“God, you’re beautiful,” Everly whispered, her words only for me.
Her praise warmed me from the inside out. When her arms came around me, her soft hands cupping my naked breasts, my knees wobbled only slightly.
Yeah. This was happening. Not because someone was directing it, either. It was happening because somewhere deep down, Everly and I wanted it to happen.
I didn’t have to see them to know Ian and Isaac were watching. I could feel their eyes on us, taking it all in, seeing how it would play out. They were the puppeteers, putting this in motion, but it was our desires that would shape the role. It was a high I’d never experienced, one I’d never even considered.
And while nothing would convince me that this was something I could enjoy day in and day out, in this moment I was able to indulge myself, to let loose.
My skirt fluttered to the concrete and I looked up at Dante. He was watching us, his eyes slowly raking over Everly from head to toe. His attraction to her was potent. In fact, all the males in this house were quite transparent when it came to Everly. And while I didn’t want their attention, per se, I did find myself craving someone’s. My thoughts drifted to Prince Charming, as I’d come to refer to the man who’d graced the bookstore a few times. Truth was, I didn’t know his name, but I’d been lusting after the guy for quite some time. He was shy, though. As I tried to picture him in this scenario, I smiled.
Everly cleared her throat, yanking me out of the fantasy.
“I think it’s your turn, Mr. Novak,” I told Dante, taking Everly’s hand and walking toward him.
He got to his feet as we approached. I took his front, Everly his back. We worked slowly, efficiently to get him out of the T-shirt. I allowed my hands to glide over his hot, smooth skin. Over his well-defined pecs, the rippling lines of his abs. He was beautiful. I’d always thought so. Slightly damaged but still beautiful. Inside and out.
Since I knew where his true interest lay, I eased myself out of the scenario, allowed Everly to take over from there. As she crouched before him to work his shorts down his legs, Dante’s eyes lasered in on her, hot, fierce.
But Everly didn’t tease him, choosing to casually brush her hand over his long, hard length before standing tall once more.
“I think it’s time to cool off,” he said softly, leaning toward Everly, his mouth inches from hers, their bodies swaying as though gravity was drawing them together.
“I couldn’t agree more,” she whispered.
He took our hands, padded over to the pool, then led the way down the steps. The other day, we’d come out here, laughing, splashing. Friends enjoying an afternoon in the water. This time, we were lovers. A slow seduction born from role-playing set up by two wicked Doms.
My gaze scanned the back windows of the house, pausing on the two men standing in the kitchen, observing as it all played out. I wondered if this was how they’d envisioned it going or if they’d had something else in mind.
Knowing they would change the course if and when they saw fit, I decided to let it play out until then.
Everly dipped beneath the water, slicking her hair back when she surfaced. Dante reached for her then, pulling Everly into him as he waded into deeper water. His eyes were hot, focused on her mouth. I was awestruck by the sight of them. Even as Everly dipped beneath the water again, surfacing moments later. Before she could take one full breath, his mouth slowly covered hers. The kiss was soft, sweet, but the underlying passion was unmistakable.
Dante pulled back, his thumb brushing over her cheek as their eyes locked. “You’re beautiful, Everly.”
Yeah, I longed for the day a man said that to me. And meant it.
While there was a hint of envy coursing through me, I wasn’t bothered by it. In fact, I was glad to see these two coming together. They’d been fighting it for so long. And after everything they’d endured, I figured they deserved it.
Just when I thought they would separate, Dante’s hand cupped her butt, jerking her to him as though he couldn’t resist any longer.
The kiss ignited, a passionate blaze that the water had no chance of dousing. Dante held Everly’s body in that moment, but there was another part of her that Dante held even if he would never understand it. A part of Everly that belonged only to him. As a friend, a lover. It didn’t matter. He was special to her in so many ways, and this moment, this opportunity they had to explore was far past due.
So while they made out, I settled for admiring them. Happy for my friends.
