Three's A Crowd

by Storm, Zee Shine

  I made sure I was always on high alert whenever I was entering or leaving the apartment and had even enrolled in a self-defense class upon my boyfriend's insistence. It was all good.

  Olivia, my friend who owned the villa had invited me over for the weekend that morning. She already knew I was seeing somebody so had asked me to bring him along. I had tentatively asked her if his best friend could accompany us since we had made plans to hang out during the weekend, anyway and she was all for it, asking me if the friend was hot and stuff.

  "Er...you're married, Olivia," I had pointed out over the phone, casting a surreptitious glance at Jasper, the 'best friend'. I was not ready to tell her the truth about my relationship; that Cole was also with another guy. Her curiosity and questions would have killed me, leading me to venture into topics I tried very hard to avoid.

  "So? I can look, right?" Olivia had giggled into the phone and added, "Well, it'll be fun, I'm sure. I'll get to meet Cole and we'll catch up as well. See you soon."

  She had definitely drooled over Jasper when we showed up at her place even though her husband, Richard, was standing right next to her. She would have drooled over Cole too had she not known he was taken.

  'Lucky bitch,' Olivia had mouthed at me when the men started talking and I grinned. She showed us to our rooms and strangely, Jasper said nothing when he was given a separate one from mine and Cole's. Of course. He had heard me talking to Olivia over the phone and probably knew about the lie I had told her but it wasn't like him to simply cooperate.

  He had been distant lately. He did not treat me badly or anything but I had started to like the fact that we had become friends. Sort of. Then the day after the attack at home, he just shut me out. Avoided me most of the time and left the house whenever Cole and I started getting too physical.

  I didn't bring it up though. It was better this way. Less confusing. But...I missed him. It was the only way to describe it. I wanted him close. So much that I almost asked him to share the room with us but bit my tongue at the last minute.

  Now we were at the beach, having come here after lunch at Olivia's and dusk had fallen during our swimming session. I was sitting on the sand, waiting for Cole to get out of the water so we could go back. Clouds were gathering in the sky and it looked as though it would rain heavily.

  It was great to see Cole enjoying himself in the water though. He worked hard but when he took a break, the guy really knew how to have fun. His enthusiasm and joy was contagious.

  I felt that familiar sensation of being watched and turned to see Jasper standing a few feet away from me, looking at me the way I had missed being looked at for two weeks now. He was drinking from a water bottle, dressed only in red swim trunks plastered to his body and revealing the shape of his junk. And his eyes were on me.

  I said nothing as he slowly lowered the bottle and wiped his mouth.

  "That...," he pointed to me, giving me a once-over, "brings back memories."

  Looking down, I realised he was talking about my black bikini. The one I had been wearing the first time we had seen each other.

  I cleared my throat. "Oh. Right. I wasn't thinking about that when I put it on," I told him, wondering why he was bothering to talk to me now when he had effectively ignored me for so long. I huddled into my towel as the wind picked up again.

  A shrill whistle sounded through the air and I winced. It was Jasper's way of getting Cole's attention who paused in his swimming and turned his head towards us. Jasper gestured to him to get out of the water and I rolled my eyes.

  "He's not a dog, you know," I said airily. "Try asking him if he wants to leave instead of expecting him to do it just because you want him to."

  "Shut up, Madison."

  Feeling irritated, I got up and walked over to Jasper to poke my finger in his chest.

  "Don't talk to me like that," I snapped at him.

  He growled and looked at me angrily. "There's no need to get all angsty. You want to go home too. You're shivering."

  I backed up, looking at him uncertainly. Was that why he had signalled Cole? Because he noticed I was cold?

  I swallowed and for some reason, I felt like crying. But why should I? The one and only time Jasper had tried to share his true feelings with me, I had shut him down, telling him it was dangerous to talk about it. Why should I feel bad about it now when he was simply following my advice?

  "I hate you," I blurted out for some reason because I could not think of anything else to say but I wanted to engage. I wanted to rile him up. Make him feel something.

  He gave me a pained look. "He's coming. Please stop."

  I exhaled loudly and stepped away from him. "Pussy," I muttered as I watched Cole approach us.

  "Don't fucking test me, Skye," he muttered back. "And don't be stupid."

  "Don't tell me what to do!" I yelled at him, unable to control my emotions anymore and momentarily losing my ability to care. "I'm not Cole, you know. I don't have to listen to you or please you. Go play Daddy with him."

  "For fuck's sake, Skye, what the hell is wrong with you?!" he screamed back at me, losing his temper.

  Cole finally stood in front of us, frowning at us both and we stopped yelling, breathless and angry, not sure how to explain the outburst. I was not sure whether I understood it myself.

  I bit my lip and looked at Cole with a guilty expression. He studied my face for several seconds before looking at Jasper.

  "Is there something you guys want to tell me?" he asked impatiently.

  I remained quiet.

  "Yeah, teach your little girl some manners," Jasper grated and walked off.

  Cole watched him leave and then sighed before pursing his lips at me.

  "You shouldn't talk to him like that-"

  "He started it," I interrupted angrily. "I was just sitting here minding my own business."

  Cole held up a hand. "Let me finish, firecracker. You can't talk to him like that and not expect some kind of...um...punishment."

  I gave him an incredulous look. "Excuse me? What's he going to do, spank me? Is he into BDSM?" I asked with a raised eyebrow. "Coz he seems like the sort. I knew there was something like that going on with you two. Some DDLB shit."

  To my surprise, Cole burst out laughing. "Wha- what did you say?" He asked between bouts of laughter.

  I rubbed my arms and looked at him uncertainly. Jasper and I had argued right in front of him after weeks of not engaging with each other and he did not seem the least bit bothered.

  "Skye, it's nothing like that," he finally explained with an amused smile. "Yeah, he's a little...demanding and he does indulge me a lot and gets mad when I act out but that's not what I meant at all. He just...wouldn't let go that easily once you make him real mad." He winked at me. "With me, he likes to pound my ass. I don't know what he would do to you."

  I gasped a little. Was he for real? Was Cole really talking about this as if it was no big deal or something?

  I opened my mouth to question him on his laxity.

  "We need to get home, baby," he said before I could get any words out. "It's going to rain like crazy and I'm super hungry after that swim."

  ~~~

  Cole

  The look on my girlfriend's face when I had shared the information about Jasper's method of discipline was gold. I could tell she was shocked to hear me being so cool after witnessing their argument and implying that some kind of punishment of a sexual nature might be dealt to her by Jasper.

  I wanted to shake them both sometimes. For two weeks, two whole weeks, I had been noticing the way they kept tip-toeing around each other. Jesus. It drove me nuts. First of all, they pretended not to be aware of each other even if they were in the same room together. Then, whenever they did interact, they spoke so politely, it was almost painful to watch.

  And the sexual tension emanating from them both whenever I accidentally walked in on them in a room together. Those tiny little moments that, when put together, amounted to something big. And Jasper, he had t
his expression of longing whenever I kissed Skye a little too passionately in front of him. The guy wanted in on the action so bad, he had to leave the house. Skye was more subtle with her reactions but I noticed just the same.

  The argument on the beach? It was bound to happen. I was actually relieved it did happen because I was getting sick of how goddamned formal they were being with each other. And I was the one caught in the middle of all that awkwardness.

  We had reached the villa an hour ago and were having dinner with Olivia and her husband in their spacious dining room. The delicious food consisted of marinated shrimp, roast lamb legs, peach mango caprese salad and tiramisu. I was starving after all those hours spent at the beach. The skies had opened up and it was raining so hard outside.

  All the swimming had tired me out and I let out a yawn, unable to stifle it anymore.

  "You want to turn in for the night?" Jasper leaned in as he asked me the question, his hand squeezing my thigh. I knew what he wanted. Rainy nights made the guy more horny than he usually was.

  I smirked at him. "I'd love to, baby," I replied in a low voice then looked up to see Olivia, Richard and Skye all staring at the two of us. Olivia looked the most shocked. I wondered if she could read lips because there was no way she could have heard us over the sound of the rain when we had been speaking so quietly.

  Then I realised Jasper's hand was still on my thigh and I was basically leaning on his arm. Anybody would think we were more than friends. It honestly did not matter to me but Skye hadn't felt ready to give her friend all the details so we had simply gone along with it.

  "Well, I guess we'd better call it a night," Olivia said loudly and smiled at us, then at Skye. "I'm sure you guys must be tired after the flight and then the beach so..." She trailed off and waggled her eyebrows at Skye suggestively who gaped at her.

  They communicated silently as only girls who were good friends could do and Skye blushed.

  "See you all in the morning," Olivia said, clearing her throat. "We'll go out for dinner tomorrow. It's a bummer we couldn't live it up tonight. The rain spoiled everything, huh?"

  ~~~

  Chapter 25

  Skye

  "You can stay with him, you know," I said to Cole in what I hoped was an offhand manner as the three of us reached our rooms which were adjacent to each other.

  Jasper scoffed at my words as expected. "Stop acting like you're doing me a favour, Skye," he drawled caustically. "He doesn't need your permission to spend the night with me."

  "I wasn't talking to you," I snapped at the blond guy as he entered his room and left the door open. For Cole, I presumed.

  "Okay, come here," Cole spoke up, placing his hands on my shoulders and guiding me gently but firmly towards the open door. "I need to show you something."

  I frowned in confusion as he steered me inside Jasper's bedroom and then...closed the door from outside!

  And locked it.

  What the-?

  "Cole? What're you doing? Open the door," I said loudly, pounding my fist on it.

  "Listen, I love you guys but seriously, you two are getting on my last goddamn nerve," he said through the closed door. "Whatever the fuck it is, I'm going to give you this night to hash it out."

  I sucked in a shocked breath and pounded on the door again. "Please, no. You can't leave me here with this monster!" I cried out dramatically.

  Hearing a sound behind me, I turned to see Jasper standing there in his navy blue t-shirt and jeans looking like some blond Greek god holding a drink in his hand.

  I splayed out my palms in exasperation. "I can't believe he just left me in here with you. Can't you say something to him?!"

  His mouth twisted up in a mocking smile. "He's not a dog, you know. I can't just tell him what to do. If he wants to throw you out of the room, that's up to him."

  I narrowed my eyes at him. Son of a bitch. Cole was already gone. I knew that so I simply dialled his number. He answered on the second ring.

  "Cole, what the fuck? Come back and open this door right now," I bit out.

  "I want to sleep alone tonight, Skye," he replied. "And you and Jasper need to sort out your problems. This ends now. I can't keep acting as a buffer between you two."

  I opened and closed my mouth in disbelief, unable to get any words out.

  "You can't just force me to stay with him," I finally said in a small voice, feeling kind of betrayed. "I don't want to involve Olivia in this but I will if you don't let me out now."

  He sighed on the other end. "Baby. Do you trust me?" he asked me, his tone serious.

  I sniffed. "I do, Cole. I trust you and I love you and I don't understand what you want from me. I can't stay with Jasper."

  He was quiet for a minute. "Why not? He won't hurt you. I know he won't. So what's the problem?"

  I chewed on my bottom lip and looked at Jasper who was now seated on the bed, looking very relaxed as he sipped his drink. I can't stay with him because I don't trust myself.

  "I...I don't think we can sort it out," I said to Cole imploringly. "Jasper's such an ass. I can't stand him."

  "He's not an ass," Cole countered in a long-suffering tone. "Look, Skye, I have never asked you for a single thing till now. I'm asking you tonight to trust me and try to find a way to work around your issues with him. Please. Please just do this one thing for me."

  I let out a breath and swallowed hard. "Okay," I said softly unable to stop the feeling of resentment from creeping in. "But can't you come in here and just sit with us while we talk?"

  "Nope," he replied quickly, sounding almost cheerful. "I'm on vacation. I want a drama-free night and I can't choose who to spend it with right now so let me sleep in peace. Alright?"

  He hung up before I could reply.

  I ran a hand through the long strands of my hair in nervousness and took a deep breath to fortify myself.

  Jasper tipped his glass at me in a mocking gesture. Why was he so relaxed about this? And what the hell was going on with our mutual boyfriend? He was acting so weird.

  "You want a drink?" Jasper asked me.

  I huffed and sat down on a chair in the mint green and grey painted room. It was masculine and simple. One bed with a side table, a lamp stand, an ensuite and a mintz chair. That was it. On the bedside table, was an open bottle of whiskey.

  "Yes. I do," I muttered sourly.

  He said nothing while he poured my drink. I watched him the whole time, feeling overwhelmed by the prospect of spending the night with him and more than a little confused.

  When he handed me a glass, I threw back the liquid in one shot and grimaced as the burn spread across my throat and set my mouth on fire.

  "Jesus." Blinking away the moisture in my eyes, I handed the glass back to Jasper.

  He smirked at me. "Too strong for you, little girl?"

  I narrowed my eyes at him again. "I can handle it. Daddy," I threw back with a vengeance.

  Jasper just laughed. A genuine, highly amused laugh with his eyes warming up and all.

  "You're too cute," he said as he put the glasses away and then proceeded to lie down on the bed on his back with his hands behind his head, looking up at the ceiling.

  I gazed at him with uncertain eyes, wishing Cole was here. I couldn't do this. My heart was beating so hard and my hormones were starting to go all haywire again. I felt like crying. How could you, Cole? What do you want from me?

  Was this some sort of test? Did he suspect that I had feelings for Jasper and maybe wanted to test my loyalty or something? If that was the case, I was going to fail. Miserably.

  I wanted Jasper too much but that did not mean I didn't love my boyfriend.

  Was I supposed to sit here all night? I couldn't sleep with Jasper. Obviously.

  "Your thoughts are so damned loud," Jasper complained, still looking at the ceiling.

  "Shut up, Jasper."

  He sighed and glanced over at me. "Come here," he invited huskily.

  I stared at him. "Are you fucking ins
ane?" I hissed. "You know we can't actually share the same bed, right?"

  "We did once."

  I rolled my eyes. "Cole was there too."

  Jasper smiled at me, looking sleepy and sexy. Was he drunk now? "It was kind of nice, though. Right?"

  I huddled further into myself. Yes. It had been. I had loved spending the night knowing both of them were in bed with me. Cole snuggled with me whereas Jasper slept next to Cole. Their presence, their breathing had calmed me after my ordeal that day.

  "I never did say thank you to you about that day," I admitted in a soft voice. "Jasper, what you did-"