by A. T Brennan
I picked Cody up at six and then swung by a Greek restaurant to pick up our dinner. I had no idea if Jonah liked Greek food or not, so I’d made sure to order basic things.
When we got to Jonah’s house I parked and then looked over at Cody.
“We have to tell him,” he said as he glanced at me.
“Yeah. I know. After we eat.”
“Okay.”
We grabbed the bags of food and climbed out of my car and headed up to the house. Jonah greeted us with a kiss and led us into the kitchen.
“You like Greek?” I asked as we started pulling the boxes and containers out of the bags.
“I haven’t had it in a long time. What did you get?”
“Souvlaki, sides, and gyros in case you weren’t a meat on a stick type of guy.”
“I’m a fan of meat however I can get it.” Jonah winked at us and Cody giggled.
“Just for that you’re not getting any of my meat,” I teased, playfully pulling the container of beef souvlaki out of his reach.
Jonah let out a soft growl and stepped around Cody, grabbing me by the waist and hauling me against his strong body.
“Is that so?” he asked in a husky voice as he held me tight.
“Yup, that’s so.”
Jonah’s lips found mine in a soft kiss and I melted against him. I’d expected it to be hot and hard, but Jonah had other ideas as he teased my mouth with his lips and tongue.
“Keep kissing me like that and you can have whatever you want, whenever you want,” I said with a sigh as he pulled away.
Jonah just grinned and stepped back, tugging Cody towards him as he did. I watched as the two men embraced. Their kiss was tender and sweet, and my dick woke up and went rock hard as I stared at them.
“Great, eating dinner with a boner. Awesome.” I adjusted myself when they’d pulled apart and turned back to the food.
“Yeah, you’re not the only one.” Cody grinned as he picked up the plates and cutlery to bring them to the table.
“If I wasn’t so hungry I’d tell you both to strip naked so I could feast on every inch of your bodies while you got each other off.” Jonah went to the fridge and pulled out three beers for us. “But I’m sure we can figure out something fun to do after dinner.”
“So not helping,” Cody grumbled as he headed to the table, shifting uncomfortably as he did.
“You’re killing us.” I moved my cock so it was at more of an angle against my stomach and away from the waistband of my briefs.
“Good.” Jonah winked. “Payback’s a bitch.”
I laughed as I followed him to the table and put down the containers in my hands.
“At least we followed up on our teasing,” I pointed out.
“And I plan to as well, after we eat.”
Cody and I exchanged a look before going back for the rest of the food. I liked seeing this playful side of Jonah. He worked so hard and worried so much about everything it was nice to see him let go.
The meal was casual and relaxed. We ate, talked about random shit, and thankfully kept things on decidedly unsexy topics.
When we were done and the remnants of our meal were cleaned up, I motioned for Jonah to come into the living room. As much as I wanted my men, we had to talk first.
“This looks ominous.” Jonah looked between us as Cody and I sat on the couch and I motioned for him to sit on his padded coffee table so we could look at him as we talked.
“There’s something we have to talk about.” I glanced at Cody and saw he was chewing his bottom lip, his eyes worried.
“What’s going on?” Jonah asked, his voice a little strained.
“Last night Cody and I... we hooked up.”
“You had sex?” Jonah clarified.
“Yeah. After we left Open Arms we went to his place and... it happened.”
“Okay.” Jonah nodded and leaned back slightly.
“We never talked about us being together when one person isn’t there. You and I messed around but we never had sex. Same with you and Cody.”
“We’re worried we crossed some sort of boundary,” Cody added when Jonah didn’t say anything.
“What do you think, do you want there to be that rule?” Jonah asked carefully.
“I don’t know... it was great, but I felt like something was missing.”
Cody nodded in agreement as we both watched Jonah’s reaction.
“The idea of you two together is one of my biggest turn-ons.” Jonah put one of his hands on each of our knees. “I wish I’d been there to see it, but I understand you guys need time together to sort things out.”
“What do you mean?” Cody asked.
“You’ve had feelings for each other for so long, you love each other and it’s natural that you’d want to explore that alone. I’m flattered you missed my presence, but I’m not angry. And I don’t think we should put those kinds of limitations on each other.”
“You don’t?” I looked at Cody and back at Jonah.
“No. There may be three of us in this relationship, but that doesn’t mean everything revolves around all three of us. We’re separate and different people and we need to establish relationship dynamics as individuals, not just as a threesome. Whether it’s having sex or just hanging out, we need to explore things as couples too.”
“I never thought about that.” Cody nodded slowly. “It makes sense.”
“Yeah.” I looked between my men. “As long as you’re sure.”
“I’m sure.” He smiled and patted our knees. “But thank you for being so honest.”
“Of course. Full disclosure,” Cody said quickly.
“No secrets,” I added.
“I agree.” Jonah smiled. “I think—”
A ringing phone interrupted Jonah and he paused mid-sentence.
“Sorry, I should get that.” Jonah pulled his phone out of his pocket and checked the ID. “Sam? What’s going on?”
I glanced at Cody and he shrugged. Who was Sam?
As I looked back at Jonah I instantly knew something was wrong. The color drained from his face and his grip on the phone was so tight his knuckles had gone white.
“What? No, I’ll be there as soon as I can.”
“Babe?” I asked cautiously as Jonah lowered the phone but didn’t otherwise move. He was staring at a spot on the wall above our heads, not blinking and barely breathing.
“Jonah?” Cody asked a little louder.
I shot Cody a what the fuck look and carefully reached out to take the phone out of Jonah’s hand. He didn’t resist and I put it on the table next to him without looking at the screen beyond checking that the call had ended.
“Baby? What’s going on?” I asked quietly, gently touching his now free hand.
“My brother... Micah... there was an accident.” His voice was so soft I could barely hear his words, and my blood ran cold as the gravity of the situation washed over me.
“Is he...”
“He’s in critical condition.” Jonah shook his head, snapping out of his daze as he looked at us. “I have to go home.”
“Of course. Why don’t you go and pack, and Cody and I will look at flights? Is there an airport in Flagstaff?”
“Yeah, it’s right in the city.”
“Okay. We’ll find the soonest options and you get packed. Then we’ll get you to the airport, okay?”
Jonah nodded and jumped up. I pulled out my phone as he hurried up the stairs, and opened a popular travel app to look up flights.
There weren’t a lot of options, and the ones they did have were fucking expensive, but at least there were flights.
Jonah appeared a few minutes later with a duffel bag in his hand and wearing jeans and a hoodie.
“There’s a flight at five a.m. It’s the earliest one you can book and it’s direct.”
“Fine, great.” He picked up his phone with shaking hands and unlocked it. “What’s the airline?”
“Here, use mine.” I handed him my phone a
nd waited as he put in his credit card info and booked the flight.
When he was done he handed me my phone and then glanced at his watch. It was just after eight. He had at least seven hours before he had to be at the airport.
“Do you want us to come with you?” Cody asked quietly after a few minutes of silence. “We could get our own tickets. I know Evan won’t mind if I take time off—”
“No, it’s fine. You have your lives here.” Jonah shook his head. “It’s my family, I have to be there for them. For Micah.”
Cody and I exchanged a look and I could see the disappointment in Cody’s eyes. I understood where Jonah was coming from, but it hurt that he didn’t want us to support him while he was going through this.
“Do you want to sit for a bit?” I asked, shifting so he could sit between us like he always did.
“I have calls to make. Work, my parents... I should do that now.”
“Okay. Do you want us to stay?” Cody asked quietly.
“I don’t know how long this will take. You guys should go home, finish the date without me.”
“Jonah—”
“I have a lot to do.” Jonah jumped up and raked his hand through his hair. “I’ll text you, let you know what’s going on later, okay?”
“Sure.” I stood and waited until Cody did the same. “Call us if you need anything.”
“I will.”
He didn’t walk us to the door or even kiss us goodbye. Instead he gave us a tight smile and headed upstairs before we’d even moved to go to the door.
Once we were outside I looked at Cody. His shoulders were hunched and his eyes were red and watery.
“Hey, it’s okay. He’s just freaking out.” I pulled Cody toward me in a tight hug, rubbing his back soothingly.
“I want to help him, you know? But he doesn’t want us.” Cody buried his face in the crook of my neck, his grip tight as he clung to me.
“He’s in shock. I know he didn’t mean to push us away. He’s just used to taking care of himself and doing everything alone.”
After a moment Cody nodded against me and pulled away.
“Once he gets home and has more information, he’ll reach out to us. It’s hard, but we have to let him deal with this his way.”
“You’re right.” Cody sighed and swiped the back of his hand over his eyes. He hadn’t cried, but the tears were still right there on the surface.
“Come on. Let’s get out of here.”
When we were in my car and buckled up I gave Jonah’s house one last look and pulled out of the driveway.
Cody wasn’t the only one who was hurt, but I had to be strong for him. My rational mind knew that Jonah hadn’t meant to push us away, but there was the emotional part of me that hated how he’d shut down and closed off so quickly. It made me feel helpless, and a little bit apprehensive. If his first instinct when faced with a personal crisis was to push us away, did that mean he only saw us as casual boyfriends?
“I was going to tell him I loved him tonight,” Cody said softly, sighing as he looked out the window.
“You were?” I glanced over at him.
“Yeah. Once I knew for sure he wasn’t mad or hurt. I was going to tell him before we had sex so he’d know I meant it and it wasn’t the endorphins talking.”
“I hadn’t really planned it out like you, but I would have done the same.” I blew out a frustrated breath and concentrated on the road. “I don’t know exactly when it happened, but I should have told him sooner.”
“Yeah. Me too.” Cody reached over and laced our fingers together, holding my hand tightly. “What if—”
“No, we’re not playing that game,” I cut him off. “We’ll get the chance to tell him when he’s home and he’s processed whatever happened. This isn’t the end of anything. Okay?”
“Okay.”
As much as I sounded confident and sure of my words, I wasn’t. Cody wasn’t the only one scared that this could be the end of us, or that Jonah didn’t feel the same way, but I shoved my doubts aside and squeezed Cody’s hand.
This was just a blip. It had to be.
* * * * *
After leaving Jonah’s, Cody and I went back to his place for a while. Neither of us was in the mood to do anything, so we lay on his bed, cuddling and petting each other, but there was nothing sexual between us this time. This wasn’t about being horny or getting off, it was about drawing comfort from each other.
We’d both put our phones on the bed next to us, hoping Jonah would call or text, but he didn’t.
Cody fell asleep first. His breathing slowed and he unconsciously rolled over, pressing his back against my front so I could spoon him. I wrapped my body around his in what he playfully called my ‘super spoon’— where I not only held him in my arms but I looped my leg over his thigh so we were as close as humanly possible.
My heart was breaking for Jonah. I could only imagine how much pain he must be in. I’d be beside myself if anything ever happened to Noah. I was also worried about Cody. He’d only just learned to trust again, and if Jonah cut us out of his life it would hit him especially hard.
It would hurt me, but it would destroy Cody. I knew how sensitive and loving Cody could be, but I also understood that his sense of worth was still tied to his confidence. Jonah rejecting him would slowly erode his confidence, and that would to hurt him far more than just having his heart broken.
I hoped and prayed I was overreacting and worried about shit that wouldn’t happen, but I couldn’t help it. I loved both my men equally, but if Jonah was out then I would do everything in my power to make sure Cody knew he was loved and he felt safe and protected.
* * * * *
I woke up feeling groggy and unrested. Cody was still fast asleep in my arms, but my internal clock hadn’t completely reset and I could feel that it was early.
As I blinked and looked around his room the events of the night before came rushing back to me and I found myself completely awake. There was no way in hell I’d be able to fall back asleep, not anymore.
I carefully untangled myself from Cody, making sure not to wake him, and climbed out of bed, grabbing my phone as I did. It was seven in the morning.
There was one text from Jonah. He’d made it to the airport and gotten on his flight.
It would still be a while before he landed so I sent back a quick message telling him we were thinking of him, and to let us know when arrived.
After making myself a cup of coffee I sat on the couch and fucked around on my phone, playing games and checking my Facebook. When my cup was empty I went back to the kitchen and started to make breakfast. I wasn’t really hungry but we needed to eat. Sitting around and waiting for text messages would drive both of us crazy so I was determined to make this as normal a day as I could.
“Hey.”
I glanced up from the frying pan I was making scrambled eggs in and smiled at Cody as he sleepily rubbed his eyes.
“Hey. Hungry?”
“Kinda, but not really.”
“Same.” I nodded to the cup I’d put on the counter. “I made you a coffee.”
“You are a god among men.” Cody padded over to the cup and took a big sip. “Perfect, thank you.”
I nodded and looked back at the pan. The eggs were almost done.
“So Jonah got off okay.”
“Sounds like.” I plated the eggs and then pulled the bacon I’d already cooked up out of the oven.
“I hope his brother is okay.”
“Me too.” I slid some of the bacon onto the plates and handed one to Cody. “Ketchup and cutlery is already on the table.”
“You know, I could get used to this.” He grinned as we sat down.
“What? Me slaving away in the kitchen to make sure my man eats something other than Pop-Tarts or leftover pizza for breakfast?” I asked teasingly as I watched him douse his eggs in ketchup until most of his plate was covered in a layer of the red sauce. Cody was the only person I knew that put ketchup on bacon
, and he always drowned his eggs in it.
“That too.” He rolled his eyes. “I meant this. Having breakfast, sleeping together... I kind of wish it wasn’t just a weekend thing.”
“Me too.” I reached across the table and took his hand, giving it a squeeze. “Maybe that’s something we can figure out soon.”
“You mean it? You’d want to live with me?” Cody’s eyes were so hopeful, but at the same time he almost looked scared of my answer.
“Yes. I do.” His smile made heat bloom out from my chest and I couldn’t help grinning. “How about we do a trial run?”
“What do you mean?”
“I’ll stay over all this week. We’ll get a feel for our schedules and how it’ll be when we make it official.”
“Yeah?”
“Yeah.”
“I’d like that.” Cody blushed and bit his lip. “What about Jonah?”
“I’d move in with him tomorrow, but I have a feeling it’s too soon for him to even think about it,” I said thoughtfully. “We could keep this to a weeklong thing. Sort of as extra support while we figure out what’s going on with the three of us.”
“I like that idea. Otherwise I feel like we’re leaving him out, and I don’t want to do that.”
“Me either.” I pulled my hand off his and picked up my fork. “Call it our seven day trial.”
“Deal.”
We dug into our food and talked about what we were going to do that day. Neither of us mentioned Jonah, but I knew he was right there on the forefront of both our minds. I understood that stress affected people differently and Jonah needed to deal with this his own way, but I couldn’t shake the feeling that he was going to keep pushing us away. We might love him, but I had no idea how deep his feelings ran for us.
I just hoped that whatever he felt was strong enough to get us through this.
Chapter Eighteen
Jonah
By the time I landed in Flagstaff I was a bundle of nerves, and so tired I was dead on my feet. I hadn’t managed to get any sleep at home or on the plane, and there had been no updates from my family since before I boarded.
Micah was the baby of the family. He was only seventeen, and the thought of him hurt and suffering was unfathomable. He was so full of life, always the first to crack a joke or give you a full body hug. He was a good kid, and I couldn’t wrap my mind around him being hurt.