Page 4

Kerrington

My instincts propel me forward and I nearly catch Nicole, but Landon beats me to it.

“Jesus Christ, what’s happened to her?” My heart is in my throat as I stare at the woman I’ve obsessed over for far too long. She’s lost weight since we last saw her. There are dark circles under her eyes and her cheeks are hollow. Even her hair is dry and thin.

“Get her on the couch,” Mason barks.

Leah dashes to the kitchen and comes back with water.

Landon carefully rests Nicole on the couch but doesn’t let go of her. “Hey,” he says gently, trying to coax her awake. “Come on, baby. Wake up for us.”

Leah hands me the glass of water and now me and Mason are both on either side of Landon, all on our knees, trying to wake her up.

Nicole’s eyebrows twitch. “Mmph.”

“Duchess,” I say in a more authoritative tone. “Open your eyes for us, please.”

Landon spares me a glance that burns with annoyance, and then he focuses back on her.

Nicole finally comes to and the first person she looks at is Mason. “Ugh.” She groans, pushing him back with her hand on his face. “Too close, Mase.”

Leah sighs with relief. “Well, she’s back to normal, at least.”

“God damn, woman.” Mason rises to his feet and huffs. “You scared the shit out of us.”

She doesn’t respond. Instead, she looks at Landon and tears well in her eyes.

I’m eager to do anything it takes to make that look go away. “Here,” I shove the glass of water in her hands. “Drink this.”

Nicole doesn’t obey me.

“Drink it,” Landon says in a calmer tone. “You’ll feel better.”

She still doesn’t listen.

“Duchess, so help me god, I’ll pry your mouth open and pour it in if I have to.”

“Landon!” Mason barks.

But she takes the glass and drains half of it before handing it back to me.

“Good girl,” Landon and I say at the same time.

Memories of our one night together bang on the door of my mind, but I don’t open it. I refuse to revisit the best night of my life. Not now. Not when she’s looking so rough and beat down.

“Give me a minute.” She pushes her way through the barrier Landon and I have made with our bodies.

Leah helps Nicole into the bathroom and talks in a voice too quiet for us to make out what she’s saying.

Mason drops onto the couch and scrubs his face. “I should have known this would happen.”

“The fuck does that mean?” Landon asks with a possessive edge to his voice.

“Ever since the night of the gala,” Mason says, “she’s been running herself into the ground. Looks like things have finally caught up with her.”

Nicole works for her family’s company. They take over businesses that are floundering or close to bankruptcy and figure out if they’re worth saving or will buy them out and basically tear the corporation down. In her “spare time”, if you can actually call it that, she does heavy philanthropy work around the world.

“Why didn’t you say something about this sooner?” Landon asks, angrily.

“Why would I?” he counters. “It’s not like you can do anything for her.”

I think Landon and I both feel the stab from that remark.

“Besides,” Mason continues. “I’ve been trying to help her as much as possible, especially since that blow up at the gala was all my fault, but she won’t listen to reason. She fucking blocked me on everything.”

She blocked him, but not us? She just ignores us. I can’t tell if that’s better or worse.

Landon frowns. “Why would she be so stubborn?”

“Because that’s all that woman is,” Mason grumbles. “She doesn’t listen for shit. No one can tell her what to do.”

That’s… not the experience we’ve had with her. Our girl listens extremely well when you use the right incentives. Suddenly, the door in my mind rips off the hinges and the memories of our night together come flooding in…

“Take his cock in your mouth, Duchess.”

Nicole drops to her knees and looks up at Landon with her pretty lips parting as she does as I command. The minute her lips wrap around his dick, Landon’s head tips back and he lets out this beautiful groan.

“That’s it. Suck him off. Look how good you make him feel.”

He threads his fingers in her thick blonde hair and looks down at her again. “Such a good girl.” His hips pump faster until she’s slurping and gagging. “Listen to those noises, Kerr. Our girl enjoys teasing us.”

She gets even louder.

“Want us to fuck you, Duchess?” Landon slows his thrusts. “One hole for me, one hole for Kerrington. We can fill you up, baby. Is that what you want?”

Nicole pulls off and licks her lips. “Yes. God, yes.”

“God is not my name tonight,” Landon reminds her, cocking his brow. “Try again.”

“Yes, Trick.”

For the first time ever, I see that he’s needed to be a Dom to a complete submissive. Something in me cracks. Landon once told me he was a Switch, but any time we brought a woman to our bed, he’s never Dommed her. I’ve called all the shots, every time. Tonight, I’m seeing Landon take the reins and… I fucking love the way he looks doing it.

I want him happy. I want him satisfied.

I want him.

My dick hardens to the point of pain. Landon looks over at me and sees me jerking off. “Like the view?” he asks, his gaze beckoning me to join them.

I close the gap between us and kiss Nicole first. She’s so soft and sweet. Then I grab Landon by the throat and kiss him. His mouth opens for me and he’s rougher and stronger than our gorgeous Duchess. It’s like I get to have a taste of two different worlds and they’re both addicting.

“I want to fuck you first.” I keep my hand collared around his throat. “While you fuck her.”

Landon’s eyes roll at the thought of the pleasure this promises. “Okay.” Then he turns his gaze to our lovely girl still waiting on her knees. “Get on the bed, Duchess.”

She crawls across the room and climbs into our hotel bed. With her hands on the headboard, she looks over her shoulder at us and smiles.

“Fucking hell,” Landon whispers.

I kiss his shoulder. “Looks more like heaven to me. ”

We both go for her, worshipping, caressing, and preparing one another for what’s about to happen.

When we line up, she faces the headboard and grips it tight. “Don’t go easy on me, Trick.”

“Trust me, I won’t.” Landon smacks her ass while I lube up behind him…

Landon’s blue eyes lift to mine. “Why didn’t she call us?”

“Why should she?” My tone is probably more defensive than necessary. “It’s not like she’s ours.”

The minute I say it, I feel the loss of her disappearing that morning like a fresh fucking wound.

The best night of my life was followed by shame and regret. We both heard her escape. As if she couldn’t get out of our hotel room fast enough. As if being with the two of us was so damning, so embarrassing, so horrible, she couldn’t stand to be in the suite with us for another second.

Mason sighs and looks in the direction that Leah and Nicole have gone. “Nicole’s suffocating, trying to please everyone around her.”

“Who the fuck does she have to please other than herself?” Landon asks incredulously.

“Her parents. Her peers. The media. Her competition.” Mason frowns. “I got out of our circle of Hell, but she’s still caught in the middle of it. I keep trying to help her, but she’s not willing to let me.”

My feet are moving before I have enough sense to see reason. I march down the hall and bang on the door. “Let me in, Nicole.”

“No,” she shoots back, and I can hear the strain in her voice. It makes me ten times more protective of her.

“Duchess, please let us in.” Landon’s by my side, his hand pressed against the door. “We just want to talk with you.”

It swings open. “Don’t you dare call me Duch—”

I’m shoving my way inside, making her back up as I go, before she can finish that sentence.

Landon’s on my heels. “Leah, give us a minute, okay?”

She leaves, biting her bottom lip, and closes the door with a soft click.

I don’t take my eyes off Nicole. My entire body locks because I’m torn between instinct and common sense.

Her chin trembles, eyes red-rimmed and bright. She swipes the tears off her cheeks and her ring spins on her finger because it’s too fucking loose. She’s a shell of the woman we know.

“Come here, baby.” I close the space between us and wrap my arms around her. The instant I do, she crumbles. Her body sags against me and it’s like she finally gives up whatever fight she’s been in.

The entire bathroom seems to hold its breath. I let her cry against me until her sobs fade and she’s taking in deep, shaky breaths.

Landon and I look at each other while she remains buried in my arms and I’m at a complete loss. I see the longing on his face and feel the desperation in her hands as she clings to my shirt and suddenly, I only have one purpose in this life.

“Landon.” I keep my tone calm. “We have a change in plans.”

“Yeah, we definitely fucking do.”

I scoop her into my arms and carry her out of the bathroom.

Then I march right out the goddamn door.