A strangled noise escaped Shay’s throat. Yet again, she was struggling to gain her footing.

Girl-on-girl action? Holy shit. She’d thought her days of experimenting had died with her teen years. Muff diving had never been on her fantasy list. Yeah, she’d shared a drunken kiss or two with friends, but that had been a lifetime ago. Only now, knowing she’d excite Leo by diddling another woman made another thrill shoot through her body.

“I need to get back to work,” she rasped.

He chuckled, fucking chuckled in her ear before stepping back to let her leave. “I’ll be calling last drinks soon. You should start worrying about what will happen once we get back to your place. I’ve got a week’s worth of attention to dish out.”

She increased her pace from the storeroom, needing space so her nipples didn’t bore a hole through her bra. She’d wanted to be more sure of herself before she left Vault of Sin tonight. Because walking out of here would be easy, but coming back as a participant would be a nervous nightmare. And after a lifetime of being confident in herself, she was damn sick of the apprehension.

She’d thought turning up tonight had been difficult, yet all her appearance had done was voice her willingness to be in a relationship with Leo. What she really needed to do was make a choice. Decide right here, right now, if she could be a part of this lifestyle. No fucking around for days. Or second-guessing what might or might not be. She couldn’t wait around for a set of balls to miraculously appear between her thighs, she had to pull up those soggy, sexy lady underwear and bite the bullet. She didn’t want to change the man she’d fallen for, so the question was, did she want to be with Leo on his terms, in his environment? Or say to hell with all the angst and take the easiest option for all of them, T.J. and Brute included, and simply walk away.

She sucked in a breath and ignored the stone settling in her chest. She adored Leo, always had, only things were much deeper now, and a great deal scarier. What if she gave Vault of Sin a try and her family found out? What if she choked, literally, and made a fool of herself? What if she wasn’t good enough?

In reality, he was asking her to be a performer in the rawest way. And yeah, she owned her shit, but spreading her thighs to the world required a set of brass balls…and she didn’t even own a plastic pair.

Leo strode past the bar, confident as always as he played the supervisor role. He was at home here in a club most people would cringe at. She was proud he owned his proclivities. Last week, she’d made a fool of herself by judging him without reason. Because glancing around the room, all she could see were happy faces. Everyone was having fun. Even those who sat in groups chatting, no orgasms required. The crowd was different from her previous visit. A completely new mass of faces, yet the atmosphere was the same.

Friends or strangers, they all seemed to be brought together by a familiar bond. They didn’t snigger or walk off in small groups to pass judgment on others. It was a quaint group of friends having a party. Only instead of playing cards and getting drunk, people got naked and played with each other.

The lifestyle here wasn’t seedy or sleazy. There were no men lurking in the corners, or women playing mind games. It was sex in a safe environment. Simple as that.

“Last drinks,” Leo raised his voice to vibrate through all the rooms.

“Oh, shit.” Shay felt the color drain from her face.

This was it. She had two options. One would test her limits and may even break her, but the chance of happiness would accompany the journey. While the other road was easy, only she’d walk the smooth, stone path alone.

“Bloody hell,” she muttered to herself. There was no way she could find the answer tonight. Not without hard liquor. And there was no chance of getting up close and personal with Mr. Grey Goose while working and having to drive home later.

Fate had got her this far…along with a little stubbornness. It looked like a flip of the coin would have to do.

* * *

Leo had called last drinks a few minutes early because Shay’s complexion was becoming paler with every passing moment. He didn’t want to contemplate the look in her eyes or what she planned on telling him the next time they were alone. So he kept himself busy and said farewell to the patrons who began to leave.

T.J. and Brute would’ve already closed Shot of Sin and be in the process of packing up for the night. He just hoped to fuck they didn’t make their way downstairs looking to play while Shay was still around.

He knew she was slowly coming to terms with strangers fornicating around her, but he doubted she had grasped the concept of T.J. and Brute being involved. Or maybe she had in the last hour and that was why all the color had vanished from her skin.

“Good luck with your bartender.” Grace came up to him, now dressed in a tight black cocktail dress with a purse clutched in one hand and a set of keys jangling in the other. She leaned in and placed a gentle kiss on his cheek. “Give her time. I know you haven’t had the best experience with the ladies, but go easy on her. Adapting to new sexual experiences is more emotional for women. We tend to hold tight to our bad choices and analyze things to the point of insanity.”

“Thanks,” he muttered and then cringed at his rudeness. “I might see you next week,” he lied. It was highly doubtful with the way things were heading with Shay. If he had to make a prediction, he’d say his time in the Vault was drawing to an end, at least for a while.

He walked away, heading for the entrance to turn off the large flat-screen. All he wanted was to get out of here. Which was fucking ironic, because all his problems with Shay stemmed from his need to be in Vault of Sin in the first place.

When he strode back into the main room, only three guys and two women remained, finishing their drinks as they lounged on one of the king-sized beds. His gaze sought Shay’s, but she was gone. His head snapped around to do a quick visual sweep of the area—not in the bar, the storeroom door was closed and he doubted she was in any of the private rooms.

Shit.

He’d made a mistake earlier. He promised he wouldn’t chase her if she ran. Hell. He didn’t even know if she’d left and already he was fighting the need to kick everyone out so he could find her. His palms began to sweat as he pounded out the steps to the bar. Once he was behind the counter, he rushed to the cabinets under the sink and huffed out a relieved breath. Her handbag was there. She hadn’t run. Not yet.

He climbed to his feet and checked the storeroom. Empty. He locked it behind him and went to the first private room filled with numerous beds. Again, no sign of her, so he flicked off the light and shut the door.

That only left one place to check, unless she was upstairs. He stood in the doorway of his favorite room and stared at the mattress bathed in light. Yesterday, he would’ve given anything to see Shay lying atop the black sheets. Now, he’d give anything to have her in his arms, simply holding her in the quiet of his apartment. Could he forego his current need to participate and live a life without Vault of Sin? Maybe. He would at least try. For Shay.

He flicked off the light, killing his fantasy with a sharp click and turned his attention to the ladies bathroom door as it squeaked open.

“Shay?”

She came to him with her head held high. In the dim light emanating from the main room, he could see the uncertainty in her eyes, right before she reached on her toes to kiss him. It was soft, sweet, entirely opposite to the ball-busting woman he knew, and his heart ached all the more for her.

His hands found her hips and he slid his tongue into her willing mouth as her warmth filled his chest. When she pulled back, he was no longer uncertain. He knew what he needed in his sex life and it wasn’t other peoples’ lust. It was Shay.

Only Shay.

She met his gaze with a half-smile, half-wince marring her face. Slowly, she raised her hands to the hem of her shirt and, with a deep, unsettling breath, raised the material over her head and let it fall to the floor.

Fuck me.

“There’s people still out there.” He glanced over his shoulder to make sure they were alone.

She gave a shaky nod and lowered her skirt to pool at her feet. “I know.” She stood before him in black lace, the firm mounds of her breasts plumped and begging to be touched.

“Shay.” He swallowed over the dryness in his throat. She needed to put her clothes back on and walk from the room. Now. He didn’t have the restraint to maintain the distance between them for too much longer. “What’s this about?”

She sucked in a strengthening breath and climbed onto the bed, laying her delicious curves down in the middle of the mattress. “This is me, risking humiliation, to give myself to you.”

He held back from pouncing, from taking what he wanted and instead rubbed a hand over the rough stubble at his jaw. Grace’s words repeated in his mind. “Adapting to new sexual experiences is more emotional for women. We tend to hold tight to our bad choices and analyze things to the point of insanity.”

This was too quick for Shay.

“Don’t get me wrong, but why now? You’re not ready for this.”

Her face was shadowed in the darkness as she rested back on her elbows. “I’m taking a leap. I don’t want to spend weeks stressing over what will happen. I want to do this now and have my answer straight away.”

He stepped forward and rested his knees against the side of the bed. “What’s the question?”

She paused, leaving them in heated silence for long moments. “I want to know if I can be enough for you.”

His nostrils flared with a sudden burst of anger. He wanted to spank her ass and prove to her in many pleasurable ways just how compatible they were. “You’re enough,” he growled. No other woman had set his heart racing like she did.

“Then show me.” She sat up and moved toward him on her knees. “Do with me what you will, and if we both make it through to the other side, maybe we’ll have a chance of taking this further.”

His body tensed from his chest to his toes as she ran her hands over his pecs to grab the collar of his shirt. She tugged him forward and he followed her onto the mattress, crawling between her parted thighs as she scooted back to the top of the bed.

She loosened his ponytail with a hand through his hair, making the chin length strands curtain their faces. “You’re quiet,” she whispered against his lips, her breath heating every inch of him.

“I’m worried.”

She pulled back into the pillows and frowned up at him. “But I thought—”

“There’s only two possible outcomes to this. Either we’ll be perfect for each other…”

“Or I’ll have to quit my job if things go wrong.”

He nodded. Shay was a passionate woman with a mean jealous streak. Working together after a botched relationship wouldn’t be an option. And as much as his dick was willing to take the chance, a dull throb behind his ribs made him proceed with caution. “We can save this for another day.”

She remained still beneath him, her chest rising and falling against his. When her hand fell from his hair, he anticipated her moving out from beneath him, to leave and rethink her decision. Then she swept her fingertips over his jaw, his chin and finally his lower lip before her mouth brushed his.

“I’m willing to risk it.”

* * *

Shay waited with her heart in her throat and her confidence slowly fading. Leo continued to stare at her in the dim light, his quiet breathing the only thing she heard over the murmured voices in the next room.

People were out there, sipping drinks without a care while she lay in her underwear beneath a man she began to pray would say something.

“If we do this, I won’t be quiet, and I won’t allow you to hold in your pleasure,” he warned. “We’ll have an audience before my clothes hit the floor.”

She swallowed. “I know.”

He went silent again, and finally she appreciated the time he took to take the next step. His cock was hard between them, the thick length pressing against her pubic bone. He wanted her, yet he was proceeding with caution. Weighing up the pros and cons like she had for so long.

“I’ll push you, Shay.” He leaned in to gently slide his tongue along her bottom lip and his hand down her side to brush the curve of her breast. “I don’t know any other way in here.”

“I know.” She shuddered, part of her wanting to be pushed while the other hoped adrenaline would see her through to the end without fleeing.

“Then take off your clothes.” He pushed one cup of her bra up to expose her breast and leaned down to lap her nipple with his tongue. “I want every inch of you at my disposal.”

She arched her back and swung her arms behind her to unclasp the hooks of her bra. As she slid the straps down, he lavished her with attention, licking one and then the other until her inhalations became labored and her skin tingled with sensitivity.

“Tell me you want me.”

“I want you,” she whispered, thrusting her breast into the heat of his mouth, dying under the touch of his fingers as they travelled along her waist.

“Louder.”

Her heart thumped beneath her chest. “I want you.” Her voice rose with each word, her adrenaline spiking with it.

He chuckled and pulled back to look her in the eye. “That meek voice does shit for my ego. Tell me you want me like you mean it. Like the tough girl I know you are.”

She bit her lip, staring him down in determination, her nostrils flaring in spite. He raised a brow and skidded his fingers over her abdomen, slipping under the waistband of her G-string.

“Giving up already?” He flicked her clit, making her jolt.

“No. Just give me a second to prepare myself.”

“No more thinking,” he growled. “Say it.” He parted her folds with his fingers and penetrated her in one delicious thrust. “Say it now.”

“Jesus Christ,” she wailed. “I want you, Leo.”

He flashed her a predatory smile before sliding his touch from her body. “That’s better.” He gripped her G-string on either side of her hips and yanked the flimsy material down her legs.

She hoped the blood rushing through her ears was the only reason the soft murmuring in the next room had stopped. Not that they had fallen quiet to listen. Either way, she was determined to ignore any stranger who wanted to catch an eye full. This was her time to prove herself to the man she’d been dreaming about, and she definitely needed to lift her game.

She reached for his shirt and began to undo his buttons, unable to pull her gaze away from the skin she continued to expose. His chest was covered in a light dusting of hair, his pecs defined, his abs smooth and taut. She ached to run her hands along the lines of sinew, to bite into his flesh and make him flinch. She wanted to make him mindless, to repay him for the way he’d made her feel for too damn long.

With a rough hand, he pushed apart her thighs, exposing her, making her more vulnerable than ever before. She was on display, at his mercy, and her body had never felt more alive.

“You’ll always be open for me. You understand?”

Her legs trembled as she undid his last button with shaky hands. “Yes,” she murmured. “Always.”

“And you will only ever give yourself to me.”

She lowered her hands to her sides and raised a brow. “As long as the same rules apply to you.”

“Always.” He grinned, boosting her confidence even though the threat of other beautiful women from Vault of Sin hovered in the back of her mind.

“This is mine.” He glided his hand over her abdomen and then lower. She pressed her lips together to fight a mewl when he slid two fingers through her dripping sex. He leaned over her, his hand still on her pussy while the other palmed her breast. “These are mine.”

She whimpered, thrusting her chest into his hand. “Yes.” She moved her hands to the bedhead and gripped the wooden frame, digging her nails into the timber. “Please, Leo.”

He held her gaze, slowly gliding his fingers into her sheath as she released a long, deep moan. He withdrew just as languorously and wiped a trail of her juices around her clit, flicking the bundle of nerves back and forth. Movement came into her periphery and she froze, sensing more than one person hovering in the doorway.

“Focus on me,” Leo demanded.

She tried. Really, she did, but the pleasure in her body began to ebb and all she could see were the shadows of onlookers darkening her lover’s features.

“Me, Shay.”

He yanked off his shirt and threw it to the mattress beside her. The hard, unyielding flesh was enough to distract her for a fleeting moment. Then her gaze drifted, moving to the couple standing close together against the wall, then to the two familiar faces in the open doorway.

“Holy shit.” She grabbed Leo’s shirt to cover her exposed breasts as she squeezed her eyes shut.

T.J. and Brute were there, watching her like a fucking porn show, their focus harsh enough to burn a lasting impression on her retinas.

“Close the door,” Leo ordered, making her wince at the disappointment in his tone.

She’d wanted to impress him, to wipe away every memory he had of other women, and replace them with the crazy passion she had to share. How the heck had T.J. and Brute skipped her attention? Travis had mentioned staff participating after last drinks, yet the important point hadn’t crossed her mind. She shook her head at herself as shuffled footsteps drifted into the distance and the door closed with a click.

Then the back of her eyelids were illuminated with the overhead lights and her eyes burst open.

Don’t panic. Don’t freak out…any more than you already have.

“Aren’t they meant to be on the other side of the door?” She clung tighter to the shirt, as T.J. and Brute approach the bed.

“Calm down.”

Calm down? She was crazy with panic. Hadn’t they just discussed remaining faithful, albeit vaguely? Now T.J. stood to the left of the bed, his somber smile focused her way as if he was about to face a firing squad instead of a naked woman. Then there was Brute. His usual scowl had deepened, his eyes harsh with disapproval.

“Yeah, calm the fuck down, Shay,” she muttered. “How the hell am I meant to do that with him glaring at me?” She flicked her gaze to Brute before swallowing over the emotion building in her throat and then focused on the black cotton sheets.

This was a fuck up of epic proportions.

“I suppose now would be an inappropriate time to ask for a glowing reference.”

“I’m not letting you run,” Leo spoke softly. “Look at me.”

When she didn’t, he made a move to climb off her. On instinct, she gripped him around the neck and yanked him back down.

“I’m naked,” she ground through clenched teeth. “Move off me and die.”

“I won’t, if you look at me.” He settled between her thighs and leaned on one elbow to peer down at her.

Fine. She raised her gaze, coming face-to-face with penetrating ocean eyes.

“You wanted to jump in the deep end, Shay. Don’t forget how to swim now that you’re here.”

His words repeated in a continuous loop. Taking the plunge wasn’t meant to be easy…it also wasn’t meant to be this confronting, but if she walked away now, there was no way she would come back.

“I’m not in this for anyone else,” she whispered. “All I wanted was you.”

Her gaze drifted away, over the sheets to the dark blue jeans T.J. was wearing. He stood still, not uttering a word while Leo ran a finger along her jaw, regaining her attention.

“All you’re getting is me. For however long you want me.” He narrowed his gaze, hitting her hard with his sincerity. “Playing with others would only be for your pleasure. And that doesn’t have to happen now, or tomorrow, or ever. You got that?”

She nodded, slightly relieved at his statement.

“But my ego needs to be fed.” The corner of his lips lifted, making her chest pound with his sexy confident smirk. “I want them to see your beautiful body. I want them to take notes on how fucking amazing I make you feel. I want their gaze on your face as you come undone by my hands, or my mouth, or my cock. I want them delirious with the need to have you.”

She shuddered, feeling the exposed skin all over her body break out in shivering gooseflesh.

“Do you trust me?” he asked.

She bit her tongue to fight back the hell no. “Not when you’re smirking like the cat that got the cream.”

“But I do have the cream, gorgeous.” His grin increased as he slid a hand between them, spreading her slick, sensitive flesh. “I just need you to trust me so I can get the chance to taste it.”

Her breath hitched as he sunk his fingers deeper, gliding his thumb over her clit. “Okay,” she gasped. “Okay.” Okay, okay, okay. She nodded and licked her lips, dying for more. One touch was all she required to make her succumb. One touch and one wickedly sexy grin and she was all his.

“That’s my girl.”

He leaned in for a demanding kiss. His tongue penetrated her mouth with the same delicious rhythm of his fingers in her pussy. She clung to him, one hand around his neck, the other on his biceps, and let sensation take away her insecurities.

When he pulled back, she was panting, rocking her hips in need for more.

“T.J., get the cuffs.”

“What?” Her gaze shot to T.J. at the bedside table to her left, then over to Brute who took a seat on the mattress to her right, before snapping back to Leo. “Cuffs aren’t necessary.” She shook her head, pleading with her gaze. She had too much pride to plead aloud. If they were alone it would be different, but she had to regain some level of backbone to prove to the others she was worthy.

“They are until you lose that frightened look in your eyes.”

“I assure you, cuffs won’t help.”

T.J. softly chuckled and the impact of the sound stunned her. She glanced over to him, to the sweet gentleness in his wistful smile and knew she was safe. He had yearning in his eyes, just like Leo, and she supposed Brute had it somewhere too, under all those layers of brutality. They’d lost hope in finding the women to complete them and needed hope to move forward. She was that hope.

Silently, she raised her arm to T.J., letting the gentle touch of his hand work the cold metal around her wrist. He held her gaze as he locked it in place and then lightly ran his fingers from her wrist to her elbow before backing away to throw the other set of cuffs to Brute.

She didn’t want to turn her gaze to the smug bastard. He’d had his fun with her underwear earlier. She could imagine how he would torment her once this moment was over. So instead of looking at him, she raised her arm in his direction and stared at Leo as an unfamiliar touch worked its way around her skin. Fingers tickled her wrist, working higher over her palm, spreading her fingers before moving back down again.

“He needs you to acknowledge his presence,” Leo murmured.

Too bad. She raised her chin and worked her lower lip between her teeth, waiting for the delicate touch to end. Brute was her friend, a great guy hiding behind an asshole persona. One glance could ruin the connection they had and she was already risking enough with Leo.

Leo chuckled. “Well, just so you know, he won’t stop until he gets what he wants.”

Her eyes widened as Brute’s fingers continued to travel along her arm, from the tingling flesh around her elbow, to her biceps and finally her shoulder. She held her breath, wrapping her legs around Leo’s waist for grounding, willing herself not to break.

Her skin burned in the wake of Brute’s touch along her neckline, slowly down her sternum. She began to pant, caught between enjoying the lust wracking her body and the determination not to break so their relationship wasn’t catapulted into another turbulent atmosphere.

“Shay,” Brute’s deep voice called.

She shook her head, fighting hard to calm herself.

“Shay.” This time his voice was louder, and he drifted his fingers to the tingling flesh below her breast. “Look at me.”

“Why?” She directed her frown at Leo. “You don’t want me here.” The truth escaped her lips. He’d warned her away from Leo when she was first employed and again last night. Subconsciously, his rejection had already cut deep.

“No.” He let the force of his word sink in before he continued. “I don’t want you hurt in here.”

She looked at him then, at the way his scowl had softened into something like regret.

“I don’t want to see you walk away like every other woman each of us have cared about.”

That’s not what their conversations had been about. Or was it? She scrutinized him, seeing the honesty in his features. Had his disapproval been out of protection for her?

“I’m a big girl.”

He inclined his head. “I know, and that’s why seeing you so shaken is hard to take.” His touch travelled over her ribs and then dropped from her side. “I’m here to protect you. To make sure this guy doesn’t fuck up, okay?”

Her lips tilted. “Okay.”

“I won’t fuck up,” Leo interrupted and pulled back from her body.

She winced at the exposure, sensing the weight of three heated gazes rake her from head to toe. Leo stood at the foot of the bed, devouring her with his eyes as he unclasped the button at his waistband, lowered his zipper and pushed his pants to the floor.

His erection tented the front of his boxers, making her mouth salivate, her restrained hands clench. He lowered the last piece of material covering his body and let his cock bob against his abdomen as he shucked his underwear.

“Time for the cat to get the cream,” he drawled.

He fucking drawled at her with smooth male arrogance and then crawled back onto the mattress and parted her thighs. He had no inhibitions, no shyness, no doubt. He was in his element, his eyes alight with determination.

“Jesus Christ, you’re beautiful.” He sat back on his haunches, staring down at her exposed flesh.

She pulled against her restraints and winced at the bite of pain to her wrists. In an instant, she had Leo’s attention, and T.J. and Brute were at her cuffs, easing the skin around her holdings.

“I’m fine.” She looked at each of them in turn. She’d never been adored before, never been fawned over or taken care of like this. “I’m not going to break.”

“Good. Because I’m just getting started.” Leo lowered between her thighs, placing his mouth an inch away from her pussy, letting the brush of his breath tickle her skin. “Wrap your legs around my shoulders.”

She did as instructed, as fast as she could, hoping he wouldn’t hold back from sinking his tongue between her folds. The first stroke down her core sent her back arching off the bed, her hands pulling at the restraints again. Caress after slow, sweeping caress, he tasted her, making her pant and wish she could run her hands through his hair and hold him in place.

“More,” she pleaded. “Please.” Her embarrassment at the compulsion to beg disappeared. She’d grovel for deeper penetration if she had to. She just wanted more. She tugged at the restraints in annoyance, not caring at the pain it caused her wrists. It provided a much needed relief from the torture Leo was lavishing on her body.

“Release her hands,” Leo demanded. “She’s going to hurt herself.”

She straightened in relief, eager to touch every hard inch of his flesh. T.J. and Brute did as instructed, yet the restriction on her arms remained. T.J. entwined his fingers with hers and pressed down on her left hand while Brute held tight to her right. They climbed on the bed at her sides, watching in silence as Leo went back to devouring her pussy.

She squeezed T.J.’s fingers the closer she came to orgasm. Never would she have thought she’d be relieved to have all three of her bosses around to share the most sensual experience of her life. Without them it would still be profound—her taking a chance and giving herself to Leo—but now her pleasure was heightened, and more importantly, she felt at home around these men.

Each time Leo’s fingers entered her, her gaze glanced from one man to the next. All their focus was dedicated to her body, to the way she began to writhe her hips. Their attention was addictive. She ground her pelvis harder, moaned a little louder every time Leo hit that perfect spot, and enjoyed the buzz of exhilaration that came with the flare of a nostril, the narrowing of a gaze or the tensing of a jaw.

Brute moved closer, leaning into her neck. The brush of his light beard was enough to escalate her lust and bring her closer to the edge.

“I knew you’d be like this,” he murmured in her ear. “Receptive. Sensitive. And a fucking treasure to behold.”

Oh God. She gasped. Dirty talk would send her over the edge and she didn’t want to fly just yet. Leo’s touch was enough, the brush of his fingers moving in and out, the suction of his mouth settling over her clit. She couldn’t breathe, couldn’t think with the delicious words flittering into her mind, Brute’s breath tickling her neck.

“What I wouldn’t give to be between those thighs, lapping your cream, nipping your skin.” He nuzzled the sensitive skin below her ear with the tip of his nose. “Leo’s a lucky son of a bitch.”

She whimpered. Leo wasn’t the lucky one. With her thighs tense with pleasure, her wrists held down by two drool-worthy men and her sex on the brink of detonation, she was the one getting the better end of the deal.

“I want to watch you come all over his mouth.”

Fuck… The world faded, light turned to black, and she screamed as her orgasm hit hard. They held her down, Leo placing pressure on her hips, and T.J. and Brute at her wrists. She bucked, her core clenching out of control while her legs squeezed tight and her eyes clamped shut. Her breasts were on fire, her heart full and rapidly beating.

Leo didn’t stop as her pleasure simmered, the heavy bursts of climax receding to a lesser tingling sensation. Her legs fell limp around him, her arms no longer fighting her restraint and then finally he backed away. She lazily opened her eyes, a smile tilting her lips, and found him on his haunches staring down at her. He didn’t speak, didn’t move, just continued to gaze at her with an emotion she couldn’t pinpoint.

The pressure on her wrists vanished, allowing her to sit up on her elbows. “What’s wrong?”

He inhaled deep and remained quiet.

“Petrova lost for words.” Brute smirked. “It must be love.”

Shay glanced at Brute in surprise and then straight back to Leo. His chin was jutted, his shoulders straight as she stared at him in disbelief.

“No.” She shook her head. He didn’t love her. He had feelings for her, lusted after her, but not love. Not yet.

Leo raised a brow, his glistening lips parting ever so slightly.

Speak to me. She needed an answer, wouldn’t breathe until she had one. “You don’t.” Do you?

He leaned down, circled her waist and pulled her to his lap. She ignored the hardness pressing against her pubic bone and scrutinized the intensity in his eyes. “Leo?”

“Hmm?” He blinked as if awoken from a daze. “What, gorgeous?”

“You don’t love me.”

The side of his lips tilted. “Are you asking, or telling?”

“I don’t know.”

He licked his lips, casually stroked a lock of hair behind her ear and smiled. “Why are you so nervous at the thought of me loving you?”

Because you’re Leo Petrova, the man of my dreams and creator of fantasies.

“Shay?”

Her focus turned to the door as it closed with a click. They were alone. T.J. and Brute had wordlessly left them in privacy.

“Shay?” Leo gripped her chin and turned her back to those penetrating blue-green eyes. “Are you scared that I love you?”

She snapped a hand over her mouth, covering a gasp. She’d never been here before, not only the sex club or a private room alone with three men, but having her feelings reciprocated. It was always a needy guy chasing her or her lusting over someone out of her league. Now she was in the arms of the man she’d given her heart to long ago, and he was returning it with his own.

“Hey.” He gently pushed her hand away and ran a delicate thumb over her bottom lip. “The Shay I know wouldn’t cry over a guy.”

“I’m not crying.” She was just trying to hide her hyperventilated breaths.

His smile grew the longer he gazed into her eyes. “I believe you.”

For long moments, they sat in comfortable silence, gazing at one another, her heart growing fuller with each passing second. She’d always known Leo Petrova was a special man. Now she knew why. He was hers.

He lowered his hands from her face and gripped her around the waist. The instant the head of his cock nudged her entrance, the warmth of love suffusing her body turned into burning desire.

“Ready for your turn?” Shay gave him a wicked grin.

“I’ll always be hard for you, but this isn’t about turns.” He reached back, picked up the row of condoms from the mattress and sheathed himself. “I’d be happy to bring you pleasure for the rest of my life without getting it in return.”

She relaxed into him and hovered her lips a bare inch from his. “I call bullshit.”

He chuckled. “Okay. So maybe I’m a little delusional. But that’s your fault. You’ve made me crazy with the need to make you happy.”

“I’ve been crazy for you for too long to remember.”

“A stubborn woman like you?” He raised a brow. “You just wanted to get into my pants.”

He leaned forward, laying her softly on the bed.

“Your heart, too,” she murmured, then bit her lip waiting for his reaction. Even after his declaration, she still didn’t feel comfortable sharing her feelings. He seemed too good to be true. Like a mirage about to disappear the closer they became.

He rolled her to her side and moved in behind her, settling the hardness of his body against her back. His hand found her hip and he delicately stroked the sensitive skin as he nuzzled her hair.

“You’re there, Shay. You’re mine, and no matter how scared you get, we’ll work through it together.” His shaft glided through the slick arousal of her pussy, nudging into her in tiny, teasing increments.

“I won’t let either of us run.” He slid home, ramming into her in a harsh, deep thrust.

They moaned in unison, and she craned her neck, allowing Leo to take her mouth in an equally strong kiss. This time, their connection was lazy and romantic. The pleasure building because of devotion and adoration. He treasured her, kissing her shoulder, slowly stroking her clit. They made love like a couple with a future, not two people expecting to be torn apart at any given moment.

“I can’t believe this is happening.” Her heart fluttered, her limbs were alive with arousal. Relief washed through her at the way the early morning had turned out. She’d jumped from the cliff and come out soaring.

“Believe it, gorgeous.” He nuzzled her neck, never stopping the delicious sweep of his hips. “Because I never let go of what’s mine.”