Bound to be Taken (Emergence) (6 page)

“I’ll get that client copy back to you right away, sir,” Cherise stated. She tugged her shirt down. She was lying. And she turned and strutted down the hall as though nothing weird had happened.

Stephanie had to force her arm to lift toward her boss. “The Garwood file you requested, sir.” Her fingers shook, the manila folder quivering as she held as steady as possible.

“Thank you, Stephanie.” Jack took the file from her and smiled warmly. A bit too warmly for her taste. He’d gone from laughing, to sober, to jovial again in only a few seconds. “Do you need to come in and explain any particulars to me?” He raised an eyebrow.

“No. I mean it’s all self-explanatory, sir. The arrangements were smooth.” Why was he inviting her into his office? He never did that. Perhaps he was subtly trying to ensure he won his misplaced bet from yesterday morning.

The idea made her shiver. Fuck him. Had he been flirting with Cherise too? Maybe he and Mr. Reeves had a bet out on everyone in the office.

“Okay, well my door’s always open if you need anything.” He reached out and grazed one finger over her cheek before he turned and went back inside.

What the fuck? She cringed at his retreating back. He’d touched her. How dare he? She swiped her hand over her cheek as though to wipe off his nasty…ick.

Again, fuck. Stephanie turned and slinked back down the hall. It was going to be a long afternoon.

At nine fifty-five Stephanie pushed open the front door of Ameci’s and stepped into the plush interior. Spine rigid, she glanced around the reception area, noting the dark décor. The restaurant was warm and inviting. Mahogany wood tables, deep red wine-colored, leather seat cushions, dim lighting. Very romantic. Each table had candles. The place was more upscale than she’d expected.

“I’m sorry, ma’am, but the kitchen is closed. I’m afraid we stop seating at nine thirty.” The voice came from her right, and she swiveled around to face the polite woman.

“Oh, I’m not here to…uh…eat.”
What the hell are you here for?
Stephanie suddenly thought the most prudent action would be to turn around and hightail her ass out the door.

“Stephanie?” The deep timbre to her left had her swiveling back toward the dining area. Aiden. What a sexy name. It went with his looks. Suited him.

Stephanie’s mouth suddenly felt very dry. “Hi,” she squeaked, glancing away from him. For some reason when she looked him in the eye, or even at his face, she lost all train of thought. She couldn’t believe her body’s reaction to him. Geez, until this afternoon, she’d thought he was gay—not that him being gay had ever kept her from melting in his presence, but somehow it was different now.

“She’s a friend, Tonya. It’s okay.” He spoke over Stephanie’s shoulder to the dark-haired, petite woman who wore a sleek black dress.
She must be the hostess.

“Oh, sure. Okay.” Her voice faded as she backed off.

“Come in. I’ll show you around.” Aiden’s gaze landed on Stephanie’s. He had to stoop and crane his neck a bit to catch her eye, and the wry smile he wore told her he realized how hard she was working to avoid his gaze.

Stephanie followed behind the blond specimen of perfection. He had to be six foot. Compared to her five-five, he towered over her. When he stopped at the bar and spun around she almost collided with him.

Smooth, Steph. So smooth.

“Can I get you a drink? Red or white?” He reached over the bar and grabbed two glasses from a clean rack. When he held them up one in each hand, she realized they were different.

“Oh, it’s kinda late. I better not.”

“You’re here, aren’t you? Seems to me like you could use at least one glass just to take the edge off all the shit we threw at you this afternoon,” he teased.

“That’s for sure. Sorry about—”

“Don’t even worry about it. Women run screaming from our apartment all the time.”

She jerked her gaze to him and gasped.

The teasing lilt in his eyes relaxed her shoulders a few inches though. “I believe you’re right.” She nodded at his right hand. “I’ll have red. Thank you.”

“Good choice. I have a splendid Merlot open.” He reached with his long arm and leaned halfway over the counter to grab the bottle and another wide-rimmed glass.

After pouring a generous amount in each, he handed her one and nodded toward the back of the restaurant.

Stephanie took a long gulp right away, following on his heels. The wine would surely settle her nerves. “The place is lovely.”

“Thanks.” He winked at her when he turned. Walking backward, he pointed out the seating area and the bar. “You’ve seen the dining section and the wining section.” He chuckled. “The kitchen is back here.” With one shoulder, he shrugged behind him. In one hand he held the glass he’d poured for himself. In the other, he held the bottle.

“It’s very…romantic.” She sighed as she looked around. “Perfect.”

“Glad you like it. We’re proud, and it’s done so well. Good neighborhood.” He nodded toward a table. “Sit. Can I get you something to eat? I’m sure Dane can whip up something quick.”

She shook her head. “No, no. I ate. I just wanted to…um…stop by…and see the place.” She bit her tongue.

“I’ll tell Dane you’re out here. I’d take you into the kitchen, but I’m betting the floors are wet. If you slipped and we caused any more harm to you today, you’d begin to think we were trying to kill you.” His grin warmed his entire face.

His lips mesmerized her. She wondered what they would feel like against hers.

When he turned toward the kitchen, she admired his ass. His expensive suit was tailor made to fit his frame. She gulped another drink of wine. It would take more than one glass to get her to loosen up. Geez. She’d been ogling these two men for months. Now today her pussy was creaming and a damn ache had formed between her legs, starting about the time she walked away from their apartment.

Before today, they were eye candy and no threat to you. This afternoon they ceased being
gay
eye candy and switched to bisexual
real
candy.
Ugh. She was in so much trouble. Just the idea of these two men fucking her and each other made her squirm.

What the hell is wrong with me?
She’d never once considered such a liaison. But the entire afternoon after she’d convinced herself to “go for it” so to speak, she’d still had trouble concentrating on the work covering her desk. Visions of what these men needed from her sparked more than her curiosity.

She was scared, of course, and reserved the right to back out of the restaurant without looking over her shoulder if need be, but she could at least hear them out. And she needed them, well one of them, badly for Saturday.

Stephanie’s hand shook so much she nearly sloshed wine out of the wide glass when Aiden returned, Dane at his side.

Dane pulled a starched apron over his head and he tossed it on a chair as he approached. He wore the equally starched white shirt and black pants she always saw him in. Somehow he managed to stay perfectly clean in the kitchen. His sleeves were rolled up to his elbows, but there wasn’t a spot on him.

Her gaze wandered from his waist, up his pecs, and landed on his face. The mass of dark hair hanging across one side of his forehead begged her to run her fingers through it.

Stephanie shook the image from her head. Two men. She ogled both of them as though she were going to engage in an orgy. Was a threesome an orgy? Geez.

“Hey,” Dane murmured as he pulled out a chair. “I’m glad you came by.” He sat gingerly, as though if he kept his voice low and his movements to a minimum, he wouldn’t scare her off.

“Yeah. Sorry I ran out of your place earlier like I was on fire.”

“Well, technically, you sort of were. After all, I did spill scalding coffee on you.” Aiden smiled.

“True.” She loosened up a little with the light banter, but still took another sip of the wine to fortify herself. It was so smooth. Obviously expensive. She could easily polish off the bottle if she wasn’t careful. And if Aiden wasn’t sharing. “This is delicious.” She set the glass back down on the table, watching her hand to make sure she wasn’t shaking.

Dane glanced at the bottle and then casually reached for the glass in front of Aiden. He swirled the wine, held it up and then took a sip. “It’s one of my favorites. Good choice, Aid.”

Stephanie nearly moaned when Dane set the glass back in front of Aiden. Why was it so sexy that they’d shared the wine? Effortlessly, as though they did it every day. She had a strong urge to take a sip from the same glass herself, just to join the club.

Neither man made a move to grab another glass. Stephanie squeezed her legs together when Aiden took another drink and then handed it to Dane.
Fuck
, that was hot. The temperature in the restaurant ratcheted up.

Aiden leaned on his elbows. “We didn’t mean to scare you off earlier. We just didn’t want to mislead you. It didn’t seem fair. I’m so glad you came by.” He leaned closer, his face inches from hers across the cozy table.

“It’s not altogether altruistic.” She shrugged. “I’m desperate.”

“Why’s that?” Dane leaned forward, mimicking Aiden. “I can’t imagine you being hard up to find a date.” He looked perplexed.

“Aren’t you sweet.” She rolled her eyes. “I hardly put myself out there.”

“There must be a story to go with that.” Aiden reached for the bottle of wine and topped both their glasses off.

Oh, not good. When she drank that way, she never knew how much actually got imbibed. She did have to work tomorrow as though it were two days instead of one.

“Maybe…” She zipped her lips. No way was she going to divulge so much about her past right here, right now. She barely knew these guys. “I just came by to tell you I’ve reconsidered. You have a deal.” There, she’d spit it all out.

Dane chuckled. “A trade? We get you Friday and you get one of us Saturday?”

“Yep.”
Stay strong.

Both men smiled broadly. “Fantastic,” they said in unison.

“How long have you two known each other?” They sounded like brothers, or twins.

“We’ve been living together three years. We do have a tendency to sound like an old married couple.” Aiden winked.

They were so enticing, like those gay friends everyone has but wishes they could sleep with. Only difference was, these gay friends swung both ways. That made them considerably less safe.

Dane cleared his throat and leaned closer toward her. “There are a few details you need to know before you consent. It’s not quite as simple as just heading out the door with us Friday night. We need to…uh…act the part, so to speak.”

Don’t run. Listen to him.

She could smell his personal scent mixed with whatever aftershave he wore. She wanted to close the gap and lean her head into the crook of his neck. But she needed to pay attention. Her physical reaction to these guys was ridiculous considering what they might be asking of her.

“What exactly do you have in mind?”

“Well, we need to get you some appropriate clothes. It’s a fetish bar. We can’t get in the door in regular street clothes.” Aiden took a drink of his wine. His hand shook a bit as he set the glass back down. “And it would help if we taught you some of the tricks of the trade, so you fit in and aren’t shocked and overwhelmed. Have you ever been to a BDSM club or a fetish party?” He swallowed. She watched his throat as his Adam’s apple bobbed up and down.

“No,” she mumbled. She didn’t even breathe.

Dane took the glass from Aiden and fortified himself also. At least that’s how she saw it. Drink. Speak. Drink. Speak. “We’ve only been involved in this lifestyle about six months. Got introduced by a friend. But we love it. The sex is awesome.”

Stephanie felt her face flush. Was she ready to talk to these men about sex? Watching these two men interact with each other fascinated her. It was so erotic. Subtle, but sexy. Hell, they weren’t really doing anything but sharing a glass. Something about the way they leaned into one another…brushed their arms against each other… She wanted that closeness.

She licked her lips and then shook her head to clear her mind.
Stop it. You don’t want any such thing.

Aiden spoke next. “What he means is, role playing can be very arousing. We’ve been taking turns being the top or the bottom, more or less. But we haven’t had the opportunity to engage in the lifestyle with a female partner yet.”

“Why?”
Shut up.

Aiden continued, “We haven’t found the right woman. Someone we’re both attracted to who’s strong on the outside, but submissive in the bedroom.” He stared directly into her eyes.
Me?

Her face seemed to be on fire now. Were they attracted to
her
?
No, you dimwit. This is a business deal. Nothing else.
And thank God, because there was no way she could keep her head on straight if she were faced with this much testosterone on a regular basis.

“Right, of course. It would be tough to find someone to fit those…parameters.”

Both men just smiled at her, as though there were an inside joke she wasn’t privy to.

“So what do you need me to do?”
And why do I suddenly feel like I would do anything for both of you?