by Azod, Shara
Three of Hearts
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
Copyright© 2007 Shara Azod- Three of Hearts
Cover Artist: Shara Azod
Editor: Jennifer Puckett
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced electronically or in print without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in reviews. Due to copyright laws you cannot trade, sell or give any ebooks away.
Three of Hearts
by
Shara Azod
Chapter One
Mikki hated her bosses with a burning, unnatural hatred. Though she knew it was irrational, she hated them both with every fiber of her being. Okay, maybe that was a bit extreme, but she really did hate them. First of all, they were both painfully gorgeous. Men that looked like they did weren’t supposed to be real; not even movie stars looked that good. Joaquin Perez and Kaito Yoshida were beyond silver screen, male model, poster boy gorgeous.
Joaquin was Argentinean; a true golden boy from the top light brown, golden-streaked head to the tip of his light golden skinned feet complete with silvery blue eyes and impossibly dark, thick lashes. He was all thick muscles without an ounce of fat. Standing well over six foot four, the man towered over damn near everyone. He looked like he should have been a professional football player. A very, very sexy football player, with a smooth voice just accented enough to be caress and seduce the ear of an unsuspecting listener.
Kaito was Japanese, though he was far from what most people thought of when they thought of Asian males. Well, what she had always thought Asian men were liked before she moved from her tiny Tennessee town to Southern California. He was way sexier then the dude that played opposite Tom Cruise in The Last Samurai. Kaito stood about six foot three, all finely sculpted lean muscles. His jet black hair hung in thick waves past his shoulders, daring a woman to sink her hands into those glossy locks. And his eyes! Japanese men were not supposed to have green eyes were they? They damned sure weren’t supposed to be sexy as sin with a deep, seductive voice which makes a girl want to drop her panties at a simple hello.
The second reason for her hatred was they were rolling in it. Stinking, filthy, never-have-to-work-another-day-in-your-life rich. And not because either man had inherited a dime from rich families or a long, lost relative. No, they had made their boatloads of money all on their lonesome, using their impressive brainpower.
They had started their company, J & K Industries, their freshman year of college. Fifteen years later, the computer software company had grown by leaps and bounds, becoming the number one producer of business software worldwide. It was bad enough they were both sexier than the law should allow, but intelligent and business savvy too?
Both men had come from the school of hard knocks to rise above and beyond their circumstances to make their own indelible mark on the world. A story like theirs was one you heard about in early America; boys from the wrong side of the tracks who made their fortunes by the sweat of their brow and cunning minds. Rarely did the world see that kind of ingenuity anymore. They had made millions, and now that they were selling out and retiring, they stood to make billions.
Mikki told herself she was upset because she was about to lose her job as the company C.F.O. The company – no, make that the conglomerate, her bosses had sold out to had financial officers far more qualified than she could ever be from the most prestigious schools. There was no way they would keep on a woman who graduated from a tiny, barely accredited college in Nowhere, Tennessee. She still couldn’t believe Joaquin and Kaito hired her as their Chief Financial Officer right out of that tiny school five years ago, but they had. And damn it, she had grown used to the power and status that came with her position. Joaquin had trained her himself. The man was a quiz with numbers. Though at the time he had thought it odd and more than a little fishy how they had both groomed her for her job, she had went with it, and grown into one hell of a C.F.O. if she did say so herself. She had been with the company and watched it prosper and grow beyond even Kaito and Joaquin’s dreams.
Although the men had negotiated the contract to where most of the J & K employees kept their positions, most of the senior officers would get a cash payout instead of a guaranteed job. The cash payouts were nothing to sneeze at, but still, how would she find another job that paid so well with such good benefits? The bastards had given her a dream job right out of college with absolutely no experience only to snatch it all away from her five short years later. There was no way she could ever replace this job and the great people she worked with. No other workplace would ever have such a relaxed feel, full of creative and innovative minds. She would run through her savings looking for that perfect fit that would never come.
Oh, who the hell was she kidding? Her cash payout was in the millions. The dynamic duo had offered her stock in the company right up front. She would be making a killing on this sale. So would all the other executives. She didn’t hate her bosses because they were selling out. If she was really honest, she would have to admit she didn’t hate them because they were gorgeous either. Her reasons for the burning resentment she felt towards the two men was entirely personal, and neither one of them had a clue. She hated them because she was hopelessly, completely in love with both men – and they were completely in love with each other. The bastards.
How two such manly, virile men could be gay, she would never know. Well, technically bisexual. She knew from rumors and various women she had once upon a time considered associates if not friends that both men were very much into women. Actually, none of the women had actually ever seen them getting freaky with one another. But they were all touchy and sensitive around one another, like lovers. They lived together, had since college, they dated together, and they fucked together – the dirty bastards.
“You really need to stop calling them bastards. It’s getting redundant,” Mikki muttered to herself as she looked out of the huge floor to ceiling windows. Her office had an excellent view of the ocean. Their corporate offices were located right on the beach. Prime Newport Beach property. Her office was huge; sporting a large desk, a full sized couch, a chaise lounge, a small bar, and even her own restroom. She was really going to miss this office. She had decorated it herself in light blues, teals and aqua in an overall beach motif. It seemed only right. The office was full of natural light, never failing to lighten her mood and put a little spring in her step. It was a great office.
“Bastards,” she muttered once more, completely forgetting about her earlier admonishment to herself to stop calling Joaquin and Kaito bastards.
“Hey, Michayla. Mind if I come in?”
Mikki shrugged and waved Kaito in. She was a little irritated by the fact he hadn’t knocked, just poked his head right in as if he owned the place. He does own the place, idiot, she reminded herself. Besides, that was just Kaito. She knew he meant no disrespect; it was just the way he was. Whenever he had something on his mind, he forgot about little things like manners or courtesy.
There were times when he would walk away in the middle of a conversation because some big idea had suddenly come to him and he had to diagram it out or fiddle with something to see if it would work. He had that look in his eyes right now, making Mikki immediately wary. Kaito with a big idea could be dangerous. His last one had her up on a surfboard at the crack of dawn. Not her idea of fun, but he was determined to turn her into a “real Californian.” She was just fine with being a transplant, thank you very much.
“What’s up?” she asked cautious
ly. There was a week left before the merger went through. He better not be having second thoughts now, or thinking of dragging her into some new venture. Building up J & K had been quite enough of a rollercoaster ride. Exciting and scary, but she wasn’t as young as she used to be, she wasn’t sure she was up for any new adventures. Her poor heart couldn’t take it. Plus working side by side with the dynamic duo was getting harder and harder with each passing day.
“You know we always do the annual Valentine’s party right? Well, Valentine’s comes like a week before Valentines this year, Joaquin and I want to do something spectacular this year. You know, blow all the other parties right out of the water,” Kaito rushed to tell her. He tended to talk fast when he had an idea stuck in his craw. He was all bubbly and excited like a little kid.
Mikki gritted her teeth and waited for the kicker. Last year they actually rented a private island, which would have been romantic if Mikki had had a date. She didn’t of course. She never did. The dating scene in Southern California for a small town black woman whose southern roots were still showing was not exactly hopping. Everyone wanted willowy, tanned blondes with huge plastic tits.
At barely five feet, she was far from willowy. She had a set of jugs and a healthy dose of ass, which put her right out of the running for a size one ideal. Her dark chocolate skin was a long way from tan, but it was smooth, soft and blemish free. She liked it, even if the stupid ass men hereabouts didn’t. The one thing that seemed to blend with her surroundings was her hair. Years of hard work and dedication had allowed it to grow almost to her waist. Thick and black, she had never had to perm it, just blow dry straight. It was her one vanity.
“Michayla, are you listening to me?” Kaito demanded impatiently.
“Sure. Party…Blow the others out of the water…Please, go on. I’m intrigued.”
She hadn’t meant to sound so sarcastic, but the man was talking about the end of the J & K family. She felt like she was losing a part of herself. More importantly, she was losing her opportunity to see Joaquin and him every day, just so she could hate them properly, up close and personal. And how many damn times did she have to remind him not to call her Michayla?
“So, we want to fly everyone to Paris. What could be more romantic? We already rented out an entire floor at the Four Seasons, suites for all the executives. We will rent out a ship or something for everyone else of course, but we want to take all the executives to Paris. So, what do you think?”
He looked so proud of himself; Mikki had to bite her tongue to stop herself from telling him she thought it was all a colossal waste of money. It wouldn’t do any good. Plus, he and Joaquin had that kind of money to burn. Bastards.
“Sounds great!” she forced herself to exclaim with false brightness. “Hope you all have a great time.”
There was no way in hell she was going to Paris, the city of love, all alone. And there was absolutely, positively no way she would watch them wine and dine one of their little plastic floozies. Enough was enough. It was time to make a clean break and move on with her life. Maybe she should consider moving somewhere in the southeast. Somewhere a stacked sister was appreciated. Atlanta maybe.
“You’re going.”
She hated when Kaito got all Alpha Male, Me-Tarzan-You-Jane on her. For one thing, it made her tingle her in places she didn’t want to think about. Plus she always wound up doing whatever he wanted her to do when he used that voice, and he knew it. Hence the freaking surf lessons. Pulling herself together, she decided to take a stand. She would not go to Paris on some Valentine’s trip alone. It was just too sad.
“I am not, I repeat, not going to Paris. I’m moving to Atlanta.”
Yep, that’s what she was going to do. Move to Atlanta. She heard there was a lot for a sister with money there. Avoiding the jade green eyes that bore into her, she tried to focus on all the wonderful possibilities. She stood from her des, turning her back on Kaito. She had to get away from them now before she said or did something she would regret for the rest of her life. Too bad all she really wanted was right here. Kaito or Joaquin, didn’t matter which one. Both would be even better, but that would make her the worst kind of slut wouldn’t it? Damn it! She was supposed to be concentrating on the opportunities in Atlanta, not the dynamic duo. Never again should she allow herself to fantasize about either or both.
“Michayla, you will be going to Paris with us, even if I have to spank that little ass and kidnap you myself.”
Damn, he sounded delicious when his voice got all growly and deep. Never mind her ass was far from little. She wanted to pull up her sensible business skirt and toot her ass in his direction just to see if he would really do it.
“Look, Kaito…”
“Did you tell her?” Joaquin burst into her office every bit as excited as Kaito had been a few short seconds ago.
Mikki breathed a sigh of relief at the interruption. Maybe she could sneak out of her own office as Kaito and Joaquin talked about how obstinate she was being. Everything on her end of things was all wrapped up, so they really didn’t need her for the closing of the merger. Her money would be transferred directly into her account; she had signed everything she needed to sign. She should book a flight for Atlanta tonight to scope it out. Inching away from Kaito, Mikki tried to move slowly toward the door, only to find her avenue of escape blocked by Joaquin. Damn!
“She says she’s not going,” Kaito informed him.
“What do you mean you’re not going?” Joaquin reached out and grabbed her by the shoulders. “You have to go. Why don’t you want to go?”
It was really difficult not to lean into that hard body of his and just inhale his scent. She had no idea what kind of cologne or aftershave he used, but it smelled all manly and scrumptious. Kaito always smelled like the sun and the sea – the idealized smell of sun and sea anyway. The real thing kind of left a little to be desired.
“I just don’t want to go, okay?” Yeah, she sounded testy, but there was no way she was going to admit she didn’t want to go because she didn’t have a date. She would rather shoot herself in the foot than to admit every time she saw them with one of their flavors of the month she wanted to cry…as she pulled the bitch’s hair out.
Joaquin didn’t say anything for a full minute. Mikki found herself shifting from one foot to another. One was bad enough. Two was impossible. She was getting weak; she had to find a way out. Why should she be miserable in Pairs when she could be miserable at home? Or in Atlanta.
“She said she’s moving to Atlanta,” Kaito supplied. Mikki wanted to shoot him.
“I don’t think so,” Joaquin finally spoke up.
His eyes went all silvery, a sure indication he was pissed, which pissed her off. Why the hell should he be mad just because she didn’t want to go on some stupid trip?
“Okay, both of you need to understand something right now,” she put on her “Mama” voice. The one guaranteed to get their attention. “After next week, I am no longer your employee so you can’t tell me what to do! I don’t want to go to Paris, I will not be going to Paris, and that is final! Do I make myself clear?”
*****
“Ain’t this a bitch,” Mikki muttered to herself as the private jet taxied down the runway. “I can’t believe I let them talk me into this shit.”
They hadn’t exactly talked her into it as much as they had connived and wheedled.
“We don’t have a date,” Joaquin had told the after twenty minutes of constant back and forth. “We were hoping you would agree to be our hostess.”
That had moved her a little, but it was the ultra-Alpha Kaito that pushed her over. Getting right up in her personal space, he had laid it on thick. Heaven help her, she loved that. She loved the threatening growly voice and the piercing jade green stares. Lord help her, it was the only sexual thrill she had gotten in quite a while.
They had even showed up before the break of day this morning complete with empty suitcases. Kaito had gone through her closets while Joaquin had
went around collecting incidentals. Sure, she had every intention of calling them at the last minute claiming to be sick. Kaito had probably anticipated that.
At least they had let her pack her own underwear. That would have been too much. But then, they seemed to know her boundaries. Despite Mikki’s growing crush, the three of them had developed a deep friendship.
Both Kaito and Joaquin had keys to her house and her two cars, she had keys to all of their houses scattered across California, a lodge in Vale and a beach house in Hawaii. She only had to ask if she wanted to drive any one of their cars.
They laughed together, cried together, occasionally vacationed together. There wasn’t much they kept from one another. It was only recently Mikki had begun to put distance between herself and her enigmatic bosses. Well, ex-bosses now, since the sale of J & K was final. She had been trying to make a clean break, if only they would let her.
“Why don’t you tell me the real reason you didn’t want to come with us, Mikki,” Joaquin asked as he slid into the plush recliner-like seat next to her.