Chapter 6

Irritation slipped down Maura's spine as she hurried along the tarmac. She was late. She was never late, ever. It always made her feel as if she had lost control. Her stomach clenched. Her head was pounding, her eyes scratchy and her basic attitude was crap. Seriously, if someone challenged her on something, there was a good chance she would punch the person in the throat. This was not how she wanted to start her day off. Normally she liked to be up with the sun. Today, not so much. Maybe she would sleep for the entire seven days she was in Hawaii.

Her phone buzzed with Zeke's ringtone. She flipped it open. "What?"

"Well, top of the morning to you, darlin'."

She sighed. "Sorry, I'm on my way to the plane right now."

"Are you alright?"

No, she wanted to scream. She had spent most of last night thinking about Rory's invitation. When she had grabbed a few hours of sleep, she had been haunted by the idea of having two sets of hands on her, two mouths and two voices thick with an Irish accent as they drove her crazy.

"Yes, just had some things that caught me off guard. I can see the jet."

He said nothing for a moment. She sensed he wanted to ask her questions. About what? Did Rory tell him what he had asked her? Of course he probably did. Those two shared just about everything.

And they wanted to share her.

Heat slipped through her blood and danced over her nerve endings. She stopped in mid step and ordered herself to calm down. She had decided not to allow it, right? She had thrown the idea out to Zeke when Rory had moved in but it had been desperation. She had been scared of losing Zeke once and for all—even as a friend. Knowing that now, she would be beyond pathetic. Her emotional well-being would be damned to hell if she agreed to it. She had thought about how it would hurt when they returned and that had been the deciding factor. She would never be able to work with both of them after that. Seeing them together now was tough enough. After seven days in their bed, it would be too painful.

She started walking again and watched as he stepped out onto the steps.

"I can see you and this conversation is ridiculous."

She didn't wait for an answer; she just turned her phone off.

He was watching her, his gaze on her as she approached. At least, she thought he might be, because he was wearing those aviator sunglasses. God, she loved them. He looked so fuckable when he was wearing them. If she had time to think about it, Maura would probably worry more about her attraction to him as an authority figure. When he stood there like that, those badass glasses on, it reminded her of a cop or a military dude. What the hell was wrong with her?

He jogged down the stairs and Rory appeared behind him. Her heart did a little jerk, then her stomach muscles clenched again. Dammit, how was she going to be able to ignore the temptation that they represented?

Zeke walked out to meet her and took her bag. "I'll take your bag around."

She nodded.

"Are you sure you're okay?"

"Yeah, I'm just a little off. I have been the last few days." She didn't want to talk about the insomnia that seemed to be her constant companion these days. If she told him, he would tell Conner. Then, there would be a talk. Lord help her if Conner wanted to talk. "I think I just need a week in Hawaii to rest. And see Conner."

He nodded, then turned, taking her arm to walk her to the jet. Rory was still standing there, waiting and watching. Heat slid down her spine and it had nothing to do with the fact that she was on a Miami tarmac. She could smell Zeke's musky aftershave.

"There isn't an attendant," Zeke said when they reached the stairs.

"I didn't think we needed one, do we? There's food on board, right?"

It was odd that he would bring that up because it had never really been an issue before. They rarely had an attendant on board when they used the jet for leisure. It just wasn't in her nature to be waited on.

"Sure." He handed her up the stairs and there was Rory, waiting still. She got a very odd feeling that Zeke was handing her off to Rory. Just the thought caused her to shiver.

Rory held out his hand and she hesitated. It wasn't as if there was a final decision. She had decided not to do anything, right? This wasn't a good idea because…

Okay, she couldn't remember why it was a bad idea, but she was sure it was.

"Maura?" Rory asked, his voice threaded with concern. She shook herself and took his hand.

"Sorry. Not enough sleep last night."

He led her into the plane. "You can just doze in the bedroom until we get there."

"I have to call Conner first." As soon as she said it, her phone rang.

Rory shook his head. "It's the middle of the night there."

"He's waiting to go to bed until I tell him we are on our way." She clicked the phone on. "Hello, Conner."

"Hello, Maura. Everything fine?"

"Yep. Zeke is just putting my case in the storage compartment and there he is," she said when he stepped into the jet. Maura collapsed onto a couch. "We should be leaving pretty soon."

"Good. Get some rest. I want to talk to Zeke."

"I love you too, Conner."

He sighed. "I love you, Maura."

She smiled and handed the phone to Zeke. "Grumpy bossman wants to talk to you."

"Hey, Conner."

He walked off to the back of the jet as they pulled up the stairs to close off the jet. The copilot smiled at her. "Morning, Ms. Dillon. We should be in the air within ten minutes."

"Thanks, Henry."

"Let us know if there is anything you need," he offered with a smile before he returned to the cockpit. Zeke was still in the back talking to Conner so that left just Rory and her. She glanced at him and he was staring at her.

"Did you get any breakfast?" he asked.

His voice sounded normal. How could someone act normally after what he suggested the night before? She had to think extra hard just to make conversation. All she could think about was having both of them touching her. Being in a plane for the next ten hours was going to be tough enough.

"Uh, no." She rolled her eyes. "And you can tell from my very intelligent conversation that I haven't had any kind of coffee either."

He grinned at her and for a moment, her brain just completely shut down. Part of it was the lack of sleep and caffeine but the bigger part of it was him. Rory was a stunning man, but when he smiled…he stole a woman's breath. He was wearing a black t-shirt another pair of jeans. He looked badass and fuckable.

Lord, she saw them both as authority figures. And she wanted them. What the hell was wrong with her?

"We can remedy that. You take it black, right?"

She nodded and he went off to get her a coffee. Why was she so stupidly happy that the man remembered such a small detail? Maybe because it was one of the things she liked about Zeke. So many guys took her for granted. She wasn't a women who enjoyed flowers or extravagant gifts. Simple pleasures were all she needed. Zeke had understood that, and now Rory did too, apparently.

They would make good partners in bed…especially both of them at the same time.

You are not here for that. For him, or Zeke. Do not make yourself crazy wishing for something that is not going to happen. Probably.

If she could remember that when either of them smiled at her she would be better off. She could save herself from playing the fool. But was she a fool for letting an opportunity like this go?

He poured her a cup and brought it to her. After setting it down, he settled on the couch next to her. This time, she was enticed by the citrusy aftershave that Rory preferred. It teased her senses and turned her on as much as Zeke's had just a few moments ago.

"Your brother needs to learn to relax," Zeke said as he walked back to them.

"You have to admit he's better since he and Jillian became involved."

"He's worried about the Petersen case. More worried than he has to be," Zeke said. "I told him this was silly."

The plane started up and Zeke sat down on the chair across from the couch. All of them buckled their seatbelts.

"Why are you two complaining? We get to do a little consulting and spend a lot of time in a million dollar house for the week. Sun, sand, tropical drinks."

"We live in Miami. You can go the beach any time," Maura said with a smile.

"When was the last time you went? Or any of us? We all work so many hours we don't have time. And when we do, we're so damned tired, we just want to sit on the couch or sleep."

That was true. Living so near the beach they all took it for granted. And all of them had been a little overwhelmed by running the office without Conner.

"Okay, I agree with that. I'm really looking forward to seeing the new office though."

"Nope, you are not talking about work. Not now. We are going to enjoy the trip over as if we are just going to be on vacation," Rory said. "What do you say, Zee?"

God, it always turned her on when he called Zeke by his nickname. She had resented it at first but after awhile it started to get to her. There was something very sexy about knowing these two men had an intimate relationship. Every time Rory said it, Maura could imagine what it sounded like when he said it when they made love. His voice dipped every time he said it too. It was easy to hear the love and desire between the two of them.

Zeke was watching her as if waiting for her to object. But she didn't.

"Sounds like a good plan to me," Zeke said slowly.

The next few minutes were taken over by getting ready for take off. It came off without a hitch. Once she knew it was safe to move around, she undid her seat belt and stood.

"I think Rory's right," she said. "I'm going to catch a few more hours of sleep. Knowing Conner and Jillian, they'll want to keep us up for hours."

Rory took her cup of coffee. "Call if you need anything."

Maybe she had gone insane but she was pretty sure it was a loaded offer.

"Sure," she said, before escaping to the back. She shut the door to the bedroom and collapsed on the bed with a sigh. She closed her eyes trying to forget Rory's offer yesterday.

She had known for a long time she was a sub. When she had become curious about it, she had researched it. It was the way she could deal with things. It was always the way she dealt with life. After the trip to Rough ‘n Ready while on an assignment, she knew without a doubt she was. The problem was, the man she was in love with wasn't a Dom.

Zeke had tried, but it hadn't been in him. He just did not get into the life like she had. It had hurt—more than she would ever let him know. But their relationship at the office was more important, especially now that they were running things without Conner there. Oh, her brother still had his hand in everything, but he had been the buffer for them. Now, it was mainly them, with a little help from Rory. Jennifer was good at her job, but Maura and Zeke were now the face of the company. She couldn't let her brother down.

She opened her eyes and stared at the ceiling. A shower would clear her head. With a huff, she pulled herself out of bed and headed for the small shower stall. And if this didn't help, she didn't know what she would do.