Stranded with Her Bullies Read online

  “And you’re way too easy to read. So you spent the night with Micah. How was that for you?”

  She looked back at the door and took a deep breath. “It was fine,” she whispered and put a hand to her mouth. “Keep it down.”

  “Why? You don’t want him to know you’re sneaking out?”

  She looked at him and then shook her head. “I don’t have time for this. I’ve got important stuff that needs to be happening.”

  He snorted but decided to follow her.

  Daphne went to the kitchen and he took a seat at the table.

  “Why are you following me?” she asked.

  “I was curious to see where your important work was happening.”

  “Coffee is important.”

  “So, two down, one to go,” Dean said.

  “Don’t,” Daphne said. “I don’t know what came over me yesterday or today, or any other day that you’ve been here. This isn’t some game, and I’m not playing anymore.”

  “So, you use me to get rid of your V-card and now I’m nothing to you.”

  “Oh, please, I bet you screw a lot of girls and have popped a lot of cherries. Do you want coffee?”

  “Being the polite manager never leaves you, does it?”

  “Do you or not?”

  “I do.”

  She grabbed two cups. The shorts she wore were on backward, but the top was fine.

  “I’ve never slept with any other virgin, Daphne. You’re my first one.”

  “You expect me to believe that?”

  “I’ve been with experienced women, babe. In case it escaped your notice, a hymen doesn’t grow back.”

  “That’s disgusting.” She scrunched up her nose and he watched her turn back to the coffee pot. He loved her ass, but he also enjoyed her face.

  “Did Micah treat you right?”

  “I don’t want to talk about it,” she said.

  “Why not?”

  She poured out two large cups of coffee and came over to him. She went to put his down on the coffee table, but he captured her arm. “Sit with me,” he said.

  “I need to go and do things.”

  “What you’re doing is avoiding the inevitable. Sit with me and we’ll talk. No sex. No touching.”

  She hesitated, and he kicked out a chair for her to sit.

  Slowly, she lowered her ass into the chair. “You wanted to talk, talk.”

  “Eric.”

  She tensed up.

  “What about him?”

  Dean didn’t like the coffee she had to offer but picked it up and took a sip, schooling his features so she wouldn’t know he found it repulsive.

  “Do you like him?”

  “I don’t know him.”

  “You don’t know me or Micah, yet we’ve both fucked you and we’ve done a lot more than watch you masturbate. Eric was the first to lick your pussy. What’s the problem?”

  She laughed. “If this is the kind of conversation you want to have, screw this. I don’t have to talk to you.”

  “No, you don’t. He’s my best friend, and if it wasn’t for Eric, we wouldn’t be here.”

  “According to my people, you booked the rooms.”

  “He was the one who wanted to find you.”

  She slammed her coffee cup on the table. “What the hell do you want from me?” she asked.

  “I want you to give Eric a chance.”

  “I don’t want to give any of your any chances. This, whatever the hell this is, it’s not normal. You bullied me. All three of you, and suddenly, I’m the one falling into bed with you. It’s not fucking right.” She went to get to her feet, but he leaned forward, putting his hands on her thighs and stopping her there.

  “Get your hands off me.”

  “No. I’m not hurting you. I get that you’re pissed. I would be too, in your position, but this is the last time I’m going to say anything.” He took a deep breath. The temptation to push his hands up between the apex of her thighs and touch her sweet cunt was so high, but he held himself back.

  “Say what you have to say and then let me leave,” she said.

  He stroked her thigh, seeing the answering spark in her gaze.

  She could deny him all she wanted, but it didn’t change the fact she wanted him, and fuck, he wanted her as well.

  “Eric isn’t who you think he is. I’m not making excuses for him.”

  “It sounds like it to me.”

  He smiled. “Eric had a really bad life. It doesn’t justify what he did and I don’t expect you to forgive and forget, but give him a chance. He wanted you, and he will do whatever it takes to fix what is broken between the two of you.”

  “We’ve never been friends, Dean. Once this lockdown is lifted, I’ll be going back to my life, and all three of you will be going back to yours.”

  “Why do you think it will be that simple?” he asked.

  She burst out laughing. “Are you kidding me? We’re different. If it wasn’t for this lockdown, I’d never be alone with you.”

  “And yet, in the past couple of days, we’ve made you come more times than you could count. You lost that V-card of yours, and believe me, princess, the games are only just beginning.” He got to his feet and quickly dropped a kiss to her stunned lips.

  “I thought you said there wasn’t any game.”

  “The only kind of game I’m playing is the kind that will have you screaming my name.” He winked at her. “Think about what I’ve said.”

  He turned on his heel and left the kitchen.

  Eric needed a helping hand when it came to that woman, and he was more than happy to help, especially as he saw a different kind of future for them all. One that didn’t include endless suits and stupid hours at work.

  ****

  Sipping at her glass of orange juice the following day, Daphne stared across the lawn at Eric as he chopped firewood. He’d been doing it for a couple of hours. He’d appeared outside in a shirt and as the time wore on, the shirt was gone, leaving him in a pair of jeans and his endless array of ink that took her breath away.

  He’d been one of the most popular guys in high school. When he got his first tattoo, it had been the talk of the week. Every single girl had wanted to see it. It was a simple ring of thorns around his left upper arm. She wondered what the significance of the ink was. There had to be a reason for getting it. She doubted he was a man who just simply decorated his skin for no good reason.

  Even from where she stood, she saw all three of the men’s initials printed across his back. Each initial had a hand, and all of them were joined together. Bound in brotherhood. That was how tight all three of them were, and the last thing she wanted to do was come between that.

  With Dean’s words echoing in her mind, she made her way across the grass. She hadn’t bothered with shoes, rather enjoying the feel of the cool ground beneath her feet.

  “Hey,” she said.

  He lifted up the axe, bringing it down. “Hey.” He didn’t look up at her.

  “You know, you don’t need to do this.”

  “I saw your storage. It’s looking a little dry.”

  “We’ve got a couple of months before we need to worry about it.”

  He shrugged. “It’s about time I got on top of it.”

  She chuckled. “This isn’t your responsibility. You’re a guest.”

  “No, I imposed. We all did. The least I can do is help out when I can.”

  He looked thirsty, and she quickly offered him her glass of orange juice. “Thanks,” he said, gulping the liquid down.

  “You looked thirsty.”

  He finished the drink and handed it right back to her. There were no words. He lifted the axe and brought it straight back down again.

  “Can we talk?”

  “I can do two things at once.”

  He swung the axe, splitting the wood in two. Then he bent down, picking up the two pieces, and added them to the pile.

  “Why did you come back here?” she asked.


  He wiped his hands down the backs of his pants. “You know why. We came for you. Dean made the reservations, but it was my idea.”

  “But why?”

  “I wanted to see you.”

  She nibbled on her lip, frowning. “We were never friends. I’ve been thinking about it since last night. We didn’t even hang out in kindergarten, or outside of school. What made you think about me?”

  Eric stared at her. He wasn’t just looking at her, but watching her, seeing right through to her soul. It was like he’d stripped her bare where he stood, and she could do nothing but wait for him to be finished.

  “Eric?”

  “I don’t know what to say to make you understand, okay? I’ve been thinking about you a lot. What I did was fucked up, and I’m sorry.”

  “You keep saying the same that, and I still don’t understand.”

  “Because I wanted you,” he said, raising his voice. “I wanted you back then, and I want you now. I know you’ve had Micah and Dean. I don’t even know if you can forgive me for the shit I pulled back then. I … fuck me, Daphne, I fucking craved you, okay. You were all I ever wanted.”

  Tears filled her eyes.

  “But … you hated me.”

  Eric gritted his teeth, gripping the axe tightly. “No, I didn’t. I had to hate you. It made my life easier.” He put up another piece of wood and she watched him split it in two. “My old man… I didn’t have kind, loving parents like yours. To everyone else watching, they were perfect. I get that. Inside, when no one watched, they were a pair of judgmental assholes. My dad was a real piece of work.”

  He stood tall and turned toward her. “He saw me watching you. It was before high school.” He ran a hand down his face. “I’d always been careful about showing how I felt but with you, I struggled. Your smile, the way you seemed to just be filled with this energy, this light. I wanted to be part of it. I’d have given anything to have that smile directed at me.” He took a step back. “My dad, he must have seen the way I looked at you. I … never thought it, but he didn’t like you. He didn’t like your…”

  “Weight?”

  “Curves.”

  She giggled, running a hand down her hip. “I do have a lot of them.”

  “Even back then. You were bigger than the other girls and well, my dad, no son of his was going to fall for a fatty.” Eric shook his head. “I hated that son of a bitch, but I got a beating for looking at you. Of course, he hit me where bruises wouldn’t show. No one would question a bruised-up knee, or even an ankle.” He rubbed his knuckles. “To punish me, he made me punch a brick wall until my fists bled. All in the name of making it look like I was just a pain-in-the-ass kid.”

  Tears fell from her eyes. The picture he painted wasn’t kind.

  “I’m not lying to you, Daphne, and it’s certainly not an excuse. I pretended to hate you because it made life a lot easier for me. Neither of you would ever know that I was and always will be in love with you.”

  Chapter Eight

  Eric wasn’t supposed to say shit like that. No one knew his true feelings. Not any of the guys. No one. He hadn’t even meant to say anything, now and look what he’d done. Running a hand down his face, he wished he could take the words back. Daphne didn’t need to know how weak he was. What he’d done to try to win over his father. He should have told him to go to hell, which was what he’d done a few years ago when his father tried to claim the credit for all of his and the guys’ hard work. The moment he’d seen the press and the crap he was saying, he’d been so fucking livid.

  He’d wanted to murder the bastard.

  Instead, he’d paid him off, severed all ties, and promised to ruin him and tell the world what a disgusting lowlife he was.

  In the last twelve years, there had been women. A lot of them. Nothing had ever been serious. They all knew the score. Sex and a few chance dinners, that was all. There were times over the past twelve years he thought about contacting Daphne. Each time he’d lifted his phone to call his PI, he’d stopped himself. He’d been worried, in case she had a life, a fun one. One that didn’t include him.

  If there had been a husband and children, he didn’t know if he could stand it. So, he’d never called. Never looked her up. He’d gone about his day without a single care in the world, always wondering.

  Now as he looked at her, mouth open, he knew he’d surprised her.

  “I guess not all families are normal.”

  “You love me?” she asked.

  He nodded. “I have since the first moment I saw you.” He chuckled. “Which goes right back to kindergarten. You used to wear your hair in little pigtails, and you were always in jeans.”

  “I was a tomboy back then.” She smiled. “I drove my mom crazy because all she ever wanted me to do was wear one dress for her. I would, but I hated it.”

  “You were the cutest thing I’d ever seen.” He lifted up the axe. “Still are.”

  He brought the axe down on the wood.

  Once it split in two, he picked each piece up. As he turned back from putting them away, Daphne had gotten closer.

  She put a hand on his arm and slowly slid it up. She offered him a smile, which he returned. It wasn’t the same kind of smile that he remembered, but it was a start. She sank her fingers into the hair at the back of his nape and pulled him in close. As her lips touched his, he came out of his stupor and pulled her close to him. Body to body. He felt each and every single curve, relishing the feel of them against him. As he cupped her ass, he growled against her lips, wanting everything she could offer him and taking so much more.

  He ran his hands down her back, cupping her generous ass, feeling her close to his cock, which was already so fucking hard. He lifted her up and she wrapped her legs around his waist, crying out in pleasure.

  Walking back, he pressed her up against the wall of the shed and she moaned his name. He slid a hand beneath her dress, touching her. The panties she wore offended him, and he gripped them tightly, tearing them off.

  “Tell me to fucking stop, beautiful, tell me.”

  “No.”

  He let her go so her legs were on the ground, and he spun her around so she was flush against the shed. Pressing her feet apart, he loosened his jeans and tilted her hips back. He lifted up the dress so he could see her ass.

  Finding her entrance, he pressed his tip against her, not even caring that he wasn’t using a condom. He wanted to feel her around his dick.

  They both cried out together as he seated her on his length.

  She was so perfect, and he tightened his grip on her hips as he thrust balls deep inside her, fucking right into her. Daphne put her hands to the shed and began to push back against him.

  He growled against her neck, and she moaned, begging for more.

  “I’m going to give it to you. Fuck, Daphne, I’ve waited so long for you.” Everything he’d told her was the truth. There was not a single lie. The guy he’d been, that had been the lie. Hating her had been nothing more than a mask, trying to hide how he truly felt. His father would have killed him if he knew the truth. He tried to save them both, but instead, he just ended up living a life that was so fucking empty for twelve years. He didn’t know what he’d have done if he didn’t have Dean and Micah.

  Daphne’s moan brought him back.

  He cupped her pussy, feeling her clit and working her until she came against his cock. Each squeeze of her tight cunt nearly set him off. He remained in control. Pulling out of her, he began to thrust slowly at first, then when he couldn’t stand to wait, he pounded inside her. Daphne held herself against the shed, and he was so fucking happy about how she could take him. In and out, he fucked her harder and faster, taking what he wanted, touching her. He brought her to a second orgasm and as he found his release, he wrapped his arms around her, keeping her as tight to him as possible. With his face pressed against her neck, he didn’t want to let her go.

  “I will never lie to you again,” he said. “I promise. That guy back then, he�
�s gone and he’s never coming back.”

  ****

  Micah knelt in the dirt as his gaze kept wandering to the full roundness of Daphne’s ass. He’d gotten to kiss and touch her this morning, but still, it wasn’t enough. She never stayed in bed to wake up beside him, and he was starting to get a complex about it.

  “Did you do all of this yourself?” he asked.

  Dean and Eric were out gathering some more groceries. They’d put a call through to a few of the guys they knew about delivering here, and they were handling everything. The lockdown had been going for nearly two weeks, and so far, all three of them had fucked Daphne. She showed no favoritism among all three.

  She leaned back and shook her head. “I took it over, but my grandma started it during a rough patch with food when the prices were really high. She started to grow her own in order to feed the few guests at the time. At least, that was how she told it to me. I don’t know if it was true as it was before my time.”

  She bent forward again with her tempting ass in full view. “I love it. I like being able to come out here and pick fruits and vegetables. Some of the guests enjoy it as well. I don’t advertise it as any part of a package, but if I’m out here and a few guests need to relax, it’s here.” She cut some basil, bringing it to her face and inhaling. “You know, tomatoes and basil is the best combination.” She held it out to him. “Have a sniff.”

  He inhaled the sweet floral scent and nodded at her.

  She chuckled. “You don’t have to pretend to like it.”

  “Out of the three of us, Eric is the one who knows how to cook.”

  “Dean cooked breakfast.”

  “That’s all he knows how to cook. If you want breakfast, morning, noon, and night, Eric’s your guy.” Micah breathed in the warm air. It was so freeing. He’d been living in the city for so long and had grown accustomed to the loud noises. The beeping of car horns. The thick air. The people. This was … heaven. “Dean’s different while he’s here.”

  “He talks a lot more than I remember.”

  “That’s why he’s different. Back in the city, he was just as quiet and as brooding as he was back in high school.”