10
Crisis Averted
How long was I out?I didn’t know, but when I came to, my bedroom smelled of sex, and sweat, and of experiences I would never forget. I was alone, and the door was open, a slight draft breezing in. Blinking, I got up and found a bathrobe, pulling it on as I walked out to my living room.
Was the emergency over? Why hadn’t someone let me know?
“Guys?”
“There she is,” Parker said, giving me a bashful smile. “We’d have stayed, but… well, the phone rang.”
“Ah,” I replied, watching Parker put a computer into a bag. “So what happened?”
“Well, let’s talk about that,” Seth said, also putting things in a bag.
“Where’s Rick?” I asked.
“He’ll be back in a minute, he’s coordinating with the building team,” Parker said. “Uh, you know, to make sure you’re okay.”
“Okay,” I replied, still not understanding. “But why are you guys packing your backpacks?”
Seth stopped and gave me a wary look. “You fired us, Miss Connor. Remember?”
I blinked, both at the fact I was no longer ‘baby’ or ‘little girl’ or ‘Lacey,’ but back to being Miss Connor again. I wasn’t sure I liked that. And I for damn sure didn’t like the idea that they were leaving. “Guys, wait… look, how about we wait for Rick to come back and talk about this?”
Seth’s hand paused, and he looked over at Parker, who shrugged. “Sure.”
Silence reigned in my living room as Parker got his computer out and started typing. Seth sat on a stool, lost in his own thoughts. I wanted to ask him what was up, but at that moment I was confused.
What had happened? I’d never been the kind of woman who was into freaky sex, and yet with one kiss, I went from pop star next door to total wanton sexual dynamo.
I had my first anal experience… and I loved it.
I was spit-roasted, and sucked down all the cum that came my way.
The door to my penthouse opened and Rick came in, looking freshly dressed and professional. “Okay, guys, I coordinated with the ground floor team, they said they’ll… why aren’t you packed?”
“The lady asked us to stop,” Seth said, looking up at Rick and pointing to me. “Now I know what you said, Rick, and yeah we broke a lot of professional lines tonight. But I’m not gonna lie… I’d like to hear what she has to say.”
“Me too,” Parker said hopefully. “I say we at least listen, right?”
Rick looked at his two men for a long minute before turning his attention to me. I felt his eyes roam over me, taking in my mussed hair, bathrobe, and exhausted features. “What is it, Lacey?”
At least with him I was still Lacey. If he’d called me Miss Connor, I might have broken down in tears. “Look, um, this is hard for me to say. What we did… was intense. And a lot of firsts.”
“For me too,” Parker volunteered.
Knowing what I had to do, I got up, and looked at the guys, one-by-one. “I’m sorry, all of you. I was… all sorts of fucked up in the head. And I was wrong to treat you the way I did. You’ve all done your jobs, and done them well. But tonight we… well, there’s things we’ll need to figure out. But if we can, do you think we can have two sides to our relationships? You know, professional and… personal?” I stuff my hands in my robe pockets, fingers crossed out of view.
“Personal I can do no matter what,” Rick said, coming over to me, “but professional… that’s harder. You realize that we’re still your protectors, not just… partners?”
I nodded, reaching with my free hand to take one of Rick’s. “I know. And I can follow the rules. I swear.”
Seth snorted. “You sure about that, Miss Connor?”
“I’m sure… and can you call me Lacey, please?” I asked hopefully. “Look, guys, I was… I need you. All three of you. This international tour’s going to be even worse than the American leg, and even if those threatening assholes are just that, threats… I need you.”
Nobody said anything for a long time, but Parker came around and put his hand on my shoulder.