An Indecent Proposition Complete ARe

by Stephanie Julian

  Damn it, he’d cocked that up for damn sure.

  He wanted to go after her, wanted to throw her over his shoulder, shove her into his car and take her the hell away from here. Back to Erik’s. Back to where this obsession had started.

  “Sorry. Did I interrupt something?”

  He turned toward Alli, whose tone suggested she knew exactly what she’d interrupted. And that she didn’t like it.

  And he didn’t give one flying fuck about that.

  He wanted to tell her, yes, she had interrupted and to get lost, but he couldn’t do that to Jules. Apparently Allison knew Jules. He wouldn’t put it past Allison to make Jules pay for any slight from Keegan.

  If these people ever found out that he and Erik had paid Jules a half-million dollars to have sex with them, Jules would never stay in the area. She’d pack up and leave.

  And he wanted her to stay.

  He forced a smile. “No. Are you ready to go back to the party? I’m afraid I have to leave in a few minutes. Late conference call.”

  He started to walk up the hall, not waiting to see if Allison followed.

  “Sounds like business is good.”

  Business was booming. TinMan Biometrics had more than they could handle and they were scrambling to screen and hire technicians, which was harder than it should be. They’d already weeded out one applicant who’d been hired by a rival firm to spy. Corporate espionage was an unavoidable fact of business.

  “It is,” he answered, not really wanting to get into a conversation with Allison but unable to simply walk away. He knew she wouldn’t take the slight well and he didn’t want her to go after Jules for any reason.

  “Which is great for local business.” Allison stayed by his side as they made their way across the room. He tried not to make it obvious as he searched for Jules. But she was nowhere to be found.

  “We try to keep as much as we can local. Good for everyone.”

  And that was the God’s honest truth and something Keegan totally believed in. At any other time, he’d be happy to tell anyone who asked how important it was to build a strong base of operations.

  But right now, all he wanted to do was find Jules, apologize for practically forcing her to do him in that closet then convince her to come with him. He couldn’t leave it like this.

  He had to tell her he hadn’t meant for that scene in the closet to happen. Jesus, the more this situation progressed, the worse it got.

  Allison continued to try to draw him into conversation as they walked across the floor to the bar where her friends continued to hold court. But as soon as she was safely back in that circle of hell, Keegan made his excuses and got the fuck out of Dodge.

  He wanted to head straight for the kitchen but Allison and her friends were watching. He’d never get there unnoticed.

  God damn, he was an idiot. Erik had said as much. Then again, Erik was being a prick so he guessed they were even.

  Frustration made him want to climb the walls so he decided to get some air. Grabbing his coat from the coat check, he stalked out to the parking lot. The frigid January air hit him like a blow to the face and he buttoned his coat and shoved his hands into his pocket for the walk to his car.

  Throwing open the door to his new Challenger, he threw himself in the front seat and considered his options.

  Shit.

  He pulled out his phone.

  “I told you not to go. You struck out, didn’t you?”

  Erik didn’t bother to say hello.

  “Fuck you.”

  Erik grunted. “Did you honestly think it’d be that easy? That she’d just say, ‘Oh, Keegan, thank God you’re here. I’ve missed you so much. Take me away from all this.’”

  Anger warred with frustration. “At least I fucking tried. You’re too much of a pussy to leave the fucking house.”

  “I’m at the lab, dickwad, so I have left the house.”

  “You can hide just as easily there.”

  “I’m not hiding. I’m working.”

  Keegan bit his tongue on the words crowding his throat. Yes, he was pissed and yes, he was taking it out on the one guy who didn’t deserve it. But it was the one guy who could take it.

  “Fuck.” Keegan blew out a breath. “I screwed up.”

  “I take it you saw her.”

  “Yeah.”

  Erik paused. “How bad did you screw this up? Hell, how could you fuck this up even more?”

  Shit. Did he tell Erik he’d fucked her up against a goddamn wall? Had he broken their unwritten code? No fucking the object of the other guy’s obsession. But what happened when the woman was the object of both of their fantasies?

  When he didn’t answer for more than a minute, Keegan heard Erik take a deep breath. “Jesus, Keegan. What the fuck did you do?”

  He slammed his hand against the steering wheel, not as hard as he wanted because he didn’t want to damage the car but hard enough to send pain radiating up his arm.

  “Shit.”

  “Oh hell. You sonovabitch. What did you do?”

  Through the open line, Erik’s rough, angry breathing came through loud and clear. Keegan tried to think of a way to tell Erik exactly what had happened without coming off like a douche.

  “What the fuck, Keegan. I told you not to go. How bad is it? Did you make her cry? I’m gonna bust your head open, you stupid—”

  “I fucked her. Alright? I fucked her in a goddamn closet. I couldn’t keep my damn hands off her.”

  The other end of the phone went deadly silent.

  Erik was beyond pissed. Which proved, without Erik ever saying a word, that he wanted Jules just as much as Keegan did.

  “I’ll fix it. I don’t know how but I’ll—”

  “Did you hurt her?”

  “What? You know I’d never fucking hurt her.”

  Not physically. Not ever. But he’d probably done a number on her emotionally.

  “Shit.” Erik’s voice held a definite sneer. “I know that, asswipe. I know you’d never hit her. But you did hurt her, didn’t you?”

  “She was already hurt. We didn’t call her. We should’ve fucking called her.”

  Another pause. “I know. Okay, I know. God damn it.”

  Something clattered in the background on Erik’s end and Keegan figured something metallic had just gone flying in the lab. Hopefully it wasn’t anything important.

  They both went silent then.

  “Call her,” Keegan said. “Call her and ask her to come to the house. I’ll follow her over. You talk to her then I’ll throw myself on her mercy.”

  “Yeah, like she’s gonna want to talk to me.”

  “Erik, we’ve got to do something. This situation is getting fucked beyond imagination. We gotta fix it.”

  Another silence but this time, Keegan knew Erik was thinking.

  “Fine. I’ll call you back.”

  Keegan hung up and settled back in the seat to wait.

  *

  “Hey, did something happen out there? You look flushed. Are you feeling okay?”

  Jules pulled a smile for Lori, who frowned at her as she began cleaning up the kitchen.

  “My stomach’s a little unsettled. I’m not needed on the floor anymore so I figured I’d help us get out of here faster.”

  And keep away from Keegan.

  “Alright.” Lori didn’t look convinced but she headed back out the door. “Just make sure you go home and get some sleep. You’re starting to look pretty sick.”

  She did feel sick but not because she was coming down with something. Unless stupidity was in the same league as the flu.

  She must have lost her mind. That was her only excuse for what she’d just done with Keegan.

  The slight ache in her bare pussy, because Keegan still had her panties. The shaky muscles in her thighs…

  Stupid.

  But, oh my God.

  She nearly dropped the trays she was stacking just thinking about Keegan and that little alcove.

  A
nyone could’ve walked in. Anyone could’ve seen them. And the gossip would start again.

  That bastard she’d met at an event three years ago, who’d seemed so decent, had turned out to be a complete asshole. A married asshole.

  But she’d been the one to take all the shit for his failed marriage. How the hell anyone had ever found out she’d been the foolish nineteen-year-old who’d believed his bullshit about having just gotten out of a horrid marriage and how he thought they’d clicked, she’d never really found out.

  But someone had and his wife had gotten hold of her phone number and raged at her for days. Vile texts and horrible voice messages. She’d to get her phone number changed.

  That incident had almost, almost, made her swear off guys for good. But she knew she couldn’t let one dickhead ruin her for the rest of her life. She enjoyed guys. She enjoyed sex. She didn’t have a lot of hang-ups about it. If she liked a guy…if he treated her well and she wanted him…why the hell shouldn’t she enjoy herself?

  She’d more than enjoyed herself with Keegan and Erik.

  And that was the problem, wasn’t it?

  She’d thought there’d been some connection between them, something that went deeper than just the money and the lust.

  Damn it, she’d wanted them to call.

  “Hey, you really don’t look good. Why don’t you take off for the night? We can manage without you.”

  Jules looked up to find Carol, standing by her side. She and Carol had struck up a friendship from the moment Jules had interviewed for this job with the catering company when she was seventeen. Carol was several years older but they’d recognized a kindred spirit in each other.

  Which meant Carol knew her better than a lot of people, her mother included.

  When she didn’t answer right away, Carol frowned at her then pulled her out of the kitchen and into the room just behind it, where they kept the dishwashing machines. “What the hell happened? Spill it.”

  Leaning back against the stainless steel counter along the wall, she took a deep breath. “Keegan was here.”

  Carol nodded, not looking surprised. “And…”

  Jules took another breath. “And things got a little out of hand.”

  “What?” Carol’s blue eyes widened. “Did he—”

  “No. Wait.” Jules held up one hand. “Nothing like that. God, this is coming out all wrong.”

  Carol crossed her arms over her ample chest. “Then just tell me exactly what happened.”

  Sighing, Jules shook her head, trying to put things in order. “I needed some space. I headed for that little alcove down the hall before the bathroom. He followed me. We had sex. He left.”

  Carol’s mouth opened but nothing emerged for a good ten seconds. “That… That… Keegan? Really?”

  Grimacing, Jules sighed then let her head fall back as her eyes closed. “Shit. That’s exactly what happened and not at all what happened. I’m being such a bitch.”

  “No. No, you’re not. This whole situation—”

  “Is becoming a clusterfuck of the highest proportions. I know that. And they’re not totally to blame. I agreed, Carol. I took the money and I screwed them and I had a damn good time doing it. I just need to realize that that’s all it was to them. A good time and a charitable donation. Christ, they can probably write it off on their tax return next year.”

  “Jesus.” Carol lifted a hand to rub her forehead then pushed her hands through her shoulder-length blond hair. “They managed to fuck this up royally, didn’t they?”

  “No, I’m the one who fucked it up. I…let myself think there could be more to whatever it was we did.”

  “Oh, now wait just a minute. They never told you why they asked you to come to the house that night, did they?”

  “They said they saw me at their company’s reception. They wanted me. They found my weak spot and exploited it. My mom’s debt.”

  Carol grimaced. “Damn them. Yes, I know that’s exactly what it seems like, but they’re not that cold. You’ve seen Erik but I’m not sure you know how really screwed up he was after the fire.”

  “You mean how screwed up he still is.”

  “Yeah, I guess that’s exactly what I mean. The guy was gorgeous before the accident. I mean, we’re talking male-model perfection. He was used to getting whoever he wanted, whenever he wanted. And Keegan isn’t too hard on the eyes either. Together, they were irresistible.”

  Carol paused and Jules found herself holding her breath, wanting more, needing to hear more.

  “And then the explosion changed everything.” Carol shook her head, sighed. “Erik withdrew from the world and it drove Keegan crazy. Keegan loves the guy like a brother. I know some people think he’s got a thing for Erik, a sexual thing but I’m not one of them.”

  “How do you know them so well?”

  “I was one of the first people they met when they moved here for the business. My sister…she’s a real estate agent. She helped them find the property. She fixed me up with Erik.”

  Jealousy pricked at Jules. She wanted to tear at beautiful Carol’s perfect hair like a raving bitch.

  Which Carol must have been able to see because she held out one hand, her expression turning rueful. “Trust me, I was willing, but Erik wasn’t interested. And Keegan was never my type. But the guys are dedicated to working with local businesses and they hired me to handle their events. Our friendship just happened. They really are great guys. But then the accident turned Erik into this lifeless, bitter shell. It was like…watching cut flowers die. Does that make any sense?”

  Jules nodded, completely understanding. “But why me?”

  “Chemistry? Fate? Hormones?” Carol shrugged. “Who knows? But for the first time in two years, Erik wanted someone more than he wanted to hide.”

  “But he wasn’t going to come out of the shadows. If I hadn’t figured out he was there, he would’ve hung back and watched me and Keegan. And that’s all.”

  “Do you really think you ever would’ve known Erik was there if he didn’t want you to?”

  Okay, Carol had a point. If Erik had only wanted to watch, he never would’ve stepped out of the shadows. She didn’t know him well. Hell, she barely knew him at all. But she’d learned enough about him that night to know Carol was right.

  “Then what the hell happened with Keegan tonight?”

  Carol shook her head. “No idea. I only know that it’s totally out of character for him. Keegan’s a sweet guy and I don’t mean that in a bad way. He and Erik run the business together but Erik had been the public face until the accident. After that, Keegan was forced into the role. It’s not one he likes. I think he got used to Erik handling all the messy stuff. Keegan’s good at smoothing, at tying up the loose ends. They’re both brilliant engineers and, when they work together in the lab, it’s like they read each other’s mind. But they’re two very different men otherwise.”

  It wasn’t only engineering where they seemed to read each other’s mind. When they’d fucked her together, it’d been like nothing she’d ever experienced. The way they worked together…

  “Didn’t Keegan say anything at all tonight?” Carol prompted.

  “He wanted to talk but I couldn’t keep my hands off him. And afterward, I was too freaked out. God, what an absolute mess.”

  “So call him. Let him talk.”

  Jules couldn’t stop shaking her head. “Maybe I should just cut my losses and run.”

  She looked up at Carol for any hint that she agreed but her friend just stared at her.

  “If that’s what you think you should do.” Carol raised her eyebrows. “But you know that’s not what you want.”

  No, it wasn’t. Jules was starting to work up a good mad. At herself. At Keegan for waylaying her. At Erik for not calling.

  “Hey, Jules.” Lori stuck her head into the room and held out Jules’ cell. “This has been ringing for the past few minutes. You left it on the table. Thought it might be important.”

  Jul
es took the phone and gave Lori a weak smile. “Thanks. I better check to make sure it’s not my mom.”

  “No problem. Hey, Carol, that bitchy blonde is looking for you to settle up. Jon’s been deflecting her but he’s getting to the end of his rope with her. Sorry.”

  “Go on.” Jules waved her friend to the door. “I’m fine. Sorry I laid all this shit on your doorstep.”

  “Well, technically I brought it to your doorstep first so I feel kind of responsible. Just think about what I said, okay?” Then Carol rolled her eyes and straightened her shoulders. “Off to be the boss. Not as much fun as you might think.”

  Carol left but Jules knew her friend loved owning her own business, even with all the headaches. It’s what Jules had always wanted and the money Keegan and Erik had given her might actually make that dream come true one day.

  She wanted to bang her head against the wall. Her thoughts just kept going in circles.

  Checking her call record, she realized she didn’t recognize the number but whoever it was had called four times. Someone wanted to reach her badly.

  She hit redial. The phone rang once before being picked up.

  “Jules.”

  Erik. She’d recognize that voice anywhere. It had that distinctive rasp, the one that sent a shudder through her body. It held the same power as Keegan’s accent.

  “Yes.” She wracked her brain for something else to say and came up blank. First Keegan, now Erik.

  “How are you? Are you okay?”

  No, she really wasn’t but she wasn’t going to admit that. “I’m fine. Why are you calling?”

  Okay, that had sounded steady. So far, so good.

  “Can you come to the house? I’d like to talk.”

  “Why?”

  “Because we should’ve done this the day after.”

  “Are you talking about the day after you and Keegan paid me or the day after we actually had sex?”

  Okay, maybe not so steady.

  “Yes.”

  She waited for him to say more, to say anything. He left that hang there.

  The silence grew uncomfortable after several seconds and finally she couldn’t stand it anymore. “Fine. Will it just be you or will Keegan be there too?”

  “Do you want Keegan here?”