She tried to squeeze between the two men to head for the door. But she brushed her breasts against Tate’s chest. Then she felt it. He had a massive, gloriously thick erection that pressed against his sweatpants and prodded her belly. The feel of him, hard and wanting, caught her off guard and she stepped back—into Eric.

Eric laughed, glancing down at Tate’s junk. “Dude, I have no idea how you run with that thing.”

But she felt Eric’s too, jutting against her ass. He wasn’t at all small or flaccid either.

“I can’t help it,” Tate defended. “The average adult male gets approximately eleven erections daily during waking hours, but when I’m around Belle or think about her—or even remember something that reminds me of her—I get hard. I’m probably skewing the average.” He shrugged. “I’m a guy who happens to be really crazy about a girl. Sue me.”

“Nah, I’d have to sue myself, too,” Eric admitted.

“No doubt.” Tate slapped his buddy on the shoulder and headed toward the stairs. “I’m going to take care of this thing, then I need to conference on the Harrison case.”

“Take care of what?” Belle just blinked. He couldn’t mean what she thought he meant.

With a wink, Tate jogged up the stairs with more energy than a man who’d already spent an hour running should have. He would have that stamina in bed. The thought slammed her out of nowhere. This time, more than her cheeks flamed.

“He’s going to go masturbate,” Eric said matter-of-factly.

Someone knocked on the door again, this time more insistently.

“More information than I needed.” She scurried for the kitchen door, trying to put space between them. They were driving her completely insane, and if she didn’t spend the next hour imaging Tate bringing himself pleasure, it would be a miracle.

“We’re in your face because you’re being a stubborn little thing.” Eric caught her before she escaped by placing a palm flat on the door, caging her in. “Come home with us, Belle, to a place we can all share. Give us another shot, baby. Let us show you this can work.”

He was so close, his mouth lingering just above hers. She nearly lost herself in his glittering greenish eyes. All she’d have to do was lift her chin and inch up on her tiptoes to feel those firm, talented lips against her own. Already, her body prepared itself for him. She’d softened and had to force herself not to lean into him. Her nipples peaked. Her pussy moistened and throbbed.

Whoever stood outside banged impatiently against the door again, and the moment was broken.

Biting out a curse, Eric stepped back. “I’m going to set up that conference. This afternoon, we’ll help you paint.”

She shook her head. “You don’t need to do that. I understand you have work.”

“I said we’ll help you after lunch. And I expect you to eat today. Lunch is at noon. See you then.” Eric turned and planted himself at the breakfast table again.

Shaking her head, Belle pushed her way out of the room and hustled to the door, signing for an overnight package of new bedding she’d ordered.

As soon as she shut the door, she leaned against it and closed her eyes. What was she going to do? The guys weren’t going to leave. They’d already made that point crystal clear. If she kept them here, their business would eventually suffer.

Or they might do exactly what they threatened and move the whole damn office here permanently. Tate had already bought a book on passing the bar in Louisiana.

She dug into the box, trying to busy herself…but in the back of her head, she couldn’t help but wonder how much longer she could resist them.

“Belle!” Kellan strode down the stairs, her puppy in the crook of his arm. “Your rat-thing crapped in my dress shoes. Do you have any idea how expensive those damn loafers were?”

She did since she’d been the one to order them. “Sir, please stop that.”

Belle refused to chastise the puppy too much. He still wasn’t completely housebroken, and he’d likely forgotten to bark at her so that she knew he needed to go.

She reached for her dog, watching as Kellan’s face went red. She winced inwardly because she’d managed to get through three whole days without the big bad Dom figuring out her little joke. But now the jig was about to be up. She winced.

“What is it you think I need to stop, Belle?” He clipped and carefully enunciated every word.

She scrambled to avoid answering him because she and Kellan had formed a decent truce and she was reluctant to upset him. “Uhm, you have to stop holding my dog that way. He needs to have his underbelly completely supported or he feels unsafe.”

Sir proved her words a lie as he did everything he could to wriggle out of her grasp.

Kell ground his teeth together. “Annabelle, did you name that thing Sir?”

She tried to send him a bright smile. “I wanted to help his self-esteem. I’m sure he could be an alpha dog.”

The puppy yipped, and Belle let him down. Immediately, he started chasing his tail. Somewhere beyond the kitchen, a door slammed shut. Sir scampered behind Kellan with a little whine.

He shook his head. “You’re changing his name.”

“Am not,” she said quietly as he walked into the kitchen.

“You absolutely are. Now, Annabelle.”

“My house. My dog.” She marched toward the living room, Sir hard on her heels.

Kellan came after her. The ringing of his phone was the only thing that saved her from more of this confrontation. Belle left the room while she could…but she was pretty sure he would think of some punishment soon.


* * * *


Tate sighed and let his weary body slide into the chair across from Kellan. Painting sucked. It wasn’t nearly as much fun as sex, but Belle probably didn’t trust that there’d be no repeat of the debacle in Dallas. And she obviously wasn’t ready.

The question was, would she ever be ready?

All Belle seemed interested in was reading that journal of her grandmother’s and fixing up this old house, though they’d had a promising couple of minutes earlier in the day, so Tate had high hopes for the evening. But right after dinner, Belle had escaped into her grandmother’s office and began browsing an old photo album she’d found.

Her father’s mother had been a beauty who had surrounded herself with other gorgeous women. Page after page showed pictures of Belle’s grandma standing near women who looked like they belonged on the silver screen. He’d loved the smile on Belle’s face as she pointed out her dad during various stages of his childhood and adolescence.

Again, Tate recalled the day she’d spoken to him about her father’s death. She’d haltingly admitted that her mom had shut down after he’d died. Though she’d received basic care, Belle had been utterly alone. He related. Even in a house filled with family, no one who shared his flesh and blood had reached out to him as a child. He wondered if that festering hurt caused any of Belle’s hesitation to dive into a relationship now.

Eric walked into their “office,” yawning. “I got the briefs filed in time. I’m going to have to fly back next week. I don’t want to, but I have to handle the court date myself.”

After just three days away, the strain on their business was becoming evident. They could handle much of their case load via computer and phone, but Kellan and Eric still appeared in court routinely. Tate avoided it like the plague. Mostly because he’d come to realize that judges were pompous windbags who liked to hear themselves talk, and being forced to listen to other lawyers pontificate made him want to punch someone in the face. He preferred contracts and corporate clients to dealing with criminal cases. He usually ended up wanting to punch unscrupulous assholes, too. Tate understood the law. People were another matter altogether.

At the moment, that included Belle.

“Okay. Do you need me to schedule the flight?” He was probably the only one of them who remembered their passwords.

“Yeah. Fuck, we need a secretary.” Eric sat in the chair beside him.

Kellan chuckled. “Yeah, I don’t think any of us really understood until now how much Belle did for us.”

“I would reward her properly if she would let me.” In fact, Tate would reward her all night long.

Eric nodded. “Amen, brother. Did she eat anything tonight?”

He’d cooked a very nice roast that had filled the house all day with savory smells and made Tate’s stomach growl.

“A little, but I found her asleep at her grandmother’s desk with her plate half full,” Kellan grumbled. “I’m going to move the office into another room. The four of us need to sit down together at meals. This whole grabbing-a-tray-when-we-have-a-minute bit isn’t working, guys. We need to think things through.”

Scowling, Tate almost objected. He was always thinking. “Sorry, I had a six p.m. conference call. I couldn’t get out of it.”

And he’d eaten lunch at his computer because he’d gotten an emergency e-mail begging for clarification on a contract some clients hadn’t yet signed. Eric had been forced to leave to find a new router when the one they’d been using suddenly blew out. Tate blamed the flirty electrician.

“Clear your schedules tomorrow at eight, noon, and six. We’ll force Belle to sit down with us,” Kellan counseled.

“Yeah, like civilized people in a relationship.” Eric looked like his patience was at an end.

“She won’t admit we’re in a relationship.” Tate sure didn’t feel like he was in one, either.

“I really thought she’d give in by now,” Eric admitted, frustration contorting his expression and tightening his shoulders. His brows settled into a deep V. Tate might not be able to read most people, but he knew his best friend. “I hate how hard she’s working.”