “You must set aside your pride and your jealousy. If you’re powerless to do so, don’t toy with her.”
Turning his gaze to Elijah, he stated, “It was you who suggested she seek comfort elsewhere.”
“She needed things I was unable to provide.”
Winters sipped his scotch. “Your position now?”
“I’ll see her when we return to New York.” He felt rather than saw Harper stiffen beside him.
For a long time, they maintained eye contact.
Elijah didn’t blink.
“You’re prepared to care for her?”
A hundred scenarios rapidly filed through Elijah’s mind.
Caring for Brie in ways she understood as well as ways she did not yet understand had been at the forefront of his mind since watching her leave with a couple focused on her pleasure, on soothing her, on reminding her that she was alive.
“I’m prepared to wait until she’s cleared from medical care. At that time, yes.” Looking deeply into the black eyes of a man he knew would kill to protect Brie, Elijah made his feelings clear. “I love her. I believe she loves me.”
“You’re correct. It happened quickly but it isn’t reversible, Eklund. She hurts at the loss of you.”
The words filled him with fucking bliss. His desire to go to her immediately was almost overwhelming.
Switching attention, Winters asked, “Your position, Delkin?”
“I don’t want to love her. I don’t want her to love me. I have neither time nor patience for such tender emotions.”
Tender emotions would change his life if he’d allow them the opportunity.
Winters didn’t seem surprised. “Your interest in Gabriella remains entirely sexual.”
“Yes.”
“I call bullshit.” Harper’s eyes went wide. “No matter your words, you’re attracted to her beyond mere sex.”
“No. I…”
“Harper, so help me god.” He sat forward and put his arm on the table. “I get your initial need to fuck someone who was temporarily mine.”
Elijah watched Harper’s face still with shock.
“I also understand the attraction to a woman very other from the women in your history as well as my own.” He shook his head. “You lie to us both if you tell me you don’t feel the fucking draw of her heart.”
The room was silent for almost a minute.
Clearing his throat, Harper murmured, “I’m too cold for a woman such as her.”
“As I once thought of myself. Yet she wants you any fucking way,” Winters shot back.
“She’s drawn to me because I look like you.”
“It isn’t my looks, Delkin.” He sat back and sipped his scotch. “As an artist, she must find our physical similarities fascinating. As a woman, she’s drawn to something she feels, not something she sees.”
Elijah agreed. “It’s the puzzle that fascinates her.”
The two men
shared a silent communication and Winters smiled slowly. “She’s mentioned feeling as if there’s something she’s missing about both of you.”
Harper was annoyed. “It’s not complicated. I look like you. She wanted you and it didn’t work out.”
“How little you know her.” Sitting up straight, Winters drew who he was around himself. “Gabriella seeks a lover who will provide strength, knowledge, and safety. Who will appreciate who she is without judgment. Simple touch and love are what drive her. In return, she is willing to give all of herself. Mind, body, and heart.”
“You were able to provide all but love,” Elijah mused.
“It was a bitter truth.”
Taking a long pull of his drink, Harper stated, “Her emotions are frustrating.”
Winters shook his head. “No. It’s frustrating to be incapable of loving her. Natalia and I speak of it often. We’d take her into our lives but it would ultimately hurt her more than help her. I wouldn’t present her with an offer that’s less than she deserves nor would she accept it.”
“I don’t understand this woman.”
“It isn’t for you to understand her, Harper. You don’t have the emotional capacity. It’s only for you to accept her and provide the very little she needs.”
“She requires more than any woman I’ve ever met.”
“Not more, merely different. What she offers in return is priceless.” Winters leaned forward. “She’s pulled toward what she senses from both of you.” He paused. “She will love you, Harper. Every aspect of who you are as a man. She will accept you, love you unconditionally. You can trust her.”
“I don’t trust women.”
“Untrue.” The words hung between them.
Finally, “Natalia was different.”
“Gabriella and Natalia are the same in every way that matters.” Elijah watched Winters inhale carefully. “You’re the obstacle. You deny yourself, as well as the other two involved, out of misplaced fear.” Leaning forward, he growled, “Slay the fucking weakness and get the fuck on with it.”
Chapter Ten
Christmas Eve 2014
Tawny shook Brie awake sometime after three. “I brought some of those little gourmet brownies Max whipped up like it was fucking nothing earlier and I need an accomplice.”
Grinning, Brie rolled over and retorted, “No tequila this year.”
“I snagged you that sparkling non-alcoholic shit.” The redhead made a gagging sound. “By the way, we need to up the security on your front door.”
“How long did it take you to get inside?”
“Girl, four minutes. However, in my defense, I was holding a tray of brownies so I had to improvise.”
“You didn’t put them down?”
“On the floor? Not sanitary and these are Max’s brownies! That’s like, sacrilegious and shit.” Bouncing off the bed, Tawny sang, “Come on! I picked movies.”
To the room, Brie murmured, “Don’t we have to be at Riya’s in a few hours?”
Sitting up, she took stock before grabbing her cane and following her friend into the living room.
Stopping in the doorway, she let her mind absorb the blanket fort that spanned her living room furniture, anchored at the top by the whale sculpture.
“Tawny…how long have you been here?”
“More than an hour. You sleep deep. I could have absconded with your sculpture and painted it like a penis – because it is – by the time you rolled out of bed.”
“Whale. It’s a whale.” The woman always made her laugh. Rubbing her eyes, she added, “I took a pill. I’ve been having trouble sleeping.”
Skipping to stand in front of her, Tawny put her hands on her hips. Her hair was in pigtail braids and she wore footy pajamas covered in Hello Kitty. “How are the Wonder Twins?”
“Joshua and Jessica are wonderful. They flew back to Texas yesterday to attend their dad’s wedding. They’ll be there through the holidays.” She made her way to the kitchen and started coffee.
“Still providing crazy monkey sex on the hour?”
“Um, no. After two blissful weeks, I needed to get some distance. They’re young and fun, easy to like, and incredible for my ego.” She lifted one shoulder. “Ultimately, they’re like Hudson and Natalia. They’re open to everyone and everything but they only truly love each other. I took our time together for what it was and enjoyed it very much.”
“Shit. Sorry, girl.”
“Don’t be sorry. They helped me when I was really down. I think it’s my new calling in life to be the kick in the ass couples need.” She winked. “They flew to Vegas three days ago and got married.”
“Shut the fuck up!”
“I can’t.” Taking a seat at her bar, she felt the effects of her insane physical therapy session. “They’re perfect together. I imagine they’ll have lots of great experiences. I doubt they’ll ever be truly monogamous but the love…that they’ll only ever give to each other.”
Tawny seemed lost in thought for a long moment. “You think Hudson and Natalia fuck outside their couple-hood?”
“I have no idea. I know they’d need to have someone, I don’t know, less emotional than me. Someone they could be with and walk away from without guilt. They could never cross that line with me again.”
“Make you sad?”
“Hell no. They’re holy shit in bed.” Brie crossed her eyes and Tawny chuckled. “I like them better as friends. No confusion and they’re fucking happy. That makes me happy.”
By dawn, the brownies were gone, they’d consumed an entire pot of coffee, and screamed themselves hoarse through two action movies.
“Quick nap and then we’ll go harass the cranky threesome.”
Climbing in her big bed, Brie rolled to her side when Tawny climbed in beside her. “Where do Zach and Quinn think you are tonight?”
She shrugged. “I needed some distance myself.”
“Why?”
“They asked me to marry them.” Brie’s eyes went wide. “They have no clue what fuckery I’d bring into their lives. Going too public is dangerous…for all of us.” For almost a minute, the redhead simply looked at her. “I can’t tell you all of it now. I need a raincheck.”
“Done.”
“You’re the only person in my life who lets me just be without a hundred questions, worries, and accusations. I want you to know I really appreciate that.”
Reaching out, she took the other woman’s hand. “Anytime. Get some sleep and recharge. You can paste on your good time Tawny persona when we head upstairs.”
* * *
Riya’s annual holiday party was packed as usual. After two hours, Brie found herself laughing almost non-stop.
She chose a long-sleeve red dress that ended in uneven layers at her ankle. Underneath, she wore a lingerie set from Natalia in ethereal white lace that made her feel incredibly sexy.
Despite having to wear flats and walk with a cane.
Micah took a seat beside her with a grin. “How are you doing, Miss Hernandez?”
“Better every day.”
“That’s the spirit. I can’t tell you how much I look forward to dragging you out on the dance floor again. We grumble like small children on a long car ride.” He winked. “I saw that in a movie.”
“You’re lovely as usual and gave me a tiny brain scramble with the words you said.”
“Liar.”
When she could stop laughing, she told him, “Maybe by this time next year I’ll have a hope of keeping up with you again.”
“I’ll hold you to that.” He accepted a glass of champagne from a passing server for each of them. “I know you’re still on lots of medications but I wanted to toast the work you did on my website.” Clinking their glasses together, he leaned forward and kissed her cheek. “Outstanding on all fronts.”
“Thanks. I’m so glad you liked it.”
“The developers who implemented your changes said it was the smoothest transition they’d ever seen.”
; She crossed her eyes. “Thank god. I hate the backend.”
For a few minutes, they sat together and people watched, adding commentary that verged on silly. When he met her eyes, she saw a serious topic change on the horizon.
“Riya mentioned your possible arrangement.” She didn’t pretend to misunderstand, wondering what was coming. “In this particular world, the rules are clearly defined, Brie. Your safety must be paramount.”
“I’m unsure it will happen but…do you have any advice?”
“Clear and concise communication at all times. Leave no doubts about what you seek and refuse to take less than you want. As with Riya, your heart is your most powerful weapon but it can leave you at a disadvantage with men who don’t understand how it functions.”
“Hudson said the same.”
“I find he and I are more similar than I’m comfortable with sometimes.” There was laughter in his honey eyes. “I know he guards your back and respect him highly for it. If your past relationship – or his dealings with Delkin – ever make you hesitate to go to him, I’m happy to help.”
“You’re such a good man, Micah.” Riya settled herself on her husband’s lap and leaned forward to kiss Brie. “I worried a little about Hudson having the detachment to advise you.”
“He’s very protective. I need to deal with this on my own, no matter which way it goes.”
“I agree and commend your consideration of everyone involved.” Riya glanced over her shoulder and her face lit up.
Two couples walked around into Brie’s line of sight.
“I finally get to introduce you! This is Victor and his wife Shay.” With her arm still wrapped around Micah’s shoulder, she accepted kisses on the cheek. “This is Lucas and his wife Amelia.” Smiling brightly, she said, “This is my wonderful friend, Gabriella Hernandez.”
“Ma’am. It’s sure a pleasure.” She moved to stand, feeling like a little girl with the huge man standing in front of her. He had to be almost seven feet tall. “Nah, honey. We’ll come on down to you. You’re an itty bitty thing like my sweet girl.”
He crouched and settled Shay on one knee. She was pretty and practically glowing with happiness. “Riya told us so much about you I feel like we’re already friends.”
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