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“I’d give it all up for her,” Zin added.
“But that isn’t how this works, Zin. We’re stuck. We made our beds. We have to live with the decisions we made when we returned from the service and realized there was nothing here for us. No parades, no financial backing, nothing but shitty pay, food stamps, and a fate similar if not worse than what we all ran from and entered the service to get away from as teens,” Storm told them.
“He’s right. She suffered enough. We can’t expose Aspen to the life like ours. We have to hide our feelings. So whatever happens with this deal, we accept it and do our jobs. We could never ask her to expose herself to the dangers of being the lover to five made men. Her freedom, her own dreams and achievements would be taken from her and she would feel more like a prisoner again, than a woman set free. Discussion over,” Winter said, and they all somberly agreed.
* * * *
Aspen Brooks knew she shouldn’t have had that third glass of wine. Now, feeling tipsy, she stood by the wall in the dining room at the banquet hall and stared at Storm Jones’s lips. The man was freaking mysterious. He made every part of her body stand at attention and so did the rest of his team. Winter, Weston, York, and Zin were dangerous men for many reasons. But the most intimidating thing for her, was that they were very good friends with her brother Porter.
Navy SEALs, now retired, Storm and his crew weren’t exactly model citizens. No, their ties to the Russian mob and the illegal and legal businesses they owned and operated brought their team billions in revenue. But she wasn’t interested in their money. Hell, unlike most women who flocked around these men trying to land them, Aspen had her own money, her own achievements, and was considered pretty darn ruthless in her own ways. She was a hard-ass, yet approachable, easy to get along with as long as people followed her orders.
Her jobs ranged from reorganizing and training employees at high-end companies to make their sales departments run more efficiently, to evaluating businesses that needed to be revamped. More recently she was getting into negotiating large money deals between some of the most ruthless, notorious billionaires of the United States, never mind the world. Yeah, she was involved with a lot of things. Things that if her brother Porter found out about then she would be in serious trouble. But truth was, some of the contacts she made because of Porter and Storm looked to her for advice. They sought her out and eventually she landed some private gigs that had her rolling in the money and deciding if it were time to settle down somewhere and just live a normal life. But she wasn’t normal. Hadn’t been normal since she was a teen and before she had been abducted.
She cleared her mind and listened to Storm’s voice as he spoke. She nodded her head to the others as if she were totally paying attention to their business conversation. She knew Storm was hinting about needing some assistance at his company Pro-Tech Industries with retraining employees, but she wasn’t sure she was interested. Besides, she was already helping them without them knowing, by trying to land this business deal with Dmitri. God, if Porter or Storm and the crew found out what kind of business dealings she had been involved in lately, there would be hell to pay.
Was she a glutton for punishment though? She would love to feel anything from Storm, Winter, Weston, York or even Zin. Although in her fantasies she would love a good spanking by them. That would surely make her orgasm like a woman should be able to.
But they didn’t know what she knew about Andrei or about them for that matter. They tried to hide the culprits behind her abduction from her. But it didn’t take long to realize it had been Andrei Renoke. Nor did it take long, well five years exactly, to find out about her family ties to the mafia. But that was a different story entirely, and apparently one relationship severed years ago, when her mother was still alive.
Either way, she was more alone now than she ever felt before. It was crazy, but she wasn’t quite finding that closure she was searching for even though she was pretty sure she landed that construction deal for Dmitri.
She was a free agent really. Could basically take on any jobs she wanted to. It would be great to help out Storm, Winter, Zin, Weston, and York with improving their business and revamping their employees training regimen. She looked at Storm again. Her heart felt as if it beat a little faster. He hadn’t even looked her body over or showed any interest whatsoever. Meanwhile she lusted for him. For any of his team of gods to notice her, never mind, make a move.
She didn’t think she could handle being in the same office building as Storm, Winter, Weston, York, and Zin, some of the sexiest, most desirable men around. She was such a loser. Holding out for the chance that they could give her the orgasm of her dreams. No other man had been successful in making her feel anything. She was a lost cause in that department.
Lately, she found herself assisting with less high-profile cases and more intimate businesses. Negotiating private contracts amongst high-profile individuals was by accident, but quite lucrative.
Although half the men she assisted with business dealings wanted to land her as their woman or at minimal their lover, she never entertained their advances. She had her own hang-ups and insecurities she hid behind her designer attire, top line fashions and exotic vacations with fellow single friends. She was independent, yet yearned for male company she could rely on and trust. But trust was something that seemed unobtainable as far as she was concerned.
So why was she staring so intently at Storm and noticing every tiny detail about him? The small scar by his right eye, barely noticeable. The way he crossed his arms in front of his sexy, muscular chest when he was truly focusing on the person’s conversation he was engaged in. His blond hair, cut to perfection and his designer dress shirt and tie he wore tonight at this event spoke volumes about his personality and the fact the man had style and money. He was a bad boy, capable of things she didn’t even want to think about and knew too well that he was capable of accomplishing.
She should fear him and his buddies, for the simple fact that they had connections to people like Andrei as well as other higher-ups. She knew they weren’t the kind of men to gain money from sex slave businesses, prostitution, guns, and drugs. Or at least she didn’t think them capable of such criminal activity.
Why women found gangsters, made men so sexy and appealing she wasn’t certain. Maybe it was the mystery, the darkness about them and their capabilities. Add in that Storm and his crew were military men and hell yeah, she found it all sexy. It aroused her, interested her as she took a sip from her glass of wine and forced her eyes to move on to something else and maintain the distance she needed for her sanity.
“Aspen, won’t you consider helping Storm out with his business? You’re so good at revamping and training employees on the subject of security measures. You would be an asset to the business,” John Brothers said and then smiled at her.
“I’m not sure I’m right for the position.” She glanced at Storm who watched her lips and then eyed her over. It only took him an hour to actually check her out. She was wearing a pretty sexy dress, too. The man should totally be taking advantage of their close proximity. But he wasn’t because he wasn’t interested.
She needed some fresh air, some distance from him and his buddies. She couldn’t think straight and the wine was messing with her head.
As she began to excuse herself, she felt the hand on her hip and then a body press against her back.
“Have you convinced her to help us and accept the position?” Winter asked from behind her. She closed her eyes, absorbed the feel of his thick, hard hand on her waist and his large presence behind her. She didn’t even have to turn to feel the attraction to the man. Blond hair, hazel eyes, and a firm expression he was known for.
His name suited him well. He always looked so complex and in turmoil. His eyes were filled with emotion and his expressions just as dark and intriguing. So badly she wanted to run her palms along his cheeks, turn those frowns and concerns into smiles of pleasure. But who was she? She didn’t have the capabilities to do such things. She was fucked up in her own ways. No one could touch her so deeply, nor could she ever touch someone’s heart with such depth either.
She was so affected by these men. Each of them, yet she could never entertain that attraction. It would be disastrous.
She stepped from his hold and smiled.
“Sorry, Winter, I just don’t think it would work out. Besides, I’m currently working on too many other projects to even consider this opportunity with you. I can always refer you to someone else who would be suitable for the position if you needed.” She hated to offer anyone else to them. She could recommend Clare, Monique, or even Stella, but then she got this instant jealous feeling just thinking that one of the men could hook up with those women.
She could only imagine Zin, York, or Weston bending Stella over one of their desks and having their way with her. She cringed and pulled away.
Weston, York, and Zin were a wild bunch, too. She heard they all shared women at one time or another because the men were so close.
Aspen had to admit that not only the thought of sharing them excited her, but more importantly the thought of experiencing such a deep bond of trust like that had to be mind-blowing. As a matter of fact, she was more intrigued and attracted to know that these men shared such a deep, unbreakable bond. She didn’t have such a relationship with anyone ever. She loved her brother Porter, but there seemed to be some sort of invisible barrier between them, too. Maybe she wasn’t the type of person someone could love?
