“Let me guess-you don’t drive a moped anymore?”
He shot her a sly sideways look from under his long lashes. “The Porsche in the garage is mine.”
“A gift from Jude?”
“He’s a generous man. Stick around and he’ll spoil you, too.”
Rather than forcing a lie, she hid behind her wine. Not for long, though. Liam’s enthusiasm for life was an addictive drug. She could listen to his chatter for hours and not grow tired of his company.
By the time they’d consumed two glasses of wine, Liam had finished dinner while telling her about growing up in Chattanooga as part of an average, blue-collar family. When he’d come out to his parents as bisexual, they’d kicked him out and told him never to darken their door again. He’d hitchhiked to New York with only the clothes on his back.
When she asked how he’d gotten the money for chef school, his beautiful eyes flashed with sorrow. He told her she didn’t want to know.
Fortunately, Liam’s melancholy was brief. Jude walked into the kitchen and leaned on his cane, breathing in the spicy aroma. “What smells so good? Christ, is that seafood gumbo?”
“Yep, and corn bread.” Liam winked at her. “Our boss has to have his New Orleans fix every now and then.”
“Minus the filth and the stink of the river,” Jude added.
Lily eyed the enormous pot. “Is it spicy-hot?”
“My gumbo could strip the paint off the side of a house,” the younger man boasted. “But don’t worry-we’ve got plenty of wine.”
“Oh, boy. I hope you keep a bottle of antacids around here.” Both men laughed, and she waved at the pot. “What are you going to do with all of that? There’s no way we’ll be able to eat that much.”
“One of Jude’s employees from the shelter is coming to pick it up, along with two extra pans of cornbread and dessert. They have their own cook, but I treat them a couple of days a week to give Mrs. Morgan time off.”
What? “A shelter? What shelter?” She glanced between the two men, noting how Jude straightened, lifting his chin.
“It’s a shelter in town for abused spouses and children who are desperate to start their lives over. I renovated a big, older home and opened it several years ago. We started with five families and two runaway teens, and now we have double that.”
“We realize it’s just a drop in the bucket, but Jude’s expanding this year, opening two more locations,” Liam said, pride in his boss unmistakable. “He has a waiting list longer than your arm.”
Lily stared at them, stunned. “That’s incredibly generous of both of you. These people are very lucky to have you behind them.”
Jude shrugged. “Someone helped me once, when I was at my lowest point. I figure it’s my way of giving back.”
“Your friend Devon must be a special guy.”
“Dev gave me my big break in the art world, but he wasn’t the one who rescued me from the gutter. That was…” He frowned, rubbing his temples. “His name was… Michael.” He blew out a breath. “God, why can’t I remember anything else about him?”
Very carefully, Lily set down her wine. “Would you both excuse me for a few minutes? I’ll be right back.”
Fast as she dared, she ducked into a powder room off the foyer and locked the door behind her. Bracing her hands on the counter, she hung her head and let the tears flow.
This was so fucking unfair. When her mission was complete, she’d find one good reason to kill Dietz. Slowly.
A quiet knock jolted her from her contemplation of Dietz’s demise. How long had she been standing here?
“Lily, are you all right?”
Jude. At least he couldn’t tell she’d been crying.
“I’m fine, just freshening up.” That seemed safe enough. Most men had no clue what women did when they “freshened up.”
“Are you upset with me? Did I say something wrong?”
“No! Give me a second.”
Quickly, she splashed some water on her face and used the small hand towel to pat it dry. She fanned her face to try to erase evidence of her tears and red eyes; she was glad her makeup was spare. Ready, she opened the door and stepped out.
Jude stood there, mouth turned down at the corners, brow furrowed. “Whatever I said, I apologize.”
“Don’t be silly! Can’t a woman take care of business without everyone coming unglued?”
“Lily…”
“All right. If you must know, the idea of what you’ve suffered gets to me.” Not a lie. “Hearing your story, the good you’ve done, made me a little emotional. I’m fine.”
His expression softened. “Oh. Well, that’s ancient history and there’s no reason for anyone to feel sorry for me. I have a good life, and now more than ever, I have reason not to squander what I have left. Even if I do have bad days.”
Which only served to ramp up her misery. “I’ll keep that in mind.”
“Hungry?”
“I could eat.”
He offered his arm. “Why don’t we retire to my suite? The guy from the shelter just left with their portion of the food, so we’re free to dine in peace.”
“We?”
“You, me, and Liam,” he said, tone thick with suggestion.
Never had she been so at war with herself. Mind, body, and soul. She wanted these men, yet she knew what she had to do-allow them to seduce her.
Then do her job.
“Sounds promising.” She took his arm and they went upstairs.
In his suite, he helped seat her at the same table where he’d eaten with Tamara. Just before he
The table was already set with a bottle of wine chilling in the middle, glasses, bowls, plates, and cutlery. Jude sat and she took the place on his right, leaving the spot on her right for Liam.
Mind racing, she thought ahead to the evening before them. There was no question what the two men had planned for her tonight. How would she keep the two different drugs at the ready and time the doses? In addition, making sure each of the drugs went to the correct man was essential. A mistake would mean disaster.
She’d wait until they were feeling loose. Offer to refill their glasses. But how-
“You’re thinking too hard,” Jude said with a smile. “I can almost hear the wheels grinding.”
“Busted.”
“Well, stop. We want to spoil you and we need your cooperation to succeed.”
“Yes, sir.”
His lips quirked. “Good girl.”
Liam rolled in with his cart of food, jeans slung low on his hips. “Chow time.”
“Good, I’m starving,” Jude said, patting his stomach.
“You’re always hungry.”
“You should know.”
Liam blushed, cutting a look at Lily. “I’m not the only one.”
The sexual tension was thick as molasses as Liam served the meal. The Chardonnay he poured, however, was one of her favorites, which was a shame. After tonight, she’d probably never touch it again.
Dinner progressed amid comfortable, idle chat. Her nerves gradually gave way to the growing lust palpable between the three of them, her senses simply no match for being sandwiched between two potent males. They smelled so good, heat practically radiating from them. Each so sexy in his own right, yet so different.
At last they pushed their bowls away and Liam gestured to the small plates on the cart. “Dessert? I made cheesecake.”
“Yeah, but I’ve got an idea,” Jude said. “You’re going to be our plate.”
