by Talya Bosco
“Oh, you want it. Your body didn't lie.” He thrust in deeply, and she sucked in a gasp of breath. “Picture it, Rissa. Two of us, giving you all the attention you want. Anything and everything you've ever desired. Never going without.”
His words rang down her body, striking a chord deep within. She could imagine it. That was the problem. She'd been imagining it ever since she picked up her first erotic romance that had a ménage à trois. The fact that Michelle's books almost all involved triads, and she was here because of Michelle, only made the thoughts more surface ones and less subconscious ones. Hell, who was she kidding? Between that and meeting him and Devon, it was all she'd imagined for the last four days.
Did that make her some kind of slut? “I don't know if I could. I would need there to be some kind of connection, something there.”
“Something like the 'moreness' you talked about before?”
Somewhere he'd stopped moving and now lay propped above her. He was still buried deep inside and still obviously excited.
“I don't know. Maybe.”
“Okay. I'm gonna drop it for now. But remember, you agreed to spend the day with me.” When she opened her mouth to protest, he shoved himself deeper into her, and her gasp took the words out of her mouth. “And you will think of me tonight. I can promise it.”
Chapter Four
Larissa looked out onto the large green lawn of the museum and took a deep breath. It had been a beautiful day. She'd enjoyed every minute with Jared, liking him more, the more time she spent with him.
He was very intelligent, and his charm seemed authentic. His formality of last night had relaxed, and she felt comfortable around him. And it had little to do with the sex of the night before or that morning.
He was smart, well educated, and had a wonderful sense of humor.
She just felt good with him. She hadn't felt the need to hide away parts of her body, or shy away from mirrors, or only let him see her “good side,” whatever that may be. She was relaxed and comfortable with him and could be herself.
It was a rare feeling, and one she enjoyed immensely.
She glanced back at him, smiling. He was more than twenty feet from her, talking to an elderly man who had asked for his assistance. And she could still feel the sexual attraction she'd felt from the instant she'd met him. Her body zinged with desire whenever he was near.
But it wasn't only desire; there was something else there. The attraction was much more than physical, even if he was sexy as all get-out, a great lover, and a snazzy dresser.
She looked down at her own clothes and sent Susan a silent “thank-you” for insisting they go shopping yesterday afternoon. Not that Larissa wasn't capable of buying her own clothes, but she never seemed to have a sense of what looked good on her. Whether it was expensive designer clothes or cheap discount items, Larissa had never felt like she looked her best. But today was a different story. Her new light-colored pants and striped tunic seemed to complement her figure perfectly, and she felt good wearing them.
Thinking of shopping, her mind drifted to the man from the day before. Devon. He was just as hot and seemed just as charming. And something about him was just as alluring as Jared.
Mix that with Jared's comments this morning about sharing, and her mind and body were in a tizzy.
Larissa didn't consider herself easy. Even if the offers came less often than she would like sometimes, she still tended to be pickier than a lot of her friends. But that didn't mean she wasn't above having a little bit of fun. Like Jared said, she was young, single, and had no one at home waiting for her. She had the right to have fun.
And there was something about both Jared and Devon that called to her. They woke up a part of her body that had been silent too long. But there was something more there that she couldn't explain. She was almost driven to spend time with them. She couldn't wait to see Devon tonight, yet the last thing she wanted to do was part ways with Jared.
In short, she was screwed, and she didn't know what to do about it.
Jared came up from behind and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her into his warmth. She melted against him and felt like purring, she was so content.
“What are you thinking?” His voice rumbled in his chest against her back, and her body reacted instinctively. She didn't have the heart to admit what she had been thinking. Instead, she admitted to half of it.
“About how good a time I've had today.”
“Mmm, me too.” He raised a hand and cupped her chin to turn her face toward his, then laid a gentle kiss on her lips. Heat shot through her at the touch, eliciting a totally inappropriate response to such a sweet kiss. Her body grew weak, and she moaned. He stroked her, and she reluctantly pulled away to admonish him.
“Stop that. If you aren't careful, we'll get out of hand and then spend the night in jail for indecent exposure.”
“We don't want that. You'll miss your date with the mystery man.”
“You're right. We wouldn't want that, would we?” Her words were more snide than she had any right to. Hell, she had no right at all to be snippy with him. He hadn't done anything wrong except unknowingly call her on exactly what she had just been thinking about.
Jared stepped away and released her, only to turn her to face him fully. “Why are you mad at me?”
“I'm not mad.”
“Yes, you are.”
“No. I'm not.”
“You're mad because I brought up your date.”
“That's stupid. Why would that make me mad?”
“I don't know. Why don't you tell me?”
Larissa felt like stomping her foot. “Oh shit. I don't know. Here we are having a good time—”
“And I have to go and ruin it by bringing up another man.”
“Yes. And no.”
“Explain.”
“When you asked me what I had been thinking about, I'd been thinking about today, yes, but also the fact that I was looking forward to tonight.”
“Larissa, how many times do I have to tell you that it doesn't bother me?”
“Well, maybe it bothers me.”
“Does it?”
“Yes. No. I don't know.”
“You say that a lot, you know.”
Larissa sighed. “I know. But you get me so confused.”
Jared smiled and stroked her arm with his thumb. “Let's go sit down on the grass, so I can tell you something.”
“I don't know—”
“Please, Larissa.”
The pleading tone in his voice melted her heart. “Okay.”
They walked over to the large expanse of grass on the side of the museum. They picked a quiet, shady spot, away from picnickers and others strolling the grounds.
Jared gazed at the woman who he knew to be the one woman in the world for him and wondered how he was going to explain to her who and what he was. He wanted to tell her everything, but he couldn't. Not yet.
She was obviously tense, unsure of what he had to tell her, and he wanted nothing more than to wipe the tension off her face, to kiss her silly and make love to her once again. Instead, he sat down beside her and took her hand in his, stroking the back of it.
Damn the rules that prohibited him from declaring his affection. If there weren't so much at stake, he'd do just that. But he owed too many people to hurt them like that. So instead he had to hurt the woman who already meant more to him than his own life.
Once they were seated, he turned to face her and started his story. “Let me tell you something about myself. I told you I had two sisters and that my parents live outside the city, right?”
“Yeah.”
“What I didn't tell you was that I have three parents. One mother and two fathers.”
“What? That's impossible.” Her face crinkled up in confusion.
“Biologically, yes, it is impossible, but not emotionally.”
Larissa shrugged. “So your mother got remarried, and you think of your stepfather as another father. That's not
a big deal.”
“No, my mother is married to two men. Legally, she's only married to one, but they all three live as husbands and wife.”
“Excuse me?”
“It's a life choice. They aren't the only ones who have made that choice.”
Jared knew she knew about triads. No fan of Michelle's could be ignorant of them, as all her stories dealt with the Ozark wolves, and for the most part, they lived in triads. He hoped she didn't know Michelle was also in one, though. Kansas City wasn't a large city, nor was it known as a hotbed of kinky families. The last thing he needed was for her to make the connection. Not yet, at least.
“I know they aren't. It's just not a usual arrangement. Until fairly recently, a part of me really thought they didn't exist except in books.” She shook her head. “No, that's not right. I knew they existed, but I didn't know anyone personally in them. And hadn't really heard of any regular, everyday people who had made that choice.”
She looked out over the expanse of grass and trees, seemingly lost in thought. “So you wanted me to know this, why? To prove that you are okay with women sleeping around?”
Jared smiled. “Well, I don't know about that. Sleeping around implies a lack of respect both for yourself and the people you are with. And that's not what you'd be doing.” He reached out and turned her head to face him once again. “I said it before. You're on vacation. You aren't committed to anyone. You owe it to yourself to experience as much as you can, as much as you want.”
He moved his hand and clasped hers between his two. “I see nothing wrong with a woman who wants two men at the same time. As long as she is respectful to herself and them.”
He waited a moment. “Knowing this, can you understand why I said I don't mind sharing? It's okay with me. But is it okay with you?”
Jared could see her contemplating what he had said. It couldn't be easy for her; his lifestyle was totally contrary to what she was used to. Her normally clear green eyes grew muddled with thoughts. He could tell she had something to tell him, but she was either unsure of how to say it, or unsure of how he would take it. Maybe both.
“I know you probably won't believe this, but I don't normally sleep with men the same day I meet them. And I never contemplate sleeping with two men in the same week, never mind at the same time. This morning we talked about me feeling something more with you. There was an attraction with you I've never felt before. I think I felt the same with Devon.”
“Devon?”
“The man I'm supposed to meet for dinner. This is going to sound wrong, but from the moment I met both of you, I knew there was something else there. Something I had to explore. I feel as though if I don't see Devon tonight, I'll be cheating myself out of something, even though I don't know what that something is. But I don't want to hurt you either. I also don't want to lose you.” A bitter laugh escaped her lips. “Not like I have you anyway, right?”
He felt his heart break at the confusion and uncertainty in her voice. This was so contrary to how she normally lived her life; it had to be killing a part of her. He cursed at himself and his pack once again.
“Larissa, I grew up with people who put great store on instincts. My mother will tell you she knew my fathers were meant to be hers from the moment she met them. One of them grew up with her, the other she didn't meet until she was in college. But she knew right away.”
“I don't believe in love at first sight.”
“Then maybe lust at first sight? Either way, you already said what you need to do. You owe it to yourself to find out what it is.”
Larissa looked at her watch. It wasn't even three; she had plenty of time to get ready for dinner, but Jared was sure she wanted time to digest everything he had told her. It couldn't be easy, feeling like this for two men she didn't really know. He couldn't imagine the swirl of emotions and thoughts running around in her brain. The best he could do was be as honest as he was allowed and be there for her when she needed him. If she would let him, once she found out the truth.
* * * * *
Devon and Jared stood on the balcony of the owner's office to the hotel and watched the woman both of them were destined to mate with sit at the hotel pool.
“I hate this.” Devon started the conversation, taking a drink of the brandy he held in his hand, swirling the liquid in the crystal glass.
“It's tradition. There's nothing we can do about it.”
Devon spun around and walked back into the office, Jared following. “To hell with that shit. There damn well is something we can do about it. We can send her home right now. Tell her that plans have changed, that she can have her shopping spree at home, but not here. Hell, we can send her to New York. What woman would turn down a shopping spree there?”
“Can you really send her away now? After knowing she's the one?” And even if Devon could, Jared knew there was no way in hell that he could.
“How do I know that? Just because my fucking hormones are going nuts? For all I know they'd do that with any new woman.”
“You can try to lie to me and the rest of the pack, Devon, but you can't lie to yourself. You knew the instant you saw Larissa that she was meant to be our mate. No other woman will do for us.”
“Are you sure it's not just your hormones talking? After all, you spent all night with her.”
Jared leaned back onto his desk and crossed his arms. “Don't you dare let your jealousy screw this up. You were the one who thought she'd do better if we approached her separately. Don't blame me because you regret it now.”
Devon sighed. “This isn't fair, Jared, and you know it. The woman is going through pointless pain. And we have no way to stop it. I thought she wasn't going to see Philip until tomorrow night, but they lied. I thought we had time to convince her not to see him. The bastard tried to tear her apart downstairs last night.”
“I know. But he didn't succeed, did he? I heard she told him exactly what she thought of him. And I was with her afterward. She's a strong woman; she'll survive this.”
“But will she forgive us? Will she understand what this was all about?”
“We had no choice. It's not like we were the ones who started this.”
“Damn you! That doesn't make it right.”
“I agree with you. How hard do you think it was for me not to tell her what was really on my mind? To spend the day knowing that the pack had yet another test planned for her, something I wasn't allowed to help her with? Hell, Mom is gonna kill me because I kept her from the fountains.
“Then when she talked about you, about feeling guilty because she wants both of us, I couldn't tell her that it's completely natural. That it's the way our mates are hardwired. She thinks she's a slut.”
“Why would she think that? There's nothing wrong with it.”
This time Jared sighed. Heavily. “I know that, and you know that, but we were brought up differently. She's confused, and I think it pains her.”
“Did you set her straight?”
“I tried to. I told her a little about my mother and fathers.”
Devon glared at Jared. Jared knew it was pointless to get on to that discussion. They both knew it was Jared's mother who chose Larissa as the winner of the contest. “Don't start on it, Devon.”
“She had no right to interfere.”
“She had every right, and you know it. Once she and the dads step down and we're asked to lead, the pack won't be complete without an alpha female. She's only doing her job. The job that may become Larissa's if she wants it.”
Devon threw the glass into the marble fireplace, the crystal shattering from the impact. “If she wants it. That's the thing, Jar. If she wants it. No one asked her about this. No one asked her if she wanted to be mated to a pair of wolves. She didn't come here to find out her favorite paranormal romance was real. She came here for a week of shopping and sightseeing.”
“With a couple dates thrown in.” Jared smiled wryly, trying to lighten the too-tense moment. He wasn't any happier about what they were
doing to Larissa than Devon was. The only difference was he had spent considerable time with the woman in question and now knew he would do anything in his power to keep her. Once Devon spent some time with her, he would feel the same way.
Even if it wouldn't change how they got her. Maybe someday she would forgive them.
“Yeah, such great dates. A gay guy, someone who's in a committed relationship, and someone who needs to be committed. Who the hell thought up those?”
“Michelle.”
“Michelle? Excuse me? The woman is a damn New York Times best seller. Couldn't she come up with something better?”
Jared shook his head. “She was afraid Larissa would be able to see past anything more subtle. After all, she's practically told the world how we find our mates. This was her way of keeping Larissa off balance.”
“I still don't think it's a good idea.”
“Which? Bringing Larissa here like this? Or the whole writing a best-selling series romance thing?” Jared shook his head. “Either way, it's too late.”
“I know. And I can't help but feel that it's all going to blow up in our faces.”
Jared sighed and walked back to the balcony. Devon was right. He'd spent the most time with Larissa, and he was an excellent judge of character. If Larissa was half as strong and determined as everyone thought she was, she wasn't going to take this trial period lightly. She was going to be infuriated.
Rightfully so.
Chapter Five
Once again, Larissa found herself staring in a mirror while wearing a dress she never would have expected herself to wear. Not only was the thing way too expensive, she still felt it revealed way too much of her skin.
Even if it did make her look sexy.
Especially with her hair done up and enough makeup for a night on the town. Even the butterflies fluttering in her stomach were impressed.
What was she doing? Here she was on a dream vacation, having met a dream man, and she was preparing to abandon him for another man.
Well, not abandon him, but she couldn't believe she was going on a date with another man. She still hadn't figured out exactly why she was doing it.
