Stay with Me by Maya Banks

  “Yes, oh God, yes.”

  “Give me a minute to catch up,” Rhys said as he pushed harder.

  Logan halted and leaned over her, panting to catch his breath. He sucked one nipple into his mouth and bit down gently, grazing the tip with his teeth.

  Rhys moaned, and his grip tightened at her waist.

  “Now,” she whispered to Logan as she wrapped her arms around his shoulders.

  He took off, fucking her, almost brutally. The two cocks stabbed deep, and she started to unravel. Faster and harder, she unwound until she lost all focus. Logan blurred in her vision as lightning seized her, sizzled through her.

  She cried out, part in pleasure, part in the unending agony of such unbearable tension. Warm liquid eased their way, and she went slick around them.

  Their shouts filled her ears, their come filled her body.

  She went completely limp, no longer to maintain any sort of muscle tone. She was theirs to fuck, to hold.

  Logan jerked against her, once, twice, held himself tight against her for a long moment before finally easing gently from the tight clasp of her pussy.

  As soon as he was off, Rhys rolled them on their sides, and he too withdrew from her aching body. She lay there, unable to form a coherent thought, too exhausted to move. It was almost too much effort to breathe.

  They gently cleaned her, taking care with her tender areas. Then Logan pulled her upward and looped her arms around his neck. She went willingly, a limp rag doll against his chest as he carried her further up the bed to lay her down.

  Rhys crawled in behind her and spooned against her back. His hand swept down her side and over her hip even as he murmured sweet words in her ear.

  Logan leaned in to kiss her lips. Then he pulled the covers up over them and told her to sleep.

  Chapter Twelve

  A brisk knock at their door woke Catherine. She stirred and started to climb from between Logan and Rhys when Logan put a hand out to stop her.

  “You stay here, baby. I’ll see who it is.”

  He rose and hurriedly yanked on some clothes before walking to the door. Catherine sat up, and Rhys leaned up beside her as she strained to see who was there.

  “My apologies for disturbing you, but I have an urgent message for Logan Wellesley and Rhys Cullen.”

  “I’m Logan.”

  Catherine saw him reach out, and then he stepped back into the room, closing the door behind him. She studied his face as he opened the piece of folded paper the messenger had delivered.

  And then her heart sank when she saw his expression darken.

  “What is it?” Rhys demanded.

  “Maybe nothing,” Logan muttered. “It’s a message from Kingston. Wants me to call him as soon as possible.”

  Rhys frowned. “What the hell could he want?”

  “That’s what I need to find out.” He cast an apologetic look at Catherine. “I won’t be long, baby. You and Rhys get dressed and head to the restaurant. I’ll meet you there as soon as I’m done.”

  She swallowed and nodded, though she couldn’t get rid of the dread tightening her chest. Whatever it was, she had the feeling it had just ended their vacation.

  Logan disappeared out the door, and she sat there for a moment, worry nagging at her. Rhys cupped her shoulder and pressed a kiss to the side of her head.

  “Don’t look like that, sweetheart. Whatever it is, Logan will fix it.”

  “Yes, he’s good at fixing things,” she said faintly.

  She slid out of bed and went into the bathroom to take a quick shower. When she came out, Rhys was sitting on the bed, fully dressed, waiting on her.

  “I’ll just be a minute,” she said. “Why don’t you go ahead so we aren’t late for our reservation.”

  “You sure?” he asked.

  She nodded and smiled. “I’m hungry, and I’ve been looking forward to dinner all day. I’d hate to lose out because we were five minutes late.”

  He stood and pulled her into his arms. “Okay, but don’t be long.”

  After he left, she selected her clothing and took care with her hair and makeup. Why all of a sudden it was so important for her to look nice, she wasn’t sure, but it made her feel better, more secure. As if painting on a mask made her better prepared to deal with what was to come.

  Ten minutes later, she left the hotel room and walked toward the lobby. After stopping at the desk to find out exactly where in the hotel the restaurant was located, she started back on her way.

  As she walked down the corridor branching off from the lobby, she heard Logan’s angry voice. She halted abruptly outside one of the conference rooms. The door was ajar, and it was obvious that Logan was spitting mad.

  She leaned in, standing as close to the door as she could without pushing it open.

  “There is nothing more important to me than this deal,” Logan said tersely. “Nothing. Whatever I have to do to secure your confidence will be done.”

  There was a pause.

  “Yes, I’m out of town, but I can leave at a moment’s notice. No, nothing important. Just some downtime, and that’s not as important as this deal.”

  She sucked in her breath. Surely he didn’t mean it. He couldn’t.

  “Rhys and I will be out as soon as I can get our pilot down here. I’ll call you when we land in San Francisco, and we can set up a time to meet.”

  Knowing he was about to end the call, Catherine stumbled away from the doorway and hurried toward the restaurant. She felt ill.

  In a desperate attempt to calm herself, she ducked into the ladies’ room. She braced herself against the sink, her stomach in one gigantic knot.

  No, she wasn’t going to get upset over this. It was business. He didn’t mean it. He couldn’t have meant it. When it came to his company, Logan was wound tighter than a watch. Whatever it was, he was reacting to it out of anger.

  She looked at herself in the mirror and knew she was seriously deluding herself. A leopard didn’t change his spots, and if he did, it certainly wasn’t overnight. She was a fool to think that everything wrong in their relationship could be fixed in a week’s time.

  She blew out her breath and tried to regain her composure. One thing she was sure of, no matter what Logan may have spouted on the phone, he’d never hurt her like that to her face. He’d been angry and obviously trying to salvage a business deal. She wouldn’t hold that against him. What mattered was how he planned to deal with what happened next.

  After dabbing at her makeup and smoothing her hair, she walked out of the bathroom and made her way into the restaurant. She was quickly ushered to a table in the back, and when she looked up, she saw that Logan had arrived ahead of her.

  He and Rhys were engaged in tense conversation, but they immediately went silent when they looked up and saw her walking toward them.

  They stood as she was seated then retook their own seats.

  “What is it?” she asked softly.

  Logan and Rhys exchanged uneasy glances. The both looked like they’d rather be taken out and shot rather than tell her anything.

  Finally Rhys broke the silence. “We have to go back, Cat.”

  She flinched even though she knew it was coming. “Why?” she asked. “What happened?”

  Logan looked at her, his lips tight. “Kingston wants us in San Francisco at eight a.m. tomorrow. He’s entertaining a last-minute bid and wants to meet with us to discuss our project.”

  “I thought it was a done deal,” she said. “I thought that was the purpose of your trips to San Francisco and Atlanta on the night of our anniversary.”

  Both men winced.

  “He could tie it up in litigation forever, and he knows we can’t afford that,” Logan bit out. “We’d spend more time and money making him honor the agreement than we’d get out of the original deal. He has us by the balls, and he goddamn well knows it.”

  “So you have to go meet with him,” she said quietly.

  Logan sighed. “Yes, baby, we do. It’s

important.”

  “Cat,” Rhys said in a strained voice.

  Reluctantly, she brought her gaze up to meet his. Regret burned brightly in his eyes.

  “I’m sorry, and I know that’s a useless word right now. This won’t take long, I swear it. We want you to stay here and enjoy the last two days. Get a massage, pamper yourself. We’ll try to get back here so we can fly home together. If nothing else, we’ll send the jet for you and meet you in New York as soon as we can.”

  Massage. Pamper. God, was she supposed to forget that until now they’d given her all her massages, that they’d done all the pampering?

  Resentment billowed in her chest, rose in her throat, and she swallowed hard, holding it back, knowing they didn’t deserve her rage.

  “When do you leave?” she asked calmly.

  “I’ve already called the pilot,” Logan said in a low voice. “He’ll be here around midnight.”

  She nodded, proud of herself for not losing her composure.

  The waiter appeared, and she recited her order in a controlled voice. They only had a few hours and then she’d sleep alone. Something that she’d grown accustomed to not doing for the last week.

  “Baby, look at me,” Logan said when the waiter left. “Please.”

  She stared down for a long moment, trying to hold back the tears. He reached over and gently nudged at her chin, forcing her gaze upward.

  “Listen to me. We’ll meet with Kingston tomorrow morning, and I’ll call you just as soon as we finish. I promise. I know you have no reason to trust what I’m saying, but Rhys and I will make this up to you.”

  She nodded again, not trusting herself to speak. She knew she wasn’t being fair, but it was hard to put her trust in them after only a week. After so long of being brushed aside, of never coming first, it frightened her to think that after having a brief moment of bliss, it could all slide away again.

  They ate in uncomfortable silence. A couple of times, Rhys or Logan brought up business, and she could tell they were dying to discuss strategy, but each time, they glanced over at her and the conversation died.

  Her food didn’t set well, and an uncomfortable ache nagged at her side. She twisted in her seat, ready to go back to the room as the men were obviously impatient to return as well.

  Though they still had a few hours yet when they got back to the room, the mood was tense. She hated it. Hated the breach that had opened up with one simple phone call. And she had no idea what to do to fix it, or if she even could.

  She watched as they packed their clothes and toiletries. Unable to stand the silence any longer, she went to Rhys and wrapped her arms around his waist. She laid her cheek against his back and just held on.

  She felt him sigh, a deep sound of regret, and she knew he hated leaving as much as she did. He gathered her hands in his and pulled them upward until they rested over his heart. Then he let them go and slowly turned until she faced him.

  He drew her into his arms and hugged her tightly. “I love you.”

  “I love you too,” she whispered.

  When he finally relinquished his hold on her, she glanced over at Logan.

  “Come here, baby,” he said when she hesitated.

  She went into his arms, and he buried his face in her hair.

  “I know the timing on this sucks, and I know you’re upset.”

  “Thank you for this week,” she said, not wanting him to go without knowing how much it had meant to her.

  He stiffened, and she could feel anger build within him. Puzzled by his reaction, she pulled away and stared at him in confusion.

  He touched her face, cupping her cheek and rubbing his thumb over her skin. “It pisses me off that you feel you had to thank me for spending time with you. God. You’re my wife, and if anyone is entitled to my time, it’s you.”

  She tried to smile but gave up before she broke down and cried. How could she tell him that she hadn’t felt entitled to anything in a long time? Now that he said it, it pissed her off too, that she’d thanked her own husband for something she should be able to take for granted.

  With a shake of her head, she warded off her anger and resentment. She wouldn’t ruin their last moments together, nor would she send them off to San Francisco worried that she was going to divorce them. If this week had taught her anything, it was that she wasn’t prepared to walk away without a fight.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Catherine shifted uncomfortably in the lounger overlooking the beach and stared down at the silent cell phone. The sun had long since set, and the moon had risen over the water, but she had no desire to go back to the room alone.

  The ache intensified in her side, and she turned again, curling her knees to her chest. She was miserable. Felt miserable, and she wasn’t sure if she’d caught a bug, eaten bad food or was just down in the dumps because Logan and Rhys had gone.

  They’d been gone nearly twenty-four hours, and she was waiting for them to call. Logan had said he’d phone as soon as their meeting was over. At one point, she considered calling him, but she hated to pile on him if he was stressed and trying to salvage his contract.

  The phone rang in her hand, and she snatched it up, opening it without looking to see who was calling.

  “Logan?”

  “Hey, baby.”

  He sounded tired, but she felt a thrill that he’d called like he’d promised.

  “How are you? How did it go? Are you finished?” she asked in a rush.

  He chuckled. “One at a time. I’m good. Rhys is good. It went okay, and yes, we’re done.”

  She breathed a sigh of relief.

  “Listen, baby. I called Paige and asked her to make flight arrangements for you if that’s okay. Rhys and I will take the jet back. It will save us some time if you don’t wait on it to return to Jamaica and we aren’t stuck trying to make reservations. She’ll be calling you shortly, but I asked her to get you on the first flight out in the morning. Rhys and I are going to crash here at a hotel and fly home in the morning as well. We’ll pick you up at the airport and ride home together. That sound good?”

  She smiled. “It sounds perfect.”

  “We want a do-over for our anniversary. Dinner, dancing and then we’re going to make love to you all night long.”

  A light shiver prickled her skin. “I can’t wait,” she said huskily.

  “Okay then, baby, let me go. You get some rest and we’ll see you tomorrow.”

  “I love you. Tell Rhy I love him.”

  “Love you too,” he said.

  She hung up and hugged herself in satisfaction, ignoring the twinge in her side. She carefully got out of the lounger and trudged toward the hotel. Fatigue rippled through her body, but then she hadn’t slept worth a damn after Rhys and Logan had left the night before.

  What she really needed was some Tylenol and a good long sleep. She stopped by the gift shop in the lobby and purchased the tablets and a bottle of water then headed up to her room. As she was walking in, her phone rang.

  “Mrs. Cullen-Wellesley?”

  “Hi Paige,” Catherine said warmly. “And it’s Catherine for the hundredth time.”

  “I’ve made reservations for you to fly out at eight-twenty in the morning. You’ll have a brief layover in Miami and will arrive in New York at four-ten in the afternoon. Mr. Cullen and Mr. Wellesley will meet you at the airport.”

  “Thank you, Paige. I appreciate it.”