Chapter 26
Benson
Sneaking into my partner’s apartment in the middle of the night is probably a new low for me, but when it really comes down to it, I’m down bad, and that can’t be helped.
I’m not jealous. Not at all. There just isn’t a single point in lying in my bed, missing the fuck out of the two people who have my heart when it’s so easy to just join them.
I tap on the screen, trying to decide what to do before ultimately pulling up Parker’s contact and hitting call. It rings and rings, and when their voicemail picks up, I try Landon.
I’m resigning myself to going back to my dorm alone when he answers. “’Lo?”
I can’t help but smile at the adorable sleepiness in his tone. “Hello. Can you please come let me in?”
“Let you where?”
I laugh. “Parker’s apartment.”
“What do you mean?”
Biting my lip so I don’t burst into hysterical laughter in the hallway, I take a breath. “I’m outside the door, Cutie. In the hallway. Come let me into the apartment, and you can go right back to sleep.”
For a second, I’m sure he’s fallen back asleep with me on the phone, but then the door lock clicks, and it opens to reveal a shirtless Landon, hair a mess, one eye closed, phone pressed to his ear. He looks adorable in a way no man his size should be able to. And my heart skips a beat.
“You’re here,” he says, his voice echoing in my ear.
I hang the phone up. “I am here.”
He stands there for a second, phone still against his head. “Huh?”
“Can I come in?”
He seems to jolt awake all at once. “Yeah. Yes. Of course. Duh.”
“Put your phone down, Cutie,” I say, grinning as I tap his arm.
He cocks his head in confusion, then snorts a laugh as he slips the phone into his pajama bottoms. Hooking my arm around his waist, I draw him closer to me. “Fuck, I missed you,” I breathe, closing the space between us and planting a gentle kiss on his lips.
He hums, his hand lazily coming up to grip my jaw as he kisses me back. “Missed you too. Park’s asleep.”
“We should be too.” I take his hand, leading him through the apartment to Parker’s room.
Parker is tucked against the right side of the bed, facing the center, one hand resting on the mattress like they’re reaching for Landon.
“C’mon, Cutie. Let’s join them. I’m exhausted, and I want to hold you.”
Landon crawls into the center of the bed, and as soon as he’s settled, Parker places their hand on his chest. I climb in beside Landon, scooting closer so I can wrap him in my arms.
I press my lips to the top of his head, smiling when he snuggles deeper into me.
I tossed and turned for almost an hour earlier trying to sleep before I gave up and came here. But now, with Landon in my arms and the slight sound of Parker’s even breathing, my eyes fall shut quickly, and I fade off into sleep.
I wake up to soft fingers dancing up my arm. It’s still wrapped around Landon like a vise, and he’s turned toward me, his face buried against my chest. I peel my eyes open to find the source of the fingers, and I’m greeted by sleepy blue eyes and a content smile.
“Good morning,” Parker mumbles, continuing their leisurely path up my arm.
“Morning,” I whisper, careful not to speak too loudly so I don’t wake up Landon. It’s rare that he lets me hold him like this. Even with how much he loves it, it always seems like I have to coax him into realizing he’s allowed to want things like this.
Parker is like a little black cat, and it’s much easier to give them what they need because they just take it.
Crawling in mine or Landon’s lap, or pressing their face into our chests.
Demanding kisses or cuddle time. Landon isn’t like that at all.
I’m not sure why he doesn’t think he can speak up about his wants, but I’ve taken to paying extra close attention so I can make sure he’s getting them.
Shooting me a sleepy smile, Parker scoots closer, snuggling up to Landon. They run a hand through his hair, softly petting him, which makes him stir.
When he realizes how he’s lying, he stiffens, but I tighten my arm. “Shh.”
Parker snorts. “I get a good morning, and he gets shushed?”
“You don’t try to run away from me when we wake up cuddling. Lan does.”
“I’m not running away,” Landon grumbles, his body relaxing as he snuggles deeper into my embrace. “How did you get here?”
I laugh a little. He really was out of it last night.
“Hey,” Parker says, voice questioning. “That’s a good point.” They sit up, narrowing their eyes at me. “I don’t recall you being in the bed when I went to sleep in it.”
“Well,” I start, nuzzling the top of Landon’s head. “I finished studying and tossed and turned for an hour before I finally said fuck it, and decided to come here. I couldn’t sleep without the two of you.”
Parker gags. “Oh, that’s gross.”
“As if you didn’t say the same thing last night when you begged Landon to come over.”
This time there’s no gag, but Landon chuckles and Parker gasps. “I didn’t beg, and I don’t like the insinuation that I did.”
Reaching behind me, I grab my phone and open our group chat. “So much,” I say, reading their messages from last night. “You two have ruined me, and now I don’t know how to starfish in the bed anymore. Feels wrong. This is all your fault. Send help.”
Parker snatches the phone out of my hand. “Alright, fine. You’ve made your point.”
With a sigh, they lie back down, wrapping themself back around Landon. “Ben’s being mean to me.”
Landon laughs. “What do you want me to do about it, Lovebug?”
“Nothing, I guess. You can come cuddle me, though.”
“Mmm, I’m pretty cozy here. How about you just cuddle me more?”
I can’t help but smile at the two of them. They’ve gotten so much closer over the last few weeks, and I love to see it, but it seems, especially after last night, like something has shifted between them.
“Did you have fun last night?”
Parker hums. “Yeah. Lan manhandled me on the couch and made me cum so hard I almost blacked out.”
My dick thickens. Fuck. I love watching them together, but I also love that they enjoyed their time without me and used it to get closer. I think they needed that.
“It’s not my fault,” Landon says. “It was all fun and games until I realized Park wasn’t wearing anything under their skirt.”
“Oh, is that right?”
A pink flush spreads up Parker’s throat. “It wasn’t for that. It was just a happy accident, but with the way he reacted, I may have to do it more often.”
Something warm and fuzzy spreads through my chest, heating me from the inside out.
“Speaking of,” Parker says, sitting up quickly. “We need to expand on our ‘boundaries’ talk.”
Landon wriggles out of my hold and sits up, so I follow suit, only slightly grumpy about no longer having him in my arms. “What’s up, Cotton Candy?”
They clear their throat, then glance between the two of us. “I want to go all in.”
Landon and I share a look. “What do you mean?” I ask.
“Like…” They wave a hand through the air. “Like I want to just go all in. No boundaries. No permission. I just want us to be free to be together in any way we want.”
“Is this because of last night?” Landon asks. “Do you think you need to rush ahead since we had sex?”
I bite my lower lip while Parker shakes their head. “No. I just really trust you both. You, uh—you mean a lot to me. And I was afraid of being hurt. I’m still a little afraid, I won’t lie, but I don’t want any of us to be stifled. I want us to be free to explore our feelings and stuff.”
I’m opening my mouth to respond when Parker’s face turns murderous. “But just with us. I think it goes without saying that I mean just the three of us.”
I almost can’t stifle a laugh at that. “I’m not interested in anyone else, Cotton Candy.”
Landon shakes his head. “Me neither.”
We all stare at each other in silence for a second.
“So it’s settled then?” Parker asks. “We have a—what even is this? A polycule? We have a closed polycule.”
“Sounds perfect to me,” I say, heart pounding in my throat.
“Me too, Lovebug.”
A breathtaking smile spreads across Parker’s face. “Okay. Perfect. Then yes, I want you to be able to explore and have fun and just be. The idea of it makes me feel all… funny inside. But in a good way.”
If it’s anything like the way I feel when I think about the two of them together, I feel the same way.
“Me too, pretty baby.”
“Ugh. Stop calling me that,” Parker says, glaring at me, but their smile and the flush on their cheeks give them away.
“You don’t want him to stop,” Landon whispers, reaching up to brush his knuckles over Parker’s cheek.
Eyelashes fluttering closed, Parker sighs. “Fine. Alright. I don’t. But you better not call me that in front of anyone else. I have a reputation to uphold.”
Weston Hale is not one to blush. In fact, I don’t think I’ve ever seen his cheeks turn pink.
But right now? They’re pink. Red, actually.
“Hey, West.”
He holds a hand out in front of him. “Don’t.”
“Don’t what?”
The glare he levels at me is impressive. It would probably be more intimidating if he wasn’t so red-faced. “We’re never, ever going to talk about what happened at the bar.”
I can’t help but laugh.
Levi stands, his dripping wet hair bouncing. He’s cute, with curly blond hair and crystal-blue eyes offset by almost elvish features, his nose and chin a little pointy and pronounced. “I think we should definitely talk about it. What’s it like?”
West goes so red I’m worried he might pass out. “Did I not already tell you enough?”
Laughing, Devon hooks his arm around Levi’s neck, pulling him away. “Sorry about him.”
West shakes his head, but the color doesn’t fade. I bump his arm with mine. “Nah, I’m happy for you, man. You’ve come a long way from the guy who stood in this very locker room asking me what was so cool about football pants.”
With a laugh, he bumps me back. “No, yeah. I’ve got it figured out now. Did you know Darcy has taken a liking to the Packers?”
I snort. “No. How did he land on the Packers? Didn’t you indoctrinate him into being a Bills fan?”
“He was.” West shakes his head, exasperated. “But then he saw Matt LeFleur, and it was all over.”
“Ah,” I say, chuckling. “So Darcy is the ‘picks a team based on how hot the players are’ type.”
“Or the coach. Not that I blame him. Dude is pretty hot.”
“Who is?” Landon says, stepping up beside me and nearly scaring me half to death.
“Matt LaFleur,” West and I answer in unison.
“Go, Pack, go.”
I turn to him with a grin. “How did I not know you were a Packers fan?”
Landon shrugs, a grin lighting up his face. “Not sure, really. Guess it just never came up.”
West sighs. “Alright, we better get out on the field. Coach’ll have our asses if we’re late.”
Well, he’s right about that.