Bliss Series Boxed Set: The Whole Damn Harem (75 page)

I stop breathing for a moment, wishing like hell she would have finished that sentence differently, but instead she quickly takes a big mouthful before putting her glass on the kitchen counter.

“Right, let’s go greet our guests, shall we?” I hold my hand out to her and we walk downstairs to the front door together.

“Oh my lord! Girl, you did not tell me he lived in a shrine!” Helen says as I open the door. She hasn’t changed too much over the years. She’s still loud and outspoken as she always was, and it’s still as endearing as it was back when I first met her.

I chuckle as I step forward and kiss her cheek. “Helen, great to see you again.”

“You too, Sean. It’s been too long.” She pulls me in for a hug, standing on her toes so that her mouth is by my ear. “If you hurt her, I’ll kill you.”

She steps back and joins hands with the man who is watching on with interest. “Babe, this is Sean. Sam’s boyfriend?” She looks questioningly at Sam who glares at her in horror.

“Boyfriend suits me,” I interrupt, “Although, do we still have boyfriends and girlfriends in our thirties?” I smirk and look at Sam who turns to me in shock. I wrap my arm around her waist and squeeze gently, and thank Christ she buries herself in my side.

“Boyfriend,” she murmurs quietly as if she’s testing the label out. It’s fucking cute as hell.

“Sorry, this is Rico, my fiancé,” Helen says with a grin.

“Great to meet you. You’re a brave man taking this one on.”

“You’re telling me,” he says with a laugh, shaking my outstretched hand firmly and looking into my eyes. He’s a straight shooter this man, my kind of guy.

“Hello! I’m standing right here, Enrico. If you want any of
this
later on, you better tread carefully, mister.”

That just makes the rest of us laugh again.

I step aside, taking Sam with me as I gesture for Helen and Rico to come inside. “Come in. We’re still waiting for Zander and Kate, but that’s not to say we can’t start with a drink.”

“Now that’s what I’m talking about,” Helen states as she and Rico make their way up the stairs followed by Sam and me.

I lean down to whisper into Sam’s ear, “Your
boyfriend
would like you to relax, Sammy.” She whacks my arm playfully and steps away toward Helen who has made herself at home in the kitchen as she prepares drinks.

Rico and I are talking baseball when I hear the doorbell again. I turn to Sam and she waves her hand at me to say she’s got it. A few minutes later, the tall blond man and gorgeous red haired woman from the Police Foundation dinner emerge from the stairs after Sam.

I excuse myself from Rico and walk toward them. “Sean, this is my partner Zander and his fiancée Kate,” Sam says, introducing them.

Holding my hand out to Zander, he shakes it rather firmly. “Nice to finally meet you.”

“You too. Sam has told me a lot about you,” I say to Zander, looking over at Kate and smiling. Her brows narrow briefly before she looks away and sniggers, like there is a joke we’re all missing.

His eyes widen briefly before he starts shaking his head. “Now I don’t know whether to be worried or whether you’re lying. Because Richards here would only talk about me if she were bitching about me. Your woman is a ball buster if you don’t already know.”

“Roberts …” Sam growls beside me.

He puts his hands up in mock surrender. “Easy boss. I’m hoping Sean here is the one who’s been melting the ice lately.”

I look at him confused before it clicks. “That would be me. Happy to have been of service.”

Sam gasps at the two of us before turning to Kate. “He’s incorrigible. Would you like a drink?”

“Definitely. I have a feeling we’re going to need one,” she comments puzzlingly. That’s strange. I’m starting to wonder what I’m missing, but it clicks a little while later, during dinner when Sam asks Kate about her day.

“I had a fitting for my bridesmaid dress today. I can’t believe they’re getting married in the summer.”

“I bet you’re looking forward to it though. It’ll be like a trial run for your own,” Helen pipes up.

“Oh, yeah, but Zander and I haven’t even started planning our wedding. We need to get Mac and Daniel’s one out of the way first.”

Oh shit! The strange look becomes all too clear

Kate knows Mac, she’s gonna be her bridesmaid … that would make Kate the best friend …Mac’s best friend. Therefore, Kate would know about me and Mac. Ah fuck … now I know what Kate’s look was about. She’s made the connection already. I tense up when I think about Sam and what her reaction will be. We’ve had such a good day and now my past is making an unfortunate appearance at what should be an awesome night with new friends.

I grab my phone out of my pocket and send Mac a quick text.

Sean:
Kate and Zander are at my house for dinner.

Mac:
I know. Kate told me earlier.

Sean:
Babydoll, you didn’t think to give me a heads up?

Mac:
And spoil the fun …?

Sean:
That man of yours should spank your ass.

Mac:
Maybe I’ll ask him to, he’s good like that ;) Have fun!

“Sean, is everything all right?” Sam asks from beside me.

“Uh … yeah.”

I look down the table to see Kate grabbing her phone off the table and I know I need to tell Sam. I tense up and reach over, grabbing Sam’s hand and putting it in my now clammy one just as Kate puts her phone down and turns to Zander.

“Sam, I think there is something you should know.”

She looks worried as she looks at me.

“What?”

“Zander and I have a mutual friend …” I wait for a reaction, but she seems nonplussed, shrugging her shoulders.

“Who?”

I reach up and rub the back of my neck, feeling mildly uncomfortable to be doing this in front of company. “Uh, if I’m right, we were both involved with Kate’s friend Mac.”

She looks over at Zander, then back at me. “I’m confused. That’s not unheard of, although it
is
quite a coincidence.”

“Yeah, I only just made the connection. The thing is, Mac had three friends with benefits at the same time …” Then the penny drops. She splutters into her drink, taking a big gulp before putting the glass down on the table. She just stares at me, then turns her eyes to Zander. Kate looks over and bites her lip, like she knows what has just happened.

“Roberts,” Sam calls out. “It seems you and Sean have something, sorry
someone
in common.”

Zander stops talking to Helen and looks over, his eyes full of surprise as he looks at Sam, then me … then something clicks into place and he spits out his drink before flicking me a sympathetic look.

“Shit!” he says under his breath, shaking his head.

“I’m guessing you didn’t make the connection either?” Sam asks, her voice light and more casual than I expected.

“Ah, fuck,” he mutters, then looks at Kate who is beaming at him as she sniggers, which makes his lips slowly turn up.

My cheeks heat up, and for the first time in twenty years I almost feel embarrassed.

“What am I missing here?” Helen interjects, looking at all of us while Rico just leans back in his chair, putting his hands behind his head like he’s just sitting back and watching the show. Lucky bastard.

“Well,” Sam announces, “Sean has just realized that him and Zander were banging the same chick at the same time.”

“Hang on. At the same time? As in a drunken threesome story?”

I choke on my whisky as both Zander and I shake our heads. “Fuck no!” we both say loudly in unison.

Sam and Kate start giggling and Helen just looks confused. “Hang on, at the same time? As in she was seeing you both at the same time?”

Kate pipes up, her face beaming, “Yep. My best friend Mac was never one to limit herself to just one man. She actually had three friends with benefits at the same time.”

Helen slaps her hand down on the table. “Holy crap. I need to meet this girl. That is fucking awesome.”

“Women …” Rico growls under his breath which just makes Sam and Kate laugh even more. Fucking fantastic.

“Hang on, that would be like saying Zander and Sean have had sex through association. That’s hilarious,” she continues.

It’s the only time I can say that I wish the world would swallow me up whole.

“Oh my god!” Sam starts saying. She tries to pull her hand out of mine, but I tighten my grip.

“No, no running,” I say, my voice automatically slipping into Dom mode.

“I’m not going anywhere, Sean. I just want to get drunk now. The mere thought that you and Zander have fucked the same girl is waaaaay too close for comfort.”

“It was almost two years ago, sweetheart. I would’ve told you had I known. You must know that.” I release her hand and run my palm up her arm, rubbing her skin reassuringly. My heart is racing; it’s the first time I’ve actually been afraid that she’d leave again.

“It’s okay, Sean. I know you weren’t a saint for the past ten years, but now I have an excuse to drink copious amounts of alcohol and have a laugh.” She leans toward me, giving me a gentle kiss on my lips before looking me dead straight in my eyes, her lips still touching mine. “And then you can screw my brains out to erase the thought of you and Zander.” She moves away and laughs out loud, her carefree attitude contagious as I just look at her and smile.

Fuck, I love this woman.

I look over at Zander and he gives me a grimace before I lift my chin, making sure he knows that everything is okay. Kate sees us and loses it again, leaning into Zander’s side and laughing.

Rico speaks up, thankfully changing the topic. “Dinner was awesome, guys, but you know me and my sweet tooth, Sammy. I just know that your dessert is going to be epic.”

An epic dessert to conclude an epic dinner party.

Definitely one for the books.

“Hey Brother”

Sam

I’m in a deep sleep when I’m woken up by a phone ringing. My body feels like a dead weight in the bed as I struggle in that wonderful no man’s land between being awake and being asleep. I roll over and look at Sean’s alarm clock beside the bed, grumbling at the fact it’s only 3 a.m. and someone is calling us.

Sean’s arm wraps around my waist and I snuggle deeper into his side. There is something about burrowing into a nice warm
hard
body that is comforting, and arousing. Fuck! How can I want to go again when he only just finished with me a few hours ago? I must be an addict. Addicted to Sean Miller. Fuck, if this keeps up we’ll end up screwing each other to death. On the bright side, what a way to go!

The phone starts ringing again and I hear a growl rumble in Sean’s chest. “This better be fucking good,” he mutters as he moves away, sitting up against the headboard and shifting to reach the phone.

He sighs before answering the call. “Ryan, this better not be what I think it is.”

My body goes tense as I think of all the possible reasons for Ryan calling his brother in the middle of the night.

It’s been four months since I came back into Sean’s life. Four fantastic months without drama, without Ryan fucking up, and
without
middle of the night phone calls. This can’t be good.

“Mmm,” Sean hums, listening to his brother. I sit up beside Sean, resting my head on his shoulder. I can only hear a jumble of sounds coming down the phone, but when Sean’s body goes deathly still, I know it can’t be good.

“You’re fucking shitting me, Ryan. Ten thousand?” the room is suddenly quiet. Sean is breathing hard and I know he’s trying to control himself, but after the last time Ryan was beaten up in the club, Sean’s patience for his brother is all but run out.

“What the fuck do you expect me to do, Ry? It’s not like I have ten grand in cash just lying around my house …”

More silence, more noise down the phone.

“He said what? Oh, fuck this shit. Ryan, you made your bed and I told you that I was done with this crap, but that bastard has gone one step too far now.”

I sit up straight and watch Sean’s features, his jaw twitching as he grinds his teeth loudly. “Where am I going?”

I jump out of bed and chuck some yoga pants and a hoodie on, foregoing a bra and panties because there is never much of a need for them with Sean around. I turn the bathroom light on and go to the sink to wash my the sleep out of my eyes.

I look at Sean in the mirror, feeling his penetrating glare. Shaking his head, he breaks his gaze. “Okay. I got to get dressed and sort Sammy out. Then I’ll be there. Tell the bastard I’m on my way. And Ry … do what you have to do to stay safe, all right?” He nods his head and my breathing hitches.

Ryan is in trouble. Serious trouble.

“Yep, okay. See you soon.”

He slams his phone down onto the bed and stands up, stalking naked toward me. “Sweetheart, I know you got the gist of that conversation, but you need to get back to bed.”

“No, Sean. I’m a cop. This is what I do. I can help.”

He continues advancing on me until his naked chest is touching mine. “Sammy. It’s because you’re a cop that I’m telling you that you need to step down and get back into bed. This is my business. Ryan has been fucking up for as long as I can remember. It’s not the first time I’ve tried to get him help, and it’s definitely not the first time he’s relapsed. He’s got himself into a bad situation and I’m going in to get him out of it. They’ve threatened him, and they’ve threatened the club, then they got stupid and let him get ten thousand dollars in the hole. Without the money, he has nothing to play with. He’s run out of cards and run out of luck, ten fucking years too late. Now, they threatened me and my ‘cop’ girlfriend, and that’s one step too far.”