Neil, Louisa - One Queen with Two Kings (Siren Publishing Ménage and More)

by Neil, Louisa

  “I told you both back at the house, I’m leaving that all behind for a few hours. You two have had two years to discuss your emotions and feelings, but I’m still shell-shocked.” Thea wandered ahead and glanced in a store window. “That would look adorable on Lucas,” she said, pointing to a knitted cap with a lion design. “I’ll be right out.” She bought the hat in a cloud, wondering where her life would be in a year, in a month, by the end of the day.

  After dropping the package in the car trunk, they wandered up and down the main thoroughfare. She was patient when both men shopped for new jeans and walking boots. “How about we drop these in the car and get some food. Suddenly, I’m famished.”

  She chose the restaurant and was amazed when they all settled in as if last night and this morning hadn’t happened. While she was happy for the status quo, she kept waiting for a remark to spoil their lunch. By the end of the hour, with a full stomach, she finally relaxed. Thea saw hints of the relationship they used to have, the easy, carefree friendship she’d come to know and anticipate. It was the first time they’d laughed together as they had before the plane disappeared.

  None of them carried their cell phones, so they were left in relative peace. There were a few glances from passersby who thought they might recognize them, but nobody approached them.

  After lunch, Thea headed directly to a chain drugstore. While the men wandered the aisles, she grabbed some chips and candy. She also took one of every magazine on the stand. She blatantly avoided the tabloids. Her last choice was several boxes of condoms, all shapes and textures. She had no trouble standing on line at the checkout to pay for her purchases. In the past, she would have been embarrassed to buy condoms. However, in the past that hadn’t been a need. She’d been on the pill and still was. The condoms were what she thought she should buy in case their sexual situation changed.

  It dawned on her that Dexter and Russell had been having unbridled, unprotected sex on the island. It hadn’t dawned on her to make Dexter use a condom when he came home because she was still protected from pregnancy. But she couldn’t shake the idea that they should be using them. Neither man commented on her purchases. Thea decided she’d feel better using them for a while to make sure there were no pregnancy surprises if she decided to sleep with both men.

  Her last stop was at a grocery store for supplies. She’d laughed aloud as both men started piling their favorite foods in the cart. Their drive home was much more sedate than the ride into town. Thea commented that their time in town went smoother than she’d anticipated. “It almost felt natural for us to be together. Like all this time hadn’t passed and I hadn’t found out your secret.”

  “You can have those days back,” Dexter said offhandedly.

  “Only if I accept you and Russell together, too. If I ask you two to separate, Dex, I’ll always wonder what you two are doing together when I’m not around. Nevertheless, I feel it would be worse to live every day wondering. You surely have left me in a quandary. And I thought you being gone was tough.”

  “I can settle this for you right now.” Russell drew a deep breath, as if what he was going to say would hurt him physically. “I can leave, relocate to the West Coast and start over out there. It would probably be the best solution, since I know I can’t go back to the corporate life. I’ll have to find something new to do with my time and for a living.”

  “Just don’t write a book about our time on the island.” Dexter’s joke fell flat, and Thea tensed at the wheel, braking the car automatically at his words. “Sorry, that was a bad joke.”

  “No, it’s absolutely true. I’m not sure what’s worse, sending Russ away and having you resent me every day or keeping him close and wondering what you two do when I’m not around.” She pulled into the driveway of the rental house and parked the vehicle. “Let’s head inside and relax as best we can. Your secret is out, so let’s make some decisions like adults. I have questions about you two on the island, and I’d appreciate answers.” She opened her car door and paused. “I could use a drink. What about you two?” Thea let herself into house and assumed the men would bring in their purchases.

  They worked easily around each other in the kitchen, putting groceries away and prepping the steaks. Dexter opened a bottle of wine and filled three glasses. “It’s still pretty sunny. Should we take this out on the deck?”

  “So we can all relive last night?” Thea had thought the words but hadn’t meant to say them aloud. Hurriedly, she added, “I’m sorry, that was rude.”

  “But accurate,” Russell said, grabbing a bag of potato chips along with his wineglass.

  “I’m sorry, Dex. I didn’t mean to say that out loud.”

  “I’m glad you did. We’ll all be better off if we keep this honest. So say what you want and ask your questions.”

  Settled in lounge chairs on the deck overlooking the snowcapped mountains, they all kept their jackets on against the chill. The three of them were quiet for a while, enjoying the view. Finally, Russell spoke.

  “I feel like I’m waiting for the other shoe to drop. Thea, ask your questions and we’ll answer you honestly. I’m not going to keep my life a secret anymore.”

  “I think I need another glass of wine,” she said, refilling her glass and then handing the bottle to Dexter. “I’m in the mood to get shit-faced just because…I’m so tired of being the responsible adult.”

  “I figure we all deserve a few days of not being responsible after everything we’ve all been through.” Dexter handed the wine to Russell.

  “Speaking of being responsible, Russ, when you called us at the lake house, you told me to tell Dex all your blood work was clean. You didn’t mean sand fleas or ticks, did you?” She watched his face blush bright red.

  “No. We, Dex and I, decided to make sure we didn’t have any communicable diseases.”

  “Since you’d been fucking on the island.”

  “Yes. And if you think being blatant with me will embarrass me, Thea, I’m long past that. I knew I was clean before the crash, had just had my yearly physical for the company, but we wanted to make sure.”

  She looked to Dexter. “But you came home and made love to me without a second thought. If you were thinking about being safe, why not when you got home?”

  “Because I’d just had my company physical before the crash, too. I knew I was clean. The tests when we got home were really just about bug bites from the island.”

  “But it is a confirmation that we’re both disease free.”

  “So you had no problem continuing your sexual relationship. Why did you let me buy all those condoms in the pharmacy today?”

  Dex gave her his best smile. “It didn’t seem like the most opportune place to discuss this situation. Besides, if you want to use them, we will.”

  “Even though I’m on the pill?” Thea sat back and sipped her wine. “You let me get them in case I invited Russ to join us.” Her statement was more to reinforce the idea to herself than to her men. That was a first. She was referring to Dex and Russ as her men. In the back of her mind, she’d been wondering what it would be like to kiss Russ, to let him touch her intimately. She wondered what his cock would feel like in her body. Thea didn’t dare let on she was thinking in that direction. She had questions and wanted answers before making any final decision about bringing Russ into her sex life.

  “Real life will start in a few days, boys. We need to make some decisions amongst us before going back to civilization. They will affect how we present ourselves to the public and the press.” Thea sipped from her glass. “I need to know some things even if just to satisfy my curiosity.”

  “Ask your questions,” Russ said. “I’m way beyond hiding about this with you two. I figure the more honest we are with you, the easier it will be for you to make a decision, hopefully the one I want.”

  “All right, how did you two start being intimate?”

  “I wasn’t very mobile for the first months with my leg in a splint.” Dex raised his glass in a
mock salute to both of them.

  “I finally got tired and frustrated listening to Dexter whine about you every night. Out of anger, I finally told him I’d been in love with you from the first time I met you.”

  “That was a shock to say the least. I’d known he was attracted to you, but I didn’t realize he’d actually been in love with you all these years.” Dex stood and walked to the railing, staring at the mountains.

  “I never realized it either. Does that make me blind or you a good liar?”

  “Probably both,” Russ admitted. “I did go out of my way to hide my feelings, for you and for Dexter.”

  “Dexter, you never felt his feelings were more than friendly?”

  “No, that’s how blind I was, too.” He turned, walked back and topped off their wine. “But that one night, he was throwing things around and kicking the sand and finally he just blurted out that he’d been in love with you and me forever. I can honestly say I was confused.”

  “I’d never felt so relieved in my entire life. Finally, I didn’t have to guard each word and movement. After that, we spent a few days giving each other a lot of room.” Russ paused to sip his wine. “I went inland and just came back once a day to make sure Dex still had water and food. Then I’d head back inland. He was beyond angry for a while. Finally, after about a week, I was so lonely I just came back to the camp and pretended I hadn’t let it all slip out.”

  “Dex, what did you do?” Thea asked.

  “We were quiet for another week, only spoke in grunts and single words. After a while, when you’re the only two on the island, you start to talk. At night, we’d watch the stars, and I started to ask Russ questions.”

  “I tried to answer honestly, and ultimately we started to just talk about my being bisexual openly.”

  “Dex, did you ever have sexual feelings for Russ and hold them back?”

  “At first I didn’t acknowledge them, but on introspection, and on the island there was a lot of time for that, I had to admit to myself and to Russ that I’d wondered about him from time to time. Seeing him in the locker room, I’d wonder what his cock would be like fully erect.”

  “Was this before or after you met me?” Thea asked.

  “Both. You know, in college, you’re wondering lots of things, but I never acted on it. And Russ was always such a ladies’ man, it didn’t make sense to ask if he was interested.”

  “So you’d been wondering about him for years. Were you interested in other men, too?” Thea pulled the collar of her coat tighter around her neck.

  “No, sometimes a passing curiosity reared if I saw a guy with a huge cock, but I was into pussy and women. It didn’t make sense to make any kind of advance on any man.”

  “When I first realized I was interested in men, I’d go out of town and buy magazines and movies,” Russ admitted. “But after a while, a film or photo wasn’t enough to jack off to. I was curious and wanted to experience a man. I took a trip to the Caribbean and found another man of the same mind. He’d always thought himself straight until one day when he was offered head by another guy. He claimed it was too many drinks and he let the guy suck him off.”

  “But you didn’t need the alcohol to let loose.” Thea stared at him.

  “No. I went away hoping to find a man to experiment with. A man who had as much to lose as I did if anyone ever found out about our side activities. It was totally freeing to experiment without fear of repercussions. He had an amazing cock, long and thick. He taught me how to suck a cock.”

  “Did you let him fuck you too?” Thea sat forward, anticipating his answer.

  “Toward the end of the vacation, when we’d become comfortable with each other, he asked me to fuck him. I did, and realized I liked it. A man’s body reacts differently than a woman’s. After that he’d finger my anus while swallowing me, and I finally asked him to use his cock.”

  “I guess you liked it, because you’re still doing it.” Thea’s words were a flat statement. “Dexter, what about you? Did you want to screw him or have him screw you? When did it strike you?”

  “I was still laid up. One night while I was sleeping, Russ just started to give me head.” She noted his face had turned beet red, but he kept talking and she gave him credit for finally trusting her enough to be honest. “I woke, realized what was going on, and pretended to be asleep. But I have to admit, after I couldn’t let go of the experience. When I was more mobile and we’d come to terms with everything, well, we went back to jacking off at night, usually talking about you, picturing you as the one we made love to.”

  “I was the aggressor, Thea. I made the first move at every level.” Russell seemed relieved by his admission.

  “I can only imagine how much courage that took.”

  “Yes, but by that point, I couldn’t take any of it back. So, the worst thing that could happen was Dexter would say no and not talk to me for a while again.”

  “But you didn’t say no, did you, Dex?” Thea was struggling to understand.

  “No. Finally, I had to admit to him and myself that I enjoyed him giving me head. My curiosity got the best of me. I wanted to know what it felt like to swallow his cock.” Dexter sipped at his wine. “Quite honestly, Thea, I’d been fucking women for twenty years, their pussies and asses. I wanted to know what it felt like.”

  Thea let out a pent-up breath. “We used toys on occasion. I always got the impression you only let me tease you with the toys because it was my idea. Never once did you suggest it.”

  “It wasn’t something I thought I was supposed to like.”

  “I’m getting mind boggled and hungry. Let’s throw the steaks on the grill before my headache gets any worse.” Thea left the men on the deck and started to bring out food to the gas grill on the deck. When she had it preheating, she turned to the men.

  “Could I watch you together, or is that too over the top?” She didn’t expect Russ to choke on his wine. Dexter’s face seemed to go blank. “It was just a question. Don’t get all in a snit about it.”

  “Look, Thea,” Dex began, his tone serious. “Let’s get one thing straight. I never considered making love or having sex with men. I always wanted you. But after a while on the island, well, it became clear we weren’t going to be rescued. That’s when I let down my defenses and accepted Russ as a sexual partner.”

  “And you liked it or you wouldn’t have continued, especially since you’ve gotten home.”

  “Yes, at this time in my life, I consider myself a bisexual man.”

  “Russ, is that what you consider yourself, bisexual?”

  “Yes, I have for years.”

  Thea dropped the steaks on the hot grill and took a step back from the sizzling. “I always liked men. Since we’re being honest, I did kiss a girl in college, but it felt strange, like I was feeling my own body.”

  “You don’t have to be bisexual, Thea. The more important question is can you accept the sexual attention of two men at the same time?”

  “Beats the hell out of me,” she said, pausing to flip the steaks. “Sometimes I had trouble satisfying Dex. To think of trying to satisfy both of you is intimidating.”

  “But you’re thinking about it, Thea. I appreciate you even considering this. I was afraid if you found out, you’d leave me.” Dexter stood, stretched, and walked to her, dropping a light kiss on her cheek. “I’ll set the table.” He walked in the house, leaving Thea and Russ alone.”

  “I can still leave. If I do, you and Dex can go back to just being a couple.”

  “There’s one thing I learned while you guys were gone, Russ. You can never go back. If you stay still, you stagnate. There has to be some forward motion to life. I just need to figure out what motion I’m comfortable with.”

  Russ stood and gathered his empty glass and hers. “I think the first step forward is to get the food off the grill.” He hesitated next to her and dropped a light kiss on her cheek. “Let’s eat, and let this all go for a bit.”

  Thea pulled the meat o
ff the grill and remembered to shut off the gas. Carrying the platter inside, she saw the men had set the table and taken seats across from each other, leaving her at the head of the table. They ate quietly, keeping to safe topics like world events they’d missed. All through the meal, she felt different, felt like they were putting her in charge of all their futures. When she paused to analyze it while the men cleared the dishes, Thea decided she liked being the queen. Liked having the power both men entrusted in her. Now she had to decide if she wanted to use that power or crawl away and start life over. Deep inside she knew that would be her last resort. Watching them, she began to form her own fantasies of what they might be like as a threesome.

  Chapter Nine

  Any angst Thea might have had over their situation was eased by a good meal and another glass of wine. She was content to let the men clean up when they offered. But she couldn’t shut down her mind. Watching the two men work side by side, her thoughts swirled with images of them together. What she witnessed last night was one thing, but was she really being welcomed into that intimate relationship, or did the guys feel they had to offer her the threesome so she wouldn’t go off mad and tell the world their secret?

  It all became too much to think through, so she excused herself and headed to her bedroom. Once there, she felt lost, roaming the room, remembering how she and Dex had made love on the bed, over the back of the sofa, and on the floor before the fireplace. Of course, that was all before she witnessed Dex and Russell’s budding relationship.

  One side of her wished Dexter would come in and tell her it was all a mistake or a bad dream. Another side of her wanted to be left alone. After half an hour of pacing the space, she thought to pack her bags. But that would be running away, and she didn’t want to walk out and forever wonder what might have been. She’d fought for this reunion with Dex for so long, could she just walk away from it now?

  Thea had often wondered how she would react if Dexter was found but with some kind of injury. Well, she’d skipped the broken leg, but she’d been prepared for any kind of disability. If he couldn’t walk or use his hands, whatever the problem would turn out to be, she knew she’d handle it. This problem never entered her mind, so she hadn’t worked out a plan.