“Who knows? I keep finding new toys in my bedside drawer. He’s adventurous.” And then came the niggling doubt,am I match enough?
“He’s good for you. Gets you out of your head. You’re crazy for each other. In fact, it’s a little disgusting.”
“He makes me happy.” I trusted Arden. Mostly. But did I trust Franco? “Listen, I don’t know what he has planned, but I’m not the best at sharing, so go lightly with your charms.”
“You worried I’ll steal your man?” Franco asked.
“Terrified.”
“He’s not doing this for himself. Or for me, but I am looking forward to it. He knows you’re comfortable with me. This is for you.”
Was that true? I grabbed a couch pillow and hugged it to my chest. “I am so fucked, Franco. I wake up in the morning with this man in my bed, and I start thinking about wedding vows and vacation homes and small people.”
“Children?”
“And wondering where the good school districts are and how we’ll pay for their college education. It’s not rational.” Or wise.
Franco smiled. “You can’t plot this like one of your mystery novels, Michael. Just worry about surviving your first threesome. After that, who knows?”
“Arden, what the hell is that?”
“It’s sheepskin,” Arden said, laying out a giant carpet of cream-colored animal fur on the living room floor. “Or an alpaca. It was a gift, so I didn’t ask. Seemed rude.”
The sheep had to have been morbidly obese. I couldn’t believe Arden had hauled it all the way here from Brooklyn.
“What’s it for?”
“It feels so good when you’re on ex, and you’re naked and rubbing your whole body on it. Like wrapping yourself in furs.”
“Ecstasy?” I asked. “Whose naked body has been on this rug?”
“Just mine.” He swept by, pecking me lightly on the cheek, before moving onto his next task. “Franco told me you guys used to do that. Back in the day.”
I glared at Franco who only shrugged. “He asked.”
“Is that a good idea for you to take it, given your history?”
“It’s fine. Just don’t give me any alcohol or I’ll turn into a Gremlin.”
I did wonder how Arden might act when he was drunk, though I certainly didn’t want to test it. Arden was now propping up our electronic devices in a triangular arrangement and aiming the screens at the woolen rug. That could only mean one thing.
“We’re filming it?”
Arden nodded. “Mutual destruction. I told Franco I’d send it to his Wall Street buddies if he did me dirty.”
“There’s only one way I’m going to do you dirty,” Franco assured him with a leer.
Arden smiled flirtatiously and then read the concern on my face. “I’m good at editing. I can make sure your face isn’t on it, if that’s what you’re worried about.”
“I’m not… that isn’t…” Other than that strange encounter with the john, I’d never filmed myself before, though to have a record of Arden in action…
Arden retrieved my half-finished mimosa and filled the rest of the glass with champagne. “Have a drink, babe. It’s going to be a lovely afternoon, and you don’t need to worry about a thing, because I’m going to take care of you, and so will Franco. You know us, and you trust us, so you only have to let go and relax.”
Arden led me to the couch where Franco sat and watched our domestic back-and-forth play out with amusement. Arden sat on the rug in front of us and asked if we were comfortable going bareback. Once that risk was assessed, Arden asked if there were any rules or boundaries we’d like to set. Franco, not surprisingly, had none. I didn’t really want to watch Franco fuck my boyfriend’s ass—my generosity had its limits—so I made that known. Arden suggested the red-yellow-green convention for whether or not we were comfortable. It gave me some heartburn at the professional efficiency with which he executed these negotiations.
And then the curtains were drawn, and Arden was straddling my lap and feeding me pills with his tongue, one blue and one white. “Sextasy” was a term I hadn’t heard since our college days when Franco’s bad influence had me taking risks I normally wouldn’t. The similarities between the two men were striking. I definitely had a type.
Arden wanted to shower, so we climbed into the stall together while Franco sat on the toilet and regaled Arden with tales of our (my) first sexual fumblings.
