He moved up the bed, taking her in his arms. She tasted her juices on his mouth when their lips met. Fletch stretched out beside her, his rough fingers exquisitely gentle as he stroked one breast. He lowered his head and took her nipple into his mouth, sucking almost painfully hard. Gaby relaxed under the attention. This had happened so quickly between them, but she couldn’t be sorry, despite the storm of gossip and disapproval.
Fletch moved away and opened the bottle of lube. He turned her onto her side, rearranging her body to his satisfaction. She flinched at the coldness of the lube when he massaged it over her pucker. He stretched her carefully. First one finger. Once she took him comfortably, he added another.
“Put the condom on for me, Liam?” There was a dare in his voice, and Gaby felt him tense a fraction, as if he thought Liam might balk at the suggestion, despite performing the service for him before.
Liam opened the nightstand drawer and pulled out a Fancy Free condom, one of the experimental ones she’d asked them to test for her. He opened the plain packet and moved down the bed.
“Not ready for a condom,” Liam said.
“What do you mean?” Fletch demanded. “I—” He broke off with a strangled groan when Liam took his cock into his mouth. Gaby grinned at his shock, and the way it rapidly slackened into a haze of pleasure when Liam sucked and licked him. He obviously reached all the good points, judging by Fletch’s expression. “Fuck, not too much. I want to come inside Gaby with our cocks touching, with the three of us together.”
Liam pulled off his cock with a loud pop. “That’s better.” Satisfaction echoed in his face. With competent moves, he rolled the latex down Fletch’s length. “Anything else?”
“Not at present,” Fletch said, his eyes narrowing when Gaby and Liam both laughed at him. “You’ll keep,” he added in warning. They both laughed harder, and finally he huffed and moved behind her. He pressed against her pucker, pushing in carefully, pressing forward and withdrawing until she took him easily. Once he was fully embedded, he waited while Liam worked into Gaby’s pussy.
“I don’t think I’m ever gonna get tired of the connection I feel when we’re together like this,” Gaby said, her tone dreamy. “It feels good. Right. I love you guys.”
“Glad to hear it,” Fletch said, shuddering at the drag of Liam’s cock when he withdrew from her pussy, unhurried as if they had all the time in the world.
Liam pushed back inside, stopping when he was balls-deep. “We feel the same way.”
“You ready for us to start moving in earnest?” Fletch asked.
“Please,” she whispered. Instead of closing her eyes as she normally did, she watched Liam’s face. The pleasure she saw in him rippled over her, both inside and out. Her men did good work together. Like a well-oiled machine, they pushed her higher and higher.
“Damn. Can’t hold on any longer,” Fletch said, his next thrust erratic.
Liam reached down to finger her slippery clit, the insistent brush of his finger sending her soaring. A spasm went through her pussy, the hard clench around a cock bringing satisfaction. Like a ripple effect, the pleasure shot through them all until they collapsed in a sweaty heap.
After a quick cleanup, they cuddled with her in the middle.
“Do we need to make a plan?” Liam asked.
“As long as we stick together and refuse to talk, we should be okay,” Fletch said.
“What about your family? Gaby’s family?”
“My mother and sister have already left messages.” Gaby couldn’t restrain her scowl. She tried so hard with them, but she’d concluded that nothing she did would ever gain their approval. They were too different in their beliefs. “Gran and everyone at work will support me. I know that without even thinking about it.”
“My family could go either way,” Fletch said, doubtfully. “I don’t know.”
“You love your family. Hell, I love your family because they’ve treated me like a son ever since the time I came home from school with you,” Liam said.
“I can’t pretend a rejection won’t hurt, but I love you guys, both of you. You’re my family,” Fletch said.
Liam let out a heavy sigh. “The next few weeks will tell.”
“What I don’t understand is how the paper found out. I haven’t told anyone.” Gaby’s brow creased. “No wait. I talked to Gran about testing the sex toys with you both, but she’s the only person I’ve discussed it with. She wouldn’t tattle.”
“We haven’t discussed our changed relationship with anyone apart from each other,” Liam said, and Fletch nodded agreement.
“I suppose someone might’ve guessed.” Gaby scowled again. “Unless we have a peeping Tom spying on us and peeking through our windows.”
“I say we behave normally and try to ignore the inevitable comments,” Fletch said.
“That’s all we can do,” Liam agreed.
“What about Rachel?”
“I’ve made it clear I won’t marry her. I’ll ask for DNA tests once the baby’s born and if it’s mine, I’ll offer financial support. I don’t love her. It was sex, dammit, and I made it clear to her at the time. She knew the score.”
“That’s a bit brutal,” Fletch said.
“You think I should marry her?”
“Hell no. I just mean she’s probably scared,” Fletch said. “I sure as hell wouldn’t marry her either. She’s a flake.”
“I think she’s putting on an act,” Gaby said. “There was something calculated about her display tonight. She went out of her way to make everyone sympathetic toward her.”
“You don’t think she’s pregnant?” Liam asked.
“No, I think she’s pregnant. It’s too easy to disprove. She either knows the real father will reject her or knows her family don’t approve of him. She’s trying to land a husband her father approves of.”
“You didn’t hear him today,” Liam said drily. “He was pissed about me rejecting his daughter, and the idea of the three of us together horrified him. He said it was against everything the church taught.”
“You forgot the bit about ruining us,” Fletch muttered.
“Don’t worry,” Gaby said. “He can’t do that. Pray for another scandal and we’ll be yesterday’s news soon enough.”
Chapter Twelve
Late November
Fletch and Liam were working in the garden when Gaby arrived home. Both bare-chested, their torsos gleaming in the late-afternoon sun. A sight to behold. She sighed in appreciation.
“Very sexy,” she purred.
“We’ve been here most of the day,” Liam said tersely.
Gaby grimaced. “Oh. I’m sorry.”
Fletch draped a sweaty arm around Liam’s tense body and gave him a quick hug. “Don’t be sorry, sweetheart. It’s not your fault.”
Liam finally relaxed a fraction, sagging into Fletch’s embrace. “We had to lay off the rest of the staff.”
“Did you finish putting up the last of the hay sheds?”
“Yep, all done,” Fletch said. “It’s official. We don’t have any work because Rachel’s father has blackballed us.”
“James and Alice invited us to a barbecue tonight. You guys want to go?”
Her two men exchanged a quick glance.
“Sure,” Fletch said.
“We could do with some tension release first,” Liam suggested slyly.
The garden was private, their closest neighbor unable to see their house let alone the garden. Gaby sank to her knees in front of Liam and dragged down his shorts.
“Ooh, I like the way she thinks.” Fletch looked on with interest as she guided Liam’s cock into her mouth and took him deep. His flavor burst over her, musky, a little sweaty and all male.
Liam groaned, his hands coming down to hold her head. Unable to help himself, he started to thrust. She breathed through her nose, swallowing to control her gag reflex while her fingers stroked his balls. When she withdrew, her tongue snaked over his tip and around to tease the acutely
sensitive part below. She glanced up to catch Fletch’s gaze and he grinned. She watched him finger Liam’s nipple before twisting it. During the last month they’d learned a lot about their likes and dislikes. Liam liked this and they were happy to oblige. Fletch kissed Liam, his fingers still busy. It was working. A rapid stream of pre-come filled her mouth and his balls drew up tight beneath his cock.
Fletch pinched Liam’s nipple again and a jolt went through Liam. She sucked hard and he started to come, shooting down her throat as she swallowed him down. When he’d finished she gradually eased up, licking him clean before pulling back.
“Is that better?” she asked.
“Only if you’re Liam,” Fletch complained.
Gaby laughed, and she rose to her feet, flashing a sly wink at Liam. Seconds later they attacked Fletch together. He didn’t stand a chance. Not that he put up much of a fight.
* * * * *
They arrived late to the barbecue. When they walked around the back into James and Alice’s garden, the area was full of laughing groups of friends and family. Fletch and Liam had been to a couple of barbecues with her before and knew everyone. Along with most of the board members and their spouses, Marc was present with a woman she didn’t know. Luke Morgan, Richard’s son and James’ friend, was there with his wife Janaya. Richard’s wife Hinekiri stood talking to Gran and a small black-and-white dog with spots ran from group to group seeking attention. The dog barked when she saw them and trotted toward them. Gaby smiled because she’d met Killer before.
Killer made a beeline for Fletch and rubbed against him before flopping to the ground and turning over to get her belly scratched. She barked the entire time, and Luke and Janaya laughed while Richard let out a disgusted snort.
“She likes you, Fletch,” Luke said.
Gaby shook her head and grinned. “I’ve never known a dog to bark so much.”
“Killer is very talkative. You could say she has an opinion about everything.” Janaya smirked at her husband. “She’s part of the family. We wouldn’t be without her.”
“But we’d let you borrow her anytime,” Luke said.
Killer barked several times and moved on to seek attention from Liam.
Gaby relaxed when no one mentioned the rumors. Public outings were rare these days. With the continuing gossip, the three of them still featured in the Sloan Gazette gossip column on a regular basis.
James brought them drinks.
“I’d like to propose a toast,” Alice said. “To Marc and Gaby our wonderful designers. Without them we’d be a very ordinary company. Instead our pre-Christmas orders are booming. It’s shaping up to be a record year for us. So, to Marc and Gaby.”
“To Marc and Gaby,” everyone said.
After that, the conversation moved on to more general things.
“The three of you are still making the gossip column,” James said.
“We keep hoping something else will grab the headlines from us,” Fletch said.
“We need another UFO sighting,” Hinekiri chirped.
“No, we do not,” Luke retorted. “The last time there was a sighting the police phone went all day and night for a week. I do not need more weeks of bedlam.”
“I agree,” Richard said. “The Sloan police department doesn’t need that sort of excitement.”
“The Sloan Ladies Division would welcome the money-making opportunity.” Hinekiri winked. “One can only do so much knitting.”
“God forbid,” Luke muttered, rolling his eyes.
Liam and Fletch gravitated toward James and Luke.
Luke acknowledged them with a jerk of his chin. “The grapevine says Rachel’s father blackballed you.”
“Yeah. He’ll be gloating tomorrow when it becomes public knowledge we let the last of our workers go. We can’t afford to pay them,” Liam said.
“Why don’t you branch into furniture or something similar until things improve?” James said. “Or try making wooden trains or toys for the Christmas market. I remember the stuff you made at school workshop. You’re both good.”
“You could sell them at the farmers’ market in Clevedon,” Luke suggested. “Cut out the middleman.”
“That’s not a bad idea,” Liam said slowly.
Fletch nodded, his expression distant as if he were thinking hard. “We have a load of timber and shorter off-cuts we kept, hoping to use them on another job. If we can sell a few things, it’ll pay the bills.”
“Robert Saunders always was an ass. Remember when Rachel accused Luke of chopping off her pigtails when we were at primary school?” James prodded the sausages and turned several of them. The scent of cooking meat filled the air. “Luke, hand me those vegetables, will you? I think everything else is almost cooked.”
“I still remember the fuss. She always was a bit of a sneak. I saw her cut them off,” Luke said.
Liam’s mouth dropped open. “Why did she do that?”
“She wanted one of the short, trendy cuts her friends were getting, but her father wouldn’t let her cut her hair. He likes women to wear their hair long.”
Fletch glanced at Liam and laughed when his lover winked at him. “So shoot me, I’m partial to long hair too.”
“I could’ve done without knowing that.” James flipped off the burners apart from the one under the vegetables.
“I take it some of Ms. Knowall’s columns have an element of truth?” Luke handed his friend a plate for the sausages and steak.
“No comment,” Fletch said.
“The no-comment thing worked real well for me,” James said.
“It’s something to do with Fancy Free.” Luke cast a sly glance at his father. “Talking about sex and sex-related items must relocate the blood south. Nothing left to help the brain process. Makes you behave without thinking first.”
“We don’t work there,” Liam pointed out.
“Gaby does,” Luke countered.
“Gaby is a gifted designer.” Fletch stole a glance at Liam.
Liam couldn’t restrain his smug grin. Gaby bore all sorts of gifts—something to keep between him and Fletch. Despite the problems at work and the fact most of their family members weren’t speaking to them, the last six weeks had been the happiest of his life.
“Your smirk tells me we want details,” James said. “But we’re damn pleased Gaby works for us. We couldn’t do without her and Marc, especially after Rodney decided to stay in Spain.”
Liam glanced over at Gaby to find her deep in discussion with Marc and his lady. To his relief, Gaby’s body language said friend and nothing more.
“Does anyone know Ms. Knowall’s identity?” Richard asked.
“It was my mother for a while,” James said. “She’s been visiting the grandchildren on the Gold Coast. Somehow I don’t see her sending a column from Australia.”
“The Gazette has two part-time reporters plus the owner,” Fletch said. “We’ve kept an eye on them. It must be someone else.”
“Has anyone considered Gaby’s sister? Doesn’t she fill in there sometimes? Isn’t she friendly with one of the reporters?” Luke mused. “I’ve seen them have lunch together in the cafe.”
“Hell,” Fletch said. “Would Elsa do that to Gaby?”
“She’s a jealous cat,” Liam said. “I wouldn’t put anything past her. I rebuffed an advance from her a few years ago before she married. She hasn’t spoken to me since.”
“No loss.” James flipped a skewer of vegetables. “The vegetables are cooked.” He transferred them to a plate and handed it to Luke.
Liam and Fletch grabbed a plate of meat each and the men joined the women.
Almost three hours later, they said their goodbyes. In the car, during the drive back to the house, Liam brought up the subject of Gaby’s sister.
“Is it possible Elsa would know about us? I mean before the story hit?”
Gaby frowned. “Gran and I discussed testing sex toys and condoms when I went to my nephew’s birthday party. We were alone, but it’s
possible Elsa eavesdropped.”
“Or it’s possible whoever wrote the column knew the three of us lived in the same house and took a calculated guess,” Fletch said.
“Next time I see her, I’ll ask her straight out.” Gaby shrugged helplessly. “Not that it matters now. The damage is done. Learning the identity of the culprit won’t change a thing.”
* * * * *
Shopping for groceries was a pain in the butt. Normally she dragged one or both of the guys with her, but they were busy working on making stock to sell at their first farmers’ market.
Gaby pushed the trolley down the supermarket aisles, mentally crossing items off her list and humming to the Christmas carols. Unable to resist she threw in a pack of candy canes to decorate their Christmas tree. She saw lots of women she’d gone to school with and many others she knew, but most of the women ignored her. The flurry of whispers that followed her was like background static on the sound system.
She rounded the corner and came face-to-face with her mother.
Gaby pasted a pleasant expression on her face. “Hi, Mum.”
Her mother pushed her trolley past, sticking her nose in the air and ignoring her totally. Two women standing by the Christmas hams witnessed the snub and sniggered.
“Hussy,” someone spat as she wheeled her trolley past the bread aisle. Gaby ignored the insult and tossed two loaves of wholegrain bread into the trolley. Maybe she should brand S for scarlet woman on her forehead or shave her hair or something. Honestly, she’d expected flak from her mother and sister, but this backlash and pettiness—never.
Sighing, she consulted her list and wheeled her trolley to the checkout. The teenage girl on the register stared but at least she didn’t refuse to serve her. She’d suffered that indignity the previous week.
Outside, Gaby wheeled her trolley to the far end of the parking lot, past the bins of rubbish and food scraps waiting for collection by a local farmer. She unloaded the groceries into the car and wheeled her trolley to the collection point. She caught a flash of white from the corner of her eye and glanced up to find four cult members surrounding her. They held a placard each.
“You need to stop working at Fancy Free,” one shouted.
Romp Page 14