Rhythm of Three (Rule of Three)

Dedication

This is for everyone who wanted more of Kassidy, Chris and Dag’s story—thank you for loving them as much as I do!

Chapter One

“Do I have to go to work?”

Kassidy burrowed under the covers, her front pressed up against a hard male back, her arm around his middle. Behind her, Chris’s body warmed her, his fingers stroking hair off her cheek.

“Yeah,” Chris whispered. The voice of Katy Perry emanated from the clock radio beside the bed. Damn that alarm clock. “Sorry, sweetheart.”

“I think we should take a sick day.” The hard male body beneath her arm began to shake and then Dag shifted, rolling to face her. He propped one hand up on an elbow and smiled down at her.

“You feel sick?”

Kassidy met the gleam of laughter in his dark eyes. “No. I just want to stay here in bed with you guys all day.”

Two men. In her bed. And she didn’t want to leave.

After all the emotion and drama of the last few days, it was hard to believe that things were more or less settled now. Well, as settled as they could be, when three people were embarking on a
ménage à trois
relationship that still boggled the mind. All she knew was she didn’t want it any other way.

“I’ve got a big meeting at nine,” Chris said, now stroking a hand over her shoulder. She felt his lips, warm on her shoulder blade. “Can’t call in sick.”

“I’ve got a flight to make,” Dag said.

Kassidy froze, eyes flying open wide despite her fatigue. “What?”

“Kidding.” He touched her nose. “I’ll cancel the flight.”

She closed her eyes briefly. He’d planned to leave Chicago, with a flight booked to San Francisco that he very nearly had ended up taking.

“Asshole,” Chris said behind her.

Dag grinned. “I was joking, but at some point I’ll have to go back to San Francisco. I still have my apartment and all my stuff there. Gonna have to deal with that.”

“Oh.” Kassidy let out a soft exhalation. “Of course. That’s going to be a big job.”

“Uh…yeah. Got a lot of shit. Furniture. Clothes. Computer stuff.”

Kassidy squinted at Dag in the dim bedroom, even as Chris continued to caress her shoulder and arm. “What are you going to do with it all?”

Dag pursed his lips. “Not sure.” He grimaced. “Haven’t had much of a chance to think about it.”

Of course he hadn’t. Only last night they’d all agreed he was going to move in with her and Chris. Their new condo was nice, and even had three bedrooms, but there certainly wasn’t room for a whole bunch more furniture. But it didn’t seem right that Dag had to give up all his stuff. Unless maybe he lived a sparse bachelor lifestyle and his furniture consisted of a leather recliner chair and big screen TV.

“Maybe we could all go back with you and help,” Kassidy suggested, partly curious about his life in San Francisco.

His eyes warmed. “Yeah. Maybe.”

She shifted in the bed so she was on her back between her two guys. “D’you guys think we should move to a new place?”

They both stared at her.

“Uh, why, hon?” Chris asked. “We just bought this place.”

She hitched one bare shoulder, glancing at Dag, then back to him. They’d talked about this briefly last night. “I know,” she said softly. “We did just buy it, and I love it. But this is
our
place. As in, you and me,” she said to Chris. “Maybe it would be nice to have a place that really belongs to all three of us.”

“I’ll pay the mortgage payment,” Dag said immediately.

“Fuck off, you will not,” Chris snapped.

“You don’t have to do that,” she said to Dag, a gentler way of reiterating Chris’s comment.

“I can afford it,” Dag said. “Why not?”

“You’re not supporting us,” Chris clipped. “That’s not what this is about.”

“I fucking know that,” Dag said, eyes narrowing.

“Okay, this isn’t the time to discuss this,” she said, lifting her hands to touch both their chests. “Clearly, we still have a lot of things to figure out. We can talk more tonight over dinner.”

She felt a little of the tension ease out of both their bodies and then she got a kiss on each cheek. She closed her eyes, pleasure filtering through her as they leaned in and kissed her—three of them together in the big bed, the soft sheets wrapped around them, their body heat warming her, their individual scents combining in a heady, sexy fragrance. She really did just want to stay there all day, with them. She sighed.

“We’ve got forever, babe,” Dag whispered. “Right?”

She smiled at him, the impatient, reckless one, counseling her about patience. “Right.”

“I’m grabbing the shower,” Chris said. His hand on her belly slid up between her breasts to her jaw, turned her face toward him and his mouth captured hers in a hard, fast kiss. Then he climbed out of bed and disappeared into the bathroom off their master bedroom. She couldn’t help watching his big, naked body, admiring the flex of muscle in his ass and thighs. When she turned her gaze back to Dag, he was watching Chris too.

They smiled at each other. “He’s hot,” she whispered.

“Yeah.” Dag’s fingertips cruised over her cheek and jaw. “He is. And so are you.”

Heat washed down through her. “I have meetings today too,” she whispered as Dag wrapped his arms around her and rolled to his back with her on top of him. “How the hell am I going to concentrate on work?”

“Hmmm.” Dag nuzzled the side of her neck. Her skin tingled everywhere. “You can do it.”

“Guess I have to.” She tried to pull away, but his arms tightened. “’Kay, let me go. I need coffee.”

He landed one big hand on her butt in a little spank that weirdly felt good. She wriggled on him, felt his cock stir and grinned.

“Get out of here,” he growled. “Before I make you late for work.”

Still smiling, she slid off the bed and found her silky robe where she’d dropped it over the arm of the chair yesterday. Barefoot, she meandered out of the bedroom, the hardwood floors of their condo cool and smooth beneath her feet. In the open concept kitchen/dining/living room, sun flooded in the front windows, dappled by the maple trees that lined their street. Beyond the green leaves, the sky was clear blue. A gorgeous June day.

Holy crap. She paused at the kitchen counter and her head whipped around to look at the calendar on the wall. With everything that had gone on the last few days, she’d completely forgotten Chris’s birthday was this Thursday.

His thirtieth birthday. A milestone.

She needed to do something about that.

She added water to the TASSIMO, popped in a T DISC and started the appliance to brew her cup of coffee. Dag would drink a Coke—if they had any. Things had been a little unsettled the last few days.

Saturday night they’d had a party to celebrate her parents’ thirtieth wedding anniversary, although it had been a tiny party since her mom was still recovering from her car accident. At the party, Kassidy had had that run-in with Hailey, her sister, which had been upsetting. Then the next day, Chris had kicked Dag out of their home. Their threesomes had never included the guys having sex—until that night, when Dag had initiated it, and Chris hadn’t been ready to face his feelings for Dag. That had been even more upsetting. After that, everything was kind of foggy. She had no idea if they had food in the cabinets or Coke in the fridge.

She drifted across the small kitchen and opened the fridge door. Oh thank heaven, a couple of cans of Coke sat on the top shelf, along with the beer Chris and Dag both liked. She surveyed the other contents of the fridge, trying to plan a meal for that night. God, she hadn’t even cooked dinner Sunday or Monday night. She’d been too distraught to eat lunch on Monday and might have eaten a few crackers Monday night, but again she’d been so upset, she hadn’t been interested in food at all.

But she’d done some shopping Saturday before the party and she found some chicken breasts, some tomatoes and peppers. She had pasta in the cupboard and a loaf of crusty bread they’d never even cut into… They were good for tonight.

Chris emerged from the bedroom, damp hair combed back off his face, dressed in his suit pants and shirt. He was fastening the buttons at his wrists, his tie hanging loose around his neck.

“Want coffee?” she asked him, admiring his broad shoulders beneath the crisp blue fabric of his shirt.

“Mmm, yeah. Americano.”

She popped another T DISC into the TASSIMO and slipped another mug under it, then picked up hers and sipped it. “Dag in the shower? Or can I use the bathroom now?”

“He was still in bed.”

Their eyes met.

She drifted toward him and laid her hand on the side of his neck. “Okay, honey?” she murmured.

He closed his eyes briefly. This was pretty fucking enormous for him. “Okay.”

“I love you.”

“Love you too. So much, Kass.”

His hands reached for her hips and pulled her to him. Mindful of the mug of coffee she held, she let him press her body against his and kiss her again—this time, deeper, longer, a kiss full of so much emotion.

“I know it’s crazy,” she whispered to him. “But it’s what we all want. What we all need. Right?”

He nodded, forehead against hers. “Yeah. I’m just… I could freak out again if I let myself.”

“Don’t let yourself.”

They both smiled. “I’ll work on that,” he said, voice gruff.

“Remember. We’re both here for you. Dag and I.”

“I know. Christ.” He closed his eyes.

She looked up at the sound of quiet footsteps and saw Dag standing in the door opening of the kitchen, one shoulder leaning against the frame. Bare-chested, he wore only a pair of boxers that sat low on his lean hips. He was also worthy of some serious studying with his smooth, dark skin and sleek muscles. She met his eyes. Was this okay? She and Chris having a moment alone in the kitchen?

They’d talked a little about how none of them could be jealous. But talk was easy…

Dag’s eyes crinkled at the corners as they met hers, his gaze warm. Nope. No jealousy. He straightened and moved toward them. He set a hand on Chris’s upper back, rubbing up and down a little, his other hand coming to Kassidy’s shoulder, almost embracing both of them. “Got any Coke?” he asked.

She grinned at him. “Yeah.”

He kissed her forehead and then headed to the fridge.

She met Chris’s eyes again and his mouth lifted into a grin too. “Fucking weird,” he muttered.

“Who’s weird?” Dag demanded. He popped open the can of soda with a snap and a hiss. “I’m not weird.”

“We’re all fuckin’ weird,” Chris said. “That coffee done?”

“Yeah.” She reached for it and handed it to him. “We might need to make a bathroom schedule,” she said. “I mean, we do have two bathrooms, but—”

“Shower’s not big enough for three,” Dag commented with a frown. “Unfortunately.”

She laughed. “Come on. We can’t shower together every day.”

“No?” Dag’s eyes gleamed as he drank his Coke

“No,” she said firmly. “Please. Leave me a little feminine mystery. I’m not shaving in front of you guys, or…or other stuff I do. I need some me time. And probably not only in the shower,” she added.

Dag’s eyes warmed. “Sure, babe. Whatever you need.”

“Right now I need to get ready for work. Unlike you guys, it takes me a long time.”

“Go on,” Dag said. “I’m not on a schedule like you two are. At least not yet. And hopefully never.”

Kassidy laughed as she swept past him and Chris. Dag liked to be his own boss, never one to work a nine-to-five job, sitting in an office. When he’d first come to visit, she’d thought he mocked Chris for his paid employment—even though Chris was ambitious and goal-oriented, and becoming Vice President of Product Development before he was thirty years old was quite an accomplishment. Turned out Dag respected Chris and his hard work and ambition, even though it looked different than his own.

She took her coffee with her to the bedroom and did her morning routine, still in a bit of a daze about all that had happened. She couldn’t seem to wipe the smile off her face as she put on makeup and blow-dried her hair. Finally dressed in a spring suit of pale pink with a silky, sleeveless pink blouse beneath the jacket, she rejoined Chris where he sat reading the newspaper, a plate beside him with crumbs indicating he’d eaten some toast. Dag was stretched out on the couch, still in his boxers, drinking a Coke and watching a morning news show.