A Delicious Taboo (9 page)

“Honey…Melanie, listen, please,” Calen pleaded.

“Where are my fucking clothes?” she screamed.

Four fingers pointed toward the recliner in the corner. The room fell silent.

Mel stomped over to the chair and dropped the towel to her feet. “Of course you wouldn’t be interested in anything more than just a fuck! You’re men after all!” She dropped her voice again, “Hey, let’s see if we can get the pathetic straight girl to come home with us!

How much fun would that be?”

Stepping into her panties, her body trembled with rage. “Why? Why would you do this to me? How could you? What the fuck did I ever do to you?”

The four stunned men watched her, standing silent and barely breathing, not wanting to upset her further, like that was even possible.

“Sweetheart, please…” Philip tried again.

Finally winning the battle with her bra straps, she fastened the front closure. “Believe it or not, fat straight girls have feelings too!” Mel tugged her jeans up over her hips and A Delicious Taboo

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zipped. “Ugh! It’s my fault; it’s always my fault! I can’t do anything right!” She gasped back sobs, trying not to humiliate herself further by crying in front of them.

Van recognized immediately not all of Melanie’s current anger and frustration stemmed from them. Her past was back with a vengeance.

Now dressed, she stomped through the living room on her way to the front door, still ranting, not allowing them to get a word in. “I love, loved you, all four of you! You guys have no fucking idea what you did to me before this weekend!” A single tear trickled down her cheek. “I knew coming here was a bad idea! I should have just been satisfied with getting myself off, fantasizing about you in my mind, because now, after being with each of you…”

Mel couldn’t finish. She was so angry, hurt.

“Melanie,” Jake reached for her.

“Don’t touch her, Jake,” Van warned quietly from the doorway.

Jake was about to protest when Calen’s hand settled on his forearm. Jake dropped his hand back down to his side.

In her current state, Melanie would be inconsolable. She needed to let go. The four men each prayed they would have the opportunity to clear the air once she’d calmed down.

“Melanie, please let us explain.” Philip tried a third time.

She was having no part of it.

Tugging her denim jacket on, she slung her backpack over her shoulders. Grabbing her helmet, she flung the door open.

“Mel, you shouldn’t drive…” Calen started, but Mel didn’t listen. “…Like that,” he finished as the force of the slamming door shook the room and everything in it.

“She’ll calm down before getting on her bike,” Van said.

“You sound pretty fucking sure of yourself,” Jake snapped. “We should go after her.”

He took a step for the door.

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“No,” Van said in a soft, but firm tone. “She needs to be alone right now. Running after her will only make things worse. We need to show her respect and leave her be.”

Philip strode purposefully to the window. “She’s standing on the porch. You sure we should just let her go?” He didn’t dare take his eyes off the woman.

The others walked to the window to watch their Melanie. She took a deep, calming breath and raced down the stairs over to her bike. They watched her fasten her helmet and mount the machine. She hit the throttle harder than necessary, and the bike fishtailed sharply as she pulled out onto the road.

“Van’s right.” Calen sighed. “Now, let’s see if we can’t find a way to fix this fuck-up.

Beer, anyone?”

“It’s not even noon,” Jake said, glancing at his watch. “Fuck it, I’ll take one.”

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Two weeks passed, and the four men had not once come into the nightclub. Mel was still furious with herself for being swept up into thinking there had been something more between the five of them than just a weekend of spectacular, mind-blowing sex. However, the writing on the proverbial wall was quite clear to her now that that was all it was.

Right off the bat, the men had admitted to her that at one time they had each been involved with women. Mel figured she’d just been used to assuage some need they had to get their rocks off with a woman once more. She’d helped to scratch their itch, and now felt used, dirty, and cheap. None of the four had even bothered to prove her thoughts wrong by showing their faces since she left them two weeks before.

They had all worked together to show her a side of herself she never knew existed, and she liked it. Craving this new sexual side of herself that the men had unleashed together, Melanie loved loving them. More than she loved being loved by them.

None of that mattered now. Men were men. It doesn’t matter if they’re straight or gay, she thought to herself. When they decide to go all caveman and hit a woman over the head to drag her back to their cave, they do!

Ugh! Men!

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At eight in the evening, Mel wandered into the kitchen to take her dinner break. Even two weeks later, she still festered and fumed at the emotions those four barbarians had stirred up in her. After eating half of her grilled chicken carbonara, she pitched the rest into the trash and shoved two cookies into her mouth, continuing to stew over her situation.

Only she would try to sway four gay guys into a straight relationship.

Well, that wasn’t true. She knew they were gay or bisexual, as it were, and was completely comfortable with it. She hadn’t tried to change that about them, nor did she want to. It didn’t bother her at all that they loved their respective male lovers and expressed their love in front of her. It didn’t repulse her to watch them fuck each other or pleasure each other with their mouths.

It turned her on.

No straight man had ever made her feel the way Jake, Van, Philip, and Calen made her feel, sexually or otherwise. They had worshipped her marred, imperfect body, making her feel beautiful. Making her feel wanted, desired, needed. They had not only devoured her physically, but emotionally and spiritually as well.

The four men were respectful of each other’s unions and her during the fuck-fest. Each couple remained committed to each other throughout the sexual escapades. Whether in the hot tub, the kitchen, by the pool, or on the pool table, each had been uninterested in the other men when they’d engaged in fucking her.

The only common denominator in the equation was her. Philip and Jake wanted to please her, fulfill her, and each other. Calen and Van were of a similar mind.

Individually, or as a group, they had satisfied each other and her. In turn, she had fulfilled something in each of them.

Then why in the fuck are they avoiding me?

“Ugh! Men!” she fumed under her breath.

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As she trudged back behind the bar, the familiar smell of cologne assailed her senses.

Her head shot up in the direction of the alluring scent.

There they were. All four of them seated at the bar. Four pairs of incredibly mesmerizing eyes thoroughly looked her over, focusing on her every move. After several seconds of uneasiness, Mel hurried to the far end of the bar and told her coworker to serve Van, Calen, Jake, and Philip at the other end.

“Sorry, Mel, they refused my service,” Justin said with a mischievous grin. “They said they’d wait till you finished your dinner break. They’re all yours, sugar.” He winked and ambled away.

Mel looked over her shoulder at the four handsome men. Their expressions were tense and apprehensive. It would be bad for business to just ignore them, she told herself. Several moments passed, and the four men continued to stare back at her. Lifting her chin, she walked over to the cooler.

With her back to them, she felt the weight of their stare. She set a bottle of each of their preferred brands on the bar and popped the caps. None of the men used a glass, so she grabbed two bottles in each hand and carried them to the end where they sat.

As she set Van’s in front of him, he grabbed her hand before she had the chance to pull it away. “We would like you to come and play with us, Melanie,” he said in a seductive tone.

Yanking her hand from his grasp abruptly, the motion rocked her off balance. She cleared her throat. “I think I made myself clear when I told you…”

“It was wrong of us to think we could pressure you into choosing between us. We were unfair to you, sweetheart,” Calen purred.

“The four of us have agreed to play nice together, Mel,” Philip cooed.

“Yeah, baby, we’re getting along,” Jake chimed in his sensual drawl. “And we’ll continue to do so, just for you.”

Melanie cast them a speculative glance. “What are you talking about?”

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With a grim nod, Van admitted, “We were assholes, love, and we’re prepared to beg your forgiveness.”

Jake nodded his agreement. “Yeah, honey, we’re sorry.”

“Baby,” Philip whispered across the bar. “We didn’t mean to hurt you.”

“We want to make it up to you, sweetheart,” Calen finished.

“I…” Mel started to speak, but was cut off.

“Please, let us make things right, baby,” Philip continued.

Mel looked at the four pleading men before her. She wasn’t sure what to say to them, but she needed answers. “It’s been two fucking weeks. What the hell took you so long to realize you were assholes?” she said, unwilling to let them off the hook so easily.

“We were working out some details, baby. For you,” Jake said softly.

“What details? What the hell are you talking about?”

“The moment you walked out the door, we realized something. You complete us, as individuals, as couples, you make us a family. I love Calen and cannot imagine my life without him in it. But I also love you and cannot imagine our life together without you.

Philip and Jake feel the same.”

Melanie recognized the sincerity in Van’s voice and expression as he spoke. Glancing at the other three men, she saw they were nodding in agreement.

“The morning you left, the four of us sat down to discuss what had happened. We knew we’d behaved like dumb fucks, and you were absolutely right in walking out on us,”

Van explained. “Together, we’ve made a decision to rectify that.”

“You’re leaving made us admit to ourselves, Mel, how much we all love you and need you in our lives. In whatever capacity you want us,” Philip continued.

“No! Not whatever capacity she wants! She has to be with us…”

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“Shut up before you blow it, idiot,” Calen cut Jake off with an elbow to the ribs. “Mel, we want the five of us to give living together a try. Philip and Jake have moved into our home, and when you move in, the five of us…”

“Wait a minute.” Mel choked on a breath. “What…are you…saying?”

Van reached for her hand again, and this time she didn’t pull away. “We’ve decided if you’ll have us…we’re prepared to share your attention and affection.”

Melanie was miffed and somewhat annoyed at his statement, but not quite angry enough to pull her hand away. The warmth of his caress she found comforting and reassuring. “So the four of you have decided I’m some plaything, a toy if you will, to just pass around whenever you feel like it? No, thanks, I won’t belong to anyone, nor am I interested in being treated like some sex object to slake your lust.”

“We don’t think that at all, Melanie.” Jake clutched her other hand in his. “The four of us love you. We all want to be with you, and we’re willing to do so under your terms. Caleb and Van have their room. Philip and I will have our room. And you will have your own room.”

“If you want company in your bed, Melanie, you alone will decide. Well, within reason.” Van chuckled huskily. “Because we all enjoy fucking you, tasting you, touching you, and well, to be honest, baby, you’re going to have to keep your door locked when you want to be alone.”

Melanie shivered, and her nipples pebbled beneath her shirt. Jesus, what the hell was going on here? This couldn’t possibly be happening.

“We want you to be the third, in both of our relationships. We love being with you in a ménage à trois, and if you’re agreeable, we’re not opposed to the group romp.” Calen waggled his brows at her, making her giggle.

“We’re good together, Mel, all of us, and we know you feel it too. Baby, we’ve been miserable without you, and none of us have felt right since you walked out,” Philip said. “We

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don’t expect an answer right now. You need time to think it over. We won’t rush you, baby.

Just give it some thought.”

With that, Jake and Van released her hands, and the four picked up their bottles and headed over to their usual table.

Mel watched them, thinking how much she adored them with all her heart. She couldn’t believe what they were offering her. The four of them when she desired. Only two of them when she desired. And none of them if she desired it… Right, like that would happen; she’d want them all the time. They would still have each other, they would have her, and she would have them, all four of them.

But for how long could they live like that?