Page 21 of Eyes Wide Open


  Wow. Everything they’d done together, and still it was possible to find something that topped it all. With two cocks inside her, no nerve ending went unstimulated and, as the two men began moving, establishing a rhythm that worked for them all, Fiona, her eyes wide open, stared into James’. A mixture of surprise and satisfaction filled her. This sure didn’t feel like she was a third wheel. More like…complete.

  “Hey,” Logan said, leaning down to murmur close to her ear, “this is just the beginning. If this is how it can be, how it has been up until now, imagine what it’s going to be like in the future. The three of us together. Fiona—you’re amazing. Thank you for agreeing to give this a chance.”

  “Yes,” James agreed, smiling at up at her. “What he said.”

  Grinning lazily as they continued to rock together, building up speed, she let herself be carried away on the waves of bliss that lapped at her. As Logan had said, this was just the beginning.

  She was very much looking forward to seeing what the future would bring.

  Epilogue

  Several months later

  It was a Saturday morning, and the three of them were lounging around on the plush leather sofas in James and Logan’s suite, catching up on the latest news while munching on nachos. They’d had a late night, having visited a fetish event, and were enjoying a companionable silence, broken only by the sounds of the TV and their crunching.

  After another disturbing news report full of hatred and violence, Fiona turned away in disgust. “Well, that’s my cue to get moving, I think. I’m gonna go for a run. Either of you want to come?”

  “Hey,” Logan said, catching her wrist and stopping her from getting up. “Wait. Can we, uh, talk to you about something?”

  Uh-oh, I’m not sure I like the sound of this.

  “Yeah,” she said, taking in the awkwardness they both displayed, and wondering how the outcome of a conversation that made them nervous could possibly be good. “Sure. What’s up?”

  “Oh, nothing’s up, sweetheart. This is nothing to worry about. Just, well… Something we need to discuss.”

  “Spit it out, then,” she said, unable to stop her frustration shining through. Despite Logan’s words to the contrary, she couldn’t help thinking the worst.

  Logan was on one side of her, and James got up and sat down on her other side. They each took one of her hands.

  Her heart pounded, then skipped a beat altogether.

  Apparently unwilling to wait for Logan to ‘spit it out’ any longer, James began, “We’ve been thinking, talking. It’s been almost a year since we met—can you believe it?”

  Fiona shook her head. No, she couldn’t believe it, but she knew it to be true.

  James continued, “We’re so, so glad you decided to give this, us, a chance. It’s been amazing, hasn’t it?”

  Fiona smiled, and heat came to her cheeks as her brain was inundated with memories. Amazing was right. In fact, it probably wasn’t even a powerful enough word to describe what they’d been experiencing. Three was certainly not a crowd in their case, and the more Fiona had worked past her hang-ups about their unconventional relationship, the better things had become. Having a smart, successful, sexy, kind and loving boyfriend was fantastic, and when you multiplied that by two, it was a magical combination.

  “Yes,” she finally said, pulling herself out of her reminiscence and answering his question. “It truly has. But”—her heart skipped another beat—“why are you talking about it in the past tense?”

  Her horror must have been clear on her face, because both men tightened their grips on her hands. “No, no, Fiona!” Logan said, shaking his head and making his curls bounce madly. Not for the first time, he was overdue a haircut, but she loved the mad black mop so much, there was no way she was going to tell him. “It’s nothing like that. Quite the opposite, in fact.”

  “Go on…”

  “Well, you remember all those months ago, when we had that conversation in the library here?”

  “Yes.”

  “We discussed our future, or at least part of it. Well… James and I think that we have come to that metaphorical bridge. We’ve come to it, and we’d very much like to cross it—with you.”

  Swallowing in an attempt to moisten her suddenly arid mouth, she said, “And, uh… What exactly does this metaphorical bridge-crossing involve?”

  The men exchanged a glance, then Logan spoke again. “Fiona,” he said, his expression serious, “you know we care about you, right?”

  “Yeees…” Her uncertainty at where this was going drew the word out to ridiculous proportions. “And I care about you, too. Very much.”

  A smile flirted with his lips for the briefest second, then was gone again. “Well, that’s good…because it’s more than that. More than caring about you. I love you, Fiona. I’m in love with you.”

  James piped up, “And so am I, Fiona. I love you!” The last sentence was said with an excited giggle, and she turned to him, wide-eyed and stunned into silence.

  It seemed that Logan couldn’t handle the silence. Agony laced his voice as he said, “Fiona, say something, please.”

  Her neck twisting left and right to look at each of them in turn, and feeling as though she was watching a tennis match, she replied, “I—I don’t know what to say. I really wasn’t expecting that.”

  “You weren’t?” Logan said, scornfully. “Are you mad? We’re fucking crazy about you, Fiona. And we want you to move in with us.”

  “Wait—you what?” Blinking, she scrabbled to get her thoughts into some kind of order.

  Logan sighed, and James cupped her cheek and turned her to face him. His green eyes fixed on hers, he said quietly, “It’s really not that surprising, Fiona. Think about it. If there were two of us, this would be the natural next step. So why the hell shouldn’t we be the same?”

  He was right, and she knew it. Knew it from the very bottom of her heart. The heart that still raced, the heart that loved them, both of them, right back, and fiercely. She’d felt this way for some time, and they deserved to know.

  She took a deep breath. They’d said it first, so why was she so nervous? Rejection wasn’t going to happen here. There was no risk—they all loved each other. Life was good. Amazing. Spectacular.

  “I…” Standing suddenly, she stepped away from the sofa, then turned so she could see them both at the same time without getting a crick in her neck. “I love you, too. Both of you. Madly!”

  Warmth flooded her being as she watched their faces break into huge smiles. It wasn’t conventional, but so what? It was nothing to do with anyone else, and anyone that didn’t like it would have to jolly well lump it. They’d agreed long ago that their happiness was the only thing that really mattered.

  Nodding decisively, she opened her mouth. A thought slammed into her head, strangling the words before they came out.

  “Shit.”

  Both men looked at her with concern. “What is it, sweetheart?” James said.

  “I meant what I just said—truly I did. But I can’t move in with you. I want to, but I can’t.”

  “Why not?” Logan said, a deep crease appearing between his eyebrows.

  “Well.” She flopped down onto the sofa behind her, and scraped a hand through her hair. “You know the PR courses I did?” The question was rhetorical, but they nodded anyway. “Well, when they were arranged, I was reminded of a clause in my contract. Basically, because the Totally Five Star has funded my progression, they understandably want to get their money’s worth. So I can’t leave the company until two years have elapsed from the completion of my course. My most recent course,” she added, reminding them all that she’d completed her third only a week previously.

  Several seconds passed, and Fiona felt, for some reason, that she had to say something else. “I’m sorry, guys. I really am. Wait for me?” Her voice was tiny by the end, and she hated how meek she sounded. But she couldn’t help it—they’d all just laid their hearts bare and now she ran t
he risk of losing it all because of some small print in a fucking contract!

  Logan, who was still frowning, said, “Surely there’s an exception to that rule? A company can’t keep you trapped somewhere against your will.”

  Fiona shook her head. “No exceptions. If I leave, I have to pay back the money for the courses. And given that I’ve done all three back to back, that means I’d have to pay for all three. I don’t have that kind of money.”

  “Wait,” Logan said, “so that’s it? If you leave, you just have to pay the money back they shelled out?”

  “Yeah. But didn’t you hear what I just said? I don’t have that kind of money!”

  “Maybe not, but we do.”

  “No.” She shook her head again. “Absolutely not. I’ve worked my arse off to get to this stage. I’m not going to walk away now and have it all go to waste. And I’m definitely not going to take money from you to do so.”

  “Who said anything about walking away and taking our money? We’re not looking for a housekeeper, Fiona. We just want you with us, every day, instead of every few weeks. We’d expected that you’d get another PR job somewhere in Cambridge or close by. Especially now you’ve got those qualifications under your belt. You could even consider commuting, if you wanted to. Whatever you want to do, we’ll support you. And if that means a loan to pay the Totally Five Star off, then so be it. It’s a small price to pay if it means you moving in with us.”

  “Bloody hell, this is a lot to take in.”

  “I know, sweetheart,” James said, moving over and sitting next to her, “and we’re sorry we sprang it on you like this. But we couldn’t keep quiet any longer. It’s been driving us crazy for weeks. It’s out in the open now, though, and I couldn’t be more delighted. But when it comes to the moving in with us and your job situation, we’ve no intention of pressuring you. Like Logan said, we’ll support you, whatever you decide. Even if you decide not to move in with us. We love you, and that’s not going to change. Yes, we miss you like crazy every time we’re apart, but if that’s the decision you make, we’ll live with it. We’re not going anywhere, all right? The decision is yours, and you make it when you’re ready.”

  Logan piped up, “And nothing’s going to change with our job situation. We’ll still be in London every few weeks or so. If you move to Cambridge, you can come into London with us. You could stay here as an actual guest, no creeping around, and we can keep attending the various BDSM events. I know you’re the one that’s making the sacrifice here, honey. Trust me, I know. But, ultimately, all we want is for you to be happy. So take a few days, give it some thought and let us know. Okay?”

  She nodded, silently implying that she hadn’t already made her decision. But she had. Ignoring the part about them paying the course fees, her instinct had been to say yes. They’d been in this kind of limbo for months already, and although it hadn’t made her unhappy, she’d known for a while that the metaphorical bridge was looming. The only thing that could improve on the amazing life they had was to spend more of it together.

  Yes, she loved her job, her burgeoning career at the Totally Five Star, and she’d desperately miss her colleagues, her friends, being part of such an amazing team and an iconic company. But what it came down to was—jobs came and went, but a love like this, a love like she, James and Logan had, was rare. And there was no way she was going to let it slip through her fingers. Not a bloody chance.

  “Yes,” she said, breaking the silence that had fallen.

  “Great,” Logan said, smiling. “So you’ll let us know, then?”

  Frowning, she replied, “No, I mean yes. Yes! I’ll move in with you. Not right away—I’ll need to find another job, as I’m not up for the commute, work my notice and so on, but as soon as I can. I will gratefully take a loan from you guys, which I will pay back. And while we’re on the subject of finance, we’ll need to discuss my contribution to the household—”

  Her words were abruptly cut off as James pressed his lips against hers. Startled, she remained motionless for a second or two before responding. She heard Logan’s whoop of delight from across the room, then, as she melted into James’ embrace, heard Logan again, on the phone this time.

  “There’s champagne already on ice? Excellent. Great, thank you. We’ll be down in half an hour. No, out front is fine. Hey, guys,” he continued, interrupting them, “can you put each other down? We’ve got a limo to catch!”

  Breaking apart, Fiona and James looked at Logan. From the corner of her eye, she could see that James’ expression wasn’t one of surprise. Whatever Logan had planned, he was in on it. “A limo?” she asked. “Where are we going?”

  “Going?” Logan said, practically bouncing as he pulled her up off the sofa. “We’re going for a quick shower and to get dressed, then we’re going for lunch. A celebratory lunch.”

  “Um, okay… Where to?”

  “It’s a surprise.”

  Fiona rolled her eyes good-naturedly. “Okay, but am I going to need a change of clothes? I only have these, and what I wore last night.”

  “Good point,” Logan said, then dialed out on his phone again. “Change of plan, make it forty-five minutes. Thank you.” Moving over to the door, he opened it. “Get a move on then, gorgeous. I want you in your most comfortable smart-casual wear and in front of this hotel in forty-five minutes. If not, I’m coming to your room to give you a hiding.”

  “And what if I want a hiding?” she shot back, raising her eyebrows provocatively.

  With a groan, he said, “Just go. I’ll owe you a hiding, all right? Don’t be late for this lunch…or what we’ve got planned afterward.”

  Grabbing her stuff, she gave James a peck on the cheek, scurried to the door and kissed Logan on the lips. “Yes, Sir. Forty-five minutes.”

  Smacking her arse on her way out, he said, “See you then.”

  She’d just opened the door to her room when she heard her phone bleep. A text message from James.

  For God’s sake, act surprised in front of Logan, but thought I should warn you what we’ve got planned so you can dress accordingly. Itinerary: lunch at the top of The Shard, a private pod on the London Eye and a boat on the Serpentine. So probably not a skirt ;) I love you, J xx

  Almost tripping over a pair of shoes she’d left on the floor in her haste to get into the room, she closed the door before composing a reply.

  Wow. Okay, Mum’s the word. And trousers it is. See you soon. Love you too, F xx

  Pressing ‘Send’, she hugged the phone to her chest and jigged excitedly on the spot a couple of times, before making a move to get ready. She wanted to be back with her gorgeous guys, and pronto. It looked as though she had yet another amazing day with them ahead, a day of celebration, and hopefully there would be many, many more to come.

  Also available from Pride Publishing:

  Totally Five Star: Life Under New Management

  Jane Davitt

  Excerpt

  Chapter One

  “Tell me why you think I should hire you, Mr. Naylor.”

  Andy directed another winning smile at the man behind the desk. Ethan Mason hadn’t responded to the last three, but maybe they were chipping away at the ice—ice that had formed when he’d told Ethan to call him Andy then solidified after the confession that most of his experience of bars had been as a customer.

  “I’m a hard worker.” If he was doing something interesting. “Reliable.” Up to a point. “Good with people.” True. “I invented a cocktail once.” Then drank so many of them, he’d forgotten the ingredients. Puked up around three in the morning. It had been a nasty mess.

  Ethan pushed back his heavy wooden chair—no padding for this guy—and stood. Not an overly tall man, no obvious muscles bulging underneath the dark gray suit, but Andy guessed Ethan could break up a bar fight if needed without ruffling his smooth, dark hair. Cool guy. Ice-cool. And now ‘ice, ice, baby’ was stuck in his head in a retro hip-hop loop-de-loop, and shit, he needed this job. His rent was du
e. His place was a crappy dump, but this was Vancouver and even shoebox-sized rooms without a view of the water or the mountains—which took some doing—weren’t cheap. He hadn’t heard back about the dog food commercial yet, but something told him he hadn’t gotten the part—the something being his main competition emerging from the final interview with lips barely dry from giving a blow job. No jizz streaking his chin, but that smug, used look was unmistakable. Andy had seen it in a mirror often enough, but he sucked cocks for pleasure, not to get a job. When he got his first major role—and he would, anytime soon—it would be down to his acting talent and nothing else.

  His determination was wearing thin after a few years of bit parts that went nowhere, but he patched it when needed.

  “Show me,” Ethan said and left his office without looking back.

  Andy chewed the inside of his cheek—a bad habit he had to stop—and followed him. They walked along a hallway with doors opening off it—storeroom, break room, cleaning supplies, the paintwork clean, the black and white floor tiles freshly mopped. Even behind the scenes, the Totally Five Star Hotel lived up to its name. The corridor led to a swinging door with a narrow glass panel set in it, allowing safe passage in either direction.

  Behind the door was a bar, although not the main one for the hotel. Andy had seen that on the way in, impressed by the muted elegance of the place, all gleaming brass and dark green carpet, the swoop of the counter drawing attention to the glitter of glasses and bottles behind it. This was a smaller lounge—clean, severe lines, a black granite surface shimmering in the overhead lights as if it was liquid instead of solid enough to resist the blade of a knife, the walls painted bronze. Upmarket but still welcoming. At eight-thirty in the morning, it was empty.

  Ethan kept going, opening a gate to give him access to the room. He took a seat on a stool with a curved back. Did that make it a chair or did they need four legs? Andy wasn’t about to ask.