“Wow,” Jane said. “You never told me WAGS were so, um, friendly.” She was fighting a smile, but at Sam’s openmouthed amazement she broke out laughing. “Let me guess? Not a WAG?”
“Worse,” King said. “She’s in charge of PR for the Rebels. Social media, mostly.” He raised a hand and waved at a group of the guys standing across the room.
“King!” The shout went out from all over the room.
“Let’s grab something to drink and mingle,” King said. He included Carmina in his smile. “We’ll introduce you both around.” Carmina was frantically shaking her head.
“Maybe it would be best if we just wander and meet people if the mood strikes,” Jane suggested to Carmina. “I’m a little too nervous to make the official rounds.” At this, Carmina nodded.
“Sounds good,” Sam said. He was a little worried about bringing them here. When he found Tom Kelly he was going to kill him. He hadn’t said anything about this being some kind of hillbilly orgy.
“I like…pool,” Carmina said, pointing to the dining room. It was less crowded; there were only a few Rebels players in there, including Danny Smith, Tom’s roommate. He had his arms around two women who weren’t shy, to say the least, laughing with Jo Jo Jones and Kitt Doyle.
“Pool it is,” King said. “I’ll go grab some drinks. Does anyone want alcohol?” Jane raised her hand.
“God, please,” she begged. Sam and Carmina shook their heads.
“Okay, waters or soda or whatever they’ve got for you two,” King said. “I’ll be right in there.” His eyes met Sam’s and Sam saw then that King was a little concerned, too. “Maybe you should go see what’s up with Melody Ann.”
“Is she the topless girl kissing the cute country boy?” Jane asked.
“Yep,” Sam said grimly.
“Okay, let’s get a shirt on her,” Jane said with a laugh. “She’s making me feel very inadequate and about three sizes too big.” She pointed at Carmina with a stern look. “Don’t you dare strip down. I can’t handle any more comparisons.” Carmina looked at her with big eyes, pointing at her chest. She laughed and shook her head.
“If either one of you starts to pull off her top, everyone will be looking for my shit, because I will totally lose it,” Sam warned seriously. “I know these guys, and they are dogs.” He grabbed Jane and pulled her in for a short, hard kiss. “And you passed adequate a long time ago and went straight to fantasy material.” She was wearing her usual tight jeans and a cute little black T-shirt, with her long, dark, wavy hair tucked behind her ears. To him she looked like a supermodel. She looked so damn fuckable, Sam felt he ought to do something to mark his territory, or every guy in the room would be after her.
Sam kept his arm around Jane and held on to Carmina’s hand as they made their way to the corner of the dining room. They were still a few feet away from Melody Ann when some guy pressed up against her and tried to grab her boob, even as the redneck DJ had his arms around her. Mal straightened up and looked ready to throw a punch. The DJ shoved the guy back.
“Get your fucking hands off my girlfriend,” he said calmly, with a thick Alabama accent. He tucked her in closer to his side as Melody Ann glared at the other guy.
“Sorry, dude,” the guy said, hands in the air. “I just saw her tits hanging out and thought she was making it available.”
“All right,” Tom said, stepping into the room with a T-shirt in hand. “Everybody relax. Somebody spilled beer all over her. I was getting her another shirt.” He smiled. “Plenty of girls around who’d be happy to meet you,” he added, pointing to the den. “Hit that, huh?” He slapped the guy on the shoulder, all friendly smiles.
“Sure, Tom,” the guy said. He turned back to Melody Ann and her boyfriend. “Sorry again, ma’am.” He hustled out of the dining room.
“Sorry it took so long to find this,” Tom told Melody Ann, helping her put it on over her head as if she were a little kid, while her boyfriend checked his playlist. “I knew some girl had left a T-shirt here.”
“Please tell me you washed this,” she said as her head came out of the neck.
“Of course I washed it,” Tom said. He spotted Sam standing there. “Sam! Hey, man. Where’s King?” Tom wasn’t wearing a shirt, either. Mal raised a hand in greeting.
“So, are clothes optional for the guys at this party?” Jane said, eyeing Tom’s chest appreciatively. “Because I, for one, vote hell, yeah, on that one.” She and Carmina exchanged a fist bump.
“I am not taking off my clothes,” Sam said. Carmina made a face. “Yeah, thanks, got it,” Sam told her drily. “You meant every guy but me.”
“I thought you wanted me to have fun at this party,” Jane said, pouting. She laughed at the look Sam gave her.
“Hey,” Tom said, noticing Jane and Carmina. He gave them both the once-over, but could hardly keep his eyes off Carmina. “Are they with you?” he asked Sam.
“My girlfriend, Jane,” Sam said, proudly introducing her. “And one of my best friends, Carmina.”
Tom shook both their hands, but reserved his biggest smile for Carmina. “Want something to drink?” he asked her, not letting go of her hand. Carmina pulled her hand away, shaking her head.
“Hi, I’m Melody Ann.” She held out her hand to Carmina, so the awkward moment between Tom and Carmina barely had a chance to develop. Melody Ann always knew what to do when everything went downhill. “This is my boyfriend, Gage. And Mal Goodman. He’s a Rebel.” She laughed. “I mean he plays for the Rebels.”
“Hey, y’all,” Gage said, shaking hands. “Sam Taylor, right? Great game last week.”
“Thanks,” Sam said. “I guess you got some of the beer, too?”
Gage laughed. “Yeah. I don’t normally go flashing my pecs at everyone. But this place hasn’t got any T-shirts to fit me.” He shook his head. “I’d rather look like an idiot with no shirt than an idiot in one of his.” He pointed at Tom, who was two times his size.
“What the hell is this?” Sam asked in wonder, looking around.
“I made the mistake of mentioning I was having a party on Snapchat,” Tom said. “I didn’t even know I knew this many people in Birmingham.”
“They’re probably busing in from Mobile,” Melody Ann said in disgust. “I made you a social-media star without making sure you could handle the responsibility.”
“Aw, Melody Ann,” Tom said, giving her a one-armed hug. “I promise not to abuse my power again. I swear.”
Just then, the guy who answered the door came up and slid his arm around Tom’s waist. Tom looked down and smiled at him, then wrapped an arm around his shoulders, hugging him close. “Have you guys met Elvis?”
Sam could hardly answer, he was so shocked at Tom’s casual manhandling of an obviously gay guy in front of all these people, including other players. He’d heard rumors, of course, that ever since Tom had come back from the summer break, he’d pretty much been doing everybody, guys and girls. Their openly bisexual quarterback Ty Oakes had become something of a mentor to him in minicamp last spring. His roommate, Danny, was still strictly het as far as Sam knew.
“He opened the door for us and informed us you had voted him cutest,” Jane said. “But, of course, that was before we arrived.” Sam had to admit Elvis was really good-looking. He was short and looked Filipino, maybe, with big, brown eyes that kind of reminded Sam of King.
Elvis pouted, and then laughed. “Girl, you got that right.”
Just then, King appeared with drinks. He handed them out and more introductions were made. The he snuggled up behind Jane and Sam, putting his arm around Jane and resting his chin on Sam’s shoulder, his hand on Sam’s hip. Sam knew that it must be obvious the three of them were lovers. “We should dance,” King announced.
Everyone was staring at them, and Sam grew uncomfortable. Jane was stiff against his side. “Okay,” Jane said. She glanced over at Sam, uncertain what to do.
“You guys go ahead,” Sam said, starting to pull away. King stopped him
with a look, and with a hand on his arm.
“I meant all of us,” King said meaningfully. He jerked his head toward the den. “Nobody will notice out there. Trust me when I say we won’t be the only threesome on the floor.”
“Oh, hey,” Tom said, catching on. “No, you won’t, man. Not here. Judgment-free zone.” He smiled down at Elvis. “Let’s go dance, babe.” He glanced over at Carmina with regret and then turned toward the other room.
“Carmina,” Sam protested, turning to her.
“I’m…good,” she said, biting her lip and glancing around. “I…” She shook her head with a tight smile. “Home,” she finally said, nodding while she wrinkled her nose.
Jane stepped in. “Melody Ann, would you and Gage mind playing some pool with Carmina while we dance?” She stepped up beside Carmina and whispered in her ear, and Carmina nodded, looking down at the floor. Jane looked back at Melody Ann. “Carmina was in Sam’s unit in Afghanistan and she suffered traumatic brain injury. She has trouble speaking what’s on her mind, so just be patient when she’s talking, okay?” She smiled. “She still thinks clearly. It’s just her speech that’s been affected.”
Sam was surprised but pleased that Carmina and Jane had hit it off so well today. Jane was so matter of fact about it, and Carmina looked embarrassed but determined. Sam wanted to step in, but he held back and let Carmina make her own decisions. Hadn’t he been encouraging her to get out and have fun? He needed to let her spread her wings.
“Oh, sure,” Melody Ann said with a big smile, not missing a beat. “Are you a good pool player? Because half these guys suck and you could really clean up.” Carmina smiled wolfishly and nodded. “Yeah?” Melody Ann said, laughing. “Cool. Let’s find our first sucker. Oh, Nigel,” she called out. Mal was trying not to laugh as she called the English player over.
“Oh, hello, love,” he said flirtatiously as he came over, grinning at Carmina. “Here now, wait a minute. Aren’t you in Sammy’s picture?”
Carmina bit her lip and nodded. She turned and grabbed a pool cue, probably to derail more conversation.
“Be nice,” Sam warned Nigel.
“I’m always nice,” Nigel said, pretending offense. “I’m very sweet, too,” he said. He held up his arm to Carmina. “Want a taste?” She rolled her eyes and handed Nigel a cue. “Oh, are we playing pool? I’ll play for kisses.” Carmina pulled a wad of money out of her pocket and slammed a twenty down on the table. Nigel turned serious. “Money, is it? You don’t say much. I’ll match you”—he pulled out a twenty and put it down on top of hers—“and raise you a kind word.”
Gage was grinning. “You guys go,” he told Sam, meeting his eyes. “We’ve got this.” Sam could read the silent man-to-man message he was sending that he’d take care of Carmina. He looked at Mal, who nodded at him, and Sam relaxed, knowing Mal would keep Nigel in line.
“Thanks,” he said. He turned toward the dance floor and took a deep breath. “Okay,” he told King. “Let’s do this.” He grabbed Jane’s hand and she squeezed his tightly. “We can do this,” he told her, and she nodded firmly.
“Jeez,” King said, ushering them in front of him. “It’s just a dance, not jumping into a volcano.”
Chapter 30
King slid in behind Jane, his hands on her hips as he swayed to the music. They had waded into the crowd dancing in the den, where the furniture was pushed back against the walls. He’d maneuvered them to the back of the crowd, into a dark corner, no one sitting around them. He’d very carefully scouted out this spot when he’d gone for drinks. As soon as the door had opened and he’d seen what was going on in here, he’d known that this was the perfect place to sort of announce the new way of things without having to make a big deal about it. If everyone else was getting busy, then the three of them wouldn’t stand out quite so much.
“I like these jeans,” he told her, kissing her neck as he rubbed his dick against her ass. He wasn’t really that hard, but he had a feeling if she and Sam got into it with him he would be.
“You just like my butt,” she teased him, wiggling against him.
“Guilty.” He smiled at Sam, unrepentant. Sam was just standing there staring at them. “Come on,” King encouraged him. “Get closer.”
“I don’t want to suffocate Jane,” he said. “If we sandwich her here on the dance floor, she won’t be able to breathe.”
“Are you sure this is going to be okay?” she asked King, looking a little worried.
“I’m sure,” King told her. “Trust me. No one will care. You heard Tom.”
“In that case, you get in the middle,” Jane told Sam, taking the words right out of King’s mouth.
“What?” Sam asked, looking around nervously. He shoved his hand in his pocket and King had to bite back a sigh. “Here?” Sam asked. The way he said it made King swallow what he’d been about to say. He’d been about to offer to be the middle and let Sam off the hook, but Sam didn’t sound opposed, just nervous.
“Here,” King said. He pushed Jane gently toward Sam and she wrapped her arms around his neck, swaying to the music. Thank God for Gage. He was playing some slow country shit with a hard beat. Perfect for grinding on the dance floor. King moved around behind Sam, his back to the rest of the room. Their position blocked most people’s view of them. King tentatively stepped in closer and put his hands on Sam’s hips, just as he had with Jane. He could feel Sam breathing hard and knew if he checked Sam’s heart would be pounding. “Can I come closer?” he said softly. One of Jane’s hands slid down Sam’s shoulder, and she reached under his arm to grab King’s shirt and pull him in.
“Yes,” she said.
Now King could feel Sam’s heartbeat against his chest, pressed to Sam’s back. “Yes,” Sam said belatedly.
“Now, move,” King said. He used his hips to rotate Sam’s in a slow grind. “It’s called dancing.”
Sam laughed, but he sounded a little shaky. “Really? I don’t think this is what they teach at Fred Astaire.”
Jane giggled, and over Sam’s shoulder King saw her grinning. “This is way better than the waltz,” she said. She pressed a leg between Sam’s, and Sam sucked in a harsh breath. “Move,” she said. It took a second for Jane and King to coordinate their movements, but before too long, the three of them were swaying to the music.
“Fuck, you smell good,” King said, pressing his nose to Sam’s neck and breathing deeply. Sam moaned softly. King could see that Jane had snaked her hands under Sam’s shirt and was rubbing his chest and stomach.
“You’re sweating,” she said. When she looked up, King could see the desire in her eyes. She wanted this. She wanted to get crazy out here.
“Damn, girl,” King said. “You’re so fucking hot.” He rubbed his hardening dick against Sam’s ass. “She hot for it, Sammy?” he asked softly.
“I’m hot,” Sam said breathlessly.
“Take this off,” Jane said, pushing his shirt up to expose his stomach and pecs. King couldn’t resist, and slid his hands up to rub his palms over Sam’s nipples.
“Fuck,” Sam said, his hips jerking.
“Off,” King said, stepping back and pulling Sam’s shirt off. He tossed it onto a nearby table.
“You, too,” Sam said, looking at King over his shoulder. He was turned on, King could tell, by how tight his expression was.
“I don’t think so,” King said with a grin. “This is all about you, Sammy. You’re in the middle. Just relax and enjoy it.” Sam moaned as King pressed in against him again and ran his hand over Sam’s bare stomach. King meant what he said. He wanted Sam to let go of all his worries, just for a while. Something about King and Jane helped Sam do that, and King wanted to give it to him. He was pretty sure Jane understood that and wanted the same thing. It was crazy how in sync he and Jane were. He knew what she was going to do before she did it, because he wanted to do the same thing. It was like him and Sam, only different. When it was right, it was right, he supposed.
“You guys are so ho
t,” Jane said, watching them. “Also, got you to take your shirt off.”
“Damn it,” Sam said with a surprised laugh. “You did. Well, if I wanted every guy in here to be amazed at your perfect tits I’d make you strip down, too. But those tits are ours.”
“Classy,” Jane teased him breathlessly. “I should do it just to teach you a lesson.” She stepped back, her hands lingering on Sam’s stomach. “King is blocking us. No one can see.” King could tell she was only half-teasing. If Sam told her to, she’d probably do it. It was so hot when she let them tell her what to do. Shit, they all liked that.
“You better not,” Sam warned her. “If anyone else sees those tits I’ll have to spank you again later.”
She bit her lip and nodded as she let Sam pull her close and press her against his chest again. “Whatever you want, Sam,” she whispered in his ear, loud enough that King could hear it, too. They danced like that, mostly moving their hips, grinding against one another to the beat. It was hot in the apartment, especially where everyone was dancing. King glanced over to his left and saw Tom a few feet away, making out with his boy, Elvis. They were holding on to each other’s asses and grinding as they tongue-fucked. As he watched, Elvis began kissing Tom’s chest and licking his nipples. Tom dropped his head back on his shoulders, clearly enjoying it. Next to them, Danny was dancing with his two women, each one grinding on one of his legs as he kissed one, and the other imitated Tom’s boy, licking Danny’s chest. The whole dance floor had become a huge make-out session. Jo Jo was getting it on with a woman a few feet away, his hand down her pants as she moaned. The air was charged with sex. King was pretty sure someone would be fucking out there in a few minutes.
When he looked back at Sam he saw a drop of sweat trickle down his neck. He couldn’t resist and licked it up. Then he kissed Sam’s neck. “Oh, yeah,” Sam moaned, leaning his head to the side to give King more access. He reached back with one hand, holding the back of King’s head.
“You are so hot, Sammy,” King said. “You’re going to make us both come out here.” He kissed the burn marks on Sam’s back. Not for the first time, he wished he’d been there to save him and everyone else. Sam shivered in his arms.
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