Neil, Louisa - One Queen with Two Kings (Siren Publishing Ménage and More) (16 page)

Chapter Eight

The drive to the closest town was only half an hour
,
but Thea hid her smile several times when she heard the men gasp or take a deep breath at her skills behind the wheel. She admitted to herself that she was driving a bit faster than usual, especially on the twisting mountain roads. Good, let them sweat, she decided, knowing she wasn’t out to harm any of them, just
to
release some of the angst she carried from her newfound information. She turned on the radio to a news station,
alleviating
any need for conversation. She found a spot on the main street and pulled into it
with
ease.

Parked in front of a small restaurant on the main street, she stood taking deep breaths of the cool air when they exited the car. “I’d like to wander a bit. If you guys want to eat, go ahead and I’ll catch up.”

“No, I’m not hungry,” Dexter said, falling in step beside her.

“Russ, what about you?”

“I’m not sure if you want to be alone
,
or what to do?”

“I told you both back at the house, I’m leaving that all behind for a few hours. You two have had two years to discuss your emotions and feelings,
but
I’m still shell
-
shocked.” Thea wandered ahead and glanced in a store window. “That would look adorable on Lucas,” she said, pointing to a knitted cap with a lion design. “I’ll be right out.” She bought the hat in a cloud, wondering where her life would be in a year, in a month, by the end of the day.

After dropping the package in the car trunk, they wandered up and down the main thoroughfare. She was patient when both men shopped for new jeans and walking boots. “How about we drop these in the car and get some food. Suddenly, I’m famished.”

She chose the restaurant and was amazed when they all settled in as if last night and this morning hadn’t happened. While she was happy for the status quo, she kept waiting for a remark to spoil their lunch. By the end of the hour, with a full stomach, she finally relaxed. Thea saw hints of the relationship they used to have, the easy
,
carefree friendship she’d come to know and anticipate. It was the first time they’d laughed together as they had before the plane disappeared.

None of them carried their cell phones
,
so they were left in relative peace. There were a few glances from
passersby
who thought they might recognize them, but nobody approached them.

After lunch, Thea headed directly to a chain drugstore. While the men wandered the
ai
sles, she grabbed some chips and candy. She also took one of every magazine on the stand. She blatantly avoided the tabloids. Her last choice was several boxes of condoms, all shapes and textures. She had no trouble standing on line at the checkout to pay for her purchases. In the past, she would have been embarrassed to buy condoms. However, in the past that hadn’t been a need. She’d been on the pill and still was. The condoms were what she thought she should buy in case their sexual situation changed.

It dawned on her that Dexter and Russell had been having unbridled, unprotected sex on the island. It hadn’t dawned on her to make Dexter use a condom when he came home because she was still protected from pregnancy. But she couldn’t shake the idea that they should be using them. Neither man commented on her purchases. Thea decided she’d feel better using them for a while to make sure there were no pregnancy surprises if she decided to sleep with both men.

Her last stop was at a grocery store for supplies. She’d laughed aloud as both men started piling their favorite foods in the cart. Their drive home was much more sedate th
a
n the ride into town. Thea commented that their time in town went smoother than she’d anticipated. “It almost felt natural for us to be together. Like all this time hadn’t passed and I hadn’t found out your secret.”

“You can have those days back,” Dexter said offhandedly.

“Only if I accept you and Russell together
,
too. If I ask you two to separate, Dex, I’ll always wonder what you two are doing together when I’m not around. Nevertheless, I feel it would be worse to live every day wondering. You surely have left me in a quandary. And I thought you being gone was tough.”

“I can settle this for you right now.” Russell drew a deep breath, as if what he was going to say would hurt him physically. “I can leave, relocate to the
W
est
C
oast and start over out there. It would probably be the best solution
,
since I know I can’t go back to the corporate life. I’ll have to find something new to do with my time and for a living.”

“Just don’t write a book about our time on the island.” Dexter’s joke fell flat
,
and Thea tensed at the wheel, braking the car automatically at his words. “Sorry, that was a bad joke.”

“No, it’s absolutely true. I’m not sure what’s worse, sending Russ away and having you resent me every day or keeping him close and wondering what you two do when I’m not around.” She pulled into the driveway of the rental house and parked the vehicle. “Let’s head inside and relax as best we can. Your secret is out, so let’s make some decisions like adults. I have questions about you two on the island
,
and I’d appreciate answers.” She opened her car door and paused. “I could use a drink
. What
about you two
?
” Thea let herself into house and assumed the men would bring in their purchases.

They worked easily around each other in the kitchen, putting groceries away and prepping the steaks. Dexter opened a bottle of wine and filled three glasses. “It’s still pretty sunny
. Should
we take this out on the deck?”

“
So we can all relive last night
?” Thea had thought the words but hadn’t meant to say them aloud. Hurriedly, she added, “I’m sorry, that was rude.”

“But accurate,” Russell said, grabbing a bag of potato chips along with his wineglass.

“I’m sorry, Dex
.
I didn’t mean to say that out loud.”

“I’m glad you did. We’ll all be better off if we keep this honest. So say what you want and ask your questions.”

Settled in lounge chairs on the deck overlooking the snowcapped mountains, they all kept their jackets on against the chill. The three of them were quiet for a while
,
enjoying the view. Finally, Russell spoke.

“I feel like I’m waiting for the other shoe to drop. Thea, ask your questions and we’ll answer you honestly. I’m not going to keep my life a secret anymore.”

“I think I need another glass of wine,” she said, refilling her glass and then handing the bottle to Dexter. “I’m in the mood to get shit-faced just because…I’m so tired of being the responsible adult.”

“I figure we all deserve a few days of not being responsible after everything we’ve all been through.” Dexter handed the wine to Russell.

“Speaking of being responsible, Russ
,
when you called us at the lake house, you told me to tell Dex all your blood work was clean. You didn’t mean sand fleas or ticks
,
did you?” She watched his face blush bright red.

“No. We
,
Dex and I
,
decided to make sure we didn’t have any communicable diseases.”

“Since you’d been fucking on the island.”

“Yes. And if you think being blatant with me will embarrass me, Thea, I’m long past that. I knew I was clean before the crash, had just had my yearly physical for the company, but we wanted to make sure.”

She looked to Dexter. “But you came home and made love to me without a second thought. If you were thinking about being safe, why not when you got home?”

“Because I’d just had my company physical before the crash
,
too. I knew I was clean. The tests when we got home were really just about bug bites from the island.”

“But it is a confirmation that we’re both disease free.”

“So you had no problem continuing your sexual relationship. Why did you let me buy all those condoms in the pharmacy today?”

Dex gave her his best smile. “It didn’t seem like the most opportune place to discuss this situation. Besides, if you want to use them, we will.”

“Even though I’m on the pill?” Thea sat back and sipped her wine. “You let me get them in case I invited Russ to join us.” Her statement was more to reinforce the idea to herself th
a
n to her men. That was a first
. She
was referring to Dex and Russ as her men. In the back of her mind
,
she’d been wondering what it would be like to kiss Russ, to let him touch her intimately. She wondered what his cock would feel like in her body. Thea didn’t dare let on she was thinking in
that
direction. She had questions and wanted answers before making any final decision about bring
ing
Russ into her sex life.

“Real life will start in a few days, boys. We need to make some decisions amongst us before going back to civilization. They will affect how we present ourselves to the public and the press.” Thea sipped from her glass. “I need to know some things even if just to satisfy my curiosity.”

“Ask your questions,” Russ said. “I’m way beyond hiding about this with you two. I figure the more honest we are with you, the easier it will be for you to make a decision, hopefully the one I want.”

“All right, how did you two start being intimate?”

“I wasn’t very mobile for the first months with my leg in a splint.” Dex raised his glass in a mock salute to both of them.

“I finally got tired and frustrated listening to Dexter whine about you every night. Out of anger, I finally told him I’d been in love with you from the first time I met you.”

“That was a shock to say the least. I’d known he was attracted to you, but I didn’t realize he’d actually been in love with you all these years.” Dex stood and walked to the railing, staring at the mountains.

“I never realized it either. Does that make me blind or you a good liar?”

“Probably both,” Russ admitted. “I did go out of my way to hide my feelings, for you and for Dexter.”

“Dexter, you never felt his feelings were more than friendly?”

“No, that’s how blind I was
,
too.” He turned, walked back and topped off their wine. “But that one night, he was throwing things around and kicking the sand and finally he just blurted out that he’d been in love with you and me forever. I can honestly say I was confused.”

“I’d never felt so relieved in my entire life. Finally, I didn’t have to guard each word and movement. After that, we spent a few days giving each other a lot of room.” Russ paused to sip his wine. “I went inland and just came back once a day to make sure Dex still had water and food. Then I’d head back inland. He was beyond angry for a while. Finally, after about a week, I was so lonely I just came back to the camp and pretended I hadn’t let it all slip out.”

“Dex, what did you do?” Thea asked.