Chapter Six

 

Declan was sporting the mother of all erections as he rounded the back of his car.

“You got here fast,” he said as he handed Trick his keys and then freed Jennifer from the seat so he could take her into his arms. “I thought you had to work today?”

Trick had a shit-eating grin on his face as he studied the red marks on her naked body and the shirt that was still twisted around her wrists. “The advantages of being my own boss,” he said, not taking his eyes off her. “I put off the job so I could patch that hole in my bathroom wall before more animals made it their home for the winter. Now I’m free in time to see this.”

Declan shook his head. “I don’t know why you won’t sell your brother’s house and get a nice apartment. You could stay here until then. It wouldn’t be long. The market is good and that’s why he signed it over to you in the first place.”

“I don’t take things that aren’t mine.” He winked at Declan. “I’m rehabilitated.”

“Open the door. With the key, please.”

“Spoilsport.”

Jennifer started to giggle and he looked down at her. “What’s so funny?”

Her blue eyes were laughing at him. “I don’t know. I just never imagined my first ménage would start with a conversation about real estate over my naked body.”

Declan tightened his grip, forcing himself not to look below her neck. Not to think about the skin he was touching. “I’m trying to get you inside so I don’t fuck your naked body into the pavement and give my respectable neighbors a show.”

“Oh.” Jen stopped laughing abruptly and turned away from his penetrating gaze.

“His respectable neighbors couldn’t see you unless they had a helicopter, Jen. Don’t let him scare you.”

Declan felt her relieved breath against his chest. “This house is huge. Are you sure we’re in the right place?”

Trick opened the door and smiled at her as Declan carried her over the threshold. “You didn’t know our professor was loaded? Your roommate’s family has nothing on this guy. The first time I got my foot in the door, I was casing the place. I could have retired on my own desert island with a bag or two of his knickknacks. Of course, fifteen minutes later I decided I’d rather steal a kiss.”

“Which is why your career as a criminal was so short-lived and unproductive.” Declan sent him a tight-lipped grin. “I need your help, Trick. I need you to take her.”

Because I can’t let her go.

Trick studied Declan’s body language with astute green eyes for a moment and then stepped forward to reach carefully for Jennifer. Taking a few steps back, he set her on her feet and pulled up her shorts gently. “I think a breather is in order, yeah?” he said as he untied her tank top. “Declan, why don’t you go grab a drink while I give her a little tour of the Kelley mansion?”

That might be a good idea. He needed a minute to catch his breath. He didn’t want to scare her.

“Trick?” Jen looked up at the blond with a frown, but something in his expression made her nod slowly. “Okay. I’d like that.”

“I’ll be in the library.”

Trick walked away with Jen in tow and Declan heard her say, “He has a library?” before he turned and forced himself not to follow them.

He hadn’t been consciously planning for this to happen today. Jennifer had been right to hesitate—it was too fast and she didn’t know him well enough to make an informed decision.

But when she got into his car, shared her safe word and let him spank her bare pussy, waiting had no longer been an option. His darker urges had won out over his common sense. He’d practically kidnapped her.

She said yes.

What if she hadn’t? He hoped he would have been able to turn around, but a part of him wondered. All he’d known was he needed to get her here. In his home. Under his roof. 

Declan found his way to his personal sanctuary and glanced briefly at the shelves overflowing with books, the Botticelli on the wall, the long desk covered in paperwork and novels and the recliner where he spent most of his nights on his laptop, working on lectures. The house was too large for one man. He spent most of his life in three of its rooms—the library, the kitchen and the bathroom.

Trick harassed him about it. Said he needed to stop living like a moody ghost in a castle and make more friends. “Have a party. Rent out a few of these rooms to circus folk and make some extra pocket change. Get a horse. I hear rich people love owning horses. It could graze in your living room and you wouldn’t even notice.”

Declan flipped open a book, his lips quirking at that memory. Trick was probably right, but Declan didn’t want any of that. He wanted something entirely different…and they were already here. Now he just had to figure out what to do with them.

And how to hang on to them.

“I thought you’d forget about that drink you need.” Declan looked up to find Trick in the doorway, the bottle of champagne in his hand.

“Why did you bring that?”

“I thought it was the best way to celebrate the start of our new adventure.”

Declan frowned as he watched him work on releasing the cork. “Where is she? She shouldn’t be alone after I…”

Trick chuckled. “She’s doing great. She was more in shock at the size of this place than her naked arrival. It was cute. But the second she saw the master bath, she lost her mind and made a lot of incomprehensible but happy female noises. I gave her arnica gel for the marks and left her to experience the wonder that is your shower. Showers relax her, and I thought you and I should touch base before we take the next step.”

The cork popped and Trick caught it before it hit something valuable. Declan leaned heavily on his desk. “The next step of our adventure? How can you be this relaxed? She came to see why I was loitering outside of her apartment and… Well, you saw what I did to her.”

“I did. She didn’t seem to mind, Declan.”

His fingers flexed as he remembered how much she didn’t seem to mind. “She’s too young to know any better.”

“I won’t tell you how stupid you sound sticking with that argument. You don’t believe it.”

“She’s young, sexually speaking. The quick-finish fiancé you told me about? A few months of reckless behavior at a fetish club? She’s still experimenting.”

“Don’t forget all those hours she’s clocked in bed with me.” Declan glared, but Trick just shook his head in disgust. “I’m sorry, I didn’t know we were grading her. I didn’t come prepared.”

“I’m not—” Declan took a calming breath. “I’m not grading her. I’m trying to make sure that we don’t end up hurting her or scaring her away.”

That I don’t go too far, the way I did with you. That I don’t ask for too much. He didn’t have to say it.

“You didn’t seem that worried about scaring her away in your driveway. The fact that she was still willing to talk to you after you—in your own words—accosted her in the sanctity of the classroom? Doesn’t that prove that you’re the one who’s scared, Declan? Not her. Not me. You.”

“Accost might not have been the best word, but it was still irresponsible. She’s one of my students, and because of the subject, I do everything in my power to ensure their privacy and protection, as well as respect their sexual and social mores in—”

“Here we go.” Trick took a swig of champagne from the bottle. “We’re not in a lecture hall now, Professor. You’re talking to me, so talk to me. You always do this. Speak around the issue like I won’t understand what you’re going through.”

Declan frowned. “I do? I don’t mean to.”

“But you always do.” Now Trick was the one pacing. “So tell the truth, now, when you can’t use passion as a cover. I dressed up your crush and served her to you on a pretty platter and it got you so hard you didn’t give a damn about your rules, or even about respecting personal space. You saw someone you wanted and you went after her. The same way you went after me. That’s human. It happens. Get over it.”

Declan accepted the bottle when Trick handed it to him, studying the man he’d known for so long. Loved. He’d been so lost in his own needs and anxiety that he hadn’t wondered how Trick was handling this. He was risking a lot for Jennifer. For the three of them. “You’re right,” he said, his voice calmer now. “I’m sorry.”

Trick’s eyes, so sharp and piercing, looked at him in surprise as he took a drink. “It’s okay,” he finally said. “I’ve had weeks to wrap my head around this idea. Months. I should have talked to you about it instead of throwing down that dare.”

Declan wanted to kiss him. Instead he sighed, thinking of Trick’s association with the Finns. “What about her family?”

“The one that’s overflowing with protective men in positions of authority?” Trick huffed out a laugh and lifted one shoulder. “She’s the baby, and the only girl, so who knows? If and when they find out they might take turns seeing how far they can kick me down the street.”

“And what would they do to me? Someone they don’t know. Someone whose last name is Kelley.”

Trick walked over to him and stole back the bottle. “The Finns aren’t like those assholes. And they’re not going to ‘name a bridge after you’ and drop you in concrete. But even if they were, you obviously don’t give a shit or you wouldn’t have trussed her up and brought her home like a delicious, naked holiday ham.”

“I give a shit.”

“Well I don’t. Here’s what I do care about. She’s here. We’re here. We all want the same thing. And you spend too much time hiding alone with Freud and Jung, convincing yourself you’re a deviant monster instead of a man with a passionate appetite who enjoys exploring his primal side more than most.”

Declan took the bottle, set it down on his desk and reached for the collar of Trick’s t-shirt, yanking him closer. “Says the tough ex con who picks locks for fun and plays at being a sleazy private detective as cover for your high IQ and that secret quest for sainthood.”

“I am a sleazy private detective. It says so on my tax returns. And I’m aiming for brooding vigilante, not saint.” Trick lowered his hand to cup Declan’s balls through his jeans, making him tense. “Either way I’m trouble, and that’s one of the things you like about me. It’s why you let me in.”

“And I’m the deviant who always wants to chain you to my bed so you can’t escape.”

“I’m not going anywhere.”

“Don’t say that.” Not when you don’t mean it. You never stay.

Trick looked into his eyes. “I’m not going anywhere,” he repeated.

Declan covered Trick’s hand with his own and pressed. “If you were trying to calm me down so I wouldn’t scare her away, you’re getting a failing grade.”

“Finns don’t scare easily, Kelley.” Trick’s rasp was more pronounced with need. “But we do need to remember to take it slow. Not that she can’t handle it, but she’s never been a part of a ménage before. She doesn’t know how intense emotions can run. She has to be our focus. Her pleasure, our end goal.”

Declan narrowed his eyes. “Why does that sound familiar?”

“It’s from the suggested reading material in your syllabus. Torn Between Two-to-Four Lovers: A Guide to Group Pleasure.” Trick laughed at Declan’s expression. “What? I read, remember? High IQ?”

Damn the man for coming so prepared. Declan sent him a heated look. “I’ll need you.” I always need you. “You’ll need to hold the reins. Pull me back.”

“I will,” Trick promised. “If I have to. I’ve been looking forward to watching you take her.”

Declan swallowed hard. “Watching? I thought we were taking her together.”

“We will. But I’ve been imagining this for a while now. Indulge me.”

“You just told me it’s her we need to indulge. She trusts you.”

“She should probably be involved in this conversation,” Jen said, her voice dry, but amused, “before you two start a sexy round of rock, paper scissors and ruin the mood.”

Declan had a feeling he might be blushing but refused to acknowledge the heat in his cheeks as he stepped away from Trick to look at her. “Did you enjoy the shower?”

“The shower was so good if I’d stayed in it a minute longer you’d never have seen me again.” Her hair was still in a ponytail and only slightly damp, but her body was heated and glinting with moisture. She had a forest-green towel wrapped around her, but that was all. Declan was thinking about how easy it would be to remove it when he noticed she was also holding a basket in her hands.

He frowned at it. “What’s that?”

“This is a basket. You have a beautiful home, Professor. I’m guessing it might have its own zip code, but it’s lovely.”

Trick laughed, the tension in his body uncoiling at the sight of her. “I’ve mentioned turning it into a disco or a home for aging stallions, but he always says no. I’m surprised you found us so quickly.”

Jen studied them with a mysterious smile on her face. “I could hear you talking all the way in the living room. I just followed my ears.”

Declan tried to remember everything they’d said. “I’ll have to look into sound proofing.”

Her smile widened. “Good idea.” She lifted her basket. “I found this in the bathroom doing nothing but looking pretty with a group of its decorative friends, so I used it to gather supplies on my long journey through your house.”

“Little Red Riding Hood,” Trick murmured. “You sure are looking good.”

Declan raised an eyebrow at the song lyrics, but Jennifer laughed in delight. “What big, cheesy lines you have, Trick. Let me show you what I brought.”

She held up a bottle of water. “Hydration is key in these kinds of situations. I found this in the kitchen. These, I found in your bathroom.” She showed them a bottle of lube and enough condoms to last them both three days.

“You have a lot of faith in our stamina, Miss Finn.”

“I’ve seen you in action,” she quipped before setting down the basket, her expression suddenly serious as she met Declan’s gaze. “Have you changed your mind again? Do you not want me to join you?”

“No,” he croaked, his throat tightening until he had to clear it. “I mean yes, I want you to join us.”

“Good. I have a few conditions first.”

“Uh-oh.” Trick looked at Declan with a grin and stepped closer to her. “More conditions.”

She kept her eyes on Declan. “I want to make sure there are no more concerns between us. You do say in class that communication is the key to all healthy forms of sexual expression.”

“What do you want to know?”

She shook her head. “I want to tell you what I know about this Kelley issue.”

Declan frowned. She’d heard that? “It’s not an issue for me, Jennifer.”

“This is all I know. My grandfather’s name was Ned. He was an Irish mobster who died before my mother and father were married. I know Dad and Uncle Sol had broken their ties with him before that and his father’s criminal record was one of the main reasons Sol decided to be a police officer.” She tilted her head. “I know every time my Dad hears the song Ned of the Hill he cries, and Seamus said it’s because it reminds him of his father. And I know he keeps a locket with a picture of his family when he and Sol were babies by his bed.”

Declan took off his glasses and folded them carefully. “That’s all?”

Jen nodded. “That’s it. At least, as far as I know. At no family dinner, no holiday, no crisis in our family have I once heard the last name Kelley—or anything about my notorious grandfather. Dad’s not a big believer in holding on to the past. He’s good like that.”

He shook his head. It was hard to believe, but she was obviously telling the truth. Declan wished he’d known that kind of family. The one she described.

She walked slowly until she was standing right in front of him. “Still, it would be interesting to find out what really happened to cause the rift. Ned and Rod were friends for life, then enemies until their untimely deaths.”

Declan’s lips curved. “That sounds like a song.”

“We’re Irish,” Trick reminded him with a shrug. “Everything sounds like a song.”

“We should research it and publish the story of Kelley and Finn,” Jennifer said. “It has everything—drama, friendship, betrayal, sex. I’ll make a note.”

She dropped her towel on the floor and reached around him, feigning interest in the papers on his desk as if looking for a blank page to write on.

“Sex?” Declan’s erection came back to painful life as her naked body pressed against his. He could see Trick licking his lips as he eyed the supple, rounded cheeks of her ass.

She stopped shuffling, straightened and looked up at him with bright blue eyes. “Sex,” she confirmed. “No story is complete without it. Two generations later, another Finn and Kelley realize the stupidity of holding a grudge and blaming all your problems on someone else’s long-dead ancestor. They have an insanely passionate threesome, doing unspeakably dirty things to each other to celebrate this newfound peace, until none of them care about what really happened, or why.”

“I told you,” Trick murmured, and Declan knew he was talking about Jennifer. She was one of a kind. Perfect for them.

He couldn’t stop staring at the pink skin between her thighs. The marks from her earlier punishment was still there. His marks. He wanted to feel the heat of them against his lips.

She put a firm hand on his chest. “Wait one minute, Professor.”

“You’re naked. Waiting is off the table.”

“Trick?” Jen motioned him closer. “I haven’t given all my conditions.”

Declan felt Trick’s hand on his shoulder and laughed. “Think you can stop me?”

“No, but she can, because she’s asking.”

Fuck. He studied her through heavy lids. “What else?”

Her hand caressed him through his shirt, almost unconsciously. “We’ve almost covered everything, I think. I’m old enough, I’m a discreet returning student not a minor, and I don’t particularly care about the Irish sob fest that is our genealogy. But you had one more issue, didn’t you? Something about scaring me?”

“Were you listening to that entire conversation?” he pushed out through his clenched teeth.

“Enough. Can I have your promise that if I use my safe word, you’ll stop? Both of you?”

“Of course,” Trick answered immediately, squeezing Declan’s shoulder hard.

“Even if it kills me,” Declan agreed.

“Then I trust you.”

She couldn’t know how conflicted those words made him feel.

“As for my concerns and issues? I think the both of you already know I’m open to just about anything, particularly role-play. I don’t like cruelty or serious mind fucks. I’m not a bitch or a whore…but I kind of love being a bad girl.”

Oh Jesus. She was negotiating.

“I don’t like sharp objects or being punished with neglect or withholding. If you need to punish me, you’re responsible for my well-being and safety at all times, and that includes any after care.”

“Are you done?” Declan was hanging on by a thread.

Her smile was pure temptation. It reminded him of Trick’s. How did she do that? “Almost, Professor. I want us to be together in every way possible. You two have me so wound up I’ll unravel if I have to wait too much longer. But I understand and respect the relationship you and Trick share. More than that—it turns me on. Seeing you together was an experience I wasn’t able to thoroughly enjoy due to our misunderstanding. Instead of the two of you flipping a coin for first place, my last condition is that you give me an up close and personal replay right here and now. I want to watch you together. Let me enjoy it as much as you do.”

Trick swore until the air around him turned blue while Declan studied the flush rising up her smooth, pale skin. He’d never met another woman like her. She’d been carried in, naked and bound like a pirate’s plunder, and now she’d just flipped the script on all of them. She was calling the shots.

She didn’t care about any of it. Their age difference, the fraternization policy, not even their strange family history. All the things that had him in knots, she’d brushed away like specks of dust.

Jennifer Finn demanded a command performance. She stood there like Eve in the Garden, as if she’d stepped out of one of his paintings just to witness Declan making love to Trick.

He had the strangest desire to kneel at her feet. He wanted to worship her with his tongue and teeth until she cried out in ecstasy. To make her as wild as her seductively direct words were making him.

“Do you agree to my conditions?” She asked when he hadn’t responded.

Declan reached for the back of his t-shirt and pulled it over his head, kicking off his shoes at the same time. “I agree.”

“Trick?”

“You know me, Jen.” Declan could hear his arousal and it fed his own. “I’m up for anything, as long as you are. Agreed.”

As he took off his pants, he was aware of her hungry gaze and what it did to him. Somewhere during her list of dos and don’ts, he’d found some control. She wanted to watch, and he wanted to please them both. Nothing else mattered. Not anymore.