Rhymes With Orange Read online

  “Well, we don’t know how bad this is.”

  Oh, who the hell was he kidding? This was bad, and he knew it.

  Coop only hoped it wasn’t a “just nuked his whole personal life” level of bad.

  Hunter looked up at him. “Seriously?”

  “I—” They heard Dani’s loud moan from the bedroom. It silenced both of them as they stared toward the hallway.

  Then they looked at each other. “Were we that loud in there?” Hunter asked.

  “Well, yeah. Kind of.”

  * * * *

  Todd wasn’t an idiot. He’d been with Hunter long enough, and knew enough about Dani, to see the pattern.

  His only hope to salvage this train wreck was to hold on tight, make her come, and apologize profusely as she floated down from her orgasmic high.

  Maybe she wouldn’t castrate him and Coop.

  Although he suspected they’d be doing damage control for a while. In retrospect, yeah, the two of them could have handled that a lot more…smoothly. They’d spent the past hour listening to the two of them in here obviously having some sort of fun, and gigging each other with verbal barbs, so that neither one of them had been thinking straight by the time they’d rushed in.

  Although kudos to Hunter for the performance, despite the beating Todd knew he would be taking as a result.

  Now if they could keep Dani from hating the two of them—especially him, since technically the bet was his fault to begin with, and he’d bet against Hunter—they might be able to keep doing whatever it was this was that they were doing.

  He drew Dani’s torment out, well aware that at any second the fingers buried in his hair and holding on as she ground her pussy against his face could easily be ripping that same hair out at the roots.

  He tried to pace himself, listening to her moans, prolonging it as long as he could until he knew he needed to get her over or risk her not being able to get over at all. As she came down from it, he stretched out next to her, holding her.

  The exact moment Dani’s brains had dusted themselves off and plugged back into her body was obvious by how her body stiffened in his arms and she tried to shove him away.

  Only he held on tightly, including wrapping his arms around her, keeping her face pressed against his chest. He knew he’d have to apologize and keep apologizing until she settled down.

  “Baby, I’m sorry,” he said. “We weren’t thinking. I wasn’t thinking. We’ve had those little bets before, like which of you could suck us off faster. It started like that in my mind and you know us two stupid idiots. We were sitting there, listening to the two of you and poking at each other. I’m sorry. We didn’t do it to hurt you. I’m actually relieved I lost. Well, not that I lost, but that Hunter and you were…you know, successf—”

  “Shut up, Todd,” she said.

  But she’d stopped fighting him, at least.

  He wasn’t sure how long he should wait before trying to apologize again, but after an uncomfortably long moment, she broke the silence. “How could you bet against him?”

  “It wasn’t in a mean way, I swear. I was actually kind of worried about you.”

  “Me? Why?”

  “I was afraid if he couldn’t come with you that you might take it personally.”

  “What am I, twelve?” She winced. “Ew, wait, that came out wrong.”

  He snorted but resisted the urge to comment.

  She let out a sigh he hoped meant maybe he’d salvaged things enough for her to talk and not just storm out the door.

  “Say it,” she said.

  In an uncharacteristic feat of restraint, he pressed his lips to her forehead. “No, running my mouth got you upset at me in the first place.” He hoped Coop thanked him later.

  “I’m kind of mad at both of you, actually.”

  Dammit. So much for that plan. “Don’t be mad at him.”

  “What were the stakes, anyway?”

  “After a couple of back and forths, it was if he won, I would take thirty strokes from the nasty paddle. If I won, I’d get to fuck his ass bareback, with him on his back and his legs over my shoulders.”

  “Wait, why is that part of the wager? You guys have been together.”

  “Not in that permutation, no. Hunter and I have rimmed him and fingered him, but he hasn’t quite gone all the way like that yet with either of us. He’s fucked both of us. He’s blown both of us.”

  “So you only went down on me to see what had happened?”

  “No!” Crap. Just when he thought he was in the clear, defeat was cruelly snatched from the jaws of victory. “I was going to do that anyway. I wanted to make you moan the way Coop does and the way we heard Hunter making you moan. I was a little jealous, actually.”

  Gawd, he hated admitting that.

  “Jealous?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Of me and Hunter being together?”

  “No. Of Hunter maybe doing a better job of it than me. I’ve had girlfriends in the past.”

  When her shoulders started shaking, his heart sank. He thought she was crying, sobbing, trying to hold it in…

  Until she rolled onto her back out of his arms and he realized she was laughing her ass off.

  He rolled onto his side, his head propped up on one arm, and waited her out.

  As she lay there snorting and snickering, she finally met his gaze. “You two are fricking idiots.”

  “Get used to it twenty-four-seven, babe. I’m sure we can easily out-idiot this situation, hands down.”

  This time when she went quiet, he sensed the true shift in her body language. When she reached out for his face, he wasn’t afraid of getting slapped. She cupped his cheek. “Well, you did pretty good, especially considering how pissed off I was.”

  “Survival instincts kicked in. I figured I’d better hold on until the ride came to a complete stop.”

  That time she actually giggled and he wanted to cry with relief. If he could keep her laughing, he had hope.

  She leaned in and kissed him. “Can I please go use the bathroom now? You two interrupted me.”

  “Sure.”

  She got out of bed. He watched her backside, the way her hips swayed, the limp she still bore and always would, the sweet curve of her ass, the scars just below her shoulders, until the door shut behind her.

  He sat up on the edge of the bed to await her return, afraid to even move for fear of screwing up.

  He hoped Hunter wasn’t too upset at him and Coop, but he needed to handle this fire first and make sure it was completely out. If Coop couldn’t handle Hunter, they were doubly fucked in the bad way.

  He heard the toilet flush, the sink run, and then she opened the door and emerged from the bathroom. He held a hand out to her and again relief filled him as she came to him and took his hand.

  Looking up at her, he felt a catch in his throat. She and Hunter trusted him and Coop, and they’d nearly fucked it all up over something stupid.

  “Would you mind if I go out and check on Hunter and Ned?” she asked.

  “This is your time, sweetheart, not mine. I’m here for you, as long as you want and need me.”

  She leaned in and kissed him before heading back to the living room.

  Todd sat there and stared at the floor. He should have damn well known better than to make a bet like that with Coop. And especially not reveal it the way they had. All his years with Hunter had taught him that.

  I am an idiot.

  * * * *

  Dani had made the conscious decision while in the bathroom to forgive the two morons. They hadn’t meant to be mean about their bet, even if they did come off looking like a couple of jackasses.

  Yes, she’d eagerly participated in some of their friendly wagers before. It wasn’t worth holding a grudge over, that was for sure.

  Both men looked up when she walked into the living room. Ned had started to rise, but she pointed at him. “You stay right there.”

  “Okay.” He sank back into his chair.
>
  Hunter watched her from his seat on the couch. She stood in front of him and wrapped her arms around him. “They’re just idiots,” she said. “Please, don’t be mad at them.”

  “Did he really bet against me?”

  She made Hunter look up at her. “He didn’t mean it like that. I know it’s a complicated issue, but I feel really honored that you trusted me enough and felt comfortable enough with me to be able to be with me in the first place. He was worried that I might get upset and feel less-than if I couldn’t get you over.”

  “Well, that’s stupid,” he said. “Of him,” he quickly added.

  She raked her hands through Hunter’s hair before throwing a dark glare at Ned. “You know last week, the blowjob contest? How we were both on our knees and they were yakking away at each other while we’re trying to get them off? It was sort of like that. They were just idiots who came off wrong.”

  His grip around her tightened. “You weren’t the one he bet against.”

  “I know. I get it, sweetie. But think of it this way. Would you bet for or against me in tennis against a pro?”

  He didn’t answer.

  “Exactly,” she said. “It’d be nothing personal.”

  He let out a sigh.

  “If it makes you feel any better, Todd was listening to you and me together and wondering if he’d be able to do as good a job as it sounded like you were doing.”

  “Yeah?”

  “Yeah.”

  He kissed her tummy and looked up at her. “Did I really do a good job?”

  “Hey, I’m trained not to fake it. You did damn good. No complaints from me. Besides, I’m your pet, right?” She smiled.

  He returned it. “Right.”

  “What?” Ned asked.

  “We decided I’m Hunter’s pet, too,” she said, not breaking eye contact with Hunter. “Since I luck out and get three cocks to play with, being his pet is fine. Todd has a pet, you have two pets, so Hunter should get to have a pet.”

  “Ah,” Ned said. “No argument from me.”

  She looked at Ned and crooked a finger at him to come hither, which he did. “Yes?”

  She kissed him. “With all due respect, Sir, you’re a fucking idiot.”

  “I know. And yet you let me collar you.” He grinned, making her laugh.

  “Yeah, I know. Which of us is the bigger idiot, right?”

  “Right.”

  “Hey, Todd?” she called out. “Come here.”

  A moment later, he walked in. “Yeah?”

  “Okay, group hug time,” she said. “And Hunter, do you want to say anything to him?”

  Hunter stood and stared at him. “The least you could have done was give me a handicap instead of straight-up betting against me.”

  Todd pulled him into his arms. “Hey, can I say I’m glad I lost the bet? I’m so damned proud of you. And more than a little jealous. Kind of set the bar high there, buddy.”

  “Okay,” Dani said. “I’m laying down the law right now, no more side wagers about sexual prowess.” She poked Ned in the chest. “And just for being jackasses, you still have to pay up on the wager. Both of you do. I’ll flip a coin or something to see who gets to go first.”

  “Dammit,” Ned and Todd grumbled.

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  With everyone soothed and egos unruffled, Dani and Todd returned to the bedroom. She shut the door behind them and started working on the buttons on Todd’s shirt.

  “Maybe I’m going to ask Sir to let me deliver a few of those swats to you myself,” she told him.

  “I’ll let you,” he said. “I’m really sorry you thought Hunter and I wouldn’t want to be involved with you.”

  Her hands fumbled.

  Yeah, that’s what had started all this, wasn’t it? Her own neurotic anxiety, instead of speaking up a lot sooner.

  Wait, why didn’t I speak up sooner?

  His hands covered hers. “Babe?”

  “I really need to learn to not overthink things,” she said, resuming what she was doing.

  “Are we really okay?”

  “Yeah. Relationship growing pains, I guess. It’ll happen.” She skimmed her hands across his chest, up to his shoulders, easing the shirt off and down his arms.

  He was two inches taller than Ned’s six one. His body hair was fine and thin and a lighter reddish hue, almost blond, compared to his red hair.

  Catching her chin, he gently tipped her head back so she had to look into his green eyes. Not emerald, like that bullshit in romance novels, but fern green and the Gulf on a good, quiet, calm day. The deep shadows of piney flatwoods, and of palmettos in the shade.

  She’d never really looked before. Not deeply. Not like this.

  She’d never really looked into him before, or let him look into her the way he was staring into her eyes, seeing her.

  They’d been friends or whatever this weird wackiness was that they had. They’d revolved around each other, in their own orbits, waving to each other but not exactly synchronized.

  And now…

  Now they were colliding, with an extinction-level event. The old going away and something new being created.

  The question remained unanswered which one was the target and which was the comet.

  This was a turning point for her, she knew. She could be swallowed up by the dust and inferno or let it remake her from the ground up.

  Totally her choice.

  She had a long, unknown future ahead of her. Was it weakness to want to have something good, something hers, something solid to lean on?

  Was it fair to go this alone?

  Was it fair to think only one man could handle her and her issues, to saddle Ned with the entirety of her uncertainty?

  Was she being greedy?

  “Talk to me,” Todd said.

  Even the resonance of his voice touched her in a different way than Ned or Hunter. She totally got why Hunter loved him so dang much.

  “I don’t want our lives to get fucked up with all of this.”

  “They won’t. It’ll just get better. Hunter will be able to relax more around his family, and they won’t have a problem with the four of us living together, because they’ll think they have a handle on the situation.”

  “What happens if I get worse and they can’t figure out what’s wrong with me?”

  “I don’t understand the question.”

  “What…happens?”

  He frowned, gathering her hands in his and tucking them against his chest. “We’re a family. What happens is we take care of you. The three of us.” He kissed her, and it was different but every bit as good as with Ned or Hunter.

  Just…different.

  He skimmed a hand down her side, then slipped his fingers between her legs. She didn’t think it was possible for her to come again, but apparently he’d been paying attention to Ned and his techniques. As Todd’s fingers gently circled her clit, she felt her body responding to his touch.

  He rolled her onto her back and entered her like that, slowly, tenderly, gazing down into her eyes the entire time. “If I’d known you wanted me to do more with you, I would have.”

  “I think I was afraid of you saying no.”

  “I’d never say no to you, sweetheart. Not after what you did for Hunter.” His cock felt different inside her than Ned’s or Hunter’s, but just as good. He even had a different kind of rolling hip action at the bottom of every thrust that soon had her swollen, sensitive clit responding to him and sending her spinning through another orgasm.

  “Good girl,” he whispered before taking a couple more thrusts of his own, groaning and falling still, his lips pressed to hers.

  She stroked her hands down his back, learning the landscape, settling into this new world. “I’m really scared,” she admitted.

  “Of us?”

  “No.”

  Todd snuggled her close. “We’re not abandoning you, sweetie. You’re stuck with all three of us. Hunter might be the lucky one getting to actuall
y marry you, but we’ll all be there for you just the same.”

  After a few minutes, he carefully untangled himself from her and walked over to the bedroom door to open it.

  There stood Ned, smiling. “About damn time,” he joked as he walked in, Hunter behind him.

  She propped herself up on her elbows. “Hunter, go find the nasty paddle.”

  He froze, torn between looking at her and Ned, who arched an eyebrow at her.

  Finally, Ned rolled his eyes and started unbuttoning his shirt. “All right, fine.”

  Hunter spun on his heel to go find the paddle.

  She smirked at Ned. “Take comfort in the fact that Todd’s going to be getting his ass spanked while he’s fucking you.”

  Todd turned to her. “Huh? What?”

  “You heard me, mister.” She grinned. “And now that you’ve just busted a nut, you’ll last longer the next time.”

  “You sure she’s not a closet sadist?” he asked Ned.

  “I’m beginning to wonder that myself.

  “Oh, quit pouting, both of you,” she said. “Ned, you’ll get to watch his face while he gets spanked.”

  “Ooh, that takes some of the sting out of this.”

  “Speak for yourself,” Todd grumbled.

  “Never bet against the pet,” Ned warned him. Hunter returned with the paddle. “Either of them.”

  “I don’t think he will again,” Dani noted. “Especially after Hunter gets done with him.”

  Hunter grinned as he held up the nasty paddle. The nasty part came from it being made out of a very hard wood that made it sting and hurt like a motherfucker when smacked with it. And it being a little on the skinny side, it actually hurt worse because the impact was concentrated in a smaller area instead of being spread out.

  A few minutes later, and Ned was on his back, holding his legs behind the knees while Dani kissed him and swallowed his moans as Todd slowly started working lube into his technically virgin ass. Hunter also took pity on his Master and reached between Ned’s legs, stroking the man’s cock until he was finally rocking back and forth between Todd’s hand and Hunter’s.

  Todd’s cock had reinflated, apparently at the thought of being the first to tap Ned’s ass. “First load ever in there will belong to me,” Todd said as he pressed the head of it against Ned’s hole.