The strain in his voice told her how close he was. Thank God, because she released barely a breath behind him, not because she had enough control to hold out, but because her timing was lucky. Chris closed the distance between them, capturing her mouth with intense purpose just as Geoff had demanded, as if it were the only way Chris had to show her how much he was feeling for her. Yet he kept his hand busy between her legs so she milked Geoff's cock with strong, spasming muscles, reveling in his harsh groans.
Geoff bit her shoulder, holding her as his hips pistoned against her, taking the full measure of satisfaction from their joining and then some as her cries increased. Higher and higher, Chris's touch and Geoff's cock, the pressure of their two bodies on either side of her, catapulting her to sheer ecstasy.
Only when she was limp in his arms did Geoff ease into a slower rhythm, bringing her back to earth. Chris kept working her hypersensitive tissues with light fingers, making her twitch and shudder in a way that seemed to please both men.
Chris had to be hard again and she wanted to do something for him. Of course, if they kept staggering climaxes, they might never leave the bedroom again. With a flash of desperate amusement, she realized she had no objection to that consequence.
Yet Chris drew back, pushing himself up off his knees. "Where are you going?" Sam asked groggily, reaching out. His fingers tangled with hers, but he squeezed her in a way that said he intended it to be a passing affection before he pulled away. She tightened her grip. "Stay."
"Yeah. Stay." Geoff shifted, and another pillow was tossed over her. Chris caught it by reflex. Geoff laid his head back behind Sam's again on his own pillow. "Lay your ass down on the floor. You know she's not going to sleep unless we're both here."
Was Geoff commanding him to lay on the floor as a way to underscore who the alpha dog was here? Or did he realize Chris wasn't ready to share the same bed with him? Or some of both? Regardless, she reached out again and curled her fingers over two of Chris's, clasping the pillow. "Please stay," she whispered. "We can move over and make room."
Geoff's arm tightened around her, but before she could determine if that was admonishment not to countermand him, or to help move them both over, Chris shook his head. He stretched out on the floor. She didn't have to scoot forward much this time to look over the edge and Geoff helped, moving with her. Chris was on his back, and his brown eyes met hers. She dropped her hand down to graze his shoulder, sliding her touch over to play in his chest hair. He took hold of her fingers, giving them a kiss and her a half smile. It wasn't an entirely easy smile, but it wasn't distressed, either. She was reassured when he held on to her fingers, their clasped hands resting on his chest.
A surreptitious glance told her Chris was still erect under his flannel shorts, but it was clear he had no plans to address that right now. Closing his eyes, he tapped out Itsy Bitsy Spider on her hand, making her smile. He wanted her to go to sleep, but he was holding on to her. They both were. Geoff lay against her back, his arm around her, his lips pressed to her neck.
She'd let that be enough for now. Her eyes slowly closed, her body melting into the heat of Geoff's, and she let herself drift.
It was close to dawn when she surfaced again. She had a sense that it was best to pretend to still be asleep, so she opened her eyes to mere slits. She was still securely in Geoff's arms, but Chris was sitting up. She watched his hand slide from her hand to her wrist and elbow, then hesitate on her upper arm, where Geoff's hand was curved over her biceps. Geoff's breath was even, suggesting he was asleep, but she wouldn't be surprised if he wasn't, because there was a slight tension to his body.
She felt Chris slide his hand from her to Geoff's hand and linger. He kept it resting there as he put his head on the covers between her chin and breasts, his breath light upon them. Geoff's hand moved, just slightly. Though she wouldn't risk turning her head to look, she thought maybe he'd adjusted enough to rest his thumb on Chris's hand, a light clasp that wouldn't spook him but established connection.
What would it take to break the barriers down between them? She reluctantly understood this was one role she would have to play only on the sidelines, but if it went in the direction she hoped, being a spectator wouldn't be a bad deal.
Still, scorching male-male fantasies aside, there were deeper considerations. The way Chris's cheek rested on the covers under her chin, like a mute supplication regarding questions he didn't yet know how to answer, a conflict he wasn't sure how to resolve, was too much for her to ignore. She knew what it was to be worried that her wants and needs wouldn't mesh with theirs, and that she might ruin everything. She was still wrestling with those things, but she was in a better place now than she had been, because she knew they loved her and she loved them. Anything else would be icing on the cake.
She also understood Chris had to go through his own process. Still, she'd do everything she could to help. Shifting her hand to his head, she stroked, slow, easy. Nurturing, with hope and love in every movement. As he let out a slow, deep breath, she pressed a kiss to his head, smiling a little as she inhaled the scent of earth and sunshine.
"It will be all right," she whispered. "No matter what. Sleep, baby. Just sleep."
He fell asleep that way, sitting up but leaning against the bed. When Geoff's hand moved to cover hers, both of them stroking Chris's head, she pressed her hips back into the cradle of his, an unspoken thanks and connection. Putting his lips against her temple, he breathed warm heat over her.
Whatever was coming, they would figure it out. They had to.
Look for Naughty Wishes Part III: Mind, available from InterMix March 2016 and keep reading for a special preview.
Chris fished through the box of resin figurines and pulled out a squirrel sitting on gray haunches and holding a nut. No bigger than his thumbnail, the creature had a steel pin in the base, which he pushed into the earth next to a fairy. Her pale skin and slim face reminded him of Sam. The fairy's slim legs dangled over the edge of the bowl-sized pool he'd created. Her dress looked like it was made out of petunia petals and her long straight hair was in a high ponytail, the way Sam wore it when she went to yoga.
Okay, he had enough pieces in place to test the stability of the channel he'd created. The water was supposed to meander from the fountain at the top of the berm down through the fairy world, and then funnel into an irrigation system for the vegetable garden. "This is either going to be great or set off a mudslide," he muttered. Hearing a clack-clack sound from Ron, watching him from the aviary, he shot the bird a warning look. "No laughing," he told him.
He started up the hose, then opened the valve. Sitting back on his haunches, he watched the rock fountain fill with water. As it spilled over the spout, it chuckled its way into the gully he'd created, becoming a sparkling creek. A couple of turns and it emptied into the small pool, where the fairy and her squirrel waited. The water made it up to her feet as he'd intended, so she could enjoy a dip of her toes.
He'd covered the liner of the pool with flat stone and outlined the interior of the rim with a variety of multicolored polished round stones that matched the style of the fountain. The water made them shiny, bringing out the array of colors. Before it could get higher than that, the water filtered into an exit pipe that emptied into another channel, which zigzagged down the remainder of the berm. He watched it find its way around several rock structures and a garden of small concrete mushrooms. A stone turtle with a fairy perched on his back watched the water go by. Just below them were three frog houses with a few pansies planted around them, which served as both shade cover and "trees" for the tiny fae figures and the frogs that would come check out the lodgings.
Rising, he moved over to the garden, nodding in satisfaction as he saw the drip hoses begin to water the soil around the growing vegetables. It all seemed to be working. He'd add some phlox and other ground covers to fill in the dirt areas. He came back to the berm, dropping back to his heels to ad
just one of the frog houses.
"She'll love it."
He'd heard the screen door clap against the frame, had known Geoff was making his way toward him. The cast of his shadow said he was standing behind Chris, a little to the left. There was less than a foot between them. Chris didn't have to turn to verify it. Since Sam had left for her bank conference in Asheville yesterday, Chris had been like a GPS on Geoff's location.
"Here. Do you think she'd like this?" A paper bag rattled and then Geoff dropped to a knee next to him. He'd gone by the Fairy Cottage, which specialized in fairy gardens. Chris tended to hit less pricey places, but he and Sam liked wandering through that one, her to chatter ideas at Chris, him to watch her enjoy the miniatures and sharing garden ideas.
Geoff was careful with his money, but he seemed to know the right moments to spend more. He'd bought a pair of cats, just little bits of clay that had been hand-pressed by someone's fingers, toothpicks used to mark eyes and mouth. An artist knew how to do a lot with a little. They were the size of postage stamps, one curled up in a ball sleeping, the other curled up but head lifted.
"I thought these might work on that piece of tree limb you turned into a stump." Geoff pointed to it. Chris had three fairies dancing in a circle around it. "Cats being like cats are, I thought it would look like they were saying, Yeah, big deal, fairies dancing around us. We're still taking our nap." Geoff pulled out a seed packet. "They also sold me these. The lady said they'll pop up into a good mix of wildflowers. Figured that might work as a border between this and the garden. But you're the plant guy. Did I waste my seventy-five cents?"