This time it was Cass who took a deep breath. She could tell he knew what was coming. Because he knew her fantasies, didn’t he?
“The ones we made come true this morning?” Beau asked quietly.
“Those very same ones,” she confirmed. “I wanted to be with more than one guy. I’ve always wanted it. When I used to fantasize about being in love, I never picked one guy. There were always two, doing wicked, wonderful things to me while I did wicked wonderful things to them.”
“It was wickedly wonderful,” Cass agreed solemnly. “It was.”
She laughed and smiled at him. Beau scooted closer on the couch and took her hand, and she let him hold it. It was about to get hard, the storytelling, and she needed her rock.
“The thing is, he didn’t want a girlfriend who wanted someone else. He didn’t want to have to share on a regular basis. But he was just fine with a willing slut who’d do his friends anytime he wanted. He figured he’d be even more popular. ‘Look, I can get the coach’s daughter to suck your dick and fuck your buddy.’ ” She reached down and picked up her wine with a shaking hand. She was gripping Beau’s hand pretty tightly, but he didn’t object.
“What happened?” Cass was leaning forward, his elbows on his knees, his full attention on her. No condemnation on his face at all. She’d known there wouldn’t be. Had known, maybe, long before she’d even met him. Knew it the first time she saw that sex tape. Their lives were meant to collide like this.
“He asked me to stay after practice one night,” she said. “Told me we were going to fulfill my kinky fantasies in the locker room. But I didn’t see it, didn’t see that he wasn’t talking about my fantasies, but his. He’d told me the day before he was going to find someone for us, someone who’d do what we wanted. When I walked into what I thought would be a deserted locker room, I saw that he’d actually found four.”
“Jesus, Marian,” Beau said softly. “You were only twenty.”
“I didn’t want it,” Marian said. “I didn’t want that, some orgy with a leering defensive line. That wasn’t it at all.”
“I know,” Beau said. He moved right up beside her and put his arm around her, hugging her to his side. “I know. You wanted what we have.”
She nodded, sniffing. She wiped her cheek with the palm of her hand, not even embarrassed she was crying a little. “I said no, and I tried to leave, but they wouldn’t let me. Blocked me in and laughed while I tried to get away. But four was too many for me. I knew how to hit, to kick, and I got a few good ones in, which only pissed them off. They were mad at…at him, because he’d lied and told them I wanted it. And he was yelling at me, telling me he was only giving me what I’d asked for. Finally he punched me, knocked me dizzy, and they got hold of me. What a nightmare.”
“When does Smith come in?” Cass asked in a clipped, angry tone. She looked over at him. He was now gripping his hands together, his stare hard and intense.
“I was yelling, and then screaming for all I was worth,” she told him. “They didn’t think anyone else was there. It was the middle of the night. They’d conned a key off a security guard, who disappeared. I think maybe they’d done it before.” She laid her head on Beau’s shoulder. “But Danny was there. He’d been kicked out of his apartment because he couldn’t pay his rent. He was sending every dime he got his hands on to his mom and his sister. They’d been homeless when he was recruited, and the school promised to take care of them if he signed. But once he was there, papers signed, the school didn’t follow through. So Danny had to take care of them. He hadn’t told a soul; he felt stupid for not getting their promises in writing and for signing the papers. Anyway, he’d been crashing in the lounge. When he heard me screaming he came running. I’ve never seen anyone so angry. He started busting heads and threatening to go to the cops. They ran.”
“Why didn’t we hear about this?” Cass said, standing up and beginning to pace. “Shit, I can’t believe the way I’ve treated him.” He turned and pinned her with narrowed eyes. “The attempted rape of Rufus Sedgeway’s daughter by members of his team would have been front-page news.”
“Would have been,” she said, “if it had been reported.”
“You didn’t report it?” Beau asked quietly. “Why?”
“My father wouldn’t let us,” she said simply. “These were some of his star players. They were headed to a bowl game, ranked number one. He wasn’t going to let his stupid slut of a daughter ruin it, or ruin those players’ lives.”
“What?” Cass said, confusion, anger, and incredulity on his face and in his voice.
“He said he’d tell them I made it all up,” she told them, the ache of his betrayal nothing more than a sting now. “And he did worse to Danny. He threatened to take his scholarship and make sure no other school would take him. To ruin his name and rep so badly that the NFL wouldn’t touch him, either. You know who my father is. He had the power to do it all.”
“He should have gone to the cops anyway,” Cass said, his voice cold.
“He was going to. I wouldn’t let him.” She put her wineglass down, the worst over. “I wasn’t going to let him ruin his life. He saved me. He was my hero. Heroes don’t get the shaft. And I knew that if it was my father’s word against Danny’s and mine, he’d win. Hands down. In that town, hell, that state, he’s a living legend. A god. He owns them. So we all went on as if nothing had happened.”
“And now? You and Smith?” Beau asked, lightly running his fingers through her hair. It felt nice, and she relaxed against him.
“We became pretty close after that night,” she said. “Danny closed himself off from the team, played ball and shut down. We were all we had.” She reached for Cass, and he came and sat down on the edge of the table in front of her, taking her hand. Being surrounded by the two of them felt so right. She’d never felt so safe, so loved.
“You have to understand where Danny is. I didn’t know. I didn’t know how much this affected him. He told me today that he hates football, hates the people he plays with, because he knows what they’re capable of, and hates himself for not doing the right thing. In his head, he’s somehow twisted it until he’s taken the blame on himself.”
“So that’s where the bad attitude comes from,” Beau said. “He’s the toughest son of a bitch in the NFL because he hates us all. For real.”
“That about sums it up,” she said sadly. “You have to show him it’s not true. That all players aren’t like that.”
“Like we showed you?” Beau asked, nuzzling her ear.
“Maybe not quite like that,” she said, with a little laugh at the tickling sensation.
“He was so angry because he thinks we’re going to do the same thing to you this other guy did,” Cass said. “Right?”
“And that point goes to Cass,” she said.
“Then we’ll prove him wrong,” Cass said simply. “Time is the best way to do that. Because we’re going to be around for a long time.”
Chapter 22
Beau ran his fingers through Marian’s hair again. It was silky, smooth, and warm as it slid along his skin. Her story hadn’t been a surprise. They’d suspected something like it all along. But it still pissed him off, that someone had treated her like that. Someone who was most likely in the NFL, it sounded like. That was what he was going to yell at Smith about. Because Smith knew who it was and he hadn’t done anything. Not even when it was too late for Sedgeway to stop him. But Beau would damn well do something. He leaned over and took a deep breath, sucking the pretty smell of her hair in as if it were high-grade cocaine. He was high on her. There was no drug that could ever make him feel better than this.
Marian just sat there and let him hold her and sniff her, her head on his shoulder, her hand in his. He was rubbing her arm gently, and he could tell by the way she snuggled in to him that she liked it. That made him feel ten feet tall, that he could do that to her, make her feel good after what she’d just told them. Cass sat on the table watching them, holding her other
hand, his thumb stroking her knuckles. They just sat there like that for a long time. Cass finally broke the silence.
“Beau told me today that he’s been in love with me for years,” he said, as if he were discussing the weather. “Did you know?”
Beau stopped breathing. What was Cass doing? Was he trying to ruin everything? Marian wasn’t ready for that yet.
“Um-hmm,” she murmured. “Sure. Everyone knows it.”
Well, that floored him. He didn’t say anything, because what was he supposed to say to that?
“Damn,” Cass said quietly. He turned to Beau with that sexy “I’m sorry” grin that always got him out of trouble. “I guess I was the only one who didn’t.”
“I was kind of surprised you hadn’t figured it out,” Marian said, turning her face into Beau’s shoulder and rubbing her nose on his shirt playfully. “Then again, our Beau likes to keep things to himself.”
“Yes,” Cass agreed with a little huff of laughter. “He does. Did you know I was in love with him?”
“Well, that only made sense, didn’t it?” she answered. “After all, you refused to leave him.”
Cass was watching him closely. “I did, didn’t I?” he said softly. “Proves it, I guess.”
Marian sat up a little and frowned at the two of them. “You didn’t think this would change anything, did you?” she asked. “I mean, my feelings, what’s going on, you know.”
“Maybe,” Beau admitted. “I don’t know. This is all new to me.”
“Me, too,” she told him with a little smile. “But we’ll figure it out.”
“I want to take the two of you to bed,” Cass said. “And I admit, I’m not really sure what’s going to happen when we get there.”
Marian’s smile lit up the room. “That sounds like a lot of fun. Let’s go and find out.” She pulled out of Beau’s arms and stood up between Cass’s spread legs. Cass put his hands on her hips and smiled at her.
“Sounds like a plan,” Cass said, standing up.
Beau just sat there. “That’s it?” he asked, frowning at them. “Just ‘Let’s go to bed, tomorrow is another day’?” Inside, he was shaking like a leaf. He knew what he wanted to happen when they went to bed. He just wasn’t so sure how the other two would feel about it.
“Well, I didn’t say the part about tomorrow, but it sounds good,” Cass said.
“Are you comparing me to Scarlett O’Hara?” Marian asked.
Beau scrubbed his hand down his face. “Look, you both know how I feel. But this is a big step. Isn’t it? Shouldn’t we talk about it?”
“I’m done talking,” Cass said flatly. “Enough talk. Talking isn’t going to change the way any of us feels, or what we all want, is it?”
“A man of action,” Marian said with approval. “I like that.” She turned to Beau and surprised him by slipping onto his lap. She ran her finger lightly around the edge of his ear. “Beau, darling,” she whispered into his ear. “We both want you. Come to bed and let us love you. What else matters?” Then she bit his earlobe and his big head handed off the thinking to his little head.
“Well, when you put it that way,” he said, standing up with Marian in his arms. “Let’s go to bed.”
—
Cass was nervous which was absolutely ridiculous, but he was. He was about to have sex with his best friend and a woman, which he’d done plenty of times before. But he hadn’t had sex with him. They were two different things entirely. And this wasn’t just any woman, it was Marian. Cass already knew she was on board for pretty much anything they wanted to do with her. But how would she react when Cass and Beau touched each other as lovers for the first time? Did Beau even want to do that? Cass and Marian had kind of railroaded him back here to Marian’s bedroom, and now that they were here, Cass just sort of stood there and felt like a fool. Which he did not like one bit. This was the part he was good at. He might not be good at the talking or the emo shit, but sex he was good at. Great at as a matter of fact, according to some pretty reliable sources.
“Me first,” Marian said, and she pulled her T-shirt up and over her head, revealing that she didn’t have a bra on. Cass blew out a slow breath, trying to keep his cool. Her bedroom was small, typical apartment size. Her bed looked like it was just a queen. How were they all going to fit on that? Like a hot fucking sandwich, that’s how. He rubbed his hands on his thighs nervously at the thought. Because Beau was in the middle of that sandwich and Cass wanted it so much he knew he better stop thinking about it or he’d come in his Levi’s.
With one hand, Beau reached out, snagged Marian around the waist, and pulled her in to him and kissed her. The way he just grabbed her and took control was fucking hot. Marian melted against him, wrapping her long, muscular arms around his neck. Her skin looked pale and pretty up against the dark lines of his tattoo there. They looked like an angel and the devil about to get it on.
Cass popped open the buttons on his jeans before his dick busted them off. He reached down and yanked his own shirt off, then quickly stepped in behind Marian, putting his hands on her waist right over Beau’s. Beau moaned at that simple touch, and Cass pressed his erection against Marian’s ass, the pressure a sweet relief. He moved in closer, until his chest was plastered to her back, pushing her into Beau. Cass could smell her perfume and Beau’s aftershave, and the combination was making him light-headed. He leaned over Marian’s shoulder and pressed his nose to Beau’s neck, inhaling. Beau froze, his mouth over Marian’s.
Cass reached around and slid his hand between them, cupping Marian’s breast and squeezing it. Then he licked Beau’s neck. Beau sucked in a stuttering breath and Marian sighed with a little whimper. Cass turned his head just slightly, and saw she was watching him, entranced. He grinned and did it again, rubbing his dick against her as he did it.
“Oh, God,” Marian whispered. “This is going to be good.”
Cass couldn’t have said it better himself. But Beau was being awfully quiet. “Beau?” he asked, his mouth poised over that delicious neck. He wanted to lick it again, the salty flavor still on his tongue tempting him. “I have always wanted to suck on this tattoo,” he confessed. “Will it show?”
“Who gives a fuck if it shows?” Beau said in a rough voice. “Do it.”
And just like that Cass had the keys to the castle. “All mine,” he whispered, squeezing Marian’s breast as he licked Beau’s neck again. Then he opened his mouth on Beau’s neck and sucked on that hot tattoo that had haunted him for years.
Beau buried his hand in Cass’s hair and held his mouth on his neck as he kissed Marian again. Cass could hear the kiss, wet and wild and rough. Marian was panting, and sexy little whimpers kept escaping. She pressed her breast into his hand and wiggled her ass against him. Cass groaned as he let go of Beau’s neck. The black tattoo was shiny from his kiss, but that’s all you could see. “I’m going to suck you somewhere else,” Cass promised. “Somewhere I can leave a mark.”
“You can suck my dick,” Beau said unevenly. “Mark away.”
“I’m not going to last long at this rate,” Marian confessed breathlessly. “I’m so close to coming that if I accidentally rub my legs together, game over. Do you two realize how amazingly hot you are together?”
“Is that what you like?” Cass whispered in her ear. “Watching the two of us?”
“God, yes,” she said, desperation in her voice. “But…I want you both, too. I mean, at the same time. I want to do that, too.” She squirmed and Cass stepped back to let her move. Moving off to the side, she shimmied out of her leggings. No underwear. Good thing he hadn’t realized it or they would have skipped the talking, which would have been a bad boyfriend thing to do. He was learning fast.
She crawled onto the bed, her ass in the air. Beau groaned and covered his face with his hands. “You’re killing me,” he said. “Both of you.”
Marian laughed and it sounded more like delight than a sexy come-on. “I don’t want to kill you,” she said playfully. “I want to
fuck you. Come on.”
“You have the sexiest little Southern accent,” Beau told her. He turned to Cass. “You both do. I love those accents. Even more when you talk dirty.”
“Yeah?” Cass asked with a grin. “Then I guess we’re both just going to have to talk dirty all night while we fuck you.”
“Yes, please,” Beau said unsteadily, closing his eyes and swallowing hard.
Chapter 23
Beau couldn’t believe this was finally happening. Cass knew how he felt and felt the same, wanted the same things. And they’d found a woman who didn’t care, who was hot and bothered at the thought of it, at watching them together. He’d pinch himself to make sure he wasn’t dreaming, but he didn’t want to look like an idiot.
Cass walked over and slid his hands under Beau’s T-shirt. Beau shivered at his touch as Cass laid his palms flat against his stomach. “You’re wearing too many clothes,” Cass murmured. “I love your body. Love your copper skin with those black tats. Have I ever told you that?”
Beau shook his head, then stopped and nodded. “Yes. A minute ago. When you were sucking on them.”
Cass chuckled, and the low, sexy rumble went straight to Beau’s dick, which couldn’t take much more without exploding. They’d barely started, he and Cass were fully clothed, and he was about to come in his pants.
“Oh, yeah,” Cass said, as he slid his hands up and over Beau’s chest, taking the shirt with him. “I guess I was sucking on you already.” Beau reached back and yanked the shirt off over his head, tossing it aside as Cass stared at his chest and then thumbed his nipples. Beau couldn’t stop grinning.
“This is going to be fucking fantastic,” he murmured right before he leaned over and kissed Cass.
Cass tasted as good as he remembered from that afternoon. Better, even, because he knew he didn’t have to stop. They didn’t have to worry about anyone catching them. Only Marian was here to see, and he was pretty sure she wanted this as much as they did. The kiss was hard and hungry from the minute their lips touched. Beau didn’t worry about that, didn’t worry about being too rough or scaring Cass off or any of the shit that was usually going through his mind at this point when he was with someone. His beard was a constant reminder that this was Cass, this was a man, and it turned Beau on even more. Cass bit his bottom lip and sucked on it, and Beau groaned.
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