Daria's Heroes

Men Out of Uniform 1

Daria's Heroes When Daria Tate loses everything—house, job and best friend— Gage Mulligan and Roman Foster step in. The two firefighters had promised their foster mother not to declare their love until Daria turned twenty-five. But their girl needs heroes, and they are just the men for the job. Daria has loved Gage and Roman since the first time she’d met them. But Gage and Roman were gay and totally devoted to each other, or so she thought. When they tell her the truth of their relationship, Daria thinks her dream of being with them has come true. Then they share the secret of their Master/slave BDSM lifestyle. Will Daria be able to accept them and join in their fun and games? Will they be able to help her over the guilt of not being home the night of the fire? Will their feelings fizzle or blaze into a firestorm of love? Genre: BDSM, Contemporary, Ménage a Trois/Quatre Length: 30,851 words

DARIA’S HEROES Men Out of Uniform 1

Cooper McKenzie

MENAGE AMOUR

Siren Publishing, Inc. www.SirenPublishing.com

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A SIREN PUBLISHING BOOK IMPRINT: Ménage Amour

DARIA’S HEROES Copyright © 2011 by Cooper McKenzie E-book ISBN: 1-61034-821-4 First E-book Publication: September 2011 Cover design by Jinger Heaston All cover art and logo copyright © 2011 by Siren Publishing, Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED: This literary work may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, including electronic or photographic reproduction, in whole or in part, without express written permission. All characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual persons living or dead is strictly coincidental.

PUBLISHER Siren Publishing, Inc. www.SirenPublishing.com

Letter to Readers Dear Readers, If you have purchased this copy of Daria’s Heroes by Cooper McKenzie from BookStrand.com or its official distributors, thank you. Also, thank you for not sharing your copy of this book.

Regarding E-book Piracy This book is copyrighted intellectual property. No other individual or group has resale rights, auction rights, membership rights, sharing rights, or any kind of rights to sell or to give away a copy of this book. The author and the publisher work very hard to bring our paying readers high-quality reading entertainment. This is Cooper McKenzie’s livelihood. It’s fair and simple. Please respect Ms. McKenzie’s right to earn a living from her work. Amanda Hilton, Publisher www.SirenPublishing.com www.BookStrand.com

DEDICATION For the hometown heroes who answer the call for help at all hours and under any conditions…volunteer firefighters.

AUTHOR’S NOTE A portion of all royalties earned from the sale of Daria’s Heroes will be donated to help build a training facility for the firefighters of Craven County, North Carolina.

DARIA’S HEROES Men Out of Uniform 1 COOPER MCKENZIE Copyright © 2011

Chapter 1 Daria Tate pushed her way through the crowd of neighbors while trying not to scream in frustration. She moved past the yellow caution tape then continued forward until the wall of heat stopped her. She stared in stunned disbelief. Yellow, blue, and orange flames totally engulfed the historic twostory house. Her home of the last eight years was burning to the ground, and there was not a damn thing she could do about it. She had only been gone four hours for the final exam of the EMT class Mrs. Stone had blackmailed her into taking. She knew the old woman had not gotten out. She could not have, not without Daria’s strong arm to aid her. “Miss, you’ve got to move back.” A firefighter in tan and red turnouts stepped between her and the fire. “That’s my home,” Daria said. She was shocked that she could speak without screaming that her entire life was going up in flames just a dozen yards away from where they stood. She turned to the tall, powerfully built man who did not look much older than her own twenty-four years. He wore a hat that read Lieutenant. Was he in charge of this chaos? “Did anyone else live there?” the man asked. He took her arm and

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gently led her to the other side of the street. “Was anyone home?” Daria nodded. “Mrs. Stone and Charlie.” “Charlie?” “Mrs. Stone’s cat,” Daria answered, though she kept her gaze locked on the hellish scene that used to be her house. The best home she had ever lived in. The firefighters trampled the flowerbeds as they dragged hoses across the grass to fight a battle they could not win. The hundredyear-old house was too far gone to be saved. Daria winced when half the roof collapsed. The man beside spoke into a radio clipped to his shoulder. She heard him shift the battle from saving her house to containing it so that the entire neighborhood did not go up in flames. Two crews of men on hoses remained focused on battling the raging fire while others shifted their attentions to soak the sides of the neighboring houses. Thankfully, the high winds they had experienced all day had died to nothing when the sun set, but that did little to console Daria. Mrs. Stone, her boss, best friend, and fairy godmother, was gone. “Excuse me? Who’s Charlie?” Daria shook her head to clear her thoughts. “Charlie was the cat. I guess…I guess…excuse me.” Before he could stop her, Daria walked away. After pushing her way past two police officers and the growing crowd of neighbors, she kept going. Half a block away, a firefighter who looked like he should still be in high school stood guard over the hydrant supplying water to fight the fire. She stopped to ask the only question she could think of. “Which shift is working today?” “C shift,” he answered without hesitation, his voice deep and raspy as if he had already inhaled too much smoke during his short career. Daria nodded. “Thank you,” she said before walking on.

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If C shift was working, that meant Roman and Gage were sleeping soundly in their bed across town. They would not hear about the fire until morning unless they stayed up to watch the late news. She should have asked which shift worked tomorrow, but it did not matter. Someone would tell them about the fire. After all, Mrs. Stone had been their savior as well, fighting the system to take them in as teenage foster children as she had Daria. Even after they had aged out of the system, the retired woman continued to mother, nag, and guide them. Maybe by the time they tracked her down tomorrow she would have figured out a new plan for survival. Right now, her only option was to move deep enough into the Croatan National Forest that the rangers would not be able to find her and arrest her for being homeless on public lands. When she reached her little red car parked under a “No Parking” sign, she did not climb in and drive away. She could not. She had a quarter tank of gas and nowhere to go. Except for her notebook computer, purse, and the clothes on her back, she had nothing. Everything else was ash by now. She stared at her little car and could not help but smile. Mrs. Stone had helped her car shop and then find financing for the car. The little car was cute and energy efficient, but hardly suitable to turn into a long-term home, and who knew how long it would take to find a new job and rebuild her life. There were not that many live-in companion slash secretary jobs available in New Bern, North Carolina. What the hell was she going to do? Too bad she did not have the number for Heroes ’R Us or she would call and place an order for a man to rescue her. Tall, dark, and handsome with a strong, alpha-male personality would be her first choice. Dominant in bed with a creative sexy side might be asking for too much, but a girl could always hope. Daria laughed, the sound startling her with its sad harshness. Mrs. Stone would be horrified. After eight years of dealing with the

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seventy-eight-year-old woman, she had built an inner core of strength that would see her through this. Mrs. Stone would have smacked her if Daria blindly kowtowed to the wrong man, no matter how desperate her situation, but her caregiver’s soul made it impossible to say no when someone said they needed her. Mrs. Stone would be disappointed that Daria wished someone would step in and deal with life while Daria worked her way through the pain that hovered just outside the gray fog. If only she could talk to Mrs. Stone… “But she’s dead,” Daria mentioned offhandedly to the bear statue dressed as a pirate as she walked by. “Mrs. Stone is dead.” The statue remained silent as she continued down the sidewalk, but that did not matter. Daria would not have heard him even if he had spoken. The gray fog of shock settled fully around her, protecting her from the harsh realities of life and death that she would have to face come morning. **** Roman Foster froze when the phone rang. His gut clenched with the intuitive warning he always felt when Daria was pained or in trouble. No matter how much he wanted to ignore the gut feeling, he had to answer. It did not matter that only a few strokes separated him from blessed release. Daria would always come first. Locking his jaw, he pulled his cock from the man beneath him who met every thrust with a writhing wiggle of his hips. “Bring me the phone.” “Now?” Gage Mulligan stared at him, shocked amazement causing him to question his Master. Roman lifted one eyebrow and met his slave’s gaze. Gage’s eyes widened when he realized what he had done. A microsecond later, he scrambled across the bed and grabbed the phone. “I’m sorry, Master,” he whispered to the mattress as he handed

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over the phone. “Please forgive me.” “We’ll discuss it later,” Roman said as he pushed the code to answer the phone and put it on speaker. “Foster. What’s going on?” “Roman, it’s Kelso. Mrs. Stone’s house just burnt to the ground. A total loss, and I think Mrs. Stone and Charlie were inside.” He sounded on the verge of tears. Kelso was another one of Mrs. Stone’s “kids.” One of the dozens she plucked out of the foster care system over her nearly fifty years as a foster mother. Kelso was now forty and a captain with C shift. When Roman and Gage joined the department, first as volunteers and then paid firefighters, he had taken them under his wing and mentored them even though they were assigned to A shift. Mrs. Stone took in the children everyone else gave up on for one reason or another. It did not matter whether they were troublemakers, as he and Gage had been, or rescued from a troubled home like Daria. No one ever figured out how she chose the children she brought into her home, but with each one she worked magic. She turned bad attitudes around, built up shattered self-esteem, and encouraged learning. Every one of her kids had finished high school and gone to college or trade school. Each one had grown into a productive member of society. The joke around town was that Mrs. Stone’s kids filled so many public service positions that the woman could take over Craven County if she wanted. Roman attributed the fact that he was not in jail to Mrs. Stone. He also gave her credit for allowing him and Gage to figure out they were monogamous bisexuals. His need to dominate and Gage’s desire to submit, sexually and otherwise, was a discovery they had never shared with her. Staring at Gage, Roman swallowed hard to keep his own pain at bay. Gage’s sky blue eyes filled with unshed tears as he dealt with his own shock. Then Gage leaned in and wrapped himself around Roman’s middle. “What about Daria?” Gage asked in a voice choked with emotion.

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Roman’s gut clenched and heart tightened until he could barely breathe. Only Gage’s touch kept Roman from screaming with his pain. “Riley said that he talked to a young woman who said she lived in the house. He walked her to the barrier, and she then disappeared. Daria’s car is parked on Front Street near the traffic circle, but she’s nowhere to be found.” “We’ll be there in ten.” Roman stared deep into his slave’s eyes as he clicked the phone off and tossed it to the bed out of the way. Instead of wilting at the shocking news, his cock had remained painfully hard and throbbing. There was no way he could leave this bed before he got relief. “Master?” Gage asked, looking up at him. “Hands and knees, ass to me,” Roman ordered, needing to find comfort in his slave’s ass. As soon as Gage was in place, he guided his cock back into the man’s warm, slicked up, and stretched back hole. Both men sighed as he slid all the way in on the first stroke. “Brace yourself, pet. It’s going to be hard and fast.” “Yes, please, Master,” Gage moaned. Roman said a silent thank you for his partner. Though Gage was six inches taller and outweighed him by nearly forty pounds of muscle, he was also the kindest, gentlest, most giving soul Roman had ever met. Since the moment they met in the principal’s office as eleven-year-old troublemakers, Gage had never questioned Roman’s lead. He followed willingly, whether they raced into a fire to rescue someone or entered into the Master/slave BDSM lifestyle they now lived on a daily basis. “You have about thirty seconds to get yourself off,” Roman warned as his balls began to draw up and clench. He began to piston in and out of his partner, best friend, lover, and slave with increased power and speed. “Use your hand if you have to.” Gage groaned in response as he moved in counterpoint to

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Roman’s thrusting hips. Three full strokes and Roman’s arousal surged back to the pre-phone call’s ball-twisting, spine-tingling level of impending release. Another half dozen strokes and he felt his climax wash over him. “Now, pet. Come with me now,” Roman ordered as he shoved even deeper twice more before shooting his seed deep into his slave’s ass. Half a second later, Gage cried out, his release spraying across the sheet beneath him. When tension finally relaxed its hold on him, Roman dropped forward to rest his forehead in the middle of Gage’s back. He wrapped his arms around his man’s middle and hugged him tight. Gage shifted his weight so he could pat Roman’s arms. As soon as he could move again, Roman eased from his big man’s ass. “You have three minutes to clean up and get dressed,” he said as he rolled off the bed and headed to the bathroom. “We’ve got to find Daria.” By the time Roman cleaned himself up and grabbed his jeans from the floor where he had dropped them earlier, Gage was smoothing down one of his T-shirts that identified him as a member of the department. Roman finished dressing as Gage took the spunk-covered sheets off the bed. Reaching into his top drawer, Roman pulled out the spare set of keys to Daria’s car that Mrs. Stone had given them. Six months earlier, just days after Daria had bought her new little car, the old woman slipped him the spare set of keys and gave him that look. The one that said, “This is between us so keep your mouth shut.” “I’ll put fresh ones on when we get back,” Gage said when Roman looked at him with one eyebrow raised in query. Roman followed him to the kitchen where Gage shoved the sheets into the washing machine. After adding soap, he started the machine. “What are we going to do when we find her?” “We’re going to bring our girl home where she belongs. We’ll deal with the rest tomorrow. Question is where do we start looking?” The two men shared a look before saying in unison, “Union

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Point.” Once they were in Roman’s truck, he handed Gage the keys to Daria’s car. “First we’ll get Daria’s car. The last thing she needs is to have her car impounded.” Gage took the key ring without a word. He remained silent for several blocks before asking, “Do you think she’ll stay? Will she want both of us? Will we be able to make this work?” Roman turned to look at the man through the dim light of the dashboard lights. “Let’s get through the next week before we discuss the long term. My plan is for her to join us permanently. I know we promised Mrs. Stone we’d wait until she turned twenty-five, but that’s no longer an option.”

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Chapter 2 When the pale fog of shock lifted, Daria found herself standing in her favorite spot in New Bern. Union Point Park’s east-facing railing overlooked the Neuse River a few yards north of where it and the Trent joined forces before flowing toward the Atlantic Ocean. A look across the river proved that more than a few minutes had passed since she had walked away from the fire at Mrs. Stone’s house. Only an occasional car crossed the Neuse River Bridge, but other than night, Daria had no idea what time it was and did not care. Nothing mattered except that Mrs. Stone was dead and she was now homeless, jobless, and alone. When her stomach rumbled, she chuffed and wished she had brought her messenger bag with her. There was a cracker pack and candy bar she had planned to eat before her class then forgot about. She had skipped dinner so she could get in a few more minutes of studying, and now she would be paying for it until she returned to her car. However, she was not sure she wanted to leave this safe place for the reality that waited for her just four blocks away. Hopefully the police would not have it towed before she got back to it. She jumped in surprise when a deep, sexy voice to her left asked, “Does this mean you’re ready to go home?” Taking a deep breath in case she needed to scream for help, Daria turned her head and looked at the man. She prepared to beat the crap out of him, though all at once she could not recall any of the selfdefense moves she had learned over the past eight years. Though clouds had moved in to obscure the sky, she recognized the movie star profile against the lights from the hotel behind him.

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Roman Foster. The most overprotective of all of her foster brothers. The first one she called whenever Mrs. Stone had to be hospitalized. The only one who knew the truth of why she had been taken from her mother and placed into foster care in the first place. The one she called at two o’clock in the morning when her boyfriend had taken her to Jacksonville then dumped her and disappeared. He had left her with an enormous bar tab and no way to get the forty miles home. Roman was the man to whom she had given half her heart when she had first met him eight years earlier at the age of sixteen. The man she used as a standard to measure the worth of every other man she ever thought about dating. The man she never had a chance of winning because his heart belonged to another. “Where’s Gage?” Gage Mulligan held the other half of her heart and all of Roman’s. The two men were like mismatched bookends that went together perfectly. The fact that they had been partners and lovers for more than ten years was something Daria had accepted, though she wished things could be different. Roman and Gage were so close that if one started a sentence, the other could finish it. She thought there might be something more between the men by the way Gage took care of Roman, but never questioned the men about it. She wished she could find someone to dedicate himself to her the way they were to each other. “Gage is dealing with your car. He’ll meet us at the house. Now, I ask again, are you ready to go home?” “There’s nothing to go home to,” Daria said as her breathing hitched. At her first sob, Roman pulled her into his chest. She did not fight as he wrapped long, strong arms around her back. With his heat and strength surrounding her, Daria felt not quite so alone. Sure, Roman and Gage, as well as Mrs. Stone’s other so-called kids who had grown up and gone on to build wonderful, productive

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lives, would surround her with love and caring. Then, after the funeral, they would return to their lives and Daria would be on her own. What was she going to do then? When hot tears dripped on her, she realized she was not the only one mourning the elderly woman who had done so much good for so many. Wanting to comfort Roman as he was comforting her, Daria wrapped her arms around his back and held on tight. They held each other, providing both comfort and strength. If only Gage was here, Daria thought as she snuggled even deeper into Roman’s embrace. When Daria’s tears stopped, she lifted her head from his chest and looked up into his sorrow-filled eyes. He held her gaze as he slowly tilted his head closer. One hand slid up her back and cupped the back of her neck, holding her head in place. His lips brushed hers once before settling in for an extended stay. Her sensible public persona was appalled that he was cheating on Gage while the rest of her jumped up and down screaming, “Yippee!” Giving over to the need to kiss him that had haunted her since the first moment she had met him, Daria parted her lips when he touched the tip of his tongue to them. When he just brushed it back and forth across her lower lip again, she grew impatient so she reached out her tongue in invitation. She leaned tighter against him and shifted her belly against the long, thick bulge pressing against the front of his jeans. He was hard for her? What the hell is going on? Her breathing stopped when his tongue suddenly plunged deep and took control of the kiss. They immediately went from a brotherly hello kiss to one that said, “I want to fuck you here and now.” Daria willingly followed his lead, giving him whatever he wanted as he thoroughly and leisurely explored her mouth. Taking a deep breath, she smelled the dark tang of sex along with laundry soap and citrusy, woodsy cologne. Her hands slid down his back to the waistband of his jeans. His

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belt kept her from slipping her hands under the fabric so she settled for sliding farther south and palming his ass cheeks over the fabric. His ass felt tight and muscular as she pressed her hands into the flesh. She wondered if it looked as good as it felt. Her pussy overflowed with her need to be closer to this man. She sucked a breath when a large, hard hand shifted between them to palm her breast, massaging it gently before the fingers drew together to tweak her beaded nipple. When he finally broke the kiss, they were both panting. She stared up at him, shocked at what had just happened. She swallowed hard as she stepped back, not able to think of a single thing to say in defense of her actions. But then again, he started it, so maybe he should be explaining to her. Roman released her reluctantly but did not let her get too far away. Without a word, he wrapped one arm around her back and turned them toward his humongous white truck. As he lifted her into the passenger’s seat, Daria looked from him to his truck and could not help but ask the question that had haunted her since he had bought his latest ride. “Do you drive this big-ass truck to compensate for something?” She blanched when he stared at her with one raised eyebrow as if questioning her sanity. He was not alone. She was beginning to wonder what in the hell had gotten into her to kiss him as she had. “It doesn’t compensate for a thing. It matches my big-ass ego,” he said just before he closed the door. His comeback was so quick and so serious it took Daria a moment before she began to giggle. By the time Roman climbed in and started the truck, her emotions had flipped, and she once again lost control, only this time with giggling. He looked at her and smiled as he put the truck in gear and drove out of the park. “Something funny?” Daria shook her head, afraid to comment on their kiss. “Not really, I just can’t seem stop.” She began hiccupping and gasping for

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air as the peals of out-of-control laughter continued until she passed out. **** Gage swore as he climbed into Daria’s little red car. Thankfully, he had arrived before the police called in a tow truck to impound Daria’s car. Now he just had to find a place to park where the car would be safe until morning while he went and talked to the fire crew still on the scene. While Roman dealt with their woman, he would deal with this. Pushing the seat all the way back, Gage found his knees were still nearly in his armpits. There was no way he could drive this thing across town, no matter how much he loved its owner. Driving extra carefully, he pulled in and parked at the public access lot a block and a half down the street. Taking a pen from his pocket and paper from the notebook on the passenger’s seat, he wrote a note and stuck it on the dash so it would remain safe and secure until morning. Tomorrow he would bring her so she could drive it home herself. When he tried to climb out of the tiny car, Gage wondered if he was going to have to call 911 for help. Taking a deep breath, he forced his foot to twist in a not-quite-natural direction and jerked his left leg free. Then it was a matter of wiggling the rest of him out. “We’re getting her a bigger car ASAP,” he muttered to the two seagulls watching him. He pulled her messenger bag from the passenger side. After setting the locks, he made sure he had the keys for the little car in his pocket before he closed the door. Then, holding the bag against his body so it would not jiggle around too much, he jogged back to where one lone fire truck remained parked in front of where Mrs. Stone’s house used to stand. He was not surprised to see Roman’s white truck pulling up and parking just beyond the far barricade down the street. Roman walked

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toward him, looking so serious Gage’s heart began to pound. Even through the evening shadows, he saw his other half had been crying. Though he wanted to hold his lover and comfort him, he kept his distance. Master would not appreciate any public display of affection, especially in front of their coworkers. After ten years of being partners on the job and off, the men and women they worked with still were not exactly sure what their sexual status was, and that was how Roman liked it. Gage would not care if they shouted it from the bell tower of city hall. “Where’s Daria?” he asked once they were close enough to speak without waking the neighbors. “Wasn’t she at the park?” “She’s in the truck. She got herself into such a state she hyperventilated and passed out,” Roman said as the two men marched in step toward the man in charge. Though the fire appeared to be out, firefighters continued hosing down the burn site, making sure there was nothing that could kick up and start burning again later. Gage saw they were concentrating on the back corner of the house where Mrs. Stone’s bedroom had been located. An ambulance waited in the driveway to take the body away once they found it. Gage blinked fast to keep his tears from falling. Though he was tempted to cry like a baby, he needed to be strong for Daria and for Roman. He would grieve later. “Hey, Kelso,” Roman said. “Roman, Gage.” The captain glanced at them then returned to staring at the burnt remains of the house they had all grown up in. After a shudder passed through his body, he turned and hugged Roman. “Thank the good Lord Daria wasn’t home when this happened. Otherwise we’d be pulling her body out as well.” “What the hell happened?” Gage asked when Kelso released Roman and turned to him for another hug. “Randy thinks it was electrical, but he won’t know for sure until

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he can get in there tomorrow to look around,” Kelso said, referring to the department’s fire investigator. “If you need to talk to her, Daria will be staying with us,” Gage said. He turned so he looked out toward Roman’s truck and not at the remains of the house. Though he would mourn his saving angel eventually, for now he would stay in control. His Master and the woman they had fallen in love with needed him to stay strong. Roman and Kelso talked for a few more minutes, consoling each other as much as it was possible for two alpha males to. Gage listened but remained silent as he began a mental list of all that would need to be done in the next few days. As he watched, the passenger’s door to Roman’s truck opened. Turning, he looked at Roman. “She’s awake.” At that same moment, the radio clipped to Kelso’s shoulder squawked. “We found her.” Knowing the procedure, Gage watched as Kelso gave the ambulance crew the signal to move into action. Then the three men headed down the sidewalk toward Roman’s truck. They moved fast without running and reached the truck before Daria could close the truck door. Standing shoulder to shoulder, they formed a wall to keep the petite woman from seeing the grisly scene about to play out behind them. “Feel better, angel?” Gage asked as she looked at each of them. She nodded, then shook her head and threw herself at him as tears filled her eyes. Gage caught her and lifted her easily until her head rested on the top of his shoulder. She wrapped her arms and legs around him. He gritted his teeth as his cock slammed to attention. “Mrs. Stone is dead, Gage,” she whispered softly as she rubbed her cheek back and forth across the top of his shoulder. “And Roman kissed me. I’m sorry.” Gage could not speak to assure her that everything would be all

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right. It was not his place. Master had to be the one to lay out their lifestyle and the part they wanted, needed, desired her to play in it. Hugging her close, he looked at Roman. “Let’s take our angel home.” Roman nodded without a word. “I’ll come by after shift,” Kelso said before he turned back to work. Once Gage settled her in the car, she looked at him wide-eyed and panicked. “I need to get my car. I left it on the street, and the cops will impound it, and I can’t afford impound and tow fees.” “Shhh, angel, I’ve taken care of it. We’ll get it in the morning. I did bring your computer and purse and stuff.” He pulled the bag’s strap over his head and handed it to her. She grabbed it and clenched it tight to her chest as the men climbed in. “This is all I have left. Everything’s gone,” she said softly. She sounded as sad and alone as any one person could be. After a look to Roman for permission, which he gave with a nod, Gage wrapped his arm around her shoulders and pulled her so she leaned against him. “You’re not alone, Daria. You have me and Roman. Hell, all of Mrs. Stone’s kids are here for you. You’ve not been alone since Mrs. Stone brought you home to us.” Daria nodded, but he could tell that she did not believe him. She did not know it yet, but once he and Roman got her home, they were never letting her go again. She was their woman, and they were about to stake their claim.

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Chapter 3 Daria wanted to argue, but she had not yet come up with a valid one to offer. Instead, she took a deep breath and released it on a sigh as she relaxed into Gage’s side. For now, she would let Roman and Gage take her in. Once the dust settled in a couple of weeks or so, she would find a place of her own and begin the overwhelming task of rebuilding her life. In the meantime, she just had to remember that these two men were off-limits, even if Roman had kissed her as if he wanted to swallow her whole. After all, they were gay and totally committed to one another. There was no room in their life, or their bed, for her. And the last thing she wanted was to come between them. Closing her eyes, she forced her brain to disengage and tried not to think of anything. She drifted with the soft jazz music on the radio until a light flashed on. She stiffened but did not open her eyes, not wanting to face the hard things to come. “Daria, are you asleep?” Gage asked as he gave her a one-armed hug. She blinked several times as she straightened. They had arrived. The truck was now parked in the detached, oversized two-car garage at the back of their yard. “Come here, baby girl,” Gage said once he had climbed down from the tall truck. Daria nodded and handed him her messenger bag, which he hooked over one shoulder. She moved across the seat, and he caught her as she slid out. He hugged her tight to his chest with her feet several inches from the ground for several long seconds before

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lowering her. Daria thought she felt his cock stiffen and grow against her belly, then chastised herself for such wishful thinking. He belonged to Roman. There could never be anything between them no matter how much she wished differently. Once her feet landed on the garage floor, she tried to step back, but Gage would not let her go. When she tried again and still he would not release her, she looked up and stared into his gentle skyblue eyes that held a heat she had never before seen in them. She thought he wanted to kiss her, but before he made a move, Roman joined them. Gage looked from her to Roman then slowly released her and stepped back. Roman turned her to face him and settled his hard, warm hands on her shoulders. She look up into his dark chocolate brown eyes and found herself caught up in a heat that was different than Gage’s and yet at the same time so very similar. “Consider this your home now,” he said. A thread of something in his voice melted any will to argue she might have had. One hand stroked down her back, not stopping when he reached her waist but going all the way down and over the curve of her ass. “We’re Mrs. Stone’s kids. We stick together. Understand?” Looking deeper, she thought she saw more than just brotherly caring. Could that be male-female attraction? Could they be interested? Both of them? Would they make her choose between them, because she was not sure she could. “Yes…no…I don’t know,” she replied honestly, not able to get her brain to focus on anything but the hunger that was growing in her heart and in her pussy. She did not even care which one wanted her; she would take either one. “That’s okay, baby girl, you will.” Roman hugged her for longer than normal before releasing her and stepping back. A look at Gage had the other man moving in to hug her as well. She took several deep breaths to keep from falling apart again. She needed to be strong and stand on her own two feet.

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She could not allow these two wonderful men to coddle her from the reality that she owned nothing and had nowhere to go. “Come on, little one. Let’s go inside, and I’ll fix you a sandwich.” Gage stepped back then took her hand in his. Daria shrugged and crossed the grass to the house beside him. Roman walked on her other side. For a second she felt important, like a movie star with two big, strong men guarding her from the world. Then reality crashed down around her. They were doing this for Mrs. Stone. A lot of things would happen over the next few days, not because people cared about her specifically, but because they loved Mrs. Stone and all the good works she had done. Once they entered the kitchen, Gage led her to the table in the corner. He pulled out a chair then waited as she stared at it. It took a moment to realize he wanted her to sit down. Once she did, she jolted when he kissed the top of her head before walking away. He had never done that before. What was going on with these two? Was it the shock of the fire? Or was something else going on? She did not turn to watch. Instead she stared at the reflection of the room in the window across the table from where she sat. The men embraced, and then Gage laid his forehead on Roman’s shoulder. Roman lifted a hand and wrapped it around the back of Gage’s neck. “I’ll fix Daria something to eat while you make up the beds,” Roman said in a soft tone that again carried that thread of power. It made her wonder if she should go up and make her own bed instead of putting Gage out. Gage’s response was so soft she was not certain, but thought she heard him say, “Yes, Master.” Master? What the fuck? In the glass, Roman brushed his lips across Gage’s temple before the bigger man straightened and walked away. After that, Daria’s attention turned to her own reflection. She barely recognized the woman with the lush dark brown hair that draped over her left shoulder in a ponytail that ended just below

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her collarbone. The woman in the window wore just enough makeup on to enhance her big amber-colored eyes and the perfectly proportioned lips. The woman in the reflection looked like a successful, young professional woman or a young mother, not someone whose life once again lay shattered at her feet. Even after eight years away from her past, whenever Daria looked into the mirror she still expected to see the angry teenager with the super-short, spiky pink and green hair and three earrings in each ear who wore her anger and too-big clothes like a shield. The belligerent attitude and smart-ass mouth she had developed to keep everyone at arm’s length did little other than earn her regular slap-downs by the latest of the parade of men her mother brought into their lives. Her mother did not care how the men treated them as long as they kept buying the beer. She had been too drunk to step in when the last one decided he wanted to fuck Daria instead of her mother. Daria objected, and the man ended up in the emergency room needing stitches where she had cut his thigh with a broken beer bottle. Her mother landed in the morgue the next morning from alcohol poisoning. Daria was sent to the county group home to wait for her eighteenth birthday. Two weeks after moving into the group home, she met Mrs. Stone. Five minutes later Daria agreed to go home with the elderly woman. She never knew what Mrs. Stone had seen that day, but somehow the elderly woman had looked past the wild child exterior to the frightened girl cowering within. Over the next year Mrs. Stone, along with many of her other foster children, helped Daria put the bad stuff of her past to rest while helping her grow to be confident and selfreliant in almost any situation. When Daria aged out of the foster care system, Mrs. Stone hired her as her secretary, companion, and then later, her caretaker. Only in the past year had the old woman pushed her toward choosing the next step in her career path. Like numerous others of her foster brothers

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and sisters, Daria decided to go into a career in public service by training to be a paramedic. She jumped when Roman set a plate in front of her. Looking down, she swallowed hard to keep from bursting into tears again. “You remembered,” she whispered. “Of course I did, baby girl,” he said with a wink before he retrieved two glasses of milk from the counter by the refrigerator. Daria smiled down at her sandwich. Peanut butter and banana cut in triangular quarters. She did not need to lift the bread to know he had placed a layer of chocolate chips between the peanut butter and the slices of banana. A relatively healthy sandwich with a treat, Roman was the only one who fixed her favorite sandwich just the way she preferred. “Thank you,” she said softly as she stared at the sandwich without making a move to eat it. **** “You’re thinking too hard,” Roman said as he sat in the chair next to hers. She had not touched her sandwich yet, just looked down at it with an intent expression. He knew from past experience with Daria that he had better be ready to discuss something of serious importance. “What is it that has you staring at your favorite sandwich like it’s covered with ants?” He fought back a smile when Daria shrugged and picked up the first quarter of her sandwich. He watched as she quickly ate it in three bites, as she did the second one. When she picked up the third quarter, she finally looked at him. “Why did you kiss me like that?” She sounded confused and looked beyond troubled. Roman thought he felt Mrs. Stone’s hand reach into his chest and squeeze his heart at the idea that he had caused this beauty any troubling thoughts.

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Though it was hardly the time for this particular discussion, the reality of the situation needed to be brought into the open. Pushing back from the table, Roman turned his chair. He twisted her chair around so they sat face to face. “I kissed you because I couldn’t hold myself back any longer.” “But you’re gay! And if you haven’t noticed, I’m not a man. And you love Gage! You two have been together forever. Why would you want to screw that up?” Daria’s eyes got bigger with every sentence. She blinked twice before pushing back and standing. “Maybe I should leave and go stay with Mariellen or Kelso instead.” Before she could take a step, Roman grabbed her arm and pulled into his lap. “No, baby girl, you’re staying here with us. There are some things we need to talk about. I wanted to wait until you’d gotten your feet under you, but now is as good a time as any.” Daria wiggled in his arms, trying to get away, but Roman held tight. He shifted her to sit across his lap and held her with one arm around her back, holding her hips, and the other arm wrapped around her chest, his arm just brushing the undersides of her breasts. “Roman, let me go! What will Gage think when he comes back?” Roman tightened his hold as she attempted again to climb from his lap. “Gage knows how I feel. And I know how he feels. We’ve talked about this, and we’re in agreement. Now settle down and relax,” he ordered, purposely using his Dom voice to see if she would react as Gage did. She stilled immediately, proving to him that she was as much his woman as Gage was his man. “What’s going on?” Gage asked as he stepped into the room. “We’re about to have a talk,” Roman said. “Now?” Roman nodded. “Right now. Get yourself a glass of juice and join us.” Daria frowned at him, her bottom lip pooching out just a bit. “How come he gets juice and I have to drink milk?”

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She looked so cute pouting that Roman could not help himself. He leaned down and brushed a kiss on the tip of her nose. “Because, sweet Daria, Gage has a severe sensitivity to milk.” “Oh,” she said, looking surprised. “Why didn’t I know about this?” “It’s not a big deal,” Gage said as he sat down in the chair she had used. “You didn’t finish your sandwich.” Roman watched as Gage picked up the last quarter of the sandwich, smashed it appropriately flat, and held it up to Daria’s lips. Roman waited until she finished eating before reaching a hand out to his partner. “Daria, the first thing you need to understand is that we are not gay. We are monogamously bisexual,” Roman said carefully as he slid his hand around so it lay over her beating heart. “What does that mean, you’re monogamously bisexual?” She looked from him to Gage and back again. “It means that the only men we’re attracted to is each other. And the only woman we have any interest in is you,” Gage said gently as he reached out and took Daria’s hand between his. “What we want to know is whether or not you’re interested in us, too.”

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Chapter 4 Daria watched Roman’s mouth move, heard the words he said, but still had a hard time comprehending what he meant. She stared into his bright blue eyes as she tore apart his statement into small, manageable pieces. They were not gay. They were both attracted to her. They wanted to know if she was attracted to them? Before she could scream, “Hell yeah,” she reached down with the hand Gage was not holding. Pinching her thigh, pain shot from the skin between her fingertips to her brain. Okay, she was awake and not in the throes of some bizarre shockinduced dream. But what does it mean? She did not realize she had spoken out loud until Roman brushed a kiss on her hair and said softly, “It means, baby girl, that we want you here with us, in our lives and in our bed. We want to be your men.” “But…but…how can we do that?” Daria turned to look at Roman, who looked just as serious as Gage did. “All you have to do is say yes and we’ll work the rest out,” Roman said. His voice was soft and intense as he leaned closer and brushed his lips back and forth over hers. Her body went weak at the touch. Her nipples stood up and begged for attention as her pussy went soft and wet in preparation for sex. “Yes,” she breathed. “I think I’ve wanted you since the day Mrs. Stone brought me home and you were there cutting the grass.”

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“Just Roman?” Gage asked, sounding hesitant. She squeezed his hand and turned to smile at him. A big yawn escaped before she said, “No, I wanted both of you, but you were committed to one another, and I couldn’t have chosen between you if someone had pointed a gun to my head. Not then and not now. I want you both. But I still don’t see how we can do this.” Gage smiled, looking like a happy man, and then his gaze shifted to Roman, and his smile slowly melted away. “There is something else we need to talk about, angel.” “More? I don’t think there could be anything bigger than this,” she joked before yawning again. She looked from one to the other when neither spoke. They exchanged a glance, and Roman gave a slight shake of his head to which Gage nodded in agreement. Then both men turned their attention to her. “More can wait until tomorrow. For now we can all do with some rest,” Roman said as he gave her a squeeze for helping her climb from his lap. **** As soon as Daria was on her feet, Gage leaned forward, wrapped an arm around her waist, and stood with her dangling from his shoulder. “Gage! What are you going?” she yelped as he followed Roman across the kitchen. “You’re tired, and I thought I’d give you a ride upstairs.” He chuckled, patting the back of her thigh. “Now just relax and trust me. I’m a fireman and trained to rescue damsels in distress.” He could not help but grin at his Master when Daria giggled then slid her hands in the back pockets of his jeans. Roman looked at them and smiled in approval. Once they climbed the stairs, Gage walked into the guestroom

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before setting Daria on her feet again. He looked around at the room then to the woman and knew they were doing the right thing. “I brought you a T-shirt to wear and a new toothbrush.” He waved toward the corner of the bed where he had left a set of towels and everything else he thought she might need that they had in the storage cabinet. He watched as Daria looked around the room that she had helped them paint a soft peach three years earlier. They had made her pick out the paint and most of the furnishings but did not tell her why. Truth was, they had wanted to claim her the minute she turned twenty-one except for the promise Mrs. Stone had extracted from them to give her another four years. Seeing her look around the room they had put together just for her made the wait worthwhile. He wondered how long it would be until she preferred sleeping with them to sleeping in here. “You want me to sleep in here?” she asked as she looked past him to Roman, who stood in the doorway. Gage turned as well to look toward the man he loved more than anything. The man who ruled his life with a velvet-covered iron fist. Roman smiled gently at them. “Daria, we would love to have you in our bed tonight and every night, but we are not going to push anything on you. You’ve had a hell of a day and night and if you would prefer to sleep in here alone, we will abide by your decision. But if you wish to join us in our room, you are more than welcome.” Gage watched Daria out of the corner of his eye. He had to swallow hard to keep from groaning in need when she licked at her lips with her pink tongue. He had to look away when she bit her bottom lip as she considered the situation. “I’d like to sleep with you, please,” she said. Roman nodded with a smile. “We’d like that, sweetheart. But just so you know, we have a rule about no clothes in bed. Why don’t you go ahead and get ready for bed? We’ll meet you in there, okay?” Before Daria could turn away, Gage wrapped an arm around her

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and brushed a kiss over her hair. “Take your time. We’ll wait.” He followed Roman across the landing and into their room. He waited until the water in the guest bathroom began to run. “Why didn’t you tell her the rest? She needs to know.” Roman gave him the look that said he was dancing on the edge of insubordination. In this room more than anywhere else in the house, Gage submitted totally to his master, but at this moment, he needed to understand. “I think we’ve overwhelmed her enough for one night. Especially after the fire and everything else that she went through today. We’ll tell her in a day or two, once she’s found her feet. By then she’ll probably have figured it out. She’s known for some time that I’m the boss in this relationship. She just doesn’t know how much of a boss I am,” Roman said. He took off his own clothes and tossed them on the bed before going into the bathroom they’d built out of the bedroom that had been between their room and Daria’s. Gage stripped down and put his clothes and Roman’s in the clothes hamper. When Roman emerged, Gage went in for a super-quick shower. After brushing his teeth, he tidied the room before turning off the light and returning to the bedroom. Daria was in the bed alone with the covers pulled to her neck. She looked scared. Daria looked in his face then her eyes dropped slowly down his body. He felt the brush of her gaze like a hand gently stroking his skin. He felt his cock twitch and begin to stiffen. He saw her swallow hard as she watched his erection come to life until it was pointing straight out in front of him, long and strong. He turned around slowly then grinned when he once again faced her and met her wide-eyed gaze. “Like what you see?” She slowly nodded her head up and down. “Do I get to see you?” Daria dropped her face until her chin rested on her chest. Then her head moved slowly from side to side one time.

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“Daria? Can’t we see your beautiful body?” Roman asked from the doorway to the landing. Looking past the man, Gage deduced that he had gone back downstairs to lock the doors and turn out the lights. Which was why he’d put his boxer shorts back on, which he now peeled off and hung on the doorknob. When he straightened, Gage had to swallow at the sight of his man naked and as aroused as he was. Daria looked at Roman for a long, long moment before she lowered the blanket to her waist. Gage sucked a breath as his eyes widened when he saw the scars on her ribs and breasts. They were white with age, but the lines and circles gave him a real good idea of why she had ended up in Mrs. Stone’s care. Someone had done some serious damage to his angel. But that was the past. Now was the present, and this was their time to show her how beautiful and loving they knew her to be. Gage approached the bed slowly and climbed in next to her, wanting nothing more than to kiss her and assure her that she was the most beautiful female he had ever seen. His eyes met Roman’s as his Master crawled in on her other side. “Daria, are you on the pill?” Roman asked gently as they settled down next to her with the covers pulled only as high as their hips. “No, I tried them, but they made me sick,” she whispered, looking embarrassed and uncomfortable. Gage laid his hand on her arm and began to stroke up and down the soft flesh, hoping to soothe her. “That’s okay, angel, we’ll take care of it.” Roman looked at him and mouthed the word “Condom?” Gage shook his head. They had not kept condoms in the house in years. “For tonight, though, there will be no intercourse,” Roman stated as he looked across their woman. Gage saw the raging hunger in his Master’s expression. What was he planning? “Huh?” Daria asked, sounding more than a little disappointed.

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“It means that we’ll have to get creative in making love to our beautiful baby girl,” Roman explained as he leaned over her and claimed her lips. Gage held back and watched as Roman seduced their woman, building her hunger, setting her arousal on fire. He knew that he would have his turn when Roman allowed it. For now he was quite happy watching as Master kissed and caressed Daria until she began to pant and shift her hips on the bed. When Roman lifted his head and met Gage’s eyes, he was not sure what the other man wanted. “Show our woman what you do best,” Roman ordered softly as his eyes cut down her body. “Yes, Master,” Gage answered in an automatic response to the power-filled tone of Roman’s voice. As he returned to kissing and playing with Daria’s lips and breasts, Gage slowly eased down the bed, pushing the covers down until they fell off the end of the bed. Then he turned to Daria, his mouth watering at the knowledge that she was theirs. He began kissing at her bellybutton and worked his way south. He felt her stiffen for a few seconds before relaxing with a sigh. As he reached the top of her slit, he worked one hand between her thighs and urged them to spread. Extending his tongue, he began to lick between her pussy lips, slowly moving farther and farther down between her thighs. As he tasted the cream that coated her skin, he could not help but moan with his own excitement. She moved her legs wider apart, and he shifted to lie between them, his intent to give her the best orgasm of her life using fingers, lips, and tongue instead of cock. Tomorrow, he would buy a case of condoms and store them in every room in the house. For tonight, he would introduce Daria to the pleasures of his tongue.

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Chapter 5 Daria, so caught up in Roman’s kiss, jumped when Gage licked at her bellybutton then swirled his tongue around in it. She probably should have confessed a secret of her own, but embarrassment kept her silent. They would learn the truth soon enough, just not tonight. She cooperated fully as Roman shifted his attention from her lips to kissing his way down her neck to pay meticulous attention to her breasts. It was as if he knew exactly how to turn her on even when she did not. When Gage slid a hand between her thighs, she moved her legs, giving him room. As his tongue parted the lips protecting her clit, Daria sighed as she moved her legs even farther apart. She felt the bed shift and then Gage’s tongue brush from the top of her slit, over her tightly knotted clit, to the wide-open entrance to her pussy. Closing her eyes, she focused on the lightning bolts that were shooting from her pussy to the rest of her body. She did not realize Roman had moved from her breasts until something warm, wet, and velvety soft brushed her cheek. Turning her head, she forced her eyes open and found herself nose to head with Roman’s cock. It was long and thick with veins tracing the length just under the rose-colored skin. The mushroom head was a darker red and slick with his fluid. “Suck it, baby girl,” he ordered in a gentle yet demanding tone. It was that same tone that always made her want to do whatever he asked so she could hear him praise her in that same powerful yet gentle tone.

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Opening her mouth, Daria hoped her inexperience would not show as she sucked cock for the first time in her life. Wrapping the fingers of one hand around the base of his cock, she extended the tip of her tongue and swiped it across the head, tasting the pearly fluid there. She moaned at the salty, tangy flavor before parting her lips and taking just the head into her mouth and closing her lips around the shaft. Then Gage did something down between her legs, pulling her attention away from what she was doing. She gasped around the cock in her mouth then sucked harder, moving her hand up and down the shaft in a movement that just felt right. Looking up at Roman, she found him staring at her with halfclosed eyes and a super-intense expression. She smiled as his hips began to push his length farther into her mouth. “Suck it, baby girl, I’m so damn close,” Roman groaned. She moaned again when Gage slid two fingers into her and began to finger-fuck her. She felt all the muscles in her body tighten in preparation. When he took her clit between his teeth and nibbled gently, she came. She tried not to bite down too hard on Roman as she continued to bob up and down his shaft. “Oh fuck,” Roman called as his cock jerked in her mouth and began to squirt his life juices across her tongue. It took nearly a minute before she could relax her muscles enough to release his softening cock without hurting him. She licked the skin clean as she did until she once again swirled her tongue around the head. Roman slid down the bed and kissed her deeply, tasting himself on her before cuddling her into his side. “That was so damn good,” he said. A moment later, Gage joined them, laying his head on her chest, and snuffled at her breast. “You okay, angel?” “Mmmm,” Daria answered on a sigh.

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“Master?” “Jack yourself off, pet,” Roman said softly. “Daria, do you think you could help him get off? Otherwise he’ll never sleep and be useless tomorrow.” Daria nodded and slid down the bed between the two men until her head was right above the head of Gage’s cock. The big man had begun sliding his hand along his shaft that was even bigger and longer than Roman’s. She stared at it, wondering how it would ever fit inside her when that time came. Wanting to help the man who was panting, Daria took just the tip into her mouth, swabbing it with her tongue as she sucked as if it was a pacifier. She took his balls into one hand and began to massage them as well. As she rubbed her tongue just under the glans, Gage’s hand moved faster and faster until he cried out and filled her mouth with his fluids. Once he relaxed back onto the mattress, Daria swallowed and cleaned his cock before crawling back up between the men. Returning her head to Roman’s shoulder, she smiled sleepily as Gage moved in close behind her. “Sleep, my loves. We have a lot to do tomorrow,” Roman said, kissing Daria’s forehead then leaning over her to kiss Gage. **** Gage waited until Daria’s breathing slowed to the steady rhythm of sleep before lifting up and resting his head on his elbow. “We need to tell her ASAP,” he whispered. “She needs to understand and accept before we go any further.” Roman nodded as his fingers continued massaging the back of their woman’s neck. “We will, but right now we all need some sleep. It’s been a hell of a day, and none of us has begun to deal with the reality of what’s happened.” Gage nodded silently. “Should I turn off the alarm?”

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The alarm clock was set for five, giving them plenty of time for a little morning wake-up sex before starting their day. “No, you need to go to Wallyworld and do some shopping. We need a big box of condoms, and Daria needs some clothes to get through the next day or two until we can take her on a proper shopping trip. But don’t bother with panties. She won’t need them.” “Yes, Master,” Gage said as he lay back down. Closing his eyes, he took a deep breath and joined the sleeping woman in dreamland. **** Roman stared at the slowly turning ceiling fan as his thoughts drifted. He tried to focus on the three of them and the life they would build together, but thoughts of Mrs. Stone kept intruding. Without disturbing his bed partners, he rolled out of the bed and walked through the darkness to the bathroom. Closing the door, he gave himself over to the sadness at losing the woman who had turned his life around. He would do his mourning now so when morning came, he could be strong for Daria and Gage. “Don’t worry, Mrs. Stone, I’ll take good care of them,” he whispered to the darkness. Once he got himself back under control, he crept back into bed and pulled Daria into his arms again. Reaching over her, he laid a hand on Gage and sighed. The world might not understand, but this was right. Breathing in the combined scents of his woman and his slave, Roman closed his eyes and willed himself to sleep. **** Daria sat straight up with her eyes still closed when loud music blasted through her dream. It took her a moment to recognize one of the latest country hits about a woman scolding a man for being mean to her. But why was it playing in her bedroom? She did not use an

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alarm clock and only occasionally listened to the country radio station in her car. Mrs. Stone preferred the classical music or gentle jazz. “Shhh, little one, it’s okay. Go back to sleep,” a deep, sleepy voice said just before someone brushed a kiss on the top of her shoulder. Forcing her eyes open, Daria turned her head. Why was Gage in her room and shirtless? Then she looked around and realized this was not her room. Then memories of the night before crashed down on her. “Daria? Lie down, baby girl. It’s too early to be awake,” Roman said behind her. “Then why did the alarm go off?” “Because Gage has to go to the store,” Roman answered as Gage rolled out of bed and padded into the bathroom. He did not seem to care that she watched every move he made. “Why?” she could not help but ask, though she had a real good idea. “Because we can’t have hot, sweaty, wake-up-smiling morning sex without condoms,” Roman said. “Now lie down so I can hold you some more.” Daria lay back down and sighed as Roman wrapped himself around her, but her mind refused to return to sleep. She was a morning person, and once she was awake she had a hard time falling back to sleep. Especially when she had questions she wanted answered. But the man felt so good wrapped around her as he softly snored in her ear, signaling he had instantly returned to sleep, so she relaxed and let her mind drift. When Gage returned to the room, she watched as he pulled on cargo pants, T-shirt, and sneakers. She frowned when he picked up her clothes and looked at the tags on each item of clothing. “What are you doing?” she whispered, not wanting to wake Roman again. After looking at the tag of her pants, he folded them and laid them on the dresser. “Go back to sleep. I’ll be back in a little while. And if

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you’re a good girl, I’ll bring one of those apple ugly thingies you like.” “Mmmm, yes, please.” Daria returned her head to the pillow then lifted it again to find the big man headed for the door. “Gage?” “Yes, angel?” “Why do you call Roman master?” “We’ll talk about that while Gage is gone,” Roman murmured in her ear. “Go on Gage. And pick Daria up a case of soda while you’re out.” “Yes, Master,” Gage said then left the room as if the alarm at the firehouse had just sounded. Instead of answering her question immediately, Roman’s hands began to play with whatever available flesh they could find. Which was plenty seeing as Daria was as naked as he was. When he began to tweak her nipple, Daria rolled away. She ended up at the edge of the bed but out of arm’s length from the man who now stared at her through sleepy brown eyes. “Come back over here,” Roman ordered in that deep, dark voice filled with power. Daria scooted back across the bed until only a few inches separated their bodies. She squeaked when Roman wrapped his arms around her and pulled her so they were skin to skin. “You know what BDSM is, right?” he asked, his voice low and dark as his lips brushed across her forehead. “Bondage, discipline, domination, submission, that sort of thing,” she answered. “Yes, that sort of thing,” Roman said. “Gage and I discovered ‘the lifestyle,’ as it is called, about five years ago. As we explored it, we found that we really enjoyed the domination and submission part of it.” Daria’s breathing hitched as her brain worked at warp speed to put together what she had seen over the years and what she had witnessed just minutes before. “You’re the dominant,” she stated warily.

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He nodded. “Yes, I am the dominant, and Gage is the submissive. In this house, I am Master and Gage is my slave boy. He is also my lover, best friend, partner, and the other half of my soul, but here at home I am in charge. I call the shots, especially in bed.” Daria closed her eyes as a wave of need washed over her. She had been reading erotic romances about threesomes and BDSM for the past year, wishing she could find herself such a situation. Now, on the worst day of her life, Roman and Gage had taken her in and were handing her the dream on a silver platter. “If you’re the Master and Gage is your slave, where does that leave me?” She knew her question sounded naïve, but it was the only thought that came to mind. “Your place will be right between us,” Roman said. “You are submissive enough that I think you’ll enjoy taking orders from me, but there’s also a side to you that wants to be in charge. It’s up to Gage, but I’m willing to share him with you, much as he and I will be sharing you.” He slid a hand down and began to rub his fingertips up and down between the cheeks of her ass. “You don’t have to decide right now. Hell, you may decide you never want to be with us in that way. All I ask is that you respect our privacy by not telling anyone our business.” Daria sucked a breath and everything from the waist down clenched when a fingertip brushed over her back hole. “And if I want to be your slave, too?” she asked in a soft voice. The finger brushed back and forth, then up and down, then around and around the puckered flesh. “Mmmm, that could be very interesting,” he said in his voice of power. “If you want to try being my slave girl, then get up on your hands and knees with that beautiful ass facing this direction.” As Daria scrambled to do as he ordered, she felt Roman move around behind her. Once she positioned herself as he wished, she turned her head to look over her shoulder. He was kneeling behind her and staring at her ass with a lust she

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had never seen on a man’s face before. Then he lifted his gaze to meet hers. “You have the most beautiful body.” She shook her head in denial, which earned her a frown from the gorgeous Dom. “Arguing with your Master will earn you a spanking,” he said as he ran one hand up and down her spine. “And right now I’d rather play with this beautiful ass than punish it. Drop your chest to the bed then lay your arms on the bed by your sides.” Daria felt her insides clench at his threat of punishment. What would it feel like to be across Roman’s knees getting a spanking? Would she like that bite of pain? Could it possibly turn her on even more than she already was? Lowering her shoulders and chest to the mattress, she placed her arms as he wished. They only stayed there a moment as Roman lifted one and then the other to her ass. “Pull those pretty cheeks apart and hold them that way. No matter what, don’t let go or you’ll earn a spanking,” he ordered gently. “Yes, Master,” she replied softly. She sighed as the title passed her lips. It felt so right. Was this what was missing from the other men she had dated? Would giving over control to another really be what her life lacked? “Now just relax, baby girl, while I play with all your bits and pieces.” Though she tried to remain calm and relaxed, Daria had a hard time when nothing happened for the longest time. She opened her mouth to speak, but he patted her left cheek sharply. “No talking unless you’re answering a question I ask of you or calling red. Do you know what that means?” “Yes, Master. Red means everything stops.” “And when do you call red?” he asked as his hand continued to stroke up and down her spine in a comforting, almost hypnotizing, manner.

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“When something hurts too much to continue,” she said. “Very good, baby girl. That’s exactly right. Now, just breathe and enjoy.” Daria closed her eyes and focused on her breathing, slow deep breaths to help her relax as she waited for Roman to begin his playing. When he pulled back, she tensed, but did not move otherwise. She could wait patiently, she assured herself silently. She would wait patiently. For she was not in charge at this moment, Roman was. Though he did not realize it, she had been praying for him to claim her as his woman for years.

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Chapter 6 Roman stared at the beautiful woman before him and wondered how in the hell he was going to hold off fucking her until Gage returned with protection. She lay positioned perfectly, her ass spread wide by her own hands to show off her pretty puckered star as well as her sweet pussy slicked up with her own juices. Instead of touching her, he climbed from the bed, still watching his beautiful Daria. She watched him, opening her mouth as if to speak then closing it again and biting at her bottom lip. He found his cell phone on the dresser and hit the speed dial for Gage. “Yes?” His man answered on the first ring. “How long before you get back here?” “I’m checking out now. Why?” “Because I need those condoms now,” Roman ground out as his cock throbbed at the thought of not being able to be inside Daria for that length of time. “Ten minutes,” Gage said. Roman heard the sound of plastic bags rattling in the background. “It had better be only ten minutes,” Roman growled before disconnecting and returning to the bed. “Have you ever had a man fuck your ass?” he asked as easily as he would ask about the weather. “No.” Roman watched as her ass cheeks clenched and fought the hold her hands had on them at his suggestion. Reaching for the bottle of lube he had pulled from the nightstand earlier, he decided he could get

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Daria used to something in her ass while they waited for Gage to return. First, though, he wanted to watch the sweet thing squirm. With one finger, he started at the top of her cleft and slowly dragged the pad of his finger down between her ass cheeks. When he reached the puckered star, he circled several times before pressing softly at opening. Then he continued down to the entrance to her pussy. He slid two fingers into her hot, wet pussy, slow and gentle, then began to finger-fuck her. He twisted and turned his fingers as they eased in and out. He could not help but smile when her breathing hitched then sped up. A moment later, her hips began to flex as she tried to fuck herself on his hand. She whined when he pulled from her pussy then sighed when one finger continued down her centerline to begin circling the puffy flesh of her clit. Her breathing became faster and faster until she began to pant and juices dripped from her pussy to coat his hand. She was close, too close. He pulled his hand away, earning a moan of disapproval from the wound-up woman before him. “Relax, baby girl. Deep breaths, remember?” he ordered with a grin. Daria did not answer, but he could tell she was fighting to maintain some sort of composure when the situation called for anything but. He knew she kept an iron-fisted control in all aspects of her life, but he would refuse to allow her one here in his bed. He wanted to see her lose the ever-present veil of calm she had developed since becoming one of Mrs. Stone’s kids. He wanted her wild and loose, yet at the same time so relaxed that she would not be able to stand on her own. Reaching for the lube, he coated the fingers of his already dripping hand. Without apology or warning, he dribbled some down the cleft of her ass. She gasped as the cold liquid landed on hot skin but did not make any other sound or protest.

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Roman slowly pressed one finger through the center of her back hole up to his second knuckle. He held his finger still as her muscles clenched and unclenched repeatedly around the intruder for nearly a minute. When they finally relaxed again, he pushed forward until the length of his finger was in her. With his other hand, he rubbed up and down her spine. “How does that feel, baby doll?” “Uh…full. Naughty. It kind of hurts, but it doesn’t,” she said softly. “Just relax and feel the immense pleasure to be had within the little bite of pain,” Roman said as he began to ease his finger out then back in again. He continued until her muscles relaxed around him. He heard Gage’s truck pull into the driveway as he added a second finger and started the process all over again. His cock was hard as a rock and drooling on his belly as he pressed a third finger in alongside its brothers, pulling a whining wail from the woman who began to move back and forth on the fingers as much as her constrained position would allow. “Roman?” she said in a tight, hoarse voice. “What is it, baby girl?” He began to rotate his fingers as he fucked them in and out of her. “I need…I need…Please?” “You need to come?” “Yes, please,” she whispered. Hearing Gage on the stairs, Roman pulled his fingers out. “Hold it, baby girl. Do not come. I want to be deep in that beautiful pussy, and then we’ll come together.” Daria did not answer, but her body continued to rock if she were trying to fuck air. “It’s about damn time,” he growled at Gage when the other man finally came into the bedroom. “Sorry, Master, but there was an accident on the highway and

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traffic was backed up,” Gage said as he handed Roman a box. “Is this all you bought?” Roman ripped open the box and fumbled to tear one of the plastic packets open. “No, Master. There are four more boxes downstairs.” “We may need to look into buying stock in the company,” Roman said as he dropped the strip of packets. Gage picked up the strip and tore one free of the others. He opened the packet and, after kissing the head of Roman’s cock free of drool, gently smoothed the latex down his steel-hard shaft. “God, pet, what would I do without you?” “You’d figure out something,” Gage snarked before leaning up and giving his Master a long, deep, wet kiss. “Go put away the rest of the things you bought and put on coffee. Kelso will be here soon, and he probably won’t be alone.” Roman kissed his man again and patted the cock bulging behind Gage’s zipper. He knew Gage was as anxious as he was to claim Daria, but right now he wanted the woman to himself. He would allow Gage equal time later. “But Master…” “Do you want to wear a plug and a ring all day without the relief of playing with our girl once your chores are through?” Roman’s voice went dark and powerful again. “No, Master. I’m sorry,” Gage said as he backed away from the bed. “And close the door on your way out.” Gage said nothing more, just walked out and pulled the door closed behind him. Roman leaned down and kissed the back of Daria’s neck. “Now, little one, where were we?” **** Daria felt torn. She wanted to prove to Roman what a good girl

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she could be, but on the other hand she needed relief and she needed it now. She did not even give a shit whether or not they had a condom. At that moment, she would take the chance as long as Roman eased the burning itch that radiated out from her clit through her entire body. Though she heard Gage and Roman talking, she was so lost in her own arousal that the words they exchanged did not make sense. By the time Roman turned his attention back to her, rubbing a hand up and down the back of her right thigh, the orgasm that had threatened to consume her had retreated enough she might, just might, be able to hold off long enough for him to find his pleasure before she exploded into a million happy pieces. “Okay, baby girl, are you ready for this?” Roman asked as he brushed the head of his cock up and down from asshole to clit and back again. “Yes, Roman. Please. Fuck. Me.” She tried to push her hips back and take him inside fast, but in her current head-down-ass-up position, she had no leverage to move more than a few inches. Then he wrapped his hands around her hips and held her steady. She could not speed up the process now even if she wanted to. She tensed, preparing herself for a fast ravaging, but instead Roman’s cock slid into her so slowly she was not sure he was even moving forward. When he froze, she knew he had figured out her secret. She tried to back up on him, but he pulled out, flipped her onto her back, and laid half over her all in one move. “Daria?” She made a soft whining sound as he moved so they were face to face. One look into his stunned expression and she knew she was in trouble. “Why didn’t you tell me?” Daria held Roman’s gaze steadily though she really, really wanted

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to crawl under the bed and hide from his all-seeing brown eyes. She could not read his suddenly blank expression. Turning her head, she closed her eyes so he could not see the hurt she would not be able to hide. She thought he would be happy to find her unused, but instead he seemed disappointed. Did he not want her now that he knew the truth? Would he send her away because she was inexperienced? A tear squeezed from under her eyelids. Then she felt a finger gently wipe it away. “Why did you save yourself? And why didn’t you tell us? Tell me?” Daria shrugged. “Does it really matter?” “Yes, darlin’, it does,” Roman said, his voice soft and gentle. “It matters a hell of a lot.” Swallowing hard, Daria took a deep breath. “I saved myself for you and Gage. I figured it could never happen and I would die a virgin, but I have yet to meet a man who makes me feel as special as you two do. There, now you know. Happy?”

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Chapter 7 The arousal she thought would kill her just moments earlier was gone, replaced by a quickly escalating embarrassment for admitting her reason for her untried state. Opening her eyes, she found Roman watching her. He wore an expression of amazement that shifted to a predatory hunger. “Yes, baby girl, I’m very happy,” Roman said as he started kissing all over the right side of her face before taking her lips with his own, “and I promise that I will to cherish this gift you are giving to me.” He shifted so he lay completely over her and began to drag the underside of his cock up and down between her lower lips. As his flesh brushed against her clit, Daria found her arousal had not completely evaporated. Her hunger roared back to life until she began squirming under him, needing more. “Please,” she breathed as he licked at one nipple while his fingers plucked at the other. With that, Roman rose up and over her. “Are you sure? We don’t have to do this now,” he said as he settled between her widespread thighs. Daria nodded quickly. “I’m sure. Please fuck me, Roman. Make me your woman.” Roman brushed his lips over hers as he fit the head of his cock back at the entrance to her pussy. “Hold on tight, baby girl. This first time might be uncomfortable, but I promise I’ll make it up to you later.” Daria wrapped her arms around his back as he slowly pushed

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deeper and deeper until he sheathed fully inside her. Lifting his lips from hers, he pulled back far enough she could see his eyes. They looked nearly black with his arousal. “How you feeling?” “Mmmm, full,” Daria said as she tried to move her hips against his. “Please. Move. Fuck me.” “Please fuck me, who?” “Roman. Please fuck me, Roman.” He kissed her long and hard as her muscles became accustomed to his cock. Then he pushed up and back until he knelt between her legs with his thick length still fully embedded in her. Her back arched and her hips lifted with him until her ass cheeks were resting on his thighs. He reached up and grabbed a pillow and slid it under her back “We’re going to take this nice and slow, sweet baby girl. Slow and easy,” Roman said. He pushed her legs up so her thighs rested along her chest. “Hold them there and don’t move,” he ordered gently. He did not move until she wrapped her hands around her legs. Only then did he slowly ease out until just the head of his cock remained inside her. Once again, the position he placed her in prevented her from fucking him back, so all she could do was lie there and accept what he gave her. After holding still for an endless three seconds, he slowly eased back in until he was buried full length again. “Please,” she moaned as she released her legs and grabbed at his arms, needing him to move faster and ease the hunger squeezing tighter and tighter in her lower belly. “Put your hands back,” Roman said without moving an inch. “You need to learn that when your Master tells you to do something or not do something, you follow his instructions to the letter. Do you understand?” “Yes, Roman.” Daria reluctantly turned his arms loose. Her insides shivered with pleasure when he smiled and said, “Good girl.”

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Once her hands returned to her lower legs, he began to ease in and out at a snail’s pace. Daria began to pant as the muscles behind her clit and around her pussy drew tighter and tighter. She tried to again to shift her hips, hoping to entice him to lose control and move faster and harder. But Roman would not be hurried. He seemed content to move slowly in and out of her pussy as he stared down at her, his own expression unreadable. Was he not happy? Had she done something wrong? “Roman, please,” she begged. Her orgasm circled her yet remained just beyond her reach as if taunting her. Wanting to move, needing just a little more, a little faster, a little harder, to reach the stars, she began to make whiney sounds with each gasping breath. “Is my baby girl close?” Roman asked. He leaned forward, placing his hands on either side of her chest. This changed his angle of penetration so his cock now stroked over her clit with every movement. He slowly increased his pace until he was pistoning in and out of her. Daria tried to follow his instructions, but needed to touch him, needed to feel his skin against hers to keep her grounded and under some small measure of control. Straightening her legs, she wrapped them around his waist as she reached up and slid her arms around his shoulders in an effort to pull him closer. Though he kept fucking her, Roman resisted her efforts. His expression showed the effort he put forth to maintain some sort of sanity. When she dragged one hand across the nape of his neck, something changed. He began to move faster and harder. “Let it loose. Come for me, baby girl,” he ground out between gritted teeth. “Come. Now.” With those words, the orgasm that had hovered so close crashed over her like storm waves beating on the shore. She cried out as every muscle in her body clenched, and she gripped him tighter than before.

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When her cries became too loud, he dropped his body down and covered her mouth with his own in an effort to muffle her. Three more hard strokes and he roared into her mouth as his cock jerked within her. She felt the added heat of his semen filling the condom that separated them and smiled with a bone deep contentment she had never felt before. Daria clung to him as her orgasm rolled back and forth through her nerves from fingertips to clit and back again. Roman held himself deep inside her for several long minutes as he whispered words of praise and love, most of which Daria did not have enough functioning brain cells to decipher. His gentle, loving tone got through, and her heart filled with the knowledge that she had pleased him. When he moved to pull from her, she tightened her hold, grunting a denial. “Hush, baby girl. We have to get up. If Kelso isn’t here already, he will be soon, and Gage can’t lie his way out of a paper bag,” Roman said as he brushed several strands of hair out of her face. Then he leaned in and kissed her gently. “But I don’t want to,” Daria whined. That earned her a sharp smack on her left hip and a frown. “No whining. Now let me go. I’ll get my shower, and once I’m done I’ll send Gage up. Maybe you can talk him into washing your back or something.” Roman’s expression eased, and he gave her a wink and a smile that screamed of sexy intentions. “You won’t mind?” Daria reluctantly pulled her arms and legs from around them then sighed when he pulled from her. “Of course not. You belong to Gage as much as you do to me. We will both want to spend time with you, alone and together. We’ll talk about this later, but understand you now have two men to see to your every need, want, and desire, both in bed and out.” Roman left the bed and headed for the shower after another quick kiss.

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Not sure her muscles would cooperate, Daria rolled onto her side and curled up. Her entire being relaxed, and, though she would love to go downstairs for a Pepsi, she felt no real desire to move. Closing her eyes, she allowed herself to drift and enjoy the sexual satisfaction that continued to flow through her. She heard the shower turn on then turn off again a few minutes later. When Roman entered the room and began to dress, she opened her eyes and watched but made no effort to get up. She was too comfortable lying there with Gage’s scent on the pillow under her head and Roman’s on her body. If she could have her way, she would lie here for the rest of the day, ignoring the world and all the worries it held beyond the walls of this room. Once he was dressed, Roman leaned over the bed and kissed her cheek. “Take a nap, love. I’ll send Gage up in a while to wake you and help you with your shower.” Daria took a deep breath and released it on a sigh as she snuggled deeper into Gage’s pillow. “’Kay.” **** Though he had no reason to feel resentment at being sent away to do his chores, Gage did. He wanted to be there, be a part of this first loving with their woman. He wanted to watch Daria come from Roman’s cock as he had done so many times over their years together. After putting the groceries away, he started the coffeemaker and wondered whether Kelso would arrive with donuts or if he should throw together some kind of breakfast for them all. The half dozen pastries he bought suddenly did not look like enough. Once he had the kitchen put to rights, he carried the bags with Daria’s clothes and the extra condoms upstairs. He put the clothes bag on Daria’s bed and the condoms in the linen closet behind and under the stack of extra towels. With all the people he was sure would be visiting over the

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next few days, someone was bound to go snooping, and he did not want his Master embarrassed. He stopped outside the closed bedroom door but did not open it. Intruding and blatant disobedience would earn him more than a few punishment strokes, and the last thing he needed was to be too sore to take care of Daria and Roman. Turning away from the door, he heaved a sad sigh. The doorbell gonged when he was halfway down the stairs again, for which he said a silent thank-you to the universe. A visitor might give him something to do other than imagine what Master was doing to Daria, which he knew would only leave him horny.

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Chapter 8 Roman came down the stairs and found a half dozen people in the kitchen talking, crying, and drinking coffee. All of them were family members in the sense that forty foster children over fifty years could form a family unit. The news had gotten out that Mrs. Stone was dead, and Kelso had probably had his wife, Maddie, tell people that this was the place to gather in this time of sorrow. It took several minutes of greeting everyone before he reached the nearly empty coffeepot. After pouring himself the first of the dozen or so cups he usually needed to get through the day, he wandered around, trying to find Gage. But Gage seemed to have disappeared. Before he could make a second pass through the downstairs on his hunt, Kelso grabbed his arm. “We need to talk,” the older man said with a look that told Roman he would not like the topic of conversation. “Sure, just let me find Gage and we’ll be right with you.” “He and Maddie went to the store and then to get Daria’s car. He said we needed more coffee and cups and stuff and that she needed to drive Daria’s car home because he didn’t fit,” Kelso said. Roman nodded and followed his mentor out onto the porch. “What’s up?” “I’ve been getting a lot of questions I can’t answer,” Kelso said, staring hard across the lawn instead of looking at Roman. “Already? It’s only eight o’clock in the morning,” Roman tried to joke, but Kelso did not crack a smile, telling him this was serious and probably not good. “About what?”

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“Daria. You and Gage. And where exactly everyone is sleeping.” Roman ground his back teeth as he considered his friend’s words as anger began to boil in his belly. Then he took a deep breath to push down the anger at the notion that anyone might think of Daria in a less-than-perfect light. Of all of Mrs. Stone’s kids, she was the one who gave and gave and gave, without question, without expectation of recompense, without thought of anything beyond giving aid where it was needed. Once he had himself back under control, he looked at his friend. “Daria is an adult, and last night her entire world burnt to the ground. We have a guestroom, and she is welcome to use it for as long as she needs and wants to. Of all the things Mrs. Stone taught us, the biggest was that though we are a family from different mothers, we are family and family sticks together.” Kelso opened his mouth to speak, but Roman cut him off. “You might also tell those who are concerned about Daria’s living arrangements that the woman needs more than a couch for a night or two. She needs a home and security. She’s also going to need a job until she finds out that she passed the EMT certification test she took last night, and we can get her hired on somewhere as an ambulance driver while she studies to be a paramedic.” Turning away, Roman felt tears pressing at his eyes at the thought that his baby girl, Gage’s angel, their Daria, needed more than just him and Gage. She needed a life of her own. One to replace the life that had been so tragically taken from her. Would they be able to let her go when the time came? Would she want to leave them and be on her own? “Don’t worry, little brother, it will all work out.” Kelso stepped closer and wrapped an arm around Roman’s shoulders. “We’re all going to miss Mrs. Stone, and we’ll help with whatever we need to in order to get Daria back on her feet.” Roman nodded as he fought back the emotion. He was a Dom and always kept his emotions under control. Why now had that changed?

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Kelso patted his shoulder before leaving him and going back into the house. Roman remained on the porch until Gage pulled into the driveway and parked. Maddie parked Daria’s little red car on the street. “That’s a darling little car,” Maddie said as she climbed the steps to the porch. “It’s too small,” Gage argued with a smile. “For a Neanderthal like you, yeah, it’s too small, but for a normalsized person it’s perfect,” Maddie returned without hesitation before going into the house. Roman stopped Gage with a hand on his arm before he could follow Maddie inside. His man stood stiff and stared at the door as if upset about something. “What’s wrong?” “Nothing,” Gage answered, his tone unusually flat. “Why don’t you go up and wake Daria? You might even offer to wash her back,” Roman suggested softly, “and her front. Just don’t be too long or there’ll be even more questions than there are now.” “Master?” “Just know that you will be only the second man to ever fuck her,” Roman said, meeting his slave’s eyes. Gage looked at him in shock before nodding his understanding. “I’m sorry,” he then blurted out. “For what, pet?” Roman wished he could take the big man into his arms, but they had a house full of people who did not need to see that display. “Never mind,” Gage said with a sigh. “Just accept my apology. If you want to punish me tonight, feel free.” “We’ll talk about this later,” Roman said as another car parked and more family headed in their direction. “Now go upstairs and tell Daria I said for her to put a smile on your face. Then, before you come back down again, I need you to go into the safe and get out the big red envelope on the top shelf.”

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“Yes, Master,” Gage responded softly before going inside. Roman greeted the newcomers who had seen the morning news and wanted to know if there was anything they could to do help. **** Daria smiled as Gage slipped through the door then closed and locked it once inside. He carried a plastic bag in one hand. Turning to face her, he froze when he saw she was watching him. “I figured you’d be asleep,” he said, crossing to the bed and sitting down next to her. “Nah, just lying here trying to decide if I wanted to wear your clothes or Roman’s or a combination of both,” Daria said as she sat up. For the first time in her life she felt comfortable in her own skin and didn’t mind the fact that she was naked while Gage remained fully clothed. She felt relaxed physically and emotionally but was not sure she wanted to face whoever was downstairs. Watching Gage watch her started to wind her sex spring up again, and the worry about anyone outside this room faded. Then she glanced down and saw the impressive bulge pushing at the zipper of his jeans and nothing else mattered. “You can wear your own clothes.” Gage handed her a bag. “I got you a few things, but we’ll go shopping tomorrow or the next day for more.” Daria opened the bag and peeked inside then looked at him with tears filling her eyes. “You bought me shirts and a bra? But no underwear?” She put the bag aside and approached the big man who held half her heart. “Roman doesn’t allow me to wear any, so you shouldn’t either.” “You never wear underwear?” “Only when I’m on shift. Also, Roman said to tell you to put a smile on my face. And that I’m supposed to wash your back and front

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before we go downstairs.” Gage winked at her then began to pull off his clothes and proved that he was indeed going commando. By the time she crawled from the bed and found her balance on legs that still felt a little weak, Gage was naked. “Come here, Daria,” he said when she froze at the sight of him in the daytime fully aroused. “Oh my,” she said as she crossed to stand just in front of him. She took his shaft that was even longer and thicker than Roman’s into one hand as the other reached between his legs and gently cupped his balls. She gently stroked his cock as she rolled his balls between her fingers, testing the feel and heat of the appendages. “Angel, if you keep that up, I’m going to blow my load right here, and I’d rather be wet and inside you when that happens.” Gage eased back from her hold then took her hands in his and led her to the shower. “Can I play some more with it later?” she asked, not realizing how sexy her innocent question sounded until Gage groaned. “Yes, sweetie. Later, when we’re alone and don’t have a house full of family waiting for you to make an appearance, you can play with it some more,” Gage said as he turned on the water in the shower. Daria allowed him to hurry her into the shower, but once they were both wet and soapy, she began to rub her breasts against him, wanting to feel him inside her. “Fuck me, Gage. Please?” “Mmmm, love to,” he moaned, and then his eyes popped open. “Shit, condom. Stay right there and I’ll be back in a flash.” He opened the shower door and disappeared into the bedroom before she could translate his quickly spoken words. By the time she understood he was back—wet, naked, and rolling the condom down his fully engorged cock. As soon as he closed the shower door, he wrapped his arms around her and hugged her, rubbing their bodies together as the water splashed down on them.

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“God, you feel so good,” he murmured as he lowered his head and kissed her. He stroked both hands up and down her body from shoulders to ass cheeks and back again. “You, too,” Daria said against his lips. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders and tried to pull herself up his body. His cock pressing into her belly was fine, but she wanted it sliding in and out of her pussy. “Fuck me, Gage. Please, take me now,” she breathed as she stood on tiptoes then wrapped one leg around his thick, muscular thighs. She was not sure whether it was the long delay in his gratification or urgency of the situation downstairs, but she suddenly found herself airborne as Gage cupped her ass and lifted her. “Hang on, angel, this is going to be quick.” Wrapping both legs around his waist, Daria tightened her grip as he lifted her higher and higher until her breasts were in his face. He kissed her sternum then pressed quick, sucking kisses to each breast before he slowly lowered her onto his cock. He felt so good and so big that Daria’s eyes closed involuntarily. She began to pant as she fought to keep from orgasming just by having him enter her. “Oh my God,” she breathed when he was fully within her. “You okay? I’m not hurting you, am I?” “Oh my God,” she moaned before opening her eyes and meeting his concerned blue ones. “No, I’m fine. Now fuck me, dammit.” She sounded bitchy to her own ears, but she was beyond needy and he had the magic to cure her. Her gruff demand seemed to be just what Gage liked. He made a soft growly noise as he began to move his hips. He held her pressed between his chest and the shower wall while he fucked her with gentle power and slowly increasing speed. “You feel so good,” he groaned as his hips began to slam harder and faster into hers. “You do, too. I’m close. So. Close,” Daria said then dropped her head and bit the top of his shoulder to keep from screaming so loud that the whole neighborhood would hear her. “Come with me?”

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“Oh fuck,” Gage groaned. He thrust deep twice more before holding her so her clit was pressed to the base of his cock. Daria felt him pulsing and twitching and smiled. Her pussy continued to spasm around the thick cock, massaging it. That action caused Gage to groan several more times and occasionally pull back and try to thrust even deeper. His random movements turned her orgasm from one single peak to a rolling reaction that rumbled through her until she could not tell where one ended and the next one began. When they finally came back down to Earth, Gage rinsed them off once more. He eased his cock from her core then set her on her feet. Daria could barely move and leaned against the tiled wall of the shower to watch with what had to be a goofy grin as Gage grabbed a towel and quickly wiped himself down. When he pulled her from the shower and began to dry her off, she tried to take the towel from him. “I can do this myself,” she said. “But I like touching you,” he responded without stopping. Once she was thoroughly dry, he set her on the counter between the two sinks and walked out of the room. Before Daria could get her muscles to cooperate enough to follow, he returned with the bag of clothes he had bought for her. In less than a minute, he had her dressed in the bra and T-shirt he had bought her. “Here, brush your hair.” He pulled a brand-new comb out of the bag and handed it to her. Daria did not argue, just swiped the comb through her hair as she usually did and tossed it on the counter. She jumped down and had to catch herself when her knees wobbled so badly they would not hold her up. Taking several deep breaths, she walked into the bedroom and retrieved her pants. By the time she’d finished dressing, he was dressed down to his shoes and was pulling the bed together. “Gage?” “Yes, angel?”

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“Do you think this thing will work? Between the three of us, I mean,” she said as he fluffed the pillows and piled them on the bed. He came to her and pulled her to lean against his chest, holding her securely. “It will work if we want it to. We’ll be able to talk more when everyone goes home tonight, but for now just know that Roman and I care for you more than you will ever really understand. Now why don’t you go on downstairs? I have to get something out of the safe, and I’ll be right behind you.” Though she wanted to argue, Daria left the bedroom instead, closing the door behind her. She glanced across the landing and found the door to the guestroom closed as well. So Gage was trying to protect her by letting everyone think she had slept alone last night. If only they knew the truth. As she descended the stairs to the foyer, Daria’s mood dropped from an “I got laid twice in an hour” high to an “oh my God, Mrs. Stone is dead and I’m alone, homeless, and unemployed” low so quickly that she was dizzy by the time she reached the open front door. When she saw Roman standing outside talking to Kelso, she could not help herself. Walking outside she wrapped herself around him. **** Gage walked around the room several times before he felt steady enough to rejoin the crowd downstairs. After retrieving the envelope Roman asked for, he descended the stairs. When he saw Daria out on the porch snuggled up against Roman, the jealous feeling he thought he had conquered earlier returned with a vengeance. Instead of stomping out and making a scene, he went into the kitchen and pulled a soda out of the refrigerator. Then he pulled out the apple ugly pastry he had bought for Daria and put it on a plate. He smiled and spoke to people as he wandered the house before going out onto the porch to join his Master and their woman.

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“Here, angel, you need to eat,” he said, handing her the plate and can. Turning, he left quickly, his gut churning with the dark emotions that filled him knowing she had gone to Roman as soon as she had left him.

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Chapter 9 It was late afternoon before the house finally emptied so that Roman, Gage, and Daria were alone. At one point Roman, Gage and Kelso had closed themselves in the library to make calls regarding the house and Mrs. Stone’s death. As they took care of business, Daria stayed in the kitchen washing dishes, dealing with food that kept arriving, and consoling those who were hurting. She kept her own sorrow buried deep and helped the others deal with theirs. She did notice that Gage seemed to be avoiding both her and Roman while Roman seemed to be touching her or checking on her every few minutes. After everyone left, she warmed two casseroles and set them out for dinner. When Gage came in from the garage, he did not speak or look at either of them. She frowned and began to worry something was bothering the big man. They sat and ate without a word. She glanced several times at Gage, who did not look up from his plate. When she looked to Roman, he was studying Gage intently. Shrugging that maybe it was just the stress of the day darkening his mood, Daria focused on her own dinner. Only when they had finished eating did Roman break the tense silence. “Pet, you’d better tell me what’s wrong, or I’m going to take you upstairs and beat it out of you.” Daria gasped at the visual image his words provoked, but bit her lip to keep from saying anything. Though her pussy clenched and her jeans immediately grew damp, this was a moment to watch and learn. Gage shrugged as he stood and cleared his dishes from the table.

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“I’m fine.” “No, you are not. You have been snippy and sullen all day. I want to know why. Now spill it.” Roman stood and grabbed the big man when he tried to walk out of the room. When Gage turned, Daria’s heart clenched at the tears that spilled from his eyes. “I’m a prick, okay? I’m scared you’re going to kick me to the street. I’m jealous that Daria was able to snuggle up to you today in front of everyone and I couldn’t. And I’m feeling guilty because I shouldn’t be jealous, but I can’t seem to stop myself!” With that, he broke down and began to sob. “Oh, baby.” Roman pulled Gage’s head down to rest on his shoulder and wrapped his arms around his lover. “You are the other half of me. How could you think I’d ever get rid of you?” “But this morning…you and Daria and…and then I…I came downstairs and saw—” Gage blubbered, not able to finish his sentences. Daria wanted to leave and give them some privacy, but was afraid to move. “Slave, there are times when I will want to be alone with Daria, just like there will be times you will want her all to yourself. This morning was one of those times, but I never meant to hurt you. I knew people would be arriving and you had things to do. But didn’t you and Daria…?” “Yes, Master, we had a great time in the shower.” Gage sniffed as he tried to get himself back under control. “But when I came downstairs you two were hugging on the porch, and I got worried because she’d gone to you as soon as she’d left me. Then I wished I could do that with you. It seemed like every time I saw you today you two were together. The more I thought about it, the more I felt like I was on the outside looking in, and I resented it. I’m sorry, Master. I’m so sorry.” Gage pulled from Roman’s arms and knelt on the floor before him. “Please, Master. Please punish me. I deserve it for being a worthless, jealous prick.”

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Daria sat silent and still, afraid to cause any more trouble. She realized this was exactly what she did not want to happen. She refused to cause a breech between these two men who loved each other so very much. Maybe it would be best if she stayed with Kelso and Maddie or one of the others until she could figure out what she was doing. Roman looked at the man kneeling before him then to her. He met her gaze and shook his head. “Don’t you even think about it,” he said in his low, dark, powerfilled voice as he stared deep into her eyes. “No one is going anywhere until we talk this out. Now I want you two to clean up the kitchen. Then get three beers and come into the living room.” With that, Roman turned and walked out of the kitchen. “I’m sorry,” Daria said, glancing at Gage, who remained on the floor. “I didn’t mean to hurt you. I don’t want Roman to have to choose between us. I also don’t want you to have to choose between Roman and me.” Gage stood easily as he wiped his eyes. “Angel, this is not your burden. I’m the one with the problem.” “Did I say either of you could speak?” Roman called from the living room. “Get the kitchen cleaned and your asses in here before I start planning punishments instead of pleasures.” Daria’s eyes widened. She looked at Gage, who winked at her with a grin that said sexy naughtiness would be on the schedule for the evening once they had their talk. Working together, they had the dishes in the dishwasher and the kitchen cleaned up in just a few minutes. Gage grabbed three beers out of the refrigerator in one hand then took Daria’s hand with his other and led her into the living room. Once there, he released her and set the beers on the end table closest to Roman. In a smooth move, he then knelt in front of him. “Stand up, pet,” Roman ordered as he opened the three beers. He handed one to Daria and then one to Gage before taking the third for

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himself. Then he pointed to the foyer where three folding chairs sat in a triangle. “We’re going in there for this.” Once they settled, Daria did not know what to say. Apparently neither did Gage or Roman. Instead of talking, they drank their beers and tried not to look at one another. Roman did not speak until he finished his beer. After he set the empty can on the floor under his chair, he relaxed back in his chair, crossed his arms, and looked at Gage. “We are a family.” He glanced at Daria, and she read power and control in his dark eyes. “We may be unconventional, but we are a family. And while other families may have problems and misunderstandings, I will not allow that in my family.” Daria nodded her agreement as she sipped at her beer. Glancing at Gage, she found him leaning forward with his elbows resting on his thighs, staring hard at the floor. “Look at me, pet,” Roman demanded. Without a word, Gage lifted his head and met the other man’s gaze. “I’m sorry you felt slighted this morning. You should have said something earlier instead of letting these feelings fester.” Gage nodded. “I’m sorry.” “Forgiven, but don’t let it happen again. Now I do hope that Daria helped you relax in the shower?” Gage smiled as he remembered. “Yes, she did.” Daria’s cheeks burned as both men turned to look at her. “And you, baby girl, are not going anywhere. I know you received several offers today, but we want you here. You are where you belong. Do you have any problem with that?” Daria swallowed and looked from Roman to Gage then back again. “I don’t want to come between you. I don’t want to cause problems, and obviously I already have.” “No, angel, it’s my fault. I should have known that Roman had your comfort in mind,” Gage said.

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“Enough regrets and self-blaming. I’m thinking it’s time to retire to the bedroom and see if three really are better than two when it comes to loving,” Roman said with a smile and more than a hint of dominance in his voice. “Does that sound okay to you two?” “Yes, Master,” Gage agreed immediately then drank down the rest of his beer. Daria nodded and finished hers as well. Her pussy dampened, her nipples beaded, and all she could think of was being skin to skin with both men at the same time. Roman nodded and stood. “Then let’s get things locked up so we can go upstairs and play. And, pet, you will be receiving five strokes for your stubbornness in telling me what was bothering you.” “Yes, Master.” Gage nodded as he stood. Daria carried the beer cans to the back door and tossed them in the recycling bin before locking that door and returning to the men. By the time she returned to the foyer, the men had stowed the chairs away and all the lights were out except the one in the foyer. “Upstairs and naked now,” Roman said, patting her ass to hurry her along. “Yes, Roman.” She giggled as she ran up the stairs with two big, horny men following close behind. As she crossed the landing, Daria pulled her T-shirt over her head then reached for the closure of her bra. By the time she reached the bedroom, she was topless. In less than a minute, she dropped her shoes and jeans as well. She turned and found both men equally bare, and each sported an impressive erection. “Mmmm, yum,” she said, crossing to them and running a hand down each muscular chest. Roman grabbed both her wrists and lifted them with a stern look. “Sorry, baby girl, but pet and I have business to take care of before we can play with you.” He leaned forward and brushed a kiss on her lips before turning his attention to Gage. “Get the belt, slave.”

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Gage dropped his gaze to the floor. “Yes, Master.” “Baby girl, I want you to go sit up there with your legs spread wide and give Gage something pretty to look at.” Roman pointed at the head of the bed. “Yes, Master,” Daria said. By the time she moved into position, Gage was back with the belt. He knelt on the floor before Roman and held the belt up with both hands, offering it to his Master. “On the bed, ass at the edge,” Roman said, his voice deep and dark. Gage positioned himself without a word. “Arms over your head,” Roman ordered. This brought Gage’s fingers only inches from Daria’s wide-spread legs. “Baby girl, slide down so that Gage can play with your pretty bits, but don’t come.” Without a word, Daria repositioned herself and sighed as Gage slid two fingers of one hand into her pussy while fingers from his other hand traced random patterns on the lips surrounding her clit. He began to slowly fuck his fingers in and out, twisting them side to side as he did. Daria watched as Roman raised the belt and brought it down on Gage’s ass. Her mind drifted from the punishment as Gage added a third finger. She gasped when his thumb brushed over her puffy clit. When Roman stopped, she was impressed that Gage had not made a sound during the entire time. She knew she would never be able to take such punishment without crying from the first stroke. Gage pulled his fingers away, but before she could whine her displeasure, he grabbed her legs and pulled her halfway down the bed. After kissing her belly several times, he winked at her before standing and kneeling before Roman again. **** “Thank you, Master.” “This will not happen again, will it?”

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“No, Master. Please forgive me for not trusting your love.” “Forgiven. Now put the belt away and get the condoms.” “Yes, Master,” Gage said, accepting the belt and rising from the floor. Once the punishment belt was back hanging on its hook in the closet, Gage paused a moment. Running one hand over his ass, he hissed at the slight burn still there. Roman had not put full strength behind the strokes, but he still left a hell of an impression. Gage knew he deserved more pain for questioning their relationship and his place in Roman’s life. His cock was hard and drooling, the bite of pain from his ass adding to his arousal. He wondered how much longer he would be able to control himself without coming all over the room. Roman liked pushing his limits and teasing him until he begged for relief, sometimes making him hold his release for an hour or more. Right now he was not sure he would be able to last five minutes. Hopefully, tonight’s goal would be to drive Daria out of her mind with arousal instead of him. “Gage? Are you okay in there?” Daria called. Her voice sounded tight, like she already teetered on an edge of her own. “I’m good,” Gage said. He returned to the bedroom and could not help but grin at the sight that met him. Daria knelt on her hands and knees at the edge of the bed looking at him. Master was snuggled up belly to ass behind her, holding himself deep inside her. Daria looked at him with a hungry, needy expression, and Gage’s already hard cock jumped in response as his heart filled once again with love at the knowledge that they had waited for him. “Where do you want me, Master?” Gage asked. He did not want to assume anything, but he would love to feel Daria’s mouth wrapped around him. “Where do you want him, Daria?”

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**** “I want to suck his cock,” Daria panted as she tried to move on Roman. “You heard the lady, slave. Get your ass over here,” Roman said as he began to ease back, making Daria’s breathing catch. As Gage approached the bed, Daria opened her mouth and stuck out her tongue in anticipation. She could not wait to have both pussy and mouth filled with man meat. Though still new to sex, she had already decided she liked sex with two men but could not imagine herself doing this with anyone else but Roman and Gage. As soon as Gage was within range, Daria raised one hand and wrapped it around the base of his cock. She pulled at him until she could almost lick the cum-slicked head. She yelped when Roman smacked her right ass cheek. “Both hands on the bed, wench. Use only that talented mouth to bring slave off.” “Yes, Master,” she replied as she released Gage and returned her hand to the mattress. She smiled when Gage took the last shuffling step forward. With a grin she swiped her tongue across his slit. He hissed, and his hips canted forward, pushing his cock deeper between her parted lips. She closed her lips around the head of his cock with a happy smile. “Mmmm,” she breathed as the taste of his fluids crossed her tongue. “Slave, I was wondering if you would be interested in having Daria top you sometime in the future?” Roman asked as he began a slow but steady in-and-out movement. He held her hips steady so she could not move. With him filling her pussy and Gage slowly easing more and more of his thick length into her mouth, Daria was a happy woman. “I think I’d like that, Master, if that is what she would like.” Daria tilted her head back to look into his hopeful gaze. She

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nodded her head as Roman’s hips began to pick up speed as he thrust into her hot, wet, hungry pussy. “Very much,” she then said around his cock. His hands slid through her hair to cup the back of her head as his hips began to shift in counterpoint to her movements. “Okay then,” Roman said as his breathing grew harsh as he pistoned harder and faster into her. “Glad that’s settled. Now, my loves, who is going to come with me to paradise?” Gage groaned as Daria sucked him harder and deeper. Pleasing two men was distracting her so much that she was not sure she could join them. That was until Roman reached around her hip and swirled two fingers through the juices that coated her clit. He then eased them through her puckered star. As he filled her ass, her brain frizzled and the orgasm that seemed so distant suddenly slammed over her, contracting every muscle in her body. Roman thrust his cock in her several more times before holding himself as far in her pussy as he could. As her muscles clenched, she tried to keep from hurting Gage as she sucked harder and harder but was not sure she succeeded when he howled and filled her mouth with his own man juice. Daria fought to stay in position so she did not hurt Gage as she sucked and cleaned his cock. When her orgasm retreated, it took all her strength with it. She had to release Gage as her arms gave out and she melted to the mattress in a puddle. She sighed as Roman pulled his fingers from her ass and his cock from her core. He climbed off the bed, but she did not have the strength to lift her head to watch him walk away. When Gage lifted her from the bed and laid her down in the center of the mattress with her head on the pillows, she stiffened but had no energy to fight him. He then crawled in and cuddled her close with her head on his shoulder as he whispered praises and planted kisses all over her face. A moment later, Roman joined them. “Go to sleep now, loves.

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We’ve got long days ahead of us before things settle down again.” Turning her head, she watched Roman lean over her to kiss Gage. Then he kissed her as well before settling down behind her. Daria listened as both men’s breathing settled into the slow rhythm of sleep. She closed her eyes, but remained wide-awake for a long time, a lifetime of guilt keeping sleep at bay.

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Chapter 10 “Are you sure you’re going to be all right?” Roman asked two mornings later as he and Gage prepared to head to the fire station for work. It was well before dawn, but their shift started at seven and went for twenty-four hours. Roman had called in the evening before to ask for time off, but two others had already called in sick with the flu, so their presence was required. “I’ll be fine,” Daria said for what had to be the hundredth time. “I’ve got a meeting with the insurance adjuster this morning, and the funeral home left a message, so I’ll deal with that as well. Plus I still have to buy a proper outfit for Mrs. Stone’s funeral.” After sleeping late the day before and then having an extended round of good morning sex, they’d spent the day in Jacksonville shopping for Daria’s new wardrobe. She now owned more clothes than she ever had in her life, and most were sexier and more feminine than she normally wore. But none of the stores they’d visited had a simple black dress that she and Roman could agree on. He chose dresses that in her opinion were too short, too tight, or too sexy to be worn at a funeral. He called her choices frumpish, baggy, and old-lady-like. Gage refused to offer any opinion. Daria hoped that by shopping without the men she would be able to find something appropriate that both she and Roman could live with. “All right, but I want you to buy something that shows off that sexy body and is above the knees, understand?” Roman demanded in

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his Master tone. “Yes, my liege. I’ll try to remember,” she snarked. She squeaked when he smacked her left ass cheek. “If I don’t like the dress you buy, it’s going back and you’re getting a spanking, so choose wisely, baby girl.” Said in his Master tone, she knew it was a promise and not just a threat. Only after she nodded her understanding did he lower his head and kiss her breathless. When he stepped back, the front of his uniform pants showed a distinctive bulge of arousal. “I’ll remember.” Once Roman stepped away, she turned to find Gage moving in. He hugged her tight and dropped his head close to her ear. “Don’t hesitate to call or come by the house if you need to. Don’t forget to take your cell phone with you and answer it when it rings.” She returned his hug and another breath-stealing kiss. When he released her and stepped back, she found herself wobbly. “Why don’t you take some of this food with you? There’s no way we’re going to be able to eat it all.” Roman shook his head. “Bring two or three hot casseroles and a couple of those salads for dinner just before five. If we’re out on a call, leave them with Tessa in the office and we’ll eat them when we get back.” “Will do,” she said as her men picked up duffle bags and briefcases before heading out the back door. Once they were gone she turned to the empty kitchen and said on a yawn, “But for now I’m going back to bed.” **** Three hours later, Daria had just stepped out of the shower when her phone rang. She thought about letting it go to voice mail, and then Gage’s words came back to her about answering it at all times. “Hello?”

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“Miss Tate? This is William Birch. I’m the adjuster at Langston Insurance Agency. I’m not calling too early, am I?” Daria clamped the phone between her shoulder and ear as she wrapped a bath sheet around her body. “No, this is fine, Mr. Birch. What’s up?” “I know our appointment is in about an hour, but I was wondering if we could meet in two hours at the property instead of the office. I’m in Oriental heading into a meeting right now and won’t be back in town before then.” “Oh, um, well, sure, no problem,” Daria said as her heart began to pound, and she instantly wished one or the other of her men were home to go with her to this meeting. Roman refused to take her by the day before, though he never did say why. She figured it was because he did not want her to see the destruction in the daylight, but he was at work and she needed to see what was left. “All right then, I’ll see you there in two hours,” Mr. Birch said before hanging up. Daria disconnected the phone then quickly dried off and dressed. Though it felt strange to pull on her jeans without panties, she kept in mind Roman’s rules of the household. Once she’d finished getting ready for the day, she wandered through the house trying to find something to occupy her mind until it was time to leave for her meeting. The house was clean and tidy, the bed made, the laundry done and put away. There was nothing for her to do except sit and wait. Pacing the house, she wandered into the kitchen, looking through the refrigerator and cupboards. Both were fully stocked, so she did not even need to make a run to the store. Walking through the house once more, she decided there was no way she could be here by herself. The house smelled like Roman and Gage, and all she wanted was for one or the other of them to walk through the door, hug her tight, and assure her that she would find her footing again.

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“This is ridiculous,” she said to herself as she gathered the papers for the adjuster as well as the file for the funeral home and packed them in her messenger bag along with a can of Pepsi and a small bag of oatmeal cookies one of Mrs. Stone’s neighbors had dropped by. Picking up her keys, she flipped through them and found a new one on the ring. Going to the front door, Daria opened the door and found the key fit the lock perfectly. Reaching into her pocket, she pulled out her phone and texted Roman. Thanks for the key. Hitting send, she grabbed her bag and headed out the door, making sure it was locked once she was out on the front porch. She drove to “her” park. After parking, she walked to the railing by the water and just stood and stared out across the river. She tried to keep her thoughts on what needed to be done and not the questions that haunted her about what she was going to do next and whether or not she really would fit into Roman’s little family. The longer she sat there, the more sadness and guilt built up in her until she felt hot tears rolling down her cheeks. Checking her watch, she found it was time to leave and meet Mr. Birch. Wiping away her tears, she pushed down the guilt and fear so she could focus on what needed to be done. Pulling into the driveway as she had thousands of times before, Daria could not hold back the small cry of pain that escaped when she looked at the total destruction that had at one time been her home. Climbing from the car, Daria ignored the yellow police tape and approached the house. Her mind could not process what she was seeing. This was not Mrs. Stone’s home. This pile of ash and wood could not be the house where she’d learned strength and courage and love. She slowly walked around the perimeter of the house, trying to wrap her mind around the fact that this was, indeed, all that was left of her life with Mrs. Stone. After stepping carefully over boards and piles of ash and debris, she walked down the front walk to the three

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steps that led to the city-maintained sidewalk. Once there she collapsed in shock as the guilt that Mrs. Stone had died because she had not been there overwhelmed her. Before she could completely fall apart, a burgundy sedan pulled into the driveway. An older man climbed out and approached. “Miss Tate?” “Yes,” Daria said, feeling numb as she pushed to her feet. “William Birch. Thank you for meeting me here. I’m sure this is difficult, but I have a few questions before I can finish filing your claim.” “Sure, whatever,” Daria said. She took several deep breaths to regain the control she had always prided herself on. She would cry later. Right now, there was business to be dealt with. **** As Roman went through the morning, his attention was divided between the clock on the wall, his task of training two volunteers on proper knot tying when it came to water rescues, and the phone on his belt. He wished he could have brought Daria to work with him today, but the chief was a stickler for rules and protocol. Besides, Daria had things to do, but he wondered it was this was too soon for them to leave her alone. When his phone rang, he automatically glanced at the readout before pulling it from his belt. “What’s up, baby?” “Roman? I…um…oh never mind, it’s not important.” “Daria, don’t you dare hang up,” Roman growled as he walked down the hall into the exercise room for privacy. “Talk to me.” “You’re probably busy.” “We’re on lunch break, and as long as we don’t get called out, nothing is more important than you. Now, what’s going on?” Roman sat on the bicycle and began riding.

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“I just wanted to say I’m sorry,” she said, her voice sounding watery. “Sorry for what? Did you buy an ugly black dress?” he said, hoping for a laugh. Instead, she began to sob on the other end of the phone. It was a couple of minutes before she sniffed and said, “It’s my fault Mrs. Stone is dead. I’m so sorry.” Before Roman could respond, a beep sounded and the connection was broken. Checking his phone’s display, he found his phone fully charged, so he assumed Daria’s battery had died. They would be having a long talk about that when he got home in the morning. All he could do now was get back to work and hope she came by so he could assure her that she was not at fault. “Was that Daria?” Gage asked from the doorway. “Yes, but her phone died before she could tell me what’s wrong.” “Uh-oh,” Gage said as the two men walked back to the kitchen. “Somebody’s in trouble.” “You could say that. Especially since she was crying and saying that Mrs. Stone’s death was her fault.” “What did Brian say?” Gage asked, referring to the department’s arson investigator. “You talked to him, didn’t you?” “Not yet. He’s been out of the building all morning. But I will as soon as he gets back.”

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Chapter 11 By five o’clock, all Daria wanted to do was find a cave and hide from the world. Not one thing she tried to accomplish had gone right. She spent most of the day running from the funeral home to the city office in charge of scheduling park events and back again three times due to a misplaced file and miscommunication. Though she had filled out new paperwork and jumped through all the hoops, she still did not have the necessary clearances needed to hold Mrs. Stone’s funeral at Union Point, which had been the woman’s request ever since her stroke five years before. In addition, she still had to get permission from someone to scatter the ashes over the Neuse River, which meant figuring out which department she needed to beg, and she did not have it in her to fight anymore. Instead, she went home and found several more containers of food on the front porch with sympathy notes from several of their neighbors. After carrying the food into the house, she pulled three of the oldest casseroles out of the refrigerator and heated them. Then she put pieces of masking tape on the new dishes and dated them so they would continue to eat the oldest food first. She forgot about her cell phone until she was ready to leave to deliver Roman and Gage their dinner. She found a power cord that fit her phone in the kitchen. She plugged it in, but before she turned it on, the oven timer went off, and she turned to deal with the food. Pulling into the fire station visitor’s parking lot, Daria saw the trucks all parked in the designated spaces. Her men were in the house. All she had to do was deliver the food, and then she could go home

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and give in to the deep, dark funk hovering her around her like a cloud. After several long minutes of deep breathing, Daria climbed from her car, almost hoping she did not see either Roman or Gage while she was delivering dinner. Reaching in the back seat, she pulled out the baskets that held everything she had packed. Nudging the door closed with her hip, she headed through the nearest open bay door, struggling with the two baskets Of course, three steps into the garage and Roman emerged from one of the doors. Gage followed two steps behind him. “Are you all right?” Gage asked as he took one of the baskets. “Yeah, sure,” she said, knowing her tone would not convince a deaf man. “You haven’t been answering your phone,” Roman said darkly as he relieved her of the other basket. “I’m sorry. I plugged the phone in about a half hour ago,” she said, turning to go back to her car. “Enjoy your dinner.” Before she could take a single step, Roman wrapped a hand around her arm. “You’re not leaving until we talk.” Daria closed her eyes as she took a deep breath. “Please, not now, Roman. I need to—” she managed to choke out before her throat closed off with tears. She tried to pull her arm free, but he refused to let her go. Instead, he handed his basket off to his lover. “Gage, take these to the kitchen and tell the guys to leave us some. See if you can get a copy of Brian’s report then meet us out back.” Gage nodded as he took the basket. After entering a code into the keypad attached to a nearby door, he waited for the door to buzz then disappeared through the doorway. As soon as he was out of sight, Roman headed toward the open back garage door. He did not say a word, nor did he let her go until they were in the large parking lot just behind the firehouse. He then released her arm but slid his hand down her arm to lace their fingers

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together before she could think about pulling away. Daria looked around, but there was no one in sight. “What are you going to do to me?” she asked, her voice quivering with emotion as he led her between two tall trucks. When they reached a sedan shielded from the firehouse’s view, Roman stopped and leaned against the sedan’s trunk. He bent his right leg and rested his boot on the car’s bumper. Pulling Daria forward, he positioned her over his thigh with her ass sticking out prominently. Then he slapped her left ass cheek painfully hard. “Do not make a sound,” Roman ordered harshly as his hand landed equally hard on the center of her right cheek a few seconds later. “Gage told you to keep your phone with you and turned on, but you didn’t.” Smack. Daria nodded in agreement though she did not know if he saw her head moving. The punishment continued with slow, harsh strokes. “You didn’t come by when your phone died. Gage and I have been worried out of our minds.” Smack. Instead of fighting for her freedom, Daria relaxed and embraced the pain that blossomed across her ass cheeks. She deserved this and so much more for not being there when Mrs. Stone needed her. “You are not alone in this. You don’t have to do it all yourself.” Smack. Daria opened her mouth to say she did not want anyone else to be bothered, but all that emerged was a nearly soundless sob that felt like it came from her toes. When she heard footsteps she stiffened, not wanting a stranger to see this even though she knew all of the men and women who worked with her men. “Roman! What the hell are you doing?” Daria relaxed again, waiting, hoping, needing more smacks on her ass. Instead, Roman’s hand settled on her ass and began to rub the skin through her jeans.

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“I’m doing my job as Master of the house. Daria let her phone die, and then she didn’t come here to finish our conversation. Then she tried to blow smoke up our asses by telling us she’s fine when it’s more than obvious that she’s not. And you might want to watch your tone, slave, else you’ll be getting a few punishment strokes of your own.” “I’m sorry, Master,” Gage said, sounding truly contrite. “That’s better.” Roman helped her to stand then wrapped his arms around her. He held her head to his chest as she cried. “There, baby girl, all done and forgiven. Next time I won’t go so easy on you.” Daria tried to pull away, but Roman’s powerful arms held her secure as he continued to murmur assurances in her ear. Her tears finally slowed and stopped, but Daria didn’t move away. It felt so good to be cuddled against Roman that she wished she could stay right where she was for the rest of the month. “Did you get a copy of Brian’s report?” “He said he won’t have it finished until tomorrow. But he has classified it as accidental and electrical in nature.” “Hear that, baby girl? The fire was an accident. There was nothing you could have done. And if you had been home, you might have died trying to save Mrs. Stone.” Having that bluntly pointed out to her, Daria took a deep breath and fought to pull her tattered control back around her even tighter than before. Once she’d gotten herself back under control, she lifted her head and stepped away from Roman. “Thank you,” she said, not looking in his eyes. Roman nodded then leaned forward and kissed her deeply. “You’re welcome,” he whispered against her lips. When he released her, Gage turned her to face him and hugged her as well. “So, what did you do today? Lie around and eat bonbons all day? Or did you spend the day playing with my toys?” Gage said, referring to his large collection of RC cars and trucks.

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“Please, don’t make me think of all that I did not get done today. Let’s just say the bureaucracy is alive and well, especially when it comes to Mrs. Stone’s funeral,” Daria said as she wiped her tears away. She then quickly told her men of all the running around she’d done and what had and had not been accomplished. “Angel, you shouldn’t have to do this alone. We can handle all this tomorrow.” Daria shook her head as she looked away. “This is my responsibility, and tomorrow is your day off. You should be kicking back and—Ouch,” she yelped when Roman smacked an already tender spot on her left ass cheek. “I’m going to put you back over my knee if you don’t change your thinking,” Roman growled. “You are not alone. We are a family now. We’ll deal with it together. Now come on, let’s go eat. I’m hungry.” “For food or our girl?” Gage snarked as they headed back to the station. “Both,” Roman said with a dark and sexy chuckle that sent a shiver of excitement through Daria to gather in her clit. “For now we’ll deal with the food. Later we’ll deal with the other.” **** Roman refused to let Daria go home after she had eaten dinner with them. Instead, he talked his way out of a training session and they settled in the television room. He sat on one of the oversized recliners and pulled her to sit across his lap. He held her securely when she tried to get up as others wandered into the room an hour later. She wasn’t sure if it was because he liked her where she was or if he needed her to hide the erection that pressed into her hip. Knowing she wouldn’t win, she shifted closer and began to tighten her leg and butt muscles to massage the hard-on. A couple joined them for the last half of the epic Western while

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others went into the kitchen for a snack. When the others said good night and began to head upstairs to the dormitory, Daria knew it was time for her to leave as well. “Guess I’ll head on home now,” Daria said. “Not yet.” Roman led her down the hall and out the back door of the building. “You’ve been teasing me all evening, and there is no way I’ll be able to sleep until you deal with this.” Taking hold of her wrist, he pressed her hand against his erection as they walked toward the parking lot. The feel of his cock twitching behind his uniform sent heat from fingers to nipple and pussy, and suddenly all she wanted was to bend over and beg him to fuck her until they both howled at the crescent moon overhead. The door they had just come through opened and closed again. She hoped it was Gage coming to join them and not one of the other men going for a walk. Roman did not seem to have such concerns as he led her past the parking lot to a small wooded area on the other side. She was not surprised to see a picnic table in a small clearing, but the blanket spread out on the grass next to it caught her off guard. Roman did not stop until they stood next to the blanket. Then he looked at her with an expression she recognized as intense sexual hunger. “Roman?” “Shhh, baby girl. No talking as you strip.” “Strip? Naked? Here?”

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Chapter 12 Roman glanced around the area as Gage walked up. “Okay, then just from the waist down. Slave, naked from waist to knees, sheath your cock, then lay face up on the blanket.” Gage nodded and reached for his belt. In seconds, he was laying on the blanket as ordered. Daria toed off her sneakers and then dropped her jeans before kneeling next to the man on the blanket. She asked, “Roman, may I?” as she stared at Gage’s cock and licking her lips. “For a few minutes, but keep your ass up so I can put this in it,” he answered, showing her a deep red butt plug. Daria sucked a breath. “Why?” “This is to start your training so that soon you’ll be able to take both of us at the same time, Gage in your pussy while I fill your luscious ass,” Roman said as he worked his hand under her shirt and bra so he could tweak a beaded nipple. “Oooooo,” Daria breathed as her pussy juices overfilled her channel and dampened her thighs. Kneeling beside Gage, she began kissing her way up his closest thigh. He moaned softly and his hips hitched upward when she finally reached the apex of his legs. Shifting a bit, Daria smiled as she placed a soft kiss on each ball before turning her attention to his long, hard cock. Licking her lips, she extended her tongue and traced the big vein up the underside of his cock, making him moan again. When she reached the head, she wrapped one hand around the base and lifted the drooling head from where it lay on his belly. She licked across the head, savoring the juices that oozed from his slit.

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Parting her lips, she took as much of his length into her mouth as she could before closing her lips around the shaft. She had just begun to bob up and down his length when she felt Roman move in behind her. “Oh, baby girl, your butt is still all pink,” he murmured as he ran fingertips over the hot skin, setting Daria to shivering under his touch. She hummed around Gage’s cock, which caused him to make yet another moaning sound as one hand wrapped around the back of her neck. He held her in place as Roman slid a wet, slicked up finger down between the globes of her ass to her back door. “Relax, Daria, I’m going to prepare you,” Roman murmured as the finger pressed through her opening. Daria froze and sucked harder on Gage as she tried to relax as Roman kissed each ass cheek. His finger slid in then twisted left and right before pulling out again. When she felt a cold hardness pressing for entrance, she froze and stopped breathing as it stretched the muscular rings wider and wider. She didn’t recognize the whining sound came from her until Roman rubbed a hand up her back, pushing her shirt out of his way as he did. “Shhh, baby, it’s almost in,” he said. Her muscles fought the intruder though Roman continued to press the plug until the plug narrowed and its base pressed against her perineum. Then a finger slid down between her lower lips until he found her clit. He circled it several times as she continued working Gage’s shaft. “Master, may I?” she heard Gage whisper. “Not yet. Daria, release him,” Roman said in his Master voice. Sliding his hand up under her, he lifted her until she had to release Gage’s cock or pull it off his body. Looking over her shoulder, she frowned at him. “But I wasn’t finished.” **** She looked so cute as she pouted that Roman had a hard time not

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letting her continue. But he had something a little different for her. “Climb on and ride our stud, cowgirl. And if you still need something in your mouth, you can suck on this,” he said as he opened his pants and fished out his erection. “Mmmm, yes, Roman.” Daria licked her lips as she moved to straddle his slave boy’s hips. “Take it slow and easy,” Roman instructed as she lifted up and fit the head of Gage’s cock to her open, wet pussy. When she began to groan as she lowered herself onto Gage’s big cock, Roman turned her head and pressed his cock deep into her mouth to muffle her. She latched on and sucked hard, sending his arousal high so fast he had to catch his breath. “Relax, baby, or this is going to be over before it ever gets started,” he said as his fingers brushed through her hair. **** Daria heard his words, but between the plug in her ass and Gage filling her pussy, she could not relax, could not slow, and God alone would have to step in to make her stop. As soon as Gage was full inside her, she began to quickly rise and fall, fucking him as hard and fast as she bobbed up and down on Roman’s length. Her arousal was burning her up from the clit out, and she could not wait for relief, but she wanted, no, needed, to take both men with her. “Come, dammit,” she muttered. She lifted a hand to gently cup and roll Roman’s balls. She tried to keep her touch light so as not hurt the tightening orbs. Though her legs were tired, she kept moving up and down on Gage. When she hesitated after an upstroke, Gage grabbed her hips and began to thrust up into her at an even faster pace. Roman pulled her hair until she looked up his body to meet his deep brown eyes. “I’m in charge, baby girl. But I think you’re right. It

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is time to come. Now, my loves. Come. Now.” She squealed with her orgasm around Roman’s cock as Gage thrust even higher and harder three more times before growling his own release. A heartbeat later Roman filled her mouth with his seed when he came as well. She gently cleaned his cock before tucking him away again and patting the softening shaft gently. “See you later,” she snarked before lying down across Gage’s chest. “Mmmm, indeed you will,” Roman said as he leaned back against the picnic table. “Gage, you alive down there?” “Oh, yes, Master, but just barely,” the man on the ground answered as he hugged Daria then gently rolled them so she lay on the blanket. He eased his cock out of her core, which caused both of them to sigh, before standing up. After dealing with the condom, he walked around the table as he pulled himself together again. “Daria? You okay, baby girl?” “Mmmm-hmmm,” she breathed as she rolled over to look up at her men. “But I can’t feel my legs.” **** Gage could not help the chuckle he gave as he reached down and helped her to her feet. “It’s okay, angel. You’ll just have to walk it off.” “First let’s get her dressed. Then we’ll all walk and try to regain some composure.” It only took a minute for Daria to step into her jeans as he held them. He then helped her on with her shoes as Roman kissed and cuddled her. He snuggled up on her other side and received his own share of loving from both his Master and their woman. Finally, with their breathing back to normal and strength slowly returning, they walked toward the front of the firehouse hand in hand. Daria had just unlocked her car when alarms sounded and a

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woman’s voice came over the PA system calling out engine 53 for a car accident. He leaned in and kissed her quickly then jogged toward their truck, hoping he wasn’t too relaxed for this. “Leave the plug in tonight. We’ll see you in the morning. And no coming without us,” he heard Roman say behind him. He laughed when he thought he heard Daria groan in response. **** By the time she heard Roman’s truck pull into the driveway the next morning, Daria thought she was on the verge of losing her mind from horniness. She was aroused and needy just riding across town and walking into the house with her ass full of plug. Now, after a night of sexual torture, she could think of nothing except relief. She didn’t care if she had to beg for it. She needed to come. She spent the night dozing off only to wake moments later when something brushed over her wet, puffy clit. She finally fell into a deep sleep just before daybreak when exhaustion claimed her. But they were home now and were no doubt ready, willing, and able to scratch this bone-deep itch of hers. Rolling out of the bed, she met them at the top of the stairs and threw herself at the first man she came to. “Help me, Gage. Please. It hurts.” “Feeling horny, are we, angel?” he asked as he picked her up and carried her back to the bedroom. He laid her down, but she grabbed his arms and yanked, pulling him down on top of her. “Oh, God, yes. Please don’t ever do this to me again.” She wiggled around until she had one of his legs resting between hers. Bending her legs, she began to hump his leg, rubbing her sensitive clit against the muscles of his thigh. “All right, baby girl. Be a good girl and come for us. Come right now,” Roman said as he sat on the bed beside them. Daria cried out as the arousal she had fought all night to keep

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under control finally cut loose and her orgasm slammed through her. When she relaxed and released her death grip on him, Gage rearranged them so his shoulders held her legs wide open and his mouth was within licking distance of her pussy. “Oooo, such a red, angry little clit,” he said. “I think it needs some TLC. Master?” “She’s in charge, slave. Do whatever you need to.” “Mmmm, yes, Master.” With that, Gage began to lick and suck at her, carrying her over the edge once again just minutes later. He gave her a very few minutes to recover before he began to gently fuck her with the butt plug as he sucked on her clit until she came a third time. Finally, he released her to Roman who, now naked, cuddled her close as he moved off the bed. “Feel better, baby girl?” “Uhhhh,” she sighed as she brushed her cheek back and forth over his chest. “Sleep now. We’ll deal with everything else later,” she heard Roman say just before darkness swallowed her whole.

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Chapter 13 Roman stared through the predawn grayness across the Neuse River and understood why Daria came here when she needed to think. Watching the water flow toward the ocean and feeling the wind brush his body comforted him for what was about to happen. It had been eight days since the fire, and life was beginning to come together for his little family. Daria proved to be a loving and easily trained submissive to him and also enough of a dominant woman to top Gage when she wanted satisfaction bad enough. Patting his jacket pocket, he assured himself once again that he had not lost the contents. He wondered if she would willingly take the next step with them or if she needed more time before permanently becoming a part of his and Gage’s life. “Roman?” Daria said, laying a hand on his arm. “Hmmm?” He roused from his contemplation of three ducks swimming a half dozen yards in front of him to look at her. “It’s time.” “Okay.” He took a deep breath and released it on a sigh. “Let’s do this.” It had taken one full day of phone calls and visits before they untangled the red tape snafu and received all the clearances, permits, and paperwork necessary for using the park for Mrs. Stone’s daybreak funeral. After the formal service and a breakfast reception at the convention center across the street, he, Daria, and Gage were borrowing Kelso’s boat for a trip several miles upriver. Once they were alone and out of sight of anyone who mattered, they would say their own good-byes before scattering Mrs. Stone’s

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ashes over the river she had loved and lived beside all her life. Afterward, Roman planned a little surprise for his loves to ease the stress of the day and put smiles back on their faces. Turning from his contemplation of the river, Roman found a larger-than-expected crowd gathered on the grass in front of the gazebo. He wondered if that was why Mrs. Stone had requested a daybreak funeral service or if she was trying not to inconvenience anyone. It appeared that everyone Mrs. Stone had ever met was here to say a final farewell. He followed Daria to the gazebo where the minister waited with Gage and the handful of those foster children Mrs. Stone had specifically requested sing her favorite church anthem. Though Mrs. Stone had asked Daria about giving her eulogy, Roman informed Gage he would be doing it. Daria’s gentle spirit would never be able to get through the service without tears. Gage had argued before giving in, saying that if Daria would help him write it, he would read it. As she climbed the steps to the gazebo platform, Roman smiled at the outfit they had finally compromised on. She wore the short, sexy, little black dress and short black sweater-like thing he bought, but underneath it she wore skintight black leggings and knee-high black boots. She looked like a baby doll biker babe, appropriate for the occasion but also sexy as hell. As soon as they joined Gage sitting on folding chairs to one side of the gazebo, Mrs. Stone’s minister stood up, approached the microphone, and began the service. **** When it came time for him to give Mrs. Stone’s eulogy, Gage took a deep breath and said a silent prayer that he could get through the next few minutes without breaking down and sobbing like a baby. Daria squeezed the hand she’d taken as soon as the service began

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before releasing him to his duty. Standing before the microphone and looking into a sea of friends and so-called family members, Gage focused on breathing. He laid his hands on the small podium to keep from sliding them into his pockets as he had a habit of doing. “Henrietta Stone was a remarkable woman who touched the lives of so many people during her life. When she and her husband were told they could not have children, they accepted the news with grace and decided to open their home to other people’s children. But they didn’t want to work with the little ones. No, Henrietta and Joe wanted teenagers, the trouble children others saw as headed for jail or the morgue. They opened more than their home to these children; they opened their hearts as well. By doing so they changed more lives than even they realized. When her husband died on his job with the railroad thirty years ago, Henrietta fought the system to remain an active foster mother, something that was unheard of at that time. ‘The children need me,’ she said, ‘and I need the children.’ Fifteen years ago, while others retired to take it easy and enjoy their golden years, Henrietta took me and Roman in. Two mischievous troublemakers who were surely on the road to jail for our pranks. “I still remember the day she claimed us, as what else could it be called? By that time, she had worked with nearly four dozen teenagers and had worked magic with each of them. She healed broken hearts and angry spirits. She taught each one of us how to accept ourselves for who we are, how to dream about a future and a career we could be passionate about, and then she helped us figure out how to fly. “I believe, if anyone bothered to do a study, that Henrietta Stone is singlehandedly responsible for filling about half the positions in the city and county governments, from fire and rescue to police and safety to water and electric. Henrietta Stone was indeed a remarkable woman. Thank you.” Gage turned and walked back to his seat, surprised to find the world going blurry from tears. When had they begun? Once he sat

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down, he leaned into Daria, who turned in her chair to hug him. “Thank you, Gage. It was beautiful,” she whispered as the small makeshift choir began to sing. Looking over her shoulder, he met Roman’s gaze. “Perfect,” his Master said, handing him a bright orange bandana. **** The post-funeral reception was just winding down when Mr. and Mrs. Holloway approached Daria. The Holloways lived next door to Mrs. Stone and were wonderful neighbors. “Daria, we were wondering if you’ve made any plans regarding the land?” Mrs. Holloway asked. “I haven’t really had a chance to think about it, why?” Daria asked. “If you decide to sell it, we would be interested in purchasing it. For fair market value, of course,” Mrs. Holloway said. “Um, well, I’ll keep that in mind, but I’m not sure if we’re going to rebuild or not. And we haven’t looked at the will to see who Mrs. Stone left the house to.” “Just please don’t sell it to anyone else without talking to us first. We’d love to build a guest cottage and expand the gardens.” “As I said, I’ll have to talk to the executor of the will and see who the new owner of the property is. Thank you for coming.” Daria smiled before she turned and walked away. This was not the first such offer she had received, and she did not think it would be the last. After all, a cleared lot in this historic district overlooking the water was worth more than a pretty penny. She was halfway to where Gage and Roman were talking with Kelso when she was stopped again. “Miss Tate, I don’t know if you remember me. I’m William Thomas, the insurance adjuster.” “Yes, I remember. Thank you for coming today.” “Oh, well I…I wanted to give this to you in person,” he said.

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He pulled an envelope out of his inside jacket pocket. Opening it, he pulled out several pieces of paper. “If you could just sign right here,” he said, laying one piece of paper on the table they stood next to before handing her a pen. “What’s this for?” “This says that you did indeed receive this.” He showed her a smaller envelope. “This is a combined check for the house insurance and the life insurance policy Mrs. Stone had which named you beneficiary.” Daria signed and dated the form then accepted the envelope. Opening it, she gasped at the amount. “Uh, um, thank you?” she said, closing the envelope again. “You’re welcome, Miss Tate. And if you need help investing any of that money, please don’t hesitate to contact our office. We have a number of very good investment counselors on staff.” “Yeah, sure, okay, I’ll remember that,” Daria said, still shocked that Mrs. Stone had left all this to her. Mr. Thomas walked away just as Roman and Gage approached from across the room. They looked concerned. “Baby girl? Are you okay?” “I’m in shock,” she said. “Mrs. Stone made me beneficiary of her life insurance policy and the house insurance. Could you hold this for me?” She handed Roman the check. “May I?” he said. She nodded and walked up to Gage and wrapped her arms around him as Roman opened the envelope and looked at the check. He swallowed hard and cleared his throat before sliding the envelope into the inside pocket of his coat. “So, are you two ready to go? Kelso said he and Maddie could take care of finishing up here.” “I’m ready,” Gage answered. “Me, too,” Daria said as she stepped away from the big man.

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Chapter 14 Roman aimed the boat he’d borrowed from Kelso toward the edge of the river miles upriver from town and far away from anyone who might see them. Mrs. Stone’s ashes had been scattered, and now it was time to cheer up his family. He glanced once more up and down the river to make sure they were totally alone before he looked at his submissives. “Okay, you two, strip,” he ordered in his soft but power-filled Master voice. While Gage immediately bent to take off his shoes and socks, Daria froze for three seconds before turning to stare at him. “Excuse me?” “Wench, I don’t like repeating myself, especially to my subs when I’m feeling playful,” Roman replied with a frown. **** Daria looked at Roman then to Gage, who was now barefoot and removing the cargo pants and T-shirt he had changed into just before they left the reception. Glancing back at Roman, she saw he was serious but had a sexy twinkle in his eye that meant something more than full body sunburns was in the works. She also realized he was in full Master mode. They had spent more time naked than clothed over the last week, but out here on the open river, she suddenly felt shy. Turning her back to the two men, she closed her eyes, breathed deep, and prayed for the courage to meet Roman’s challenge.

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Pulling off her tall boots, she set them aside then stood up. After finding her balance in the gently rocking boat, she quickly shimmied out of the black leggings. She rolled them up and tucked them into one of her boots. Another look at Roman’s serious expression and she shrugged out of the sweater. After putting it in her other boot, she reached for the hem of her dress and quickly pulled it over her head. Folding her dress in half, Daria draped it over her boots. Now naked, she took a deep breath as she turned around. Gage was completely bare while Roman was still fully clothed as befit his status as their Master. Looking at the two men, the arousal she was not sure she would be able to find in such a setting surged forth. Her nipples beaded as her pussy dampened and her mouth watered as her gaze dropped to Gage’s hard cock. During the past days, she had learned a lot about the lifestyle she had agreed to live with her men. Though she still had trouble calling Roman “Master,” she did call him “Sir” whenever they were in a scene such as the one they were about to engage in. His calling her “wench” was her signal as to whether they were playing BDSM games or merely having fantastic sex. “Mmmm, you look so damn good, wench of mine,” Roman said, licking his lips. He held one hand out, beckoning her to come to them. “Thank you, Sir,” she said with a giggle as she closed the distance and laid her hand in his. She squeaked when Roman jerked her off balance. She stumbled across the deck and landed heavily against him. He caught her easily, pressing her full length against him. Flexing his hips forward, he pressed his hard cock into her belly. She licked her lips in anticipation of taking his erection in her mouth. “Mmmm, and you feel good, too,” he said as he ran both hands down her spine to cup and massage her ass cheeks. “I’ve got a yen to fuck this beautiful ass while slave fills your pretty little pussy. Would you like that, my precious wench? Would you like to fuck both your

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men together until we all come?” “Oh, yes, Sir. Very much so.” Daria stretched up on her toes so she could kiss her Sir. “Then show your submission and undress me. Slave, adjust the seats like Kelso showed you.” “Yes, Master.” Daria knelt and untied both of Roman’s shoes, pulling them and his socks off as quickly as she could manage. Her breath caught when her juices overflowed and ran down her thighs. Lifting her attention, she fumbled with Roman’s belt for several long seconds. With a soft growl, Roman finally brushed her hands aside and opened it himself. Kneeling before him, she carefully opened the buttons of his jeans then fished out his hard cock and balls. Once they were free of the fabric, she took hold of the waistband and pulled the jeans down his legs before helping him step out of them. Raising her gaze as far as his crotch, Daria licked her lips. Rising up on her knees, she took the head of Roman’s cock between her lips. She swirled her tongue around the head before he reacted. He grabbed her hair and jerked her head off his cock. Her lips made a popping sound as they released the head. “Did I tell you to suck my cock, wench?” he growled. She blinked and met molten chocolate eyes that were filled with the fire of hunger combined with anger. “No, Sir. I’m sorry, but…” “Don’t try to make excuses for your disobedience. Stand up and get into position.” Standing, she turned, and as she bent over and pushed her ass out toward Roman, she looked for something to hold onto. She would not be able to maintain her position in the gently rocking boat during what she figured would be a quick, hard spanking without help. “Slave, feed her your cock. Keep her still and quiet during her punishment.” Gage took her arms and wrapped them around his hips as his cock

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brushed against her lips. She opened her mouth and sucked him in as Sir began her spanking. The strokes came fast and harsh, spread over her ass so that the whole of her ass burned instead of just one or two spots. By the time the punishment ended, Daria’s thighs were slick with her juices and Gage’s hips were beginning to rock back and forth, gently fucking her mouth. She whined, and Gage sucked a breath when Roman pulled her back until Gage’s cock left her mouth. “Hush, wench. Or do you want me to continue your punishment?” Daria swallowed hard as she shook her head. “No, Sir.” Knowing what she was to do next, she turned and knelt in front of Roman, her back straight and her head bowed low. “I’m sorry, Sir.” “Forgiven.” With that Roman tilted her head back so he could kiss her deep and hard, causing them both to moan with the arousal that flared higher and hotter than ever. Breaking the kiss, he helped her to stand again. “Slave, on your back so our girl can play cowgirl.” Gage laid down on the seat that he had rearranged so it made a flat bed. As soon as he was in position, Roman handed her a condom. She gently unrolled the latex sheath down the big man’s erection before kissing his belly. His breathing hitched as his hips canted upward. “Okay, wench, climb on your stud, but do not mount him,” Roman ordered, gently running two fingers down her spine to gently pat her ass. She moaned as she crawled on top of Gage. She straddled his hips with her parted pussy lips and clit pressed into the base of his cock. “Slave, hold onto her because this is going to be quick and she’s going to buck.” Roman ran his left hand down her spine from neckline to the top of her cleft. As that hand moved back up her spine, two cold, wet fingers gently stabbed through her back hole, twisting as they forced their way all the way in.

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Daria did indeed try to buck as her muscles were forcefully stretched, but Gage held her firmly. Roman’s fingers fucked in and out several times before he added more lube and a third finger, stretching her fully. She could not help the growl that escaped when Roman pulled his fingers free. When the broad head of his cock replaced it, she sucked a deep breath and fought to keep herself relaxed as he slowly pushed forward until his entire length filled her. “Good girl, wench. Damn you feel so hot and tight. Slave, you can release her now.” As soon as Gage’s arms left her, Daria pushed up, needing to feel closer to Roman. He wrapped his arms around her chest just under her breasts and lifted until her upper back pressed against him. Her back arched, and she fought an ever-growing need to move. Then Sir shifted them, lifting her high enough for Gage to fit the head of his cock to her pussy entrance. A moment later, Roman released her body, and she fell forward, catching herself by her hands on Gage’s chest. With that, Gage slipped fully inside her. Daria heard a high keening noise as the two men filled her painfully full. It took a second before she realized that the cry came from her. “You feel so damn good wrapped around my cock,” Roman praised her. “Oh, God, please. Move, dammit,” she demanded, earning a slap on her hip from Roman. “That’s enough of that, wench. Just relax now and let us do all the work. Just relax and enjoy. And come as much as you need to,” Roman said as he brushed kisses across her back of her neck, causing shivers to race through her. “Master?” Gage managed to grind out through a locked jaw. “Yes, slave. I’m not far myself. But I want wench to come at least twice before we do, understand?” “Yes, Master. I’ll try to hold off.”

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With that, Roman began to move her at his pleasure so that while one cock slid in, the other slid out. It only took a few such strokes before Daria cried out, her orgasm racing over her like a train. As the men’s movements gained speed and strength, Daria’s orgasm continued from peak to peak, strong and steady, causing her muscles to spasm and contract. She gave up trying to control anything except her body’s need for oxygen in greater and greater amounts. She screamed again just moments later when both cocks slammed home and held steady deep inside her and her men cried out their releases in deep masculine harmony. Her arm muscles gave, and she melted down onto Gage’s chest, her mind shutting down to everything except the pleasure that filled her to overflowing.

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Chapter 15 Though it was difficult for him to breathe, Gage remained silent as the two people he loved slowly recovered on top of him. He felt Roman move, and the weight on him eased. Daria groaned, and he knew his Master had pulled from her ass. A moment later, Daria lifted her head and looked up at him, her expression one of complete satisfaction. “You okay?” “Hmm-mmm,” he answered as he wrapped his arms around her back to hold her in place when she tried to move away as well. Then an engine noise broke the silence. When Daria would have sat up, he held her tighter until the sound crescendoed and then faded away again. Once it was gone, he felt Roman clean up their girl before moving away again. Only then did Gage sit up, still cuddling her into his chest. “Okay, baby girl, time for a talk before we head back to town,” Roman said. Daria looked at him with wide, frightened eyes. “It’s okay, angel. But we need to get dressed before we start to burn,” Gage assured her with a smile. She did not look so sure as she eased up and off his shaft. When she stood, her wobbling stance was only partly due to the rocking of the boat. **** Once she was on her feet, Daria did not know what she should do.

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Sit down naked and act nonchalant? Or dress and try to wrangle her fear that Roman was about to kick her to the street? Turning to look at her Sir, she found him wearing only his jeans and holding her dress in one hand. His smile was warm and loving as he helped her back into her dress. When she reached for her leggings, he stopped her. “That’s enough for now,” Roman said. He sat down on the bench and pulled her to sit across his lap. Gage joined them a moment later, sitting next to Roman instead of on the floor at his feet. He lifted her legs to rest across his thighs before he cupped one of her hands between both of his. Roman waited until she looked into his eyes before he spoke. “I know we’ve only been together a short time, but we have loved you for years and want you to permanently join our family. Daria Tate, will you marry us?” Daria sucked a breath and blinked, shocked to her toenails at his question. “Marry you? Both of you? Isn’t that illegal in North Carolina?” “You’ll legally be married to Roman as Master, but I will be just as devoted to you as any husband would be. There will never be another woman for me, just like there will never be another Master for me. I love you, my mistress angel. Please marry us?” Gage said after a glance at Roman, who nodded his approval. Daria turned and looked out across the river then back at her men. She had to blink away tears and clear her throat before she could answer. “Yes. Yes, I’ll marry you and love you until the day I die.” She leaned forward and kissed Gage first. Then she turned and kissed Roman. As she did, someone took her left hand and slipped something on her ring finger. When Roman released her, she looked at her hand in amazement. The ring’s band was fashioned of three strands of gold with four stones along the top, one diamond and the other three representing their three birthstones. “It’s beautiful,” she said, wrapping an arm around each man’s

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neck, and pulled them in for a group hug. “Now you’re not just marrying me for my money, are you?” she pulled her head back and asked with a grin. “Because I’m not keeping it.” “You’re not?” the two men asked together. “No, I was thinking about setting up a scholarship fund at the community college called the Henrietta Stone Memorial Scholarship. It could help foster children who want to become firefighters or policemen pay for their education.” Her men looked at each other and then back to her, both grinning as tears filled their eyes. “That sounds like a perfect plan,” Roman said. “Besides,” Gage added with a snarky grin, “we love you no matter how rich or poor you may be.” “And I love you two, too,” Daria said, suddenly slapping at a mosquito that bit her arm. “Now can we go home before we’re all eaten alive?” “Whatever my mistress wishes,” Gage said, kissing her once more before pulling up the anchor and starting the boat’s engine.

THE END WWW.COOPERMCKENZIE.WEBS.COM

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Cooper McKenzie always thought she had been born a hundred years too late, but appreciates air conditioning, computers, and other conveniences of modern day living. She enjoys the slower pace of New Bern, North Carolina as well as the history and small town community found there. In addition to dreaming up her next story, Cooper enjoys reading everything except scary books, singing in her church choir and needle-weaving.

Also by Cooper McKenzie Ménage Amour: Welcome to Sanctuary 1: Spring Comes to Sanctuary Ménage Amour ManLove: Welcome to Sanctuary 2: Winter and His Twins Ménage Amour: Welcome to Sanctuary 3: Summer Loving Ménage Amour: Welcome to Sanctuary 4: Autumn Healing Ménage Amour: Their Dream Weaver 1: Claiming Their Dream Weaver Ménage Amour: Their Dream Weaver 2: Loving Their Dream Weaver Ménage Amour: Their Dream Weaver 3: Marrying Their Dream Weaver Siren Classic: Prequel to The Billionaire’s Mate: The Soldier’s Mate Siren Classic: The Billionaire’s Mate Siren Classic: Sequel to The Billionaire’s Mate: The Billionaire’s Lady Siren Classic: Sequel to The Billionaire’s Lady: The Cop’s Mate Ménage Amour: Club Esoteria 1: His Sub’s Submissive Siren Classic: Club Esoteria 2: Caught by the Master Ménage Amour: Club Esoteria 3: Minding Mistress Ménage Amour: Club Esoteria 4: Masters of Her Heart Siren Classic: Club Esoteria 5: Jillian’s Master Siren Allure: Club Esoteria 6: His Beck and Call Girl Siren Classic: The Color of Sex Siren Classic: DM2010

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