Authors: Jan Springer
Toygasm (10 page)
“We are pressing assault charges. Tell that to the police
when you call them,” Josh ordered.
The guards nodded and quickly hustled Earl down the hallway.
It was then she noticed Kim hovering nearby. Her old friend
had aged over the years and she had the same frightened look that Cammie had
once seen in her own eyes before she’d finally quit Sexy Toys.
She looked as if she’d been crying. Her eyes were swollen
and red.
“I…I told them…about Earl. I’m sorry I…betrayed your
confidence,” Kim said as tears streaked black rivers of eyeliner down her
cheeks. Her lips were trembling and her hands shook violently as she dabbed at
her eyes with a tissue.
Concern for her old friend had Cammie reaching out and
grasping both of Kim’s hands. They were ice cold.
“It’s all right, Kim. Everything is going to be all right,”
she said, trying to reassure her. Kim tossed her a wobbly smile.
“I’m glad you came back. I missed you,” she said.
“I missed you too, sweetie. I’m so sorry I didn’t keep in
touch. I was just trying to bury the past. I hope you understand.”
Kim nodded jerkily.
“They fired Earl,” Kim said quickly. “I should have told
them about Earl the day they purchased Sexy Toys…but I was afraid…that they
didn’t care…” Kim turned to face Josh and Jode. They smiled at her
reassuringly.
“But they do care,” she sobbed. “They truly do. I…if you’ll
excuse me, I have to get cleaned up and wash my face. I look awful when I cry.
I don’t want to scare my kids when I go home.”
“Sure, sure. You take care, Kim.” Cammie let go of her hands
and took comfort that they had already grown warm. Kim was strong. She was
going to be okay. Her friend nodded and gave Josh and Jode one quick adoring
glance and then walked quickly down the hall.
As Kim left, the full brunt of what had just happened with
Earl made Cammie’s knees go to jelly. The full weight of what could have
happened had Josh, Jode and Kim not come along when they did made her stumble.
The twins quickly grabbed her before she could slump to the
ground. Concern whipped over both their faces as they ushered her into the
conference room.
“Ah, shit, Cammie, are you all right?” Jode asked.
She could barely walk, her legs were shaking so badly now.
Had they not been holding on to her, she would have sunk to the floor. Jode
ushered her into a chair and a moment later Josh thrust a glass full of water
against her mouth.
“Drink, beautiful lady,” Jode said. His voice shook and she
didn’t know if it was from rage or fear or both.
Both men crouched onto their haunches in front of her as she
sipped the water. The cold liquid was heaven as it exploded over her dry
tongue. She closed her eyes and gulped, loving the way the water splashed down
her parched throat. When she opened her eyes, their pale faces would have
frightened her had she not been otherwise occupied at trying to figure out what
Earl had been saying.
“I’m so sorry he came back, Cammie. We had him escorted out
over an hour ago after we fired him,” Josh said.
After they fired him?
Had what Earl said been the
truth?
Her stomach did a sickening somersault.
“You mean he’s gone because of the bet,” she managed to say.
Her insides went to jelly as both men looked at each other
with horrified expressions on their faces. Those looks of guilt could not be
denied. Earl had told her the truth.
“You let me believe you were the male models but you are the
owners,” she managed to say as the full of their deception hit her like a ton
of bricks.
Oh, she’d been horribly naïve and badly betrayed.
“Bet? You know about it?” Josh gasped. A red flush of
embarrassment crossed his face. He cursed and turned away from her.
Jode also swore and buried his face in his hands.
“It wasn’t supposed to be this way,” he muttered.
“If I knew you both better I’d think that you two were
ashamed of yourselves. Maybe because you’ve been caught?” she taunted, wanting
to hurt them and make them feel her pain.
The both shook their heads and then turned their faces to
her. Yes, they were mortified, it was clearly written on their faces.
“Sweetheart, you’ve got it all wrong,” Josh insisted.
“I don’t think so. Earl told me about a bet and a deadline
about getting me into bed. I filled in the rest.” She forced brittle coldness
into her voice, despite hoping they had a plausible explanation for this damned
bet. All that sex and tenderness and those plans for the future they’d murmured
into her ears while making love to her the last couple of days and nights. It
all couldn’t have been just because of a bet. It just couldn’t be…faked. Could
it?
When Josh slumped dejectedly into a chair beside her, she
knew it had been just what Earl said.
Josh frowned and clenched his hands into trembling fists. He
was pissed off, but she would give as good as she got if he tried to weasel his
way out of this.
“Okay, it started out that way,” Josh admitted.
“Asshole!” she shouted before she could stop herself.
“Hear us out, please?” Jode interjected.
“Fine. Just hurry up. You’re both wasting my time.” Oh boy,
she was going to be sick. She had trusted these two men. She had bought the
bullshit they told her and swallowed it hook, line and sinker.
“Like I said, it started out as a bet,” Josh said. “But only
because he was handing us his job if we could hire you as the model. When you
opened your door and didn’t give us a chance to get in a word edgewise, we just
let you believe we were the models.”
“Actually we were going to be the models anyway because we
couldn’t find anyone at such short notice, so technically…” Jode chimed in.
Josh nodded. “We just didn’t tell you about the boss part
and before we knew it—”
“We were so far in, we didn’t want to ruin things by telling
you what was going on,” Jode finished.
Both men shrugged and frowned at her.
Cammie shook her head. This was such a big mess. She should
be hating them. Slapping them. Shouting at the top of her lungs. But she just
didn’t have the energy, so she would listen to what they had to say and reserve
judgment until she was a bit more clearheaded than now.
“Go on,” she said stiffly.
“Having sex wasn’t a part of the bet. Jode and I are
attracted to you. It was like we said, the instant we saw your pictures. That
part we told you is true,” Jode said.
Josh quickly broke in. “Everything is true, Cammie. We’re
attracted to you. We care for you. We love you.”
Both of them stared at her with desperation in their eyes.
“What about Earl? Why did you fire him if not because of the
bet?”
Josh answered first. “When we arrived this morning Kim asked
to speak with us. She said that Earl had been sexually harassing her for years
and he’d been doing the same to you when you worked here. She said she didn’t
want to break your confidence by telling us you admitted to her that Earl had
cornered you once in a back room and would have raped you had you not managed
to get away from him.”
Cammie shuddered as she remembered how close that had been.
“She said you quit that same day after you reported it to
your partner and he laughed and told you to suck it up. We fired Earl and were
trying to persuade Kim to press charges with the police when we heard him in
the hallway just now.”
She inhaled deeply, trying to stifle her anger.
“And of course, that makes everything regarding this bet all
right?” she asked.
“No, it doesn’t,” Josh stated firmly. “We never should have
made a bet with him. We should have let him go but unfortunately no one was
talking to us about him until we got an inkling from Kim last week. But she
didn’t spill the beans until this morning.”
“Do you know how horrible I felt knowing Earl was shown
those pictures from the photo shoot because of a bet?”
Jode and Josh both tensed.
“That’s bullshit,” Jode said and they both shook their
heads. “Earl never saw anything. He couldn’t have because everything is still
out in the van. Whatever he said, he’s just yanking your chain. Don’t let him
tear us apart, sweetheart.”
“I don’t know…”
“On the ride over to Sexy Toys, we decided those photos are
going to remain private.” Josh smiled. “They’ll just be for us. We want you all
to ourselves. We love you. Have we said that to you today?”
His smile widened. Of course he knew they had told her they
loved her early this morning just before they left.
Her anger cracked and began to fall apart.
“Please, sweetheart.” Jode grabbed her hand and held tight. “Please
let us explain. Please give us another chance. We wanted to tell you everything
tonight when we got back home.”
Home. That one word melted her anger instantly. That they
thought of her place as being their home wrapped warmth around her heart
despite her being pissed off. And they did say this morning that they had
something very important to tell her. This was it. The bet. And they were the
bosses who were so eager to meet her.
She understood what had happened. Truly she did, but she
couldn’t let the two of them off that easy. They’d been dishonest and yes, she
would have to accept some of the blame for her blind trust.
“I think you’re going to have to work very hard for my
forgiveness, gentlemen.”
Relief flashed across both their faces.
“Name it,” Josh replied quickly.
“We’ll do it. Whatever you want, beautiful lady,” Jode said.
She couldn’t help but smile. This might be lots of fun.
“Do whatever I ask when we get home and I just might be
inclined to think about maybe forgiving you.”
In an instant Josh’s eyes brightened and understanding
flared across Jode’s face as well.
“We’re going home with you?” Jode asked with eagerness.
Cammie nodded.
“Yes!” Josh laughed.
“Thankfully we have that box of toys to play with when we
get back, and I love to eat after lovemaking. You’ll have to cook and clean for
me…”
Josh and Jode laughed, their hands slipping protectively
around her waist as they led her to the door. Their powerful touches made her
feel safe again, Earl be damned. She knew the statute of limitations of sexual
harassment in her case had long passed but she was going to press assault
charges against Earl for what had just happened and she would persuade Kim to
go after him for sexual harassment.
And yes, she’d make Josh and Jode work hard for her
forgiveness. Very hard indeed and she would love every minute of it too.
Jan Springer lives in Ontario, Canada and writes full time.
She enjoys kayaking, hiking, photography and gardening. She is a member of the
Romance Writers of America, Passionate Ink and The Author’s Guild. She loves
hearing from her readers.
Jan welcomes comments from readers. You can find her website
and e-mail addresses on her
author bio page
at
www.ellorascave.com
.
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Heroes
at Heart 1: A Hero’s Welcome
Heroes
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Undercover 1:
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Cavemen: Legendary Tails II
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at Heart 1: A Hero’s Welcome
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Toygasm
ISBN 9781419948916
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Toygasm Copyright © 2013 Jan Springer
Edited by Julie Naughton
Cover design by Syneca
Cover photography by michelaubryphoto /fotolia.com,
conrado/shutterstock.com,
Electronic book publication October 2013
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