by Dani René
He nods but as soon as he moves away, I miss his calm.
“I’ll wait. We’ll both wait, Ella, because you’re ours,” he whispers. He pushes up off the sofa to walk away, but I want him to offer me a reprieve from the tension and fear.
“Wait.” My voice comes out rough with need, yearning.
He turns and eyes me warily.
“Please, just wait. I’m new to this, to talking and opening myself up to someone. And the two of you, you’re like a blanket of calm. You both offer me something I’ve never felt.” My confession stills us both.
“Do you want us both, Ella?” he questions, our gazes clashing with desire. I can’t find the words, so I nod. The downlights seem to illuminate his eyes. They’re beautiful, sparkling like crystals. He smiles—it’s a genuine one—and joins me on the sofa, pulling me into the crook of his arm. My eyes flutter closed and I hope my nightmares will stay away this time.
Carter
“Baines, go straight home. I’ll call you if we need anything, but at this time of the night, I doubt we will. Bennett is here, and he must have his car.”
He nods and offers a smile. The man is my savior. “Yes, sir. I’ll see you tomorrow. Good luck.”
As I make my way up to the entrance, the doorman gives me a nod, allowing me to make my way to the lift. Pushing number seven, I wait for the doors to slide open to take me to her.
The ride up to the seventh floor is the longest journey, and by the time I reach her door, I’m anxious because of Bennett’s call. My father wasn’t impressed with me leaving early, but I don’t give a shit. This is Ella. She’s hurting and needs me and I’ll be fucked if I let her wait.
I knock, then hear Bennett’s voice from inside. When the door opens he steps aside and I see her. It takes all my restraint not to rush to her. I don’t want to scare her, but all I want to do is hold her.
She looks like she’s been crying for days. “Carter.” Her voice is croaky and she clears her throat, her eyes never leaving mine.
“Ella, I’m so fucking sorry I took so long. Are you okay?” My words fall like the walls I’ve hidden behind for so long. Bennett’s hand on my shoulder startles me and I turn to him.
“Let’s sit.” He looks at home here and something tells me he’s made a move already.
I settle on Ella’s left, and Bennett on her right. She’s sandwiched between us, the only place she belongs. There’s no longer a choice in my mind. This is right. My heart aches seeing the pain in her expression, and all I want to do is protect her. When I look at Bennett, I see the same resolution in his eyes.
“Carter.” Her soft, tentative voice drags my attention back to the reason I’m here. The incredibly beautiful woman beside me. Her eyes are shimmering with unshed tears. Seeing her in pain only makes me want to kill whoever hurt her. There’s nothing for me to say until she tells me the truth.
“I’ll start at the beginning; it will be better that way. When I was eighteen I ran away from home, from my life, and from my past. I’ve never had anyone who cared enough to ask why I didn’t have any friends or why I was alone.” She peers up at me shyly, and I realize I was the one who broke her barriers.
“We care, Ella.”
She nods and places her hand on mine. When her skin touches mine, my intake of breath is sharp.
“I know that now. You see, when I was…” This time she breathes deeply and my gaze flits over to my best friend. He nods, but doesn’t say anything. “When I was thirteen, my mother remarried.” I remember her telling me her father passed away, but she never spoke of another man in her life.
“He was good to us… but… I…” Tears tumble down her cheeks and I can’t stop myself. I reach out and swipe them from her pretty face. She’s perfect even when she’s crying. “It was my sixteenth birthday.” She laughs wryly. It drips with pain, which seeps into my veins, darkening my heart because I have a feeling I know what’s coming.
“He… I was… I mean, he took me…”
My vision blurs and I see red. Pushing up from the sofa, I hear an animalistic sound and I realize it’s me growling. Fucking arsehole! I need to punch something. I need to fucking break something, someone, with my bare fucking hands.
“Carter, sit down.”
Pivoting, I glare at my best friend. He’s right, I should let her get it out. I find my seat again, but my body is vibrating with fury.
I take her hands in mine, watching her submit to my touch. “Baby, I don’t know what to say.”
“The card and box. It was him...” Her body shudders, but she continues, “The first time he ever gave me a snow globe was a few months after my birthday.”
I have to frown at this and her eyes find mine.
“It was a snow globe with Buckingham Palace and a red bus inside.”
“I don’t understand, baby.”
“That night he showed me what he wanted to do with it.” Her gaze implores me to understand and when I do, bile rises in my throat, burning like a poison threatening to kill me.
“Ella.”
“He fucked me with it.” Her voice breaks on the words and I don’t resist pulling her body against mine.
Anger heats my blood and I can’t fucking see straight. I’ve been angry before. Hell, I’ve been furious with people, but this is a whole different type of rage that’s coursing through me.
Her body so pliable against mine makes me want to hold her forever. My gaze meets Bennett’s and I can see the pain he feels for her. He cares about her as much as I do. When I first saw her, I knew she’d be different. She’s the one for us.
“Baby, you don’t—”
“I woke from a nightmare earlier, and Bennett asked me about it. So now you both know my dark secret.” The woman I love was hurt and violated by a sick bastard who’s out there fucking with her head.
“We’ll find him, baby. I promise you.” Meeting Bennett’s stare, he nods and I know this fucker will not survive the wrath of me and my best friend.
Ella
He sits absolutely still, but I know there’s a silent conversation going on between the two men who’ve come to mean more to me than anyone ever has. There’s a vow in Carter’s words that’s unsaid but known by me and Bennett. He’ll kill for me.
The sooner Charles is found, I know I’ll be okay. Freedom is something that’s always been elusive to me, but with both men fighting for me, there’s just an inkling I might make it through. Right now, though, all I want to do is be cocooned between these two incredible men.
The broken girl. The tainted whore.
I want them both.
Does that make me a bad person? No.
Does that make me a slut? No.
Does that mean I’m finally fixed? Maybe.
The first thing I know I need to do is find a psychologist who can assess me once more. This time there aren’t any hallucinations. He really has found me. There aren’t any vivid dreams or morbid thoughts, only real-life memories.
I curl up and they both wrap their arms around me. Now they both know who I am and what I’ve come from. My sordid past is out in the open and they haven’t run. They’re both here and for the first time in years I feel like a woman who’s desired for the right reasons.
“Princess.”
I turn to Bennett. His gaze is soft, yet commanding.
“Princess.”
My gaze flits to Carter. He looks as if he wants to devour me. My head is spinning, like I’m on a carnival ride and out of control.
“Let me in. Don’t worry. I’ll find him and kill him with my bare fucking hands, but don’t push me away. Please?”
My heart leaps at his sincere promise. I want Carter, there’s no doubt in my mind, but I turn to Bennett and realize I want him too.
I nod. I agree. Nothing can stop my need for them.
“Sleep now. We’ll talk after you’ve had some rest.”
My eyes close and I feel safe, more so than I ever have in my entire life.
* * *
>
Rolling over, I find a warm hand on my hip and one on my arm. Cracking my eyes, finding the source of the heat cocooning me and after my confession, I can’t help smiling. Two incredibly beautiful men are holding me. “How long was I asleep?” I ask, my voice groggy with sleep.
“About an hour,” Bennett answers with a smirk, his gaze roving over me like a hungry lion.
Pushing up, I settle between them, finding myself relaxed and calm.
“Can I have one?” I gesture to the whisky.
Carter hands me his glass, which I take gratefully and down the strong liquid in a long gulp. As it burns its way down, my mind reels with the emotions warring inside me. Unrestrained desire and the unbidden ache between my legs tell me I’m just a normal woman, with ordinary needs.
Glancing between the two, I know that if I were forced to choose, I couldn’t. Are these emotions that normal people experience? What they crave? Carter trails a featherlight touch down my arm, causing me to tremble.
Bennett copies the action on my other arm and the pleasure that coils deep in my core is foreign but wanted. It’s unbelievable for me to know safety with a man. Most won’t understand it. But if you’ve been broken so many times, for so long, there’s no doubt you’d feel the same. My fragile innocence was stolen in a few seconds, but I think somehow, both Bennett and Carter may be able to heal the shattered pieces of me.
“Ella, do you trust us?” My eyes find the blue shimmer of Carter’s and I nod.
He leans in and kisses me tentatively, sweetly.
It’s passionate, not filthy.
It’s gentle, yet demanding.
And I have a feeling he’s holding back. In fact, I know he is.
Bennett’s hands stroke my back, gripping my hips in a firm grasp. He tugs me against him, my back to his solid chest. A small shiver of anticipation shoots through me as his heat encapsulates me. “Ella, close your eyes, darling.” His deep rumble vibrates against my body from behind and my pussy pulses. They want to show me pleasure, something I’ve never allowed myself to experience.
“I’m not… I—”
“Shh, trust us, darling.”
I stare into those sea storm eyes that implore me to let go. They glint with desire like sunrays warming me. With Carter in front of me and Bennett behind me, my body is completely cocooned between them. The T-shirt I’m wearing slips off my shoulders so slowly I hardly notice. Only when Bennett’s warm lips come into contact with my skin does my body tremble with need and desire that’s tightened my core deliciously.
“Close your eyes, Ella, I’m right here. I promise.” His words are a whisper, barely audible, but I feel them right down to my soul.
My eyes flutter closed and warm fingers trace the curve of my neck, the outline of my lips, and the sensitive skin behind my ear. Hot breath tantalizes me from the soft kisses my boss plants on my shoulders, one after the other. Every inch of my skin is prickling, tingling, thrumming. While Carter focuses on my mouth, his lips whisper over mine, down to my jaw and to the swell of my breasts.
Hot, wet, and hungry.
He suckles my skin into his mouth, allowing his teeth to graze the flesh, and I’m about to explode. A volcano rumbling with molten lava swirls in my stomach. Traveling down to my core and my panties are soaked with arousal for not one man but two.
“I’m going to slip your bra off, Ella.” Carter’s deep voice in my ear sends an erotic shiver through me and I nod. The thin straps of silk slide down my shoulders and the material lands on the floor with a gentle whoosh. “Fuck.” His growl has me opening my eyes, and when my gaze meets his, they’re turbulent.
“Is something wrong?” I question, frowning at him.
“You’re perfect,” Bennett hums against me as his hands find my full breasts. His fingers tweak and tug on my nipples and they harden to tight peaks. When he drops his hands, Carter’s mouth laves at the one bud, taunting and teasing it. His teeth graze over the pebbled peak, causing me to whimper and moan. My head drops back and Bennett is there.
His lips find mine in a deep, passionate kiss, as he traces the seam of my mouth, seeking entrance, and I let him have it. Our tongues dance in an erotic tumble. The vibration in his chest has electricity shooting through me.
“Let us show you pleasure, baby. Trust us,” Carter urges me with a ferocious growl.
Breaking the kiss, I look up at one of the men who broke my walls down. Who’s been relentless in his pursuit.
“I’ll try.” My voice is thick with emotion. There’s no fear, only lust.
“My sweet Princess,” he murmurs and never in my life has a nickname made me feel more powerful. I’m in charge. They’re not taking, they’re giving. As that realization settles in my mind, I feel off-kilter. I’m on the edge of a cliff and I’m about to leap. But I won’t fall. With Bennett and Carter, I’ll fly.
“Let’s get more comfortable.” Bennett scoops me up and turns toward my bedroom.
My feelings for both these men are spiraling inside me, a storm brewing. It’s about to rain down with more passion than I’ve ever felt and I don’t know how I’ll handle it, but I’m willing to try.
He places me on the bed, and I watch as they unbutton their shirts. I can’t hide the smile that plays on my lips. How have I found myself here? Watching two incredibly gorgeous men strip down to nothing but tight black boxer briefs with thick hard bulges that are solid steel for me. Both want to take me and own me.
“See something you like, Princess?” Carter’s overconfident smirk has my heart racing, and when I glance at Bennett, his cocky grin has my blood thrumming.
“I do actually. I see two somethings I like. Now I wonder if they’re just going to stand there and watch me, or are they going to do something about it.” I don’t know where my courage comes from, but my hand drops between my thighs and when I part my legs I stroke the thin lace material. My clit is throbbing, needing attention. Even though I’ve never been with a man and found pleasure, I’ve managed by myself.
Both sets of eyes devour me. They’re glued to the show I put on for them and I feel like a queen ruling an army.
“Open those beautiful legs wider, sweetheart.” The green-eyed god growls and I do. I obey him because the way he’s looking at me is not filthy, demeaning, or wrong. It’s affectionate, lustful, and hungry.
Bennett
Standing beside my best friend in my underwear while the woman we’re falling for strokes her perfect little pussy is like a dream come true. I’ve never wanted love, but this right here makes me realize I may not have wanted it, but it’s found me.
Kneeling on the bed on her right, Carter kneels on her left. He replaces her hand with his and I watch his expression change from calm to explosive.
“Fuck, Ella, you’re soaked,” he grunts out through clenched teeth as he strokes her gently. Her moans filter through the haze of lust and I focus my attention on her beautiful tits. They’re full and heavy. Her pert nipples are dark, beautiful, and hard.
My mouth drops to one while I tweak and tease the other. Carter drops to his knees and her legs open for him instinctively. I watch as he tugs the knickers down her slender legs. Once they’re off, her sweet scent of arousal has me inhaling deeply, reveling in her. Fuck, this woman could bring down armies.
When his mouth closes in on her pussy, I bite down on her nipple, not to hurt her, but to show her that pain can equal pleasure. Her moans echo through the room. It’s like a melody of the sweetest song and I’d like to have it on repeat as her body convulses in an orgasm.
“Oh God, ohhh… ohhhh….” She mewls like a kitten as we devour her. My cock is hard, painfully so, and all I want to do is slide into her tight heat. To feel her pulse around me. But we need to take this slow.
Watching him feast on her wet cunt almost undoes me and I have to focus on her eyes fluttering and her plump lips that are parted as she whimpers.
I reach up, stroking the smooth skin of her cheeks, and goosebumps dot every inch of her. Fo
r her to find pleasure, with not just one man but two is astonishing. Her body bows and an orgasm wracks through her. Shivers and trembles, moans and hisses echo around us.
Her thighs quake on either side of Carter’s face and I suck her nipple into my mouth, flicking it with my tongue as she grips my hair with one hand and his with the other.
The sounds she makes when she comes apart are an aphrodisiac because I need to be inside her.
“Carter,” I bite out his name, my voice laced with lust, and when his eyes meet mine, he nods. I waste no time in pushing my boxers down. Her amethyst eyes shimmer as they flit between me and him. I watch her tongue dart out and she licks her lips like she’s about to feast on a buffet.
“I’m going to fuck you, Princess, and I want you to suck Bennett’s cock, okay?” Carter’s voice is a growl laced with lust and I smirk.
She nods slowly while her wide eyes watch him sheath himself. As soon as the tip of his cock comes into contact with her core, she freezes. Her body goes rigid and her eyes shut tight.
“Open your eyes. Look at me.” His order is commanding and I know he’s got to be stern or she’ll always be afraid. Her submissive nature has her opening those amethyst gems, latching onto his movements.
It’s torture watching him slide into her. She must be tight because he goes so slow. My eyes are transfixed on the sight of them connecting, so I don’t notice her mouth enveloping my thick, hard shaft. It’s only when her lips wrap around the crown do I groan as pleasure rips violently through me.
Her mouth is warm and wet and it’s taking all my restraint not to be too rough or fuck her beautiful face because I want to. God, do I want to.
“Fuck, Ella, you’re going to suck my fucking soul out through my dick it feels so good.”
She’s amazing at giving head. Her tongue swirls around the shaft and when Carter is fully seated inside her, she hums her approval, sending shockwaves through my body.