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  Now, Tilly had started getting job offers from others. Ones she politely rejected, even though some of them were offering far more money and the chance to work with some of Hollywood’s major A-list names.

  It wasn’t about the money or the fame to her. It was about helping her friends and enjoying what she was doing, learning new things, the challenge of it all.

  She didn’t need the money. What Landry and Cris made alone had them set for life, even if they sold their business tomorrow.

  It was the fun of it.

  In the private garage under their condo, Cris got behind the wheel for the first leg of the morning trip.

  “How about I rent the car for you?” he suggested. “Or you can drive mine and I’ll drive a rental?”

  “No,” she said. “This is fine. We’re flying back to Florida Friday night. My car won’t be done until late next week at the earliest. That’s three days to rent a car and turn it in again. That’s just stupid and a pain in the ass.”

  “Suit yourself, sweetheart. I’ll be in meetings all day tomorrow anyway with a client. John Ebhrams is going, too, so I can catch a ride there with him from the office.”

  “See? Why waste the money?”

  “It’s not a waste. It’s a tax-deductible expense, since it’s a work vehicle. Besides, technically it’s Lucas and Leigh’s car, since the production company pays for it.”

  She arched an eyebrow at him.

  “Fine. Be stubborn.”

  “Thank you. I will. Seriously, I’d rather not spend the money. And I’m the one who wrecked it, so I should pay for it.”

  “You do understand that, even if we didn’t have good insurance, we can easily afford to rent something, right?”

  “That’s not the point,” she said. “Just because we can afford it doesn’t mean we should spend the money. I’m not blowing our money when we don’t need to.”

  He reached across the seat and laced fingers with her. “You always were a thrifty woman,” he said. “One of the countless things I love about you.” He gently squeezed her hand.

  A thrilled shiver ran through her nervous system. Lately, yes, those familiar old feelings for Cris had renewed. A return to the easy rapport she’d had with him as her Master.

  Maybe in public she wouldn’t ever be able to fully return to that old dynamic, she didn’t know. But it felt damn good to no longer have that boulder of resentment and pain weighing her down like it had for so long.

  It felt good to be them again. Even better, Landry didn’t mind it. Had, in fact, encouraged them to try to rebond in that way. Yes, sneakily and in secret, at first, but then openly admitting he was fine with it and welcomed it.

  They were a family again. It sucked that she’d finally had to bow to her body’s limitations and get a hysterectomy to end her monthly misery. Knowing she would never have kids and still having that little outside chance dangling overhead was different than the finality of not having any kids being forced on her by medical necessity.

  It took away every possible fantasy scenario, every last, desperate wish.

  Ironic, now that she had not just one but two men she’d kill and die for, men who she knew were just as madly and deeply in love with her.

  But them’s the breaks.

  At least she could be an “aunt” to her friends’ kids, including Lucas, Leigh, and Nick’s baby, Lily Grace. Tilly took every chance she could to babysit the adorable little girl.

  And Leo and Eva’s daughter, Laurel, and Eva and Crawford’s infant son, Kenny. Not to mention others in their closely knit group of friends.

  When they arrived at Cris’ office, he shifted the car into park. Then he leaned in and kissed her before unfastening his seat belt. “Have a good day today, Redbird,” he softly said. “Be my good girl.”

  “Yes, Sir.” The automatic response fell from her lips. Most of the world saw the hard side of Tilly Cardinal LaCroux.

  They didn’t see this.

  The true her.

  The slave who wanted to curl up in the protection of her Master’s lap and let him fix the world for her.

  She took his place in the driver’s seat. She was about to pull away from the curb when she realized Cris had left his personal cell phone in the center console, hooked into the hands-free system.

  She honked and rolled down the passenger side window for him. “You forgot something,” she said with a smile as she held it up.

  “Thanks, sweetheart.” He leaned in and took it from her. She used to tease him and Landry about having both business and personal cell phones.

  Until she went to work for Lucas and Leigh. Now, she got it. Not only did she have two cell phones, she had two iPads, her personal one and the one she only used for work.

  Tilly pulled out into traffic, trying to sort her day in her mind.

  * * * *

  Leigh was already in the office and handling a phone call when Tilly arrived. Tilly went to her office and was getting organized to start her day when Leigh appeared in her doorway.

  “Still won’t rent a car, huh?”

  “What are you, psychic?”

  “I saw you pull in driving Cris’ car. And you texted me that you were running late this morning, so I’m guessing you took him to work.”

  Tilly sat back in her chair. “I’m not going to give that little fucker ammo against me.”

  “There is no ammo against you. It was an accident. You’ve already let Archie Lounds into your head and ceded him the game by not ignoring him. If he wants to make something up against you, he’ll make it up regardless. Hell, he’s made up worse shit about more famous people. It’s all right.”

  “Yeah, and the less ammo I give him, the better.”

  Tilly thought Leigh muttered stubborn damn Domme under her breath as she turned from Tilly’s office doorway.

  The rest of the morning, fortunately, passed in a reasonably uneventful fashion.

  Then Landry called her around lunch time.

  “Pray tell, love, why won’t you rent a car?”

  Tilly silently groaned. “I already went through this with Cris.”

  “Yes, well, I’m asking you to go through this with me.”

  Landry already knew about the car accident but he’d assumed—as had Cris—that Tilly would simply rent a car.

  “Yes, I get it,” she said when she finished. “I’m stubborn and boneheaded and maybe it doesn’t make sense to you two, but I’m not renting a car when I don’t need to.”

  Landry let out one of those sighs, one that made its way over the phone all the way from Florida.

  “All right, Little Miss Stubborn,” he said. “Have it your way. I won’t even tell you ‘I told you so’ when you break down and rent one.”

  “I’m not going to rent one.”

  “Cris can go rent one, if he desires.”

  “You did not overrule me. Tell me you didn’t.”

  “Now, love. Would I do that?”

  “Bullshit, yes, you would. Did you tell him to rent a car?”

  “Not yet, I haven’t. I’m trying to decide how much satisfaction I can derive from your irritation all the way here in Florida.”

  “You know, that’s sooo not fair.”

  “I never said I was fair, love. I believe I made that perfectly clear to you when we got married.”

  “You did, but I thought you were teasing.”

  “Frankly, I’m beginning to think you’re just being stubborn on purpose.”

  “Well, think what you want, Sir Fussypants. We had a deal not to mess with each other’s jobs.”

  “True. But I could counter that you having to drive Cris to and from work is interfering with his job. And yours. You were late to the office this morning, were you not? Or should I call Leigh to ask her?”

  Dammit.

  “Don’t you go using logic on me, mister.”

  Landry chuckled. “Love you, sweetheart. I’ll talk to you later.”

  “Love you,” she grumbled before ending the
call.

  Damn Dom.

  Later that afternoon, as Tilly was stuck in traffic while going to get Cris, she started to reconsider her stance. This was a major pain in the ass.

  That is, until Cris greeted her with a smirk when she rolled up in front of his office building.

  She knew that smirk. That smirk meant he thought he had the upper hand and she was about to capitulate.

  “Ready to take me to the rental car place?”

  She bristled. “No, we’re going home. Someone promised to cook me dinner tonight.”

  His smirk faded, giving her satisfaction. “Seriously?”

  “Uh, yeah. I’ve been looking forward to your chicken parm all—”

  “No, I meant about not renting a car.”

  She glared at him. “What part of that did I not make clear earlier?”

  “But I thought Lan said—”

  “Well, you thought wrong.” Dammit, she wouldn’t let these two damn Doms get the better of her. Unless they pulled the Master card—which she suspected they wouldn’t due to it being a job-related issue for her—she would hold her ground.

  On this matter, at least.

  It was too easy for the two of them to tag-team her, and before she knew it, she was rolling over.

  Not that rolling over was a bad thing with them, but dammit, she had her pride.

  This time, she wouldn’t cede.

  “Buckle up, buttercup,” she told him as she pulled away from the curb.

  Chapter Three

  Cris knew Tilly was being stubborn just for the sake of being stubborn at this point.

  And also that, very likely, Landry wouldn’t step in because he was enjoying watching the power struggle from a distance.

  Sadist.

  Cris was also smart enough to recognize that playing the Master card with Tilly regarding this topic would go over about as well as a fart at a funeral. He’d worked too damn long and hard to regain her trust to pull a stunt like that.

  Or to ask Lan to intercede on his behalf.

  No, this was one of those things he’d have to work out with her.

  With her sitting right there in the car, it wasn’t like he could call Landry and talk to him about it, either.

  When they returned home, Cris changed clothes and headed out to the kitchen to make dinner. When it was just the two of them, they switched off the chore. He did notice that when it was just him and Tilly, she seemed to drop back into slave mode more and more.

  It was the best feeling in the world, to have that trust from her again.

  Of course he’d cook her dinner. Who said Masters couldn’t cook dinner? Masters could do what the fuck they wanted, when they wanted.

  And he wanted to cook her dinner.

  Tonight, she’d even slipped on her leather collar and joined him in the kitchen wearing one of his old T-shirts. He’d donned shorts and nothing else.

  He pulled her close, wrapping her hair around his hand and tipping her head back. “Who’s my good girl?”

  She grinned. “Still not renting a car, Sir.”

  He laughed and gave her a long, deep kiss that hardened his cock. In some ways, this was better between them. She’d learned how to take care of herself, to stand up for herself.

  She didn’t brat but it was nice knowing he couldn’t steamroll her. That meant, especially in bed now, he could take control in ways he’d been hesitant to their first time around out of fear of her not stopping him if he crossed a line.

  Now, he had no doubts she’d stop him before he derailed them.

  He grabbed both her ass cheeks through the T-shirt and squeezed, hard, before smacking them. “I had other things in mind, Redbird. Like after-dinner activities.”

  “Mmm. I think I could be persuaded in that direction, Sir.”

  He nibbled on her neck, drawing a gasp from her when he nipped her, just below her ear. “Good, because I’m in the mood to give someone a spanking before I fuck their nice, hot pussy.”

  She squirmed against him. “We could do that before dinner, Sir.”

  Even her tone of voice had changed, sounding subspacey, turning his hard cock into something that felt like molten iron in his shorts.

  Now he had her. “After dinner, pet. I’m hungry.” One more smack delivered to her ass and he let her go, amused to see her sway a little on her feet.

  Good.

  * * * *

  Tilly knew trying to push or goad Cris into something before he was ready would only mean more delays.

  He was definitely a sadist like that.

  Not that she was complaining.

  Now having spent several years married to Landry, she easily saw where Cris had developed some of his sadistic practices.

  Again, not complaining in the least.

  If anything, it only amped up her excitement, her need. She knew he’d make good to take care of her after dinner. One thing he and Landry had quickly learned was that post-reunion Tilly was not a woman who took well to tease-and-denial play.

  If they teased her, they damn well better be ready to make good in short order. Winding her up and letting her go only made their own lives a living hell. It’d taken just one time of them doing that, Landry used to getting away with tease-and-denial with Cris, to end up with a screaming, and then sobbing Tilly, who alternately lashed out and retreated from the men, practically undoing in one evening all the work Landry had done trying to gain her trust.

  She hadn’t even realized why she’d triggered so hard or so badly until the three of them curled up in bed and talked it out.

  It was shades of rejection, of abandonment.

  And both Landry and Cris had sworn that night never to do that to her again.

  Making her wait a little while, for a definite payout, was one thing. Fun after dinner—fine.

  If that didn’t happen, unless it was legitimate circumstances beyond the men’s control like a natural disaster or something, it risked setting in motion something neither man wanted to happen.

  Landry still had his sadistic fun that way with Cris, but never with Tilly.

  She didn’t even mind a little delay, especially if they worked her up to a frenzy in the process, much like Cris was doing tonight.

  Such as making her sit on the counter, legs spread wide, so he could tease her by licking her pussy.

  Just enough to sink her into a deliciously subspacey place and keep her there for the duration.

  That was fun.

  That was something she damn well loved.

  Teasing with no foreseeable payout meant the men risked their testicles, or worse—losing her trust in them.

  After a delicious dinner eaten while cuddling on the couch, they cleaned up the kitchen together and set up a FaceTime call with Landry.

  “Ah, there’s my two gorgeous pets,” he said. “I was just getting ready to head for bed.”

  “So are we, Master,” Cris said as he hooked an arm around her shoulders and pulled her into his lap.

  “Miss you,” Tilly said. “We’ll fly home Friday night.”

  “I shall be eagerly awaiting your return, loves,” Landry said. “I wish I could have made this trip with you.”

  “Me, too,” they both said, making Tilly giggle. “Jinx,” she said.

  “I see someone’s already been dropped into subspace,” Landry said with a knowing smile. The picture tilted and shifted as he propped his iPad against his legs. He was in bed already, sitting up against the headboard.

  “I might have promised her some fun while we were cooking dinner,” Cris said.

  “Then fun you shall have,” Landry said. “I shan’t keep you any longer. I didn’t sleep very well last night, so I’m going to turn in.”

  Tilly sat up, alarm bells going off in her brain. “What’s wrong? Don’t you feel okay?”

  “Calm down, my rabid little nurse. I’m fine. My own damn fault, I had an iced coffee late in the afternoon.”

  She relaxed, relieved. “Oh. Well, yeah, you’re right. I
t was your own damn fault. You know you can’t have caffeine late in the day.”

  “Yes, and neither of you were here to give me a blowjob. Which is, of course, the fastest way for me to get to sleep when I’ve done that.”

  She smiled. “Hey, unintentional sadism on our part. Yay, us.”

  “Very amusing, love. I shall remember that when we’re together again. I can see someone needs a forced orgasm session with her pussy and her ass stuffed with cock.”

  Said pussy and ass both clenched at that thought. “Maaaybe,” she said.

  Landry chuckled. “Take her to bed and ravish her well and fully, Cris. Love you both.”

  “Love you,” they said in unison before Landry ended the call.

  Cris grinned down at her. “Well, now. Master gave me permission to ravish you.”

  “Yeah?”

  He tumbled her off his lap onto the sofa and stood, easily scooping her up and over his shoulder as she squealed.

  He smacked her ass, hard, as he carried her to the bedroom. “One ravishing, coming up.” He smacked her ass again. “In fact, I’m thinking someone’s getting a butt plug up their ass before their spanking.”

  Tilly whimpered. Oh, Cris was really wound up now.

  She’d have to remember to thank Landry tomorrow.

  He dropped her onto their bed, where she landed with a bounce. He walked over to the dresser where they kept their small supply of toys there at the condo and opened it.

  “Hmm. Let’s see.” He rooted through the drawer, pulling out her leather wrist and ankle cuffs and a snap-clip, as well as a medium-sized butt plug and the Hitachi vibrator.

  He brought them all over to the bed, a very wide grin on his face. “Shirt off, cuffs on.” He set everything on the bed. “I’ll go get the rest from the bathroom.”

  She was already naked and had her wrist cuffs on when he returned with a towel, a tube of lube, and a condom for the butt plug.

  “Such a good girl you are,” he said with a panty-dampening grin on his face.

  When she finished buckling the cuffs around her ankles, he stripped, sat on the edge of the bed, and patted his lap. “You know the drill, Redbird.”