Blazing: A Billionaire Boys MFM Menage novel Read online

  “Well, it wasn’t my idea,” Julian said, defensively. He had no issue with Milo per se, not directly, after all; the two of them had come up with the arrangement, but he’d half hoped she wouldn’t agree, choosing one of them just to be done with it.

  Of course, it hadn’t quite worked out that way and given that he’d agreed to the plan, he had to follow through. He didn’t regret it, but he wasn’t exactly entirely comfortable with it; the sight of the other man’s junk was enough to make him a little squeamish.

  Even the most secure of men would have an issue with that.

  “Not exactly,” Julian added. “You remember what I told you.”

  Aiden leaned back in his seat and scratched his chin. “About you and your business partner, Milo? You know, most men would’ve just fought the good old-fashioned way, a throw down, arm wrestling, hell I bet even pistols could’ve been provided if they were need, but this! This is some batshit crazy stuff. I didn’t think you were actually going to go through with it.”

  Julian snorted. “I know, but it works for us. I’m not even sure how.”

  The logistics of it were a bit fuzzy, and it wasn’t as if they’d taken the time to hammer out the details, making blueprints with big large Xs to mark the spot. No, nothing like that.

  It had simply been an idea, tossed out by Milo in the heat of the moment, as a compromise since they’d both been getting ready to go at it, battling it out for the chance to pursue Olive, without any interference from the other person.

  In retrospect, it wasn’t a half bad plan, especially given his feelings towards Olive, and Milo was actually surprisingly easy to deal with, a quirky sort of comradery blossoming between the two men, based on respect, trust, and the feelings they shared for the feisty redhead, the owner of their hearts.

  And balls apparently.

  “So, I take it last night went well?” Aiden asked, removing his hands from the table when the waiter approached with their drinks. Julian thanked him, took a quick sip of his scalding hot coffee and drummed his fingers against the wood.

  In every regard, yes, it had gone well, as well as it could given the circumstances, but he wasn’t sure what kind of details to give his friend, wanting to spare himself from the hooting and hollering.

  “Well, it was kind of awkward at first with Milo and I just giving our backs to each other and refusing to turn around.”

  Aiden chuckled and blew on his mug. “I can imagine that. So, what happened?”

  “She helped us relax,” Julian continued, lips twitching at the memory. “And things progressed from there.”

  “Don’t leave me hanging, man. Come on, this is some interesting stuff right here,” Aiden pointed out, pleadingly. “So, you were both fucking her at the same time?”

  Julian paused. “In a way, yes.”

  Aiden took a large gulp of his coffee. “Isn’t that awkward?”

  Julian grimaced. “Well, it’s not all smooth sailing. He was trying to finger Olive and ended up tickling my balls instead.”

  Aiden choked in his coffee, some of it coming out of his nose as his belly shook, noises coming from the back of his throat. “Damn. How was that?”

  “I started laughing. I don’t even know. My balls aren’t ticklish,” Julian replied, shaking his head slightly. That particular incident was seared into his memory as was the horrified look on Milo’s face, mirrored, he was sure, by his own.

  The only thing that made it better was Olive’s reaction, immediately smoothing things over. Milo had been apologetic, mumbling about how he didn’t mean to invade his space, and that was that.

  But, it would be hard to forget it, that much was certain.

  “And this chick just has you at her beck and call?” Aiden asked, pushing his coffee aside, not wanting to risk wasting any more of it. He reached between them for the napkins and dabbed at the table, grumbling under his breath before he bunched it up.

  “No, we’re all in this because we want to be,” Julian argued.

  “Wow. Redheads, huh?” Aiden waggled his eyebrows, making a suggestive gesture with his fingers. Julian flipped him off, and he threw his head back, laughing uproariously as if he’d just revealed the funniest joke in the world.

  In all seriousness, he was glad he had someone to talk to about this, hash out the weirdness without feeling strange. Aiden was able to provide him with that, by treating him exactly the same way he always had.

  If anything, Aiden seemed to encourage the madness, absorbing the stories like a sponge, soaking everything up. Julian guessed it was because he didn’t get much action in his own life.

  “I love living vicariously through you,” Aiden commented, giving him a Cheshire cat grin. “Man, you do the weirdest shit, and it’s fucking hilarious.”

  Julian shot him a long look. “I’m glad to see you’re finding this so funny.”

  Aiden chuckled and gulped down the rest of his coffee, reaching for the doughnut as a reflex and attempting to stuff it into his mouth in one bite.

  “Don’t choke on that,” Julian said, eyeing his friend in thinly veiled amusement.

  “Man, that’s nothing. Want to watch me stuff two doughnuts in at once?” Aiden suggested, cracking his knuckles jokingly.

  “No, I’d rather not.”

  “Oh, I see. It’s not kinky enough for you,” Aiden guessed.

  “Screw you.”

  “I’d rather you didn’t,” Aiden remarked. “I don’t like you that way, Julian. I’m sure you’re lovely on the inside and all that bullshit.”

  “Don’t you have somewhere to be?” Julian asked, pointedly.

  “Why? Are you planning on propositioning me, too? Wait, let me act surprised.”

  “Fucking hilarious,” Julian grumbled, good naturedly, shooting his friend a venomous look. Aiden shrugged it off and laughed before they parted ways, each heading in the opposite direction, towards their respective jobs.

  3

  Milo

  The sound of his car beeping brought him out of his state of reprieve, and he gave a jolt of surprise, as if electricity was coursing through him and exhaled. Slowly, he ran his hands over his face then raked it through his blonde hair, making it stand out in tufts atop his head.

  All things considered, it wasn’t the most professional look, especially given that he had to step into the office, but if he wasn’t allowed these little idiosyncrasies as CEO then who was?

  Yes, it was good to be the boss, to have people look the other way and offer him a plethora of chances just because he was the big man on top, and damn did that feel good. He had no qualms about admitting that.

  Why should he?

  He’d worked damn hard to get to the top, and with his sharp intuition and ruthless bulldog attitude, he usually got things done. Add his business partner, Julian to the mix, and he’d struck gold.

  Granted, things had taken a rather adventurous turn between them of late, what with their arrangement with Olive, but he liked to think it was working out just fine. After all, they both knew what the boundaries were. Hell, they were the ones who came up with the whole idea to begin.

  Which he still couldn’t believe sometimes.

  In his hands, his phone vibrated, the shrill sound bringing him back to the present with a jolt, a smile hovering on the edge of his lips. He gave a slight shake of his head and took the elevator up, recalling a day, very similar to this one, where he’d shown up to work, sleep-deprived and looking like he rolled out of bed.

  Four weeks earlier…

  “Mom, are you sure this is what you want for your birthday?” Milo asked, switching his phone to the other ear, cradling it between his shoulder and his neck. His assistant gave a quick rap on the door, holding up a folder in his hands.

  He signaled for her to come in and leave it on his desk.

  Slowly, she walked forward, giving her hips an exaggerated sway, her pencil skirt just short enough to be considered professional and bent over the desk giving him a full view of her cleavag
e.

  Milo raised an eyebrow but didn’t say anything, focused on what his mom was saying. Sure, his assistant, Brandy, was incredibly attractive, in the thin model kind of way, but he’d dated a lot of women like her before, and he wasn’t looking for a repeat.

  No, he wanted something new.

  Something different.

  He just didn’t know what it was yet, but he was sure that the minute he saw it, it would hit him like a ton of bricks. His mother’s voice droned on his ear, describing the item in painstaking detail till he could practically conjure it in his mind.

  “A brooch?” Milo inquired, pulling the phone away from his ear to give it a long look before he placed it back. “Mom, how about a full day at the spa? Then a few hours at the hair salon? You love shit like that.”

  Truthfully, there was nothing he wouldn’t do for his mom, go the ends of the Earth and back for her, offering her every single treasure he found along the way, but lately, she’d started developing an acquired taste in the strangest of items.

  Last month, it was a rare type of bird.

  This month, it was a brooch, an expensive and rare kind he’d never even heard of, and he’d been around his fair share of jewelry, enough to be able to identify it after a thorough inspection.

  He did make it his business to have a foothold in everything, studying the world around him, and the people in it. A rather clinical way of viewing the world, but what else was he supposed to do?

  Everything came easily to him; that was just a fact of life.

  His mother had called him the golden child, the one with the Midas. From his grades to his athleticism, he seemed to do exceptionally well in everything, save for one exception.

  Relationships.

  No matter how interested he was in the beginning, or how invested he became, it always fizzled out, spiraling out of his control till one or both of them called it quits. In most cases, they hadn’t even done anything wrong, he’d just simply lost interest, never able to focus on one woman for an extended period of time.

  Perhaps that was his curse, his Achilles heel, sentenced to a rotating door of shallow, empty relationships that meant nothing, hollow on the inside. He cleared his throat and shook the thought away, tuning back into what his mother was saying.

  “Okay, I’ll look for it, but I can’t promise I’ll find it,” Milo acquiesced.

  Satisfied, his mother hung up, and he tossed the phone onto his desk, pulling up his calendar for the day. Luckily, his day was, for the most part, completely free, so he had time to hunt down this elusive brooch.

  A quick internet search led him to a local thrift store that promised the exotic and unusual, and it was only a few blocks away from where his office was. Surprised, he stared at the screen, expecting to find it somewhere a bit higher end given its exclusivity.

  However, the reviews and comments swore by this place, likening it to a diamond in the rough, lost amongst a sea of gold-plated stores. He shrugged and plugged the address into his phone.

  Milo stood up, rolled his sleeves up to his elbows and popped open the first few buttons on his shirt. The tie was tossed onto the desk, and the jacket was left behind, giving him a more casual look.

  “I have my phone if you need me,” Milo called out to Brandy, hitting the elevator button. It pinged, and he stepped in, humming under his breath as he waited for it to descend, hoping it wouldn’t stop along the way.

  As soon as he stepped out of the building, he was met with a blast of warm air, tearing its way through him before it moved on, making him pause to tilt his head back and relax his shoulders, unclenching.

  Suddenly, he was glad he’d left his jacket and tie behind because the weather was too nice not to enjoy, and with all the hassle they’d been experiencing lately, he’d missed the sun.

  He was one of the few people in the world who actually enjoyed warm weather, preferring it to the sharp sting of the cold, biting and unforgiving. Milo glanced towards the parking lot where his car waited, beckoning him forward, but he turned his back and walked ahead, pulling out his phone to use as a navigator.

  Fifteen minutes later, he was peering at the store in confusion.

  He couldn’t possibly have the right place, not based on everything he read online. He took a step forward and pressed his face to the glass, surprised to find that it was only one floor, a modest antique store that didn’t have much in the way of boasting but certainly looked well-stocked.

  Yes, the items on display were of a wide array, interesting enough to pique even his interest, but he was suddenly skeptical as to whether or not it did own the brooch. By all accounts, it didn’t look like it did.

  Still, since he was here, he figured he might as well take a look, so the trip wouldn’t be a complete waste. With his phone clutched in his hand, he stepped in, cool air hitting him in the face as a small bell jingled above, signaling his arrival.

  “Coming!” A voice called out.

  He shoved his hands in his pockets and wandered around, smiling at all the odd little knickknacks strewn here and there. Sometimes, he thought it was a pity he didn’t have more of an interest in vintage items, but he simply didn’t see the point.

  Sure, they were nice to look at, but beyond that, he saw no practical purpose for them, not as far as he was concerned. A homage to the past, a nod to where they came from, but nothing more.

  Soon enough, he wandered towards the counter, hearing noises coming from behind. Eventually, a head popped up, her face split into a wide grin. Milo froze, his heart doing an odd little lurch.

  He definitely wasn’t expecting this.

  The woman behind the counter was stunning, a redhead with the most alluring pair of blue eyes he’d ever seen. He swallowed past the sudden dryness in his throat and offered a weak smile, his mind going completely blank.

  What the hell? You’re Milo Underwood, CEO of a successful company, not some pubescent teenager. Open your mouth and speak, you idiot.

  “Can I help you with something?”

  Milo cleared his throat. “Yes, I’m looking for a brooch that my mother wants, and I was told I could find it here.”

  “Can I see what it looks like?”

  Expectantly, she held out her hand, and he took out his phone, hastily pulling up the picture and zooming in. His hand brushed against hers as he placed the phone and waited to see what she would say.

  He had no idea what was happening, but the redhead was invoking a strange response in him, almost giddy in nature. His palms were sweating, his heart was racing, and he found himself unable to find the right words to win her over.

  This hadn’t happened to him in a long time, possibly ever.

  Not since his first crush back in middle school, and even that went much better than this, what with him standing on the other side of the counter, tongue tied and shifting from one foot to the other as she perused the picture.

  “You’re lucky I specialize in the unusual,” she said, brightly, handing him back the phone. “That brooch is one of my personal favorites actually. I had to arm wrestle a Buddhist monk for it.”

  Milo choked back a surprised laugh, the butterflies in his stomach picking up the pace. “Really?”

  “No, but it’s a cool story, isn’t it?”

  Milo chuckled. “Yeah, it is. You should keep it, though maybe leave out the part where you say it isn’t true. Otherwise, you’re just stripping away the mystery.”

  She paused. “You already know, though, so it’s a little too late for that.”

  “I can keep a secret.”

  She eyed him curiously, the corners of her lips turning into a small smile. “Do you? Well, that’s good. I can have it ready for you by tomorrow then.”

  “Tomorrow?”

  “I need to prepare the certificate of authenticity,” she explained. “And it’s a little backed up today.”

  Milo frowned. “I don’t think I’ll be able to stop by tomorrow.”

  “I can drop it off for you if it’s not f
ar,” she offered, helpfully.

  Seriously, who the hell was this woman?

  “Yes, that would be very helpful.” He pulled out a business card, wrote down his number on the back and slid it over the counter. “Around noon would be great; otherwise I’ll be stuck in meetings.”

  She brought the card up to her face and peered at it, relatively unimpressed. “Okay, Mr. Underwood. I’ll have it delivered for you tomorrow at noon.”

  “Thank you.”

  He turned to leave then paused in his tracks before he turned to face her. “I need to leave a name at the door, so they can let you up.”

  “I’m Olive Anderson.” She held out her hand for him to shake it, and he took her hands between his, surprised at the current of warmth passing between them. “It’s nice to meet you.”

  “Same.”

  Reluctantly, he drew his hand back and tucked it into his pocket. “I’ll see you tomorrow then.”

  “You got it.”

  4

  Olive

  Four weeks earlier

  Butterflies in her stomach?

  Check.

  Sweaty palms?

  Check.

  A strange giddy feeling coursing through her veins while her heart did odd little somersaults?

  Double check.

  Yes, by all accounts she was incredibly nervous, and she couldn’t, for the life of her, figure out why. It wasn’t as if he was the first handsome man to walk into her store, but no, handsome didn’t cut it.

  Milo was striking.

  In a way that was completely effortless, and it had very little to do with the way he looked although he was incredibly handsome. In her eyes, it was so much more than that; it was the way he carried himself, the easy confidence and charm he exuded.

  Charisma practically oozed off of him, and although he wasn’t the type of guy she normally went for, she preferred the more laid back modest type, but there was something about him that drew her in, a bird in the lure of a prey.

  In any case, it explained why she felt nervous although all she was doing was dropping off a brooch he ordered for his mother. By all accounts, she had no reason to be. It wasn’t as if she had no reason to be there; it was just business after all.