Bound by Their Kisses (7 page)

“How long, Tessa?” Tag asked.

She drew in a deep breath and forced her head up so she could see his eyes. “Three years. He wasn’t like that at first. When I first met him in college, he was kind and sweet. He took me out and gave me flowers and candy. I’m not even sure when he changed or when it started. After he moved in with me, I quit school to work while he finished his last year, then instead of me going back to college, I ended up staying at home to take care of him. Somewhere in all of that, I lost control of my life.”

Tag closed his eyes, but she saw the flash of rage that filled them before he did. No doubt her weakness and susceptibility disgusted him. She knew he wouldn’t want anything to do with her now. Now when she realized that they were nothing like her ex, she was going to lose her chance at something that might have been really good. She fought back more tears and tried to get off of Tag’s lap. He tightened his hold around her and stroked her hair.

“Easy, Tessa,” Tag said in a gruff voice.

“Did he hurt you physically, Tessa?” Even Zander’s voice had changed. It sounded hard, cold—unyielding.

“No. He never hit me or anything,” she said.

“Thank God,” Tag muttered.

“I know I was stupid for falling for him to begin with,” she began, but Zander stopped her from continuing.

“You weren’t stupid, Tessa. Don’t ever say that. You couldn’t have known that he was playing a part to get you to accept him and even fall for him. No one would be able to determine that until he showed his true colors. Unfortunately, by then, you already had feelings for him and wouldn’t have been able to tell what he was doing until it was too late.”

“Men like that know what they are doing. They lure women into a false sense of security, make them dependent on them then trap them. You’re not the first woman this has happened to, baby,” Tag said.

“I should have realized what he was doing,” she insisted.

“You were on your own for the first time in your life with your brother out of touch. I doubt you had many friends at first, either,” Zander began. “Anyone would have welcomed the attention he probably poured on you. Don’t blame yourself for being human. That’s in the past now. Let’s talk about the future.”

Tessa swallowed hard and nodded. It sounded as if Zander at least was still interested in having a relationship with her. She still wasn’t sure she could be what they needed, but now she wanted to try. There was just something about them that not only aroused her to the point of having soaked panties around them but also made her heart skip a beat and her soul quiet.

Tag passed her over to Zander so that now she sat on his lap. She looked up at him, afraid that she’d see disinterest in his eyes now that she’d told them about her past. Why would someone like him, strong and brave, want anything to do with someone like her who’d allowed another person to control her life? But instead of disgust, Tessa saw worry. Why would this mountain of a man be worried? Did he think that he’d be stuck with her if Tag still wanted her though he didn’t? She started to lower her eyes.

“Look at me, Tessa.” Zander’s tone brooked no argument.

When she looked up at him, he smiled. “Nothing in your past matters to us outside of the wish that we’d been there to stop what happened to you.”

“And been there to kick that bastard’s ass,” Tag added under his breath.

“All that matters is the here and now. We will never stop you from having friends. We will never tell you what to wear—”

“As long as it’s not indecent or going to get me into a fight,” Tag grumbled.

“Tag,” Zander warned.

Tess couldn’t help but giggle. “I don’t wear stuff like that, so there’s no point in worrying about it. But I do like to wear shorts sometimes when it’s hot. I don’t mind wearing a T-shirt over my swimming suit if I go swimming.”

“You don’t have to go that far, baby girl. Just no miniskirts that show your ass cheeks in public. At the club, that’s a different story.” Tag brushed the back of his hand over her cheek. “We’d enjoy showing off your gorgeous body when we’re there.”

“I–I don’t know about going to the club. I’m really not into that stuff, guys.” Tessa felt the worry and anxiety from earlier creep back inside.

“Tag, you’re going too fast. Back off, man.” Zander frowned. “Tessa we’ll worry about that later. Once you’ve gotten to know us and are comfortable with us, we’ll talk more about the club and what it means to us. We aren’t sadists. Neither one of us enjoys inflicting pain, but we do like to control things in the bedroom. Let’s just take it one day at a time, okay, kitten?”

Tessa nodded but wasn’t sure if she could really handle the two men no matter how much she wanted a chance with them. She’d known them for nearly a year now and they’d always been polite and courteous to her. Even once they’d made their intentions clear, they’d never gotten rough or insulting.

“What worries you the most about being with us, kitten?” Zander asked.

“I’m not sure. I think I’m still just really uncomfortable with being around men. I don’t trust my own judgment after, um, what happened. I’m scared I’ll make the same mistake and end up just like before. I’d rather die than live like that.” She looked from Zander over to Tag to make sure they both understood how serious she was.

“We will never treat you like that, Tessa,” Tag said. “I’m gruff, I know. I can be an asshole sometimes, but I don’t abuse women and I would never take away your freedom. You will always have the ability and the choice to walk away if you don’t want to be with us.”

Tessa could see just how hard that was for him to say to her. It was obvious that he really wanted her and didn’t want her to refuse to be with them. Was it possible that he really did care about her outside of sexually?

“Tessa? Can you live with that? Will you take a chance with us and let us prove to you that we aren’t like your ex? I’ve never had to prove myself before. I don’t like the idea that I’m on some type of probation, but for you, I’ll do it. For you, I’d do most almost anything if it meant having you in our lives.” Tag’s eyes seemed to see right through her. She couldn’t believe that he was bending so far to meet her needs.

She looked back up at Zander and could see the same determination etched on his face. Both men were offering something to her they had never offered another woman. She had no doubt that normally if a woman turned them down or acted unsure of their intentions, they just walked away and cut their losses. With her, though, both men were taking chances that put all of the power in her hands.

It humbled her, making her want them even more. She licked her lips and nodded.

“I want to try. I like you both and I’m tired of being alone all the time. If you’re sure you want to take the chance that I’ll flip out on you or something, I’m willing to try.”

Before Zander could hug her, Tag had grabbed her out of the man’s arms and carried her toward the front entrance hall. She had no doubt that they were heading toward the bedrooms. Both men had shown a tremendous amount of restraint where she was concerned over the last few months. Part of her was nervous, but an even bigger part of her was excited. She had no idea how to satisfy two men at one time, but she’d try. She wanted to try, and that felt really good.

* * * *

Zander followed Tag as he carried their woman down the hall to the master bedroom. He’d had it designed with the three of them in mind but left a few things for Tessa to handle picking out once she’d moved in. He hoped she would be happy with it. The three of them would share the room from now on. She would be moving in with them after this. He wouldn’t take no for an answer. She was theirs to protect.

Zander reached around Tag at the end of the hall and pushed open the double doors that led into the bedroom. He heard Tessa’s gasp and prayed it was a good gasp and not a disappointed one.

“Guys! This is amazing.”

Tag let Tessa slide down his body so that she could look around. His friend turned and looked at Zander only to shrug when he lifted an eyebrow in question.

He tried looking at the room through Tessa’s eyes, but wasn’t sure what she’d see. All he saw was the hardwood floor with cream-colored walls to be neutral until she picked out colors. The bed was specially made to fit the three of them, and right now it was covered in a burnt-orange and gold coverlet with several scatter pillows at the head to make it look nice. There were two chests of drawers, one for him and one for Tag while she had the full use of the massive dresser on the opposite wall from the bed.

He watched her run her hands over the massive posts then walk over to where the two walk-in closets stood. One of them he and Tag would share and she would have the other one to herself. It wasn’t like they had anything elaborate to wear outside their jeans and leathers. She ooed and aahed over them before opening the door leading into the master bath. Her loud squeal had both men racing to see what was wrong.

When he stopped just inside the bathroom, it was to find Tessa standing in the middle of the large walk-in shower turning in circles. He relaxed, realizing she was excited, not upset or hurt.

“I take it that you like the shower,” his friend said. Leave it to Tag to state the obvious.

“It’s huge and I love the bench seat and all the cubby holes that you can put your shampoo and soap on, but some of them are shaped a little funny,” she said, pointing to one of the handholds they’d had designed into the stone walls.

“Those are handholds, kitten,” Zander explained. “They are there to give you something to hold on to.”

“Oh, so you don’t slip,” she said, smiling.

“So you don’t slip and fall when one of us has our mouth between your legs or have you bending forward while we fuck you,” Tag added with a mischievous grin.

Tessa’s face turned a bright shade of pink as her eyes widened in shock. As much as he wished Tag hadn’t quite put it that way, he enjoyed seeing her blush. She was so perfect for them.

“Do you like the tub, Tessa? Most women love the big soaking tubs for long bubble baths.” Zander turned her attention to the massive tub he and Tag had fought over. Tag had wanted the one with jets, but Tag had pointed out that they had the hot tub on the deck.

“I love it. I’ve never really had one to take baths in. Usually we only had showers or a combination that I didn’t like taking baths in.” She stepped out of the shower and eyed the large tub with obvious curiosity. “I’ve never actually had a bubble bath before.”

“We’ll have to remedy that as soon as possible then,” Tag said, surprising Zander. “But not right now.”

Zander watched as the other man took two quick steps into the bathroom and picked Tessa up in his arms. He turned and carried her back into the bedroom and deposited her on the edge of the bed.

“Undress for us, baby girl,” he said.

“What?” she squeaked, jumping down from the bed to stand next to it. “Now?”

“Yes. Here, now. We want to explore that sexy body you’ve got going on there.” Tag smiled and reached behind him to grab his T-shirt and jerked it over his head then off his body.

Zander wanted to curse at his friend’s abrupt demands of Tessa, but he felt the same way. He would have handled it differently though. Instead of arguing with him and sending mixed signals to Tessa, he took a step closer to her and captured her mouth in a kiss. She was so surprised that she opened to him without any persuasion. Not that he wouldn’t have enjoyed that as well, but it kept things moving along the rapid pace Tag had set.

Her mouth tasted like sweet candy with a twist. He explored every area of it, using his tongue to prod and tap until he’d memorized it so he could trace it in his sleep. He wanted to know everything there was to know about her and couldn’t wait to explore other areas as diligently.

Tag had her down to only her panties and bra now. When Zander pulled back from her tempting mouth, she realized that she was nearly naked. Tessa halfheartedly resisted the other man’s efforts to remove those final scraps of clothing, but they soon joined the rest of her things on the floor by the bed. Zander got busy removing his own clothes. He wasn’t going to let Tag have all of the fun.

“You’re gorgeous, kitten,” Zander told her as he removed his clothes.

Tag had her bare to their gazes now, though she’d initially tried to cover herself with her hands. Zander could see how uncomfortable she was, and he worried that she’d back out if they pushed her too much harder. Thank goodness Tag seemed to realize that as well with his next words.

“You deserve a bubble bath, baby girl. Zander is going to run one for you to help you relax while I give you a massage, nothing else, just a massage.” He looked over his shoulder at Zander and jerked his head toward the bathroom.

Normally Zander was more in control, but he let Tag direct things tonight since he’d established the connection with their woman already. Giving the two most important people in his life one last look, Zander walked to the bathroom to start the water in the tub. He was glad he’d insisted on the oversize tub now more than ever. It was sad that someone as sensual and nice as Tessa had never enjoyed a bubble bath before. They’d make sure she had plenty of them from now on.

Once he’d gotten the water to the temperature he wanted, Zander added the moisturizing bath bubbles that they’d picked out with Tessa in mind. They had a soft vanilla and mint scent that would complement her own. Once the bubbles were established and the water was at the right level for her to relax in without overflowing the tub, he turned off the water and adjusted the bath pillow for her. Then he lit two of the vanilla-scented candles and dimmed the lights to encourage her to relax.

When he returned to the bedroom, Tag had Tessa lying across the bed on her stomach as he straddled her buttocks and massaged her back and shoulders. The man’s cock lay hard and heavy at the small of her back. Zander couldn’t help but wonder how she’d reacted to feeling his shaft resting on her bare skin.

“The bath is ready whenever she is, Tag. I’m going to go open a bottle of wine for her. Do you want to share a glass with her or do you want a beer? I’m going to have a beer,” Zander told the other man.