Three Made in Heaven [Made in Heaven] (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour) (11 page)

While Charlie tied up a few of his accounts before handing them over to a colleague, the prospect of a transfer looking very promising, Cole found a few veterinary practices in town and not too far out that he wanted to apply to. He decided that he would hold off on interviews until he returned from his trip. He did not want to take the chance of being called on an interview while Charlie was away. Instead, he officially gave his mom the go-ahead to put his house up for sale and spoke extensively with the realtor she had hired.

Cole also decided that they would venture out of the house this coming weekend. As much as he loved spending the whole of the previous weekend, and every night since, shut in, naked, and in sexual bliss, he wanted to take Maddie out on a proper date, something that he and Charlie had not yet had the chance to do.

Their official first date was scheduled for Friday night and would consist of dinner and a movie. On Saturday they would all be going to a get-together at Angela and Kellan’s house, and on Sunday, they would revert back to being naked and shut in.

Maddie told Cole that she felt a bit like a nympho. She just could not get enough of her men. At night, they fulfilled each and every one of her desires, and in the mornings, she woke up wanting more. At work, they shared stolen passionate kisses whenever Charlie or Cole, or sometimes both, cornered her in private. She also let him know that it wasn’t just the sex that left her feeling blissful and content. It was how well their close-knit friendship translated into real and now everyday life. She knew that she had been lonely before, but up until Charlie and Cole’s arrival, she had not fully realized the magnitude.

* * * *

On Friday afternoon, Angela and Cole found themselves alone in her office. He was sitting at Maddie’s desk, going over the paperwork for the sale of his house, while Charlie was helping Maddie with customers out in the main room.

Angela sat down at her desk to review the new item orders she was about to place. She wordlessly typed away on her computer and surreptitiously—or so she thought—glanced up at Cole every so often.

“What is it, Angela?” Cole asked, setting aside his stack of papers. “You seem curious about something. Go ahead and ask. I don’t mind.”

“It’s just…well,” she began, searching for the right way to phrase her question. “I mean I guess I can understand it from a girl’s perspective but…well the two of you…you don’t mind…sharing?”

“I don’t see it that way,” Cole said without hesitation. “Sharing implies that Maddie is only half mine and half Charlie’s. I see Maddie as being fully mine and fully Charlie’s. The three of us are in a relationship together.”

“But how can that be?” Angela blurted. “It’s not like you and Charlie are… you know,
intimate
.”

“Sure we are,” Cole stated matter-of-factly. “We don’t have sex with each other, if that’s what you mean. He and I are both straight. But we make love to the same woman at the same time. His presence and also his gratification are an integral part of my sexual experience and vice versa. It’s very intimate.”

“Oh,” was all she could think of to say. She quickly closed her mouth when she realized it was still hanging open.

Just then, Charlie walked in the room. “You two look very serious. Did I miss the ‘what are your intentions with my daughter’ talk?”

Though still a little dazed from her conversation with Cole, Angela was quick to reply. “Consider this your warm up. Just wait till it’s her father’s turn.”

“Well in that case,” Charlie began, humoring her, “let me assure you that our intentions are completely honorable.”

Angela smiled. If she had any doubts, the last several days of watching Charlie, Cole, and Maddie interact with each other, dispelled them.
And they thought they were only making out in private
. Angela had caught them several times and quietly slipped away. She was sure there were plenty of times that had escaped her notice and wondered if those times could have possibly been any steamier.

* * * *

Their official first date was wonderful. Charlie and Cole surprised Maddie with calla lilies, her favorite flowers, and they were the perfect gentlemen as they each gave her an arm to link hers through on their way out. At the movies, they showered her with snacks and soda from the concession stand, satisfying her sweet tooth. The comedy they agreed upon seeing was stupid but incredibly funny. They poked fun at Maddie as she snorted through some of the funnier scenes, a habit of hers they were very familiar with. Even as a kid she could not a help a snort escaping every so often when she found herself in a fit of laughter. She tried to cover her mouth, but Charlie or Cole wrestled her hand away each time.

She only laughed harder when Charlie “accidentally” dropped popcorn down her blouse and unabashedly went in to retrieve it. He located the wayward piece, copped a feel, and then popped it into his mouth.

By the time they sat down to dinner at Maddie’s favorite Italian restaurant, the atmosphere had become very sexually charged. When their food arrived, Maddie got a kick out of teasing Charlie and Cole by provocatively licking marinara sauce off her fork or sucking on her pasta before taking it into her mouth and slowly, deliberately, licking her lips. Then she would casually slide her foot up and down each of their legs. Charlie nearly choked on his water when Maddie’s foot rubbed his already strained crotch. Cole was a little better prepared when Maddie teased his cock with her foot, but Maddie noticed how much he struggled not to make a sound.

“Just wait till we get you home, you little vixen,” Charlie had said, with promise and longing in his voice.

The only hitch in the evening was the few awkward stares they received from the diners as both Charlie and Cole laced their fingers with Maddie’s upon leaving the restaurant. Maddie managed to brush it off, figuring it was something she needed to get used to. Not that any of them planned on constantly displaying their affections in public.

Charlie and Cole had made good on their threat when they arrived home. They drove Maddie wild with desire. They teased and tortured her until she was begging for them to make her come. Since they could deny her nothing, they obliged—repeatedly. She fell asleep happy and sated in their arms.

“Shit! Wake up, baby. Cole, help me wake her up!”

Charlie was frantic. The sound of Maddie groaning in her sleep had woken him. He saw her face twisted in pain, her hands balled into fists by her sides. He gently tried to shake her awake but to no avail. He leaned over and nudged Cole again.

“I can’t wake her up,” Charlie said, his voice breaking, when Cole finally opened his eyes and sat up.

“Maddie, sweetheart, wake up please,” Cole said soothingly. “How long have you been trying to wake her up?” he asked Charlie.

“A few minutes, maybe.”

“Come on, love. You’re okay. Everything’s okay. Charlie and I are both right here.”

Charlie and Cole continued with their reassuring words as they gently shook her shoulders. Finally, with a gasp, Maddie bolted upright.

“Blood…blood…so much blood,” she cried. Her shoulders shook as she sobbed uncontrollably. Charlie and Cole held on to her tightly and crooned reassurances.

After over a week of peaceful sleep, Charlie could not fathom what had brought on her nightmare, the most frightening one yet it seemed, especially after the amazing night they just had. In the week that he and Cole had spent with Maddie, nothing out of the ordinary had occurred and certainly nothing that brought them closer to figuring out who would want to hurt her.

“We’re never going to let anything happen to you, baby,” Charlie said as he rubbed her back. “I promise you.”

“Want to talk about it?” Cole asked her.

Maddie shook her head. “Just hold me,” she whispered.

* * * *

“Maddie, please talk to me,” Cole pleaded. He was perched on top of the closed toilet lid as Maddie was putting on the finishing touches of her makeup. She had been avoiding talking about her nightmare all day even though she had been visibly upset about it. Cole had a pretty good idea what the nightmare was about having witnessed it firsthand. What concerned him more was the blood part. There hadn’t been any when he showed up in her nightmare, and it made him wonder if her dream progressed horrifyingly further.

“You can’t keep things like this from us,” Cole said, continuing his plea. “I know you’re scared, sweetheart, so are Charlie and I…terrified actually, but if we are going to figure out who would want to hurt you, you have to let us in. Please, Maddie.”

She let out a breath and turned around to face him. “This one was different,” she began saying. Her voice was barely above a whisper. Cole could see the tears already pooling in her eyes.

“Different how?” he asked. He reached out and took her hand, pulling her gently to him and seating her on his lap.

“We were on a beach again…the three of us, and at first I thought we were sharing another dream. But it didn’t look right. The water was too dark…almost black, the sand was like a sickly green color, and when I looked closer at you and Charlie, I realized they weren’t really you. They were like soulless, cheap imitations.

“Then I heard gun shots…several really loud popping sounds, and the fake you and Charlie fell backward. You both just lay there, not moving, with your eyes open.” Maddie took another deep breath before she continued. “I searched you both for bullet wounds and couldn’t find any but then suddenly blood began to pool underneath you and then it was coming out of your open eyes, then your ears, then your mouth.” She nearly choked on the last words and began to cry.

“Did you see the shooter?” Cole asked after a few minutes of rubbing up and down her back to soothe her. He looked up and saw Charlie standing in the doorway of the bathroom, listening intently.

Maddie shook her head. “The nightmare morphed into the usual scenario right after that. I woke up before he shot me.”

“Maddie,” Charlie said softly as he came into the bathroom and knelt down in front of her, “I think that the beach nightmare was just that…a nightmare. Remember last week, when we were talking about how Cole showed up in your nightmare? You told us that right before that you were dreaming about being nude on a non-nude beach,” he continued without mirth. “Well, I think that now that you know we are real, you’ve incorporated something bad happening to us in your nightmares.”

“I agree,” Cole said. “Sweetheart—”

“I would die if anything happened to either of you,” she blurted, cutting him off. “Especially because of me. Promise me.” She held up her hand when it looked like Charlie and Cole were about to interrupt. “Promise me, both of you, that no matter what happens, you won’t do anything to put yourselves in danger. Please, I couldn’t bear it…”

Maddie burst into tears again and buried her face in Cole’s neck, unable to finish her sentence. Cole held her tightly as he and Charlie gave her the reassurances she needed to hear. Of course they wouldn’t intentionally put themselves in danger, but they would do whatever they had to do to protect her.

“Are you sure you still want to go tonight, sweetheart?” Cole asked after Maddie’s tears finally subsided.

“Yeah,” she said, getting up and wiping her eyes and nose with a tissue. “I can’t let fear dictate my life. I just need to fix myself up. I’m a mess.”

“You’re beautiful, baby,” Charlie said, wrapping his arms around her middle. “Even when you cry, you are still absolutely gorgeous.”

Cole had to agree. Even with her eyes all bloodshot and her red nose, she was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen.

* * * *

An hour later, they arrived at Angela and Kellan’s house for their housewarming party. Maddie had already been over many times since the couple moved into their two-story three-bedroom house almost six months ago. She had gone on several furniture shopping outings with Angela when Kellan was tied up at work and was constantly over helping to unpack and decorate. Even though Angela was a social butterfly and loved to both attend and throw parties, she was also a perfectionist and did not even attempt to have anyone other than a few close friends and family over until she deemed her dream house to be perfect.

The house was already pretty packed with guests when they arrived, consisting of Angela and Kellan’s closest friends, coworkers, and a few plus-one’s. An eclectic mix of music was playing low on the impressive sound system in the living room where most of the guests converged. The music filtered through the speakers set up in the backyard, where the rest of the guests were gathered. Outdoor heaters warmed the air from the October chill. Chairs and a long table with pretzels, chips, dips, and hors d’oeuvres were neatly set up both inside and out while the drinks were set up in the kitchen on a little breakfast bar facing the open dining room.

Angela immediately dragged Maddie and her men over to Kellan to make introductions. She had of course filled Kellan in on Maddie’s new relationship status, and once the shock wore off a little, the somewhat religious Irish-Catholic boy decided that he wasn’t one to judge if Maddie was finally happy. Knowing Maddie for two years, Kellan was very fond of her and had always wondered why the beautiful, sweet, intelligent girl hadn’t managed to find someone.

Charlie and Cole had immediately hit it off with Kellan. Much like them, he seemed very laid back and friendly. Eventually, the topic veered toward sports, and since all three men were from different states, rooted for three separate teams in each mutually loved sport, a friendly debate and breakdown of players began. That was when Maddie and Angela made their escape.

“I don’t envy you there, girlfriend,” Angela stated with a giggle as they walked away. “They’d better be giving it to you good ’cuz it’s hard enough to put up with one sports-loving man, let alone two.”

“Somehow I will try to manage,” Maddie said dramatically and then they both burst out laughing.