Chance’s upcoming “date” with Mia energized him on two fronts—planning a day she’d never forget and checking out her smartphone.

Her safety came first.

He Skyped Nolan Peters. After serving in the Rangers, Nolan had used his computer savvy to get an IT position at a major corporation headquartered in Dallas. His hacking skills matched a teenager’s, which said a lot. Youngsters were better than anyone else at devising new ways to bypass system safeguards.

Riley sat in on the call at Chance’s apartment. They had today off from the resort.

“Yo, Chance, Riley.” Nolan offered a toothy grin. His office lights shone on his receding hairline. He’d been balding since he turned twenty-five and couldn’t have cared less. “Your text didn’t give a lot of details. What’s up with this phone you’re worried about?”

Chance told him everything Mia had said. “Is there a way to check to see who’s been contacting her if the caller keeps hanging up?”

“Depends on many factors. Do you know who her service provider is?”

Chance told him.

“What about the number in question or the phone?”

“Got it right here.” He held it up for Nolan. “She’s already checked her bill and the log. There aren’t any numbers that repeat dozens of times over a short period. Would the caller blocking his identity have anything to do with that?”

“Depends. Providers have different ways of doing things. Were the calls forwarded to voice mail? Did the person in question hang up then?”

“Could be on some. Why?”

“From what you’ve told me, her provider wouldn’t record those calls. If the person phoning her uses spoof numbers, that adds another problem. Those won’t show unless the call’s answered. Which brings us to the simplest solution for this.”

Riley leaned closer to the computer screen. “Like what?”

“Have her answer when the thing rings. Find out who’s calling and get it recorded.”

“No damn way.” Chance squeezed her phone. “Not going to happen. She’s too afraid.”

Nolan rocked in his chair. “But you aren’t, right? Why don’t you answer it? That could put off whoever’s bothering her. Confuse him as to whose number he’s reaching. Might get him to give up.”

Chance wasn’t certain. “That still doesn’t settle his identity. It’s not like he’s going to admit the truth if I asked who he is. What if we check with her provider? They keep records of every call, right?”

“Sure. In the case of ones that aren’t showing up on the bill or in logs, she’ll need an attorney to subpoena the provider for the data. No telling how long that could take. Has she considered getting another phone, carrier, and number?”

“She’s already done so several times.” Chance reined in his irritation. “Isn’t there anything else you can suggest?”

Nolan lifted his bulky shoulders. “Past that, no. If someone wants to harass an individual, they’ll find a way. Industry is always several steps behind the general public. Someone is out there right now, bypassing system safeguards to get what they want. Sorry I couldn’t help more.”

“Not your fault.” Chance wasn’t about to give up.

He phoned Isaac at Hardbodies. Glasses clinked in the background. Tim McGraw’s Live Like You Were Dying played. “Need a favor.”

“Shoot.”

“Do any of the Equalizers know how to get phone logs from a company fast?” Isaac and his brothers were close with the group, formed by former SEALs who’d banded together to protect innocents. “You know, sidestepping a court and all that. This is important.”

“Are you in trouble?”

“Someone’s been giving Mia grief.”

“Because of what goes on at her resort?”

“I can’t say. She wants to keep this private.”

Isaac hmm’d. “Don’t know if the guys will be able to help, but I can check. Maybe they know someone who can plow through the red tape. I’ll have to call you back.”

“How soon?”

“Depends on what they’re doing and if they’re even available. It’s not like they’re sitting around waiting for me to contact them.”

“Do the best you can.” He ended the call.

Mia’s phone rang.

Riley stared at it as he would a poisonous snake. “Think we should answer?”

Chance wasn’t certain what to do. If Kipp called, hearing a man’s voice might scare him off. Bullies were always cowards, especially when facing an opponent who could smash their faces in. On the other hand, Kipp might be so obsessed with Mia that his well-being didn’t matter as much as winning. Ex-lovers and ex-husbands were known to defy protection orders, police presence, and deadly weapons to get at the woman they wanted in order to possess, harm, or kill.

If Chance did anything to escalate the situation, he’d never forgive himself. “I have to ask her first. She’s the only one who can make that decision.”

“Right.” Riley rubbed his mouth. “Since she’d have to live with the consequences.”

“Fucking shit on that. There aren’t going to be any. We’re going to see to her goddamn welfare. Right?”

“Hey, no need to come down on me.” Riley held up his hands. “I’m on her side. Maybe we can find something on the net that will tell us how to get the phone logs faster. No need to sit here and stare into space until Isaac calls back.”

Chance agreed. “You start. I’ll get the beers, chips, and picante.”

They googled for hours. Mia’s phone buzzed repeatedly. Each time, Chance and Riley froze until the calls cut off only to start again. Precisely as she said.

Riley rubbed his eyes. “I want to smash the damn thing.”

“Me, too.” Chance turned it off. “Let’s get back to work.”

By supper, they’d discovered zip. The only way to get the provider’s full records, without a subpoena, was to hack into their system and steal the data.

“I’m game.” Riley slumped on the sofa. “If the hacker’s good, no one will know what we did.”

Chance caught the last beer drops on his tongue, his six-pack gone. If they wanted more booze, they’d have to haul ass to the convenience store. “You know anyone we can hire who’ll never tell a living soul what he did at our request and because we paid him?”

“Hackers don’t blackmail their clients. They’re breaking the law, too, which means they’re risking someone snitching on them. If that doesn’t put the fear of God into the kid we hire, we’ll sic the Equalizers on him or promise to tell his mommy.”

This was getting as complicated as a plot from Quantico or The Blacklist. Thanks to Kipp’s lunacy, Mia flinched every time her phone buzzed. She looked over her shoulder more than necessary or Chance would have liked. He and Riley were getting as wacky, coming up with scenarios that would put a fiction writer to shame. “We need to lighten up.”

“I’m too tired to go to the store for beer.” Riley rested his arm over his eyes. “This research about killed me. I never knew there was so much boring shit on the net.”

“That’s not what you said about those porn sites you found.”

“By accident.”

They laughed. Chance kicked Riley’s foot. “Come on. We have new work to do.”

“On what?”

“Our date with Mia.”

Riley sat up, eyes bright. “What’s your idea?”

“I don’t have one yet. That’s what we need to research.” He pulled up Amazon.

Riley wrinkled his nose. “Please tell me you’re not planning to buy a how-to book on dating. I’ll give you every tip you’ll need and save you the money.”

“Lucky me. I’m not looking for a how-to book.”

“Toys?” Riley rubbed his hands together. “Dom and sub play-things?”

“Nope.” Chance keyed in romances. A zillion entries came up. He narrowed his search in the book department to BDSM romances. That whittled the entries down to hundreds of pages and thousands of titles.

Riley groaned. “You expect to get ideas from this?”

“You have a better plan? Didn’t you see the romances in Mia’s office? She uses this stuff for the resort. Nothing we do will amaze or please her unless we come up with something special. She’s read it all and has seen it in action.”

“How do we choose which stories to get? Wait—go back to that one.” He pointed at a cover. The woman pawed a man’s torso. “That looks good.”

Chance pushed Riley’s hand away. “For who? You? We’re doing this for Mia not ourselves. We should choose one with a cover where two guys are pleasuring the woman.”

“Fine with me. Point one out.”

They were few and far between, the artwork cheesy. Chance refined his search to BDSM ménages. Didn’t help much. This was like finding the proverbial needle in a haystack.

“What about that one?” Riley jabbed his thumb at a red cover showing two men and one woman sandwiched between them. “She resembles Mia.”

Like that would make the story a goldmine of information on how to wow her. “Best to check out the first chapter before downloading anything.”

By the tenth book, Riley couldn’t stop yawning. “Who would’ve guessed reading about sex could be boring? What do women see in these things?”

“Could be they’re buying better romances than these.” The ones he and Riley checked out sucked. Chance tried bestsellers. Some were only marginally better. Others…

“Hey.” Riley gripped Chance’s wrist. “You’re scrolling too fast. Go back to the first page. I wasn’t finished.”

“Think this one’s a keeper?”

“Let’s check out the reviews.”

Many gushed about Stone and Hammer’s playfulness with Diamond, the heroine. and how the guys enflamed her fiery spirit. The few one-star comments complained there was too much sex.

Chance added the book to his cart and resumed his search.

Riley blew out a breath. “We’re going to have to read more than one?”

“I want to be sure everything’s perfect. Who knows what Mia likes? We have to have a contingency plan if something we do doesn’t thrill her.”

“Good God.” Riley dropped to the sofa arm. “Since when has dating become so difficult for you?”

“As I recall, you promised her a great time. Better than anything she’d ever experienced.” Chance scrolled through covers. They began to look the same. Similar to what a crime victim would experience when reviewing mugshots. “Except for Mia, you never talked to my other dates and got their hopes up.”

“I didn’t want you to crash and burn with them. I thought the less they’d expect from you, the better your outcome.”

Chance punched his arm.

Riley laughed then moaned. “Don’t buy more than one for me. This is to jumpstart our imaginations not replace them.”

“Think she’d like getting wet?”

“I know I’d prefer her that way. Wouldn’t you?”

“Get your mind out of the gutter. I’m talking about this.” Chance pointed at the waterfall cover, the babe and her guys steaming up the misty flow.

Riley squinted at the screen and tapped it. “Says right here they’re aliens, new to earth. Call me crazy, but I don’t think that’s going to impress Mia.”

Chance selected it anyway and purchased ten additional titles that revolved around two cowboys or military men and their girl, each threesome into BDSM. Fiction didn’t get better than this. “Choose the five titles you want. I’ll take these.” He pointed to them.

“How do you call that giving me a choice?”

“If yours aren’t good, I’ll share mine after I’m through.” He downloaded the lot to his computer then transferred five to his Kindle and handed it to Riley. “Read.”

Chance took up two cushions on his sofa, settled his PC on his belly, and got comfortable.

 

*****

 

Riley lolled on the floor, head propped in one hand. He was a slow reader by nature. Highlighting every third sentence, making notes, and repeatedly going over the same passages didn’t speed up the process.

He’d yet to reach the BDSM parts. So far the characters had merely kissed, snuggled, teased each other, and fucked like newly released inmates who hadn’t known carnal delights for decades.

His cock strained against his boxer briefs and jeans. The fabric chafed. He rubbed himself.

Heat burst from his groin and shot to his chest. Pleasure he couldn’t describe whipped through him. He cupped his balls and gritted his teeth to keep from coming.

Chance made a strangled noise.

He stared at his computer screen, eyes goggled, his complexion darkened with what might have been excitement. His lips moved as he read at supersonic speed. He stopped, frowned, and ran his forefinger over the PC mouse. He mouthed the words again and made a face men do when their cocks are deep within a woman’s tight pussy and they’re about to release their load.

Curious, Riley sat up. “What’s it say?”

Chance blinked. His glazed expression didn’t clear. “Huh?”

“What are your guys and girl doing?”

“Not what. Where. You ever think to make love in the middle of stampeding horses? Wild not broken?”

“Are the people on the ground?”

“In the pickup bed.”

The striking hooves would stir up dust, but, otherwise, it should work. “Is it sunny?”

“Let me check.” Chance scrolled and read. “Doesn’t say. Why?”

“Without a cloud cover, their lily-white asses are gonna get burned. Why’d they stop to screw in the middle of nowhere? What started the stampede?”

“Doesn’t say.”

“Where’s the author from?”

“Let me check.” Chance scrolled. “Brooklyn.”

That explained a lot. “Should’a done her research. You get to any Dom and sub shit yet?”

“Nope. You?”

Riley shook his head. “Made a bunch of notes though for other stuff.”

“I did, too. Don’t bother me again unless—”

Riley was already back in his story. If he’d known these books existed when he was in middle school, his life would have been a helluva lot better. Coupled with visual aids from Playboy or Penthouse, he and Chance wouldn’t have had to sneak onto internet porn sites and risk their parents’ ire. Kids today had it freaking easy.

The threesome in Riley’s book entered an X-rated movie theater. Patrons shouted and shook their fists at the blank screen, the projector broken and difficult to fix.

Didn’t make sense to him. Did anyone bother going to places like that when they could enjoy smut at home?

He checked the copyright date. This year.

The plot took place in El Paso. Could be no one there could afford internet service and had to go out for fun.

Ginger Snapson, the heroine, shushed everyone in the theatre and pulled her guys to the stage.

Riley read:

 

“Let’s give them a show they’ll never forget,” she said breathily.

Men pulled off their belts and tossed them at her guys.

Tank Johns caught each with incredible ease, his ex-military training showing in his speed and agility. Rock Stukowski used a tooled black-leather belt to tie Ginger’s hands behind her back.

Confinement never felt as good to her.

“Ready, baby?” Rock whispered.

Was she ever. “Do it. Now.”

He and Tank ripped off her snug tee and teeny short-shorts and tossed the ruined clothing into the audience.

None of those men moved or breathed.

Ginger hadn’t worn underwear, precisely as Tank and Rock had commanded. Her boobs, intimate curls, and engorged nether lips were bared for everyone to see. She knew what got her men off—her vulnerable nudity and them punishing her as Doms should.

 

Riley’s rod stiffened. He highlighted the last paragraph and put it on his wish list for what he wanted Mia to do with him and to him.

He was pretty damn certain she’d never consent to punishment, sex, or even a chaste kiss around an audience. Of course, if those potential onlookers were nearby, but didn’t have a high probability of happening upon her, him, and Chance playing, that might still rev her engine. It sure as fuck got his purring.

“Food.” Chance slapped his thigh. “What does it do for you?”

They’d finished the chips and salsa hours ago. “Keeps me alive.” Riley hadn’t noticed his hunger until now. “You ready to grab a bite? Order a pizza?” They could bring the eReader and laptop along if they went out.

“Not food for filling your belly. Eating it off Mia.”

On occasion, Riley had licked chocolate smears from his date’s lips. In middle school, he’d shared a spaghetti strand with his girlfriend, same as those dogs did in that old Lady and the Tramp cartoon. Messy as hell. The strand broke before his and her lips touched. Sauce flew on her new pink dress. A drop flicked in his eye. Its heat and salt stung like hell. “Tried it. Didn’t like it.”

“Listen to this.” Chance cleared his throat. “‘They filled her navel with caramel sauce and dribbled the decadent treat to her furry mound. Drops glistened on her reddish curls. Neither of her guys was through. Hungry men deserved a full-course meal.’” He laughed. “I’ll say. Quiet.”

“I haven’t said a word. Go on. Read the damn thing.”

“I’m trying.” He adjusted himself on the cushions. “‘They took turns bathing her clit with the sauce. It mingled with her natural female juices. Being thorough men and lovers, they tended her tits next. Alabama on her right side, Eduardo on her left. Her rosy nipples tightened beneath their expert touch. The elongated tips begged for their mouths and tongues.’”

It was a miracle women did anything except read this stuff. “Sounds good, but they haven’t eaten it off her yet. Are they inside an apartment, house, whatever, or outside?”

“On her patio near the pool. Middle of summer. Hot and steamy, like their love.” Chance pointed at the screen. “Says so right here.”

“Then there’s a problem. Won’t caramel attract bees and such? What if Mia’s allergic to stings? I carry condoms with me, not EpiPens.”

Chance screwed up his mouth. “You’re asking that after you’ve had the gall to tell me I worry too much about stuff? Since when did you become a hothouse flower, afraid to take your food outdoors?”

“I’m thinking of Mia’s welfare, not mine. Bees and mosquitoes can eat me alive if they want. I’ll survive. But I don’t want to look like a damn fool.” He told Chance about the spaghetti mishap.

His cheeks reddened from laughter. “If Mia’s turned on enough, she won’t notice. Neither will you. One time, I mounted a girl while I was standing and sprained my left calf. Came three times before the pain registered. Couldn’t walk easy for weeks. If you don’t want to go with food, fine. I’ll do it. Already highlighted that section in the book.”

“If you’re game, so am I.” They were going to pleasure her together. “Make your notes and I’ll do mine. Are you going to order the pie, or do you want me to?”

“On it.” Chance grabbed his smartphone and called the pizzeria. A small, local restaurant that thankfully delivered.

Riley dove back into Ginger, Tank, and Rock’s romance.

*****

D-Day—as in Mia’s date—had arrived. She, Riley, and Chance agreed to take off work and make the next twenty-four hours theirs.

Last night, the guys had piled into her office and asked if she minded them calling the shots and if she’d agree to go with the flow.

That same request coming from Kipp would have given her hives. With them, her pulse ticked up from pure, hard lust. They wouldn’t hurt her. “Sure.”

“Great.” Chance’s grin carved mega-deep dimples in his cheeks. “No underwear for you. Not even a thong.”

Riley raised his hand. “I have a question. What do you call those things women put on their nipples to hide them?”

“I’m not following— Wait. Pasties? You want me to wear them? I’d have to buy a set first.”

“Don’t bother. They’re out of the question, too.” He shook his finger. “We want you buck naked except for your perfume. Put it in places you never considered before.”

She’d pressed her thighs together to keep from getting too wet and embarrassing herself.

This morning, she’d plucked, shaved, groomed, and applied her scant makeup better than she had in years. She rifled through her clothes baffled as to what she should wear since the guys wouldn’t say where they were taking her.

When she’d asked, Chance had wiggled his eyebrows and claimed it was a secret. Riley promised that not even waterboarding would get him to fess up, though he did say she should keep her getup simple. That’s what he called her proposed outfit—a getup.

Since fleeing Kipp, Mia hadn’t shopped much for clothes. She had her leatherwear for the resort and a few jeans, shorts, and tees for her days off.

Her cotton tops wouldn’t make it easy to go braless. If her nipples got hard, and she suspected they would, the tips might poke a hole through the thin fabric. Plus, her boobs were huge.

She’d matured early, barely past twelve years old, and was ridiculed by her classmates. The boys made lewd jokes. The girls called her a slut. Like she had control over her hormones or genetics. Even when the class caught up to her and developed adult bodies, the damage was already done.

For years, she hunched her shoulders to hide what she considered a deformity. Excelling in school became her new pastime. Eventually, her success allowed Mia to hold her head high though she still wore the sturdiest bras she could find to avoid drooping.

She pulled on a maroon shirt and turned from side to side in front of her full-length mirror. Her breasts swayed more than she liked. Maybe if she bound them with a scarf… The guys had said no underwear or pasties. They hadn’t mentioned anything else. She could fashion a makeshift halter and wear it beneath the tee.

Or she could be as bold as Chance and Riley were and let things unfold as they should.

She tore off the tee and chose a plain white one with a low sweetheart neckline. The flimsy cotton revealed her darkish nipples. Her face heated, but she refused to change into something respectable. Surely before noon, Chance and Riley would see her naked. Might as well give them a preview.

When it came to her shorts, she was more circumspect. The white fabric proved thick enough to mask the curls between her legs. She should’ve groomed there, too. Gone full Brazilian on the guys.

Maybe for their next date.

She stilled and shook her head. Today was a one-time deal. They’d have fun and go back to their separate lives. A real relationship couldn’t evolve from this. Not with two men. How was that supposed to work in a world where even the most giving person got selfish at times? She might wound Riley if she kissed Chance too much or vice versa. They’d end up competing, possibly hating each other. It’d be her fault. What was the matter with them for going along with this?

Her phone buzzed.

Just what she didn’t need. Mia drooped. The guys hadn’t found out anything from their Ranger friend or Isaac who’d contacted his sources.

Warily, she checked the display. Chance.

“Hey.” She cradled the phone to her ear. “What?” He couldn’t be canceling.

“You okay?”

“Sure.”

“You sound kind of breathless. Any calls?”

“Only from you.” She didn’t want to ask but had to. “What did you want?”

“To see if you’re ready. Are you?”

She’d been waiting for him and Riley her entire life. “Yep. Except for shoes.”

“Wear your black heels. Those babies that are really high.”

Mia transferred the phone to her other ear. “Riley said to keep it simple. I did. A tee and shorts. No underwear.”

Chance sighed happily. “The heels will do fine. I like them.”

“We’re not going out in public, are we?”

“Nope. Just you, me, and Riley…and a surprise. That’s all, I swear. Sorry, but I can’t tell you more.”

He sure as hell better. “What surprise? Isaac? Avery? Strangers?”

“Do you trust me and Riley?”

Mia wanted to. She fingered perspiration off her throat. “I don’t want to be embarrassed.” She wasn’t that brave or confident.

“You won’t be shamed in any way. Riley and I are here to protect, serve, and pleasure you, remember? Leave through the kitchen back door. We’ll be outside. Don’t make us wait or have to come get you…please.”

“I’ll be there in a sec.”

Her heels looked ridiculous. She nicked her ankle with her razor, the mark an angry red shade. Cantaloupes were smaller than her boobs.

Given she was more discreet than twisted, she tugged on a windbreaker and hoped to God the help wouldn’t notice that she looked like a hooker in a seedy part of town.

She kept her head down and hurried through the kitchen. Bacon, cinnamon toast, tortillas, and coffee scented the immaculate space.

A chorus rang out, “Morning, Ms. Strand.”

The guys stared at her heels, the women her windbreaker.

Mia smiled briefly. “Have a good day.” She fled through the back door.

Humid heat engulfed her. In spots, mist hugged the ground. The punishing sun beat down from a surprisingly flawless sky.

Shading her eyes, she rounded the building and stopped.

Chance and Nick faced her bare-chested, pecs and abs sculpted, blue jeans hung low on their lean hips. Silky black hair circled Chance’s navel and trickled to beneath his waistband. Riley’s did the same except his body hair was light brown.

Her bones softened.

Chance’s locks hung loose, stirred by the muggy breeze. His tat covered his shoulder and upper arm, the tribal design delightfully savage.

A brutal scar cut through Riley’s right pec, the skin puckered and white against his deep bronze complexion.

Mia touched the disfigurement. “How did this happen?”

“On a mission.” He shrugged. “No biggie. I survived.”

Spoken like a true military hero. Whenever Kipp cut his face shaving, he’d curse himself hoarse and whine like a little girl. “I’m glad you did survive.” She kissed his scar.

Riley inhaled sharply.

“You, too.” She pressed her face to Chance’s tat and sniffed his wondrous scent.

He caressed her cheek.

“What’s with this?” Riley tugged her windbreaker. “It’s nearly a hundred degrees out here already.”

“I had to get through the kitchen without anyone thinking I’d gone loony with my getup. I’ll ditch the jacket once we leave.”

“Now’s better. Before you sweat to death.” Chance opened it and whistled. “I do like your shirt.”

Riley nodded vigorously. Blond waves fell over his forehead. “Take the jacket off. No one’s out here except us.”

Someone snorted.

Or rather something. A black horse. No. There were two horses, the other one brown. Both cooled their hooves beneath a massive tree. What the staff called a Texas live oak.

Mia pointed at the animals. “Are they the surprise you mentioned?”

“Yep.” Chance tugged off her right sleeve.

Riley handled the left and folded the garment. “I’ll put it in the cooler for safekeeping.”

It rested on the brown horse’s rump.

She stated the obvious. “I didn’t bring a pony since I don’t know how to ride.”

“Not a problem.” Chance laced his fingers through hers. “You’ll ride with me on the way there and with Riley on the trip back. While we’re at our destination, we’ll share you equally, the same as you’ll do with us. As soon as we settle down and get seriously naked.”