Deuces Wild (Gemini Project Book 3)

by Bianca D’Arc

  Marlon’s expression grew pained, but she could tell his words, when he spoke, were honest. “We haven’t done this before, but we’ve been discussing it. There’s… It’s…”

  “It’s complicated,” Jeff said, bending low so that his words were near her ear. “We’re not a couple, but we’re partners, and probably will be for life.”

  “Not a couple,” she repeated, thinking those words through.

  Gayness wasn’t unheard of, but it wasn’t prevalent among shifters. The idea that Jeff and Marlon might be a couple really hadn’t entered her mind because she didn’t get that kind of vibe from either of them. What she did get was more a feeling of hidden magic. Nothing sinister, but definitely a tingly feeling at certain times when she was around them.

  “I’ve never…um…done anything like this before,” she told them, trying to clear her mind enough to think this through, but it wasn’t working. Her mind was galloping away while her libido was pushing her to let her wild side have a little—albeit unconventional—fun. And her inner bear, well, she was growling her approval in no uncertain terms. She wanted them both.

  Odd.

  “Believe it or not, neither have we, but we’ve been thinking about it, and we were waiting for a special woman who might be adventurous enough to try it with us,” Marlon said, his voice raspy as she squirmed on his lap.

  Jeff’s hand caressed her neck, making her body respond to the sensitive touch. Damn. She was halfway there already.

  “You think I’m the one?” she asked, not even really sure what she was asking. Her body was taking charge, and her thoughts were scattered.

  “We do,” Jeff whispered, bending closer to nip lightly at the curve of her ear. She moaned in response, letting her head fall back against his chest.

  “Mm…” she murmured. “I think so, too.” She had a moment of clarity before she allowed herself to be completely swept away. “Uh… What about the cameras?” She realized after she said it that they may not have been aware of the intensity of surveillance in this building, but they didn’t bat an eye.

  “Already taken care of,” Marlon told her. “And the mics, too. This mansion is filled with bugs, but we—and most of the savvier guests—have been neutralizing them as a matter of course.”

  She paused a moment to listen with her bear’s gift of hearing. She could hear the minute hum of electricity given off by the small devices, if she concentrated. There was nothing like that in this room. She trusted her senses. Marlon’s claim to have nullified all the surveillance in this chamber was true. Not that she hadn’t believed him. It was more that she was concerned he might have missed something. But all she heard was the light crackle of the fire and the heartbeats of the men. A heady combination.

  Rather than say something that might lead to more discussion about how she knew of the surveillance, she acted. Moving forward, she kissed Marlon again, while at the same time, she reached back with her right hand, seeking Jeff’s muscular thigh.

  “How did she know about the surveillance?” Jeff asked Marlon silently.

  “Are you kidding me? You want to talk shop now?” Marlon replied, distracted by the way Maya was kissing him. She was a delight to hold and wildfire in his arms.

  “I guess Abernathy could have alerted her to it,” Jeff allowed.

  “Less talk, partner, or I’ll personally beat you senseless.”

  Jeff didn’t have to be a genius to realize he wasn’t going to get anything coherent out of Marlon right now. Not while the most beautiful woman in the world was kissing him for all she was worth. Jeff wanted some of that.

  He was going to say something else when Maya’s hand found his hard length and squeezed, sending his senses into orbit. Yeah, Marlon definitely had a point. Less talk, more pleasure. The talking could wait.

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  Maya felt that buzzing tingle against her senses again, but it stopped when she felt the thick length of Jeff’s cock through his trousers. Sweet Mother of All, that man was built. So was his partner, judging by the hardness rubbing against her inner thigh. Mm. This was going to be fun. Also, incredibly naughty.

  Jeff moved his hands around to cup her breasts from behind, and she moaned into the kiss she still shared with Marlon. The dress had thin straps and a bit of give, so when Jeff pushed the straps down over her shoulders, her breasts were freed…right into his palms. She pressed herself into him, enjoying the warm feel of his hands.

  Marlon broke their kiss and looked downward. Jeff’s hands cupped her, presenting her tits for Marlon’s enjoyment. Marlon dipped his head and nipped his way gently downward from her throat to the tops of her breasts, and then, he latched onto one of her nipples as Jeff plucked at the other with his fingers. Sweet Mother of All! That felt good.

  As Marlon moved to take her other breast into his mouth, Jeff’s hands left her, only to return lower, as he tugged upward on the hem of her dress, which was already around her thighs because of the way she was straddling Marlon’s lap. Jeff freed the fabric and moved it farther up her thighs until her ass was no longer covered, and his warm hands began a slow caress of her butt cheeks. His fingers slid up under the elastic of her panties around her legs and onto her bare skin.

  Her thighs were spread, so Jeff had good access when his questing fingers roved inward, toward the apex of her thighs. Right where she wanted him. Marlon sucked and kissed her breasts while Jeff’s fingers explored her pussy, delving inward and pulsing lightly, in time with Marlon’s sucking motions. As if they were coordinating between them, somehow.

  Stars! She was going to come apart, and she hadn’t even gotten one of their shirts off, yet. She let it happen, knowing that they wouldn’t end things there. There was time for her to get all she wanted from these two amazing men. No way would she turn either one of them away. Not now. Maybe not ever.

  She cried out as Jeff’s fingers went deep, and Marlon held her as she shook. Then, it was a blur as they moved in tandem, placing her on the couch while they stood over her. Marlon removed her dress, tugging it off over her head while Jeff pulled his shirt off, revealing those lithe swimmer’s muscles, then slid his pants down partway, revealing a hard, long, slightly curved cock. Mm. He was built very nicely, indeed.

  Jeff knelt down next to the couch to run his hands over her body while Marlon unbuttoned his shirt and lowered the zipper on his pants. His hard cock was straight and thick, his body deeply muscled in a way that made her mouth water. Both of these men were specimens. Athletes. Sexy as sin. And, for now, at least, they were all hers.

  “Jeff got to feel you first,” Marlon said in a rough whisper. “So, I get to fuck you first.” Suiting actions to words, he put one knee on the wide couch, right between her thighs and used his big calloused hands to move them apart. Wide apart. “It’s going to be fast this time, Maya. I hope you don’t mind. It’s been a long time for us, and we… Well… We need you.”

  Touched beyond all reason by his words, Maya opened her arms, tugging him downward, accepting without words. Something seemed to break inside Marlon, and then, he was positioning himself at her entrance. Holding her gaze, he pressed inward and, by slow degrees, slid into her.

  Maya couldn’t help the growl that escaped her at the intimate touch of his thick, hard cock. She wanted more. Now. More. Her inner bear’s needs echoed her own human thoughts. In this, they were in perfect alignment. They needed to be fucked. Hard. And fast.

  Finally, he was seated fully within her. Then, all hell broke loose as Marlon seemed to lose control. He thrust just the way she wanted. Hard and fast, holding her gaze as he labored over her. She became aware of Jeff moving closer, near her head and when she turned slightly to look up at him, she realized his hardness was right there.

  “Take him in your mouth,” Marlon whispered. She’d never heard anything so dirty. So tempting. She did as Marlon asked and opened for Jeff.

  Marlon cried out and came right then and there. His climax tipped her over the edge, and she followed as Jeff p
ulled out and seemed to watch her with hungry eyes. After long moments, Marlon moved back, and Jeff took his place.

  “We’ll have more finesse next time,” Jeff promised roughly. “If you allow us a next time.” He paused for a moment to cup her cheek gently and look deep into her eyes. “Are you still okay with this?”

  She had to swallow hard to keep the bear from sounding in her voice. “Yes. I want you, too, Jeff. I don’t understand it, but I do.”

  She didn’t need to say another thing. Jeff smiled, his every muscle tight as he slowly joined their bodies for the first time. She was already slick, and his passage was eased, but her climax had left her wanting more, oddly enough. As if she was incomplete until Jeff had enjoyed himself, too.

  As with Marlon, it was…almost frenzied. Jeff pumped hard and fast, carrying her along in a tempest of reawakened desire and when he cried out, she joined him in bliss. She’d never experienced anything like being with the two of them. Her pleasure had never been so great, and her inner bear was rolling around in joy for the experience. The furry hussy.

  She closed her eyes to enjoy the moment, and maybe she dozed because the men were in different positions when she woke. Both were dressing slowly, their movements almost lethargic. She grinned inwardly. She’d done that to them. Taken the edge off their sharp angles. At least for a little while.

  Marlon leaned over and kissed her, then pulled back to look deep into her eyes. “Do you want this to end here, or will you come back to our suite with us?”

  “The suite,” she managed, holding her bear’s roar of approval back by sheer determination alone. Marlon and Jeff both kissed her, in turn, then helped her find her clothes.

  Taking a few minutes to throw on her dress and for all of them to get presentable, again, they left the room and headed for the suite the men shared. When they got there, Jeff went in ahead and used some sort of device that had been in his pocket to go over the room. Maya could hear a light electrical hum from the device he was using, that intensified when he came to an area with a live microphone. A little zap of static from his handheld device, and the bug died. Zapped.

  He only found the one live bug in the common room, but he went into each of the other rooms, in turn, and swept the area. When he was done, Maya used her heightened senses to secretly check if he’d missed anything and found the rooms clean to her satisfaction. No one would be listening in or watching what happened in this suite for the remainder of the night, at the very least.

  Which meant they were free to pursue their passions in whatever ways they chose. Right now, Maya was interested in seeing if that first time together had been some sort of fluke. She wanted to test the bounds of this new passion and try to figure out what in the world was going on with her bear in relation to these two fascinating men.

  She didn’t understand her bear’s possessive reaction to them. The bear was growling mate at her, but it wasn’t clear which of the two men was the one that provoked the response. Could it…? Was it possible she wanted them both? Maya had never heard of such a thing happening among her people, but then, these were strange times they were living in. Maybe she had hit the mating jackpot and found two men she could spend the rest of her life with…if they were willing. Or, maybe, she was destined to be broken hearted.

  One thing she knew—if they were destined to be mates, she would have to come clean sooner, rather than later, about exactly what she was. If that didn’t send one or both of them screaming into the night, then there was a possibility for a future filled with happiness, love, and the best sex she’d ever had. But she wasn’t sure how to tell them…or even if she should tell them. One didn’t just blurt out, “Hey, I’m a bear shifter.” Not if they didn’t want to spend time in a padded room, at any rate.

  She’d have to figure out exactly how to manage this. She’d have to spend some time thinking about her options. For now, however, she was just going to enjoy the moments they had left before morning. She’d think about it a little later, when her head was clearer and not fogged by the desire that hadn’t abated.

  She followed Jeff into one of the bedrooms and decided to enjoy what was left of the night. Marlon was right behind her.

  Maya was gone when Jeff woke much later that morning. He wasn’t really that surprised. They’d been up most of the night. He smiled to himself, remembering those moments. But then, his mood darkened. Had she left simply because it was daytime and she had things to do? Or had she left because she couldn’t face what had taken place between them the night before?

  If the latter, he and Marlon had to find out and fix it—if at all possible—because Jeff very much believed that they’d found the one. The only woman who might accept them both and whom they could love in return.

  “Dude, you up?” Marlon’s voice came to Jeff as he lay in bed, thinking.

  “Yeah,” Jeff replied. He could hear his partner moving around in the other room. “Just woke up. What’s going on?”

  “Maya took off, but I guess you figured that out already.”

  “You didn’t see her go?” Jeff asked, just to be sure.

  “Nope. She pulled a phantom on us.”

  “Damn.”

  “Yeah,” Marlon agreed. “Thought I might—just sort of casually—take a look around the mansion.”

  “Looking for her.” Jeff knew his partner like he knew himself. He wanted to go looking for her, too.

  “Among other things.”

  Marlon left the suite before Jeff had even gotten out of bed. The lazy ass. Marlon was eager to find Maya, but he also realized that, if she wanted space, they would have to give it to her.

  They had a job to do, too. They really couldn’t afford to let personal matters affect their performance. Marlon figured it was fine to spend time with Maya when it fit in with their mission, but they wouldn’t be able to really give her the time and attention she deserved until they completed it. Marlon was already dreaming up plans to spend more time with her.

  If they had to put in for leave time to chase her across the continent, they would. It was as simple as that. Of course, that all depended on whether or not she wanted to continue what they’d started the night before. They’d let her set the pace, but if she rejected them now, it would be a devastating blow to both him and his partner, he knew. After only one night, they were both deeply involved with the beautiful Maya Marshall.

  Marlon made his way to the dining room, where a large buffet-style breakfast was still in progress, even though it was almost time for lunch. There were quite a few late risers this morning, since most of the guests had been up into the wee hours of the morning. Marlon heaped scrambled eggs onto his plate, along with some fruit and a bit of toast, and headed for a table by the window. A waiter came right over to offer coffee and juice, then Marlon dug into his breakfast. He’d worked up quite the appetite last night.

  “Heads up,” Jeff’s voice came into his head, and Marlon was well-trained enough by now not to let anything show in his outer demeanor. “I’m at the doorway. Looks like Admiral Morrow is making a beeline for you.”

  “Thanks for the warning. Get your breakfast and come over here. I don’t want to deal with the brass all alone.” Marlon’s tone was as close to grumbling as he could get telepathically.

  “Roger that,” Jeff replied, not bothering to hide his amusement.

  “Glad I caught you, Parkhurst,” Morrow said, sitting down at the table without being asked. “I assume Shera won’t be far behind.”

  “Jeff’s just getting some breakfast and will be here shortly,” Marlon said, trying to sound neutral. What was the admiral up to, approaching him openly like this? He was wearing a golf shirt and cargo pants. Very informal, and similar to what Marlon and Jeff were wearing.

  “I’m playing golf in a few minutes with Sam Kinkaid and a few others. I believe you know him, both being Texans in the oil business. Do you or Shera play golf by any chance?” Morrow asked.

  “Jeff doesn’t, but I do,” Marlon replied. “My
family founded the local golf club in our hometown.”

  “Are you any good?” Morrow asked, with a hint of challenge, his blue eyes twinkling.

  “I’ve been known to win a tournament or two on the local level,” Marlon said, answering in the same tone.

  “Good. Meet us out there in an hour.” Morrow stood from the table and nodded at Jeff as he approached, but didn’t say anything. Morrow left as quickly as he’d arrived.

  “What was all that about?” Jeff asked out loud for the benefit of anyone who might be observing them.

  “Looks like I’m playing golf this afternoon,” Marlon replied. “With the admiral and Sam Kinkaid.”

  “Nice. While you’re out chasing little white balls into the woods and out of sand pits, I think I’ll go swimming again. The pool here is top notch, and the weather looks good. Got to enjoy the last of the warm days while I can.”

  “Okay, Mr. Merman. You go for it,” Marlon teased as he finished his breakfast, then stood. “If I’m going out on the links, I’ll have to dress the part. Luckily, I saw one of the vendors had a large selection of golf attire. I didn’t bring anything with me, since I know you don’t play.”

  “I’ve got better things to do with my time, boy-o,” Jeff agreed breezily as he buttered his toast. “Have fun hitting balls with sticks.”

  “Catch you later,” Marlon said, not rising to the bait. “I’ll check in regularly. You do the same.”

  “Roger that.”

  Sam Kinkaid remembered Marlon and greeted him warmly, introducing him to the rest of the party. There was a senator and a deputy director of one of the government agencies responsible for military procurement, both from California. The senator had been recently appointed, when his predecessor died in office. That had raised more than a few eyebrows, since the death occurred under mysterious circumstances, while he’d been at home, during a break. Rumors had flown but had come to nothing.