Game On (The Morgan Brothers Book 4) (4 page)

I’m reeling from how quickly things have changed, my mind spins as I try to clear the questions bouncing around in my head. I’d been fighting to wrap my mind around the way my body responded to the men who’d snatched me from the clutches of the soldiers. Now I’m fighting a new battle…one I don’t stand a chance to win when I can barely stand on my own. I feel myself beginning to sway as my mind spins in circles, but warm hands still me before I can fall. “I’ve got you, love. Hold still while we secure you. We’ll get your punishment out of the way first and then we’ll see to the pleasure your body craves.”

A cool band of silk slides over my eyes once again and I find my mind beginning to float into a place where nothing exists but the soft brush of warm hands at my wrists and ankles. The place my mind escapes to is safe and secure but detached from the reality of my situation. The sound of fabric being shredded startles me back to the moment, and I realize the garment I’d been wearing is now gone. “Beautifully bare, I do love a smooth pussy. We’ll make sure you keep those spa appointments, baby.” This voice is familiar…I’ve heard it before in another time and place. I remember being lost in its timbre once before while I walked through the fog. I’d tried to find a way to him then, but the fog was too thick and I’d slipped too far away before he was gone.

This time, I find my voice and whisper, “Don’t go. Please don’t leave me again.” I remember feeling so alone the last time he left even though I still can’t remember where we met. I don’t think I can bear him leaving me again.

“I’m not going anywhere, cher.” I’m close to bringing the memory into focus when the first stinging blow lands on my ass causing me to gasp in surprise. As I shudder through the strikes, my mind once again drifts to another plane. The pain morphs into a whole new kind of heat, searing through my blood, igniting a firestorm of need that quickly sends a wash of moisture to my sex. The first trickles of evidence snake down the insides of my thighs as the final swat rocks me as far up onto my toes as the straps binding me allow.

Hot fingers slide through my drenched folds and for the first time I’m grateful for the shield the blindfold affords. The absurdity of my ostrich theory isn’t lost on me, but in the absence of any other way to hide how deeply affected I was by their punishment, I’ll cling to any small piece of dignity I can.

“Don’t try to hide your reaction, Athena. It won’t work and will just piss us off. Your body craves what we can give you. Knowing how deeply your submissive streak runs pleases me more than I can say.” His fingers curl inside me, touching the spot I know will immediately launch me into the abyss of orgasm, and it does.

Colors flash around me like a kaleidoscope of neon lightning as pleasure races through my body with such intensity I’m only cognizant for a few seconds…a few precious seconds so intense I feel myself burning from the inside out even as I’m sliding into a sweet respite. Instinctively, I know once I reach the new level of consciousness I’ll be able to float in a quiet space and gather the shattered pieces of my mind back together before I’m forced to face the men who now own me body and soul.

M
itch read the
fantasy portion of Aspen’s application so many times he was starting to feel like a damned stalker. The entire thing was loaded with crystal clear glimpses into her subconscious. He doubted she’d taken the time to reread it before sending it off or she’d have known how telling it was. “There’s a lot there. I’d be surprised if she intended to share such personal insights. I just can’t see the woman I met in St. Maarten taking this circuitous route. Even now, during our on-line conversations, she’s been direct almost to a fault.”

“Not about her location or identity,” Phoenix’s tone reminded Mitch of a kid who’d been beaten at his own game, and it was actually pretty close to the truth in this particular case.

“Stop and think for a minute. She told us from the beginning she didn’t intend to share that information and she stayed true to her word despite our continued badgering. If you’ll think back, she gave us a couple of clues, but we failed to realize it at the time.” And she had. She’d told them she was a tumbling tumbleweed, and according to their DHS sources, Aspen had been assigned to several locations during her short tenure with the agency.

“Whatever. I’m still going to take out my frustration on her lovely ass. And from the pictures I’ve seen, my hand is going to fit nicely across those nice rounded cheeks. She’s going over my lap the first chance I get.” Mitch wanted to laugh out loud at his friend’s justification for getting Athena exactly where she’d have been anyway.

Phoenix obviously wasn’t accustomed to being beaten at much of anything—and particularly not his own games. When Mitch rolled in late last night, he’d followed Kip’s truck into the yard. The youngest Morgan brother had greeted him with his typical boisterous bull shit, but he’d also told Mitch how glad he was they’d finally managed to track down Athena.

“Damn, Phoenix has been a real pain in the ass for months. I’m glad Miss Andrews will now be on the receiving end of my brother’s pissy attitude; I’m done with it. Fucking hell, I’m telling you my brothers are four for four. Every one of them has gone completely bat shit crazy until they got the girl.” They’d each grabbed a beer and settled on the back deck watching the stars move slowly across the Montana sky. “You know one of the strangest things about it is that every single one of my older brothers preached my entire life about how there is always a girl to replace the one you lose.”

“That’s probably not the way it works when it’s the right woman.” Mitch rocked his chair back on two legs and propped his boots up on the adjacent seat giving him an amazing view of the stars above. He loved gazing at the night sky, it was easy to understand why Montana was known as the Big Sky state. The vastness of space was easier to imagine when it was spread out in front of you. It was humbling to know what a small our little corner of the Universe we call home.

“I keep telling Phoenix he’d feel better if he’d go down to Mountain Mastery and blow off some steam, but he hasn’t been there to play for months.” Kip shook his head, and Mitch would have laughed at his obvious frustration, but there was a part of him that actually understood Kip’s point. And the hell of it was, a big part of him missed being Kip’s age and believing there wasn’t much that couldn’t be solved with a good drunk or fucking a beautiful woman until you were both too spent to walk.

“I don’t know how much he’s told you, but we’ve learned a lot about Ms. Andrews in the last few days—that’s one of the reasons I’m rolling in so late. Hang on to your hat, because Phoenix and I are definitely going to be playing at the club in the near future.” There wasn’t a chance in hell they’d walk away from the challenge Aspen’s Mountain Mastery application presented.

Kip’s raised brow let Mitch know his curiosity had been piqued, but he wasn’t going to ask any questions—at least not yet. “I’m pooped, and I’ve got a shit-ton of stuff to get done before the A.I. team shows up Monday.” Phoenix had mentioned Kip was making some changes to the Morgan’s ranching operation. Evidently those changes would include artificial insemination. Certainly didn’t sound like anything Mitch wanted to be involved in. Kip started shaking his head and laughing. “Damn, man. It’s not like anybody is asking you to be on probe duty or anything, so you can wipe the horrified look off your face. Although, watching a couple of our best bulls give it up to a little electrical stimulation will make you mighty glad you’re at the top of the food chain.”

“I’ll take your word for it. I’m convinced this is one of those
ignorance is bliss
things.” Mitch knew far more about the process than he was letting on, but awareness and a desire to witness it firsthand were two entirely different things. “Besides, I’ve come to plot Athena’s demise with your brother, and I’d hate to leave it all to him. I fear he might go too far and push her so far away we won’t ever be able to reel her in, and I think she just might be what we’ve been looking for.”

“Figured you guys might be planning to share a woman. Seems to be working out well for Brandt and Ryan, although I’m not sure what Joelle would tell you. Those two keep pretty close tabs on her.” Mitch had heard the same thing, word tended to travel quickly among former Special Forces operatives. For the most part, they remained a tight knit group long after leaving the teams.

“From what I’ve seen, Joelle holds her own quite nicely. To tell you the truth, every polyamorous relationship I’ve seen works well, so I’m anxious to see where this leads. I’m sure there are a lot of reasons for the success of poly relationships, but the most obvious is because they require a lot of special attention. Kent West once told me he and Kyle had grown up seeing how dedicated their dads were to making sure their mom always felt cared for. They had great role models for the kind of life they wanted for themselves. I envy them, and I’m grateful for their openness.”

“You have to admire brothers who can get along well enough to share a wife. None of us have similar enough tastes in women to share.” Kip laughed, but Mitch suspected his words were only partially true. He’d seen all of the Morgans interacting with Coral, Joelle, and Josie. The brothers’ love and respect for the women who’d joined their family was easy to see. It was also clear there were similar traits among the women, but he’d leave that discussion for another time.

Phoenix’s teasing tone
brought Mitch back to the moment. “Damn, I don’t know where you went, but it was a damned long way from here because you haven’t heard a word I’ve said.” Mitch didn’t even try to hold back his grin. Hell, he’d never met anybody who could become as lost in his work as Phoenix Morgan.
Hello pot, meet kettle.
He’d watched his friend zero in on a laptop so completely he hadn’t even heard his own phone ringing on the table beside him. From what he’d heard, Sage had been the same way before his life was turned upside down by three beautiful, but very active little girls.

“I was just thinking about my conversation with Kip last night. We arrived at the same time and shared a beer outside.” Phoenix looked up from the copy of Aspen’s application he was holding, raising a brow in question. Mitch grinned. “That young man is going to go down fighting when the right woman comes into his life.”

“That’s the truth. Part of that is due to the fact he’s the youngest of five boys and likely to have sustained more than a few
unintentional
head injuries. Another issue is our mother relentlessly pushing him to date the neighbor girl. Not that Caila isn’t nice enough—but she is known as Calamity for a reason.” Mitch didn’t even try to hold back his laughter. No wonder Kip didn’t seem too enthused about the idea of one woman in his life forever.

“Is the young lady still your neighbor?” Mitch was suddenly beginning to understand some of Kip’s reluctance. Hell, no man wanted his mother to choose his wife.

“She’s been away at school, but I heard she’s coming back home to help her dad at his vet clinic. I saw her in town yesterday, and I can hardly wait for Kip to see her Monday.” This time, it was Mitch’s turn to look at his friend in question. “Oh, you’re going to love this. Caila Cooper is the A. I.
expert
her dad is bringing to oversee the semen collection from the ranch’s bulls.” His expression must have given away his revulsion because Phoenix burst out laughing. “Damn, buddy, tell me how you really feel about it.”

“Fuck you. I was just wondering what on Earth your mother is thinking trying to match her son up with a woman who specializes in semen collection. You have to admit it sounds a bit odd.” Particularly since he’d checked YouTube just before dawn. Jesus, Joseph, and sweet mother Mary, he couldn’t imagine his own mother finding that particular skill set valuable in a potential daughter-in-law. But then again, he wasn’t Kip Morgan either.

Phoenix had to
remind himself that just because Mitch had divided his childhood between his parent’s southern Louisiana mansion and their penthouse in Houston, it didn’t mean he was a country boy. Hell, as near as he could tell, the only thing the man knew about livestock was which cut of steak he liked best.
I’d love to be able to see the picture he has in his mind of Calamity because there’s no way in hell it’s even close to the stunning young woman I saw walking down the street yesterday.
In fact, she’d reminded him a lot of the pictures he’d seen of Aspen Andrews.