by Quinn Ward
"You about ready?" I whispered in Tony's ear once I caught up with him. He spun around on his stool, reaching down to adjust himself as he checked me out. I was a wreck, but he didn't seem to mind one bit. The wig and costume were gone, but I hadn't been prepared for the adventure of trying to take off pounds of makeup and get the glue out of my eyebrows. Hopefully Tony had something strong enough at his place to cut through the layers, otherwise my face would be smeared all over his pillow case by morning.
"Yeah, just let me get my keys," he said, shoving his hand into the front pocket of his jeans. His attempt at twirling the key ring around his finger failed, and I swiped up the keys before he could.
"You're not driving anywhere tonight," I told him, narrowing my eyes slightly, daring him to argue with me. I was a trained professional; I'd fought and won against more drunks than I could count.
"I can't leave my car here," Tony argued, his words slurred together.
"Then I'll leave mine, and you can bring me back in the morning," I offered. This wasn't an unsafe neighborhood, but if one of our vehicles spent the night in the parking lot, people would be much less likely to fuck with a rusted, base model Ford Ranger than his Dodge Challenger. That car was his baby, and if not for his blood alcohol content, there was no way he'd let me drive it. Tony scowled at me, and I laughed. "You can glare at me all you want, it won't work. And so help me, if you even think about sticking out your bottom lip or making puppy dog eyes at me, I'll throw you over my knee in the middle of this bar and get everyone to count while I spank your ass."
"Kinky fucker," Tony teased, running his hand down my chest before cupping my cock. "I guess I'd better be a good boy then."
The way he emphasized “good boy” was probably meant to sound sexy, but it was nearly comical. Both of us enjoyed a little slap and tickle every now and then, but nothing more. Not that I wasn't interested in it, but I wasn't sure he would be. And we weren't going to discuss anything like that when he was drunk off his ass.
"What you'd better do is remember this is Max’s work, the bar where you like to hang out every night you can, and everyone who matters will remember everything you do tonight, whether you do or not," Enzo warned him.
Tony glared at his brother before pulling him into a tight hug. "Thanks, man, you've always got my back."
"Someone has to." He started leading Tony toward the entrance, jerking his head, motioning for me to follow.
The street was far from quiet, but once we were outside, it took a minute for Tony's brain to catch up to the fact he didn't need to yell to be heard over the music we'd left behind. "You're really spending the night tonight? Like all night?"
"That was the plan," I told him, tossing the keys to Enzo because it would be easier for me to lead Tony to the car than him. Or at least that was the story I told myself. In reality, I couldn't take much more of watching Tony list to the side and Enzo righting him. Every time he did, Tony nuzzled his face into his brother's neck, thanking him for being the best brother. It could've been completely innocent, but since he'd brought up the idea of the three of us fucking around, all it did was shove my libido into overdrive.
Maybe it was a horrible idea to even think about pushing their boundaries tonight when Tony had been drinking, but it could just as easily be for the best. Tonight, his mind was dulled just enough he wouldn't be obsessing over the reasons it was wrong for him to fuck me while I fucked his twin. He wouldn't freak out if there was incidental contact between the two of them.
Together, we managed to pour Tony into the back seat, and Enzo sat next to me. Not part of my ill-formed plan, but it worked well. If I was going to do this, I'd feel better if I felt up—out, not up, you perv—Enzo to make sure he'd be into it. Otherwise, everything could easily go to shit, and we'd never recover.
The problem was, how did you start a conversation like the one I felt needed to happen? "Hey, so your brother says he thinks you're into the idea of fucking around with me while I fuck around with him..." Yeah, that wasn't happening. "So, if I told you I can't stop thinking about fucking one of you while the other fucks me, what would you say?" That was even worse. "They say twins share everything. I'm wondering how true that is..." Ugh. I should just sit here and focus on driving the damn car.
"Are you and Tony together now or what?" Enzo asked, his head lolling to the side so he can look at me. Seemed Tony might not be the only Marino brother who was feeling no pain. But he was still in the tipsy range, as opposed to Tony, who was snoring in the back seat.
"Tony and I are...complicated," I told him, wincing because it sounded so damn cliché. "We have fun together, but we're not exclusive or anything. What about you? Anyone special in your life?"
Enzo glanced over his shoulder, quickly turning back to the front seat. His silence spoke volumes, as did the slow sigh. "No, I keep busy enough with work I don't really have time for much else."
"That's a damn shame." Taking a chance, I reached over and squeezed his knee. "You can't work yourself to death."
"Not like there's a lot of prospects on the table right now anyway." He snorted as if something funny had just crossed his mind.
"That can't be true," I argued. "You're a good-looking guy with a sense of humor. What's not to love?"
"Can we just drop it?" Enzo let out a huff before twisting in his seat so he could stare out the window. I could drop it, but I didn't want to. I wanted to find out what secrets Enzo kept and, if my growing assumption was correct, show him not everyone would judge him for what he wanted.
Tony's snores were the only noise in the car for a while. It spoke volumes that I didn't need to ask directions to their place. More often than not, I wound up following Tony home after I closed down the bar because my place was off-limits.
"Hey, I'm sorry if I touched a nerve back there," I apologized when I couldn't take the silence any longer.
"Not your fault," Enzo responded, letting me off the hook. But it was. I knew what he was hiding, or at least I thought I did, and I'd still pushed to get him to say it.
"Would it make you feel any better if I told you that you could tell me just about anything and I wouldn't think less of you for it?" I offered, quickly adding, "Unless you're into fucking livestock or something."
"Your bar is really that low?" Enzo asked, forcing a laugh I could tell he didn't feel.
"Pretty much. I've never really worried too much about other people's sex lives or desires." I placed a hand on his knee again, testing to see if he'd flinch away from me. He didn't, and both of us relaxed a bit. "Society has a lot of rules that don't make a whole lot of sense. As far as I'm concerned, if you're happy and the person or people you're with are too, that's all that matters."
"So you don't think it's weird to be with more than one person at the same time?" Enzo's voice was filled with uncertainty, like he needed someone to tell him he wasn't weird.
"Not at all," I responded, giving his knee a squeeze. He looked up at me and smiled. It wasn't much more than one corner of his mouth lifting, but it was a start. "In fact, I think a lot of relationship problems could be solved if people were honest about what they needed. Sometimes, that means you can't get everything you need from one person. Hell, as much as I enjoy being in a relationship, sometimes it's too much damn pressure to feel like I'm supposed to be someone's everything."
"When you say it like that, it makes a lot of sense." Enzo let out a small sigh, and his shoulders relaxed. "But that's not all of it for me. And it's not something I'm ready to talk about. No offense, but we don't know one another well enough to share all of our secrets."
"Fair enough." Enzo shocked me by placing his hand over mine as I went to move it back to my side of the car. "And if you're up for it, maybe that's something we could work on."
"What's that?"
"Getting to know one another," I clarified.
"Why?"
"Because you're an intriguing man.”
Enzo shrugged. "I'm really not. I'm the one who tries to
lurk in the shadows so no one notices me."
"And that, my new friend, is a damn shame."
Before the conversation could turn any more serious, we arrived at Tony and Enzo's apartment complex. I pulled into the stall I knew was reserved for Tony and turned off the engine. "Think we'll be able to wake him?"
"I'm awake," Tony muttered. He sat up, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. "We're already here?"
"Yes, Sleeping Beauty, you passed out as soon as we shoved you in the back seat," Enzo told him.
"Shit. Sorry about that." Enzo opened the door, tilting the seat forward so Tony could climb out. He was still a bit wobbly, but Enzo had lightning quick reflexes that made me revisit my assumption he was drunk, too. He held onto his brother longer than absolutely necessary, smiling when Tony kissed his cheek. "Thanks for keeping me from face-planting."
"Come on, let's get you inside."
I followed the brothers upstairs and stopped behind them outside the entrance so they could unlock the door. They both looked at me, waiting. Right. I have the keys. I pulled Tony's keys out of my pocket and took a guess at which one was the door key.
"It's the gold one," Tony told me, still leaning against his brother for support. My gut twisted. Was that...jealousy? No. That's ridiculous.
"Here, you keep him upright and give me the keys," Enzo suggested. As soon as Tony curled against my side, my insides settled. Shit. That wasn’t good.
When I handed the keys to Enzo, our fingers brushed, causing me to look up at him. His eyes were the exact rich shade of brown I saw when I looked at Tony. Of course they were, the men were identical twins, therefore, certain things would always be the same between them. He stared back at me, and I wished I had the slightest idea what he was thinking.
Tony seemed to become more lucid as we followed Enzo to the second floor. While we waited for him to unlock the door to their apartment, Tony boldly slid his hand over my dick. "Good to know you let him free. He had to be uncomfortable tucked up in your beautiful ass."
"Hush," I hissed. Without looking back at us, Enzo shook his head and swung the door open.
Tony shoved me against the wall without bothering to enter the apartment, twisting his fingers in my hair as he kissed me. It was sloppy and demanding, a hint of things to come. When Tony pulled back, he stared at me and shook his head. "Fuck, you should wear makeup more often. You're hot as hell right now. Want to throw you down on the couch and bury my dick in your ass."
"Inside, Tony," I demanded. Enzo stood on the other side of the doorway, his cheeks stained an adorable shade of red. The differences in the men's personalities made them unique in their own ways. Tony bold, chasing after what he wanted, while Enzo had grown accustomed to being a spectator rather than risk rejection.
I waved Enzo to lead the way into the apartment and had to drag a pouting Tony so he'd follow. When Enzo passed the living room, heading for his bedroom at the end of the hall, I felt like an opportunity was about to slip past me. "Enzo, stay."
He stopped but didn't turn to look at us. I could practically hear him considering his options. He wanted this, I knew he did, but he wouldn't reach out to take it. If we were going to have tonight, it was up to me to take the lead.
"Tony, go to the living room and find a movie. I'll be right there," I said, giving him a gentle push in the direction I wanted him to go. Once I was satisfied he was doing as I'd asked, I followed Enzo, stopping him with a firm hand on his shoulder. "Is this what you wanted? What you were afraid to admit earlier?"
He started to shake his head, then stopped with his back to me. Fuck, I wanted to see those gorgeous eyes again. Taking one proverbial step closer to the edge, I tightened my grip on Enzo's shoulder and turned him to face me. He bowed his head, staring at his feet.
"It's okay if it is, Enzo," I reassured him. He looked up briefly, his eyes wide with disbelief. "I told you before I wouldn't judge you for what you wanted, and I meant it. You can tell me. If you want this, let me help you."
"I shouldn't." His protest didn’t escape me, but he wasn’t disputing my assumption. As his shoulders slumped and his chin dropped to his chest, I saw a shimmer in his eyes that hadn't been there before. Oh, you beautiful man.
Without thinking too much about it, I took Enzo in my arms and held him against my chest. I'd upset him, even if only by forcing him to admit a truth I doubted he'd verbalized before. Now, I wanted to make him feel better. Make him believe neither Tony nor I would judge him if this was something he was curious about.
"You can't tell him," Enzo pleaded, his words muffled against my shoulder. "Please. He'll think I'm messed up. I'm not supposed to feel this way."
I ran a hand over Enzo's hair and kissed the top of his head. Just like his brother, he was a few inches shorter than me, the perfect height to hold like this. "I won't tell him, but I think he's curious too."
"I don't believe that," Enzo scoffed. "He's busy fucking everything with a heartbeat, he doesn't need to think about doing something so..."
I clamped my hand over Enzo's mouth to keep him from finishing his thought. I didn't want him telling me all the reasons he couldn't fantasize about being with his brother, I wanted to give him a glimpse and see what happened.
"You're wrong, Enzo. More than once, Tony's asked me if I'd ever thought about being with both of you at the same time," I admitted, hooking a finger under Enzo's chin to force him to look at me. "And I have. Lord, have I ever."
"Yeah, it's the twins fantasy. I know. Heard all about it from more than one of Tony's playthings." He seemed irritated, but he didn't pull away from me.
"I won't insult you by saying that's not part of it for me," I told him, hoping my honesty would count for something. "But it's not just that. I don't look at the two of you as halves of a whole. Being attracted to you isn’t part of some fetish or fantasy about sleeping with a set of twins. You're an amazing person on your own, Enzo, and I’d truly like to get to know you better."
"So you're saying that if you met me before Tony, you’d have approached me instead?" Why was it so hard for Enzo to believe that I could be interested in him as his own person?
"That's exactly what I'm saying." I reached up, brushing my thumb over Enzo's high cheekbones. God, he really was stunningly beautiful. There was something about his humility and innocence that made him even more attractive to me. "If all you're interested in is one night to live out your fantasies, it's fine by me. But don't you think you owe it to yourself to at least try?"
Enzo sucked his bottom lip into his mouth and appeared to be contemplating my suggestion. Without giving him an opportunity to come up with an excuse to bail, I slid my fingers around the back of his neck and pressed my lips to his. If I had my way, there'd be plenty of kissing tonight, but this first time, I wanted it to be just the two of us. I needed Enzo to understand my attraction to him wasn't based on any kinky fun we got up to.
"I need to get the rest of this makeup off my face. Think about what I said. For now, I'd like it if you’d join Tony and me in the living room for a movie. I promise, nothing will happen unless you want it to, and even though I think you're not giving Tony enough credit, I won't spill your secrets to him. If you want to find out if I’m right or not, go sit on the couch with him, and I’ll be there as soon as I can."
Walking away from Enzo was the hardest thing I'd done that night. The uncertainty of not knowing whether he'd turn around and join us in the living room or retreat into his bedroom drove me crazy, but I'd said all there was to say. Now, it was up to Enzo to decide if it was what he wanted to do.
Chapter Four
Enzo
My legs shook with every tentative step back to the living room. I ran a hand over my mouth, trying to figure out if that had really just happened. I could still taste the spicy cinnamon from Max's gum on my lips, so it had to be real. And now, he wanted me to wait for him so all three of us could fuck around.
Max knowing so much about me freaked me out. I had worked hard to make sur
e no one ever learned the twisted fantasies that had plagued my mind since puberty hit. It was completely unnatural to be attracted to Tony in that way, and yet I couldn't stop myself from wishing he would look at me the same way he looked at everyone else he was attracted to.
There was a good chance Tony would hate me if I followed Max's lead tonight. Even though Max seemed convinced Tony wanted me as much as I wanted him, I found it hard to believe. Not once had I picked up on the faintest hint of attraction or curiosity from him. We spent the first eighteen years of our lives sharing the same bedroom, sleeping less than four feet away from one another, and nothing ever happened. Or at least, to the best of Tony's knowledge, nothing ever happened. I was ashamed to admit how many nights I pretended to be asleep when he came to bed, taking myself in hand as I watched him undress. It was depraved. It was wrong. And yet I couldn't change any of it.
"Hey, man," Tony greeted me. He patted the couch cushion next to him, inviting me to sit down. How many nights had the two of us sat next to one another watching a movie just like Max intended for tonight? Tony never thought anything of it when I sat close to him. Neither had I, but now, the idea of sitting on the cushion next to his, so close I could feel the heat radiating off his body, terrified me. I was convinced if I sat next to him, he’d see through me and tell me how disgusting I was.
I looked at the papasan chair we picked up at a yard sale when we first moved in. Sitting there would give me the space I so desperately needed, but Max clearly instructed me to sit on the couch with Tony. If I sat there, Max would know I was agreeing to his offer as soon as he walked back into the room. I wouldn’t have to say a word.
