25. Max

I'm fucking gobsmacked.

I thought Darcy and I were having a moment. I told her how beautiful she was; I opened up about wanting more of her. I said all the things women love to hear. Not that they were insincere—I meant every word—but I was confident I could predict the effect they'd have on her.

Nope.

Would you be up for a threesome?

Who the actual fuck is this woman?

Because I think I'm in love.

I bark out a laugh. People don't shock me. Not in business. Not in bed. But I sure as hell didn't see that little proposition coming.

‘That's a heck of a non sequitur,' I splutter, but I'm not affronted. I'm tickled as fuck.

‘Yeah.' She smiles and takes a sip of her wine, her blue eyes wide above the rim of the glass as she waits for me to expound.

‘Where did that come from?'

She puts her glass down and shrugs. ‘Answer the question and then I'll tell you.'

Okay then. ‘Why not? I'm sure you're well aware I'm more than fine with group activities. The more the merrier, I say.'

‘That's what I thought.'

‘What about you?'

‘I've never had one.' She twirls her wineglass by the stem, avoiding my eyes. ‘And it's really been bothering me. It was one of the main things on my bucket list for when I got back here, but my cockblocking sister won't let me loose in Alchemy.'

‘Hmm.' I take a sip of my wine as I survey her thoughtfully. ‘Well, as you know, I'm happy to fill up that greedy little bucket of yours whenever you like.'

We grin at each other.

‘Any particular… catalyst for this admission?' I ask casually. ‘Are you thinking a man or a woman? Because God knows I'm fine with both.'

Her mouth twists. I didn't think Darcy had a self-conscious bone in her body, but she looks almost bashful as she meets my eyes. ‘A man.'

Isn't that interesting? ‘So you want even more cock than I gave you last night, you greedy little slut? Would this "man" be someone you met tonight, by any chance?'

‘Yeah,' she confesses. ‘And I know this is—you and I are casual, but I also don't know how the hell something like this would come about unless we're in Alchemy and it's, like, a spontaneous free-for-all.'

‘It's definitely easier at Alchemy,' I muse. ‘So, who was this guy? Do you think he'd be game?'

She laughs then. ‘No. Honestly, I think he'd be absolutely horrified. He'd run for the hills.'

I frown. ‘So how come you've brought it up?'

‘Because I know he wants me, even if he doesn't want to.' She covers my hand with hers on her thigh. ‘And I'm definitely attracted to him. But then I thought, why not have both of you?'

A smile spreads slowly across my face. ‘You little fucking beauty,' I drawl. ‘Why not indeed? You want both our cocks at the same time, do you?' God, the mere thought of it has me hardening in my shorts.

‘Well, I thought about it in the cab over here,' she confesses. ‘And then I couldn't stop thinking about it. And I like to think I'm pretty liberated, but clearly I haven't messed around as much as I should have, and, honestly, the thought of both of you naked with me is so insanely hot that I can't even handle it.'

‘You wouldn't be able to handle it, you little wench,' I mutter. ‘You'd fucking combust with pleasure when we made you take our dicks.'

‘Oh, God,' she groans, shifting on her chair, her hand clamped on mine so it stays securely on her thigh. Like I have any plans to move it away.

‘You didn't tell me who he is,' I press. ‘I might know him from Alchemy.'

She snorts. ‘You definitely won't. He's an Alchemy virgin—tonight was his first night stepping foot in there, and he didn't even go into The Playroom. It's Belle's brother, Dex. He just moved back from New York.'

‘Belle's brother, Dex,' I repeat. ‘Don't know him. What's their surname?'

‘I dunno,' she says, visibly wilting. ‘Bugger.'

I reach for my phone. Let's take a look at this guy who has my little minx frothing between her legs. ‘Was he at your sister's wedding?'

‘No, but he would have been at Belle and Rafe's, obviously. Were you there?'

I shake my head. ‘I don't know them well enough. But I do follow Belle on Instagram—she's been sourcing some art for me to liven this place up.'

Her feed is a mixture of professional and personal. Paintings from Liebermann's, the high-end gallery she works for, and beach shots. She and Rafe spend far too much time on holiday, from the looks of it. I hand my phone to Darcy. ‘Here. Have a look through—see if you spot him.'

She bites down on her lip as she scrolls, and I take her in with pleasure. She's seriously fucking adorable: fun, and uninhibited, and sexy as fuck. Asking me to raise the kink factor is the icing on the cake.

‘Ooh,' she says, staring at my phone. ‘Group shots. Hang on—Yes! Bingo.'

She passes the phone to me, and I swear there's a flush on her face.

I roll my eyes. ‘Let's see him, then.' I look down and freeze, because the guy on my phone screen with his arm around a radiant Belle isn't just attractive.

He's a Greek fucking god.

I take in the triangle of olive skin at the open neck of his shirt, white tie undone and hanging loose. The dark hair raked carelessly back. The easy, sexy smile that shows off his white teeth. His eyes, which are—I have no fucking clue what colour they are, but they're remarkable, that's for sure, and they're staring straight at me, and the way I would bend this guy over and fuck that smile right off his face is nothing short of?—

‘Jesus fucking Christ,' I manage, putting the phone reluctantly down between us on the island.

‘Right?' Darcy asks. ‘He's hot, isn't he?'

I laugh mirthlessly. ‘He's hot, all right.' What a grotesquely inadequate term that is for such aesthetic splendour.

She cocks her head. ‘Is he—do you…?'

‘What is it you want to ask me, sweetheart?'

‘Do you like men, I guess?'

‘Yes.' I watch her face and see only curiosity and, I think, pleasure.

‘Do you sleep with guys?'

‘Yes. Not as often as I fuck women, but yes.'

‘At Alchemy?'

‘Mainly, yeah.'

‘Huh.'

‘Why the huh?' I ask her.

‘No reason—it's just—the stuff my sister told me about you, it always sounded like the woman was the focal point in your, um, interactions with Anton.'

‘She was.' I stride over to the fridge and yank the door open, pulling out the open bottle of white so I can refill us both. ‘I've never laid a finger on Anton.'

‘Do you find him attractive?' she presses.

‘Obviously. It would be impossible not to find him so. He's objectively an incredibly impressive physical specimen. But he's far more interested in women, and anyway, we're both tops. It would never have worked with him.'

‘Ahh,' she says, like this is a revelation for her. ‘Of course you are. So if we—if I managed to convince Dex, somehow, would you be…?'

I laugh again, and once again there's an edge to it, because this conversation and this guy's photo have both got me hard, and there's zero point in even entertaining the idea of anything with him. ‘Poor guy,' I tell her. ‘Not only have you ensnared him in a threesome without him having any clue, but you're also conspiring to have me royally fuck him, too. Unlikely.'

‘Oh.' She deflates, her shoulders dropping, and slumps on her bar stool.

‘Did you get the impression that he likes men?' I ask.

‘Not in the slightest,' she says, and it's my turn to slump. Inwardly, that is.

‘Listen, sweetheart,' I say, filling her glass up, ‘if you can find a way to get this guy over the threshold of The Playroom and into a private room, then I'm game.'

‘Really?' She brightens. ‘Because I asked him if he'd be up for coming to watch me dance, and he kind of looked like he wanted to run for the hills but also come in his pants.'

I throw my head back and laugh a genuine laugh. ‘Poor fucker. I bet he didn't know what had hit him when he met you. But what man could say no to watching you dance?'

‘I dunno,' she mutters. ‘He's skittish, that one.'

‘Get him to the club,' I order. ‘I'll take it from there. If he wants to lay a finger on you, he'll have to do it in front of me.' I slide my hand around the back of her neck and caress the delicate skin there. ‘And if you, my beautiful little thing, want both our cocks, I'll find a way to make it happen. I'm extremely good at ambushing people—I learnt from the best. You understand me?'