14. Leo
LEO
Spying on people came with the job description, but I hadn’t intended to spy on Peyton when I first walked into the lunchroom. I did this once every few months, taking a trip around the lower levels to gauge employees and work ethic.
I often heard the most fascinating things in the lunchroom, but I had not expected to overhear Peyton talking about having sex with us.
Anger surged immediately and with enough force that my ears rang. At first, I slipped into the shadows, needing to hear more before I reacted with such animosity.
If it had been anyone else, I might not have even given them the benefit of the doubt, but Peyton had proven that she deserved a moment.
She gushed over how we treated her, her details a bit vague considering what had really happened in the limo last night. And then I realized she never mentioned our names.
No names whatsoever were mentioned, not even a nickname. She only said one of us did this, or another did that.
The anger shifted to astonishment that she would talk about this at all.
There was something else underneath the astonishment, something I refused to examine while hiding in the shadows behind a support column. She chose to talk about us, to talk about how we made her feel.
My blood surged for a new reason.
I’d watched her hold herself in for weeks before any of this began. She was careful, almost cautious.
She kept to herself and often hid behind her desk. Even the way she dressed showed a woman who often hid. That had not changed except when she came to see us.
But in this moment, her face lit up, and even though she stuttered a bit through some of the more explicit details, she chose to talk about us.
I’d thought her more reserved considering how little she’d known about sex.
Then again, she was speaking to another woman. That might have given her courage to say things she would not otherwise.
Which meant I needed to evaluate this other woman and the potential threat she raised.
Standing in Peyton’s line of sight, I finished my coffee and poured another. Black and almost burnt tasting, it was nothing like what we brewed upstairs, but it was decent enough that I didn’t wince with every sip.
I took a step toward them, and the other woman’s shoulders lifted.
Peyton ran her spoon around her bowl and shifted in her seat. Color flooded her cheeks, and she’d stopped talking.
“Good afternoon.” I walked up to their table and stopped, raking my gaze over Peyton before shifting to the other woman. “I apologize for interrupting your lunch, but I needed to know if you had a chance to schedule the meeting with Mr. Borzov for tomorrow.”
Peyton nodded, her head bobbling. “Yes, Mr. Petrov. I added it to your calendar. I was going to email you the details after lunch.”
“Very good.” I tipped my head toward her companion. “You are one of our accountants, yes?”
She nodded, her eyes narrowing. “Yes.”
“I thought so.” I recognized her face from the financial department files. I went through all employee records every six months, familiarizing myself with them. She was a pretty thing who had hovered at first.
She’d found excuses to be near me, Misha, and Viktor, showing an interest in taking things further.
Once she realized we were not interested, she backed off.
Good for her. I would much rather have employees who did not pout when not given our undivided attention but were able to do their job regardless of the disappointment.
We’d fired several who did not understand how to draw that line.
This one, though, she had found her place and befriended Peyton. They were close enough that Peyton felt comfortable confiding in her about our sexual activities, but she held true to not naming us.
I grinned down at Peyton. “I’ll let you get back to your lunch and conversation. Enjoy.” I lifted the cup, my smirk widening as Peyton realized I’d overheard her.
The two of them stared at my retreating back, which caused the hairs to lift on my neck. I ignored the feeling and drank my coffee on the way to the elevator, my grin turning into a full-blown laugh by the time I made it upstairs.
Viktor and Misha walked out of their offices, catching sight of me and glancing at each other.
“My office.” I waved them forward, waiting until I’d closed the door behind them to explain my mirth. “I caught Peyton talking about how great sex is with us.”
Misha crossed his arms. “Why are you laughing about that?”
Viktor took a minute to consider the situation. “You don’t think this is a problem?”
“No. She did not name us, only talked about how much she enjoys sex with us. I think she is ready for us to take things up a notch.” I relaxed against my desk, balled up the empty cup, and tossed it into the trash.
Intrigue lined Misha’s face. “What do you have in mind?”
Viktor made a low, grumbling sound deep in his chest. “I believe this is my area of expertise.”
“Yes, and that is why I wanted you here. But we do nothing that pushes past what she’s comfortable with.” I gave him a pointed look. We’d had this conversation in various forms over the past weeks, and I intended to keep having it until the caveat became a reflex. “She has to want it.”
“She will want it.” Viktor’s expression pulled his lips to one side.
Like me, he’d no doubt studied Peyton’s reactions.
He was systematic in that way. “She wants to be held accountable. She told us as much in the app. Weeks ago. She simply has not yet been given the chance to explore it.” He paused, his chin dipping toward his chest. “I will be careful with her.”
From Viktor, that was a clear a vow as I’d ever receive.
Misha had gone quiet, planning.
He’d be fine once she arrived. I’d have to keep him occupied until then to prevent him from charging after her in a hunt.
He’d yet to explore that side of Peyton, the side that might fall apart at his intensity.
Not every woman wanted to be hunted, subdued, then ravaged.
“Misha?” I snapped my fingers in his face to gain his attention.
A heavy look swung my way. “I heard him.” He uncrossed his arms. “I’ll be careful.”
I pulled out my phone and showed them the app. “I’d like to invite Peyton over tonight.”
“I’ll think of an appropriate punishment for her lack of judgment.” Viktor matched Misha’s crossed-arm stance. “Something we’ll all enjoy.”
“I do not want her to know we have planned this. Let it be part of the surprise.” I typed out a message, hit send, and waited.
All three of us stared at the screen, silently willing Peyton to agree.
It arrived seconds later, and we all took a deep breath of relief and began to prepare.
Hours later, in our penthouse with our plan fully fleshed out, we waited for Peyton to arrive.
Waiting had never suited any of us. No one told us no, and no one made us wait.
Until Peyton.
Viktor channeled his energy into purpose, spending hours in the playroom adjusting things until he had them to his liking. This mattered to him, this control. It began before anyone walked into the room, and it never ended.
Misha prowled from one end of the penthouse to the other.
He lifted weights, ran on the treadmill, then prowled some more before taking a shower and perching on the edge of the window with his hands laced between his knees.
The eerie stillness fooled neither me nor Viktor.
He’d engaged with the moment, his hunter’s patience taking effect.
I checked the app one more time, rereading Peyton’s message.
On my way. Need an hour.
Almost time. I set my phone down and cracked my neck, reliving the moment in the lunchroom. She liked how we made her feel. The flush on her cheeks. The way she turned her head to the side as her eyes fluttered shut.
We did that for her.
We were going to ruin her for any other version of her life. Ruin her in the absolute best possible way.
The elevator hummed, and the three of us took up our positions as the ding sounded and the doors began to open.
Even now, after weeks coming here, she always hesitated a heartbeat when the elevator doors opened.
She paused even longer on the threshold tonight, her arms loose by her sides but her hands balled into fists. She wore a long skirt that flirted with her calves and a black shirt with a tucked waist that cupped her breasts and dropped into a deep V to show off her cleavage.
“Hello, Peyton.” I held out my hand, drawing her deeper into the room.
Her warm fingers grasped mine, and a quick glance at her neck revealed her fluttering pulse. “What are we doing tonight?”
“Feeling bold tonight, are you?” I lifted her hand and kissed the inside of her wrist. “Feeling bold this morning as well.” I raised my eyebrows and looked toward where Misha and Viktor stood on either side of the hallway door leading to our playroom.
“What do you mean?” Her voice shook, and I almost called off the plan.
But then her chin lifted, and she met my eyes.
Viktor adjusted himself and gave me a nod. He’d read her body language too. She was ready for this.
“You have been naughty, Peyton.” I pinched her chin lightly between my thumb and forefinger. “You were talking about us at work.” My cock swelled when she gulped, her pupils blowing wide.
“I did.” She nodded. “But I didn’t tell her who you were.”
“You told us this had to remain a secret. You did not want our exploits known to those you work with.” The hard edge in Viktor’s voice caused another hard swallow.
Fuck, this woman undid me. If I didn’t know Viktor, I’d think he meant to hurt her. I gave him a look warning him to dial it back.
He ignored me and ran his hand along the back of Peyton’s neck, gathering her hair in a knot.
He used that to pull her head to the side, doing it gently but with enough pressure to draw out a low sound from Peyton’s throat.
“You broke your own rule, a rule you have held us to. That deserves punishment.”
If he pushed her too far, he’d be the one enduring punishment. I focused on Peyton’s reactions, on the way her breathing hitched. A little bit scared but also wildly interested.
I bit back a smile. “Viktor is right. You have broken your own rules. There will not be a date for you tonight.”
“What?” Her throat worked, her gaze sweeping between all three of us.
“That’s right.” Misha joined us, his gaze locked on Peyton. “Some nights, we are going to want to take you places. Let you experience the world. Like the ballet. But not tonight.”
“Tonight, you are going to try and earn our forgiveness for revealing our secrets.” I slid my hand along her neck, her thrumming pulse sending every bit of blood flow to my dick.
Viktor was the one with a control kink, but I couldn’t deny the sense of power I felt in this moment. As long as Peyton wanted to play along.
“Earn your forgiveness?” Her tongue darted out to lick her lower lip. “How?”