by Jane Jamison
“And you’re happy?” Ryce wiggled his eyebrows, trying and succeeding in making her laugh.
“I am. Like I said before, I’m happier than I’ve ever been.”
“But you’re wrong, Jewel.”
It was her turn to be confused. “I am, sir?”
Owen nodded at Ryce, giving him a signal. Ryce reached over to the nightstand, retrieved the white box, and set it in front of her.
“What’s this?”
“This,” answered Owen, “is the most important gift we’ll ever give you.”
Her palms skimmed over the sleek white paper, then traced over the white bow. “It is? I mean, it is, sir?”
“Never mind about the titles for now. If you want to call us that all the time, then that’s your choice. But you don’t have to unless we’re acting as your Doms.”
Ryce took her chin and turned her to face him. “We’re still and will always be your Doms, but, like Owen said, you don’t have to use a title every time you talk to us. Just while we’re having sex or out in the club. But in private, afterward, we’re just Ryce and Owen.”
“Okay. But what’s inside?” If she didn’t get to open it soon, she’d have to start begging.
“First, we need to tell you how much we love you. I know it’s fast and all, but we knew the moment you walked into the club.”
“Yeah, like Ryce says, we love you.” Owen took her arm and squeezed it. “I love you.”
“And do you forgive me? I’m sorry I lied to you. I’m sorry I took the pictures. I just didn’t know what else to do.”
“You were caught in an impossible situation. We get that. Right, Owen?”
“Right. Just as long as you promise to never keep any secrets from us.”
“And to not try and trick us. Got it?”
She nodded, happy to give them anything they could ever want from her. “Got it.”
“There’s something we need to confess, too.” Owen glanced down as though ashamed.
“We hate like hell to say we did this, but we knew something was wrong.” Ryce paused, gathering his words. “We got into the employees’ locker and checked your phone. It was wrong and a violation of your privacy. I’m sorry for it and so is Owen.”
She had to admit she was shocked. But then again, if she’d been in their position, suspecting her of exactly what she’d done, wouldn’t she have tried to find out what was going on? “You know what? We’ve all made mistakes, but as far as I’m concerned, it’s in the past. Is that okay with you? Can we leave it in the past?”
They relaxed, visibly relieved. “We sure will, if you will,” answered Owen.
“Good. Then it’s in the past and won’t be mentioned again.” She gave them a coquettish look. “Now about the box…”
“Right. The box. But before you open it, we need you to answer one last question.”
Was Owen dragging her torture out on purpose? She looked from Owen to Ryce, amazed at how much her world had changed. When she’d come to Pleasure, she’d been determined to lie and deceive to save her sister. Yet, in doing so, she’d managed to find the men of her dreams.
“Go ahead, Owen. You’re doing fine so far.”
“Okay, I will.” He cleared his throat. “Do you love us, Jewel?”
He jerked back at the sight of fresh tears welling in her eyes.
She laughed and pressed her palm to his chest. Like Ryce, he was strong, virile and everything a woman could hope for in a man. But he didn’t have any defenses against her tears. “It’s okay. These are good tears. And yes. I love you and Ryce more than I can ever say.”
“I think you just did.” Owen laughed. “But there’s another question we need answered.”
“Hey”—she feigned a petulant look—“you said one question.”
“Deal with it, sub,” joked Ryce. He nodded at the box, telling her to open it. As she lifted the lid, then stared at what was inside, he asked, “Will you be our permanent sub? We want you and no other woman from now on.”
The white collar that held a single diamond in the middle of it was the prettiest thing she’d ever seen. “Oh, wow. It’s so perfect.”
“You only have to wear it inside the club and not even then if you don’t want to. We’ll make an official announcement, but wearing it will show everyone that you’re our sub and only ours.”
Did she want to wear a collar? She thought so, but she’d have to see. And yet, refusing them anything wasn’t possible. “Would you put it on me, please? I love it and I want everyone to know that I’m yours.”
Ryce did the honors, fastening it behind her neck. The leather was padded with a thin layer of soft cloth. She brought her fingers up to feel it circling her neck.
“There’s one more thing we need to ask you.”
She laughed, then pushed playfully against Ryce’s shoulder. “You guys just keep adding more questions. When is it going to end?”
Owen twisted around and dug into the drawer of the other nightstand. When he turned back around and opened the small black box, once again, tears sprang to her eyes. “I swear I don’t normally cry this much.”
“As long as they’re good tears, it’s okay.” Owen flipped open the box. “Jewel, darlin’, will you be not only our sub, but our wife?”
She would’ve sworn her heart skipped a beat when he took the glittering diamond ring out of the box and started to place it on her fourth finger. She yanked her hand away. “Wait a minute.” Casting her gaze down and wiping the smile from her face was difficult, but she managed it. “There’s one more secret I have to tell you.”
Owen and Ryce stared at her. “What is it?” Ryce’s voice was strained.
Keeping the pretense was impossible a second longer. Instead, she held out her hand and quipped, “Just kidding. I had to get in one last trick, right? Yes, of course, I’ll marry you. Both of you.”
“Woman, you about gave me a heart attack.”
“Yeah.” Ryce had never looked so relieved. “I think our little trickster deserves a spanking. And no more tricks.”
“All right. No more tricks.” She held out her hand and admired her engagement ring. “But can I still have the spanking?”
They were on top of her before she finished the sentence.
Epilogue
Jewel had never felt so nervous. She stood in the same hallway where she’d spent so much time slinking back and forth from the supply room to hide her cell phone.
That had been a week earlier and since then, Wilburt had come through with his end of their bargain. Owen and Ryce had taken the video of Wilburt and locked it securely away in the safe deposit box in Paul’s home, keeping it just in case the less-than-trustworthy Wilburt tried to pull a fast one and put it out later once they’d lowered their guard. As far as she could find out, Wilburt had taken an impromptu vacation and left his business in the hands of his assistant. She doubted he’d give up Exposed because of what had happened, but at least he seemed to be laying low for a while. In any case, he was out of their lives for good.
She’d stayed away from the club, instead, living another week at the bed and breakfast while scouring the surrounding area for land where she and her men would build their dream home. She still had to move out of her apartment and make sure Jacee was all right and ready to resume her college career, but that would come after she moved into the Casing’s main home. Paul and Destin, along with the love of their lives, Georgia, had welcomed her with open arms, forgiving her for what she’d done. At least once she moved in with them, she’d be able to see Owen and Ryce more often.
Yet the biggest hurtle still remained. She wanted to return to work at the club, but before she could do so, she had to apologize to the members and the employees. If they forgave her, Paul said she could come back. She turned to see her men along with Paul, Destin, and Georgia come in the back door.
“Are you ready?” Owen slipped his arms around her.
She smiled, even though the smile was a bit unsteady, and took a de
ep breath. “Ready as I’ll ever be.”
Paul tilted his head toward the main room. “Might as well get it over with.”
She nodded, then started down the hallway. Was this how death row inmates felt? She wasn’t going to die, of course, but if the others didn’t forgive her and accept her back into the club, it could mean the death of the life she and her men had talked about every day for the past week. Life and work at the club, not to mention the friendly people of Pleasure, Texas, had a lot to do with which parcel of land they’d end up purchasing. If she wasn’t welcomed back, Owen and Ryce had already said they’d rather move than stay where they were no longer welcomed.
Where she was no longer welcomed was the truth of it.
The crowd was large, as it always was on a Saturday night, with a throng of people dancing so closely together that it was difficult to tell who was dancing as a couple or who was doing their own thing. Sexual play surrounded her, mixing the fragrances of lust, sweat, and alcohol into the air. Yet as involved as everyone was, they started to notice her as she kept her head high and made her way onstage. Owen and Ryce followed, while the Casing men and Georgia stayed at the side. The band ended the song, then backed up, giving her room enough to take the lead singer’s microphone.
Shaking a little, she turned to her men, and at once, felt better. As long as they supported her, she could handle anything that came her way.
She cleared her throat, then stepped up to the mic. “Hi, everyone.”
The ensuing silence didn’t give her much hope. And yet, as she gazed over the sea of faces, she saw that very few of them looked angry.
“In case there’s anyone who doesn’t know me, I’m Jewel Jackson. I work”—she froze, then started again—“I mean, I worked as a waitress for about two weeks. During that time, I lied and deceived you.”
Again, she paused and was struck by the silence. Was silence golden? Or was it only the calm before the storm?
“Anyway, I had my reasons for sneaking around and taking cell phone pictures of people, um, enjoying themselves. That doesn’t excuse what I did, but I hope it explains it. I wouldn’t have done it if I’d had any other choice.” She looked at her men again. “At least, I didn’t think I had any other way out of an awful situation, until Owen and Ryce came to my rescue.”
“But the real credit goes to Jewel,” added Owen. “She was the one who stood up to the man who was trying to blackmail her and her sister.”
A murmur arose, but she couldn’t understand anything they said. “Someone I love was being blackmailed and was forcing me to get those pictures. But you don’t have to worry. The pictures, every last one of them, have been deleted.”
“Who are you, really? We feel like we don’t even know you.”
Her gaze met Belinda’s. “I didn’t lie about my name or what little I told you about myself. But now that I’ve found my Doms, I can truthfully say that the girl who walked into the club and asked for a job, the girl who tricked all of you, is gone.” She bowed her head and searched for the right words to say. “I’m learning what it’s like to be a submissive and, if you’ll have me, I’d like to stay on and keep learning. I’ve fallen in love with Owen and Ryce and I’m praying my bad judgment won’t make them lose the club they love.”
She jerked her head up as Ryce slipped her white collar around her neck. He kissed her cheek, then stepped away. She fingered the leather and the soft material next to her skin. Only the diamond ring on her finger felt as good.
Bringing her gaze back to the people who held her fate in their hands, she asked as simply as she could. “I’m hoping you can forgive me. Whether you let me stay on and work here is another matter, but your forgiveness will mean more than I can say.”
The murmur began again with people turning to their neighbors. For a moment, she wondered if she should leave the stage or wait on their decision.
“She did it for me.”
Just like everyone else’s, Jewel’s attention jumped to the door leading into the reception area. “Jacee? What are you doing here?”
Her sister, looking younger than her eighteen years, walked toward her as the crowd parted, giving her a path. “A couple of men named Owen and Ryce gave me a call and told me what happened. And it’s all because of me.” Jacee gazed over the crowd. “You should blame me, not my big sister.”
Even what she’d said earlier over the phone wasn’t as sweet. Jewel opened her arms as her baby sister came on stage and brought her into a hug.
“Still, what are you doing here? Why aren’t you at college?”
Jacee rolled her blue eyes, then leaned away when Jewel tried to brush the hair away from her face. “I’m not sure college is my kind of thing.” She made a show of checking out the room and especially the partially clothed members. “This looks way more interesting.”
Oh, hell. Here comes trouble.
“We hope you don’t mind that we called her, baby.” Ryce slid his arm around her. “We figured you could use all the support you could get.”
“Yeah. Besides, once we told her how much you wanted to come back to the club, she wouldn’t stay put like we told her,” added Owen.
“It’s okay.” She ignored her sister’s groans and hugged her again. “I’m glad you’re here. I’ve got a lot to tell you.” She turned her loose and faced the group again, needing to have an answer. “I don’t want to push, but it’s killing me. Can you forgive me?”
They crowd seemed to come together at first, then broke apart. Belinda walked over to Paul and whispered in his ear. She shifted from one foot to the other, knowing he’d let her know their decision.
Paul nodded, but didn’t give anything away with his expression. “Jewel, is that it? All the lies and tricks are over with? Can you promise us that?”
“I swear. I’m done. Never again.”
“In that case, we’ll expect you to take tomorrow’s shift. And, oh yeah. One last thing.”
“Anything. Just say it.”
“Leave your cell phone in your car.”
The crowd broke into cheers and grins. She couldn’t hold back, laughing then hugging her sister, then taking her men into her opened arms.
“Come on, darlin’.” Owen grabbed her hand and led the way off the stage. “We’ve got another acreage to show you.”
Ryce patted her on the bottom, then skirted ahead of them. “We think this is the one. Forty acres with an older home we can use until ours gets built.”
It wasn’t until they’d made it to the entrance of the hallway that she finally turned back to her sister. “Jacee, come with us.”
Her sister still stood on the stage, watching as the fun times started again. Her blue eyes were big, her expression lighting up her face.
“Jacee? Did you hear me?”
At last, her sister blinked and faced her. “Oh. Um, no thanks. I’d rather stay here.”
“Oh, hell, no.” Yet as she started back toward her sister, Ryce snagged her arm and held her back.
“Don’t worry, baby. Remember what we said? Let her go.”
Owen shrugged. “Besides, we already talked to Paul. He and Georgia will watch over her.”
She laughed, then let him lead her away. “Okay, but it she gets into any trouble, I’m blaming you.”
They burst out into the air that had turned chilly overnight. Ryce lifted her up and spun her around. “Sure. Go ahead. Just don’t try and trick us into thinking nothing’s wrong.”
Again, she laughed, the joy she’d found with her two cowboy Doms making her feel alive. She’d have time enough to talk to Jacee about college and, if she couldn’t get her to go back to school, she’d figure it out. With the help of her two Doms, of course. For now, Jacee was safe and all she wanted was time alone with her men.
THE END
WWW.JANEJAMISON.COM
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Jane Jamison has always liked “weird stuff” as her mother called it. From an early age she was fascinated with stories about were
wolves, vampires, space, aliens, and whatever was hiding in her bedroom closet. To this day, she still swears she can hear growls and moans whenever the lights are out.
Being born under the sign of Scorpio meant Jane was destined to be very sensual. Some would say she was, and remains, downright sexual. Then one day she put her two favorite things together on paper and found her life’s true ambition—to be an erotic paranormal romance author.
Jane spends at least six days a week locked in her office surrounded by the characters she loves. Every day a new character will knock on the door of her imagination. Her plans include taking care of her loving husband, traveling, and writing at least twelve books a year.
For all titles by Jane Jamison, please visit
www.bookstrand.com/jane-jamison
Siren Publishing, Inc.
www.SirenPublishing.com
