I’d waited all fucking day to pay Brooks back for what he’d done at work. The sight of him on his hands and knees, facing the headboard and waiting for me to take what I wanted excited me.
“Are you ready for your punishment?” I asked.
“Yes,” he moaned. “I did us a favor though.”
I slapped his ass without warning.
“Don’t talk back, or I’ll put your mouth to better use.”
Brooks let out a moan as I rubbed my hand over the heated area I’d just smacked. I added a little more lube, fisting my cock a few times and pushing myself inside of him.
He let out a grunt as I slid fully in. I pulled back and slammed into him, knowing that he would take it and enjoy it. In the office, Brooks came across as the dominant one, but when we were alone, he liked to be dominated. I never failed to give him that.
“Always ready for me,” I growled over his shoulder. “Do you like it when I fuck you hard?”
“Yes,” he groaned. “You know what I want.”
I could tell that he was close. I buried my cock deeper with each thrust, making his body shake. He tried to hold off his release, but couldn’t and let go with me as I thrusted into him one last time.
We fell to the bed and rolled to our sides.
“I love you,” Brooks whispered as he kissed me.
“I love you too,” I mumbled into the kiss. “I wasn’t too rough, was I?” I asked as he broke the kiss.
“It was exactly how I like it. But next time, it’s my turn.”
We were silent for a few seconds before Brooks spoke again.
“I’m sorry about kissing you at work. I should have talked to you about it first. We needed to know if Austen could handle knowing and stay focused on her job.”
“I know. It surprised me, but it was a good call. She seemed to handle it well,” I admitted.
“Yes. There’s something different about her. You feel it too. I’ve seen the way you’ve been looking at her since she started.”
We both still found women attractive and had flings with them in the past, but we hadn’t found we wanted a relationship with. We’d also never been interested in a coworker, especially not someone who worked for us, but something about Ms. Maxwell had caught both our attentions.
“I won’t lie. She is very attractive, not afraid to be assertive, and determined. She calls me sir, which you know I love. I have found myself fantasizing about what it would be like to bend her over my desk,” I admitted with a look to Brooks.
Brooks let out a laugh.
“I tend to think more about candlelight, rose petals, and satin sheets, but I’m glad we’re on the same page. Should we even approach her about this though? I mean she works for us. That’s a lot to risk for a fling.”
“What if it’s more than a fling?” I asked. “She’s different. This could turn into something more. We’ve talked about it before.”
Brooks nodded.
“We’d have to move slowly, present it to her in the right way, and see if she’s interested. Polyamorous relationships are often hard for people to understand. I wouldn’t want to make her uncomfortable around us or report us to human resources.”
“So, who’s going to make the first move?” I asked.
Tonight was the night that we were going to see if Austen was open to the idea of being with us. We agreed I would be the one to approach her and gauge her interest. Brooks thought she might be more comfortable with me.
We’d sent a car to pick her up and told her we would meet her at the gala. We had just arrived when Brooks grabbed my arm.
“There she is,” Brooks whispered. “I’m actually a little jealous you get to approach her tonight.”
I turned and stopped, openly staring at her. She was wearing a floor-length, red gown that hugged all of her curves in just the right way. Her blonde hair was done in a simple updo that my fingers itched to make a mess of. She looked stunning.
“I hope I’m not late,” she said as she approached us.
“Right on time,” Brooks said. “Introduce yourself to clients, keep track of any meetings we set up, and have fun.”
“Yes, sir. I’ll have my notebook at the ready,” she said as she waved her notebook.
“Excellent. Let’s introduce you to some people,” I said, placing my hand on her lower back and guiding her across the room.
“Is that little Austen Maxwell?” Leon Andrews said. Leon Andrews was the CEO of one of our top clients and close friends with the CEO of our company.
“Apparently, no introductions are needed,” Brooks said, raising an eyebrow. We both looked at Austen.
Austen let out a small laugh.
“Hello, Leon!” she said, giving the man a hug. “How are Ava and Oliver?”
“Oliver is getting married in a few months, and Ava started at a law firm last week,” Leon said with a laugh.
She turned to Brooks and me.
“I grew up with Leon’s children,” she explained before turning back to Leon. “I’m glad to hear they are doing well.”
Austen and Leon talked for a moment about their families before Leon excused himself.
“I’ll let you all go. Brooks? Ezra? Hold on to this one. She’s smart and very hard working.” He clapped us on the shoulders before saying goodbye to Austen. We waited till he moved on before looking back at Austen.
“Is there anyone else here you know?” I asked.
“I actually know a lot of people here,” she whispered. “We have different last names, so I didn’t expect a lot of people in the office to make the connection, but my uncle is the CEO of Legacy Investment.”
Brooks’ eyebrows rose, and he looked over at me. We already admired her work ethic and determination, but to find out she could have had this job handed to her but decided to prove herself capable was absolutely impressive.
She looked a little embarrassed by her confession.
“I didn’t want to be some entitlement hire, so I didn’t even tell my family I applied. Or that I got the job on my own.”
“We’re definitely going to have to revisit this,” Brooks said, his tone a little annoyed.
“But it’s very helpful. We won’t have to make nearly as many introductions as I had been expecting. No wonder you memorized the list so quickly.”
“Why didn’t you tell us before the event?” I asked.
“It was important that I did this my own way. That I proved to my family and myself that I could earn my position without using my family’s influence. I didn’t want everybody to think that I didn’t deserve to be here,” she said, angrily. Her cheeks were flushed.
“Austen, we didn’t—” I started.
“Excuse me,” she interjected, quickly heading for the hallway toward the bathrooms.
“What was that all about?” Brooks asked.
“I have no fucking clue, Brooks. She just stormed off.”
“You’d better go apologize,” Brooks said. “Leon was right. She’s a hard worker. The best assistant we’ve had so far.”
“All right. I’m going,” I snapped as I stormed off after Austen. She was angry about something, but I didn’t think it had anything to do with what we said.
When I got to the ladies’ restroom, I entered. Austen was standing at the sink, staring at herself in the mirror.
“I just need a moment to collect myself, Mr. Weston,” she said, looking down to wash her hands.
“I’m sorry if we offended you, Austen. It was a bit of a shock, but it’s also an advantage.” She was quiet.
“Please talk to me,” I said.
“I don’t even know why I’m upset,” she said, furiously drying her hands and not meeting my eyes. “It’s not like I haven’t heard it all before. Everyone thinks things are just handed to me because of who my family is. That I didn’t have to work hard to get my degree or earn my way into one of the top financial advising firms in the nation or anything. But I did. I succeeded without needing to rely on my family’s influence.”
“Please, look at me,” I begged.
I didn’t know why I felt the need to apologize. Brooks and I hadn’t doubted her abilities. It had been a surprise, and honestly, it made me like her even more. I liked her drive and determination. Brooks was right. There was something different about her. Something that attracted us and made us want more.
When she still refused to look at me, I stepped behind her, hands sliding up her smooth arms, and turned her around. I lifted her chin, forcing her eyes to meet mine.
“I’m sorry if anything we said came across that way. Neither Brooks nor I meant anything by it.”
“It’s fine,” she mumbled. “I just didn’t want everyone at the office thinking I didn’t deserve my job. I work hard, I have a college degree, and I have the skills to do this job well.”
“We’ve never questioned your capabilities. In fact, your work ethic and determination are very impressive to both of us. This was just a surprise, that’s all. I completely understand why you didn’t say anything before.”
“You do?” she asked, surprised.
I let out a sigh.
“Yes. You want to be taken seriously as Austen, as yourself. I respect that.”
She smiled.
“Thank you, Mr. Weston.”
We stood in silence, my hands still on her arms. We were close enough to kiss, and my eyes dipped down to her full lips at the thought. I wondered if they were as soft as they looked. I found myself leaning in.
A knock on the door caused us to jump apart.
“Be right out,” I yelled, running a hand through my hair.
“People are going to think we were up to something in here,” she said with a nervous laugh.
“I don’t care what people think,” I said, looking back into her blue eyes.
She tilted her head.
“Then why is your relationship with Mr. Everette a secret?” she asked.
“It’s nobody’s business who or how many I choose to love.”
