Owned (Office Intrigue Book 8) by Nicole Edwards (bill gates book recommendations txt) 📕

was eager to make him happy, to see his needs were met, of that I had no doubt. But in doing so, I realized she was overlooking something. On purpose, if I had to guess.

“Strip him,” I instructed Sim and Taurus.

Braelyn inched back on the cushion, moving closer to me as Taurus and Sim approached Jones.

They were very hands-on during the process, touching him in a non-clinical manner as they removed the jeans he wore.

Once he was naked, I instructed him to kneel before me.

He did, gracefully shifting down to his knees.

I then reached into my pocket and retrieved two collars, one leather, the other titanium with Owned etched into the metal. I turned to Braelyn, holding one in each hand.

“My question for you is which would you prefer to present him with?”

Her eyes were wide when they shot up to my face. “Seriously?”

“It’s your choice.”

I’d seen how attached she’d gotten to Jones, and because of that, I’d been spending a little time with him. Nothing intimate, but I had discussed at length what his desires were. Jones had surprised me, opening up and telling me about his life with his former Owner, how he’d come to care for her. I’d listened, understanding because of my own relationships, for lack of a better word, with my possessions.

“It should be his choice,” Braelyn said.

Before she could reach for both collars, I pulled them back, closed my hands around them. “He’s already made his choice. Now the final decision is yours.”

Her eyes searched my face, her voice not much more than a whisper when she asked, “I have the option of keeping him?”

“You do, yes.”

Her gaze shifted to Taurus and Sim then back to me. “I don’t want to disrupt…”

“They wish to please you,” I informed her. “The same as they please me. It’s not their decision to make. Nor do they want it to be. Braelyn, that’s how this works. This is the reason they’re here.”

I unfolded my hands, held out the collars to her again.

Tears formed in her eyes as she stared down at both. I was pleased when she opted for the one that would announce him as Owned by us.

And yes, it was now an us although Braelyn and I hadn’t yet had that conversation. We’d simply moved in that direction naturally.

From my pocket, I retrieved a key, this one on a titanium chain that I’d had designed just for her.

“This unlocks all their collars,” I told her, passing it over so she could lock the collar around Jones’s neck.

All eyes were on her as she gently placed it on him, secured it, then passed the key back to me before moving her hair out of the way as she shifted so her back was to me.

“This should stay on you at all times,” I informed her as I clasped the necklace.

“It will,” she whispered. “I promise.”

When she turned back, she pressed the key to her chest and smiled at Jones.

In a surprising show of emotion, Jones leaned forward and rested his forehead on her knee.

I’d picked up on those little details with my own possessions. They treated her differently than they did me. As though they understood she needed more from them than I did.

And it appeared they wanted to give in return.

*

Braelyn

I was in shock.

That’s what this was.

I’d spent the past week keeping a close eye on Jones while at the same time trying to keep my distance. Not because I wanted to but because I knew if I didn’t, I would get attached.

Looked as though my best efforts had failed me, because there was no question as to whether or not I wanted to keep him.

And if that didn’t sound weird, I didn’t know what did.

When Jones lifted his head from my knee, I turned to Talon, reaching for him so I could kiss him. I needed his strength in that moment, to hold me together when I felt this influx of emotions.

It wasn’t only because of Jones or the fact he’d chosen me. Sure, that was part of it.

But it was mainly because Talon had known what I needed, what I wanted, without asking me. He was a perceptive man, and I was well aware he paid attention to me on so many levels. In fact, he treated me like a queen most of the time. Of course, he also treated me like his dirty girl when we were intimate, and that was something I’d come to expect from him, to look forward to, even.

When the kiss lingered, I heated it up a few degrees by moving closer, needing to be near him.

Talon didn’t hesitate, pulling me into him, his arms banding around me, hands squeezing as though he wanted me as much as I wanted him.

“Come here,” he said with a grunt, positioning me so that I was sitting on his lap, my back to his chest.

Because he was behind me, I was forced to look at the three possessions in front of us, noticing the way their eyes heated as Talon’s hands slipped beneath the sundress I was wearing. Beneath it I was naked, which, based on Talon’s soft groans, he very much approved of.

I inhaled sharply when he jerked the dress up, forcing me to shift so he could remove it.

And then I was completely naked, on display for the three possessions still watching me.

“Spread your legs,” Talon commanded.

I did, feeling heat infuse my face as I shifted my knees apart, hooking them over Talon’s legs.

“Jones, lick her.”

A wave of heat went through me, igniting my blood when he shifted to his left, his face between my legs.

He met my gaze, held it as he leaned in and did as he was told. I saw it then, the smoldering warmth in his blue eyes. He approved of the command, and I ensured he saw my desire, as well.

Talon’s arm banded across my chest, his hand circling my neck as he held me against him. It seemed a possessive move, one meant