Authors: Mari Carr
He grinned. “You’re saying it all just fine. You sure you’re okay with staying longer? I know the deal was for one night, but we just got you back after a decade and last night went by too damn fast.”
She agreed with his assessment. “I want to stay longer.”
He sat up, pulling her along with him. He leaned forward to kiss her. “I’ll start running the water. Why don’t you dig through the top drawer in that dresser over there and see if you can’t find a T-shirt to wear. I doubt you wanna put those fancy clothes back on and since we’re just hanging out today, I sort of like the idea of you walking around in my shirt.”
She grinned. “Sounds great.”
He walked out of the room and she swallowed past the lump clogging her throat.
What the hell was she doing? Staying longer was stupid, utterly stupid. She’d wanted Justin and Killian for ten years and she’d told herself she could handle one night. Just one night to live out her wicked fantasies before returning to the real world, a bit lonelier perhaps, but at least she wouldn’t be suffering anymore from the damn regret that had plagued her this past decade.
She’d known the words she wanted to use to describe last night to Killian, but all of them would have given her away, revealed far too much. The dream of being with K
and Justin didn’t hold a candle to the reality of it and her fantasies had been pretty fan-damn-tastic. How was she going to be able to protect her heart if today followed suit?
Both men were funny, handsome, generous. It was as if everything she’d adored about them in high school had solidified, grown and matured into more than she’d ever anticipated. Criminy. She was falling fast and hard…for both of them…
again
.
“Stupid,” she muttered.
“Water’s just about ready,” Killian yelled out from the bathroom.
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She roused herself from the bed, crossing to the dresser. “I can do this,” she muttered. “I can do this.”
She grabbed a T-shirt from the drawer, pausing to smell the fresh, clean shirt, hoping the cotton carried some of K’s mouthwatering, masculine scent.
Jeez. She rolled her eyes. This was
not
going to end well.
* * * * *
Lily reached for another piece of pizza and tried to remember when she’d had a nicer afternoon. She’d lounged in the bathtub until the water went cold, the long soak doing wonders for her stiff muscles. Rather than coming down for breakfast, she’d discovered Justin had returned with a late lunch—three large pizzas and a case of beer.
Staples, he’d called them. They’d spent the last hour eating, talking, reconnecting. The longer she spent in their presence, the more she remembered how easy it had been hanging out with them.
“So after Dad showed us the ropes of the construction business, he hightailed it to Florida. Last I heard, he even got himself a girlfriend.” Justin took another bite of pizza.
“My dad retired too, right after Chad graduated from high school. He and Mom moved back to Atlanta since that’s where most of our family is from.”
“You didn’t want to settle in Georgia?” Killian asked. He was sitting next to her on the couch, while Justin was lounging in his recliner.
“Nope. Baltimore is close enough. Not that I don’t love my parents, but distance really does make the heart grow fonder in this instance. And besides, Chad’s still here too, so it’s not like I don’t have any family in the area.”
Killian laughed. “I used to think I couldn’t wait to get away from my family. Too damn many of us kids living in too small a space. I was only in the Army about five minutes before I missed the shit out of all of them.”
“That’s because your family rocks.” Lily took a sip of her beer.
“Amen to that. Plus your sisters are hot.”
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Killian narrowed his eyes at Justin and Lily giggled. “Oh my God, you still don’t let him jerk your chain with that line, do you?”
“It’s my sisters he’s talking about. There’s a fine line, you know?”
Justin grinned. “I don’t see anything wrong with saying the truth. Besides, it’s not like I could ever put the moves on them. Not when Keira’s married with a kid and Teagan’s as good as with Sky Mitchell, of all people.”
“I noticed you didn’t mention Riley,” Killian joked. “She’s available.”
Justin shuddered and Lily grinned. “I take it your baby sister is still a handful?”
“On a good day.” Killian put his arm around her back, lightly massaging her neck.
“How’s your pop?” she asked.
“Excellent. Really great. He had a minor stroke a couple years back. Actually, Lane, Tristan’s wife, was his nurse. That’s how those two hooked up.”
“And Justin said Keira’s married with a baby?”
“She has a little girl, Caitlyn. Most gorgeous kid on the planet. Her first birthday is in a month and Keira’s having a big bash at the pub. You should come with me and Justin. I know my family would love to see you again.”
Her heart sped up at the thought of seeing Killian and Justin socially after this weekend adventure. “I, um,” she swallowed heavily, “I’ll have to see what my work schedule looks like.”
“Cool.” Killian took her answer in stride and she was relieved he didn’t notice her nervousness. She glanced over at Justin and realized she hadn’t been as lucky with him.
“I thought the aquarium job was a nine-to-fiver.” Justin wiped his mouth with a napkin, threw it on his empty plate. He put the plate and his beer on the coffee table and came over to join her and Killian on the couch.
“For the most part it is,” she replied. “But there may be some weekend hours involved if the aquarium puts on special events and that type of thing.”
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Justin nodded but she could see he wasn’t finished. “What kind of break do you get for lunch?”
“Why?”
He grinned. “Because sometimes K and I work downtown. We could swing by and take you out for burgers.”
Killian’s fingers played with her hair and she tried to ignore how good his simple touch felt. He leaned closer and she felt his breath on her cheek as he spoke. “Lunch would be fun. There are a couple places down on the waterfront or we could always hit Sunday’s Side for the daily special. Riley’s taken over as chef there and I have to admit, my sister can cook.”
Lily remembered Killian’s family restaurant fondly. While she’d never spent any time during high school in the pub side, she’d worked with Killian and Justin on school projects around one of the tables in the restaurant more than a few times. When she’d been alive, K’s mom, Sunday, would make them snacks and chat with them as they worked. Memories of the smells and the warmth of the place rushed through her and she was amazed by how much she really wanted to go back to see it.
“That sounds nice. I guess we’ll have to see how it goes.”
Justin ran his hand along her leg and she had to fight back a shiver. His touches went through her like electricity, sparking every sexual cell in her body to life. “How it goes?”
She nodded uncomfortably and she wondered if he’d let the subject lie. “I’ve only just moved back and started work. I’m sort of trying to get my bearings there. You know how it is.”
Justin stared at her and she fought to hold his gaze, refusing to let him see any weakness. Dammit. She’d made a mess of everything. For someone with so-called intelligence, she’d dropped the ball on this scheme. While the romantic part of her was thrilled by the thought of continuing to see them, the reasonable side of her screamed this whole affair couldn’t end in any other way but disaster. A ménage was a fantasy, 78
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not a lifestyle. Somehow she’d have to find her way back to “just friends” without losing her heart along the way.
Justin grinned and she realized she’d dodged the bullet…for the moment. “I bought you some presents when I went out this morning.”
“You did?” she asked.
“Mmm hmm.” Justin leaned closer and nuzzled his nose against her neck. She loved the rough slide of his cheek against hers.
Killian’s hands left her hair and traveled to her waist, drawing up the T-shirt she’d donned after her bath. “No panties. Very good, Lil. You’re definitely top of the class in being naughty.”
“You guys are good teachers.” The breathless quality of her response gave away her sudden, raging lust.
Killian pulled the T-shirt over her head and she was instantly struck by how sexy it felt to be totally naked, sitting between two fully dressed men. Killian turned on the couch, leaning back against the arm of the large sofa, taking her with him. Her back rested on his muscular chest while Justin took his position at her feet.
“Open your legs, Lily.” Justin’s hands gripped her knees, pushing them apart. He helped her lift one, placing it along the back of the couch while putting her right foot on the floor. She was spread out like a banquet feast and she reveled in the hungry look in Justin’s gaze.
He leaned forward, sucking her clit into his mouth at the same time Killian’s hands came around to play with her breasts. She laid her head back on K’s shoulder, closing her eyes and soaking up the beauty of their dual affections.
“Open your eyes, Lily.”
Lily turned her head to face Killian.
“Watch us.”
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She glanced down her body, inundated by the sight of Killian’s large hands engulfing her breasts, his fingers pinching her tight nipples, the pleasurable impulse shooting throughout her body and driving her hips toward Justin’s questing mouth. He was devouring her pussy like a starving man and she cried out when his tongue thrust inside her.
“Too good,” she whispered.
Killian chuckled. “Ain’t no such thing, sweetness. Not with you. Do you wanna know about Justin’s presents?”
She pushed her hips toward Justin’s mouth again.
Presents?
“I thought
this
was the present.” Justin pulled away briefly to grin at her and before she could think about it, she leaned up and ran her finger along his lips, wet with her juices. She pulled her finger back and sucked it into her mouth, wanting to take a taste.
“Holy fuck, that’s hot.” Justin dipped his finger into her pussy, plunging in hard and fast a few times before pulling it out again. He ran the finger along her mouth, painting her lips with the slick moisture. Her tongue darted out to taste but he shook his head. “That’s for K.”
She turned her head and Killian swooped down to take the offering, kissing every bit of the essence off her lips while his hands held her face in place. She loved the way Killian cupped her cheeks when his kissed her. The gesture so romantically sweet it never failed to bring tears to her eyes.
Justin watched them kiss for only a moment before returning to tease her once more with his mouth, his lips, his teeth. His sensuous assault on her pussy was relentless, wonderful. His firm hands on her hips couldn’t hold back her body’s need to move, to grind on his face, to steal every bit of pleasure from him it could while Killian laid claim to her lips. She was lightheaded, breathless when her climax came. She threw her head back and cried as pure white-hot lightning streaked through her, blazing so brightly she thought she’d be blinded by the intensity.
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She lay for several moments, limp as a wet noodle, grateful for Justin’s and Killian’s comforting caresses as she tried to recover from the single greatest orgasm of her life.
“Wow.” They both chuckled at her comment. Justin had pulled her feet to his lap and was lightly rubbing them, while Killian simply held her tightly in his warm embrace. K was a large man and she loved being surrounded by him, the sensation of being protected, cared for, more compelling than she would have ever imagined.
A rattling sound caught her attention and she watched Justin pull a plastic bag onto his lap.
“My presents?” she asked.
He nodded and, for a moment, she thought he hesitated. She felt Killian take a deep breath, the rising of his chest pushing against her back. “If you don’t want to do this, Lil, you only have to say no,” he said.
She looked at Justin curiously. “Show me what’s in the bag.”
He pulled out several packages and it took her a few moments to figure out what she was looking at. She spotted another tube of lubrication and a tiny remote-controlled vibrator shaped like an egg. Those items were obvious, but one was not. It was clearly a sex toy, but it wasn’t one she’d ever seen before. Of course, her experience with toys was limited to the single slim vibrator she owned.
“What am I looking at?”
“You know what these are.” Justin tossed the vibrator and the lube onto the coffee table. “This one’s a butt plug.” Justin lifted up the item she’d been questioning.
“Ah.”
Killian turned her face toward him with a hand on her jaw. “‘Ah’?”
She grinned. “I already said last night I was willing to try anal play.” She felt a hot flush cover her cheeks but she forged on anyway. “I sort of liked Justin’s finger when he…you know.”
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Justin laughed and shook his head. “We’re going to have to seriously start working on your dirty talk, Lily. Later. Right now, I want to go back to bed.”
“Bed sounds good.” She rose, surprised when Killian bent forward and picked her up in a fireman’s hold.
“Bed sounds damn good. Bring the toys, Justin. This is gonna be fun.”
Lily giggled as Killian carried her upstairs. He’d always been the more serious of her two friends, so she loved seeing his playful side.
“You’re crazy. Put me down.”
“Nope. Not ’til I have you in my bedroom again.”
“You fellas are starting to get greedy.”
Justin laughed as he followed them upstairs and into Killian’s room. Killian threw her down on the bed and she giggled as she bounced on the cushy mattress.
“That’s your fault.” Justin pulled his T-shirt over his head. “You’re too fucking sexy. My cock’s been stiff since I woke up this morning. I’m pretty sure that could be dangerous to my health.”
She pushed up, leaning on her elbows. “Well, we can’t have that, can we? Come here, let me see if I can’t kiss it all better.”