A Little Harmless Fantasy

by Melissa Schroeder

  “Vanilla, waffle cone.”

  He signaled with his head and they followed him.

  “She’s not looking very good.”

  It wasn’t an accusation but it still felt that way. He bit back the retort, but apparently Ross picked up on his feelings.

  “And don’t be getting upset with me. It’s just an observation. Since everything that went down with Conner, I know that she has been on edge. Dee said she sensed it in her voice when they would talk. She’s been a little worried about Maura. Running the office by herself is hard.”

  “I’m there and I hate to have to keep pointing this out, but I’m partners with Conner,” Zee said. Rory sensed he was mildly irritated.

  Ross sighed as he stepped in line. “I get that, but you know that girl. She’s so focused on not letting Conner down. The fact that she’s changing hair color is a sure sign.”

  Rory frowned at him. “What are you talking about?”

  Ross eyed him. “Dee has said in the past that Maura changes her hair color when she is upset.”

  Zee nodded. “I picked up on it, but at least she didn’t go dark. When Conner and Jillian were in that mess, she died it black. That wasn’t pretty.”

  He glanced back at the table and smiled when he watched her throw her head back and laugh.

  “Does Conner know?” Ross asked.

  He had to pull his attention away from Maura to concentrate on Ross. He found the Dom watching him without an expression on his face.

  “What?”

  “No, he doesn’t know,” Zee said. “And we would rather not have to deal with that.”

  Ross crossed his arms and stared them down. Rory had dealt with more bastards than he wanted to remember, but at the moment, most of them paled in comparison to Micah Ross.

  “There is one thing I want both of you to understand. I love my wife.”

  “Nice to know,” Rory said, sarcasm dripping from his words.

  “My wife has a soft spot in her heart for Maura. I do too.”

  “And, what does this mean to me?” Rory asked, not able to keep the sneer out of his voice.

  “This means that if you hurt her in any way, Dee will give me permission to beat the shit out of you.”

  He glanced at the woman again. She was very petite and small boned. She had one of the sweetest faces. He turned back to face Ross.

  “She’s too sweet.”

  Micah snorted. “You got that off the what fifteen minutes total you’ve spent with her?” Rory opened his mouth but Micah stopped him. “Sweet Dee is the daughter of Tony Rizzoli. Yeah, that’s right. And, she hid for years, all the while learning how to defend herself. The only thing she got from that bastard of a father was that you mess with one of her family—either one of your choosing or blood—she will happily order me to hurt them. Ask Zeke here.”

  He glanced at Zee and he nodded.

  “Your problem is that you don’t see women as a threat,” Ross said. “You make too many misconceptions.”

  “And you figured that out after fifteen minutes in my presence?”

  Instead of getting mad, Ross smiled. “Hey, just trying to help out. And I’m good at reading people. Part of my former life as a bounty hunter. Just remember that women aren’t as helpless as you think.”

  Rory was irritated but he did his best to hide it. “Yeah, and how did you come to that observation?”

  “Who’s standing in line waiting to get yogurt and who’s sitting at a table talking?”

  Rory laughed. “You have a point there.”

  * * * *

  Maura held her hand on Dee’s stomach and giggled when she felt another kick against her palm.

  “Wow, you have a future soccer player in there, woman,” she said.

  “You don’t have to tell me. All night long, every night. I’m blaming Micah because he’s so damned tall.”

  She sat back and smiled at Dee. It was hard to remember her as the young woman her brother had hunted for years. When her father put a hit out on her, Dee didn’t just give up. She survived and now, she was getting rewarded. A woman who was married to Micah Ross and had the man knee deep in love with her was one lucky woman.

  “You look so happy.”

  Her smile widened. “I am happy. I never thought I would be, but I am. Before Hawaii, I’d move within a year.”

  “Yeah, I know,” Maura said, wryly. “I am pretty familiar with your disappearing act.”

  Dee threw back her head and laughed.

  “Sure, you think it’s funny. I had to deal with Conner. You know how many times we almost got to you? There was a time in Chicago…I thought Conner was going to come unglued.”

  “Well, I guess I can’t complain too much. I found my brother thanks to that little excursion. And I think because you came in here with big, bad Zeke, you got to hook up with him. So, I think you kind of owe me.”

  Maura laughed. “You would say that.”

  “Well, I have to say, you have more energy than I do,” Dee said as she glanced toward the men standing in line.

  “What are you talking about?”

  Dee looked at her, one eyebrow raised. “Oh, please, woman. They look like they were ready to eat you alive. Plus, that Rory, he wasn’t too happy with Micah manhandling you that way.”

  Maura snorted trying to ignore the way her heart did flip-flop when she thought about it. Sure, they were playing, but there was nothing permanent. “That pregnancy of yours is starting to mess with your head.”

  Dee leaned forward, her smile fading. “You better know what you’re doing, Maura.”

  She opened her mouth to argue but Dee stopped her. “I do not judge you. Seriously, I wouldn’t mind living out a fantasy. But that’s how things started with Micah. I thought, I’d just have fun for a while. Then I fell in love.”

  Air backed up in her lungs and she suddenly found it hard to breathe.

  “Maura, are you okay?”

  Maura shook her head. “I’m not in love.”

  Understanding moved over Dee’s features. She said nothing as she took a sip from her water bottle.

  “Okay, I love Zeke, I probably always will. But that isn’t that important.”

  “Really? Maura Dillon, who are you kidding? You are head over heels in love with Zeke, and I’m guessing you’re falling for that other big Irishman.”

  She wanted to deny it, but she was really afraid it was true. Dee looked behind her, and Maura turned to find out what had caught her eye. All three men were walking toward them. Micah usually garnered the most attention, but all Maura could see were Zeke and Rory. They were both tall, strong, and undeniably sexy. And she was in love with one and desperately falling in love with the second.

  Shit, she was in a lot of trouble.

  * * * *

  Maura sniffed at the air and smiled. “God I love the smell of plumeria. It's fantastic.”

  Zeke couldn’t help but smile as they walked along the path next to the Hilton. “Yeah, there is something here you can't get anywhere else, especially on the mainland. It’s like being in another country in a way, they’re so unique.”

  She looked at him from the corner of her eye. “Don’t let the locals hear you say that.”

  “Hey, I thought they liked to be known as one of the most original states.”

  “They do, but I don’t blame them for having a little chip on their shoulder about being considered the US. You hear people say when I get back to the states…it is kind of annoying.”

  “That’s the truth.”

  “So, Rory, what meals do you plan to make for me.”

  That was Maura. While her figure was trim, it wasn’t due to her lack of eating. She’d been graced with a high metabolism. And now that she knew Rory liked to cook, she would badger him until he made her several meals.

  “I don’t know. I thought we would be eating out more often.”

  She lifted her head and grinned at Rory. “That was before I found out you could cook. Tell me, how are
you at Italian?”

  Zeke groaned. “Oh, god, she is going to have you making pasta every night. I can’t handle the carbs.”

  “Suck it up, Zeke,” Maura said. “So, what can you make me?”

  “Are you more of a Northern or a Southern Italian lover?” Rory asked.

  Maura let go of him to clap. “Anything, all, I want it all.”

  “I’ll make a lasagna this week.”

  “With béchamel sauce?”

  “Of course,” Rory said.

  “I will be your slave for life.”

  Rory gave him a look then leaned closer to her. “I’ll make sure to remind you of that next time I have you naked.”

  Her face turned red, then she looked around them.

  “What?” Rory asked. “You’re not embarrassed, are you?”

  She shook her head and shrugged. “I feel like someone is watching me. Weird.”

  Immediately, Zeke’s alarms went off. Maura wasn’t a woman who worried about being followed on a regular basis. He knew Conner didn’t get calls in the middle of the night from Maura.

  “What?”

  “When we got into Ala Moana, I felt it, but it’s gone just like that. Might be my imagination.”

  He looked back at Rory who was already looking around. The fact that neither he nor Rory felt it was enough to satisfy him, or it should be.

  “You don’t have an imagination.”

  She rolled her eyes. “Way to romance me, Zeke. The flattery is going to make me faint.”

  “Maura,” he said, lowering his voice in a warning.

  She patted him on the cheek. “It’s probably because I’m tired. It’s been such a long day. Even with a few cat naps, I need some rest.”

  “Yeah, that’s probably it,” Rory said, but Zeke wasn’t too happy with it. He knew not to blow it out of proportion and coming to Hawaii had only been a precaution, but still, it was something he would have to think about.

  “It has been a long day. Let’s head back.”

  She sighed and set her head on Zeke’s shoulder as they walked. “That sounds great.”

  * * * *

  By the time they got home, Zeke had mostly dismissed her worries. She went to the bathroom leaving them alone.

  “What’s bothering you?”

  He looked at Rory. “Maura doesn’t have things like that happen to her.”

  Rory shrugged. “So, she felt someone staring at her. She’s probably tired.”

  Zeke thought about it and realized he might be blowing it out of proportion. How much of it had to do with their relationship?

  “I see those wheels turning, so what the hell is going on in there?” Rory asked.

  “Nothing.”

  But he was lying. He was in love with two people who made it very hard to choose. Not that they had asked him to, but he could feel them dancing around each other trying to figure out the relationship. There was a small part of him...okay a bit part of him that wanted to make it permanent. He wanted both of them forever.

  That thought hit him hard. He blinked.

  “Zee, are you okay?”

  Rory’s concerned voice reached him. He nodded.

  But he wasn’t. Shit, he had promised himself that he wouldn’t get bogged down on what would happen when they returned home, but somewhere in the back of his mind, he had been. He had been hoping that they could be together forever.

  “What’s up with him?” Maura asked as she walked into the kitchen.

  “Not sure.”

  “We just need to get to sleep.”

  Maura smiled, but it wasn’t her usual brilliant grin. Zeke realized just how exhausted she was. He patted her shoulder.

  “Come on, love, let’s get to bed.”

  She nodded and he practically carried her up the stairs to the bedroom. By the time she was in PJs, she was almost asleep. He tucked her into bed then looked up at Rory.

  “She’s wiped out,” he said.

  Zeke nodded and waited. It was going to be a real test if he wanted to sleep with her. Zeke wanted to, but Rory tended to avoid sleeping with other lovers. The intimacy was something he could not handle. Zeke was pretty sure he was the only lover Rory had ever really slept beside.

  Rory pulled his shirt up over his head, and dropped his pants. He climbed into bed with Maura as if it was the most natural thing in the world to do. Zeke was so happy, he didn’t even mention that Rory had left his clothes on the floor.

  Zeke undressed and then brushed his teeth. When he walked out of the bathroom, he stopped and just looked at the scene on the bed. Maura had rolled all the way over to Rory. Both of them were fast asleep and she was snuggled up against him. Rory had his arm wrapped around her as if to protect her.

  Zeke’s heart melted. The two of them probably didn’t even realize what it meant to him to see them like that. In their sleep, they accepted each other. He slipped into bed behind Maura, snuggled up close to her and sighed as he closed his eyes.

  It wasn’t a huge step, but it was at least a step in the right direction.

  Chapter Nine

  Zee was already dressed by the time Rory and Maura crawled out of bed. Rory was glad to finally have a partner with them who enjoyed snuggling in bed rather than getting up and going to work. Zee always berated him for it. Rory was just sitting down at the kitchen bar when Maura came stumbling in.

  “There has to be some coffee, and it better be hot.”

  Zee sighed as he poured her a cup, handed her sweetener and retrieved the creamer from the refrigerator.

  “She takes it black, Zee.”

  Zeke looked at him and there was a flash of irritation in his eyes before he hid it. He put the creamer back in the fridge.

  “You two are pathetic.”

  Rory opened his mouth and laughed. Maura flipped Zee off.

  “Well said, love. Anyone who wants to work with the ocean view like that one out the window is an idiot anyway.”

  Zee frowned at him. “I’m just going to spend this morning going over some figures with Conner. I don’t know when we’ll be able to sit down in person again.”

  Maura snorted. “You can do a teleconference any day.”

  “And for some reason, I don’t want to hang around with you two this morning. Not that your shiny personalities don’t do it for me, but I am not in the mood to deal with two grumpy lovers.”

  He picked up the keys and walked around the counter. First, he kissed Maura on the cheek, then gave Rory a kiss.

  “Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do,” Zee said, as he walked out the door.

  “What the hell is it with morning people?” Maura asked as she laid her head down on the counter. “Conner’s always freaking chipper, all smiles and shit. Well, not smiles. Conner hardly ever smiles, except sometimes at me and more when he is around Jillian. He should thank me for that, dammit.”

  She looked so…cute. Grumpy as Zee had pointed out but cute. Her hair was a mess, her face was still flush from sleep and she had her hand on her coffee cup as if she were afraid someone would steal it. This was a side of her he had never seen. She had always been so put together at the office and she was there early every day. He would have never thought he would see her like this and it made her even more tempting. Seeing the soft side of such a buttoned down perfectionist turned him to goo.

  “So what should we do?” he asked.

  She yawned, took a sip, and put her head down again, closing her eyes. “Pretend we are sleeping.”

  “No really. There’s gotta be something to do.”

  “With Mr. Sunshine out of the picture, I think we should go back to bed,” she said. It wasn’t said coyly, as if she were trying to entice him, and that made it all the more arousing. She still didn’t understand her appeal to him or even probably to Zee.

  “Yeah?” he asked. She opened one eye and looked at him. He didn’t blame her. His voice had already deepened at the idea of a little play with her. She was one of the most amazing subs and they had just st
arted.

  “I thought…”

  Her voice trailed off and she frowned. Now he knew what Zee meant about her brain. It got her into trouble.

  “You thought?” he asked as he reached out to toy with her hair.

  “Well, I just thought it was the threesome. I mean, I know you and Zeke do things together, but I thought for the week, it was going to be the three of us.”

  He smiled. “There are no rules here on how we do things. And, I will point out that you and Zee had sex without me yesterday.”

  She didn’t return his smile and he started to worry. Did she mean she didn’t want to be with him without Zee?

  “Maura, is there some reason you wouldn’t want to play a bit this morning, just tell me.”

  “No, there isn’t. I just didn’t know if you would want me without Zee around. I understand that a lot of the excitement is having him watch you.”

  “That is part of it. The other part of it is you.”

  She studied him for a few seconds, the serious expression in her eyes made his stomach clench. He knew he could order her to the room and she would do it. But in this, he wanted her to decide on her own, their D/s relationship out of the equation.

  A shy smile curved her lips and his heart did that little tap dance he was getting used to when he was around her.

  “Yeah?” she asked. He was amazed she didn’t understand just how much a man could want her. She might be a genius, but apparently she didn’t understand her appeal.

  “Yeah. So, love, what do you say? Wanna play?”

  Her smile turned into a grin. “Yes.”

  He took her hand and pulled it up to kiss her fingers. Without a word, he led her into the bedroom they had all been using. He couldn’t believe the way his body was already begging to take her. When it came to sex, Rory had complete control, but with Maura, he seemed to lose part of it. He needed to remember what she needed from him.

  Rory dropped her hand.

  “Take off your clothes, lay down on your back, and spread your legs so I can see my pussy.”

  She hesitated for a second and he swatted her behind.

  “Get a move on.”

  She did as ordered and he drew in a deep breath. How could he resist a woman who was so damned submissive, and one that Zee loved? Impossible.