“That’s it.” Tate’s big hand covered her head. “You look beautiful like this.”

Even when he was angry with her, he still made her feel special. She wanted to take back everything she’d said to him, but she couldn’t do that unless she was absolutely certain she could keep whatever promises she made. Instead, Belle swore she’d take whatever time they shared and give as much of herself as she could. “Thank you, Sir.”

“It’s a simple truth.” His sneakers exited her line of sight. “If we’re going to continue this sexual relationship, we need to prepare you. In the past, we’ve always taken a lover together. That means using more than just your mouth and your pussy. Do you understand what I’m saying?”

Tate clipped every word with a distinctly academic tone, as though he were discussing some intellectual problem, not explaining that he wanted to have anal intercourse with her.

Maybe it was time to show him she was learning. She didn’t normally curse, but the night before had been dirty and glorious, and there was nothing wrong with the truth. She wasn’t the same reserved girl whose virginity they’d taken. These men had changed her for the better. “You want to fuck my ass, Sir.”

The whole room went still, as though not a single one of them could believe she’d uttered those words. At their shock, Belle had to stop herself from giggling.

“That’s correct.” Tate’s voice was a little higher than before. It was nice to know she could get to him with a few well-chosen words.

“Belle, what Tate is trying to explain is that we’ll first prepare you by inserting a plug in your ass that will stretch you to take a cock there.” Eric circled around her until his feet came into view. He wasn’t wearing shoes. How could his bare feet seem so masculine, so sexy? No clue, but they were.

She felt his hand sink into her hair, then he gently tugged until she was looking up at him. “When Kellan went out for beignets, he bought you a set of training plugs. This city has a surprisingly large amount of sex shops. And voodoo shops. Sometimes I couldn’t tell the difference.”

Belle would have to hope that no one had placed a curse on her anal plug. “I understand, Sir. I want to be able to take all of you. I’m ready.”

He tipped her chin up and stared into her eyes as though he could see her down to her soul. “You’re ready for sex with all of us, but not commitment?”

“I can’t promise more now, Eric. You’ve had a year to think about this. I’ve had a few days. I need time to figure us out.”

“I should probably step back until you do, but I won’t. Instead, I’m going to show you absolutely everything we can give you. I’m going to show you what it means to belong to us. You won’t be able to send us away.”

Belle was already afraid of that. She didn’t want to find herself swept back to Chicago and giving up her design dreams. She couldn’t run their lives again and not have one of her own. Even if they did help her find an office close to theirs so she could go into business for herself, as Tate suggested, it wouldn’t be what she needed. Fate, her grandmother—something—had called her to this place. She had to make them see that. Besides, even if she was ready to jump into the relationship…well, Kell still wasn’t. These three men wouldn’t be right without one another. She didn’t want to be the reason they were no longer a unit.

“I can’t do this.” Kellan shook his head.

Couldn’t what, even sleep with her anymore? Now that he’d had her, did he not want her again?

Panic encroached. She studied Kell’s face, wishing he would look at her. She couldn’t read him beyond agitation. His jaw firmed. He paced, shaking his head. Her stomach knotted, and she barely held in a sob.

She’d thought she would have more time with him, that she could build up memories with him before he left her. How had everything gone so wrong so quickly?

“If you want to bail, there’s the door.” Tate’s face had gone harder, his eyes downright stony as he glared Kellan’s way.

Kell rolled his eyes. “Stop being a drama queen. I wasn’t talking about leaving. We’re going to shove a plug up her ass. Don’t you think I’m staying around for that? I was talking about this whole ‘Sir’ thing. She ruined it for me.” He pointed at her. “Now when the word comes out of her mouth, it’s like she’s addressing that little rat-thing that hikes its leg and pees on my shoes.”

A great well of laughter burst from Belle. She tried to press it down, but couldn’t. Her reaction might annoy him, but she couldn’t stop it, especially not when he looked so righteous.

Even Tate cracked a smile. “How about Master? Except we haven’t earned it.”

“I can call you Master,” she interjected quickly.

It felt right, like a formal admission of their sexual relationship. They would be her Masters…for now.

“I like the way that sounds. Hands and knees, baby. Let’s get the rough part over.” Eric moved to the dresser where someone had lain a plastic bag. He retreated to the bathroom, and Belle heard the water begin to run.

Rough part? They were really going to impale her backside with a foreign object. She wasn’t entirely sure how she should feel about that, but she’d seen Kinley blush and stutter when the subject of anal anything came up. Belle didn’t have any hang-ups about it being “weird.” It was simply new, but she wanted to know what it meant to be in between them, to have them love her all over. If she had to allow them to plug her before that could happen, she’d manage.

Belle leaned forward, placing her palms on the carpet. It was plush against her skin, between her fingers.

“She needs a safe word.” Kellan sank into the chair opposite her, obviously preparing for a show.

“Belle, select one,” Tate commanded. “Make it something you wouldn’t typically say during sex.”

“Aquamarine.” It was the color of Kell’s eyes as he stared into hers now.

Tate nodded, his face still grim. He’d shrugged out of his shirt, but his sweats were still on. The night before he’d been so eager, he’d tossed off his clothes with abandon. This morning, she felt distance between them—and she hated it. Her eager lover had been replaced with a wary man, and she wished she’d had more time with the fun-loving Tate before they’d confronted the issue of forever. Last night, he’d been all over her, caressing her body as if he couldn’t stand not to touch her. Today, they’d barely shared any contact since reaching the bedroom.

“Fine. Everything stops if you say that word,” Tate explained.

The water shut off, and Eric returned with a piece of pink plastic in one hand and a tube of lube in the other. “Exactly. At that point, we talk about what made you uncomfortable and how to rectify that. In exploring your submission, we should find your boundaries and push them. We’ll discover what works for you sexually. So if you don’t like something or find it uncomfortable, we hash it out until you’re ready. For now, I’m going to work the plug inside you. You’re going to keep it there until we take it out. You’ll wear it a few hours each day until we decide you’re ready to handle a cock.”

She wouldn’t say that she wasn’t a little nervous, but she didn’t shy away. “Yes, Master.”

Eric held out his hand. “Suck Tate’s cock, Belle. He’s had too much stimulation for one day. He’ll be cranky for his one o’clock phone conference with these new clients about their multimillion dollar case if he doesn’t release this tension.”

Belle slanted a glance in Tate’s direction. His eyes lit up briefly before he seemed to remember he was crabby. Instead, he pulled up a chair and plopped in front of her, then settled in to work his sweatpants down.

Eric edged behind her, his warm hand on the small of her back. “Spread your legs a little wider, baby.”

She did as he asked, moving her knees further apart. At the same time, Tate pushed his boxers down and released his cock. He was so beautiful—big, strong, stalwart. She couldn’t help but lick her lips. She hadn’t really gotten to explore his body yet. The previous night, he’d taken her with his mouth and driven her to insanity before spending half of the night inside her. Belle looked forward to paying him back.

He stroked himself, staring down at her. “Suck me until I come.”

A drop of fluid already pearled on the head of his cock. More than ready to taste him, she began leaning closer when she felt Eric pull her cheeks apart.

Surprise and more than a little embarrassment made her clench down instinctively to keep him out.

A loud smack cracked through the room, then pain flared across her ass.

“Don’t fight me,” Eric growled. “Arch your back and push down.”

“Seriously?” She wasn’t sure what she’d expected. “I thought you would just push it in.”

Kellan chuckled. “Push it in? Love, it’s not just going to fall into your backside. Eric will have to coax that pretty little hole into opening for him. He’ll spread you wide and use his fingers to distribute the lube. He’ll rim and stretch you. You’ll shudder and gasp a little, but eventually you will let him in.”

Maybe it shouldn’t, but the demand in his speech made her squirm. “But does he have to look at it?”

Her question might annoy them, but Kinley had always stressed communication in BDSM.

“Fuck, yeah, I’m going to look at it,” Eric said, his hand heavy on the curve of her hip. “Every single part of you is gorgeous, Belle. Watching you take our plug will be sexy as hell. Do you know how long I’ve dreamed about getting my cock up there?”

When he talked that way, her heart rate zoomed. Her skin felt too tight.

Tate tangled his fingers in her hair. “You pay attention to me, Belle. Let Eric do what he needs or we’ll give you a nice long spanking and you’ll still take the plug.”