by Violet Paige
“One more thing,” he promised. He nodded at Lee who was already in position to take her ass.
She wiggled and squirmed. There was nowhere to go, only to live and love in this moment. In the intensity and desire they gave her. To let the flames burn her down and smolder her soul.
Lee pushed into her, filling her ass. Her mouth covered Ty while the humming vibrator electrified her pussy.
If she could stay like this all morning she would. Reveling and reeling in the most erotic state of being. Loved and fucked by the men who rocked her world.
None of them could fuck like this long. It was too enticing. Too carnally blissful. Within minutes they exploded, leaving nothing behind but embers.
Forty
Brooke
If every morning began that way, Brooke knew her life would be full of love. Her heart was ready to burst. Lee wrapped a hand around her waist. Tyler had gone downstairs to bring up a pot of coffee. No one was in a rush to get to the office this morning.
“I don’t have words, Brooke.” Lee brushed the hair on her cheek. “You amaze me.”
She wiggled closer to him. “It was so intense.” She looked in his eyes. “I’ve never felt so close to anyone.”
“Are you ok?” he asked. “I know I’m rough.”
“I feel like my skin is floating around my body.” She giggled. “I’m perfect.”
“I’ll never forget this morning. I’ll never forget what you gave me.” He kissed her nose gently. “What you’re always willing to give me.”
“Neither will I.”
Tyler pushed the door open and walked in with a tray of mugs and a pot of steaming coffee.
Brooke sat up on the pile of pillows.
“Mmm. Coffee.”
“For you.” He handed her a mug.
He climbed into bed next to her.
“How are you feeling, sweetheart?”
She looked at them. “You two are worried about me.”
“Yep. You are our top priority. You are our family now, Brooke. There isn’t anything we wouldn’t do for you.” Tyler’s voice was serious.
“Family?” she whispered. The terrible pit of fear hit her out of nowhere. She had awakened in their arms and forgotten about Niall. The blackmail had seemed like a dream she had pushed to the back recesses of her mind.
“Family,” Lee echoed. “As unconventional as it is. That’s what our relationship is. We love you. We love you like the only woman who was meant for us. We felt that way at the cabin and here too.”
“Oh God,” she croaked. She suddenly couldn’t drink anymore of the coffee. She felt the walls caving in on her.
“What’s wrong?” Tyler searched her face.
“I-I don’t deserve any of this. I don’t deserve you.” She wiggled to try to free herself from them, but Lee took the coffee and Tyler’s hands landed on her shoulders.
“Talk to us. What’s going on?”
She shook her head. “You’ll hate me.”
“Doubtful.” Lee laughed.
“You don’t know what I’ve done.”
“Other than give us everything we’ve ever wanted?” Tyler stared at her.
“You’re going to find out either way.”
“Find out what?” Lee’s blue eyes turned a dark cobalt color. “You’re scaring us, Brooke.”
She stared at the sheet. She couldn’t face them. “Remember when someone hacked your payroll system two years ago?”
“Are you talking about StarCon Global right now?” Tyler asked.
She nodded. She had to fight the tears. These weren’t happy ones. “Niall has had all kinds of ideas to make cash. It never ends. One of those ideas was training me to be a hacker. And I hacked StarCon’s payroll for a quarter. I transferred the payments into one of Niall’s offshore accounts. Small amounts so they wouldn’t be traced. And only for three months. But it was me. I stole from you.”
The room was quiet. She looked up. Brooke’s heart fell to her stomach.
Forty-One
Lee
He’d never loved a woman like he loved Brooke. He couldn’t imagine sharing anything more intense than what they had this morning. But now she was sitting in between him and Tyler, confessing to theft. To hacking. To hiding money.
Lee bit his lip. He was stunned. He heard the words, but it was unbelievable. How was it possible? Brooke? Their sweet perfect Brooke had done this.
“Niall made you hack into our payroll?” He tried to keep his voice calm.
She nodded. “I knew it was wrong. I knew stealing from you was wrong. I didn’t touch the employees’ income, just the company portions. I know that doesn’t make it any better, but Niall didn’t know where the money came from, only that it ended up where he wanted it.”
She hung her head. “I thought it was better to steal from you rather than the employees. It was the only control I had. It was the only thing I could think of to do.” He heard the pain in her voice.
Tyler pressed his lips together. “This is it, isn’t it? This is what the fucked-up money philosophy is all about?”
She looked at them. “Yes,” she whispered.
He pushed off the bed and paced at the window. “Damn it, Brooke.”
“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”
Lee stared at her. “What did you mean we were going to find out?”
“Niall is blackmailing me. He said if I didn’t get cash to him this morning he was going to the press and outing me.”
“That’s insane.”
She sniffed. “I didn’t want to ask for the money and I don’t have enough to pay him.” He saw the look of desperation in her eyes. “I don’t want you to be embarrassed by me. I don’t want to tarnish Soar. If the press finds out what I did, it’s going to ruin the Dreams with Wings reputation. It means so much to you. It’s your life’s work. God, I don’t know what to do to make this right.”
“You should have told us,” Tyler growled. “From the beginning. You should have told us. We could have helped you. What were you thinking?”
“I wasn’t in the best position to say much.” She stared at him. “I wasn’t a guest during your retreat. It wasn’t like those first two weeks were some kind of magical fairytale. I was glad I stole from you.” The tears welled in her eyes. “But I’m not now. I would never want to hurt either of you. I’m so so sorry.”
Lee placed a hand on her knee. “It doesn’t matter. You’ve told us now. We have to figure out how to deal with your cousin.”
Tyler continued to pace. He knew his friend would be angry for a while. But he knew exactly what was going through his head. He was pissed at Niall—not Brooke. They would do everything they could to protect her. There were no words to describe what Niall had done to the woman they loved.
“You what?” She blinked back the tears.
Lee pressed a hand on her shoulder. “We’ll figure it out.”
She shook her head, her hair flying around her bare shoulders. “No. I’ll leave. I’ll resign from my position with Dreams with Wings. You can clean up the PR nightmare when I’m out of the picture. It’s better for the foundation this way.”
Tyler rushed to the side of the bed. “Hell no. That isn’t going to happen.”
Her eyes flew to his. “Don’t try to protect me in this. I did it. I hacked in. I helped Niall. And maybe I didn’t get caught then, but I’m going to have to pay for it now. My past. My sins. My penance to pay, not yours. I deserved to be punished for my crimes.”
Tyler’s hands moved to her face. “We’ve all done shit we’re not proud of, sweetheart. But no one is going to hurt you again. Lee and I will make sure of that. We’re in this together now. Your past and everything that comes with it. We meant every word of what we said. What good would our word be, if we only said it for the good times, right?”
“How can you forgive me?” she whispered.
Lee smiled. “You were in bed with us about thirty minutes ago, weren’t you?”
She blushed. She
was beautiful and sexy. Still so innocent. “Yes.”
“You belong to us. We belong to you. That means something, Brooke. Those weren’t just words. We are men of honor. Our word means something. Tyler and I will take care of your cousin. You aren’t alone anymore.”
There was alarm in her voice. “What are you going to do to him? Are you going to pay him off?”
Tyler scoured the room for his clothes. He threw a shirt at Lee. “He’s not going to bother you. That’s all you need to know.”
“Wait. Please tell me something. Anything,” she pleaded. “Don’t do something stupid. I don’t want either of you to get hurt. Niall is crazy. You can’t trust him.”
Lee leaned to kiss her on the cheek before he and Tyler left. “We’ve got you. We’ve got this. Try to get some sleep. We can handle him. Stop worrying.”
“Sleep? You expect me to sleep?” Her eyes darted back and forth. “There’s no way I can close my eyes.”
“Work?” he suggested.
She bit her lip. “Maybe. I can try. I do have to get to the office. I have another meeting.”
“Good. Focus on that today. We’ll meet you there. And stop worrying.”
If he could, he’d stay in bed with her all day and kiss away the fear that was in her eyes, but there was a way to make sure the fear never returned. And for that, he and Tyler were going to have to deal with Niall McIntosh.
Forty-Two
Brooke
They were gone. Brooke blinked at the door. It could have gone worse—much worse. The way Lee and Tyler handled the news impressed her. There was no end to how amazing they were. She knew as long as she lived, she’d never meet anyone else like them.
There was no point in sitting around her room, worrying about what was ahead of them. Brooke hopped from the bed and walked to the master suite. She started the hot water in the shower. At least if she were in her office she could be distracted by Dreams with Wings. She’d rather listen to her new assistant Maureen ramble on about her dating life than sit alone and worry about what could happen when Lee and Tyler faced Niall.
She had never expected them to take on her problems. As she stepped in the shower she wondered if knights in armor were a real thing. Were Lee and Tyler her knights? It didn’t seem possible they could forgive her after what she had done.
But they had rushed off to fix everything.
The water ran over her shoulders and down her back. On top of everything, she had shared something with them this morning she never imagined she could experience. They had both been inside her at the same time, filling her with more. She wrapped her arms around her body trying to hold on to that feeling.
What it felt like to be totally possessed. To be filled beyond her dreams.
Niall couldn’t take that away from her. Niall didn’t control her destiny anymore. She turned off the water, watching the last bubbles slide down the drain and disappear.
Brooke reached for a towel, wrapping it around her chest. She loved Tyler and Lee for what they wanted to do, but this was her mess. She had to clean it up. She couldn’t stand by while they faced Niall. She had to do something.
She got dressed and grabbed her keys.
Brooke squared her shoulders as she faced the McIntosh compound. She had prayed she would never set foot inside this place again, but she couldn’t run from her problems. And she couldn’t send her knights in to rectify something she had done. She needed to be the one to face the demons of her past.
She took each of the stone steps with confidence. This wasn’t like the last time she was here. No one would ever drag her out and stuff her in a trunk again. She had the love and support of the two most incredible men. They had given her the strength to face this. Because of them, she had to do this. She loved them enough to put herself here again—the last place she ever wanted to be.
Tyler’s sports car was parked in front. As she climbed the front porch steps she could hear loud voices from the other side of the door. Panic shot through her. Tyler and Lee were irate.
She didn’t hesitate. Brooke burst inside, landing in the middle of their circle. Their eyes darted toward her. She suddenly felt like she was surrounded by a pack of lions. Luckily, two of them were hers.
“What are you doing here?” Tyler asked. His face was stern. Lee was as determined as his friend. He made a protective stance toward her.
“Brooke, you don’t need to be here.” He shook his head.
She stepped forward, locking eyes with her cousin. “Yes, I do. Niall has no right to do any of this. I can take care of my family problems. It’s what I should have said this morning.”
Niall laughed viciously. “So you sent your men to take care of your little fuck-up, but you don’t trust them enough to take care of it?” he mocked. “This little arrangement the three of you has is fucked up.”
Her eyes narrowed. She could claw at his face. She could kick him in the balls. She could spit on his cheek. But she held her ground. She didn’t want him to know how much she hated him. Niall would love to see the hatred in her eyes. It was as if it fueled him. As if the way people despised him pushed him to be worse. She never understood that about him.
Tyler stepped in front of her, but she didn’t want him to protect her this time. She could handle Niall.
“I can do this, Tyler.” She pressed a hand to his elbow. “Please,” she added softly. She watched in amazement as he cautiously moved so she could face Niall on her own.
She stared at Niall. “You’re not going to the media.”
He rolled his eyes. “You sound like these two. I’m happy to keep your illegal escapades to myself if you hand over a hundred thousand to start. But that’s just the start.”
She didn’t let her eyes bulge or her jaw drop. She had to stay steady. Of course he would threaten more blackmail. He was going to hang the hacking over her head as long as he could milk them for money. It would never stop.
“You aren’t getting the money and you aren’t releasing the story.” She gritted her teeth. “Your threats don’t mean anything to me.”
Lee was behind her. She felt the warmth of his body as he laid a hand on her shoulder. She looked up at him, trying to convince him she could do this. But God, did it feel good to have him behind her. It was as if she could draw strength from his body. She needed every ounce of it right now.
Niall sat on the couch, crossing a leg over his knee. “See, what you don’t get is that I have dirt on you. I’m the one with all the card. I set the terms and you pay up. That’s how this works.”
“What you don’t get, is that I have way more on you,” she hissed. “That’s how this works.”
He raised his arms in the air, chuckling. “My hands are clean. I had nothing to do with your internet heist. You can’t trace that to me. Not even the accounts. You know they are ghost accounts. You insured I was in the clear. And it was exactly what I wanted. So thank you again for that.”
Brooke reached in her pocket and held up a thumb drive. “But I have every other piece of dirt on you I could find.” She slammed the drive on the coffee table. “And that is just one of many, many copies.” She tilted her head in his direction.
Niall reached for it, but Tyler cut him off. “Don’t touch it,” he snarled, knocking Niall back on the couch.
“There’s nothing there,” Niall snapped.
“Are you so sure?” Brooke glared. “You don’t have multiple accounts? Texts to associates? Email chains? Are you sure your hands are so clean?”
“You collected evidence against me? Against your own family?” He sounded stunned.
Brooke nodded. “You wanted me to be the hacker. Don’t you remember? You created this little skill I have. And I took full advantage of it.”
“But you’re using it against me? You’re turning on me?”
“It’s all there, Niall. And if something happens to me, or to one of them there are plenty of copies that can be discovered that will incriminate you. I’ve planted them all over t
own, so don’t even think about trying to find them. As soon as one is discovered, you’ll be in prison the rest of your life. I can guarantee it.”
He looked at her and then his eyes flicked to Tyler and Lee. “Fuck.”
Tyler collected the drive from the coffee table. “We’ll take this as one of the insurance pieces that you aren’t going to release that story about Brooke.”
Niall turned his head, ignoring the three of them.
“Let’s go.” Brooke feathered her fingers through Tyler’s strong hands and then Lee’s. “I want to go home.”
They followed her outside, closing the door to the compound behind them.
Brooke felt her knees buckle, but Tyler held her steady. “I think you better ride home with me, sweetheart. Lee can drive your car.”
“Of course.” Lee looked for her keys.
There were so many things she wanted to say, but she used everything she had back there to get through the confrontation with Niall. And it had worked. She was free. They all were.
Lee buckled her in the front seat as Tyler stuck the key in the ignition. She looked at them. “That drive is blank.”
“What the fuck?” Tyler stammered.
“I had to think of something. It was all I could come up with,” she admitted.
Lee laughed so hard he almost hit the top of his head on the inside roof of the car. “You are the smartest woman I know, Brooke.”
She bit the inside of her cheek. “I can hack him now and get the insurance policy. If you want, I can do it. Should I? Is that the smart move now?”
Tyler shook his head. “I think he’s scared shitless. We’ll worry about that later if we have to. I have a feeling he isn’t going to bother any of us. You took care of that.”
Lee kissed her on the cheek. “You were incredible. I’ll see you at the house.”