14. Alexander

14

ALEXANDER

W e had to get out of this room before we fucked ourselves to death. Was it possible to die from pleasure? I’d never known sex to feel this good, so good that even coming down from the high made me giddy and ready to laugh at a moment’s notice. It was a far cry from my usual CEO badass, hard-nosed prick.

I kind of liked that Clara brought out this side of me. Grinning, I pulled her tight to my side and rested my head on top of hers. Even fully blissed-out on sex, she kept talking about next time.

Next time. My eyes shuttered closed. There could only be so many “next times” before we ran out of time. Office romances were not strictly forbidden, but when I looked at our situation, it spelled disaster. Clara was a decade younger than all of us. She was a junior architect while we were all her superiors. And Harrington. Fuck. Harrington’s project was one of the biggest we’d ever landed. He’d never take us seriously as a company if he discovered we were all having sex with our employee.

Why did I have to think about this when Clara looked at me with that perfect smile that said she was tempted to climb into my lap and have the promised full-on foursome?

Her stomach growled, and mine answered, followed by Ethan’s and Liam’s.

I inched Clara into my lap and hugged her tight enough to make her laugh. “Sounds like we should get some real food.” We’d gotten distracted by the game and left our snacks on the table.

Clara shivered and the brush of goosebumps on her skin drove me to my feet. I lifted her up as I stood and grabbed the blanket she’d slept beneath last night.

“I’ll get the meals started.” Liam headed to the table where Ethan and I left the self-heating meals and began tearing open packages. “Looks like there are a few different kinds. Anyone not fond of chicken and dumplings or chicken teriyaki with rice?”

“Fix all of them.” I settled back on the couch with Clara on my lap, the blanket spread over her shoulders and our mingled body heat creating a cocoon of warmth. I kissed the tip of her nose. “We’ll need to keep our energy up.”

“Mmm. I like the sound of that.” She nestled into my chest and curled her hands beneath her chin. “How much longer do you think we’ll be here?”

I wrestled with the right answer. I wished we could stay here in our sex cave forever, but reality waited on the other side of this storm. “I’m not sure.” Contentment wrapped around me, easing the pinch of pain in my heart. Sitting here holding Clara soothed aches I’d forgotten I carried.

“Thank God for technology. Can you imagine living off crackers and wine until this is over?” Liam waved the packages toward Ethan, who remained on the couch, still lost in memories of his time with Clara.

I couldn’t blame the man. She’d given him one hell of a blow job. It had made me hard again just watching her take him down. Holding her was enough for now, especially with the promise of what she wanted next time.

“How’s your mom?” I’d meant to ask earlier, but again, the game distracted me, taking away all my good sense.

Clara rubbed the blanket back and forth over the tip of her nose. She stayed relaxed in my arms, but a sudden shift in the air brought me up short. “She’s okay. As good as she can be.”

“Is there anything we can do?” I didn’t know where the question came from, but Clara tucked her head beneath my chin and cuddled closer, as though the question had answered something she’d needed to know. We were all worried when we first heard about her mom, and she’d taken a long leave of absence.

Clara pinched the blanket between her thumb and forefinger, rubbing it back and forth over her chin. “She just needs time to recover. It’s been hard on her. Chemo is a bitch.”

I tightened my hold around her waist, hating that while she talked about her mom, I kept thinking about how right she felt in my arms. I concentrated on her words and rubbed a hand up and down her spine. “You can tell us if you need something.” I locked eyes with Ethan.

Liam nodded from my peripheral vision.

This might have started as sex. No. It had been more than that from the beginning. Clara was not the “just sex” kind of woman. She had a depth and uniqueness to her. Yes, she’d intrigued us from the beginning, and I’d wanted to fuck her right there on the restaurant table like a man possessed. Yes, she made me wild with sexual fantasies. But she’d gotten into my heart from the beginning too.

“Thanks.” Clara sniffled quietly, her body limp and comfortable in my lap. “It’s nice of you to offer.” She almost sounded like she expected us to renege if she ever really did need us.

Her words about promises and actions came back to me. We’d prove to her that we made good on our promises. I demanded perfection from our company and our employees, as well as myself. My word was more than my bond, it was my reputation that I staked everything on. Clara didn’t know any of us well enough to understand. She required proof that only time would offer.

“Let’s eat.” Liam pulled a chair out from the table and motioned us over with a jerk of his head.

I kept Clara in my arms as I stood and walked over. She made a tiny huffing sound. “You don’t have to carry me everywhere.”

“I know.” I tightened my grip. “I like it.”

That shut her up with a snap of her teeth.

Ethan chuckled from beside me. “You don’t like being carried?”

Clara shot him a venomous look. “Not many men can pick me up like I’m a ragdoll. I’m too heavy.”

Laughing hard enough to bounce her in my arms, I threw her over my shoulder and patted her ass. “Trust me. We’re not average men. We can handle you just fine.”

“Alexander Patrick Thorne, put me down right now.” She peppered my back with tiny thumps from her fists. Her squeals of laughter ruined the effect.

We reached the table and I dropped her into a chair, pinning her in with my hands on the armrests, my face inches from hers. “You’re perfect. You hear me?” I waited for her to overcome the initial rush of rejection I spotted in her glare. “Perfect.” I traced the pout of her lower lip with mine. “Don’t ever let anyone make you think otherwise.”

She slumped back. “Damn it. I was ready to be mad at you. Why’d you have to ruin it?”

“Want me to make you mad?” I arched a brow. “What will you do as punishment?”

“Oh, I have a few ideas.” She eyed my entire body, lingering over my cock as it rose to half-mast.

I pushed back from her chair and picked up my pants. “Eat. I need to make a few calls.”

“Now?” Ethan grabbed his pants and followed me.

“Stay with Clara. I’ll be right back.” I yanked my pants on and grabbed my phone on my way to the door, dialing before the door fully closed behind me.

Harvey picked up on the third ring. “Hey, boss. Been expecting you to call.”

“As soon as the weather over Silverbrook clears, I need you to pick me and three other passengers up in the chopper.” Cold air whipped down the hallway. My skin prickled with the sudden surge of frigidness. I shook off the chill and made my way to the front office. Heavy gray clouded the windows, but for the first time since the storm started, I could see colors from the buildings across the street. Snow peppered the glass, the intensity ebbing only to pick up again with another gust of wind.

Harvey’s steps carried through the phone. Papers rustled and a door creaked. “Sky’s good here. Give me a few hours to check things out.”

“Thanks, Harvey. Call me when you’re on your way.” I ended the call and eased my hands into my pockets. Time with Clara drew short, but I wasn’t ready to give her up completely. If things worked out, I’d have her in my mansion by nightfall. A slow smile pulled my lips back until my cheeks ached.

Sex in the office during the storm was one thing. Sex in my mansion, in my bed, was something wholly different. Clara had no idea what she was in for once Harvey arrived.

I smoothed my face and made my way back to the office. Ethan, Clara, and Liam sat in a huddle around one end of the table. Clara spooned a bite from the silver bag into her mouth and laughed. The blanket slipped from her shoulders, revealing the smooth expanse of creamy skin down her spine. I meant what I said about perfection. There was nothing about her I would change. I admired every curve, every dip and hollow from her head to her toes. She turned me inside out with a need to protect.

Ethan caught my gaze over her head. His eyes turned flinty as he tipped his head to the side in a silent question. I’d seen that expression one other time, and the sight of it now confirmed my growing concern. We were all falling for Clara. Liam was probably halfway in love already. He was the easiest of us when it came to emotions.

I lifted one shoulder and let it fall. Ethan looked away, but I knew he’d understood my answer. We were trapped here a little while longer, and we’d make the most of it.

The next two hours passed in a wild flurry of questions and answers and a bevy of stories. Clara wanted to know about us. Where we’d grown up, when we decided we wanted to run an architecture and design firm. When we’d first met. Liam answered most of the questions with bright stories about our past that had all of us laughing.

“I’d forgotten about that.” I finished off a bottle of water and launched the empty container into the trash can. “Do you remember that, Ethan?” When he shook his head, I leaned toward Liam. “I seem to remember you falling on your ass the first day we met, not the other way around.”

“Really?” Liam scratched the side of his nose. “I could have sworn you slipped on the snow and busted your tailbone. Had to go to the hospital and get one of those donut pillows to sit on during all of our meetings.”

“Which is why he stands up now.” Ethan chimed in. “Can’t let anyone think he’s weak.”

“Seriously?” Clara had put on her clothes an hour ago, almost to my disappointment, and we’d all followed suit.

At least we would be ready when Harvey arrived. Standing, I picked up the last of the trash from our two-day adventure and stuffed it into the garbage can. “Not seriously. I stand because it’s a position of power.” I puffed out my chest and winked at her. “Plus, I don’t like having to unbutton and button my jacket all the time.”

“Lazy fucker.” Ethan stretched his arms behind his head, his jacket sleeves pulling past his white shirt cuffs. “Talk about a power move.”

“Do you have any idea how sexy it is watching you button and unbutton your jacket, though?” Clara folded the blanket and set it on the back of the chair.

Ethan and Liam had moved the couch back out into the main room an hour ago when our phones pinged with weather alerts that the storm was abating. Roads were still impassable, but I trusted Harvey. He’d come for us.

I took one last look around the room. To the casual observer, it would look like nothing happened here. Not to me. I’d never look at this room the same again.

“Sexy?” I tugged my jacket smooth over my abdomen and reached for the button. “You think this is sexy?” I undid the button and pulled my jacket aside. I’d never thought about how I moved during meetings. If this was a move that brought women’s attention to me, that might explain a few things.

“Put your hand in your pocket.” She motioned at my hand. “Like that.” Her eyes widened. “Yep. Sexy as hell.”

“Good to know.” My phone trilled, and I snapped it up with a grin. “Harvey? Good news?”

“I’m landing now.” The whomp whomp of rotor blades tore through the phone.

“Get your shit and let’s go.” I spun my finger around in a whirling motion. “My helicopter’s here.”