“Have I found myself slipping into bed with more than one person throughout the duration of my life? Yeah.” He laughs roughly. “Many times. But they were never people I cared about. Not the way I care about you.”
“What about Nat?”
“I care about her too.” He sighs. “You know she’s not…built for traditional relationships. I think this comes easy for her. She’s focused on what makes her feel good in life, and clearly, both of us do that for her. I think she wants to make sure we’re okay with wherever this goes, and…I think I am. So, that leaves you.”
“I think I need to know where it goes before I can say for certain.”
He tilts his head, watching me intently with his glacial eyes, but he says nothing, as if waiting for me to continue.
“I liked seeing you two together, and I liked you watching us. I liked kissing you,” I murmur, cheeks heating. “But I don’t think I could stomach knowing either of you would be with someone outside the three of us. I’m not sure if that makes me selfish.”
“No, angel,” Hudson says. “You and Nat are both more than enough for me. I’m a fucking blessed man to be in this position. I won’t speak for Nat, but I am fucking content right now.”
An effortless smile springs to my lips, and I find myself curling into the warmth of his chest to hide it. “What about… I mean… We’d have to keep it a secret, right?”
“Yeah,” he resigns. “I could lose my job, and I don’t even want to begin to imagine your mother’s reaction if she were to see us right now.”
“Honestly, Hudson, I think I’d be content if neither of us ever saw my mother again. Her opinion is the least of my concerns, but your job is the most.”
“You’ve only got a year left of school, and I may have some other opportunities arise eventually. We can figure things out until then.”
“And in the meantime, we just…have sex?”
Hudson’s laugh is rich and smooth, his head tilting back as his throat moves with the sound leaving his lips. Some kind of pride blooms in my chest at the sight of it. “I’d very much like that, Ellie, but we can go at whatever pace you’re comfortable with. We can also just do this…” He waves his hand, motioning to our current position. “Other nights, we may be busy or have different schedules, and we may hardly see each other in passing. You may spend one-on-one time with Nat or vice-versa. We do what feels right for us, and if at any time it stops feeling right for us, we talk about it.” He grips my chin, lifting my head to meet his face. “Does that work for you, angel?”
Breathless, I only nod.
His smile is radiant as his hand moves from my chin to cup my cheek, and he lowers his mouth to mine. He kisses me slow and deep—savoring yet somehow languid, like he’ll have the rest of his life to move his lips against my own.
His touch turns exploratory, hands roaming over my curves. Noises leave me when he caresses my nipples, when he grips my thighs. He swallows them like he’ll remember them, like he’s tracking all the places he can feel me and studying the spots I like most.
I don’t know how long we kiss like that, slowly familiarizing ourselves with the other’s skin, but eventually, our food arrives. We sit in bed watching television, laughing at the nonsense, and it’s easy,soeasy with him. Butterflies spread their wings inside my chest the same way they always have in his presence, expanding that familiar comfort Hudson gives me. Even when he was married to my mother, the conversation between us was simple, the energy a safe hum, his smile a beacon home.
It’s then I wonder if he was ever supposed to have been with my mom; maybe instead, it was me he was drawn to. Maybe I’m his beacon too, and his wires got a little crossed. Whatever the reasons may be, I find myself incredibly grateful to be here with him now.
Hours later, I fall asleep in his arms, only stirring at the sound of muffled voices and shuffling feet. After a moment, another warm body appears on my other side, curling itself into me. Smooth, soft skin and graceful, long limbs tuck themselves between mine, the feel of her lips briefly against my cheek and the smell of the body wash I know she always uses covers me like an additional blanket of warmth.
I get the best sleep of my entire life.
CHAPTER SEVEN
NAT
Ellie makesthe same kind of noise every morning when she wakes up: a mewl that begins deep in her throat but floats out soft and high. I’ve heard the sound a million times before, but only now do I realize it’s the same noise she makes when a tongue is pressed flat against her clit. She made that noise last night when I was between her legs, and she’s making it again now.
My eyes aren’t open, but I can feel the way she’s stirring beside me, her limbs stretching as the bed creaks as the sheet covering my torso is ripped away by the movement of her hips. I roll over, reaching for her. My hand collides with soft, smooth bare skin, and I stretch my arm around the flesh of her stomach, pulling her back against me. She gasps, and as my eyes flutter open, the first sight I’m subjected to is her wide, blinking green eyes.
She’s on her side, her plump ass flush against my hips, her back to my front. My hand slides up her belly until it reaches her breast, and I take a handful, savoring the soft, heavy feel ofher flesh in my palm. Her head is craned to the side so she can look at me, and a sleep-hazed, content expression filters over her face, warring with the dilation of her pupils as I brush a thumb over her peaking nipple.
“I can’t believe I’m waking up beside you,” I whisper, brushing her hair from her face with my free hand.
“You’ve woken up next to me a thousand times,” Ellie says with a laugh.
“Not like this. Not getting to touch you like this. Not while I’m remembering how you taste on my tongue. This is different.”
Her face softens, and suddenly, her hand is resting on the curve of my waist, fingers gliding over my skin. I realize Hudson isn’t in bed with us when there is a distant clattering of noise, and I assume he must be in the kitchen.
“This is different,” Ellie agrees, sighing as she studies my face with hooded eyes, raw adoration in her gaze, like she too can’t believe we’ve reached this place. “How are you feeling? I think things have happened really fast, and I’m not sure where we go from here.”
