Red Zone: Boys of Fall (3 page)

“Take us to your bedroom.”

Sadie broke off her kiss with Oakley to look over her shoulder at Joel as he made his demand. “Ask nicely.”

Joel’s lips tipped up at the edges. Then he lifted the hem of her dress to reveal her panties. Before she knew what he was planning, he slapped her ass. Hard. It hurt and turned her on all at the same time.

“Take us to your bedroom. Please.”

Adding the final word certainly didn’t make it sound like less of a command, but Sadie didn’t give a damn. She was into this side of Joel’s personality.

“Jesus, bro,” Oakley muttered. “You gotta scale back on that macho shit. It’s starting to work on
me
.”

Sadie giggled when she spotted Oakley’s very apparent erection poking through his dress pants. Joel didn’t seem quite as amused.

Oakley Fox was very open about his sexuality—his
bi-
sexuality. He didn’t discriminate when it came to lovers. Boys or girls, he liked them all the same.

“Oakley.” For the first time since they’d entered her apartment, Joel seemed to waver in his resolve.

Hell no.

She grasped his hand and dragged him to her bedroom before he could reconsider. She still had a lot of champagne flowing through her veins, heating up her girlie bits. She wasn’t finished. Not by a long shot.

When they entered the room, Joel wasted no time taking things to a completely new level. He gripped the bottom of her dress and tugged it over her head in one fell swoop. The dress had a low back, so she’d gone braless. She wasn’t packing enough on top for that to be a problem. She wasn’t exactly-flat chested, but she was no stranger to padded bras either.

Neither man appeared to be disappointed.

“Shit, Sadie,” Oakley murmured reverently. He stepped closer, compelled to run his finger along the edges of the watercolor hummingbird tat that rested over her right breast. “That’s incredible.”

She lifted her shoulder, pleased. Not all the guys she went out with liked her tattoos. “I go to this guy in New Orleans. I figure if it’s going to be there forever, I want it to be perfect. Caleb is the best. He’s done all my art.” She turned to show them the hibiscus on her left shoulder. They’d already seen the Celtic knot on her wrist, the fleur de lis on her ankle and the infinity symbol on her foot. Like her apartment, her tats were eclectic. If she saw something she liked, something that spoke to her, she got it.

Later, she’d give them a peek at the butterfly on her ass. Maybe she’d even confess to what it was covering up.

“I’ve always liked this,” Joel lightly touched her belly button ring. Sometimes she wore crop tops just to show off a new ring or whenever she felt like annoying her dad. While he didn’t mind the piercings or the tats, he hated when she wore clothes that were too revealing. Typical father response.

“Had enough of the tour?” she teased once they’d looked their fill.

Oakley laughed, his fingers stroking the side of her silk panties. “Sort of leaving out the best part, aren’t you?”

She gave him a flirty grin. “You think you’re up for the rest?”

He groaned and grabbed her hand, tugging her to the bed. He sat on the edge of the mattress, making it easy for her to straddle his thighs. She crawled on, facing him, kissing him and pressing her pussy against his hard cock, still trapped in his pants.

Oakley gripped her ass tightly, pulling her against him tighter. Neither of them seemed capable of getting enough.

She hadn’t forgotten Joel was in the room, though she’d lost track of him. He remained somewhere behind her. She could feel his gaze on them, watching them. What the hell was he thinking of this?

She’d never considered herself a threesome girl, but she could definitely see the appeal. Like Oakley, she wasn’t fussed with limits much. She’d done some hot-and-heavy making out and fondling with a girl back in high school and really enjoyed it. Sadie was a little too fond of being fucked with real dicks to go there permanently, but that wasn’t to say she would turn down the experience again if it presented itself.

However, Joel was as straight as Oakley was wiggly. Sadie was sort of amazed he was here, taking part in this.

“God,” Oakley groaned. “Gotta fuck you, Sade.”

She reached for the button on his pants, but never made it to her destination. Joel suddenly made his presence known. He grasped both of her wrists and pulled them behind her back, holding them there, his large hands her shackles.

Her pussy clenched hungrily. Oh hell yeah. She may not have fantasized about a ménage, but bondage was another thing entirely. Unfortunately, she’d never dated anyone she trusted enough to tie her up.

Joel tightened his grip, causing her back to arch slightly, her breasts forced farther out. “What’s your hurry?”

Using his hold on her hands, he pulled her off Oakley’s lap. “Pull down the covers, Oak.” Then—much to her dismay—Joel released her hands. Her annoyance was short-lived when he tugged off his tie, unbuttoned his shirt and stripped it off.

Oakley responded to Joel’s demand, but Sadie could see what the dominant side of his friend was doing to him. Poor Oakley was as turned on as she was and fighting like the devil to hide it.

Once the bedspread was lowered, Oakley took off his own tie and shirt, climbed onto the mattress and scooted over to make room for her and Joel. Oakley was waiting for her as she and Joel lay down. He resumed their kiss, his hands caressing every part of her body he could reach, stroking her breasts, her waist, her hips.

Joel claimed the place behind her, his covered cock nudging against her ass. She pushed against it, seeking stimulation, hoping to encourage him to fuck her. Instead, he gripped her hips and rubbed his erection against her harder. She resented the feeling of his light cotton pants. She wanted flesh on flesh. Needed it.

Her head was swimming in a sea of alcohol and arousal. It was one hell of a buzz.

She flipped to her back when the heat of the kisses and the closeness of their two huge, muscular bodies became too much.

“God. Please.” She reached down, intent on stripping both men out of their pants at the same time.

Both men.

Both.

Two.

The thought made her pause. Her hands were resting on two very hard, very ready cocks. She struggled to suck in a deep breath.

What the fuck was she doing?

“Um…”

Her arousal flickered out as if someone had dumped a bucket of cold water on her.

Joel must have sensed her hesitation and panic because he grasped her wrist, pulling it away from his dick.

“What are we doing?” he asked, his words mimicking her thoughts.

She shook her head slowly, common sense rearing its ugly head. “I don’t know.”

Oakley apparently hadn’t caught up. “We’re having sex. The hottest fucking sex ever.”

She looked at him and bit her lower lip.

Oakley’s expression fell as realization dawned hard. “Shit.” He closed his eyes and sighed. “Sadie—”

“I’m sorry,” she whispered. “I…this…it isn’t…” She started to say
right
, but that was wrong. The problem was, this felt entirely too right. But sobriety was starting to clear a path and the voice of Sober Sadie was yelling for her to stop. “We wouldn’t be here, doing this, if we weren’t drunk. I know I said wedding hookups were all about sex and regrets, but I don’t want to feel that way about you guys.”

“You’re right,” Joel admitted. “We shouldn’t be here.”

Oakley didn’t agree. “You’re joking, right? I don’t give a fuck how much we drank. There’s no way you two can lay here and tell me this isn’t fucking awesome.”

Oakley was the only man in town capable of out-cursing her. Which was saying something, considering her gutter mouth.

“Oak,” Joel started. Sadie recognized the tone as much as Oakley. Joel was about to issue one of his
you have to be responsible
speeches. She and Oakley had both been on the receiving end of them before, given their rather reckless approaches to life.

Oakley sat up, rising from the bed. “Save it. Tonight’s not happening. I get it. I gotta take care of something.” Sadie would have laughed when he pointed to his erection if she hadn’t felt so guilty. “Where’s your bathroom, Sadie?”

She pointed to a door on the left and Oakley stormed out. She released a long sigh. “Guess I screwed that up.”

Joel gripped her shoulder, turning her toward him. “I share a room in the bunkhouse with that horny bastard. He’s no stranger to his hand. Besides, we all got carried away. It’s alright.”

She studied his face, the dominant man had faded away and the friendly Joel she’d always known returned. “I have to admit your bedroom persona wasn’t what I expected.”

He rolled his eyes. “Sade.” The word was laced with warning, so, of course, she ignored it.

“I mean in real life, you’re just so…”

“I’m not going to like the word you fill in that blank with, am I?”

She grinned. “Passive.”

He narrowed his eyes. “Seriously?”

Sadie laughed, glad that they could return to their usual teasing so quickly after such an intense almost-fuck-up. “I could always go with stoic, stodgy, serious, predictable or boring.”

Before she knew it, Joel had pulled her toward him, tickling her as she giggled and tried to bat his hands away. She continued to wiggle, fighting to crawl off the opposite side of the bed, until he pulled her toward him, her back resting against his chest. He wrapped his arms around her in a friendly, relaxed manner, a far cry from their previous touches.

“I guess I should get up and call for a cab to take us back to the ranch.”

She shook her head. “No. Sleep it off here. We’re going to have to deal with the awkward morning after for this fiasco at some point. Might as well get it over with right away.”

He tightened his grip, accepting her invitation without words. Then he finally said, “You’re still not going to go out with me, are you? Or Oakley.”

She twisted in his arms, wanting him to see her face as she tried to explain. “The thing is…I can’t choose, Joel. I like you and Oakley. A lot. And as I think you saw tonight, I’m attracted to both of you. You say choose, but it’s just not that simple.”

He nodded slowly, though she could see her words didn’t make him happy. Hell, they didn’t make
her
happy.

She needed to lighten the heavy mood. “Let’s face it, put together, you and Oakley make the perfect man.”

Joel chuckled, the sound short-lived when Oakley walked back into the room.

Sadie glanced at him over her shoulder, wanting to put a smile on his face again as well. “Damn, Oak. That didn’t take long. You know that doesn’t really speak too highly of your stamina.”

“Shut up and scoot over,” Oakley said, no heat behind his words. He spooned her, snuggling close to her in a way that was far too comfortable. Sadie could sleep just like this every night of her life.

She sighed. “You mad?”

“Naw,” Oakley said. “I could never be mad at you, Sade.”

She snorted. “Yeah, right.”

“Fine,” he amended. “I could never
stay
mad at you.”

She closed her eyes. Alcohol was a fickle friend. Now that the possibility of sex was off the table, it was taking the opposite route, making her very, very sleepy.

Her last thought as she drifted away was of Advil. She should have taken two. And had some water. Because there was no way she wasn’t waking up without a headache.

Fucking champagne.

Fucking karma.

Joel tossed a hay bale on the back of the tractor and tried to ignore Oakley’s constant whistling. The damn man had been in an annoyingly good mood ever since they’d left Sadie’s bed yesterday morning.

Sadie had claimed the morning after would be awkward, but she’d been wrong. Apart from the fact they’d all had wicked hangovers, there was no uncomfortable silence or stilted conversation. They had just gotten out of bed, dressed and shared some dry toast and weak tea while teasing each other the same way they always did.

That was one of the things Joel liked best about Sadie. She didn’t play games or pretend to be anything other than exactly what she was. The woman was honest, with a great sense of humor and just the right amount of humility. She didn’t take herself too seriously, but she wasn’t afraid to tell you what she thought of you either. It was incredibly appealing.

However, unlike Oakley’s sudden, irritatingly cheerful demeanor, their night together had left him in a foul mood. Mainly because he knew exactly how much he was losing out on now. He’d always liked Sadie, always been attracted to her, but he’d never realized just how cool she was. Hearing that she couldn’t choose between him and Oakley was different from thinking she was uninterested and just trying to be a decent person. It made things harder, because now he knew she wanted him as much as he wanted her.

Oakley’s whistling grew louder.

“Dammit, Oak. Will you stop making so much racket?”

Oakley paused mid-toss. “What the hell is wrong with you?”

That wasn’t the right question at all. “Actually, I’m curious to know why you’re so freaking happy?”

Oakley sighed. “You don’t get it, do you, Joel? You haven’t figured it out yet?”

Joel had spent the past eight years of his life working side by side with this man. And sometimes, it felt as if they were still strangers. Joel would never get used to Oakley’s bizarre way of looking at the world. If Joel saw storm clouds, Oakley saw shade. If Joel saw an annoying deer eating all their vegetables in the garden, Oakley saw Bambi. And clearly, while Joel looked at Sadie and saw no possible future, Oakley found something different.

“Figured out what?”

“I heard what she said the other night. About liking both of us.”

“You were eavesdropping?”

Oakley shook his head. “Not the entire time. Me and Woody had to have a little chat first. I was trying to talk him off the ledge.”

Joel rolled his eyes. Oakley had named his cock Woody—the least inspired name on the planet—and actually talked about it like it was a real person. “Then I also assume you heard her say she couldn’t choose. She’s never going to date either one of us.”