by Liz Crowe
“Really, Austin, you’re right. I’m being a stubborn, irrational bitch. I’m going to try to be better.” She grabbed his hand. “Let’s set a date. For a wedding.”
His mouth tickled her ear. “Okay, but first I need to ask you something else. About someone, actually.” His fingers took hold of both nipples, making her arch up at the same moment the steam cleared enough for her to get a nice long look at Ross, who stared straight at them through the steamy glass wall. “I love you, Evelyn. I will always love you.” Austin’s lips found her neck again, making her shiver.
He interspersed his commentary with nibbles and light suction along her shoulders. “I want you to be happy.”
She sat up, sloshing water over the side of the tub. Austin moved around beside her so he could look her in the eyes.
“I am happy. You make me happy. I just, I don’t know, lost it for a while, but I’m good. Honestly.”
He smiled and she relaxed back again, allowing the realization of what he was about to suggest burn a hole in her libido. She wanted him to say it—to ask her if she wanted it.
He leaned forward, tilting her chin up so she was looking straight at Ross on the other side of the glass barrier. She glanced over to find Austin staring at Ross, as well, a knowing smile playing around his lips. “Why don’t we see where this takes us?” He ran a finger down her cheek. “Something tells me I’m not the only one of us to consider this option. I know you, Evelyn, and I know what you want.” He took her hand and pressed it between her legs, making her gasp and close her eyes. “I want you to be happy and I think I know how to do that.” He bit down on her shoulder. She gasped and opened her eyes, taking in the vision of Ross, hand on his giant cock, propping himself against the glass with his other, his gaze right on hers.
She reached back and pulled Austin around to her side, covered his mouth with hers, and slipped her fingers into his coarse hair, loving everything about the man who’d changed her whole life, in spite of her own stubborn resistance. He broke the kiss, smiling at her, soothing her in the way only he had. “I love you, Evelyn.” He held out his hand. She put hers in it and rose, the water sluicing off her body, aware of both sets of male eyes on her.
Chapter Sixteen
Exhaustion stole over Ross as he stood under the scalding hot stream of water. The endless rounds of negotiations with Jefferson after a whirlwind trip from Europe, and now the long, late hours necessary for a huge beer fest had taken their toll. He’d been operating on about four hours of sleep for the last couple of nights. The water beat against his skin. He kept his head lowered, trying to ignore the pulsing in his cock that had refused to soften ever since he’d touched Evelyn’s cheek. Only to catch that drip of beer, of course.
He’d admit to a bit of jealousy over the fact that Austin would fall so hard for a woman. They’d been well matched in the pussy-chasing, noncommitting thing at one time. He’d also admit to avoiding communication with Austin for the past few years, unable to admit even to himself how much he missed Austin’s company.
But now he fully understood. And Evelyn Benedict’s magnificence left him speechless. He rinsed the shampoo from his hair and turned his face up to accept the deluge. Focusing on why Austin had brought him here—to talk, he’d claimed. Which had been why Ross had sought the man out in the first place, anyway. To talk.
He was able to make out Austin pulling Evelyn from the big tub and helping her out onto the warmed marble floor. As he watched, mesmerized by the sheer perfection of the woman’s hourglass figure, Austin began to gently dry her skin. Ross gulped as Austin dropped the towel, met his eyes through the shower’s steam, then picked Evelyn up and set her on the granite vanity top.
Shocked, but perhaps not completely surprised, Ross kept watching the way he knew he was meant to as Austin laid a kiss on her that made Ross want to do the same thing so badly his dick sprang back to attention. He grunted and had to prop both hands on the glass wall to keep from toppling over. Austin kissed his way down the long, porcelain line of Evelyn’s neck as she leaned back, lips open. He kissed her shoulders, her collarbone, then cupped one full breast in one hand while using his other one between her legs.
The shower water muffled all sounds, but Ross could definitely detect his own breathing getting short as his pulse raced and his skin tingled all over. Evelyn’s body arched back which forced her hips forward, close to Austin, who had leaned into to suck one of her firm, large nipples into his mouth.
She had her fingers coiled in his dark hair and her hips were thrusting now, moving fast against Austin’s hand. Her red-toenailed feet wound around Austin’s bare legs, tugging him closer. Ross had to swipe at the glass again with one hand as he gripped his cock with the other, mesmerized, fascinated, and hornier than he’d been in a damn long time, watching the show right outside his shower.
He could see Austin’s biceps and triceps flex as he fingered his woman to an orgasm that broke well through the sound of the water still beating on his back. Ross groaned and moved his hand faster at the sight of the woman’s beautifully flushed face, haloed by curling wisps of her golden blonde hair. She was still moving, still moaning as Ross watched, unable to rip his gaze from her.
In the meantime, Austin had divested himself of his shorts. The familiar contours of the other man’s ass made Ross smile with familiarity. He and Austin had a firm hold on their own heterosexuality but had double-teamed enough women in their day that Ross felt he knew Austin’s musculature almost as well as his own.
At that moment, Austin turned and caught his eye, making Ross stumble back, afraid of what the man might do next. He wasn’t ready. He wasn’t worthy to share Evelyn and he was starting to feel uneasy about this whole thing, because one thing he wanted to do right then was to grab her, toss her over his shoulder, throw her down on the bed, and take his own damn turn.
“No,” he mouthed, letting go of his cock and watching as the steam cut off his view of the two of them. As he leaned back against the shower tile, shaking all over, he reminded himself of the many times a girl had requested this—that one of them fuck her while the other one watched. It was no big deal.
And yet, somehow, all of a sudden, it was.
He reached out to swipe at the steam, unable to stop himself. Evelyn was on her feet again and was kissing Austin with the sort of passion that gave Ross a fresh jolt of jealousy. With a glance back at Ross, Austin pulled away from Evelyn and said something to her that Ross couldn’t hear. He reached up and wiped what looked to be a tear off her face, kissed her gently then turned her around.
Evelyn gripped the edge of the vanity top and arched her back, exposing her ass while Austin leaned over her and cupped both her breasts, still nibbling her neck. With a gulp, Ross took a step forward and watched as his oldest friend and confidant, and the woman he’d spent a solid fifteen minutes entertaining the sort of fantasies about that would make a sailor blush, moved in a sinuous, erotic rhythm. Their flesh looked sweaty and slippery as they fucked, not four feet from Ross’ amazed eyes.
He could see Austin’s dick sliding in and out of her body, watched as the man gripped her hips and started pounding into her, groaning loud enough so Ross heard it clearly over the sound of the shower. Evelyn’s full breasts jiggled with every hard thrust. She threw her head back at one point and Austin grabbed onto her hair, pulling hard and making her cry out. But she didn’t stop meeting his every thrust forward with her own back into him. Her plump, luscious lips were parted, her eyes closed, and when they came with a cry, Ross joined them with a shudder, one hand propped on the glass, the other now coated in his own fluid. He let go of himself and kept watching as Austin pulled Evelyn up, kissing her neck and shoulders again as their bodies stayed connected, still moving in a primal way.
“I love you, so much,” Austin said, loud enough for Ross to hear it. Ross opened eyes he hadn’t realized he’d closed and met his friend’s deep green gaze. Evelyn moved forward, releasing Austin’s cock which was still hard and gl
eaming. Ross swallowed hard, trying to deny his own urge, his base need to leap out of here and take her to yet another depth of sensuality, but with him this time, while Austin watched.
“No,” he said out loud, then turned to face the shower, letting the heat and noise of it fill his senses once more, hoping to drown out the new drumbeat of need in his chest. Damn Austin and his show-off ways. What the fuck was he thinking?
When Ross turned around to face the bathroom again, Evelyn was gone, but Austin was there, a towel around his waist, staring holes into him. With a sigh, he turned off the water and opened the door. Austin handed him a towel, never taking his eyes off Ross’.
“I don’t know what you’re playing at here, but…”
Austin held up a hand to stop him, slipped off his towel and ducked into the shower behind Ross.
“I’m not going to do this.”
“I know,” Austin said with a smile as he turned the water back on full blast. “Just go talk to her. Get to know her. I need a shower. We’ll eat something after.”
Ross nodded, his throat closed up at the thought of being around Evelyn without Austin watching.
“It’s all right, Hoffman,” Austin insisted before he shut the glass door. “I trust you. And I want the two of you to get to know each other. That’s all.”
Ross nodded slowly, dried his hair a few seconds with the towel then wrapped it around his waist. His heart was thudding so loud it almost hurt. And, of course, his dick was not cooperating either. It remained rigid, practically quivering in anticipation.
“No,” Ross repeated for the third time, staring down at the stupid bulge in the towel until it finally subsided.
Chapter Seventeen
Stop it. You told him to do it. Do not be that woman. One who says yes when she means no.
Evelyn’s heart pounded and her mouth was all dried out. A dark shroud of reality had stolen over her as she’d crept out of the bathroom after putting on that blatant show for Ross. And now, if she were a hundred percent honest with herself, she still felt it.
Threesomes, she thought for the zillionth time, were best left to fantasy. It was simply too strange, too unnatural. These were serious alpha males, she reminded herself as she brushed her wet hair, her thighs still quivering from exertion and post-orgasmic excitement. She put the brush down and stared at herself in the mirror over the hotel’s desk. Her face was flushed red, her pupils dilated, the tops of her shoulders covered in a sheen of sweat. She trailed her fingers down her neck to her tops of her breasts, visible above the towel she’d wrapped around herself, admitting that she did, indeed, want more.
She wanted Ross.
God, she was sick. A pervert of the highest order.
But, yeah. She wanted them both.
The sound of a male throat clearing behind her made her drop the hairbrush. It clunked the side of the glass someone had been drinking out of and had set too near the edge. The glass toppled in slow motion, landing on her big toe and sloshing a couple of ounces of dark beer onto the hotel rug. She stared down at it, then up into the mirror, meeting the very blue eyes she’d been wishing she could see. But even as she admitted to an overt horny thrill of excitement, she clenched her jaw against it. She and Ross stared at each other, using the mirror as a buffer for a few seconds.
“I should go.” Ross’ German-inflected voice hit her ear, making her shiver. He blinked. She turned to face him when a sharp rap and a “Room service” call hit her ears. Ross grabbed his jeans and ducked back into the bathroom, leaving her to deal with the rolling tray of food and drink, the check and the slight ‘have a nice evening’ smirk from the waiter.
She picked up a piece of toast—they’d all been craving breakfast food and this hotel served it twenty-four-seven for an outrageous amount of money. But it tasted like warm, buttered cardboard so she put it back down and crossed her arms, cupping her opposite elbows in her palms. Ross emerged, redressed, his hair pulled back in that leather tie once more. She stared outright at his statuesque perfection—the high cheekbones, the soft, reddish curls of his beard.
She sensed herself backing away from him, in a movement that felt more like self-protection than anything. Her legs made contact with a chair and she dropped into it.
“Nice meeting you, Evelyn.”
Ross caressed her name with his lips and tongue in a way that made her shivery with her own inability to take this to the next level. One she knew she wanted, but was somehow now unable to fulfill.
He walked over to her and crouched down so he was at her eye level. She sucked in a breath against the raw, visceral need that rushed through her then—a need to reach for him, to pull him close and into their circle.
But no. That’s not fair to Austin. Or is it? Wasn’t this kind of his idea in the first place?
She found herself recalling some of the wilder moments Austin had told her about—the just shy-of-orgy situations he and this tall, gorgeous, hunk of Nordic perfection got into together.
But she resisted it. Ross touched her lips with his rough fingertip and smiled.
She smiled back. “Sorry,” she said, her voice croaky. “I’m just not…um…”
“Shh,” he said, leaning toward her, filling her vision and world with his magnificence before pecking her cheek and standing. “I understand. Thanks for…” He made a gesture in the direction of the bathroom where she and Austin had fucked, knowing full well he’d been watching. Evelyn bit her lip and nodded, then stood and ran for Austin who’d emerged from the bathroom, rubbing his hair. She buried her face in Austin’s chest, mortified, horrified at her wild, careening fantasies, wishing Ross would just go. But willing him to stay.
Austin held her close against his bare skin. She could tell from the vibrations in his chest he was talking, but she shut her ears to it, sickened by her own lame behavior and needing more space to process this. Whatever the hell ‘this’ was.
She must have slept, because the room was dark when she next opened her eyes. Austin lay next to her, awake, his green eyes shimmering with emotion. She put her hand alongside his cheek. “I’m sorry, honey.”
He took her hand and put it to his lips. “It’s all right. I love you, you know that, right? No matter what…I love you.”
“Yes, I know that.” She swallowed hard. “But tell me more about Ross.”
Chapter Eighteen
By the time they made it to the convention hall the next afternoon, the place had filled with craft beer fans, eager to see the long-awaited awards for each category. After the Brewers Association president announced the last of the one hundred-plus awards for individual brews, the crowd would be prepped for the Big Ones—Small, Mid-Sized and Large Brewery of the Year.
They’d entered Fitzgerald in the mid-sized category although it was a bit of a stretch. Evelyn and Austin had gathered the year-over-year sales data, plugged in all the necessary media coverage and growth strategies and had sent the thing off without a thought to collecting an award—or so they both claimed.
Evelyn smiled as she watched Austin greet fans and media gathered near the brewer’s entrance to the hall. When she caught sight of Ross, her skin tingled.
In the last twenty-four hours, her life had flipped totally sideways, upside down, and inside out. In spite of Austin’s insistence that this was about what she wanted, she now knew in her heart he’d be happier if they were all together. It would complete him, somehow. It was up to her to make that happen. She held the key to their happiness in her trembling, uncertain hands.
“You are the most beautiful woman in here,” Ross whispered as the steep escalator took them to the upper floor, where the other brewery VIPs gathered, milled around, drank beer and chatted, everyone pretending not to be as nervous as they all were.
“Flatterer,” she whispered back. Austin turned and smiled down at them both before stepping off the top step. He turned at the last minute, wrapped his arm around her waist, and tugged her close.
“I love you.” Austin gr
inned, nuzzling her neck.
“Cut that shit out, you damn lovebirds.”
Evelyn laughed as Greg Zeller put his arms around them both. As owner of Michigan’s largest and most successful brewery, Zeller always made a big show of being worried about Fitzgerald, after his initial dismissal of them as a one-off.
Evelyn shot him a fake angry glare. “What? It’s the secret of our brewing success. You should try it.” She smacked Austin’s ass and moved away but not before she heard Zeller laugh and shout to her retreating back.
“With you? Name the day, my darling.”
She flipped him off on her way back through the growing throng, catching sight of Ross as he accepted a beer from his new boss, the infamous Brad Jefferson. He raised his glass to her.
She frowned, and made her way in a different direction, her face burning at her own rudeness.
After nearly an hour of schmoozing and random, forgettable discussions, Evelyn’s head was pounding. She slumped against the wall behind the podium where the awards would be announced and closed her eyes.
“Hey, there you are.”
She opened her eyes and saw Ross with a water bottle. Austin was on her other side, smiling his beautiful smile. She focused on him and sipped.
She hated to admit how comforted she felt by this—by the laser-beam attention of both of these men. Surely she didn’t deserve this. And she could possibly serve as a catalyst for something bad—what if they got jealous of each other and the time they spent with her…pleasing her…fucking her?
Oh God in heaven, Evelyn Benedict, snap the hell out of it. That is not ever going to happen.
Panic surged through her, making the meager breakfast she’d managed to choke down threaten to make another appearance. “I gotta sit, boys.” The dynamic of this—of two strong men attentive to her every need—made her dizzy with the possibility and the potential responsibility.
