A Little Harmless Fantasy

by Melissa Schroeder

  He brushed those thoughts aside and realized Maura was still talking about her brother. There was something between the siblings that was endearing and perplexing at the same time. She saw him as a brother, which Rory understood, but she also acted as if she needed his approval like she would a father. It was odd that she tied so much in her life to his approval.

  “I just want the key to the house, then I want to go to sleep,” Zeke said when Maura stopped long enough for him to comment.

  Rory nodded as he leaned back and let the environment take control of him for just a little bit. He needed this time off, all three of them did. And this…connection they all seemed to have was definitely one that he was going to enjoy. They did need rest and he could understand why Zeke just wanted to go to sleep. Rory was exhausted in one way, but there was a part of him that was completely exhilarated. Who couldn’t be with two lovers like Zee and Maura?

  He watched Maura from the back seat. He liked women. They had been his first love until he hit twenty and had his first encounter with a man. Still there was something about Maura. Something in her tugged at him. He had sensed it before they had been in bed. Zee had a thing for her and now...Rory wasn’t so sure he didn’t have a thing for her.

  Whoa. What the hell was he thinking? Sure, the sex had been stellar. She hadn’t really submitted yet and he was already a little tangled up in her. But, that was all it was. One week for Zee to work her out of his system, and then they could move on. That was it.

  She turned and smiled at him. “How many times have you been to Oahu?”

  They’d removed the top of the Jeep because Maura had insisted it was the only way to enjoy Hawaii. It had surprised him. She seemed closed down at the office, all business. But here, in this setting with them, she was open as if she feared nothing. It seemed so...intimate. Something about her he didn’t know. And now, her hair was flying around her head. She pulled it out of her face and smiled at him. Something hit him hard and clutched at his heart. He rubbed his chest hoping to rid himself of the feeling.

  “Only when your brother and Jillian got married.”

  Her eyes widened. “Really? I thought maybe you and Zeke had been here before. Like for work.”

  His lips twitched. “Not a lot of security work here on Oahu for us.”

  Her smile turned into a grin. “I hope there is since my brother insists on opening that office.”

  He didn’t want to tell her that the type of work Zee and he did for years wouldn’t be the type of high-level security they now handled. It was down and dirty, some of it more than a little questionable. He didn’t think much about the earlier jobs these days. Truth was, if Zee and he didn’t have the protection of the British government, they would probably be in prison somewhere. But, they had done it for—what was it the Americans liked to say—God and country. That was it. Those days were long gone, but he didn’t regret them. They had done what needed to be done.

  Shaking himself from his thoughts again, he found Maura staring at him still.

  “No, it’s actually smart. You have a lot of work here thanks to the movies plus, it gives Dillon Securities the ability to work their way into the Pacific Rim. There is a lot of need for security. More and more US companies are moving into these new market areas and we can provide them security for their executives and their offices.”

  “I’m just the nerd who works on the technical aspect,” she said shrugging. “I don’t think there’s a need for me to be here.”

  He didn’t like the fact that she downplayed her abilities. It was something that her brother and Zee allowed all the time. Zee always dismissed it as a joke, but Rory still did not care for it. He knew the truth of it. Their company wouldn’t be able to function without someone like Maura. She was the reason they were gaining more and more clients in every area.

  “Computers are a huge part of the problem today. So much terrorism happens online, or the ability to hack into systems, easy way to steal millions.”

  She nodded and then gasped when Zee took a hard right turn.

  “Dude,” she said punching him. “Slow down.”

  “You know that Conner is going to want to keep us there forever. I am ready for bed.”

  He heard the way Zee’s voice dipped over the word and understood that Zee wasn’t just planning on sleeping. He was as ready for a submission from her as Rory was. She had been so fucking responsive to him on the jet; he could just imagine what she would do when he pushed it to the next level. The fact that she liked watching Zee and him together was even more arousing. Not every woman they took to bed did like that part of it. In fact, he was pretty sure she was the only one who looked forward to that part of it. He couldn’t wait to tie her down and make her watch.

  He shifted on his seat trying to ease the tightness of his jeans. Fuck, he was getting a hard on. Not a good idea. Part of it was Maura’s fault in a way. The woman intrigued him more than anyone before, except for Zee.

  “And, here we are,” she said, her voice bubbled, excitement filling every syllable. Zee had barely put the jeep in park when she jumped out of it and ran to the house. The door was already slamming open.

  Jillian Dillon came running out squeeing, her braids flying behind her. As the two women embraced, Rory realized just how opposite they were. Sure, he had seen Jillian a couple of times at the office and then at the wedding, but seeing them together told him just how odd a pair they made.

  Jillian was a tall black woman, tattooed and pierced, with long dark braids. She lived life on her own terms as an erotic romance writer. Dressed in a pair of cutoffs that had seen better days and a red tank top, you would never know the woman controlled billions with her family’s company. If you looked up free spirit in the dictionary, you would probably find her picture. He often wondered just how they made it work as friends, but there was some kind of connection between the two women.

  Conner came out behind her, a frown on his face. Rory wasn’t sure that he had ever seen the man smile other than the day of the wedding. From the moment he met his new boss, there had been a patent distrustful air about him. At first, Rory had assumed it was his relationship with Zee, but he soon found out that Conner could care less about that. He looked at everyone that way, which is one of the reasons he was good at his job. But the moment Conner saw Maura, his entire expression softened. That was family—something he would never understand.

  She untangled herself from Jillian and launched herself into Conner’s arms. “I missed you so much!”

  Conner, in a display Rory would never expect, pulled her up off the ground into a bear hug.

  Zee must have read his expression. He walked up beside him. “They are very close.”

  “You don’t have to tell me that, Zee.”

  “No, I guess not.”

  Jillian shaded her eyes. “Come on boys. I just put on some Kona and I think we can scrounge you up something to eat.”

  “I’ll cook,” Conner said, his arm now draped over Maura’s shoulders.

  Rory knew he was just her brother and was not a competitor for her sexual affections but it bothered him. He had never been possessive except when it came to Zee. Not like this. He had to control the need to tell her brother to get his damned hands off her. He shook his head and smiled at Jillian.

  “I would love a good breakfast,” Rory said.

  “Then I better cook because while Jillian is good with writing books and making coffee, her idea of breakfast is usually left over pizza.”

  She shot her husband a nasty look. “I can cook. But when I have a man trained to do it so nicely, why should I bother.”

  He growled and for the first time in a few minutes, finally let go of his sister. Rory barely kept himself from walking up the steps to the porch and slipping his arm around her waist. For some reason, he wanted everyone to know she belonged to him and Zee. It was an odd feeling, but maybe it had more to do with the lack of sleep than anything else.

  Conner swatted his wife on the ass.
“While I would like to argue with her, Jillian is right. I do a lot of the cooking because someone gets too caught up in work to notice that we have nothing to eat.”

  She shook her head and gave Zee a hug. “Hey, Mr. Man, how are you doing? I like the baldhead. It gives you a real ‘The King and I’ look, especially regal with that goatee.”

  Zeke laughed. “As long as you don’t expect me to sing, we’ll be fine.”

  She gave him a smile and Rory felt the power of it. She didn’t downplay her attributes, but she was so laid back he forgot just how powerful they were. When she turned all that attention on him it was hard to miss.

  “Hey, there, Rory.”

  “Hey, yourself.”

  Jillian patted her heart. “Ohhh, two men with Irish accents. How ever do you concentrate at work, girl?”

  Maura laughed. “I use my super intellect and lots of coffee. And where is that coffee I was offered?”

  “Make sure to give her some soon, or we could be dealing with a monster,” Conner said. She elbowed her brother.

  “You have no room to talk, Conner. But, I would love to have some coffee, and I am definitely famished.”

  He sighed following them in. Zee gave him a warning look. Rory nodded. He knew they had to be patient to get her alone again. If he spent any time thinking about it, Rory was sure he would be worried. He’d never been this into a sub before, but he was going to keep going in the spirit of their week.

  There would be plenty of time to worry when they got back to Miami.

  * * * *

  “So, how’s work really going?” Jillian asked when she and Maura were finally alone walking on the beach.

  Maura shrugged as she tried to sort through her feelings. She was still feeling slightly overwhelmed by the two men and her body was buzzing. Once they got to the house, they were definitely going to want to play. Just knowing that made it really hard to concentrate on talking. “It’s going.”

  “Girl, don’t even try that with me. I picked up on the vibe with the three of you.”

  Maura looked out over the water trying to come up with a way to describe what was going on. She knew that Jillian would know right away. Now was the time to decide just what she would tell her best friend.

  “And don’t even think of telling me nothing’s going on, because Jillian sees all.”

  Maura chuckled. “I can’t believe I bought that in college.”

  She smiled at her and Maura was thrust back into the memory of meeting the worldly Jillian the first time. She had been so young and scared to death. Jillian had made life so much easier—even if she had lied telling her she had spies all over campus.

  Jillian tugged on a lock of her hair. “Yeah, quit stalling.”

  She looked out over the water again. Maura didn’t know if she was ready to explain what happened. Hell, she didn’t know what was really going on. Sure, there was sex. Amazing sex. Hell, just thinking about it right now had her blood heating and her hormones hopping. Something else was there though, something that she worried about.

  “Stop pondering and share before Conner gets done with the guys.”

  “You know Rory and Zeke share women sometimes.”

  “You said that before, or you suspected it.”

  “There were rumors, but I wasn’t entirely sure. You know, people in the office talk.”

  “They haven’t been doing it with people at the company, have they?” Jillian asked. “Conner would kill them.”

  “No. No, not until recently.”

  Jillian didn’t say anything for a second. Maura glanced out back over the water again, but she could feel her friend’s attention. Then, Jillian chuckled. “Good for you Maura Dillon.”

  Maura looked over at her. From the moment they met, they had been friends. So odd because Jillian had been so, well, cool. Maura had been years younger in age and even more naïve than the average teenager. She hadn’t known just how to take her roommate, but after awhile she realized she had been handed a gift. Jillian was the older sister she had always wanted.

  “No recriminations?” she asked worried that for the first time in her life she let her best friend down.

  “Of course not. You’re an adult. You know what you’re doing.”

  “Do I?” she asked, still unsettled by the lovemaking earlier. They had just started and she found herself enthralled with both men. She had a really bad feeling that things were going to get out of hand pretty fast and at the end of the week, it would be over. She already loved Zee. She didn’t even want to think about what would happen if she fell for Rory also.

  Jillian sighed. “How did it happen? When?”

  “How—Rory approached me. Seems that while Zeke is not into BDSM, he does have a kink.”

  “And that would be?”

  “Voyeurism.”

  Jillian hummed. “Ohhhh, mama. That is hot. I mean, really hot.”

  “Apparently, he also really likes showing off for the sub. Like if the sub likes to watch the guys together, it turns him on more.” And that was one thing she liked. She loved the way they touched each other. Their openness to express their affection for each other was so sexy. Even right now the heat was building in her blood thinking about it.

  “Wow. Well, right up your alley then. How long has this been going on?”

  “Are you going to go tell my brother?” she asked.

  “Of course not. I might be married to him, but I know better than that. He needs to let go and let things happen. His control freak nature is the reason you’re here. I’m going to warn you though; your brother might sniff it out. He might try and pretend it isn’t happening, but I have a feeling it will hit him if you spend any time with him while you’re here. It will be hard on him to accept. I think in his head he still thinks you’re a virgin.”

  Maura shook her head. “He does not.”

  “He pretends at least.”

  She rolled her eyes. “Men. You should have seen the way he reacted when I told him I had lost my virginity.”

  There was a beat of silence. “Wait, when was that?”

  “You know when that happened. I told you about it.”

  Jillian waved that away. “No, not losing it. When you told him?”

  “Oh, when I went up to DC to see him a few weeks later. He didn’t take it the way I thought he would. I mean at the time. Now, I understand.”

  “I would have paid a thousand dollars—and I mean it—to have seen that.”

  “Yeah, he didn’t look at me for over a whole day.”

  “I can imagine. Guys don’t like hearing stuff like that about their sisters, especially with him being the authority figure in your life.”

  “Well, I told him I didn’t know what all the fuss was about. I mean, it was over so quickly with Jed.”

  Jillian snorted. “Oh, please tell me you said that to him.”

  She blinked. “Of course I did. I thought he could tell me what was wrong. He got a weird look on his face and just walked away.”

  Jillian laughed. “Why didn’t you ask me?”

  “Well, if you want to know the truth, I was embarrassed. I mean, he was so fast I thought it had something to do with me, or that I was frigid because nothing happened for me. I did research but it was all so vague so I asked him later about a woman being frigid.”

  “Thank you. I am going to use that against him in the future.” She crossed her arms beneath her breasts. “So, spill, when did this start?”

  “On the ride over.”

  Another beat of silence. “Oh. My. God. Woman, when you let loose, you really let loose. Little Maura Dillon a member of the Mile High Club. And not just one guy in a small stall. Two guys, a bed, and a private plane. You do me proud. How was it?”

  She sighed. “It was actually very wonderful. And we haven’t even started playing with submission. Rory is a Dom, but only with women, and well, the one thing Zeke likes to do is watch him make a woman submit.”

  “But?”

  She look
ed at Jillian then out over the water again. “I’m not sure what I’m getting myself into. They’re together, this is just for the week that we are here.”

  “Are you hoping for more?”

  That scared her. Even now she didn’t want to think about going back to Miami and being left behind. It would hurt, probably more than losing Zeke the first time. Resisting would have been futile though. They would have just overwhelmed her at every turn. And now, she wouldn’t just be losing one of them. She would be losing Rory too. She wanted both of them so much now. She closed her eyes as if that would help.

  Jillian said nothing, so Maura opened her eyes.

  “Are you?” she asked again.

  “God, I don’t know. You know how I feel about Zeke.”

  “You love him. You have for a long time,” Jillian said quietly. She had been the one who had picked up on Maura’s feelings before Maura knew what was going on.

  “Yeah, and I find Rory over the top attractive. To make it worse, he’s a talker.”

  “Oh, wow. A Dom who is a talker, and they like to do each other. Talk about Maura’s dream come true.”

  She didn’t regret telling Jillian her fantasies, but her friend was always so bold in stating them. While Maura believed in being cautious, Jillian thought it best to face your desires head on. Telling her that she had a thing for bisexual men probably hadn’t been the smartest thing Maura had done, but they had been drinking at the time.

  Jillian frowned at her. “Don’t look like that. There is nothing wrong with your needs. Who are you hurting?”

  Maura shook her head and smiled. “No one. I just hope that at the end of the week I’ll be able to walk away.”

  “I would just play it by ear.” Maura’s spine stiffened and Jillian rolled her eyes. “I know that’s hard for you Dillons, but in this one week, let it go. Have fun, enjoy. You might learn a lot about yourself.”