Triple Knockout (Make Mine A Menage Book 3) Read online

  No wonder he treated her like a kid sister. She was sexually naïve compared to what he was used to, what he could gorge himself with on a daily basis.

  Weary disappointment knotted her belly. Although she knew she’d only be sprinkling salt on her wounds, she couldn’t sequester the relentless crush of questions clamoring to escape her mouth. “W-what does he do there?” Her cheeks heated the instant the inquiry slipped free. Oh lord. What a dumbass thing to ask. Safe to assume Beau wasn’t at the club to partake in a high-stakes game of Old Maid. And not like Jana was running around keeping tabs on her cousin’s sextracurricular activities in the first place.

  Jana grimaced, confirming Allie’s mortifying assessment. “I don’t know the specifics, but according to Kev, Beau and Van are two of the more popular Doms at the club.”

  Van? Both of her dream men were... “Doms?” She didn’t realize she’d whispered the nerve-tingling word until Jana nodded.

  “It’s short for dominant.” Jana scrunched her forehead. “I should probably explain what that means.”

  “Not necessary.”

  Jana’s eyes sparkled. “Girl, have you been holding out on me? Are you secretly a dominatrix?”

  Allie nearly hacked up a lung. “Uh, no. I just read a ton of erotica.”

  “Gotcha.” Wistfulness flashed across Jana’s face. “Being besties with a dominatrix would have been epic, though.”

  “Sorry you have to put that one back on your bucket list.”

  “No worries. I’ll just slot it in between visiting a sloth sanctuary and having a sex position named after me.”

  “Um, my bucket list wants to be you when it grows up.” Her chuckle petered off as her dazed brain once again absorbed the crazy and tantalizing revelation about Van and Beau. So much for thinking she knew everything about them. What else had they been keeping her in the dark about all these years?

  Okay, that was a bit unfair. It’s not like she’d been an open book with them about every detail of her life. For starters, they had no clue she used them as masturbatory material nearly every freakin’ day. Now that she knew they were into domination? Good grief, she was going to have to invest in Duracell because her vibe usage alone was going to make their stock soar through the roof. She’d never again be able to fantasize about Van and Beau without imagining them tying her up. Of them spanking her before fucking her ass. Spanking her while fucking her ass.

  A tingle coursed through her clit and she shifted uncomfortably. This had to rank in the top ten worse moments to be obsessing about ass-fucking and spankings.

  Jana eyed her closely for a long moment before a wide grin stretched her mouth. “You’re intrigued. And I can guess about what.”

  “No.” She nearly gave herself whiplash shaking her head. “I couldn’t care in the least that they’re Doms.” She sighed as Jana’s gaze lit up, confirming she’d been busted. “This is why I’ve banned myself from ever playing poker.” She fidgeted with her coat’s top button, seeing no easy escape route in sight. “Okay, I…might be a teensy bit intrigued.”

  Wagging her eyebrows, Jana playfully slugged Allie in the arm. “About time you came out of the bad girl closet.”

  If only she was a bad girl. Her life would be a hell of a lot more exciting. Maybe Beau and Van would even stop seeing her as their surrogate baby sister and instead view her as a vivacious sex goddess capable of rocking their boxer briefs off.

  Her thoughts trekked back to the wariness pouring from Van earlier when she’d called their upcoming dinner a date. The sinking sensation plummeted in her stomach again. His reaction made it all too clear he wasn’t interested in her that way. And it was a safe bet Beau wasn’t either. She’d be the world’s biggest delusional idiot if she tried to convince herself otherwise.

  The Woody chime went off, breaking through her morose musings. Nick and Kevin trooped into the store, their broad shoulders liberally dusted with snowflakes. Both men passed Allie a friendly greeting before bestowing a kiss on Jana that was hot enough to melt the remaining vestiges of snow from their coats. Allie glanced away, a tiny stitch of envy working its way through her. She’d give anything to be on the receiving end of such intense passion. And if it was at the hands of Van and Beau? She’d be the most blissfully happy person on Earth.

  The odds of that particular fantasy coming true were about as likely as getting that sex move named after her.

  “Traffic has been really light today,” Jana said once she’d extricated herself from the clutches of her adoring men. “I don’t think you’ll get hit with an unexpected rush, Allie, especially if this snow keeps up. If the roads look like they’re going to be a royal mess have your ride pick you up early. I’ll still pay you for the entire shift.”

  “I don’t expect you to—”

  Jana made a zipping motion over her lips.

  “Better heed her orders, Allie. The woman has a black belt in browbeating,” Nick said with a wink.

  “And spanking.” Jana backed up her boast with a solid whap on Nick’s khaki-garbed ass.

  “Just make it hurt good, baby.” Nick stole another kiss before ushering Jana toward the exit.

  “Distractive maneuvers like that are what make him an excellent wingman.” Shooting Allie a humor-filled smile, Kevin gave her a departing wave and followed his cohorts out the door.

  Once she was alone, Allie grabbed her purse and trudged to the back room. After shucking her coat and scarf and stashing everything in the small closet, she returned to the front of the store. Other than the bubbly rock track playing on the central intercom, the atmosphere was strangely hushed. Most of the time she loved the evenings when she closed on her own. Solitude had never bothered her. Plus she was able to work on her lingerie designs whenever things were slow, thanks to her employer’s extreme generosity. Jana had even offered to sponsor a trunk show of Allie’s Intimates this spring. It was the culmination of a decade-long dream of seeing her name on a clothing label. A day didn’t go by that she didn’t pinch herself to see if it wasn’t a crazy fantasy she was poised to wake up from.

  Any other time, she’d be filled with that rush of excitement and anxious to work on the newest additions to her portfolio. But her creative juices were currently the consistency of sludge. All because she couldn’t kill the depressing reel of thoughts cycling through her mind.

  Beau and Van had never been farther out of her reach. Prior to discovering this new facet to them she’d deluded herself with the secret hope that one day she’d scrape together enough courage to tempt them into the unthinkable. Now it seemed like the most ridiculous idea to ever pop into her brain. It was no mystery that they could have any woman they wanted. For Pete’s sake, they had a stable of gym bunnies all too willing to indulge their kinkiest desire. How could she compete with them and their perfect bodies? For all she knew, some of those bunnies—worse yet, all of those bunnies—were getting tied up, fucked and spanked on a regular basis by Van and Beau.

  Her stomach a massive knot, she trudged to the nearby display of naughty Christmas ensembles and began re-sorting the boy shorts that’d somehow gotten mixed in with the thongs. She managed to keep herself busy with menial tasks for the next several hours. It helped pass the time and avoided her wallowing in a cesspool of gloomy thoughts regarding her nonexistent love life. Despite that, she was more than ready to call it a night by eight-thirty. Since she hadn’t seen a customer in over an hour she didn’t feel guilty accepting Jana’s order to close up early. That decision made, she fished her cell phone from her purse and scrolled through her Contacts list until she reached Van’s mobile.

  One ring got through before Beau came on the line. “Allie?”

  She blinked, flustered by the unexpectedness of him picking up instead of Van. “Err…hi. Just calling to let Van know that I’m done with work.”

  “I’ll be there in ten.”

  “Oh. Okay.” Guess this meant she’d have to fork over two meals now. Yeah, like dinner with both Van and Beau would be
a terrible hardship. “Take your time. I’m not in a rush or anything.” Or have a life and hot sex waiting for me at home. Sad but true.

  “I’m heading out the door right now. See you in a bit.”

  The line went dead. She stared at the phone for a second before disconnecting and stuffing the device back in her bag. He’d sounded strangely edgy during their brief convo. Maybe he was put out about having to drive in this wicked weather but was too nice to tell her so. Or perhaps he’d left some woman bound and gagged on the bed. He and Van had probably drawn straws to determine which one of them would get to play fun and games while the other schlepped his ass over to Wicked Delights.

  No, drawing straws was too lame for bondage. They probably did Rock, Paper, Handcuffs.

  Momentarily letting that mystery rest, she headed to the main breaker box and killed all of the lights but the ones near the front door. Those she’d manually switch off. After disconnecting the music and collecting her coat, she returned to the checkout.

  A vehicle pulled into the lot roughly ten minutes later, its headlights cutting a swath through the eddying snow flurries. She locked up and hurried to the passenger door of Beau’s Grand Cherokee. Teeth chattering from her brief stint in the cold, she piled into the warm comfort of the seat. “Holy moly, when did we revert back to the ice age?”

  Beau cranked the heater up a few more notches. “Temps dropped fifteen degrees in the last hour.”

  “I’m so sorry you had to come out in this weather.” Groaning, she rubbed her frozen fingers in front of the heat-blasting vent. Not only had she likely torn him away from sexy good times, but he also had to battle Arctic conditions to boot. Good going.

  “No biggie.”

  She shot him a look that hopefully conveyed her complete lack of faith in that smoking load of BS. He countered it with his own stern stare. “I’m one hundred percent serious. Van and I practically came to blows over who’d get to pick you up.”

  I’m sure you did. Snuffing another groan, she clicked her seatbelt into place.

  Beau reversed the SUV before nosing it in the direction of the lot’s exit. “Did you have dinner yet?”

  “No, and I’m starved. I haven’t eaten since breakfast.” Her stomach chose that moment to toss in its own complaint with a rumbling growl.

  Beau’s dark gaze swept her. Despite the shadows clinging to the vehicle’s interior, there was no missing the reproving set of his gorgeous features. “Al, what are we going to do with you?”

  She had a few suggestions. Most of them involving a pair of velvet-lined handcuffs and nipple clamps.

  Actually, nix the nipple clamps. Those sounded horrendously awful. Shuddering in the confines of her poufy coat, she stretched her feet toward the floor vent, letting the defroster work its magic on her numb toes. “I honestly didn’t realize how hungry I was until now.”

  “Not an excuse. You’ll deplete your energy skipping meals. Possibly even make yourself sick.”

  “You sound like Eric.” Great, more of the little sister treatment. Could this night get any worse?

  “We worry about you.”

  “And I love you all for it, believe me. But I wish you’d realize that I’m an adult.”

  “I do.” He shifted his attention from the road long enough to give her a prodding look. “Don’t mistake my caring for brotherly badgering, because I sure as hell don’t view you anything like I do my sister.”

  Whoa. Definitely not what she’d expected to come out of his mouth. “W-what exactly does that mean?”

  His attention snapped back to the windshield. “Nothing. How about we drive through Mickey D’s and get you some grub?”

  “Make it Taco Bell. And don’t think you’re getting out of this conversation that easily, Colton.”

  “There’s no more to discuss. I fully expect you to listen to my advice and not skip any more meals.”

  Is that how he talked to his subs? All sexy and bossy? Damn. If that wasn’t panty-soaking worthy, nothing was. “That isn’t what I was referring to and you know it. I want you to tell me what you meant by that crack about you not seeing me like you do your sister.”

  “It’s a no-brainer, Al. You’re not Stacia.”

  “Obviously. I’d need to be about six inches taller and blonde to remotely pass for Stacia. But I always thought you placed me in the same sisterly category as her.”

  “Why would you think that?”

  “Because you’ve never been attracted to me.”

  A stunted cough chuffed from Beau. The sound made her pulse dance a jig. “Am I…wrong?”

  He remained stubbornly mute. Straining against the restrictive hold of her seatbelt, she leaned over the center console, attempting to get a clearer glimpse of his shadowed face. “Beau?”

  He stubbornly refused to meet her gaze. “Al, it’s best if we take this conversation no further.”

  “Why?”

  He glanced at her, finally revealing the wariness holding his features hostage. “Because I might say something I’ll regret.”

  “What? That you’re attracted to me?” She knew her disbelieving hope was readily apparent in the squeaky Mini Mouse quality of her voice, but damn if she could play coy and hide it.

  “You’re my best friend’s baby sister. Attracted to you or not, I can’t act on it.”

  His firm avowal was a bittersweet lance to her heart. It also wasn’t unexpected news. Beau was fiercely loyal to Eric. As was Van. They’d never do anything to deliberately jeopardize the balance of that friendship.

  Which left her in the dust, nursing the shattered pipe dream of a possible future with Van and Beau.

  She loved her brother beyond reason, but at that moment she’d gladly strangle him for the big part he played in her heartache.

  Yeah, probably unfair to blame Eric. He meant well, even if his over-protectiveness contributed to her nun-like existence. And it wasn’t as if he’d given a direct order to Beau to consider her hands off.

  She hoped. Sick suspicion creeping over her, she peeked at Beau. “Did Eric tell you to not get involved with me beyond innocent friendship?”

  Beau scratched his nape. “No.”

  “Oh my God. He did.” She buried her face in her hands, muffling her mortified howl.

  “He didn’t specifically, Al. It’s always been an implied thing, though. Guys don’t fuck around with their buddy’s sisters. It’s not cool.”

  “You men and your stupid bro codes.”

  Beau exhaled heavily. “Look at it this way. How would you feel if your best girlfriend hooked up with Eric?”

  “Are you kidding? I’d be all for it and planning their wedding.” She snorted. “Maybe if he had a love life he’d leave mine alone.” Non-existent as hers was.

  “You’re being unfair to him.”

  Just because Beau’s statement was a mirror to her previous thoughts didn’t mean she had to like it. “Easy for you to say. You don’t know what I go through. Constantly being treated as if I don’t have a lick of sense in my head. I’m twenty-six. Not a toddler who requires constant reminding that touching a hot stove is going to burn me. And guess what? If I do end up getting burned I’ll learn from that mistake and do my damnedest not to repeat it. But how can I when Eric is dead set on mistake-proofing all aspects of my life?”

  “It isn’t as bad as you’re imagining.”

  Frustration welled inside her. “It is, Beau. He’s never gotten along with the majority of my boyfriends. He even insisted on calling Dustin Douchetin. Right to his face.”

  Beau chuckled, the husky sound an erotic caress over her skin.

  Hoping he’d take her prominent shivering as a byproduct of the not-entirely-warmed state of her body temp, she stacked her arms over her chest. “It’s not funny.”

  “Fuck yeah, it is. Fitting too.”

  Okay, maybe Dustin was a bad example to latch onto. “Eric couldn’t stand Paul either, and Paul was a nice guy.” A total dud in the sack, but you couldn’t ask for e
verything, right?

  “Wasn’t Paul the mooch who always borrowed money from you and never paid it back?”

  Oh for Pete’s sake, did Eric blab every bad detail about her past boyfriends? She was going to have a chat with that jerk when he got home. “If Paul had a job he would have repaid me.”

  “You dated him for three years. Plenty opportunity there for him to have gotten a job,” Beau pointed out drolly.

  “Totally beside the point. Eric didn’t need to stick his nose in my business.” Hell, if she wanted to date losers it was her prerogative. She didn’t pass judgment on some of the chicks Eric hooked up with, though she’d been mighty tempted a time or two.

  “You deserve better than the likes of Paul and Douchetin. Eric’s looking out for you because he cares.”

  Her righteous indignation lost steam and fizzled into a sigh. “I know.” Didn’t make it any easier to live with the constant coddling and boyfriend sabotage, though. Hunching deeper into her coat, she fiddled with the strap on her purse. “Guys aren’t the only issues I’ve had with my brother. Remember how he balked at my decision to finally learn how to drive?”

  Beau slid another penetrating look in her direction. “He was worried it’d be too much for you and bring back bad memories.”

  The phantom sting returned along the length of her scar. It took all of her willpower not to tuck her legs together protectively. “The memories are there whether I’m in a car or not.”

  Sympathy colored Beau’s expression. She didn’t want pity from him. She especially didn’t want to focus on the painful tragedy of her past. She would never forget. Never get over the devastating loss. It was always there—a tangible emptiness resting close to her heart. She knew it was there for Eric too, even though they didn’t talk about it as much as they used to. But he didn’t have to live with the horrible ghosts of the accident. A blessing, because one of them had needed to keep their shit together during the following months. Years. It sure as hell hadn’t been her.