“Do you think because Trevor and I are former lovers that will be an issue for Mac? That she’ll feel like an outsider?”
Gryff placed his fork on his plate and sat back, running a hand down his cheek. “I know what Grae went through with Connor and Paige. It was difficult for a while. Luckily it worked out and they’re very happy, but it could have turned out differently with Grae being on the losing end.”
“What about this Eli and Grant you mentioned? They were already married when Trey’s sister met them. Did she have any difficulty being added to an established relationship?”
“No,” Trey answered. “She fit seamlessly with them, luckily. Not that I was thrilled about it at first. Now, I am. Then, not so much. The most important thing is not playing favorites. We,” he glanced down the table at Gryff, “had a little problem with that and that almost destroyed what we were building.”
“T heard me propose to Rayne,” Gryff explained. “And that’s another reason why none of us are legally married. After that debacle, we decided it was best to leave things as they were and just be satisfied with a commitment ceremony.”
“Mmm,” Trey mumbled as he forked a roasted red potato into his mouth.
“Gia said this is new,” Rayne said, ignoring Trey next to her.
“Very,” Mac answered.
Rayne raised a brow. “And what made you decide to attempt a polyamory relationship?”
Mac squeezed Damon’s hand again, and he noticed her slip her other hand into Trevor’s. “They love each other, and I didn’t want to be the reason they remained apart.”
“This was your suggestion?” Gryff asked Mac, his dark eyebrows rising.
“They decided to give this a whirl and sprung it on me,” Damon spoke up.
“Everyone’s on board, though?” Gryff asked with a frown.
Damon nodded. “Once I got over the initial shock, yes. So far, so good. But we came here to see a functioning polyamory relationship. To see the dynamics. One issue we’ll have is me traveling a lot for work.”
“Ah, so that’s why the question about us all being together at the same time. You’ll be out of town and they’ll be intimate without you,” Gryff said and sat back.
“Yes.” Though it sounded like a foolish concern now that it was brought to light.
“If you have a problem with that, if you let that bother you, your relationship will fail. I can tell you that much. It’s unfair to tell your lovers to remain celibate when you’re not around, especially if you’re gone for any length of time. However, there are some creative things you can do to be a part of their intimacy. Video calls are one,” Gryff suggested. “Phone sex another. It may not be the same, but it’s still a connection.”
“Yes, Day, and I’m sure your copilot would love to join in on a little cockpit phone sex,” Trevor teased, giving him a grin.
“Phone sex can be hot unless you’re on the other end of the phone listening to a couple getting it on and someone threatens to hang up on you. Like when—”
Gryff cut Trey off. “We don’t need to revisit that.”
Trey leaned closer to Trevor and winked. “That’s okay. I got him back.”
Trevor fist bumped Trey across the table. Trey jerked his head toward Damon. “Is he the bossy one?”
Trevor shot Damon a quick glance before answering, “Yes, but I love it.”
Trey curved a hand to the right side of his mouth and stage-whispered, “Don’t tell that one on the end, but I love it, too,” then he sat back and dragged a hand through his dirty blond hair. “I used to be team captain when I played with the Bulldogs. Gryff is our team captain now.”
A long sigh rose up from the man across the table. Damon hid his smile by lifting his pint glass of beer to his lips. After taking a long sip, he said, “I appreciate you inviting us to dinner tonight. It’s been enlightening and gives us a good idea of what to expect.”
Gryff tipped his head. “You’re welcome. But just remember, you don’t have to rush into anything. Let things develop. Treat it as if it’s any other typical relationship. You’re going to have both good times and times that are tough. You might question this whole thing once or twice before realizing there’s nothing you want more. In the end, it’s more than just a sexual relationship, it all comes down to respecting and trusting your partners in every aspect.”
“And love,” Rayne added. “That’s important, too.”
“And love,” Gryff echoed.
And love, Damon repeated in his head, lifting Mac’s hand and pressing a kiss to her knuckles before releasing it so they could finish their dinner.
He was ready to take Trevor and Mac home and follow some very valuable advice.
Chapter 20
Four weeks after meeting a handsome pilot while getting off a plane, Mac opened the door to Damon’s house and smiled at Gia who was standing impatiently on his doorstep, tapping her toe, her arms crossed over her chest.
“Don’t you smile at me. Four.” Gia held up four fingers. “Four weeks I’ve waited for you to invite me over. Or to bring them over to Grae’s. But nope. You had to wait until I’m about to head home to Arizona.” She pushed past Mac into the house. “I can’t believe you made me wait so long,” she growled under her breath. Once she noticed Trevor and Damon standing right off the foyer in the living room, she shot a blinding smile at them. She might have even smacked her lips.
“It was new. We needed to settle. I wasn’t sure—”
“Don’t give me that shit: you weren’t sure,” she huffed. “Look at them. Look.”
“I don’t need to look. I know what they look like, Gia. Very well, in fact.”
“Because you get to see them naked.” She released a long dramatic sigh. “You get to see them,” she circled her hand in the air, “doing whatever two men do with each other.”
“You know what they do.”
“But I’ve never gotten to be a part of it!” she hissed. “I’m destined to remain a single, sad soul.”
Mac snorted. “Right.”
Gia grabbed Mac’s arm tightly and leaned in. “So tell Ms. Gia, since you’ve been holding out, how are things going between the three of you?”
“Surprisingly well. Trevor gave up his apartment and moved back in with Damon—”
Gia clicked her tongue. “But you still have your condo.” It wasn’t a question because she knew Mac still had her own place.
“I’m here almost every night.”
“Even when he’s out of town?” Gia asked with a raised brow.
“Yes.”
Mac yelped as the other woman dragged her down the hall away from the living room. Once they entered the empty kitchen, she asked, “Damon doesn’t mind you and that handsome hunk of meat with the magical hands getting it on without him?”
“No.”
“Then why the hell are you still in your condo?”
“For work. And I think it’s too soon for me to move in. It’s only been four weeks since I met Damon, even less for Trevor.”
“Bullshit.”
“I go home during the day and do my work. It’s quiet and I can concentrate.”
As Trevor and Damon followed them into the kitchen, Gia eyed them both thoroughly. Mac was certain the woman didn’t miss one damn inch.
“Hmm. Having two hotties wandering around the house all naked and shit would be distracting. Tempting you.” Gia nodded. “Now I get it.” She continued to stare at Trevor and Damon for another second. “And when you’re working at your place, are they doing the hanky-panky with each other here?”
“Yes.” Anytime one of them had sex with the other, they told the third person who hadn’t been around. Nothing was kept secret or hidden between them. It was one of the rules they had set up. And so far, everything had been going smoothly.
Gia raised her perfectly-groomed eyebrows. “They tell you?”
“Of course. Remember what Paige said? We need to stay completely honest and open with each other for this to wor
k.”
“Are you being completely open and honest? How about the part about moving in? You don’t feel left out?” She turned toward Damon. “How can she feel a part of the team when she still has her own place while you two are shacking up?”
“Gia,” Mac muttered, feeling heat crawl up her chest and into her neck. The woman had no filter.
“What? It’s true. If you can’t speak up for yourself, then your bestie will.”
“I was fine,” Mac whispered.
“Says you.”
“And that’s who matters.”
Trevor moved forward and held out his hand, laughing awkwardly. “I’m Trevor, by the way, since we’ve never met, but you’re making our life decisions for us.”
Luckily, Trevor was easy-going. Damon, not so much. Mac noticed he wasn’t appreciating the line of conversation. Or the fact that Gia was demanding answers.
“Back to the topic at hand,” Trevor continued, dropping an arm around Mac’s shoulders and pulling her into his side. “Do you want to move in? I thought—”
Damon moved closer to both of them and wrapped a hand around the back of Trevor’s neck, quieting him.
“We’ll discuss it,” was Damon’s low response.
“Now?” Gia asked with both hands planted on her hips.
“No,” Damon answered.
“Maybe this isn’t going quite as well as you think it is,” Gia said to Mac, then turned back to Damon. “Are you just using my friend as a toy? As someone to spice up your sex life?” She wagged a finger between the two men. “She’s only here when it’s convenient?”
“That’s not what I said, Gia,” Mac grumbled under her breath.
But there was no stopping the woman now, she was on a roll. And once that happened, it was best just to wait until that boulder hit the bottom of the ravine. “You know, I thought you were hot, but I see how controlling you are of this relationship between the three of you. She’s dealt with enough assholes in her life. She deserves better.”
“I agree,” Damon said, his jaw tight. “She deserves nothing but the best.”
“And you believe that’s you.”
Damon’s nostrils flared.
This whole thing needed to end before Gia hammered a wedge between her and Damon and Trevor. She was happy with their arrangement. Why couldn’t her friend believe that?
“Gia, let’s drop this,” Mac suggested quickly. “I’m fine where I am, with how things are at this point. I don’t want to move in.”
“You don’t want to live with us?” Trevor asked, sounding a bit hurt.
Which was not Mac’s intention. Shit. Yes, she wanted to live with them, but not until their relationship was more seasoned. It was still too fresh.
“Yes, I do. I—”
“There you go, boys. Go rent a U-Haul. I might even supervise, so I can watch you two bending over to pick up the boxes.”
Mac lifted a hand. “I want to move in when the time is right.”
“When will the time be right?” Damon asked softly.
Mac glanced up at Damon in surprise. “I... I don’t know. I guess when you ask because you are sure?”
“They didn’t ask?”
“Gia!” Mac hissed.
“That’s my mistake then. I assumed you’d let us know when you were ready. Trev was ready right away because of his month-to-month tenancy. I figured...” Damon scrubbed a hand over his head and released Trevor. He turned to Mac. “Look, we want you here. When you’re not here, we miss you.”
“That’s true,” Trevor said, squeezing her shoulders.
“But I didn’t want to pressure you. I mistakenly assumed since Trevor moved in, you’d eventually do the same, but I wasn’t one hundred percent sure. It’s only been weeks.”
“I wanted all of us to be certain first.”
“I’m certain,” Trevor said.
“And so am I,” Damon added. “From that first moment I saw you—hidden behind some other woman who was blocking my view,” he cocked a brow at Gia, “I needed to know you. Something about you drew me. I hadn’t been that drawn to anyone in the same way since the day I met Trevor. What surprised me was, I had the same feeling in my gut when meeting you as I did with him. Now I know why.”
Mac wanted to ask why, but they needed to table this conversation until a time when the three of them were alone.
Gia clapped her hands sharply together. “Whelp, my work here is done. I need a drink. What do you have, handsome?” she asked Trevor, moving close and plucking at his T-shirt.
“We have some good shit.”
“Well, break it out. This sounds like a celebration.”
“That it does,” Trevor agreed with a grin. Dropping his arm from Mac’s shoulders, he broke free from Gia’s clutches but before he moved away, he kissed her temple and whispered, “Please move in with us. You’re practically here all the time anyway. When Damon is gone and you’re at your condo, I get lonely.”
While Trevor took Gia deeper into the kitchen, Damon grabbed Mac’s hand and pulled her into the hallway.
“Your friend is a trip.”
Mac sighed. “Sorry, she’s always like that. She’s very opinionated and doesn’t hide it.”
Damon smiled. “But she’s looking out for you. So was her brother, Gryff, when we were at their house for dinner. And I’m assuming Grae, when we get to meet him and his family, will be the same way. That’s good, baby, you have people concerned about you, people who want you happy.” He cupped her chin and raised her face. “I want the same thing. So does Trevor. We want you to be happy. And I don’t want to rush you into any kind of major decision like selling your condo and moving in with us. It’s a big step, and as much as I want you here, I want you to be comfortable with that choice.”
“I’d need a place to work.”
“We can set you up anywhere in the house you want. A spare bedroom, a corner in the sun room. It doesn’t matter.”
“Will this house be big enough for the three of us?”
“If not, we’ll find something else. Something that the three of us can decide on. I’m fine with that. I’m not emotionally invested in this house, but I am emotionally invested in you and Trev. How things have been progressing between us has exceeded my expectations.”
“It’s only been about a month, though. I mean, Trevor moved in quickly. Won’t it be too much if you went from living alone to having two other people living with you?”
“You said yourself that you’re here all the time. Instead of going home to work, you’d just head into your home office here. Are you worried about not having privacy?”
Was she? Mac considered that. She shook her head. “No. I don’t think that will be a problem.”
“I want you in our bed every night. Even the nights I’m not here. I’d feel better if Trevor had you here with him. And I’d feel better knowing where you are.” He lifted a hand when Mac began to protest. “Not to keep tabs on you, but because I worry. I care about you deeply, so does Trev. We want you with us.”
“I want to be with you and Trevor, too.”
He smiled, then leaned down and pressed his mouth to hers. “Is that a yes?” he murmured against her lips.
Her answer was kissing him deeply.
Trevor grinned as he carried three flute glasses in one hand and a bottle of champagne in the other as he entered their bedroom.
Their bedroom. Damon and his. And now Mac’s, too. Tonight was their first night together now that Mac had “officially” moved in.
He was thrilled and so was Damon.
Because of that, they’d decided to celebrate in bed.
Her condo was now on the market and since they didn’t need her furniture, they only moved in her clothes, some personal items and her home office stuff. By keeping her furniture in her condo until it sold, she still had an “out.” Trevor hoped she didn’t need that out. Like Damon, he hoped everything went smoothly. When he came back to Boston and went searching for Damon, he had hoped D
amon would accept him back and would forgive him for all the pain he caused. But he never expected to have to share Damon.
In the back of his mind, he was always worried about regressing back into that dark head space. Having two people to love and love him in return had helped balance things out for him. He’d talked about it with his therapist, who didn’t see being with two partners as a bad thing. If anything, having someone around to lean on when he was having a tough day helped. And while Damon was working on getting shorter flights and not being away from home so much, there was only so much he could do with his schedule. Even as a captain.
But he was trying. And Trevor was doing his best, as well, to make sure he didn’t slip. If anything was starting to bug him, no matter how small, they sat down and talked about it. All three of them. While Damon loved him, he was set in his ways. In contrast, Mac was a little softer and more compassionate. So “balanced” was the perfect description for the dynamics of their atypical relationship.
He got to the edge of the bed and smiled at Damon and Mac who were sitting against the headboard, splitting a large slice of turtle cheesecake.
“Hey, you better leave me a couple bites!” He handed a flute to Mac and one to Damon and placed the third on the nightstand. He had already popped the cork downstairs, so he poured some champagne into the glasses, then filled his.
Even though he didn’t drink anymore, since this was a special occasion, he was making an exception. One glass of bubbly wouldn’t be too much of a downer.
Not only were they celebrating Mac moving in, Trevor was silently celebrating the fact that he’d made it halfway through laser tattoo removal. He was told it would only take a couple more sessions until the “SLUT” and “PET” was removed from his body. One more reminder of his painful journey finally gone. One more step forward.
Once his glass was full, he shucked his robe and moved around the bed to the other side to climb in carefully. He settled against the headboard shoulder to shoulder with Mac, held his flute up and the other two followed suit.
No one said anything for a moment. Trevor expected Damon to make the toast. Maybe Damon had expected it to be him?
A Daring Journey: The Dare Menage Series, Book 6 Page 23