“I wanted both of you, but in different ways.”
“Like now?”
She breathed deep and released the tension slowly. This date had not turned out like she expected. She’d expected to have a nice, quiet supper, reminiscing over old times, then going back home for a pot of Nona’s coffee. Now ... “When did you tell him you loved him?”
“When we were on a camping trip in school. We were eighteen.” He laid his head against the back of the seat and stared at the night sky through the moon roof.
Natalie heard the regret in his voice. She reached out and touched his arm with her hand. “What happened?”
She didn’t think he’d answer her. The interior of the car grew so quiet she could hear the ticking of her wristwatch. Just when she felt compelled to tell him not to worry about it, he shifted in his seat and looked at her.
“We filled my uncle’s old skiff full of booze and snacks and went over to Deer Island. You know, the inlet on the south side, where no one can see you.”
Natalie nodded but didn’t say anything, scared he would stop talking. In her heart, she knew she didn’t really want to hear what he was telling her, but she needed to understand. The two men had been friends since they were five years old; then one summer that friendship had disappeared, as if it had never happened. She’d never known what had caused the two to separate.
“We drank and talked about girls, you in particular.” He reached over and feathered his fingers through her hair, tucking a strand behind her ear. “We ended up drunk, lying out on the sand, staring up at a full moon.” He laughed.
“How romantic can you get, huh?” His hand dropped and he turned to face the front. He wrapped his fingers around the steering wheel. His knuckles showed white in the darkness. “I looked at him and I just couldn’t stop from kissing him.”
Natalie heard her indrawn breath. She closed her eyes. David’s pain at the renewed memories made her heart ache. “What did Nico do?”
“He was shocked at first and didn’t do anything. When I pulled him closer and told him to pretend I was you, he responded.”
David turned his face to her. In the dark, she saw his drawn features. His eyes glittered with regret. “I knew then the only way to have him would be through you. I gave him everything I could, but in the end it wasn’t enough.”
Natalie cried out when David grabbed her upper arms and pulled her close. His lips were hot and hungry against hers. She turned her head left ... then right. “D-David!”
“I want to know what you have that I don’t. Your lips aren’t any softer than mine.” He sighed. “God, I sucked his cock that night. When he came, he called out your name.”
Silence tore through the car. Natalie didn’t struggle against the hands that bit into her flesh. David hurt, and she wanted to help him.
“The next morning when I woke, he’d swum back to shore. We’ve not been friends since.”
His grip eased and she sat quietly in his arms while he held her, rocking back and forth in the dark, taking what little comfort she could offer. She lifted a hand and petted his head. “I’m sorry.”
“I don’t want to be alone tonight, Natalie.” He raised his head. “Stay with me?”
She shook her head. A part of her still wanted David, but the other part knew she belonged to Nico. “I can’t.”
“You can have the bed. I’ll take the couch.”
He looked so earnest in his offer. His mouth turned up in that devious smile of his and his eyes begged like a lost puppy. “Please?”
“Don’t be silly; we can share the bed.”
The eyes twinkled in delight. “But strictly platonic, huh?”
“Yes.” She watched his smile fade into a sadness she could relate to, as he got out and walked to her side of the car. He opened her door and held out his hand. She didn’t hesitate placing her hand into his. This man she could trust.
“I lived with a man for three years while I was in New York.” She slipped her arm through David’s. “I thought I loved him.”
“You didn’t?”
“No.” They walked up the stairs to his apartment with slow, relaxed steps. At the door, she turned to him. “Turns out he just reminded me of someone I thought I couldn’t have.”
“Nico?”
David’s key scraped into the keyhole and clicked. He swung the door wide for her to walk through.
Natalie stood on her tiptoes and kissed his cheek. “He reminded me of you.”
She stepped past him and entered the darkened apartment. The stale aroma of cigarettes permeated the air. She reached back and took David’s hand. “Let’s go to bed.”
He squeezed her fingers before he closed the door. Tonight they accepted their relationship -- friends, not lovers, like she’d dreamed in the past. But tomorrow brought another day with a hope for something new and exciting. He’d offered her a way to have both the men she cared for, if she only had the nerve to reach out and take what could be hers.
Neither saw the lone figure sitting quietly in the shadows of the building, watching their every move.
Chapter Seven
The music had an eerie quality, but she didn’t mind. Today was her wedding day. She clutched the bouquet in her hand tight and stepped forward. She looked down the aisle and found the two men she’d always loved. They must have made up, because they stood side by side in their tuxedoes. Natalie smiled up at the man who led her down the aisle.
The smile turned into a frown. She tried to pull her arm away, but the man held her tight.
“You’re not running away again, Natalie. This time, you will accept the candy that is offered you.” He nodded his head toward the altar. “One dark, one light.”
“Noooo ...”
Natalie sat up with a jerk, clutching the bed covers to her chest and gasping. Sweat clung to her skin and she could feel the heat from the morning sun, streaming through the bedroom window. She took a deep breath to steady her pulse. Where the hell had that come from? She’d never been known to have nightmares. Now in the space of a couple days, she’d had two.
“Nona’s damn bay leaves.”
“What’s that?”
She looked up to see David coming through the bedroom door with a tray. He kicked the door shut with his foot, then headed for her. She shook her head in response to his question and waved her hand. “What’s all this?”
“This is to thank you for last night.”
Last night? Natalie glanced around, hoping she hadn’t forgotten something very important. She didn’t remember drinking anything stronger than Irish coffee after supper, but --
“For lending me a shoulder to cry on, so to speak.”
“Oh. Yeah. Right.”
“Had you worried there for a second?”
She shook her head, but when she saw the laughter in his eyes, she smiled. “Well, for a second.”
“Don’t worry. When we sleep together, you won’t forget it.”
“When?”
David placed the tray across her lap, then picked up the red rose. The image of another rose drifted across her memory. He feathered it under her nose. The fragrance, strong and sweet, tickled her nostrils. “I think we should give Nico what he wants.”
Natalie reached for the orange juice on the tray. “And that is ... what?”
“Both of us.”
She choked. Her juice spluttered over her plate. “We had this discussion last night. It sounded ... intriguing, but I don’t know.”
David grabbed the napkin and dabbed her face and mouth. Natalie tried to take the paper from him, but he continued his task and his proposition.
“Think about it, Nat. He wants you. I want you --”
“Wait a minute. Since when do you want me?”
“I’ve always wanted you, but I just wanted him more. I didn’t say I don’t like women.” He snorted. “I love women. I just prefer men.”
Natalie waved her hand in the air. Makes perfect sense to me. She picked up her fork and s
tabbed her sausage. “I’m confused. Last night you were crying in your cup over Nico. Now, you want me to believe you want to have sex with me.”
“I do, but with the three of us together.” He leaned over her and took a bite of the sausage before she could get the meat into her mouth. “He’d love watching me fuck you.”
“Aha! That’s why you want to have sex with me.” The sight of his white teeth clamping into the sausage flashed an image she’d tried to repress. The image of him and Nico, having oral sex while she watched. Her clit throbbed, and she squeezed her thighs together.
“Yeah, but I think you’re attractive, too.” He lifted the covers and scooted into bed beside her. “You’ve always wanted me, so how ’bout it?”
Natalie opened her mouth to respond, but there was a loud bang bang bang on the front door. She looked at David. He shrugged and got up, letting a bout of cool air swish in over her legs. She shivered and pulled the blankets closer around her before she resumed her breakfast.
Two bites later, the bedroom door crashed open and she spilled her juice a second time. “Dammit, David --”
She looked up into dark eyes beneath fierce black eyebrows drawn together into a scowl. David inched into the room behind Nico, trying to explain.
“Look, it’s not what you think.”
Nico glanced at David, and his eyes narrowed further. “Yeah? What is it then?”
David looked at her; she looked at him. “Okay, you caught us.”
“David!” Natalie couldn’t believe what she was hearing. He had decided to put his “plan” into motion without her agreement.
“We slept together last night.” He turned and pointed a finger at Natalie. “And don’t you try to deny that you were in my bed all night.”
She opened her mouth, then stopped. She couldn’t deny being in David’s bed all night, because she had been. She just hadn’t been having sex in said bed. She opened her mouth again.
“I think actions speak louder than words. Don’t bother trying to explain.”
Nico’s words were spoken in a soft voice, but she heard the venom beneath. She closed her mouth again. There would be no use in trying to defend herself when he was in this kind of mood. He hadn’t listened yesterday; why would he today?
She shrugged. “If you’ve made up your mind, there’s nothing I can do to change it, is there?”
“No.” He turned and left the room with David following close behind.
Natalie flinched when he slammed the door. The eggs and sausage lay on her plate, but she couldn’t have eaten if she’d tried. A movement caught her eye. She glanced up to see David leaning against the door frame, rubbing his chin. A red mark spread beneath his fingers.
“He hit you?”
“Yeah.”
“You deserved it.”
David grinned. “I got his attention though.”
* * * * *
Sisters of Mercy blared through the garage, loud enough David had to cover his ears when he walked past the speakers. He’d never understood Nico’s taste for Goth rock. Granted he always wore black and his hair always looked as if it could use a trim, or two, or three, but he didn’t fit your stereotypical Goth.
Climbing over a row of boxes containing motorcycle engine parts, he spotted Nico’s long frame stretched out on the cement floor with one leg bent at the knee and leaning to the side. The view of his crotch caught David’s attention.
Nice package. His cock hardened at a sight he hadn’t seen in a while. David clenched his jaw. This wasn’t the time to be drooling over the man’s gorgeous bod. Natalie had sent him on a mission. Explain, or else.
It was the “or else” part that had him scared. For such a tiny thing, she sure could dish out the orders. The image of her standing over him and Nico with a whip flashed through his mind. He bit back a groan and shifted his hips to relieve the sudden pressure against his fly.
“You gonna stare at me all day, or is there a reason you’re here?”
Nico had caught him. “Never could sneak up on you. With that crap blowing a hole through the stratosphere, I’m surprised you can hear any--”
The song ended.
“--thing.” David’s voice ricocheted off the metal walls of the building. Before another one could start, he walked to the stereo system set up against the far wall and turned the volume to a dull roar. “Jesus, man, where do you find this stuff?”
Nico rolled his large frame, bent his knees, and stood, wiping his greasy fingers on a stained rag. He shook his head, examining his hands. “Here and there.”
A man of many words. That was the problem. Nico never told anyone anything, and trying to probe the layers of his mind was like pulling teeth -- damned big, long molars that wouldn’t let go. David sighed. “Nico --”
“Don’t bother, Dave. You won the bet. She’s always wanted you.” He threw the rag into a box filled with other dirty rags in the corner. “Now, she’s got you. I hope you don’t decide you can’t stand pussy anymore and go for a big, fat dick.” Nico pointed a finger at him. “Because if you hurt her, I swear I’ll kick your ass.”
“Wait a minute.” David’s voice rose. He looked around to make sure no one was within hearing distance. He took a step closer to Nico. His lips compressed against what he really wanted to say. “I came here because Natalie made me.”
“Never figured you’d end up pussy-whupped, bro.”
“Fuck you!”
Nico had him by the collar so fast David hadn’t been able to blink. He felt his feet leave the floor, his back shoved against the cold metal of the wall. Tools scattered and clanged to the floor. Nico leaned close, so close that his breath came in hot spurts across his cheek. David swallowed the fear that rose in his throat. The sheer power of the other man’s body rippled beneath a thin layer of cotton. Nico could make mincemeat of him if he wanted, without working up a sweat.
“You already did that, friend. Or have you forgotten?”
The words were soft, but David heard the lethal note in the seductive voice. A shiver of excitement mixed with the fear; his cock twitched. He placed his hand around Nico’s wrist and squeezed, hoping the contact would ease Nico’s grip.
It didn’t. His collar tightened to the point of asphyxiation; he coughed. “I remember.” His voice sounded husky and strained. “I also remember how you enjoyed what I did to you ... ack --” David’s hands clutched and pulled at the pressure around his throat.
Nico growled, but David ignored the unspoken threat. With one hand, he reached down and did the only thing he could think of that would force Nico to release him. He smoothed his palm up Nico’s crotch, letting his fingers caress the bulge. The cock had looked massive before he touched the outline, but now, the pulsing flesh hardened and quivered, growing longer and thicker beneath the rough denim fabric.
Nico stiffened.
David’s fingers tightened, then withdrew. He angled back across one of the work tables with Nico’s shove. He swallowed, wincing against the searing pain in his throat as saliva coated his esophagus. He sucked the much-needed oxygen in through his mouth and gagged. The cough sounded like a bark, raspy and deep.
He watched Nico pace back and forth like a caged animal. He raked his hands through long strands of black hair. The resemblance to Luke struck; David’s gaze narrowed. The build, the loose-limbed gait, the coloring ... They had to be related.
“You ever meet your father?” The question escaped before he had a chance to think over the reaction he’d receive. Dread pitted in the base of his gut.
Nico’s agitation came to a halt. He turned to face David with a frown on his face that resembled a murderous black mask. “What ... in ... hell ... does my no-good, bastard father have to do with any of this?”
“N-Nothin’.” David shook his head, held out a hand in denial, and stumbled forward, still needing more oxygen to clear the dizziness that had overwhelmed him a few minutes before. Any longer, and he’d have passed out from the pressure of Nico’s fingers around
his windpipe. “I’m not thinking ... clear.”
“Get out of here.” Nico pointed to the door. “Don’t come back.”
“Natalie --”
“What does Natalie want?”
David stood straighter, trying to get the words out, but the pain in his throat had him doubled over in a fit of coughing. Through the tears that pooled in his eyes, he heard a soft, feminine voice.
“She wants the three of us to become lovers.”
Natalie! David spotted her through the bout of coughing and moisture. A sight for sore eyes. If anyone could tame the beast before him, it’d be her.
Chapter Eight
Everything happened in slow motion. One minute she’d been standing by the car, waiting for David. Then she glanced across the street and saw him; he was dressed in black like he’d been years before. He held up two pieces of candy wrapped in a shiny red cover. His words and actions from long ago echoed through her mind.
“I offer you both.” He worked the candies between his fingers to hold up one. “One is light and sweet.” He worked his fingers again. “The other dark and bitter.” The candies circled and twirled between his fingers, then rested in his palm. He held them out to her.
She blinked, then he disappeared. “Dammit, not again.” She stepped closer to the street; she looked left, then right. Nothing. Not a soul in sight. A loud crash from Nico’s garage caught her attention. With one last look across the street where she could have sworn the guy from her dream had stood, she turned toward the commotion that continued to grow louder.
The transition from the bright sunlight to the dimness of the garage blinded her. She could hear Nico threaten David, but couldn’t see anything. Then the two men came into focus. Nico had David pinned against the wall and a work table.
She took a step forward, but stopped when David touched Nico’s crotch. Her breath caught and her abdomen muscles tightened in anticipation of how Nico would react.
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