“To be expected,” Grae said.
“I had a dream last night. I figured out what my deepest, darkest fantasy is. Only mine isn’t deep.” He yawned again and rubbed his eyes. “Or dark, actually.”
Paige had almost forgotten about the question Grae had posed to them on the boat. She hadn’t given it much thought, and Grae hadn’t bugged for her answer. “Well?” She prodded him.
“Weeell, I want to have sex in public,” Connor answered.
“All three of us?” It was risky for two people to have sex in public and not get caught. But three? Paige wondered if it was possible.
“In my dream we were, yes. But we were on a stage in front of an audience.”
“Like a sex show?” she asked.
Connor shrugged. “I guess so. It was a dream. It’s not like I had all the details.”
“I doubt we’ll be having sex in front of an audience,” Grae finally said.
Oddly enough, it was Grae who ended up smoothing down Connor’s hair. Connor acted like it was a normal thing between the two of them and Paige opened her mouth to mention it but shut it since there was no reason to point it out. The men seemed much closer after last night, and she didn’t want to draw attention to it in case they became self-conscious. Mentally, she shook her head. Self-consciousness and Graedon Ward did not go together. Silly her. What was she thinking?
“No. But maybe we can pull it off somehow,” Connor said. “I mean, we don’t need to be watched, right? It’s the thrill of being caught that’s the excitement.”
“Like having sex on the beach?” Paige suggested.
“No. I’ve had sex on the beach. I won’t be doing that again,” Connor said. “Damp skin, sand, friction, and sensitive parts don’t go together very well.”
“I can imagine,” Grae murmured. “There’s always the bow of the boat.”
“In the marina,” Connor added.
“Yeah, if you want to be arrested, honey,” Paige said, frowning. “That’s a big fat no.”
“We can figure something out,” Grae told him. He turned his gaze down to her, still laying on his chest. “And you? Have you thought about what your deepest, darkest fantasy is?”
“No. But I will. What about you?”
“I’ll reveal mine at the right time,” he answered.
Really? So, he had a fantasy that had to be told at the right moment? Interesting. A blaring ringtone made Paige jump. She didn’t recognize it, so she knew it wasn’t her phone.
No one moved for a moment, but then Connor grabbed the offending cell and passed it over to Grae. “Yours,” he said.
Grae frowned, staring at the Caller-ID.
Paige thought he would let it go to voicemail, but he swiped at the screen at the last second, giving the person on the other end a gruff greeting.
She felt guilty listening to the one-sided conversation, but Grae’s short answers and questions really didn’t give anything away. If Grae wanted privacy, he could excuse himself from the bed, but the conversation was over in minutes.
Connor’s eyes had drifted closed again. Although apparently, he wasn’t actually asleep because he held out his hand for Grae’s phone, and then without a word, put it back on the nightstand.
Paige was dying to ask Grae who would call him on an early Saturday morning but knew him being such a private a man, he probably wouldn’t appreciate the nosiness.
“Well,” Grae started, pushing himself up to a seated position to prop himself against the headboard. As he moved, Paige’s head had slipped into his lap, and he now tangled his fingers into her hair, while his thumb stroked her ear.
Paige never realized how much ears were an erogenous zone. Not until Grae. No man had ever caressed, licked, or sucked her there. Not even Connor.
“Well,” Grae continued. “My sister is going to be in town next weekend. And she would like to get together with me.”
“Which one?” Paige asked, remembering that he had three siblings and Grae was the oldest out of all four.
“The youngest, Gia. However, here’s the thing. She’s bringing my sister and brother along for a visit. Apparently, I’ve been neglecting my family, and since I don’t go to visit them, they have all decided to come here.”
“Here? To this house?” Paige asked, surprised they would even know about her or Connor.
He shook his head. “No. To my house. They’ll be arriving Friday night and staying the weekend.”
Paige couldn’t tell if he felt happy or angry about the unexpected visit. He didn’t talk about his family or their dynamics. And she hadn’t bothered to ask. She knew she would get his typical short answers or none at all. Paige was learning to let him tell them things at his own pace. Every once in a while, he would reveal a piece of his complex puzzle. Usually, when you least expected it.
“So basically, you’re saying that you’ll be back at your house next weekend doing your family thing. Not a problem,” Connor said, burrowing deeper under the covers and plumping a pillow for under his head.
“No, that’s not what I’m saying. That’s what you’re saying,” Grae answered.
“Wait,” Paige said. “Is there a holiday I’m missing, one I don’t know about? Why now?”
“I was told it worked out between their schedules and since I’m not traveling this month for recruiting, it was a good time. Though, they conveniently forgot to ask me how I felt about the whole thing.” Grae sounded a bit bitter.
Now she really wondered what his relationship was like with his family. “It’ll only be for a couple of days, Grae. We’ll survive without you for that long, won’t we, honey?” Paige asked Connor.
Before Connor could answer, Grae spoke, “No. You’ll be coming with me.” He glanced at Connor and then back at Paige. “Both of you.”
Paige’s eyebrows shot to her hairline. She pushed off his lap to sit up, wrapping a corner of the sheet around her. “Do you think that’s a good idea?”
“Should I hide our relationship from my family?”
Good question. Her brother was the only family she had, and he knew about their arrangement. But then he’s the one who started this whole thing. His polyamory relationship and love life showed Paige that a successful threesome was possible.
So, of course, Logan had no problem with it. Or he’d be a hypocrite.
“No, I guess not. But it’s one thing to tell them about it…it’s another thing to shove it in their face when they aren’t expecting it.”
“I’m not shoving anything in their face. If it were just you and me, Paige, I’d expect you to be by my side when my family visits. And vice versa. And if I was gay and Connor was my sole partner, I’d handle it the same way.”
A thumbs up came from beneath the pile of covers on Connor’s side of the bed.
“Does your family even know you’re bi-sexual?” Paige realized he never once had used the bisexual label in regards to his sexuality. But that’s what he was, and society was going to label him, whether he liked it or not.
“I’m sure they do,” he murmured.
No, she wasn’t convinced yet. “Have you actually told them, though?”
“It’s not a thing that you normally bring up at a family brunch, Paige.”
Maybe he was right. Logan never actually announced he was bisexual. He just fell in love with Ty and Ty became a part of his life. In fact, Paige had thought Logan was gay, not bisexual, for the longest time. It wasn’t until he brought Quinn into his already established relationship that the light dawned on Paige that her brother was bi. Not that she ever cared. She only ever wanted her brother to be happy. Especially after the rough start to his life.
Ty had made Logan a better person. And she loved Ty like a brother and Quinn like a sister, proving family wasn’t always blood.
“You have to treat our relationship like any other relationship,” Grae said, he grabbed her wrist and brought it to his lips. The tip of his tongue tickled her skin there, and she relaxed a little, settling back al
“I never said I wanted to hide it,” Paige said.
“Are you nervous about meeting my family?” he asked her.
“No, not nervous. More like anxious about how they are going to react. But really, isn’t any new girlfriend or boyfriend nervous to meet their new beau’s family?”
Grae chuckled at her use of “beau.” “I suppose you’re right. I might be a bit anxious when meeting Connor’s family for the first time.”
At the mention of his name, Connor peeked his head out from under the covers. “Uh, that isn’t going to happen anytime soon. They’re all back in Australia. And they’re not so open-minded. Believe me. In fact, they weren’t happy when I married a crazy American.”
Paige grabbed a pillow from behind her and reached over Grae to whack Connor. “Crazy American. Please. They were happy when I took you away. And your family loves me.”
Connor made a sound as he ducked under the covers again to avoid another strike of the pillow. Laughing, his two hands came out in surrender. “If you bruise me, baby, I’ll introduce myself to his siblings as your sex slave.”
Paige laughed. “That would really have their heads spinning.”
Paige’s head was spinning. Enough so, that the sound of the doorbell made her jump out of her skin. She bit her bottom lip as she wrung her hands.
This would be the first time their new relationship was on display to strangers. Well, strangers to her and Connor, anyway.
Grae scowled at her until she released her lip. “Calm down. You’re making this a much bigger deal than it is.”
“Whatever, Mr. Cool-Calm-and-Collected.”
He shook his head and walked to the front entry to let his guests, aka siblings, in.
Paige waited—more like hid—in the kitchen wondering where the hell Connor was. Grae’s house was much bigger than theirs, and she had a hard time keeping track of where the men were sometimes.
A mixture of voices rose and fell from the front entryway, and Paige thought she might pass out at any moment. Her heart pounded, and she felt surprised she wasn’t in a cold sweat already.
She could hear Grae doing his host duties, helping them with their luggage, and whatever else they needed assistance with.
She still had time to slip out the back and run away. But she froze in place instead as what sounded like a herd of noisy humans came closer. She gripped the counter for support and pasted a stiff smile on her face. She hoped it looked at least a little bit genuine.
It slipped a little as his first sister walked into the kitchen.
Holy fuck, where were they from? The Amazon?
His sister—Paige didn’t know which one—was tall. And beautiful. Her dark skin and makeup were flawless. Her black hair long and straight. And she had curves that didn’t quit in an outfit that was impeccably stylish.
Paige felt suddenly conscious of how casually she was dressed.
The woman stopped short when she saw Paige and let out a little “Oh!” She looked back over her shoulder and said, “Grae, there’s a white woman in your kitchen. Is she the housekeeper?”
What remained of Paige’s smile fell flat. In fact, it fell so far, it turned into a frown.
Housekeeper?
Grae’s deep chuckle came from down the hallway.
He ushered the rest of his family into the kitchen, and they all lined up staring at her like they’ve never seen a woman before. Or maybe a woman in Grae’s house. Which made her shoot him a glance.
He gave her a twisted smile. Well, she was glad Grae found this amusing because she didn’t like being on display like an animal in a zoo.
Grae stepped forward to stand by Paige’s side. “Well, Gayle, you’re right about one thing. She’s a white woman. That’s hard to miss. But she’s not my housekeeper. In fact, she doesn’t like to clean up dirt; she plays with it instead.” He leaned over and kissed Paige on the lips.
Paige didn’t kiss him back. She simply stood there blinking, her eyes not leaving the lineup of his two sisters and brother. They were all tall. Between their similar skin tone and facial features, as well as their height, she could easily see they were related.
“Paige, these are my incorrigible siblings, and I hope they don’t scare you away.”
“I don’t scare easily,” Paige muttered.
“That’s good because that’s not my sisters’ intent. Right, ladies?” Grae’s brother said, stepping forward. He held out his hand.
They could be twins, Grae and this nameless brother. The biggest differences were his hair being tightly trimmed to this head, no facial hair, and wasn’t anywhere near as built as Grae. He was slimmer, but still looked in very good shape, and just as handsome. And it appeared they were the exact same height.
“I’m Gryff.”
Interesting name.
Grae’s brother shook his head, still holding out his hand, waiting for Paige to accept it. “Gryffin Ward. Gryff for short,” he corrected.
Paige shook his hand. It was as broad and strong as Grae’s. “You could be twins,” she murmured.
“Don’t get any ideas,” Grae said under his breath before introducing his two sisters.
Gayle, the sister who had entered the kitchen first, was in the middle age-wise, sort of, because it was hard to be in the middle with four children. She had to be at least six inches taller than her. Paige guessed she was in her late twenties, but couldn’t be sure. Grae’s other sister was introduced as Gia. If she were an inch shorter than Gayle, Paige would be surprised. The women were curvy, for sure, and absolutely stunning. Their family had been a winner in the gene pool. Well, except for the heart condition that had plagued Grae.
Gia seemed to warm up to Paige quicker than Gayle, who stood back a bit, reserved. Paige took it to be because Gia was the youngest of the bunch.
She approached the two of them and gave Paige a hug in greeting and then punched Grae in the arm. “Big brother, why didn’t you tell us that you had a girlfriend?”
Heat flamed up Paige’s cheeks. If only it were that simple.
“Since when has Grae volunteered any personal information about his life to us?” Gayle asked, sounding a little perturbed about it.
“It’s always been like pulling teeth to get any news from him. Why are you surprised?” Gryff asked, giving Paige a smile and a wink as if she could commiserate.
Yeah, she could.
Grae laid an arm around Paige’s shoulder and pulled her against his side. “Now you know,” was all he said.
Typical Grae.
Gia laughed and shook her head. “Well, I, for one, am glad to see you, big brother. I’ve missed you. And I’m glad you’re getting laid.” She bounced on her toes. “But I need the little girl’s room. Please point the way.” She disappeared back the way they had come.
The rest of them stood looking at each other, a bit uncomfortable until Grae made a move. “Why don’t we head into the living room so we can all relax before dinner.”
“That sounds like a plan,” Gryff agreed, evidently ready to break the awkwardness.
Grae handed Paige a couple bottles of wine, then he picked up a tray of stemmed glasses and they all trooped into the living room. He’d already set up trays of cheese and crackers around the room and lit the gas fireplace, though more for the ambiance than for warmth since it was late in the season for a fire.
Paige waited for Grae’s brother and sister to pick spots to settle into around the room. They migrated to the loveseat and recliner leaving Grae and Paige the sofa.
Then before she could move to the couch, Gia rushed in, dragging Connor behind her. “I found this one down the hall. Does he belong to anyone?” She beamed at Connor, and he returned the smile. She unmistakably batted her eyelashes at him. “Because if he doesn’t, then I’m going to keep him. He’s got the cutest accent.”
“He’s not a stray kitten, Gia,” Grae said.
His youngest sister laughed and shrugged. “It’s not finders, keepers? Well, it was worth a shot.”
“Are there any other people just wandering around your house that we should be aware of?” Gayle asked.
“No. That should be the last one. Connor, you’ve already met my little sister, Gia. The one with the stick up her ass over there is Gayle, and that’s my brother Gryffin.”
“Gryff,” his brother corrected, rising from his seat just enough to reach out and shake hands with Connor.
“This is Connor Morgan. Paige’s husband.”
Gryff’s chair complained loudly when he dropped abruptly back into it, a stunned look on his face.
“Damn, he is taken,” Gia said, disappointed, not joining in on her older siblings’ shock.
“Yes, sorry, I am,” Connor said, acting like he could care less about the bomb Grae just dropped. He moved to the sideboard and started to pour the wine.
Paige envied his easiness about the whole situation. In contrast, she felt like a deer caught in headlights. In any case, she guessed there wasn’t an easy way to explain their relationship. Better just to rip off the Band-Aid.
“Grae…” Gayle started, a frown on her face.
“Connor, can you give my sister a glass of wine? She looks like she needs it.”
Gayle accepted the wineglass and took a sip. And then another.
“So wait… What am I missing?” Gia asked, standing in the center of the room, her glass halfway to her lips. “I thought Paige was your girlfriend?”
Paige hated the term girlfriend because it sounded so sophomoric. Plus, she felt sure Grae disliked it too.
“Something like that,” Grae murmured, settling on the couch to face his siblings.
Grae reached his hand out to Paige, and she took it. He pulled her towards the couch, encouraging her to sit next to him. She did, though she felt a little uncomfortable about it with Gayle across the way staring at them, obviously not a happy camper.
Gryff seemed to be taking the disclosure in stride.
Gia appeared to have too many thoughts wanting to escape her head. So different from her oldest brother. She gazed over at Paige. “So your husband doesn’t mind you sleeping with my brother?”
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