Her Old-Fashioned Boss

by Laylah Roberts

  Not that she would, because it definitely would not be harassment.

  No, she’d welcome any advance from him with open arms.

  Sam, too.

  She didn’t want to come between them. Hell, no, what they had was beautiful and strong. She’d observed their relationship, seen the way Roarke looked at Sam like the sun rose and shone on him. Seen how Sam worshipped the ground Roarke walked on.

  No, she didn’t want to choose. She wanted them both. Together. At the same time.

  She shivered at the images that thought produced.

  “You okay?” Roarke glanced down at her with concern as he sat her on the edge of the giant bath tub. Ava glanced around, realizing that they must be in his and Sam’s private bathroom. “Are you cold? I’ll get you something warm to put on in a second.”

  Grabbing the detachable head on the bath, he turned the tap on cold and started running it over her burning thighs.

  Instant relief.

  “Hold this, sweetheart. I’ll go find you a sweater.”

  “No, wait, I’m...fine,” she trailed off, realizing he wasn’t listening to a word.

  Ava took the chance to take a deep breath and try to steady her nerves.

  Damn, I’m losing it. I have to do better than this.

  She knew they didn’t mean anything by their flirting, with the way they took care of her. That was just the kind of men they were. Men who protected those who were weaker than themselves. They opened doors, carried bags, kept watch over those smaller than them.

  “Here you go.” Roarke returned with a large hoodie. “This is one of Sam’s.” He handed her the sweater while grabbing the hose back from her.

  “I’m fine.”

  Roarke simply looked at her. Sighing, she pulled it over her head, admitting to herself that it did make her feel better. Sam’s scent drifted around her, clean and sharp.

  “My legs feel fine now, I think you can stop drowning them,” she told Roarke jokingly.

  Instead of smiling, he glanced down at her thighs. “Few more minutes. You have to be careful with burns. I should never have yelled out at you like that. The hot water could have splashed up into your face or anything.”

  Self-recrimination filled his words and she instantly felt the need to soothe him.

  “Roarke, I’m fine. It’s just a bit of hot water, I’ve had much worse. And it was not your fault. I shouldn’t have been drinking tea at my desk. I’ve had enough water now,” she said reaching over to turn it off. Roarke grabbed her hand, stilling her. She shied back and he frowned.

  “Are you scared of me?” he asked in a low voice.

  She shook her head then stilled, remembering how she’d promised honesty and nodded slightly.

  He reached over slowly and pushed some hair behind her ear. “I’d never hurt you, honey. Not for the world.”

  Smiling slightly, she looked into his deep blue eyes—his rich, mouth-watering eyes—and saw how sincere he was.

  “I know we’ve only known each other a short time, but I consider you part of the family. And I protect what’s mine.”

  He leaned in, as though to kiss her, when Sam stepped into the bathroom, staring at them quizzically. His brows rose, no doubt from her state of semi-dress.

  “What’s wrong? Is Ava hurt?” he asked anxiously.

  “She burned her thighs,” Roarke said, standing so abruptly that she swayed slightly, missing his steadying presence. “Take care of her for me.”

  Stepping towards the door, he stopped and turned back, his gaze so cold she shivered. What had happened to the caring man who’d been about to kiss her?

  “Look after her, Sam. Ava, I don’t expect to see you again today.”

  Then he left. Tears welled in her eyes and she immediately reached over and turned off the tap.

  “Sam, my pants are wet do you think you have something I could wear home?” she asked, trying to keep her voice steady.

  “Oh, baby, he didn’t mean that the way it sounded,” Sam told her soothingly, placing his arm over her shoulders. But Ava’s emotions were in a whirlwind.

  “It’s not that, it doesn’t matter. Please, I just want to go home.” She needed to think about everything. About the fact that she’d came close to kissing her boss. A boss whose life-partner was currently trying to cuddle her close.

  “Please, Sam,” she said, her voice breaking.

  “Okay, sweet. Let me just have a look at your legs. I’m going to put some burn cream on them to take out the sting, but you shouldn’t use it all the time, give them a chance to breathe.”

  “I think I can take care of a couple of small burns, Sam,” she snapped at him.

  He reeled back as though she’d hit him, his face closing down. “Well, all right then, let me just get the cream.”

  Guilt, sharp and nasty stabbed her in the gut. She grabbed his hand as he stood.

  “Sam, I’m sorry, I’m just not feeling myself. Please forgive me.” She gazed up at him, knowing she would burst into tears if he remained mad at her.

  His face softened and he nodded, patting her hand. “It’s okay, sweet. Let me get some cream to take that sting out then I’ll see if I can find you something to wear. You just stay there.”

  Ava nodded, not really certain that she could move anyway.

  *****

  Sam saw Ava to the car, worried about her pale appearance and sad eyes. What the hell had Roarke done to her? The burns on her legs were mild, but he knew Roarke would be beating himself up for her pain.

  But the pain of the burns couldn’t be attributed to the misery he saw in her eyes. As soon as Max took off down the drive, he raced back inside to find Roarke.

  He entered the gym. Roarke was pounding on the boxing bag, sweat already dripping down his body. He’d stripped off to just a pair of small shorts, but for once Sam’s attention wasn’t caught by his fantastic body. Right now he was on a mission.

  To find out what the hell was going on.

  He moved over to stand in front of Roarke, not about to be ignored.

  “What was that all about?” he asked mildly, holding the bag, so Roarke could pound away on it.

  “Nothing,” Roarke replied shortly.

  Sam sighed. “Don’t do this.”

  “Do what?” Roarke asked, his gaze set on the bag.

  “Don’t shut up like this. You really hurt her. Why’d you act so cold to her and walk out like that?”

  “None of your business.”

  “It is my business.” Sam swung the bag away, glaring at Roarke who had to pull back his punch.

  “Dammit, don’t do that. I could have hit you.”

  “Then hit me! Just don’t close down on me, I can’t stand that.”

  Roarke stood, panting then turned away with a loud yell. “Fuck!” he cried out, making Sam flinch. When he turned back, his misery was clear to see. “I really fucked up, didn’t I? Was she really upset?”

  Sam nodded. “What happened?”

  “I nearly kissed her, right before you came into the room.”

  “Shit,” Sam said.

  Roarke nodded. “She’s probably completely confused now. She’ll think that I nearly cheated on you, that she nearly betrayed your friendship. I just, I wasn’t thinking, I wanted to touch her, kiss her and then you came in and all those emotions started to boil over, I had to get away from her before I pulled her into our bed and made love to her and she’s not ready for that.”

  Sam shook his head. No, she wasn’t.

  “I’ll be lucky if she comes back tomorrow,” Roarke said with a sigh, pulling off his gloves. He moved over to sit on the weights bench. Sam walked over and opened the small fridge, pulling out a bottle of water. He handed it to Roarke who took it with a small smile.

  “I don’t deserve you, you know,” he said almost sadly. Sam kneeled at his feet and rested his head on Roarke’s knees. No matter how annoyed he might be at Roarke, he loved him. He was hurting at the moment, he needed Sam.

  Roar
ke ran his hand through Sam’s hair. “I’m sorry.”

  “I think you’re saying that to the wrong person,” Sam replied.

  “I’m not.” Sam glanced up at him in surprise, but Roarke merely pressed his head down again. “I owe you both an apology. I should never have started something without you there, and for that I owe you an apology.”

  Sam shook his head. “No, you don’t. I’m the one who pushed you into this, if it’s not what you want...”

  Roarke smiled. “I think it’s fair to say that I want her. A lot. What I don’t want is to ruin what you and I have. You’re the most important person in my world, Sam.”

  “Does that mean there’s no room for Ava?”

  Sam held his breath, waiting for his answer. He wanted Ava. Sam had material things growing up, but after his mother’s death he’d had little in the way of affection and love. So what he had now, he held on to for dear life. There was no way he was going to let Roarke go. If Roarke couldn’t handle this then Sam would have to find a way to let Ava go.

  Even if it broke his heart.

  “No, it doesn’t. It just means that I need to take this slow for all our sakes, so nothing gets messed up.

  Sam nodded. “If you don’t think you can handle this then we need to stop it now, because I could love her, easily, and while it would be hard to say goodbye to her now...”

  “Soon it will become impossible. I know. And you’re right. I have to be sure. I need to think about this for a bit. It’s Friday now, we’ve got a couple of days. Just give me some time, hmm?”

  Sam agreed, hoping that time was on their side.

  Chapter Four

  Ava curled up on the bed, disgusted with herself. As soon as she’d gotten home and changed, she’d rushed down to the bakery. Having chewed and spit out two brownies and a dozen cookies, she now felt more than a little ill.

  And ashamed.

  Sniffling, she held the tears off, not willing to give into another bout of weeping.

  Enough! I’m stronger than this. I can get through this. I don’t need anyone else.

  Two pairs of blue eyes swam before her.

  What the hell is wrong with me? Not only am I lusting over my boss, but his partner as well?

  She’d well and truly ruined things now.

  “Just like always,” she muttered and punched her pillow. How could she ever face them again? She’d have to hand in her resignation; it was the only thing to do. She wouldn’t hurt either of them for the world, or come between them. And what else would she do, with the way she lusted after them.

  Rolling onto her back she ignored the ringing phone. The answering machine clicked on and she groaned as she heard Asia’s voice.

  “Ava, you better not be screening calls and ignoring me. Come on, pick up the phone, we need to talk Ava. I’ll keep calling back.”

  Knowing she’d do exactly that, Ava rolled to her side and grabbed the phone. “Hey, Asia, what’s up?”

  “Wow, you sound awful.”

  “Thanks,” Ava said dryly.

  “What’s up?”

  “Just a bad day at work.”

  “Yeah, how bad?” Asia asked.

  “Like I almost kissed my boss bad. My gay boss who is taken, bad.”

  Asia whistled. “Yep, that’s bad all right. I know just what you need.”

  Ava slumped back. “Oh yeah, and what’s that?”

  “A night out on the town with your friends, that’s what.”

  “I don’t know.” No way did she feel like going out and dancing, she wanted to hide under the covers and sleep forever.

  “Come on,” Asia wheedled. “If you don’t come then we’ll have to come over to your place, I suppose. Movies, pajama party, popcorn. Sleepover.”

  Oh God, the last time they’d had a sleepover at McKenna’s place, the neighbors had called the cops about the noise.

  “No, no, I’ll come out.”

  Asia laughed. “Thought you might.”

  *****

  Roarke sat back in his chair and closed his eyes. He’d really fucked up today, in more ways than one. He had no business trying to kiss Ava like that. Not without Sam there and definitely not without talking to her about a few things first.

  Shit. She must think him the worst kind of guy. A cheater. One who would come on to his employee. He’d be lucky if she didn’t charge him with sexual harassment. He certainly deserved it.

  Then he’d hurt her by acting like a cold asshole and walking out, leaving her care to Sam. And that grated too. While he knew Sam was better at the care-taking stuff, Roarke wanted to help care for her as well. Cuddle her, soothe her, love her.

  Shit.

  A month. Only a month that he’d known her and yet he knew he couldn’t let her go. He wouldn’t hurt Sam or what they had for the world, but he had to figure out how to bring the three of them together without harming any of them.

  He had too. Because he loved her.

  How that had happened, he didn’t know. But the three of them felt right together.

  Now, he just had to convince Ava of that.

  “Sam,” he called out as he headed up the stairs to their rooms. Damn, maybe he should think about getting them a real home. Ava and Sam deserved more than living above a kink club.

  “Yes?” Sam appeared out of the bedroom, looking at him warily.

  Roarke sighed at the hesitance Sam displayed; the other man was obviously worried that Roarke would decide against having Ava in their lives.

  He pulled Sam close, holding him against his body as he ran his hand over the other man’s silky hair.

  Turning Sam’s head, he took his mouth, moving softly, teasing him with his licks and nips until Sam opened his mouth and let him inside. Roarke took full advantage, driving his tongue deep.

  Sam rubbed his body against Roarke’s and he could feel the other man’s thick erection pressing against him, driving his own need higher. If only they had time...

  Roarke pulled back and Sam knelt, moving his fingers to the zipper of Roarke’s jeans.

  “No time,” Roarke panted. “We need to go get our girl.”

  Sam stilled and looked up at him, a combination of hope and tears filling his beautiful blue eyes.

  “You mean it?” he asked.

  Roarke nodded. “I mean it. We need her in our lives and she needs us.”

  “She might take some convincing,” Sam warned.

  “No doubt,” Roarke agreed. “But when have you ever known me not to get something I go after?”

  Sam smiled. “Well then, we’ll have a lifetime to convince her, so I don’t suppose five minutes will make much difference.”

  He drew Roarke’s cock free. “Five minutes!” Roarke protested.

  But his indignation soon turned to a moan of hunger as Sam sucked his cock into his mouth.

  And damned if he didn’t last less than five minutes, although he made up for it by taking Sam to bed and showing just how long he could torture him without granting release.

  *****

  Ava shook her body to the beat of the music. Well, she tried. But the four gin and tonics she’d had, combined with countless tequila shots, were playing havoc on her co-ordination.

  A large, dark-skinned man sidled up to them, dancing behind Asia. Jeez, what was it with guys? This is the fourth one they’d had to field off and they all had the same move. They’d gradually get closer and closer, as if they were predator sneaking up on prey, then they’d dance behind whatever girl they’d set their sights on, moving in time with her, as though they thought she wouldn’t notice that she suddenly had a 170 pound asshole attached to her ass. McKenna and Ava moved in close to either side of Asia and glared at the man.

  “Lesbian bitches,” he snarled as he turned and walked away.

  McKenna shook her head and led the way off the dance floor, the others followed her through the thick crowd of grinding bodies to the next room which was a bit quieter. McKenna found a free table. Ava sat with a sigh, grateful
the music was a bit quieter in here. She loved to dance, but tonight she’d had too much to drink, hoping the alcohol would help her forget everything that had happened earlier that day.

  “I’m beat,” Casey said with a sigh, looking tired as she gazed around at the rest of them. “I just don’t have the energy for this anymore.”

  “That’s cause you waste it all on those kids,” McKenna replied. “I wouldn’t have any energy if I had to look after twenty-five littlies either. It’s a wonder you don’t collapse each night.”

  “Sometimes I do,” Casey muttered.

  Ava glanced over at her, trying to get her brain to function properly, but everything was muted by the fuzziness in her head. Her stomach lurched and she held her hand over her mouth.

  “You okay, Ava?” Casey asked with concern.

  The others turned to look at her and she nodded. “Just not feeling so great,” she said weakly.

  “Can’t handle your tequila shots, huh,” Asia teased.

  “You want to talk about it, Ava?” Casey asked kindly.

  Ava shook her head. They knew the bare facts; she’d had to tell them that. But she couldn’t confide in them how Roarke and Sam made her feel. How she longed to have Roarke order her to her knees, take her, command her. How Sam made her feel giddy inside, loved, precious.

  How could she explain that she lusted after both of them? And that she was so disgusted with herself that she’d raced home like a scared little bunny, devouring brownies and cookies then spitting them out as soon as she could no longer hold it in her mouth without swallowing.

  No, she didn’t want to talk.

  What she wanted was her bed and sweet oblivion.

  Pulling up her bag, she dug around in it until she found her cell phone. Her phone might be large and old, but it still worked and that was all that mattered at the moment.

  “What you doing?” McKenna asked. “You’re not leaving are you? The night has barely begun.”

  “I don’t feel so great, guys. I’m really sorry, I just want to go home and curl into bed.”

  “We’ll go with you,” Asia said with concern. “We’ll do that sleepover. Except this time we’ll actually sleep.”