Us Read online

  Exciting opportunity or freaky and too much?

  It was hard to decide what was going through their minds. As I’d watched them from across the room, it’d been easy to see they weren’t like the other alpha assholes wandering around the club. They didn’t send over drinks I didn’t want or walk by and grab my ass like I was some kind of fruit they were feeling up at the grocery store. They just quietly watched from across the room, debating my sexuality and talking themselves out of coming over.

  It was so cute.

  Neither of them said no, but it was clear they had no idea what to do. I couldn’t have been the first guy to proposition them. There was also no way I’d been the first guy to at least hint at a threesome. Right?

  Thinking back, I wasn’t sure I’d seen anyone other than me approach them all night. If someone else hadn’t been able to tell what they were talking about, they probably would’ve looked like a quiet couple who was just spending the evening alone. They hadn’t even had any friends stop by, and aside from the occasional smile, they hadn’t flirted with anyone else.

  Since it was clear neither of them knew what to do, I took charge. A lack of denial wasn’t an agreement, but nothing in their body language and expressions said they were opposed to the idea, so I jumped in. “All right, sexy, come sit down next to my shy friend Scott here. I can’t pick a lap until you’re both sitting down, can I?”

  They both shook their heads slowly like puppies in an online video. The nameless one seemed to like instructions, though, because he nodded again and moved to sit down. I wasn’t sure what god I’d inadvertently pleased or offered a sacrifice to in order to get such sexy big submissives to land in my lap, but I sent up a quick thanks to the universe anyway.

  Variety was the spice of life, but my obsession was big, good-looking guys who seemed like they should be alphas in everything but really loved it best when someone else took charge. They were like these elusive creatures that were perfect when you found them, but their natural habitat was to blend into the background or just stay home, so they were almost impossible to find in public.

  When the sexy guy with the beer finally moved around the table to sit down, he seemed to realize he’d never said his name. Giving me a slightly confused smile, he sat stiffly in the chair. “My name is Ryan.”

  Shy Scott looked as if he might have a heart attack, so as I slowly walked around the table, giving both of them a chance to change their minds, I sat down on Ryan’s lap but stretched my legs out so they rested on Scott’s. I didn’t want either of them to think I was picking one over the other, or for there to be any confusion about my intentions.

  It was too loud in the room for me to hear the little moan that I knew escaped Ryan, but the way his chest vibrated gave it away. Scott’s arms slowly moved to rest on my legs and Ryan’s carefully wrapped around me. It was like I was a fragile piece of china they weren’t sure they had permission to touch and neither wanted to break.

  I would’ve worried I was coming on too strong, but their desire was still evident and there was something hopeful in Scott’s expression that made me want to lean over and give him a kiss. When I’d first seen them, I’d been picturing a fun night or even better weekend, but as they held me in their arms, I knew it could turn into something more.

  “So now we’ve gotten the introductions out of the way, but I still don’t know why you didn’t come over and say hi to me.” Well, that wasn’t quite true, but I needed to know what they would say first.

  Submissive men didn’t always like saying they were submissive. Especially when I was half their size and didn’t always come across as especially dominant.

  There were entirely too many stereotypes of what a dominant man should look like.

  Twinks, even muscular ones, with vibrant personalities who were a little exhibitionistic never came up as people’s top attributes when describing what a take-charge guy looked like.

  “Oh, and I have a feeling I must hear the pizza guy story.”

  “What?” Scott spoke first and gave me a confused look, but Ryan wasn’t far behind him.

  “How?”

  Neither guy seemed to be very articulate when they were confused, so I could only hope as they warmed up they’d get more chatty. Smart was just as sexy as being physically attractive, but so far, neither had said enough for me to figure it out.

  The strong silent type could be fun, but I didn’t want to be the only one able to carry a conversation. “Lipreading. You guys speak very well and don’t mumble, so it was easy.”

  It’d technically answered their question, but it’d seem to raise even more. Not that they’d said anything. Ryan’s body seemed to relax, though, but I wasn’t sure why. My best guess was that he was glad I wasn’t pissed they’d been talking about me. But it could’ve been anything.

  Our awkward group didn’t seem to be going anywhere quickly, so I tried to think of something to say. “I’d hoped that I’d see you guys out on the dance floor at some point. I was planning on getting your attention there, but you’ve been avoiding it. Do you dance?”

  Scott shook his head no, but Ryan actually spoke. “Yes, I do.” Then he glanced over at Scott. “He doesn’t.”

  Okay, I needed a new plan.

  I wiggled just enough to make sure Ryan knew I was aware of his erection pressed up against my ass. He cleared his throat and blushed, but didn’t apologize. I gave him a wink and then glanced over at Scott.

  He seemed to guess what had made Ryan blush, but he wasn’t sure what to do. Scooting my legs a little bit closer to his body, I shifted my feet so that my calves caressed over his still-hard dick. “I was glad to see that both of you were excited to meet me.”

  That had Scott blushing too, but he nodded and actually spoke. “We…Um…I…Both?”

  It was clearly a question to clarify my intentions.

  I loved that even with all of my blatant flirting he wasn’t assuming. His confused, puppy dog expression was too cute to resist. Leaning over, I ran my hands over his head and down to cup his cheek for just a moment before pulling away. I didn’t want to take too many liberties like some asses did to me, but I needed him to know that I was interested in him.

  Ryan had the same question in his eyes, so I nodded. “Finding two big, strong guys who are clearly…polite…is hard. You’re both so sweet and so cute I don’t really want to choose. Do I need to?”

  There was a long moment of silence where they looked at one another. Finally, Scott spoke again. “We’re just friends.”

  Interesting.

  It wasn’t a no, so I kept going.

  “Well, have you ever dated anyone at the same time?” With their short, vague answers it should’ve been frustrating, but it was more like a word puzzle that I had to keep poking at.

  Scott shook his head no, but Ryan nodded yes.

  Interesting.

  “In high school.” Ryan’s short explanation was enough to make Scott start nodding as well. Thankfully, I didn’t have to beg for more information because Ryan kept going. “Dating probably isn’t the right word because we were both really in the closet at the time, but we dated the same guy in high school. Ian.”

  Scott stepped in to fill in one of the details. “We just didn’t find out about it until college when we actually came out.”

  Well, we’d moved beyond one-word sentences, so I kept the conversation going. “So you guys have known each other a long time? But you didn’t come out to each other until college?”

  Ryan nodded. “Yeah, we were on the football team together in high school. It wasn’t an accepting environment, so we kept it pretty quiet. From everybody.”

  “Ian guessed.” Scott blushed at some memory. “He…um…said I always looked at him too long.”

  “He said I always stared at his ass.” I had a feeling Ryan only started to share because he sensed Scott was uncomfortable.

  “So neither of you knew about the other?” There was clearly more of a story than they were willing t
o fess up too. Something about the way they carefully kept their gaze away from the other and the way they danced around the specifics had my curiosity going.

  They shook their heads, but Scott answered. “Ian made it clear it wasn’t serious, and he wasn’t promising anything.”

  “So neither of you were angry when you found out about it later?” It didn’t sound that way, but if things were headed in the direction I wanted, then we had to be clear up front about jealousy and anger.

  Getting in the middle of two sexy hunks was one thing…getting in the middle of crazy was another.

  Scott cocked his head. “No, why would we be mad? He hadn’t lied.”

  Oh, he was so cute.

  He honestly thought the question was ridiculous. But I’d seen people who were just friends split because they’d ended up dating the same guy at completely different times, so I wasn’t going to assume it’d been easy for them.

  As much as I wanted to know more about what had happened—because I could see there were still some unresolved issues with it—I decided to let it go. They were entirely too tense, and that hadn’t been my initial goal when we’d started talking.

  Well, not this type of tension at least.

  It was turning into the most difficult pickup in history, but I loved a challenge, so I kept pressing forward. “Since you’re not together, I’m assuming you’re both single. Is that right?”

  Neither of them seemed to be the type to mention a spouse or boyfriend after we’d already started having fun, but I wanted to get it out in the open first thing. The identical nods were so funny I had to smile. How had they not been scooped up before this?

  “Good. And just to clarify, I’m single too.” I started to go on to something else random, but Scott spoke up first.

  “What about the other people…the couple?” His tone wasn’t accusatory, just curious.

  “Just friends of mine. They’re a couple and we’ve had some fun in the past, but nothing serious.” I’d thought in the beginning when we’d all first met there might be something between us, but it’d quickly become obvious it wouldn’t work.

  Scott’s expression softened. “Was that okay with you?”

  If it’d just been a simple question or even a nosy one I’d have given him a teasing response, but the way his brows had pulled together and the warmth in his eyes said he was worried they’d hurt me. “It’s been a long time now, but when we first met, I thought it might turn into something more. We weren’t really meant for anything more than friendship, though.”

  I thought about stopping there but something made me keep going. “They’re both really dominant in bed. They assumed I was submissive because I was letting them start things, so it didn’t go anywhere after that. I’m not all lifestyle or anything, but being bossed around in the bedroom doesn’t do it for me. I’m a bit more take charge than that.”

  Wide eyes stared back at me from both faces and even though they looked still, both men had tight grips on me. I couldn’t decide if I wanted to say “boo” and see what would happen or hug them both.

  “Is that alright? You guys didn’t seem like the type to go all alpha on me and demand I submit. Does it bother you that I like to be in charge?” I knew the honest answer, but I wasn’t sure what they would say. They were still so quiet and everything in them seemed to be frozen. I wasn’t sure if it was indecisiveness or just fear but they were like deer in the headlights of an oncoming truck, and I wasn’t sure how to help them.

  Finally, Ryan seemed to come to life again. His eyes sent me a pleading look and then his eyes flicked over to Scott. He was clearly trying to send a message, but what? Had they really never talked about things like that before?

  Going on instinct, I took one of Ryan’s hands from my leg and held it tight, then reached over to grab Scott’s and brought it over to rest with Ryan’s on my lap. Both men had gone back to that careful stillness and neither were looking at the other. It was like I was walking through a minefield. One wrong move and we’d all explode.

  The problem was there wasn’t a we yet, and I could only guess what would set off the mines.

  “You don’t think it’s silly that I don’t look like a Dom, right?” That had them shaking their heads in unison, and Scott finally spoke.

  “No, of course not. I like the way you look.” His words seemed to indicate that wasn’t the only part of me he liked, and evidently, Ryan realized it too because he finally looked over at Scott with questions clear in his eyes.

  “Ryan, do you like the way I look?” We were dancing around the real question, but it seemed to be all they were ready for, so I focused on the way their fingers threaded together with mine and the way Scott leaned into Ryan, trying to get closer to both of us without seeming to realize it.

  Ryan nodded. I knew there were countless things bouncing around in his head, but he seemed relieved he didn’t have to answer anything more difficult. “Yes. I like the way you look.”

  He said the words carefully, as if he were deliberately acknowledging the more subtle meaning behind the words. Scott wasn’t as easy to read, but there was a knowledge in Ryan’s eyes that said he knew what he wanted…just not how to get it or how to confess it to Scott.

  “Then do you want us to get to know each other better?” I wasn’t sure when the fantasies in my head had switched from sexy one-night stands to waking up in their arms and planning a life together, but I wasn’t going to chase them away.

  I wasn’t afraid of getting everything I’d ever dreamed of.

  As they both slowly nodded, fingers still weaved together with mine, I also knew I wasn’t afraid of showing them they could have everything they’d ever dreamed of and more.

  Chapter 3

  Scott

  I’d never pictured Ryan’s hand as being so soft. As Dare held our hands together, it was hard to think. Heat radiated from Ryan, and the way his fingers absently rubbed against mine had me feeling like the biggest game of the season was about to start.

  But there wasn’t an opponent to win against, it was just Ryan and Dare holding me tight.

  Ryan and I had slammed into each other in practice countless times over the years, and I’d seen him naked while he was changing and showering almost as much. But I couldn’t remember him ever taking my hand like they were holding it now.

  They.

  Dare didn’t just want Ryan or me…he wanted us both.

  I’d admit, I’d been a bit slow on the uptake with it, but the only people who’d ever hinted at something like that had been drunk girls at a frat party one time. The only frat party I’d gone to, actually. I’d been raised to respect women and the word no, but I wasn’t sure they’d gotten the same lecture, because they’d backed me into a corner and were feeling up my chest when Ryan had stepped in to rescue me.

  It’d been embarrassing at the time, but he’d understood that I hadn’t been sure what to do, and he’d never made me feel bad about it. Ryan had tried to get me to go back to more parties after that, but it’d been too much. Even though I’d been out at the time, I guess I’d just looked too straight because women were the only ones who ever approached me.

  It’d gotten better once Ryan started dragging me to clubs and gay bars away from campus, but we’d never been approached like this before. Ryan had teased that we looked like an old married couple most of the time, but I hadn’t minded.

  Having him around kept the more aggressive or creepy people at bay, and it gave me a chance to figure out if I wanted to get to know someone…and how to approach them. Because it was always me that was supposed to do that, no matter how much I didn’t want to be the aggressor.

  Dare seemed to be able to see past all that…just like Ian had.

  But Dare wouldn’t be content to just fool around with the kind-of-closeted guy. No, he seemed to be the type who went for what he wanted, and that was evidently both of us.

  Both.

  I snuck a peek at Ryan. He had the same do-I-want-this look that I
suspected was on my face. Was it just the idea of doing something with me there? I wasn’t so naïve that I didn’t understand what Dare was talking about, but was that the only thing that was worrying Ryan?

  He’d always been carefully shoved in the friend box for me. It wasn’t because I’d been oblivious that he was hot, but with being a friend and spending so much time together in football, he’d just gotten put there. It’d made it easier.

  And once I’d figured out who I was and what I liked, he’d needed to stay there. Explaining things like that to him then would have been impossible. But was I ready to do it now? If I agreed to whatever Dare wanted…and I still wasn’t sure if that was just sex or something more…Ryan would end up finding out.

  Dare’s fingers kept rubbing against ours.

  Ours.

  It was like I’d fallen into another dimension. Dare’s next question made it seem more real, however. “Have you ever thought about going on a date with each other? I don’t want this just to be about sex.”

  Fuck.

  I didn’t look at Ryan, but from the way Dare smiled I thought his mouth probably dropped open too. Answering the question was too hard, but it gave me the opportunity to ask one myself, so I forced the words out. “You want to date us?”

  So, he’d kind of already said it, but I wanted to make sure I understood what was on the table. As I sorted through my emotions, I realized that a one-night stand wouldn’t be enough to get me to basically out myself to Ryan. But a real relationship…

  Dare’s nod and smile had me panicked and excited at the same time. Fuck. Now what?

  “Like go out to dinner before we have sex and get to know each other dating?” Ryan didn’t sound any smarter than me at the moment, but Dare didn’t seem to mind.

  His quiet laughter curling around me made my cock harden again. “Yes, dinner and talking then sex kind of dating.”

  “Oh.” Ryan’s short response had me looking over to him.

  What was he thinking?

  Nothing, from the startled look on his face.