Cin's Secret [Club Libertine 4] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) Page 2

  “I’m Cindy McNeil, Lindy’s sister.”

  Her stomach sank at the way the smile left his face. Obviously her reputation preceded her. She wondered if all Lindy’s friends had heard about what a crappy sister she was.

  “Cindy, I am so sorry. I had no idea you were coming. Zack, did you tell Michelle that Lindy’s sister was here? I helped her set up, and I know that she’s not on the seating plan. Can you go let her know? I am sure Lindy and Cindy will want to sit together. I’m sure they have a lot of catching up to do.”

  Cindy let out a sigh of relief. He didn’t hate her. Which was nice. It would be even nicer to feel those well-shaped lips on hers and those muscular arms holding her close. Whoops. Stop that, Cindy, she thought to herself. You are here because of Lindy, not because you haven’t gotten laid in almost three years and here’s this blond god who looks so much like his younger brother, except more mature and unbelievably sexy and exactly my type.

  She smiled. “Don’t worry about it. Lindy wasn’t actually expecting me, and I certainly didn’t mean to crash this party…”

  “That’s my fault, Connor. She came to the house looking for Lindy and I hijacked her. I just assumed she knew about the party and that’s why she was in town.” Serena giggled. “I even made Zack put her bags in the spare room and told her she could stay with me. Sorry, Cindy. They tell me I’m kind of impetuous, which isn’t always a good thing. Maybe you had other plans.”

  Cindy could see Connor watching her intently. Damn, he was one fine-looking man. She was five foot four, and he was about seven or eight inches taller, his long blond hair tied back. Tearing her thoughts away from rolling around naked with this blond Adonis, she replied to Serena, “You were just wonderful. I’ve been overseas for a while and came back on a whim because I missed my sister. And I have absolutely no place to stay, and no job right now, so maybe you don’t want a broke roommate.”

  Serena hugged her tight. “Any sister of Lindy’s is a sister of mine. And now I see my actual sister waving frantically at me. I’ll be right back.”

  Zack smiled at Cindy and then trailed away after Serena.

  “She’s quite a force of nature. Your brother’s going to have to work hard to land her.” Cindy’s tone was wistful. It was clear to her that Zack thought Serena was worth the effort.

  “The O’Hara men are a stubborn bunch. When they see something they want, they don’t give up until they get it.”

  She found herself shivering as he made his proclamation. She wondered what it would be like to be target of his desire. She took a sip and realized that her champagne glass was empty. Connor reached out and took it from her, his fingers trailing over hers for a second.

  “Let me get you a refill. I’ll meet you in the ballroom. Looks like the crowd is heading in.”

  Cindy allowed herself to be swept in by the crowd. She tried to keep an eye on Connor, but he disappeared through a doorway.

  * * * *

  “Where the heck have you been? I’ve been stuck behind the bar mixing drinks and serving wine while you’ve been flirting up a storm,” groused Liam. “Did you talk to her, the woman at the door with Zack?”

  “Where’s Duncan?” replied Connor, laughing and ignoring his brother’s question.

  “Where do you think? He’s with our accountant, banging her brains out. If they keep that up, we’ll have to get a new floor manager and a new accountant because neither of them will have the energy to do their jobs.” Liam poured himself a shot of Scotch and downed it in a gulp.

  “Drinking away all of our profits, I see,” teased Duncan as he walked up to the bar, his arm around Andie, the two of them clearly postcoital. “Now why don’t you two mingle? We’ve got this for now.”

  “Hey, I did all the work. He schmoozed,” protested Liam.

  Connor grabbed a couple of glasses of champagne with one hand and his brother’s arm with the other.

  Liam reached for a glass, but Connor held the glasses out of his reach.

  “Get your own.”

  Liam glared and grabbed a flute off the bar counter. He looked at his brother and saw his expression. He was dying for Connor to spill about the woman at the door, but he’d be damned if he’d give his brother the satisfaction by asking again. Besides, he knew his brother well. He could see the excitement in his eyes and knew that if he waited, Connor would just blurt everything out. He started counting to himself. He didn’t even hit seven when Connor caved.

  “You won’t believe this, but I think I met her.”

  “Her who?”

  “Her who we were talking about earlier. A woman that we’ve been looking for. It was her at the door. I told you so, I told you so!” He punched his brother in the bicep to emphasize his words.

  “She’s in the other room. I was just bringing her a refill.” He indicated the glass.

  “And she just introduced herself to you?”

  “Actually, Serena introduced her. You saw her arrive with Serena and Zack. That hot blond. We shook hands and I swear, I felt the electricity between us. Oh, and turns out she’s Lindy’s sister Cindy. They are physically quite different, but you can see the family resemblance.”

  Connor knew his brother was interested. They were twins. If he felt that excited about a woman, he knew that Liam would be attracted to her, too, but Liam was the more cautious twin and Connor knew he’d have to wear him down.

  “I get it, she’s pretty. You are attracted to her.”

  “It’s more than that. I don’t know how I know, but I do. She’s the one, Liam. Just go meet her and talk to her and tell me if you don’t feel the same attraction I feel.”

  “That’s lust, not love. Sure, she’s beautiful. But you, from this what, five-minute conversation, think she’s the ‘one.’ Would she be your one or our one? And if she’s supposed to be ours, does she even know there are two of us and would she want to take on two Doms?”

  “Slow down. Of course she doesn’t know there are two of us, unless maybe Zack told her. But there was something when we shook hands. I felt it.”

  “Of course you did.”

  “Go meet her for yourself and tell me that you don’t feel something. Here. Take this glass of champagne to her. You don’t even have to talk to her. She’ll think you are me. Just deliver the glass and take a look. It’s not like I’m suggesting we take her home and tie her to our bed until she agrees to be our sub. I figure we woo her slowly, get her used to the idea of the two of us and then we take her home and tie her to our bed.” He grinned wickedly and Liam smiled. Surely, it wouldn’t hurt to just talk to her.

  Just then, there was a commotion. It was Jake and Lindy. Connor sighed. Cindy would have to wait. Jake was one of their best friends. Time to witness the big announcement.

  He looked around as he entered the ballroom. The table had been pushed to the side so they could eat buffet-style. He could see Duncan and Andie on one side. He looked back toward the bar and saw that Zack and Serena had taken over so Duncan could be there for his best friend. He could see Mac and Sean near the front, with Michelle sandwiched between them. They’d been together and then apart for almost a decade and were now back together, and the two men weren’t letting her get away again. They’d collared her and made sure it was clear to everyone that she was theirs, and it was clear that she was deliriously happy to be their permanent sub. Of course, that didn’t prevent her from being a hard-ass at work as a corporate lawyer. He loved that about her. As much as she submitted to her men at home, she was a smart and independent woman everywhere else, the kind of woman he and his brother wanted.

  Some scantily clad men and women circulated with more champagne, and everyone raised a toast to the happy couple and Jake made the announcement that he and Lindy were getting married. Most people had expected the announcement and toasted happily. Everyone loved Jake. And they were learning to love Lindy. Jake was a widower, and they all saw just how happy Lindy made him, so even those who didn’t really know her yet loved her for lov
ing him.

  Connor stayed on the edges of the party. He knew he’d get his chance to congratulate the happy couple. In the meantime, he kept an eye on Cindy. She also kept her distance, mingling and chatting a bit, but mostly watching the action.

  It wasn’t until close to midnight and the crowd had thinned out substantially that he saw her approach Lindy.

  Chapter Three

  “Surprise!” Cindy walked over to her big sister. “Congratulations.” She hugged her sister tight. At first Lindy just stood there, stunned, and then she hugged her back fiercely.

  “Oh my god. I can’t believe you are here. How are you here? I wanted to invite you, but I didn’t even know where to send the invitation.”

  “I showed up on what used to be your doorstep, and Serena took pity on me and invited me to stay and swept me off to the ball.”

  Lindy laughed. “That sounds like Serena. Does this mean you are back to stay?” she asked hesitantly. “And where were you? One day you were around, and then you were gone and no one seemed to know anything. I got your letter, so I knew you were okay, but it didn’t really tell me anything.” She looked her sister up and down. “You look terrible. How much weight have you lost? I always thought you were too thin before, but now…” Her voice trailed off, her tone worried. The old Cindy would have bitten her head off for any real or perceived criticism.

  “Yes. I’m back. To stay. And one day, I’ll talk about the last three years. And yes, I am too thin and I am trying to gain some weight back, although tonight I was too nervous to eat. I wasn’t sure if you would want to see me here.”

  Lindy swept her into another hug. “You are my sister. Who else would I want here? And who else will be my Maid of Honor?”

  “Really? But…”

  “No buts. I’m in love with the most amazing man in the world, and now my long lost sister is back to share my happiness. Let’s not look back. And speak of sharing my happiness, I want you to meet my fiancé Jake Hughes.”

  Cindy looked up at Jake. He was the spitting image of that actor who played that werewolf on the television show about vampires. And he was at least as tall. Cindy estimated he was at least six foot five. Lindy was wearing heels and still shorter than him. But even more than the fact that they were fitting together height-wise, Cindy could see the happiness radiating from her sister.

  “Nice to meet you, Jake. I’m Cindy, and if you hurt my sister, I’ll hunt you down and stab you through the heart.” She smiled her brightest smile at him.

  Jake looked at her for a moment and roared with laughter.

  “I like her, Lindy.”

  “Me, too.” Cindy turned to see Connor approaching, a glass of champagne in his hand.

  “I promised you a refill.”

  Cindy turned to take the glass. She looked at Connor, puzzled, but before she could figure it out, another hot blond joined them. An identical blond as a matter of fact. It seemed like Connor had an identical twin. She could feel the desire rise inside her at the thought that popped into her mind of being sandwiched between the two of them, their hands roaming over her body. She shook her head to clear the idea from her mind, although she planned on revisiting it when she was alone in bed tonight.

  She looked from one to the other. They were dressed identically, but something was off, and then it came to her.

  “So, do you always trade identities, Connor?” she asked the latecomer.

  “He’s Connor. I’m Liam.”

  “I can’t be 100 percent certain of your names. Maybe you were calling yourself by his name earlier, but you”—she took the glass—”are not the man I was introduced to earlier.” She pointed to his brother. “He is.”

  She looked from Connor to Liam, or maybe it was Liam to Connor, not quite understanding their dazed expressions.

  “Forgive them,” interjected Lindy with a laugh. “You are the first person besides Jake here who can tell them apart. Even their parents were never sure.”

  “Surely not. It’s pretty obvious which is which.”

  “It’s obvious to me, too.” Jake shrugged. “Not to change the subject, but I will, how long do you plan on staying?” he asked.

  “I’m planning on settling here for good. As I said, Serena’s offered me the spare bedroom. I’ve got a research job lined up starting Monday, and I’m going to try to do some writing. Eventually, I should be able to get my own place, but right now Serena’s spare room is just what I need.”

  Just then, Zack and Serena joined the group. She smiled. “Speak of the devil.”

  “We’re heading back to the city now. Did you need a ride?”

  “I do, actually. Lindy, you finish up celebrating with your friends. You know where I’m staying. And I’ll be working from home, setting my own hours, so I’m free whenever you can fit me into your schedule. Give me a call and let me know what time is good for you.”

  “How about lunch tomorrow? I’m working the last shift from two to nine. Maybe you can help me with some of the wedding planning. Jake thinks I can put together a wedding in less than a month. I’m so glad you are here. I really need you, sis.”

  Cindy felt herself tear up.

  “Thank you. I’d really love that. Now go home and get some sleep. You look exhausted.”

  Cindy felt herself being led away, her feet moving reluctantly. She looked back at the little group. She waved to her sister, but then she saw Connor and Liam looking at her, staring intently. She felt a shiver go down her back. Those were the looks of men with a mission. They wanted her, and she felt an answering pull of desire deep in the pit of her stomach.

  She didn’t come home to meet a man. Or men. She came home to reconnect with her sister and get her life back on track. It had been a long time since she had these types of feelings for a man. She’d never even considered being with two men at the same time, but now she just couldn’t get the pictures out of her mind, of herself sandwiched between them.

  She could feel her panties dampening as she imagined what it would be like.

  She tried to tear her thoughts away from the O’Hara twins as they walked through the foyer.

  “So, Zack. Was you brother telling the truth? Can no one really tell them apart?”

  “Pretty much. I kind of can, since I grew up with them, of course. But even Mom and Dad couldn’t always be sure. Pretty much the only non-family member who can easily tell them apart now is Jake. Even Duncan, Sean, and Mac sometimes have trouble.

  “Don’t tell me you could tell them apart?” he exclaimed when he realized why she’d asked. “Seriously?”

  “It’s really not that big a deal, is it?”

  Zack laughed. “It is to them.”

  “But there is one thing you have to know,” added Serena. “Zack, it’s only right that she know. She’s new here and doesn’t know about their lifestyle.”

  “Are you sure?” asked Zack.

  Cindy’s eyes narrowed. That didn’t sound good.

  “You are right, of course,” concurred Zack. “Cindy, that club we mentioned the guys owning. It’s a BDSM club. They are all Doms. And the women you met are their subs. The men love them dearly, but they expect obedience and submission and they’ll paddle their asses if they disobey.”

  “Even Lindy? I’ll kill him if he’s abusing her. Why on earth would she want to marry someone who would hurt her?”

  “Zack. That was not what I was going to say. Why don’t you go and get the car while I do damage control.” Zack happily took off toward the garage, leaving the two women on the front steps.

  “Relax, Cindy. There’s a lot you don’t understand, and Zack was an idiot. Technically he was right, but that’s not how you spring it on someone not familiar with the lifestyle.

  “Think about it. Did your sister seem unhappy? Jake worships the ground she walks on. He just has a few kinks, and as it happens, Lindy shares them. Look at my sister. She’s living with two Doms, and I’ve never seen her so happy. Sure, her ass is sore sometimes, but she’s the m
ost sexually fulfilled woman I know. And outside the bedroom, they support her career 100 percent. They are so proud of her successes as a lawyer.”

  “She did seem happy. They all did.”

  “Don’t go off half cocked. My sister will kill me and his brothers will kill Zack if you upset Lindy. She’s the sweetest woman I know. Don’t prejudge her relationship with Jake. They love each other, and he’d die for her. See for yourself before you make up your mind about them.

  “Read up on the topic. Don’t be shocked when you talk to Lindy. Don’t judge. Ask her questions. Satisfy yourself that their relationship works for them. If you can’t do that, then I have to ask you to leave my home. I can’t let you stay if you are going to hurt your sister.”

  Cindy choked up. “You are a good friend to my sister, Serena. No, I don’t understand how she could be with someone in the BDSM lifestyle, but she literally was glowing with happiness because of Jake. I promise you that I’ll be open-minded. I love my sister and want her to be happy above all. But if he’s taking advantage of her sweetness, I’ll make him regret it.”

  “Fair enough. I’d do the same for my sister. And remember, Michelle has two men paddling her ass. Mac and Sean are hard-core Doms.” She paused. “Of course, she also has two men pleasing her in the bedroom. It’s a wonder she has the energy for work.

  “And if you are seriously considering dating Connor and Liam, I have to tell you this. You have to understand that they share women just like Mac and Sean do, and just like Mac and Sean, they are Doms. What that means, I don’t know in detail because I’ve never been involved with them that way. They look at me as a little sister.” She paused, taking care with her next words.

  “But I tell you that every uncollared sub who has ever come to the club has made a play for them. They have never led any of them on. They’ve played quite a bit. But they’ve never led anyone to believe it was more than sex.”