Back in Bliss

by Lexi Blake

  “Then why did you go pale? Is it the Stark kid? Because I can handle him.”

  That was the last thing she needed. She wasn’t about to send sweet Seth into a confrontation with her claws-and-fangs eldest brother. “Seth is great, and he’s not a kid.”

  Cool gray eyes rolled. “He’s twenty-six, Georgie. Trust me, he’s a kid. I’m thirty-seven. Everyone looks like a kid to me.”

  She wasn’t sure Win had ever been a kid. He’d been forced to watch out for them all at a very young age. Still, she felt the need to defend her boss. “Well, at twenty-six you weren’t in charge of a multibillion-dollar business.”

  “No. It was sad. Mine was only multimillion,” he replied with the patented Dawson sarcasm. “It took me another ten years to get to a billion.”

  Georgia shrugged. “Well, I guess Seth is smarter.”

  His face fell. “Shit. You like him.”

  “Of course I like him. He’s my boss,” she said as quickly as she could. She had to throw him off the scent right freaking now.

  But Win was a wolf who rarely lost his prey. “No, sweetheart, this isn’t about a boss. You think I don’t hear that sigh in your voice? I’ve been your big brother for a very long time. That was the sigh you used when Brad Pitt came on screen or that idiot high school boyfriend picked you up. That sigh isn’t about how much he pays you or how he treats you on Secretary’s Day. How did he treat you on Secretary’s Day?”

  “God, Win. You’re like back in the fifties, you know. I’m his assistant. It’s Administrative Professional’s Day, and he was very nice. He took me to lunch at Cipriani and then we saw a show.” She didn’t mention the pashmina he bought for her or the way he’d brought her breakfast in bed. It wasn’t like he cooked it or anything, which was good because he couldn’t cook to save his life, but he’d placed it all on a nice tray.

  Those icy eyes of his grew grim. “So he wants you, too.”

  At least she could be totally honest, and it would save Seth so much trouble. “I like him a lot, but our relationship is not like that. I…god, this is stupid. I like him. He doesn’t like me. I tried to kiss him one night and he said no.” She’d had too much champagne at a gathering, and she’d kissed him in the back of the limo. He’d been a perfect gentleman, hugging her and saying all the right things, but she’d been in her own bed the next morning and they hadn’t talked about it since.

  He didn’t want her. Seth would end up with someone sophisticated and smart and very, very beautiful.

  And she would spend the rest of her life pining away over men she couldn’t have. Maybe she should go back to California.

  “Georgia!” Gus, Seth’s driver, called out. He was standing backstage with the rest of Seth’s staff. He always invited staff to these things since one of the ways he paid them was in stock. His staff members were also his shareholders, and they tended to love him for that. Gus’s daughter was in college thanks to what Georgia had come to think of as the “Seth Stark college fund.” “Come on. He’s trying to get you onstage.”

  Seth’s voice came over the loudspeaker. “Come on, Georgia. Don’t leave me hanging out here. I swear, people. She really does exist. She’s the best assistant in the world, and she’s also gorgeous. I do not deserve her.”

  “Just boss and employee, huh?” Win said with a frown.

  How did she make him understand? She probably couldn’t. Win believed what he wanted to believe. “He’s like this with all his employees. In some ways, we’re his family. I have to go. Dinner tonight? You’re paying or it’s fast food, and even then, you’re probably paying.”

  He ruffled her hair like he had when she’d been a kid and he’d been the only father figure she could count on. “Of course. But I should warn you, we’re all in town.”

  She felt her eyes widen. “All? Like Ben and Chase and Mark and Dare?”

  A ridiculously predatory smile lit her big brother’s face. “All of us.”

  Shit. That didn’t bode well for someone, and it was probably her. Her brothers only tended to get together when they were plotting. But hey, she would likely get some good meals out of it. And hopefully Nat was around and they could do some shopping with Ben’s MasterCard. Yeah, she would take that. She could use some shoes. And clothes. And a new handbag. Visions of Chanel danced through her head.

  Sometimes she missed being wealthy.

  “Georgia? They are starting to believe you’re a figment of my imagination. Stock is going down as we speak,” Seth said over his mic.

  “I have to go. See you later.” She gave her brother what she hoped was a saucy smile, but all she could think was that once again her big brother thought she needed rescuing, and this time he’d brought in the big guns if he’d managed to get Mark and Dare and Ben and Chase all in the same room at the same time. She’d fucked up in their eyes, but then that seemed all she was capable of. She rushed to get to the corner of the stage. She couldn’t leave Seth out there alone. He liked to call out his employees for recognition.

  He was the best boss ever.

  He was watching for her, his face frowning in consternation. He smiled as she came into view, his hand coming out to pull her onstage. She let him drag her forth and turned her head toward the bright lights. She’d been on stage enough to know how to handle them. She didn’t blink, merely gave the unseen crowd a brilliant smile.

  “See, I told you I have the most amazing assistant. Couldn’t do it without her.” He brought her hand to his lips, kissing it gallantly. She didn’t take it personally. He was an affectionate man. She winked his way and waved to the crowd.

  This, at least, she knew how to do. Smile and try to look pretty.

  It was all she was good for.

  * * * *

  Seth Stark took a long breath before he pushed through the conference room door. Georgia was taken care of. She was off to Bergdorf Goodman and Tiffany with Nat Dawson, and then the two women would have an early dinner at Cipriani where the maître d’ was waiting to treat them like queens. It would keep both women out of the way for hours. The men he was meeting had made sure of it. Of course, they had their reasons. None of the five Dawson brothers wanted their baby sister around for this takedown. Seth was sure they thought they didn’t want her around because she would object to their interference in her life. Soon they would be happy they’d made arrangements for her to shop with her sister-in-law for different reasons—so baby sister didn’t watch as they were all taken down a peg or two.

  Seth Stark didn’t play games and he didn’t allow anyone to push him around, least of all the men who would one day be his brothers-in-law.

  Begin as you mean to go. If he showed one ounce of softness, they would be all over him like a pack of wolves.

  He was about to show them who the fucking alpha was.

  They all turned in their chairs and he was faced with five Dawson wolves. Winter, the oldest, ran his own communications firm. DawComm had, at one time, belonged to Win’s father. Win had won it over in a slick hostile takeover that had left his father blindsided and his business gutted.

  To Win’s left sat Ben and Chase Dawson. Trust fund private detectives, former SEALs. Ben was frowning, but Chase had an air of amused expectation about him as though he was looking forward to the upcoming drama. Across the table from the twins sat Mark and Dare. Mark was the older of the two but only by ten months. They were currently on a Delta Force team, and Seth had insider information that they were being recruited by the CIA. They were the easiest ones to take down, but in the end, he’d managed to find something that would force every one of them to back the fuck off.

  Of course, he could be wrong and this could be a friendly “get to know you” meeting. He gave them his best “geeks are harmless” smile. He’d learned that being underestimated was sometimes his best maneuver. “Gentlemen. It’s nice to meet you all.”

  Maybe they were here to check him out and they wouldn’t give him hell. He would wait and see. He never played cards he didn’t have to
.

  Win Dawson leaned forward, a menacing smile on his face as Seth sat down. “Thank you for agreeing to meet with us. Now, this is going to go one way and only one way. You are going to fire Georgia, and I’m taking her back to California with me.”

  Excellent. They were good cards. He really wanted to play them. He frowned, hoping he looked worried and a bit scared. “I don’t want to fire Georgia. She’s actually quite good as an assistant.”

  A low huff came from Win’s chest. “I’m sure she’s perfectly atrocious. Georgia doesn’t take anything seriously. Look, I’m not stupid. None of us are.”

  “I don’t know that I’d say that, Win,” Ben Dawson said with a frown.

  Ah, a crack in the brotherhood. Ben hadn’t wanted to play it this way. He would have made a bet that Ben Dawson would be the softest of the five. It was good to know his instincts were perfect.

  Win ignored his younger brother and plowed straight ahead with the surety of a man who always knew what he was doing and always got what he wanted. “Georgia has never been organized a day in her life. She rarely looks up from doing her nails long enough to do more than text her friends.”

  “You haven’t been around her lately,” Chase said with a shrug.

  “Yeah, because Georgie got serious all of the sudden,” Mark broke in. He was all shoulders and bulky arms. “I don’t buy it. She goes from acting classes to being some tech guru’s secretary? Not in this lifetime. She’s fucking him. She’s his mistress, and no man is going to fuck my sister over.”

  Ah, the military contingent. A sense of peace settled over Seth. A lot of men got a rush of adrenaline before they went into battle, but for Seth there was always a sweet contentment that came with knowing he was about to dismantle someone’s life.

  “Win is right. She needs to be home,” Dare said. “She’s not that smart when it comes to men.”

  “She’s Georgie, Dare. She’s not all that smart about anything,” Mark said with a shake of his head.

  And he was done playing around. Seth smacked a fist on the table and let go of his affable-geek persona because no one, not even her brothers, was going to insult his lady. “If I hear you insult Georgia’s intelligence one more time, Mr. Dawson, we’re going to fight, and you won’t like how I fight.”

  Mark turned on him, canines bared. Yeah, he was going to be a peach of a brother-in-law. “Somehow I think we’ll manage, Mr. Businessman.”

  “She’s not dumb,” Ben insisted.

  “She’s not.” Win seemed determined to placate the most reasonable of his brothers. He sent Ben a long look, and Seth wondered how it would feel to be able to communicate with someone through a single look. Ben settled down. “She’s not dumb, but she can be a bit naïve. She claims that she’s not sleeping with him and there’s nothing between them. Is that true, Mr. Stark?”

  “I’m not sleeping with Georgia.” He let a sigh of relief run through the crowd. He found it deeply interesting that Ben alone seemed upset by the news. And then Seth dropped his hammer. “I’m not sleeping with her yet. The time isn’t right.”

  He stood because this wasn’t as much fun as he’d thought it would be. He meant to marry Georgia Dawson, and now all he could think about was the fact that she seemed to love her brothers. He wasn’t sure why, but she did, and she would be upset if she knew they were all fighting.

  He didn’t like it when Georgia was upset.

  Seth made his way around the table, placing a file folder in front of each Dawson brother. “Gentlemen, if you would care to open the folders in front of you, we can begin.”

  Win pushed his away, a stubborn look on his face. “What the fuck is this, Stark? This isn’t some business meeting. I’m not in negotiations with you. I’ve come to take my sister home, and there’s not a damn thing you can do about it.”

  “What the fuck is this supposed to mean?” Dare held the contents of his folder up. He and his brother Mark were a very simple fix. His folder contained one phone number, a match to his brother’s.

  Seth settled back into his chair. It was time to get comfortable. “That’s the phone number to the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff of the United States. I recently did some programming work for the Pentagon. They were grateful. I have dinner with the old guy now and again. He’s a nice man. Reminds me of my grandfather.”

  Mark rolled his eyes. “Awesome. You have a phone number. Good for you, buddy.”

  “This is stupid. I’m getting Georgia. I’ll drag her home if I need to.” Win started for the door.

  “Brother, I would sit down if I were you. I think the little shit is serious.” Chase frowned. “Is this what I think it is?” He held up a crystal-clear photograph of himself sitting at his computer desk, his back in full view.

  “That was taken with a high-powered rifle from a building one block down from your office in Dallas. As you can see, there is a sniper position that works for your desk.” He’d learned from Georgia that Chase was the smartest of all her brothers but had a paranoid streak that went a mile wide.

  “Motherfucker. He’s going to snipe me.” Chase sat back, his hand slapping at the table. “I like him. You have my full support. Get at her, man.”

  Dare stared down at that number. “Are these ways you’re planning to get rid of us? Is he serious?”

  Seth shrugged casually. “Perhaps I’m not completely serious about taking out Chase. But I will spend an enormous amount of time and effort pointing out all the ways his security plans don’t work. He’ll be like the little Dutch boy trying to plug all those leaks with too few thumbs.”

  “Dude, I told you I’m good. You’re mean. We’re going to get along nicely.” Chase grinned, the only one in the room who seemed to be having a good time. “How are you going to kill Ben?”

  Ben held up his note. It was blank. “I’m nothing to any of you.”

  “You’re the reasonable one,” Seth explained. Ben was deeply simple. If logic didn’t work, he knew who to talk to. “And I do have a plan to deal with you. If you give me trouble, I’ll talk to your wife.”

  Ben paled. “I’m with Chase. Go get Georgia. Don’t look at me like that, Win. Nat can be brutal when she wants to be, and she won’t like us pushing Georgia around. They’ve got that whole ‘girl power’ thing going.”

  “She’s your sub. Tell her what to do,” Win shot back. “Or have you two taken her collar? Do you understand the Master-sub relationship? Has Julian Lodge gone soft? What the fuck is he teaching you?”

  “Yes, Julian is such a softie,” Ben replied, rolling his eyes. “There’s a reason you’re not married, you freak. Keep it up, Win. I want to see how Seth handles you.”

  “I still don’t know how this phone number is supposed to scare me.” Mark seemed to struggle with the concept. Maybe they weren’t as smart as he’d imagined.

  “Dude, he’s going to call the big brass and get you kicked off Delta Force.” Chase shot his brother the finger, and for the first time in his life, Seth was genuinely happy he was an only child. The level of testosterone in the room was ridiculous, and the brothers looked like they were going to start throwing punches any minute.

  “He can’t get me kicked off.” Dare stood up, leaning over the table. “Now he might have been able to get a sad little SEAL kicked out, but we all know you guys take it up the ass from anyone.”

  Ben got up, too, proving the reasonable guy could only be pushed so far. “I have something I’ll shove up your ass, Dare.”

  “Shut up, all of you.” Seth had been forced to shout down protesters before. He could handle this crew. He turned to the Delta contingent. “I assure you if I call and offer the United States military my expertise at no charge, with the only codicil being you and your brother’s immediate forced retirement, you two will get kicked to the curb.” He turned his gaze on the former SEALs. “Don’t think I can’t take care of you two. I can make Natalie think I am the greatest human being in the world. I recently set up a fund for victims of human traffickin
g. I endowed it with fifty million dollars and set her up as an advisor. I intend to let her know about the new charity this evening. Who is she going to think is best for Georgia?” And Win. Win was the hard case. Win was the one who wouldn’t go down easy. “And you. Please read that file because I set that up so carefully. I want you to understand how far I’m willing to go.”

  Win’s face was red, his whole body stiff and stubborn, but he sat back down and the rest of the pack seemed to take their cue from him. The whole group calmed, a détente obviously reached. Win opened his folder and began to read. His was the most convoluted, complex plan, but he would get the gist quickly.

  Seth waited and wished Logan was here. Logan Green was his best friend despite the time and distance between them. They’d bonded at a young age. He’d been older than Logan, and it might have meant something if they’d met at Seth’s school in New York. But in Bliss, those months didn’t mean a thing. Bliss, Colorado, had been his sanctuary, the one place where he could be a kid, and Logan had been his brother in every way but blood. He’d spent each school year working hard so he would be allowed to spend the summer and Christmas break with his granddad in Colorado. If he’d earned even one B, his parents would have forced him to stay in New York and spend the summer with a tutor. Seth Stark had graduated with a perfect GPA. He’d been a National Merit Scholar and gained every academic award his private Manhattan high school had offered, and all because he wanted those months of freedom with his brother.

  He was too close to having the family he wanted to screw it up now. He’d found the right woman thanks to someone named Kitten. He wasn’t going to allow Georgia’s brothers to fuck it up for him.