Divine Grace (11 page)

Jack glanced at Ethan and Adam standing beside him, similarly dressed in their black suits, boots, and Stetsons, before turning his gaze to the doorway, where he could hear tapping heels approaching.

With measured, slow strides, Grace entered the waiting room. His breath left him in a gust of air. Stunning. Radiant. That saleslady at the department store was definitely going to see some repeat business from the three of them. Grace looked incredibly beautiful.

“You look gorgeous, darlin’.” He approached her, and the others followed.

She placed a hand on the gold necklace and said, “Thank you. You are so generous. I love it all. I feel very…precious to you. It’s all so beautiful.”

Jack leaned in and kissed her cheek. Ethan kissed her forehead, and Adam kissed her other cheek, each of them whispering a compliment to her.

“We have reservations in Morehead for six o’clock. Ethan has a friend there who just opened a new restaurant we’d like to take you to,” Jack said.

Charity asked, “Where are you taking her?”

“Tessa’s,” Jack replied. “It’s off the beaten path outside of Morehead.

We thought she might enjoy the atmosphere.”

“I think y’all have great instincts.” Charity sounded pleased with their choice.

Adam carried the garment bag and the box to the back of the SUV and put them in. Jack helped Grace into the front passenger seat, his hand lingering under hers for a moment before closing the door. The others climbed in, and they returned to Grace’s house. After dropping Charity off with Grace’s things, they headed out to the state highway and drove toward Morehead.

* * * *

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Grace turned to smile back at Adam and Ethan and then reached out a hand to Jack as he drove the SUV, stroking his strong bicep through the sleeve of his coat.

“Thank you again for my outfit and the jewelry, y’all. We both loved the spa day. I haven’t felt this relaxed in…
ever
.”

“We wanted to make you feel special, Grace. I’m glad you like everything,” Jack replied. “A really nice saleslady helped us at the department store. We told her about you, showed her the list of sizes Charity gave us, and she helped us find the right things. Ethan found the necklace for you.”

“And what did you help pick out, Adam?” Grace turned to smile at him in the back seat.

He leaned forward and gave her a little kiss. “I picked out your lingerie, baby. Did you like it?” he asked, his voice laced with desire.

“Very much. You have good taste,” she replied, tentatively reaching back to touch the hand resting on his knee. He briefly clasped her fingers with his before releasing her. She glanced up into pale green eyes full of purpose and promise.

Ethan chuckled as he leaned forward from his seat. “Uh-oh. He was planning on going back and doing more shopping with that saleslady if you liked the things he picked out. Obviously, we weren’t sure what your preferences were.”

She turned to him and said, “Oh, I like
everything
you bought me just fine, you two. You’ve all got great instincts. Jack, you’re all going to spoil me rotten.”

“I think you could do with some more spoiling. You just let us worry about all that, all right, darlin’?” Jack drawled as he held his hand out, and she rested hers in his gentle, callused palm.

“Mmm-hmm,” she murmured and settled back against the leather seat.

Her body felt like it hummed from the massage and pampering, as well as the slow simmer they had her on from all the attention she was receiving.

She felt beautiful, and the way they looked at her, like they needed her, made her panties damp and her folds just a little swollen. The whole night lay ahead of them, and she might combust if she didn’t get her hormones under control.

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They arrived at Tessa’s which, like Jack said, was just a ways off the beaten path on the way into Morehead. The restaurant was nestled back in a stand of oak trees, looking as though it had been there forever. The restaurant appeared to be expensive, and she imagined couples came here to celebrate anniversaries and other special days. It didn’t look like the kind of place that had a kid’s menu and high chairs stacked up in a corner.

Adam opened the door for them to enter, and Ethan led the way to the
maitre d’
, who checked his list and escorted them immediately to a private booth. Grace noticed that she couldn’t see any other tables once they were seated in the deep, draped enclosure.

A beautiful woman in a sleek black dress came to their table as Grace settled between Adam and Jack. Ethan rose to hug the woman and then introduced her to them. He reached for Grace’s hand as he introduced her to Tessa Morgan, the owner. She was tall and thin, with full, red lips and long, perfectly straight honey-blonde hair. Her body was perfectly stereotypical of a supermodel, almost too thin.

“Tessa and I went to A&M together. She and her boyfriend and I hung out a lot. She helped me through a lot of rough patches, and we crammed for lots of exams together. Do you ever hear from Rex anymore?”

“Oh, yes,” Tessa replied softly, in a sweet Southern lilt. “He came in last month when he heard about the restaurant. He’s married now, and his wife is very sweet. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Grace. Ethan has told me wonderful things about you. I hope you enjoy yourselves tonight. I’d better check in with your waiter now. Enjoy.” She backed away from their table before turning with the grace of a supermodel in four-inch heels to see to her business.

“She’s gorgeous!” Grace exclaimed, totally unabashed.

“Yes, she is,” Ethan replied as he took his seat at the table. “She broke up with Rex during our junior year, but we stayed good friends. I like what she has done with this place.”

“I do, too,” Adam replied.

A waiter came and lit a candle arrangement and dimmed the light that was located above their table. Drapes around the back of their booth were drawn, further dampening the sound of the restaurant around them. The waiter welcomed them and told them about the featured entrees for the evening and left to fetch the wine they ordered. He returned a few minutes

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later and poured their wine, then took their order. He handed a cell phone to Jack, then backed from their miniature private dining room. “Enjoy your time at Tessa’s.” He reached up and closed a heavy drape over the entrance.

Jack placed the phone in his pocket and took a sip of his wine. “I’m glad you suggested this place, Ethan. Tessa has created a one-of-a-kind atmosphere out here.”

“What’s the phone for, Jack?” Grace asked softly as she took a sip of her wine.

“When each course is ready,” Jack said, “they send a text to notify whoever holds the phone, then wait for a text back on their end to let them know we’re ready. Otherwise, they don’t come to the table unless we page them for something. We’re served a gourmet meal and allowed to enjoy our meal in complete privacy. No one will come to the table unless we page them.” She was alone with them in their own little world, with the promise of privacy and no interruptions. The thought made her heart beat a little faster and the G-string a little damper.

Ethan explained further. “This booth is reserved for us for the next two and a half hours until the next party arrives, so we have plenty of time to enjoy our meal and talk to each other.”

* * * *

Ethan carefully observed Grace as they told her about the restaurant.

Now that the waiter had dimmed the overhead light and lit the candles, the jewelry he’d picked for her at Clay’s shop twinkled and shimmered softly in the flickering flames of the candles. He could just make out her fluttering pulse where the rings lay over it, moving with each beat of her heart. This was just how he envisioned her when he’d seen the solid gold set in a display case. Jack and Adam had agreed they should get it for her, even though the handmade set was worth a pretty penny.

His greedy mind also wanted to see her in the necklace and other pieces with nothing else on. He imagined her straddling him, her back arched as she moved, and he wondered how she would sound when she came. He couldn’t help thinking about her that way, even though he knew that it could be a while before she let them into her bed or went home to theirs. Some
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primitive part of him liked the idea of her in their bed even better. Cocooned by all their warmth, keeping her safe and cared for.

“This has been a wonderful day. I feel so blessed.”

“Well, darlin’, the evenin’ isn’t over yet, is it?” Jack asked, smiling at her playfully.

“No, it’s not, but I feel in my heart like things are about to change between us,” she replied softly, looking up at Jack.

“What do you mean, baby?” Adam asked, looking unsure.

“I mean change in a good way.”

“You mean that you’re ready to move on in our relationship, don’t you?” Ethan asked, understanding her perfectly. “You want to see what happens next.”

She nodded. “I’m not sure about the physical aspect…” She blushed all the way down past her neckline.

Ethan saw her blush and knew what she was thinking and had to stifle an audible groan. If she was fantasizing about them naked right now, the evening was going to be long, and no amount of cold showers later would help.

“We want to make you happy, Grace,” Ethan replied. “That’s our main priority where you’re concerned. We won’t make love to you until you’re ready. Once you’re ready, I promise it will be good. We’re not in this for a fling with you.”

There! One of them had
finally
addressed the big elephant in the room.

Making love to Grace.
Now
they turned the corner in their relationship. He wanted to make sure she understood they wanted something that would last with her. They wanted her forever.

“You can be satisfied with things that way? For a little while? Allow me to get to know you?”

“Don’t worry about us,” Jack said. “We’ll wait as long as we need to.

You are worth the wait, and once you’re done with waiting, we’ll make sure you never regret giving us your trust. I promise we’ll make it good for you, darlin’.”

When the pager buzzed in Jack’s pocket, he responded with a quickly typed text message back to them.

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“Can I ask a question, just for clarification?” she asked, grinning. “Since I don’t know anything about how this will work—I mean I do, I’m not totally naïve—I want to be clear on what happens.”

“What would you like to know?” Ethan asked, enjoying her blush all over again.

“Charity said I should just get everything out on the table with all of you. Is that okay?”

“Of course, baby,” Adam replied. Just then, the waiter tapped and came through the curtain, carrying a large shrimp cocktail on a tray. He smiled, asked if they needed anything, and departed just as quickly.

“This is all new, and I don’t want you to be put out with me for any of my questions or the things that I tell you.”

“Not if you need the answers and it makes you feel better to ask and get it on the table,” Jack replied.

“Have you shared a woman before?” she asked.

“We tried once, briefly, but it didn’t work out,” Ethan replied, already anticipating she would ask about that.

“Can I ask why?”

“She was someone I’d known who dabbled in the poly scene. There was no chemistry between her and Jack or Adam, but it was a useful experience.”

“How so?”

“We realized then that we wouldn’t mind sharing the right woman at some point in the future. We didn’t mind being in the same room naked and having sex with the same woman. She had a good time, but we could see that the chemistry was off and chalked it up to experience. Everyone walked away wiser.” Ethan took a sip from his wine glass.

“How long have you wanted a woman that would accept the three of you?”

“We’ve wanted this all of our adult lives,” Ethan said without hesitation.

“As teenage boys, the idea titillated us, of course, and provided a lot of good fantasy for masturbation, but that threesome happened about ten years ago in our mid-twenties. Because we grew up together and talked about it a lot, it became an ideal end result for when we eventually settled down. It was just a matter of meeting the right woman. Falling in love with her
and
her falling in love with all three of us as well was non-negotiable.”

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“Was it Tessa?”

“No. Tessa was involved in a polyamorous relationship with another girl and Rex, but it didn’t last. Tessa is very jealous by nature and couldn’t handle sharing Yolanda with Rex. It was not a good grouping. There was a lot of jealousy and manipulation and hurt feelings. The group eventually broke up. Down the road, her path crossed with Yolanda’s again, and they gave it another try, just the two of them, this time successfully. Tessa’s is their joint business venture.”

“Would she be okay with you telling me her story?”

“I explained the hopes that we have, and she gave me carte blanche to tell all if it helps you to hear the story of another.”

“Have you ever been with Tessa, just the two of you?”

“No, she’s just my friend. Were you going to worry about whether or not we ever had sex?”

“Yes.”

Ethan grinned. “Then I’m glad you asked. I have never been in a committed relationship before. Only short-term ones that for various reasons didn’t work out.
This
has always been what I wanted. No girlfriends are going to come out of the closet. Better?”

“Very much. How will the sex work?” she asked bluntly. “Sore subject?” They groaned, and she put her hands on her blushing cheeks as she waited for the answer.

Ethan knew this was probably a big obstacle for her, so he jumped right in like a high school health teacher, explaining, very dryly, the basic mechanics. Vaginal penetration, anal penetration, if—and he stressed
only
if—she was interested in it, oral sex, for her and for them, at the same time if she wanted it that way. Then he made the most important point.

“If you were content to make love with us individually and separately and that was the most you could handle, we’d be content. If you were willing to make love to us all and sleep all together in one bed, sharing oral sex and trusting us to make our experiences together good for you, we would be lucky bastards. If occasionally you wanted to let us all make love to you at the same time, we would know heaven on earth. The only way it will work is if we have earned your trust as well as your love.”

She appeared to think for a moment. “I can tell you right now I’m
not
interested in musical beds. I haven’t done much research but have read a

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few erotic romances, and I relish the thought of sleeping tucked in amongst the three of you.”

“You’ve looked into this lifestyle before?” Ethan asked, intrigued.

“Read about it only. I have to confess, I am turned on by the notion of making love with you at the same time. It’s only ever been a fantasy, and now I’ve been presented with a dream come true.”

“We’d make it good for you, baby. You’d never be left hanging,” Adam added.

“I do have some issues I need to bring up with you. I want to be as upfront as I can so there are no surprises later.”

“What’s the first one?”

“I know one thing about myself that will never change. So don’t ever,
ever
ask it of me.”

They all leaned forward, and Ethan was ready to deal with whatever bomb she was going to drop on them.

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