by Bea Paige
“Come on, let’s go in,” Hudson says, tugging my hand.
We walk through the large double doors into an open-plan reception area. Behind the high white desk is a casually dressed man in his mid-twenties with short, brown hair and a welcoming smile.
“Afternoon, Hudson. Bryce and Max are in the meeting room on the top floor.”
“Thanks, Stuart. Almost done for the night?”
“Yes, just waiting on the security to do their check then we’ll shut up shop. I’ll ring up once we’re done.”
“Thank you. If I don’t speak with you, have a good weekend.”
I stand awkwardly whilst they make their exchange. Stuart smiles at me, waiting to be introduced. His eyes flick to our joined hands. Interest sparks in his eyes, but he covers it well.
“Nice to meet you…” Stuart starts, looking at me.
“Louisa,” I say.
“Nice to meet you, Louisa.”
“God, where are my manners?” Hudson says. “This is Louisa, and she will be starting as our new personal assistant on Monday. I thought I’d show her around, get her acquainted with the place.”
“Excellent. Well, I look forward to seeing you Monday. Will there be anything else you need before I leave, Hudson?”
“Actually, there is. You couldn’t do me a favour and order us in some Thai. Our usual dishes. I know Sarah will have left already, otherwise I would have asked her to do it. There are some things I need to discuss with my brothers and we might be here for a while.”
“Yes, Sarah left a few minutes ago. I’ll order it in and bring it up before I go.”
“Thanks, Stuart.” Hudson places his hand on my lower back and steers me towards the lift on the other side of the reception area. He presses the button and the door slides open, revealing a mirrored interior. We step inside, and the lift doors slide shut behind us.
“He was nice,” I say, looking at myself in the mirror. Next to Hudson, who is casually elegant, I look like an art student gone wrong. “I wonder what he must think?”
Hudson steps up behind me, wrapping his arm around my stomach. “Stuart’s a good guy, he’ll only have noticed the fact I was holding your hand, not the clothes you’re wearing. We’ve known him a long time. In fact, aside from a handful of people, most of our employees are friends from before. We’re a family here. I think that’s why it works.”
“Friends from before?” I frown, even though Hudson is trying his best to distract me with gentle kisses on my neck.
“From the home we grew up in, or friends from when we were young,” he says flippantly, as if that’s nothing out of the ordinary.
“Wait,” I say, twisting in his arms. “Let me get this straight. Most of your employees are kids you grew up with in the care home?”
“Yes,” he confirms, just as the door pings open. “We kept in contact. Those who wanted to, we asked them to join us here. Some did, some didn’t.”
“That’s incredible.”
“We had the ability to help people out, why wouldn’t we take it,” he says, guiding me out of the lift.
“Because people are generally selfish, because in my experience people only look out for number one.”
“We are not most people,” Hudson says, as we step out into an open-plan office filled with a couple of dozen desks. There is a wraparound window giving amazing views of Battersea power station on the banks of the River Thames opposite. It’s incredible.
“I’m beginning to understand that.” In France, before the weekend in Petite Cabane, I thought I knew what kind of men the brothers were. Even after, when I ran, I still had my doubts. Today, as I hear what they’ve done and the opportunities they have given other people who had a shit start in life, well, I am floored by their kindness, their generosity.
“We look after the people we care about, Louisa. Always,” he says.
Chapter Eighteen
“It’s unusual though, isn’t it? The fact that you employ friends.”
“Business is built on a number of factors, Louisa. A good business, a successful one, the one we have achieved, is built on hard work, friendship, loyalty, and sheer bloody determination.”
“Well, I think it’s incredible, what you’ve all achieved,” I say, looking around the place. I feel excited for them, proud.
“Hey, it’s not all on Hudson. Don’t give him all the credit, his head might explode. His ego’s big enough already!”
From a door to our left, Max walks into the office. He looks deliciously handsome in his navy suit and crisp white shirt. He has removed his tie, and the top button of the shirt is undone. His blonde hair is a little dishevelled, and I have the sudden urge to run my fingers through it.
“Ha ha. Just because you want a little ego stroking yourself, don’t spoil mine. You were saying, Louisa?”
I grin. “You are all amazing. Seriously, I’m impressed.” Even though I feel excited about the opportunity to work here with them, self-doubt clouds my thoughts. What if I’m not good enough? What if I mess up? I chew on my nail.
“Louisa, you alright?” Hudson asks.
“I have no experience at all. I don’t want to be a burden. I can go back to the café and work off the debt that way. You don’t have to give me this job.”
“You can do this. Pretty much all of our staff were trained from the bottom up. There isn’t anything we can’t teach you. Sarah, our overworked PA, is great. She’ll show you the ropes.”
“Maybe. Honestly though, I don’t mind finding a job someplace else. It might take me longer to pay you back though…” My words still in my mouth as I see the stony expression on Bryce’s face as he enters the room.
“That’s out of the question,” Bryce says. “You’ll work for us here, where we can keep you safe.” A look passes between them all. “Your debt has been paid. That prick has got his money.”
“You’ve paid it already?”
“Yes, I paid it the day after I brought you home. He won’t be bothering you again.”
Unexpected tears fill my eyes, but I wipe them away fiercely. “Thank you. I don’t know how I’m ever going to repay you.”
Bryce strides over to me. “Yes, you do. You will work here with us. Besides, in my book you’ve done more than repay any money loaned to you.”
“How do you work that out?” I say, peering up at him.
“By taking a chance on us,” Bryce says, stepping closer. He pushes a strand of hair behind my ear, then leans down and presses a delicate kiss against my lips, wrapping me in his arms. I can’t help but lean into his hold. He smells divine. “Besides, I wouldn’t be a very good boyfriend if I let that creep find a reason to hurt you again.”
The lift dings and I can smell the food before I see Stuart bringing it in. Bryce lets me go, but not before Stuart notices. It doesn’t seem to faze him.
“All your favourites are here. Have a great evening,” he says, placing the takeaway on the table.
“You’re welcome to stay,” Max offers. “Looks like there’s plenty to go around.”
“Ah, not tonight. Me and Liz are heading to the West End to watch some god awful musical. You know what she’s like.”
Bryce laughs. “She’s still a fan then? I remember how she loved Annie when we were kids. She wouldn’t stop singing the bloody songs from it.”
“Tell me about it. She still does. At least you don’t have to live with her,” Stuart laughs. “Anyhow, I’d best be off. The building’s clear. Noah will see you out when you’re ready. See you Monday.” He turns to me and grins. “Lovely to meet you. I shall look forward to seeing you in the office.”
“You too,” I say, watching him get back into the lift. “Wow, he’s a really nice guy. Is Liz his wife?”
“No, his sister. Stuart’s a good man. We went to school together. Aside from these two arseholes here, Stuart was my only friend growing up,” Bryce explains.
“So he didn’t grow up in the care home with you?”
Bryce flicks hi
s gaze to Hudson who shrugs. “I explained that most of the people who work for us are from the care home, or friends of ours. I see no reason why she shouldn’t know that.”
“I’m glad you told her,” Bryce says to Hudson. “Stuart had a normal home life with great parents. He’s probably one of the few who work here that did.”
“I like him.”
“We all do.”
Hudson grabs the takeaway and heads towards the door Max and Bryce entered through a moment ago. I follow. Beyond the door is a conference room. In the middle is a large mahogany table with several chairs positioned around it. Along the back wall of the room are matching cupboards. Bryce heads over and opens a door, grabbing some plates and cutlery. He places them on the table whilst Max pulls out the various cartons of food. My stomach rumbles.
“You always keep this kind of stuff here?” I ask, looking bemused.
“Yep, we work late a lot. It’s easy just to get takeaway in. This has become our second dining room. Besides, before we never had any reason to rush back home,” Max explains as he dishes up some delicious smelling Thai green curry onto each of the plates.
“Before?”
“Before you, of course,” he says with a sweet smile.
We dig in. The brothers talk business for a while and, though interesting, I find my mind wandering. Being here with them all, comfortable like this, is the best kind of feeling. Soon my thoughts stray to the last night in Petite Cabane where the three of them took me to a place of ecstasy with their mouths and hands upon the kitchen table. I find that I am squirming in my seat at the delicious memory.
“Louisa, are you alright,” Max asks from his spot opposite me. My eyes focus on him, he is frowning. The room has suddenly gone deathly quiet.
“Yes, sorry,” I say, shaking my head. My cheeks flush immediately, partly through embarrassment that they’ve caught me not paying attention, and partly because I am feeling more than a little turned on. It is totally inappropriate, given we are in their place of work. Hudson, who is sitting to my right, places his fork down. I can feel him staring at me.
“What are you thinking about, Louisa?” he asks.
“Nothing important,” I say, moving my food around with my fork. A flash of black silk, hot mouths and warm liquid against my skin tumbles across my thoughts once again. Something shifts within me and I feel my nipples tighten against the cotton of my bra. What the hell is wrong with me? It isn’t as if we didn’t have sex just last night, but there is something about the power they exude here in this place they built.
Hudson, somehow sensing the change, gets up and stands behind me. I feel his hands slide over my shoulders.
“What are you thinking about, Louisa?” he whispers into my ear. I feel the slight graze of his stubble against my cheek. That simple touch sends bolts of electricity over my skin.
I swallow, glancing up at Bryce and Max, who are watching with interest, their gaze flicking between Hudson and myself. Bryce’s hands are resting on the table in front of him, the large veins on the back of them protruding slightly. I don’t know why that turns me on, but it does. Max has rolled up his shirt sleeves, his muscular forearms covered in blonde hair. They are like polar opposites, Max and Bryce. I am attracted to them both equally, but in different ways. Then there’s Hudson with his troubled past, his dragon tattoo, his turbulent green eyes and fuck me smile. I am a hot mess almost constantly when they are around. Put all three in a boardroom and clearly, I am in trouble.
“You don’t need to be shy around us,” Hudson says, running his fingertips under the collar of my top. “Tell us what’s going on.”
“I was thinking about the last night at Petite Cabane…”
“Yes, Icy,” Max says, a flirtatious smile pulling up his lips. I watch as Bryce rubs the flat of his hand against the table. He catches my gaze and I know he is remembering our time together in the shower and all the fucking we have done since. My mouth parts as I recall the way he made me come with his lips and his tongue.
“What about it, darling?” Bryce asks, his hazel eyes darkening.
“I was thinking about how much I want you all to touch me,” I say in a breathy rush. There, I said it. I feel Hudson’s hands still on my shoulder. “Well, that can be arranged,” he says after a moment. His hand slides over the front of my shirt as his fingers begin to undo the buttons. “What else?” Hudson moves his hand lower, undoing each button steadily.
“I was also thinking about how much I want to touch you all. I want to taste you, Bryce, like you tasted me.” I look at him with nothing but longing and desire. He blows out a steady breath at my confession.
“Fuck me,” Max says.
“I want to. All the damn time. I think about nothing else. You’ve ruined me,” I say with a gentle laugh.
Hudson’s hand reaches the last few buttons and he undoes them. Leaning over, he pulls open my shirt. I turn my head to the side and he catches my mouth with a gentle kiss. His hand slides over my lace-covered breast. He cups me gently, running the pad of his finger over my nipple. Opposite me I hear Bryce groan. It is intensely erotic being played with in such a way whilst Max and Bryce watch. I am getting used to their ways. Sometimes all three will spend the night with me, sometimes just one of them, on occasion two. It doesn’t matter what combination, there is no jealously or rivalry, we make it work.
Hudson swivels my seat so that I’m facing him and places his hands on the arms of the chair, effectively boxing me in. He leans over and kisses me fiercely, and I respond with the same fervour, wrapping my hands around his neck. The heat in the room has ratcheted up several notches. Through the haze of our passion I sense Bryce standing behind me, the familiar smell of his aftershave telling me it’s him. As Hudson kisses me, Bryce slides his hands over my breasts, squeezing them gently in his large hands. Opposite I hear Max mutter under his breath, something about the ‘best fucking dessert ever’.
A phone rings from the corner of the meeting room and the sound has Hudson pulling away reluctantly.
“Who the fuck is that?” he says.
“Let me find out,” Max sighs, getting up. He answers, listens, thanks the caller then puts the phone back on the cradle. “Fun’s over. Cleaners are coming up, and the IT guys want to set up Louisa’s computer ready for Monday.”
Bryce removes his hands and pulls my shirt together over my chest. “We are not done,” he says, bending over and pressing a kiss against my cheek. “Come on, I’m calling a cab.”
Chapter Nineteen
I feel breathless, giddy with excitement; the thought that someone could have walked in on us is shockingly thrilling. Hudson pulls me to his feet, a wicked smile on his face, and he starts to button up my shirt.
“Whatever you want, we got you, okay?”
We walk from the room. I am feeling more than a little aroused at the thought of what is to come. Max settles the phone back in the cradle and holds out his hand to me. I take it as we walk towards the lift.
“I put a call through to Cal as well. He’s taking Nisha out for the evening. I thought we could do with some time alone.”
“Really? I don’t want Calum to feel like he has to. Nisha wouldn’t want that either. She’d feel pretty crap if she thought he was made to take her out, rather than actually wanting to,” I say.
“Don’t worry about Calum,” Hudson says as we wait for the lift. “He’ll be the perfect gentleman.”
“I know, he has been. But after last week when we all thought he was interested, he seems to have cooled off. Nisha has been through a lot in her life. More than me, and that’s saying something. She can’t be fooled around. Calum shouldn’t take her out unless he wants to. Unless he’s certain.”
Max puts his arm around my shoulder. “Cal is a great guy, he does a lot for us. We’ve known him for a really long time. If he didn’t want to take her out, he would have said so. Don’t worry about Nisha. Tonight, the only thoughts we want running through your head are how fucking adored you are
, okay?”
Well, that shuts me up. Max’s words have the desired effect, so too does the closeness of them all. Max holds me against his side, Hudson takes my hand on my left and Bryce places his arms around my waist. I look at us all in the mirrored doors of the lift. All three of them are staring intently at me. I am in the middle of a Freed sandwich. A slow smile spills across my face.
“What are you grinning at, baby?” Hudson asks.
“I guess I’m just happy.” I don’t get to see their answering expression because the doors to the lift ping open. We step out into the foyer.
“Your car is waiting outside, Sir,” a security guard says as we walk towards the exit.
“Thanks, Noah. Time to shut up shop and get off home. Have a good evening,” Max says. Noah waves us out, locking the door behind us.
Outside on the street, our cab is waiting. We climb inside and a delicious nervousness fills my belly at the thought of what is to come.
We are standing in my bedroom. The blinds are drawn and the lights dimmed. Hudson, Max and Bryce are all staring at me. Strangely tonight I feel inexplicably shy, despite having shared my bed with all of them. Something is shifting between us. I can feel it in the air, it ignites a tension, a longing that draws us to each other.
Max is the first to make a move. Of the three he is the most open, the most willing to share his thoughts about his past, his life growing up. I have an easy relationship with him and I am always relaxed in his presence. He stands in front of me, blocking my view from Hudson and Bryce. There is no cheeky smile on his face this time as he leans down and brushes his lips against mine. When he pulls back his expression is serious, worried.
“Icy, there’s something that has been playing on my mind.”
“What is it?” I ask, trying to hide the tremor in my voice at his apparent unease.
He sits down on the bed and takes my hands in his. I sit down with him.