by Cara Adams
“Welcome, Allegra. Darcy’s spoken about you before. Congratulations on rearranging the contract for this swimming pool. It certainly looks amazing, but I’ve been told the engineering involved is pretty amazing, too.”
Allegra stared out at the swimming pool and then turned and smiled at Violet. “At a quick glance, it’s hard to even see the toughened glass or whatever the barrier is. The pool really does seem to blend into the horizon. The men have done a great job here.”
Violet laughed. “I actually went over and touched the glass. I needed to be certain it was really there.”
“Oh come on, Violet. You’re not that timid. You’re the woman who treated her own staircase as a waterslide and then went back and slid down it again,” said Juliana.
“Yes, well, the first time I was too surprised to really enjoy it. The second time was pure fun. And then I realized I was soaking wet and freezing cold.”
“Am I right in guessing your basement was flooded?” Allegra asked Violet.
“Oh, no. The story is much better than that. It’s how Violet met Darcy,” Juliana interrupted them.
“Do tell.”
“I’ve always wanted to own horses, which is how I met Raff. Then I bought an old farmhouse with the land so I could have the horses. I was staying there with the horses while Darcy’s company was to renovate the house.”
Darcy leaned over the back of Violet’s lawn chair. “I told her to stay out of the house. That it was dangerous. But the damn pushy woman never listens to me.” He dropped a kiss on her forehead.
Violet giggled. “I heard a faucet dripping so I went into the house to turn it off and saw some water at the foot of the stairs. I’d just gotten to the top of the staircase when the ceiling fell down and all the water poured out of the hot water unit. The water raced down the staircase like a waterfall, and I went with it. Really, it was a lot of fun. You should try it sometime.”
Allegra laughed and so did Juliana, although likely she’d heard the story a dozen times before. “But if it was a hot water unit, why weren’t you scalded? You said you were cold.”
“Oh, the house had been empty for years. All the utilities had been turned off. The family was arguing over the estate. Grandpop’s attorneys handled all that for me. It’s actually Grandpop who bought the farm, but it’s mine to live on.”
“Mr. Cambrisi. Our company handles work for him. I remember the house sale now. One of the nephews of the former owner had ideas totally disconnected with reality. When six people share the proceeds of the sale of a property, no one is going to get rich. Fortunately his siblings and cousins finally made him do some basic math and accept that his dreams of around-the-world travel and sports cars were just that. Dreams.”
Violet’s grandfather was a wealthy man. He was also very clever and kept his finger on the pulse of the many corporations he owned. He’d handed the management of his companies over to his very large family, but he always knew what was happening in them. If he’d agreed to buy the farm, it was worth buying.
Allegra leaned back in her chair and closed her eyes, loving the warmth of the sun on her skin through the thin sarong. She and the women chattered together intermittently, and more people arrived. Someone brought out a grill, and several men began barbecuing ribs and steaks. One of the women who’d just arrived unloaded coleslaw from a cooler while Darcy and Jason brought out cold drinks from a second cooler.
Jason was Darcy’s second-in-command, and he and Beckett were partnered with Juliana. Hmm, things seem to be happening here in threes. First Darcy, Raff, and Violet, and now Jason, Beckett, and Juliana. No wonder Cam and Hammer are both pursuing me. I wonder…
Sierra Bond, one of the partners at Bailey and Bond Attorneys at Law, and the woman who had both mentored Allegra and become her hero and role model, was often accompanied by two men. Fergus, whose hair was every bit as red as Juliana’s, and Campbell were both nurses at Thorne House, the Shape-shifter Clinic. They were also both werewolves and had mated Sierra. Since werewolves hid their shape-shifter side from the human world, and since, as a high-flying attorney Sierra’s life could get dangerous, the human world considered the two men to be her bodyguards.
Only those close to Sierra and the men, and the werewolves themselves, knew the three were a mated triad. Their mating had happened several years ago, shortly after the Supreme Alpha of North America had declared ménage relationships, where several men shared a woman, to be permissible. Because werewolves tended to breed far more males than females, there was a shortage of women for the men to marry. The Supreme’s decision had meant at least some men would now finally have a partner.
Allegra stared at Cam and Hammer. She was certain they weren’t wolves. She was also as certain as she could be without seeing him in action that Hammer was a Dom in the dungeon. She hadn’t decided yet what Cam’s role was. Maybe he was a helper. She didn’t think he was a Dom or a sub, but she was fairly sure he’d want to be involved in whatever happened. So being Hammer’s assistant would fit him.
Allegra was startled out of her reverie when a fountain of water splashed over her, Violet, and Juliana as a group of men all leaped into the swimming pool together. Violet was laughing, and Juliana was wringing out her hair as Allegra jumped to her feet and took her sarong off. Fortunately, the fabric was very thin, and the sun shone brightly so it’d dry quickly.
“Anyone else want to come for a swim?” she asked.
* * * *
Cam was standing near the grill with a group of men, but he wasn’t listening to their conversation. He was watching Allegra. He’d been watching her for most of the morning. The good news was that she seemed to be enjoying herself talking to the other women and relaxing in the glorious warm sunshine.
The bad news was that he wasn’t beside her, holding her in his arms and pressing those luscious round breasts against his chest. Or kissing her pink lips, or… He widened his legs. Maybe he’d better not continue that train of thought, or everyone would be staring at the tent in his board shorts.
He continued watching as Allegra walked to the edge of the pool and dipped a toe in. The pool had a solar blanket to keep the water warm, but that didn’t mean it was warm like the water in a bathtub would be. It just meant it wasn’t really cold.
She was at the opposite end of the swimming pool from where three of the men he worked with were splashing and dunking each other. She turned and walked away from the pool. She must think the water is too cold for her. Then she faced the water, stood still for a moment, ran forward really fast, and jumped up into the air, not down into the pool.
Cam was frozen to the spot where he stood, unable to understand what she was doing as she turned a complete somersault in the air and then dived into the water, hands first and feet stretched up in the air behind and above her like a professional swimmer. How did she do that? She was on the ground, not on a diving board. That has to be impossible, right? I didn’t just see it, did I?
He was certain his mouth was wide open and his jaw dropped with shock as she rose out of the water, swam to the side, and pulled herself up on to the edge of the pool in a single movement.
Violet and Juliana were clapping, and Allegra gave them a little grin as she walked back to her chair and pulled her towel out of her beach bag. Cam raced over to help her with the towel.
“However did you do that? Jump up in the air, I mean, and do a somersault before landing in the water?” He wrapped the towel around her and reluctantly stood back as she sat on the lawn chair again.
“It’s been a long time. I wasn’t sure if I could still do it, but I figured, worst-case scenario, I’d land flat on my face in the water so it wouldn’t really hurt to try.”
“You haven’t done it for a long time? I couldn’t do it if I practiced for a month,” said Violet.
“Were you on your high school dive team or something?” asked Juliana.
“Not the dive team, no. I didn’t go to a school that had a swimming pool. I used to do gymnast
ics though, when I was young.”
Cam thought he noticed a flicker of something cross her face, but it was gone so fast he couldn’t be sure. “Why did you quit?” he asked.
“Yes. You’re damn good now. I bet you were amazing back then,” said Juliana.
“I broke my ankle. It has metal pins in it. I don’t run very often anymore as it’s not always very stable and I worry about falling.”
“What was it you said before? Judges with long dockets and short fuses? I take it they don’t appreciate the attorney turning up covered in mud from a fall?”
Allegra looked at him and smiled. “You’re absolutely right.”
Taj, one of the younger men in the company, came up and stood in front of Allegra. “I’m Taj. Can you teach me to do that, please?”
“Did you do physics in school?” she asked.
Taj just stared at her, and Cam was pretty sure he looked as confused as Taj did. “Um, yes, sure. I can’t promise to remember it now though.”
“Speed gives you elevation. If you run fast, you can jump high. And if you jump high enough, you can turn the somersault before you hit the water.”
Taj grinned. “I get it. Run fast, jump high, somersault into the water.”
“That’s it exactly.”
Cam sat on the deck beside Allegra as Taj and his friends proceeded to practice somersaulting into the water, with a predictable amount of gigantic splashes and a lot of laughter from everyone.
Cam watched Allegra as she smiled and laughed at the men’s antics and the women’s conversation. He took one of her feet in his hands and stroked the skin, petting the smooth instep and rubbing her toes gently. When he picked up her other foot, the right one, he knew instantly that this was the one she’d broken. Up close to it and with it in his hands, he could see a network of fine lines that were an almost invisible roadmap of scars around her ankle and across the top of her foot, even extending to the toes and heel. Once again he stroked and petted her skin, being especially gentle around her ankle.
He looked up at her. “That must have been quite some break. Was it a car accident?”
“No, a fall.”
“Seriously? Are the pins in your ankle? The scars are very pale. I wouldn’t have known they were there unless I’d held your foot.”
“It was a bad break. There are quite a few metal pins in the ankle and the foot. I have to carry a letter when I go to court as the metal in my foot sets off the security alarm, and if they aren’t security guards who know me, they’re quite disbelieving and think I’m a terrorist or something.”
“Grandpop has a metal plate in his hip. He won’t fly anymore because he says it’s too much trouble making explanations to everyone,” said Violet.
“I was almost late for court one day because the security team insisted on testing my hands for explosives. What’s more, they took my doctor’s letter and wanted to have a handwriting expert check his signature. In the end I called him on my cell phone, and he straightened them out. I mean, security is very important. Don’t get me wrong about that. But they were just being obstructive. I was starting to wonder if the defense attorney had offered them a bribe to ensure I was late.”
“Do people do that? Try to bribe the court staff?” asked Hammer, who’d walked across to join them.
“It happens. You have to understand that sometimes the bad guys have access to very large amounts of cash, and a thousand or two in bribes is just coffee money for them.”
“Damn. I knew I was in the wrong career,” joked Taj.
“Barbecue’s done. Come and get it,” called Jason.
* * * *
This was the type of social gathering Hammer loved. Darcy’s work crew was like his family now. He got along really well with these men. Like him, they all focused on doing a good job, achieving something worthwhile.
In his grandfather’s circle, there was always much laughter about “how I pulled the wool over his eyes and the rug from under his feet.” Too many of those people took pride in deception, misdirection, and downright dishonesty. Hammer knew all businessmen weren’t like that. Just the ones who seemed to surround his grandfather. He wanted nothing to do with that world. Here, in his world, the men took pride in producing good results, in making structures that would last, and in helping people achieve their dreams. It fulfilled him in a way a huge pay packet never would.
He was really glad Allegra was enjoying herself. Cam had taken a huge risk inviting her here, but she’d not only agreed to join them, she was smiling and happy as well. Their first date was a success. Now all he had to do was leverage it into a second date, which would hopefully end up with them both kissing her, or even more. Unless there was an opportunity to kiss her tonight, but having come in separate vehicles, that wasn’t very likely.
Hammer stood beside her at the grill helping her to ketchup, mustard, fried onions, and coleslaw. Once again she took proper portions on her plate, which thrilled him, as it encouraged him to believe it was her usual behavior. She was real and true, not a plastic decoration as some of the women he knew were. And she had a clever brain. No matter what topic people were talking about, she was able to participate. In his grandfather’s social circle, the men talked business while the women talked about clothes and beauty treatments.
He liked the idea of a woman with a career of her own and a brain that she used for more than just planning the next social gathering. He supposed, though, it took a lot of time and effort to look stunningly beautiful twenty-four-seven, as the women in his grandfather’s social circle did. Huh. He’d rather see Allegra with her face all rosy from a good orgasm and her hair all messed up from him running his fingers through it.
“What are you planning to do tomorrow, Allegra?” he asked.
“I’ll be working since I took today off.”
“Do you always work weekends?” Cam had joined them beside the pool.
“Not always, but mostly. I’m still only a senior associate. Not even a head of department yet. I’ll never rise as far or as fast as Sierra, but I do hope to get a lot further than I am now.”
“I expect you’ll get there. Sierra thinks highly of you, and she wouldn’t make a mistake.”
“Sierra has been an enormous help and encouragement to me. Considering how hard it was for her at the start, it’s a huge credit to her that she takes the time to help other young attorneys.”
“What do you mean how hard it was for her? Because she’s a woman, do you mean?” asked Hammer. He was well aware some of the men in his grandfather’s circle thought of women as useful only as ornaments to their success.
“Men deliberately lied to her and misled her, and at parties they’d spike her drinks, things like that.”
“Wow. That’s shocking,” said Cam.
“That’s why it’s so much easier for me. Now that she’s a success, they’re not game to do that sort of thing to the other members of Bailey and Bond because they know she’d crucify them in public if they did.”
A flash of fear ran through Hammer. “But you’re still careful to watch out for your drink and to check your tires before driving away, aren’t you?”
“Absolutely. I know it would only take one idiot to make me look ridiculous and damage all her work. I take that very seriously. Fortunately I’m not high enough up to be a worthwhile target for any haters yet. If I make partner though, I’ll have to be a lot more careful.”
The shiver was back inside him, twice as strong this time. “And you’re determined to make partner, aren’t you?”
“Before I turn thirty. Less than three years.”
Fuck! How would he protect her? It’d never occurred to him someone would genuinely harm her, but if Sierra thought they would, he knew it could happen. But not to his Allegra. He wouldn’t permit such a thing to happen to his woman.
Hang on. My woman? Yes, his woman. His and Cam’s. They both wanted her.
He wasn’t sure yet how to go about wooing and winning her, but he was a Dom. He�
�d figure something out.
Everyone sat together as they ate, and the conversation crisscrossed the group. Hammer wasn’t really interested in talking. He was enjoying being with Cam and Allegra and watching her as she chatted to people and deflected questions and topics she didn’t want to discuss. He supposed that was a skill all attorneys had, but he’d never noticed before, and she did it so gently and smoothly he suspected most of the people didn’t even notice it had happened. Also, she seemed genuinely interested in other people and what concerned them, and he really appreciated that side of her. It was something very much missing from his grandfather’s life, where the only topics discussed were ones he approved.
The big positive was that she seemed happy to relate to his and Cam’s friends. The big question was how to move their relationship forward, just him, Cam, and her.
When people started packing up the grill and other items, instead of helping them, Hammer turned to Allegra and quickly looked at Cam to make sure he understood he needed to stay, too. Fortunately Cam was the most amazing of friends in that he always seemed to understand what Hammer wanted.
“Allegra, did you enjoy your time at The Dom’s Dungeon the other evening?” he asked.
“I assume you don’t mean the business meeting, but rather the food, the environment, and yourselves?”
“Yes.”
“In that case, yes, I did. The food there is excellent, and the stage shows are always well thought out.”
He wouldn’t have used a term like well thought out, but he had to say it was appropriate. Leif and Simon, the managers of the BDSM club, required a very high standard of everyone and everything.
“Have you ever considered spending time in a dungeon?”
She stared back at him, and despite the fact that she was wearing only a bikini and a sarong, he could almost see her in a judge’s robes. “If I ever did, there would be very strict and unbreakable boundaries in place.”
“Anyone who participates in a dungeon scene with the potential of being a sub to a Dom or a Dom of a sub is required to fill out a detailed questionnaire. The Dom’s Dungeon abides strictly by the safe, sane, and consensual rule,” he replied.