Bought by the Billionaire Brothers 5(6)

Nolan's reverie was cut short by Vince as he pulled him back to the  present but Nolan was grateful; the past was filled with dangerous  pitfalls for them both.

"I don't want to hurt Penny but I don't want Dillon to have her either," Vince admitted. "The bastard doesn't deserve her."

"Like he didn't deserve Isabel?" Nolan said with a twist of his lips that made Vince scowl.

"Yeah, that's about right."

"Did you ever think how things might've been different if we hadn't gone after Isabel like we had?"

"Fuck, Nolan. Why do you have to bring up Isabel every bleeding second?"

"I guess I'm finally growing a conscience," Nolan retorted. "We were  wrong. What we did was wrong. Maybe it's time to atone for that."

"You want to atone for something, go to church and say a few ‘Hail  Marys' and nut up for Christ's sake. Penny and Isabel are nothing alike  and we're not doing anything wrong," Vince said, his voice rising to a  near shout, which meant Nolan had managed to get under his skin. Vince  threw his hands up. "Fuck this. I'm going out. I need a breather."

"What about Penny?" Nolan asked, irritated that his brother was bailing.

"You're the bleeding heart, you figure something out." Then, he added  with a frustrated gesture, "Just tell her to go home. She doesn't want  to be with us anyway. She wants that asshole Dillon. Just like Isabel  did." With that he stormed from the room and in the distance, Nolan  heard a door slam as Vince left the house.

Nolan stared at the perfectly prepared food and shook his head at the  muck they were all wallowing in and wondered how the hell they hadn't  seen this coming. Penny was an amazing girl - and just like Isabel -  much too tender-hearted for an arrangement like theirs.

Nolan pushed away from the counter, leaving the food behind.

No one had ever accused the Buchanans of being noble but Nolan hated the  heartache he saw in Penny's eyes. It was just too damn close to the  pain he'd once seen reflected in the gorgeous cornflower blue of someone  else's eyes.

Someone else who'd fallen in love with Dillon.



Dillon saw her from a distance, not that he'd been in the park by  accident, but he hadn't been prepared for the jolt to his senses seeing  her would create. Her dark hair cascaded down her shoulder, exposing the  gentle slope of her neck that he distinctly remembered kissing, and she  appeared to be daydreaming as she people-watched. Dillon scanned the  area, looking for his brothers and when he didn't see either of the  twins, he took that as a sign that it was time to talk.

"You should have a jacket."         

     



 

His observation startled Penny as she swiveled around to see him.  Immediately her eyes lit up with a light she couldn't have possibly  known radiated her entire face but she shut it down just as quickly. "If  you're looking for your brothers, they aren't here," she said pointedly  as she dismissed him with a glance.

"Mind if I sit with you?"

"Yes. I do mind. Go away."

He ignored her and sat beside her, ostensibly to people-watch as well  but in truth, he had so many things he wanted to say but the words  seemed caught in his throat. He'd hurt Penny terribly. The path to  redemption might've been a simple apology but he knew she deserved far  more than a few careless words thrown her way. Problem was, he didn't  even know where to start. Apologies weren't exactly his forte. But  before he could even try to formulate the appropriate attempt, Penny was  on her feet. "If you won't leave, I will," she said, dusting her behind  and grabbing her purse.

He was on his feet in a flash. "Penny, wait."

She stopped, her stare wary but he'll be damned if he didn't see a hint  of yearning in those chocolate eyes as well and he was going to bank on  the latter as he tried to make sense of what he was feeling. "Please  give me a chance to explain," he started but she shook her head.

"No."

"Why not?"

"Because you have a way of twisting real emotion into a knot until it  serves your purpose and I don't need any more Buchanans messing with my  head."

"Who else is messing with you?" Dillon asked, immediately protective. "What did Vince and Nolan do?"

"Nothing. None of your business."

"Have they hurt you?"

"No more than you."

Okay, he deserved that. He tried again. "Penny, I didn't mean to hurt  you," he said quietly, hoping she heard his earnest apology couched with  the admission.

But either she didn't hear it or she didn't believe him for she sent him  a hard stare as she said, "You did hurt me. Worse than either of your  brothers because unlike you, they never lied to me. They never used me  to get back at someone else for something that happened years before I  met them."

"No, they just used you period. I suppose that makes them the good guys?"

"I didn't say that."

"No, but you're willing to stay with them aren't you?" God, he hated how  he spit the words out but he couldn't help it. He hated the idea of  Penny fucking his brothers - the thought was enough to drive him to do  something reckless and stupid.

"Does it bother you that I am willing to honor my agreement or that you  didn't think of it first? You fucked me for far less honest reasons than  either of your brothers. At least they were up front with me from the  start. You, on the other hand … "

"I never promised you a happily ever after," he said, stiffening.

"No, but you lead me to believe that you truly cared about me."

"I do care about you."

Her eyes glazed with sudden tears and her mouth trembled. "Don't. Just don't."

"Penny … "

She backed away, as if needing more distance between them and he had to  fight the urge to follow but he knew if he took one step toward her,  he'd drag her into his arms and never let go. The startling realization  made him take a step back, swallowing with difficulty. "Whatever. Go  back to the men who bought your integrity for their own satisfaction.  You seem to prefer their company over mine. Thanks for the memories,  babe," he said, adding with a cruel flippant smile. "At least I know my  brothers' are getting their money's worth - you were a fabulous fuck."

Penny lifted her chin, her eyes glittering with unshed tears and he felt  like a royal shit but his pride wouldn't allow him to beg. "I hope I  never see you again. Ever," she ended on a whisper and walked away  without once looking back.

Dillon wanted to swear at the sky, throw things and chase after her all  at the same time but he did nothing. Instead, he stood as if he'd  suddenly sprouted thick roots into the soft ground, and watched her go  until he couldn't see her any longer.

It was better this way, he told himself.

So why did it feel as if a MMA fighter had just landed a roundhouse kick to his sternum?

Just fucking fabulous …

He was not falling for Penny McDaniel. He just didn't want anyone else  to touch her. And when he thought of his brothers doing the things he  wanted to do to her, he wanted to break something - preferably their  aristocratic noses.         

     



 

A piece of paper said she belonged to Vince and Nolan.

But was his heart trying to tell him that she belonged to him?

Dillon closed his eyes and the memory of being with Penny clung to his  mind. For a moment in time, they'd been like any normal couple spending  time alone discovering each other's bodies and sharing bits of  themselves with one another. He'd forgotten what it felt like to let  down his guard - if only for a second. But in that quick flash Penny had  gotten in … and now, he didn't know what to do about it.

He couldn't leave. He couldn't stay.

He wanted Penny even though he shouldn't.

Could he be the man she needed him to be?

Or had that part of himself died with Isabel?

He didn't have any answers for himself or for Penny.

All he knew was that seeing her again had been a mistake because now,  all he wanted to do was grab her, hold her tight, and forget the rest of  the world.

And that scared the shit out of him.



Are Penny and Dillon meant to be together or has there been too much  pain between them to heal the wounds left behind? Will Vince and Nolan  convince Penny to stay with them or will Penny leave all the Buchanan  brothers behind to start fresh? Don't miss the thrilling conclusion of  Alexx Andria's best-selling series, Bought By The Billionaire Brothers!



Here's an excerpt from Alexx Andria's hot, emotionally erotic story, ONE NIGHT TO SAY GOODBYE: http://amzn.to/SXdGc3



"What are you doing here?"

That single question, even as uninviting as his stark tone implied, sent  a riot of goosebumps popping along Elise's skin. She remembered that  voice, as if it were spoken in her ear only yesterday instead of the  years between them, and her breath caught painfully in her chest. The  desire to fall into his arms, regardless of the consequences, tightened  her muscles and made rational thought difficult. He looked the same -  God, did he never age? - not classically handsome, but unique and  different, but always virile and powerful. The tension between them  pulsed like a live wire, sparking dangerously within the confines of the  executive office. Gage had always been ruthless in business; his  penchant for the jugular had served him well, she noted as her stare  flitted among the fine furnishings and dark-paneled walls. Her stare  returned to his, daring him to throw her out as he should for the both  of their sakes.