Chapter Four

Chapter FourSitting on the chair beside mine, Izzy picked her glass up from one of the dome’s select few tables. “I still think you should hang around here instead of going upstairs to watch a show with Cat and Inaya,” she told me.Taking a small sip of my fruity cocktail, I felt my brow crease. “What, and join you and Cole for a meal in the lounge? Nu-uh. Three’s a crowd.”“It wasn’t when you were getting shagged by Trace and Kaleb last weekend,” said Izzy, a teasing glint in her eyes.I shot her a playful look of annoyance. “That was a little different.”On the chair opposite me, Inaya chuckled. “Just a little.”“They’re here at the club tonight,” Cat casually threw in.I was well aware of that. The first thing I’d seen on entering the dome was Trace talking to a woman at the other end of the long bar. I’d looked away quickly, not bothering to see if Kaleb was also nearby. I refused to be one of the women who watched and pined after them. “Yeah, so?”“You said you’d happily go for a repeat,” Izzy reminded me.“I also pointed out that there likely wouldn’t be one. And after the way Alondra acted at the charity ball, I think we can safely say that there definitelywon’t be a repeat. Trace will keep his distance from me. I can’t even blame him.”“From what you said,” Cat cut in, setting her empty glass on the table, “it didn’t sound as if he was intimidated by her.”“I don’t think he is. I also don’t think he’d curb or change his behavior to please her or anyone else.” Except maybe Kaleb. “But there are plenty of other women at the club he could play with whose mothers won’t get on his case about it. As such, I’m hardly going to be anything closeto his first choice.”“Maybe, maybe not,” said Izzy. “But I’m not suggesting you stay for them anyway. You said you want to find ‘more,’ which also means finding a bloke who, like them, can push all the right sexual buttons for you. You’re not gonna find him while watching a burlesque show upstairs.” She looked from Cat to Inaya. “You two wouldn’t mind if she skipped it, would you?”“Not if she’d rather hang around here,” said Cat, thrusting her hand through the back of her long, platinum blonde beach waves.I expected Inaya to say something similar, but she didn’t pipe up at all. It was then that I noticed her attention was elsewhere. I tracked her gaze and felt my own widen slightly. “Isn’t that Kaiser Wolfe?”Inaya’s Nordic blue gaze snapped to me, shuttered. “It would appear so.”Much like her, Kaiser was a very high-profile rock musician. I’d listened to a lot of his songs growing up. His voice was absolutely orgasmic. “I heard whispers that he’d moved to Redwater, but I wasn’t sure if they were true. Damn, he’s hot. Like blistering hot.”“I had a massive crush on him when I was a teenager,” said Izzy with a soft sigh. “I even had posters of him on my bedroom walls. My brothers used to tease me about it. They’re bloody idiots that way.”“I think every female of our generation—and subsequent ones, come to think of it—had a crush on Kaiser Wolfe at some point,” hedged Cat. “I certainly did. The dude is utterly delicious.”“That can’t be denied,” said Inaya, holding herself a little stiffly. “It’s a shame that his attitude leaves something to be desired.”Cat’s green eyes sharpened. “Wait, you’ve met him?”“A time or two,” Inaya replied. “I can safely assure you that he’s as rude as the media portrays him.” She nudged Cat. “Careful. If he notices that you’re staring at him, he’ll gift you one of his scowls from hell.”“He hasn’t noticed me,” said Cat. “He’s too focused on you. I can’t quite tell if he’s glaring at you or eye-fucking you.”“He’s glaring,” Inaya decided. “It’s a regular thing with him. He doesn’t like me.”Izzy frowned. “How can anyone not like you?”I had the same question; Inaya was plain fabulous. “Did you piss in his drink or something?”“From what I’ve seen, Kaiser does not need much of a reason to dislike people, so I don’t take it personally.” Inaya adjusted the position of her bangle. “Still, I’m not exactly pleased that we’re now neighbors.”Izzy’s twirling ankle stilled. “What?”“Do you remember the house that was for sale a short distance from my place?” asked Inaya. “He bought it.”I leaned forward. “Seriously? You saw him moving in?”Inaya shook her head, making her ruby red hair shift, giving flashes of the black and purple streaks. “My grams heard about it from one of our other neighbors. They’re all worrying that, simply because he’s a rockstar, he’ll throw massive parties every weekend.” She rolled her eyes. “The guy is too antisocial to hold so much as a video call, let alone a party.”“Have you done the neighborly thing and stopped at his place to welcome him to the area?” Cat asked.Inaya snorted. “Why would I bother? I doubt he’d even answer the buzzing of the damn intercom. I told you, he doesn’t like me.”I wasn’t sure I believed that, because I also wasn’t certain that he was truly glaringat Inaya right now. It seemed like more of a rather intense eye-fuck to me.Cat glanced at her wristwatch. “The show’s gonna start soon. I need to use the bathroom before we head upstairs.”Inaya stood. “Me, too.”Watching them walk away, I didn’t fail to notice that Inaya pointedlyignored Kaiser as she passed him, or that he stared at her so hard it was a wonder his gaze didn’t burn holes into her flesh. Interesting.I was about to point it out to Izzy, but then I noticed that she was biting her thumb. She’d done it a few times throughout the past hour while we waited for Cole to arrive. “Are you okay?”She blinked. “Yeah, why?”“You keep nibbling on your thumb. You usually only do that when something’s on your mind.”She lowered her hand to her lap. “It’s nothing bad.”“So tell me what it is.”More ankle twirling. “This morning, Cole asked me to move in with him.”I felt my brows rise. “Well, now.”“It’s a big step.” She bit down on her lip. “I don’t know if we should be taking it so early.”“Cat took it with Danton, and they’re happy. You’ve known Cole for, what, eight months now? It’s only too soon if it feels too soon.” I slanted my head. “What did you tell him?”“That I needed to think about it.”“How did he react?”Her lips thinned. “He just smiled and said, ‘No worries, baby, take what time you need.’ Basically, the cocky shit is confident I’ll say yes so he saw no need to push me on it.”“He wouldn’t want you to actually move in with him unless you were one hundred percent sure about it.”She snorted, shoving a stray curl away from her face. “Don’t be so sure. Cole’s mostly laidback, but he likes to have his way—irrespective of what others might want. It’s that single-minded focus which got him where he is today in the world of boxing.”True enough. “Do you wantto move in with him?”She took a long breath. “Yes. Yes, I do.”“Then go for it.”“I don’t know if I …” She trailed off, her gaze moving to something behind me. “You just stay right there while I go check on Cat and Inaya.” Then she was gone.Twisting a little in my seat to glance behind me, I saw that I had company. It was a guy I’d seen around the club before. One who happened to be hot as hell. He had a real mountain man look with his tall build, short beard, big hands, and broad shoulders.Flashing me a smile, he said, “Hi, I was debating whether or not to come say hello, since you seemed to be having a simple night out with your friends—I didn’t want to intrude. But I knew I’d regret not coming over if I didn’t.” He held out his hand. “I’m Remy.”I shook it, smiling. “Briar.”He gestured at the chair opposite me that Inaya had vacated. “Mind if I sit down?”“No, go right ahead.”Taking the seat, he said, “I’ve seen you here a few times. You usually wear red.”“That’s a thing of the past.”His smile widened. “Glad to hear it.”We talked a little. More like flirted, really. When my friends didn’t return, I took a quick look around. They were stood at the bar with Cole, grinning like idiots. Inaya even gave me a thumbs up. The nosy heifers then dispersed, seemingly content to leave me alone with Remy.“It appears that I now have you all to myself,” he said, watching my friends scatter.“It does indeed.” Feeling the spot between my shoulder blades begin to burn, I glanced over my shoulder without thought. Trace stood several feet away, staring right at me, his expression completely neutral. My stomach did a crazy flip, and my hormones’ interest quickly shifted from Remy to him. Ugh.I sent Trace a breezy smile and then turned back to Remy, only to notice that his eyes were pinned on the male I was striving to ignore.“A certain someone doesn’t like me talking to you.” Remy’s gaze returned to mine. “You left the dance floor with him and Kaleb last weekend.”Huh. Someone paid attention. “I did.”“So that’s what you’re into? Group sex? Because I gotta say up front, I don’t share.”I almost narrowed my eyes, my shoulders tensing. I was very much a ‘live and let live’ person. I didn’t judge people for what they did or didn’t like. And if Remy here wasn’t interested in sex that involved multiple partners, fine, whatever. But I wasn’t feeling so flippant toward the trace of disgust that had laced his tone.“I wouldn’t say I’m specifically into it,” I told him. “But I wouldn’t find it anything to be ashamed about if I was.”He stiffly shrugged one shoulder. “I personally don’t see the attraction in it.”“Okay.”“My opinion is that Lacroix and Westley want each other and aren’t comfortable facing it, so they share women instead. The whole time, they’re probably imagining that they’re fucking each other.”I highly doubted it, but it seemed better to change the subject in any case. “So, anyway—”“Sex should be between two people, or it’s not even really sex, it’s just a bunch of people getting off on doing something taboo.”I bristled at how he made it sound so unnatural. Slutty, even—that was what he was getting at. “I can guess what your real problem is with group sex. You have to be the focal point of a woman’s attention. You don’t want to compete for it. You need her to be allabout you. There’s nothing wrong with that. But it’s also not wrong that some men don’t feel that way.”His brows snapped together. “Are you insinuating that I’m insecure?”“I didn’t say that. Though it wouldn’t be a negative thing if you were. Everyone has insecurities, it’s part of life. I just mean you get off on being a woman’s focus. I was making the point that not all men do—that’s not taboo, it’s a simple matter of preference.”“It’s got nothing to do with preferences. It’s a case of two gay men refusing to admit they’re gay and some women being naïve enough to not see it so they hop into bed with them.”“You’re calling me naïve? Suave, dude.”Trace materialized beside my chair. “Evening, Briar.” He looked from me to Remy. “Is there a problem here?”“No,” I replied, marveling at how I could feel both relieved and uncomfortable by his presence—well, having your hormones run amok was an annoying experience. “I’m just not feeling the vibe. It was nice to meet you, Remy.”He rose from his chair. “Whatever,” he mumbled, walking away.Such a precious man-child.“What was that about?” Trace asked me.Preferring not to get into that, I prevaricated, “He was being rude. I called him on it.” Needing to calm my body the hell down, I added, “Right, now you have to go.”His brows shot up. “Excuse me?” he asked, the image of indignation.I waved my hand. “Go on now, shoo.”He did a slow blink. “Did you just … ‘shoo’ me?”“Look, it was nice to see you and everything—especially when you’re such a pleasure to look at—but no man is going to come over and talk to me while you’re towering over me like this.”Just then, Kaleb sidled up to Trace, but his hazel eyes were on me. No, focused on me. Like nothing else was worth his attention.My pulse jumped because, yeah, my system didn’t know what to do with itself right now. “Hey, Kaleb,” I managed not to croak.He smiled, slow and sexy. “Hello again, Briar.”Looking at him, Trace gestured at me, an amused smirk playing around the edges of his mouth. “She just shooed me.”I rolled my eyes. “Don’t be a baby. Go play.”“We intend to,” Trace told me, his voice dropping. “And we’re hoping to play with you.”My lower stomach fluttered and clenched. Well, damn. “My mother’s behavior at the ball didn’t make you decide to avoid me?”“No. Though I think that was her hope.”I licked my lips. “If I go with you, she’ll find out. A couple of her friends are here—I noticed them earlier. They’ll report back to her.”He shrugged, uncaring. “What happens between you, me, and Kaleb is our business.”“Maybe so, but she’d make it her business. She threatened you. I heard her.”Trace pinned my gaze with his own. “No one keeps me away from what I want.”I narrowed my eyes. “Just how much of this invitation you’re issuing to me is motivated by the urge to flip her the finger and make a point that she has no say in what you do?”“I already made that point to her at the ball. I don’t feel the need to make it again. And if I did, I wouldn’t use you or anyone else to do it.” He took my hand and gave it a gentle tug. “Come with us.”“You know you want to,” said Kaleb.Oh, I did. And if Trace was down with risking Alondra’s wrath, well, I figured he’d later regret it … but that would be on him. I’d done the right thing and warned him like a good citizen.I stood. “All right.”Two sets of eyes glimmered with male satisfaction.Trace didn’t release my hand as he began pulling me through the crowds toward the ornate doors. Kaleb remained close behind me, his warm palm splayed on my lower back.In the hallway, Trace guided me to a particular door and unlocked it with a swipe of his card. “We booked this room with you in mind, hoping you’d be here tonight.” He let the door swing open.From the doorway, I got a good glimpse of the space ahead of me. Gray walls. Dark floor. A table. Three chairs.An interrogation room, I quickly realized.Well fucking now.“In you go.” Kaleb gently but firmly ushered me inside and led me straight to a chair that was clearly meant for whoever was there to be ‘questioned.’It wasn’t until I sat down that I noticed there was a steel bar in the middle of the table. Uh, okay.“Remember, Briar,” began Kaleb, “if you need us to stop at any time, you say stop—that’s all it will take.”I gave him a slow nod, trusting them.Trace let a set of metal cuffs dangle in front of me. “Yes?”I licked my suddenly-dry lips. “Yes.”Indigo-blue eyes heated. “Put your hands out in front of you.”I did as Trace asked. My pulse quickened as the cold weight of the cuffs settled around my wrists—not too tight, but restrictive enough to make adrenaline pump through my blood. It was only at that moment that I realized there was a third cuff connected to the chain. Trace attached it to the steel bar and, yeah, that I’d not been expecting.The chain was long enough that I could sit up straight in my seat, but not enough for me to back away from the table or fully stand upright. I gave an experimental tug, and the chain easily held.I was going nowhere.And I freaking liked it.Trace and Kaleb both took a seat opposite me, their expressions neutral, their eyes flinty, looking the absolute epitome of cool, casual, and assertive. It was a little unnerving, to be truthful. And it made my stomach get all fluttery in the best way.Trace folded his arms. “Here’s how this is going to work. We’re going to ask you a series of questions. They’ll be a little on the invasive side. You might not wish to answer. If that is the case, you can decline to do so. But … you will pay a price. You can also choose to lie of course but, again, you will pay a price. As such, I’d advise you to only lie if you’re sure that we won’t detect you’re being untruthful.”I looked from one man to the other. “What kind of price?”“Nothing bad.” Pursing his lips, Trace briefly inclined his head. “Depending on your idea of ‘bad,’ I suppose.”Not comforting. But I wasn’t put-off. Excitement edged the nervous thrum in my blood.“Once Trace and I are done questioning you,” Kaleb cut in, “we’re going to take turns fucking that pussy of yours. You’ll be cuffed the whole time, unable to do a damn thing but take what we give you however we want to give it to you. And you’ll come hard for us like a good girl.”Oh, I didn’t doubt it.“We’ll start with a nice simple question,” said Trace. “Do you prefer one-night stands or long-term sexual partners?”“Long-term.” Which I thought would surprise some people, since … “I’ve never done long-term before, though.”“Why not?” asked Kaleb.I shrugged. “Either I didn’t click with my past partners or they … or they failed Alondra’s test.”“They let her kiss them, you mean,” Trace surmised, the corners of his eyes briefly tightening. “Yes, Kaleb mentioned she was far more fucked up than I’d realized. But we won’t talk about that; tonight is about you.” He tipped his head to the side. “Have you ever kissed a girl?”“No,” I replied.Kaleb drummed his fingers on the table. “Are you curious about it?”I shook my head. “Not really.”Trace unfolded his arms. “Have you ever had sex while another couple was having sex in the same room?”“No.” These questions were rather easy. Which I hadn’t expected, because I figured they’d fire all sorts of potentially embarrassing questions at me to make me feel uncomfortable and trip me into either lying or evading answering.“Would you do it?” asked Kaleb.I twisted my mouth. “I don’t know. I think it would depend on who the other couple was.”Trace fussed with the position of his wristwatch, his gaze not leaving mine. “Have you ever watched porn?”“Yes,” I replied.Curiosity flared in Trace’s eyes. “What kind of porn?”Well, one time it had been … “Guy-on-guy.”Kaleb’s lips twitched. “Why am I not surprised? Any other types of porn?”And I’d prefer not to answer that. Not because I was ashamed but because I knew they’d likely laugh and it would spoil the mood. I gave an aloof shrug. “Just average stuff.”Kaleb tsked. “She lied.”Trace nodded at him. “Deal with it.”I stiffened, my eyes widening as Kaleb left his seat. “I didn’t lie!”“Oh, she did it again,” said Trace. “Make her pay for that as well.”“It was the truth,” I protested, my shoulders hunching as Kaleb moved to stand behind me.Trace gripped the chain and gave it a yank, making me lean forward in my seat. “That was a third lie.”A hand pressed on my back to pin my front to the table. “Up,” Kaleb ordered, his voice low and deep and all demand.I pushed out of my seat, essentially bending myself over the table. My chair was kicked aside. My dress was flipped up. A finger traced the gusset of my thong.“Pretty,” Kaleb murmured. “Our girl has the best ass, doesn’t she?”A hand came down sharply on my butt.I flinched at the burn. Damn, that hurt.“One.” Kaleb slapped the same globe again. “Two.” A slap to the other globe. “Three.”Ow, freaking ow.“Now let’s try this again, Briar,” said Trace. “What other kind of porn did you watch?”Blunt nails dragged over my smarting flesh, and I hissed out a breath. “Cat and I only looked it up after having too many glasses of wine; we wanted to know why it was so often talked about.”“Which doesn’t answer the question.” Kaleb slapped my ass again and, fuck, it was now throbbing like a mother. “What sort of porn was it?”“Hentai,” I gritted out, my face now feeling almost as hot as my over-spanked flesh.“There,” said Trace, “that wasn’t so hard, was it?”I blinked, surprised that neither man had much else to say about my watching anime porn.“Have you ever sent naked pictures of yourself to anyone?” asked Kaleb, gently smoothing his hands over my ass. But it wasn’t to comfort or seduce. It was a threat.“No.” I wouldn’t have trusted that the photos wouldn’t have been shared or leaked to the media.Another soft stroke over my ass. “What’s your favorite sex position?”“I don’t have one.”Trace hummed. “What’s a sure-fire way to turn you on?”That should have been obvious. “Pin me down.”Bracing his elbows on the table, Trace interlinked his fingers. “Tell me something non-sexual that turns you on.”The first thing that came to my mind was Kaleb’s voice. I wasn’t so inclined to say that out loud, however. These two men had enough power over me as it was. “There isn’t anything.”Trace let out a sad sigh. “Such a little liar.”Slap.I jumped. “Fuck.” Sharp bristles grazed over my stinging flesh. Kaleb’s stubble,I realized.“Answer the question, Briar,” Kaleb pushed, trailing little bites over my butt—again, it was a threat.“Voices,” I replied, vague. “Some voices turn me on.”Trace’s brow inched up. “Like whose?”Oh, the fucker. “None in particular. Dammit, Kaleb!” The son of a bitch had sank his teeth hard into my smarting skin.“Whose voice?” Trace persisted, leaning forward just a little. “Tell us, Briar.”I ground my teeth. “Kaleb’s.” The idiot behind me must have liked that, because he pressed a soft kiss to his bite mark.Trace’s mouth curved. “I figured that would be your answer. Now … what do you wear for bed?”“A smile,” I snarked.Both pricks chuckled.Fingertips danced over my folds, short nails lightly scraping over my underwear, and my inner muscles fluttered.“Wet,” said Kaleb, his voice thick.Again, my face flooded with color. I did not like to be spanked. I did not like pain. I did not like answering invasive freaking questions. And yet, I was in fact damp and seriously turned on.Trace made a sound of approval in the back of his throat. “Good. That’s how we like her.” He returned his gaze to mine. “How often do you make yourself come?”A few times a week, if not more, but I fudged, “Not very often.” I braced myself for a harsh spank or bite, but nothing. Ha, I’d gotten a fib past them.Trace trailed a finger down the side of my face. “Have you ever thought about me and Kaleb when you got yourself off?”Uh-oh. “No.”He sighed long and loud. “Will you never learn, baby girl?”A hand came down hardon the bitten globe of my ass. Goddammit it burned.“Did you fantasize about us fucking you before we had you?” Trace pressed.“That is such a narcissistic question.” I jumped as yet another spank was delivered to my abused ass.“Briar,” Kaleb drawled, his tone a pure warning. “Where’s that honesty I love?”I swallowed, closing my eyes. “Fine. Yes. I did.”Fingers doodled circles on my throbbing butt. “And did you come thinking about it?”I was so gonna get them back for this at some point. “Yes,” I mumbled, opening my eyes.Trace’s face went all warm and lazy. “Good girl.”“Have you ever worn an anal plug?” asked Kaleb.I shook my head. “No.”Kaleb’s hands stroked my butt again. “How many times have you had anal sex?”“Twice,” I replied.“Did you have it with the same partner?”“Yes.” The freaking tool hadn’t properly gotten me off.Trace gripped my chin. “What’s your number one sexual fantasy besides being helpless?”I hesitated.Thwack.I jerked with a hiss, but Kaleb slammed a hand on my back to keep me in place.“You know we’ll keep going until we have our answer, Briar.” Trace breezed his thumb over my lower lip. “Why don’t you want to tell us?”“You’ll probably think it’s weird.”“Try us.” It wasn’t a dare, it was an order.“Someone fucking me while I’m asleep.”“Nothing weird about that. Lots of people fantasize about it.” His eyes drifted over my face. “Have you ever thought about what it would be like to have both me and Kaleb inside you? One taking your ass while the other fucks your pussy?”He just had to go there, didn’t he? Swearing in my head, I admitted, “I’ve thought about it.”He gave me a look of approval. “Good girl. I know that wasn’t easy for you to answer honestly. Last question. Would you like Kaleb to eat you out before he fucks you?”My body brightened. “Yes.”Trace bit his lip, softly sliding his hand from my chin to my nape. “Shame for you, then, that he’s gonna do whatever the hell he wants.” He gripped my neck tight, his mouth setting into a ruthless slash. “Don’t fucking move.”