Ten days after Harper’s surgery, on her first day back at work, her father walked into her office without knocking first. He closed and locked the door behind him, meaning he wanted a long, private chat with her. She was on the phone with one of their attorneys. Her dad sat in front of her desk expectantly, without saying a word.
She tried not to feel his gaze on her as she talked. Finally she was able to end the call, and she looked at him. “Yes?”
He raised an eyebrow at her.
In the pit of her stomach, she knew what this was about. She didn’t seriously worry about him pulling rank on her and firing Doug and Tate, but this wasn’t a conversation she wanted to have.
“What?” she finally asked.
“You know what, little girl.”
“I’m not a little girl.”
He crossed his arms over his chest and waited her out. A reminder from childhood, when he knew she’d done something, she knew he knew exactly what, and he waited her out to admit it so they could continue with the discussion of whatever happened.
“What do you want me to say, Daddy?” she finally asked, breaking the uncomfortable silence.
“I want you to tell me what the hell you think you’re doing.”
“I’m trying to live my life. You’re the one, if you’ll remember, who threatened to push me out of the company if I didn’t get a boyfriend.”
“No, I said if you didn’t learn to balance your personal life. I never said go out and get involved in a threesome!”
“Do you have a problem with my personal life?”
“I—” His mouth snapped shut. Finally, he said, “What do you want me to say? That I’m happy for you having two boyfriends?”
“No, I want you to say you’re happy for me falling in love with two wonderful men who love me and each other and who want to be a family. Two men who are as dedicated to this company as I am, for that matter. Hey, you always said when I was growing up that you pitied the man I ended up with because he’d have a hard time handling me. Now I have two who can share the job.”
He stared at her, stunned, before he finally burst out laughing. She smiled but didn’t join him, still unsure the direction the conversation would take.
“You’ve got a valid point there, sweetheart,” he eventually said when he composed himself. “No one man would ever be able to handle you.” He sighed. “What the hell am I going to do with you, kiddo?”
“Let me run this company, and my life, the way I need to. It’s that simple. I trust both of them to be as dedicated to the success of this company as I am. You either have faith in me and my abilities, or you don’t. And if you don’t, say so now so we can decide how to transition the company over to another CEO.” She wanted to hold her breath while waiting for his answer. It was a bluff, because the last thing she wanted was to walk away from something she’d worked so damned hard for.
After a silence that felt like forever, he nodded. “You’re right. You’re an adult, and I do have faith in you.” He shook a finger at her. “If they hurt you, I’ll kill them.”
When he stood, she did, too. She rounded the desk and hugged him. “Daddy, they love me. I love them. I know it’s crazy, but it’s what happened, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.”
“If you’re happy, that’s all that matters, I suppose.” He released her and headed for her office door. “Are there any other surprises I need to be made aware of?”
“No, Daddy.”
He turned before he exited. “Don’t be surprised if someone, at some time, tries to use this against you. We’re in a business where people can be pretty cutthroat when going after contracts. I don’t have to tell you that. But if you want to walk this path, you’re going to need skin as tough as a shark’s. And you’re going to have to fight the urge to lose your temper if someone tries bullshit like that.”
She nodded. “I know, Daddy. It’s okay. I’m not worried about it.”
When he left, she plopped back down in her office chair. She knew he was right, but it wouldn’t change her mind about Doug and Tate. She loved them. She was done sacrificing her personal life. She could have them and her business, and god help anyone who stood in her way and tried to take either from her.
When she arrived home that night, Tate had gotten there first. They agreed they didn’t all have to go into the office together, or even at the same time. Sometimes Harper would go work out in the morning if she didn’t have meetings, and she treasured that alone time so she could clear her thoughts. She loved that the men wanted to give her space and not smother her twenty-four-seven.
“Hey, babe,” he said as she walked in and found him in the kitchen. He’d already started dinner. “What’s wrong?”
She set her briefcase on the table. “What do you mean?”
“The frowny thing. What happened?”
She slumped into a chair. “Daddy decided he wanted to talk with me today about our situation.”
“Oh.” Did he look a few shades paler? “And?”
“I told him it’s my life and that I’m an adult, and if he trusts me to run his company, he should trust me to run my personal life.”
His relief was obviously visible in how his whole posture relaxed. “Does he hate me and Doug?”
“No.” She grinned. “Not yet, anyways.”
He pulled her to him. “You get a kick out of yanking our chains sometimes, don’t you?” He held her tightly and nibbled on the side of her neck.
“Duh.” She moaned. Whenever either man did this to her it totally unhinged all her joints, started her clit throbbing, and usually ended up with them in bed in a very short amount of time.
Probably why they loved to do it to her so much.
Just as she was about to suggest they do just that, move upstairs into bed, Doug walked in. “Oooh, what am I missing?”
“Nothing…yet,” Tate teased as he released her with a final kiss on her neck.
“Not for lack of trying on my part,” she snarked.
Doug engulfed her in a hug. “Aww, is mean ole Tate teasing my poor girl?”
“Uh-huh.”
“Well, I promise we’ll take care of that after dinner. Won’t we, Tate?”
He’d already turned back to the stove, where something delicious was simmering. “Yep. Without a doubt.”
After dinner they made her wait until they’d cleaned everything up and the dishes were done and put away. Then Doug reached over and gave her a gentle slap on the ass. “Upstairs, young lady,” he teased. “March.”
She wondered for all of a second if scrambling full speed for the stairs counted as marching. Harper was already naked in the middle of the bed by the time the men made it upstairs and to the bedroom doorway.
“Hmm, she sure seems eager, doesn’t she?” Tate asked.
“Yep. She sure does,” Doug replied with a grin.
They advanced on her as they stripped, naked by the time they joined her in bed. She was ready for more than a show from them tonight. She wanted to go to sleep well fucked, and the doctor had cleared her to do it as long as nothing hurt.
Tate lay on his back, rolling her over on top of him. He kissed her, a firm fist in her hair holding her in place as she squirmed against him and tried to play Pin the Pussy with his cock. She was vaguely aware of Doug reaching for something before he returned to kneel behind them.
Then she heard the unmistakable sound of a condom pouch being ripped open. Doug delivered another playful slap to her backside. “Stop squirming. I can’t see what I’m doing.”
She reluctantly fell still as Tate distracted her with his tongue in her mouth. She felt Doug reach between her legs and realized he was rolling a condom onto Tate’s cock.
“Okay, now you can ride the pony, baby,” Doug joked. She felt him position the head of Tate’s cock at the entrance to her pussy. She slid him deep inside her with a happy moan. When she tried to ride him, Doug pressed one hand on the flat of her back. “Hold on, not yet. Just sit there and look pretty.”