by Shayla Black
“I also have security of our own. They’ll be here before dark.” Rory had immediately requested a detail for the house and grounds. He had no doubt Talib would send someone tomorrow. The sheikh had been upset to say the least.
The magistrate promised to be in contact, then he headed for the door, leaving Rory alone with Oliver.
“Are you thinking what I’m thinking?” Rory asked. He couldn’t get Tori’s last night in London out of his mind.
“Of course. This isn’t the first time. It can’t be a coincidence that someone tried to attack her before she left. Now that I think about it, it might have been the same man all three times.”
Rory felt his eyes widen. “Three times? Are you talking about Peckham?”
“Yes, I was about to ask the same thing.” Tori stood in the doorway, her skin pale and that haunted look in her eyes. “Callum is asleep. Claire is sitting with him. I was going to ask if you thought what happened in London is connected to the shooting. Now I’d really like to know what you mean by three times.”
Oliver winced and sat on the sofa. The curtains were drawn, despite the fact that sun still shined brightly. “I followed you one night.”
“Creepy stalker,” she said with the first hint of humor he’d seen from her since the shooting.
Oliver shrugged. “Perhaps, but I wasn’t the only one. According to Claire, a man followed you off the bus. I jumped him in an alley when he pulled a knife.”
Her eyes narrowed. “Your last ‘bar fight,’ I presume.”
Oliver held his hands up. “The very last. I assure you I’m through with the fight club mentality. Unless I get my hands on the shooter. Then all bets are off.”
Tori frowned. “So I was visiting a friend, you were following me, and Claire was following you. The creepy stalker thing must run in the family.”
Oliver leaned forward. “This feels more personal than someone with a political agenda. Besides, even with Tori’s ties to the royal family, someone with an ax to grind against the Bezakistani way of life probably wouldn’t have targeted her before today. I want to know where Thea’s been.”
“It certainly wasn’t a female who shot at me today. I saw him.” Tori crossed her arms over her chest.
“That doesn’t mean a thing.” Rory actually thought that idea made sense. “He behaved more like a hired hand than a terrorist.”
“He was after me.” Tori turned toward the door. “It doesn’t matter why. Callum nearly died. The only plan that makes sense is me leaving.”
Rory had worried she would retreat emotionally since the thug had fired the gun. He hated to be proven right. “Where would you go?”
She shrugged. “It doesn’t matter.”
It did. Rory crossed his arms over his chest. “Absolutely not.”
Her greatest fear was loss, and Callum had nearly played out that story earlier.
Oliver frowned and agreed. “You’re not going anywhere. We have security. It’s going to be all right. We’ll protect you.”
She pursed her lips and turned toward the hall. “I’m not worried about me. I’m giving you notice now. Someone—fate, maybe—doesn’t want us together. So in thirty days, I’ll be leaving. No one will have to take a bullet for me again.”
Rory wasn’t about to let that lie. In three steps he was at her side, his hand wrapped around her arm. “That’s not how it’s going to go, love.”
She looked at him, that blank stare nearly ripping him asunder.
“Don’t look at me as if none of this matters. Everything about you matters to us, and you need to understand that. I know what happened this afternoon scared you, but Callum is fine. He’s a tough one and he’s going to be perfectly fresh by tomorrow. He won’t even remember he’s been shot.”
“I’ll remember,” she promised.
He tried to drag her into his arms. She stood still, stiff. “Tori, Callum did what he had to do. Any one of us would have done the same.”
“You shouldn’t have had to do anything at all,” she said, her voice flat. “This is ridiculous. I’m not married to royalty. Why would they come after me?”
She was already erecting walls again. Every time he managed to tear through the last barrier, she started building another. He had to prove to her that there was no wall that he and his brothers couldn’t break down.
Rory squeezed her tight. “I don’t know, but I will find out. I’ve got a call in to a London security agency that investigates things like this. I’m also going to put an end to the thing with Thea.”
“Callum’s baby mama?” Tori rolled her eyes.
Ah, there was his first hint that she wasn’t as unemotional as she pretended.
“Does it bother you?”
She shrugged. “It’s not my business.”
Oliver stood, coming to Rory’s side. “Really? You don’t care who Cal has sex with?”
Those sweet lips of hers flattened into a stubborn line. “No. I can’t. Can’t you see this won’t work? The press won’t leave us alone and now someone is trying to hurt me. Callum could have been killed. Do you get that?”
Tears welled in her eyes again. She needed to cry and purge those emotions, but she held tightly to her control.
It was time to strip that from her.
Rory tangled his fingers in her hair, twisting lightly so she was forced to look into his eyes. “Cal could die on the road. Any one of us could get into an accident at any time. No one is guaranteed tomorrow. I won’t allow this irrational fear of yours to come between us.”
“It’s not irrational,” she argued. “I’ve seen it. It’s happened to me before and now it’s happening again. On top of that, someone wants me dead. Why can’t you see that it’s more logical to let me go? I don’t want to put everyone in danger. I couldn’t stand it if one of you died because of me. Please let me go, Rory. I can be back in London in a few hours, even farther away by tomorrow.”
He tightened his hold, relieved when her breath hitched. He could see the way her nipples peaked under her thin shirt. She was already responding and he’d hardly touched her. Did she honestly think she could walk away from this? He knew damn well he never would.
Oliver moved in behind her, crowding her until she was between their big bodies. “We’re not letting you go. You can beg all you like but you’re not leaving this house.”
“You can’t keep me here.” The words came out on a breathy gasp as their bodies collided. One manicured hand came up to touch his chest. The other moved back to Oliver’s hip. “Just because the sex is good doesn’t mean this is a good idea.”
Tal had been right. The only way to break through Tori’s defenses was sheer intimacy. They would be inside her so often for the next thirty days that she would feel empty if one of them wasn’t making love to her.
“The fact that you only call it good sex shows me how naïve you are and how little you understand. It’s not sex. I’ve had sex. I’ve had so much sex I got bored with it. We don’t have sex.” Rory cupped his free hand around her breast. She seemed to swell around his fingers, forcing him to take more into his hand. “What we do is make love and I’ve never made love to another woman.”
She arched a brow at him. “I seem to remember a couple of models who would disagree.”
“Ah, that was sex. It was an itch I could scratch with anyone. This is more. I hunger. I crave, and only one person in the world can satisfy me now. You. Only you.” It had been that way since the moment he’d seen Tori. Only she mattered now. Only Tori could fulfill his needs.
“I thought I’d been in love,” Oliver whispered. “I thought I knew everything. Then my whole world got ripped out from under me.”
Tears formed in her eyes. “Then you should understand why I can’t do this.”
Oliver didn’t let up. “I understand that you’re scared. I’ve been the same. My fear caused me to lash out and hurt you, but I won’t ever do that again. I’m stronger now.”
“What happened to you, Oliver?” she
asked.
Oliver kissed her cheek. “You happened, love. I went back to the palace for you and I found myself again. I’d been lying on that floor dying for years, but I got up and I won’t go back down again. I’ll fight. You wanted to see the real me. Well, this is who I am, darling. I’m going to fight for what I want and that’s a family with you and my brothers. Give in now. Make it easy on all of us because there is only one acceptable outcome and that is marriage. A life together. I’ll accept nothing less.”
She shook her head, but she shifted between them as though she couldn’t decide which way to turn. “I can’t handle it.”
“You can and you will. I’ll make sure of it. We’ll all help you.” Rory took her mouth with hungry dominance as though his lips and tongue could brand her.
She softened under the onslaught, and he could feel her tears against his face. He refused to let up. She needed to cry, needed to feel. She closed herself off from everything and he was beginning to understand that she only seemed open to people who didn’t matter. She was terrified of letting anyone in who she really cared about.
Rory intended to change that because he intended to be one of the men she loved more than life itself. All that passion and love was trapped. It was up to them to set it free.
Words didn’t seem to work on her so Rory was going to try something far less verbal.
He let his tongue dive deep, playing along hers. He tugged at the hem of her shirt. “You don’t need this, sweetheart.”
Then Oliver was undressing her, and Rory assisted.
Life was easier with a couple of partners. He never had to stop kissing her yet his older brother continued to peel away her layers. Before too long, they revealed her warm flesh. With a twist, her bra came free and her breasts fell between them, begging for his attention. He ended the kiss with one last swipe of his tongue over her bottom lip and studied her.
“How do you do this to me?” Her guileless eyes had clouded with desire.
There was an easy answer to that question. “I’m passionate about you. I love you with my whole heart and soul. Tori, you’re never going to find this again. We all click. We fit together. Oliver, have you ever wanted another woman like you want her?”
“Never. I didn’t know I could want a woman the way I want her.” Oliver cupped her chin, tilting her up toward him. He brushed his lips against hers. “And I’ve never had such pleasure from a woman. It doesn’t work like this with other people. You won’t find this with another man. You have to settle for only having the three of us.”
“Another man? I can’t handle the ones I have. You three don’t listen to good sense.” She arched back, her mouth against Oliver’s while her breast filled Rory’s hand. “You make me forget to think.”
“There’s no need to think right now. Just feel. Give over to us. We need to be together. I need to be close to you. I know you’re afraid, but so are we. We don’t want to lose you. Not to a bullet or to your own fear.” He lowered his head and licked at the tight peak. It tightened further, begging him to torment her even more.
He glanced up and Oliver was kissing her, their mouths fused in passion. It made his dick harden to the point of pain to watch as she submitted to their desires. She wasn’t thinking about the potential of loss now. She was thinking about pleasure and love and what they could give her.
He sucked the nipple into his mouth. This would be hard and fast. It couldn’t be any other way. Later tonight they would inundate her with long strokes of their tongue and hands and cocks. Hopefully, Cal would be up to joining them. But after the events of the day, Rory needed to be inside her.
Now.
He tugged at the waist of her pants, dragging them down and dropping to his knees. Oliver kept kissing her, his hands wrapping around to tweak her nipples. Her body moved with unconscious grace, sensuously rolling between them.
“Step out,” he commanded her as he pulled her knickers down as well, revealing perfect feminine skin and that lovely pussy he couldn’t wait to make his again. He could scent her desire. She was already getting wet and ready for them. The evidence of her need glistened on the folds of her pussy.
He leaned over and nosed her, gathering the sweet smell of her desire around him. He loved how quick she was to respond. When it came to sex, she didn’t prevaricate or play games. The honest, open need she displayed threatened to send him over the edge.
He wasn’t going until she went with him.
Rory dragged his tongue through her labia and right over her needy clitoris. He stopped for a moment and suckled the nub between his lips.
Tori squirmed and gasped, calling out his name even as Oliver tweaked her nipples.
He found a deep satisfaction in knowing his brother was right there, holding her down for his pleasure. And hers.
Rory moved in, giving that sweet clitoris a hard suck as his fingers found her pussy and slid in. He curled them inside her and found her sweet spot, stroking as he sucked. Tori came all over his fingers. She soaked him with her release. It was perfect and gave him leave to move to the next phase.
“Hands and knees,” Rory commanded.
Oliver helped her slip to the floor. Tori’s whole body was flush with orgasm. She looked up at him and Rory realized there were no walls between them now. This was the only place he could be utterly sure of her. He needed to broaden their safe places.
Oliver moved in front of her, shoving his slacks down and freeing his cock. She didn’t need prompting. The minute he was in position, she sucked the head between her lips. Oliver hissed and thrust his hands in her hair. “You should do what you’re going to do. I can’t last too long. That little tongue of hers is a killer.”
Rory shoved out of his pants, snagging a condom before tossing them aside. He rolled it over his hard-as-nails cock and settled in behind her. Her ass swayed invitingly and he promised it wouldn’t be too long before he felt that sweet hole around him. On the plane, they’d instructed her to wear a plug for several hours. She’d balked at first…then she’d complied. In a few days, she would be ready for them to take her together. But for now he would be satisfied getting her between him and Oliver.
“Spread your knees wide,” he commanded. “Don’t stop sucking Oliver, but prepare yourself for me. I’m going to fuck you hard while you take him. Suck him deep. You can do it. You can take him and me. Eventually, Callum is going to fuck this sweet arse of yours. You’ll be so full. There won’t be an inch of you we don’t explore.”
She hummed, wiggling her backside.
Oliver cursed. “Fuck, that feels good. Just a little more. Take every inch.”
There was no way his brother would last much longer. Rory knew exactly how good it felt to be balls deep inside that hot mouth. If they were going to go together, he had some work to do. He lined his cock up with her soaked pussy and started to press inside. She moved to accommodate him, tilting her pelvis up toward him. So tight. She was so perfectly tight and hot. He pressed in, ruthlessly forcing his dick into her channel. He pushed forward, gripping her hips to hold her still.
She wriggled and squirmed as she kept sucking Oliver’s cock. She was caught between them, a precious bundle of femininity. She was theirs to protect and love. And she was definitely theirs to fuck.
He thrust until he was flush against her and then held himself still for a moment, enjoying the deep connection he felt every time he immersed himself inside her. This was intimacy unlike anything he’d ever experienced before. She was the right woman and this was the right time.
He moved one hand around to find her clit as he began a pounding rhythm. He held nothing back. She was strong and not just physically. He was going to prove it to her, but for now all that mattered was the sound of her mouth sucking Oliver and the feel of her pussy tightening on him.
He stroked her clit and felt her spasm. Oliver groaned and thrust hard into her mouth.
Rory felt her quake and gave in. The orgasm made him shudder, but he kept thrusting, stroking h
er to greater heights. She sucked furiously and finally let go, having taken everything Oliver gave her. She thrust back and cried out his name as she came all over his cock.
He forced his way inside her one last time before sheer exhaustion felled him. He cradled her as he moved to her side. It didn’t matter that they were in the parlor where his mother used to have teas. This was their home now, and they would love their wife how they saw fit. He kissed her ear. “I don’t want to hear anything further about leaving. You belong here with us.”
She reached out for Oliver, taking his hand as she rested her head back against Rory’s chest. “Do I have a say?”
“Not in this.” Oliver tenderly kissed her palm. “Not when your safety and happiness are at risk. You can’t live away from us forever. We have to figure this out.”
“Together,” Rory said with finality.
“It’s a mistake.” But she brought Oliver’s hand to her breast.
“Then it’s our mistake.” Rory thought the only real mistake was being apart. Everything else would fall in place. Once they’d taken care of Thea, the press would die down a bit and they could focus on finding the man trying to kill Tori.
A shadow darkened the door. “I go to sleep for twenty minutes and this is what I find you doing?”
Rory looked up and Callum was standing in the doorway, a glower on his face.
“You snooze you lose, as the Americans say,” Oliver taunted.
Tori sat up, scrambling to get to her clothes. “You’re supposed to be in bed.”
“He barely needed stitches. He’s played with a concussion,” Rory grumbled as he got to his feet. It looked like his playtime was at an end.
“My arm hurts something fierce, and I think the drugs the doctor gave me are affecting me.” Callum looked at Tori like a sad little boy. “I woke up without you.”
Tori picked up Rory’s shirt, abandoning her own clothes. She hurried to reach Callum. “I won’t leave you alone again.” She took his good hand and started leading him out to the hallway. “I’ll take care of you.”