Chapter Thirteen
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The desolation in Eve’s chest threatened to break her. How could she have been so wrong? And why the hell did they do this to her if it bothered Chase so much?
It had been all about the pictures. The reminder zinged through her mind in startling clarity. She was such a f*cking idiot. He’d warned her more than once how things would go. There’d been no denying how much he wanted to photograph her, which inevitably led to f*cking. It was her fault for fooling herself into thinking it had meant more.
Still, they’d demanded she face her true nature against all her objections. And she had. Like it or not, she couldn’t deny her submissiveness. But what if it was something she’d only felt for Chase and Murphy?
Jesus, Eve. Two men. Seriously? Who takes that seriously?
Apparently she did.
A fresh bout of shame filled her. Her na?veté astounded even her. Now she just wanted to close her eyes and cry until she got it all out. Maybe then she could look at the situation objectively. Eve sighed. More tears would do her no good at this point. Even embarrassed anger couldn’t overcome the exhaustion threatening to claim her.
She needed to get home—and fast. With startling clarity she remembered whose arms still cuddled her close. Murphy had taken her to the car, covered her in a blanket, and all without a single word. She’d gotten so lost in her own shameful thoughts, she’d momentarily forgotten him.
Now she became hyperaware of his heat blanketing her. His distinct and woodsy smell that always made her feel so good. And the hard jean-covered cock pressing against the curves of her ass.
It dawned on her that while they’d blown her mind in release, neither of them had tried to f*ck her yet. If Murphy wanted to take her now, there really wasn’t much she could do to stop him. She still craved a connection, and being cast aside so easily by Chase left her more vulnerable than ever.
She tensed in his arms, worried where things would lead. “I want to go home.”
“We will soon enough.” His dick twitched under her.
The smooth, commanding voice he used with her heightened her awareness. She couldn’t go through with this. “No, you don’t understand. I have to get away. Now.”
“Relax, Eve. It’s not what you think. Don’t lose faith now.” His hand smoothed her hair and stroked her back.
What the hell was that supposed to mean? “Don’t tell me to relax. Just take me home.” Maybe she’d apologize later when she wasn’t mortally embarrassed or as weak as a newborn.
“Don’t tempt me, Eve. I need to f*ck and you don’t. However, my self-control only goes so far with the gorgeous naked woman I desire the most squirming on my lap.”
Oh! He wouldn’t. Would he? She quit moving immediately. Despite the emotional turmoil roiling through her, a shocking blast of arousal flamed bright, embarrassing her even further. She had to be defective even to think about him that way now. But it wasn’t Murphy who’d rejected her.
New tears pooled in her eyes. The hot shame of Chase’s rejection filled her once again.
Murphy pulled her head to his chest again. “Don’t worry, little one. You’ve had more than enough for one night. My only intention is to take you home and make sure you rest.”
Eve sighed into him. She didn’t have the energy to fight or worry. Tomorrow she’d deal with the fallout. For now, she had Murphy.
“As for Chase…” Murphy hesitated. “There are things you don’t know about him—about us.”
Now he’d gone and piqued her curiosity. Although why she cared she had no idea.
“He’ll come to his senses later, and then he’s going to feel like a jackass.”
Good. She wanted him to suffer just like she was.
Eve sighed. She wasn’t a spiteful person and she didn’t want to be one now. If Chase didn’t want her, so be it. She was a grown woman fully capable of accepting that whatever she’d thought had been there simply wasn’t. Still, the memories of the scene flooded her mind. She’d likely regret how it ended, but nothing could take that kind of pleasure away from her. For a few minutes she’d been at peace. Something that had eluded her until now.
Now she’d have to figure out how to get it on her own. It’s what she did. Face reality and find her own escapes. The little pleasures that made her forget the bad or the mundane.
Eve yawned.
“Try not to take Chase too personally tonight. He swore he wouldn’t get involved in another ménage relationship ever again. Now he’s half in love and it pisses him off.”
She snorted. “Half in love? You’re crazy. Did you see the look he gave me? That was not the look of a man half in love.”
Murphy lowered his lips to her ear. “I might be crazy, but when it comes to Chase, I know exactly what I’m talking about. You’ll see.”
Eve shook her head. She didn’t want to see. Accepting her mistake had to be the first step to getting past all of this. Murphy was a gentle soul. A demanding, deviant soul, but gentle with emotions as well. She would miss him after tonight. She’d have to quit her job and start looking for new employment all over again. That was definitely going to suck.
“Sleep now, Eve. You think too much.” He brushed a chaste kiss across her cheek and patted her hip.
Maybe when she woke up she’d find herself at home and realize all of this was a dream.
Wait. She jerked her head up.
“Did you say another ménage relationship?”
Murphy laughed. “A little slow on the uptake. That’s the kind of thing that can happen after an intense scene. Yeah, I said another.”
“When? What? Who?” She couldn’t form a coherent question.
“Sleep first. Then Chase can explain it to you. We need a submissive like you—he just hasn’t accepted it yet.”
Eve frowned. Yeah right. Chase wouldn’t be talking to her anytime soon. And that word again. He’d forced her to accept it, to embrace that she needed to submit to them, and look what good it did her.
Grateful that at least Murphy had not abandoned her, she once again snuggled into him until she found a comfortable position that didn’t stretch any of her already taxed-out muscles. On a sleepy sigh, she inhaled deeply. She wanted to imprint his scent on her memory. She had a feeling she would need it in the future when things got rocky.
Tomorrow she’d face the changes and start working on a new plan. Maybe she’d even find the courage to talk to her stepdad about the building she loved to hate. Either he gave her the control to restore it the way it needed to be, or she’d walk away. A fresh change was definitely in order.
*
Chase sat at Eve’s kitchen table in the dark. He’d waited for Murphy to come and ream him a new one. But the hours passed, and he never heard him stir from her bedroom. Good for him. At least one of them had their priorities straight.
They should have both spent their night cherishing the woman who’d surrendered fully to them for the first time ever. He’d pushed her right along with Murphy, determined to make her understand who she was and that it was okay to embrace.
She’d done it and he’d been damned proud of her. Still was. No woman had ever tempted him like she did. Not even Cynthia. Chase sighed. When was he going to give it up and stop letting another woman’s betrayal fester in his gut? He cared far more for Eve, and he’d rejected her in a heartbeat.
Murphy had gone too far when he’d made her admit they were her masters. He might be a shit right now, but Murphy wasn’t completely blameless. He’d warned him not to try and make this a relationship for the three of them. Playtime was one thing, anything more was out of the question.
So then why did the thought of Murphy in there with her alone burn him from the inside out? He should have left and gone home hours ago. He’d been given an out and he damn sure needed to take it. Yet here he still sat. Waiting for Murphy to call him out.
“I’m keeping her for myself.”
Chase bristled at the words Murphy uttered. “Like hell you are.”
“Do you have any idea what your behavior tonight did to her? It’s going to take a hell of a lot of maneuvering on my part to even convince her to let me stay in her life. You are a f*cking prick.”
Chase winced at Murphy’s not incorrect assessment.
“I finally get it, okay? You don’t want to have a relationship that includes both of us with her. Fine. Have it your way. But I’m keeping her, so you’d better get used to it.”
Chase shoved his chair away from the table and stood. Anger fired his blood, and jealousy drove him insane. “No.”
“F*ck you, Chase. You aren’t the boss this time. You relinquished that right about six hours ago in a f*cking public park.” Murphy moved forward, fists clenched at his side.
“This isn’t about you.”
“The hell it’s not. It’s about you, it’s about me, and it’s about Eve. The woman we broke tonight deserved so much better than you gave her.”
Red-hot rage burst free in Chase’s head. He swung his fist and connected with Murphy’s jaw. Pain exploded in his hand, and Murphy’s head swung back. Chase welcomed the pain, the torn skin on his fists, and the anger he saw reflected in Murphy’s eyes.
“You son of a bitch.” Murphy charged him, grabbing him at the waist and driving him back into the wall. Dishes rattled and crashed from the counter to the floor, and still Chase saw nothing but the thick haze of jealousy. He couldn’t simply give Eve to Murphy. It would eat him alive to be left out.
“What the hell?” Eve stepped into the room. “Murphy, Chase, what the hell are you doing to my kitchen?”
Murphy froze on top of him, fist poised in midair. Eve ran toward them.
“Stop!” they yelled in unison.
She halted her progress but continued to glare.
“There’s glass, baby. I don’t want you to get hurt.” Murphy’s tone changed instantly with Eve. Protective.
“Me? Are you kidding? You don’t want me hurt, but it’s okay to pummel each other?” She backed out of the room and disappeared around the corner.
Murphy turned back to him, anger and hurt still etched in his features. Before either of them spoke, Eve sauntered back into the kitchen with a pair of slippers on her feet and a broom in her hand.
“Are you two done breaking my things?” Resignation had settled in her voice, and it tore at Chase’s gut. He’d done this to her.
He jumped from the floor and lunged for the broom. “Let me.”
She yanked it out of his grasp. “Haven’t you done enough tonight?” She swept at the glass and porcelain shards scattered across the floor.
“I f*cked up.”
Her sweeping halted, but she kept her head down and eyes averted. At least he had her attention.
“I don’t know what I was thinking. I didn’t expect—” F*ck. Who was he kidding? He couldn’t lie to her now.
“Don’t bother, Chase. You told me from the beginning this was a bad idea. It was a job. One I agreed to do and then be done. We both knew it would lead to sex. Just leave it at that.”
Chase grabbed her and hauled her against him. “Sex. You think this was just about getting laid?” He tightened his fingers around her arms like tight bands. The need to hold her still and make her listen was all that mattered. “I knew the minute you walked by me the very first time with your f*ck-me shoes and feminine swagger that you’d mean more than someone to f*ck. Your scent alone had the power to send me to my office to jack off every damn day.”
She struggled against his hold. He clamped tighter. He wasn’t letting her go. “But, baby, I see the way you look at us both and I’ve been down that road before, and you don’t want to go there. Trust me.”
“Why? Because that’s what happened to you the last time?”
Her words shocked him to his core. Of course, Murphy told her. He’d undermined this relationship from the get-go. “Yes.” He had nothing more to offer on that subject.
“So, you’re scared. Big deal.”
The fire in her eyes singed his pride. “Not scared. Realistic. There’s a difference.”
“Whatever.”
Chase roughly released her, and Eve stumbled back a few steps. “Easy for you to say, I guess. You’re not the one who spent a year wondering what had gone wrong.” Using women the way he’d been used.
“What!” she shrieked. “Easy?” She took two steps and stopped with only a few inches between them. “You think what happened tonight was easy? I gave you and Murphy something I never thought I’d give to anyone. Not after the shit I’ve been through.” She poked him in his chest.
He grabbed her finger and walked her backward until her butt hit the edge of the table he’d spent the night sitting at. “Don’t.”
“Don’t what? Tell you the truth?”
“Don’t push me.” A fierce need already grabbed him by the balls, urging him to take what he wanted and f*ck the consequences. He needed her at that moment as much as he needed his next breath.
“Maybe I wasn’t the only one who needed to be pushed.” The warmth of her breath caressed the front of his face. Sweet Lord, this woman would be his undoing.
“I won’t let you go.” If he took her now, it would seal their fate. There’d be no turning back.
“Thank you, Sir.”
Her shocking acceptance broke him. Logic be damned.
Chase grabbed her wrists and brought her arms behind her. With both of her hands at the small of her back, he wrapped one of his much larger hands around them both and clasped them together. His dominant need to overpower her made things a little rough, but the hot gleam in her gaze indicated her appreciation. She loved to be restrained.
He pushed his thigh between her legs and pressed against her sex. The flimsy T-shirt she’d worn to sleep in did little to hide the heat building between her legs. Chase leaned over her, pressing her back close to the table.
“Do you want me to f*ck you?”
“Oh God, yes. Please.”
The husky whisper fueled his intent. He loved hearing her breathless.
He made quick work of unfastening his pants and shoving them past his hips. He pushed the fabric of her shirt out of his way and reveled in the sight of her swollen and juicy cunt. The proof of how much she wanted him glistened across her silky, bare folds. With a tight fist around the hard length of his cock, he thrust to the hilt, forcing his way inside her tight channel. Nothing soft or easy this time. He had to take. Claim. Conquer.
His savage in-and-out rhythm began before she even had a chance to take a breath. Blind need drove his movements despite the flood of emotions he felt for this woman. He had no intention of hurting her, only giving them both what they truly needed.
“You belong to me too,” he growled.
“Yes. Oh yes, Master,” she moaned. Her cries of pleasure grew louder every time he yanked on her wrists to tighten his hold.
“Take it,” he grated, the civil veneer long gone. “Your cunt is mine.”
“Oohh,” she moaned louder.
His dick swelled. Everything about her was so perfect. The sheen of perspiration glistening on her skin, the lush curves of her body so soft under his hands. He couldn’t lose her.
“Oh God, Chase,” she cried. The vise grip of her channel on his dick told him just how close she was to the edge.
“I will f*ck this p-ssy whenever and wherever I want.”
“Yes. F*ck, yes.” She screamed in surrender as the release hammered through her. She arched under him, her muscles pulling at his dick.
Still, he f*cked her harder. “I love you like this, Eve. So wet and needy. Coming all over my dick.” Her eyes grew wide while he watched her tumble into another soul-gripping orgasm that pulled him under as well.
He impaled her one last time in an urgent and powerful thrust, losing himself inside her.
“Jesus Christ,” he gasped, pressing his forehead to the sweet curve of her neck. He lifted her slightly and released her arms. In a slow, languid move she eased her arms to her sides. She’d be sore later, but it’d been worth it. He’d needed to push hard, and she’d not only accepted it, but reveled in it. Now he needed more.
“Eve?” He lifted his head so he could watch her eyes. See her reaction to his words.
“Yes, Chase?” The sweet smile delivered with the question tumbled his stomach. He wanted to wake up to that every morning from here on out.
“Come home with us.”