Double Dare(26)

This time, Mason answered.

“Two men and a woman isn’t new,” he rumbled, eyes intent on that curvy form. “Derek and I have shared women before, absolutely. But it was just a quick fuck, something casual,” he concluded.

But that wasn’t what Katie was getting at.

“When you were with the other woman,” she said slowly. “Were you, you know, into each other?” she asked, biting her lip once more. “Or was it all about the girl?”

Silence hung in the air. But I answered, as nonchalantly as possible.

“It was all about the girl,” I rumbled. “Mason and I focused on the female. Sure, we saw each other, that’s inevitable, but we weren’t into each other if you know what I mean. This is the first time that we’re exploring something new,” I ground out, my eyes meeting his in a clash across the room. “So what’s new for you is new for us too. We’ve never been into one another before.”

There was another silence, but then the girl took a deep breath, that generous chest inhaling before exhaling deeply.

“Then I feel better about it,” she said quietly. “I feel better about this already.”

A sharp bark escaped my friend.

“Why? What’s better about all this?”

Katie turned to us with limpid eyes, hands still playing with the folds of her skirt.

“It’s been overwhelming for me. It’d be overwhelming for anyone,” she said with a smile, a glint flashing in her eye. Yeah, that was my sassy baby, nothing could keep her sense of humor down. “But knowing that there are a lot of firsts out there, for me as well as you guys, helps a lot. It makes it feel like this is an adventure for all of us to explore, that I’m not some science experiment gone bad, with you guys watching the whole time.”

I snorted.

“Honey, you’re not a science experiment, I assure you.”

“I know, I know,” she said shyly. “But for a while, I felt like it. I mean, kidnapped? And then passed off as Mason’s fiancée? It was like I was a monkey doing tricks, with no idea where this was all going to end up.”

Now it was Mason’s turn to snort.

“You’re no monkey,” he growled. “You’re a girl. One that I’m marrying.”

That made Katie blush, eyes going wide once more.

“So if I am,” she said slowly. “How is this going to work? I mean, you guys touched me down there,” she said, a flush running over those cheeks, “But that wouldn’t do it. Shouldn’t I go on some birth control at least?”

I let out a rough bark, half laugh, half pained yelp. But she was right.

“Absolutely honey. We’ll get you on something, I promise, this is all fake.”

I swear, a dark shadow appeared in Katie’s eyes as well, one of disappointment and sadness. But it was gone in a flash, the girl nodding.

“Okay,” she said softly. “Just let me know what I should do.”

I smiled lazily.

“Leave that up to us, honey. Don’t worry your pretty little head over it. But for now, baby girl, let’s just relax a little, and get to know one another. Drink?” I asked, getting up and striding to the liquor cabinet. Hell, all this talk was making me thirsty for a lot more than alcohol. I pulled out three snifters and poured a finger of brandy into each, holding out the amber liquid. “Drink?” I asked again.

But this time, Katie took a deep breath before shaking her head slowly.

“I’m underage,” she said in a soft voice. “You have to be twenty-one and I’m only eighteen.”

I threw my head back in laughter. Shit, we were fucked up mofos, the virgin was practically a baby. But she was a baby with ethics, and I respected her all the more.

“Surely you can drink if you’re supervised?” I asked, blue gaze hot on those curves. “It’s no big deal if Mason and I are supervising right? We’re both forty-five so that means you have, oh, ninety years of experience on it.”

The brunette hesitated, biting her lip, but then reached one small hand to take the snifter.

“Okay,” she nodded. “I’ll bite, but maybe there’s a way to do this without violating the law.”

Mason grunted next to me. Dude found this hysterical as well. We’d kidnapped the girl after stalking her for a year, but she wanted to follow the rules? This girl was worth ten of me and him combined, and I was all the more determined to keep her.

And Katie didn’t let us down. Sensing the heaviness in the air, the subtle change in tension making both big males alert and aroused, she took the clear crystal from me before leaning back on the couch.

“I want to learn,” she said softly. “I haven’t had much of an opportunity to learn in life,” she said, taking a delicate sip. Shit, she was so beautiful and I watched mesmerized as that pink tongue flickered out to trace the rim of the glass. Did she even know what she was doing? Was she aware?