Body Rush

by Anne Rainey

  “That they hope to see me again soon. Are they insane or what? And how did they even know where I work?”

  “The form you filled out at Kinks, remember? And why insane? You enjoyed yourself, didn’t you?”

  Lydia was ready to scream. “I’d forgotten about the form. Yes, I enjoyed myself, but that’s not the point here.”

  “Then what is the point?”

  How could such an educated woman be so dense? It was inconceivable. “I had sex with three men, three hot, mouthwatering men, Roni. But it was only supposed to be one night. Sex with a stranger, remember?”

  “And you don’t want a repeat performance?”

  “What I want and what I should do is not the same thing. I shouldn’t even accept the flowers. I should be putting the whole thing behind me and praying I don’t go to hell.”

  “Listen to me, Lydia, really listen,” she ordered, her tone firm. “You’re upset because you did accept the flowers and you do want a repeat performance. Here’s the clincher. You are not going to hell just because you had a good time at Kinks and are now considering doing it again.”

  Lydia ignored Roni’s argument. She couldn’t allow herself to go down that oh so tempting road. She needed to forget about Friday night, period. “What if Dane and them ask about the flowers? What am I supposed to say?”

  “Hell, tell them the truth. Say they’re from an admirer.”

  Roni’s simple answer made her wish she could reach out and strangle her. “I guess that could work.”

  “Of course it could work.” Lydia heard voices in the background. “I need to go, but call me tonight.”

  “Sure. Talk to you later.” Lydia hung up the phone and looked at the flowers again. They wanted to see her again? Her heart did a little flip as she imagined making love to Apollo, this time without the mask hindering her view. She’d enjoyed the three of them, but it’d been Apollo’s touch that had stayed with her, haunting her dreams. She’d been secretly afraid the night had meant nothing to him. After all, while it was unique for her to spend the night with three men, it was obvious he and the other two men were a little more experienced. Come to think of it, maybe the flowers were a standard thing for them. They probably sent flowers every time they spent the night with a woman. She sighed. Here she was imagining them pining away for her when the truth was much uglier. She’d just been another notch on their bedpost most likely.

  Lydia grabbed a file from her desk and forced herself back into work mode. It was her one saving grace, keeping her mind busy kept her from going crazy.

  As she entered Dane’s office and tossed the file onto his perpetually messy desk, a paper fluttered to the floor. She bent to retrieve it when a word at the top caught her attention. Kinks. Lydia took hold of the paper with shaky fingers. She quickly scanned it and realized it was an electric bill and it was on Dane’s desk. As if she’d conjured them, Dane, Trent and Mac walked in. She looked at each man in turn, then looked back at the paper in her hand. “No,” she breathed out, “it can’t be, it simply can’t be.”

  “Lydia?”

  Her gaze shot to Dane’s hair. That curl. Oh, God, she should have recognized that curl of his. He was Apollo. It was so clear now. She looked over at Trent and recognized the blue eyes as Poseidon’s. She didn’t even have to look at Mac to know he was Zeus. She should have picked up on the accent. She would have probably had they not kept her in a perpetual state of arousal, which had continued throughout the weekend.

  She held up the paper, her body trembling as the truth sank in. “You really should learn to clean your desk, Apollo.”

  Dane stepped forward, concern etched into his features. “We can explain, baby.”

  “Don’t even try it.” Lydia wadded the bill into a ball and threw it at him. It hit him in the chest then fell to the floor. Dane’s gaze trapped hers. She started for the door, her legs shaking so badly she thought she might fall at any moment. As Dane stepped into her path, she stiffened, determined to get out of there before she broke down. She’d be damned if she’d let them see her cry. “Move, now.” Her voice quivered as misery engulfed her.

  Dane’s jaw hardened. “Not when you’re so upset. You aren’t driving in this condition.”

  Trent moved up beside Dane, his eyes imploring. “It’s not like you’re imagining. We didn’t set out to trick you, Lydia. It wasn’t like that, I swear it.”

  She couldn’t hear their explanations or she really would lose it. “Let me go!” she shouted, her nerves shot.

  “I’m sorry,” Dane muttered, his soft tone nearly tearing her apart.

  He stepped out of her way and she fled the room, barely remembering to grab her purse as she reached her desk. When she saw the flowers sitting on the edge, tears filled her eyes, blurring her vision. She tripped over her own feet but kept her balance. It took her three tries to get the door open. She heard someone calling her name, but it didn’t stop her haphazard flight from the office building. As she reached her car, opened the door and threw herself inside, a floodgate opened. Her world crumbling down around her, Lydia remembered her mother preaching to her about the road to hell. Was this her punishment? Was this the penalty for enjoying their touch?

  9

  “Son of a bitch!” Dane shouted. He turned and put his fist through the wall. There’d be pain later, he knew, for now all he could see was Lydia’s ashen face and shaking fingers as she’d held that bill up for him to see. What had he done?

  “Mac, follow her home,” Trent ordered. “Make sure she makes it there safe.”

  “Yeah,” Mac muttered. He shot Dane an angry glare before leaving the office.

  Dane bent and picked up the wadded-up bill. “She’ll never forgive us. Never.”

  Trent went to the desk and pulled out a drawer. He took out two glasses and poured a shot of whiskey in each, then handed one to him. Dane grabbed it and downed the fiery liquid in one gulp. Trent followed suit. He poured them each another shot. “She’s hurting right now. We need to give her time.”

  Dane pointed to the door. “Did you see her face? She’s completely crushed, Trent!”

  “I saw her, but I have a question for you.”

  “What?” he gritted out as he sat down and looked at the paper in his fist. Christ, he deserved to be shot for what he’d done to her.

  “Do you love her?”

  Dane’s gaze shot to Trent’s. “What?”

  Trent crossed his arms over his chest and stared down at him. “You heard me.”

  “We all care about Lydia. She’s been a part of our lives for two years. The other night with her has us all panting after her like little lost dogs.” Even as the words fell out of his mouth, he knew they were lies. His feelings for Lydia went deeper than lust. He’d always known that if he ever had her beneath him, he wouldn’t want to let her go. Sharing something so personal with Trent wasn’t an option though.

  “Mac and I care about Lydia, that’s true. We’ve even fancied the idea of having her again. But for you, it’s different. You love her, don’t you?”

  Dane suddenly felt like cinder blocks were sitting on his damned shoulders. He didn’t want to talk about his feelings for Lydia. He damn sure didn’t want Trent and Mac fantasizing about her either. If another man touched her now, he’d cut their damn hands off. Would she ever forgive him? The thought of hurting her tore at his gut. “My feelings are none of your damn business. All that matters is fixing this. I hurt her. I deserve to be drawn and quartered.”

  Trent shook his head. “We all participated. It’s not your burden alone.” He downed the second shot and put the glass back on the desk. “Give her some time. Let her think on it.”

  Yeah, let her think about what a shit he was, great plan. “And then what?” Dane growled.

  Trent smiled. “And then you beg her forgiveness and you do it on your knees.”

  “You think that’s really going to work? This isn’t like forgetting to buy her a gift for her birthday!” Dane could still see the pai
n in her eyes. That look would haunt him forever. “This can’t be washed away with an apology.”

  “No, it can’t. But she’s a reasonable woman. And she has a heart of gold. And unless I’m way off, I think she cares about you. I think she has for a while now.”

  Dane recalled the day he’d gone to her apartment, the soft kiss they’d shared. The way she’d melted against him as she’d admitted to being attracted to him. That had been before Kinks. “It won’t matter. She won’t forgive me for this.”

  “She looks at you differently than she does Mac and me. She always has. Besides, do you really think she didn’t have a clue who she was with the other night? She’s worked for us for two years. If you ask me, Lydia had at least some idea. She might not have been conscious of it, but deep down she knew who she was moaning and writhing for. I’d bet money on it.”

  Could it be? Had she suspected and still gone through with it? It seemed too much to hope for. “I don’t know, Trent. That sounds like we’re trying to assuage our consciences to me.”

  He shrugged. “We’ll see. Give her a few days then go talk to her. Explain what happened. Make her listen to you. See how she reacts.”

  Dane hated the idea of waiting. He wanted to go to her now. He needed to talk to her, to tell her it wasn’t some damned stunt. They hadn’t been trying to play with her feelings. Dane had wanted her so badly he’d let himself believe it would all work out. He’d been an ass.

  “And if she doesn’t forgive me?” Dane said, admitting the unthinkable.

  “Then tie her to the bed and make love to her until she does.”

  “You’re a damned Neanderthal.” Even so, Dane thought Trent’s idea had merit. If all else fails he’d kidnap her and show her how good they could be together. Just the two of them. He could spend hours loving her.

  If she didn’t shoot him first.

  His cell phone rang and Dane grabbed it, hoping it was Lydia. “Lydia?”

  “No, it’s Mac. She’s home safe.” Mac paused, then added, “She’s really upset, Dane. I’m worried about her. She shouldn’t be alone.”

  “Are you outside her apartment now?”

  “Yeah.”

  She wouldn’t want to see any of them, but maybe Dane could reach one of the friends she always went to lunch with. “I’ll take care of it.”

  Mac sighed. “This sucks. We really screwed up this time.”

  Dane couldn’t have said it better. “I’ll fix it,” he vowed. Please, God, let me fix it.

  Lydia had cried herself dry. The only other time she’d done that was when her father had died. Her entire body ached and like a bad movie, the image of that electric bill fluttering to the floor kept zipping through her mind. She still had a hard time reconciling the three men she’d made love to with the three lawyers who made her life crazy. How blind can one person be? Now that she knew the truth it seemed so obvious. She’d been a fool. And they’d played her like a fiddle too. They must have had a good laugh afterward. The thought had her throwing the tissue box across the room. “Assholes,” she ground out. Suddenly the doorbell rang and Lydia jumped.

  “Go away!”

  “Lydia, it’s us, open up.”

  What were Roni and Jeanette doing there? “I’m not up for the company right now, Roni,” Lydia called back.

  “Don’t make me use my key.”

  Lydia had given Roni a key to her apartment when she’d gone on vacation one year. She’d needed someone to look after her plants. She tried to muster up some irritation at being forced into letting them in, but Lydia knew she’d only wallow in self-pity if left to her own devices. She got up from the couch and strode to the door. When Lydia flung it open to find Roni and Jeanette both staring at her with worry, a bag of groceries in Roni’s hands, Lydia’s anger boiled over.

  “Dane called you, didn’t he?”

  Roni frowned. “He called. He was worried and didn’t want you to be alone.”

  Lydia crossed her arms over her chest and stared at her two best friends. “Did he tell you what he did? Did he share that little tidbit with you as well?”

  Roni pushed her way inside and went straight to the kitchen. Jeanette pulled her in for a hug. All the starch went right out of her. And here she’d actually thought she was all cried out. Go figure. She pulled out of Jeanette’s arms and went back to the couch. Socrates jumped onto her lap and purred, then curled into a ball and fell asleep.

  “He told Roni what happened,” Jeanette said. “Roni called me. I’m sorry, sweetie.”

  Lydia shrugged and started stroking Socrates. “I shouldn’t have gone with them. It’s partly my fault.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “They didn’t exactly drag me to their apartment above Kinks kicking and screaming. I went willingly. If I hadn’t, they never would’ve had the chance to pull this stupid stunt.”

  “So now you think you’re being punished for spending time with the three of them?”

  Lydia bit her lip and looked down at the black ball of fur in her lap. “Maybe. I feel like I’m getting what I deserve here, ya know?”

  Roni came back into the room carrying three black cherry coolers. “Please don’t tell me you’re blaming yourself for this, because that’ll just piss me off.” She handed Lydia and Jeannette a cooler then sat in the chair across from them. “There’s also chocolate chip ice cream in the freezer. I figured we might need it later.”

  Lydia unscrewed the cap and took a long drink before replying. “You have to admit it’s pretty ironic. I spend a wild night with three men and what happens? They turn out to be the men I work for! I can’t help but feel like I’m being punished for my transgressions.”

  “That’s a load of crap. You’re still letting your mother get to you.” Roni placed her cooler on the coffee table and leaned forward. “I want you to know that I talked to Dane at length. I’d love to castrate the ass. What he and those other two idiots did was wrong, no question. But after he explained, I came to the conclusion that it wasn’t truly his intention to hurt you. I think he saw a chance to finally be with you and he jumped at it. Does that make it right? Hell no, but it does explain his actions a bit better. Also, try to remember that he didn’t lure you to Kinks, Lydia. You went willingly. You wanted to spend the night with a stranger, remember?”

  “Yes, but they weren’t strangers, were they? They should have said so when I explained my reason for being there to begin with.”

  Roni’s eyes widened. “You told them about the bet?”

  “Not exactly. Apollo, er, Dane wanted to know why I was there. I told him I’d fantasized about having sex with a stranger. I was honest. He wasn’t.”

  “Maybe he was just trying to give you what you wanted,” Jeanette said. “You know, letting you believe they were strangers.”

  “I don’t know. Maybe,” Lydia grumbled. “Still, he should’ve told me.”

  “Yeah, he should have.” Roni sighed. “I’m sorry, hon.”

  Now Lydia felt bad. “It wasn’t all their fault. I shouldn’t have been there to start with. I shouldn’t have—”

  “Stop flogging yourself,” Roni ordered. “Your mother used her beliefs to twist you up inside and that’s where a lot of this self-recrimination is coming from. Stop trying to be the daughter she always wanted and start being your own person. She moved on with her life and left you behind, Lydia. You didn’t leave her.”

  Lydia knew in her heart, Roni spoke the truth. “You’re right. It’s just…I’ve never felt so much pleasure. My lord, sex has never been like that for me. Never. Even now I can’t seem to stop thinking about it. Dane was so gentle, but forceful too. How messed up is it that I can’t stop thinking about him? I should hate him for what he did, but instead I want him again. What sort of woman am I?”

  “Normal. Tell me this. Since it was that good, then what’s the real reason for the tears? Is it because you’re starting to fall for Dane?”

  Lydia shrugged. Roni had it right; Lydia was falling for
him. She suspected she’d started falling the minute she’d interviewed for the position as his paralegal.

  Roni’s lips quirked. “I’ve noticed you’ve not mentioned how great it was with Mac or Trent.”

  “They’re all great lovers, but I guess it’s Dane’s deceit that’s left me feeling so betrayed.” Lydia took another drink of her cooler and looked over at Jeanette. “I really hate when she goes into psychology mode on me.”

  Jeanette laughed. “Don’t we all.”

  Roni flipped her hair behind her back and smiled. “It’s all part of my charm.”

  “You aren’t nearly as charming as you’d like people to think, Roni,” Jeanette said. “Remember that time you spit on Jimmy Linedecker in third grade?”

  “That little dweeb kept pulling my ponytail. He deserved worse.”

  They all three laughed. After several Jimmy stories and a few more coolers, Lydia looked at the two women and tears sprang to her eyes. “I don’t know what I’d do without you guys. Thanks for coming over. I really needed the company.”

  Jeanette patted her knee and Roni waved a hand in the air. “You’d do the same for us, honey.”

  It was true. They’d always looked out for each other. Jeanette and Roni were the sisters she’d never had. Lydia moved Socrates onto Jeanette’s lap and stood. She planted her hands on her hips. “Okay, who wants ice cream?”

  They passed the rest of the evening finishing off a half-gallon of ice cream and a bag of cheesy chips while they watched a horror movie marathon on cable. At three in the morning, she’d had to usher them out the door. They’d only agreed to leave because she’d sworn she was okay.

  It wasn’t until she slipped into bed with the lights off, finally alone with her thoughts, that Lydia realized Roni had been right. She’d been hurt because she cared. It hadn’t just been sex for her. It’d been much more. And for some crazy reason she wasn’t nearly as upset with Mac or Trent. It was the thought of Dane betraying her that had shards of glass cutting at her heart.

  He’d starred in so many of her fantasies. She’d always wondered what it’d be like if he were to ever see her as a desirable woman, rather than an uptight paralegal. Well, she’d gotten her wish. Unfortunately all she’d been to him was a good time, a novelty. He felt bad, sure, now that she knew the truth. He was concerned and wanted to make it right, but not because she meant something to him.