By the Book

by Scarlett Parrish

  Floorboards creaked to my right, and Sarah stopped. I held my breath, praying for her not to move away. Just stay just stay just stay, don’t—

  “Reece.” Georgia sat on the edge of the bed and whispered, close enough for me to feel her words as cool breath on my jaw. “Perhaps the blindfold was a trifle unfair.” Her voice grew distant as she backed away, down the bed. The movement of the mattress reverberated through everyone’s bodies, and Sarah, gripping my hips in both hands, shifted. Tightened a little inside. Her staying exactly where she was reassured me; nothing too untoward was about to happen, but I didn’t have a fucking clue and wanted to see…feel…do something.

  “Yes, Geo, I realize that—”

  “And,” she went on, stressing the first word as code for don’t interrupt me again, “it is your birthday after all. So I think…” Her hand slid along the side of my face, pushed the blindfold up and off.

  I blinked against the lamplight a few times before making a stupid, futile attempt to take in and accept the sight of two women. Naked. In my bed. Me, in one of those women. Reece, you lucky bastard. You could die tomorrow and—

  “…it wouldn’t do any harm to let you see Sarah.”

  “Oh yes.” Thick with lust, the words growled out from the back of my throat. “Yes yes yes.”

  “But you still can’t touch her. Either of us.”

  “Well.” I shrugged in a twisted sort of way, lying with my hands above my head. Again the chain clinked against the slats. “Anytime you feel like—holy shit.” My eyes widened when Georgia cupped Sarah’s breast, and the look that passed between them sent my blood pressure rocketing.

  “One one thousand, two one thousand, three one thousand, don’t do this to me, you two.” I stared up at the ceiling. Don’t come, don’t come, don’t come.

  “No?” Georgia lifted her hand away when I met her gaze. “Are you sure?”

  “I won’t last another second if you…” I gulped. “Four one thousand…”

  “Because I was thinking. If you can’t touch Sarah…” Georgia ran her thumb over Sarah’s bottom lip and shot me a sideways glance, smirking. “Maybe I should.”

  Sarah shuddered. And I felt it. I felt it.

  I didn’t need the blindfold then. I screwed my eyes shut, arched my back, and, for the first time in a long time, spent all my mental energy trying not to come. “Fuck.”

  “That,” Georgia said, “is exactly what we’re going to do. All three of us.”

  The only sound to emerge from my mouth was halfway between a gasp and a whimper.

  I alternated between throwing my head back so I didn’t see them, didn’t get that much closer to coming—yet—and drinking them in. The sight of Georgia’s hand drifting down and settling on Sarah’s clit nearly set me off, so I had to screw my eyes shut again. The blindfold had been a blessing, had I but known it.

  I’d had worse birthdays, that was for sure.

  Sarah moaned and arched her back, all but resting her head on Georgia’s shoulder. Georgia moved her fingertips faster, and I could have sworn I felt the beginning ripples of Sarah’s orgasm. Already. And my own. Too soon.

  Sarah turned her head—to whisper something, perhaps—but Georgia silenced her with a kiss, a deep one judging by her hollowed cheeks and—

  “Fuck. I’m not gonna last much longer,” I panted. One one thousand, two one thousand, three one—

  Sarah broke off the kiss and, as her hips whipped back and forth, bit her lip and continued staring at Georgia. “You—I-I’m gonna—”

  I had no idea which of us she was speaking to, but when she came, it was unmistakable. Georgia’s hand tangled in her hair, pulling her head back, letting her scream into thin air, and I tried to hold back; Jesus, I tried.

  But. I just. Couldn’t. The way Sarah’s hips moved, each pulse inside her driving me closer to the edge, made it inevitable. I arched my spine off the bed, and I registered Georgia saying something—

  “Don’t.”

  Before I did. Silently. I thought. The cuffs jingled above my head as I strained against them, eyes watering with the hybrid emotion of relief mixed with apprehension. Oh shit, what is she going to do to me now? The power of my orgasm tore my last breath out of me, but even though I came so hard it was almost painful, even in that moment suspended between coherence and insanity, I prayed, please don’t let that be the last one.

  Gasping for breath after—it could have been seconds or hours—I felt my back touch the bed again. And Sarah wasn’t there anymore. She flopped down beside me, groaning in exhaustion. No, tiredness. She wasn’t exhausted yet.

  “Fuck.” I recognized the voice as my own. “I couldn’t help it. I couldn’t wait.”

  “What did I tell you?” Georgia attempted to sound cross, but—

  Cross. Cross. Cross.

  —there was a smile in her voice.

  “I couldn’t… I’m sorry, but I couldn’t…” My eyes still watered, and I sniffed.

  “Well, what am I supposed to do?”

  “I’m sure I’ll think of something.”

  “He’s got a mouth, hasn’t he?” Sarah put in with a girlish giggle.

  “I need to…” I hit the quick release on the cuffs, rubbing my wrists as the circulation returned to normal. “With your permission…?”

  “Sure.” Georgia shrugged. “Don’t be long. I might get bored and have to think of something else to do. Someone.”

  “You…” Still shaking, I swung my legs over the edge of the bed. “Don’t do anything without me.” And I left the room to the sound of low laughter.

  In the bathroom, I got rid of the condom and grinned at my reflection in the mirror. Covered in sweat, hair all messed up, a scratch on one shoulder from where Sarah had gotten a little carried away, and personally I reckoned I’d never looked better.

  And what little strength I had in my knees threatened to give out when I returned to the bedroom.

  Two naked women lying on the bed, arms wrapped around each other, legs entangled. An embrace that could only be described as every heterosexual man’s perfect wet dream.

  “Ah. There you are.” Sarah smirked as Georgia ran her hand down Sarah’s thigh. “We wondered where you were. Got bored waiting, so we started without you.”

  “Don’t hold back on my account.” I stepped toward the bed before pausing. This was a sight I had to drink in. Treasure. I wondered if they’d let me take pictures.

  “Of course we won’t.” Georgia laughed and leaned back against me as I joined them on the bed. I curved my body against her back perfectly. “But if you want us to do something, we’re not psychic. You have to tell us.”

  “So we know,” Sarah put in.

  “So we know exactly what you want as a gift,” Georgia said. “And we’ll give it to you.”

  “Anything?” My eyebrows shot up. Well, as if this day could get any better…

  Sarah nodded. “Sure, why not? Your birthday, your call.”

  “You know me,” Georgia put in. “Willing to try anything, especially if I get off on it too.”

  “Jesus.” I flopped onto my back, staring up at the ceiling in wonderment. I willed my cock back to life. I didn’t want to see my next birthday without experiencing a double-header blowjob. No man should go to his grave without having at least one. “I hope there’s some Red Bull in the fridge; I swear you ladies are gonna be the death of me.”

  “What a way to go, though, right?” Sarah asked.

  “I am so with you there.” I chuckled, taking a deep breath and propping myself up as best I could, leaning back on my forearms. “I don’t know what the hell I did in a former life to deserve this, but I fully intend to use up every last one of my karma points tonight.”

  “Me first, though.” Georgia turned over to face me and every one of her curves molded against the contours of my body. “It’s only fair.”

  “Well, never let it be said Reece Hutton isn’t a gentleman,” I said in mock resignation, sliding an arm round h
er waist.

  Happy. Fucking. Birthday.

  * * *

  Sarah’s philosophy was “Always the guest star, never the main attraction.” She chose a shower and a mug of coffee over our invite for her to stay the night. “Besides, that bed’s made for two people, not three,” she added.

  “There’s been three people in it for a couple of hours,” Georgia pointed out.

  “Yes, but we’ve all been on top of one another.” Sarah looked over the rim of her coffee mug at me. “And while that’s okay for the birthday boy, it doesn’t make for a comfortable night’s sleep, does it? And I’m exhausted. I don’t know how you handle him on your own, Geo.”

  “Oh, I have a few tricks up my sleeve.”

  “I’ll just bet you do.” Sarah giggled, and I couldn’t help but wonder what the hell I’d done to land on my feet like this. A girlfriend willing to give me anything I wanted for my birthday, and her best friend had the same attitude. “Anyway. I’m gonna get off home now.” She drained her mug and set it down on the kitchen countertop. “Thanks for the coffee. And the orgasms. Both of you.” We all snorted with laughter at that point, and I, personally, sent up a blasphemous prayer of thanks that there was little to no post-threesome awkwardness.

  Mind you, Hutton, it would have been damn worth it even if there had been. How many men can rightfully say they’ve—

  “I’ll call you a cab,” Georgia threw over her shoulder as she left the kitchen for the living room. “Which means I won’t see Reece kissing you good night.”

  “She’s an incredible woman,” Sarah commented, stepping closer to me, hands behind her back. Head inclined, she exposed her neck. Offered it, almost.

  “She certainly is.” I cupped her face and ran the tip of my tongue from the base of Sarah’s neck up to her earlobe. “And so are you.”

  “Happy birthday, Reece.” A teasing whisper and a low laugh vibrated her throat. “I hope you enjoyed it.” Playfully she tugged on the waistband of my jeans, drew me closer.

  “Like you have to ask?” I kissed her, a light peck on the lips, and there was the faintest response, the merest hint of don’t let your next kiss end so quickly. “Are you sure we can’t persuade you?”

  “Dirty bastard.”

  “That’s me all over,” I murmured against her lips before kissing her properly this time, snaking my tongue over hers, twisting my fingers in the still-damp hair at the back of her neck.

  “Hey, that’s enough of that nonsense, you couple of perverts.” Georgia leaned against the kitchen doorway trying—and failing—to look cross.

  Daniel. Daniel Cross is his name.

  “Damn it, she’s caught us,” I whispered in Sarah’s ear, trying not to think of someone who wasn’t here.

  “Oops.” She giggled, looked at Georgia. “How long will they be?”

  “The guy I spoke to said about ten minutes.”

  “Better get my things together then. I’ll grab my coat.”

  While Sarah slipped into the hall to gather her belongings, Georgia sidled over to me and took my hand. “I hope you’re not completely tired out,” she said in a low voice, conspiratorially, as if she didn’t want Sarah to hear. This was just between us.

  “And why is that?”

  “Because I am nowhere near finished tonight. You better not be either.”

  “Jesus, Lawrence. Where do you get your energy from?”

  “I have absolutely no idea. Maybe I should blame it on you leading me astray?”

  “Sure, sure. It’s all my fault.”

  “Listen, why don’t we order Chinese? I know it’s late, but I’m hungry. That way you get a chance to gather your senses and prepare for round two.”

  “Round two? You mean that”—I nodded in the direction of the bedroom—“was just a warm-up? Woman, you’ll kill me. Keep going at this rate and I’ll need to bring in—”

  “Hey, guys.” Sarah interrupted what I’d been about to say, and my heart skipped.

  Just in the nick of time.

  “The taxi will be here soon, so you better see me to the door.”

  “So quickly? Damn, just as we were all getting along so well,” I joked.

  “I’ll give you a quick buzz when I get back so you know I’m home safe,” Sarah said, and we gathered by the front door to say our good-byes. I gave her a last long, lingering kiss, and so did Georgia.

  The night was far from over. Calling for takeout and having a shower was never going to be a full stop after the evening’s activities. More like a comma. A pause before the next round.

  Georgia called in the order while I was in the bathroom, and she showered while I paid for it. Nice timing, Lawrence.

  “You started without me?” She padded across the carpet in her bare feet, cocooned in a huge robe, towel wrapped round her hair, and sat beside me on the floor.

  I sat with my back against the settee, picking at the various packets and cartons with a fork. Chinese food it may have been, but I wasn’t too clever with chopsticks, so traditional cutlery it was.

  “I’m damn hungry,” I said, pointing out, “I’ve worked up a huge appetite.”

  “Yeah, you have.” She grinned, kissed me on the cheek, and leaned against the settee. “Rice, rice, where’s the rice, Reece?”

  “Here. I already started on it, but don’t worry. I left you some.”

  “Thanks.” As unable to master chopsticks as I, she spooned some into her mouth. “God, that’s good,” she mumbled through a mouthful of food. “I’m starving.”

  “We’ve both had a long evening.”

  “And a good time, I hope?”

  Rolling my shoulders, I winced as something popped back into place, then laughed. “You need to ask?”

  “Glad you liked it. I thought it was shit hot too.”

  “Anytime you want to repeat it…”

  “Oh.” She gulped back more rice and grinned. “I knew you were going to say that.”

  “Psychic now?”

  “No. You’re just predictable.”

  “Georgia. I’ve just had two women at once. What sort of bloke would I be if I didn’t enjoy it so much that I thought about doing it again?”

  “True. True.” She looked sideways at me. “Though I thought you were about to say something in the kitchen earlier. Just before Sarah left.”

  I frowned, and something in the back of my mind strove for recognition, a voice. Like the echo of a bell ringing, there was something there but…not. A sound or word as yet unmade, unsaid.

  “Yeah. When you made a remark about how much energy I have, needing to bring in…? Care to finish that sentence?”

  “Ah.” My lips quirking in a smile, I tried not to laugh. “Well, I wouldn’t want to cause offense or suggest you were a sexual deviant, Miss Lawrence.” For a moment, just a moment, my blood ran ice-cold, but I shrugged it off, wondered how to avoid the subject. Then realized I couldn’t. I’d have to tell Georgia what had been on my tongue without telling her exactly what had been on my mind. “Let’s just say I was going to make a remark that you’ve got so much energy I might have to bring in another man to take care of you. Again.”

  “Reece.” She shuffled closer, put her hand on my knee. “You romantic old fool. That’s the nicest thing anyone’s ever said to me.”

  “You’re full of shit, Lawrence.”

  “Well, hey, if you ever feel like being a gentleman and returning the favor, just let me know.”

  My heart skipped, and I wondered if the increase in my pulse rate showed in coloration of the face, maybe a widening of my pupils. Anything discernible. Georgia knew me well, but did she know me well enough to read my mind?

  “Your definition of a gentleman is a guy who watches another man fuck you senseless?” Even saying the words made my throat swell up. I had to cough a few times before I was able to breathe properly.

  “Turnabout’s fair play, wouldn’t you say?”

  “Well, when you put it like that.”

  “Come on
, Reece. You can’t tell me you haven’t at least thought it might be fair to bring in another male guest star…?”

  “Again? So that’s why you engineered this entire situation? Georgia Lawrence, you devious wench. You seduced me into this entire event just so you could have your wicked way with me and, well, whoever.”

  “I did not.” She ran a hand up my thigh, and I cursed the fact that I’d pulled my jeans back on after my shower. That would have felt a hell of a lot better skin to skin. “I just wanted you to have a memorable birthday, that’s all.”

  “Bringing another woman into the bedroom’s the perfect way to make certain of that.”

  “There was nothing devious about it. I promise you.”

  “I believe you.” And I did. “Georgia?” I curved an arm around her shoulders as she pulled the towel off her hair and let it fall in damp rats’ tails.

  “Hmm?” She looked at me as she toweled a few strands, a mischievous twinkle in her eyes.

  “Would you…?” I ran a finger round the collar of her robe, barely touching her skin but loving the way she shuddered.

  “If you’re involved, then yes, I more than likely would.”

  “It’s been a while since we fooled around with another guy. Like you said, if I wanted to be a gentleman and return the favor, I only had to let you know.”

  Those rosy lips of hers curved into a smile as mischievous as the twinkle in her eyes, more seductive than the Mona Lisa’s. “Why, Reece, whatever are you thinking?”

  I shifted my weight slightly, raising one knee, bracing my foot against the floor. Memories of what Georgia had done on other nights, in front of me, with my consent and blessing, flashed up in my mind’s eye. God knew how, but I grew hard. This soon.

  “Got anyone in mind?” Straight down to it, now that the tone of the conversation had changed. Somewhere along the line, flirtatiousness had left the building, leaving behind only straight talking. “Nathan?”

  The thought of her sucking his cock—again—made me want to throw her down and fuck her senseless.