CHAPTER 27
Zeke
Despite his choice of topics of conversation, the pretty boy amused me. Although irritated that I had to listen to my sister discuss her visit to Dichotomy, I had to admire the way the pretty boy launched right into it while I was sitting directly across from him.
And with a smirk on his face, to boot.
The pretty boy was going to pay for that later, and I was going to enjoy the hell out of it.
But right now, I was allowing the pretty boy and the cowboy to chat it up with Luci, Addison, and Dale up in the break room. I figured I’d give them some time. Allow them to relax before I sought them out and made them beg.
A knock sounded on my office door, and I peered up to see Ben standing there. He was holding a mug of coffee and leaning against the doorjamb.
“Morning,” he greeted.
I leaned back in my chair and smiled. “Morning.”
For a brief moment, his eyes roamed over my face and I wondered if he was going to launch into something about how I looked different. My sister had already called it out this morning, and since I was known to give everyone shit, I figured Ben was gearing up to launch into the same thing.
He didn’t. He simply smiled, white teeth flashing in his dark face. “I thought I’d check in, see what you decided on the hiring front.”
I sighed heavily. “Heather accepted the offer, and I’m still on the fence about Lance. Because I wasn’t thrilled with the other interviews, I’ve got a couple more coming in this afternoon.”
“Want my help talking to them?”
“If you’ve got time, sure.”
“Always have time for you.” He stood tall. “Send me the calendar invites and I’ll block out my afternoon.”
“Will do.” I fully expected him to say something more, but Ben simply turned and disappeared.
I stared at the empty space, which was the only reason I caught Greg trying to slip by unnoticed.
“Edge!”
He grumbled something, but then appeared in my doorway.
“Come in,” I urged. “Let’s chat.”
Electric-blue eyes shot to my face momentarily, then darted down the hall. I expected him to come up with an excuse. I couldn’t blame him. I would run from me, too.
When Edge peered back over, he looked… I’d go so far as to say the man looked scared. Which could only mean something had happened with my sister.
“Sit,” I commanded.
A smile pulled at his mouth, but he did join me. “I’m not one of your submissives, Zeke.”
“Nope. You’re not. However, you are the Dom who introduced my sister to kink.”
He practically fell into the chair across from me. “Is this where you give me shit about it? Keep in mind that was your idea.”
“Technically, it was Ransom’s.”
“But you went along with it.”
True. I did.
I stared at him for a moment, hoping the silence would intimidate him. I should’ve known better. Edge wasn’t intimidated easily. He had a backbone of steel, which I actually admired.
“So, how’d it go?” I held up my hand quickly. “But spare me the details. I mean overall.”
He seemed to consider his words carefully. “It …” Edge thrust a hand through his thick, black hair. “Fuck, Zeke. Why’d you have to go and do this?”
I sat up straight when I heard the torment in his voice. “What happened, Edge?”
He dropped his head in his hands, and I instantly came up with worst-case scenarios, hating myself for doubting my friend.
He was right. This had been my idea. I thought back on Jamie’s responses at breakfast. She had seemed so happy.
Well, except for the fact that she’d obviously been waiting for Edge to call her, and he hadn’t.
Leaning back in my chair, I forced myself to relax, to take deep, even breaths. “Talk to me, Edge.”
“What do you want me to say?” he snapped, his eyes lifting.
I shrugged. “I don’t know. Tell me how it went.”
“I assume you’ve already talked to Jamie?”
“Not in depth, no.” That much was true. I’d only heard what I had to hear, and even then I had tried to block it out.
He huffed out a breath. “Fine. You want to know?”
I tilted my chin as a confirmation.
“It was great. Your sister’s a beautiful submissive, and I enjoyed her company far more than I thought I would. She was eager, attentive.” He raised his hand quickly. “And no, there was nothing sexual about the encounter. I answered her questions, listened when she wanted to talk, and…”
And holy fuck, Edge had a thing for my sister. It was so fucking evident I could hardly breathe.
“You know how old she is, right?” I asked, my tone curt.
“I do,” he quipped. “She’s thirteen years younger than me. Yeah. I get it. I’m too old for her.”
“Twelve,” I corrected, not that it mattered. “She’s twenty-four.”
“Fine. She’s twelve years younger than me.”
It was obvious he hated that fact.
“She mentioned she’s going back?”
Wary blue eyes locked on my face. “She asked. I told her I’d call her.”
“And you haven’t called.”
“Fuck,” he growled before launching to his feet. “What the fuck do you want me to do, Zeke?”
“What do you want to do?” I was surprised by how calm my voice was.
His head snapped around to me. “I want to call her. I want to invite her back to the club or out to dinner. Fuck. It’s all I can think about, and I know you want to punch me right now.
Sadly, I can’t blame you. I want to punch me, too.
But don’t worry. I know what you wanted from me, and I did it. My obligation’s over.”
“Call her.” I shook my head quickly. “Wait. No. I didn’t just say that.”
Edge was staring at me, his eyes wider than I’d ever seen them. There was a glint of hope there.
“Zeke.”
“No, I know.” I sat up and stared at the hard surface of my desk before taking a deep breath and looking up at him. “It’s not my place. Jamie’s told me that a million times. And she’s right. She’s an adult. She can make her own decisions.”
Edge was still staring, but now his mouth was hanging open.
I laughed because fuck me running. I couldn’t believe what I was saying. I was giving this man permission to… Hell, I wasn’t even sure what I was giving him permission for. To talk to my sister? Have dinner with her? Chain her up and— Nope, not going there.
“Zeke? I need you to open your mouth and tell me what’s on your mind,” Edge said, his tone pleading.
Swallowing hard, I forced myself to maintain eye contact. “You like her?”
“More than I should,” he admitted, and I had to admire the man. He had balls of steel. No one had ever admitted as much to me. “And not in a one-night kink club encounter sort of way, either.”
Son of a bitch.
I pushed to my feet and stepped around my desk.
“Fine. Call her. Take her out. Wine her, dine her. Do whatever the fuck you feel you need to do.” I stopped when I was right up in his face.
He was only a few inches shorter than me, so we were nearly eye to eye.
“But you hurt her, Edge, and I will break every fucking bone in your body. Then, I’ll wait for you to get out of traction and I’ll do it again. ”
His eyes were stone-cold serious when he said, “The last thing I want is to hurt her, Zeke. I swear to you. That’s the last thing I want.”
I could hear the sincerity in his words, but I couldn’t speak.
I had just given this man—one of my best friends—permission to date my sister.
And I knew deep down that he wasn’t some blowhard college kid who wanted to take her for coffee and stare deep into her eyes while they chatted about mundane bullshit.
This man was into kink, which meant he would likely—
Nope. Not going to think about it.
“Just promise me one thing,” I said on a sigh.
He looked skeptical. “What’s that?”
“That you’ll warn me when she’s coming to the club. Because … no. If you forget, and I show up to find my sister… I mean it. If I walk into Dichotomy and see her, I swear to God, I will kill you, then resuscitate you and do it again and again.”
A small smile pulled at Edge’s mouth. “You’ve got my word.”
There was gratitude in his eyes, and I found myself oddly relieved.
My sister could do far worse than Gregory Edge.
I just had to remember that this was my idea when things went south between them.
And when that happened, I was going to lose one of the closest friends I had, because no matter what, I would never turn my back on my sister. Not for anyone.
Edge nodded, then turned to go. He cast a quick look over his shoulder as though expecting me to launch myself at him and beat him to a pulp.
It was surprising that I didn’t want to.
I’d never felt as though anyone was good enough for my sister.
However, Gregory Edge was one of the finest men I knew.
When he walked out, I stared after him.
It was time I found my fuck toys.
Brax (the cowboy)
“I hate to interrupt the party,” Dale said when he popped his head into the break room, “but you two are being summoned.”
He was looking directly at me, so I assumed he was referring to me and Case.
“Well, ladies,” Case said with a smirk. “That’s our cue. It seems our Sadist is ready to inflict some pain.”
He didn’t appear at all bothered by the notion.
“Good luck,” Addison teased. “I think I’ll go back down to my office, too. Maybe I’ll get to hear some moans and groans coming from that direction.”
“Not if he gags them,” Luci noted. “Does he enjoy that? Gagging you?”
Case waved her off. “A masochist never tells.”
I was the first to get to my feet, but Case was right behind me.
“Maybe we can grab lunch later. You know, if we can walk,” I told them with a smile.
“I’m down.” Addison smirked. “Even if you can’t walk. That way I can make fun of you.”
I couldn’t help but like Addison. She’d come out of her shell ever since she hooked up with her two Doms, her rebellious streak shining brightly.
“Come on,” I urged Case. The last thing I wanted was to keep Zeke waiting.
I practically had to run to keep up as Case darted for the stairs. We arrived at Zeke’s office to find him sitting in his chair, staring out the window.
He must’ve heard us because his attention redirected our way when we stepped into the room.