by L. P. Maxa
“Dare.” Jasper crossed his arms over his chest.
“Go eat the yellow snow.”
Blake laughed and Jasper’s jaw dropped open. “Dude, I am not eating your piss snow. What’s the penalty for not following through on a dare?”
Blake held up the whiskey bottle, shaking it. “Do a shot.”
Jasper grabbed the bottle from her, tipping it back and downing more than a shot. He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. “Blake, truth or dare?”
“Truth. I’m not about to try to piss my initials in the snow.” Blake was still sitting on her knees, her body pressed close to Riley’s. He took off his second pullover, the heat from the fire and the warmth from Blake’s body making him feel a little flushed. The whiskey probably wasn’t helping either.
“Tell us the kinkiest thing you’ve ever done.” Jasper’s gaze cut to Riley’s. He knew why his packmate had asked her that. He knew what Jasper was trying to judge for himself. Riley’s jaw clenched, his muscles tightening to the point of pain. This wasn’t the first time he’d heard Jasper ask a girl that question, and it was always leading. Jasper hadn’t lied when he cryptically told Blake they had a system.
“I knew you’d go to sex. So predictable.” Blake rolled her eyes. “Uh, let’s see. The kinkiest? I hooked up with a basketball player this year under the full bleachers while he was supposed to be in the locker room for halftime.”
Jasper nodded, a smirk on his face. “Public sex. Not bad.”
“My turn.” Blake grinned, basically vibrating in her seat. “Riley, truth or dare?” He opened his mouth to say dare but she interrupted him. “Truth? Okay, great. What has Jasper been not-so-subtly running his whore mouth about? System? Good cop, bad cop? I’ve gotta know.”
Riley closed his eyes, dropping his head forward in irritation. Even when Jasper promised to keep his trap shut, he opened it and let shit fall out. “I take the penalty.” He took the whiskey from her hands as she pouted, taking a healthy swig. “Jasper, truth or dare? Dare? Perfect, I dare you to keep your fucking mouth closed, like you promised, until we drop Blake off at home tomorrow.”
Jasper chuckled, taking the whiskey bottle from him. “I’ll take the penalty.” He tsked, his eyes dancing with wicked humor. “You really shouldn’t be so ashamed of who you are, bro.”
Riley gave a slight shake of his head, warning his packmate not to cross him. He wasn’t ashamed of antics with Jasper, he never had been. Not once. That didn’t mean that he wanted Blake involved. He’d vowed to keep her separate from the supernatural side of his existence, and that included his extracurricular activities with his best friend.
“You know I’m going to keep asking until someone tells me, right? You can’t throw out vague shit like that and not expect me to get curious.” She turned to Jasper, her head cocked to the side. “That was your plan all along, right? You wanted me to ask. You’re so predictable.”
“Seems my man here has developed a nasty habit of keeping secrets from the people he loves.” Jasper sat on the hearth, facing Blake and Riley. “Too many secrets will eat you alive, bro. I’m simply trying to keep you breathing.”
Riley and Jasper both were well versed in secrets. They kept their shifter nature secret for their whole lives. They kept secrets about the men Jace and Axie were taking out one by one. They dealt with and lived in secrets. Jasper wanted Blake to ask. He wanted Blake to know because he wanted her to be intrigued. He wanted to share her, had since the first moment she’d bounced into Riley’s dorm room and he realized who she was.
Riley saw that now, and it pissed him the fuck off. Jasper got bored easier than a kid in church, and the minute they’d entered the cabin he’d made his mind up. What better way to spend a night than sharing Blake in front of the fire? What better way to get back at Riley for keeping Blake’s identity from him? Jasper wanted to get his dick wet. He wanted to have Blake, and he wanted to punish Riley.
The detour to the empty, secluded cabin had given him the perfect opportunity to hit a whole flock of birds with one stone.
Chapter Eleven
Riley ground his molars together, his body tense. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d been this angry with Jasper. He didn’t know if there was a time when he’d wanted to kick his packmate’s ass this badly. He couldn’t do that though, not in front of Blake. Two shifters fighting, even in human form, was too risky. It would be too violent, too rough. She’d be scared, and she’d have even more questions. It was too late to keep Blake separate from Jasper, but he could still save her from learning about his wolf. Knowing about his pack, becoming too intertwined with them, would be dangerous for her. Look at what happened to Corey, Madden, Pen…even Axie. Their supernatural side of the world wasn’t always bonded mates and happy babies.
“While you two have this little pissing contest, I’m going to run to the restroom.” Blake hopped up. “After that, I want to hear the real story behind Jasper’s thinly veiled attempts to lure me in. Annoyingly, it worked.”
Jasper waited until they heard the bathroom door click close. “Come on, man, what’s the big deal?” He put his hands behind his head, resting back like he didn’t have a care in the world. “It’s not like you two are hooking up.”
“And it’s not like you two ever will.” Riley sat up, training his narrowed eyes on his packmate. “You hear me?”
Jasper held his hand up. “I don’t want your girl.”
Riley shook his head, not even needing to speak out loud for Jasper to understand what he meant. Blake wasn’t his girl, but he’d be damned if she got involved with Jasper either.
Riley had spent a lot of time with her over the last few weeks. If she was meant to be his forever, then he would’ve known it by now. Same with Jasper. If she was meant for his best friend, he would’ve felt it.
Blake was human, and she wasn’t supposed to be part of their world. Riley would do everything he could to keep her out of it, keep her from getting hurt. There was no future for her with him or Jasper, other than friendship. Sex with two shifters? It wasn’t normal, it was altogether more. It tended to become an addiction for the girls they were with. Jasper was a horny bastard, but he wasn’t cruel. If Riley couldn’t get Jasper’s dick to listen, maybe he could appeal to his heart.
“We’ll ruin her, and you know it. She’s my friend. Why would you want to put her through that?”
Jasper rolled his eyes. “We’ve been with plenty of girls, and they’re fine.”
“They’re fine now, but they weren’t fine right after. They know. They know what we did together wasn’t normal. They know we’re different.” Riley hadn’t been lying when he said he was the nice one, that he made sure all the girls were okay. It took time. It took Riley turning them down over and over again. He dodged questions, he made excuses. He covered their tracks, always. “Blake is my friend. I don’t want to have to ice her out of our lives. I don’t want to push her away for her own good.”
“She seems like a big girl to me, bro. Not one who lowers herself to chase dick once it walks out of the room.”
Riley got to his feet, stepping closer to Jasper and lowering his voice. “This. This is why I never told you about her. I knew you’d end up pulling some bullshit.”
“We’ll drop her at home tomorrow. She’ll have all of winter break to forget about it. By the time we see her back on campus, everything will be fine.” Jasper smirked. “Unless there’s another reason you don’t want me to touch her?”
“She’s not for me.” Riley grabbed the whiskey bottle back from Jasper, taking another long swig. “But if you fuck up my friendship with her, I’ll never forgive you.” Jasper was still wearing that stupid smirk so Riley added, “And I’ll tell Madden what you did.”
That wiped the shit-eating grin off his face. Jasper had a relationship with Madden like Riley had with Corey. Disappointing someone who was a cross between your sister and your surrogate mother? Not a good feeling.
“Okay, losers.” Blake saun
tered into the room and sank back down on the couch, eyeing the two of them with a wicked smile on her pretty face. “Tell me what’s going on. You two look like you’re seconds away from ripping out each other’s throats. It’s hot, but I don’t want to spend my night cleaning up blood.”
“Riley doesn’t want you to hear any stories.” Jasper shrugged, like he hadn’t thrown Riley under the bus.
“Oh.” Blake pouted, her gaze turning to Riley. “Would it help if I shared more stories about myself? I don’t mind sharing. Let’s see, there was this one time at a party where my ex showed up and we ended up in a shed in the backyard and—”
“Stop.” Riley covered his ears. “I don’t want to hear a blow-by-blow of your sexual history.” He sighed, completely over this whole day.
“Oh.” Blake tugged her bottom lip between her teeth. “I would never judge you. You know that right? You’re my best friend. I just want to know you. I want to know who you are when you’re with your family. That’s all.”
Fucking fantastic. Now his attempt to keep her safe was hurting her feelings. Riley sighed and dropped his head to his chest. He would beat the shit out of Jasper once they got back to Haxton, no doubt about it. As soon as they pulled into the driveway at Corey and Dom’s place, he would knock his bitch ass out cold. Then he’d leave him on the front lawn to sleep it off in the snow.
Riley cut his gaze to Jasper, letting him see the anger hiding behind the calm. The minute the three of them stepped foot inside this one-room cabin, their night was laid out for them. Jasper and Blake were too similar, they got bored in the same ways. He knew both of them as well as he knew himself. It was inevitable. It was what he’d been trying to avoid. What he’d wanted to keep from happening. It was always going to go this way though, wasn’t it? If not tonight, then another night on campus after a crazy party. A spring break trip gone wrong. Late-night studying fueled by Adderall and coffee. Unless he wanted to give Blake up completely, the three of them were inevitable.
“Jasper and I share girls, we always have. I honestly don’t remember a time when I was with someone without him there. The first girl we slept with was older than us. A senior at the public school our freshman year at St. Leasing. We met at a party and she wanted us both. It was fun, we liked it, so we kept doing it.”
Blake’s eyebrows raised to her hairline. “You only share?”
Jasper shrugged. “Mostly. Not only.”
“But you two don’t hook up?”
“No.” Riley shook his head. “It’s not like that.”
“How can it not be?” Blake wagged her finger between the two shifters flanking her. “There are a lot of moving parts when you’re sharing. How do things not get, uh, crossed?”
“We’re pros by this point.” Jasper took another sip from the whiskey bottle, then passed it over to Blake. “Riley is good cop, because he’s a good guy. I’m bad cop because I’m an asshole.” Riley watched as Jasper eyed Blake, looking her up and down. “So? What do you say? Wanna play?”
Blake choked on the whiskey she’d just sipped. “Excuse me?”
“We both know why you wanted to know the story. If you weren’t interested, you’d have ignored my bullshit and let it go the first time Riley asked you to. You’re curious as fuck and there’s nothing else to do here.” Jasper stood, pulling his shirt over his head and tossing it to the dirty ground he refused to sleep on. “You call the shots here, gorgeous, just give us the word.”
Riley’s hands were fisted at his sides, his heart beating wildly in his chest. He was so fucking torn. He wanted to kill his best friend, he wanted to hit him until he was unconscious. He wanted to grab him by the hair and drag him out of the cabin, he wanted to throw him into the snow and watch as he slowly froze to death.
But.
He also wanted Blake to say yes. Suddenly, he wanted to know what she sounded like while she came apart between them. Riley hated himself in that moment, hated the lust that was starting to run through his veins. He hated that his wolf was awake now, when he’d been all but dormant for the whole damn semester.
Blake’s eyes met his, her perpetual smile dimming. “This what you want too?”
“He wants it as much as he doesn’t want it.” Jasper jerked his head in Riley’s direction. “He’s afraid this will change things between you two. He’s afraid that it’ll ruin everything. He’s turned on though. He’s into it.”
Riley detested how well his packmate knew him. How well he could interpret his warring emotions. Jasper’s wolf was always closer to the surface, especially when it came to his reaction to females. Which meant Jasper could sense Riley’s mood the moment it shifted toward lust and away from annoyance. Jasper simplified things that were more complicated than the bottom line. Riley wouldn’t touch Blake, not if it meant he’d lose her. This, what was about to happen between the three of them, was never his plan. Never.
“Will you hate me afterward?” Blake was only looking at Riley, her tone vulnerable for probably the first time since they’d met.
Riley shook his head, answering honestly. “I could never hate you, doll face.”
“As much as it pains me to admit it, Jasper’s right, I’m curious.” Blake still wasn’t looking anywhere but at him. “I won’t do this if you don’t want to go through with it. I don’t want him without you.”
That helped clarify things, as odd as it sounded. Knowing if he said no, the whole thing would drop. Blake was breathing heavy, her face flushed. It was the whiskey, the warmth from the fire, but it was also the anticipation. She wanted to do this, she wanted to be shared.
He couldn’t blame her. Most girls were curious. Most women wanted to experience it, even if only once. It was taboo, it was forbidden. Yet here was her best friend and his best friend. Which made Jasper safe. They were offering her a harmless space to explore. Blake grabbed life by the horns, was always down to try something new. Riley had known she would be catnip to Jasper, but what he hadn’t counted on was Jasper offering something Blake would find so enticing.
If he said no, this thing would still be between them. It already existed. The sexual tension was thick, and the words couldn’t be unsaid. Jasper had ruined his relationship with Blake.
Riley wanted to rage. He wanted to weep. He also wanted to make Blake sit on his face.
Fucking Jasper.
Riley sighed, studying her gorgeous blue eyes. “This really what you want?” Blake started to smile, nodding. “This is a one-time deal, you understand?” She nodded again. “We do this together, and it never leaves this cabin. Nothing changes when we all get back to campus.”
“Nothing changes. Gotta try everything once though, right?” Blake rose up on her knees, her bottom lip between her teeth again. “After tonight, I’ll forget it ever happened. Promise.”
Jasper had been silent while he waited for Riley to make up his mind, but he scoffed at her words. He knew as well as Riley, Blake would never forget tonight. She’d never forget the way it felt for them to share her.
They weren’t human.
And even if her brain didn’t know that, her body would.
Chapter Twelve
Jasper’s shirt was already on the floor, and when Riley didn’t protest anymore, Jasper unbuckled his belt and let his jeans fall to the ground as well. He was standing in front of the fire in his boxer briefs, his eyes alight with mischief and excitement. Riley’s jaw clenched. His whole body wired like the string of a hunter’s bow. This wasn’t what he’d planned, it wasn’t what he would’ve chosen for Blake. He’d wanted them to be friends. Only friends. Now that it was right in front of him, ripe for the picking, he was having a hard time not mirroring Jasper’s mood.
Riley pulled off his Henley, letting it join the growing pile at their feet. He knew his chest was heaving, and his racing heart had his pulse pounding in his neck. He knew Jasper could tell, his quiet chuckle giving him away.
Riley watched as his packmate stepped forward, taking Blake’s hand and helping he
r to her feet. “This is what you want, doll, right?” He waited for her to nod and then his fingers clasped the hem of Riley’s sweatshirt, dragging it up and off her petite body. “Then let’s get the show on the road, yeah?”
“The show?” Blake snorted out a laugh, taking the liberty to remove her t-shirt, leaving her standing before them in tight jeans and a soft pink lacy bra. Her breasts spilled out of the cups so temptingly Riley licked his lips.
Jasper missed nothing, laughing quietly at his reaction. “I think our boy likes what he sees.” He put his hands on Blake’s hips, placing small kisses down the column of her neck while his fingers worked the button on her pants. “You just gonna watch tonight, bro? Not usually your style.”
Riley had never been content to be a bystander, and tonight would not be an exception. He stood, unbuckling his belt as he got to his feet. He could feel Blake’s body heat radiating off her perfect smooth skin. Her eyes held no fear, only mischief like Jasper’s. Jesus, was he the only one with any fucking reservations about the line the three of them were about to leap over?
Blake’s gaze trailed over his bare chest, like she was suddenly seeing him in a new light. Because they both knew she’d seen him shirtless plenty of times. “What now, what do I—”
Jasper tsked behind her, his fingers dragging slowly up her side, rendering her speechless. Which was no easy feat. “You don’t need to do anything. You don’t need to worry about anything.”
Jasper’s words were so familiar. He and Riley had done this together so many times he’d actually lost count. For some reason the softly spoken words, words he’d heard over and over, helped him relax. Relax and remember his role here. He reached out, cupping Blake’s cheek, his gaze searching hers. “You want this?” She nodded, like he knew she would. “Then all you need to do is trust us and submit.”
