by Chloe Lang
Megan’s suffering called to him like a siren’s song. His urgency to comfort her, pleasure her, to give her all she needed was pounding inside him, inside his veins, inside his chest, pushing him to act. Sex with her was a part of it, but only a part. Trust. That was the crux of the matter and would take time. There was only one way to protect her from whoever was behind the attacks and also get to work on earning her trust—the plan Scott had laid out back in the courtroom.
“What damn offer are you talking about, guys?” Phoebe’s irritation was growing. “Ethel assigned her to me. Unless you drop the case, my obligation is to her, not you. I know we’re friends but I’m bound to keep her best interests in mind. Understand?”
Bound? God, he loved that word. Being a Dom was elementary to his character. The lifestyle gave order to a world that often hadn’t made sense to him. Eric let his mind draw up an image of a naked Megan tied up in his favorite braided nylon rope. The red and black two-color combination would look so beautiful against her pale skin.
“We want to offer her a job,” Eric said, keeping his eyes not on Phoebe but on her. “She becomes our personal assistant for three months.”
“Make it six, bro,” Scott interjected.
His brother was onto something. “A year is better.” That should be enough time to win her over.
Scott smiled. “I’m all in with you on that one.”
Phoebe stepped off the stool and stood in the aisle, blocking his view of Megan. “A year working for TBK? You’ll drop the lawsuit?”
“Yes.”
“You came up with this plan before you believed she was innocent, right?” she asked.
Eric nodded, shifting slightly so he could see past Phoebe to Megan. He didn’t want her out of his sight.
Phoebe looked skeptical. “Neither of you answered my question about this danger thing. Enlighten me.”
Scott filled her in on what Dylan had found about the digital breadcrumbs that led to her IP, to her house in Dallas. Someone was using Megan to get to the back doors Kip had left at TBK. Once they got what they wanted, she would be the one holding the bag. Most likely it was Kip’s Chinese buddies behind it, and that could only mean she was on the radar of some deadly people.
“When she agrees to be our personal assistant for a year,” Scott explained, “we can keep an eye on her.”
“The deal is twenty-four seven, Phoebe,” he added.
“Purely professional?” She held up her hand. “Don’t answer that. I know you. She says ‘no’ to an invitation to your bedroom, you’ll accept that. You want to keep her close, to protect her. I get it. Every unattached man in Destiny is ready to play white knight for a woman in trouble.” Phoebe sighed and glanced for a microsecond at Jason. Apparently, she still had it bad for him, too. “What happens when the real criminal is brought to justice? What then? You send her on her way back to Texas?”
He couldn’t imagine letting Megan go, but what choice did he and Scott have? She wasn’t from Destiny. She didn’t know their ways. Most outsiders thought that a family consisted of one man and one woman. More than one man sharing one woman was unthinkable. But he and Scott had grown up expecting the same kind of life their parents had shown them. Two dads and one amazing mom.
“What would you have us do?” he asked.
Phoebe shook her head. “Don’t break her heart, guys. Please. She’s a frail little thing.”
“We won’t.” Scott spoke first. “I’m already gone on her, and by the way Eric is acting, it’s clear, so is he.”
“Fine. But I’m going to recommend she holds for a three-month contract, not twelve.”
“Why?” Eric moved his attention to Phoebe. “Have you not heard a single word we’ve said?”
“I have, but you two need to get off your asses and help her. Three months is more than enough time to figure out who is behind the hacking.”
Eric’s gut tightened. “It took Dylan nearly a year to discover what he did, and you expect us to finish the job in three months.”
“Actually, I hope sooner. I agree, she needs help and protection. If the Knight brothers want to give it to her, then I’m all for it.”
“Glad to know you’re on our side on this one,” he said.
“I’m not. I’m on Megan’s side. That’s all.” Phoebe looked like an overprotective sister. “You wrap this up, guys. Three months is more than enough time to get the bad guy. And if she falls in love with you and you do send her back to Texas, she has more of a chance of healing from the end of a ninety-day fling. Longer, I’m not so sure.”
“Is this about Jason and you or about Megan?” Scott asked. He was always the open book.
“Screw you, Scott Knight.” Phoebe turned on her high heels and marched to Megan’s booth.
“That went well,” Scott said.
Eric watched as Phoebe told Megan about their offer. “Fuck. Three months. It’s not enough time, Scott.”
“Time to find the hacker or time to get Megan to fall in love with us?”
“Maybe both. I don’t know. But our first priority has to be finding the hacker.”
“I agree, bro,” Scott said. “We’re going to have to be patient with her.”
His dick definitely wasn’t on board with that part of the plan. He was hard just looking at her. What would he be like when the most beautiful creature he’d ever seen in his life was with Scott and him twenty-four seven?
* * * *
Megan couldn’t believe what Phoebe was telling her. “They can’t be serious.”
“I can assure you, they are.” Phoebe took a bite of her meal.
“No lawsuit and Eric and Scott Knight are offering me a job. Why?” It didn’t make any sense.
What was it about these men that mesmerized her so? They were mouthwateringly handsome, for sure, but that wasn’t the entire reason.
“It’s a good offer. There’s little chance we can beat their charges next Tuesday.” Phoebe reached across the table and took her hand. “You want to keep your house?”
As her heart seized a tiny bit, she nodded.
“Take their offer. They also think you’re in danger, Megan.”
“Where do they think this supposed danger is coming from?”
“Great question. You’ll have to ask them yourself.” Phoebe raised her hand and motioned the Knight brothers their direction.
Megan’s cheeks were on fire and her belly swarmed with butterflies. “Why did you do that?”
“I’ve done my duty as your attorney, Megan. Time for you to make a decision.”
Of course, Phoebe was right, but how could she agree to such an obvious illicit proposal? Twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week clearly meant she would be residing in their house. It didn’t take a genius to figure out what duties they would expect, despite what Phoebe had assured her. Apparently to the Knight brothers, employee benefits ran straight to the bedroom. As much as she didn’t trust them, even more, she didn’t trust herself around them. Given her past record, it made a lot of sense to be skeptical and keep her guard up.
The billionaires scooted into the booth, this time with Eric taking the seat next to her. Scott moved in next to Phoebe.
Eric spoke first. “What do you think of our offer, Megan?”
Her intuition kept screaming they were good men, ready to help her. But discernment clearly wasn’t a skill she’d mastered. “Let me make sure I get this straight. You want to hire me as a personal assistant for you and your brother.”
“That’s right.”
“I’ll be on the clock day and night, seven days a week, with no vacation, no breaks.”
He nodded.
“In exchange for this, TBK will drop the lawsuit against me.”
“Yes.”
“Three months only?”
Eric frowned. “I’d like a longer commitment from you, Megan.”
Phoebe leaned forward and pointed her index finger at him. “I already told her you would settle for three months. Don�
�t push me, Eric Knight.”
He looked annoyed with the attorney. “Okay. Three months, Megan. Will you do it?”
“I’m not sure about this. If you think I’m in danger, you must know I’m innocent. Why not just drop the lawsuit and be done with this mess once and for all?”
He leaned in. “Because I’m not done with you, Megan Lunceford.” His tone was throaty. “Be honest with us, you’re completely broke, yes?”
That was none of his business. “If I am, what difference does that make to you?”
He slapped the table, causing an electric-like tremble to shoot through her entire body. “A whole helluva lot of difference, baby, is what it means to me.”
“Chill, bro. Don’t be a bastard. You’re scaring her.” Scott leaned forward across the table. “Don’t worry, Megan. You’ll get used to Eric’s argumentative, demanding, and contrary side in time. It’s only a percentage of his larger-than-life character. He can be quite charming and kind when he needs to be. You’ll see.”
She’d seen glimpses of that part of Eric’s supposed character moments ago before heading to the counter to tell Phoebe about their job offer. “That’s why I’m worried about your offer. I’m still a married woman.”
“Let me calm your nerves,” Scott said, though his brother’s face seemed to darken with some internal storm. “We want you here with us until we figure out who was using your IP to hack into our systems. We also want to make sure no one has access to your house.”
“What? My house?” The shock of that statement nearly had her on her knees. “You think Kip might be out already? That he’s been in my home without my knowledge?” That possibility had her shivering with dread.
“Could be.” Scott looked at her two empty plates. One had held her cheeseburger and fries, and the other the delicious pie. “You want more?”
“No. I’m full to the brim,” she said honestly.
Eric touched her elbow, sending a tantalizing shiver through her. “You haven’t been in contact with your husband recently, have you?”
“No. Only a few letters since the FBI removed him five years ago. I’ve tried to find out where they took him but have come up short. I have no idea where he is.”
“Do you care to know?” Eric’s tone made her uncomfortable. Why was he probing her for answers? Did he still suspect her of wrongdoing despite what he’d told Phoebe, despite this get-out-of-lawsuit-free card they were dangling in front of her, despite everything?
Her gut told her the Knights were okay. They could be trusted. Should she tell them that she only wanted to find Kip to serve him annulment papers? She wasn’t sure what the right thing to do was, so she kept that little bit of information to herself. In time, should her intuition about the guys turn out to be correct—though that would be a first for her—she would tell them then. Not until.
“He’s my husband. Of course I want to know where he is.”
Eric’s mouth twisted slightly before he removed his fingertips from her elbow. “Know this, Megan. Whoever is behind the hacking didn’t have to be in your house. They could’ve jumped on your modem wirelessly from a car parked more than a block from it. You don’t need an MIT degree to do that.”
“But having one wouldn’t hurt, would it?” She knew Kip had that degree. Or at least he’d told her he did.
Scott pulled out a pen from his jacket and took one of the white paper napkins from the dispenser on the table. He wrote something on it and slid it over to Eric. “Good?”
“Whatever she wants, bro. Whatever it takes.” Eric pushed it in front of her. “How’s this for your starting salary, Megan? Will this work for you?”
She looked down at the number and her jaw dropped. “I don’t know what you two think I’m willing to do for this, but you better figure out real quick that there are some things I won’t do.”
Phoebe took the napkin and chuckled. “Damn, boys. Billionaires or not, have you lost any sense of what this kind of money means to most people?”
“I don’t understand,” Scott confessed.
Phoebe pushed the napkin back to her. “Talk about overshooting the mark. Any woman with half a brain would be scared out of her mind with this many digits on a napkin. Trust me, Megan has more than her fair share of brains.”
“I can’t accept this. It’s unbelievable.”
Eric leaned forward. “Look at me, Megan.”
Unable to resist, she turned to him and gazed into his blue eyes.
“Being our personal assistant doesn’t mean we expect anything you don’t want to do. Whatever limits you have we will respect. It’s a job. Plain and simple. You want the truth. We believe you are in danger. Someone with knowhow got through the best cyber security systems in the world to get to our code, code that would garner a small fortune from certain interested parties. Having you by our side will help us find them. You are safe and our code is protected. Win-win.”
Unable to move her eyes off the figure on the napkin, she laughed nervously. “It’s too much. I can’t accept this kind of money from you. I don’t have a college degree even.”
Scott handed her the pen. “Tough negotiator. Impressive. Write down the amount you would agree to, Megan.”
She laughed. “Three months. That’s all. I want to trust you guys.”
“Then trust us,” Eric stated firmly.
“You see why I’m the spokesperson for TBK. My brother is too blunt and harsh. I, on the other hand, am warm and open.”
“That’s one way to describe you, bro. I can think of another.”
“See what I mean, Megan?”
Their brotherly banter was endearing and sweet. They clearly cared for each other deeply.
“Make your case, gentlemen,” Phoebe suggested. “You have my client on the ropes. Seal the deal.”
Scott sent her a knowing wink. “Eric and I can be trusted, Megan. We’re animal lovers, for heaven’s sake.”
“I’m betting horses are your favorites based on your choices of hats. Stetsons, right?”
The Knight brothers laughed, which felt like magic to her ears.
She turned to Eric. His face had softened a bit, making him look even more appealing.
“Dogs and cats, too, sweetheart,” he said jokingly. “We love all God’s creatures.”
“Maybe so, but you still could be playing me, Eric, lover and defender of all four-legged creatures,” she said, hitting with her own dose of teasing but with a dash of truth mixed in. “It’s the two-legged variety that has me worried. In particular, my two legs, if you catch my drift.”
Phoebe shook her head. “Like I said, this girl is sharp.”
“She’s going to keep us on our toes, that’s for sure.” Scott sent her a toothy grin. God, the man was devastatingly good looking.
Eric’s tone turned serious. “Trust me, Megan, in the Knight house, the word ‘no’ means no. You have nothing to worry about.”
His words eased some of her worries. “Phoebe, you know these guys, right?”
“My whole life.”
“Should I trust them?”
“Yes, but my legal advice is to keep one eye open at all times.” Phoebe smiled. “Gentlemen, yes. Devils, definitely.”
Her heart was thudding in her chest. Could her troubles be a thing of the past once she said “yes” to the Knights’ offer? Was it really that simple?
She scratched out the six figures Scott had written down on the napkin. “I don’t want to be a charity case for you. I want to earn my way, fair and square.”
“That works for me,” Scott said. “You’ve been a secretary. A personal assistant needs the same kind of qualifications as that.”
“What’s your number, Megan?” Eric’s patience was without a doubt fading.
“Hold your horses, boys.” Lucy stepped up to the booth. “Give the girl time.”
Had Lucy been listening the whole time? Apparently so. Looking around the other booths and tables near theirs, Megan realized with all the heads turned i
n her direction that minding one’s own business didn’t seem to be the rule in Destiny.
For the first time in her life, she didn’t really care. What was it about this place that had gotten to her? It wasn’t the place at all. It was the people. They seemed so genuine. From Judge Ethel, to Sheriff Jason, to Lucy, to Phoebe, and yes, to even Eric and Scott—especially Eric and Scott.
She closed her eyes, trying to come up with a reasonable figure. Three months of work. The most she’d ever made was at the dentist office. That would be her starting point. She opened her eyes and wrote down the hourly rate she’d received there—twelve dollars and fifty cents. Multiplying it by twenty-four hours a day for ninety days, she came up with the mind-blowing amount that would pay the back taxes on her mother’s home and give her enough money to start her life over.
“Twenty-seven thousand dollars is my counter, take it or leave it. Your call, guys.”
“Done.” Eric nodded and held out his hand for her to take.
She did and they sealed the deal.
Scott shook her hand, too. “We just saved ourselves over one hundred thousand bucks, bro. That’s got to be the best bargain we’ve ever made.”
“Agreed.” Eric left the booth and stood at the end of the table. “Time to earn your paycheck, Megan.”
Her jaw dropped. “Now?”
He smiled. “Right now. We need to get you settled into your room at our house. Where are your things?”
“You love to bark orders, don’t you, cowboy?” Phoebe asked.
He frowned. “Your services are no longer required for her.”
“That’s not your call, Eric. Besides, I like Megan. I wouldn’t mind having a smart woman like her as a confidant and advisor.” Phoebe grabbed her hand and squeezed. “What do you say? Buddies?”
