STORY EXCERPT

Clay wanted nothing more than to hold his wife in his arms and comfort her, to feel her soft and warm against him so he knew she was safe. With a warning look at his brother, Rio, to keep his temper to himself, he put the phone on speaker.

“Of course we’re worried about you, baby. Please, just tell us where you are so we can come and get you.”

“No, Clay.” The trembling sob in her voice tore him up inside.

With his heart in his throat, he turned, meeting the cold, hard stare of Lucas Hart, one of the partners in Desire Security Systems—and more than that—a good friend.

Lucas had been giving him dirty looks since they’d arrived a little more than an hour ago, clearly blaming Clay and Rio for hurting Jesse.

Clay blamed himself even more.

He’d hoped, prayed, that Jesse would answer the phone and that Lucas could use some of his vast array of equipment to find her.

Clenching his jaw, Lucas motioned for Clay to keep Jesse talking.

Clay had no intention of letting Jesse hang up, especially after spending the last few hours out of his mind with worry.

“Jesse, what do you mean, no? What happened, honey? We don’t even know what’s wrong. It’s not like you not to talk to us. If you’re mad at us for something, I’d rather you just give us hell like you usually do. It’s not like you to run away.”

“I guess you’re tired of having a woman who stands up for herself.” She said it in such a low voice that Clay almost missed it, but she continued on before he could say anything.

“I’ll be back tomorrow. I just need to be alone tonight.”

“You don’t need to be alone. You need to be with us!” Clay winced inwardly as the knot in his stomach turned to ice.

He kept his voice low, struggling to speak calmly when he was anything but. “You said you’ll be back tomorrow. You didn’t say you were coming home. You’re scaring the hell out of me, Jesse. If you think I’m letting you go, you’re very much mistaken. Just talk to us. Let me explain.”

Her silence scared him, and for several heart-stopping seconds, he feared she’d hung up. When she spoke again, the weariness and distance in her tone frightened him even more.

“Clay, I really don’t want to talk about this tonight. I’ve got to go—”

“No. Don’t you hang up on me, Jesse Erickson!” He scrubbed a hand over his face, praying that Lucas would be able to pinpoint her location before she hung up. Worry for her ate him alive.

“Baby? Are you cold? You left without your coat. Please tell me you’re someplace warm, honey.”

The sob in her sigh tore at him, the effect also apparent on both Rio and Lucas as they listened.

Rio sank into a chair, hanging his head, his hair mussed from running his hands through it countless times in the last few hours.

A muscle worked in Lucas’s jaw, his steely gaze holding Clay’s and his stonelike expression even harder and more intimidating than ever.

Jesse’s voice, so sweet and with a tremble in it that brought another lump to Clay’s throat, came over the speaker, softer now than before.

“I’m fine, Clay. I’m a big girl, remember? I’m not one of those sweet little things that fall all over you. I’m used to taking care of myself, or have you forgotten?”

The reminder of the cold, withdrawn woman he’d met two years earlier, a woman that had thought herself incapable of loving or being loved, nearly took him to his knees.

“I haven’t forgotten a single thing about you.”

The ice in his stomach seemed to spread, making him cold all the way to the bone and stiff with fear.

Her tone, a tone he’d never hoped to hear again, sounded so much like the one she’d used when he’d first met her that his heart skipped a beat and he actually felt dizzy for a moment.

Losing Jesse would kill him.

He didn’t even try to keep his frustration and fear out of his voice, hoping to get through to her.

He had to get through to her.

“Jesse, of course I’m worried about you. You’re my wife. You disappeared into the night without no coat and no dinner. I’m sure you didn’t eat anything. I know you, baby. When you’re upset, Rio and I have to practically force you to eat. That means you’re cold and hungry and I can’t get to you to make you eat, or to keep you warm. You’re hurting and I can’t hold you.”

His arms ached to hold her close.

“Please tell me where you are, Jesse. We need to talk, to straighten this out. I can’t stop thinking about the way you looked at me.” That look of confusion and hurt in her eyes would haunt him forever.

Jesse’s choked sigh cut his heart to shreds. “We’ll talk, Clay. Tomorrow. Look, I’m sorry I acted like a coward and ran off that way, but it was such a shock. I’ve been stupid and never saw it coming. I should have paid more attention. I should have realized that you felt neglected.”

Her voice lowered, so low he had trouble hearing her.

“I’ve always suspected it would end some day. I knew better. I just thought I would see it coming.”

ADULT EXCERPT

“You want this ass filled and I’m not even done yet. I’m going to shove my cock in that tight ass and make it burn, like my guts burned last night when you almost got hurt in a hotel fire! What if we hadn’t gotten to you? You. Could. Have. Been. Killed.”

He punctuated each word with a slap on her ass, except the last. With a groan, he covered her back, his lips hot on her shoulder.

“My heart would have died with you.”

Jesse arched as much as she could, allowing Rio better access to her breasts, the firm pinch of her nipples between his strong fingers sending arrows of tingling sizzles to her clit, ass, and pussy. Choking back a cry, she threw her head back. “I love you. Both. So much. Too much.”

Her clit felt huge, throbbing to the beat of her heart, becoming so sensitive that each time she moved against Rio, it sent jolts of sizzling heat to her pussy and ass.

With no warning, a lubed finger was shoved into her ass, the shock of it stealing her breath.

“Never too much.”

Clay sunk his teeth into her shoulder as he moved it inside her.

“Next time I won’t be so nice.”

Jesse squirmed on Rio, her ass clenching on the finger Clay slid deep inside her, clamping down on Rio’s cock at the same time.

“Ah, God!” The feel of something invading her bottom never failed to shake her. It always felt too intimate, too naughty, and as with the spanking, made her feel vulnerable as hell, something her husbands used to their advantage.

Rio’s hoarse curses mingled with her cries and whimpers, his groan rumbling beneath her, the vibrations of it racing over her heated skin.

“The way she clenches drives me crazy. Everything about her drives me crazy.” He tugged a nipple, groaning when she cried out and clenched on him again. “I still owe her a spanking.”

Clay slid his finger from her, igniting every nerve ending along the way. “I want to be there.”

Jesse shivered at the threat, unable to catch her breath when Clay positioned the head of his cock against her puckered opening. As always, the vulnerability of her position filled her with trepidation, but the trust in her husbands made it possible to let herself go.

“Easy, baby. Hold on tight to Rio. My cock’s going in there no matter how much you try to close against me.” Clay’s rough drawl sent a decadent thrill through her, telling her more than words just how much this excited him.

A shiver went up Jesse’s spine as Clay pressed forward, a whimpered cry escaping when the head of his cock pushed through the tight ring of muscle and into her.

“Clay! Oh, God.” She never got used to it—was never prepared for being so full, so taken.

Clay’s hands firmed on her hips, his voice like shattered glass. “Rio, hold on to her.”

Rio held her closer. “I’ve got her.” Lifting his hips, he groaned. “Hurry up, damn it. She’s gonna scream my name before we’re through here.”

“And mine.” Clay forced his cock an inch deeper, withdrew slightly, and thrust again, pushing even deeper. “I’ll bet she screams mine first.”

Trembling helplessly, Jesse whimpered at the burning heat as Clay worked his cock into her, inch by incredible inch, forcing the delicate inner walls of her bottom to stretch to accommodate him.

Rio slid his hands lower, gripping her thighs to control her movements.

Clay held her hips with an equally firm grip. “Hell, I can never get over how tight her ass is.”

Rio groaned, his eyes narrowed on hers as he thrust deep.

“Especially when we’re both inside her.”

Jesse threw her head back again, crying out as her husbands fucked her pussy and ass in a rhythm that drove her ruthlessly toward the edge. As Rio withdrew, Clay surged deep, only to withdraw until the head of his cock reached the tight ring of muscle while Rio thrust into her again.

Every thrust made her clench, making her feel even fuller. Her clit throbbed unbearably, so badly that she reached for it herself, only to have Rio slap her hand away.

“No way, darlin’. You’ve gotta pay.”

Clay surged deep. “Never again.”

Mini-explosions went off inside her, gathering to add to the tingling heat. “God! Clay!”

“Yes!” Gripping her waist, he withdrew several inches and surged deep again. “Mine.”

Rio’s face tightened, a mask of tortured concentration, groans of pleasure rumbling from his chest. Pinching her clit between his thumbs, he worked the swollen nub, setting her off.

Every nerve ending in her ass and pussy sizzled, her clit burning and pulsing beneath Rio’s thumbs.

Sensation took over. She threw back her head, screaming Rio’s name, her body stiffening as she clamped down on their cocks.

The waves engulfed her, rolling through her and tossing her everywhere. She couldn’t hold on to anything, but knew they held her. She heard their groans as they came, felt the pulsing of the cocks inside her, but couldn’t move.

Her voice became hoarse from screaming, but she had no idea what she said.

She only knew heat.

And the love all around her.

By slow increments, she became aware of Rio and Clay’s crooning voices, the words of praise and love pouring over her. She became aware of the firm hands gentling on her body, caressing her and guiding her back down to earth.

After what could have been several minutes, or an hour, Jesse lifted her head from Rio’s chest, smiling at the drowsy look in his eyes. “I love you so much it scares the hell out of me sometimes.”

Rio grinned. “Back atcha, darlin’.”