19. Kat

Chapter 19

H e’s going to fire me.

Even if he wasn’t going to before, he probably will now. His eyes roam over me, starting at my face before slowly working their way down to my bare feet and back up again. Unlike with Alex, Nathan’s face is blank; there's no hint of what he’s feeling or thinking. It should be a good thing. At least he doesn’t look disgusted with me, but in our short few weeks of getting to know each other, he’d seemed more open with me. Whereas he gave people like Trevor and Barbara nothing, I was used to hints of his emotions.

Being on this side of him is terrifying, and for the first time, I think I understand why Trevor tucked tail and ran that day in my classroom.

Hell, I want to tuck tail and run, but I know that’s not really an option. If he’s going to fire me, I’ll have to leave. Hiding out in the room that was mine for a few short days won’t save me from that. This is his house, after all.

My body sags as I realize I’m once again right back where I started… under the power of a man.

“Don’t look so grim, Cherry,” Alex says, leading me further into the office to the two chairs that sit opposite Nathan.

He releases me, dropping into one and motioning for me to take the other.

Might as well get this over with, I guess.

Sitting in the chair beside him, I take a deep breath before letting it out slowly, hoping to chase away some of my nerves before I force myself to look up and meet Nathan’s eyes.

My deep breath was useless. The moment our eyes meet, I feel my palms begin to sweat, and I fight the urge to fidget.

“Kat,” Nathan says, greeting me with a nod. “I apologize for pulling you from your room so late, but I wanted to have a word with you in a more private setting.” He cuts his gaze to Alex, who smiles back at him, and I get the feeling I’m missing something, but I don’t dare ask. Even if he wasn’t about to fire me, it’s none of my business.

“I’m not sorry. Do you see her?” Alex asks, gesturing toward me, and I duck my head as my cheeks once again betray me.

This is so not the time, Alex. I mentally scold him but remain quiet.

Nathan shakes his head at his brother before returning his attention to me.

“It’s been brought to my attention that prior to you taking this position, you had met my brother and my son.”

His words hit me like a punch to the chest, knocking the air from my lungs. Of all the things he could have said, that’s not what I’d been expecting. It’s not a question, not really. I can hear the surety in his tone, though he seems to be waiting for some kind of reply, regardless.

There’s no point in lying; I’d planned to tell him. I just wasn’t sure how.

I guess I don’t need to worry about that part now, though.

I nod, not trusting myself to speak. If I open my mouth right now, there’s no way I won’t beg him to let me keep my job. I love Addison, and I’d promised to be around for her. The thought of breaking that promise makes my chest feel heavy. But he’s her father, and he has to do what he thinks is best. If he thinks that means letting me go, then the least I can do is try to keep my dignity intact. If I have any left, that is.

“I see,” he says, leaning forward to rest his elbows on the desk in front of him and steepling his fingers. “This seems almost too convenient to be, yet I know for a fact you didn’t know who I was when we met. And despite my son and brother’s best efforts, they were unable to find you after that night.” He looks over at Alex, and I can’t help but look as well.

They looked for me?

“And believe me, they tried.”

Alex doesn’t look at me, but he doesn’t need to. From our brief encounters, I’ve learned he has no problem speaking his mind. If what Nathan said wasn’t true, he would have said something.

I’d spent months remembering that night, alone on the subway, at night alone in my bed. And as crazy as it sounds, it wasn’t just the amazing sex, though I did think about that too. That night with them was fun and exactly what I needed to help me start fresh. They helped me remember myself after so long being lost to being whatever Carter wanted.

“So, now the question is what we will do moving forward?”

Nathan’s voice pulls me from my thoughts, and I turn back to look at him, knowing this is it.

“I understand,” I say, biting my lip when my voice shakes. I have to look away, unable to meet his eyes as he fires me.

Alex barks a laugh, and I snap my head to look at him, unsure what can be funny about this.

My confusion must show on my face because he quickly explains. “Sorry, Cherry, but I really don’t think you do. And if you do, and that’s your reaction, I clearly need to refresh your memory.” He wiggles his brows at me suggestively, and now I’m even more confused.

“What?”

“What is it you think is happening here, Kat?” Nathan asks.

My brain short circuits, and I don’t know how to answer that. I wasn’t aware there was another option, but clearly there is.

“Um, I thought…” I trail off, turning from Nathan to Alex, looking for some kind of hint as to what I’m missing,' but come up empty. “Aren’t you going to fire me?”

Alex pops out of his chair and slaps his hands on Nathan’s desk hard enough that the sound rings out and startles me.

“I fucking told you!” he shouts with a laugh.

A hint of a smile pulls at Nathan’s lips as he reclines back into his chair. I swear he’s like a different person. This is the Nathan I’ve become used to over the last few weeks.

“I never said you were wrong,” Nathan shoots back, arching a brow at his brother in challenge.

Their sibling banter is kind of fucking adorable, but it’s not at all helpful.

“I’m confused…” I say, and both of them turn back to me as if remembering I’m there. “Am I not being fired?”

“Not even close, Cherry.”

“Okay… Well then, what’s going on?”

Neither of them answers; instead, they share a look, and Nathan gives the slightest nod. Whatever silent conversation they just had leaves Alex smiling from ear to ear as he turns to face me before stalking toward me.

“Do you remember our night together, Cherry?” he asks, and I don’t even have to answer; I know my face gives me away.

He stops in front of me, dropping to his knees and letting his hands rest on my knees, my very bare knees. His touch makes my skin tingle, and I’m not sure what to do. I want to lean into it, soak up his touch, but I know I shouldn’t. Somehow, I’m not being fired, but that could always change.

“Do you remember how Desmond and I shared you?”

How could I forget?

But the better question is, why the hell is he asking me this now, in front of his brother, who happens to be my boss?

“Kat?”

My head snaps up at the sound of my name, and I find Nathan watching me, his gaze intense and not in his usual cold way. No, right now, he’s looking at me a lot like Alex had when he saw what I was wearing earlier, and it’s not just me he’s watching, but Alex and me.

“I remember,” I say, forcing the words out despite feeling like I shouldn’t say them.

“What if I told you it isn’t just Desmond and I who share?”

I’m going to get whiplash at this rate.

Alex is still in front of me on his knees, but I swear he’s closer, and there’s no denying the fact that his hands are slowly creeping up my thighs.

Goosebumps break out over my skin, and I press my thighs together in an attempt to try and hide my arousal from him. Of course, he notices, his eyes flicking down to my lap before darting back up to me with a knowing look.

Fuck, I should have just pretended I was asleep and not answered the door.

“Wh—what does that mean?” I ask, my breath catching as he continues to trail his hands higher.

“What if I told you we all share?” Alex asks, leaning even closer now. His fingers are dangerously close to the edge of my booty shorts turned sleepwear, and I swear my heart is trying to beat its way out of my chest.

“I don’t understand…” Shaking my head, I try to clear it so I can focus, but with his hands on me, it’s damn near impossible.

“What part don’t you understand?” Nathan asks, and I chew on my lip as I try and fail to think of how to word it.

“Kat.” His voice has just the slightest hint of demand, and I find myself wanting to answer him despite the fact that I might sound crazy.

“I don’t understand why you're not firing me or why you’re telling me this. Do you need me to stay hidden when you bring someone to the pool house? I only work here. It’s none of my business what you choose to do with your personal lives. And why did you look for me?” The last bit is for Alex, and I feel his fingers tighten around my legs as I turn my attention back to him.

“Why the hell wouldn’t we look for you, Cherry? Des said he left you his number, but you never called. Do you know how strange that is for us? Usually, we refrain from giving out our information because people abuse it, but you were different. He wanted you to call, but instead, you disappeared.”

His lips pull down in a slight frown as he looks at me, and I don’t like it. Alex and Desmond are a lot to handle, especially working here, but even with the teasing and embarrassment, I don’t want them to be unhappy, especially not because of something I did.

“His number was smudged. The condensation on the glass made it impossible to read.” I tell him, and while that’s true, it’s not the whole reason. I could have easily gone to them in the yard and gotten it, but what I’d seen made me panic.

“Kat.”

Again, Nathan’s voice hits me with that cold demand, and I know he’s not buying it.

How the hell does he know? Am I that easy to read?

I hesitate a moment, unsure how to explain, and both of them remain quiet.

Fuck it.

“I saw you with Addison, and I…” I pause, licking my lips as my mouth goes dry. I know it was a misunderstanding now, but I’d felt so bad that night. Thinking I’d been the other woman, no matter how amazing our time had been, all I could picture was me being the reason a happy family was ripped apart.

It’s stupid. I didn’t know. They hadn’t told me, and it wasn’t my fault. Had it been true, that would have been on him, not me, but the guilt was unavoidable, especially when I’d just dealt with that myself with Carter.

The thought of him leaves a sour taste in my mouth, but I refuse to let him have a hold on me. He made his choice, and they aren’t him, despite what I thought.

Looking at Alex, I swallow my pride and admit my mistake. “I heard someone call to you.”

It takes him a moment before he seems to understand what I’m implying.

“Rose.”

It’s not a question, but I nod all the same.

“You thought Addison was mine, and she was calling to me?” His eyes light up with understanding, and he nods. “I can see how you would think that.”

“I…I’m sorry. I know it’s terrible, but I heard her call, and then I saw her with you, and Rose called to her, but I thought she was calling to you…” My words come out in a rush, and I look down at my hands in my lap, unable to hold his gaze.

“Hey,” His finger hooks under my chin, forcing my eyes back to his, and I find nothing but understanding in his gaze. No judgment or anger. “I get it, Cherry. Actually, it makes a lot more sense why you flew out of here like your ass was on fire.”

He offers me a reassuring smile, and while I can’t return it, I’m grateful.

“You didn’t know us, and I can imagine we probably came off like the assholes who would do that kind of thing, but I assure you that’s not who we are. If Rose had been my wife, I never would have been out with Desmond like that. I’m not the cheating type, and I’d never make anyone the other woman.”

His words loosen something in my chest, and some of the tension I’d been carrying seeps away.

I’d been so afraid to tell them, to tell Nathan I’d been with them, that they would be just like Carter, but I was wrong about all of it… I was wrong about them.

“I think there might be more to this, but that’s a conversation for another time.” I turn back to Nathan, and I swear it’s like he can see right through me, making me feel bare in a way that has nothing to do with my clothes.

“The reason I called you here is to see if you would be interested in being more than a nanny to Addison.” His gaze burns into mine with so much intensity I want to look away, but I can’t.

“I don’t understand. Like a chef?” I say, recalling what they had said the other night when I cooked dinner.

“We share, Cherry. Usually, it’s only the occasional hook-up in the pool house, but ever since you…” Alex groans, cutting himself off, and his hands finally hit the bottom of my very short shorts. My breath catches as he flexes his fingers on the sensitive skin at the top of my thigh that’s just short of being inappropriate.

I pull my gaze from Nathan to look at his hands, licking my lips at the memory of what it felt like to have his hands on me like this. It had been one night, but it plays on repeat in my dreams, and being here like this with him has my stomach in knots and my shorts soaked.

With his grip on my thighs, he gently guides my legs open. I tense, trying to stop him for a moment, not wanting him to see the evidence of how much I want him. He pauses for a moment, flicking his gaze up to meet mine with a smile, and his pupils are blown wide as he looks at me, just like he did that night.

My resistance crumbles, and I stop fighting him as he once again moves to guide my legs open.

“I knew you were different the moment I laid eyes on you in our club. You had us captivated, and you didn’t even have to do anything.” His voice is husky, and I swear the air is thicker. Every breath is a struggle as I try to keep myself from panting.

“Do you know why I decided to call you Cherry?” he asks, leaning between my spread legs. The feel of him so close scrambles my brain, and it takes me a moment to realize he’s asking me a question.

“Be—because they're red?” I guess, unsure. Trevor had made that nickname feel dirty, and while I enjoyed it that night, I didn’t like it the same anymore, something he quickly picked up on.

He chuckles, low and deep, and I feel the vibrations from his chest where it rests on my knee. I bite into my lip to stop from squirming as I feel them all the way up into my aching core.

“No, though I guess they are,” he says as his thumb rubs along the hem of my shorts, almost absently. “It’s because you had me from the moment I saw you in our club, sucking on that damn cherry from your drink.”

What?

They’d come up to me after that guy had been a little too pushy, right? I’d had a few drinks that night, so some of it was less than clear, but I’m almost positive they weren’t around for that.

“You sat all alone, looking like a fucking goddess, and you had no idea the pull you had on just about everyone. Fuck, I could have watched you eat those damn cherries all night.” He groans at the memory of it. His nails bite into my thigh, and I open my mouth to say something, but nothing comes out.

“It took every ounce of Desmond’s control not to chase down that douche-bag and lay him out,” he chuckles and shakes his head. “He banned him from the club, you know?”

My eyes go wide at the thought. I knew they had power and money, but to ban someone from somewhere feels like a lot, especially for me.

“Wh—why?” I stutter.

“Because we don’t condone that kind of behavior,” Nathan says, and I whip my head toward him. I’d been so focused on Alex that he startled me.

Being alone with them is already dangerous, but having Alex on his knees between my legs is scrambling my brain even more than usual.

Shaking my head, I let his words really sink in.

Holy shit!

When Alex said ‘our’ club earlier, I thought he was talking about a club they frequented.

Not that they owned the club!

“So what do you say, Cherry?” Alex asks, but I’m still reeling from discovering it's their club.

“You can say no, and nothing will change. This isn’t a requirement.” Nathan reassures me, and I believe him. He doesn’t seem like the type to force something on someone if they don’t want it.

But are they seriously offering me what I think they are?

They want to share me…What does that even mean? Like right now?

My cheeks heat, and I dig my nails into the soft cushion of the chair at the thought.

I don’t know if I could pretend that it wasn't appealing to me if someone held a gun to my head and told me that was the only way I could live. My body would give me away, even if I found a way to force the lie out of my mouth.

Alex’s eyes rake over me, and I know he sees my excitement at the thought, even if I can’t make myself say the words.

A smile pulls at his lips as he dips his head, his eyes never leaving mine as he presses his lips to the bare skin of my inner thigh just above my knee. It’s nothing more than a feather-light brush of his lips, but I feel it like a shock to my system. A shiver runs down my spine as his warm breath ghosts across my leg, and I can’t look away.

“Tell me to stop, Kat. All you have to do is say the word,” Alex breathes before dropping his lips to my skin again, just an inch higher.

“I’ll never forget the way you responded that night.” Another kiss. “You were so ready to please us.” Kiss. “So tell me, do you want to please us, Kat?”

His lips hover just shy of my shorts when he pulls back, and I can’t stop the whine that rips from my throat with him having been so close to where I want him. If my face wasn’t already on fire, it would be now, but I almost don’t care.

I do want that, and while I have about a million questions about all of this, they don’t feel as pressing right now knowing I could have him.

Have them.

“Yes.” My voice is hardly more than a breathy whisper, but I know he heard it. His smile grows big enough that I’m worried he’s going to hurt his cheeks, but he doesn’t seem to give a shit.

I squeak in surprise when he surges forward and presses his lips to mine before I melt into him.

I should stop him, push him off, and leave. This is not happening, and it's not okay. Nathan is my boss, and Alex is his brother; this is Nathan’s office, for crying out loud.

But despite that, I can’t make myself stop kissing him, can’t possibly push him away, and I can’t stop the wetness that’s damn near soaking my shorts knowing I have Alex kissing me while I still feel Nathan’s eyes on me.

Alex’s hands move up my legs, over my waist, up to my breasts, and my breath catches, feeling him touching me even with the thin layer of fabric still between us. I haven’t been with anyone since him and Desmond all those months ago, and my hands never feel this good.

“So fucking eager,” Alex says with his lips still pressed to mine, and I can feel his smile.

He pulls back, and I fight to peel my eyes open to find him looking over his shoulder at Nathan, who is looking very intensely at us.

“Didn’t I tell you she was so receptive?” he doesn’t wait for an answer, instead turning back to me with that shit-eating grin still in place.

“Such a good girl for us.”

Fuck, that shouldn’t be so hot, but between his smirk and his words, I feel like I could melt into a puddle right here and now.

“Isn’t she such a good girl, brother?” Alex’s question has my eyes darting back to Nathan over his shoulder, wanting to know what he thinks. Before this, I would have told you I didn’t give a shit if a grown man thought I was a good girl or not.

Now, I think that might be a lie.

Nathan doesn’t respond, and I have to fight back the urge to pout over his lack of reassurance.

“Awe, don’t worry, Cherry, it’s not you, it’s him,” Alex assures me as his fingers find their way under my shirt before he pushes it up, exposing the fact that I’m not wearing anything underneath. My face heats being on display for both of them like this, so raw and open, but I fight the urge to cover myself, instead watching Nathan as his eyes move over my chest with a heat in his eyes I’ve never seen before.

“Yes, see, he wants you. How could anyone resist you? You’re just so fucking delicious.” He leans in, quickly sucking one of my nipples into his mouth before he lets it drop just as quickly. I let out a high-pitched moan that’s half from shock and half from the intense pleasure.

“What do you say we give him a little show, Cherry? I think he could use a good show, he works so much after all. There’s no way he’s had any good quality time with a woman in a while.”

Nathan’s eyes narrow at the back of Alex’s head, but he doesn’t correct him or say anything against his suggestion.

Wrapping his arm around my waist, Alex easily pulls me up to stand so that we’re chest to chest. His finger hooks under my chin, forcing my head back so that my eyes meet his.

“I’m going to fuck you, and he’s going to watch, Cherry. Do you understand?” My eyes go wide at his words, and he chuckles, no doubt seeing my reaction as he stares down at me, but I can’t help it.

He didn’t just say that, did he? No, I had to have heard him wrong.

Before I can overthink it anymore, Alex’s hand tangles in the hair at the base of my neck. Holding me still, he steps to the side, leaving me on full display for Nathan, who still sits at his desk. I’m shirtless and so damn wet that I’m almost positive he can see the evidence of it on my shorts.

“Ah, ah, ah. We aren’t going to do that.” Alex swats my hands away as I attempt to cover myself, and I’d love to give him the stink eye, but his hold on my hair keeps my gaze firmly on Nathan. “Don’t deny him the chance to see you, Cherry. That kind of torture would be cruel when he’s so clearly begging for it.”

Alex walks me forward toward Nathan’s desk until my thighs brush the edge of the wood, and I suck in a sharp breath as Nathan leans forward in his chair. Until now, I hadn’t been sure he was into this the way Alex said he was. Hell, I’m still not totally sold; maybe what I’d thought was lust burning in his eyes is something else entirely, and I’m only seeing what I want to see?

Alex releases my hair, but I don’t move. I mean, I might be a bit uncomfortable under Nathan’s gaze, but it’s also exhilarating knowing I have his attention solely to myself. A man as powerful and attractive as him, well, that could give a girl an ego, that’s for sure. Not to mention, Alex stands close enough behind me that I wouldn’t make it far, and as I hear the rustle of his clothes behind me, well, suddenly, I’m not sure I’d want to make it anywhere.

No, my embarrassment can take a back seat right now because I know what it’s like to be with Alex. I know exactly what I’ve been missing, and I’m not prepared to give that up. I already did once, and I was wrong. I might very well combust if I tried to leave right now.

I hear the sound of what I can only assume is Alex’s pants hitting the floor behind me, and I want to turn around so badly. I’m not sure when I became this needy, but it’s almost as if I’m no longer thinking with my brain. If it wasn’t for Nathan’s icy blue eyes holding me in place, I might already be on my knees for Alex.

Alex moves up behind me, and I shiver at the feeling of his cock as it presses into my lower back, the warmth of his skin on mine. Fuck, I need him to fuck me like right now before I resort to begging.

He’s taller than me; they all are, and that might just make this angle a little harder for him, but I know he’ll figure it out. He and Desmond had no issues lifting me every which way they wanted me that one night.

“You see, brother, this is why I always tell you that you have too much stuff on your desk. You never know when you could benefit from having more room.” No sooner are the words out of his mouth than Nathan clears it.

In one swift movement, he sweeps his arm across the desk, knocking everything from papers and pens to his whole PC to the ground with a bang that makes me flinch but doesn’t seem to phase either of them.

“See, he’s dying to see you.” His words roll over my neck before he presses a kiss to the sensitive skin right behind my ear. “I bet he can’t wait to taste you, Cherry.” His tongue moves along the sensitive skin, and my eyes fall closed, my head falling back against his chest in bliss.

His hand moves down my stomach, sliding past my waistband, down between my legs, where he trails a finger through the wetness that’s gathered there, and I hear the deep grumble in his chest as much as I feel it.

“So fucking wet, Cherry. Is this for me? For us?”

The only answer that leaves my lips is a moan that isn’t a word at all, but he seems to know what I’m trying to say.

He pulls his hand from my shorts, holding it out in front of him like some kind of trophy that he’s showing off to Nathan, and finally, it’s too much.

“Eyes on me.”

I jerk my head back up to find Nathan’s eyes still on me, his jaw set as he peers at me with so much intensity that I almost fuck up and look away again but stop myself at the last second.

Alex’s hand presses to my back, just between my shoulder blades, and I don’t fight him, instead allowing him to push my chest to the desk, my hands braced on either side of me. Once I’m damn near parallel with the desk, Alex moves his hand, only to reach around and grab my wrists. With my wrists in his hand, he moves our hands up to the far edge of the desk nearest Nathan before he closes his hands around mine so that I’m left gripping the edge.

“Hold on nice and tight for me.”

I do as I’m told, even as I feel him pull away, one of his hands moving to grip my left thigh.

“Bend that knee for me, Cherry,” he tells me as he lifts my leg to rest on the desk, making it so that I have to stand on my tiptoes. I have to fight the urge to tell him this is a bad idea, but the feeling of his cock between my legs keeps me quiet.

Or it keeps me mostly quiet.

With my leg up on the desk, Alex makes quick work of moving my shorts to the side and pressing into me in one swift motion. The sound that leaves me is half needy moan and half satisfaction at the feeling of being filled after so long.

He pulls back, and I realize I’d forgotten just how large he is. Pulling back until he’s just barely inside of me, he groans as if it pains him to do it before he quickly slams back in, and this time he’s all the way in, the slap of his nuts off my ass, assuring that. We both moan at the feeling, my back arching from the intensity of it, my head falling to Alex’s shoulder as he stays buried deep inside of me, unmoving.

“I’m going to fuck you now, Cherry, and you’re going to keep your eyes on my brother while my cock is deep inside of you, making you come.”His words excite me, and my heart pounds in my chest, both with nerves and anticipation. With his one hand on my side holding me up, his other comes up to cup my chin, ensuring there’s nowhere for me to look that isn’t Nathan’s blue eyes.