Texas Tangle (21 page)

Dillon didn’t. Realizing Brett had stopped, he frowned. “What are you waiting for? She needs you.”

Not needing any further encouragement, Brett returned his attentions to Nikki. He lowered himself over her. Heat rose from her skin, calling to him, soothing him. The scent of her arousal clung to his chin, his cheeks, enveloping him. With one hand he guided the head of his cock to her opening, then pressed in inch by inch.

Though going slow damned near made him whimper, he forced himself not to rush. Last time he’d taken her against the door in a frenzy. This time he wanted to show he could be gentle. She deserved to be worshipped. Loved. Tonight he would give her anything she desired. No matter what his body wanted, all he cared about was her pleasure.

The pair were locked in each other’s gazes, unaware of anything else, any
one
else, as Brett parted Nikki’s swollen folds.

When Nikki grabbed Brett’s biceps, begging him to take her harder, Dillon bit back the urge to groan and urge his friend to do what she asked. He understood Brett’s need to go slow, while cursing his own lack of control. Even though they’d promised the night would be for Nikki, she’d ended up sucking down Brett’s dick then later he’d pounded into her from behind, hard and fast. Oh, she’d come when he’d gone down on her earlier, and again while he was inside her, but she deserved to be pampered, to be cherished.

Brett knew that, and could control himself to put Nikki ahead of his own desires, to give Nikki what she needed, what she deserved.

They both deserved better than he could give them. He’d never shared a lover before, and he’d half expected to be jealous, but watching the love on their faces, seeing the care Brett took with Nikki, the total look of adoration on his face, hearing Nikki begging for Brett—not Dillon—to fill her had convinced him he’d been right in suggesting the threesome. He’d heard Brett’s whispered declaration of love, but now he was seeing their mutual love firsthand. How could he be jealous in the face of such complete devotion? Of such selfless love?

This night wouldn’t just be for Nikki. It would be for Brett too. To make up for that time ten years ago when he’d driven his best friend away.

Sometimes saying sorry isn’t enough
. Isn’t that what Nikki had said? Would this be enough to convince Brett how sorry he’d been for hurting him?

What a shit he had been to let a fit of jealousy separate Brett from the only people he’d ever been able to trust. Yeah, tonight would be for both of them. Tomorrow they’d probably be wondering if things had changed, especially since Brett tended to overthink things. So tomorrow he’d make sure they didn’t have any regrets over anything they’d done tonight.

Brett groaned when the full length of his cock nestled between Nikki’s glistening labia. The deep-throated sound thrummed through Dillon’s chest and into his balls.

Nikki’s breath hitched and the look of sheer pleasure as her eyes fluttered closed had come leaking out of Dillon’s dick, his balls drawing tight to his body.

Brett’s languid movements as he withdrew from Nikki then slowly slid his cock in again, combined with Nikki’s soft mewling, became an erotic dance, with Dillon an entranced spectator. Watching them make love so tenderly, compared to the frantic coupling they’d done against the front door and their obliviousness to his presence, made his voyeurism that much more erotic.

When Brett bent down and kissed Nikki, Dillon had to squeeze the base of his cock to stop himself from coming too soon. His balls ached when Nikki dig her fingers into Brett’s ass, smelling the heady musk of their mutual arousal. His hips jerked in time to Brett’s thrusts as they gradually increased their tempo.

Nikki’s arms and legs wrapped around Brett while he held onto her as if she anchored him to the world, the two of them still joined in the most intimate way a man and a woman could be. Afraid of breaking the spell of their shared release, Dillon soaked in the love enveloping them, filling the room until nothing else existed.

Seeing his friends in the throes of passion drove Dillon over the edge. Not wanting to sully the gift they’d granted him, he grabbed the towel he’d discarded earlier, covering his cock as his release splattered over his hand.

After a long moment of the two of them clutching together, Brett rolled off of Nikki and, after disposing of his condom, settled on the other side of the bed beside her. Nikki reached out, tugging Dillon until he rested beside her.

“I’m sorry,” she said softly. “I’m not sure how things work having to please two guys at the same time. Would you like me to—” A blush staining her cheeks, she withdrew her hand from his and reached for the towel covering his groin.

“Don’t. You don’t have to apologize.” Before she could remove the towel, he caught her hand, lifting it to his mouth and kissed it. “It was beautiful to watch.”

“Don’t you need—”

“No, Nik. Sssh. I’m fine.” He stroked her face, caressing the tender skin just above her eyes until they fluttered closed. “Go to sleep, baby. I’ll be right here.”

He reached down and snagged the sheet. Brett grabbed the other side, his look cautious as together they draped it over Nikki. That his friend still didn’t trust him not to betray his word cut as deep as any knife. “You should get some sleep too, buddy.”

After a short hesitation, Brett nodded, then he stretched out beside Nikki.

Once Dillon turned off the remaining light, he lay back on the pillows, aware Brett was staring at the ceiling the same as he, both listening to Nikki’s soft breathing. If only there was some way the three of them could stay like this forever. Because if there wasn’t, he had to make sure Nikki chose Brett. There was no way he could in good conscience come between two people who shared such love, such devotion. But the thought of making good on his promise, of standing as Brett’s best man, was going to hurt more than having his balls ripped out through his throat.

Chapter Twelve

Nikki awoke to a hand stroking the arm she’d thrown over Dillon’s warm hard body. Giving a groan of contentment, she snuggled closer and buried her face in his chest. “I could stay here all day.”

“As much as I’d love that, we’re gonna have to get up soon or we’re gonna be late.”

“Late? For what?” She cracked open one eye and found Dillon watching her. Though his lips were quirked up in a smile, there was a strange expression in his eyes as they looked past her. Her eyes opened wide, finally realizing there was another warm hard body—with an impressive erection—cuddling her back.

“It’s Sunday, remember?” Brett murmured against her shoulder.

“Which means we have dinner at my parents’ place.” Dillon brushed a kiss over her hair and patted her hip. “Hit the shower, sweet cheeks. I promised Mom we’d be there in a half hour.”

“A half hour? I can’t get ready in a half hour.” She dashed to the bathroom and screeched when she got a look at her hair. “Oh my God, I can’t go to your mother looking like this.”

“What’s the matter? You look fine.”

She tugged at the tangles and the bump of hair on one side. “Fine? This is not fine, Dillon.”

“It’s only a family dinner. You’ve been there a half-dozen times now. Well, maybe four because we missed last week.”

She turned on the shower and stepped into it, ducking her head under the water. “Exactly. It’s your
family
dinner.” Shampoo. Where the hell was her shampoo? “That means your mom. And dad.”

There it was. Water running into her eyes, she grabbed the bottle and squirted it on her hand, then slapped it onto her head. “Your brothers. Your sister.”

She scrubbed, trying to work up a lather. “It’s your whole freaking
family
.”

Not to mention that I’ve just slept not only with you but your foster brother too!
Yet he expected her to waltz in between the two of them as if nothing had happened?

Why wasn’t the damned stuff lathering? She stared at the bottle. Shit! It was the conditioner!

Brett rolled from the bed and joined them in the bathroom. He shot Dillon a glance Though he was wearing his cop face, which meant she couldn’t tell if he was amused or concerned. “I think Nik’s concerned about facing them after what we did last night, Dill.”

“Uh, gee, d’you think?” She ducked her head under the spray again and washed as much of the conditioner out as she could, then squirted the shampoo directly onto her hair.

Dillon frowned as he peered over Brett’s shoulder. “They won’t know. I’m not about to tell them. Brett won’t either.”

God, sometimes guys could be so clueless. It didn’t matter who else knew. She knew. How the hell was she going to look at Mrs. Barnett in the eye again?

She slammed the shampoo bottle onto the shelf but only got half of it on the ledge and it fell off onto her toe. Her shriek echoed off the bathroom tile. “Goddamn it!”

“Go call your mom, Dill. Tell her we’ll be late and to hold dinner until we get there.” Before Dillon could argue, Brett shut the bathroom door and locked it, leaving Dillon on the other side. He stepped into the shower and wrapped his arms about her. “Breathe.”

She tried to push him away, frustrated that she was losing control while he was so calm. “But—”

“Ssshh. Just relax. Take a deep breath.” Once she had, he told her to take another, and another, rocking her until she was limp against him. “Don’t worry about the Barnetts. They won’t judge you.”

“But—”

“No. No buts.” He tightened his arms around her and tucked her soapy hair under his chin. “They are the nicest people I’ve ever met. Dillon’s right. They don’t know you slept with both of us, and we’re not about to say anything. But even if they did know, they’ll be nothing but polite to you.”

“Until I leave.”

“No, even then they won’t say a word against you.” His hand rubbed up and down her spine. How did he know how to say just the right thing? “They’re good people, Nik. You can trust them to treat you right.”

“That’s why you’re so afraid of losing them, isn’t it?”

“Yes.”

She pulled away and looked up at him. “I’m glad they took you away from your father so you could live with them.”

“So am I.” He tucked her back against him. “So am I.”

On the way to the Barnetts’ house, Nikki sat between them. The fifth time she reached for the radio, Dillon grabbed her hand and held it flat against his thigh. “Stop worrying.”

“I was just going to turn it up.”

“You turned it down less than thirty seconds ago. You’ve been playing with it all the way here.” He shared a glance with Brett. “Do you want me to turn around? Call Mom and tell her we’re not coming?”

“Would you?”

“I could.”

She eyed him suspiciously. “Why did you say it like that?”

“Like what?”

“The way you dragged it out like that. What are you implying, Dillon?”

“We cancelled out last week, and I missed that week you first moved in too, remember? Mom said if I cancelled out this week, she’d round everyone up and bring them all over to my place.”

“She would, too,” Brett agreed.

“Then she’d make us do the dishes afterward.” Dillon frowned and turned onto the county road leading to his parents’ place. “There are a lot of dishes to do on Sundays. Like quadruple the amount we normally have.”

“Dillon, doing dishes is not a chore when you’ve got a dishwasher.” They both looked outraged at her statement. It wasn’t until she settled back, thinking she’d won her argument, that she realized Dillon was pulling into his parents’ driveway. Shoot. They’d tagteamed her into not watching where they were. Now it was too late to back out.

Dillon parked his truck beside a beat-up old Chevy. “Hey, Griff’s home.”

He hopped out of the truck and swung Nikki down. She noticed that Brett kept a decent distance away from them. While she knew it was necessary to maintain the illusion, she wanted to hold his hand.

She was chewing on her thumbnail when the front door swung open. Mrs. Barnett swooped onto the porch with a smug look on her face. She hugged Dillon first, then Brett, and turned to Nikki. “I’m so glad y’all could come today. With Griff working all over the state these days and Ethan at college, it’s the first time the whole family’s been together in ages.”

She led them into the house, talking over her shoulder as she went. “When Dillon phoned, I thought he was going to try to cancel again. But I told him that if he did, I’d just pack everything up and bring everyone over to his place.”

As they passed the living room with its faded couch and upright piano, Brett leaned over and whispered, “You didn’t believe us, did you?”

She shook her head as they entered the dining room. While she already knew Dillon’s family, her nerves jumped to see Dillon’s brothers, Griffin and Matt, grinning a smile identical to Dillon’s as if they knew full well what had happened the night before. Middle brother Ethan and Dillon’s sister Lilly sat on the opposite side of the table. While they were nodding and smiling, they didn’t make her stomach flip-flop. She took a deep breath and took her seat, telling herself she could get through this meal.

At least until she glanced to the head of the table where Dillon’s father sat, a frown on his face, his dark eyes, normally sparkling like Dillon’s, solemn and penetrating. She wiped her hands on her skirt. Did he suspect what had happened?

From the chair to his left, another pair of sharp chocolate eyes scanned her.

Mrs. Barnett placed her hands on the shoulders of Dillon’s grandmother. “Nicole, you remember Jackson’s mother, Ruth, don’t you?”

“Yes, ma’am. How are you, Mrs. Barnett?”

Gramma Barnett flicked her gaze from Nikki to Dillon for a moment then turned to Brett and pursed her lips. From the few times she’d met Dillon’s grandmother before, she got the feeling that little escaped the woman’s attention. With a curt nod of her head, Gramma tapped on the table. “Glad to see you made it this week. Now where’s dinner? I’m hungry.”

Feeling as if she’d just been judged, and passed inspection, Nikki exhaled a slow breath.

As plates were passed around the table, and the family settled into a half-dozen different topics in which everyone voiced an opinion, Nikki gradually relaxed. She’d half expected that Dillon might try something inappropriate considering he was sitting right beside her, but he kept his hands to himself the entire time.