Less than a week in Bridgewater and I'd experienced more joy, friendship, laughter, and amazing sex than the last few years in New York. Maybe the people in this town had the right idea. They certainly had different priorities than most people I'd known in my life, but that didn't mean those priorities were wrong.
A smile tugged at the corner of my lips as I remembered Sam and Jack's means of helping me get my priorities straight. Especially the spanking. Sheesh, my ass was still a little sore. Other places, too. Maybe their particular techniques were working, after all. Because I sure as hell was starting to reconsider what was important to me. Not spanking, but the way they made me forget everything, to focus on what was really important. And it wasn't a corner office.
I'd be hard pressed to find a more caring group of people than those in Bridgewater. And Sam and Jack? My heart constricted in my chest at the thought of those two men. My men.
Yeah, they were definitely a priority.
But so was my career. I'd already invested a shitload of time and energy into getting where I was. Granted, I still wasn't partner, but I would be. All that hard work had to count for something, didn't it? I couldn't just throw all of that away. Could I?
Sally told me she had a potential buyer to meet at another property and with a quick wave she was out the door, leaving me alone with the clutter and my conflicted thoughts. Luckily intensive cleaning was a fantastic distraction, so I threw myself into it and didn't stop for the next hour.
I probably wouldn't have stopped then if it wasn't for Charlie's phone ringing. The man on the other end introduced himself as Buck Reinhardt. The name didn't ring a bell but from his arrogant tone and the expectant pause, I guessed it should have.
"What can I do for you, Buck?"
Turned out Buck Reinhardt was a pretty big deal in Montana real estate-or at least, he seemed to think so. He launched into a spiel about his company and all the development projects they had in the works. As he was talking, Sam and Jack knocked on the back door and walked in, making concentration difficult. Two sexy cowboys strutting around my kitchen and I had the attention span of a gnat.
As Buck yammered on in my ear, Jack sauntered over with that sexy grin of his and wrapped an arm around my waist, pulling me up against him so I could feel his hard cock pressing against his jeans. Sam leaned against the kitchen table beside me and gave me a wink.
"Do I have your attention, Catherine?" Buck asked in my ear.
"Um … " I gave Jack's chest a little shove but apparently he took that as a request to start nibbling at my neck. I bit my lip to keep from moaning into the phone.
"I wasn't fortunate enough to know your uncle, but I've heard great things about him," Buck said.
"Mmhmm." Why was he still talking? And what was Jack doing with his tongue that made my knees give out like that?
"But I do think your uncle would have appreciated the New York City apartment you could purchase for the price I'm offering on his property."
My eyes sprang open. Offer? What offer?
Buck quoted a number then that made me gasp so loudly, Jack sprang back with surprise and Sam shot up straight. They hovered over me with questioning looks, but I waved them off as I asked Buck to repeat what he'd just said.
"The amount?"
"No, all of it. I was distracted."
Buck repeated himself and this time I listened, with Sam and Jack waiting impatiently nearby. By the time I hung up, they were pacing the kitchen. "What was that about?" Sam asked. "Was it your ex? Chad? Because he and I had a little chat and he won't be bothering you any more."
I frowned at him wondering what he'd done, what he'd said to Chad, but I was distracted by Buck's offer to think on it further.
"No, not Chad. A real estate developer."
I told them what he'd told me-how he wanted to buy Charlie's property, along with his water rights, for a sum that made my stomach do backflips. Holy shit, I could buy myself a partnership with that kind of money. Hell, I could buy the firm.
Well, maybe that was an exaggeration, but it was a hell of a lot of money-more than I'd be able to save in a decade at my current salary. Buck had been right, I could buy property in the city. No more shoebox apartment. For an investor, he'd done his research and worked his sales pitch to where it would be most enticing.
Jack muttered a "hot damn" at the sum and Sam slid down into a kitchen chair. By his grim expression, I had a feeling he'd gone into lawyer mode, thinking through every angle of this deal.
I knew, because I'd done the same thing. As soon as my stomach settled down, my brain raced into action trying to sort through possible pitfalls, the legal ramifications, what to do next, and what this deal would mean for me.
"Are you going to take the offer?" Jack asked. My gaze met Sam's.
He knew what I was going to say and he beat me to it. "She needs to do her homework at city hall first. Isn't that right, doll?"
I was already gathering up my purse and car keys as I nodded. To Jack, I explained, "I can't even start to consider the deal until I sort out the details of this property's water rights and what they're worth. It's Old West laws I know nothing about."
He scratched his chin as he stared at the ground. I could tell he wanted to ask more questions and I had a good idea where they would lead. What then? If I sold, or even if didn't … what then? Would I stay or would I go?
I didn't want to hear the questions because I didn't have the answers. I was even more confused than before. Instead of sticking around, I busted my ass trying to get out of there, ignoring the tension in the room.
"Do you want me to come with you?" Sam asked. "I could give you a ride, help you do some research."
I gave him an appreciative smile, but shook my head. "Thanks, but I need to do this on my own. Could you guys lock up when you leave?"
I'd almost reached the door when Jack's voice stopped me. "Sam and I will stick around and clear out some of this mess," he said, gesturing toward a stack of boxes and filled trash bags. "When you're done doing whatever it is you need to do, we'll meet you at Sam's house, got it?"
I nodded. It wasn't a request, really, but a command. I'd gotten used to Sam being the one who issued commands but Jack was a natural. He sauntered across the room until he was standing right in front of me, and placed a finger under my chin to tip my head up so I couldn't avoid his gaze.
"Don't make us wait, sweetness. There's a lot we need to discuss."
Shit. I knew exactly what they wanted to talk about, but I wasn't ready. "I thought you said you wouldn't pressure me."
He flashed me that shit-eating grin of his as he tugged me toward him roughly. "Did I say that?"
Oh fuck. He slipped a hand down the waistband of my jeans and cupped my pussy, using his fingers to tease my clit through the thin fabric of my panties. My whimper made him smile again and I heard Sam get out of his chair to join us.
"We won't pressure you, doll," Sam said, coming to stand behind me so I was sandwiched between them. Trapped in the best way possible. There was no place I'd rather be.
"Not everything can be solved by good sex," I countered, trying to keep my focus which was close to impossible with these two.
"Just good?" Jack countered.
Sam wrapped his arms around me, his hands cupping my breasts through my T-shirt. My nipples pressed against the fabric of my bra as his thumbs teased them and I found myself pushing against his palms, trying to get him to touch me harder, the way I liked.
He wouldn't, and I knew that was on purpose. These men loved to tease, to build up anticipation. I bit back a moan.
What they were doing was working.
"We won't push you," Sam said. His hands fell away, but Jack made no move to release me. His palm was still firmly pressed against my pussy and if he didn't stop working his fingers, I'd come for him just like that-standing and fully clothed. "And we won't use sex like a weapon. But you have to keep in mind how much we want you. Mind and body. This conversation? You can't put it off indefinitely."
No, I couldn't. Time was running out on this trip, which meant the clock was ticking on our relationship. "Not indefinitely," I agreed, my voice coming out irritatingly breathy. How was a person supposed to argue effectively when she was being manhandled from all directions?
As much as I wanted to give in and let them have their way with me in the kitchen, time wouldn't allow it. "But not now," I said. "I need to get to city hall before they close for the day."
"Not so fast, sweetness." Jack leaned down so I could feel his breath against my neck. "You're not going anywhere with those panties on."
CHAPTER EIGHT
CATHERINE