by Sara Brookes
“I know.” She wet her lips, steeling herself for the confession that had been rotting away in her soul for so long. “I had an affair with my senior project advisor right before we all graduated. His wife caught us. Called me a homewrecker,” she said in a rush, squeezing her eyes up as though it would make the pain of the memory dissipate. “I told Mason and my parents. He didn’t seem too surprised or bothered. Almost like he was relieved. But my parents...my mother said those horrible, horrible things...and then you were both so sweet to me. You didn’t ask what happened, you just...loved me. You loved me so much. Instead of enjoying what we did that night, I overanalyzed it. I tried to dissect it. Find some meaning to it where my mother wasn’t right. I let two men, who were together, fuck me.”
“And we all enjoyed it.”
“I know. I was...raw after what happened with Professor Fillion. Vulnerable. I thought sleeping with you two so soon after what happened meant that was who I’d become. That my mother was simply trying to tell me the truth. That I was nothing more than your plaything. A passing whim you were entertaining to pass a fun few hours. Fucking him was a mistake. Being with you two wasn’t. But I was too tied into my own head to see that. What we had was more than sex and kink and friendship. Love.”
Tears pricked at her eyes again as Boyce touched her cheek. “Shh, baby,” he said quietly.
But she wasn’t done. “You both invited me into your lives and I was too wrapped up in all the shit to see it.”
Saint’s face came into view this time. “I have to say, while you’re sexy no matter what, you’re much better wrapped up this way instead.”
“You’ve held that in for a long time, Grae, but it’s over now.” Boyce’s voice was hoarse as he spoke. A soft whoosh of air caressed her skin as a vacuum seal was released. The stretchy covering was whisked away, and Boyce pulled her close, wrapping his arms around her. Cradled her. Held her close.
The emotion she’d held in check for so long finally spilled over. Saint came to stand next to Boyce, to wrap his arms around them both. They cradled her close as she wept, as she released all the pent-up emotion and frustration she’d been containing. They’d accepted her confession without judgment or complaint. Without dragging out the shadows of their past with how they’d felt. They’d recognized her breaking point. That she’d left everything quite literally on the table. She’d thought she’d been in love with them before, but now...with their acceptance wrapped around her, she knew there would be no more barriers between the three of them.
That realization slammed into her with destructive force. The purge became violent and soul-shaking, each tear stripping away her very essence. Each cry repairing her. Making her whole again. Building her in an even stronger version of herself that she could be proud of. One who wasn’t afraid of what the future held. Wasn’t ashamed of the very thing that brought her happiness.
And through it all, the men held her.
Told her it would be all right.
Told her they loved her.
Chapter Twenty-Six
When Grae was able to think coherently again, she discovered she was still cradled between the men. But they’d moved from the dining room to the couch. The very same one where she’d fallen asleep in their laps a month ago. When she hadn’t been able to tell up from down. Left from right.
Something clinked as she moved her head. Saint slipped it off his leg and repositioned her head against his thigh. “Comfortable?”
“Yes.” She spotted a band that almost disappeared in his wide hand. “What is that?”
“Your collar.”
Grae waited for her stomach to lurch, her lungs to burn, or her blood to ice. Instead, her heartbeat remained steady. Her brain clear.
“Such gracious acceptance.” Saint touched his lips to her forehead. “Lovely.”
He held the item out for her inspection. The narrow strip of dark green velvet was broken only by the gleaming silver pendant in the center. Three interlocked circles, two large on each end with a smaller one in the center.
She ran her fingers over the smooth metal, discovering the piece was thicker and heavier than she’d realized. “It’s beautiful.”
“It’s yours.” Boyce fit himself between her legs, whispering against her throat. “Ours. If you will do us the honor of wearing it. Always.”
Saint touched the hollow of her throat. “Once this is in place, here, where everyone can see our mark of ownership, the collar doesn’t come off. Not without a hell of a lot of communication. And an understanding that Boyce and I will fight you with everything we are before we’ll accept the collar back.”
“I promise to wear your collar proudly.”
Boyce kissed the same place Saint had touched. “And we will honor your vow always.”
The metal was cold against her skin as Saint draped the collar around her throat. Somehow he managed to get it buckled in place without moving her. The weight against her throat was more than she expected, but a serene calm washed over her as she lay there with the men, wearing their promise.
She sat up suddenly, pulling out from underneath Boyce and gesturing for him to scoot closer to Saint. When they were positioned side by side, she crawled into their laps and put her head on their shoulders.
“Thank you.” Even though she knew she would never be able to adequately express how thankful she was.
“Well, now that we’ve gotten that all straightened out, I’m afraid we’re not done here.” Saint’s breath skimmed hot over her skin as he pressed a gentle kiss to the back of her neck. “I owe Boyce.”
“For?”
“Overstepping my bounds as his sub during a scene.”
“You keep track?” Grae asked as she situated herself comfortably in Boyce’s arms. It felt good to lie against him. To feel his heartbeat tripping against hers. A sign he wasn’t unaffected by the breakthrough she’d just had or her acceptance of their collar. “With me in the mix now, that list is going to get very long.”
Saint glanced at Boyce. “Not normally, no. But I took control of a situation when it was clear he was in command. Tell me what you think, angel. You watched. I did string him along and hold his neck while I fucked him.”
Grae drew in a sharp breath. “What?” Surely he hadn’t...no.
“You think it was an accident I just happened to have a laptop handy, and it just happened to be the very same one I used to hack into the club’s security system?” Saint clicked his tongue against the roof of his mouth. “Given how much you deal with computers, I expected you to figure it out much, much sooner.”
Mostly because she’d been too damn turned on to even think about the possibility. Then her mind had gotten so addled at the street fair, and she’d forgotten about her little trip down voyeur lane. “So this has just been one big lesson in denial?”
“What’s the matter, angel? Pissed that someone turned your method on its ass and out bottomed you?” Though her eyebrows had drawn together, Saint smiled. “Admit it—you got off on it.”
“I should probably be pissed you’ve been playing mind games with me.”
“But you’re not.” He was right, she wasn’t. Not truly. “You didn’t answer me. Did you like what you saw?”
Despite the anger churning her stomach, she nodded. The images of the men tangled together at the club, toying with extreme edge play had lit a fire inside her like no other. “You did it on purpose. You knew I would watch.”
“Have to admit, you haven’t kept your voyeuristic desires secret. You’re welcome to watch any time. That won’t stop just because we’re a triad now.” Saint touched the metal at her throat as a reminder. Triad. Three. A unit. “In fact, I see things like that increasing in frequency.”
God, I hope so.
“Enough talk.” Boyce tangled his fingers with hers, drawing their joined
hands to his mouth as he pulled her away from Saint. He guided her to the bedroom, helping her to the center of the bed and placing her on her knees. “I’m going to tie him to that chair. Make him watch while I sink into this sweet ass that I’ve been thinking about for thirteen years. Then I’m going to let you suck on him, tease him, and maybe I’ll let you sit and ride him, ordering him not to come, but letting him feel you orgasm as much as you want. And then? We’re going to both take you. Fuck you. Love you. Until you are so spent, so lost to us, that you can’t say no when we take you again. And again.”
Suddenly sobering, she captured Boyce’s wrist. “Shenanigans.”
Her safe word rang through the charged air. Both men halted, their expressions almost immediately filling with concern. She hadn’t meant to stop them, not entirely. She’d loved everything they’d done so far, but she couldn’t think of another way to call for a pause.
“I don’t want to stop. I just wanted to make it clear that I don’t want anything between us anymore.”
“Kind of makes it hard to tie him up.” Boyce winked at her.
“I meant with condoms. We’re not at the club. We’ve all been tested. And I’ve been getting shots for birth control since I was in college.” She hesitated, then remembered the encouraging words of her friends. “I need to feel you both.”
Boyce’s undisguised hunger washed over her. The last of her resistance melted away as he took her mouth again. “And we need to feel you, angel.”
He left her kneeling on the bed and crossed to Saint in two easy strides, crushing their bodies together as his mouth slashed over Saint’s. Grae’s core went from a warm simmer to a blast furnace in the space of a heartbeat. This was one thing she was certain she would never tire of. And as much as she liked watching them on the Noble House feeds, observing them in living color was so much better. The heady aroma of sex and sweat hung around them, permeating the molecules in the air so they were ripe with pleasure.
Need.
Want.
Grae forgot about everything else and focused on the men.
Boyce deepened the kiss, tangling their tongues as he swept his hands through Saint’s hair. Yanked hard. Moved and tugged where he wanted Saint to move. And Saint went, letting Boyce control the power of the moment. Hold command and keep his head in place as Boyce continued to ravish his mouth.
The men were breathing heavily as they parted, both of their lips swollen and red from the fierceness and potency of the kiss. Boyce began unbuttoning Saint’s shirt, gradually spreading the fabric to reveal the sculpted expanse of his chest. The strips of leather crossing over his chest. Grae risked a glance at Boyce’s face and found him looking directly at her, smiling.
“I saw how interested you were in the harness at the fair. Since you didn’t get to see it fully, I thought you would appreciate it tonight.”
“Thank you.” Saint hadn’t been wearing the harness earlier, when she’d arrived. She would have noticed the line of it under the thin tee he’d been wearing when he’d welcomed her inside. Felt it through the suit he’d been wearing as he held her against him as she purged emotions she’d been keeping pent up. Once Boyce had assumed control sometime while she’d been out of it, he must have asked Saint to put it on.
No. Commanded Saint.
A delicious thrill zipped through her.
Heat spread through her system as Boyce guided Saint to a chair positioned beside the bed and removed the rest of his clothes. She suppressed the desire to lick her lips when Saint stood before her nude except for the inventive strips of leather and metal. Five straps spread out from a ring in the center of his chest, nested comfortably right between his pecs. Another ring was positioned at his midsection and met another ring circling the base of his cock.
Just like at the fair, two more straps separated Saint’s testicles, lifting them in tight constriction. The head of his cock was already flushed a healthy shade of dark pink. Saint kept his gaze steady on hers while Boyce set to work handcuffing him to the chair. That dark pink flushed deeper each time Boyce locked another circle of metal against Saint.
Wrists first. Then each ankle.
Once Saint was firmly bound, Boyce crouched, wrapped his hand around Saint’s erection, just next to the constricting ring, and bent forward to swallow Saint’s cock in one smooth motion. Saint closed his eyes then, dropping his head back as Boyce hollowed his cheeks and sucked.
“Sweet merciful fuck.”
Boyce pulled back, licking his lips as he stood. Saint growled. Though the sound was quiet, it held no less of a lasting impact. And caused Boyce to smile wider.
Boyce tangled his fingers in Grae’s hair, tugging her head back. He closed his mouth over hers, the combined flavors of the two men exploding on her tongue. She groaned, opening wider as she fought the desire to lift her hands to his shoulders and hold on.
She was tumbling helplessly out of control, the world spinning faster and faster as Boyce pulled her down into that headspace she’d already been in for a good chunk of the night. But this time, she went effortlessly. Surrender had become easier now that everything was pure and right between the three of them.
How could she have been so stupid to deny herself this?
Boyce broke away suddenly, tearing his mouth from hers. He swiveled her around so she was facing the footboard and perpendicular to where Saint was cuffed in the chair. Boyce pushed her forward, tugging on her hips to raise them high into the air. He pressed against her back, between her shoulder blades, pinning her against the mattress.
As Boyce dragged his fingers through her soaking wet heat, his voice rumbled through the room. Sparks of arousal fired up her spine as he took his time playing with her. She wanted to feel his face between her legs, his tongue sweeping over her clit until he brought her to climax. But the pressure between her shoulder blades, his hold, kept her in place, restrained under his masterful hands.
Her nipples were tight and hard, pushing against the worn fabric of the comforter. She willingly accepted his fingers as he speared them into her wet pussy. He played with her like this for some time, adjusting the force and depth of his probing fingers every time her whimpers softened. Each time she grew complacent.
She forced out a loud whine when he withdrew his damp fingers and swirled them around the tight bud of her anus. The bed dipped as he moved. She felt his presence over her, his body burning against her back, though he kept his fingers in place, slowly swirling and teasing the pucker.
Her muscles trembled as Boyce shifted again. Something warm, slick, and firm stroked over her anus. For a split second, she thought it was Boyce’s fingers again, but she felt the firm pressure of his fingers fanned out against her buttocks.
His tongue.
Saint growled.
Cold air brushed against her as Boyce sat back. “Keep it up and I will shove a gag between your teeth.”
Saint narrowed his eyes, bared his teeth, but the low vibration of his snarl ceased.
Boyce swept his tongue against her again, but this time he skimmed up and over the curve of one cheek. He slid it against her lower back, using his thumbs to massage either side of her waist. He moved up, farther and farther, worrying his tongue over each knob of her spine, drawing a tremble from her each time he nipped at the bones as he passed.
He finally lay over her again, cradling her back to his chest as he swirled the tip of his cock against her anus, still slick with her juices and his saliva. The lubrication was enough for the wide head to spread her open. When she whimpered at the intrusion, he bared his teeth and sank them into her shoulder. Her hips levered back as she cried out, taking a few more inches.
“That’s it. Push against me, baby. Let me in. Let me inside you.”
She followed his instruction, screwing up her eyes tight against the exquisite burn she never wanted to end. But once he
was fully seated inside her, stretching her, the burn was replaced with a delicious pleasure she could almost see dancing in front of her eyes. She wanted him out and in at the same time. Moving with her to stroke sensitive nerves.
Boyce sat back, pressing his hands to her shoulders again to push her upper body down against the mattress. When he drew his hips back, pulling nearly the entire length of himself out of her, the world became a colorful kaleidoscope. She turned her face, biting at a chunk of the bedspread to keep from crying out her pleasure.
He moved slowly at first, dragging out each pull and thrust. She wiggled her ass, hoping to elicit more movement. Instead she was rewarded with a light slap against her flesh. Her world tilted as her muscles clenched around him, the pain spreading.
“Someone likes to be spanked.”
No.
“What was that?”
She whimpered and pushed back, but was rewarded with another slap. This time against her thigh.
“No.”
Despite her protest, her pussy clenched around emptiness, yearning to be filled. Her ass tightened around Boyce’s cock, as though trying to draw him deeper.
“You’re saying no, but your body is saying otherwise.”
“No. No. No.”
Boyce’s rough laugh sounded in her ear. “Say it as many times as you like, Grae. But I know the truth.” He began moving faster, using strong, driving thrusts that rocked her forward. The skin he’d struck burned, melding with the pleasure he was gifting her with each punishing drive.
“She’s so fucking hot inside, Saint. So tight.”
Metal clanked loudly as Saint tested the strength of the handcuffs. The noise only caused Boyce to slow down. To savor. To skim his hands along the curve of Grae’s back until she started wiggling against him.
“I can’t wait to be buried inside her ass while you’re deep inside her cunt.”
Grae pushed up on her hands, trying to arch back in encouragement. “Now. Yes. Now.”
Boyce shoved hard, rotating his hips. “When I say, Grae. Always. You can beg and plead all you want, but you’ll have an orgasm when I decide.” He stopped, bending over to cover her with his body, let his fingers dance over the velvet and metal surrounding her throat. “I like it when you beg and plead, though. Don’t let that stop you. And when you say no? That’s music to my ears, baby. ’Cause it means I’m doing so many right things to you that your brain can’t form any other words. Like your safe word.” Boyce pulled her chin, tilting her face toward his. “You’ll get what you need, Grae. Both of us inside you as far as you can take. But you’re not ready. Not truly.”