All In: Double or Nothing (12 page)

Tyler

I was surprised when Caleb showed back up in my room just an hour after giving Lauren a ride to her car.

"Hey," he said when he came in, not meeting my eyes.

"Hey. You're back already?" I asked.

"Yeah. Are you up for company?"

"Sure. I'm bored out of my mind." I laid down the remote I'd been flipping through the ten channels with.

"Where are your parents?"

"Gone to get some lunch. They're bored too."

He nodded, but didn't respond before sitting in the uncomfortable looking hospital chair under the TV. He chewed on his fingernails but still wouldn't look at me.

"Caleb, is something up?"

"Yeah. I want to ask you something while it's less likely you'll be able to kick my ass again."

Oh shit.

"This about Lauren?" I asked, already knowing the answer.

"Yes. Will you just hear me out before you freak the fuck out?"

"If it's that damn bad I can't make any promises."

He stood up and starting pacing, rubbing his hand through his hair. When I was about to yell at him to spill it already, he finally started.

"You're jealous of me right? Especially when I'm alone with Lauren?"

"Yeah, I guess."

"Because you think she might still want me?"

I blew out my breath, considered denying it, but then answered honestly. "Maybe."

"Do you think you'll get over that jealousy anytime soon?"

"I don't know. Probably not. Are you happy? Is that what you wanted to hear, that I'm jealous of you?"

"Yes, because now you might actually listen to what I'm about to suggest."

"What would that be exactly? Even if I am jealous, it's done and over - she picked me. Last night she told me that she loves me."

He cringed like those last few words caused him physical pain before he went on. "Not at first she didn't. She picked me, and if I hadn't left do you think you'd even be with her right now?"

"Honestly? I don’t know."

"And you probably think that if you hadn't been late that first night then she would have never ended up with me."

"I still regret that shit."  

"Right, it's sort of like both of us got screwed when it came to our first chance with her, so what I want is for you to give me another chance with her."

"Are you out of your fucking mind? Hell no."

"So you're okay with always wondering if she still might want to be with me?"

"No. I mean yes, she's with me so that's all that fucking matters."

"You're a more confident man than me I guess," he said with a shrug, sliding his hands casually into his pants pockets. "I'm sure it didn't matter as much while I was gone, but I'm back now. I know she missed me, and I think she may still care about me, even if she did end up fucking you because she was lonely and felt like I abandoned her."

"Whoa. You think you still have a chance with her? Hold on, did she say something to you?"

He smirked and wagged his finger at me. "Ah. Right there. There's that jealousy again. Wouldn't you like to know what was said, and what went on between the two of us when we were alone? Alone in my car where she fucked me in the front seat on our first date. Before
and
after we had dinner. And yes, I still hope there's a chance. I'm sure as hell not giving up."

"Goddamn you. I really fucking hate you right now," I told him, feeling my blood pressure rise.

"Feeling's mutual."

"What makes you think that if I was stupid enough to agree to this that Lauren would even go for it?"

"Won't know unless we ask, but what do you think she'd say?"  

I wanted to think she'd say "hell no", but would she? Is she happy with me, and has she put her relationship with him behind her? I was pretty sure she had before he came back, but now ...    

"If you have to think about it that long then you already know the answer, you just don't want to admit it," he taunted, knowing he had me.

"I love her, and I'm not going to lose her to you."

"Then what will it hurt? We can even give it a time limit and at the end of it, if that's true, she'll decide she wants you. End of story."

"I can't believe I'm even fucking considering sharing my girlfriend with you."

"We already have shared her, back when you screwed around with her behind my back."

"You know what I mean. So would she live with us and sleep in your bed one night and mine the next? That'll never work."

"I don't know, but I know I want her staying with us, and I'll do whatever it takes for that to happen." He shook his head and clenched his jaw. "Fuck. Even if it means her sleeping in your bed."

"Okay, then we leave it up to her. I want her to stay with us too."

"We'll have to have ground rules if we're going to stay civil and not beat the shit out of each other every day. She would never put up with that," he said.

"Like what?"

"Like no beating the shit out of each other! Other than that, we leave everything up to her, and respect her decisions regardless of how pissed off we get. And no sabotaging each other."

"I still think this is fucking ridiculous."

"Why don't we ask her? If she refuses and says she only wants you then fine, I'll man up and accept it."

He seemed awfully damn confident.

"You think she'll agree, don't you?" I asked. 

He gave me a smug smile that I wanted to knock off his face. "Let's just say that if we were betting, I'd go all in."

"Shit, it sort of feels like I'm going all in too."

…

Lauren

I slept for a few hours, then got up and showered at Jess's after I got a text from Caleb asking if I'd come back to the hospital around five. I had a feeling this was about the crazy idea he'd mentioned earlier, and I still wasn't sure how I felt about it. If Tyler agreed to it, then does that mean he doesn't love me since he's going to let me date someone else? Or does it mean he loves me so much that he wants to give me the chance to figure out for myself if he's the one for me? If I really loved him would I even be considering it?

I was confused, but I couldn't deny that a part of me was absolutely giddy with the thought of being with both of these men. Two guys that cared about me more than anyone else ever had. Two guys who were mind-blowing in bed. And it felt all kinds of wrong how hot it made me to think about being wanted by both of them.

When I walked into Tyler's room I was glad to see it was just him and Caleb. This wasn't something I wanted his parents to witness. I gave Tyler a kiss and asked how he was. He looked better. The only thing off was the expression of wariness on his face.

"Hey Caleb. What have you two been up to? Keeping your hands off each other I hope."

"Completely civil," Caleb said innocently, as he leaned back casually in the hospital chair with his hands behind his head.

"Good."

"So Lauren, there's something Tyler and I want to talk to you about."

"Um, okay?" I tried to steel my face and pretend like I didn't know what he was about to ask.

"What would you say about starting over with us both?" Caleb asked, leaning forward with his elbows on his knees.

"What does that mean? You have a DeLorean hiding in your garage?"

"I mean, you would pretend like you just met the two of us, and date us both, starting from scratch," he said.  

"Tyler, what is he talking about?" I asked, wanting to hear his thoughts on the whole idea, since he was so quiet.

"Baby, you know I love you, but I need to know if you still care about Caleb. Because if you do, I don't want you to settle for me. I need to know I'm all you want. If I am, then forget this whole conversation. But if you have any doubt then I want you to be honest with me."  

This was it, the moment of truth. Tell Tyler I only want him and always wonder about what could have been with Caleb, or ask for a chance with Caleb and risk losing what I have that's so good with Tyler.

"So you still care about him," Tyler said. It was a statement, not a question.

"You didn't give me a chance to respond," I scoffed.

"Which makes your answer clear. You can't say, without hesitation, that I'm the one you want."

The hurt on his face was one of the worst things I'd ever seen. Damn, I was one confused fucking bitch.

"Don't cry baby. It's fine," Tyler said, and I realized tears were running down my face.

"No, it's not. I don't want to lose either of you."

"You're not going to lose us. You get both of us, because we care about you so much we'd do anything to be with you," Caleb said.

"Although he's a jackass, he's right about this."

"So what would this mean? You get joint custody of me, swapping every other weekend? You know this is ridiculous," I told them, wiping the tears from my face.

"It's an odd arrangement, but we're leaving the logistics up to you. Whatever you decide, we agree not to beat the shit out of each other, to respect your decisions, and not to sabotage the other," Tyler answered.      

"You're serious?"

"Yes. So will you move back in with us?" Tyler asked.

I couldn't help but laugh. "Are you out of your mind? Where will I sleep? The couch?"

"Hell no. You'll sleep with me or with him, up to you," Caleb said, like it was just a matter of choosing between flavors of ice cream, not which man to be intimate with while the other was rejected and still had to sleep under the same roof.

"This sounds like all three of us are going to end up getting hurt."

"No more than we already have. We'll give it two months, unless you decide sooner, and if you've spent seven of the eight weeks in Tyler's room then I'll get the hint and move out. If not then we'll have to decide what to do then," Caleb explained.          

"Two months to live with you both, sleep with you both, and make a decision?"

They looked at each other and then nodded. I wanted to ask what happened if I was never able to make a choice between the two of them, but I decided to keep that to myself.

"So do we have a deal?" Caleb asked. He was much more excited about this than Tyler. Caleb had nothing to lose. Tyler on the other hand knew he had me, but was willing to risk losing me.

"I have a feeling this is going to blow up in my face, and end with me losing you both, but if you promise me that won't happen then I'm in. Losing one of you will kill me. Losing you both will destroy me."

"I promise I won't leave you unless you tell me we're done," Caleb said.

"I love you too much to leave you, no matter what," Tyler said less enthusiastically.

"Okay. It's crazy and unconventional but if you both want to do this, then let's try it and see what happens."

"I've got a favor to ask. Can we postpone the start of this until I'm out of here? I feel like I'm at a disadvantage laying up in a hospital."       

"Agreed. Although if I were you Ty, I'd milk the sympathy bit as long as I could," Caleb responded.

"And I plan to, when I get back to my bed."

"Has the doctor told you when you might get to go home?" I asked.

"Are you that eager to let the games begin?" Tyler asked, a trace of anger in his voice.

I rolled my eyes and waited for him to answer.

"Maybe tomorrow, if everything keeps going like it has been. They took out the IV, and I'm only taking pain pills by mouth every four hours or so. No sign of infection, so I'm good to go."

"Good."

"Yeah, I may have to have a talk with the doctor to push up your release," Caleb said with a grin.

"Bastard."

"Ignoranus," Caleb countered.

"Dude, I think you mean ignoramus, and right back at you."

"Nope I meant ignoranus, you stupid asshole."

"You two sound like nine-year-olds and I just agreed to date you both. I'm such a lucky girl," I joked, but damn if it wasn't the truth. I was already trying to figure out whose bed I was going to end up in the first night.     

Tyler

She'd actually agreed to it. Lauren had agreed to date me and my best friend, after telling me she loved me. I couldn't say I wasn't a little surprised. I'd wanted her to protest and say no to the whole thing, but she hadn't. Now we were starting from scratch, or so we said. After the weeks spent with Lauren I, without a doubt, knew her better than Caleb, and I cared about her more than him. Regardless of how I felt about her, it must not have been enough for her to forget about him.

The next day I was glad to be going home from the hospital and sleeping in my own bed, but I was nervous about the possibility I might be sleeping alone.

I settled in on the couch in our living room, embarrassingly exhausted from the walk up the sidewalk to get into the house. Lauren picked up Chinese food for dinner, and the three of us ate in silence. The same thing was on everyone's mind, and I hadn't missed Caleb's blatant attempts at flirting with Lauren every chance he got. By ten that night I already knew her decision by the way she looked at him, and it stung worse than two bullets.

"So, um, Tyler, I was thinking I'd give you the bed for the next few nights so I don't hurt your shoulder or leg while I'm sleeping."

"Hell yes! I mean, that's really thoughtful of you Lauren," Caleb jumped up, unable to contain his excitement.

"Nights like plural? How many nights will it take before I'm not considered glass?" I asked Lauren. She was sitting with her legs crossed and a book on her lap beside me on the couch.

"Tyler, even if you weren't hurt I'd still probably make the same decision."

"And why is that?" I asked.

"Ty, you agreed not to bitch about her decisions," Caleb threw in.

"I'm not bitching. I'm asking for her reason. How about you let her decide whether or not she wants to answer it."

"Guys, please stop. This isn't going to work."

"Tyler, tell her you'll shut the fuck up," Caleb said, his teeth clenched because he was getting pissed at me.

"I will shut the fuck up. All I want is an explanation."

"Fine," she said, slamming her book closed. "If you really want to know, I'll answer that one, but this is going to be too hard to do if we argue every night. Caleb just got home from being gone for ten weeks. I missed him, and I feel guilty that I was cheating on him with you all those weeks."

"Oh okay. Glad to know it's just a pity or guilt trip fuck," I threw back at him.

Caleb laughed. "You think I give a shit what the reason is?"  

"Enough! One more word from either of you and I will move back in with Jess. Then you can both date me, drop me off at her place at night, and go to bed alone."

Caleb mimed zipping his lips, then with a shit-eating grin, picked Lauren up in a fireman's carry and headed to his room.

"Caleb!" she yelled. "I can still change my mind."

"But you won't," he said confidently before shutting his bedroom door.

Well, looked like it was time to pop in a pain pill, find some earplugs, and pass the fuck out.

…

Caleb

God I'd missed this woman. The last two days it'd felt like we'd picked up right where we left off. Hearing Lauren's laugh and seeing her smile again was even better than I remembered. The only thing missing between us since I got home was what we were finally about to do.

After I carried Lauren into my room I shut my bedroom door and let her slide down the front of my body until her bare feet hit the floor. My arms circled around her small waist, pulling her flush against my body from chest to hip. The look on her face told me everything she didn't need to say. She missed me and wanted me. 

"Thank you," I told her, after pressing a quick soft kiss to her lips.

"For sleeping with you tonight?" she laughed.

"For that, and for giving me another chance. I wasn't sure if I'd ever get to kiss you again."

"I missed you," she said softly, blinking back tears in her beautiful green eyes. I had no idea until this moment how much my leaving had honestly hurt her.     

"Good, because I missed you so damn much. And tonight we're going to make up for a lot of lost time," I told her with a grin.  

"Oh really? I thought you'd have me up against the wall and be in me by now. At this pace we'll never-"

My lips on hers put an end to her words, and when my tongue delved into her mouth she relaxed and melted into my arms. Her arms reached up and wrapped around my neck, holding me to her tightly. God, my memory had been sorely lacking on how it felt to kiss her. When we finally broke apart, panting, I pulled her shirt over her head and she reached for mine. She gave a small sound of appreciation.      

"Somebody's been doing some crunches," she teased, as she rubbed her fingertips down the ridges of my more defined abs, all the way to the waistband of my jeans. Unbuttoning and unzipping them she pushed them and my boxers down while I stripped her of her pajama shorts and panties. Lifting her up from her bottom, I carried her the three feet to my bed and laid her down before climbing on top of her, our tongues continuing to tease and explore each other's mouths.

When my mouth began a descent down her body she stopped breathing and went still.

"I thought about you every day. How good you feel." My mouth and hands ravished her breasts. "How beautiful you are. How good you taste."

Moving lower I kissed her flat stomach, just before my lips softly placed a kiss between her legs.

Three more open mouth kisses later and she was writhing under me. "Please Caleb," she begged.

"Please what sweetheart?"

"I want your mouth on me."

"My mouth is on you. You'll have to be more specific," I said with a grin, looking up at her from between her thighs, before teasing her with another kiss on her most sensitive flesh. 

"Oh God! Fuck me with your tongue," she moaned. My tongue snaked out and licked all the way up her slit before retreating, making her whimper and yearn for more.

"What is it you want me to do with my tongue?" I asked, intentionally holding out on her to make her lose her mind.

"Fuck me. Please make me come," she begged, then moaned and arched her back when my tongue pressed against her clit. I hit just the right spot, over and over again until she exploded.

She still hadn't come back down when I entered her, the waves of her orgasm continuing to flow, making her inner walls clench around my cock.

"Oh God I've missed you. Missed this," I told her before grabbing her bottom with both hands to raise her hips, grinding my pelvis against her clit. She wrapped her legs around me and cried out as the pressure started building inside of her again.

"You want me to make you come again?" I asked, before my mouth locked onto her throat.

"
Yes, please God yes
!" she moaned, loud enough for our neighbors to probably hear, then she grabbed onto my shoulders as her body started shaking uncontrollably, and I found my own incredible release inside her. Ten weeks had been way too long.

I clutched her to me, probably almost uncomfortably so. My lips brushed lightly over her forehead, then the tip of her nose, across her cheek and down to her shoulder, needing to make up for all the missed touches and kisses while I was away. I regretted leaving her so damn much, and now I was going to show her how much I cared about her. I was going to remind her of how fucking good we were together, and damn it, I wasn’t going to give up until I made her mine.