by M J Adams
“Of course,” he said, his voice breathless. “It’ll lock from the inside, Cora.”
“Do you guys have your own rooms?”
“The bigger house has four bedrooms, yes. The smaller one only has three.” He looked into her eyes, and desire and compassion lived in his. “I know you’re worried about…intimate things.” He swallowed. “You don’t need to be, Cora. No one expects anything of you.” He touched his forehead to hers, his eyes drifting closed as softly as snow fell to the ground. “You get to decide everything. Who you kiss. Where. How long. What else we do.”
Cora nodded, glad for the reassurance. She wanted to ask one more question, but foolishness bubbled within her.
“Go on,” he said, the hint of a smile in his words. “You can ask me anything.”
“What if I…want more than one of you?”
“I think that’s already obvious,” Isaac said. “You kissed us all in the conference room earlier today. Did any of us have a problem with it?”
“I’m talking about something more than that,” Cora said, keeping her eyes closed and her face close to Isaac’s. “What if I want you and Max in bed with me at the same time?”
“Done,” Isaac whispered, his mouth catching on her earlobe. “I actually found it really hot watching you kiss the others. Luke, especially. He’s been broken for so long.”
“So what if I wanted you and Luke to make love to me at the same time?”
“I’m sure we have different styles,” Isaac said, pulling back so that Cora opened her eyes and looked at him. He didn’t seem to think any of these questions were ridiculous. “But sweetheart, I think I can speak for all of us when I say we’ll do whatever you dictate. You want me to touch you somewhere? Say it, and it’s done.” His hand slid down the side of her face now, over her shoulder and on down her side. “Kiss you somewhere? Tell me, and I’ll do it.” He pressed into her, and she felt the evidence of his desire against her stomach.
“You’re the boss, Cora,” he whispered, dipping his head to kiss her again. Cora kissed him back, almost drunk on the thrill of this man—of all of them.
She was the boss, and it felt really, really empowering.
Chapter 16
Max
Max sat in the backseat of the luxury sedan, looking out the heavily tinted windows. He’d had dozens of interviews with the Grand Master, and as he’d coached the rest of the team last night, this one should be no different.
Except they all knew it was different.
He’d never had an exit interview before, and he knew it took something exceptional to get anything past the Grand Master—and Max was trying to conceal alternate plans for relocation for four people.
You must be insane, he told himself, his nerves threatening to burst from the box where he’d put them.
The car eased to a stop outside the barn, which wasn’t a barn at all. Only the front door opened, and there were no other exits. No windows. No back doors. No secret hatches. The front door was guarded by two armed men anytime the Grand Master was inside, and he barely glanced at the men flanking the door now.
He waited for the driver to get out and open his door, then he emerged from the car and buttoned his suit jacket. An interview with the Grand Master always brought out the formal clothing, and Max nodded to Will. “Thank you,” he said, moving toward the door and expecting one of the guards to open it.
The one on the left did while the one on the right radioed in his arrival and checked his credentials. The security seemed a bit ridiculous to him, as the barn sat on Academy property, behind the gate no one could get through without the right paperwork and keycard.
Finally allowed to enter, Max nodded to the two guards, tugged on the ends of his sleeves, and stuffed away every feeling and thought about Cora Middleton. She was just another charge. Another battered woman they’d rebuilt from the ground up and were about to say goodbye to.
Inside the barn, only the finest materials had been used to create a vibrant, inviting space. The left half of the space had been segmented into two rooms—one housed the Grand Master’s private suite, which Max had never seen. The other was the office where they met, and he’d been inside that many times.
The right half of the barn had a waiting area with plush couches and recliners, massage chairs and magazines. In the back corner, a kitchen completed the barn, and bottles of soda and water had been set out.
The Grand Master did try to put everyone at ease before their interview, and Max wandered toward the back corner to get carbonated and sugared up. He loved the assortment of potato chips he could only get in the barn, and today the Grand Master had put out the crispy, onion-flavored ones he liked so much.
He never had to wait long, and today was no exception. A door behind him opened, and he turned toward the office to find the Grand Master standing there.
“Major Ellis,” she said, her voice flowing over him like honey. “Come on in.”
Max swallowed the last of his chips, took a quick drink of his cola, and grabbed a handful of gum from the bowl on the counter. He crossed the barn to the office and went inside, closing the door behind him.
The Grand Master slinked the last few steps to her desk, her tight, red dress accentuating every curve of her body, and sat down. When Max had first met her, he’d been shocked to learn the Grand Master was a woman. Sexist, maybe.
His second thought was if she was married or wanted to be. He’d dismissed that fantasy pretty quickly, because while he’d enjoyed his job here at Parkwood Academy, he didn’t want to live in a room behind an office in a barn, even if the woman was gorgeous.
“Lucinda,” he said, reaching over to shake her hand. He unbuttoned his jacket and sat down, his eyes meeting hers and refusing to let go. She swept her dark hair over her shoulder and looked down, a single folder on the desk in front of her.
“You’re leaving Parkwood,” she said.
“Yes, ma’am,” he said.
She didn’t open the folder, but placed her hands on it, palms down. “You’ve read and signed our non-disclosure form, and you’re aware of our outbound procedures.” She wasn’t really asking, but he had to confirm anyway.
“I have, and I am, ma’am.”
“I was surprised to see the whole team put in for termination as well.” Interest swam in her eyes, and whatever Max had expected, this wasn’t it. Didn’t she have exit questions?
“It was a joint decision, yes,” he said, working hard not to squirm. “Luke, Isaac, and I have worked so well together, and they didn’t want to get another team lead.”
“So leaving was your idea.”
“No, ma’am,” he said evenly. “We talked about it, and we decided together.”
“Where will you go?”
“Captain Holt and Captain Ramsey and I have all turned in our relocation forms, ma’am.” He dropped the formal language, because he knew Lucinda didn’t like it. He always threw it in to remind her that he wasn’t a schoolboy. He’d been a Major in the Army Rangers most highly revered unit. “Isaac and I are focused on the relocation of Miss Middleton, and I’m sure we all await your relocation assignments for us.”
Lucinda nodded, her lips pursed, probably at the formal captain talk. She flipped open the folder. “Isaac’s was left blank.”
“Yes, ma’am,” Max said, hoping he could make it through this interview without giving away his impatience with the process. But the whole thing was idiotic. He wasn’t in the Army anymore. He could leave this job anytime he wanted, go anywhere he wanted. He understood the secretive nature of the work Parkwood Academy did, and he’d signed the non-disclosure agreement not to disclose what his job had been for the past four years.
But he should be able to relocate anywhere from California to France to China, for all she cared. He was a private citizen.
She pulled out a single piece of paper from the folder. “Your request for relocation in the state of Montana has been approved.” She signed her name at the bottom and looked
up at him, a smile in her eyes that eventually drifted to her lips. “Pick somewhere nice, Max. You deserve it.”
She replaced the paper in the folder and pushed it toward him. “Are you front or rear team on the relocation of Miss Middleton?”
“Rear team, ma’am.”
“And your previous charges?”
“Halfway through, ma’am. I think I should follow up with Case Thirteen personally, which I’d like permission to do as soon as the relocation of Case Fourteen is concluded.” He hated talking about people as cases, but Lucinda thrived on it.
“In Iowa?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“I’ll expect a report to be emailed in.” Lucinda leaned forward onto her elbows. “And then you’ll be free from this place.”
Max blinked, wondering why she’d chosen those words. “It’s not about being free, Lucinda,” he said, taking on a less formal way of speaking. “I’m simply ready to move on to something else.”
“What will you do in Montana?”
“Try to stay warm,” he said, allowing a small smile to grace his face. “Maybe get a cattle ranch. Something simple and low-key.”
“Low-key would be a good idea,” she said. “I can’t say I’m happy you’re leaving. You were one of the first men I hired, and you’ve served exceptionally well at all times.”
“Thank you, ma’am.” He drew in a deep breath. “It’ll be hard for me to leave too.”
“I know this job isn’t for everyone, and I appreciate your service.” She stood, and Max did too. She came around the desk, and he extended his hand for her to shake again. Instead, she stepped past it and placed a kiss on his right cheek and then his left. “You’ve helped a lot of women.” She nodded, and Max felt the urge to salute, the way he did his superior officers in the 75th.
So he did, causing her to smile and shake her head. She seemed softer when she acted more human, and Max liked the more relaxed version of her. He couldn’t imagine what it took to do her job, from assigning charges to securing funding, to making sure everyone stayed happy, healthy, and fed. Keeping the place staffed had to take a fair bit of time as well, not to mention the security measures that never slipped.
“You’ve helped so many,” he acknowledged. “Including me, Isaac, and Luke. We’d have been lost without this job.” He felt confident in saying such a thing for the other men on his team.
Lucinda bowed her head in acknowledgement of what he’d said. “I look forward to seeing Isaac tomorrow. He knows of his appointment, yes?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Do tell him to come with at least a state where he’d like to live, would you please? I don’t want to be responsible for assigning him somewhere he hates.”
“I’ll let him know.” Max didn’t dare step toward the door. Could the exit interview really be this easy? You’ve never given her any reason to doubt you, he told himself. So he stepped, and she let him.
He kept stepping until he was outside, then in the car, but it wasn’t until he’d made it back to his room and taken off his jacket, white shirt, and tie that he finally breathed.
“No problems?” Cora murmured, her lips catching on his as they snuggled together on the bench in that five-foot area of the grounds the cameras never recorded.
“No problems,” he reiterated, kissing her again. “I can pick anywhere in Montana I want.”
She giggled softly, and Max smiled down at her, happier than he’d been in so, so long. He knew he didn’t kiss as passionately as Isaac or Luke—after all, he’d seen them kiss Cora yesterday. Or rather, she’d kissed them.
He didn’t mind, which felt as strange as it felt normal. She seemed to like kissing him, and stroking her hand down the side of his face, and tipping her head back and letting him have his way with the silky skin on her neck, her shoulders. He dipped lower this time, his teeth skimming the fabric of her bra, and she sighed in pleasure.
Max couldn’t wait to be with her, truly be with her, and the heat of the thought scorched his blood. A sound met his ears, and he pulled back, putting several inches between him and Cora. “Someone’s coming,” he whispered.
Cora ran her fingers through her hair, and Max wished he could eliminate the heat from his body, because he couldn’t control how it showed in his face.
Isaac appeared, his face tight and worried. Max sprang to his feet. “What’s going on?”
He flicked a glance toward Cora. “Sorry to interrupt. I can wait.”
“You already have,” Max said. “Come sit down.”
Isaac complied, sitting on the other side of Cora. “I feel stupid. I didn’t…” He cleared his throat. “I just got an email from the Grand Master. I—she wants a full detail of our relocation strategy when I go in tomorrow.”
“I have that,” Max said, frowning. “But she’s never asked for it this early. It could still change.”
“Why didn’t she ask you for it?”
“I don’t know,” Max said, trying to find a reason for this change in protocol.
Isaac reached over and took Cora’s hand. She looked at him and then Max, fear clear on her face. She’d been embracing her fear more often, giving it room in her life so she could deal with it. Max spent half of his time on this bench talking to her about things she feared, and the other half kissing those conversations away.
“It’ll be okay,” Cora said, and Max found it ironic that she was the one reassuring them. He normally didn’t need reassurances. Isaac either. He watched as Cora leaned over and kissed Isaac, further reassuring him. “It will,” she whispered. “Max has the report. Just take it with you. If you don’t normally detail that, she won’t expect you to have it memorized. Right?”
She looked at Max, who nodded. She turned back to Isaac and cradled his face in such a loving way. Max had felt that touch on his face too, and it was glorious and wonderful. She kissed Isaac again, and Max’s heart started pounding as if he was part of the exchange too.
Without thinking, he reached over and touched Cora’s back. She twisted away from Isaac and kissed him too. Her lips were wet and soft, pliable against his, and she moaned into his mouth. He pulled back slightly to see Isaac had slipped his hands along her waist and was currently placing kisses up her arm to her shoulder.
Max grinned and bent his head to taste her mouth again. He felt Isaac getting closer, and Cora groaned again, tilting her head back and breaking their kiss. Isaac had his lips on the side of her neck, one hand in her hair and the other on her back. Max didn’t hesitate as he moved his mouth and hands to her breasts, coaxing a cry from her throat. He paused and looked up at her, but her eyes were still closed, her breathing still coming quickly.
She hadn’t pushed him away, and Max returned his attention to her breasts, sharing this experience with Cora and Isaac one of the hottest things he’d ever experienced.
Chapter 17
Cora
Everywhere I turn, someone’s there. Someone’s watching. I can’t wait to leave Parkwood Academy. Can’t wait to get to Wisconsin, where I can come and go as I please, where I don’t have to kiss my men on a bench behind a tree.
Something shifts on my right, and I turn that way, almost expecting to see the glowing, yellow eyes that have been following me for so long.
There’s nothing there.
Maybe everything will be okay. Maybe I can escape this place. Escape my past. Build a new future.
The fear nearly drowns me. The what-ifs are everywhere, though Isaac’s reassured me that Rich won’t come for me. Though Max passed his exit interview easily. Though Luke has plans down to the minute for our escape to Wisconsin.
I fear I’ll never be good enough for them, and yet a voice whispers that I already am.
Cora rolled over, the heat source on her right—Isaac—so hot right now. She didn’t have covers on, as Isaac usually kept her plenty warm as they slept. But on her left, another heat source vibrated.
Max.
She came to full consciousness, remem
bering she’d asked them to both to come to her room that night. She wondered what Luke thought, but Isaac had assured her—again—that the Rangers wanted to do what she dictated.
She’d enjoyed the brief tryst she, Isaac, and Max had shared on the bench, though no clothing had come off. Isaac had rubbed his hand between her legs, and she’d nearly come apart while he kissed her mouth and Max kissed her breasts.
Max, ever the practical one, had suggested they get back to the Academy as Cora panted through her near orgasm. “We can’t do this here,” he’d said, and Cora knew he was right.
She’d kissed them both in bed last night too, still a little surprised they didn’t seem to mind sharing her. She rather liked having one kissing her mouth, neck, and chest while the other pressed into her backside, his manhood hard as he touched her with his hands and kissed her shoulders.
As she’d fallen asleep, she wondered what it would be like with Luke in bed too. The only other place for him to be was between her legs, and her stomach tightened again at the thought of having an intimate relationship with all three of them.
But they obviously all wanted one with her, and she felt like the luckiest woman in the world.
“You okay?” Isaac whispered, his hand coming over her side to rest against her stomach.
“Hot,” she whispered back.
“You are hot,” he agreed, his lips touching her bare shoulder.
She snuggled her back against him, feeling warm and safe in his arms. She felt the same with Max, though he was more reserved than Isaac. She couldn’t stop thinking about her men, and the life they were going to build together.
“I’m taking care of Rich today,” Isaac whispered. “Meeting with the Grand Master. Let’s meet up after that, okay?”
“Okay,” she said, and he slipped out of the bed, providing room for some cooler air to come in. He dressed and bent down to kiss her.