“Fuck, Luke,” Eli groaned, his rhythm faltering as my muscles clamped down on him. His fingers dug bruises into my hips as he thrust once, twice more, then buried himself to the hilt as he filled me with hot pulses of cum.
We collapsed in a tangle of sweaty limbs and racing hearts. Eli’s weight pressed me down onto Mioko, who didn’t seem to mind, her arms wrapping around us as we struggled to catch our breath.
Eliwas part of me, had always been part of me, even during those six years apart. But somehow, Mioko had slipped into the space between us, not wedging us apart but binding us more tightly.
Chapter 16
Eli
I woke to thesoft rustle of sheets and the subtle dip of the mattress as Mioko tried to slip away. The watery dawn light filtering through the thin curtains caught the curves of her naked body as she bent to retrieve her scattered clothes. My first instinct was to reach out and drag her back into bed, pin her between Luke and me where she belonged, but I remained still, watching her through half-lidded eyes, curious to see what she’d do.
She moved silently, efficiently, gathering her skirt and sweater from where we’d tossed them the day before. Her dark hair hung loose down her back, no longer in its usual braid. We’d spent the day in bed and showered before sleeping, but I still felt ravenous for her.
“You’re leaving,” I said quietly, careful not to wake Luke, who was still dead to the world beside me, one arm flung across my chest.
Mioko startled, clutching her clothes to her chest like a shield. “I thought you were asleep.”
“No.” I propped myself up on one elbow, watching.
“I’ve called for a ride,” she said, her voice soft but steady. “Should be here soon.”
“You don’t have to go.”
Hersmile was gentle, a little sad. “I know. But I think I should. You two need to work things out without me getting in the way.”
“You’re not in the fucking way, Mioko. You brought us together.” I studied her face, trying to read her dark, expressive eyes. “Do you regret what happened?”
“God, no. Yesterday was... incredible.” She put on her underwear, then stepped into her skirt. “I’m thrilled for you two. Truly. The way you love each other... It’s beautiful. It’s what I wanted.”
“And what about what we both feel for you? Or what you feel for us?”
Her hands stilled as she pulled on her sweater, her head emerging with her hair in wild disarray. Something flashed across her face—longing, maybe fear—before she masked it with a forced smile.
“Don’t worry about me. I’m happy I helped you find each other again. That was the point of my meddling, remember?”
I didn’t believe her—not entirely. There had been something real in the way she’d responded to us, in the way she’d whispered our names as she came, in the way she’d held us afterward like we were something precious. But I could see the walls going up, the careful distance she was creating.
And from what Luke had said about her past, she had reason to be afraid.
“We’ll see you later?” I asked, making it sound casual, like I wasn’t already planning ways to get her back into our bed.
“Of course.” She moved to the door, then hesitated, looking back at us with an expression I couldn’t quite decipher. “Take care of him, Eli. And let him take care of you. You both deserve to be happy.”
Then she was gone, the door clicking shut behind her, leaving me with Luke’s warm weight against my side and a strange twist in my gut that I couldn’t quite name. Loss? Anticipation? Both, maybe.
Beside me, Luke stirred, eyes blinking open slowly, that moment of soft confusion before awareness returned. He looked at me, then at the empty space beside us where Mioko had been.
“Where’s Mioko?”
“She left. Said she called for a ride.” I ran my hand down his side, feeling the warmth of his skin beneath my palm.
Luke sat up abruptly, the sheet pooling around his waist. “She just left? Without saying goodbye?”
“She said goodbye but didn’t want to wake you.” I watched the play of emotions across his face—confusion and hurt that mirrored mine. “She said she’s happy for us. That she’s glad she helped us find each other again.”
“Bullshit,” Luke muttered, scratching his head and making his sleep-mussed hair stick out in all directions. “That’s not—we’re not—”
He made a frustrated sound.
