Capital Risk (20 page)

Nothing could be better than that.

But the Bennetts loved to prove me wrong.

Nicholas shifted as I crashed against Reed. I recaptured my breath, but Reed grinned, Max hummed, and Nicholas removed his shirt. Fingers tightened over my hips, and the cool touch of more fun gel soothed the aching, clenching part of me.

First he teased.

And now Nicholas sought to claim me fully.

I tensed as Nicholas rose behind me. I prepared for him to lift me from his brother and seize me for himself.

That wasn’t the plan.

“Hold tight to Reed,” Nicholas whispered. “And relax.”

As if my insides weren’t already simmering with heat as I rode Reed beyond my pleasure. A thread of dominance shadowed Nicholas’s words. His command bit with gentle attention. I did as I was told, loving how Reed’s cock thickened inside me.

Nicholas planned for far more.

His cock warmed, desperate and hard. He pressed against the vulnerable, secret button. I shifted. Reed didn’t let me off his lap.

They both wanted their turn.

At the same time
.

My eyes widened.

“You can’t be serious…” I silenced as Nicholas pushed against my bud. “Whoa. Wait. We’ve never done that before…”

Max’s smile was cold. “Never had a reason.”

Reed wrapped his arms over me. “It’ll feel good.”

Sure. Right. Why was I believing three men who had never let anything touch
them
there?

I gripped Reed, but I tensed too much for Nicholas to move.

Max leaned over the couch, taking my cheek in his hand. It wasn’t a soothing gesture, his never were, but it distracted me. He pushed his thumb in my mouth.

“Suck,” he ordered.

I did, one long draw, just to watch as his jaw tightened.

Nicholas pressed hard, and I murmured over Max’s thumb.

Oh God, they’d split me in two.

And I’d love it.

My mind instantly and completely blanked to everything but the overwhelmingly intense sensation of stretching and surrendering and welcoming something entirely too big, too fierce, too
everything
into a part of me that hadn’t ever accommodated anything so powerful.

Tight. Full. Aching.

He didn’t push in all the way, and God, it didn’t matter. I had all I could take, all I could
ever
need.

I collapsed against Reed as two men claimed me. As their cocks buried inside of me.

I melted.

Fell limp.

Rode a blizzard of chills that shocked me into a cascade of warming shivers and a torrent of blistering heat.

I tensed and liquefied, hurt and ached with pleasure, and thought of everything and nothing. The only thing that mattered was to be connected with these men, to feel how deep and intimate and
passionate
they could be.

Reed stayed still as Nicholas took control of both of us, edging deeper into the vulnerable part of me and somehow moving me against Reed. His slowest, most deliberate of pushes immediately found a rhythm with his brother. Nicholas surged an inch forward, Reed edged just an inch out, and I lost myself in the wicked, spinning, and extreme delight of it all.

I sucked hard against Max’s thumb, the only thing preventing me from moaning in constant struggle. He knew that wasn’t what I needed. I looked at him, begged with parted lips and a single nip against his thumb.

I had Nicholas and Reed. But Max refused the pleasure, refused the closeness, refused
me
.

We had to begin again, to fix what was broken, so that we could move beyond the darkness.

“M—Max…” I couldn’t speak as I thickened with raw energy. “Let me…”

Help him. Heal him. Whatever he wanted, whatever would finally ease his guilty conscience and forgive himself for what he had done. It was only a nightmare now, the force of his body only one in a series of horrors I forgot. I wouldn’t let that separate us or challenge our bond ever again.

“Fuck.” He pulled away. “Baby, I can’t make you do this.”

“Want to.”

“You’re better than me. I won’t drag you down. I won’t have you hate me.”

“Never.”

“Always.”

My groan enticed him. Max’s strength existed in his muscles, not his will. I reached for him, bringing him near. He climbed the couch and let me lean, careful to not disturb the pulsing, trading, delicious pumping of Nicholas and Reed within my clenching body.

His cock unleashed from his pants. Max hadn’t permitted me to pleasure him before, not when cocks and seed meant we could only explore each other in one way.

God, if I had only known.

If
we
had known.

A man in my core, a man tucked deep in a secret and sensitive part of me, and one tasted upon my lips? I was filled and stretched, used and worshiped, cherished and adored. And I had them all. Together. Within me and around me and dedicated to me.

Sealed inside me in a way I had
never
imagined but would forever
need
to happen again and again.

I took Max as deeply in my mouth as I could. I did the same for Reed and Nicholas, desperate for the few gentle strokes to yield into a squealed moment of sharp sensation. It dueled between pleasure and pain, excitement and complete sensory overload.

My body and mind couldn’t keep up, and I eventually fell into a lust-warmed limpness, balanced against Reed, offering myself to Nicholas, welcoming Max’s thrusts into my mouth.

His salty excitement teased my tongue, and I shivered as each alternating stroke thickened them with shared desire.

The tension coiling in me stilled my movements, stole my breath, and shocked me with its power.

I sucked hard against Max if only to prevent myself from crying out for all them, any of them, more and less and everything confusing that I suddenly desired more than anything.

Nicholas’s weight pushed me against Reed, and their hands, their legs, their cocks tangled me within their need and my own inhibitions. Everything stripped. Everything warmed. The thin, tiny bit of me that separated them left me so
full
, so unbelievably stuffed with their hardness.

Their furiously contained desire growled in profanities and promises. I drove my own body back to accept more of them. The heat overwhelmed me. I arched as Nicholas wrapped an arm over me, his hand tucking low.

He held my little bump.

And I was lost.

My tightness crippled both of them, and Reed shouted first, jamming his hips upwards as the heat splashed inside me. I welcomed it as my body ground against the shared bliss. Nicholas didn’t last either. He kissed my shoulder, held my tummy, and pushed deeper than he had before. I couldn’t groan, not with Max’s pulsing, jetting cock erupting within my mouth. I swallowed, eagerly, savoring his salty seed as wave after wave of heat crashed inside
all
of me.

Max pulled away, leaving a mess upon my lips I eagerly licked up. Reed swore, again and again.

Nicholas merely held me.

And I shuddered in absolute stillness as my body accepted everything from these men. I flew, I crashed, I shuddered, I cried, and each of them comforted me, loved me, relieved me with soft touches and perfect encouragement.

Again and again I twisted, and they eased everything that overwhelmed me with absolute devotion. Nicholas pulled me away, cradling me in his arms, resting me on my side, kissing my flushed cheeks and parted lips.

“I love you,” he whispered. “Both of you.”

His hand hadn’t left my tummy. I covered his fingers with mine. “I know.”

“Never hesitate to ask for us. All of us. Any of us.”

I nodded, amazed and breathless.

It wasn’t a normal relationship. It wasn’t good or safe or conventional. But I needed them. All of them. Together with me.

If only so we could prepare for what happened next, if only so we could enjoy each other for a single moment in time.

Because I feared what would happen in the coming days.

And I was right to fear.

My dress didn’t fit. Wouldn’t even zip.

The front pudged with a tiny, revealing bump.

Either tiny, sickly Sarah Atwood was finally putting on weight, or the gossip would scandalize me before I made it through the first of many conversations and cordial encounters with business associates and my family’s enemies.

I couldn’t let that attention fall to me. Not when this Bennett Foundation fundraiser would be Darius’s last.

I folded the pretty gold dress and tucked it back into the garment bag. I donned a black, less form-fitting cocktail dress to a pre-dinner celebration.

The social implications of wearing black to an afternoon affair might have been disastrous to the old Atwoods. My family kept a strict social schedule and etiquette. It was my role to prattle in delicate conversations with Dad’s investors, board members, and the lobbyists he courted.

If he were alive, he’d be outraged. Still, I rather have worn a black dress than revealed to the world that Mark Atwood’s twenty year old daughter was unwed and pregnant.

“May I confess something to you?” Nicholas asked. He stared only at the mirror to make the final adjustments to his tie.

I shrugged. “I’m not going anywhere.”

“I…hate these formal events.”

I wasn’t expecting that. “Really?”

“Always did. My mother was the social butterfly. Reed has her charm. Max drinks through it.”

“But you?” I yawned, settling into the pillows on the bed.

“I much rather stay here with you.”

“Undoubtedly.”

Nicholas stared at me from the mirror. “I play the part I was raised to portray. I’m Nicholas Bennett, the man my father trusts, the president the board depends on to manage the company. Tonight, I’m the confident business partner meeting with potential clients.”

I hesitated, asking for my own benefit. “So who is the real Nicholas Bennett?”

“Do you know?”

“I’d like to find out.”

Nicholas approached only to adjust the cuffs binding me to the bed, tight enough to prevent me from escaping the estate as the Bennetts attended their function for the night.

“Be careful what you wish for, Ms. Atwood.”

Everything had to go right tonight.

Everything.

Reed organized beautiful events for his foundation, mostly to entertain the deep pockets of the donors he courted. He chose a conservatory for this event, and it felt natural for me to walk amongst the budded flowers trapped within artificial gardens.

Nicholas and Max escorted me as far as the first glassed atrium housing the string quartets and bustling servers. Champagne and hors d'oeuvres passed between bubbling fountains and beautiful sculptures.

We waited to make our entrance. Exotic tropical flowers shielded us in a curtain of meticulously trimmed vines. The black dress might have concealed me in sophistication at any other event. Here, amid the crimsons and golds, fierce violets and crushed blues of every manner of flower, I wasn’t hiding.

Soon enough, I’d have no reason to hide.

“We don’t need to go inside.” Nicholas adjusted his suit. The sharp, charcoal grey faded within the flowers, but the amber of his eyes blossomed in brightness. “I won’t have you face him again.”

Darius Bennett didn’t scare me.

In fact, he was the reason I attended the party.

I emptied the Atwood purse for the
privilege
of attending his family’s social event. It was worth it though, the charity meant well, aiding less fortunate families struggling with their children’s medical bills. The greatest irony of becoming the largest contributor to their charity was that it was my father’s fault the foundation even existed. Without his evils, Helena Bennett would still be alive, and her boys, Max and Reed, would never have endured such terrible injuries from the horrific car crash.

One crime led to another. One death became many more.

But the war was ending. Tonight.

And I’d do it myself, without the help of my step-brothers. This night was for me. For Bumper.

For a life beyond Bennett control.

“Are you feeling well?” Nicholas asked.

“I’m fine.” I lied, hopefully my last one. “I can handle Darius and the board. Besides, there’s Atwood investors here as well.”

By intent. I invited them to event, to broach a
peace
between my farm and our newest vendor.

“Is now the time to be flexing your muscles?” Max asked.

I smoothed my dress. “I should be making public appearances while I still can.”

“You won’t need to hide, Sarah,” Nicholas said. “We have nothing to fear.”

“The fate of your family’s company doesn’t rest in my uterus.”

“Yes, it does.”

“It isn’t the same, and you know it.”

We smiled and greeted a passing judge and his wife. A server carried caviar. My stomach turned, but I suddenly craved salt, oranges, and a nap.

The sooner this was done the better.

“Everything is going to be okay.” I held their gazes. “I promise.”

Max frowned. “You don’t need to reassure us, baby.”

“Yes, I do.”

Max usually only wore dress shirts and vests. Now, he donned a jacket. I knew why. My bodyguard was abruptly fired with no explanation from Nicholas. Max was my security for the night. His weapon rested in his jacket.

The thought sickened me. This was exactly why it had to be tonight. I wouldn’t tolerate the weapons, the dread. For too long I’d waited, helplessly fearing the day Darius would act on his threats against my step-brothers, Mom, and me.

One night, and then we’d find peace.

“I’d like to talk to Reed,” I said. “Before we make our rounds.”

Nicholas didn’t like the idea. I pretended to study the beautiful displays of flowers and statues instead of him. I didn’t trust myself to adopt a stoicism that wasn’t my own. I imitated
him
and shielded my step-brothers from my intentions. That didn’t mean Nicholas wouldn’t see through my plan. That he wouldn’t ruin everything in a chivalric excuse to
protect
me.

This revenge was mine to take.

“We’ll find Reed,” Nicholas said. “Are you sure you’re okay?”

No. “Of course.”

“Need anything?”

“You don’t have an orange, do you?”

“What?”

“Just a weird craving. Don’t worry about it.”

He extended his arm. Business partnerships and marriage united us, but we hid our true relationship from the world. In any other circumstance, it was
proper
for a gentleman to escort a lady. I took his elbow to ease the flustered, raging beat of my heart.

Would anyone know the truth? Would they see how I looked at him, how I held myself near him?

Could they see Bumper?

I was terrified. I smiled anyway.

Reed broke from a cluster of attractive blondes. Their assets would tempt some of Southern California’s society, but they weren’t good enough for Reed Bennett. He excused himself, and they giggled, perky and giddy, as he walked away.

“Thanks for the rescue,” he said.

“You looked cozy,” I teased.

“Aw, Sarah. You know you’re my one and only mistake.”

“How sweet.”

Reed nodded to Nicholas. “Dad’s here. Pulled up in a limo. Brought Bryant Maddox and Peter Hannigan with him.”

Max grunted. “Then we won’t be here for long.”

“We won’t have to be.” Now or never. I held Reed’s gaze, subtly nodding away from the party. “Reed, my attorney is coming.”

Nicholas hid his scowl. “Delvannis is here?”

“
Anthony
is here. I invited him. Since he’s been involved with the new contracts, I thought it’d be proper to have him speak with the board in person. I really need to introduce Reed as the host as well.”

Reed groaned. “I’m not a fan of attorneys.”

“Especially Anthony Delvannis,” Nicholas said.

“You can’t be annoyed by every man who isn’t afraid of your family,” I said.

“It’s a very short list.”

“Well, I’m not going to scandalize the Atwoods by having my attorney crash the party. Reed should receive him.”

“Do I have to?” he asked.

“Behave yourself.” I pulled him away. “Let’s go. In and out.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

We crossed the atrium, exchanging brief pleasantries with some of the more distinguished guests. A friend of the family intercepted me between planters of weird flowers and weirder blossoms. The pollen scratched my nose. I cleared my throat. It tightened anyway.

Allergies. Of course. More complications.

A polite smile excused us. I dug my fingers into Reed’s arm. He flinched.

“Jesus, Sarah. Are you okay?”

“Can you see Bumper?” My hand flitted over the dress. “It’s not obvious, is it?”

“Only when you stand like that. Relax.”

I’d never relax. Not now. Not until I knew it was safe.

But the closer that moment came, the more my insides turned to ice and then shattered through everything soft and tender. The hatred coiled inside me. I hoped Bumper was too little to feel any consequence.

I tugged Reed down an isolated hallway, away from the crowds, the eyes, the ears.

The witnesses.

He knew
immediately
what I wanted. He suffered through my plans before.

“Don’t you fucking dare.” Reed pointed at me. “What the hell are you doing, Sarah?”

“I have a plan.”

“I
hate
your plans.”

“I need your help.”

“I
hate
when I have to help.” He tried to escape back to the party. I blocked his path. “Why isn’t Nick helping?”

I answered honestly. “Because he’d try to stop me.”

“And I won’t?”

“You won’t want to.”

“I doubt that,” Reed said. “You have five seconds to come clean. This is
my
party, Sarah. My work. A
charity
. Don involve it in this.”

“This will be the only time I’m close enough to Darius.”

“No.”

“I have a plan.”

“No, you have a disaster. You’re upset. I can tell. You’re scared, but believe me, Sarah. Nick’s got this plan, we have contacts, and it’ll be done right and professionally and without any fallout implicating us. And it’ll be
soon
. I promise. We’ll do this, and then you’ll be safe.”

“You can’t guarantee that.”

“Yes, we can,” Reed said. “Trust Nick. He has this under control.”

“So do I.” I pulled the glass tube from my purse. “Simple. Quick. Easy.”

Reed didn’t want to see it. He forced past me only to swear and turn.

“What the fuck is that?”

I bit my lip. “You might not want to know.”

“Just tell me.”

I wished I wasn’t as proud. That Dad wouldn’t have delighted in the dark irony.

“It’s a concentrated sample of a Bennett Corporation pesticide. An organophosphate.”

Reed sucked in a breath. “And I can’t tell you to pour that on one of your fields instead?”

“No.”

“What do you think you’re going to do?”

“Toast to the future successes between the Bennetts and Atwoods.”

I planned to poison Darius with the very same chemicals that built his fortune.

Poetic.

Sick.

Reed rubbed the scar on his cheek. “What happens if he drinks it?”

“It’ll mimic the effects of a heart attack.”

“My father doesn’t have a heart, let alone a bad one.”

I agreed. “He’s sixty years old. He works long hours in a stressful industry. No one will question it.”

“Nick will.”

I swallowed. “And he’ll be glad it’s done.”