Game On (Entwined Hearts) (10 page)

“I don’t want anyone disturbing us.” She went around her desk and sat, keenly aware of the image she was presenting.

My world. My rules.

The two men glanced at each other before focusing on her.

Jake was the next to speak. “So that’s it? One date and you’ve decided?”

Hunter glanced at him. “One date might have been enough.” He smirked. “What can I say—I’ve got the magic touch.”

Angela put up her hand, stalling the argument. The butterflies in her stomach spiraled up to hurricane levels. “First, I love you both. I do.” She smiled at each man in turn. “And I appreciate that you gave me this time to set my mind right. After Eric—” The name caught in her throat. “After Eric, I wasn’t sure if I’d be able to get it together again, open my heart to anyone. Finding the two of you here was scary and amazing at the same time.” She entwined her fingers, pressing them hard together. “After being played for a fool by Eric, I wasn’t sure about what I wanted, what I needed out of my life. Out of being home here, in Glen Barrow.” Angela glanced up at the framed diplomas on her wall, her qualifications out in the open for all to see. “I started this business and I love it. I love being here, at home, with the people who need and appreciate me and my legal skills.”

Both men nodded in turn, keeping silent.

Waiting.

Angela heard her pulse pounding in her ears, loud and demanding.

“Last night I thought a good long time about what I want out of a relationship. What I need to make me happy.” She forced herself to speak slowly and carefully, afraid of racing through her rehearsed speech. “And I figured it out.”

Both Jake and Hunter leaned in, hanging on each word.

“What I want, what I need”—she looked at each man in turn—“is you.”

Silence filled the office.

Hunter blinked rapidly, processing the words.

Jake frowned, his lips pressed into a tight line.

She crossed her arms and waited.

Jake was the first to speak. He jabbed a thumb at the man beside him. “‘You’ me or ‘you’ him?”

Angela held her breath for a second before replying. “Both of you.”

“I don’t—” Jake glanced at Hunter before looking at her. “I don’t understand.”

“I do.” Hunter chewed on his lower lip. “Are you sure about this? Is this really what you want?”

“Yes.” Angela spoke quickly, afraid her nerve would desert her. “I can’t choose between you, and I don’t want to. For the first time in my life, I want to do something different, be someone different. I don’t want to go backwards to how it was when I was dating you.” She looked at Hunter. “Or you.” She locked eyes with Jake. “I don’t want to go back to what I had with each of you. I want to move forward. Together. With both of you.”

“A three-way.” Jake leaned back in his chair. “A ménage.” He laughed at Hunter’s surprised look. “What? You don’t think I know about these things?” He tapped his chest. “I’m on the Internet.”

The mild protest had them all smiling.

The tension in the room lessened a fraction, enough to ease Angela’s fears.

She stayed silent, letting the idea sink in.

Jake looked at the floor and rubbed his boots together, dislodging a clump of mud from one sole.

Hunter scratched under his chin and studied the ceiling tiles.

Angela had nothing left to say, so she didn’t.

“Okay.” Hunter stood up. “I don’t know if this will work or not, but I’ll be damned if I’m going to be the one to disappoint you.” He glanced at Jake.

Jake scrubbed his hand through his short brown hair and shook his head.

Angela’s heart sank.

“This—” He stopped, his gaze on the floor. “This has got to be the craziest thing you’ve ever asked me.” He looked up and locked his green eyes with hers. “Or him, I’m assuming.”

Hunter nodded.

“But I’m willing to give it a shot.” Jake rose. “Because I love you and if this is what you want to try, then I’m in.” He smirked. “So to speak.”

Hunter rubbed the palms of his hands on his jeans. “Where and when do you want to do this?”

Emboldened by their responses, Angela spoke. “I’ve booked a room at the Touchstone Hotel for this Saturday night. Can you both make it?”

Jake frowned, and she saw the mental calculations working behind his eyes, the distant look. “I can switch shifts with Phil. He owes me for when his daughter was born a few months ago, no problem there.”

Hunter looked at Angela. “No games this weekend. And no meetings I can’t either reschedule or skip out on altogether.” He shook his head. “I didn’t think you could surprise me anymore. Guess I was wrong.”

She felt the heat on her face. “You asked me about a woman’s greatest fantasy. Now you know.”

Hunter let out a sharp laugh. “Got me there.” He went to the door and flipped the sign over. “Okay, then. Saturday night.”

“Yep.” He smirked, easing Angela’s nerves. “Let’s see if the coach remembers his playbook or if he needs to be replaced before the first tip-off.”

Hunter raised an eyebrow, signaling his willingness to play along. “At least I’m not second string, warming the bench while the big boys get on the court.” He tapped his chest. “We’ll see who gets more play time and who hits the showers early.”

“Out.” Angela stood up, her stomach still churning. She let out a nervous laugh, giddy with the success of her proposition. She shooed them both out, hands waving in the air. “Both of you. I’ll see you Saturday.”

“Hell yeah.” Hunter blew her a kiss and unlocked the door before walking out.

Jake hesitated, holding back until Hunter was out of sight. “I’ll be there. But don’t forget you can call this off at any time. Anytime,” he repeated, mimicking putting a phone to his ear. “Saturday morning, afternoon, evening, at any point. Be there because you want to be there, not because you believe you owe it to us.”

“I won’t.” She smiled, her eyes brimming with tears. “Now, get out before Hunter comes back and picks a fight.”

“As you wish.” He went to the door and smiled, too. “You’re still full of surprises, Angela Kenzie. Never change.”

And he was gone.

The door shut behind him, sealing Angela in her office.

She let out a whoosh of air and leaned back in her chair, her heart racing.

What have I done?

I’m not sure,
she answered herself,
but it sure as hell is going to be one interesting night.

Jake caught up with Hunter before he made it to his car.

Hunter spun around, obviously anticipating Jake’s approach. He leaned back on the Charger and waited.

“You okay with this?” Jake kept his voice down.

Hunter gave a loud snort. “Hell no. I was hoping this meeting was for her to kick you to the curb. But Angie’s always chosen her own path.”

“That’s true.” Jake crossed his arms and moved beside him as they both looked back at the law office. “One time, she faced down a bunch of drunk frat boys. Cornered her and a few girlfriends out on the grounds, made crude remarks about what they were going to do.” Jake shook his head. “I only heard about it afterwards from a friend.”

“What did she do?”

“Read them the riot act. Included each possible infraction of the rules and threatened to drag them not only through the courts but through the papers, too, until they had as much of a chance of graduating as they did of growing wings and flying away.”

“And they left?”

“Nah. They were drunk and horny and didn’t give a crap about anything she was saying.” Jake let out a sharp laugh. “So she kicked one of them in the nuts, and all the girls ran. The boys were too busy helping their buddy to go after her.”

Hunter snickered. “Yeah. She’s a handful.” He looked at Jake. “So we’re going to try this?”

“At least for one night.” Jake rolled his shoulders back. “I don’t know about you, but I want her to be happy. Maybe this’ll work for her, maybe it won’t. But I’m curious to see how it all works out.”

“Me, too.” Hunter eyed him. “Maybe you should follow my lead. I know what she likes.”

Jake levered himself off the car with another laugh. “So do I, Coach. So do I.”

A few days later, Jake sat at his office desk, typing as fast as he could. It was almost noon on Saturday, and he wasn’t in a mood to waste time.

His phone rang.

Jake looked at the text message.

Don’t forget. Touchstone Hotel. 8 p.m.

Short and sweet.

Classic Angie.

He sent back a smiling-face emoji and nothing else.

“You good?” Grace walked by on the way to the coffee machine.

“Doing great. Finishing off the council report before Phil comes in.”

The dispatcher refilled her mug and moved to stand in front of his desk. “Taking a night off?”

“Switching shifts. Figured I’d cash in the favor before it got stale.” Jake tried to make the shoulder shrug look nonchalant, as if nothing were out of the ordinary.

When everything was.

It was hard to focus on the bland monthly report, detailing the small police force’s happenings. In the middle of typing, he had an overwhelming urge to sweep the keyboard off the table and roar like a beast, shout to the rooftops he was going to be with Angela Kenzie tonight for the experience of a lifetime.

If he had anything to do with it.

Hunter’s phone buzzed, bringing him out of a sound sleep. He’d had a restless night, tossing and turning, fuzzy dreams of Angela creeping in and out of his mind.

He couldn’t figure out if he was mad or glad about the situation.

Angela wasn’t the same woman he knew from high school, just as he wasn’t the same man. Her request, while surprising, wasn’t far out of line with his own desires and fantasies. If anyone hadn’t thought about a threesome at some point in their lives, they were either lying or headed for a religious order.

The question was if the three of them would be able to mesh together or dissolve into a fumbling, messy brawl as each man tried to top the other and hog Angela all to himself.

And while he liked Jake, respected Jake, it was going to be interesting to see how he’d react in this situation.

The text message was enough to bring him to full wakefulness.

Don’t forget. Touchstone Hotel. 8 p.m.

Hunter sat up and laughed, tapping the small screen to acknowledge the text.

When Angie said she was going to do something, she did it.

That much hadn’t changed.

He glanced at the clock. It was close to noon.

Plenty of time to get ready to deliver the night of a lifetime to the woman he loved.

He yawned and headed for the shower, mentally drawing up plans for the evening’s entertainment.

There was no way he was going to let Jake Weatherly get ahead of him in this area.

Angela felt her heart race as she approached the hotel, her fingers tightening on the steering wheel. It was a luxury hotel about an hour’s drive out of town, attached to the nearby casino. She’d never been here but had read about it online, the high traffic improving the odds that no one would focus on her or the other two.

She wasn’t sure how open-minded Glen Barrow had become in the past few years, but she wasn’t going to push it.

“Ms. Kenzie.” The beaming clerk slid the card key across the polished counter. “Hope you enjoy your stay with us.”

She smiled and picked up her overnight bag, feeling more confident by the second.

This is my time.

This is what I want.

This is what I need.

She took a long, leisurely shower in the oversize stall, pampering herself with body lotion and perfume before retreating to the bedroom.

It took a few minutes to slip her lingerie on.

It’d been a present to herself, bought months ago on a whim from an online site. She’d resolved to save it for a special occasion, and it’d stayed packed in her storage bags until yesterday.

Now it symbolized her freedom. To be with whom she wanted, when she wanted.

The black lace rubbed against her skin as she slipped the soft white hotel robe back on and opened up the minibar.

She’d already eaten dinner at home, telling her mother she was going out of town to take a client’s deposition and would be back late on Sunday. The cover story would keep gossip at a minimum and allow her a degree of privacy.

Angela plucked out a small bottle of scotch and prepared a drink.

She wasn’t going to get drunk, but she sure as hell could use a bit of a pickup.

Jake closed the trunk of his car and slung his duffel bag up over his shoulder. He looked up at the hotel.

Nice digs.

He flashed back to the encounter in the parking lot and the way Angela had reacted to his touch, arching back against him with unfettered need and want.

The memory shot straight to his groin, and he grunted.

New tricks, Angie.

For all three of us.

He looked around the parking lot, afraid for a second that someone would recognize him. It wouldn’t be illegal for the police chief to go to a hotel, or to a casino, but he was always worried about public opinions.

His inner voice snapped at him as he hesitated again, studying the people walking in and out of the hotel.

Enough. Go to her.

She’s waiting for you.

A second text from Angela an hour ago had given the room number, so he didn’t have to deal with the clerk. Given the busy traffic in and out of the lobby, Jake doubted anyone would have blinked if he’d walked through in a full SWAT team uniform.

He got to the room and knocked.

The door opened to show Hunter standing there, a smile on his face. He was barefoot, wearing only a white dress shirt and khakis.

“You’re ahead of schedule.” He looked at his watch. “It’s only seven fifty-five.”

“You’re worse.” Jake laughed and pushed by him to enter the room. “Doesn’t look good when a man comes too early. Might want to remember that.”

Any further jokes fell off his tongue as he caught sight of Angela.

She stood at the foot of the king-size bed, a white robe wrapped around her. Her cheeks were flushed as she looked at the two men.

Hunter closed the door. “Got here a few minutes ago. Barely long enough to get my socks and shoes off.” He turned and faced Angela. “She’s been waiting for you. Hasn’t moved an inch.”

Jake nodded, searching for words. Her long blond hair was loose on her shoulders, a long strand sneaking in under the front of her robe.

“Call it, Angie,” Jake said in a hoarse voice. He tossed the duffel bag to the side. “We’re at your command.”

He couldn’t think of what else to say.

She smiled, and the simple gesture shot straight to his cock, sending him to full attention in an instant.

“First, you’re both awfully overdressed. Second”—she slowly drew the long belt free of the robe to let it fall open—“I’m not.”

Hunter’s heart felt like it was about to burst out of his chest.

He’d seen Angela naked before.

But this time she wasn’t naked.

And it was sexier than ever.

The black lacy corset hooked up the middle, playing into her ample cleavage. The tiny matching thong hid nothing and yet hid everything, standing out against her fair skin.

She licked her lips and put her hands on her hips, her attention going from one man to the other.

“I’m waiting.”

“Yes, ma’am.” Jake chuckled as he stripped, making short work of his black T-shirt and jeans. He tossed them to the side along with his socks and shoes.

Hunter kept staring at the woman he thought he knew intimately and yet knew nothing about right now.

Angela cocked an eyebrow, and he realized he’d already fallen behind.

He heard Jake laugh as he struggled to get his shirt off, his fingers suddenly thick and clumsy.

“I hope you’re better with your hands in bed, Coach.”

Hunter ran his tongue over his lips and looked at Angela. “Getting ready for the tip-off.”

Angela rolled her eyes and dropped the robe. “Get over here, you two. I’m getting cold.”

She couldn’t stop trembling.

All the fantasies she’d had, all the wet dreams sending her over the edge, they were about to disappear with the harsh reality about to happen.

Angela closed her eyes as the two naked men approached her, trying to figure out what to do next.