by J. L. Beck
“Hiding is for children. We’re no longer playing childish games.”
Cole’s voice thunders through me as he makes quick work of his clothes, as if he’s in a race against time—and maybe we are—but I don’t allow my mind to hang up on the uncertain future when we're together now.
Then again, Cole’s always in a competition to be better, even if that competition is against himself. And I wonder what he plans to do to my body, having just witnessed the sexual god who is his twin brother.
Desire builds behind Cole’s eyes as he stares down at me a moment before he scoops my thighs into his hands and shoves my body back so my head’s nearly flush against the poster bed headboard.
“Drop your knees,” Cole orders.
The firmness in his voice makes me shiver and my core tingle. Confusion settles into my mind, however, as I try to grasp what’s taking place. “My what?”
War’s suddenly at the bedside. “Open your legs, baby. Cole’s got plans for that wet pussy of yours.”
Heat flashes through me and I swallow my gasp. I’ve never heard War talk dirty, and I grin up at him. “I like when you talk dirty.”
“Wait until we claim that tight pussy. You’ll be the one talking dirty then, babe.”
My toes curl at the visual. Who knew I could be so turned on by not one but two men from only their words?
Cole settles in, his feet hanging off the bed. “War. Join us. Maddie take War’s dick in your mouth. Do it now.”
Wetness floods between my thighs at Cole’s command. I’ve never been ordered to give a sexual command or a blow job, but my mouth waters at the thought of pleasuring War like he did me. Except concern washes through me. War's just come between my folds. “Cole, I didn’t wash away—”
“Stop. Nothing could stop me from this moment, not even lapping up a little brotherly cum when your juices are pouring out for me.”
His primal tone sends shivers down my spine. “Oh…”
“That’s it. Go with us, sugar.” Cole stabs War with his gaze. “Do it.”
The bed jiggles, and War grabs one of the many pillow, lifts my head so I’m propped up a bit at the head and spread wide, my pussy so ready for Cole.
Synchronized as they are, I don’t want to think about them doing this with someone else, but that thought plagues the moment. I’m innocent in the bedroom, when I know these men are well-seasoned. “I’ve never….” My cheeks burn as I speak the words.
“Suck, lick, taste me. Don’t bite.”
War straddles my chest and grabs the railing, his length dangling in front of my face, his perfectly shaped cock a whisper away from pressing against my lips.
“I’ll be easy. Cole won’t.”
Heat from Cole’s lips lights me on fire as he sucks my clit into his mouth, swirling his tongue like a merry-go-round, circling my bundle of nerves. I writhe under War and dig my nails into Cole’s forearms while his hands cup and lift my ass, giving him the magical angle.
He ravishes me, his tongue tantalizing my desires. “Cole, my God,” I cry out, wanting more, needing more than I know how to ask for.
Locked between the men I love, I take War into my mouth to prove I’m a woman who’s ready to take them on, that I’m not so inexperienced as my history would prove. I hope the rumble deep in War’s throat is an indication I’m doing it right.
War tastes salty and buttery, the bead of wetness at his spongy head greeting my tongue. And he’s restrained, his gaze all for me. He allows me to test the angle and depth a bit. I meet his half-lidded stare, before I close my eyes, sucking, drawing him deeper into my mouth and down my throat while Cole works his relentless magic at my clit, sending me closer toward heaven than I could ever have imagined.
Chapter Six
Cole
Maddie’s so fucking wet, moans of pleasure tear from her throat. I don’t give a shit that War’s ass hovers above my head or that he’s getting sucked off by the only woman I’ve ever loved. And by the look of his straining back, slick from sweat, veins popping at his neck, I admit the guy’s a badass for holding on as long as he has.
Maddie bucks her hips into my face, bringing my attention back to her. Always to her, every fucking time. And in the daylight, her nub is purple as shit, her opening glistening for me to slip one of my thick fingers into her hole. The need to do so beckons me.
“Go with it, Maddie, make this moment last. I’m going to make you feel like a queen. I’m going to claim this pussy with my tongue and fingers, and I won’t stop until you’re a weeping mess against this mattress.”
I swirl a finger in her pussy juice and circle the opening, delving deeper and deeper into her tight hole that clenches and releases, the little pulses causing my dick to leak like a motherfucker.
‘Cause fuck, I want to take her. I want to take her so fucking badly, shove my length into her wet channel and claim her as mine. Except a deal’s a deal. I’m not one to break promises, and War and I have to take her together. It’s the right thing to do.
I add another finger, stretching and readying the space that will one day be me and my brother’s. Faster, deeper… I slide my fingers through her warmth with ease, her body reacting to my touch just as I knew it would.
The room crowds with sounds of pleasure erupting from all three of us.
I give her nub a couple more licks and crawl up, so my dick’s at her opening. I don’t enter. I won’t do that, but I take myself in one hand and tease her there, trying on the idea that I’ll be inside her soon—very soon.
Nudging her opening, like a knock on the door to her virginity that’s eager to escape, I swirl my thumb across her clit, close my eyes, and lose myself to the pleasure I’m giving her. Giving myself.
She’s moving her hips back and forth, digging her fingernails into my thighs. “I’m coming. Cole. Cole!”
“Fuck.” I lose my resolve not to come the moment she calls out my name. Instead, the heat of my seed spills across her perfect pussy where she’s shaved clean as a babe.
War’s groans reach my ears.
Or maybe that’s me. And I don’t fucking care that Maddie’s suddenly consumed by her climax, locked under our pleasure-giving command for what seems like hours.
Or that moments later, she’s nestled between me and my brother, tangled in our limbs, her eyes glazed, her body still locked in the aftershocks of the orgasm I’ve given her and covered in me and Warren’s seed. “You’re beautiful, Maddie. And Ours. All fucking ours.”
“I’ve always been both of yours. Nothing can stop us from being together,” she whispers against my skin.
I want to kiss her so badly, the need clings to my insides as her proclamation floats in the spaces between us like sunrays. The impossible future we’re heading toward is nothing more than a distant thought.
We snuggle in closer together, exhaustion nearly overtaking us, but a knock on the door steals my sense of peace. My first glimpse at true happiness slips away, reminding me that dreams aren’t meant to come true.
Shit’s about to get real.
Chapter Seven
Maddie
Fear trickles down my spine. The knock on the door is deafening, ripping the air from the room. My gaze collides with both Cole’s and War’s as we all silently weigh our options before scurrying from the bed.
“Hide.” I panic, whispering as I try and smooth down my almost sex-head hair. Anxiety churns my insides, making me feel as if I’m riding a roller coaster, with the next turn being unknown.
“No. We’re not hiding, Maddie. This is our house, and whoever is on the other side of that door knows we’re here,” War starts, rolling off the bed and jamming his legs into his pants.
Instinct tells me nothing good stands on the other side of that door. Who could it be? What if it’s my mom?
Or worse, my father? I scramble from the bed and dress as if my life depends on it—‘cause it does—while every emotion I can think of swarms me.
“Relax, sugar. Whoever it i
s will just have to understand.”
Cole soothes me, or at least he tries, running his warm palm down my arm. What he doesn’t know is that I’m not yet ready to face my parents on the matter of him or his brother.
War and Cole dress quickly, and within seconds, the door is opening.
My mother’s not-so-pleased face graces me. She presses her lips in a flat line, hiding her full, pink lips. She crosses her arms and narrows her gaze at me. I can already tell she’s annoyed from being forced to wait outside longer than she deems necessary.
She takes in the scene: War, Cole, and me. Me with swollen lips and damp hair. She knows what happened without even asking, that much I’m sure of.
“Angela.”
Cole and War both say her name in unison, causing her glare to move away from me and to them.
Oh shit.
“Mom, we were just—”
“Save it, Maddie. Could you make what you all were doing in this room more obvious, not only with the door closed but with it locked...”
My mother’s almost-always-soft eyes are cold, and that coldness sends a shiver of guilt down my spine. I want Cole and War—together—but at the expense of my mother’s disappointment in me? That I’m not so sure about.
Tension builds inside the room, growing warmer until I’m my underarms are tacky. I rub my palms against the front of my yoga pants. I have to try and diffuse the situation anyway I can.
Mom stabs the guys with her warning glare. “I need to talk to my daughter alone. I’ll speak with you two later.”
Cole and War give me a half-smile as they mutter their goodbyes while pulling their shirts on, clearly not wanting to argue or sit in on the pending lecture.
“We weren’t doing anything,” I lie, wringing my hands together nervously.
My mother’s face deadpans. “Your hair is damp, and you have two hickeys on your neck. You might be able to lie to yourself, but you cannot lie to your own mother. Not when the evidence is right in front of me.”
My cheeks burst into flames, every word like a match being struck and tossed at me as she raises her voice.
“Okay. We were kissing. That’s it,” I correct myself, though we both know I’m still very much hiding.
She knew what we were doing, but can she really blame me? Both Mom and Dad kept me away from the twins for the last four years. Temptation to be with Cole and Warren is like a poor man holding the winning lottery ticket. Of course I’m cashing in.
I can’t deny my urges or my dreams any longer. “Okay, well, even if we were doing something, it doesn’t matter. This is their house, and it wasn’t like we were doing anything wrong. We’re all adults,” I try reasoning with my mother, even when I know it’ll do me no good.
“Adults don’t hide, Maddie. Those men are a decade older than you. They’re experienced in ways you can’t even imagine. You have no idea what you’ll be getting into. This isn’t what you want,” she assures me.
I lock my crossed my arms, anger festering just below the surface. “You have no idea what I want, Mom. How could you when you split us up and sent me away. It’s not like you and I are as close as we used to be. This is my life.”
“That’s not the point, Maddie. Once the fantasy plays out, what happens when you want to take it further? When reality hits all three of you?”
She lifts a brow in question, as if she understands from personal experience or something. Which she can’t. She’s been married since the day she turned eighteen. She didn’t hold on to a dream for the past decade like me. She didn’t imagine the night she’d give herself fully to two men who’d claim her with their bodies and hearts. I’m not holding back for no one. It’s pretty simple to me. “Then we take it further. It’s what I want. I want me and the guys to be a family forever.”
Mom’s mouth pops open as if she’s shocked before she snaps her lips closed. “It’s not like this kind of thing doesn’t happen in the world. We’re not blood related in the least,” I argue.
“You know people in this town will not take kindly to that kind of behavior. Cole and Warren are like your stepbrothers. If this doesn’t work, it will destroy all of you. It will destroy everything: our family, this ranch, your father, the business, even the horses. Everyone and everything depends on those men. Think about the repercussions. Please.”
Mother scolds me as if she can change the way I feel about Cole and Warren. I love them, and I know deep down in the pit of my belly that would never change. But what hurts me most is that Mom’s left one person out of the equation, as if I don’t exist. I bite my lip to keep it from quivering. Mom pats my leg as if she suddenly cares.
“Do you remember the Clarks? They owned the feed store in town, before it was sold to the Taylors?”
I nod, and a smile tips up the corners of my lips at the memory of the sweet couple. “Mrs. Clark was so nice. She gave me that silver snaffle bit and bridle for my pony the day they closed the store.”
Mom drops her gaze to her lap where she’s finds the hem of her shirt, rolling the material. “Do you remember Richard? He was the one who worked in the yard. He gave you rides on the forklift a couple of times.”
Richard… “It’s been years, but I do remember him. He had blue eyes like the pit of a deep lake and muscular arms etched with ink, completely different from Mr. Clark, who I assume acted as the brains behind the business. What about them?”
Mom takes my hand into hers. “They were a threesome.”
I cover my gasp at the news, but Mom continues.
“No one suspected, but one night they decided to go to dinner as a trio. They sat in the corner booth of BJ’s Pub.”
“I know that booth. It’s the one that’s dark and made for secrets. So they were still keeping their relationship quiet.”
“I suppose they were testing the waters. Maybe they had too much wine, too much intimate conversation, or too much hope of a future in Brown Valley. It doesn’t matter.” She gives my hand a squeeze. “Their house was vandalized.”
I still as my mind conjures the scene. “That’s awful. Who would do such a terrible thing?”
Mom shrugs and shakes her head. “No one knows… The three of them were caught on camera, and that video of them too close, comfortable, and tangled in each other alerted a town to something unacceptable. Townsfolk weren’t ready to accept a polyamorous relationship. Someone crossed the line...” Mom deepens her stare and releases my hand.
“Times have changed,” I murmur, though I’m not so sure twenty years is enough to change small-town views. What if what I’ve wished for ends in disaster?
Mom interrupts my thoughts. “They were bullied. Someone broke into their house and ransacked all their belongings. They defiled the walls with all kinds of hateful words. Their lives were threatened, their relationship dissolved, so they packed up and left town.”
My throat thickens, like a sock has been shoved deep into my esophagus. The town is small, unchanging, nothing progressive happens here unless someone gets a new John Deere tractor—the kind with air conditioning and a radio. That’s reality. I haven’t considered that harm could come to the men. My parents. Our home. I’m feeling childish all of a sudden, which I’m sure is mom’s point.
But I’m not a child. I pull Mom into my arms and hold her close, listening to her gentle breaths while mine pumps out of my chest. I find more comfort in her arms than I expect because she’s Mom and I have to wonder if she cares about me more than I realize.
Outside, a diesel engine revs and a horn honks, alerting me that Dad’s outside with Sampson as well, ready to take my parents to the airport for their vacation.
My pulse speeds, and I dart my gaze toward the closed window. There are truths inside this house I’m struggling with. Maybe I’m asking too much from the guys, from my dreams. I’m wanting big-city acceptance, but I’m surrounded by small-town minds. Cole and War have made those facts clear, and they’ll never leave the ranch. This is their home. Have I gone too far, too fast? �
�You’re not going to tell Dad are you?”
“No. When the time comes, if it comes, that’ll be your decision. But it won’t go well for Cole and Warren if you choose both men. One of them, your father might consider supporting your choice. But your father’s warned them once about hooking up with you. He’s not the kind of man to give second chances, and you need to prepare yourself for that.”
I know she’s right, and an imaginary belt around my chest cinches up a notch. I would never consider separating the two brothers. I just can’t do that. Because my father would never consider thinking outside the box of a traditional relationship, even though that’s been my craving forever. It’s all or nothing. “I’ll be discrete.”
Mom presses a cold kiss against my cheeks, stands, glancing back over her shoulder as she closes the door behind her.
Just like that, she’s gone, the engine rumbling and then fading, leaving me trembling on the sofa, even though the throws curl around my arms. I blame the shiver on my wet hair, but I know different.
I have to make a choice, stick to what I want, or let others dictate my future. But what if all I’m left with at the end is regret?
* * *
The chill I felt from that night lasts an entire week, both Cole and Warren deciding to harvest the alfalfa for a fourth time—something so late in the season that isn’t standard.
I know they’re avoiding me. Pretending as if I’m not here anymore.
I spray the French doors of my parents’ game room with window cleaner and polish them until each square shines. The pane at my eye-level is familiar as I’ve polished the same panes two days in a row after pounding out my frustrations on the billiard balls. But a new layer of glaze doesn’t clear my muddled thoughts or make my decision to pursue my dreams brighter.
That’s when a flash catches my eye.
I open the door, the scent of fresh-cut grass licking my nose, and, in the distance where Cole and War’s cottage sits, I watch the men.