Love Me Twice (5 page)

Celeste watched in fascinated horror as the two men she loved flipped a coin for her as if she was a carnival prize. Drew’s hand closed over the coin, and she jumped as he slapped it on the back of his outstretched arm. It was like watching a train wreck in slow motion. One by one, Drew peeled his fingers away. Then he lifted his hand to reveal the coin, gleaming silver against his sun-bronzed skin. Sean sat forward, and Drew leaned toward him.

Drew scowled.

Sean grinned.

It took less than a few seconds, but it seemed her life passed before her eyes. God help her. They were right. She did want this.

“You’re mine tonight.” Sean stood for the first time since she’d arrived. Her feet were braced against the pitch and roll of the ship, but they should have moved when she told them too. Instead, she remained rooted to the spot as Sean closed the distance between them.

Her eyes locked on his chest as he loomed over her. In her peripheral vision, she saw Drew take a step back, but he didn’t leave.

One strong hand closed over her shoulder. The other fisted under her chin and forced her face up to his. She stared, wide-eyed as Sean lowered his lips to hers.

 She had to be in shock. It was the only explanation for her mute acceptance of their plan. After kissing her senseless—well, she’d already been senseless, Sean turned her around and marched her to the door, and through it. Seconds passed while she stood outside the cabin, dazed, confused and aroused.

Her feet began to move then, carrying her to her cabin—she hoped. In truth, she didn’t have a clue where she was going. Away. Away from Sean and Drew. She’d done it before, but this time, she had no place to go.

* * * * *

“We need some rules.”

“Isn’t it a little late for that?” Drew crossed to the kitchen, separated from the rest of the suite by a high, black granite bar. He needed a drink.

“No. I don’t think so.”

Drew searched the kitchen for a serious drink. He settled for coffee. “What do you have in mind?”

“A day is one twenty-four hour period. Mine begins when we finish this discussion. Your first day begins tomorrow at the same time. We alternate days until Friday. Friday is shore day, so we can spend time with her off the ship, together. No one-on-one time on Friday. Saturday night is the costume party. We get an answer then. Whatever she decides, we abide by.”

“What if she decides to walk away again?”

“We abide by anything, except that.”

“Agreed. Anything else?”

“No touching her during the opposition’s allotted time.”

“Does that mean I can talk to her, or anything else, as long as I don’t touch her during your twenty-four hours?”

“Yes. I think that’s fair. After all, we do still have to consider this eco-terrorist thing. Damn, Drew. Why didn’t we know she’d gone to the FBI?”

Drew leaned one hip against the counter and sipped his coffee. “We didn’t want to know? Either one of us could have tracked her down. It wouldn’t have taken more than a few minutes of our time.”

“Why didn’t you?”

“I don’t know. I guess I didn’t think I had a right to. You were living with her at the time.”

“I should have gone after her, but. . . . ”

“You were too big of an ass to admit you were wrong?”

“No. I wasn’t wrong. We both deserved an answer, and you know it. That’s why you’re going along with this now. You may be sleeping with half the women onboard this ship, but you still love Celeste.”

“So do you. Let’s not forget that.”

“I’m not likely to forget. Now go see what you can find out about this eco-terrorist group. We’re eating away at my time with Celeste.”

* * * * *

A cabin steward brought the note, a brief command to be ready to go to dinner at a specific time. Typical of Sean. No negotiation. No consideration of what she might want. But then again, he knew what she wanted, especially in the bedroom.

She showered and pulled on the evening wear provided by the ship. It took all of three seconds to fasten the silk sarong in place, and slip her feet into the spa-style sandals that came with it. She’d never been one to use much makeup, so she was ready long before Sean’s scheduled arrival. He’d be on time. He always was.

Having the extra time wasn’t wise. She had too much time to think about what she was doing, the sheer stupidity of it. If she hadn’t been able to decide between the two men five years ago, how was she supposed to decide now? They led different lives now. They’d moved on.

The thought stopped her in her tracks. Had they moved on? She certainly hadn’t. Sure, she’d moved, to another job, another city, but moved on? No. Not by a long shot. There had been other men, but none of them had lived up to her standards. Standards set by Sean, and Drew too.

Could they pick up where they’d left off? It hadn’t been such a good place to leave off. There had been lots of anger and hurt those last few weeks, right after they’d returned to the States. That last mission had changed everything between the three of them.

Celeste slid the glass door to one side and stepped onto the small balcony. The stiff salt breeze caught her hair and swirled it around her face. She caught it in one fist and held it to one side as she leaned against the railing. The last mission they’d served on had nearly gotten them killed, and in the process, it had killed her relationship with Sean, or at least changed it beyond recognition.

Going back to where they’d left off wasn’t the answer. Somehow, she needed to get Sean to talk about what happened, maybe then they could put it behind them. That’s the only way they could move forward.

He arrived at exactly the specified time. She smiled as she moved to the door. At least that hadn’t changed. Her breath caught in her lungs at the sight of him. Everything in her body screamed for her to throw herself at him, but she pointedly ignored the pleas and stepped aside.

He’d changed to a white sarong, a passenger issue variety. It hung low on his lean hips, barely concealing the impressive package she knew was beneath it. The white made his skin look darker, and the loose sarong added an aura of casual decadence she’d never seen in him before. He stepped past her in the close confines of her economy cabin. She closed the door and rested her forehead against it for a brief second, willing her body to be strong.

“Hello, Celeste.”

She sucked in a calming breath and turned. “Sean.”

“I brought you something.”

He raised his hand. A silver band lay across his palm. Her knees grew weak, and her pussy flooded.

“You brought me a collar?”

“Yes. You’ll wear it when you’re with me.”

She made it to the one chair in the room before she collapsed. “In public?”

“Yes, in public.”

Before, she’d worn his collar in the privacy of their home, but never beyond the front door. Their games had been theirs, private. She couldn’t contemplate what this new demand meant. She stared at the solid loop. “I. . . . ”

“You will do as I say, Celeste.” He said it, emphasizing the word
will
, in that tone that overrode all her dominant circuits, and made her putty in his hands.

She fought to gain a foothold on her sanity. Liquid heat pooled between her legs. She wanted to wear the collar, wanted to give in to his demands, wanted – everything his presence promised. But if five years had taught her anything, it was that she could be strong when she needed to be.

“We need to talk.”

“I know. We will, but you’ll wear my collar while we do it.”

He took a step toward her. He’d always done this too her, robbed her of all good sense. She watched his hands work the simple clasp and open the band. He came closer. Heat radiated from him like an inferno.

“Look at me, Celeste.”

She tilted her head so she could see his face. The question was in his eyes. He silently asked her permission. She closed her eyes in answer, and he closed the cold band around her neck. One fingertip brushed the top of the band, and then skimmed the pulsing artery on the side of her neck, then along her jaw to her chin.

“Open your eyes, sweetheart.”

He gazed at her with a love she hadn’t seen in years. Her heart swelled, and tears filled her eyes. She couldn’t imagine giving him up again. The thought of it was enough to make her heart stop.

“I love you, Celeste. I always have.”

“I love you, too. I always will.”

“Do you remember your safe word?”

Not that she’d ever had to use it, but she nodded. “Glock.” She’d chosen it because she promised she’d kill him if she ever needed to use it.

He smiled that quirky half smile that made him look almost boyish, before his lips covered hers. His kiss was sweet, a welcome home, unlike the one he’d given her earlier. Now she understood that one was a message to Drew. She was his. An image of Drew watching as Sean claimed her lips flashed in her mind, and she broke the kiss.

“We need to talk.”

He stepped back, and his hands dropped to his sides. “So you say. We can talk over dinner.”

“Promise me, Sean. Promise me we’ll talk. We can’t pick up where we left off. That wasn’t a good place. We have to talk about what happened.”

His gaze was focused on the collar around her neck. “Promise me, or I’m going to take the collar off.”

His eyes jerked to hers. “I promise. We’ll talk. We’ll eat. Then I’m going to fuck you until you can’t walk.”

She wasn’t sure she could walk now, but his blunt speech threatened her resolve. “Maybe.”

She allowed him to take her elbow and lift her from the chair. Her feet moved in step with his. She was aware of a few stares as they traversed the hallways and common areas. Collars weren’t unusual on the
Lothario
. She’d seen a few, but mostly it seemed, the passengers played at domination and submission. The room service menu had a variety of collars listed, none of which were anything like the one she wore.

He seated her at a secluded booth in a small restaurant. He took the opposite seat. She suspected it was so he could see the collar around her neck, as opposed to his consideration for her needs. Whatever the reason, she was glad for the distance. It made it easier to think.

They ordered wine and cheese and waited in silence until the waiter returned. Sean declined to go through the wine ritual, taking the proffered bottle and waving the waiter away. He filled their glasses and set the bottle to one side. He relaxed in his chair and took a sip.

“Talk.”

Patience never had been one of his virtues.

“Why did you do it?”

“Do what?”

“Don’t be dense, Sean. Why did you let Drew join us?”

She’d been haunted by that day for five years. The events that transpired had changed their lives, and none of them had dealt with it well.

“Neither one of us thought we were going to get out of there alive. Drew and I talked about it before they threw you into the room with us. Then, when they brought you in and made you strip in front of them, I, we, well. . .  we knew they would kill us eventually. As soon as they took your clothes, you were doomed. They kill women for showing ankles, and you were naked in front of half a dozen men, none of whom were your husband. Drew and I were dead men then. We would have died defending you.”

“So,” she drew out the syllable, “what? You decided to share me?”

“Sort of. It wasn’t something we planned. If you remember, as soon as they left you alone with us, you threw yourself at me. To be honest, I didn’t think we had anything to lose. I knew the bastards were watching, but I didn’t care. I wanted you one more time before they killed me.”

She remembered that day, vividly. He was right. They
were
going to kill her. As soon as they figured out she was female, she knew she was going to die. She’d wanted Sean as badly as he wanted her. One last time.

She told him so. “I wanted you so much, I forgot all about Drew being in the room. I knew the bastards who took my clothes would probably be watching, but I didn’t care about that, either.”

Sean picked up her train of thought. “I fell into that chair and you came down on top of me. We were both pretty far gone, and I remember looking over your shoulder, and Drew was there, watching us. He was in love with you, and I could see it was killing him to watch us. We didn’t need words to communicate. We’d worked together in tight situations before, pardon the pun,” he smirked, “so I invited him to join us. Besides, you needed a distraction. I didn’t want you to dwell on what was going to happen to us.”