by Amelia James
I wrapped myself around him, holding him tight while I took his punishment. His body turned hot and I pulled his shirt off, scraping my fingernails down his back.
He hissed and pulled my hair. His fingers circled my neck, squeezing.
My breath came short and the room went dim. Spots flashed behind my eyes and oh GodI could come so hard if Will just tightened his grip
Don’t ever let anyone else do that to you. Not even Will.
The memory of Alex’s voice rattled my already quivering body.
Please, oh please. I begged and pleaded. I wanted to submit, to let Will take control.
I’d do anythingeven give up Alexif Will would just squeeze tighter.
It’s too dangerous.
Fuck!
I had to give up Alex. I had to give up Will. I had to give up everything holding me back and take control. No one else would protect me. I had to protect myself. I had the strength, if only I could find the courage to use it.
Gasping for breath, I knocked Will’s hand away.
“No.”
I shoved him off and rolled over, riding his cock while he groaned and swore. The woman-on-top position had never excited me, but tonight, with Will beneath me and Alex overcome, a surge of power set my senses ablaze. Electricity exploded through me,
showering my body with crackling, white-hot sparks. I felt Will come, and watching him surrender ignited the strength contained between my legs, jump-starting the confident woman I used to know.
I collapsed on his chest and he wrapped his arms around me while we caught our breath.
“Where the hell did that come from?” His words burned hot in my ear.
“Good question, but I have a better one. Why did you let me fuck Alex? He said you were trying to fix me.”
“I wasn’t trying to fix you.
Someone else.” He closed his eyes and shook his head. “No, not her. Me.”
“I don’t understand.”
He looked into my eyes and stroked my hair. “I told you I loved you so many times, but I’m not sure I ever felt it.”
His admission explained a lot, but my stomach churned and I swallowed past the lump in my throat, forcing my question out. “Why?”
“A couple years ago I lived with a woman. I loved her, and wanted to marry her, but one day I came home early and caught her in bed with my partner. Never saw it coming. I should’ve been angry or hurt, but… I was turned on.” His voice cracked.
I leaned up on his chest to look at him. Guilt and pain flooded his eyes.
“I didn’t know what to do, so I left.”
“Did you talk to her about it? Ask her why?”
“No. I didn’t know how.”
His head hit the floor with a defeated thump. “I still don’t.”
Blood dripped from his lip again, and I wiped it off. “That’s going to leave a scar.”
“Yeah, it did.” Then he saw the blood on my thumb. “Oh, that. I deserved that too.” He kissed my fingertips and squeezed my hand. “I was supposed to protect you.”
“From what?”
“Alex and I set up all these rules. The only thing I had to do was make sure you didn’t get hurt.” His fingertips caressed my cheek. “I failed.”
“I can protect myself.”
His muscles tensed and his eyes flashed. “Not when you get involved with mobsters.
How did that happen?”
“What?” How had we gotten from cheating ex-girlfriends to the mob?
“Alex told me what you’re doing for Holland Spencer. I watched him in a meeting with mob bosses tonight. Did you know he was working with them?”
The room got hot and close.
My head spun and I grabbed Will’s shoulders for support.
“No, I… I knew he was using both the firm’s and clients’
money to make risky
investments. I saw names, but didn’t know they were…. Oh God.”
He helped me to my feet. “I gotta go after him.” He zipped his pants and grabbed his jacket.
“No.” I pulled my rumpled skirt in place and adjusted my bra, but my shredded blouse no longer covered me. “Alex is helping me.”
“What’s he doing?” Will’s eyebrow arched.
“He set up a meeting with someone… someone who can frighten Holland.”
He shook his head. “I’ll take care of Spencer. And his gangster friends.”
“Will, please.” I grabbed his arm and pulled him away from the door. “It’s too dangerous.”
“It’s my job, darlin’.”
“Let Alex help you.”
His bleeding lip curled in a vicious snarl. “I don’t trust Alex anymore.”
“I do.” Those two statements changed everything. “I trust him more than I trust you.”
His lips made a firm line. He needed to feel something so I speared him again.
“You let me believe I was cheating on you. You kept it secret while I suffered. You lied to me.”
“I never….”
“Do you know what it feels like to find out the one person you trusted let you believe you’re a liar?”
He winced and staggered back against the wall, holding his hand to his stomach as if I’d shoved a knife into him. He could feel something now. “I wish I couldn’t. It’s killing me.”
“I love you, Will. Even when I was fucking Alex, I loved you.” I twisted the knife handle. “But I can’t be with a man I can’t trust.”
He steeled himself, fighting the pain. “I can change.”
He’d always been so strong, but I had to be stronger. “I believe you can, but until then, we can’t….” My words caught in my throat and tears stung my eyes. “Go home.”
He reached for me. “I need you. Please, Talia.”
I stepped back and shook my head, my hand clapped over my mouth to stop myself from begging him to stay.
How could I let him go?
How could I want him
back?
His empty hand fell to his side, and he nodded, resigned.
When he looked at me again, the cold, hard mask had moved back in placehis oncebeautiful blue eyes flat and
dead.
“I’ll see you around.” And then he left me.
I dropped to my knees and burst into tears, sobbing on the floor. The one man I’d dared to love had hurt me more than I’d ever thought possible. The man I used for lust loved me. They’d both used me for their own twisted pleasure without caring how it would end.
It ended with all three of us suffering.
Twisted Tryst
Avoiding Alex proved easy; he’d been scheduled to travel out of town for a few days, then appear in court. I had research deadlines and writing briefs.
Today, I dashed into the law library and literally ran into him.
“Whoa, baby, slow down.”
He grabbed my shoulders and steadied me. “What’s the rush?”
It felt so wrongand so goodto be in his arms again.
“Sorry, I have work to do.” I stepped back and he let go of me.
“Yeah, me too.”
Neither of us moved. He smiled, but a hint of sadness shadowed his naughty charm.
Alex lowered his voice and moved closer. “I miss you.”
I looked aroundforce of habit. “I miss you too.”
“How are you?”
“Busy. I’ve been keeping busy, trying not to think too much.” Trying not to feel? Maybe Will had the right idea.
“How’s Will? Have you talked to him?”
“No, have you?”
“No. I left a message, but he hasn’t called back.” His shoulders slumped and he kicked at the floor.
“Wow. I can’t believe… you two were like brothers.”
He shrugged. “Things
change.”
“I’m sorry.” Why? They got themselves into this mess.
“I’m not.” Alex looked at me, his blue eyes troubled. “I’m sorry
we hurt you, but I’ll never regret sleeping with you.” He slid his hand into my hair and stroked my cheek with his thumb.
After two weeks alone, my body hungered for male companionship, and I ignored my hesitation. “I still don’t understand why you did it.”
“Don’t you?” He lifted my chin and his gaze touched my lips.
I let him pull me close.
The library door opened, and we jumped back as if we’d been scorched. I ducked around a stack of bookshelves and beckoned him. “I know you wanted me. I wanted you too.”
He backed me against the rows of law books, his body kissing mine. “Our timing was always off.”
“Why didn’t one of you tell me? Maybe things would’ve turned out differently.”
Even in my darkest
moments, with my deepest guilt, I still loved having them both. One night, I’d dared to imagine having them together.
My fingers made circles on my slippery clit, and I came to the burning image of lying naked between my two men. It became my favorite fantasy.
He raised an eyebrow.
“Yeah, but I thought Will should be the one to tell you.”
His gaze slid over my shoulder to the end of the row. “We can’t talk about this here.”
“Come over for dinner t o n i g h t . ” What am I doinginviting him to a place where we’d be alone, two rooms away from my bed? Forget the bed; he’d fuck me on the kitchen floor if I let him.
Another idea flickered deep in my hopeful mind. “We’ll talk.
We’ve never talked.”
“Talk is overrated.” A devious smile touched his lips.
My stomach fluttered. No!
You can’t want him anymore.
“Seven. If you’re late, I’ll punish you.” A promise he couldn’t refuse.
He tugged on my arm and pressed his lips against my hair.
“Don’t threaten me unless you intend to carry it out.”
Damn it. Can I pull this off?
Or will he see right through me?
***
“What do you want to talk about, baby?” Alex poured the wine while I stirred the Alfredo sauce.
“I’m not going to do the talking. You are.” A hesitant knock rattled my front door as I set a third wine glass down. I couldn’t have planned it better.
“And so is he.”
“Who?” Alex eyed the
dining room table suspiciously.
“Why are there three plates?”
I was already at the door.
“Hi, Will, it’s good to see you.”
“Hi, sweetheart, I missed you.” He smiled and touched my cheek. As he caressed me, his warm hand feeling like it belonged on my skin, his fingers suddenly turned stiff.
“Alex,” he said, peering over my shoulder.
“Will.”
Alex’s eyes burned into my back.
“Will, come in and sit down.” I took his hand and closed the door behind him.
“Alex, behave.”
Will glared back at Alex. I tugged him toward the dining room, but he planted his feet firmly into the floor. “What is he doing here?”
“I was thinking the same thing.” Alex finished filling two glasses, and set the bottle down, leaving the third empty.
I pulled Will’s arm, but he didn’t budge. He crossed his arms over his chest, and Alex followed suitsizing up one another like rival gunfighters.
I’d feared Will would bolt out the door as soon as he saw Alex, but a Wild West standoff hadn’t occurred to me.
“I was here first,” Alex growled.
“I’m here now,” said Will.
“Stop behaving like two make-believe cowboys waving toy guns!” I shoved Will to the table and grabbed Alex. “Sit down and play nice.” The oven timer buzzed, but I hesitated to leave them alone. “Dinner’s ready. I’ll be right back. Don’t do anything stupid.”
“Yes ma’am.” Will’s eyes still narrowed in Alex’s direction.
I’d keep a close eye on them from the kitchen. “You two need to talk to each other.”
Of course, they sat in silence. I served the pasta and finished pouring the wine while my obstinate boys seethed quietly. The first part of my plan had worked. They’d managed to sit in the same room without hitting each other. Now, how the hell could I get them to talk?
Neither seemed to want to say the first word, so I pulled my chair between them like a mediator. “We were wondering how you’re doing, Will.”
“We?” Alex argued, but my swift kick shut him up.
“I’m doing all right.” Will ignored Alex, his eyes softening when he turned to me. “I wanted to call you, but I thought I should give you time to… um… calm down.”
“Thank you. I appreciate that.” I turned to Alex. “How have you been?”
“Busy. Lonely.” He reached for my hand, and Will bristled behind me. “I’m sorry I couldn’t be there for you. If I’d known he’d been ignoring you….”
Will’s fork clattered off his plate. “I never ignored her.”
“Then why did I have so much time to fuck her?”
Chairs scraped the
hardwood floor as they leaped to their feet, fists clenched, muscles tensed.
I nearly choked on all the testosterone in the room. “Sit.
Down. Now.”
Will hung his head, and Alex whispered a hurried ‘sorry’ as they took their seats.
“No fighting. You’re
supposed to talk.”
“I have nothing to say to him.” Alex stabbed a helpless piece of chicken.
“Same here.” Will speared his pasta.
God, I could strangle them.
“All right then.” I drank half my glass of wine in one swallow.
Whoa. Don’t do that again. “Talk to me. Tell me why. Why?”
Will let his fork fall and sat back, glaring. Alex took a deep drink of his wine as Will avoided eye contact with him, and me.
I let the silence hang.
“It was supposed to be about you.” Will leaned forward and reached for me, his fingers falling short of my hand.
“Yeah.” Alex put down his empty glass. “He thought… we thought… you wanted more excitement.”
“I knew you didn’t want to be in a relationship,” Will said, “but I took that as a challenge.”
“You never could resist a challenge.” Alex shook his head.
A small smile curled Will’s lips. “Nope. But after a while I knew you were craving something different, so I thought if I let you stray, you’d come back to me.” He wrapped his fingers around my hand.
“It worked for a while. You and I had a great time.” Alex grinned at me, then over to his former friend. “You had fun watching, and we shared some hot stories over beer.”
“That night you took her to my place… oh man.” He sat up and adjusted his pants.
“Hell yes, and after
Spencer’s party when she tackled me in the bathroom.”
“Mmm.” Will’s eyes
sparkled. “I got it good that night.”
I fought the temptation to peek under the table to see if they had hard-ons. My panties were damp. Their glasses emptied; the wine bottle emptied. Good thing I’d bought more than one bottle.
“And that first night…
Jesus.” Will leaned back in his chair and his thighs fell apart. I glanced over the edge of the table at his bulging jeans.
“In my office?”
“No, after your party when you made her come alone in the bathroom.”
“Oh yeah.” Alex laughed. “I have skills.”
“I had no idea you could do that.”
“Neither did I. Damn, that was sweet.” Alex leaned on the table, hiding his crotch.
Damn it. “So after Alex fucked me, you two got together and went over all the details?”
“Oh yeah.” Alex grinned.
Will nodded. “We had rules.
I didn’t always need
to know about it before, but he always told me everything after.”
While Will downed his wine, Alex looked at me, put his hand to his throat, and shook his head. We’d never tell Will about that one night.
“And you enjoyed that?” I asked.
Will flinched at the venom in my voice. “Yeah. I think we enjoyed it more than you did.”
The attorney slipped into his defender role. “This whole thing became about us instead of about youhis problems, my fantasy.”
“Your fantasy?” My abs fluttered and I parted my legs.
Alex smiled.
Will cleared his throat and moved closer to me. “I knew how much the forbidden appealed to you. I wondered if you’d enjoy having something you knew you shouldn’t.”
So many times, I’d left a short-lived relationship to pursue something different…
someone forbidden. Will hated rules as much as I did, and pushed boundaries that shouldn’t have been crossed.
That’s why I loved him.
“She did. She enjoyed it like a dirty slut.” Alex caressed my thigh under the table, grabbing my hand to rub it against his stiff cock.
And that’s why I still wanted Alex.
Will groaned. “I should be pissed, but watching you grope my woman still turns me on.”
“You’re fucked-up, man.”
Alex’s fingers wriggled under my skirt.
Will stroked my hair. “I know.”
“We all are.” I reached for Will’s thigh.
His gaze met mine and his lips fell a breath apart. I’d seen that look so many times. He wanted to kiss me, but wouldn’t do it in front of his friend. Oh sure, he could watch Alex eat my pussy, but wouldn’t give me a simple kiss with another man in the room.
Will’s fingers caressed my shoulder, making slow circles while he squirmed in his chair.
Alex moved in. He found the top of my stocking and pulled it down, stroking my bare thigh with both hands. His touch brought back wanton memories of secret kisses and bold caresses. I tore my gaze away from Will to focus on Alex. His soft laugh and wandering fingers parted my legs, and then another hand stroked my knee.
Three hands on my body.
Two men wanting me. One more glass of wine.
“All right.” I stood up, escaping their stroking hands. I needed to confess my sins before we could go on.
“Don’t stop us, babe,” Alex begged.
“You pushed her too hard, man,” Will complained.
But I would maintain