by Elle Kennedy
And yet neither Dylan nor Aidan had commented on it. They’d held her and comforted her and whispered reassurances without once pointing out she looked like a rabid raccoon.
As she left the bathroom, there was an unexpected spring to her step, which was damn peculiar considering she’d just lost her job and probably her parents. She was giving up everything for these men—why wasn’t she more freaked out about it?
She got her answer the moment she entered the living room and saw both men leap off the couch, their eyes shining with concern.
She belonged here with them. She belonged to them.
And they belonged to her.
“Are you leaving?” The gruff inquiry came from Aidan.
With the slight shake of her head, she walked toward them and said, “I’m not going anywhere.”
Chapter Sixteen
“So a little birdie told me you and Dylan are both dating Claire.”
Aidan rolled his eyes. “And does that little birdie go by the name Seth?”
Chuckling, Matt rested his elbows on the iron railing of the second-floor balcony and glanced over. “Actually, it was Cash. He said Dylan told the boys about it the other day when they were chilling by the pool.”
Aidan wasn’t surprised that McCoy had shared the news with his roommate, but he’d kind of been hoping to be the one to tell Matt. He and O’Connor were tight, had been ever since they’d run into each other on the base several years back, and other than Dylan, Matt was Aidan’s closest friend. The two of them had indulged in a shit-ton of threesomes, including some seriously hot nights with Matt’s fiancée.
“So it’s true, huh? You’re both dating the same woman?”
After a beat, Aidan nodded.
“And how’s that working out for you?” Matt asked in a careful tone.
“Pretty damn good,” he admitted.
“I see.” The other man’s skepticism was unmistakable.
Aidan didn’t blame Matt one bit for being skeptical. He still couldn’t wrap his head around it, either. A relationship between three people? He wouldn’t have ever dreamed a scenario like that could actually work, and yet it did. At least for them.
“Okay, I don’t see,” Matt blurted out, retracting his previous remark. “I mean, I get it in the sexual sense—you know how much I love a little variety in the bedroom. But romantically? I don’t get it.”
Aidan moved away from the railing and swiped his beer bottle from the small table before sinking into one of the plastic chairs. Matt flopped down in the other chair, his green eyes mystified.
“Seriously, dude, you’ve gotta explain it to me.”
“It’s just like any other relationship, except there’s another person in the mix. I care about Claire, and so does Dylan. And she cares about both of us.” He sighed. “I still feel guilty as hell, though.”
Matt furrowed his dark eyebrows. “Why?”
“She lost her job because of us, and her parents aren’t speaking to her.”
His throat clogged at the memory of Claire in tears. That had been three days ago, but just as she’d promised, Claire hadn’t gone anywhere. She was as committed to this unconventional arrangement as he and Dylan were, a fact that continued to floor him.
Claire McKinley was so fucking incredible. So smart, and so sweet, and so passionate she blew his mind. He couldn’t believe a woman like her actually existed. A woman who was willing to welcome two men into her bed, into her heart. A woman who was willing to accept that those two men also desired each other.
“That’s rough,” Matt said sympathetically. “Is she looking for a new job in San Diego?”
“She’s actually thinking of starting her own business. She’s doing some research to see what it’ll take, and hopefully that works out for her. She’s damn good at what she does. The last thing I want is for her to settle for a job she’s not passionate about.”
“What about her parents? You think they’ll come around?”
“I hope so. It would be a damn shame if they don’t.”
“So you’re really in this for the long haul?” Matt asked.
“Yes,” he said quietly. “I know it doesn’t make sense to you, but I’m happy, man. This…this thing we have, it’s exactly what I need.”
Matt went silent for a moment, then threw out a curveball that made Aidan’s mouth go dry.
“You’re screwing Dylan, too, huh?”
His hand froze before he could bring his bottle to his lips. “What makes you say that?”
“Oh, come on, man, I may be from the south but I ain’t slow,” Matt drawled. “And for someone who works in intelligence, you’re mighty transparent sometimes. You and Wade were dancing around each other all summer. Whenever you were in the same room together? I’d get a fucking hard-on. I’m serious—major sexual tension, Aid.”
He had to laugh. So much for thinking he’d been stealthy about hiding his attraction to Dylan.
“Am I right?”
“Yeah, you’re right,” he confessed.
“So this is, like, a true three-way, huh?” Matt sounded intrigued. “You’re dating both of them.”
“Yes.”
“And it’s actually working out? No jealousy or arguments or one of you feeling left out?”
“Nope.” Aidan grinned. “Claire and Dylan bicker like children, but I’m there to turn them over my knee if need be.”
Matt laughed. “You were always damn good at spanking. Remember that night you got Savannah’s ass nice and pink?” Those green eyes smoldered. “Fuck, that was hot.”
As the SEAL took a long swig of his beer, Aidan noticed the man looking a wee bit flustered. His grin widened as realization dawned.
“You miss me,” he said in delight.
Matt set his bottle on the table and ran a hand over his shaved head. “Sometimes.”
“Sometimes? Nuh-uh. I think you and Savannah are totally jonesing for some Aidan.”
He got a middle finger in response, but then O’Connor let out a breath and flashed a sheepish grin. “Fine, we miss you. That’s why my girl got all bitchy when she saw you kissing Claire on Christmas Eve. We were planning on inviting you over that night.”
Aidan raised his eyebrows. “What happened to the whole, We’re engaged now—it wouldn’t be proper to fuck you anymore?”
“We realized that being engaged doesn’t mean we’ve gotta turn into a boring married couple who only fucks in the missionary position every night.”
“Every night?” He snorted. “Do boring married couples even have sex that often?”
“Ask Carson and Holly. Those two fuck like every five minutes. I’m pretty sure they ducked into the bathroom on Christmas Eve to get it on.”
“Oh, they did,” came Seth’s voice.
Matt and Aidan glanced at the open sliding door, where Seth’s big frame had appeared. Beyond Seth’s broad shoulders, Aidan glimpsed Cash shrugging out of a brown leather jacket.
“You’re back early,” Matt remarked. “I thought you were catching the eight o’clock screening.”
“Sold out,” Seth grumbled. “Everyone and their fucking mother decided to buy tickets for the movie, so we figured we’d come back here and watch Die Hard. You guys in?”
“Hell yeah,” Aidan said. “I was trying to convince Claire to watch it the other night, but she’s all about the shitty rom coms.”
Seth flashed that cocky grin of his. “Miranda hates rom coms. She says they’re too unrealistic.”
As the three of them headed inside, Seth picked up the previous subject. “Anyway, Carson and Holly totally got it on Christmas Eve.” He scowled. “And you want to know the worst part, other than having to picture my LT going to town on his wife? Having to explain to the rugrats why they heard, and I quote, ‘farm noises’ coming out of the bathroom.”
Aidan and Matt burst out laughing.
In the living room, Cash shoved a DVD into the player while everyone got settled on the two couches with their beers. But
before McCoy could press play, Seth turned those shrewd gray eyes on Aidan and said, “So the relationship ménage is still going strong?”
Aidan met Seth’s gaze head on. “Sure is.”
“I still don’t get it.”
He shrugged. “You don’t have to get it. Not your life, remember?”
“He’s just jealous because his life isn’t as interesting,” Cash spoke up with a grin. “He’s got two kids to raise. You get to have kinky three-way sex every night. No contest.”
“Miranda and I have kinky sex,” Seth protested.
“Uh-huh,” Aidan said indulgently. “So how does that work with the twins constantly running underfoot? Do you get to fuck her on the kitchen counter every morning?”
“After the kids go to school,” Seth answered smugly.
“Does she suck your dick in the shower?”
“When the rugrats go to bed.”
“Hmmm.” Aidan offered a cheeky smile. “Does she moan like crazy when you’re fucking her pussy and another cock is buried in her ass?”
Matt choked out a laugh. Cash looked envious.
And Seth just sighed. “Fine, I guess my sex life isn’t as kinky as it used to be. Hey, where’s the D-Man, by the way? He’d be all over Die Hard.”
“When I left him, he was involved in a serious COD battle with Jackson,” Aidan said. “Claire and I couldn’t take it anymore so I dropped her off at Savannah’s for girls’ night.” He turned to Matt with a warning look. “And I swear to God, if Savannah threatens my girl again, I will kick her ass.”
Matt raised a brow. “You’ll have to go through me first.”
“Is that supposed to scare me? I could kick your ass any day of the week.”
Seth clapped his hands together. “Shit, now that I’d love to see.” He glanced at Cash. “A death match between O’Connor and Rhodes?”
“I’d fucking pay to see that,” Cash retorted. “My money’s on Matt.”
“Forget that—I’m all about Aidan. Didn’t you snag an invite to that heavy-duty boxing camp during your navy training?”
Aidan found himself under Seth’s scrutiny again. “Sure did,” he confirmed.
Matt rolled his eyes. “I’m a SEAL—there’s no way in hell Rhodes is kicking my ass.”
Seth and Cash exchanged a look, which led to Aidan and Matt exchanging a look of their own.
“Don’t even think about it,” Matt warned.
But the two men were already hopping off their respective couches and beginning to drag the coffee table out of the way.
“This is so happening,” Cash announced. “I’ve got a hundred bucks on Matt.”
Seth grinned. “Get ready to lose some money then.”
Despite himself, Aidan had to laugh. “What happened to Die Hard?”
“Fuck that. Live action is so much more rewarding.” Cash crossed his arms over his broad chest. “So are you two gonna pussy out, or do we have ourselves a fight?”
Aidan glanced at Matt again, who simply shrugged and said, “It has been a while since we sparred…”
With another laugh, Aidan got to his feet and stripped out of his V-neck tee. “All righty. Let’s do this shit.”
“Wow. When you commit to something, you really commit,” Annabelle Holmes remarked, amusement dancing in her brown eyes.
Claire laughed. “I know, right?” She waved a hand when the brunette made a move to refill Claire’s wine glass. “No more for me. I’m already tipsy as hell.”
Jane Becker wagged her finger in disapproval. “Tipsy is not an unacceptable state to leave girls’ night in. Our goal is to get rip-roaring drunk and then go home to have our way with our men.”
From their various positions around Savannah’s living room, all the other women were nodding and grinning. Claire had to laugh again. She was suddenly so glad she’d taken Jen up on her offer to come here tonight. She hadn’t been thrilled the gathering was taking place at Savannah’s, but the blonde had been on her best behavior since Claire’s arrival, and all the other women were so damn friendly.
For the past two hours, she’d chatted easily with everyone. Holly, Jen, Miranda and Savannah, she already knew. But this was her first time meeting Annabelle, who was engaged to Ryan Evans, and Jane, who was married to the team’s Lieutenant Commander. She liked both women immensely, especially Jane, who was as a blunt as Savannah but far more humorous about it.
“So is it a three-way every night then?” Annabelle pressed, looking more than a little curious about Claire’s current living arrangement.
She felt her cheeks heat up. “Pretty much. But sometimes it’s one-on-one if one of the guys goes out.”
Or if she wasn’t around, but Claire kept that tidbit to herself because she knew Dylan and Aidan didn’t want to announce to everyone that they were sexually involved. Dylan had told her Jen was in the loop, though, and from the secretive smile the blue-eyed blonde shot her, Claire knew Jen was thinking the same thing she was.
“What about dates?” Jane asked. “Do the three of you go out?”
She nodded. “Yeah, but we don’t go overboard on the PDA or anything. Usually just hand-holding.”
Annabelle giggled. “Does everyone’s jaw just drop when they see the three of you holding hands?”
“Sometimes.” She smiled impishly. “I get a lot of envious looks from other women.”
“Well, duh,” Savannah said, grinning widely. “You’re walking around with two of the sexiest men on the planet. Chicks are probably jealous as hell when they see you.” The grin dissolved into a guilty look. “I was jealous too, if I’m being honest.”
“Ooooh,” Jane teased. “Look at that, Claire, you brought out Savannah’s green-eyed monster by stealing Aidan away from her.”
Discomfort rose up her spine, but it faded when she saw the sincerity shining in Savannah’s gray eyes. “I’m not jealous anymore, I promise,” the woman assured her. “It just caught me off-guard seeing Aidan kissing you that night. Matt and I have always thought of Aidan as ours, know what I mean?”
“I get that,” Claire said quietly. “He’s pretty damn special. I don’t blame you for feeling possessive over him.”
“But it’s nice to see him looking so happy,” Savannah admitted. “He’s not the kind of man who wears his emotions on his sleeve, but lately he’s always smiling and laughing, and it’s all because of you.”
Claire was genuinely touched. And she knew exactly what Savannah meant. Aidan had been opening up more and more to both her and Dylan. The other night, he’d even told them about how guilty he’d felt after his mom’s death, how living with the knowledge that she’d died to save him had eaten him up inside. Afterwards, Dylan had pulled her aside and thanked her for being there. He claimed that her presence was good for Aidan, and now Savannah was saying the same thing, which only cemented Claire’s decision to stay.
Her parents were still avoiding her calls, and she was still unemployed, but when it came to her love life, she’d never been happier. And she was holding on to the hope that all the other parts of her life would fall in line too. Preferably sooner rather than later.
The conversation was interrupted by Savannah’s cell phone, which vibrated with an incoming text. The blonde glanced at the screen and laughed. “Matt is requesting we all put our clothes on because he’s on his way up. He doesn’t want his buddies beating him up for seeing their women naked.”
Annabelle looked mystified. “What on earth does he think we do on girls’ night?”
“According to his fantasies, we all get naked and have a pillow fight.”
Everyone laughed.
“We should do that one time just to fuck with him,” Jen suggested.
A few minutes later, the front door of Savannah’s loft swung open and Matt strode in.
Sporting a very swollen, very black eye.
His fiancée immediately bolted to her feet. “What the hell, baby? What happened?”
A second later, a very sheepish-loo
king Aidan entered on Matt’s heels, prompting Claire to gasp. His gorgeous eyes were just fine, but his bottom lip was split and caked with dried blood.
She was at his side in a heartbeat, touching the side of his mouth in concern. “What the hell?” she echoed.
“Ah, darlin’, it’s just a little shiner,” Matt told Savannah.
“And just a busted lip,” Aidan assured Claire.
The two women glanced at each other, then turned to glare at their men.
“You two got into a fight?” Savannah demanded. “Please tell me the other guys got it worse.”
“Um…” Aidan shifted on his feet. “There were no other guys. We, uh…”
“Fought each other,” Matt supplied.
A loud snicker came from the living area.
Matt glanced past his fiancée’s shoulders and offered a careless wave. “Evening, ladies. Thanks for getting dressed so fast.”
“No problem,” Jane said with a snort. “You know we don’t like anyone walking in on our nude pillow fights.”
Claire narrowed her eyes at Aidan. “Why were you fighting each other?”
“Just for fun.”
“For fun?” Disbelief fluttered through her as she stared at his swollen lip. “How is beating each other up fun?”
Behind them, the other women began gathering up their purses and jackets, chuckling amongst themselves. Miranda was the first to approach, and she paused in front of the men with a suspicious cloud in her hazel eyes.
“Why do I get the feeling my husband played a part in this?”
Aidan’s lips twitched. “It may or may not have been his idea.”
“Of course.” Miranda sighed. “How much money did he lose?”
“None,” Matt grumbled in response. “Your asshole husband bet against me, and then he and your asshole boyfriend—” he glanced at a grinning Jen, “—decided that Rhodes was the winner because black eye trumps split lip.”
“They have a point,” Savannah told him.
Mock outrage filled his eyes. “You’re saying I lost?”
“Sorry, babe, but I think you did.” Her lips curved seductively. “Don’t worry, you’ll still be a winner tonight. Just wait until everyone leaves and then you’ll be winning all over the place.”
