Limitless Love: A Polyamorous Charity Anthology

4. Jim

“Jimmy.”

“Hmm?”

Merry placed a hand on my thigh, bringing my focus back to him. His light blue eyes were gentle and full of concern.

“You’ve been distracted. Are you all right?”

I managed a weak smile. Usually, I looked forward to these surrogacy meetings where Merry and I could help other couples to rejuvenate their intimacy and explore. But this evening, the strange hollowness within me wouldn’t go away.

“Yup, it’s just been a long day. Are you ready to go in?” I unsnapped my seat belt, but Merry stopped me before I could get out of the car.

“If you’re not feeling up to it, we don’t have to do this. We can cancel and spend the evening together.”

“No, really, it’s fine. We’re just having a meet and greet. The couple might not even pick us.”

Merry gave me a small smile. “I know what this is about.”

I frowned. Rarely did a couple bother me this much like our neighbors, but since we had our swap party at our place, Cairo and Brandt hadn’t been by. Cairo hadn’t had lunch with me over the past few days either.

“You know what irks me the most? After all these years, I never expected to be affected by what anyone thought of me—of us.”

“It’s understandable, Jim. We really like them, but we have to respect their boundaries if they aren’t into us. It’s probably my fault the way I blurted out we were having a partner swap, but what else could I have done? They were both so upset that we hadn’t invited them to our party.”

I cupped Merry’s cheek and placed a kiss on his forehead. Regardless of what happened in our lives, we always had each other, and that was the only thing that mattered. We understood each other and knew exactly how to meet each other’s needs. Cairo and Brandt were more conservative, although I’d thought they were warming up to us.

“It’s better to know how they feel now than later after we got too deeply involved. It’s been a while since we’ve taken to a couple this way, hasn’t it?”

“I don’t think we ever have to this degree. It doesn’t help they’re so sweet and kind, but we can talk about that some more when we get home. Let’s go in. Our clients are probably already waiting for us, and if we’re not vibing with them, say your safeword, and I’ll get us out of there.”

“You’re a doll.” I pecked him. When we got out of my car, I placed my arm around Merry’s slender waist. The contact gave me an instant sense of calm as we walked to the café. The streetlights bathed us in a soft, warm glow, silhouetting Merry’s profile against the city backdrop.

We hadn’t seen pictures of the couple, but they’d told us they would both be wearing red scarves. One man in a corner reading wore a red tie, but given he was alone, I didn’t figure him to be our client.

Merry stuck his elbow in my ribs. “Oh my god, Jim.”

“What?”

He gestured to a couple in the back of the café, wearing red scarves. Cairo and Brandt. Judging from their shocked looks, they’d had no idea they were meeting us.

“Oh shit, this means they are looking to explore.” Merry gasped, his voice going high as it did whenever he was excited.

“I don’t know, Merry. Cairo’s been blowing me off at work, so why should I assume he’ll want to see me?”

“We can ask. Go on over. I’ll get us some coffees and join you.”

“Merry!” But he had already skipped up to the counter. Left with no option, I approached the corner table where Cairo and Brandt sat.

“Evening, guys.” I tried to sound casual, but my heart was pounding hard. After ten years of sex surrogacy, I shouldn’t be reacting this way. I never did. What was it about these two that made me second-guess myself?

“Hey, Jim,” Cairo said, his voice hesitant. “What brings you here?”

I gestured toward Merry, who was chatting animatedly with the barista as they prepared our coffees. I smiled. That was why I loved him so much. He knew how to make everyone feel special.

“I think you already know. Merry and I are here to meet some clients. I assume that’s you two.”

“Well, this is embarrassing,” Brandt said.

“I understand. I get it. You would rather not have us. After all, you’ve been avoiding me at work, Cairo.”

“I didn’t mean to.”

“Yeah, well, whatever.”

I turned and almost collided with Merry, who did his best not to let the cups of coffee fall. “Where are you going?”

“Come on, babe. I don’t think we’re wanted here.”

“Wait…what?” Merry frowned. “Aren’t you here to meet us?”

“We didn’t know it was you,” Brandt said.

“So? You don’t want it to be us?”

“I don’t think we’re doing a good job explaining. Why don’t you sit, and we can straighten things out?”

Merry put the coffees on the table and sat, making it clear he was his own person, even though we were a couple. I’d never tried to stifle his autonomy, which was one reason we worked so well together. I understood his need to make his own decisions, even when they were unpopular, and I always supported him.

“All right, we’re here.” I parked my ass in the chair beside him.

“You’re right that we’re here to meet with our sex surrogate couple,” Brandt said. “We had no idea it was you because we asked for a closed file so we could get to know you in person.”

“That I get. What I don’t understand is why you’ve been avoiding us after you learned we’re swingers?” I shook my head. “You know what? Don’t explain. This isn’t why we’re here, but I don’t think this will work. It’s already too personal.”

“No, please let me explain.” Cairo placed a hand on mine. “I was busy with work over the past two days. That’s the only reason we didn’t get to have lunch together, I swear. I am happy—we’re happy—to have you as our sex surrogate. We know and trust you.”

“You truly don’t mind?”

“We don’t.” Brandt shuffled forward in his chair. “Before I met you, Cairo told me so much about you, Jim. He admires you. And, Merry, you’re the most beautiful person we’ve ever met.”

“So you really want to do this?”

“Yes, very much. We know therapy isn’t necessary, but for us, it was the right choice,” Brandt said. “We had very conservative parents, so certain things we felt guilty about, we had to work out with a third party. Our therapist introduced us to the idea of a surrogacy partner so we could explore in a way that makes both of us feel safe. From what we know about you, you must be very good at it.”

“Oh, you want to know how good we are?” Merry asked with a suggestive smile.

The color in Brandt’s face was high. “Yes. So will you do it? Will you help us?”

I caught Merry’s eye, and he nodded. Thank god they hadn’t meant to avoid us. “Sure.” I stroked the back of Cairo’s hand and smiled at his sharp intake of breath. “Let’s get expectations and concerns out of the way. Do you have any questions for us?”

“So, you’ve been doing this for ten years?” Cairo asked.

“Give or take.”

“What made you decide to go into partner surrogacy?”

“There are too many people who have endured sexual trauma. Merry Berry and I love to help couples and individuals to reconnect with their sexual selves. We believe that sex is a natural part of life, and it shouldn’t be stigmatized or shamed.”

“And if we get an orgasm or two out of it, that’s a bonus.” Merry winked, and I chuckled.

“Be gentle, darling. We don’t want them to run away.”

“Oh, we’re not running,” Cairo said. “We want to learn more.”

“Here’s what we will do. We’ll discuss together like this for a bit. After, we’ll take turns talking with you one-on-one, and then we’ll get back together. At the end of the evening, you can let us know if we hit your buttons.”

“Let’s start with the obvious question.” Merry sidled closer to me. “Do you top? Bottom? Or are you vers? A side?”

“Technically, I’m vers, but Cairo tops,” Brandt replied. “He’s bottomed for me a few times, but it’s not his favorite position.”

“Is that what sparked your interest in being with another couple?”

“Initially, yes, but the more time we spent on it and learned what that meant for us, the more we realized it suited us. What about you and Merry?”

“We’re both vers.”

Cairo stopped his coffee cup an inch from his mouth. “Merry tops?” I knew what he was thinking. Since we’d spent so much time with them, Merry had opened up to them about being trans. It wasn’t the first time someone assumed he must be a bottom because he was open about not having done bottom surgery. They still had so much to learn.

“Yes.” From the way he was staring at me, I could tell he wanted a piece of me. And I wasn’t opposed at all.

“I have a drawer full of strapons this big boy loves to ride,” Merry said, and I nodded in agreement. “Is that going to be a problem?”

“No, not at all,” Brandt said.

“Good. Why don’t you tell us what dynamic you are looking for?”

“Brandt, you explain.”

“Okay, hon. It’s important for us to play with couples only, so the sex parties aren’t for us. Sorry. We have nothing against them, but they’re not what we are into. We want to remain each other’s primary partner but also to form a bond with our couple. We don’t want to share the same residence, and we’re not heavily into kink, though we have a list of stuff we might try.”

I smiled. “Sounds good. We’re okay with not being a primary partner. We have each other twenty-four seven when Merry’s not at work.”

“We wanted it that way because we couldn’t bear the idea of our sex surrogate feeling alone and left out.”

“That’s thoughtful of you,” I said. “But truly, it’s fine for someone not to want to be a primary partner. You don’t have to feel guilty about it.”

Merry laced his arm through mine. “How will you approach sex? Do you only want us to have sex together, or are you open to one-on-one action sometimes too?”

“Just to start, only when we’re together.”

“That sounds like a plan. If there’s nothing else, why don’t we split up and talk alone for a bit?”