And Dillon seemed hell-bent on rewriting history, a history where he came out the victim instead of one of the people who’d had a hand in Isabel’s death.
“Stop thinking about her,” Vince warned in weary tone as if he only knew Nolan was stuck in the past because he was replaying a nightmare reel as well. “Nothing we do or say will bring her back.”
“Yeah. I know. Are we making the same mistake? Penny isn’t like Isabel but she’s fragile, too.”
“We’re not making the same mistake,” Vince assured him. “Penny knew the stakes when she signed on the dotted line. We never played with her heart, ever. We can’t say the same for Isabel.”
Nolan nodded but still felt like shit. “We need to woo Penny. She’s been through a lot and it’s our faults. We can’t punish her for what happened.”
“She’s in love with Dillon,” Vince said. “What do we do about that?”
Nolan winced. “Do you think it’s love?”
“Did you see how cozy they were playing house? It might not have been real for Dillon but it sure as well was for her. She’s totally in love with him.”
“Damn, you’re right.” Nolan hadn’t wanted to admit it but he’d seen the glow in Penny’s expression right before Dillon had revealed his true nature and she’d been near blissful. It’d been the first time he’d seen her like that and he was certain she’d never looked that way with either of them. The realization twinged a bit but Nolan wasn’t ready to concede defeat just yet. He sat up and a slow smile spread across his face. “The answer to our problem is simple.”
“Yeah?” Vince retorted dryly. “Lay it on me.”
“We need to remind Penny what she loved about us. At one time, she was our girl. It’s time we remind her why.”
Vince returned his brother’s smile as he warmed to the idea. “Are we talking wine and dine, pamper her like a princess and then fuck her raw?” Nolan’s grin was answer enough and Vince’s bad mood began to dissipate. “Hell yeah. I’m on board with that plan. When do we start?”
Nolan fished his phone from his trousers and dialed a florist. “We start now.” He waited a minute and then said to the awaiting florist. “I’d like two dozen fire and ice roses delivered, please. Put on the card, ‘To our darling Penny...all is forgiven...’
Nolan disconnected the call and he and Vince shared a laugh as they jumped from their chairs to prepare for the most epic of all rebounds.
#
When the doorbell rang Penny nearly skittered out of her skin as her hand fluttered to her chest to calm her wildly beating heart. Good God. Her first thought was Dillon and she hated herself for the hopeful leap in her pulse that followed. Stop it, Penny. He’s not coming back for you.
When the florist stood with the most brilliant, breath-taking array of red and white variegated roses, she couldn’t speak for a moment and simply gestured to the table. The florist smiled and placed the flowers on the table, saying, “Someone thinks you’re special. These are very hard to come by. And very expensive,” she added with a wink.
Penny nodded but she couldn’t get her throat to work. Could the flowers be from Dillon? Flowers didn’t seem his style but then, she didn’t really know his true style as he’d likely been playing a part the whole time he’d been with her. Tears stung her eyes fresh and she ripped open the card, half-hoping they were from Dillon so she could shred the card into a million pieces. But when she read that the exquisite flowers were from Vince and Nolan, she broke down completely. Damn it, why couldn’t Dillon care? She sobbed into her arms, not sure what to do with herself when she felt so completely lost and alone. Dillon didn’t want her. Plain and simple. But the twins were trying to make amends. She lifted her head and wiped her nose to stare at the blood-red and stark-white blend of roses. Just like the twins to send the very best. She plucked a single rose from the vase and inhaled its sweet scent. Papa, what should I do? She had no right to seek the wisdom of her Papa when she knew full well what he would’ve thought of her arrangement with the twins but she missed his firm voice advising her, helping her choose from right or wrong. It was all wrong but the pleasure was sinful, she sighed unhappily. She was a slave to her body’s needs now that the Buchanans had awakened that sleeping part of her. She deserved punishment for how she’d grievously betrayed the twins when they’d been so good to her. Vince was the best at exacting the most mind-blowing pleasure from carefully orchestrated pain. Nolan’s touch was sweet and more giving. She refused to remember how Dillon’s touch had made her forget that anyone else had ever known her body but the memory singed her thoughts.
“Strip for me, Penny.”
Penny squeezed her eyes shut at the recollection of Dillon’s bold instruction but she could still see the burn in his gaze that heated her insides with one smoldering glance. Her thighs trembled in memory, her core melted and ran with sweet liquid, and she knew that if Dillon were to show up this very second, she’d shamefully allow him to fuck her again and again. God, when did she become so weak? She’d never known what she’d been missing back in the days when she’d been the forgotten, chubby accountant at Buchanan Enterprises because she could count the number of dates she’d been asked out on with her hand. Her papa had warned her to guard her treasure — well, she’d guarded it so well, men had stopped looking. Until the Buchanan brothers that is.
She sighed. Dillon wasn’t coming back to her. Was it possible to go back to the way it was with the twins? They’d forgiven her but would there always be this terrible thing between them? Squatting like a fat, ugly toad making its presence known with a guttural croak each time they tried to forget and move on? Could they truly forgive her for allowing their hated older brother not only get inside her body, but her head?
And heart.
Penny groaned and pushed herself away from the table and those gorgeous roses that she didn’t deserve. She didn’t know what to think any more and she didn’t want to feel either. She wanted to drift into a black sea of nothingness and remain there until Dillon Buchanan was a distant memory.
If only that were possible.
-12-
“Dillon? Did you hear what I just said?”
Dillon’s attention snapped to the lawyer he’d hired to set his affairs back to rights after his brothers had tried to wipe him from his granddad’s will and forced himself to get back to the business at hand. He’d been thinking of Penny again and how he wished he’d handled things a little differently, possibly less hurtful to her. The point had been to screw with his brothers, not necessarily hurt Penny. Once he’d fucked her, he’d accomplished his objective but he hadn’t really considered the collateral damage.
He kept seeing her stricken expression replaying over and over in his mind. He’d give anything to blot out the image so he could get some damn sleep again.
“Yeah, sounds good,” Dillon said with a mild nod, more interested in catching a glimpse of Penny than he was of the dry legalese his lawyer was spitting out. “Thanks.”
The lawyer, a spindly man with a balding pate and a dour expression that rarely changed, looked with distaste at Dillon’s obvious disinterest in whatever he had to say in spite of his diligent work and collected his paperwork. “The original will and trust will be reinstated as soon as the paperwork clears the state offices. Congratulations, Mr. Buchanan. You are once again a wealthy man.” He closed his briefcase with a resounding click and followed with a brief smile.
Dillon cut him a short glance. “I was already a wealthy man. This was not about money; it was the principle.”
“Of course.” He sniffed. “My office will send the closing bill. Good day, Mr. Buchanan. Pleasure doing business with you.”
Dillon watched him leave and returned his attention out the wide glass window, wondering where Penny was and what she was doing. He already knew she hadn’t been at the office — those twin brothers of his probably had her holed up in the apartment while they fretted and fumed about the situation — and it occurred to him that he might p
ay her a visit if he wasn’t sure she wouldn’t lob a candlestick or some other heavy object straight at his head.
God, he’d sure as hell deserved far worse.
He stared for a long moment without seeing any of the glorious view of the city below and he wondered how things might’ve been different if he hadn’t set the wheels of today’s situation in motion all those years ago. He was a different man than the hot-headed young man he’d been but it seemed not by much if one were to judge by his current snit.
He was angry with the twins — no, angry was too gentle of a word, he’d been furious — but it wasn’t only that they’d tried to underhandedly wrench the last tie he had to the Buchanan legacy, it was that they hadn’t even considered picking up the damn phone and talking to him first. They’d taken the pussy way out and tried to muscle a senile old man into doing their dirty work for them. For that alone, they deserved a swift kick in the ass but their comeuppance was long overdue for what they’d done to Isabel.
Vince and Nolan deserved to have their names sullied, their financial future wiped out, and their status downgraded but if they deserved such punishment, he did, too.
Every single day he served penance for what he’d done to Isabel. How were the twins paying their due?
Dillon swiveled away from the window and dropped the file the lawyer had left behind in the drawer beside him and for the first time felt uncertain as to what his next move should be.
The next phase of his plan was ready. He had the power to destroy his brothers but whereas before he’d been single-mindedly focused on his goal, now he found himself hesitating. It was all Penny’s fault. Before she came along, he would’ve had no trouble following through with his agenda.
Before Penny, nothing could’ve shaken his focus.
A long exhale escaped his chest as he gave into the memory of losing himself in her plump, soft body. Penny embodied feminine grace with her rounded curves and billowing breasts, though she didn’t have an ounce of self-awareness, which only sweetened that vulnerable part about her that he seemed to have caught a vicious craving for. He could very well lose his mind replaying every touch of her fingertips or slide of her mouth; every sigh and moan that slipped from her parted lips as he pleasured her until she cried and quaked beneath him. He’d never been so consumed by one person and the feeling alternately frightened the shit out of him and drove him to do something reckless — such as try and see her.
Step away from the crazy juice, he warned himself. Seeing Penny was the worst thing he could do and he was clearly off his game for even allowing the thought to cross his mental threshold.
The world was filled with pretty, curvy women — hell, he could spend some time in Brazil and find a handful of women to bury himself in who were nothing but tits and ass — he didn’t need to obsess on the one woman whom was the worst fit for him.
He scoffed at the idea of inserting Penny into his world. What a nightmare that would be. He wasn’t the kind of man who believed in commitment and Penny, in spite of her cockamamie agreement with his brothers, wanted a man to love her and only her. Plus, he traveled in debauched circles that would likely curl her sweet hair into knots. The parties, the orgies...he couldn’t even imagine exposing Penny to such a filthy lifestyle. She deserved better. That was the bottom line and it didn’t matter how he danced around it or tried to turn it into something that it wasn’t...the fact remain clear: Penny deserved more than being relegated to someone’s fuck buddy.
She deserved far more than any of the Buchanan brothers could provide.
At least he knew that.
If only he could convince his brothers to turn her loose.
And if by some miracle they agreed...would she want to leave?
#
Penny tried not to fidget but her nerves had gotten the best of her. The twins had requested her presence at the main house — the last time she’d been there, her life had been irrevocably changed. Some might argue, not for the best — and the butterflies in her stomach were presently doing aerials and loop-de-loos, which made being still difficult.
Vince and Nolan appeared looking devastatingly handsome as always in their casual yet finely-tailored clothing and Penny was struck by how alike all three brothers were in looks yet vastly different in temperament. She had no idea what to expect but as both welcomed her with warm, adoring smiles, she swallowed and allowed a tremulous smile in return. “You wanted to see me?” she asked, twisting her fingers behind her back until Nolan gently pulled her toward them.
“Penny, the last few days have been a nightmare for everyone. We thought in order to start fresh we need to wipe the slate clean and how better to do that than where it all began?” Vince grinned and his gaze flicked to the ornate carpet of the library and her cheeks colored at the memory of what had happened there. Nolan drew her clasped hands to his lips and pressed a sweet kiss on the tops, smiling sensually. “One of our most treasured memories is when we accepted the gift of your body — and your virginity — to us right here in this room. Although some might try to convince you otherwise, what happened between us wasn’t some tawdry exchange; it was beautiful. Our brother, Dillon, has made you believe that we’re monsters who only use people for their own purpose but Penny, ask yourself this...have we ever made you feel less than anything but a treasure? We have gladly lavished you with the finest things and if there’s anything you want, you have but to ask and we’d happily procure it for you. All we ask in return is your loyalty.”
Penny nodded but felt something stuck in her throat. They were being so sweet, so loving. How could she be sure about her true feelings if they were always so accommodating? Shouldn’t they hate her? She’d promised to be true and then had leapt into bed with Dillon. Oh God. She was the worst sort of tramp there was. “I’m sorry,” she murmured with a mournful shake of her head. “I’ve betrayed your trust in the worst way.” What else could she offer but the truth? “I wouldn’t blame you if you never wanted to see me again.”
“Penny, you sweet little goose...we adore you. We aren’t ready to turn you loose,” Nolan said, drawing her to the chaise and sitting beside her. Vince joined them on her other side. Both brothers flanked her, the warm, sharp scent of their cologne beckoned with seductive promise and as wretched as she felt inside, she wondered if it were possible to go back to the way they were before. There’d been a time when she would’ve done anything to be in their peripheral much less in their direct line of sight. Before Dillon, that is.
Vince’s touch on her shoulders made her jump and he tsked at her reaction, “So tense, lover. Relax. Let us remind you what you adored about belonging to us.” She closed her eyes as his touch worked out the knots in her shoulders and she relaxed bit by bit against his firm hands. Vince always knew how to work her body, whether it was bent over his knee as he paddled her behind to a warm rosy red, causing her to buck against the pain, or teasing her nipples with fingers and tongue as he readied her for his cock. “Tell us what you want and we’ll give it to you,” he murmured against the sensitive shell of her ear, his breath teasing and warm. “We’ve missed our little plump peach and the feel of her body against ours. All that’s happened before this moment is forgiven. We know you didn’t mean to hurt us. Dillon is a master manipulator and we were fools to underestimate him with our most treasured possession. Forgive us, please,” Vince finished, his voice a silken slide against her nerve endings as he followed with a slow crawl of his lips against the column of her neck. “Show us that we’re still in your heart...” His hand crept to her blouse and delved inside, popping tiny buttons and sending mother-of-pearl scattering to the floor. Her breath hitched in her throat and her mind fuzzed as a part of her wanted to stop because it felt as if she were cheating against Dillon but the other part of her, the wounded, and broken-hearted part of her, reminded her sharply that Dillon had played with her emotions like a cat with a string and thus, he didn’t deserve her loyalty. The twins, on the other hand, had done nothing but treat her as
they’d promised. Her head fell back and she allowed the twins to ease her down against the plush softness of the chaise. Before long, her breasts were spilling free from her bra and Nolan and Vince were feasting on her nipples, sucking her areolas deep into their greedy mouths like hungry babies and she lost herself to the sensation of being willingly devoured.
“We’ve missed you,” Nolan said against her skin while his hand snaked down her belly to unzip her jeans. He stopped long enough to pull her jeans from her legs as well as rip her panties away. She gasped at the forcefulness but Nolan, the more intuitive of the two, must’ve known her thoughts were as knotted as her shoulders for he moved swiftly to the soft apex of her thighs and gently pushed her legs apart, eager to taste her sweet flesh. Oh God...Nolan’s clever tongue delved deep, seeking and finding that hot, pulsing nub of nerve endings that swelled in ready response to his ardent attention. Vince swallowed her gasp as his tongue invaded her mouth just as Nolan’s penetrated her feminine folds. Each were taking turns ravaging her, both in mind and spirit, as her thoughts tumbled from the carnal to blissful nothingness, she pushed all memory of Dillon from her heart and gave herself to the sensation of being owned by her two Buchanan brothers.
“We’ve missed you, darling,” Nolan murmured, nuzzling her damp flesh as he tenderly licked and sucked at the swollen skin until he had her panting and twisting unable to take the sweet torture. “You’re so responsive...so sweet. I could remain between your legs for a lifetime...”
“Don’t be so greedy, brother,” Vince growled at Nolan, growing impatient. “You’re not the only one who has missed their pet.”
Nolan smiled wickedly and buried his face into her hot core, lapping and teasing her clitoris until she was sobbing against raised arm, shuddering as she nearly blacked out from the pleasure. “Please...I can’t take it anymore,” she begged for release, needing that ultimate cataclysm to send her hurtling into oblivion. “Oh God!”
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