She glanced my way, then quickly dropped her eyes.
“Marco’s right,” Joseph said firmly. “Don’t use that word. You are not a slut. I respect you. Marco respects you. We care about you, Ashlyn. We want to be with you. Both of us.”
Her brow furrowed. “But that… That’s wrong. I’m supposed to be with you, Joseph.”
I bit the inside of my cheek hard enough that coppery blood spilled onto my tongue.
“But you want to be with Marco, too,” he told her. “It’s okay. We want it to be this way. This is how it should be. You were made for us, angel. Both of us.”
“I don’t understand,” she murmured, but her cheeks were pink with something other than shame.
“Marco and I like to share. We’ve always been this way.”
I remembered clearly how we’d fallen into this dynamic. Joseph and I had always shared a tight bond. I’d taken on the role of his protector when he was a scrawny kid, and I’d become responsible for him. He meant more to me than a brother, but I thought of him with similar affection I might feel for a younger sibling.
I was five years older, and I’d been with my share of women by the time Joseph was ready to lose his virginity. He’d opened up to me about how nervous he was. He’d asked me for guidance. So, I’d provided it. In person.
Telling him how to touch that woman to get her off had been the hottest experience of my life. It hadn’t taken long for us to start sharing in more extreme ways. Over time, Joseph had developed his tastes in his kinky toys, but I’d always been the one who was ultimately in charge.
We might not engage with each other sexually, but Joseph was still mine. Mine to guide and protect. I’d always had his back, and it had killed me when he’d disappeared. During his time hiding out in Cambridge, I’d worried he was dead.
That still stung a little, as did Ashlyn’s distance from me. She thought she was supposed to belong to Joseph because she’d been with him first.
We had to make her understand that wasn’t how we worked.
“My feelings about you haven’t changed because you kissed Marco,” Joseph told her. “I’m happy you want to be with him, too. Don’t you care for him?”
“I…” She bit her lip against the admission. She still thought it was wrong, a betrayal to Joseph.
“Tell us the truth,” he prompted in a deeper tone that made her shiver.
“Yes,” she breathed.
He trailed his fingers through her hair, and she leaned into his touch.
“Look at Marco, and tell him how you feel.”
Her sapphire eyes met mine. They were still dark with confusion, but she uttered the words that made my heart squeeze.
“I care abo
ut you, Marco. I thought I was scared of you, but I’m not. Not really.”
I nodded. “So, you understand? We both need you, Ashlyn. We’ll never get jealous or fight over you. We’re supposed to be together. The three of us.”
“Don’t you want that, angel?” Joseph asked, coaxing.
She nodded, still too shy to give voice to her secret longings.
“I need to hear you say it,” I told her. “Tell us you want us.”
She licked her lips. “I want you,” she whispered. “Both of you.”
I finally allowed myself to close the distance between us. I wrapped my hand around her nape and bent down to crush my lips against hers. She was soft under my mouth, pliant. She shuddered and opened for me, welcoming me. I kissed her until she sagged into Joseph’s waiting arms.
When she was trembling and gasping for breath, I finally released her.
“I think it’s time to punish our naughty girl,” I told Joseph.