Elemental Pleasure (5 page)

However
,
he did like sex, and he knew he and Carly would be so hot together they’d probably set the bed on fire.

Preston Kim. He was the unknown, a complication. Lance didn’t have a choice about letting Preston into his life, but he still didn’t know if the other man was a friend or a threat.

Grabbing the bottle of whiskey off the bar, he took it back to his room. The day was already fucked up beyond
repair;
he might as well end it drunk as fuck.

~~~~

Chapter Three

“Carly, are you al
l
right?”

Carly lifted her head and no
dded. Her blood was humming
with anger
, embarrassment
and unsatisfied desire. The way Lance had held and touched her had been terrifyingly arousing. It had taken all the strength in her body to walk away from him.

Preston followed her into her room, her dress in his hand. Her breasts were back in her bra, her wet underwear in place, but she still took the dress, holding it on her lap.

“Thank you.”

“Why don’t we go get some dinner? I think we need to get out for a few minutes, see some normal people.”

Carly laughed. “That’s a good idea
. Give me a moment to change.”

Preston nodded,
and then
touched her cheek with one finger before leaving.

Carly let out a breath and flopped back on the bed. Her skin was alive and tingling. She’d never been aroused so quickly before. Lance had handled her with a skill and complete assurance she’d never encountered, but which she certainly found exciting.

If Preston hadn’t followed her and invited her to dinner
,
she would be lying on her bed with her hand between her legs finishing what Lance had started. However, with Preston waiting she did
n’t have time, so she sl
ipped into the bathroom and cleaned up, then swapped out her lingerie for a much less complicated matching bra and panty set. She pulled on a gray
, wool fifties-
style dress with a full skirt and fitted bodice. She hadn’t brought many of her regular, far more casual, clothes, so this would have to do. Adding her boots, she pulled her hair back in a simple bun and headed out the door.

*****

Preston tasted the wine and nodded to the server, who poured two glasses. It was early, and the restaurant down the street from the hotel had just opened for dinner. They were the only diners, which was fine with Preston as he hoped this would be a private conversation. They were at a prime corner table, seated so they could look out the windows on either side, watching as the city wrapped up work for the day.

When the server left, Carly raised her glass to take a sip. He was both surprised and pleased by who she was. Because of his family, he understood that being partnered to someone with so much power and potential was a sign that the Grand Master thought highly of him and what he could do. Carly’s company had developed a console and game that was a living, changing thing. No cheat codes or walk-throughs worked in the world she’d created. The game watched how people played and l
earned from it, adapting
to their skills. That meant the game was thinking, not just randomizing. It was a brilliant bit of computer science, the brainchild of a beautiful woman.

Preston would be lying if he said the sight of her with Lance hadn’t excited him. He’d been standing there longer than they knew, watching them, his own cock hard in his pants. He’d been thrilled and aroused to hear his name on Carly’s lips as she rode the wave of passion. He’d only stepped in when he thought Lance was in danger of doing something that might ruin their
ménage
before it even got started, and
potentially damaging Lance’s
relationship with Carly. The other man might not know it, but Preston’s interference benefited all of them.

He and Lance would have to make their peace, but right now his main focus was Carly.

“Tell me about yourself,” Carly said. “We talked about me, but not you. What do you do?” She gestured to his hand. “How did you get involved with the Trinity Masters?”

Preston looked at the signet ring he wore, stamped with the Trinity Masters’ emblem. “Like you, I officially joined in college. I went to Boston College for my undergrad, Harvard for my PhD, and then did my post doc at Cal, which is how I ended up in San Francisco.”

The server came again and there was a pause while they ordered.

“I’m a partner in a small nano-tech firm. I started it with several friends from my PhD program.”

“I thought you were a chemist.
”

“I am. Nanotechnology is chemistry.”

“I thought it was tiny machines.”

Preston laughed, and then used breadsticks to diagram what he was talking about. Carly was smart, almost scarily so, and within minutes she was asking questions that could qualify as chemistry dissertation topics.

It reminded him that what was between them, all of them, was about far more than just sex or attraction. They were the building blocks of the future.

“I wonder what Lance does,” Preston said, as much to himself as
to
her.

“That’s a good question.” Carly turned to look out the window. “My money is on military.”

Preston thought that was a fair guess. “Carly, are you really okay, after what happened, after what he did?”

“Are you?” Her gaze searched his face.

He nodded, then smiled to show he was sincere. She seemed relieved, her shoulders relaxing.

“I shouldn’t have let it g
et that far. I didn’t mean to. I
t just happened.”

“It’s fine. If you want to be alone with Lance you’re welcome to do so, as long as you’re not hiding it from me.”

“You’re
really
okay with this?”

“I am.”
He’d been raised by a trinity. T
o him
,
the idea of Carly and Lance together w
as both arousing and comforting
because it felt right. He knew it wouldn’t always be possible, or practical, for all three of them to be
together, and he wanted his
partners to have a strong, solid relationship.

Her gaze narrowed. “You never answered my question
about how you got involved in…
this.” She kept her voice down. Around them
,
the restaurant was filling with early diners.

“I’m a legacy.”

“A what?”

“My parents, and by parents I mean both mothers and my father, were members of the Trinity Masters.”

Carly’s mouth dropped open in shock. “You…have two mothers.”

“Yes.”

She licked h
er lips, frowning
. “That’s why you were upset when I wasn’t excited. You understa
nd this, and I’m guessing you’
ve been looking forward to it your whole life.”

“Exactly.”

“Wow.” She sat back, wineglass in hand. “So people do have children?”

“Of course. You assumed they didn’t?”

“Actually, I did. I mean
,
isn’t it hard to work out? One person is always going to be left out. It’s biology.”

“My other mother, who I call Imo, was always a part of our lives. We lived next door to each other, and when I was young my father and Imo started a company together. My parents have done more to improve science education in the U
.
S
.
in the past
ten years tha
n in the fifty proceeding.”

“Wait, do they own Eduvation?”

“Yes.”

“I went to an Eduvation magnet high school. That’s how I got interested in computer science.”

“Two of my parents had the knowledge to make the company, to create the product, and my mother, my biological mother, who is civilly married to my father for legal reasons, made sure their dream could become a reality.”

“What does she do?”

“She’s a lobbyist.”

“So when they say
the Trinity Masters create relationships that build the future…they’re not kidding.”

“Exactly.”

“Still,” Carly picked up one o
f his nano-breadsticks and toyed with it, “that’s an awful lot riding on a very tricky relationship. The three of us didn’t even get through the ceremony without trouble.”

“We’ll work it out, but that brings up something I’ve been meaning to talk
to you
about. Since you had some time with Lance, I think it’s only fair that I get the same
time
with you.”

*****

“What do you mean?” Carly asked, suddenly on alert.

“I mean that
we should even the playing field.”

“This isn’t a race to the finish
.”

“You’re right, it’s not, and life isn’
t fair, but I’d like to
start out on some semblance of equal footing.”

“W
hat happened between Lance and me
doesn’t
affect the two of us. If anything
,
we’
re on better terms because we’ve talked. I don’t even know what Lance does for a living or where he lives.”

“And that’s somethin
g
we need to rectify. I’
d like to have a conversation with him, but you’re underestimating the power of physical attraction and connection. You and I are starting to form a relationship, a bond, but what we’re doing right now is no different than getting to know a new friend. What you did with Lance formalized in your mind the idea that he and you are now connected on an intimate level.”

Carly pushed a piece of fish around her plate, no longer hungry. “I understand, bu
t I won’t be a pawn in some competition between you and Lance
,
both of you
trying to see whose dick is bigger. That’s a precedent I’m not willing to set.”

“Fair enough.” Preston took a sip of wine and she watched his throat as he swallowed. He looked trim an
d dapper in his navy suit, blue-and-
white striped shirt and narrow pale blue tie. His hair, parted at the si
de, was just long enough so
one lock fell out of place, lying on his forehead. Without that
, he would have been
too polished, too put together.

“But—” He set his glass down. “Will you accept that I want to touch you, want to know, and want
you
to know, that we’re not new friends, not business acquaintances?”

He picked up her hand, and there was nothing she could do to stop her fingers from
trembling. “We’re lovers, husband and wife,
bound by a law and a tradition stronger than any other in this country.” He raised her fingers to his lips, kissing the back of her hand, then turning her wrist to tease her palm with the light brush of his tongue.

Carly took a deep breath, then let it out.
The desire and arousal Lance had ignited was still there,
waiting, hoping for a way to find satisfaction.

This wasn’t the flash-fire and heat of Lance
’s touch, but a slow, cool burn
like ice melting against skin. I
n a way
,
it was more intense as
Preston was forcing her to acknowledge what they were to each other. With Lance
,
she’d been lost to everything
,
but his touch. She knew, th
ough she couldn’t say why,
Preston wouldn’t let her do that.

“Preston, this is just…it’s a little too much. Too sudden.
We just met a few hours ago.
”

He nodded and set her hand down. “Then let’s not take it so seriously.” He smiled and there was hint of devilry in his dark gaze. “Let’s play a game.”

“A game?”

“Ye
s. I love games. You must too. After all, y
ou created the game of the future.”

“I’m assuming
you mean a sex game, not dominoes or RPG.”

“A sex game, yes.”

There was something about the way he was looking at her that had Carly pausing, trying to fit together what she knew about him, to look beyond what he was saying and
doing to what was underneath. W
hat code was driving that smile, that touch.

“If I had to guess,” she said, watching his face for his reaction, “I’d say that to you normal sex is what others would call sex games.”

One eyebrow went up.

“B
ut to you they aren’t games or
actually, they’re
more
than games.”