The Space Between Us (22 page)

Charlie groaned again. In the next minute, he moved, getting on his back so that his face was under my pussy. His mouth found my clit; his hands grasped my hips. I rocked against his lips and tongue, the brief press of his teeth.

We came within seconds of each other, me and Meredith. She shook with her orgasm, but bit back her cries. Mine were muffled against her flesh. I pressed my lips to her clit as it pulsed, and felt mine echoing it almost exactly.

Something that can take so long to achieve is over so soon. I rolled onto my back and caught my breath. Charlie moved against me, one hand resting on Meredith’s hip. She didn’t stir.

Then she said, “The room at the end of the hall can be yours, so you’ll have your own space. And we’ll expect a third of the electricity and other utilities, including groceries. You can cook, I’ll clean up—I’m shit with cooking. Charlie takes out the garbage and I do the laundry, but you can do the vacuuming.”

She pushed up on one elbow to look at me cuddling with her husband. She wet that lovely mouth with her tongue. She kissed me. Then him.

“There will always be stuff to talk about,” Meredith said. “But is that enough for now?”

I’d been pretty sure before coming over tonight that it would be, but now I stretched, lazy and sated, and pulled her down to snuggle with us. “Yes.”

And that was how it began.

Chapter 26

“W
e either go with her or we have Thanksgiving here.” The dishes rattled in Meredith’s hands as she moved them from dishwasher to cabinet. “That’s just how it’s going to be, Charlie. Or you go to your sister’s by yourself. Whatever. You think I care if I miss her dried-out turkey breast and baked spaghetti? Who the hell serves baked spaghetti at Thanksgiving, anyway? Oh, that’s right, the sort of person who doesn’t serve mashed potatoes.”

I paused in the upstairs hallway, not meaning to eavesdrop but unwilling to go down into the kitchen once I’d heard them arguing. Well, Meredith was arguing. Charlie was his usual amiable, softer-spoken self. I heard him say something, but couldn’t catch the words.

Another cupboard opened and closed. Hard. “She lives with us. You agreed to it, and the last time I checked, you were having a great old time. She’s part of us, Charlie. And so, what? Because you don’t want to tell your family, you’re going to tell Tesla she has to stay home by herself? Fuck that noise.”

My heart sank. I didn’t want to be the reason Meredith and Charlie fought. This was a complicated business, being a third of a relationship instead of half. It made it hard when we went places together because someone always had to sit in the backseat. I could only imagine what a commotion it would cause if they took me to Charlie’s sister’s house as something other than a roommate. After all, I’d been living there only a few days. It was unlikely Charlie’s family even knew he had a roommate.

Honestly, it would’ve been fine with me if they left me home. I didn’t really want to go to his sister’s house for Thanksgiving. I had to work the Friday after, so going to my mom’s in California was out, even if I’d wanted to make the trip to see her. I’d figured I’d get Cap to cook me something, since Lynds was going to be out of town with her family, and we’d watch old movies all day long.

I’d been back to Vic’s house once to get my things and say goodbye to the kids. Simone had refused to talk to me. Max hadn’t seemed to understand. Even though Elaine hadn’t protested my moving out, she’d told me I was welcome to go to her mother’s house with them. When I asked her what Vic thought about that idea, all she’d been able to say was, “The kids and I would like you to be there.” I believed her, but I still couldn’t go to Thanksgiving at her mother’s house.

“You can’t just expect me to tell them the truth.” Charlie sounded reasonable. He always did. “You’re my wife. I’m not supposed to have a girlfriend, too.”

More rattling and slamming. “News flash. You do.”

“I’m not sure how I feel about asking my sister if I can bring a stranger to Thanksgiving dinner—”

“She’s not a stranger. She’s Tesla. You might remember better if your face was buried in her pussy.”

Even I cringed at that. Yet I heard Charlie laugh. I figured it was time to make an appearance. I made it loud enough that both of them would have to turn. Strangely enough, it was Meredith who looked as if she’d been caught at something.

“Honey, come here.” Charlie beckoned and I went to him willingly enough. He put an arm around me and then around a reluctant Meredith, who suffered his embrace for only a second or two before pushing away from him to finish unloading the dishwasher.

“I can make plans with my brother,” I said, before Charlie could dive into the embarrassing explanation of why he wasn’t going to invite me to eat turkey with his family. “Really, Charlie. It’s cool.”

“It’s not cool.” Meredith shot the remark over her shoulder.

“If Tesla wants to spend Thanksgiving with her family—” Charlie began, but she cut him off.

“That’s not what this is about, Charlie, and you know it. It’s about you not wanting to admit what’s going on, because God forbid your family figure out you’re kinky.”

He drew me a little closer to him, though he was looking at her. “It’s none of my family’s business what I do in my house or in my bedroom. But it is their business what I bring to their house.”

“I’m not a thing to bring anywhere,” I said to them both.

They looked at me.

I stepped out a bit from Charlie’s hug, though not so far he couldn’t reach for me if he wanted. “I’m not a bone for you two dogs to fight over, okay? Really. Meredith,” I said, facing her. “The fact is, there’s a reason why it’s called a couple. Couple is two. Not three.”

“Nobody tells me how I should live my life. I’m not going to be ashamed of it, or conform to what society—” she began, but it was my turn to interrupt.

“I’m not ashamed. Charlie’s not, either,” I added, hoping that was true. “But…you have to live in the real world. We all do. I love being with you. Both of you. But it’s not something we can just go flaunting around to everyone and expect the rest of the world to understand. Like Charlie said, it’s not anyone’s business.”

She frowned, her brow creasing, and crossed her arms. She looked as beautiful being stubborn as she did acquiescing. “If we were dykes we’d have parades to march in. But what, because we’re three…?”

I reached for her hand and, when she let me take it, tugged her closer to me and Charlie. “Baby, I don’t really care. I don’t need to go with you for Thanksgiving.”

“But I want you there,” she said.

“I want her there, too.” Charlie slipped his arm back around my waist and kissed the top of my head when I snuggled closer. “But I can’t just bring her in and tell them all the truth. I won’t subject Tesla to that, Meredith. You can call me a coward if you want, but I’m thinking of her, too.”

I stroked my fingers along the back of her hand, but she wouldn’t join our hug. “And you. They’d give you a hard time, too,” I said. “Or maybe pity you, thinking Charlie’s got himself a side piece.”

She glowered. “Anyone who knows me would not pity me. Ever. For anything.”

Charlie laughed. “No, but they’d talk about you behind your back.”

“You think I care?” she said, but her anger was softening. She sidled a little closer and hooked a finger through Charlie’s belt loop. “Fine. We could just say she’s our roommate. Let them think we made some bad investments or something and need the income. Though your sister’s not dumb, Charles. She’d totally see right through all of it, unless you can keep from looking at Tesla like you want to eat her right up. Which you can’t.”

“Probably not,” he admitted, and kissed me again. “And I don’t want to have to.”

“It’s better if I don’t go with you. Next year,” I offered boldly, since next year was something we’d never even talked about, “we can have it here and nobody needs to explain anything.”

Finally, Meredith moved toward us. Her hand slid over the ass of my fleecy sweatpants, cupping my butt. Her other hand did the same to Charlie. She pushed up on her toes to kiss his mouth briefly, then gave me a slightly longer smooch.

“That’s our Tesla. So smart.” Her forehead pressed mine.

So close I couldn’t focus, her face blurred, but her eyes stayed clear. She blinked and kissed me again. Her tongue slipped inside my mouth, delicately probing.

“You sure you’ll be okay? I hate the thought of you spending Thanksgiving alone.” She put her head on my shoulder.

“I don’t have to be alone. Cap needs someone to hang out with, anyway. I should spend the day with him. It’ll be fine.”

Charlie’s hand made circles on my back. “Hey, let’s stream a movie on Interflix. Just relax tonight.”

I liked the sound of that. “I’ll make popcorn. Real butter. Salt. It’ll be awesome.”

“All those calories?” Meredith said without real heat. “Guess we’ll just have to work them off.”

“I like the way you think.” Charlie kissed her.

He kissed me, too.

The three of us eased apart, Charlie to head into the den to find something to watch, Meredith with the last of the dishes. I went into the pantry to pull out the plastic container of popcorn kernels and then to the fridge for real butter. I was reaching into the cupboard for salt when Meredith moved behind me to put something in the drawer. We bumped into each other and, laughing, she put her arms around me.

She kissed me again, backing me up against the counter. Her hands fit neatly on my hips. Her tongue stroked mine as her thigh pressed between my legs.

“Mmm,” I said into her mouth. “What’s going on with you?”

“What do you mean?” She paused, her hands on their way to my breasts, but stopping just beneath. She frowned.

I didn’t want a frown. I wanted smiling and sultry Meredith. Playful, not pouting. “Nothing. Never mind.”

I leaned to kiss her again, but she pulled away enough to keep me from reaching her mouth. “Why should something be going on with me?”

I didn’t want to point out that she rarely, if ever, initiated anything with me like that. Flirty caresses and a kiss here and there, yes. But she’d kissed me the way she kissed Charlie, and that was unusual. Because I liked it, though, I didn’t want her to feel self-conscious.

I pushed my crotch lightly against her thigh. “It shouldn’t. I liked what you were doing. Don’t stop.”

She drew in a breath, her shoulders lifting. She tilted her head, looking over my face. Her hands moved up to cup my breasts, her fingers tweaking my nipples before moving away. “Charlie’s waiting.”

I smiled. “You think he’ll mind if we start without him?”

“He might mind if we finish without him,” she said, and kissed the corner of my mouth before moving away. “Besides. I want some of your insanely fattening popcorn.”

I caught her before she could move too far. “Meredith, you’re gorgeous. You know that, right?”

Sometimes I wasn’t sure she did, even though now she tossed the fall of her perfect golden hair over her shoulders and gave me a look worthy of any silent screen vamp.

“Of course I am.” She winked and moved toward the door to the laundry room that led to the garage. “Getting a soda. You want one?”

“Sure.” I pulled down a pot from the rack and set it on the burner. “Thanks.”

Twenty minutes later we were all settled on the big overstuffed couch with bowls of salty, buttery popcorn on our laps and cans of soda in front of us. Charlie had picked a horror movie I hadn’t seen, and though Meredith had curled her lip, she hadn’t insisted we watch something else. Set up between them, I could laugh when she jumped and hid her eyes, and discuss the plot points with Charlie.

In that moment, I knew how that third bowl of porridge felt, that third chair, the third and final bed Goldilocks had tried. I wasn’t too hot or too cold, too hard or too soft. I was just right.

The movie ended. I held up a handful of popcorn for Charlie to take from my fingers. He lipped at my palm, his tongue swiping along the flesh in a way that made me shiver. When I looked up at him, those dark blue eyes dug right into my soul.

I kissed him because I could. Because here in this place, on this couch and in this house, Charlie belonged to me in a way that had nothing to do with rings or ceremonies. Behind me, Meredith’s breath caressed my neck before I felt the warm, wet press of her lips on my skin.

Upstairs we went to their room by unspoken agreement. We’d fallen into the habit of bed-hopping, Charlie and me in mine one night, Meredith and me in theirs another, the two of them in theirs and me sprawled out decadently alone sometimes, too, but that was for sleeping. When it came to fucking, they had the better bed. Not quite big enough for the three of us to sleep in comfortably, at least not for the person who ended up in the middle, but for sex it was perfect.

I loved how easy it was for Meredith and me to push Charlie back against the mattress and strip him naked. To cover him with kisses up one side and down the other, passing each other at his cock, which we both took turns sucking and licking. I loved the flicker of her tongue on mine as our mouths met on Charlie’s prick, and I loved the way his hands stroked our hair back from our faces. And the way he murmured encouragement, the hitch in his voice when he reacted to our touching, licking, stroking, sucking.

Meredith didn’t notice that I’d paused in my adoration of Charlie’s body; she was busy stripping out of her clothes and tossing the extra pillows onto the floor so we’d have enough space for everything else. Charlie noticed, though. He got up on one elbow to cup my cheek with his hand.

He didn’t say anything. We could communicate so easily with silence what some people needed an entire dictionary of words to say. I loved that, too.

I moved up his body to reach his lips with my mouth. He was smiling when I kissed him. I toyed with his nipple and trailed tickling fingers along his side, which made him laugh and squirm away. I looked up to see Meredith watching both of us.

“What?” I asked.

She shook her head and shifted closer to run her fingers through Charlie’s hair. He turned his head so he could kiss her hand when she pressed it against his face. His fingers closed over it, holding it to his mouth when I grasped his cock, sucking gently, then harder. His hips pushed up, and I laughed softly, gripping it at the base to keep it from choking me.