Ty must have sensed him standing there because he twisted his head in surprise. Then he smiled and greeted him. “Hey, brother.”
Paige looked over her shoulder at him and said his name, her brows furrowed.
Grae pinned Ty with a stare. “Don’t hey, brother me when you are on the couch with an arm around my woman.”
“Your woman?” Ren echoed, looking at Ty in surprise. “I thought she was married to Connor. Did I miss something?”
Paige frowned at Grae. “Hey, he’s like my brother. In fact, he’s my brother-in-law. What’s wrong with you?”
Movement on the TV made him glance up. The game playing was all too familiar to him. He stepped around the couch to grab Paige to remove her from the house—but he was too late.
His lips flattened as he watched Paige’s expression change from annoyed to horrified, as she watched Grae collapse on the field.
Grae didn’t need to turn around to know everything that happened next. At least what he could remember. The rest he himself had watched over and over on tape, trying to figure out what happened on the day that ended his promising career.
The sports announcer’s words echoed the scene he relived in his head.
The refs called a medical time-out. The team’s medical staff rushed out to surround him, quickly followed by a stretcher. He laid on the ground encircled by bodies of concerned medical staff, coaches, and teammates. Someone rushed up with an AED and tried to shock his heart back to beating. Two other people took turns doing CPR between the body-jolting shocks.
Paige watched in horror as the scene before her unfolded, a shaky hand covering her mouth, her eyes wide.
People on the screen were yelling, waving their arms, and a cart was rushed out to take Grae away. The filled stadium was in complete silence. Both teams were on their knees in prayer circles. One teammate had collapsed to the ground, pounding on the turf. Paige couldn’t make out what he yelled but he screamed up at the sky. She turned in slow motion to Ty.
He was that player.
Her brother-in-law squeezed her shoulders in support.
Paige brushed away the wetness on her cheeks; she hadn’t even realized she was crying. She willed Grae to fight to live, even though he stood feet from her, perfectly fine. Her chest tightened as her fingers dug into Ty’s arm. She wanted to turn away but she couldn’t.
She couldn’t.
When Grae was finally carted off the field and off screen, Paige turned teary eyes to the man who stood stiffly near the couch, his hands clenched into fists, his expression blank.
She reached out for him.
He stepped back. “I’ll meet you at home.” He spun on his heels and strode from the room.
“Grae!” she called out, but he ignored her.
As she heard the front door slam, she jumped to her feet to follow him. To stop him from leaving. To apologize.
Ty snagged her arm and she fell back onto the couch. He wrapped her into his arms, whispering, “Let him go, baby girl. Just let him cool down for a bit.”
Ren leaned forward to look her in the face and asked, “Damn, Paige, he didn’t tell you?”
Paige shook her head. “No, I asked, he didn’t want to talk about it. I did some Google searches and knew the basics, but I never saw the actual film.”
“If I would have known, I wouldn’t have brought the damn tape over,” Ren said, shaking his head. “Or I would have given you a copy to watch with him. I didn’t know it was going to cause a problem.”
“I didn’t either,” Paige murmured against Ty’s chest.
“I don’t get it, “ Cole said, squatting at Paige’s feet, his hands squeezing her knees. “What is he to you?”
“Our lover.”
Grae sat on the couch in the dark. If it wasn’t for the movement of him raising a glass to his lips, she might not have spotted him.
She stopped at the entrance of the room, waiting. Waiting…For him to say something, to invite her in. Anything.
As the seconds ticked by, her first instinct was to apologize. But honestly, there was nothing for her to be sorry about. She did nothing wrong.
It was only natural to want to know everything about her lover. Yes, maybe she should have waited until he was ready to tell her. Or maybe she should’ve waited until Connor was home. But she didn’t.
Also, knowing that Ren and Ty had played ball with him, she couldn’t resist asking.
She chewed on her bottom lip.
“Don’t.”
The sharp command caused her to release her lip. She rubbed her hands in frustration over her face. She would not apologize. She. Would. Not.
“Why? Why did you go to them?” His voice sounded deep and low, wounded. She’d broken his trust.
Yes, trust was needed one hundred percent in a polyamorous relationship. When Logan and Ty found out that Grae was moving in with them—temporarily—they had emphasized the trust issue to her. And not just once either.
She didn’t wait for an invite, she decided enough was enough and she entered the room to stand in front of him. As her eyes adjusted to the dark, she realized he had his elbows on his thighs and his drink hanging loosely from his fingers between his knees.
His gaze was directed downward toward the floor. After a heartbeat, he lifted his head, emptied the glass, and put it aside on the table next to the couch. “I would have told you.” He pounded on his chest with the flat of his palm. “Me,” he emphasized, his voice raised slightly. “There was no reason for you to find out from them.”
“But it wasn’t a secret. It happened on national TV.”
“You didn’t even give me a chance.”
“How long was I supposed to wait, Grae? How long? Medical issues happen every day.”
“But not to me.”
His words ripped her apart. She could feel his pain and defeat. The frustration of losing a career because of a fault he had no control over. She dropped to her knees in front him. “Why? Because you were in shape? You were an athlete? Did you think you were immune?”
“It destroyed my career.”
“What could you have done differently?”
He shook his head and averted his gaze from her.
Paige closed her eyes, taking a couple breaths before looking at him again.
His body looked stiff and he had shut down.
“Jesus, Grae. There was nothing you could’ve done about it.”
Her words were met with silence.
She placed her hands on his knees and leaned closer. “From what I’ve read, you had an undetected congenital heart defect. You couldn’t have known. No one knew. Not even the doctors you went to since you were an infant. Your heart failure would have happened at some point, whether you were on the field or not. But you lived, Grae, you lived. And you know why? Because you were in that game, on that field, when you collapsed. You were surrounded by medical personnel. Not alone in your car or at your home. Otherwise, you wouldn’t be here right now.” She swallowed hard. “You wouldn’t be here with me…with us.”
Grae shot to his feet, almost knocking Paige on her ass, but before she could stand, he grabbed her, threw her over his shoulder, and rushed down the hallway. He kicked the master bedroom door wide and threw her on the bed.
Her breath caught and adrenaline pumped through her body. She scrambled backward while he tore off his clothes. She reached for the light sweater she wore but his sudden, sharp, “No,” stopped her.
Once naked, he pounced onto the bed and crawled until he reached her. He yanked her sweater over her head and threw it. He ripped off her bra, breaking the clasp, and tossed that somewhere too.
She only helped by lifting her hips enough so he could peel her jeans down her legs, after removing her shoes and socks. One shoe landed on the dresser, knocking over some of Connor’s cologne. She swore he growled as she watched him move up and over her—so solidly built, the muscles bunching underneath his dark skin, the overhead light making his body gleam as he shifted.
His body was so fucking amazing and she was so fucking wet for him. As long as he didn’t hurt her, she didn’t care how rough he got. She liked it.
Fuck, she loved it.
He was the complete opposite of Connor and Grae’s dominance thrilled her. Made her want him more than ever. No matter what she was in the mood for she got it. Tenderness from Connor. Power and authority from Grae.
Grae slid his hands over her shoulders, down her arms, until he got to her wrists. He circled them with his fingers and pulled her arms over her head. He pinned her wrists down to the mattress with one hand, while his other grabbed a fistful of hair, pulling her head back, forcing her neck to arch.
His gaze was intense as he stared down at her, not saying a word, not making a sound.
Her lips parted, her breath rushing in and out from between them.
“What do you want from me?” His question sounded raw, almost painful.
It sent a shudder through her. “You,” she breathed. “I want all of you.”
He dipped his head and sank his teeth into her neck at the same time driving his cock deep inside her.
She was wet, but she wasn’t ready. She gasped as he filled her, stretching her, thrusting hard and fast. She struggled to free her arms, wanting to hold on to him, but he held them tighter.
Grae sucked her skin where he’d bitten her, then lifted his head to watch her while his body entered her over and over. He pounded her relentlessly. “I’m giving you all of me. This is what you wanted.”
“Yes,” she hissed, her teeth grabbing her bottom lip.
He crushed his lips against hers, taking her mouth, licking her lip.
A groan built at the back of her throat.
He suddenly released her wrists and she grabbed his ass, her fingers digging hard into the muscles that flexed with each thrust.
Before she could wrap her legs around his thighs, he rolled them both over, bringing her on top. They stilled, and she looked down at him. His hands were on her hips, holding her against him. In this position, he felt unbearably deep. The pleasure just on the edge of painful. She ground her pelvis in a circle, and cupped her breasts, pushing the mounds together. She pinched both nipples between her thumbs and forefingers and twisted them, pulled them as he watched her, his eyes hooded but very aware.
His cock twitched inside her as if she needed a reminder of her role. She braced her hands on his chest and…
The scar was thick and raised, the shiny skin a shade of eggplant. Paige shivered envisioning Graedon’s chest being cracked open and spread apart wide. His sick heart beating in the doctor’s hands before he died. He did die a small death before a stranger’s heart could be placed in his body, bringing him back to life once again.
Like she reminded him, he was alive. And she could feel just how alive beneath her. His heart beat strong under her palm; his erection like steel, filled with the lifeblood that his borrowed heart pumped through his veins.
She circled her hips once more, her inner walls clenching down, tightening around him. Then she rose and lowered, tilting her hips, directing him to where she wanted him. An ache built within her as she rode him hard, his cock hitting her most sensitive spot. Not only was she slick with sweat, but also her own arousal as she drove herself down on him.
His fingers gripped her flesh, his arms flexed with each rise and fall. His stomach muscles tensed and released. And he watched her, his heated gaze never wavering. “I want to watch you come apart.”
Between the deep rumble of his voice and his words, she shattered into a million pieces. She ground against him harder as she rode out the waves of her orgasm, driving him deeper.
He sat up, wrapped an arm around her waist, and twisted her onto her belly underneath him. He pulled her hips back and towards him, running a finger between her swollen folds. “You are so wet. I want to taste you.”
She pushed her face into the mattress as his tongue stroked her sensitive flesh, his thumb pressed against her clit, circling, flicking. Her cry was muffled in the sheets, her hands fisting the fabric tight when his tongue entered her, tasted her. He sucked at the plump folds, and as he pinched her clit once more, a climax spiraled through her, making her toes curl, curving her spine.
“That’s it, baby. Give it all to me. Let me taste your pleasure.” With a last stroke of his tongue, he shifted behind her, reaching for something.
She heard the nightstand drawer slide open and the cap of the Astroglide they kept stored there snap open. She turned her head enough to see what he was doing. He had the long, black vibrating anal plug in his hand and he was liberally coating it with lube. He moved back behind her and with a lubed finger, he pressed against her anus, preparing her.
Paige’s nipples hardened even more at the thought of what was about to happen. She’d been anxious to try the new toy, even though it had been actually purchased to help prepare Connor.
The plug hummed when he turned it on. He rubbed it over her tight opening and she moaned at the unfamiliar sensation. Then there was pressure as he slowly worked the long, thin toy inside her. She could feel the vibrations to her core, and she wanted nothing more than Grae to be inside her at the same time. “Fuck me,” she demanded.
Grae ignored her and worked the plug in and out of her, dribbling more lube on the toy, it’s coolness against her heated skin even more of a turn-on.
He pulled the plug almost completely out and Paige screamed into the bed in frustration.
Then she grunted when he thrust his cock into her and pushed the toy to its hilt at the same time. She came instantly, her body clenching around him, around the vibrator.
He stilled, waiting for her body to relax again, and then he held the toy deep inside her while he pounded her from behind, his other hand holding her hip in place to take his onslaught. His fingers would leave a bruise, but she didn’t care.
The vibrations deep inside her drove her wild, drove her to the edge again and again.
Until she couldn’t take anymore.
Her body was spent and Grae had slowed. She felt a bead of his sweat drip onto her ass and heard his labored breathing. His endurance amazed her.
He made a sound, then ground out, “I’m going to come deep inside you.” With one last thrust, he stilled, his fingers flexing along her hip, his cock pulsing inside her. “You’re mine, Paige.”
And that’s when it hit her.
He hadn’t worn a condom.
Chapter 7
Paige could hear the smile in Connor’s voice as they had their nightly phone call. Whenever Connor was out of town, they made a point to talk to each other every day. Even if the conversation was just about boring work stuff. Paige simply needed to hear his voice no matter what he was talking about.
“Have you and Grae been having a lot of sex when I’ve been gone?”
Oh, man, what a loaded question. Do you admit to your husband you’ve been having copious amounts of sex with another man in his absence? But it was the agreement and Paige wanted to always be upfront with him.
She shot a look at Grae, who laid relaxed on the couch, watching some game film on the large flat screen. The coffee table had a pile of files and loose papers, and on top of the paper mountain was an iPad. He had the TV muted. Paige wondered if it was to be courteous because of Connor’s phone call, or if he just wanted to listen in.
“Yes,” she answered.
A smile spread wide across Grae’s face, even though his gaze hadn’t moved from the TV screen.
“I miss you two.”
“We miss you also, Connor. We can’t wait for you to come home.” Paige assumed Grae felt the same way as she did. And if he didn’t, too bad. No reason for Connor to know that.
“Maybe I can Skype in and participate from afar. You know I like watching the two of you together.”
Paige turned her back to Grae, whispering, “That sounds like an exciting plan, honey. We’d have to set things up with the computer and all.”
“So do it and text me when you’re ready.”
Paige sighed. Nothing like having scheduled sex. “Okay, I’ll let you know.”
They finished the call and hung up. Then she faced Grae.
He had paused the DVD and watched her instead. “Let him know what?” he asked.
“He wants us to set up the computer to Skype in.”
“Okay.”
“And he wants to watch us having sex.”
Grae raised his chin. “Ah.” He sat up. “Don’t whisper when you’re on the phone with him. There can’t be any secrets between us.”
Paige only nodded and slapped her phone against her thigh. She started to pace the length of the room. “What about the condom issue?”
Grae pinned his eyebrows together. “What issue?”
“About you not using one.”
“Not an issue. Connor doesn’t wear one when he’s with you.”
Paige snagged her bottom lip with her teeth.
“Paige.” Her name became a warning.
She sighed and released her lip. “Grae…”
“Paige,” he dragged out her name.
“We need to tell him.”
“It shouldn’t matter,” he said.
“I realize it was something we didn’t discuss…”
“Does it bother you?” he asked.
She thought about it for a moment. Did it bother her? No, in the end it didn’t. At first, she’d felt uncertain, but after the last couple days of condom-less sex, she didn’t even give a thought. However, she was more concerned about Connor’s reaction. “No.” She hesitated. “But anal—”
“That’s different. A condom will always be used.”
She moved over to the couch and climbed onto his lap.
Grae wrapped his arms around her hips and placed a kiss on her shoulder. “We can use a condom tonight, but be aware why it’s going to be used.” He gave her a sly smile.
Paige smacked his chest. “Yeah, I get what you’re saying there, big boy. If I make you wear a condom, you’ll be doing a little backdoor action.”
“Little?” he chuckled.
-->
