by Layle Black
“Good morning,” she said, hoping her voice sounded nonchalant. Sure, it was everyday a woman is standing in a kitchen with two wildly hot men and sexual tension sharp enough to cut like a knife.
“We got bacon, toast and grits for breakfast. Take a seat at the table and I’ll get you some coffee.” Remy was already moving toward the cabinets for a coffee mug. Selene went to sit at the table and Jac came to join her.
“Slept well?” As he spoke he raised a hand to run his finger lightly down her cheek. The feather light touch was an instant reminder of their heated moments on that club balcony. The knowing gleam in his blue eyes relayed he was remembering the very same moment. Words stuck in her throat, the thrall of his gaze holding her in place. She saw the carnal knowledge there, the knowing look that said he knew her intimately. Selene squirmed in her seat, between her thighs heating to slow simmer.
“I think she slept well. She looks as fresh as a morning lily.” The warmth of fingers running down the length of her neck drew her attention from Jac. Remy stood close to her chair, his hand just moving away from her neck to tangle in the curls of her hair. She hadn’t had time to grab her flat iron that she used to tame her curls into its usual businesslike sleekness. Now curls sprang wild around her face. The combined attention from both men should have made her skittish but instead she felt a languid heat settle in her lower belly and begin to work lower. Just that quick the atmosphere in the room became thick with anticipation. Much like how it had been in Jac’s car the night before when she had known she was going to invite him into the house and into her.
She watched as Jac leaned in close, his hand slipping behind her neck to pull her in closer. Selene couldn’t resist the gentle insistence of his lips as they captured her in a light teasing kiss. It was meant to torment and entice. Even as Jac kissed her Remy’s hand remained in the thickness of her hair, his finger lightly messaging her scalp mesmerizing that both lulled and excited her . She felt his fingers return to the slope of her neck, brushing against her skin so lightly but leaving a definite sensory trail in his wake.
“You mean to steal all of her kisses for yourself, Jac?” The teasing tone in Remy’s words carried an intensity that drew Jac’s attention. Slowly he pulled away from Selene, his hand remaining on her cheek.
“Will you let Remy kiss you good morning, baby girl?” Selene knew he was asking more than that but she was in no way prepared to articulate the answer he wanted. Instead she turned her face up to Remy. A smile spread across Remy’s lips as he leaned down to take her lips in a soft but urgent kiss. The first brushing of his lips brought her right back to that time next to the lake. Remy had been her very first kiss, her first taste of true desire. For years afterward she was sure she had imagined the softness of his lips and the erotic slide of his tongue. Surely it had been too good to be true, an event she built up in her mind. As he deepened the kiss she realized it was never her imagination, it was all she had thought and more. Selene moaned as the remembered pleasure and the present combined to become one erotic moment that held her suspended between these two men.
Suddenly the telephone rang and disrupted the moment before it gained momentum. Selene was thankful for the reprieve but neither man looked terribly happy about the interruption. With a soft curse Remy pulled away from her to grab the phone from its wall hook. His tone was abrupt when he answered and Selene felt sorry for the poor bastard on the other end. In moments Remy handed the phone over to Jac. All traces of the indulgent smile on his face gone and replaced by a grim look that had Selene stomach churning with apprehension.
“It’s Sparks PD, Jac.” Immediately the mood in the room changed as Jac took the phone. He silently got up from the table to pace away as he listened to whoever was on the phone. Remy set a steaming cup of chicory coffee down in front of Selene before returning to the stove for her breakfast. Normally she wasn’t a breakfast person but the delicious smell of grits and bacon was more than she could resist. Remy placed a piping hot plate down in front of her and pulled up a chair at the table. He calmly watched her as she ate. She felt his eyes on her every time she raised her fork to her mouth. Selene felt self-conscious as he watched her as if her every move was a great source of fascination. She became conscious of every flavor passing over her tongue, even the gentle rustle of her clothing as she moved. How had eating become so erotic? Because he watched her as if he would like to trade places with the fork in her hand, she thought, feeling her skin flush warm beneath his avid perusal. She felt keenly aware of every part of her body and almost wanted to preen. If the girls at the office could see her now, they would have to take off their imposed title of the ice queen they’d dubbed her with over the years. The thought of work brought her up short. Rafael! Shit, she was supposed to call him yesterday and clean forgot amidst all of the drama.
Selene sprang up from the table and went to find her purse. When she pulled out her cell phone she let fly a nasty curse. Rafael had called twice already and knowing him he was already preparing to delegate someone to find her. Not bothering to listen to the messages she dialed his number. He picked up on the first ring, a sure sign he was pissed.
“Where the hell have you been, Selene? I was about ready to fly back to the States to see what was going on.” Selene felt even worse. Rafael always sent others to do things like that. If he had to get involved himself than he was truly pissed.
“I am sorry, Rafael. Things have been a little crazy around here. I am afraid I got busy and wasn’t able to call you back.” She didn’t think twice about not telling him about what happened to her aunt’s house. The last thing the little town of Sparks needed was a pissed off financier coming in and running the show. Rafael tended to take over wherever he went. It was just part of his arrogant bastard charm, she supposed.
“Next time things get a little crazy, Selene, you call me.” Yeah right, she thought with wry humor. She was dealing with a vandalizing stalker and on top of that she was a hair’s breadth from getting her groove on with two men. That would qualify as out of character for her but she sure as hell wasn’t going to clue him in on that. Selene steered the conversation away to safer ground. Anything that surrounded work was the safest there was. Rafael ran down all the latest developments to include his dislike of her temporary replacement.
“The woman cannot handle the work load whatsoever. The other day she broke into tears and I sent her home just to spare me the embarrassment.” Selene shook her head in wonder at how she had survived the first few months of employment under Rafael and she felt truly sorry for the temp.
“I should be returning soon and then she can make her escape.” For a moment Rafael was silent on the other end of the phone. For a moment she thought he’d been distracted until he spoke.
“I fully expect you back as soon as you can. There is no rush but…you are missed. Besides you’re the only one who tells me when I am being a jackass.” Selene was warmed by what he said but strangely she didn’t feel in a hurry to rush back to her old routine. Work had become an escape for her but now…she wasn’t so sure that was what she needed or wanted.
After a few more minutes they concluded the phone call and she turned to head back to the kitchen. She gasped in surprise to see Jac and Remy calmly standing there, no doubt listening to her conversation.
“So that must have been the boss? The one that flew you back here on his private jet.” Jac sipped at his coffee, his intent gaze belying his usual relaxed stance. Remy guffawed. “Private jet! I didn’t know your boss was Mr. Moneybags.” Selene rolled her eyes at them, already walking back to the kitchen to finish her breakfast. She felt them follow behind her and she fought the urge to laugh. It felt like her childhood all over again with them following after her.
“Yeah, he’s been trying to reach me and I hadn’t gotten back to him.” She sat back down at the table and dug back into her food. Jac took a seat at the table, his tone suddenly all business.
“Sparks PD ran a check on Denny last night. He sti
ll lives in that old trailer home just out of town. When they went by his place they practically had to drag him out of bed. Looks like he got shit faced to the extreme and passed out. Whether he was the one who trashed the house isn’t clear but their hands are tied until they get some solid evidence.”
Selene sat back in her chair, her appetite disappeared completely. She realized that she had taken some comfort in thinking the obvious perpetrator was Denny. Now she wasn’t so sure. Squaring her shoulders, she refused to be cowed by this. Whoever the sick fuck might be, he was not going to prevent her from taking care of her aunt’s things and getting on with her life.
“I need to go to the house to finish packing things and getting them ready for a charity pick-up.” Perhaps it was her no bullshit tone that clued both men in on her take no prisoners mood. She felt Remy come up behind her chair, his hands moved to rest on her shoulders.
“You’re more than welcome to head back over there but you are not going alone, Selene. Jac has to go to work so I am going to go with you and help you do whatever needs doing.” Jac nodded in agreement and reached over to place his hand on her knee. There was a time she would have argued her independence about this but it seemed unnecessary. The touch of both men was nonsexual but provided comfort on a far richer level. Their presence made her feel like she could handle anything right about now.
Jac went through the motions of preparing for work. As Selene watched him strap on his gun belt and grab his jacket she got a little thrill that made her blood simmer. She’d never been particularly attracted to danger but the sight of the belt sitting low on his hips was downright inspiring. Just before he left he slipped up next to her and brushed his lips across hers in a kiss. The soft lingering contact was shocking in its rightness. The fact that Jac had no problem touching her in front of Remy seemed to calm her own reservations about it. Once Jac left. Remy and Selene prepared to head out for the house. On the way to the door she looked for her overnight bag and found it missing.
“Remy, where is…” Remy didn’t give her the opportunity to finish.
“The bag is right where it belongs. In your bedroom upstairs. There is no way you’re spending a night in that house alone until we figure who is trying to make a point. It’s just not safe, so don’t argue.” Selene really wanted to argue the point but the same determination she’d had earlier about not being pushed around was being reflected right back at her.
“If and when we get this sorted out, you are welcome to go back.”
“Well thanks a lot for permission.” Keeping the flippancy from her voice was downright impossible. “Remy, you realize I am not a kid, right? You don’t have to keep after to me. It’s not like it was when I was a little girl.”
Suddenly Remy pulled her into his arms, his mouth captured hers in a searing kiss. Her hands came up against the hard wall of his chest but any notion of pushing him away melted with her resolve. Her arms slid up around his neck as he pulled her even closer against him. A low growl emanated from his chest that resonated through to her own body. A moan of her own melded with his as his tongue slid along the soft line of her mouth and then sliding between her lips to tangle with hers. His kiss was so different from Jac’s, more feral but no less arousing. She felt his hand slide along her waist and edge just along her breasts. Desire tingled in her veins and coursed through her like a deep drugging flood. Selene could feel the hard press of his cock against her belly which only inflamed her senses more. The urge to wrap her legs around his waist was incredible. She needed something, anything to ease the pressure building between her thighs. As quickly as it all started, it ended. Remy slowly eased her from him, his jaw tightening with tension.
“As much as I’d like to take you upstairs and fuck you silly until you can’t sit down, we’re going to have to wait or we’ll never leave the house today.” Selene knew he was right but a nagging feeling that resembled guilt clouded her mind and she couldn’t let it pass. She was no two timer or wild sexual creature that made a practice of jumping from one lover to another. It had only been a matter of hours since she’d let Jac touch her so intimately.
“Perhaps…Jac would mind?” Was it really this easy to just engage in a sexual relationship with two men? Remy smiled down at her, his fingers running down along her cheek.
“Baby, the only thing Jac would mind is getting left out.”
Chapter 12
Selene spent the better part of the day finishing packing all the boxes for the charity pick-up while Remy worked like a dynamo scrubbing walls and floors of red paint. She wouldn’t admit it to him but she didn’t know what she would have done without him. With him there she didn’t have to face the ugliness that had been left all over the walls alone and that suited her just fine. By lunchtime everything was ready for the charity pick up and they could stop to take a lunch break. Luckily there was food still stocked in the fridge and she threw together a couple of sandwiches and made some lemonade. Carrying the sandwiches and drinks out to the porch she spied Remy sitting on an old metal swing bench. He was hunched over rubbing his leg but as soon as he spied her he sat up. Selene remembered the noticeable limp from the funeral reception and recalled what Jac said about Remy’s stint in the military.
“I thought I would make some lunch. Sort of a thank you for busting your ass out here.” She carried everything over to a patio table. Remy smiled his thanks and swiftly devoured one of the sandwiches and half the lemonade before she really got started on her own. Was there anything sexier than a man with a voracious appetite?
For a moment they sat in comfortable silence until Selene asked what was plaguing her.
“What happened to your leg?” As soon as the question left her mouth she winced. Perhaps she had gone too far asking such a personal question. She was just about to tell him so when he spoke up.
“It was an IED. My company was heading down a road in Kandahar when we were attacked by insurgents. The Humvee I was in was blown ten feet in the air riding on a wave of pure flame. When I came to all five people in the vehicle with me were dead and my leg looked like it came through a meat grinder. Somehow in the chaos I was pulled to safety until I could be airlifted out.” Selene quietly sat and listened as he spoke, her heart breaking apart for what he went through. She’d heard about the battles in the Middle East like everyone else did, on the news but she’d never come face to face with the outcome. Remy had put his life on the line and took the consequences. Without thanking she reached for his hand, her fingers intertwining with his. For a moment he was unresponsive but then his hand wrapped around hers.
“When I came back from physical rehab I was one angry asshole. Jac did a lot to help me get my head on straight because I was heading down a road that could finish what that IED started.” Remy paused for a moment, as if he was having difficulty. Selene squeezed his hand in encouragement and silent acceptance.
“I started drinking for a while but Jac stayed on my ass like a barnacle to get me to stop. At first I didn’t listen because I was too far gone in my own self-pity. One night I was on a real bender and wrapped my truck around a light post. Jac was the first cop on the scene and arrested me. I was mad as hell and called him every name in the book. It was a real tough love moment but I finally got it. I spent the next few months drying out and ended over here helping your aunt with repairs on this old place. Felicity was a tough old lady and spoke her mind but she always told me what I needed to hear.” Selene felt warm tears sting her eyes as Remy spoke. She felt for his struggle to pull himself back together after such a life changing event. She loved her Aunt Felicity even more for being there for him as she had been there for Selene when she needed a place to run to.
Remy felt his gut clench at the sight of the tears rolling down Selene’s beautiful face. No one had ever cried for him. He had expected a different reaction from her, especially when he told her about his drinking. He’d had a firsthand view of how alcoholism had impacted her life. Remy was man enough to admit a part of him feared re
jection and censure from her especially but he knew if he wanted any deep connection with Selene he had to be honest with her. He learned a long time ago you couldn’t come from a town like Clay Parish and not expect some judgment from others but with Selene he really cared what she thought.
Selene was speechless. There was nothing she could say to make him feel better or make right what he had been through. She decided to let her touch do the talking. She let all of her misgivings about what she was doing fall away for the moment and just obeyed the urge to comfort and protect as best she knew how. It seemed like such a small thing, considering all he had done for her. She raised her hands to gently cradle Remy’s head and pulled him closer. Her lips first brushed across his forehead then passed feather light across his closed eyelids. He pressed closer, seeking her touch to a greater degree and she obliged him. Her lips continued their journey down along his strong jaw and finally reaching his lips. Her eyes stung with barely suppressed emotion when she felt the slightly raised edge of the scar that marred the side of his face. Selene was thankful he survived his injuries but wanted to weep for everything he suffered. For a moment her softly parted lips hovered over his and they exchanged breath. She imagined she was taking him in as he did her. His arms slipped around her waist to pull her closer, chest to chest, breath to breath. For moment they stay like that, simply exchanging. Then the tasting began. Slowly at first, with an attentive flick of her tongue along his lips. His mouth opened to receive her with a groaning breath.
