by Alisha Rai
But what a night.
Devi tousled her hair a bit more and nodded definitively before leaving the office. Her confidence and resolution diminished a bit with every step, until she hovered at the mouth of the hallway. The sounds of light laughter and the tinkling of silverware came from the main dining room.
What would she say? Could she really just sit there in her family restaurant and vamp them? Being a nonconformist was all well and good, but at the end of the day, the staff worked for her family. What would they think of her?
What if the brothers had already left? What if—?
“Excuse me.”
The deep rumble from behind her pulsed a shot of adrenaline through her veins. She whirled around so fast she overbalanced on her heels. Strong hands grasped her around the waist and saved her from landing straight on her butt.
She looked up. And up. And up. Into a pair of sinfully beautiful brown eyes, framed by a thick layer of lashes.
“Oh. Hi. Marcus, right?”
“Good memory.”
“What are you doing here?”
Marcus cocked his head. “Men’s room.”
Of course. He wouldn’t just be lurking in the hall waiting for her.
“What are you doing here?”
She brought her attention back to his unwavering gaze. “Um, office.”
“Ah. And here I thought you might be waiting for me.”
Warmth wormed under her skin at the low huskiness in his voice. She licked her lips, some of her daring returning under his flirtation. “Maybe I am.”
A black eyebrow arched and he glanced down. “You changed. I like this shirt better.”
“I was getting hot. That’s all.” The longer he stared at the massive amount of chest she flaunted, the hotter she got.
His lips curled in a slow smile, a dimple playing peekaboo in his cheek. “Me too.”
“You—you don’t need to keep holding me up, you know. No danger of falling now,” she joked in nervousness.
They both looked down at his hands where they clasped her hips. Instead of withdrawing, he tightened his grasp and sent tingles racing over her flesh by sweeping his thumbs down until they rested on her pubic bone. On the upsweep, his thumb crept under her tank top and raised it so a small strip of flesh became visible. The heat of his thumb on her bare stomach burned where he rubbed back and forth in a gentle caress.
“I want to keep holding you.”
Well, clearly.
“You changed something else too. Your hair, your makeup.”
Gads, how embarrassing for him to know she had primped and polished for him and his brother.
“I like your hair down.” Marcus withdrew one hand to twine a ringlet around his finger. He stretched the curl down until it straightened, and then let go. He used the hand on her hip to draw her closer, before tracing her upper lip with his forefinger. “But you should be careful with that lipstick, sweetheart. Naked, your lips are gorgeous, but when you paint them that color, you’re just inviting a man to think all sorts of nasty things.”
His finger rested on her lower lip, not exerting any pressure, just tantalizing her with the promise. Their gazes locked, and without thinking, she opened her mouth. He inhaled sharply as she drew him inside, savoring the clean taste of his finger in her mouth.
Delicious.
As if a switch had been tripped somewhere inside of her, wildfire raced through her veins. She wanted to rip off his clothes and find out how every inch of his body tasted. She applied a slight suction, once, twice, drawing him in deeper before she backed off, his finger emerging from her mouth with a small wet sound.
A ruddy flush colored high on his cheekbones, and his breathing had sped up. “Holy Christ. You’re amazing.” He grasped both hips again and pulled her tight against him, until she could feel the tantalizing promise of his erection throbbing against her belly.
“This isn’t fair. You started without me.”
Devi jerked in surprise, but Marcus controlled her by expediently wrapping an arm around her. He looked behind her. “Your loss.”
Devi didn’t dare turn around in case she completely lost her nerve, but she could feel the warmth of Jace’s body as his footsteps came to rest right behind her.
“So you decided we weren’t faking our interest, huh?”
She tensed and glanced at him over her shoulder. A gentle light shone in his eyes, his smile teasing, and she immediately felt a little more at ease. “I’m so sorry about that outburst. If you had any idea how meddling my family can be—and I didn’t think you could possibly both be attracted to me—but then my sister told me…”
“What?” Jace prompted when she trailed off.
“That you like to, you know. Share women,” she finished in a mumbled rush.
Jace gave a low chuckle. “Oh, baby. You have no idea at all what we like.” He lowered his head until his lips hovered just above hers. “Do you want to find out?”
She felt like a rabbit surrounded by two large predators. Except she didn’t mind being prey.
An imperceptible nod and Jace gave a large sigh. “Thank God.” As if her nod broke his restraint, he slipped a hand under her hair to cradle her neck and tipped her head.
He didn’t bother with a gentle, exploratory foray. No one had ever kissed Devi like that, like they were dying for her taste. Jace’s tongue swept inside without asking permission, and his hand held her head still while he plundered within.
She heard a sudden groan and then hot hands covered her breasts. She moaned into Jace’s mouth as Marcus expertly cupped them, his fingers pinching the sensitive tips hard.
This should feel uncomfortable, Devi marveled. Turning your head and kissing one man while another fondled you from the front? At the very least, there should have been some awkwardness, right?
The rush of cool air on her stomach startled her out of the pleasure of exploring Jace’s mouth. She realized Marcus had taken advantage of her compliance to drag up her tank top. She whimpered as the cotton rasped her nipples, the air drifting over the heated tips, until they were bare…
In the hallway of her family’s restaurant.
Her eyes popped open and she jerked away. Unfortunately, with Marcus in front of her, and Jace behind, the only way she could go was to the left. Smack into the wall.
“Ow!”
“Are you okay?”
“What’s wrong?”
Their words tumbled over each other as four hands pulled her away from the wall. “I’m fine,” she mumbled, and tugged at the neckline of her top until all her important parts were tucked away. “I-I can’t do this.”
Marcus stiffened, his face blanking, while Jace frowned and then nodded. “I’m sorry, you seemed like you were into it.”
“I am,” she reassured them in a rush. God forbid they get the wrong idea. “Here. I meant I can’t do this here. Anyone could see.”
Two pairs of broad shoulders relaxed, and Jace smiled. “Ever been watched?”
A shudder ran through her and her nipples hardened even more. She had never gone for such a kinky proposition before, but suddenly the idea of someone watching her, being aroused by her, while she in turn gave in to passion, really rocked her boat.
No, not yet. Right now the only people she wanted watching her body were these two.
Devi cleared her throat. “I have no intention of having sex here.”
“But somewhere, right?”
Devi smiled at the bite of impatience in Marcus’s voice. “Yeah.”
“Our place?”
She hesitated. No, she didn’t want to give up complete control. “I’d rather go to my apartment, if that’s okay?”
“If you said you wanted to head to the dumpster in the alley, we wouldn’t be far behind, sweetheart,” Jace said.
Marcus snorted. “And that’s saying something, if you knew how fastidious he is.”
“Okay. Um, let me go get my purse.” She inched around Marcus and walked to the office door on wa
tery legs. She heard them approaching and turned swiftly to meet them. “I need a minute, please. I’ll be right out.”
Without waiting for a response she slipped inside the door and closed it behind her. She collapsed against it and heaved a deep breath. She looked across the room to the mirror, taking in the swollen lips and rumpled clothes reflected there.
A slow smile curled the lips of the vixen in the mirror.
Oh, yes, indeed. She could definitely handle this.
Chapter Three
Jace wanted to rub his hands with glee and howl at the moon.
Although that would hardly be mature.
He glanced down at the voluptuous little siren walking silently in front of them as they left through the back door of the restaurant. Luck fell on their side, and they encountered no one on the way. It wouldn’t take a genius to pick up the vibes of sex and intent around the three of them.
Not that he or Marcus would care, but Jace had the feeling Devi might have expired on the spot had a staff member or customer so much as glanced in their direction. Her veneer of courage and bravado was paper thin, her excitement and rampant sexual curiosity just barely outweighing her reserve. Jace didn’t want anything to tip the scales in the wrong direction.
He’d been working toward this for weeks, since he’d first seen Devi and felt a visceral physical reaction in his gut, a primal need to stake his claim. He’d pestered Rana with questions and bombarded her with requests until the woman had agreed to introduce them. Not before threatening to cut his balls off if he hurt her baby sister, of course. He had no intention of hurting anyone, though. He had a happy ending in mind.
One for him, his brother and the woman blossoming under their undivided attention.
He couldn’t pinpoint the exact moment he had become tired of the casual threesomes in which he and Marcus had engaged for over a decade now. When he had seen the quiet little chef slip out of the kitchen, he’d taken a body blow. He was a normal, healthy thirty-five-year-old man who liked sex, loved women, but he’d never before had such an immediate reaction to a woman. Though he felt vaguely stalker-ish, he had watched her whenever he could catch a glimpse and chatted up the staff at the restaurant. Except for the bartender, who found Devi a bit too reserved and a little snooty—and by that time, Jace had become so infatuated he wanted to punch the guy for daring to malign her—they spoke of her with affection and respect.
Her sidelong glances had given him hope she noticed him as well. The idea pleased him to no end. Love at first sight—a couple of months ago, he would have scoffed at such a ridiculous idea. Now, well…perhaps they didn’t know each other well enough to call it love, but he would reserve judgment.
He hadn’t wanted to make a move, though, until his brother came back into town. Jace wanted a woman who could love both of them wholeheartedly. Marcus was his other half—he couldn’t imagine having a relationship with a woman on his own. If Devi could be that woman…Lord, that would be perfect.
Of course, he would bring up his intentions later, once they had Devi snared and Marcus was too far gone on her to come up with any stupid objections.
Just call him Mr. Ulterior Motive.
They followed her into the small alleyway behind the restaurant. The balmy Florida air lifted the strands of her dark hair. Scents of rich, savory food drifted from the building. Since he associated the smell with Devi, it made him harder.
She turned to face them and licked her lips, the only sign of her nervousness. “I live one block over, so I rarely drive.”
“Jace has a nice car. This is a good neighborhood, but I hate to leave it out all night. We can all just ride over there together.”
Her dark eyes widened, no doubt in response to Marcus’s all-night comment, but she nodded.
When they turned around the corner of the restaurant into the front parking lot, Jace stopped. “If you want, we can just get the car and you can stay here in the shadows. So no one will see us leaving together.”
She considered it, but then her rounded little chin firmed and she shook her head resolutely. “No, it’s okay. I don’t care who sees us.”
Jace knew she was lying, but he felt proud of her in any case. Marcus expressed his silent approval by stroking a hand over the curve of her ass, and she jumped just a bit.
His car served as a slight distraction for Devi. She let out a low whistle and shot them both an incredulous look. “This isn’t a nice car. This is a thing of beauty.” She ran a small hand over the hood of the silver Jaguar sports sedan in a worshipful manner.
Jace felt a corresponding lick of fire up his spine. He couldn’t resist a woman who could respect a car.
He tossed the keys to Marcus and ignored his brother’s knowing chuckle. Grabbing Devi’s hand, he opened the back door and just managed to keep from stuffing her inside. He slipped in next to her.
“Where do you live?”
As she rattled off her address, Jace watched her fingers caress the butter-soft leather of the seat with unknowing sensuality. He counted three strokes before he groaned and gave in, reaching for her. “Drive.” He bit the command out, and then slid over and pressed her against the door, his lips falling on hers, his hands tight around her waist.
He tried to gentle his touch, but the sweet taste of her mouth made him as crazy as it had back at the restaurant. Her body turned toward him, rounded arms slipped around his neck. Her lips immediately parted for the forceful thrust of his tongue, and the soft submission inherent in the gesture made him even hotter. He plundered until they were both gasping for breath, barely hearing the purr of the motor as Marcus drove.
Jace swept a hand up her body until the weight of a heavy breast filled his palm. He had fantasized more times than he could count about her amazing breasts, imagined her straddling his chair and feeding him topless. He drew back a bit as he pulled the stretchy neck of her abused tank top down until a delectable breast spilled out, propped on the shelf of the tight shirt. He mourned the lack of illumination, but the passing lights of other cars at least gave him glimpses of the plush golden flesh and upthrust little brown nipples.
Unable to resist, he cupped her and bent down to draw upon the exposed nipple. At the touch of his lips her body bowed against him. Her hands tangled in his hair to hold his head tight against her. A small moan emerged from her mouth.
Marcus groaned in response from the driver’s seat, and Jace knew without looking that half his brother’s attention was on the rearview mirror. “You like that, don’t you, baby?”
When she didn’t respond, Jace rasped her nipple with his teeth and gently grasped her wrists, pulling them from his hair to pin them against the seat. The way she strained against the small restraint, the excitement he could see shimmering in her eyes, just about undid him. “Answer him.”
Devi shook her head, bewilderment and passion turning her eyes black. “What?”
“You like me kissing you? Sucking on your sweet breasts?”
She nodded mutely. He leaned down and lapped at the tip. “Say it.”
She shuddered and stared at him as if she had never seen him before. The slight forcefulness in his tone during sex always surprised women at first—out of the bedroom, he might be a little less rough around the edges than his brother, but both of them had fairly dominant tendencies.
“I love it. Please—don’t stop.” She arched her chest toward his mouth, and he obliged, keeping her hands where they were. He wanted her to be accustomed to the feeling of sensual helplessness.
Her moans rose with every tug of his mouth and she undulated beneath him. The sweet spicy scent of her skin and her arousal made his head spin.
His normally alert senses ignored the halt of the car and the cutting of the engine. He only came up for air when the door behind Devi’s back abruptly opened and she spilled into Marcus’s waiting arms.
“Which apartment?” Marcus growled and set her on her feet while Jace climbed out and slammed the door.
“104,” sh
e gasped, and tried to jerk up her shirt.
Jace could have told her it was a wasted move, but before he could utter a word, Marcus scowled and pulled her hand away. “Don’t cover yourself.”
Her body quivered with vibrating tension. “But anyone could see.”
Unlikely, Jace thought. She lived at the end of the very quiet street, and the other four apartments in the small bungalow-style building were dark and deserted. Plus, their bodies blocked hers from easy view.
Why should he reassure her? If he read her right and she really was the perfect mate for them, the forbidden aspect of it would only ratchet her hunger up.
Marcus must have concurred, because he reached out and tugged hard against the opposite strap of her shirt. The cotton gave way quickly, and he pulled the other cup down to bare her entire chest. “I don’t care.”
“Well, I do.” She glared at them and moved to cover her flesh.
Marcus growled and loomed over her. “Don’t hide them. I want your tits bare. They’re gorgeous.”
“Maybe I don’t care what you want.”
“In bed, you obey me, Devi.”
She snorted. “Like hell. I agreed to have a little fun. I didn’t sign on for some crazy submissive role.”
The light of battle flashed in Marcus’s eyes. “Baby, don’t you get it? This is the way we play. We want your tits stripped, they’re stripped. If you don’t want to play the game, tell us now before we go too far. You aren’t comfortable with this, say no, and we leave. Otherwise—this is us.”
She looked at Jace and he tried to convey reassurance through the layers of lust clouding his brain. Truth be told, he was feeling just as raw as Marcus. He knew they were asking a lot of her, but Marcus was telling the truth, trying to give her fair warning—they wouldn’t be able to hold back anything once they were in the sack. Better for her to be aware of all their kinks before she found herself completely at their mercy. Once again, her little chin stuck up. “I want a safe word.”
Jace chuckled, amusement piercing his haze of need. “We aren’t going to be flogging you, honey.” With a wink, he added, “We left our whips in the other car. But if it makes you feel better, use ‘red’ if you want us to stop.”
