That did it. The overall impression was that we were guys living above our means. We were rich, sure, but just medium rich. Not the kind of billionaire that you hope to meet as a stewardess for a charter airline. More in the category of the well-to-do dentist from Iowa.
So Crystal’s lips turned into a sneer.
“There’s a mortgage on your plane?” she asked disbelievingly.
“Oh sure,” stepped in Tom. “Absolutely. We bought that thing with a big loan from the bank, no other way we could afford it.”
That sealed the deal with Crystal.
“Thank you,” she said abruptly, standing with those rhinestones winking. “I have another job lined up actually. I forgot to tell you.”
We feigned mock confusion.
“A competing offer?” I said quickly. “We’ll match it. You’re perfect for a position with Elite.”
“How much is your other offer for?” asked Andrew worriedly. “Because maybe we can’t afford it,” he said, shooting a meaningful look my way.
Shit, these twins were hilarious. Fucking incredible. They should be actors with the way they were carrying on.
But it didn’t matter. The blonde was already stalking towards the door, purpose in her movements.
“Thanks so much,” she called over one shoulder. “I’ll just let myself out.”
And with a swish of that imperious ponytail, she was gone.
We waited until the elevator door dinged before bursting into raucous laughter.
“What the fuck?” was Nick’s crude comment.
“Shit,” repeated Charlie. “Shit got screwed.”
But it was more than that.
“She was the right shape,” I growled. “Helena knows what we like physically. But that girl was nothing like Joanie. Nothing at all.”
“Speaking of which, where is Miss Chickadee?” drawled Andrew, looking around like he could find her somewhere. “What’d she get up to?”
I shrugged.
“Should be back soon,” was my confident reply. “Probably just stepped out for coffee.”
Aaron glanced at his watch.
“Been a while,” he growled, eyes getting intense. “What the fuck, how long could coffee take? Isn’t there a bodega on every corner in this city?”
I shrugged again.
“Starbucks has lines that go for miles these days,” was my casual reply. “Something about fall flavors and red cups instead of white.”
“Are you shitting me?” interrupted Nick. “Seriously, is this what we’re talking about? Pumpkin spice and all that bullshit?”
I shrugged.
“Marketing is my thing. If you knew how much Starbucks spends researching their holiday offerings, you’d be astounded.”
Because it was true. Whatever people say about their coffee, Starbucks is a marketing genius. They’ve taken over the coffee industry and prevented newer, cooler upstarts from making headway. So geniuses all around.
But Nick had a point. It was ten thirty now, and there are bodegas all over the neighborhood. Joanie should have been back by now.
“Shit, what if she doesn’t come back?” rumbled Damien, eyes concerned. “Did you guys fuck up big time yesterday?”
The twins and Nick exchanged a glance that was frankly, a little guilty.
“Naw,” Aaron denied. “Nothing that serious.”
“What happened again?” asked Charlie, squinting his eyes. “Seriously, what the fuck went down?”
And they launched into an explanation once more. How Joanie was supposed to be on her way to Atlanta to meet the twins, but Nick kept her here. The twins, enraged, flew up to NYC, confronting the balpha. And there was a blow-out. A massive blow-out that had the girl in tears and apologizing, even though it wasn’t her fault.
“We’ll fix it when Joanie’s back,” I assured them smoothly. “It’s fine. People fight. There’s six of us, and it’s expected.”
“But the girl didn’t appreciate being in the middle of it,” rumbled Andrew reflectively, eyes on the horizon. “Not at all.”
I snorted.
“Did you fuckers think about that before you scared the shit out of our female?” was my growl. “Seriously assholes. Did you have to do that in front of her face?”
The twins and Nick shared another guilty glance.
“Yeah, we fucked up,” admitted Aaron. “Goddamit.”
But Andrew’s hackles went up then.
“We’ll discuss it when Joanie gets back,” he said huffily, making eye contact with us all. “We’ll have a real conversation then and get it sorted out,” he shrugged. “No worries.”
Because that’s why we were here. The dust-up had been serious enough that me, Damien and Charlie took red eyes into the city. Among the six of us, we had to figure out how to share the female because the old methods hadn’t worked so well. Joanie was our one and only … and we had to let her know.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Charlie
Three months later …
Oh shit, oh shit. We fucked up. Or more accurately, Nick and the twins fucked up. Because Joanie never came back that day. Or the day after. Or the week after.
And now it’s been three months without laying eyes on the luscious female form. It’s been three months since we spoke to her.
We know where she is. It was easy to find out. One call to our private investigator and her location was evident immediately.
She was at the Hudson dorms with a friend from middle school named Karen.
Why the fuck would she live in dorms, when she could live in Nick’s penthouse?
What the fuck was she doing at the Hudson University dorms anyways? Taking classes? Meeting boys her age? What the hell?
The six of us have been like caged animals since, tense and angry. Sure, we’ve left New York intermittently. I’ve gone back to Chicago a couple times to tend to business, Damien’s dropped in on Dallas, and Tom on Tucson. But we always come back. Because we’re waiting for Joanie to make an appearance.
Those sweet brown curls, surrounding her flushed face.
Those big boobies bouncing, hips swaying back and forth.
And oh shit that cunt. That steamy, sweet slit with a brownie in back that makes us drip with need.
Because Joanie’s truly our one and only. She’s gorgeous, smart, and innocent as an angel. And yet she’s not an angel either. Because the female went wild when it came to taking us all. Her pussy was hungry, swallowing cock after cock, juicing with need.
So what the fuck were we doing? Instead of being men of action, instead we sat around, staring at each other like dumb motherfuckers. In fact, right now we were crowded in Nick’s living room again, trying to figure things out for the millionth time.
“You shouldn’t have made her apologize,” barked Tom at Andrew. “What the fuck were you thinking?”
The alpha got an offended look on his face.
“I didn’t make her apologize, she did it on her own!” he snarled right back.
But Tom was relentless, turning on Nick next.
“What were you thinking, trashing her butt at a place like Heartland Brewery? In public? Were you out of your fucking mind? No wonder she’s not coming back,” he spat to our host.
And Nick actually leaped out of his chair, fists raised, face red and angry.
“Shut up asshole,” he threw right back. “Shut up, she wanted it. That little ho is a butt slut, we’ve done anal with her multiple times before. Don’t put this on me.”
They were about to rumble when I held up both hands.
“We need to stop this,” I growled authoritatively. “This has gone fucking insane. We’re CEOs, men who have everything at our fingertips, and we’re getting riled up about a sweet female? What the hell?”
And the truth was in the air.
“She’s the best thing that ever happened to us,” grunted Damien morosely. “And you fuckers fucked it up.”
World War Three almost started again, a couple guys le
aping up, fists clenched. But fortunately, I interceded just in time.
“She wants to be a chemist. I can make that happen. I run a cosmetics company, we have tons of laboratory scientists on our team.”
Tom rolled his eyes.
“Of course you can, Charlie. So why didn’t you do it before?”
That was a good question, my words slow and contemplative.
“I wanted her to come back without me offering a bribe. Because it is a bribe of sorts. I didn’t want to offer more money, a job, the promise of connections, or any of that type of shit. Other girls, no problem, I’m on it. But when it came to Joanie, I wanted her to come back on her own.”
And that was the crux of our issue. The brunette was noble. She was virtuous with a real sense of right and wrong. And something like the promise of a job wasn’t a guarantee her return at all. In fact, it might back-fire.
But what did we have to lose? We were six dumbasses sitting around mooning for our lost girl. Even worse, we’d been doing this for three months now, neglecting our other duties, hearts lost.
Fuck.
We’d lost sight of what makes us alphas.
Instead of taking, we were waiting.
Instead of owning, we were asking.
Was this our new way of life?
Instead of possession, were we the possessed?
Fuck.
Had we lost everything to the girl?
Our minds?
Our souls?
Even our hearts?
And swallowing my pride, the decision was made. Joanie was worth it. I didn’t care about my ego anymore. I didn’t care about giving her room, or more time to think. I didn’t care if bribing her with a job was what we had to do.
We had to get her back.
It was the only way to be whole again.
And with that, the six of us rose, grabbing our jackets.
Because our girl has been missing for three months … and we weren’t waiting any longer.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Joanie
It’s been a quiet three months. I’ve been holed up in Karen’s dorm when she’s at class, and when she comes home, I head to the library. Hudson is a great university, but her room’s so small that it’s impossible for us both to be in it at once.
But that’s okay. Because I don’t want to talk about my situation, not really. Of course, it’s been unavoidable with my best friend, but at the same time, I’m talked out. At this point, there isn’t that much more to say.
Because I’m pregnant.
I’m not sure who the father is, and it really doesn’t matter. All I know was that this baby was conceived in a mix of love and pleasure, and I’m not giving the child up.
No way, no how.
This baby is mine, and I’m going to raise her with memories of her fathers. All six of them, swirling in my mind again and again, a sweet yet sorrowful remembrance of days past.
Because I never went back to Nick’s penthouse after the shocking fight, nor did the billionaires come looking for me. Of course not. They were already interviewing replacements the next morning, me just a faded shadow.
But even if I’m a memory, I still have my thoughts, crystal clear and sharp. The smells of the men. The feel of their hands. Those hard bodies and deep voices.
And yes, their cocks.
Those massive ten inch monsters, taking me again and again, sixty inches total.
Sometimes while I doze, I’ll cry out.
“Tom! Charlie! Damien!” is my anguished voice. “Andrew! Aaron! Nick!”
Karen will shake me awake.
“Joanie, you’ve had another nightmare,” she’ll say firmly, lips pressed in a line. “Another bad dream.”
Because my eyes are filled with tears most times. But how can I tell her that these aren’t nightmares, they’re memories of good times that are now gone? The best experiences of my life in the hands of these charismatic, dominating men?
Because they’re ruthless for sure. I was tossed out like the dirty laundry just a couple hours after I left. They gave no quarter. No mercy. There’s no forgiveness.
But it’s all done now, and I don’t want to fixate on the bad. I have a child to think of, and it does no good to speak ill of her fathers. It’s better to remember the good times, and how much I loved them. How much I adored being with them, becoming my one true self in their presence.
These memories will have to last me a lifetime.
Because that’s all I have left.
No more.
Never again.
But I’ll focus on the future. I’ll make sure my daughter wants for nothing, and that she needs for nothing. So gone are my dreams of being a chemist. There’s no way I can go to school while heavily pregnant, or even taking care of a child.
But I haven’t given up. Instead, I’ve turned to freelance writing because it has a flexible schedule. I can take jobs when they come, or turn them down if I’m too busy. Plus, I should be able to put the baby in daycare a few hours a day while scribbling my thoughts onto paper. Actually, it’s the only real option on the table.
“How is this going to work? How are you going to survive?” asked Karen worriedly one day. “Do your folks even know?”
I took a deep breath.
“I’ll be out of your hair when my delivery date comes around,” was my soft voice. “I promise.”
But Karen shook her head.
“It’s not that Joanie. It’s that life is tough for single moms. Don’t you think you should tell the dads? Don’t they deserve to know?”
A lump formed in my throat. I didn’t know what to think when it came to the six men. Those hot, hard bodies, their blue eyes so intense. But I couldn’t bear it. I couldn’t bear facing them and seeing the disdain in their eyes, how little regard they had for me. I couldn’t bear seeing their shock and horror once they realized I was pregnant.
“Get rid of it,” one would spit.
“You did WHAT?” another would ask.
“It’s too late,” the last would say, a dead look in his eyes. “She’s past her first trimester. We’re stuck for life.”
Because that was the last thing I wanted. I didn’t want to saddle the alphas with a child they didn’t ask for. A baby who was nothing but a burden, an unwanted extra. After all, how many times did we talk about birth control? How many times did they ask me to go to the doctor to get on the pill? How many times did I dawdle, twiddling my thumbs?
So this was my secret to keep. My greatest burden, and also my great treasure. The child was mine, and I would raise her the best I could, using whatever meager resources on hand.
Money. I needed money. Well, not immediately. The billionaires had paid me plenty, so I was set for the near term. But it wouldn’t last me forever unfortunately. And hunched over at Karen’s small desk, I forced myself to focus. Focus, focus. There was nothing but the story in front of me. The characters. The plot. The emotional development and growth of my heroine.
I was just getting into it when the door swung open with a creak. No worries, we don’t usually lock our doors in the dorms. It’s more of an easy-peasy come and go situation.
“Hey Kar,” I greeted, putting down my pen. “I’ll head to the library now that you’re back. Just give me one sec.”
But my tone disappeared into nothingness. Because it wasn’t Karen at the door. It was my six former lovers, huge and looming. And without a sound, they entered, cramming those massive bodies into the tiny dorm room before shutting the door with a firm click.
“Oh,” I choked. “Oh.”
Oh god, oh god. What should I do now? Instinctively, my body crowded closer to the desk, hiding my bump. I was only showing a little bit, and maybe by keeping my midsection hidden, they’d never know. My hands itched, but I resisted the urge to run them protectively over the curve.
The billionaires took everything in, blue eyes assessing. They didn’t suspect, did they?
“Good to see you Joanie,” drawled Ni
ck. “It’s been a long time.”
I swallowed heavily.
“Good to see you too,” was my stammering reply. “How did you find me?”
Aaron threw his head back and laughed, like this was truly funny.
“Sweetheart, we’ve known where you were since the day you disappeared. In a city with billions of cameras, you think a person can stay hidden? No honey. We’ve known for months you were here. Why’d you pick this place, anyways?” he asked, looking around. “It’s positively tiny.”
I gulped. The room was packed to the rafters with Karen’s stuff. She had a narrow twin, and my sleeping mat with an extra blanket was rolled up tidily at the foot of the bed. I’d been making my home on her floor, which wasn’t ideal for a pregnant lady.
But I pretended nonchalance.
“My friend’s a student at Hudson,” I said casually. “When she offered me a place, I said why not? It’s as good as any.”
The alphas’ eyes surveyed the cramped room, but they didn’t judge.
“Sure,” was Tom’s slow drawl. “Okay.”
That made me gulp again, nerves in a flurry.
“So what’s going on?” was my careless voice. “What brings you here?”
Six sets of blue eyes gleamed.
“Well honey,” began Charlie slowly. “This seems like a tough position to be in. Sleeping on the floor of your friend’s dorm room, eating mess hall provisions. What if I offered you a job? Or do you have a job right now?” he asked, eyeing the scraps of notepaper on the desk.
Embarrassed, I dropped my hand over the scribblings. Because I was writing a romance novel, one that loosely followed my experience working for Elite Air. Of course, there weren’t six guys in the book, but there was an innocent virgin who meets a billionaire. So it wasn’t a hundred percent made up.
But my spine stiffened. Why was I embarrassed? I was dead set on making a living for me and my child, without taking a dime from anyone. Writing was honest and true. Writing was noble, which was more than I could say about working for them.
So my chin lifted.
“In fact, yes. I’m beginning a new career as an author. Chemistry isn’t all that you know,” was my light fib. “I decided this fit me better.”
The President and the Starlet: A Forbidden Romance Page 38
