by Mari Carr
“Fuck me,” Annalise muttered.
Jakob followed her, his arm, like hers, in a matching sling. He joined her on the couch, the two of them mirror images in damaged bodies and weary expressions.
If Walt weren’t so damn tired, he might have had enough energy to make a joke about the slings, but like them, he’d been ridden hard and put away wet. So he merely claimed the chair across from them, rubbing the palms of his hands into his scratchy, dry eyes.
Annalise broke the silence first. “It’s been a challenging few days.”
“So much crazy,” Jakob murmured. The three of them were still shaken after hearing about Ava’s mother’s death, and Walt was particularly disturbed by the fact Ava, the serial killer, was a trained orthopedic surgeon. He was struggling to understand how she’d been able to hide her psychosis all through medical school.
“Nikolett wants us back at her place tomorrow early. She’s asked me to continue leading the questioning,” Annalise said after a few quiet minutes.
Jakob sighed. “Are you okay going back in there? Talking to Ava? No one would blame you for stepping aside after everything that happened with Axel.”
She gave Jakob a soft smile. “I’m fine. Truly. It’s a bit like playing chess. I’m not used to being the primary investigator, so it’s a different way of approaching the suspect. A different style of questioning. It’s challenging.”
It wasn’t until that moment that Walt realized how much Annalise had changed over the course of the past week. When they’d first met in her office at the university, she’d seemed a bit like a caged puppy, one who’d been kicked a few times too many, and was torn between cowering or biting back.
None of that was apparent now as he was seeing the reemerging of Annalise and the forensic psychologist she’d been before Axel had come into her life and slowly, insidiously, ripped it to shreds.
No. Walt changed his mind. He’d bet his entire life savings this was a totally new Annalise. A woman who was much wiser and stronger after unspeakable mental abuse. She was just now coming out on the other side of hell, and he was blown away by the confident, intelligent woman sitting across from him. She rocked his world.
As did the man sitting next to her. Jakob hadn’t hesitated to race off to rescue a woman he’d never met yesterday. He’d risked his life to save Zasha. But that shouldn’t surprise Walt. Even after a short acquaintance, he’d come to know Jakob as the type of man who’d throw himself in front of the speeding bullet. Jakob faced down danger with nothing more than his courage and his strength and his need to protect.
They were incredible people, and Walt felt grateful to be sitting here with them. He’d had no idea when Eric had stumbled into his field hospital in Libya, covered in blood, that his life would be so irrevocably changed in such a short time.
He stared at them in silence for a few minutes, trying to push away the dark thoughts starting to close in on him. When that failed, Walt leaned his head against the back of the chair and closed his eyes, debating whether or not to ask the question that was on everyone’s mind, the big-ass elephant in the room.
The serial killer had been found and Annalise’s stalker was dead. Their reasons for being together were at an end, but the idea of returning to Libya to continue his work with Doctors Without Borders held very little appeal to Walt right now, something he’d never experienced before. With him, work had always come first.
Before he could speak his concerns, Jakob beat him to the punch. “What now?” There was no denying from his tone Jakob was afraid to hear the answer.
Just as there was no denying the thought of leaving these two, knowing they could never be together, killed Walt. He had never expected to feel a tighter bond between three people than the one he shared with his brothers. And while this bond was different, it was definitely just as powerful, as strong.
The clinical, practical part of him tried to explain away the closeness he felt. After all, they’d shared a life-or-death experience that—coupled with their obvious attraction—could have Walt seeing and feeling things that weren’t there.
But he discounted that instantly. He might be relatively inexperienced when it came to romantic love, but he knew enough to understand that this was it. The real deal.
Walt’s eyelids lifted as he captured Jakob’s gaze and decided he couldn’t leave them. Not yet. “I still have some time before I’m due back at my clinic. I could come back to Frankfurt with the two of you for a little while.”
Jakob considered that, and then turned to look at Annalise.
“I have some time before the semester starts. And perhaps I could also take additional time off,” she said. “In truth, I think it is time to do more than teach. I’d like to return to the Kripo.”
Jakob gave her a sad smile, sighing. “Damn. I was afraid you were going to say that.”
Annalise reached out and grasped his good hand with hers. “Your job is just as dangerous, you know. I lost ten years off my life yesterday when I saw that knife in your arm. We’ll have to worry about each other equally.”
Jakob lifted her hand and kissed her knuckles. “Agreed. But Walt has the most dangerous job. Wasn’t he talking about taking down extremist cells in Libya with the fleet admiral?” he asked with a chuckle.
“Then we would be smart to keep him here with us for as long as we can.” Annalise glanced in Walt’s direction.
Walt rose, closing the few feet that separated them, kneeling before them on the floor. “The future is coming. It’s not something we can outrun or escape. But let’s steal a few days more. Keep living in this incredible present just like Annalise suggested.”
“I’d like that,” Annalise said.
“So would I,” Jakob added.
Walt smiled, rising up to kiss Annalise and then Jakob. They were quick, sealed-with-a-kiss busses, a promise that he would give them everything he could in the time they had remaining.
After that, words were no longer necessary. Annalise rose, Jakob’s hand still clasped in hers. She gave Walt a pointed look that said “follow,” and the three of them walked to the bedroom.
Once they arrived, Jakob kissed Annalise gently, his two lovers standing by the side of the bed. Walt had stopped at the bedroom door to watch them.
When they turned in unison, he couldn’t hold back the brief bark of laughter at the sight of their matching slings. “This keeps getting trickier.”
“Good thing there’s a doctor in the house,” Jakob said.
“Stay still,” Walt said as he approached them. With slow, careful movements, he removed Annalise’s sling, then Jakob’s. Annalise lowered her arm, flexing it a bit to work out the kinks. Jakob winced, keeping his upper arm close to his side. The sling wasn’t really necessary, but Walt used it as a way to immobilize Jakob’s arm so the muscles could start to heal. The knife wound had gone about as deep as it could without striking an artery, and without the sling and the painkillers Walt had given him earlier, Jakob would be in a great deal more pain. Even now, Walt suspected his arm was hurting him more than Jakob was willing to admit.
Together, he and Annalise worked to remove Jakob’s clothing, taking care not to jar his arm too much. Once he was naked, Walt placed a steadying hand on his good arm and guided him to the bed.
“Sit up with your back against the headboard,” Walt directed.
“You think you’re going to be the one giving the orders tonight just because I’ve got a little cut on my arm and a few stitches?” Jakob asked in that deep, rich, commanding voice that had Walt’s cock rising from half-mast to rock hard in an instant.
Walt merely chuckled, then waved his hand, gesturing for Jakob to take control. He sure as shit wasn’t going to argue with him or suggest they arm wrestle for it. There was nothing on earth hotter than Jakob’s dirty demands in the bedroom. Unless, of course, it was Annalise’s pleas for more.
“Undress our woman,” Jakob said, looking for all the world like a king on his throne as he sat propped up agai
nst a pile of pillows.
Regardless of what Jakob might ask for, Walt wouldn’t let him go too far tonight. His lover really did need to keep his arm as still as possible. There was no way Walt was going to risk him tearing out the stitches.
Walt twisted toward Annalise, who gave him the sexiest come hither smile he’d ever seen. He could tell he surprised her when he shifted until he was standing behind her, her back to his chest. He looked at Jakob over her shoulder, sliding his hands along her arms and sides until he reached the hem of her shirt. His light touch made her shiver.
Gripping the bottom of her shirt, he pulled it upwards, taking his time in order to tease Jakob as he bared her to their lover inch by inch.
He pulled the material tauter on her injured shoulder side, trying to limit her movement, but Annalise was clearly feeling better. She lifted both arms over her head to help him remove her shirt completely. Walt kissed her bruised shoulder, then the other, as he unfastened her bra.
Jakob was uncharacteristically—well, for the bedroom—quiet as he watched, but he was by no means an uninterested observer. He gripped his erection in his hand, slowly stroking the hard flesh, his gaze glued to Annalise’s breasts as Walt tugged the bra off and dropped it to the floor.
“Cup them,” Jakob said, his voice husky with need. “Pinch her nipples.”
Walt narrowed his eyes at the second command, but Jakob shook his head and continued speaking before he could voice his concerns. “The bruises are faded. And she likes the way we make her nipples ache. Do it.”
The doctor in Walt tried to glance over Annalise’s shoulder, tried to make certain she’d healed enough. He couldn’t see her nipples well enough to tell, but it didn’t matter. Not when Annalise repeated Jakob’s demand. “Do it,” she whispered.
He cupped her heavy breasts, lifting them up before closing his palms over them, squeezing them, gently at first, before kneading them more firmly. The way Annalise’s breathing increased and the slight arching of her back drove him on. Taking her nipples between his thumbs and forefingers, he pinched, the action provoking the sweetest moans and whimpers.
Jakob’s grip on his own dick tightened, his strokes harder. “Turn her around, Walt. Take those pretty nipples in your mouth and suck them. Hard.”
Walt had Annalise facing him before Jakob had finished issuing his demand. He bent his head lower, drawing one of her nipples in with rough suction. Annalise’s hands flew to his head and she nearly suffocated him in her soft breasts as she drew him closer.
“Harder,” she gasped.
Walt gave her what she asked for, teasing the taut tip with his teeth.
“Fuck, that’s hot,” Jakob murmured. “Take off the rest of her damn clothes and yours and the two of you get over here.”
Annalise and Walt wasted no time getting naked, racing to undress each other, and once they were done, they both turned to face Jakob, awaiting his next command. Walt had never been a passive lover in his previous sexual encounters, limited though they were. He had never realized how much he liked being told what to do in bed.
Maybe he’d get Annalise to explain the psychology behind it for him later. Nothing like a little light pillow talk. He grinned at the thought, his sudden amusement catching Jakob’s attention.
“Something funny?” Jakob asked.
Walt shook his head. “Tell you later.”
It was obvious Jakob had other things on his mind because he dropped the subject. “I thought I told the two of you to get over here.”
Annalise stepped closer to the bed, but Walt stopped her from climbing on the mattress and straddling Jakob’s thighs by gripping her wrist.
She looked over her shoulder in question.
“Regardless of what Jakob might ask for,” Walt warned, “we need to go slow tonight, take care.”
Jakob growled, but didn’t argue—which told Walt the man was indeed still in pain. “One of these days, the three of us are going to be completely healed and I’m showing you exactly how hard I want to fuck you. Both of you.”
“But until then…” Walt said, releasing Annalise’s wrist and kissing her on the cheek. “We’re just going to have to be creative.”
Annalise grinned. “I think I can handle that.”
Walt sucked in a deep breath as Annalise proved just how creative she could be. She climbed onto the bed, but rather than straddling his waist, she settled between Jakob’s outstretched thighs. Bending low and supporting her weight on her good arm, she ran her tongue along Jakob’s dick from balls to tip before sliding it back down again and sucking one of Jakob’s balls into her mouth.
Jakob’s eyes closed briefly and Walt wondered if their lover was praying for the strength to hold on. God knew Annalise could tempt a priest to sin.
While she teased Jakob with her mouth, she took Walt down in a different way, wiggling her ass suggestively.
Walt reached out and ran his hand along the soft, smooth globes of her ass, then drew one fingertip along the slit between her legs. He teased the rim of her anus, then moved lower, circling the opening to her body. She was wet and hot and ready.
Annalise lifted her ass higher, spreading her legs apart even farther. He grinned and accepted the offer, pushing two fingers inside to the hilt.
She released Jakob’s balls with a pop, a breathy moan escaping her lips.
Jakob was watching him, his gaze locked on where Walt was fucking her with his fingers.
“Use three,” Jakob demanded. “Get her nice and ready for that big cock of yours.”
Walt added a third to the first two, circling her waist with his other hand so that he could play with her clit. Annalise was a clit girl. The second he touched hers, she jerked and cried out, “Yes!”
Jakob placed his hand on the back of her head. “Pay attention to your work, Dr. Fischer,” he growled.
Annalise shuddered, but lost no time wrapping her hand around the base of Jakob’s cock and taking the head into her mouth.
“Get on the bed, Walt. You’re going to fuck our woman while she sucks me.”
Walt shifted, claiming his spot at the bottom of the bed between her legs. “Shit. I forgot the condom,” he muttered, starting to rise.
Annalise released Jakob, shaking her head. “Birth control. Nothing between us. Please.”
Walt glanced at Jakob and saw his own emotions reflected in the other man’s eyes. They were both head over heels in love with this woman, and Walt was certain that would be true until the day they both took their last breaths.
Jakob and Annalise had fallen in love slowly over the course of the past few years. Their feelings had been born from protection, and then turned to friendship, before settling into this comfortable yet passionate love.
Walt was jealous of the years they’d had together without him. It was a weird sentiment, considering he’d only met them a week ago. His brothers would no doubt give him shit. Walt had always seemed the least likely of the Haydens to fall in love at first sight, too practical, too driven, too distracted by his career.
Oscar, though a grumpy fuck, had fallen fast for his first love, Faith, while Langston, a bit of a playboy, had always been open-minded, ready to find his soul mate—or in his case, mates—and fall in love. Walt, on the other hand, had brushed aside the concept of a close relationship, content to settle for casual, infrequent hookups that didn’t interfere with his work.
Now…well, now, he wanted them with a passion that bordered on reckless. He felt completely out of control and he wasn’t about to try to change that fact. Walt lowered his head and bit Annalise’s ass. Not exactly hard, just enough to tease.
She jerked in surprise, his actions catching her off-guard. “Walt?”
“I’ve never felt like this,” he admitted. “Never wanted anyone as badly as I want the two of you. And it’s not a normal desire. It’s overwhelming, consuming. It’s like I’m willingly walking into the fire.” He ran his tongue over the red mark left behind by his teeth. Then he lifted his
hand and spanked her. Just one hard smack that cracked in the quiet room. “I want your pain, your pleasure, your body, your heart. I want to own you, and I want you to own me. I want to lose myself in your arms every single night and never wake up if it means leaving you.”
Annalise studied his face as she looked at him over her shoulder. “Walt,” she whispered.
He held her gaze but didn’t respond. Couldn’t respond. His throat constricted, tight. Had he gone too far?
“Everything. You can have everything you just asked for.”
Walt swallowed heavily, placed his hand on her hip, guided his cock to her pussy, and he thrust in hard. Buried deep, he froze and chanced a look at Jakob.
“Take it,” Jakob said. “Take everything. It’s yours.”
Annalise took Jakob into her mouth once more and this time, she followed Walt’s lead, drawing their lover in deep, half his cock disappearing until he heard the quiet gag that told him Jakob’s dick was touching the back of her throat.
After that, everything went out of focus, so he closed his eyes. Walt thrust in and out of Annalise’s tight, beautiful body. He couldn’t get deep enough, so he took her harder. He stroked her clit with firm fingers, drove the tip of his thumb into her ass, and still it wasn’t enough.
He heard Jakob’s grunts, his demands that Annalise take him deeper, open her throat, swallow him down.
He opened his eyes, watching as Jakob fucked Annalise’s mouth. Or maybe she was fucking him.
Jakob’s fist was clenched around her hair, lifting her up, drawing her back down. His face was etched with pain chiseled from pure ecstasy.
Jakob must have felt Walt’s eyes on him because he glanced up. Walt hadn’t stopped fucking her—he couldn’t.
A muscle in Jakob’s jaw twitched. “She’s ours,” he said through gritted teeth. “Prove it to her.”
It was all Walt needed to hear. He increased his pace, spanking her ass over and over until her orgasm crashed over her, She lifted her head briefly from Jakob’s cock, releasing a loud, beautiful cry, as her inner muscles clenched Walt’s dick so tightly, he saw stars.