3. Burton
CHAPTER 3
BURTON
“Where’s he going?” Phoenix asked as he tensed in my arms.
I rubbed my hand up and down his back until he relaxed into me. His essence matched that of his bakery, and all I could detect was cinnamon, vanilla, and sunshine.
“He’s going to start lunch and feed you until you beg him to stop. It’s his way of taking care of you without murdering your father or figuring out a way to invent a time machine to save you from your childhood.”
“Is this why you brought me to your house? Because I’m incapable of taking care of myself?”
Instead of using tact, I chuckled before leaning back and capturing his gaze. I reached up and thumbed his bottom lip away from between his teeth.
“No, Petal, that’s not the reason we want you in our home. While Luka needs to take care of people, the moment I spotted you in a chocolate smeared apron with your hair tied back, looking like the embodiment of temptation, you were it for me. And other than my attraction to Luka over the years, I’ve never wanted someone of my own. Until now.
“For Luka, who I’ve known since we were seven, I’ve never once seen the practical, logical man react to anyone with anything other than polite indifference. But when I noticed you, he became so enthralled, he?—”
“Yes, B? Let’s try not to say anything to embarrass me before we can prove the truth of our words.”
I shook my head. “Oh, I’m sure I drooled a bit when I noticed Petal here. I may have even stumbled over my words.”
The younger man chuckled and as I heard the melodic sound, my entire being relaxed.
“There’s your gorgeous smile, Sunshine. Are you ready for lunch?”
When he nodded, I stood and lowered him on the floor, forcing myself to let go of him as Luka led the way to the kitchen.
I was still awed to find the dazzling man in our home, winning over the dogs, and showing more of his true self with each minute that passed.
My reaction toward Phoenix’s father wasn’t as visceral as my best friend’s.
You couldn’t change the past, and I learned never to dwell on the impossible. But what I could do was to show Phoenix that caring for someone doesn’t come with consequences, limits, or rules, and with me and Luka, he’d only have to be himself.
We settled around the dining room table, and I noticed Luka made a lunch meant to impress. Brisket grilled cheese along with creamy coleslaw and roasted Brussels with cranberries.
“Oh, wow, it smells and looks delicious. But it’s a lot of food…”
“Eat what you can, Sunshine.”
“Okay,” he said as he lifted half his sandwich and took a bite.
Phoenix’s eyes closed as he took his first bite and savored the flavors. Based on his expression of pure bliss, I found myself ravenous. I scooped up a spoonful of sprouts and almost choked at the moan reverberating next to me.
“This is… wow! Luka, it’s the best thing I’ve ever put in my mouth.”
Fucking hell!
Luka chuckled, and Phoenix froze with the sandwich near his mouth. His eyes darted toward Luka and then over to me. He shrugged and took another gigantic bite. As he chewed, he gave us a closed smile, his bright eyes shining in delight.
Another appreciative sound escaped as he tried the coleslaw, and before long, we were all eating in silence with me and Luka watching the man as he devoured every morsel on his plate.
“Dessert?” Luka asked.
“Ah, if I’d known there was dessert, I would have… nope, I still would’ve eaten it. How about later? Not that I’m inviting myself to stay longer, because I wouldn’t, that’s rude?—”
“Phoenix?”
His blue eyes widened as he turned toward me. “Yes?”
“It’s too early for more, but can I press my lips to yours?”
Another addictive whine escaped his throat, and before the sound cut off, my lips touched his supple ones and it was my turn to groan, aloud. My cock swelled in my jeans and I pulled away with a gasp before I ravaged his mouth.
On second thought, I slanted my mouth and drifted closer. Maybe another small taste.
“Nope, I know that look in your eyes, B, and we can’t devour him. Yet.”
With a huff, I leaned away and smiled when Phoenix laughed and grabbed Luka, giving him a chaste kiss. The simple move caused a rumble to escape the bigger man’s throat.
A chuckle escaped before I grabbed the empty plates and headed toward the kitchen.
“Dessert is ready whenever you want,” Luka said, sounding gruff.
A chair scraped against the wood floor as Phoenix stood and said, “The least I can do is clean?—”
“Nah, no worries, Petal. There isn’t much. I got it.”
Winking at the younger man, watching him blush, put a smile on my face before I disappeared through the threshold of the kitchen.
In a hurry to get back to Phoenix and Luka, I rinsed the dishes and scrubbed the pans with hurried movements. Dish duty was easy, especially when Luka had all the talent as the cook.
But as I shut off the water, I knocked over a glass I’d forgotten on the side of the sink and gasped as cold water soaked my shirt. With the last glass inside the dishwasher, I reached back and pulled my tee off, stopping by the laundry room and chucked it in the hamper.
When I walked back into the dining room, Luka laughed with heat in his eyes. I loved that look.
“Are you trying to impress him with your six-pack?”
Phoenix turned toward me and I watched his eyes widen and his mouth drop open. Rather than look away, his cheeks brightened with a peach blush as his gaze, which felt like a caress as his eyes moved over my neck, down my chest, and over my abs until he landed on my crotch and blinked. Torn between my naked skin on display and my dick trapped behind the tight denim, those blue eyes darted around, never focusing on one part of my anatomy.
Then, without looking, the younger man reached out, grabbed Luka’s tee and dragged the amused man closer.
“Yeah, I got nothing. Let’s stare at Burton. Unless…”
“Unless, what?” Luka asked.
He unclenched his hand from Luka’s shirt, but didn’t let go.
“Do you want to join him? But, if you do, take it off with excruciating slowness.”
My head dropped back, and I groaned. “And now I’m hard.”
The younger man’s eyes snapped to where the outline of my dick was dangerously close to the zipper and back to Luka, where I noticed my friend wasn’t immune to the younger man’s curiosity. His nipples were taut and the white tee did nothing to hide his arousal. At that sight, again, my dick jumped in my pants.
Phoenix gulped. “Are you going commando?”
I nodded before we both peered at Luka.
“Sometimes, but not today,” he replied.
Phoenix grunted while Luka laughed.
“There is nothing more that I want than getting naked with you and exploring every inch of you and Luka. But I’m going to be the responsible one here, put on a shirt, and we’re going to talk about our relationship and a lot of what that entails.”
A whimper slash whine sounded from Phoenix’s throat and the sound did nothing to calm my raging hard on, so I shuffled toward the closet near the bathroom and snagged a shirt from the last time I did laundry but didn’t bother to carry any of it upstairs.
When I got back to the dining room, Phoenix’s face was a shade darker. He blinked up through his eyelashes at me.
“What?”
Exhaling a considerable sigh, he leaned back in his chair and lifted his gaze to meet mine.
“There’s more to you than your sensual, muscled, ripped body and the significant bulge I wanted to reveal inch by delicious inch… but that’s beside the point. You’re a person, not a sexual being in your prime who knows how to please several men, me and Luka in particular, and I shouldn’t objectify you. Sorry?”
The silence grew between the three of us, only broken when Luka laughed. The sound rumbled through me, along with Phoenix’s lighter giggle, and I settled into a chair with a smile on my face.
“Why, thank you, Petal. I appreciate the compliment. But compared to you; all pale skin, bright white hair, pouty lips that have fueled more than one wet dream since I laid eyes on you, next to Luka, who’s your physical opposite in every way with his scruffy beard?—”
“Hey!”
I continued, despite the obvious objections.
“And his dark, messy hair, towering over both of us, and that’s on top of his wide shoulders and perfect bubble butt… yeah, now I forgot my point. Oh, I remember. At least for me, I’m tempted by both of you, but there’s the possibility of so much more than our simmering physical attraction, despite three opposing personalities.
“Luka is purposeful with everything he does, takes responsibility for things in and out of his influence, and is a grump on the best of days. You, Phoenix, work harder than the both of us, but you don’t see the beautiful and positive things about yourself that Luka and I do. And I take fuck-all with the seriousness the issues deserve. Well, at least that’s the image I project. I’ve been dismissive, harsh without meaning to, and an outright shit when I was too lazy or uncaring to find it in myself to understand another person’s point of view.”
Luka cleared his throat. “I think what B is trying to say is that despite all our flaws, which are in abundance, we crave a relationship with you. We’ll take it at your pace. But the important question we want to know is if you want to try being with us?”
“So, what does it entail? I’m not… experienced with relationships, so I’m not versed in what you expect.”
“What?” I asked, surprised.
Phoenix’s eyebrows furrowed for a second, as if debating with himself.
“For the longest time, I believed I might have been ace. But thinking back, I was too busy to notice anyone. Arthur pointed out, on various occasions, men to me whenever he found one attractive. I’d examine the man with an unbiased lens, but soon my thoughts wandered to a new recipe or which plant I should propagate next. Until you two came into my bakery.”
His statement caught my attention. “What do you mean, you were too busy?”
Phoenix, without an ounce of artifice, confessed.
“I’ve worked since I was fourteen. After school and during the summer, I interned in my father’s real estate office doing everything but selling properties. At eighteen, I earned my license, which I didn’t want. But after forty hours of courses, passing an exam, filing for approval from the board, passing another exam to become a salesperson, and then having my father, who tried to teach me everything he knew about being a sleaze bag, sponsor me, I was a certified realtor. I have no issues with the profession, just my father.
“Anyway, from my last name alone, I snagged high-paying clients. All I focused on was my dream of owning my bakery and didn’t think about the other agents who dealt with the cheaper properties, making meager commissions in comparison, but I did as soon as I quit.”
He sounded miserable as he took on guilt that wasn’t his to carry. Finding no words to express that opinion, I sat there, feeling helpless to combat Phoenix’s distress. I squeezed his hand as Luka pulled him against his chest. Phoenix buried his face against Luka’s solid form and stroked his thumb against my sensitive palm before he continued.
“To save everything I earned, I worked nights and weekends. It didn’t matter. Of course, my father thought I inherited my talent and drive from him, but it was desperation, not a great work ethic on my part. By the time I was twenty, I bordered on collapse from exhaustion from both working myself to death and the constant criticism day in and day out, so I used my years of stable employment along with the down payment I scraped together and asked for a business loan. With the last name of Aalto, it was another advantage for no other reason than reputation. Guilt swamped me for five-seconds after they approved the loan until I realized I’d own my business to shape and decorate and build up my way. And it had nothing to do with Hale fucking Aalto.”
Luka met my eyes, and by his expression, the revelation startled him, too. I’d wondered why Hale chose an out of the way bakery for their contract negotiations, but the reason didn’t matter the moment we spotted Phoenix. During the meeting, we bristled each time Hale denigrated the welcoming and unique bakery, but thought nothing more about the man once he left with the signed contracts.
“Why did you both freeze? Is it because of my father?”
I nodded.
The younger man shrugged and asked, “Remember I said I sensed you each time you came in for a visit?”
“Yeah?”
“I spotted you sitting with him that day. It’s a passive aggressive move on his part to do business in the corner of my bakery while ordering nothing and making snarky, hurtful comments to my staff. They all know who he is and ignore him. Or try to. Arthur takes great pride when he gets to wait on him, but instead of the passive-aggressive shit, he makes direct comments about what a terrible father he is until the man huffs out in a snit.”
Phoenix was ours now, and we’d do whatever it took to keep our man happy. Yes, I knew it was too early to declare ourselves in a relationship after we started getting to know him only hours before, but I shrugged off the technicality.
Luka said, “We’re the only landscaping business he hires. But with every new commercial property he wants to sell, he’ll make us jump through hoops in order to get the contract. The less said about the man, the better.”
“True. So. You were telling me about our relationship? Burton mentioned naked times, so… this will lead to sex eventually, right?”
“Fuck!”