by Shayla Black
Liam and Hammer had once been friends, but she’d mostly seen them mix as well as oil and water until today. Sure, they’d behaved civilly enough before Liam collared her, but Hammer’s aloofness had even extended to his best friend, and she’d witnessed Liam’s frustration and hurt. Today everything had been different, and Raine couldn’t put her finger on why. Yes, they’d agreed to put aside their differences to help her, but their rapport now didn’t feel like a forced compromise. It felt more like a kinship, like they’d fallen into a comfortable brotherhood.
Absently putting the wand back in the tube of mascara, she wound it closed and glanced at her appearance. She’d pass muster for dinner. Dark curls framed her flushed cheeks and trailed to her breasts. Red gloss sheened her slightly swollen lips.
In the mirror, she looked the same, but everything inside felt raw, confused, yearning. Different. The need they’d incited breathed just under her skin, lying in wait to hurtle her into aching desire again with their next touch. It was a miracle she hadn’t begged them for relief.
What would it be like to spend every day between them, wrapped in their care, the center of their lives? It sounded ludicrous—mostly because it was—but it was her fantasy. No way she could deny how perfectly happy and whole everything they’d done today made her feel. She’d better enjoy it because it probably wouldn’t last.
“Raine, time for dinner!” Seth shouted up the stairs.
“Be right there,” she called back, shoving her makeup in its case and turning off her curling iron.
She wasn’t really hungry, but when the watchful Dom had left her a few minutes ago to check on the meal, Raine figured she wouldn’t have long to sort out her thoughts alone. Nice to know that something about this day had been predictable.
Raine dashed out of the bedroom, her bare feet padding down the stairs. The scent of something delicious wafted in the air, and the little growl of her stomach surprised her. Then again, she hadn’t eaten much the entire day—too bewildered to consume the big breakfast she’d cooked and too confused to do more than nibble at lunch. The anxiety and arousal simmering inside her would probably kill her appetite for dinner as well. But if she spent the evening surrounded by Hammer and Liam, wrapped in their affection, she really didn’t care.
From the kitchen, she heard Beck’s boisterous laughter and sighed. So dinner wasn’t going to be a quiet evening for three. She had no idea what was on the agenda, but since Hammer and Liam had “requested” she wear this sheer black baby-doll, Raine had her suspicions. Great, more sexual teasing. How the hell was she going to survive even another minute of feeling like an orgasmic time bomb?
Tugging at the lace tickling the tops of her thighs, she shoved back her self-consciousness. Why hadn’t they given her some damn flannel pajamas?
Drawing in a deep breath, Raine rounded the corner into the kitchen and stopped. The four Doms stood, their chairs scraping the hardwood floor. She felt every eye on her, eating up her exposed flesh, and forced herself to stand with her head up and shoulders squared—and ignore that fluttery feeling inside her.
Raine raised her chin. “Hi.”
Liam arched a brow at her.
“Sirs,” she added hastily. She’d behaved casually for so long, she had trouble remembering her protocol.
Liam smiled at her before extending his hand and leading her toward the empty chair between him and Hammer. “You look lovely, lass.”
“Scrumptious,” Macen whispered in her ear as she sat. “I know what’s for dessert.”
As the other men resumed their seats, heat rushed up her face. She sent him a delicate scowl. “Hammer…”
He chuckled.
The men had set the table and laid out the meal the caretaker’s wife had prepared. Everything looked fine, but Raine still frowned. “I would have been happy to cook.”
“We enjoy when you do,” Hammer said. “But we need you focused, not disappearing into the kitchen.”
“Besides…” Liam glided his hand up her thigh, his fingers inching breathlessly close to her silky thong. “You’ll need to save your strength.”
Raine’s breath caught. She zipped a questioning glance his way. He leveled her a smoldering stare. She shifted in her chair, wondering how she was going to make it through this meal.
“So, princess, did you enjoy your bath?” Beck asked with a wicked grin. He was being a jackass.
She answered with sticky sweetness. “It was nice, Sir.”
“Just nice?” Hammer baited as he set a crusty dinner roll on her plate.
She resisted the urge to throw it at him. “Fine. Lovely. Enjoyable.”
Trailing the pads of his fingers down her arm, Liam grinned as goose bumps peppered her flesh. “I’d call it amazing. An experience worth repeating.”
“Very soon.” Hammer smirked as he loaded her plate with chicken and rice casserole.
The men ate with gusto, chugging back a beer. Raine scooted her food across her plate with her fork and sipped at her wine, the appetite she’d had minutes ago now an afterthought. What would the next few days bring? And how would she get through them? Would there be an orgasm in her future?
“I didn’t know you had this place, Liam,” Seth said into the silence. “Do you come up here much? Ski in the winter, hit the lake in the summer?”
“I just inherited it last year, but I hope to visit more often.”
Raine only half listened until Liam grazed his fingers over the silk covering her pussy. An electric arc danced through her body. A vicious ache followed. She grasped the table.
Damn, she’d been on edge all day. She struggled for a breath. A moan clogged her throat, and she barely managed to swallow it down.
“You’re not eating, precious.” Hammer smiled her way, mischief in his eyes. “Something wrong?”
“No, Sir.” Under his watchful gaze, she speared a chunk of chicken and forced herself to chew.
Liam caressed down her thigh, then scooted back from the table. Without warning, he hoisted her onto his lap. “I’m not sure I believe that, Hammer. Do you?”
Raine swallowed tightly, feeling wired and flustered. They were going to dissect her thoughts, and all she could focus on was their touches and hot stares undressing her, with Liam’s heat enveloping her and his steely erection prodding her thigh.
“No. Let’s help her.” Macen glided his fingertips up her calf.
She tried not to whimper.
After tearing apart a steaming roll heaped with melted butter, Liam lifted a piece and coaxed her to open for him. When she did, he slid the morsel into her mouth, his fingers lingering on her lips, urging her to lick them clean. His dark stare held hers captive, and Raine drowned. He anchored her in his steely arms, both giving her tenderness and oozing sex. She clung in return, sucking on the slightly rough pads of his fingers, tasting the salt on his skin.
Hammer moved her plate next to Liam’s and slid closer, occupying her chair. As his body heat assailed her, he reached into his salad bowl and plucked up a thick slice of cucumber, slathered in dressing.
“Open for me, precious,” Hammer commanded.
As she leaned in, lips parted, a drop of the creamy sauce splattered on the swell of her breast, trickling down the pale flesh. His eyes flared with heat as he eased the vegetable onto her tongue. Then he bent and licked the dressing from her skin, his lips brushing down the curve of her chest until he nipped her turgid crest through the lace and sucked hard.
Liam swallowed her moan by fusing his lips over hers and dominating her mouth, tangling his fingers in her hair.
Raine’s body burned. Her heart roared in her ears…but she could still hear Beck groan from the other side of the table.
“Holy shit,” Seth muttered.
Hammer turned his attention to her other nipple, leaving the first hard bud aching and clinging to the fabric. She arched to him, then wrapped her hand around Liam’s nape, drawing him closer and losing herself in his kiss.
He jerked away
, then elbowed Macen in the shoulder. “She needs to eat.”
Food was the last thing on her mind.
With a jerky nod, Hammer pulled her into his lap. His erection prodded her backside, every bit as hard and demanding as Liam’s. Meshed against his broad chest, Macen pressed close, his feverish heat surrounding her. She still shivered.
Raine blinked up into his hazel eyes. His breathing was rough. He looked at her as if she was the treasure he’d never expected to find.
Liam cupped her chin and tilted her gaze to him. “Take a nibble, love.”
As he held a chunk of pineapple between his fingers, Raine opened, biting the plump fruit between her teeth. The juice seeped past her lips, dribbling onto her chin as Liam bent forward, sliding his tongue along the sweet path before he claimed her lips in another demanding kiss.
Hammer cupped her hip, his fingers skating over the curve of her ass. She could feel his stare burning into her as he watched. “That’s it. Give yourself to us. Feel me. Open for him. Let us take care of you.”
“Please,” she whispered as Liam eased away. “More.”
God, they couldn’t leave her like this. But apparently they planned to because they spent the rest of the meal passing her back and forth. In between bites of chicken, salad, bread, and fruit, they caressed her, whispered to her, aroused the hell out of her. She gulped down her wine and her mind raced, circling on one thought: how perfect this felt.
When the men’s plates were empty, and she’d eaten enough to stop her stomach from rumbling, Liam stood and lifted her, then set her on his vacant chair.
Beside him, Hammer rose to his feet. “Stay with Seth and Beck. In a few minutes, they’ll give you instructions.”
“Yes, Sir.” What else could she say? She suspected they meant to start the work they’d brought her here to do. Raine wanted and needed to finish it. But she’d be lying if she didn’t admit the whole idea made her nervous as hell. Still, she refused to disappoint them or continue existing as an emotional cripple.
As she watched them go, Raine bit her lip nervously.
“How you doing so far, princess?” Beck leaned in and rested his elbows on the table.
“I’m all right.” She heard the unsteadiness of her voice.
Seth shook his head, then sent Beck a look of annoyance.
“Let’s start again, Raine,” Beck growled in his badass Dom voice. “What’s going on behind those pretty blue eyes? You’re here to open up. Let’s have it.”
Beck and Seth both sent her intent stares, and she couldn’t help feeling like a bug under a microscope. “I’m not sure where to begin. I have all these feelings and questions…and crazy notions. And they’re driving me nuts.”
“Those two haven’t exactly given you a lot of peace today so you could think things through.” Beck grinned. “Of course, that’s on purpose.”
“Of course,” Raine said wryly, rolling her eyes.
“How did you expect it to feel?” Seth asked.
“I don’t know. Everything happened so fast this morning. When I agreed to their bargain, I didn’t have time to picture much. But this is like a dream. I keep expecting to wake up and find myself miserable and alone again. Because when I’m with them, everything is right in my world.”
“It should feel that way.” Seth smiled. “Tell us your questions.”
A million of them circled in her head. “I don’t exactly know why they’re doing this. They’ve told me what they think I want to hear, but… Liam says he loves me, and I guess he wants me back someday, but Hammer treated me like his sister for six years, so—”
“You mean except the night he fucked you endlessly?” Beck cut in.
Raine crossed her arms over her chest and sighed at him. “Except that one. But you’ve seen him do it. You know what I mean. How many other women did he take to bed while I stood there in plain sight? He acted like I was invisible until Liam took an interest in me.”
“Oh, princess. You were a lot of things to Hammer, but never invisible. That man loves you.”
She reared back and scowled. “No, he—”
“Loves you,” Beck insisted.
Equal parts joy and terror sparked through her at the sadist’s emphatic comeback. Still, that familiar self-doubt managed to worm its way back in.
“He cares, but—”
“Cares?” Beck snarled. “Do you think Hammer is the sort of man who goes all out for every waif who crosses his path? Do you think he shelters every lost girl by providing doctors and help, money, time, and support? He gave you almost everything you ever needed, princess.” He laughed gruffly. “Shit, when Liam brought you here the first time, you should have seen Hammer curl up in bed with your clothes and inhale your scent, like that would bring you back. When you ran from Shadows a few days ago, he sounded prepared to burn down the world to find you. And you think he merely cares? Grow up, Raine.”
“Liam loves you, too,” Seth said quietly. “If you’re having trouble believing it, stop. I’ve known O’Neill a long time. It took me less than two minutes of seeing the man with you to know that you’re everything to him.”
Their words hit her squarely in the chest. Maybe they were right. Liam and Hammer wouldn’t talk out their strife and drop everything to help her if they didn’t more than care.
Raine released a shaky breath and closed her eyes. Tears threatened. “I don’t know why they would love me. I’ve made their lives really difficult. Hammer practically had to finish raising me, and Liam has tried so hard… I’ve fought. I’ve hidden. I’ve lied.”
“Stop beating yourself up.” Seth took her hand. “You’re doing the right thing now. That’s what matters.”
“I hope it’s not too little, too late. Up until today, I was convinced that I’d destroyed their friendship. But seeing them together like this…” Raine groped for the right words. “That’s what their bond should be.”
Seth nodded. “You’re right.”
“Couldn’t agree more,” Beck added. “All that bickering bugged the shit out of me, especially since I think, deep down, they want the same fucking thing. You should have seen the kitchen after Thanksgiving.”
“I did. What the hell was that?”
“Language.” Seth raised a brow at her.
Raine dropped her gaze. “Sorry, Sir.”
“I think that was them beginning to work it out.” Beck shrugged. “Throwing dishes is for pussies, and if Hammer hadn’t been so wrenched, I would have told him that. But their friendship wasn’t right even before you came along, princess.”
“Hammer told me not to take all the responsibility on my shoulders, but he never explained. So—”
“You didn’t believe him,” Beck filled in.
“No,” she admitted. “But what I saw today… It stunned me. Before now, I would have said it was impossible for them to share a woman again. But their actions together are so seamless. One picks up where the other leaves off. They’re so in tune, it’s like they can read each other’s minds. They operate as if they’re two halves of a whole. Like…they were born to be together in this way. The guilt that I’ve somehow kept them at one another’s throats for so long—”
“Stop there,” Seth demanded. “That’s both their doing and their problem. Focus on you for a minute. How does being with both of them make you feel?”
“Centered for the first time in my life. Secure. Protected. Happy.” She shook her head, still looking for the right words to express herself. “Don’t get me wrong. Every look, touch, and whisper has me completely off-balance. But being with them is so perfect. I don’t ever want to give it up. Juliet must have felt like the luckiest woman in the world.”
“I don’t think so. She had issues.” Seth paused. Something bitter passed over his face. “Hell, she was an issue.”
“You didn’t like her?” That surprised Raine. Hammer had loved Juliet enough to grieve for years—in his way. Liam…she wasn’t sure exactly how he’d felt about the woman.
> “Not much.” Seth didn’t hesitate. “She didn’t have a spine. Not like you.”
“Sometimes I have too much spine,” Raine grumbled and shot a guilty look Beck’s way.
The doctor just laughed. “That’s actually a good thing, princess. Trust me.”
“You’ll need it with these two,” Seth drawled. “What’s your end game here?”
“What do I want out of this?” At their nods, she sighed. “I started down this path just to grow, to learn how to be open with someone and not try to protect myself all the time.”
“You’re being pretty damn honest now,” he pointed out.
“Because I can’t go back to being miserable. And no offense, but I can talk to you because my heart isn’t on the line.”
“None taken.” Beck shrugged.
“Besides, I’m guessing they left you here as my sounding boards.”
“Smart girl,” Seth said.
“Yep.” Beck nodded. “If you need help, we’re here. And we’ll be happy to whack Hammer and Liam upside the head if they need it. But we’ll also talk you through anything you’re unsure of or hesitant to address with them.
“I’m really grateful for the help, guys. Thanks.”
“So your goal is simply to not be miserable?” Beck prodded. “You don’t want anything else out of your time with Liam and Hammer?”
“Yesterday, no. Today…I’m afraid what I want is a little more pie in the sky. I know you said it was possible, Beck, but I’m still thinking I should go buy a bridge from someone on a street corner.”
“It’s not farfetched. Say it, princess.”
“I want them. Always,” she admitted softly. “I still think it sounds crazy. But today, they seemed happy. I’m happy. Part of me insists that it can work. But they tried with Juliet and it didn’t.”
“Apples and oranges. You’re different than Juliet. They’re not the same men, either. Liam and Hammer are stronger and more in sync now.”
Raine digested that information. “They weren’t like this with Juliet?”
“No. Not this…intimate. Hammer is more gentle. Liam is more possessive.” Seth searched for words. “I don’t know how to explain it, but it’s definitely not the same.”