A Valentine's Day Treat: Two Short Stories

by Sam Mariano

  “Yes, well, I can’t get you Adrian,” he remarks, his eyes flashing with mischief as he takes a seat on the edge of the bed.

  I roll my eyes and crawl toward him again, lifting his arm around me and nestling into his side. I wrap my arms tightly around his torso and mutter, “I don’t want a threesome with Adrian either. I told you, that’s just a kinky story I tell to get you going.”

  If he believes me, you certainly can’t tell. “Well, tonight, we can actually do it.”

  “But I don’t want to.”

  “Stop saying that. I don’t like when you lie to me.”

  I pull back and frown at him. “I’m not lying to you.”

  “I can feel the tension between you, Mia. Who do you think you’re talking to?”

  That makes me feel absolutely wretched. Before I can help it, tears well up in my eyes at the thought of him feeling like I want anyone else.

  He sighs and wraps his arm back around me, pulling me close. “Don’t look like that. I already told you, I’m not upset. I never want you to feel ashamed of your sexuality, Mia. It’s one of my favorite things about you. Your attraction to Rafe happens to work in my favor in this instance. I’m not just doing this for you; there’s a whole list of other reasons I’ve decided this is the right move. My sexually capable cousin helping me overload my little wife with orgasms seems like a good enough reason to make the list, though.”

  I squeeze him tight. “You give me lots of orgasms. All the orgasms I need. You just gave me two a couple hours ago.”

  “Yes, I am aware of all this,” he says, dryly.

  “So, make Rafe go back to his room, we can forget this ever happened, and you can give me all the orgasms you want.”

  “All right,” he says, far too easily. “If you can tell me in explicit detail about the night he made you come in Vegas, I’ll say fuck the rest of my reasons and I’ll do that.” Tugging me back, he watches expectantly, like he’s my professor awaiting an oral exam.

  I stare at him. He knows I can’t—won’t—do that.

  “Go on,” Mateo says. “I want every detail. I want to know how he tasted, how he felt against your skin—”

  I shrug out of his hold and roll away. “Stop it, Mateo.”

  He stops talking, but he stands. “I’m going to get him. This is the quickest, easiest, and best solution to a host of my problems. This is the most important. I won’t have shit like this between us, Mia. It’s stupid. It’s beneath us.”

  “You won’t like it,” I burst out, jumping off the bed to follow him. I grab his arm to stop him. “It’s not fun. I don’t know why you think it will be, but it isn’t. It’s stressful and awful and it makes your stomach hurt. And I didn’t even have to watch—whatever I’m sure he’ll want to do. We had strict rules and I still hated every minute that you weren’t just touching me, and I felt awkward when you were touching me, every minute that she was even in the room with us. Knowing it happened is not the same as seeing it, trust me.”

  It’s annoying how patient he looks. “Mia, this is not the first time I’ve watched you with someone else. You and I are different people. I know you didn’t enjoy that, that’s why we never attempted it again. This is entirely different. I’ve already watched someone else fuck you—Vince, on a monitor.” Now he grabs my arm and yanks me against him, running his fingers lightly down my shoulder. “I know you don’t understand because it’s just how you are, and it’s all you know, but thinking of you with Rafe—in front of me—doesn’t make me feel jealous. You’re all mine—what do I have to be jealous of? Watching you is intoxicating. Your pleasure is beautiful. You’re so responsive, so passionate. You feel so much. I love watching you. It doesn’t make me feel the way it would make you feel. It turns me on.”

  “Just the thought of it makes me want to claw your skin off,” I state.

  He lips curve up and he rubs my back reassuringly. “You have before. Rest assured you can retract your claws; I’m never going to touch anyone else ever again.”

  I already know that, but now he wants me to touch someone else. “I just don’t see how you can enjoy this.”

  “You will enjoy this,” he murmurs, running his lips along the shell of my ear. “Two dangerous, powerful men using your body for their pleasure.”

  Despite my reluctance, I feel a twinge between my legs hearing him word it that way.

  “Rafe shares many of your kinks and I’ll let him play with you however he wants. I have one rule, that’s it.”

  I feel like asking will give the appearance that I’m considering this, so I keep my mouth shut.

  He nibbles on my ear, causing goosebumps to rise up along my neck and arms. “Don’t you want to know my rule?”

  Still, I say nothing.

  Apparently seeing he hasn’t hooked me yet, Mateo continues, “Among the many differences between this time and that one, this is something everyone wants. Rafe wants to fuck you, sweetheart. To be honest, I expected he would when he had the chance in Vegas. He wants it enough to come here and do my bidding for these past two weeks, potentially putting himself at risk when he goes back home.” Pulling back and glancing down at me, his brown eyes warm, he adds, “Before you met him, Rafe wouldn’t have dumped a glass of water on me if I caught on fire. He’s here for you, not me.”

  Now I can’t help speaking. “That seems like a bad thing from where I’m standing. Look what happened with Vince.”

  Mateo shakes his head, dismissing my concern. “Rafe isn’t Vince. He likes you because you’re his type and you’re mine, because you’re a beautiful toy on a shelf he can’t reach. He’ll be satisfied playing with you; he doesn’t need to keep you. There is a chance he’ll try to wrest control away from me tonight just to fuck with me for my past trespasses against him, but I’m not worried. I have complete faith in you. I know you won’t give in to him. You’re mine, Mia; nobody else can ever really have you. When he fails, he’ll lose interest. Then we can put all this behind us. You won’t have to feel guilty because you’ll know I’m honestly not upset by what happened, and he can stop wondering what it would be like to fuck you because he’ll already know. One night and we all clear the air. Plus, you know, the debt thing.”

  “You seriously promised him this for his help?” I question.

  Mateo shrugs. “It’s all he wanted. He already has money and clout; I don’t have much bargaining power with him.”

  That just reminds me of when Rafe first brought me home to Mateo, after I came clean about what had happened in Vegas between us and Mateo joined Rafe in the wing chairs in his study. I remember vaguely wanting to lie down on the floor between them, in front of the roaring fire, and just soak up their powerful presences.

  As long as they’re playing nice and I don’t have to worry about treachery, they really are quite beautiful together. Mateo and all his seductive darkness, Rafe with his golden good looks. The visual creeps into my mind of both of them having free rein over my body—Rafe’s hands on me, Mateo’s intense presence hovering over me, watching.

  I swallow and look up at him, a bit cautiously. I know he doesn’t need much to pounce on. “You would both have me at the same time, or you’d only watch?”

  “A little bit of both. We’ll definitely both have you at the same time.”

  “You don’t think you’re too much alike? I’m not sure this works. When I imagine it with Adrian, that’s different because Adrian is ultimately within your control. Rafe….”

  “He’s within yours,” Mateo says, simply. “He might push your consent, but he won’t take it. He’s not like me.”

  Smiling faintly, I loop my arms around his neck and lean in to kiss him. “No one is like you.”

  “He’ll try to tempt you, but he won’t force you. At the end of the day, he knows he’s a guest here. The games may be big league, I can’t say for sure; I’ve never done this with him before. If I were him, I’d try, so be ready for it.”

  “Of course you would,” I mutter. “What’s the r
ule?”

  A slow smile claims Mateo’s lips and I realize I just said the magical words.

  “I meant, if we—”

  He doesn’t let me finish backtracking. “The rule is simple. Play however you want, but don’t kiss him on the mouth.”

  The addition of “on the mouth” fills my mind with naughty images—Rafe standing above me, me kneeling on the ground in front of him. “I can kiss him… in other places,” I say, to reiterate.

  “Yes, of course,” Mateo says, easily. “I want you to enjoy yourself. I don’t want this to be a stressful experience for you. There’s one simple rule, and that’s it. He already knows the rule—well, he has two, but he can handle two.”

  “What’s his other rule?” I ask, out of curiosity.

  “When he’s inside you, he has to wear a condom.”

  I bury my face in my hands, feeling heat beneath my skin at Mateo’s words. “Another man shouldn’t be inside me at all.”

  He grabs my wrist, tugging my hands away from my face. “Nope, don’t fall back; we’re making good progress here.”

  I let him pull my hands away from my face and tug me back against him. Meeting his gaze, I ask seriously, “You’re positive you want to do this?”

  “Yep.”

  Yep, he says. Like it’s so freaking simple. God, he’s a peculiar man. I love the hell out of him, but I swear, he’s going to drive me out of my mind. “Tell me the other reasons.”

  “Hm?”

  “The other reasons. You said you have a list.”

  Instantly dismissing my request, he tells me, “Don’t concern yourself with my reasons. Know that I have a more than a half dozen aside from your pleasure, so it’s a considered decision.”

  “There are that many reasons to do this? And you can’t tell me any of them? Are they mean? Is this a trick? A test?”

  “Stop asking so many questions and obey your husband,” he tells me.

  I give him a puppy dog pout. “Just one reason? A nice one? Please?”

  Mateo rolls his eyes at me, but indulges me anyway. “Fine. Since he can’t take control from me, he won’t attempt to steal you away, but because of tonight, he will still be invested in protecting you. The experience will bond him to you in a way nothing else would. Vegas already bonded him enough to make this past couple weeks happen, and he didn’t even get an orgasm out of that; tonight will seal the deal. Should anything ever happen to me, Adrian would obviously protect you, but if anything happens to me, there’s a good chance he goes down, too. If something happens to me, Rafe will find out. He’ll know you’re vulnerable. Instead of leaving you to fend for yourself, he’ll extract you and bring you to safety because he’ll care about your well-being.”

  I make a face, my stomach sinking at the idea of there ever being a time where that might happen. “That’s the nice reason?”

  “The nicest one I have to offer,” he verifies.

  “Ugh, then don’t tell me any of the other ones.”

  Mateo smirks, reaching down and tucking a chunk of hair behind my ears. “I didn’t plan to.”

  “I don’t like talking about you dying. You have to live forever. We already talked about this.”

  “Even in that case, Rafe caring about you has already proven beneficial to me. He’ll do things for me now he never would have before he met you. Who knows all the ways this could potentially benefit me?”

  The way this man’s mind works, I swear. “You’re so devious.”

  “Yes,” he agrees.

  I shake my head at him. “You’re lucky I love you.”

  Dragging my hand to his mouth, he kisses my knuckles, then flattens it against his heart and tells me, “I am well aware of my good fortune.”

  Now that he’s won the argument, Mateo tells me to get back on the bed and he goes to the door to get Rafe. I’m still not sure this is a good idea, so I climb under the covers and pull the sheets up to cover my breasts again. I’m not entirely sure what my strategy is here, but the prospect of tonight seems daunting and I don’t want to be on display as soon as he comes in.

  “Are we good in here?” Rafe asks, looking at Mateo, then me.

  “We are,” Mateo says.

  Rafe waits for me to answer, but I just look down at the sheets and fidget.

  Crossing the room, Rafe takes a seat on the edge of my bed again. “Little one?”

  I look to Mateo for guidance, but Rafe knows exactly what I’m doing and cuts me off before I can get anything. Gently grasping my jaw, he turns my face to look at him instead.

  “I’m talking to you, not him,” Rafe states, firmly.

  My heart kicks up a few speeds. I already feel like he’s disregarding Mateo and he hasn’t even taken any clothing off. Mateo is wrong about this, I can feel it. I don’t know what his other reasons are, but this is a bad idea.

  “Mia,” Rafe says, more sharply.

  My gaze jerks to his. “Yes.”

  His gaze warms. A faintly sensual smile tugs at his lips and his grip on my jaw turns into a caress. “Good.”

  Fuck, did I just agree to this? I think I did. It wasn’t exactly my intention, but then he snapped and I just… I didn’t want to disappoint him.

  This is a bad idea.

  “I’m nervous,” I blurt.

  He nods, maintaining my gaze. “Why are you nervous?”

  “I’m not sure you two are compatible in this way,” I say carefully.

  Rafe smirks. “Well, we’re not fucking each other, little one—just you.”

  “I know, that’s what I meant, though. You’re both too controlling.”

  “You love controlling,” Rafe states.

  “You’re both used to being the alpha male in this scenario, and there can’t be two. The law of nature dictates this does not end well. I don’t want you to piss each other off, and I feel like it’s inevitable in this situation.”

  Shaking his head, Rafe slides closer. I hold the sheet a little tighter, but he makes no move to take it away from me. Instead, he takes my hand, places it palm up on his lap and lightly runs his blunt fingertips across the delicate skin of my wrist.

  Pleasure swallows me up instantaneously. My heart feels light, my stomach rocky, but in the nicest way. Some of my senses weaken, as if to make up for the sense of touch requiring every single bit of my focus. Mateo has done this to me before, usually only when we’re fighting. It’s such a simple, seemingly innocent thing to do, but something about it bowls over my defenses like they’re nothing. All I can focus on is how nice it feels, how nice he is for making me feel that way. He traces the outside edge of my palm, then drags it toward my thumb. My eyes drift shut as he continues to touch me with just that one finger; my teeth come down on my bottom lip. I’m lost to feeling, and there’s really nothing sexual happening yet.

  What were we talking about? I can’t remember. Did he ask me a question?

  Now he rotates my hand palm down and uses his finger to trace a path along the slightly less sensitive topside of my hand. It still feels lovely, but now I’m more cognizant—or I try to be. My brain tries to resist the shut-off technique that shouldn’t work, because it’s so damn simple. I recall just a moment ago when Mateo’s lips were brushing the skin where Rafe is running his fingers.

  Only before I can feel guilty, I look up and see Mateo standing beside the bed. My pulse picks up and I watch him slowly unbutton his shirt while Rafe’s finger makes its way up my arm to my shoulder. My skin prickles pleasantly and in the smoothest motion imaginable, Rafe is suddenly on his knees behind me, his strong hands kneading the tense muscles in my neck and shoulders.

  Okay, so far, this is not, in fact, a bad idea. Everything that’s happening right now resides firmly inside the city limits of Good-Idea-Ville.

  Pleasure rolls through me in gentle waves as I watch my husband undress. God, I love watching that man undress. Getting an incredible neck message in the meantime makes the glorious experience even better.

  Stripping his shirt off
, Mateo reveals the familiar, toned torso that I curl up against every night. I search his face for some sign that he doesn’t like seeing Rafe’s hands on me, but I find only molten heat in my husband’s eyes. My head lolls to the side as Rafe’s fingers knead a particularly tense spot and I murmur, “You’re good at that.”

  A low chuckle in my ear causes me to tense up all over again. Still kneading the muscles in my neck and shoulders, Rafe places a soft kiss against my shoulder blade. “I’m good at a lot of things, little one.”

  Oh, God, bad idea, bad idea!

  “Relax,” he commands, giving my shoulders a firm squeeze.

  I swallow, watching as Mateo climbs on the bed and prowls toward me, his intense dark eyes locked on mine. My favorite predator. I reach my arms out to him, needing him to come closer and reassure me.

  Only I ask the big, bad wolf for reassurance.

  Because I do, he gives it to me. Uncaring of Rafe’s hands messaging me, Mateo rips the sheet away and drags me closer. I can’t kiss Rafe, but I can certainly kiss him. Mateo claims my mouth in a hard, reassuring kiss so powerful it has me leaning away from Rafe’s magical hands.

  Rafe releases me and I go to my husband, abandoning the sheet to crawl forward. There’s little point clinging to modesty when I know Rafe will see my body anyway. I brace my hands on Mateo’s strong shoulders and close my eyes while he plunders my mouth. His hand creeps between my legs and I spread them obediently, waiting for his finger to move inside me. It doesn’t. He runs a hand down my thigh and I moan into the kiss. He pushes on my thigh, signaling me to spread them wider so I do.

  Mateo breaks the kiss and pushes his fingers through my hair, grabbing a fistful with one hand. I don’t know where he’s leading me, but I go without question. He looks behind me for a few seconds, watching Rafe, I guess. Then he claims my lips again, and as he does, I’m startled by the sudden movement of Rafe’s handsome face moving beneath my body.

  Oh, god. I break the kiss to say something, to stop him, but then Rafe’s beautiful mouth fastens onto my pussy and I can scarcely breathe. Blood surges through my veins, then rushes to my head. He uses his tongue to explore the unfamiliar territory, but it’s like he has a map. I shudder as his tongue touches every sensitive, hidden place. By instinct alone, I reach down and grab his hair. He growls into my pussy and does something incredible that draws a near-sob out of me.