Triple Booked

by Mardi Ballou

  “What is it, Rapsos?” Gabe looked ready to jump out of his skin. “Was it an earthquake? I read that Manhattan lies on a fault line. Or maybe a gas explosion? Talk.”

  Alex took a swig of water before speaking. “According to the officer, there was a small earthquake, extremely localized.”

  “What the hell does that mean?” Gabe asked.

  “It was confined to this street. A few people need some medical treatment for minor injuries. But it looks like the ‘quake itself was pretty minor.”

  Jade surveyed the damage to Alex’s apartment. “This is not my idea of minor. And the physical disruption is not all that happened. Which leaves open the question of what did happen,” she finished thoughtfully. In addition to the room being trashed, more disturbing were the hallucinations or dreams she had experienced.

  “Yes,” Alex said. “Officers are canvassing the area for any further damage.”

  “Maybe we should do some checking ourselves,” Gabe said. “Shit. What if our apartment is also messed up? A shock like the one we felt here could easily damage our computers. Jesus, Jade, we’ve got to go now.” His voice got louder with each word. Jade could tell he was beyond angry. Scared, certainly. And what else went into that emotional brew?

  What was wrong with her? Until now, she hadn’t even thought about their place. If it were damaged or destroyed, they might be homeless in addition to having lost heaven knew how much of their work or their equipment.

  She took Gabe’s arm. “Let’s go, Gabe. We’ll only worry until we know the complete extent of any problems.”

  “The police said we should all stay here in my apartment, where we can feel relatively safe. Even though the ‘quake appears to have been minor, other parts of the building might be unstable. And who can know what will happen with aftershocks?” Alex gave them a don’t-shoot-the-messenger look.

  “Who knows how long it’ll take them to get out here. I say we go, figure out what’s happened and how to fix anything that’s wrong. Sitting here, doing nothing, is giving me agita.” Gabe shook off Jade’s hand and started walking toward the door.

  “If you’re going, I’m going with you.” Jade didn’t feel frightened that anything hazardous was out there, and the suspense of wondering about their place would make her crazy.

  “I’ll come too,” Alex said.

  “That’s not necessary,” Gabe muttered.

  “I insist.”

  Gabe rolled his eyes but didn’t say another word. He went to the door and opened it. They had no clue what shocking sight awaited them. He turned the knob and opened the door a fraction, peeked out and then threw it wide open. There in the hallway was—nothing.

  Nothing unusual. Being daytime, the lights were turned off. There was no one in the hall. Nothing was disturbed or in any disarray. The hall and all the apartment doors looked the same as always.

  This was a bigger shock than evidence of upheaval would have been.

  “I don’t understand,” Jade said.

  She and the men went out into the hall and surveyed the area. No one spoke, and nothing moved. “Let’s check our apartment,” she whispered. Why was she whispering? Clearly no one was in earshot except the men she was talking to.

  * * * * *

  Things were moving faster than he’d anticipated, which, as far as Alex was concerned, was all to the good, though he probably had not progressed as fast as he should to meet his obligations in a timely fashion. But now that he’d gotten Gabe to open up, Alex was solidly on track to accomplish his mission. He’d figured Gabe would be a much tougher nut to crack than was turning out to be the case. As for the delightful Jade—Alex regarded her as a treasure.

  Once Gabe and Jade realized their apartment was untouched and the apparent earthquake had struck a very specific, limited target, the questions would begin. This was the most critical point for convincing them to allow him to move along with them. He had the very strong impression Gabe’s hackles would be raised to an unprecedented level. Jade, on the other hand, would probably be receptive, though she might put up some initial resistance. After all, she’d been the one who showed herself receptive to the message of the Tarot card. Now she would have to assert herself to guide Gabe to the good fortune promised.

  Gabe had a lot to contend with. Alex wished he could ease the other man’s path with an affectionate hug, a pat, a warm look. But in the guise of Ares, Gabe had just experienced a huge jolt of awakening. He needed to get his mind around a huge dose of self-awareness without virtue of any advance preparation or time for reflection. Though Alex knew exposure such as Gabe had just experienced could rock a lesser man’s identity, Gabe had more than enough strength to integrate the new with the old and flourish. All Alex had to do was find a shortcut to help Gabe realize the same.

  Both Jade and Gabe seemed subdued—entirely appropriate emotions and reactions to the upheaval they’d both just been through. Alex smiled. Only he could savor the satisfaction and unique compatibility he’d found in the three of them being together. Of course, he realized how much work lay ahead of him to build on the foundations they’d just laid in their sensuous interlude, when they tapped into their inner divinity.

  “I don’t understand any of this,” Gabe muttered.

  You will in good time, Alex promised silently.

  “I don’t either,” Jade agreed, still whispering. “But, Gabe, aren’t you fascinated?”

  “Fascinated?” Gabe grumped. “More like weirded out. My gut tells me Rapsos has pulled off some sort of illusion, and that whatever he has in mind is not to our benefit.”

  “Gabe.” Jade strung out her lover’s name to four syllables. The woman was so amazingly expressive. Alex knew he’d chosen the right companions to help him complete his mission.

  “Don’t you see, we have a unique opportunity here,” Jade continued, her voice becoming more animated. “Something’s going on, something unprecedented. Something we’ll be able to use in our writing.”

  “Once we figure out what the hell it is.” Gabe didn’t sound convinced.

  Jade nodded. Her eyes glowed with inspiration. “Even if we don’t ever completely understand. Gabe, think about how we’ve felt since that first jolt struck. Think about our confusion when we came to and saw the mess in Alex’s apartment. Even though we were there, we can’t completely figure out what happened.”

  “Yeah, and?”

  Jade sighed. “This is prime emotional stuff. I, for one, can’t wait to get to my computer so I can write up how I feel in painstaking detail.”

  Gabe’s brows drew together. “Assuming our apartment is as untouched as everything except for Rapsos’ place seems to be.”

  “Granted.” Jade hurried on ahead of them.

  “I don’t know what the hell’s going on,” Gabe said to Alex, “but I’m going to get to the bottom of it.” A muscle along the side of his face tensed menacingly.

  Ah, Gabe would get to the bottom of it. Alex’s cock twitched as he thought about Gabe getting to his bottom. He had to put sensuous delights on hold for now, but he had the feeling that would not be the case for long.

  Chapter Six

  Determined to keep his hand steady, Gabe unlocked the door to their apartment. What if the earthquake had destroyed everything? With Jade and Rapsos close behind him, Gabe opened the door. A lamp had fallen to the floor, clearing a space among all the strewn newspapers and magazines. The chair he’d always hated had fallen over. With any luck, it was broken and they’d have to toss it. He shivered. So far they were okay. Miraculously, their computers looked untouched.

  Jade burst into the living room behind him. Wordlessly, she raced around their small shared space. With a whoop she announced, “It’s a mess, but nothing we can’t take care of!”

  Gabe’s gaze flickered to Rapsos, who looked smug and self-absorbed as usual.

  Jade ran back to his side and hugged Gabe, then quickly enlarged the embrace to include Rapsos. “We haven’t lost anything, Gabe. While all my emot
ions about the earthquake are still so fresh in my mind, I’m going to write them down. I know some of today’s experience will come in useful for our writing.”

  In a flash, she was seated at her computer across the room and typing. Gabe quickly realized there was no apparent damage to their computers.

  Though relieved it appeared they hadn’t lost anything vital, Gabe knew the problems he and Jade now faced would make equipment loss seem trivial. “What’s going on, Rapsos?”

  He shrugged. “Some sort of disturbance struck my apartment and left it a mess. You, the fortunate ones, have considerably less chaos to sort out.”

  Gabe wished he felt as cool as the other man appeared. “On a scale from one to ten, your concern for the mess in your apartment appears to be a minus five. Which is a higher score than I’d give you for honesty.”

  Rapsos bristled at that. Good, Gabe thought. He’d finally managed to hit a nerve. Before he could press the point, Rapsos responded. “Setting my apartment to rights is just a matter of some labor. Fortunately, the service that prepared my apartment can send over some cleaning people. Since I’ve hired them to work for me on a regular basis, they have my key.” He thought for a moment. “Despite the disruption, nothing appeared broken. There is little in my home I couldn’t replace if it were to break. As long as my books are intact, my computer unharmed and my nephew’s gift, the one you love so much, Gabe, is whole, I can cope with everything else.”

  “Maybe you should go back and take a careful look to be sure the damage isn’t worse than a quick look around indicated.” Gabe managed to imbue his voice with what sounded almost like a note of concern.

  Rapsos ignored that suggestion. “As for my honesty—” His eyes sparked, and Gabe experienced an uncomfortable stirring. His body was giving out all sorts of confusing messages when he was this close to Rapsos, and he couldn’t shake the image of what he’d fantasized had happened earlier. Though Rapsos didn’t attract him in any of the ways Gabe was accustomed to, there was some kind of pull he couldn’t suppress. “What exactly are you referring to?”

  Gabe didn’t want to go any further with this particular dialogue. He was sorry now he’d even brought up the whole topic of honesty. Much as honesty was one of his most dearly held values, Gabe realized he didn’t want to be completely honest with Rapsos now—or ever, if it came to discussing the disturbing thoughts he’d been having.

  He shrugged dismissively. “Not important. Or at least not as important as everything else that’s going on. Look, you have a lot to do. Even if you get cleaners in, your place requires attention. I want to check in with Jade, see where she’s going with what she’s writing about this morning’s experience. Maybe I should write my own ideas down too. And then, we really have to get back to our own work. We are seriously off our usual schedule, and there’s a deadline looming.”

  Rapsos pursed his lips, and a memory of kissing those lips, of having those lips open to take in his cock shook Gabe. “The apartment can wait. I also want to see what Jade is writing. After all, I’ve played an important part in what Jade has experienced this morning.”

  “You just don’t get it, do you, Rapsos?”

  “Don’t get what?”

  “You know the old cliché we keep coming back to. Two’s company, three’s a crowd—that’s especially true when it comes to our writing.” Gabe felt angry with Rapsos for pushing so hard and angry with himself for not just cutting things off before.

  “I prefer the other old cliché—three heads are better than two.”

  “That’s two heads are better than one.”

  “Not my version. But Gabe, I want to explore your challenge about my honesty, especially because we both know you’re in no position to impugn mine.”

  Gabe flinched. Somehow, he got the feeling Rapsos knew exactly what he’d fantasized, though Gabe had no idea how that could be possible and didn’t want to know.

  “Furthermore, Corelli, as you’ve pointed out ad infinitum, Jade is your partner. She’s not your employee or your underling in any way. You can’t make a decision about my role in your writing without consulting her. Which I intend to do right now.” He turned on his heel and started walking toward Jade.

  * * * * *

  Jade loved it when the words flowed, when she felt as if she were just the channel along which some cosmic force dictated words that went through her fingers, to the keyboard, and onto the computer screen. With the vivid experiences of the morning fresh in her psyche, the words did more than flow. There was practically a flood, which she had to struggle to keep up with. But she was determined to get it all out now, because, as had happened in the past, when she let time elapse between the event and her writing about it, something irretrievable inevitably got lost.

  Therefore, when the two men moved from making background noise she could easily ignore with their mutual wrangling to demanding her undivided attention, she wanted to wave them away.

  “This is important,” both Alex and Gabe said simultaneously. Well, at least they could agree on one thing. Hallelujah! What was it about grown men that kept them from…from growing up? Both of them were writers, for Pete’s sake. A person would think they’d understand.

  They didn’t. Both continued to clamor for her attention.

  “I’m not finished here,” she muttered through gritted teeth.

  As she wrote, she felt herself enmeshed in the most amazing process of her life. She felt like a mass of goose bumps, almost as if lightning or some other source of electricity was coursing through her. She’d moved from the emotions the morning’s jolt inspired to something else. Evidently, while she’d been blacked out, she’d had the most amazing hallucination. She, ordinary Jade Flint, had become Aphrodite, goddess of love—with all the trappings of being divine.

  Amazing as that had been, she’d had two gods with her—Ares, the god of war, and Dionysus, a half-divine who became fully divine in her presence and was associated with wine and good times. Both men were her lovers, which went with the territory. But they’d also been each other’s lovers.

  Gabe was Ares and Alex Dionysus. Until just a few hours before, the notion that Gabe and she would open their relationship to another lover would have been more alien than space travel. She’d have sooner imagined herself colonizing Mars than ever watching Gabe’s erotic intimacy with another man. Previously, if she’d have thought such a coupling possible, she’d have been sure one look would send her running off in horror.

  The reality was nothing like her imagination. The two men’s sex with each other and with her had flowed seamlessly, magically. Most of all, it had seemed so natural. A witness to everything, as if she’d been both a participant and an observer, she realized she’d considered all the lovemaking as part of the men’s adoration at her altar. All the lovemaking was part of a universal celebration of love.

  After she typed these words and saw them on the screen she stopped, frozen. It was only by expressing these ideas and reading them that she recognized her thoughts—for example, how easily she accepted Gabe and Alex as lovers of each other. Even easier was to make love with both of them.

  But could any of this be real, or was her imagination—and her libido, after she’d suffered a knock on the head, out of control?

  Alex and Gabe each looked angry enough to spit nails. But beyond that, she sensed a bond between them, something that united them and made them a couple as much as did the bonds between her and Gabe.

  She didn’t know how Alex would react if she put words to her thoughts, but she did not expect Gabe would take any part of this well. Understatement. He’d probably freak out in a way she couldn’t even imagine.

  Though she didn’t know exactly how to handle the dynamite of her new understanding, her gut told her she had to figure that out. Somehow she sensed a profound link between what she was feeling and the new vistas for their writing that Alex dangled temptingly in front of them.

  But how was she going to get herself and the two men she appear
ed to share her destiny with from Point A to Point B—from Alpha to Beta?

  Things were actually moving as Alex needed them to. He sensed Jade was intuitively making all the connections that would optimize his work. Gabe proved recalcitrant. Well, what fun would it be if his god of war capitulated without any struggle?

  “I want to read what you wrote,” Gabe said to Jade. “But I expect anything you say will be personal, whether for our life relationship or our writing. Personal as in for my ears only. It’s past time for Alex Rapsos to get out of here. For once, though, he’s honoring your and my partnership. Says he won’t leave until you also tell him to.”

  Jade could see Gabe’s anger. She didn’t have to go too far beneath the surface to tap into his accompanying confusion, which seemed even more profound than the anger. She hoped it wouldn’t take much to set him straight, make him realize exactly how their lives would be taking new directions. She wanted to take him in her arms and soothe away his evident discomfort, but she suspected any such gesture right now would be misinterpreted and counterproductive. Much as it pained her, Gabe would have to work through some of his angst on his own. She’d be there for him as much as she could.

  “As I will show you,” Alex said, “this morning’s events will prove what I’ve been saying. Furthermore, everything that’s happening is part of the fulfillment of Jade’s Tarot card prophecy you heard last night.”

  There it was again.

  “That’s the biggest crock of bullshit I’ve ever heard,” Gabe sputtered. “Look, Rapsos, fun’s fun. But neither of us believes in any of that crap. Tarot is just a parlor game eccentric types like Maura enjoy fooling around with. And to be blunt, you’ve been nothing but a pain in the butt since you horned in on us last night. Jade is a polite lady. Often too polite. But I don’t have that problem. I want you out of here, and out of our lives now. If you continue to bug us, I’ll do whatever it takes to get you to stop your harassment.”