Limitless Love: A Polyamorous Charity Anthology

10. Bryan

Bryan’s boss said he could go home early that day as his last appointment had been cancelled at short notice, and he wasted no time in getting out of there. As much as he loved his job, sometimes it was a lot. And the nerves he’d been keeping under lock and key on top of what had been developing between him, Lev, Gary and Rowan had been reaching boiling point. But now, everything seemed easier. Clearer. And he couldn’t wait to celebrate.

Gary had sent him a message to say he’d finished early, too, and was going to meet Lev at the garage and walk him home just because he could, and Bryan loved that idea. He’d have to do the same for him and Rowan at some point.

By the time he reached home, he had an idea where they could go and rang to reserve a table for four. Then he jumped into the shower to wash off the day before dressing in similar clothes to what he’d been wearing. He had just fastened his belt buckle and was descending the stairs when the front door opened, and Lev and Gary entered. Lev stared up at him and licked his lips before racing towards him and throwing his arms around him.

“I’m so happy for you!”

Bryan nuzzled his face into Lev’s neck and breathed. Then another hand rested on his back, and he glanced up at Gary.

“Congrats. You’ll do great,” Gary said.

Bryan wanted to kiss him, but with Rowan not being there and them having not talked about the rules, he didn’t, but he wanted to, and Gary knew it. The knowledge that Gary and Rowan had wanted him and Lev for a long time had come as a shock to him. He’d seen how they cared for them, but he’d assumed it was how they were towards friends. But now, when he looked closer at his memories, he could see it.

“Do you have any ideas about where to go tonight?” Lev asked, pulling back.

Bryan cleared his throat. “Yeah, actually. I’ve booked a table at Tennants.”

Lev gasped, eyes widening. “Really?”

Bryan nodded. It was a place they’d talked about visiting before but had never got there, for one reason or another. But that night, they were going.

“I have to get ready!” Lev brushed past them and raced up the stairs. He stopped at the top, shouting down. “What time?”

“Six,” Bryan said.

“Shit!” Lev yelled and slammed the bedroom door.

Gary chuckled, drawing Bryan’s attention and feeling his hand still on his back. Knowing he wouldn’t kiss him yet, Bryan drew him into his arms and hugged him like he had Lev. Gary’s arms tightened around him, and Bryan closed his eyes, breathing deeply. Gary’s hand rose and gripped his nape, and Bryan dropped his forehead to his shoulder.

“Thanks,” he murmured.

“It’s all good, Bry. Let it go now,” Gary replied, squeezing his nape again.

So Bryan did, letting all the tension he’d felt the moment he’d decided to apply for the job and all the uncertainty he’d felt from what they’d started. As easy-going and relaxed as he seemed to most people, he wasn’t. Lev knew how much he kept locked inside, and Gary had obviously seen it, too.

When his shoulders eased of their burdens, he pulled back, staring into Gary’s eyes. “Thank you.”

Gary cupped his cheek and smiled. “You’re always welcome.”

“You can kiss him.” Lev’s voice startled him, and he turned to the stairs, shaking his head. But Lev nodded and showed him the screen of his phone that Bryan hadn’t seen he held. Rowan’s face stared back, smiling. “You can. Rowan says you can.”

“He’s right,” Rowan said, his voice echoing through the speaker.

“It’s okay,” Bryan said. “We can wait.”

“Well, we can’t,” Rowan said. “Kiss him! Kiss him! Kiss him!” Rowan chanted, and Lev joined in.

“We’ve created two monsters, I believe,” Gary said.

Bryan smiled at him, and then he studied Gary’s expression. Gary brushed his thumb over Bryan’s lip and drew closer. As their lips met, Bryan’s body lit up. He slid his hand to the back of Gary’s head and deepened the kiss, opening his mouth for Gary’s tongue. Heat pooled in his groin as Gary explored his mouth, the kiss so much deeper and harder than any they’d shared so far. Bryan needed more and stepped closer, sending Gary stumbling back against the wall. Groaning, Bryan used the extra support to deepen the kiss more, sucking at his tongue, nipping at his lips, hands gripping and holding.

“Holy fuck.”

The soft whisper reached his ears, and he gentled the kiss but didn’t pull away, his legs far too unsteady to hold him. He rested his head on Gary’s shoulder for a brief second and then lifted his head. Gary’s lips were bruised and swollen, and he expected his own to be the same.

“The next time you’re doing that, we’re going to be together because that was fucking scorching,” Rowan said.

Bryan let out a huff of laughter, disentangling himself, but Gary stopped him. He met his gaze, and Gary dropped another kiss on his lips before letting go. Then he turned to Lev and pointed.

“And you two,” he said to Lev and the phone that was Rowan, “need to hurry up.”

“Ay, ay, captain,” Rowan said. “I’ll be there in two shakes of a lamb’s tail.” He hung up.

Lev, however, continued to stare at them. Bryan cracked his knuckles and stepped closer to his husband. “Lev?”

Lev blinked and shook his head, wiping a hand across his mouth. “Yeah?”

“Are you okay?” He gestured to him and Gary. “Was this okay?”

Lev’s smile blinded him, as it always did, and his heart slowed now that he wasn’t as worried. “Yes. Definitely. Yes. One hundred per cent.” He rubbed his nose. “I need to…just…calm down…a bit before I…move.” He exhaled.

Bryan climbed the steps to where he sat and held on to the bannister as he crouched in front of him. “Why? What’s wrong?”

“Rowan was right. That was…really hot, and I’m a little…on edge.”

Bryan took in his flushed face, his dilated pupils and his trembling body and came to one conclusion. He leaned closer and lowered his voice. “Are you ready to come, Lev?” Lev closed his eyes, but his cheeks darkened further. “How close?”

“So close that if I move, I’ll come,” he whispered.

“Do you want to?” Bryan asked.

Lev’s eyes snapped open and pierced Bryan with their intensity. “So fucking much…but also…not yet.”

Bryan manoeuvred himself, so he knelt in front of Lev—not an easy feat on the stairs—and rested his hands on either side of his husband. “You’ll get the chance to come again later. But I want you to come for me. Now.”

Lev whimpered. “But?—”

Bryan simultaneously spread his legs and kissed him hard, resting his stomach against Lev’s groin and giving him the friction he needed to come. Lev’s lips left him as he dropped his head back, his cry of release echoing in the hallway, and Bryan held him through it. When Lev’s body relaxed against the stairs, Bryan pulled back a little.

“Let’s get changed, sweetheart,” he murmured.

Lev nodded, and Bryan helped him up the stairs, glancing back to see Gary adjusting his jeans. Yeah, they were going to come again later. All of them together.

But first, they had to get to the restaurant before they cancelled their reservation for being late. Bryan had plans for their first date, and he wanted nothing to mess it up. Not even joint orgasms, though the idea had merit. Maybe on the second date, but not right then.

By the time they were on their way to the restaurant, with Rowan and Lev in the back of the car chatting and probably causing trouble, the arousal between them all had died down to a simmer. A manageable simmer. And as the host led them to their table, he settled Lev beside him and Rowan opposite him, ignoring the look Gary gave him. He had a plan, and he was sticking to it. It was why he chose this specific restaurant, but first, they were going to eat and celebrate their lives because each of them had something worthwhile, and he would never not be thankful for them all.