The Men with the Golden Cuffs (Masters and Mercenaries #2)(88)

“It doesn’t look like it’s over for them. They seem very serious about you.”

Yep, this was more than a friendly conversation. “I was convenient.”

“Do you want to see just how convenient you are? Do you think a man would try to kill his friend over a convenient lay? Trust me on this one. Adam damn well deserves this.” Liam reached out and put a hand on her waist, pulling her close, her chest bumping against his.

“What are you doing?” Serena asked, her wide eyes taking him in.

“Proving a point. I’m about to make you deeply inconvenient.” He leaned over, and before she could protest, he brushed his lips against hers.

She had a brief shock of recognition. Liam was intensely hot. He was insanely sexy. He had those deep green eyes and shockingly dark hair, and that accent that melted her female parts. She felt a moment’s curiosity. She hadn’t been kissed very often. She’d had a few boyfriends, but Doyle comprised the majority of her sexual experience.

It was different to kiss Liam. She viewed the experience from an intellectual standpoint even as Liam molded his lips to hers. He didn’t use his tongue. She might have protested that. There was an almost lackadaisical interest coming from Liam. She felt oddly safe with him.

And while the man knew how to kiss, she really didn’t want him to kiss her. Because she belonged to someone else. She belonged to Adam and Jake. Adam and Jake were the ones who moved her. She wouldn’t have been thinking if she’d been in their arms. She would have been living that kiss.

Suddenly, it felt brutally wrong to be in Liam’s arms. She started to push against him, but she didn’t need to. She fell back on her ass as she was shoved out of his arms. Adam didn’t play the gentleman. He didn’t scream or ask what had happened. He didn’t reach out to lend her a hand. His eyes were dark as night as his fist came out.

“Now, Adam, I was just making a point,” Liam said, holding his hands up in a placating gesture.

Again, not a word passed Adam’s lips. He struck out, his fist flying and catching Liam directly across the jaw. The Irish Dom cursed.

“Fuck all, Adam, you know you deserved that. Sean would high-five me.” Liam had a shit-eating grin on his face.

Adam simply launched his body at the other man and rammed his knee in his gut, causing Liam to grunt in pain.

“What the f*ck is going on?” Jake asked, offering Serena a hand up.

Serena wasn’t sure how to explain. She was watching two men fight. It was oddly quieter than she had expected it to be. Liam obviously decided he didn’t like the way Adam had nearly kneed him in the groin and had stopped taunting him, obviously preferring to pay him back. He kicked out, trying to catch Adam. They were really fighting. Over her.

Well, Adam was fighting over her. She rather thought Liam was just fighting.

“Serena, I asked you a question.” Jake glared at her, forcing her attention back to him.

“Adam didn’t like something Liam did and so they started fighting.”

Jake stared down at her. “What the f*ck did he do? Tell me now.”

“He kissed me.” She couldn’t think of a lie, and she was worried what he would do if she did lie. He liked to spank her, after all.

Jake nodded, and for the briefest of moments, she thought he would be reasonable about it. They didn’t have a commitment. They weren’t boyfriend and girlfriend. Or was that boyfriends and girlfriend? It didn’t matter because Jake’s moment of reason was deeply short lived. He turned and jumped into the fray. He punched Liam right in the eye.

“Goddamn it.” Ian walked into the lobby, a fierce frown on his face. Alex was beside him. Both men were dressed in leathers and looked like a calm in the storm. Thank god. Someone could break this up.

Ian waded into the throng and pulled Adam up by his collar. Alex got a hand on Liam.

“You three need to calm down,” Ian ordered, his deep voice blatantly military. Serena had no problem envisioning him handling a unit of elite soldiers. Or really mad Doms.

Alex held on to Liam’s neck and then suddenly punched him straight on the nose. Liam shouted out, cursing.

“What the f*ck?” Liam held his bloody nose.

“That was for Eve,” Alex said, his shoulders set. He turned and walked away.

Liam held his hands up. He turned and looked at Ian, his eyes wide with apparent shock. “What was that about? I’ve never touched Eve.”

“He knows you’ve been spending time with Eve. He suspects you’re sleeping with her.” Ian gave Adam a little snarl. “Don’t f*cking try anything else. That means you, too, Jake.”

Jake gave him a mulish stare. “He kissed my sub.”

“She doesn’t have a collar on,” Ian pointed out. “Get a collar around her throat and we’ll talk. And you,” he turned to Liam, “need to stay away from Alex’s wife.”

“Ex-wife.” Liam frowned. “And I’m not f*cking Eve. Not even close.” He grinned Serena’s way. “Though I will f*ck that one.”

Both Jake and Adam started for him again. Ian hauled Liam behind his own enormous body.

“Back off,” Ian commanded. “He’s being an *.”

Liam crossed his arms over his chest and looked over at Serena. “There you go, dear. That’s your answer. You’re very inconvenient now. They’re risking their jobs, and their jobs are pretty much all they have. You’re being brutally stubborn. You’re hurting all three of you. Come out of that corner, Serena. You don’t really want to be there anyway.” Liam backed away. “I’m going to clean up. You three better figure something out or it’s going to be over.”