Page 3 of Double Down & Dirty

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Leaving his carry-on suitcase and laptop at the foot of the stairs in the foyer, Remington Mann went in search of his brother and found him in the den. Sitting on the couch with his feet on the ottoman, Gray had a tumbler filled with ice and whiskey in his hand, as he stared at the blaze in the gas fireplace. The flat-screen TV above it was showing the latest CNN news report, but the sound was off. Instead, soulful jazz filtered through the surround sound speakers. Remi helped himself to a glass of the Jack Daniel’s Monogram Tennessee Whiskey before plopping down in his favorite, brown, leather recliner. He took a sip of the $750 liquor and let the smooth, smoky flavor pleasure his taste buds before swallowing, welcoming the familiar burn in his stomach. “So ... twenty-seven voice mail messages from Aurora. I really wish there was a ‘delete all’ feature on the damn phone.”

Gray snorted. “She knew better than to pull that shit with me. You’re too soft, brother. She knows there’s no way I’ll take her back if you won’t.”

It was true, so Remi didn’t feel insulted. Gray had always been the more reserved and stoic one of the two men, while his younger-by-one-minute sibling was the relaxed, more sociable one. They complemented each other like yin and yang. “Well, then she doesn’t stand a chance. She knew the rules from day one.”

“And I knew from day one she wasn’t long term, so let’s move on. How was Miami?”

Remi rolled his eyes and took another sip of whiskey. “I swear, I really hate dealing with the parents of minors. Josh Halstead’s mother thinks her son walks on water. Did you know she wanted us to pay for weekly manicures and pedicures for both her and the kid? He’s fucking fourteen for Christ’s sake. What fourteen-year-old boy, gay or straight, wants a fucking mani/pedi on a weekly basis?” They’d found the teenager on YouTube and knew they had to snatch him up before someone else did. He had the looks, talent, and charisma to go far in the music business. Hopefully, he’d be one of the kids who didn’t let it go to his head and become a publicist’s nightmare. Black Diamond Records had their fair share of those, as did every other recording empire.

“I take it that didn’t make it into the contract.” Gray still hadn’t taken his eyes off the mesmerizing flickering of the fire.

“Nope, and about ninety-five percent of the other shit she wanted didn’t make it in either. She finally signed on the dotted line when I stood and made a beeline for the elevator. She realized I was serious about not taking the kid on, no matter how good a singer he is, unless it was on our terms. I told Tessa to put him on the recording schedule starting next Tuesday with the playlist we’d decided on.” Many artists didn’t write their own music and many song writers didn’t record their own songs. BDR maintained a long list of previously unrecorded works that would hopefully be in the Top 40 someday with the right singer.

He eyed Gray. Something else was on his mind, and it wasn’t Aurora. They’d both known the singer would one day be a thing of the past in their private lives. While she’d been fun and adventurous in the beginning, her elitist attitude toward others had started to grate on both of them. She also hadn’t been a true submissive, although, she did enjoy playing in the BDSM lifestyle. Some people got off on the slap and tickle part of it, but other submissives needed more than that—they needed the opportunity to completely submit to their Dom or Domme. “Anything else happen today I need to know about?”

There was a long pause before Gray looked at him. “Crawford was sniffing around Abby again.”

Ah. Remi should have known. “Chad’s a good friend of hers. Yeah, he flirts, but he doesn’t stand a chance with her. I overheard her talking to Liz one day, and there’s no attraction there for her. And we agreed we wouldn’t touch her, so therefore, she’s not ours to be jealous over. Someday she’ll meet some asshole she likes, and we won’t have a say in the matter.” That bothered him as much as it bothered Gray. He tilted his head and stared at his brother. “Unless you want to change your mind. You know I have no problems breaking the unwritten rule of not getting involved with employees when it comes to Abby. She’s different from the others.”

“She’s too sweet and innocent,” his twin replied, running a hand through his hair. “If we tried to bring her into our world, we’d lose her as our secretary and as our woman. I’m not willing to risk that. She’s the best secretary we’ve ever had, and that includes Liz, who was a saint putting up with our shit for as long as she did.”

“So stop grumbling every time a guy flirts with Abby.”

“I’m not grumbling.”

Remi stood and downed the last of his whiskey. “Yes, you are, brother. And I’m not in the mood for it. If you need me, I’ll be relaxing in the hot tub.”

“Whatever. Oh, before I forget. Ian is trying to get a headcount for the grand opening of the new wing next week.” Gray raised a questioning eyebrow. “We going?”

“Oh, yeah. I’m dying to see what fun stuff the Sawyers have thought up—should be very entertaining. I also heard a new batch of submissives are finishing up their training sessions. Maybe one will catch our eye.” He didn’t doubt it. Since Marco DeAngelis and Brody Evans had both met their significant others, they were no longer free to tag-team, which meant there was one less ménage duo for the single submissives to choose from. They’d be happy to hear the Mann twins were back on the available list for threesome scenes.

Striding out to the lanai, he stripped off all his clothes and flipped the power switch for the hot tub on before climbing in. Between the lush vegetation and secure perimeter wall, he could sit out here buck-naked and not have to worry about being seen or giving the paparazzi a photo opportunity. Yet, he was still able to have a great view.

This was the life. Their $8.5 million, six-bedroom mansion was located in Bellaire, overlooking Tampa Bay and the city lights twinkling across the water. When they’d been looking to purchase a home in either Clearwater Beach or Bellaire, it hadn’t taken them long to decide on a property that backed up to the bay as opposed to looking out over the gulf. One had beautiful sunrises, while the other, stunning sunsets. But with the bay, they had a dock for a boat and jet ski launches. And it wasn’t a far walk to the beach. Remi did it several times a week before taking a run down the sandy shoreline. Once in a while, he just sat there, watching the sun go down as dolphins played in the water. The peacefulness of it all calmed him just the way the D/s lifestyle did. It was a way for him to leave all the stress of running a competitive, international business behind and just relax, soothing his mind, body, and soul.

Remi reached over and pushed a button that activated the outdoor speakers and the same relaxing music Gray had on floated through the air. Adjusting a few of the jets, he was soon enjoying the pulsating water hitting his upper and lower back in all the right spots. He’d forgone turning on the outdoor lights in favor of being able to see the millions of stars overhead. This was definitely the life. So why did it feel like something ... or someone was missing?

* * *

“I’m sorry. Black Diamond Records’employees do not comment on the CEOs’ personal lives. Please contact their publicist.” Abigail hung up the phone, resisting the urge to slam the handset down on its cradle. Over the past two days, on top of her routine, business phone calls, the paparazzi had been doing their best to try and get a quote from either Remi or Gray about Aurora Locke’s newly single status. The news and ensuing speculation was all over social media and the news outlets. While most of the reporters knew they’d never get past the secretary, that hadn’t stopped them from trying. Thankfully, BDR had a fully-staffed, media relations division, which handled the Mann brothers’ publicity, in addition to that of their clients.

Glancing at the clock, Abigail noticed it was a little after twelve. No wonder her stomach had been growling. While she was entitled to leave for a forty-five-minute lunch, she often ate at her desk with her e-reader, especially when she had the office to herself. Even with all their combined meetings, it was rare for Remi and Gray to both be gone for the entire day unless they were out of town. In addition to the main headquarters, they had offices in New York, Chicago, Las Vegas, and, of course, Los Angeles. With those exciting cities, she often wondered why they’d picked Tampa as their home base, but since she benefited from it, she didn’t question it.

Punching a speed dial button on her phone, she told the receptionist out front she was putting on the call forwarding for her lunch. After completing that, she stood and locked the main door to the executive suite. She’d have complete silence to dive into Velvet Vixen, Kristen Anders’s latest book she’d been dying to read since it had been released a few weeks ago. She loved that the author’s books were all set in Tampa; it felt like the characters were real and living in her hometown. The only reason Abigail hadn’t started the romance/suspense novel yet was she had several favorite, must-read authors. And it seemed like they’d all published their latest books at the same time, so she was reading them in the order they’d appeared on her device. Today, she was going to find out what Ms. Anders had in store for Master Zach. BDSM books had become her secret, guilty pleasure over the past few years.

It didn’t take long for her partially-eaten, tuna salad sandwich to be forgotten as she fell into the digital pages of the book. Master Zach was spanking Priscilla for the first time after she’d disobeyed him, and Abigail found herself getting as turned on as the lucky heroine. Her nipples puckered and her clit throbbed with need as her pussy grew damp. Her mind drifted from the story to her being bent over her desk, her skirt pulled up to her waist, as Gray and Remi took turns slapping her bare ass.

Holy shit! She needed to give herself some relief if she was going to make it through the day. But how? She couldn’t get off where she sat. Even though for another half hour, the receptionist should stop anyone from coming down the hallway to where they’d be able to see Abigail at her desk through the floor to ceiling glass windows and door, she couldn’t risk it. And the ladies’ room in the hall was shared with three other women from the outer offices, so that was a no-go too.

Abigail’s gaze went to Remi’s office. Neither of the CEOs would be back for the rest of the day, as they’d both had full schedules. With the locked door that led to the main reception area and the lock on the office door, she could masturbate and relieve the needy ache between her legs and be back out at her desk with no one being the wiser.

Hesitating, she bit her bottom lip. She couldn’t do it, could she? It was her boss’s office of all places ... her totally hot, drool-worthy, panty-dropping boss’s office. And that had her clenching her thighs together. Way to talk yourself out of it, Abigail.

She wouldn’t have to worry about anyone coming in because the only people who had passkeys to the executive suite were her, Remi, Gray, and the head of their security team. Since that man had been here earlier in the morning to talk to Remi, and knew the CEOs would be gone for the rest of the day, he wouldn’t be back unless it was an emergency. The men took their security seriously, keeping their multi-million dollar prospects and current clients’ files locked up tight. Even the cleaning staff didn’t have a key. Abigail let them in after she arrived each morning at 7:45. They would then spend the next forty-five minutes vacuuming, dusting, and emptying the trash from both offices and her reception area. They’d be gone before either of the twins came in at 8:30 or later.

Pushing her chair away from the desk, she paused one more time before throwing caution to the wind. She double-checked the lock on the outer door then grabbed her e-reader and hurried into Remi’s office. Shutting the door, she engaged the lock before she changed her mind or ran out of time. Inhaling deeply, she detected the enticing aroma of Remi’s expensive aftershave, the lemon wood spray the cleaners used, and the leather couch and executive desk chair.

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