Page 21 of Savage Ruin
“What if SEI made JF Technologies a wholly owned subsidiary? It would make it a legitimate business, but we could account for the taxes and other necessary expenditures across SEI’s in-house entities. With the kind of money we’re talking about, it would be tough to conceal the source. This mitigates the issue and still allows JF to operate without directly paying taxes. For CJ Tech, we could continue the partnership using a private purchase deal.” Grayson throws out his suggestion to Thiago and me.
Thiago thinks about it for a second, then nods. “It could work. We need to iron out the details before I completely agree, but my main concern is keeping SEI legitimate.”
Henley looks relieved to find a possible solution.
“Can you create the app?” I interject.
She wrinkles her nose. “I can complete all the development necessary to use the iOS or Android operating systems, but someone else should probably build the apps. I’m not the best creative or user experience design person. It needs to be simple so we can get it to market quickly. Maybe three primary sections—a demo of the technology, a registration and payment section for the annual license, and finally, the main AR display and segmentation functions. Plus, the usual minor stuff like legal, account and password creation, forgot password, blah, blah, blah.”
“I agree. We have a few developers on staff I can pull in to create the interface and a library of components to pull it together quickly,” I tell her before looking at Thiago. “Do you want them to come here or for us to go there?”
“Neither. Virtual meetings only,” he informs me. “We’re not taking any chances right now.”
I look around for my phone to send them a meeting invite.
“No phones,” chimes Henley beside me.
“Right,” I retort with a chuckle. “Are you ready to go inside?”
Her attention returns to Thiago standing there in his swim trunks. “Let’s stay for a while. It’s been nice to play hooky today. Exactly what I needed.”
Thiago lifts an eyebrow toward Grayson. “Good call,” he drawls.
Henley’s face looks surprised for a second, then swivels to face Grayson. “Thank you. It’s been… wonderful.”
His mouth lifts in a half smirk. “Thiago, I’ll race you to the water.” Before the words are out of his mouth, he takes off. Even with his head start, the two end in a tie.
“Thiago’s fast!” Henley exclaims in disbelief.
“For a big guy, he can move,” I confirm with a chuckle. “While they’re gone, I want to talk to you about earlier.” I pause until she turns toward me, but she’s still too far away, so I shift over to sit on her lounger and look her in the eyes. “It’s okay to be attracted to Grayson. To both of us. I…” I pick up her hand. “I want to tell you something, but I don’t want you to think badly of us. Or jump to conclusions, okay? Promise me you’ll listen and keep an open mind?”
Her breath whistles out. “Okay.” While she might look calm, her fingers are squeezing mine a little bit tighter.
“Grayson and I had the same girlfriend in high school. She liked us both, and neither of us wanted to give her up, so we all three made the decision to be in a relationship together. We didn’t tell anyone but family because we didn’t want her to suffer at school,” I confide to her.
She frowns. “That isn’t what I thought you were going to tell me, but okay?” Confusion and uncertainty cross her face. “Why are you telling me?”
I hesitate for a second. “She’s the only girlfriend we shared, but we have had threesomes with other women. With their full consent, of course.” The words stop flowing while I try to figure out where to go from here.
With other women, it was easier. They were more experienced and often suggested it to us. Henley says nothing, and I’m not sure if that means she’s offended or shocked or…. I shove my fingers through my wild hair in frustration. What do I do now? Maybe I should have waited for Grayson to have this discussion with Henley. He’s better at the whole communication thing.
Her fingers start tapping against my hand. “Is this something you want with me? I don’t… I haven’t ever…” She stops and lifts her shoulders. “I like you, and I’m attracted to you. Both of you. Maybe Thiago, too. I don’t know. It’s kind of confusing. You’re all beautiful or handsome… whatever. Sophisticated. And smart. But I don’t know if the isolation of the last few years is causing me to react to all of you or what. I know you, Mateo, more than the others, and I like you, but I’m not sure about Grayson. Although I’m sure the sex would be great. With all of you.” She pulls her hand from mine and slaps it over her mouth.
“Merda,” I spit out. “I’m not… We’re not expecting you to do anything with any of us. Although, I definitely hope it’s going that way. With me.” I wiggle my eyebrows, hoping she might laugh. She doesn’t. I sigh. “I want you to be comfortable reacting to us the way you want without worrying about jealousy or whether it’s the right or wrong thing. That’s the only thing I meant. We’ll take our cues from you. I swear. Not a promise, but I swear you’re the one who decides what steps we take. Although we might try to persuade you, we will never take it further than you want to go. Okay?”
She looks relieved, which makes me feel like I finally accomplished what I wanted to say instead of royally fucking this up.
“And you’re sure nobody will get upset?”
I pull her hand to my chest. “I swear.”
CHAPTER13
THIAGO
Mateo has lost his fucking mind. “Que porra é essa? You told Henley she could do whatever she wanted with each of us? What is wrong with you?” I roar, unable to keep my temper under control. Share my woman with my family? He’s crazy. Louco. I pace around the gym, trying to calm down before I say something I’ll regret. “Look, I know you two have shared in the past, but why the hell did you drag me into it?”
Mateo looks at Grayson for help, but he simply crosses his arms and leans against the wall. “I didn’t bring you up. She did. Henley is attracted to all three of us. Although she’s not sure if she likes Grayson.” He smirks at the irritated expression on Grayson’s face. “Thiago, I don’t think you two have seen each other much since she arrived, right? Maybe she’s just attracted to the idea of you.”
