I chose to be both.
“Well you have no right!” I spat but I didn’t mean it. I was so happy they were there, I wanted to cry.
“We have every right,” Harry replied, stepping toward me. “You’re a part of us now, whether you like it or not.”
I couldn’t step away from his outstretched hand and I nuzzled my face into his hand, inhaling his scent.
No! I warned myself. No, I can’t do this. I can’t trust them.
As he he sensed my reservation, Harry’s hand firmed against my face and he drew my eyes up to meet his blazing irises.
“You’ve got it all wrong. We had no idea what Mirror, Mirror was doing until you told us,” he explained gently.
“We were bound by a confidentiality waiver,” Seth added. “We wanted to tell you who we worked for but we couldn’t.”
“And we never lied to you, Sasha. We are drillers. Mirror, Mirror was just a side job so to speak,” Graham added. “I wanted to tell you but…”
He trailed off under the withering gaze of the others.
I looked at them, taking in their faces one by one and exhaled in a hot breath.
What they were saying certainly made sense but could I believe it?
“Sasha, we’ve never lied to you,” Dan insisted, stepping forward to touch my other cheek.
I lowered my gaze and shook my head.
“It doesn’t matter,” I mumbled. “I can’t go with you anyway.”
“If you’re worried about Mirror, Mirror, I promise you that we’ll protect you,” Jim said and I suddenly realized that I was encircled in all of my boys. I’d never felt safer but that didn’t change the fact that I couldn’t go with them.
“I’m not worried about Mirror, Mirror,” I sighed. “I mean, I am but that’s not why.”
They stared at me, waiting.
I bit on my lower lip.
“I’m pregnant.”
The wave of shock was charged with excitement and the men embraced me with kisses and hugs, each one of them patting my stomach as I stared at them, stunned.
“W-what are you doing?” I demanded. “You have a pact about this. You can’t father a child!”
“One of us can’t,” Dan agreed, grinning at me before turning to look at his friends. “But all of us can.”
My lower lip began to quiver and I choked on a sob.
“What do you say, Sasha Snow? Will you be the mother of our child?” Stevie teased. I sniffled back my tears of happiness and nodded.
“I would be honored,” I mewled and allowed myself to be swarmed by their muscled arms.
Epilogue
SASHA
My toes poked out of the end of the blanket we all shared and I admired the manicure job that Bash had done on them. If the contract drilling didn’t work out, he’d certainly have a future in esthetics.
I stretched and turned onto my right look at Jim and kissed his cheek before turning to my left and dropping one on Dan’s cheek. I never really knew which one would be at my side in the morning and I liked it that way. It kept me on my perfectly coiffed toes.
Popping my head up, I looked at the rest of my horde along the emperor mattress we shared and gently tugged the comforter off Seth who was the only one not waking amongst us. I was glad I’d talked the guys into this purchase even though I’d been met with some reluctance by Seth who did enjoy his own bed to sleep in.
“Good morning,” I sang. “It’s Christmas!”
I was met with a chorus of “Merry Christmas” and “Hello beautiful” but my sleepy Seth remained in sound in slumber.
I guess he got used to the bed after all, I thought, grinning to myself.
“Look at him,” Graham grunted. “How does he do that?”
“It’s a talent I wish I had,” I agreed enviously. “Seth?”
There was still no response and I laughed, shrugging as I sat up.
“What time is our flight again?” I asked, letting the blanket fall off my naked breasts. Instantly, two sets of hands reached for them and I giggled as Dan pushed me back onto the bed, his mouth finding my earlobes.
“Not until nine tonight,” he muttered, grinding his morning wood against my leg. “Lots of time.”
“Not really,” I countered, pushing him away reluctantly. “I still need to make the turkey and prepare the stuffing—”
“Oh no,” Jim countered, picking up where Dan had left off. “I’ve got the stuffing prepared right here.”
The men groaned and I howled but I didn’t stop them from resuming their endearing kisses on my body. I would never get tired of their affection.
Even after a year, they still managed to turn me on without effort and sometimes I felt like I was constantly wet for them.
It was a wonder any of us got any work done.
“I, for one, am glad we’re going to be somewhere warm for once over Christmas,” Stevie said, flopping onto his side to grab the remote control. “Not Iceland, not Scotland…”
“It hasn’t been so bad here in Canada,” I protested but even as I said it, I saw snow whipping against the window. I quietly hoped our flight wouldn’t be canceled. We’d all been looking so forward to going somewhere tropical for once and we had certainly earned it.
“I’m just glad I’m not on the run for my life anymore,” I continued. While I didn’t work for Mirror, Mirror anymore, I’d come to learn that Queenie had gone off the deep end, trying to kill me. It wasn’t sanctioned by anyone in the company and Andrea Silva had offered me a rather generous settlement so that I wouldn’t press charges—provided Queenie get locked in a psychiatric hospital, pending recovery. I guess I’d always be looking over my shoulder to but I had seven massive protectors who would keep me safe.
I learned that Hunter had stopped her from finishing me that night in Iceland by knocking her unconscious but I was still wary of him, wondering if he’d had some part of abandoning me in the storm.
There were so many unanswered questions about everything that had gone on with Queenie and the company but I’d learned to accept that I might never know everything.
I’m not sure if Silva was aware that I was onto the company’s scheme but if she was, she didn’t mention it to me at all. It seemed to me that Queenie probably told her I had discovered what they were doing but what was she going to say about it, really? Please don’t tell anyone about our plans to poison the environment?
It was far too late for that and I’d made no such promises anyway.
In the meantime, I’d taken my research about Icelandic moss to the competitor, half-daring Mirror, Mirror to come after me for spilling trade secrets. They wouldn’t be so dumb, would they? They had no real use for my work anyway.
As I suspected, they didn’t and I was free to expand on my theory.
Fairest Industries had been happy to offer me my own lab to develop my own prototype with a staff of four, all whom worked beneath me. I was the new Queenie, in a new company. Except, of course, that I was nothing like Queenie. My underlings liked me and I respected them.
But the best part of it all was that I’d learned that Icelandic moss wasn’t the only moss which could be used in my theory. There were hundreds of species which I could use and I intended to go all across the world, finding them. I truly was looking at an innovation which could change the world.
For New Year’s, we’d be in Costa Rica.
Stevie flipped on the TV and I closed my eyes as Dan’s hands started to knead at my ass, his mouth inching lower along my throat.
“…live at Mirror, Mirror Inc. Alex?” the announcer said.
I bolted up and Dan groaned in protest.
“Hang on!” I cried. “That’s Alex. Turn it up!”
The TV had everyone’s attention now and I inhaled sharply as my friend’s heart-shaped face appeared on screen.
“Thank you, Tina. As you can see, I’m in front of Mirror, Mirror Incorporated, a company that has been long affiliated with helping the environment but have they really?” Alex started and I squealed in delight.
The sly dog hadn’t mentioned a word of this to me!
“In the background, you can see the EPA and FBI are raiding Mirror, Mirror’s headquarters under suspicion of fund misappropriation, conspiracy and environmental charges. There have been reports from both inside the company and independent sources that Mirror, Mirror has been using their wholesome image to cover chemical testing. While the investigation is still ongoing, witnesses say that there may be more charges associated with this scandal, including involuntary manslaughter and attempted murder from the damage the testing has caused to locals in secret testing areas. Back to you, Tina.”
I gasped, my hand flying to my mouth in disbelief.
“Wow,” Graham muttered, muting the volume. “That’s something, isn’t it?”
“She cracked the story!” I cried, clapping my hands together. “She’s on TV!”
I’d never been so proud of Alex and I went to move for my cell phone but I was blocked four ways.
“Where do you think you’re going?” Jim wanted to know. “It’s Christmas Day, you know?”
“It is?” I asked in mock surprise, laying back down. “What does that mean?”
“It means,” Dan purred, picking back up where he left off. “It’s the season for giving.”