Loving and dating two men at once, who knew about each other and were okay with it, was the strangest thing she had ever done. Jem and Will seemed comfortable rotating days with her. In fact, the three of them were so rarely together that Tessa sometime worried they were both just trying not to think about the days the other spent with her rather than embracing the strange nature of their relationship. Every now and then, Tessa feared one of them would get jealous for real and her brilliant solution would crumble into pieces, costing her one or both of the men she loved. But despite the safety of rotating days, Tessa always preferred it when the three of them were able to spend time together. It felt like the two pieces of her heart were finally present when both Jem and Will were near. At this point, Tessa couldn't imagine losing either of them. The very idea twisted something inside her.
As she walked arm in arm with Jem down the street, Tessa thought about how lucky she was to love two people so completely. No matter if it all ended tomorrow or if it lasted forever, she was lucky to have right now. She rested her head on Jem's shoulder as they turned around a corner. Tessa sighed contentedly as she squeezed Jem's arm.
"I love you," Tessa whispered to him. He repeated the endearment back to her instantly and nothing more was said until they saw Will. William was wearing a thick, warm looking grey jacket with blue detail that brought out his eyes. Since Will had reentered their lives and told Tessa about his family, things had been as close to perfect as Tessa could imagine. Will no longer shut down, but was his joyful self always. She had not seen the distant look in his eyes since that day, and both she and Jem were so glad of it.
"Get off my woman," Will accused Jem but he did it in his usual sarcastic voice and in such a way that Tessa wasn't worried.
"Boys," Tessa cautioned, despite the smile on every face. There was a certain energy that existed when the three of them were together, and it always made Tessa smile.
"It is true," Jem replied. "I did have her this morning. It's only fair." Jem took a step back and motioned for Will to take Tessa's arm, which he did. She walked, now arm in arm, with Will as they went back the way Will had come. This was her life now, Will walking her halfway and Jem walking her the other half. It rather summed up their relationship nicely, she thought.
Tessa could hear the snow crunch under her feet. She could look out over the once green lawns of the houses they passed and see the sun set the snow to glittering as it reflected the light of the day. Winter was beautiful, even knowing that when this all melted it would be a mess. They were headed to Will's house. Tessa usually preferred the comfort of home rather than the atmosphere of restaurants or bars. Her one exception to this rule was the bookshop that held the small cafe she and Will visited together. Since neither Jem or Will had any great objections to this, more often than not they met up at one of their three homes. Jem, having the grandest home, was usually their first stop, but Tessa liked to have her boys at her place sometimes too. Today was the first time, however, that the three of them were going to spend the day at Will's. Tessa had stayed over at Will's before, but then it had just been her and Will, not all three of them.
They reached Will's small house and it looked the same as the other times she'd seen it. The phrase that sprang to mind was bachelor pad. You could tell the place lacked a woman's touch as there was nothing on the white walls and not a single decorative item in the room. The large tv in the corner sat facing the couch directly. Tessa knew which door down the hall on the left led to Will's room. On the right was the kitchen and dining room. She'd seen the basement only once, but knew there was a second bathroom down there as well as a large entertainment area with a pool table and mini fridge full of beer.
"Make yourselves at home," Will said as he flung his jacket toward the coat rack that stood in the entryway beside a mat for their boots. Tessa watched the coat land on the floor, just missing the puddle of melted snow.
"Really, Will," Tessa scolded. "It would take a full-time maid to clean up after you." Will shrugged.
"It's true," Jem laughed. Will just scoffed at his friend, then turned from them toward the kitchen. Tessa kissed Jem sweetly, then made to follow Will. Will's kitchen was much like the rest of his house, plain and undecorated. The countertops were a lovely light brown and the floor was laminate made to look like tile.
"Tess," Will said giving her a look as she approached. "This is my kitchen."
"I know," she grinned. Tessa knew Will didn't like people helping him in the kitchen, but she always liked to anyway.
"You just can't help yourself, can you?" Will replied, shaking his head. Tessa just grinned at him. Will, obviously trying to ignore her, started preparing breakfast, though at this point it was closer to lunch. Tessa watched Will pull eggs and milk from the fridge, measure ingredients and mix batter.
"He's still not letting you help?" Jem asked as he entered the kitchen.
"Nope," Tessa said. "He won't even let me be on the other side of the counter."
"Is that so," Jem said with a glint in his eye. Will suddenly froze, then turned toward Jem who was sprinting around the counter. Will put down what he had been mixing and tried to stop Jem, but it was too late. Jem now stood staring at a wall Tessa couldn't see from where she sat. Will muttered something under his breath as he returned to his task of making waffles. The awed look on Jem's face made Tessa circle around the counter to see what Jem was seeing.
On the wall was a painting, the only painting in the house and it was of a mallard duck, with a green head, brown chest, orange feet and a white underside. The duck had a little baby duckling waddling behind it and there was a pond in the background.
"Oh Will," Jem gasped.
"Yeah yeah, whatever," Will said waving his hand dismissively. "Let's not make a big deal."
"Actually, let's!" Jem exclaimed. He went over to Will, turned his friend around and held his gaze. "When did you put this on the wall?"
"A few weeks ago," Will said causally. Tessa still wasn't sure what the significance of a duck painting was, except that it was the only painting on any wall in the whole house.
"It's a beautiful painting," Tessa said feeling oddly out of the loop. Both men turned to her as if suddenly remembering she was there. How she could sometimes be the third wheel in this relationship she didn't know.
"Sorry, Tessa," Jem said with a little shake of his head. He turned back to Will. "Should I tell her?" Will shook his head only slightly then moved past Jem to face Tessa.
"Ella, my sister, she loved ducks," Will explained. "And the last good memory I had of her was us down at the duck pond."
"I see," Tessa said. "Then why hasn't this painting be on your wall all along."
"Ducks remind me of what happen to her and of the part I played in her death," Will said. "They always have."
"When I first met Will, he had an irrational hatred for ducks," Jem explained. "It took many years for him to tell me why."
"What changed?" Tessa asked innocently.
"Everything," Will said softly, then he kissed her. It wasn't a deep kiss but a gentle romantic one.
"Does this mean you have finally given up on your pointless guilt?" Jem asked. Will smiled, his face brightening; his eyes twinkled and Tessa knew the answer was yes, though she also knew Will would never say it aloud. His actions always spoke louder than his words.
"Aren't you guys hungry?" Will asked as he let go of Tessa's shoulders and walked back to his neglected waffle batter. Jem and Tessa exchanged a look. Words were not needed to convey their mutual happiness at the obvious change that was occurring in Will, unchaining his soul.
Will finished making waffles while the three of them engaged in conversation. Tessa brought up music and Will listened while he cooked, then as they were setting the table, the topic shifted to books. Will joined in animatedly discussing the book Tessa had lent him recently. Tessa could not imagine a better way to spend the afternoon… well that wasn't totally true, she could think of one thing.
"I'm full," Tessa said. "Those waffles were delicious, Will. Why don't you cook more often?"
"I only cook in my kitchen," Will replied, pushing his chair away from the table.
"Well then, we shall have to be in your kitchen more often," Jem suggested.
"I agree," Tessa said, getting ready to stand up as well. "I love your cooking!"
"Is that all you love, Tess," Will asked. He'd walked around the table and now stood beside her, leaning towards her.
"No," she whispered. "But you know that."
"Do I now," Will replied silkily, his breath brushing against her skin. Then Will was kissing her neck and she automatically turned her head to give him better access. She heard the distinctive sound of a chair leg scraping the floor, then Jem's presence behind her. Tessa turned in Will's arms, his lips still caressing her neck, to face Jem.
Jem's gentle hands cupped her face as he kissed her. Tessa reached out with one hand to hold Jem's cheek and with the other she reached behind her to touch Will. They had never tried this. She'd been with them both separately before now, but never together. Was this really going to be the perfect afternoon or was their afternoon together not leading to where she thought it was. Will's kisses on her neck stopped and she turned to kiss his lips instead, while Jem's arms wound around her from behind. Tessa's hands were now busy with Will's shirt. When she felt two sets of hands trying to get her out of her complicated attire, she couldn't help but smile. This was indeed going where she thought it was. She loved them. She wanted them. She wanted all barriers between them and her to be gone and they seemed to agree with her.
"Why do women's clothes have to be so complicated?" Will grumbled as he released her lips to better see what he was doing. She laughed, and yanked on his shirt, forcing Will to stop trying to undress her until his own shirt was up and over his head. Jem's gentle hands were still at her back working the clasp of her bra, or rather trying to find the clasp of her bra. Little did Jem know that it fastened at the front. Tessa smiled at the knowledge as she lifted her arms up to allow Will to remove her blouse.
"Two shirts!" Will grumbled as he saw the tank top Tessa was wearing underneath. Tessa ignored him and focused her attention on Will's belt while Will focused his attention on removing her second shirt. Neither item of clothing remained on them for long.
"I give up!" Jem said. Her tank top had long since been cast onto the floor. "This bra is glued on."
Having successfully undone Will's jeans at this point, Tessa turned around and showed Jem where the clasp on her bra was, grinning while she did so. Jem shook his head at her, but she was beaming at him. Tessa held her arms up and out of the way, inviting Jem to return to his task. Just as Jem's hands reached the clasp, Tessa felt Will's strong arms come around her and try and beat Jem to the punch. Suddenly Tessa felt the tightness of her bra relax as one or both of them undid the clasp. It hung loose on her, just the straps keeping it there. Tessa shrugged out of it and it fell to the floor.
"We are in the dining room," Tessa reminded both boys who at the moment were both staring at her bare chest, like they hadn't seen it before, which they totally had.
"So, what?" Will said as he pulled her closer to him from behind, pressing the bare skin of her back against his chest and using one of his hands to cover her loose breast. Tessa moaned as his finger teased her nipple, hardening it.
"I live alone," whispered Will. Tessa was too caught up in the moment to care that there was a perfectly good bed just down the hall. She reached out and pulled Jem towards her, attacking his jeans next. The bare skin of Will's chest was pressed against her back while Jem's front was up against hers. Jem's hand now held the breast Will had ignored, but not for long. Jem moved down her and moments later, Tessa gasped as Jem's hands found their way under her skirt and up her thigh, a tingling sensation traveling down her legs at the contact. As Jem pulled her panties down, Will's hands unzipped her skirt and shimmied the fabric down her legs. She now stood naked with a mostly naked man on either side of her and she could feel the blood rushing through her veins, her pulse pounding in her loins. She knew how sticky and ready she was for them.
As Will pulled her closer she could feel the bare skin of his hips contact hers and knew Will had finished removing his clothes on his own. His hard shaft pressed against her lower back and made her ache to feel it inside her, but Jem in front of her was still only partially relieved of his pants. Jem didn't seem too worried about this. Jem's hands were still busy teasing her, totally unconcerned that his obvious arousal was still caged. As her breath caught in her throat from his skilled movements, Tessa set to work returning the favour. She quickly unfastened what was still fastened and pushed Jem's pants down to his ankles.
"Oh," Tessa gasped as Will's strong hands moved suddenly down the sides of her hips. She was so close now, her body humming. Will's strong arms lifted her just slightly off the ground, instinct told her to spread her legs and when she came down she felt his hard shaft slide in, easily. She moaned as he moved inside her.
Tessa reached forward to pull Jem closer just as Will's hips started to thrust into her. With her hands, she moved up and down Jem's shaft, in time with Will behind her. Will's arms were busy holding her against him, but his lips were kissing her shoulders. Tessa's hands were busy with Jem but she now busied her lips with his as well. Kissing Jem while Will thrust into her felt so incredible, Tessa couldn't help but feel her toes curl. She stopped stimulating Jem as Will's body stiffened and released inside her. He put her down, panting, as he slid out of her. She turned in his arms and kissed him gently on the lips.
"I love you," she whispered into Will's ear before turning to Jem. Her eyes shone and Jem quickly had her in his arms, kissing her shoulder, then her neck and finally her lips.
Tessa stood on her tip toes, but she couldn't line them up without Jem holding her up. Unfazed, she guided Jem to sit down on a dining room chair before she straddled him. The slightly awed look on Jem's face as she engulfed him, made Tessa smile. She swayed her hips forward and backward while tightening and relaxing her muscles around him. Jem gasped, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her head down to kiss his lips. She felt him move his hips with hers, creating those wonderful feelings down her legs. As she reached her climax she knew her body had tensed and speed up Jem's finish. When his body tensed then relaxed, she knew he had finished inside her as well. She collapsed on him, panting, her head on his shoulder and his arms still around her. Tessa was thoroughly blissed out. She'd had them both and neither of them had had to settle for just her hand. That somehow felt right to her.
"Okay, I have to confess," Will's voice broke through the bliss of her moment. "A little jealous over here."
"Then join us silly," Tessa said unable to worry about anything at this moment.
"I would," Will said. "But that chair is a bit small." Tessa just laughed.
"That isn't fair," Jem countered. "You were first. You aren't allowed to be jealous."
"You had Tessa's hands though," Will argued. "And you are still holding her while I am standing here."
Ignoring their squabbles, she made to stand up but Jem's arms were like iron bars holding her there. She was about to protest when she was suddenly scooped up into Jem's arms.
"Don't over exert yourself!" Will chastised his friend at the same time Tessa said something similar, but Jem was ignoring them both. He looked like he was walking on air, his face alight with happiness.
"Put me down," Tessa said and Jem complied. She kissed him lightly on the lips to make sure he knew she wasn't mad, then kissed Will in the same manner, or at least that had been her intention but William wrapped his arms around her, deepened the kiss and even dipped her.
"Show off," Jem grumbled. Suddenly Jem's breathing changed; it was more laboured, strained.
"Are you alright?" Tessa asked him.
"Yeah," Jem said breathlessly. "Fine."
"But you'd say that if you were dying," Will reminded him, both annoyance and concern in his voice. "Are you having trouble breathing?"
"No," Jem gasped. Tessa didn't believe him for a second and she suspected Will didn't either. Then, suddenly, Jem pressed his hand to his chest and collapsed.
So as my beta pointed out, first real lemon since chapter one and it's Tessa. lol. I am honestly not sure where this came from but yeah... that happened. Some days I really just don't want to write lemon and other days it just flow out of my head and onto the page easily. Don't ask why cause I have no answer BUT I blame the Sense8 Xmas special and its epic orgy scene.
Speaking of Sense8 if any of you watch the Netflix original show, Sense8, please check out my friends new sense8 story about Karla and Wolfgang. I am her beta and its great. Her username is: Cococla43. She just sent me chapter two today so the next one is coming soon. If you don't watch Sense8 on Netflix then I HIGHLY recommend it! Its such a freaking AWESOME show! OMG! I can't wait for season 2 which goes live on May 5th 2017! :D :D :D
Also who is excited for Shadowhunters season 2! I KNOW I AM! Not long now! I wonder how long they will drag out the siblings plot in the show... hmmm... and I hope we get lots of Malec scenes but no break up!
Sneak Peek Chapter 33
"You will always be my friend," Clary said. "And I love you."
"Brotherly love wasn't really what I was going for," Simon almost laughed.
"I tried," Clary said tears still falling down her face.
"I know," Simon said.
And sorry for the long hiatus guys! I was writing my other Malec story like crazy and then Xmas happened and my family took over my life. But now its writing time! Work is usually dead in January and my family has all returned to their respective homes. More time for writing for me! yays!
The next chapter is basically finished so that should go up in the next few days. The sneak peek is short cause I am not gonna spoil nothing! ^_^ hehe! :)
Happy 2017 everyone! I have now officially been in the Shadowhunter fandom for a whole year! o_O
