Bedfellows

by Lola Leighton

  I slid myself into it and took a long sip. “Thank you.”

  “Anything for you, baby.” Sullivan flashed me that crooked smile that I loved, and then got back to work chopping and slicing.

  A few minutes later, I heard the rattle of keys at the front door. A second later, Will rounded the corner and entered the kitchen.

  “Smells good. What's for dinner?” he said to Sullivan as he joined me by the counter.

  “Steak and grilled vegetables,” Sullivan replied.

  Will placed one hand on my cheek and guided my mouth toward his, stopping just before our lips touched.

  He frowned and pulled back.

  “What?” I asked.

  “Lipstick.” He muttered it like it was a curse word.

  I'd nearly forgotten. I'd applied red lipstick before work that morning, and had touched it up at the end of the day. Will had given me a hard time—refusing to kiss me before I left and teasing that he was going to institute a no-lipstick rule. I'd only rolled my eyes and laughed, treating Sullivan to a big kiss on his cheek and leaving a red mark on his skin.

  “I wouldn't tease her right now, man,” Sullivan warned. “I just got a stern talking to about allowing someone else to cut my hair.”

  I snorted, chuckling into my wineglass.

  Will stroked my cheek, his gaze on my mouth again. “You're killing me, sweetheart.”

  I only rolled my eyes. He could still kiss me if he really wanted to. It was only lipstick, wasn’t like I’d coated my lips with anthrax.

  After we'd eaten and the dishes were cleaned up, all three of us retreated to the media room upstairs, Sullivan promising to find the perfect movie we could all agree on. I didn't think it'd be difficult. We generally agreed. Lipstick and haircuts aside. Truthfully, we'd fallen into an easy rhythm as roommates—Sullivan primarily did the cooking and Will and I shared the dishes clean up. It just worked for us.

  As Sullivan and Will looked over the new movie releases, I excused myself to the bathroom where I reapplied my lipstick in the mirror, smirking at my reflection.

  Feeling bold, I returned to the media room, trying not to smile. I felt almost giddy, like I was taking back power from the ultra-macho Will.

  Sullivan's gazed zeroed in on my bold red lips immediately and he shook his head, a mischievous glint in his eyes. I joined them on the couch, sitting down between them, and waited. It only took a second for Will to notice.

  And when he did, he let out a groan. “Jesus, babe. More lipstick?”

  I smiled and batted my eyelashes. I felt a little evil just then, but he was just so fun to tease. “Kiss me.”

  Will shook his head slowly. “You're trouble, you know that?”

  Turing my head toward Sullivan, he allowed me to press a soft kiss to his lips. He wiped the trace of red away with the back of his hand. But the smile on his lips told me he didn't mind at all.

  “Yes, but I'm the best kind of trouble,” I murmured.

  Sliding from the couch, I lowered myself to my knees on the carpeting in front of Will. With nimble fingertips I began to work at the buckle on his belt.

  “What are you …” the words died on Will's tongue as I unbuttoned his jeans and drew down the zipper.

  I was showing him that I had my own opinions, that I held strength in this relationship too, that we were all three on equal footing.

  Will's throat moved as he swallowed, his gaze latched on my careful movements as I pushed his boxers down just enough to draw out his cock.

  It was already hard but growing firmer by the second. And when I slid my hand along the length of him, he twitched in my palm.

  Both men watched as I lowered my face toward Will's lap, placing one kiss against the tip of him. A red lip print stained the head of his cock.

  “Oops,” I said, blinking up at him.

  “Clean it off,” Will said, voice impossibly tight.

  Leaning forward, I treated him to a long, slow lick, earning me a soft grunt as my tongue swirled around his hot flesh.

  I could feel Sullivan's eyes tracking my movements, and it only made me hotter. Knowing he was watching made this feel ten-thousand times more taboo.

  “More,” Will groaned, leaning back against the couch and lacing his fingers behind his head.

  Sullivan slid closer, petting my hair back from my face, and tucking it behind one ear. “You are so fucking sexy,” he groaned.

  “She's naughty is what she is.”

  I smiled, my mouth still working, tongue gliding along the firm length of Will's swollen shaft.

  “Suck him deeper,” Sullivan ordered, his voice a low growl.

  The idea that he was getting turned on watching me with Will twisted inside me, sparking a delicious curl of heat low in my belly. And I immediately obeyed, sucking him down as far as I could go, before retreating to draw a shaky breath.

  “Faster,” Sullivan growled.

  I continued treating Will to teasing licks and deep kisses, with both men's breathing growing ragged.

  “You're making a mess,” Will said, one large palm cupping my cheek.

  In the low light of the room, I could see what he meant. His cock held the evidence of my trademark color, the root of him smudged with a distinct ring of red. I was sure it was smeared all to hell across my mouth, too, but I didn't care about that right now. Especially not with the way they were looking at me like I was a goddess reincarnate.

  With one hand on the top of my head to guide me, Will's head fell back against the couch, as I worked up and down over him.

  “Gonna come,” he murmured. “Get ready for it.”

  I sealed my mouth around him as hot spurts of cum jetted down my throat and Will let out a low sound of pleasure.

  Rising on shaky legs, I excused myself to the bathroom where I cleaned up, and wiped the last traces of lipstick from my mouth. Then I returned to the media room, where Will had fastened his jeans, and he and Sullivan sat in silence, waiting for my return. I almost expected them to pounce on me, but instead, they were watching me with a stunned sort of silence.

  I settled down between them and grabbed the remote. “I'm thinking something girly, like a rom-com.”

  Neither of them said a thing, merely blinking at me as I selected a movie and pressed play.

  After several seconds of silence, I patted Will's thigh. “I'm in the mood for some popcorn. Go make me some?”

  “Uh.” He swallowed. “Yeah. Sure.”

  When he retreated down the stairs, Sullivan pulled me into his lap. “I have no idea what's gotten into you, but that was so fucking hot.”

  Nestled against him, I could feel that he was still hard. I removed myself from his lap and patted his shoulder. “Not right now, tiger, I really do want to watch this movie.”

  He exhaled slowly and lobbed me a smile. “You really are naughty.”

  ***

  Later in bed, Will was sound asleep on my left, and Sullivan was still awake on my right. I'd gotten used to sleeping between them, and now I had no idea how I'd go back to sleeping alone. As far as I was concerned, three definitely was not a crowd. There was something decidedly cozy about it.

  “Can't sleep,” Sullivan whispered.

  “Me neither,” I whispered back.

  “You horny?” he asked.

  I flicked him on the shoulder blade. “You're not getting your dick sucked tonight.”

  He chuckled. “It was worth a shot.”

  I rolled my eyes.

  “That was really fucking hot,” he murmured, trailing his fingertips down my bare spine.

  I shrugged. “I really just wanted to teach him a lesson.”

  I could see Sullivan's answering smile in the near darkness. “I don't think he'll ever hassle you about wearing lipstick again.”

  Then I'd achieved my goal. As I thought back to tonight in the media room, the memory of Sullivan watching me suck Will off made my heart pump faster.

  “Can I ask you something without you freaking out?”
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  “You can ask me anything,” he said.

  I chewed on my lower lip, weighing my words. “Have you and Will ever … done anything sexual together—like just the two of you?”

  He didn't answer right away, and in the span of those ten seconds, my heartrate started to climb.

  “No,” he said finally.

  “But tonight, you watched. You're not repulsed by each other, and sometimes you even seem to appreciate the view.”

  “Yeah, I guess.”

  His raw honesty meant everything. I knew that Sullivan would never lie to me. In fact, I knew he'd do everything in his power to make sure I felt safe, happy, and comforted. That did something to a girl. Leaning in closer, I pressed a soft kiss to his lips.

  “Have you ever been with a man?” I ventured next.

  “A long time ago, yes. But I was young. It was just meaningless experimentation.”

  “But it wasn’t Will?”

  “It wasn't Will.”

  Did that mean that Sullivan was interested in more, but Will wasn't? My mind was spinning with possibilities.

  “No more questions. Let's go to sleep.”

  He patted my butt, silencing the questions that remained unspoken on my tongue

  “Goodnight,” I said.

  Soon, Sullivan's breathing had grown deep and even, matching Will's. But I knew that sleep was still a long way off for me, as I wondered what this new revelation meant for our future.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Sullivan

  Things at work were going great, and things at home were even better. I'd never met a woman quite like Adrienne before. She was confident and outspoken, but still obedient enough to be everything both Will and I required of her. She couldn't cook to save her life, and she had a bad habit of leaving the toilet seat down, but other than that, I couldn't fault her with a single complaint. And I knew Will felt the exact same way.

  It had been three weeks since the repairs in Adrienne's apartment had been completed, and two since she'd decided to sublet the place to a student at the nearby community college. The fact that she'd decided to take the leap of faith and move in with us meant everything.

  Except now shit was about to hit the fan. Or, at least that's how it felt. Adrienne's mom was coming to visit this weekend and was set to arrive in the next fifteen minutes. Adrienne had taken off for the airport an hour ago, insistent on collecting her mom alone, and Will and I were tidying the house. It wasn't even messy, yet neither of us could quite seem to sit still. Which was how I found myself sorting through a stack of old junk mail and coupons.

  “Do we want this?” I held up a colorful, half-page ad in a flyer to show Will. “Half-priced appetizer at that Irish pub down the road?”

  Will shook his head. “You need to relax, dude.”

  I raised my eyebrows. “And you don't?” I glanced toward where he was frantically wiping down a mirror in the hallway. A mirror that didn't have one single streak.

  He blew out a frustrated breath and tossed the paper towel into the trash. “You're right.”

  I heard the crunch of tires in the driveway and my stomach erupted in nerves. This was it. We knew how incredibly close Adrienne was with her family, and if her mom didn't approve, this could be the end.

  “They're here.”

  I nodded.

  We stationed ourselves by the door, both of us milling around nervously. I couldn't recall doing this before—meeting the parents of a girl we were serious about. We'd fielded questions from best friends and over-involved siblings, and even one chick's pastor over the years, but this was new territory for me and Will, and I wasn't exaggerating when I said it fucking terrified me.

  I took a deep breath and pulled open the door.

  Adrienne's mother was vibrant and attractive with shoulder-length silver hair and bright blue eyes. It was a first-hand look at how Adrienne may look in about thirty years. That thought alone made me smile because she was the face of our future and I loved the way that looked.

  “You made it,” I called.

  Adrienne held her mom's hand, rolling a suitcase with the other. She looked so happy to have her mom here, and her smile was contagious.

  Will trotted out to retrieve the suitcase, and followed behind him, stopping in front of Adrienne.

  “Sullivan, this is my mom. And Mom, this is Sullivan, and that’s Will.”

  The woman's gaze traveled between us and her lips pursed. Adrienne had explained our relationship over the phone several weeks ago, but seeing it in the flesh was a whole different animal.

  She stuck out a hand toward me. “Call me Betsey.”

  I shook her hand, and then Will did the same. “We're so happy that you're here. Come inside.”

  When Adrienne had invited her, she'd had to talk her mom into staying here with us, promising that we had plenty of extra bedrooms. Betsey would be staying in the room that I'd vacated ever since Adrienne had moved in and I’d relocated into Will's bedroom to be with them.

  Adrienne talked when she was nervous. She gave her mom a tour of the place, Will and I in tow, chatting insistently about every detail from the crown molding to the tankless water heater to the color of the stain on the cabinets. They were details we'd shared with her when she moved in, and I had no idea that she memorized so many of them.

  Betsey nodded and smiled at all the right times, but still I wasn't about to let my guard down. I was guessing that Adrienne got her spirit from her mother, which meant we may have to field some tough and honest questions later about our intentions with her daughter.

  The tour concluded, a bottle of wine was opened, and still I was waiting for the grilling to start. But it didn't. Instead Adrienne and her mother sat perched at the kitchen island with their wineglasses as I drew out ingredients for chicken marsala.

  As I cooked, Betsey admired my technique, and we shared secrets for grilling fish and how to get roast chicken to come out of the oven perfectly moist. She was pleasant and attentive, and I started to suspect that maybe we'd all made a big deal out of nothing. Perhaps all it was going to take to accept us was to see her daughter happy and in love. And there was no denying that's where this was headed. It was fast, yes, but not unheard of. We'd been living together for a month, and it'd been one of the best months of my life. I knew Will was every bit as smitten with her as I was, which made me bone-deep happy.

  During the meal, Betsey indulged in our curiosities about a young Adrienne, painting a picture of a quiet, studious girl who loved her church youth group and cheerleading. Will and I exchanged a look.

  After dinner, the dishes were loaded into the dishwasher by Will while I wiped down the table. And then we sat in the living room, Adrienne wedged on the sofa between Will and I, and Betsey sitting in the arm chair across from us, looking down into her third glass of chardonnay.

  “So … “ she began, her mouth twitching. “About this unique lifestyle of yours…”

  “Mom,” Adrienne warned, her tone hushed.

  I placed one hand on Adrienne's knee, silencing her. “I'm sure you have questions. Fire away.”

  “We'll be happy to answer any of them,” Will added.

  Adrienne’s eyes pleaded with her mother's, but Betsey ignored her, seemingly emboldened by the glass of wine in her hand. “How long have you two been living this way?”

  I looked at Will, pretty sure that he was going to field this particular question.

  He nodded, and then his gaze swung over to Betsey. “We met when we were kids staying at the same orphanage, and we quickly became best friends. Over the years, that relationship changed a bit as we grew, our romantic interests aligning, but one thing that never changed and never will is our friendship. We have a mutual respect, and an understanding. We own a home together, a successful business. We've stuck together through it all, and honestly we see no need to part and go our separate ways. I guess you could say we're family. And while we knew that finding a woman to suit us both wouldn't be easy, it's just how we're
wired, I guess. Deep down we have pretty traditional values. We want a wife, children someday.”

  Betsey brought her glass to her lips with trembling fingers. After a long swallow, she exhaled slowly, as though pained. “I'm sorry, I just don't see how something like that could ever work. Not for the long haul anyway. Adrienne's father and I have been married for thirty years, and there's so much compromise, so much open communication needed. Often times it's hard to get two people to see eye to eye, let alone three.”

  I nodded. “I understand your concern. Truly, I do. I hope that we can prove to you our devotion and maybe even win you over.”

  Betsey stayed silent, her eyes downcast.

  Okay then.

  Adrienne gave me a sympathetic look. It wasn't the most promising start, but I wasn't about to give up.

  A short time later, Will carried her suitcase upstairs and Adrienne retreated to help Betsey get settled.

  By the time she joined us in the bedroom, Will was reading in bed and I'd just finished brushing my teeth.

  When Adrienne stepped into the room, it was like all the air had been sucked out. I crossed the room and folded her into my arms. With tears in her eyes, Adrienne pressed her face to my chest. Will rose from the bed and joined us, wrapping Adrienne in his arms as I released her to his grasp. I thought she might cry, but then she drew a deep, shuddering breath and stepped back.

  “It's okay,” she said.

  I couldn't help but smile at her. Here she was the one upset, and still she was consoling us.

  I cupped her cheek with my palm. “It will all work out.”

  Her eyes met mine, and there were huge pools of endless blue.

  “You okay, sweetheart?” Will asked.

  “I think so,” she whispered.

  “Let's get you to bed. Come on.” I took her hand and led her toward the bed.

  Will worked on stripping her out of everything until she stood before us in a pair of light blue cotton panties.

  I wanted her. But that was nothing new, I always wanted her. But even more than that, my chest ached for her, and I just wanted to see her smile again.