Chapter 2
Mia
The alarm goes off next to my head, and I blindly slap my hand around to get the noise to stop.
I was up way too late last night, and this morning has come way too fast. The worst part of October is all the Fright Night parties.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m a spooky bitch just like the next girl, but I’d much rather be exploring the grounds of this haunted college campus than having my thoughts blasted out of my skull because the music is so loud at a party.
I was so relieved when my boyfriend, Leo, dragged me out of there and took me into the Ravensmere Gardens.
Even if he did have an ulterior motive. Not that I minded being fucked outside while the rest of the school was partying yards away from us.
Knowing that someone could stumble on us at any moment only made it that much more intense.
I’m tempted to snooze my alarm, but I’m spending the day with my two best friends, Sloane and Felicity, and if I don’t get out of bed and get ready, they’ll drag me out there themselves.
They have zero boundaries, and it’s honestly a bit of a nuisance when I want to get out of something and be a recluse, and they won’t allow it.
With a groan, I toss the blankets off me and head to the bathroom.
I check to make sure the other door that leads to Sloane’s room is locked, then strip out of my clothes.
The shower feels good along my shoulders, but stings as it cascades across my scraped palms and knees, a reminder of last night’s fuckfest in the dirt.
My nipples tighten as I relive the memory of Leo sliding his thick dick inside me while I was on all fours on the ground.
I love taking every inch of him. Love the way his hands feel over my body, loved the illicit fear that someone could be watching us.
Something I’m almost certain happened. I swear I could feel Parker’s eyes on me.
The thought shouldn’t make me wet, but I can’t help it.
My hands travel down my trim waist, my middle finger dipping through my folds as I find my clit. My breathing picks up as I circle it, my free hand coming up to pinch my nipple, twisting it until there’s just a bite of pain. Warmth spreads through my belly, my pussy throbbing as I play with myself.
I just came twice last night, and I’m sure Leo and I will fool around tonight, but I’m insatiable, hungry. Orgasms are healthy, right? What’s a little self-induced fun?
I press a little harder against my clit, spreading my legs and propping my foot up on the side of the tub.
The position lets me slip more easily down to my core, finding myself ridiculously wet already.
Arousal coats my fingers, and I drag it up to my clit, circling it with renewed fervor.
It feels so good, and I barrel toward my release with the image of Parker watching Leo pound into me.
What would it have been like if he had joined?
Kneeled down in front of me and let me suck on his cock.
With that image playing out in my head, I come.
Hard. I release the pinch of my nipple and brace myself on the shower tile as wave after wave crashes over me.
When it ebbs, I sit down on the shower floor and catch my breath.
“Jesus, Mia,” I pant. Not that I haven’t thought about it before, but having both of the men I’m in love with at the same time really does it for me.
Too bad that’s not something either of them would ever go for.
After my shower, I pull my long hair to the side and quickly plait it, skipping my makeup, and pulling on a pair of tight denim jeans, a plain white V-neck T-shirt, and my leather jacket.
When I finally drag myself out of my room, feeling a little more human, Sloane sits perched on the arm of the couch, her arms crossed like a mother waiting to scold her child.
Her auburn hair hangs in wild, kinky curls around her shoulders, and she’s wearing the cutest dress with ankle boots.
She’s always so put together, looking so fresh and prim and proper.
But it’s misleading. She’s a viper wrapped in silk.
“You disappeared last night!” And there it is.
“Good morning to you, too, sunshine. I need caffeine.”
“We’re out. You can have alcohol when we get to brunch. Now, where did you run off to last night? It was the first party of the season! We were supposed to dance the night away, and somehow, I ended up being bailed on by my two best friends! How does this happen? Why does this happen?”
I rip open my bag of Skittles, popping two red ones in my mouth. “Where did Felicity go?”
“Caught her and Abigail going up the stairs at Ravensmere to get it on, the little horny wenches. Their sex drives are almost on par with yours. What are you all drinking to make you so needy?”
“Maybe you just haven’t found the right person yet, huh, Sloane?”
“Stop eating candy for breakfast. I definitely don’t need another person to get myself going, my toys are just fine, thanks.” I roll my eyes at her, knowing I’m going to continue to eat my candy anyway.
“Mhm,” I hum as I fill a glass with water and chug it down. “Are you ready? I just need to put on shoes.”
“I’ve been ready! Felicity is probably sitting there already, waiting for our asses.”
I close up my bag of Skittles and turn to face my best friend.
“Alright then, let’s go!” I shoo her with my hands as I slip into a pair of ankle boots I keep at the front door of our apartment.
The three of us share one of the few apartments in Harrow House reserved for seniors and those who can afford it, and it is so much better than a stuffy dorm.
Luckily for us, Sloane’s parents are practically Corvus royalty, so they’re paying for it.
I hate handouts, but it was living with my two best friends or another year in a dorm room with a random pairing. No thanks.
Together, Sloane and I leave the warmth of Harrow House and step outside into the unseasonably cold weather. An early winter will be here before Thanksgiving; I’m calling it now. If I breathe deep enough, I can almost smell the smoky scent of snow on the breeze.
Corvus College is one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever lived, and as I step onto the old, cracked cobblestone, I throw my arms outward and let my head fall back to face the sky, taking a deep inhale of the crisp autumn air around me.
I fill my lungs with the richness, feeling a slow sensation of wholeness as it spreads through my veins.
There’s a pull I’ve always felt to the grounds here, something I can’t quite explain.
It’s more than the quiet eeriness of the college; it’s deeper, almost instinctive, like the place itself is humming just under the surface, calling me home.
I live for the ivy-covered old brick walls, the vines that thread themselves through the mullions and delicate tracery.
My eyes are drawn to them now as they choke the stained glass of the windows into obscurity, dimming what little light can pass through.
I’ve never been one to thrive in a crowded room, always looking for the things that reveal themselves in the quiet, wanting to explore what hides in the dark.
I rebel against doing what everyone else is doing.
My lips turn up in a smile. Little rebel.
My heart pangs when I think of how that nickname sounds on Parker’s lips.
Did I ever expect to fall in love with two people?
Never. But it happened, and my heart has been torn in two ever since.
I can’t explain it any more than why my lungs need air to breathe.
Loving them is biological, innate, primal.
I can’t pick just one of them without my heart being forever split in two.
Sloane and I walk in silence, which I appreciate.
Even though she’s typically a chatterbox, she lets me look around at our surroundings, even though I’ve seen it all a million times.
The courtyard in the center of the school is surrounded by massive Gothic architecture.
Above us, spires reach up into the colorless, gloomy sky, their sharp silhouettes decorated with weathered gargoyles and grotesques that leer down, casting their silent judgment.
And encircling it all, towering white oak trees stand as sentinels, their branches heavy with leaves in shades of amber, rust, and blood red, their colors a brief light against the campus’s otherwise lifeless gloom.
The school echoes with rich history and dark secrets, and it’s one of the many reasons I’m so enthralled by it.
Most students ignore the whispers that breathe life into the grounds, too busy with the hustle and bustle of day-to-day life, but it’s among the quiet stillness that truth tends to reveal itself, and that’s where I like to be.
In no time, we arrive at the café. Felicity sits at a booth in front of the window, sunglasses still on, even though there’s no sun in sight, her long hair piled high on top of her head.
Sloane and I tap the window just as she brings a mimosa to her lips, rapping our fingers against the glass.
Felicity jumps, the orange liquid spilling over the rim and dribbling down the stem.
She flicks us off, and our combined laughter echoes around us.
Sloane and I pull open the door, a welcome blast of heat flushing our cheeks as we enter.
The café reminds me of a speakeasy, with dark, black-painted walls and rich, crimson-colored velvet tufted booths. Gold frames with famous artists, writers, composers, and scientists adorn the walls. I love the atmosphere, and it’s a spot the three of us often frequent.
After shrugging out of our coats, we take our seats with our friend, who looks worse close up. Bloodshot eyes, dark circles, and a hand rubbing her forehead.
“I don’t think I’ve seen you this hungover since freshman year. You get a little wild last night?” I ask her.
“Not hungover, exhausted, and ‘wild’ is an understatement. Abigail is like a sex goddess with no off switch,” she whines.
Sloane sags dramatically into the booth next to me, bringing her fists up to her eyes and mock-crying. “Oh, boohoo, poor Felicity, her girlfriend fucks her, so terrible!”
“Oh, I didn’t say anything about it being terrible.
Quite the opposite. But when you’re in a relationship with someone obsessed with making you come, they become obsessed with finding your limit.
And being the stubborn asshole that I am, guess who came so many times last night that I passed out?
Like, passed the fuck out. Pretty sure my clit is going to fall off, and my vagina is just a big gaping hole at this point. ”
I can’t hold it back; a laugh bursts from deep in my belly, and Sloane joins me as Felicity drops her forehead to the tabletop with a groan.
“What an image you just painted!” Sloane bellows.
“Does your hooha need some ice?”
“Yes, actually, you bitches. I could use some ice down there. My lips are so puffy, it’s uncomfortable to sit.”
Sloane and I share a look and then start laughing again at our friend’s expense.
“My best friends are assholes. Straight up assholes,” Felicity says to herself. “Changing the topic! Where did you two end up last night?”
“Mia ended up on either Leo or Parker’s dick, and I went home alone. Which is annoying. Can’t say I want my clit to be played with so much it feels like it’ll fall off, but some attention downstairs would be nice.”
I push Sloane with my shoulder just as the waitress comes over. We order a round of mimosas and blackberry pancakes, and then we’re back to gossiping some more.
“I was with Leo last night, thank you very much. I’m with Leo, not Parker.” The words taste like ash on my tongue, and I have to bite back the wince.
“Have you thought about telling them to share you? You’re jumping back and forth between them anyway, why not get them on board with it?” Felicity asks after taking a long pull of her drink.
“Share me,” I repeat incredulously.
“Yes, share you. Those two men are head over heels for you, you think they wouldn’t share you?”
“I think they’d rip each other to shreds. Leo is . . . possessive. And Parker is . . .”
“Obsessive.”
A blush blooms, and I can feel the heat on my cheeks. Which is most definitely not from the mimosa I’m sipping on. “Yeah. Obsessive.”
“You can have yourself a little why-choose situation.”
“What the hell is a why-choose situation?” I ask.
“She’s already not choosing with the way she’s treating their beds like musical chairs,” Felicity jokes. I slap her arm playfully.
“You two are idiots if you think those two men would be up for sharing me. They’d rather get in a ring and beat each other senseless.”
Sloane and Felicity both look at me with similar expressions. I read them loud and clear.
“Babe, you’re already doing that, though. How long are you going to jump back and forth when your heart clearly can’t make up its mind?”
Her question is valid, and the answer is completely unknown to me.
I want both of them, and I can’t imagine my life without them.
But I have no issues imagining what life would be like if I didn’t have to constantly choose, didn’t have to feel this awful sensation of being pulled in two different directions.
Plus, the idea of being with both of them?
Goosebumps scatter across my skin, and I have to suppress a shiver. They’d never go for it.
Would they?