The Dare Menage Series, Book 3
Jeanne St. James
Genre: Contemporary Erotic Romance,
LGBTQ, Menage, MMF
LGBTQ, Menage, MMF
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He was dark. So dark, she couldn’t keep her gaze from
him…
When Paige Reed spots a man across the room at a party,
she’s fascinated and decides she wants him in her bed. Fortunately, her
husband, Connor, doesn’t mind. He’s attracted to the powerful man too.
Always bi-curious, the right opportunity has never presented
itself to Connor Morgan. Until now. He doesn’t mind bringing another man into
their marriage as long as it doesn’t drive a wedge between him and Paige.
Former NFL player, Graedon Ward likes to be in control. He’s
more than pleased with Paige's obvious interest. However, she makes it quite
clear: it's a package deal. If he wants her, he has to take on her husband too,
and past experience has taught him that’s a dangerous road to travel.
The chemistry between the three is explosive, but it’s
Grae’s desire to share the same level of intimacy he sees between Paige and
Conner that puts real pressure on the threesome. And it may cause it all to
crash and burn.
Note: This book in the
series can be read as stand alone. It includes an HEA ending. It is intended
for audiences over 18 years of age since it includes light BDSM as well as explicit
sexual scenes between all three characters.
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Chapter One
He was dark. So
dark, the rich, deep tone of his skin reminded her of a ripe plum. She couldn’t
ever remember seeing someone quite so black. Because of this, her gaze kept
drawing back to him. It was rude to stare, she knew, but she didn’t seem to
have any control over it. She couldn’t keep her eyes off of him.
His head looked
smooth and beautifully shaped. He had the type of structure which made bald
look good.
Never a fan of
facial hair, Paige Reed rarely liked it on a man. But this man’s goatee was
neatly trimmed and fit his face perfectly. A thick gold hoop earring hung from
his left ear. He wore a well-tailored suit. He probably had no choice but to
get his suits either made for him or, at the very least, tailored to fit. His
shoulders were broad, his thighs thick.
She thought her
brother-in-law was built like a beast, but this man outsized him. He was enough
to intimidate anyone crossing his path.
But not Paige.
He fascinated her.
“You find him
attractive, don’t you,” her husband’s whisper came, close to her ear.
Not posed as a
question, but she answered anyway, “Yes.”
“I’m not sure why
you married me, then. I’m as pale as a person can get,” he teased.
Paige brushed her
fingers through her Connor’s dirty blond hair, ruffling it a bit. “No, you’re
not. You worship the sun. And it was that sexy Aussie accent of yours that
caught my attention.”
“It made you wet.”
Paige
half-shrugged and gave him a smile. “Still does.”
Connor brushed
away a strand of hair from her cheek. “Hmm. Good to know. But you like him.”
“He’s interesting.”
“He’s dark,”
Connor stated.
“Yes.”
“His skin tone is
extraordinary. I like it too.”
“Should I be
jealous?” she asked.
“Should I?”
Connor’s vibrant blue eyes twinkled.
Paige laughed,
shaking her head. “We’ve talked about this. Jealousy is not allowed.”
“I wonder what
he’d say if he knew what we were talking about.”
“Or thinking,” she
added.
“He’d probably run
like hell.”
“I don’t know. I’d
hope not.” Paige regarded the man across the room talking to her brother. “I’ve
never seen him before. I wonder how well the guys know him?”
“Could be Quinn’s
friend. Or a former co-worker of hers,” Connor suggested.
“Coming to Ty’s
fortieth birthday party? I doubt it.”
“Maybe he’s
related to Ty.”
“Maybe we need to stop speculating and
ask,” Paige suggested.
“You want him.”
Again, not a question. Just more of an, are
you sure?
“Do you?” she
asked.
“I like what I
see. But I need to find out what’s up here.” He tapped his temple.
Suddenly, Tyson
White slipped between the two of them and squatted. Even though the man had
retired from the NFL years ago, he was still in extremely good shape, and his
shoulders were wide enough to brush against them both.
Not that Paige was
going to complain. She and Connor always flirted with Logan’s boyfriend, now
husband. But it was always in good fun. Ty loved it and neither Logan or Quinn,
their wife and mother of their child, minded.
Ty cocked his
eyebrow at Paige. “Why are you staring at Grae like a piece of meat?”
“Was it that
noticeable?” she asked, surprised.
“Uh, yeah. Hard to
miss.”
Paige shrugged.
“He’s hot.” Grae. What an interesting
first name. She wondered what it was short for. Maybe it was a nickname.
Ty looked behind
him for a second at the subject in question, then turned back to Paige. “Yes,
he is.”
“Who is he?” she
asked. “Current or former player?”
“Retired. Sort of.
Left the NFL after a debilitating medical issue.”
“Like what?”
“Like, I’m not
telling you his secrets. You’ll have to find out for yourself. And anyway, why
are you guys so interested?” Ty asked, suspicion thick in his question.
Hmm. The man was a mystery she might
have to solve.
Connor spoke up,
“Well, you know, there’s a certain man I’ve been trying to get into my bed for
a couple years now, but for some reason, he keeps resisting.”
Ty lifted his left
hand and pointed to his ring finger. “I’m married if you’ve forgotten.”
Connor chuckled.
“I haven’t.”
“And I have a
kid.” His face lit up. “And another on the way.”
“Oh, shit.
Congratulations! You sure Quinn wants everyone to know?” Paige asked him.
“You aren’t
everyone. You’re family. But keep it on the D.L. since it’s early yet.” Her
brother-in-law pushed himself to his feet and stepped back from the table.
“C’mon. I’ll introduce you to Graedon. I won’t warn him about the depraved
things you two are probably planning for him.”
“Oh please,” Paige retorted as she stood and
took Ty’s arm on one side, her husband’s on the other.
Ty escorted them
over to Paige’s brother, Logan, who had been deep in conversation with this
mystery man.
“Hey, hot stuff,”
Ty greeted his husband. “Should I be jealous that you’ve been talking to this
handsome hunk of a man for an hour now?”
Logan offered his
hand, and Ty took it. Logan drew the darker man into his side, his arm slipping
around his waist.
Darker, Paige
thought, but not nearly as dark as this…Graedon.
She liked the name on her tongue.
And that wasn’t
the only thing she’d like on her tongue.
Wow. She shook her head. She normally
wasn’t this depraved. Something about this man just drew her in like a fly to
honey. Paige held out her hand. “Hi. I’m Logan’s sister, Paige.”
Graedon gave her a
slight smile and, with a quick flick of his eyes, looked her up and down—didn’t
that make goosebumps flood her
body—before clasping her offered hand within his.
His grip felt warm
and firm, and his hand dwarfed hers. Paige marveled at the contrast of their
skin. Their clasped hands reminded her of a yin and yang symbol: opposites, but
complementary.
Connor cleared his
throat.
Paige released the
man’s hand, heat climbing into her face, though it seemed Graedon was in no
rush to break the contact either.
Logan waved a hand
towards Connor. “Grae, this is my brother-in-law, Connor Morgan. The poor sap
stuck with Shorty.”
Paige glared at
her older brother. He knew she hated that nickname.
“Shorty.” The name
rolled smoothly off Graedon’s tongue, and he seemed reluctant to pull his
attention away from her to shake Connor’s hand. The men’s handshake was quick
and firm. “Graedon Ward,” he introduced himself to Connor.
“Interesting first
name,” Connor told him.
“Interesting
accent,” Graedon remarked.
“Connor is
Australian,” Ty explained.
“And Shorty’s
husband,” Connor said, jerking a thumb towards Paige.
Paige whacked him
in the arm. “You know I hate that nickname!”
“Well, I can’t
tell him my other pet names for you.” Connor smiled at Graedon and wiggled his
eyebrows.
“He’s got a thing
for brothers,” Ty warned Graedon.
Graedon looked
over at Connor in surprise. “Oh?”
“He’s not the only
one,” Ty added, tilting his head toward Paige.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t
mean to stare so rudely,” Paige said, grimacing at Ty’s comment.
“Okay then! On
that note, we need to go mingle, old man,” Logan said as he drew the birthday
boy away.
“You’re older than
me,” Ty griped.
“But I look
younger,” Logan said, as they moved away.
Paige’s gaze
bounced back to Graedon. “So…”
“You don’t mind
your wife staring at other men?” It was a serious question but touched with a
sense of amusement.
“Well...” Connor
pursed his lips for a second. “It depends.”
“On what?” Graedon
asked, once again clearly surprised.
“On who she’s
staring at.”
Graedon shook his
head, obviously confused. “You’re not worried she might be interested in the
man she’s staring at?”
“Oh, I definitely
know she’s interested in who she’s staring at.”
Paige waved her
hand between the two of them. “Hello! I’m standing right here. Jeez.”
“I’m truly sorry,
Paige,” Graedon said, bowing his head to her. “That was rude of us.”
She blinked. Rude?
Not unlike her staring.
Now, since she
stood next to him, she realized how large a man he truly was. Though she was small, or nicely put, petite, hence
the “Shorty” nickname. She had to look from her five-foot-two inches up to
Connor’s six-foot-one. But this Graedon, he had to be an inch or two taller
than her husband. While Connor wasn’t skinny, the other man definitely
outweighed him by—Paige
guessed—at least fifty
pounds. His hands were large, his fingers long. Good for gripping a football,
of course. She wondered how old he was and how long ago he left the game. “How
do you know Ty?”
“We played
football together in college.”
“Ah. And you went
on to be pro?”
“Yes, I was lucky
enough to be drafted.”
“You retired?”
Graedon hesitated
for a few seconds, then answered, “Yes, a while ago.”
All right, she
didn’t want to keep bombarding him with questions. She definitely wanted to get
to know him better, but she didn’t want it to seem like an inquisition.
Oh, but she had so
many questions on the tip of her tongue.
What do you do for a living now? How old are
you? Do you live around here? Would you like to have sex with my husband and me?
The last one might
be a little much. She certainly didn’t want to scare him away. And here she
thought she would be bored at Ty’s fortieth birthday party, but then she
spotted his man. She realized she was staring again and her face became heated.
“I need to get a drink. Anyone else?”
“I’ll get it,
honey,” Connor said, placing a hand on her shoulder. “What do you want?”
“Something with
alcohol. Surprise me.” Connor knew her tastes well, so she wasn’t worried he’d
come back with a drink she didn’t like. Wait.
Had she ever met a drink she didn’t like? Oh,
yeah. Gin and tonic. Blech.
“Anything for you
Graedon?”
“A gin and tonic,
please. Thank you.” He gave Connor a wide smile.
Paige swore it
just lit up the whole room. Of course, he would want a drink she hated. But she
wouldn’t judge him for it. Much, anyway.
“I’ll be back
shortly,” her husband said, kissing her cheek then heading toward the makeshift
bar in the corner of the large room.
Her eyes never
left Graedon while her husband kissed her—while his, in turn, never left hers.
Until her nipples beaded under the thin fabric of her dress—then his gaze
dropped but quickly returned to her face.
“I don’t know how
you can drink that awful shit.”
“It’s an acquired
taste.” He studied her face.
Paige tried not to
squirm as he ran his gaze from the top of her head to her chin, then just high
enough to land on her lips. She unconsciously licked them and then tugged on
her bottom lip with her teeth. “I don’t think any drink that you need to learn
to appreciate is worth drinking. So many other choices.”
He stared at her
mouth while she talked. She fought the urge to dig into her clutch purse to
reapply her lip gloss.
“Choices are
wonderful, but sometimes you want one specific thing. So, you work for it until
you achieve it.”
“We’re still
talking about drinks, right?” she asked.
He finally raised
his eyes to meet hers as a wince of surprise and then clarity flickered in his
gaze. Like he’d shaken himself mentally, getting out of some sort of fog.
She hoped it meant
that he felt attracted to her.
Suddenly, he
leaned toward her, and she froze. He reached out and whisked away something on
her face with his thumb.
She stared at him
curiously.
He held his thumb
up. “Eyelash. Make a wish.”
Paige knew exactly
what she would wish for. She pursed her lips and blew lightly, the eyelash
spinning towards the floor.
“I hope your wish
comes true,” he murmured, not breaking their locked gaze.
“Me too.” Little
did he know he was her wish.
The seconds ticked
by and neither even blinked.
His eyes were like
very deep wells of dark brown. Dangerous if you fell in. His thick eyelashes
were surely the envy of some women. His lips were dark and thick, reddish at
the center like he’d been sucking on a cherry. Those luscious lips parted...
Paige waited for the words to escape, to flow
over her. She just knew he was about to say something intriguing.
“Sorry, there was
a line at the bar.” Connor approached, handing her a tall glass filled with
pinkish-red liquid, a maraschino cherry, and a tiny plastic straw. He handed
Graedon a short glass filled with ice, a lime wedge, a stirrer, and the clear
toxic mix that made Paige scrunch up her nose.
Graedon nodded at
Connor, thanking him.
He was such a
gentleman, but one she bet knew how to be not-so-gentle at the right times. She
covered her sigh by sipping on her drink. She had no idea what the concoction
was, but it tasted fruity, and it went down smooth.
Connor upended a
beer bottle and took a swig. Some local microbrewery. No piss water—what Paige
called regular beer—for him.
“So, what do you
do for a living, Connor?” Graedon asked after squeezing his lime wedge and
stirring his drink.
Connor slid his
arm around Paige’s waist and gave her a small squeeze.
Graedon’s eyes
followed the gesture and didn’t raise until Connor answered.
“I’m a structural
engineer.”
Graedon
contemplated the answer. “Structural. Like bridges?”
Connor shrugged
slightly. “Yes, bridges. But I mainly concentrate on sports complexes. Like
stadiums, arenas, and what not. Anything sports related.”
Graedon raised his
eyebrows. “Football stadiums?”
Connor nodded.
“Yes, some.”
“Sounds like a
very interesting career.”
“It is. But I have
to travel a lot.”
“Is that how you
met your stunning wife?”
Stunning. Huh. Paige never considered herself
stunning. This had always been a description for leggy blondes who strutted
down runways. Cute, maybe. She was short, with long brown hair. Then add some
freckles, which didn’t make sense for her complexion. Her whole family had been
confused about this. Mailman’s daughter, Logan had always teased her, which had
always upset their single mother.
But it did make
her wonder. Especially, since Logan was a foot taller than her and didn’t have
a single freckle.
Connor gave her a
look before answering him, “Yes. We actually did meet at a football stadium.
She was with her brother when he was there to re-sod the field.”
Paige remembered
that day. Logan’s business was just getting off the ground and, since she’d
been helping him with the business’s books, he had asked her to go along
because he didn’t have any employees at the time. It had been long days laying
sod, and they were both filthy and exhausted come nightfall. She felt glad she
no longer helped with the physical part of the business.
Then, she reminded
herself, if she hadn’t gone, she never would have met the crazy, sexy Aussie,
who currently had her pinned to his side. The rest was history. Connor picked
up his life and moved to the states, gladly making her hometown his, and they
got married a few years ago.
Now, with Quinn
doing the books and Ty as Logan’s partner, the business was extremely
successful, and Paige did whatever the guys needed her to do, either on the sod
farm, in the office, or out on a job. A sort of Girl Friday/project manager
with a great salary and benefits. If they needed coffee, she got coffee. If
they needed her on site at a sodding job supervising employees, she was there.
The job was never boring. The guys and Quinn relied on her. Sometimes to simply
babysit their son Preston.
“Best day of my
life,” Connor stated, giving her another squeeze.
“Yes, you’re
certainly a lucky man,” Graedon said slowly, the words rolling off his tongue
like molasses.
“You could be
too.”
Paige elbowed her
husband. Too soon.
Graedon tilted his
head and studied Connor. “What do you mean?”
“I just meant one
day you’ll meet the girl of your dreams.” Connor tripped over his words as he
added, “That’s if you’re not already married. I shouldn’t assume.”
“I prefer women
over girls. And, no, I’m not married.”
Paige’s gaze
flicked to his left hand. The only ring this man wore was the one in his ear.
“Yes, a woman,”
Connor murmured. “One that knows what she wants, when she wants it, and how to
get it.” He shifted his left arm up to her shoulders.
Once again,
Graedon followed his movement until he pinned his gaze to Paige’s lips once
more. “And you, Paige?”
And me what? Oh. “I help out with Logan
and Ty’s business.”
“I’m sure that
keeps you busy. Their business is extremely successful.”
“It is. Who
expected growing grass could be so lucrative?”
He cracked a
slight smile. “I’ll have to come out and tour the farm one of these days.”
Paige tamped down the
urge to rub her palms together in anticipation. ‘Will you walk into my parlor?’ said the Spider to the Fly. “Yes,
please do. Just let me know, and I can personally escort you.”
Graedon tipped his
head graciously.
“She’s crazy
behind the wheel of the UTV. So, I’m warning you now…”
Graedon looked
confused. “UTV?”
“Utility Task
Vehicle. Like an ATV for farm use,” Paige explained. “However, don’t listen to
him. I have a safe driving record.” ‘The
way into my parlor is up a winding stair.’ “You’ll be perfectly fine in my
hands.” ‘And I've a many curious things
to show when you are there.‘
“I’m sure I will
be,” Graedon murmured.
‘Oh
no, no,’ said the little Fly, ‘To ask me is in vain, for who goes up your
winding stair-can ne'er come down again.’ “Why don’t I give you my number,
and you can text me when you want to come out.”
His smile appeared
and then disappeared as quickly as it came. A blink and it would’ve been
missed. “Only if your husband doesn’t mind.”
“Connor doesn’t
mind, do you, honey?” she asked her husband, without even so much as peek his
way.
“No, not at all.”
Graedon dug out
his cell from an inner pocket of his suit jacket. A few seconds later, he was
ready. Paige didn’t hesitate to spill her digits.
“Morgan?”
She shook her
head. “Reed. I didn’t change my name.”
Once again, he
cocked a brow. Paige thought this might be a signature expression for him.
He slipped his
cell back inside his jacket and pulled out a business card. “So you know it’s
me calling.”
Paige tried to
pluck it from his fingers, but he resisted just enough so her hand had to make
contact with his. The brush of their fingers made her suck in a breath and
warmth radiate from her core.
Damn. If this was her reaction to just a
light touch, she couldn’t imagine how she would respond to something more
substantial. But she didn’t want to imagine; she wanted to know. She let her hand drop, the card ignored in her grasp.
Connor placed his
left hand at the small of her back and extended his right hand out to Graedon.
“Excuse us, we need to go visit with Quinn. I don’t want her to think we’re
ignoring her tonight.”
The larger man
shook Connor’s hand, then turned to Paige. He dipped his head. “It was nice
meeting you tonight. I look forward to the tour.”
“It was nice—” staring at
“—meeting you also. Hopefully, it’ll be soon.”
Then with that,
Connor steered Paige out of earshot. “What do you think?” Connor asked her,
barely-contained excitement in his voice. “He’s intelligent, well-spoken, hot
as fuck.”
“Oh, he’s a big
fat yes. But I wasn’t getting any vibes from him other then he’s a het.”
“Yeah, he was hard
to read except when it came to you. He was definitely drawn to you. I think I
should be jealous.”
Paige bumped her
shoulder into him as they walked. “Stop. If you need to make the rules, then
make them. If I meet up with him and you don’t ever want me to have sex with
him without you, then I’ll agree to that. I don’t ever want you to feel left
out, honey.”
“We’ll discuss it.
We’d have to find out if he has any proclivities toward men. If not, that
shoots the plan all to hell.”
“Plan? Now we have
a plan?”
“You had a plan
the first second you laid eyes on him across the room, whether you knew it or
not.”
Paige pursed her
lips in thought. “Yes, you’re right. As soon as I saw him, I knew I wanted
him.”
“See?”
“But I want to try
to get to know him better if he comes out to the farm. And I have this.” She
lifted the business card so she could read it. “You could always ask him out
for a business lunch or coffee.”
“I would need a
good excuse other than, ‘my wife and I want you to join us in bed.’”
Paige snorted.
“You never know, maybe he likes direct.”
“Yeah, like he
wants to take you directly to bed. He’s definitely fascinated by you as well.”
“Well, that’s a
good start.”
Connor pushed his
way through French doors which opened to a dark patio. Outside, the breeze felt
cool, and Paige shivered.
Connor removed his
suit jacket and wrapped her in it, pulling her into his arms. “So, what does
his card say?”
She held the
crumpled card up. “Too dark to read it.”
Connor lifted a
hold-on-a-second finger and dug his cell phone out. With a push of a button,
the card was illuminated.
Paige tried to smooth it out a bit and peered closer.
“Graedon C. Ward, College Scouting Director, Boston Bulldogs.”
JEANNE ST. JAMES is an erotic
romance author who loves an Alpha male (or two). She was only 13 when she started writing since it gave her an escape from teenage
angst! Her first paid published piece was an erotic story in Playgirl magazine.
Her first erotic romance novel, Banged Up,
was published in 2009. She is happily owned by farting French bulldogs. She
writes M/F, M/M, and M/M/F ménages.
She has a few new releases coming up
in 2017. So keep an eye on her website at www.jeannestjames.com or sign up for
her newsletter here.
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