by Layle Black
Selene knew he was right but she just couldn’t help herself. She felt a yawning emptiness that ate her alive from the moment she opened her eyes in the morning and until she closed them at night. The nights. Those where the worst of all.
“Look, Selene, I don’t know what you have going with those two men in that little backwater palace but judging by the killing looks I got from them I take it that’s pretty serious.” There was no denying they had, she thought glumly. Rafael had shown up at the worst possible time and the resulting confrontation had been volatile to say the least. They had just come from a violent and emotionally charged night only to find her boss waiting at the house to take her home. Jac and Remy had stood on either side of her, using their bodies as living shields like they had the entire night. Their expressions had been unwelcoming and both men had looked as if they would have welcomed a fight. To Selene’s surprise Rafael had taken on a similar stance of barely suppressed aggression, his eyes watching the other men and preparing for anything. At that point Selene just lost it.
“Will you guys just stop! It’s been a hell of a night and the last thing I want is more blood.” Rafael looked taken aback, his brows raised in inquiry.
“More blood? Maybe you need to tell me what the hell has been going on here, Selene, and don’t give me the bullshit ‘everything is fine’ song and dance.” Remy and Jac visibly bristled at Rafael’s tone, both men taking a step forward, their shoulders squaring up for a fight.
“You may be her boss, asshole, but you aren’t right now so I suggest you watch your tone.” Remy’s own tone spoke volumes and none of it good. Jac was right beside him, ready to join the fray. Rafael merely smiled in a cold careless way that had Selene’s heart lurching. She’d only seen him smile like that when he was going in for the kill in the boardroom. Usually by the time he was done, someone was either out of a job or looking longingly at the nearest window they could fling themselves out of.
“I am more than her boss. I’d like to think I am her friend and in the few minutes I have been standing here I’ve come to the conclusion that I should have come for her a long time ago.”
“The fuck you say! She’s not going anywhere. She’s the safest woman in the world right where she is standing. Tell him, Selene. Tell him where you belong.” Remy turned to look at her, his green eyes glinting sharply with the force of his emotions. She opened her mouth to concur but for a moment the words wouldn’t come. A replay of the night’s events and the days leading up to it flipped through her mind like a film reel. So much had happened just in that night. A man was dead and she couldn’t help but feel at least partially responsible. Her hesitation was noted by Remy immediately and she watched the gleam in his eyes begin to dull until they went flat and emotionless. With a brief nod he stepped away from her and she felt the separation keenly. She looked to Jac but he’d already stepped away himself and began to walk into the house without a backward glance. His hollow words echoed directly to her soul because they sounded so empty, so defeated.
“We’ll leave you to pack, Selene. There’s no point in keeping you here if you don’t want to stay.” Selene watched in shock as he disappeared into the house and she turned to Remy. He’d already begun to walk away but stopped before he got to the stairs. He turned to look back at her and what she saw reflected in his eyes made her die a little on the inside.
“You know where we are, petite oiseau. When you’re ready to come home…we’ll be waiting.” Remy directed a speaking look to Rafael, his jaw tightening with anger.
“You make sure she’s taken care of or I’ll take care of you.” Without another word he went into the house, leaving Selene and Rafael standing there. Pain, sharp and unforgiving, nearly took Selene’s breath away. Her first reaction was to run in after them but Rafael gently grasped her arm, halting her in her steps.
“I may not know everything about love, Selene, but I know wounded when I see it. Give them a minute, okay?” She turned to look up into Rafael’s eyes. They were dark and knowing as if he had a deep understanding of what was happening. All the fight drained out of her and she allowed Rafael to pull her to him in a gentle embrace. It didn’t take long for her to pack her suitcases and have them stowed away in her rental car.
As she walked through the house one last time she fought the urge to hunt for Jac and Remy but neither man made an appearance. Even as she climbed behind the wheel of the car and started to drive away, one question replayed in her mind. Why didn’t they just ask her to stay? The all or nothing demand Remy had posed in front of Rafael caught her by surprise and perhaps she didn’t react as well as she should have but…why didn’t they just ask her to stay? The plane ride back to Seattle had been with only the sound of Rafael talking on his phone and the click-clack of his fingers tapping away at his laptop. Strange, Selene had thought, as she stared out of the plane window. Dark clouds loomed all around as if preparing for a storm. She’d arrived in Louisiana under a cloud and it appeared she was leaving under one as well.
As soon as they touched down back home all Selene wanted to do was go home and be still but when she got to her apartment all she could think was she was in the wrong place. The apartment seemed quiet and sterile compared to the warm beauty of Remy’s rambling house. How was it possible for such a tiny apartment to appear so cavernous and empty? Rafael offered her two days additional leave but she refused to take them. Sitting at home alone was the last thing she wanted to do. Work was the only thing she could think to do, the only thing she had that made sense. The multimillion dollar deal Rafael had been working on had begun to fall through and the woman hired to cover her job while she’d been away had turned out to be unable to handle the workload.
“You’re just too damned efficient, Selene. I need you on this deal.”
Now two weeks later she sat staring aimlessly at a plate of food and the only thing she could see was Jac and Remy standing in front of the porch. She’d wanted to call so many times but something prevented her. If there had been any doubt of what they meant to her there was not any longer.
“There is nothing stopping you from going to them, Selene.” Selene looked up to Rafael’s penetrating gaze leveled on her. A sardonic smile gave a slight tilt to the sensual curve of his lips.
“We closed the deal yesterday and though I will truly suffer from losing your efficiency in the office…I’d rather see you happy.” He leaned forward, his hand lightly touching her own. The comforting warmth a stark reminder of what she was missing with Remy and Jac.
“You are not happy.”
Selene held his direct gaze, the truth of his words resonating through her. Rafael smiled sheepishly, his hand still covering hers with gentle pressure.
“I have to be honest with you, Selene, I am going to miss more than your uncanny way to know what I need before I need it.” A sensual gleam shone in his eyes that reminded her of the day they parted when she arrived back in New Orleans.
“I am attracted to you, cara. Just say the word and our entire relationship will change in an intense and…satisfying way.” The erotic promise in the dark mystery of his eyes should have sent her heart racing but she remained unmoved. She had to admit she found him a dynamically attractive man but her passions were still in Clay.
“Rafael, thank you for saying that and I wish I could…I just…well, I am already in love.” Rafael’s smile dimmed only slightly as he sat back in his chair, his hand sliding from hers.
“Than what are you doing here?” Selene knew he was right the minute he finished speaking. What the hell was she doing here?
Selene looked up into a mirror just behind Rafael and saw her own face reflected back at her. The light glinted off the golden surface of her locket. With shaky hands she reached up to lay her hand over it, pressing it against her chest where her heart beat. Never forget love, her Aunt Felicity had said. She’d been about to, Selene realized. No!
“Rafael, can I borrow your plane?” He laughed aloud, drawing the attention of nearby din
ers.
“I expect to get it back in one piece.” Selene laughed and stood from the table, her purse already in her hand. Rafael eyebrows rose in mocking inquiry.
“You mean to leave now? Before dessert? A shame.”
“I’ve been gone long enough. It’s time for me to go home.” He nodded, a wistful look in his eyes.
“Then by all means go. I fully expect that resignation in the mail.” Selene smiled tremulously, swallowing the lump in her throat. Nodding, she leaned down to press her lips to his smooth cheek.
“Thank you for everything, Rafael. I owe you so much.” Rafael raised his hands in a dismissive way.
“You owe me nothing, Selene. Don’t keep them waiting.” Selene gave a final wave and went to start the ball rolling on ending the chapter on her life there and preparing to start a brand new one with the men she loved.
Chapter 24
Remy took another swing at the punching bag¸ his muscles protesting with each jarring contact. Rock music blasted in his ears from his iPod. He pushed through the throbbing pain in his leg, determined to get lost in the physical exertion until he collapsed from sheer exhaustion. This had been his ritual for the last two weeks. Wake up, don’t think about her. Work in his office, don’t think about her. Work like fuck in the gym, don’t think about her. Usually it worked and then night would come and he’d lie in bed and think about Selene all night. The urge to reach for his cell and call her was an irresistible siren song, constant and haunting. There lay madness, he reasoned. Sure he could call her and probably end up begging like the desperate man he was. Jac was no better but luckily they had seen little of each other in the last weeks. Looking at his best friend was just another reminder of Selene. Remy kept swinging at the bag. Each blow punctuated by a series of thoughts. He missed her. He needed her. He wanted her. Please come home.
Suddenly a heavy thud landed against his bag and Remy turned, his body already moving into a fighting pose. Jac stood behind him, him arms folded across his broad chest. The man must have just got in from work because he was till sporting the uniform of Clay Parish’s finest. Remy snatched the ear buds from his ears.
“What’s up, Jac?” Remy stepped away from the punching bag, tugging off his boxing gloves. Ignoring the sweat pouring down his chest, he walked to the fridge for a bottle of water. He turned back to Jac and stopped short when he saw a wide grin spread across the other man’s face. Without a word he held out his cell phone, the screen lit up to show a text message emblazoned across the screen. It was short and to the point. Remy read it aloud, a smile beginning across his face and growing wider with each word.
“Care for a swim at our favorite place.” That was all it said but it may as well have been a full love sonnet because it left the same effect. Jac took the phone back from Remy. Both men spoke simultaneously.
“She’s back.”
* * * *
Selene paced nervously around her rental car one more time for good measure. She’d come straight from the airport in New Orleans that morning straight to Sparks. The last two days had been abuzz with activity but she’d felt like she was floating the entire time. Any fears she’d had about uprooting her life in Seattle had melted away. With a wave of Rafael’s billionaire hand her apartment had been packed up and her belongings put in storage until she was ready to have her things shipped. She had no close friendships, so there had been no long goodbyes or explanations necessary. The only sadness came from the knowledge that she had nothing that she was truly going to miss because she had been so career orientated she had never bothered to lay down any roots. Well it didn’t matter, she thought happily because just like that she was here and waiting for her future to arrive.
Giving up on the pacing she walked over to a fallen log that overlooked the stillness of the lake. So many of her happiest moments had been here and it seemed only right that she meet Jac and Remy there. She remembered when she’d experienced her first kiss here and how it had set her awareness of them in motion. The sound of a car engine broke the peaceful silence and she slowly stood to face her future. Remy’s Humvee barely came to a full stop before Jac was climbing out of the passenger side and walking toward her with a single-mindedness that made her shake. His eyes never broke from her until he reached her. To her surprise he didn’t embrace her but stood still before her, his hungry gaze moving over her like a starving man.
“Just tell me one thing. Are you staying? Are you ours?” Selene looked up into the deep blue of his eyes, a smile breaking across her lips.
“Yes,” was her husky whispered response and his response in turn was immediate. With a soul deep growl he snatched her up into his arms and held her against him.
“Ah baby girl, don’t you ever leave us again. I couldn’t take it.”
“Neither could I.” Remy’s soft baritone voice interrupted their embrace. Jac slowly let her slide to the ground. Every inch of his body flush against hers and communicated his desire in no uncertain terms. His hand remained at her waist even when Remy pulled her into arms. Remy’s response was quieter, more intense but no less poignant for Selene. He pressed his lips to her neck, his words a soft whisper against her skin.
“You have our hearts now, petite oiseau. You have absolute power over us in a way that you cannot fathom.” His words felt momentous and as solemn as any wedding vow. Jac pushed in from behind, his chest a solid presence against her back. Selene gave a high pitched yelp at the sudden gentle nipping of teeth at the back of her neck. They laughed and then fell silent, content to hold each other.
“We’re not going to have an angry billionaire on our doorstep in the morning, are we?” Remy leaned back to look into her eyes, a gentle smile teasing his lips. Selene laughed her hands reaching up to cradle the masculine beauty of his face.
“Rafael practically pushed me out the door. He knows what I want…what I need. This is where I belong.” Solemnity flavored her own words as she stared into Remy’s green eyes. What she saw there made her heart flutter with excitement and settle with contentment all at once. She was loved. More than she’d ever thought. She watched those eyes sheen with moisture as he lowered his head to take her lips in a burning kiss that had wet heat building between her thighs. The play of his wicked tongue along her lips as he slowly licked into her mouth until their breath mingled with mouths.
A low growl rumbled in the depth of Jac’s chest and she relished the vibration against her back. His arms slid around her waist as he tucked her back against him, his own lips trailing along the sensitive slope of her neck.
“You bring us together, baby girl. You bind us together…forever.” Jac’s words were a low rumble that made her thighs clench, his tongue teasing the sensitive shell of her ear. The sweet combination of Remy’s kiss and Jac’s tasting of that spot just behind her ear sent another gush of liquid heat below her waist. The hard thicknesses of each man’s arousal pressed in on her from the front and behind. Deliberately she rocked her hips forward and back, knowing full well she was poking the bear but she didn’t care. Remy’s hand tightened on her arms before he slowly eased away from their kiss.
“We’d better stop or we’ll be giving the local wildlife a show they won’t forget.” Selene smiled up at Remy, feeling mischievous. Her hand reached behind her so her fingers could lightly caress the huge bulge nudging the base of her back. Jac groaned aloud, his hips rocking into her, making her blood heat and stir. She was hungry for that sound and she gave him a firmer grip to elicit another response. Selene was not disappointed.
“Damn, baby girl, you’ll make me come in my jeans if you’re not careful. Tread carefully, Selene. We haven’t had you in over two weeks and we’re not capable of gentle. As a matter of fact we might be downright mean with the things we want to do to you. “ His voice thickened with that Cajun drawl that made her panties wet, a note of desperation in his voice daring her to do anything she wanted and damn the consequences.
“I want to go swimming and you two are going to join me. Remem
ber that last time we were here? You know that was my first kiss, boys?” Jac nipped at her neck, his hands slipping lower about her waist to rest on her hips. She shivered as his fingers slid beneath the material of her skirt.
“Remember it? Hell…You almost lost your virginity that day, Selene. One taste of those innocent lips and all I wanted to do was own them… own you until you couldn’t walk straight. Then all those fears Gaston had about Jac and me taking advantage would have come true.” Remy smiled as he spoke but the intensity of his words were anything but polite. They were raw sexuality in a way that made her pussy weep in delicious response.
Selene should have been intimidated but fear was the last thing on her mind. They were hers, these beautiful men and now she wanted to play. With a little teasing smile she pulled out of their arms, shivering a little as their hands slipped away from her and leaving her warm skin chilled. Not for long, she assured herself, not for long.
“I invited you here to swim and I have every intention of doing so.” Maintaining their intense stares, she slowly began to unbutton her blouse. Purposely her hands slowed every now and then just so she could see them shift in impatience. Slipping the top from her shoulders, barely suppressing a little shiver caused by the cooling air blowing in from off the water. Her nipples pebbled and pressed against the thin lace of her bra. Selene deliberately lifted her hands up to cup her breasts together, her fingers lightly teased the sensitive tips until a little moan slipped from her lips.
“Damn, Selene, you’d better get over here and let us take care of you before your clothes end up in shreds.” Jac already took a step toward her, his eyes glued to where her fingers teased the tight peaks of breasts. She felt drunk on power as she took steps backward leading to the small dock.
“I don’t think so, Jac. I am not finished undressing for my swim. Now you’ll just have to be patient.” Remy laughed, his own eyes moving over her like she was the greatest prize he’d ever beheld.
