by Katee Robert
Being wrapped in Theo’s arms felt a whole lot like that.
It didn’t make a bit of sense. He wasn’t hers in any sense of the word. He was the exact opposite of hers. But the truth had no place here, especially the ugly truth.
Theo turned them and lifted her onto the kitchen counter. He stepped between her thighs, pressing them wide enough that her skirt fought the movement. It only made everything hotter. He used his hold on her hair to tilt her head so he could kiss down her neck. Meg arched her back, needing his mouth all over her, needing him to rip her out of the goddamn clothes that had the audacity to create a barrier between them.
Somewhere in the back of her mind a voice whispered, the words emerging from her lips. “We shouldn’t.”
“I know.” He nuzzled her tank top lower and nipped the curve of her breast. “Galen will kill me.”
Galen.
His name in Theo’s rumbling voice sent a bolt of pleasure straight to her core. Last time, Galen had watched them for some time before he’d finally waded in to take the pleasure he considered his due. But Galen wasn’t here tonight.
Theo skated his hands up her thighs, pushing her skirt higher until she had to lift her hips to allow it to bunch around her waist. His thumbs feathered along the edges of her panties. “Black lace.” He cursed low enough that she had to strain to hear him.
If he didn’t rip off her fucking panties, she might expire on the spot.
But this was Theo, and Theo never seemed to do anything unless he damn well wanted to. He traced her clit through the fabric. “Fuck, Meg, I missed you.”
“No.” She grabbed the back of his neck and dug her nails in a little until he met her gaze. His blue eyes were fire, bright enough to make her whole world glow. If she let him, he’d sweep her away and ensure she enjoyed every second. Meg couldn’t let him. She couldn’t be swept away. Not again. “No, Theo.”
He stopped the torturous slide of his thumb. “No?”
She used her free hand to cover his where he cupped her pussy. “Don’t stop that.” Still he didn’t move, searching her face for answers she didn’t have. She drew in a shuddering breath. “I am furious at you. My wanting to fuck you doesn’t change that. It doesn’t change anything.”
“Doesn’t it?” He raised a single eyebrow. “You think you can keep it separate.”
“I know I can. The question is—can you?”
Theo’s smile sent her stomach into a dizzying flip. “Naughty princess. You want to use me for my cock and then walk away. Your own personal sex toy.”
She dragged her gaze over him, from his dark hair to those wicked blue eyes to his sinful mouth, down his broad shoulders, his clearly defined chest, to the jeans clearly sporting a hard-on for the ages. “I have a sex toy. In fact, I have several. None of them look a thing like you.”
His laughter rolled through her. “Fine, princess. I’ll play your game. No more telling you I miss you.” He hooked his fingers through her panties and dragged them down her legs, stepping back so she could kick them off. Theo went to his knees between her spread thighs, looking at her pussy so intensely she could feel it like his touch. “I definitely won’t tell you that I jacked myself to the memory of you countless times in the last three months.”
“Theo…”
He pressed a painfully gentle kiss to each thigh and then his breath ghosted over her clit. “I sure as hell won’t tell you that when I fucked Galen, I imagined you were there with us. I came so fucking hard, princess, just from thinking about you while I was buried in him to the hilt.”
She stared down at him, mesmerized despite herself. “Fantasizing about me while you’re having sex with Galen…” She had to stop because the image unfurled in her mind and stole her breath. Of Theo moving behind Galen’s big body, kissing the back of his neck as he drove into Galen, reaching around and stroking Galen’s cock so they could reach their pleasure together… “Fuck,” she breathed. What was she saying? Meg swallowed hard. “It’s rude.”
“Is it?” He dragged his tongue over her pussy in a long lick as if savoring her taste. “I wasn’t fantasizing about fucking you while I was fucking him, princess.”
She tried to focus past the pleasure of his mouth, his big hands holding her thighs wide as he devoured her. “I… What were you fantasizing about?”
“Him.” He sucked on her clit hard enough to make her back bow. “Fucking.” Another long lick. “You.”
And just like that, the image in her mind shifted. Theo drove into Galen, and Galen drove into her.
She whimpered, her pleasure building as much from the fantasy as from Theo’s mouth. He rolled his tongue over her clit, working her in just the way she needed. How the hell did he remember that after all this time? She tried to put on the brakes, to slow her pleasure, to make it last, but Theo drove her before him like lightning before thunder. She couldn’t resist him.
She never should have tried.
Meg came with a cry that filled the room around them. Theo didn’t give her a chance to recover, though. He stood and stepped back between her thighs to take her mouth. She tasted herself on his tongue and hell if it didn’t make her toes curl. Meg wrapped her legs around his waist and he lifted her off the counter and walked them down the hallway, still kissing her, never missing a step. “You’ve done this before,” she murmured.
“Not like this. Never this.” He kept her pinned to him with one arm around the small of her back and used his other hand to pull her tank top off. Meg ran her hands down his muscled chest. He really was too beautiful. It almost hurt to look at him and touching him only magnified the sensation.
He spun and pinned her between his body and the wall next to the door, thrusting against her. The seam of his pants pressed against her clit and Meg cried out. “More.”
Theo dragged his mouth up her neck and set his teeth against the sensitive spot below her ear. “Impatient, wanton girl. If I pressed you against those windows for the world to watch me fuck you, would you let me?”
She twisted to look at the windows in question, massive panes stretching from floor to ceiling and offering a view of Central Park below. With the lights on in the bedroom, anyone close enough to look would be able to see everything Theo did to her in startling detail.
It would be so wrong.
Her body tightened at the thought. Theo bit her again, harder this time, making her breasts ache and her nipples tighten in response. His low laugh vibrated against her skin. “We both know you would.”
“Yes,” she whispered.
“No.” He released her, letting her slide down his body until her feet found purchase on the hardwood floor. Only then did he step back and stalk to yank the curtains closed. Closing off her view of the world gave the room an intimate feeling, as if they were the last two people alone in the world. Except Galen. Galen’s out there somewhere. No amount of distance would erase that man.
Theo turned to face her. “Strip.”
There wasn’t much left to take off. She shimmied out of her skirt and tossed her bra away. Even from across the room, she could hear his breath hitch and hell if that didn’t make her feel like the sexiest woman in existence. Theo rubbed the back of his hand across his mouth. “There’s only one person I’d put on a show for and unfortunately he’s not here. Next time.”
“There’s no next time, Theo.” She meant it to come out firm, but the words lifted at the end, as if she was asking him to confirm that truth.
His lips quirked. “Then, yeah, Galen is most definitely going to kick the shit out of me when he gets back in town.”
She started for him and then stopped. “Is… You talked about it, but…” Meg pressed her lips together. “If you two are an item…”
“We’re not. Not in the way you mean.” Theo stalked toward her, the light dancing along his muscles as if it couldn’t resist him any more than she could. “What Galen and I are is complicated and not exclusive when it comes to what’s happening tonight.”
Sh
e tried to pick apart that statement. Realization washed over her. “You can have sex with women, but not other men.”
“Something like that.” Theo stopped in front of her and shifted his fingers through her hair. “He won’t kick my ass because I fuck you, princess. He’ll do it because he’s jealous he wasn’t here with us.” He lowered his voice. “He should be here with us.”
“Another time.” She had no intention of saying it, of promising him anything. She was still furious that he’d pulled that stunt with the money and Meg didn’t make a habit of spending time with people who made her furious—her bar patrons excepted. But the thought of completely closing the door on another night with both Theo and Galen hurt too much.
His grin made her heart stutter. “On the bed.”
She obeyed, crawling on the mattress and reclining among the pillows. Theo rewarded her by stripping out of his lounge pants, shoving the denim down his strong thighs and kicking free of it, leaving him naked. The sight of his cock straining against his stomach had her biting her bottom lip. She knew what came next. She craved what came next. “Don’t make me wait.”
“One condition.”
“Damn it, Theo.” Of course there were conditions. The man wouldn’t know uncomplicated if it slapped him in the face. “What condition?”
He pulled a string of condoms from the nightstand and tossed them on the bed next to her. She counted six and raised her eyebrows. Theo gave an unrepentant grin. “Stay the night. If this is the end, then let’s end it with fireworks.”
He’s playing me. Theo had no intention of letting this go. If it was the end, he wouldn’t have all but promised her another night with both him and Galen. She wouldn’t have all but agreed.
It was a terrible idea.
She couldn’t deny the temptation his words brought. Nothing would change if she spent the night riding Theo’s cock. She would still manage to convince him to take the money back. This would still be a period at the end of their encounters, rather than a semi-colon. Why not take the pleasure he offered?
He doesn’t have to play you—you’re playing yourself.
It’s only one night.
That’s what you said last time.
She met those intoxicating blue eyes and nodded. “Yes.”
“Thank fuck.” He was on her in seconds, shoving her legs wide and he ground the base of his cock against her clit. He tangled his fingers in her hair and took her mouth like a she was the sweetest kind of candy and he’d never get enough.
Like he’d devour her whole.
She reached blindly over and snagged the condoms, ripping one free. Seconds later the foil was gone and she rolled it over his cock. He allowed it, shifting back to give her the room to work. Hurry, hurry, hurry, her body cried. She needed him inside her and she needed it now. Meg guided him into her and he thrust hard, sheathing himself completely.
Oh god.
Theo broke free of her mouth and pressed his forehead against hers, their breath mingling between them. Each of her exhales came out as, “Oh god. Oh god. Oh god.”
He gentled his touch, stroking her hair as if she was a wild animal he had every intention of taming. “Stay with me, princess. I’ve got you.”
As if this was something she submitted to, rather than chased down and tackled to the ground because she wanted it so badly. Meg laughed. She couldn’t help it. “Fuck me, Theo.” She hitched her leg around his hip so she could take him deeper. “I need it hard.” She leaned up until her lips brushed his ear. “Take me like Galen is watching and you want to give him a show.”
Fuck me until he can’t hold back any longer and joins us in the bed.
An ache started in her chest, a longing for a man she barely knew. She wanted Galen here with them. Theo must have felt it, too. He withdrew and flipped her onto her stomach, urging her hips up even as he impaled her again. “You want me to fuck you like Galen’s watching.”
“Yes,” she moaned.
“Knees wider, princess. Let’s give him a show.”
Galen breathed a sigh of relief when he hit the button to take the elevator up to the apartment. The entire flight back to New York, he couldn’t shake the feeling that something terrible was going to happen. He didn’t put stock in feelings over facts, but Galen trusted his instincts. As much as he would have liked to chalk up his unease to dealing with his father, it didn’t explain away things as neatly as he wanted them to.
Theo hadn’t answered his calls or texts in hours.
They had a policy since their exile; when they weren’t together, they checked in at regular intervals. Too much shit could go wrong. Too many people were gunning for them. Phillip might not be willing to brave the potential political storm to send an assassin after Theo, but as soon as he installed Edward as king, all bets were off.
Even if Phillip wouldn’t take that step, there were half a dozen other countries who would. The fact they hadn’t yet amazed Galen a little bit. In their position, he would have ensured Theo didn’t survive the flight to the States. Easy enough to bring their plane down if someone had pockets deep enough.
Every one of their enemies had pockets deep enough.
The elevator doors opened and he stepped into the apartment. He hadn’t been back here in months. He and Theo had wasted precious time pursuing a lead that took them nowhere, and Galen could admit he was glad to spend time in New York again. He loved the shit out of his country, but there was something about the mad pulse of NYC that drew him in despite himself. So many strangers packed into such a tight space, all living their lives on top of each other and steadily ignoring anything they didn’t feel like dealing with. Here, people didn’t care what his past was. They didn’t give a fuck about his future, either.
It was freeing.
He stopped short. His memories of the last time he was in this apartment had to be playing with his mind. For a second, he could have sworn he caught a strain of the same floral perfume Meg Sanders had worn the night they brought her home. Galen closed his eyes and inhaled again, slower this time. Yeah, that was Meg’s perfume, which didn’t make a damn bit of sense because three months was more than long enough…
A flash of something out of place from the corner of his eye brought him around to face the kitchen. The black lace thong on the floor hadn’t been there when they left New York. Meg had worn red that night and Theo ripped the fucking thing off her.
Goddamn it, Theo, you promised.
He should have known better. He should have sent Theo to Europe or Australia to follow some imaginary errand while he was occupied in Thalania. Anything but letting his friend come back here to start shit neither one of them were capable of following through on. Galen stalked down the hallway, the sliver of morning light shining from behind the bedroom door confirming his worst fears. He used a single finger to push open the door.
They were in bed together.
He watched Theo move over Meg. In Meg. She had her legs locked around his waist, her heels digging into the dip at the bottom of Theo’s spine. Galen had tongued that dip more times than he cared to count. He should stop them. Should clear his throat or let loose the curses rattling around in his head at their recklessness.
But, fuck, they were beautiful together.
Theo rolled, taking Meg with him, and ended up on his back with her astride him. That’s when Galen realized his friend had spotted him. Theo knew he liked a show and the bastard thought he could entice Galen to join them. Meg didn’t have the same training—the same awareness. Or maybe she was too far gone. She braced her hands on Theo’s chest and rode him as if paradise lay just on the other side of her next stroke. Her ass bounced every time she slammed down onto Theo’s cock, and fuck if that didn’t make Galen want to climb onto the bed and take a bite out of her. He leaned against the door jamb and crossed his arms over his chest. Waiting.
Her rhythm went choppy as she chased her pleasure. Theo cupped her jaw with a hand and leaned up to kiss her. He grinned, the bastard, and said,
“Look who’s home, princess.”
Her hazel eyes met Galen’s and that was it. She came with a cry to bring the roof down on them all. If Galen wasn’t already rock hard from the show they’d just put on, any blood left in his body would have rushed to his cock in that breath of a moment. Fuck.
He managed to hold it together as Theo rolled them again and drove into her, chasing his own pleasure. Even as part of Galen was already planning how he’d get them out of this mess, he appreciated the view. Theo came with a curse and rolled off Meg to give him a cocky grin.
Galen legitimately couldn’t decide if he wanted to walk over there and kiss Theo or punch him in his pretty face. Meg, at least, didn’t look happy to see him. She shoved the covers back and jumped to her feet. He saw the exact second her knees buckled and was there to catch her before she landed on her ass on the hardwood floors. “Hey, Meg. Long time.”
“You don’t say.” She stared up him as if searching his face for answers. He had none, and whatever she was looking for, she didn’t find. Meg shook her head and jerked her arms out of his grip. “Tell Theo to take his money back.”
On the bed, Theo growled. “I thought we were past this.”
“You thought wrong. It’s morning, which means it’s over.” She pointed a finger at him like she was a teacher lecturing a troublesome student. Galen had never wanted to see any of his teachers naked, but if Meg had been one of them, maybe he would have made an exception. Meg spun to face him. “Did you approve of this bullshit?”
He’d had a clear view of what he thought was happening when he walked through the door of the bedroom. It appeared Galen was half right. They might have been fucking seconds ago, but she wasn’t lust-drunk.
No, Meg was fucking pissed.
Galen retreated back to the doorway and resumed his position. “I don’t have the slightest fucking idea what you’re going on about.”
“Going on. Going on.” Meg dragged her fingers through her long dark hair. She didn’t seem to notice she was still naked and flushed from the fucking Theo had laid on her, and hell if that didn’t make Galen like her a little bit more. She’d lost weight since he’d seen her last—weight she couldn’t afford to lose. He couldn’t quite count her ribs, but another few pounds and he might be able to. There were faint hickeys on her breasts and thighs, which confirmed his suspicion that Theo hadn’t waited a damn hour after Galen boarded his plane to move on Meg.
