Rebel on the Run (12 page)

“You can share anything with me,” Kaelyn promised, stopping short of admitting it wouldn’t change her love for the man in front of her. If ten years of believing he had abandoned her hadn’t destroyed her feelings, finding out about whatever kinky secrets he and his roommates shared certainly wouldn’t either.

She didn’t think so anyway. In fact, she was kind of wary that her love for him could turn to
in love
with him someday, if she wasn’t careful.

“Okay, we’re hanging up now. Good luck, Rebel, though I’m sure you don’t need it.” Mike waved right before the screen went black.

Bryce carefully closed the laptop and set it aside before taking a breath deep enough to raise his shoulders several inches. She went up behind him and wrapped her arms around his waist, laying her head between his shoulders.

“Can I guess what you’re about to say? Will that make it easier on you? I think if I hadn’t crashed into your life today, you’d be in that room with your friends. Am I right?” she wondered out loud.

“Probably. Yes.” He took it one step further. “Except maybe we’d all be in the living room. With Eli and the rest of the gang too.”

“But I didn’t get the impression you were gay earlier.” Kaelyn didn’t mean it as a criticism. She merely struggled to understand the big picture. There’d been no denying his arousal before she’d slipped from beneath him minutes ago. Where did this leave them? 

“I’m not.” He scrubbed his hands through his hair. “Well, I don’t know what I am. What you call it, I mean. I never was attracted to men before them. I like women, though. A hell of a lot. I l-like you, Kae. I want
you
.”

“And them too?” She wondered if it bothered her that he was attracted to so many people. Digging deep, she tried not to feel less special than he’d made her seem earlier.

Distress creased the corners of his eyes as he struggled to find the right words.

“Hey, look, you don’t have to explain anything to me.” She cleared her throat. “I showed up, unannounced,
really
unexpected. You didn’t have to take me in. This is none of my business. Maybe we got out of control before. Is that why you needed a minute? To think straight and figure out how to let me down easy? No problem. If you could change my tire, and maybe lend me some gas money, I’ll stay out on the couch in the living room. That thing was enormous. And I’ll be gone first thing in the morning. Out of your hair before I can screw up what’s between—”

“Stop right there.” Bryce turned, leaning in, invading her personal space with his bulk and heat. “Nothing about having you here is an imposition. More like a dream come true, okay?”

She swallowed hard as she stared into his eyes. What she saw there had her nodding.

“I don’t want you to go, Kae. It would kill me if you left. No matter what happens between us on a personal level, you’re welcome here. This is your safe haven too. You’ll always be my friend before anything else. I swear that’s true.” He held his hand out to her. And she took it. “I’m terrified that if I tell you everything, you’ll change your mind about letting me open your eyes to what sex can really be like. Part of me wants to be selfish and share that with you before I admit the rest. I know you deserve honesty, though. Enough bastards have taken that from you. I’m not like them. Not like my father. You should make your choice after hearing everything. The crew was trying to convince me not to be a total bonehead before I really fucked things up. They counseled me not to make a fatal mistake with you when they can see it means so damn much to me.”

“It does?” She waffled, the desire only growing stronger in her as they spoke of a world full of possibilities she hadn’t known existed. She felt like an ignorant noob. And a horny one at that.

“Yes.” He squeezed her hand and tucked her close to him as he lay on the bed again. This time she didn’t hesitate before curling into his embrace. He held her tight, breathing and organizing his thoughts for a while.

Then he said, “It started with Eli and Alanso. They went out to visit the Powertools crew when those guys were having a rough time. To help out with some insurance stuff after Dave had a serious wreck. While they were there, they walked in on the crew. Sharing. Each other.”

“Wow. I can relate.” She giggled, trying to ease the tension cording Bryce’s thick neck.

“I bet.” He glanced down at her and returned her smile. “Except Eli and Alanso apparently stayed. They watched, and maybe fooled around with each other some.”

“Well, if I’d known that was an option…” She wiggled her brows, making Bryce grin.

“Such a minx.” He pinched her ass, helping her stay focused, though she squirmed. The reaction aligned his thigh with her wet and swollen pussy.

She sighed at the incidental contact.

He grinned. “Okay, maybe this wasn’t a bad idea.”

“Keep going. What happened next?” She truly wondered—how did a relationship as complex as theirs evolve? Trying to hook up with Bryce alone had nearly freaked her out.

“Well, nothing for a while. Eli was afraid of fucking up our friendship. But Alanso was smarter and pushed him into taking things to the next level. He convinced Cobra to claim Sally too. Thing was, after so long together as a group, it seemed odd for them to exclude the rest of the Hot Rods in their developing relationship, I guess. We were curious about what it would be like between them after being friends so long and what it would mean for our gang. I think at first it was reassuring to have proof that it wouldn’t tear us apart. You know, that they weren’t going to go off on their own and leave us behind. And well, shit, Kae… It’s hot to watch them together. So many of us grew up without really knowing what love was.”

She nodded, frowning as she counted herself in that bunch too. Her parents had been hands-off caregivers, her mother drunk or stoned on prescription painkillers until she overdid it one night before Kaelyn had made it to kindergarten. Bryce was the only constant companion she’d had. Until he’d left too.

“To see what was possible when a pair of people, or more, committed to each other. Gave everything—heart, mind, body… It turned me on. Still does, every time. And being included in that sphere of positive energy means a lot to a group of oddballs like us.” He paused. “I’m not going to lie to you. I’ve done more than watch lately. Eli, Alanso and Kaige, they share their women with us. They let the rest of us bring their lovers pleasure—of course the girls have no objections—and know it’s an extension of what they can do themselves.”

Kaelyn sat up. “You mean…”

“Yeah, I’ve fucked Sally and Nola. And loved it.” He clenched his jaw, closed his eyes for a second, then opened them, searing her with the truth there. “I’d get off on letting Holden, Carver or Roman—hell, all three—pleasure you. Just think, Kae… The four of us, we could do so much for you. Give you more than you can dream of taking. No worries here about polite portions of lust. No stuffy preconceptions about a woman’s role in sex either. Take whatever you like. Everything you want and things you find out you desire along the way. You’d be gorgeous as they fucked you. Brought you ecstasy over and over, long after I’d run out of steam.”

She shivered.

“You’d do that for me?” she whispered. “You’d enjoy it?”

“Almost as much as I guarantee you would. I mean, you did say you wanted something better than vanilla, right? I think we’ve got that covered. Boring will not be a word you use to describe a session with the Hot Rods.” He stroked her hair, then down her back, his fingers restless as he promised her such a lascivious bounty. “I started doing it because I couldn’t have what I really wanted. I’d given up on ever seeing you again, lady. There was gloom in me I couldn’t shake. Not even after all that time. I think they saved my life. Sharing was a compromise. One I’d never dreamed possible.”

“How so?” She levered up so she could see him in the diffuse light.

“It allowed me to feel close to people. Not alone anymore. Without making me betray the memory of the girl I had pledged my soul to. You, Kaelyn. I didn’t feel like I was cheating. Having a girlfriend of my own, someone who’d never be as special as you in my heart. I wasn’t lying to them. But it allowed me to find some comfort, some closeness, some
intimacy
that filled the void in a way.”

Her heart ached for him. Why hadn’t she known he was out here? Hurting? Missing her half as much as she missed him.

“I’m glad you had that, Bryce.” She petted him, trying to calm the pulse pounding in his neck. Understanding the emptiness he described, she couldn’t blame him for doing something to alleviate it. She hadn’t been so lucky.

“It’s pretty recent. And kind of developing still,” he admitted. “At first Eli and Alanso shared Sally with the guys. But seven on one aren’t very good odds.”

“That bitch.” Kaelyn shook her head in wonder at how spoiled the mechanic had been. Good for her.

Bryce snorted. “Yeah, well, we can be kind of a lot for one woman. And so we started…experimenting. Some of the guys are bi and had been with men before. They sort of bridged the gap. And now, I guess it’s becoming kind of a free for all. Like you saw with Roman, Holden and Carver.”

“Yeah, they had Carver tied up. It looked like they were doing
things
to him.” She would have liked to have played Peeping Tom longer. Still, she blushed when she said, “With a belt and ropes. Wax too. And maybe some toys. I got the impression they were using rough sex to…salve him after this afternoon.”

“Really?” Bryce’s pupils dilated. “I think he’s been pressing Barracuda to play harder with him. I didn’t think Roman would go for it, though. He’s kind of…dark…sometimes. Especially after any memories today might have stirred up. I think he’s still dealing with stuff from his life before Hot Rods. Of all of us, he was on his own longest. Maybe that’s why Holden was watching. It’s complicated, Kae. We know we can trust each other. Barracuda probably wouldn’t feel safe unleashing that part of him unless he knew one of the guys had his back. They’d stop him if he ever crossed the line into unwelcome pain. They’d never let him hurt Meep. So he’s free to explore without fear. Only pleasure.”

Kaelyn shook her head, awed at the plentiful varieties of loving she’d been introduced to in a single day. So many flavors, and she kind of wanted to try them all.

“I think it’s beautiful, Bryce.” She kissed him gently. “That you guys have that kind of bond. I’m sort of jealous.” She ducked her head when she admitted it.

“No reason, lady.” He brought her back for another taste. “I want you at least as much as I want any of them. All of them together maybe. I’d do anything to make you part of what we have. But I’m not telling you that to rush you. One step at a time. For God’s sake, you’re practically a virgin by comparison.”

“Not for long. Right?” She peeked up at him from beneath heavy lashes. “Please.”

“I never could say no to you.” He kissed her, deeper this time. “And while there might be a lot of firsts today, that isn’t going to be one of them. I need to be inside you. Soon, Kae. I’ll try my best to make it good for you.”

“Thank God,” she practically purred as she rubbed herself along his body, tensed now for an entirely different reason. “Otherwise I might have had to go find one of your friends to help a girl out.”

“Don’t joke. They would do it in a flash.” He might have growled a bit as she recalled the way they’d eyed her as she made her way from the bathroom to Bryce’s bedroom earlier. A thick, juicy steak indeed.

As if summoned, another knock came on the door. Three hard raps that couldn’t be ignored.

“What now?” Bryce shouted, his head falling onto the pillows as he groaned.

The door opened and Holden appeared, looking flushed. Even at half-mast, the bulge he sported made a noticeable line toward his hip beneath the fabric of his sweats.

“They don’t need me anymore tonight, but I thought you might have changed your mind.” Holden leaned on the doorjamb. “Everything okay in here?”

Genuine concern radiated from the fun-loving man. Kaelyn’s heart squeezed as she interpreted his loaded silence as worry, for their future and for his friend. She wanted to reassure him she didn’t intend to break up their gang. No calling her Yoko.

“Fine,” Bryce answered. Then he added, “Much later, I want to know what went down in there.”

His cock jumped, nudging Kaelyn’s hip where they were pressed together. And suddenly, she had an idea. It popped right out of her mouth before she could consider, and dismiss it as ludicrous. Or ask Bryce for his feedback.

“Holden, have you ever watched someone lose their vanilla-virginity?” She couldn’t say what tempted her to be so bold. Except maybe that she wanted to prove to Bryce—Swinger too—that she could live in their world. Thrive there. Showing off seemed like dipping her toe in their waters compared to what she’d seen and what Bryce had described.

And maybe it was something more selfish than that. Her own desire burned through her, lighting every bit of her on fire. Not one but
two
sexy men focused on her. The thought had her ready to reach between her legs and take care of business herself. Never before could she remember being so needy. Aching so much.

“Nah, I’m kind of a recent pervert. Unless you count the rest of the Hot Rods, I guess. But…is that an invitation?” Holden asked, his pupils dilating at the same time Bryce cursed.

“Kaelyn, no.” Bryce tucked her tighter to him. “You should have something soft and romantic. Something fit for a princess. Especially our first time.”

“If that’s what you think of when you look at me, you’d better get over it.” Yanking away, she sat up and put her hands on her hips. “Haven’t you been listening to me? I’m not some delicate piece of china. Or a useless decoration.”

“You’re sure, lady?” He lifted to nuzzle her neck, tipping up her chin so he could stare into her eyes as she decided.

“Yes. Positive.” It wasn’t a lie. She licked her lips. “I want you to take me. And I want Holden to watch you make me yours. I’m more sure than ever that we don’t always get second chances in life. Things you have today could be taken tomorrow. I don’t want to waste this opportunity when I know tonight could be the best night of my life. Give me this, please.”