by Cara Adams
“But won’t the weeds grow wild here?” Jeff had objected. Jeff, a human, was one of the men who’d spent quite a bit of time helping Leticia pull all those weeds out of the vegetable garden.
“That’s the whole point,” Leticia explained. “In a vegetable garden they’re weeds. We want the food to grow there. But out there, they’re just grasses so are free to grow and make the pipes look less ugly. Basically we’re just relocating them. Re-homing them, if you like.”
“Right. So now I’m a professional weed re-homer,” joked Jeff.
Everyone laughed.
David had to admit the area was looking pretty good, and everything was working out really well. As long as there wasn’t too much rain and snowmelt runoff, of course, and they didn’t end up with half the land flooded. Oh yes, and as long as the police didn’t come and stick him in jail. With his psycho father. For something he didn’t do.
* * * *
Galen enjoyed the long walk up to the north ridge, where he stuck a flag in the soil to indicate the line where he needed to take the final set of photographs for Nicholas and Curtis. Then he walked back to the parking lot and drove off the property, around the access road to the back of the land, and walked into the wild land until he was opposite the north ridge. When he was finally at the right tree, he placed the advertiser’s logo, a notebook-sized piece of laminated cardboard, against the tree, with a few blades of grass surrounding the edge on one side of it to make it look more natural. Then he hiked back to his car, drove back to the Carnal Connections parking lot, and hiked out to the north ridge again. This time he took his photographs, making sure he took plenty of variations, repeated the trip back to collect the logo, and went home and collapsed on his bed in the men’s apartment for an hour.
It would have been so much easier in panther form. I really need to find a way to carry my camera when I’m transformed. I must talk to some of the other panthers about that.
Finally he got off his bed and sat down with his laptop, saving his pictures, downloading them, then opening the files and checking everything before saving them again. It was late afternoon by the time he went out to his car and took the completed pictures and the logo back to the movie studio to show Curtis and Nicholas. He felt quite confident they’d like the final shots. Galen thought they’d come out well.
As he drove into the movie studio parking lot he blinked. Huge bright-green letters painted across the wall of the building proclaimed, “One of a Kind Productions.”
“Not a bad name. I think I like it.”
* * * *
Galen had plenty of time to think as he walked up and down from the north ridge. And what he mostly thought about was formalizing the arrangement between him and David and Diane. He’d never been so content in his sexual life as he was now, and sleeping in the same bed as them was heaven.
He’d already known he wanted more from them, and now he knew what he wanted was permanency and commitment. It’d taken him almost the entire day to work through to that conclusion, but he instinctively knew it was correct. Just as he’d known he needed to stop travelling and come home to his pack again, so, too, he now knew that it wasn’t just the pack he needed, but his own family. Himself, with Diane, and David. They belonged together. They fit together perfectly like the parts that made themselves into a well-balanced photograph.
Just as he’d known the dawn would light up the roof of the old house and make it look perfect, in the same way he knew that together, he, David, and Diane would be well matched, and able to strike the right sparks off each other to sharpen their very different talents, to bring out the best in each other, to make each other content. And contentment was what he craved. The contentment that would come from uniting forever with such loving, caring partners as Diane and David.
Galen was almost certain both the others wanted that, too. Oh, neither of them had said anything, but he was a Dom. It was in his bones, in his soul, and he knew what they truly wanted and needed. And that was each other. So, all he had to do was lay it out before them and get them to agree.
All.
Hmm. Likely not quite as easy as it sounded. Well, he was up for the challenge. As he was thinking about it, Galen realized they’d never been on a date together. They’d had that night together looking for the buildings in town, but it was hardly a real date. For a start, he’d been working. But the problem was, he didn’t really want David off Carnal Connections property. If someone was truly trying to frame him for the graffiti troubles, having him away from home could be playing right into their hands. So, how could they go on a date and yet still be safe?
First David went and spoke to Alyce. When she agreed, he sought out Autumn, who nodded and said Jubilee and Jill would probably help, too.
His plans laid, he texted Diane and David. Meet me in the small sitting room Autumn uses as her workspace @ 7.
Even though he was sure everything would be fine, nevertheless Galen found himself pacing his room as the time grew closer to seven. At six fifty he entered the small sitting room and was thrilled with what Autumn and her helpers had done. The woman had a wonderful way with colors and designs.
A small dining table had been placed in the center of the room with three chairs set up at it. The rest of the furniture had been pushed back toward the walls. In the center of the table was a vase of spring flowers in various shades of gold and yellow. The tablecloth was a sunshine yellow and a platter of vibrantly colored foods to nibble was set on it, arousing the visual senses as well as the taste buds. Orange carrot sticks, green pieces of celery, tiny red cherry tomatoes, yellow cubes of cheese, deep-red cubes of salami, and a creamy green avocado dip.
Since this was a date, he was wearing black pants, a button-down black shirt, and a hand-knit sweater with a traditional Fair Isle pattern using red, blue, and white on a black background.
“Oh, nice sweater,” said Autumn, coming into the room. She stretched out her hand about to touch it then asked, “May I?”
“Sure.”
Autumn would guess the sweater’s secret. Although this was a traditional Fair Isle pattern, using one of the set repetitions of geometric shapes and with the threads stranded across the back, which may be what she was about to look at, the colors were not traditional Fair Isle colors, which tended to be softer shades of cream and deep green and a more pinkish red.
“What are you doing, Autumn?” asked Jill from the doorway.
“Come and look at the threadwork on this sweater.”
“And have Diane claw my eyes out? I don’t think so.”
“Why am I going to claw your eyes out?” Diane had come into the room now and was staring at Autumn, Jill, and Galen. Galen grinned at her and wondered if she’d work out what was going on. She knew both these women well, so he expected her to understand.
Now Jubilee pushed past Jill, who was still standing in the doorway to enter. She stared at the women clustered around Galen then looked more closely at what Autumn was doing. “Oh, I get it. Fair Isle knitting is named after an island north of Scotland. It uses a particular style of knitting and special colors and designs. I guess I can only claim half a point though, because I don’t know if that sweater is real Fair Isle or not.”
“Carey isn’t here, so take the full point toward your trivia contest. It’s—” began Galen.
“Let me answer. The knitting is done the traditional way, with the threads across the back and only two colors per row, and the pattern looks genuine to me, too, but the colors are different,” said Autumn.
“Exactly right,” said Galen, trying hard not to laugh. Here he was organizing a date for his subs and everyone was more interested in his sweater than anything else.
“Hi, everyone.” David stepped through the doorway and stood beside Diane, just inside the room.
Galen realized David might be overwhelmed so pulled his sweater back down his body and gestured to Diane and David. “Come over here, Diane and David.”
“My goodness yes, we’d
better get back to work,” said Autumn, rushing out of the room, closely followed by Jill and Jubilee.
Galen held out a chair for Diane then he and David sat either side of her at the small square table, so the men were actually facing each other, but a simple turn of the head enabled them both to face Diane. Later he would likely move his chair so he was more directly facing her, but for now, and while they ate, this was fine.
He looked at her carefully. Her body language showed she was relaxed, and she had a slight smile on her face, so she must have enjoyed the byplay with the other women, rather than have been upset by it. She’d known Jubilee and Jill for a very long time, almost since the beginning of Carnal Connections, so likely she’d understood their reactions immediately.
David was different. He hadn’t been in the community very long and he was still a bit insecure in social situations. Galen thought he was relaxing more now, though, since it had become just the three of them together at the table. He hadn’t asked any questions, so likely he was working it out as he went along.
Kurt and Raegan appeared, dressed in black jeans and bright-white shirts. Kurt carried in a tray of roast beef, which he placed on the table, expertly carving each of them several slices, and Raegan walked behind him serving green beans and mashed potatoes from his own tray.
They carried the trays over to a side table and left them there, then Kurt came back with a bottle of sparkling nonalcoholic wine. Alcohol was seldom served in the community, as most people followed the BDSM lifestyle seriously and believed in keeping a clear head before playing a scene for both Doms and subs.
Galen started them talking, asking David about the work on the lake, which gradually drifted into all sorts of other topics.
Then Kurt was back, bringing them each a decadent chocolate confection with a strawberry perched on top, and Raegan poured hot coffee, Galen’s and David’s black, Diane’s with frothy milk and topped by a sprinkling of cinnamon.
“How about we play Twenty Questions while the coffee cools?” suggested Galen, moving smoothly into the next part of his plan for the evening. He looked first at Diane, who was regarding him assessingly, then at David, who appeared confused. All right, Diane had better go first in that case.
“Diane?”
“Is ‘maybe’ allowed, or just ‘yes’ and ‘no’?”
Trust Diane to get straight to the heart of the matter with no waffling side chatter. “Only ‘yes’ and ‘no.’”
“Okay, go for it.”
“I’m ready, start guessing,” said Galen. This would be very interesting. Diane was an accountant, so she’d know all about math and statistics, and the only way to win this game was to structure her questions so as to eliminate as many possibilities as she could with each try. Ideally, half of them.
“Is it alive?”
Good opening question. “No.”
“Is it a piece of technology?”
“No.” Galen flicked a glance at David. He was nodding, so likely he did know the game.
“Is it is natural formation?”
Another extremely good question, narrowing the possibilities down a lot. “No.”
“Is it in the northern hemisphere?”
“Yes.”
Galen watched Diane’s face. Her eyes were shining with intelligence and her brow furrowed as she planned her next question. Galen deliberately kept his face impassive to avoid giving clues, but inside, his heart was beating faster at the way she was tackling the game. He loved playing games that involved strategy and planning. Now it looked like Diane was a perfect match for him in this field.
“Is it in Europe?
“Yes.”
“Is it a capital city?”
“Yes.”
“Paris.”
“Yes! And you did it in only seven questions, Diane, you’re good.” Galen was excited at the neat way she’d narrowed down the possibilities, eliminating entire categories of things in a single question.
“Well, I figured you’d go for one of the major capitals, but I did think maybe I should have asked if it was Eastern Europe next instead of guessing Paris so soon.”
“I’m glad it was you then. I don’t think I know the capital cities of most places in eastern Europe,” said David.
“Jubilee’s out in the kitchen, she’d be able to help you,” said Diane, smiling.
“Oh yes. Remind me never to play with her or Carey. I’d have no chance of winning,” said Galen. But he had won, even though he’d technically lost, because he’d learned such a lot about her in just a few short minutes. He’d even learned about David, not just in the earlier conversation but also simply by watching him as Diane played the game. Still, there was plenty of evening left. It was time to move on to the next part of his plan.
* * * *
They all walked back to the kitchen to thank everyone for their wonderful dinner, then Galen led them out along the track that wound through the community. David was wondering what would happen next. He’d had absolutely no idea what they’d be doing in the small sitting room. His best guess had been watching a movie, although even then he didn’t think there was a TV in that room. And he’d been so busy talking and watching the faces of Galen and Diane he still hadn’t had a good look to check. Well, it didn’t matter. He loved that they were still together and about to spend more time doing something, although he had no idea what it might be.
Twice he opened his mouth to ask where they were going, and twice he closed it again. Galen was his Dom, and it was bad manners to question his Dom. Besides, he was perfectly happy just being with Galen and Diane, so where they went and what they did was basically irrelevant. Just idle curiosity. He may as well walk with them, and in time he’d find out. I guess it’s a bit like a scene in a dungeon. The Dom makes the subs wait to find out what’s happening there, too.
Once he made the jump to seeing what was happening now as all part of raising his arousal for a coming scene, David was much more excited about their walk. He’d just become used to understanding his community and being accepted, and then the police had tried to blame the graffiti at the movie studio—no, at One of a Kind Productions—on him. Fortunately none of the community seemed to blame him, but it made his shoulder blades itch, wondering if there was still someone who didn’t like him. But not tonight. Tonight he was with his Dom, who he respected and was more than willing to obey, and the woman he loved and adored. He would rest in the pleasure of sharing the evening with them, and tomorrow would be soon enough to worry about the future.
Galen stopped when they reached the sauna. At present, it was still at the end of the track where it had been set up in winter. Of course there was no snow around it anymore. There was very little snow anywhere now, just in some hollows and under trees and suchlike.
Instead, JB had set up a big barrel of water with a dipper so people could pour the water over themselves to cool down. Beside the sauna were two big crates with lids. One held clean towels, the other used ones. A third crate was empty, intended for people to leave their clothing in while they were inside the sauna.
“I booked the sauna for an hour just for us, so we won’t be interrupted,” said Galen.
“Oh, good. I’ve only been here once before. This’ll be fun,” said Diane.
David blushed. Being in the sauna with Galen and Diane was one of his fantasies. He hadn’t imagined it coming true at all, let alone so soon.
David quickly stripped off his clothes and dropped them into the tub then picked up three towels and stood ready to open the sauna door for Diane. She rolled her clothing up inside her skirt into one neat parcel before taking a towel from him and wrapping it around her body. Then Galen was ready and he nodded, and David opened the door. All three of them hurried inside, trying not to let too much heat out of the little wooden building.
David sat on the lowest bench. It seemed very hot to him, but he knew he’d soon get used to it.
The sauna still smelled strongly of fresh wood and of pine but also of
something else. Then he noticed the birch branches lying on the topmost shelf.
“Birch branches. I wasn’t sure we’d ever be allowed to have some,” he said.
“Larry is rationing them quite strictly. We’re to put them in the water barrel when we leave to keep them fresh for other users. But I heard you and Ezra talking about being whipped with birch branches and guessed you’d add it to your fantasy, so I convinced Larry to let us have them tonight.”
“You did?” David heard the surprise in his voice. Did Galen know all his secrets? The Dom was amazing.
They lay on their stomachs and reveled in the heat for ten minutes then raced outside to pour water over their heads and run around a little in the cool air. When they went back inside Diane said thoughtfully, “I noticed Jill and Kurt and Raegan seem to be getting on together rather well. I’m so glad Jill’s found some men she likes.”
“It’s amazing Raegan found Tor, too. That was truly special,” added David.
“Even though it took a long time. Over thirty years. But I guess there aren’t very many shape-shifter communities around,” Diane said thoughtfully.
“Do you think Ben and Bethany have been accepted somewhere?” David’s heart missed a beat. He’d come to terms with his sister and brother rejecting him. It was natural they’d stay with their mother rather than with him, but he still missed them.
“Of course. Most communities are very accepting of part shape-shifters. Very few are the way your former Alpha was. There’re just too few shape-shifter women for life to be any different,” said Galen.