Double Mountain Trouble Read online

  “Come on, sweetheart.” Tyler opened a hand toward her. “We won’t bite. We want to talk. Let’s get to know each other a little.”

  “I was sold into an arrangement without my consent by my cousin, stuffed in the trunk of a car, dragged in here against my will, and you think cocktail hour is a problem I need to consider? And I hate martinis.”

  “That answers one question.” Lee corked the gin and poured a glass of deep red wine. “It sounds like if anyone needs a drink, it would be you. Here. Drink.”

  She stormed over to the bar. “Fine.” She snatched the goblet from his hand.

  “Good. I hope you enjoy it. Let’s sit.” He pointed to an open chair for her.

  Brooke took a seat and assessed her new set of captors. Her heart still pounded, but after a sip of wine, she was calm enough to consider a conversation rather than arguing. The rage had settled to a low boil.

  Tyler’s dark gaze was distracting. His eyes trailed all over her body. It made her feel strangely uncomfortable and attractive at the same time. Lee didn’t make things any better. His blue eyes were like something out of a movie. She had never seen blue that color before.

  They were certainly an upgrade from James and his burly hands.

  She took another gulp of wine. Maybe getting drunk was the answer.

  “Brooke, Tyler and I want you to know you are our guest during this arrangement. That’s the most important thing”

  “Guest?” she sputtered on the wine. “A guest who can never leave? A guest who didn’t accept an invitation?”

  She saw the look that transpired between them.

  “We don’t have that level of trust yet,” Lee explained. “The terms of the arrangement are that you are to remain in Tyler’s custody for sixty days. I don’t see why as time goes by you can’t start to have more freedom. That has to be earned of course.”

  Her eyes darted to Tyler. “This is your debt Niall has to pay? You wanted a prisoner?”

  He nodded. He didn’t bother to hide his smile. “The best game of poker I’ve ever won.”

  “Poker? I’m here because of poker? A stupid game of poker,” she muttered under her breath.

  Lee shook his head. “Jesus, Tyler. Do you have to be an ass from the get-go?” He traded seats so he could sit next to Brooke. Lee seemed to be the more level-headed one between the two.

  “Tyler and I are business partners. Co-CEOs to be exact.”

  “I know all about StarCon Global. I hate to admit it, but I used to study your graphic arts department.” She bit her tongue. She had studied more than their graphics, but that was a secret she had to keep.

  “Really?”

  Brooke nodded. “I said I used to.” That was in the past.

  Lee bit the inside of his cheek and turned toward Tyler. “What’s your background Brooke?”

  “Are you saying you didn’t get a bid sheet on me?” she mocked. “You don’t have every sordid detail about who I am and what I have to offer? Come on, you had to be more thorough than that.”

  “I was hoping for something more personal. Something about you.”

  “I’m Niall McIntosh’s cousin,” she answered reluctantly.

  “No, not that. What are you interests? Skills? Did you go to college? Tell us something about yourself.”

  The wine made her feel fiercer than she actually was. The adrenaline had started to fade and she was nervous. She didn’t know if she could handle these two tycoons.

  “Yes I graduated the top of my class with a visual arts degree. Why? Are you trying to figure out if that deducts points because I might have operating brain cells? Does that intimidate you?”

  Lee pressed his lips together. “No. I like a smart woman.” He rubbed his chin. “I thought you might be interested in a job while you are here.”

  Tyler leaned forward. “Lee, we haven’t discussed this. What did you have in mind?”

  The men turned toward each other. “We need an artist to design the logo and complete the interface for the Foundation,” Lee answered.

  “But that’s a high-level campaign. I’ve been considering candidates for weeks. It’s the pinnacle of our comeback.”

  Brooke leaned back in her chair while they discussed her. It was no different than Niall.

  “She’s here. She has a degree. I think we could use a fresh take on the art,” Lee argued.

  “This isn’t the type of project that can be completed in sixty days. It’s our cornerstone.”

  Lee smiled. “Perhaps, she’s the type of artist who would like the challenge and would stay beyond the requirement.”

  His sapphire eyes landed on hers and her heart stilled. As much as she had tried to be unaffected by them, it wasn’t working.

  “I never agreed to any of this.”

  Lee exhaled. “I’m trying to make this worth your while. Tyler is right. The art director for this campaign should be a seasoned expert. Someone with years of experience in the industry. Honestly, I think it’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for someone without those credentials. Why not take the job for the next two months and see what you can do with it?”

  “Are you serious?” She cocked her head sidewise. “You’re trying to sugarcoat this with a job offer?”

  Tyler smirked. “I’d take it sweetheart. Lee is being more than generous.”

  “Right. Of course.” She settled into the chair. “Just tell me. Along with the art, what do I have to do to get your trust so I can leave when I want? Daily blowjobs? Would that work?”

  Tyler leaned forward. “You are our guest. You are our companion. And we will never order or ask you for anything sexual. Is that understood?”

  She noticed how his neck tensed. The easy smile he had faded.

  She nodded, yet she didn’t completely believe him. Why else would they want her to stay with them?

  “Dinner is at six o’clock,” Lee explained. “We will see you then.”

  “Are you dismissing me?”

  “Did you need something else?” he asked.

  “Where are we?” She didn’t like how small her voice sounded.

  Tyler smiled. “This is our retreat.”

  “You two are in hiding, aren’t you?”

  Lee’s smile turned angry. “We aren’t hiding.”

  She shook her head. She had heard rumors and read a few things online. There was a possible takeover at StarCon. It had been splashed all over the business news. The co-CEOs had left town to supposedly build their portfolio, but this confirmed what Brooke had thought from the beginning. They were hiding. They were using the retreat for some kind of master comeback.

  “You want me to trust you two, yet you won’t tell me where we are and why you’re up here. I know we’re far from the city. I might have been in the back of a trunk for hours, but I have eyes.” She pointed to the window. “Nothing but snow and trees.”

  Lee sighed. She didn’t want to admit how insanely sexy his beard was. For a quick flash of a second she wondered what it would feel like on her tender skin. She shook her head. No, she scorned herself.

  “She’s right, Ty.” Lee stared at his business partner. He turned to her. “We’re taking some time off out of the city. We’re unplugging. Ok? Does that answer your question?”

  “No it doesn’t. But I guess we have time for me to figure you two out.” She twisted her lips together.

  Lee winked. “Perfect. You’ll find everything you need upstairs in your room. We will see you at dinner.”

  Brooke rose from the chair in disbelief. “I’m taking the wine with me.” She clutched the wine and marched out of the office. She had no idea what in the hell had just happened.

  Six

  Tyler

  As soon as the doors closed behind Brooke, he spun around to face Lee. He didn’t know if he had the words to describe what just happened. Shit like that didn’t happen to him. Never.

  “Fuck, did you see her?”

  Lee shook his head. “Yeah, I saw her.”

  �
��She hates us, doesn’t she?”

  “What did you think would happen? You bought her in a poker game. Why couldn’t you stick with gambling for cars or horses? Cash? Why her, Tyler. Why?”

  Tyler pushed off the couch and paced around the room. “Damn. She’s perfect. More than perfect.” He hung his head. “She is incredible.” He’d never seen more beautiful lips on a woman. Her hair was golden—it almost shimmered as if she were an angel. “This isn’t going to be easy.”

  “You wanted an empress.”

  “Instead I got a caged panther.”

  Lee stood next to him. “I’d say back out of the deal, but…”

  He cut him off. “No. We can’t let her go. And I’m not sending her out in that snowstorm.”

  “You sent James out in it.”

  He glared. “What the fuck do I care about James? She’s different. We can’t let her go.”

  Lee shook his head. “No. We can’t. On this, I actually agree with you for once. Even if I completely disagree with how she came to us.”

  “Are you ever going to stop giving me shit about it?”

  He knew he gambled too much. He knew sometimes it got out of hand, but this was the one time it had paid off. His bet brought the most amazing woman into their lives. A sassy spitfire with gorgeous tits and an ass that was round and soft. And there was an entirely unexpected side—she was an artist.

  It was a part of his life he had never been able to share with anyone before. He had collected for years. Toured the world, visiting the most prestigious collections he could find.

  “She isn’t going to go for this, Tyler.”

  “Then, we do it the old-fashioned way,” he decided.

  “Old fashioned way?” Lee questioned.

  “We seduce her with everything we have. We will be relentless. Put everything on the table. Everything.”

  “I don’t know that Brooke is the kind of girl who is going to fall for that. You saw that look. It’s clear Niall McIntosh isn’t her favorite person, and I’m certain she has added our names to that list.”

  “That may be so. But we have sixty days to make her ours. And I plan on using every second we have to make sure that happens.”

  It took everything he had not to kiss her when she was here. He had taken one look at her and wanted to know what those plump lips would taste like. What kinds of sounds she would make when he kissed her. How her eyes would light when he touched her.

  “Are you with me?” he asked his friend.

  Lee ran his fingers through his hair. “For a chance with her? Yes, I am. I’m all in, if we can make this work.”

  “Being trapped in a cabin in the woods is going to be everything she needs.”

  “Let’s just get through dinner first.”

  Seven

  Brooke

  It didn’t matter that the drapes were made from imported silk or that she had her own fireplace. Brooke didn’t care that there was a closet full of designer gowns, and more high heels than she had seen in a department store.

  These walls were her prison. A beautiful expensive prison. And she hated it.

  She turned on the TV and sank onto the pile of pillows. She scowled, despising how comfortable the bed was. It would make it easier if they gave her a bed of thorns to sleep on—not luxurious linens.

  Who did these assholes think they were? There was nothing about them that seemed like the thugs Niall usually did business with. They were refined. Polished. And they had money. They weren’t trying to hide how rich they were. She doubted they had made a single deal in the back of an ally or resorted to petty theft to pay bills.

  From their expensive suits to the custom details in the cabin. They were loaded. Their reputations as Denver’s infamous bachelors were hard to miss. They were splashed on social media. There were even blogs about Tyler and Lee. The last article she read put together a bracket list on which Denver socialites would be able to snag the duo. She wondered what the world would think if they knew this is what they did.

  She wasn’t going to get caught up in the riches. Brooke knew money was fleeting. She had learned that the hard way. She had seen her family’s fortune go up in flames when her father lost everything in a real estate deal. They lost it all: the cars, the land, her mother’s jewelry, and their house.

  It wasn’t long after his financial ruin that her father learned he was sick. Life went from bad to worse. Money meant nothing and everything at the same time.

  Brooke wandered to the window and stared out at the mountains. There was something alluring and peaceful about being here. But she shivered. She felt alone.

  She would do anything to trade the money to have her father back.

  There was a knock on the door.

  “Yes?” she called.

  The door cracked open and Tyler walked in. “How are your rooms?” he asked.

  She felt the tension in her neck and shoulders when she saw him. “Fine for a jail cell.”

  He chuckled. “Don’t be dramatic. You’re sleeping like a princess in the wilderness.”

  She folded her arms across her chest. “Why did you stop by?”

  “We’re looking forward to dinner. It’s casual. Don’t worry about the gowns. Those are just gifts for you.”

  “Gifts? Why would give me gifts?” she asked.

  “To make you feel more comfortable. To let you know we’re glad you’re here. And to spoil you rotten.” He grinned devilishly. “We want you to feel good.”

  “I’d feel a lot better if I could leave.”

  “We haven’t even had dinner. Give us a chance, Brooke. Come on.”

  She scowled. “I’d rather not.”

  “There’s a pair of jeans and a sweater I think you should try. And some heels.” He pointed to the closet.

  “Is that an order or a request?” She tilted her head.

  “I told you. There are no orders here.” He placed his hand on the door. “See you at dinner.” It closed behind him and she walked to the closet.

  She picked up the pair of skin tight jeans. They felt like the softest silk in her hands. She’d never felt denim this soft before. She reached for the sweater on the hanger next to the jeans. The V in the front was a deep cut and she realized the sweater was cropped. They’d both get an eyeful of her navel. The heels were incredible. She picked up the stilettos and turned them in her hand.

  She sighed.

  She didn’t have a choice. She thought about her options. There were none. She had to put on the skimpy designer clothes and march down the stairs like the piece of property she was. For the next sixty days Lee and Tyler owned her. There was no way around that unless she could prove herself through her art.

  For sixty days she had to survive in this golden log castle. Endure the loneliness. Bear the brunt of what they expected. Her stomach rolled. She had no doubt what she was expected to do. They might have acted like gentlemen. They might disguise their motives with lavish gifts. They might try to hide behind a job offer at StarCon Global. But she knew. It was an elaborate sham.

  They bought her.

  They owned her.

  And the price was expected to pay was with sex.

  Eight

  Brooke

  Brooke had to hold the banister to keep from tripping over the high heels. If she tipped forward, there was a chance she would tumble down the winding staircase.

  The black sweater cut in a low V almost to her navel and draped gracefully off her shoulders. It was hard to deny how elegant and sexy she looked. It seemed ridiculous to wear this to dinner in the dining room, but she did as she was told. She wasn’t interested in testing Tyler or Lee.

  When she reached the bottom of the staircase she peered around the corner looking for the dining room. The house was eerily dark and quiet.

  She didn’t know what it would be like living with two bachelors. Whether they would have sports blaring on the TV at all times. If they would smoke cigars or walk around in their underwear. These two men didn’t s
eem like other bachelors. They were different.

  She listened for the sound of Tyler and Lee talking and walked toward the front entrance of the cabin. An overpowering chandelier constructed from antlers hung in the foyer. In front of her was the front door. She didn’t know how the design could be rustic and elegant at the same time.

  There was no one here. No one to see her. No one to stop her.

  She slowly picked up her pace. Was she actually considering making a run for it? Could she run through the front door to her freedom? How long would it take for them to notice she was gone?

  There was no way she would make it far in these heels. She looked to her right. Then her left. The house was quiet. She slid off her shoes, feeling tiny without them to give her extra height. She tiptoed toward the massive set of doors.

  She didn’t know where she would go on the other side. With each step she took she tried to think of how this could pan out. Would Niall track her down? Would he punish her for ruining his payment plan? What if Tyler and Lee had an angry side she hadn’t picked up on? Would she have to serve a longer term if they caught her?

  And then there was the snow. It covered everything. She didn’t have a coat, gloves, or a hat. With this crop top, she’d freeze in under an hour.

  There wasn’t time to hash out every scenario. It was now or never. Frostbite or freedom.

  She reached the handle. It was embellished and carved. Her fingers rested on the design. On the other side was the dark night. Night that offered a chance to run. A chance to escape. Night that held more fear. Held retaliation. A life that would never be certain. She pressed her forehead into the planes of the door.

  She heard footsteps behind her and jumped. She quickly maneuvered away from the door.