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River went for another rib and sucked some glaze off his finger. “I don’t know—you wanna explore Daddykink. That’ll be a lifestyle thing, right?”

“I guess. I go back and forth with that,” Reese said. “I’m not sure there’s a Little out there I can click with. Most of the time, it just feels weird when I see ’em runnin’ around at events.”

I found them charming as fuck, at least those who were also brats and masos, but it was one of those fetishes I wanted to observe from afar.

I wasn’t a Daddy whatsoever; I just loved to beat up mouthy little brats.

We riled each other up with constant teasing and testing the waters. It was an addictive push and pull.

Lucian tilted his head, visibly curious. “Do you and River play together?”

“We co-top,” Reese confirmed. “Our ma used to joke that we share a brain, and…”

River snorted. “I got 80% of it.”

Oh-ho! I chuckled.

Reese didn’t miss a beat. “You’re not very self-sufficient for havin’ the biggest chunk of it, are you?”

River scowled and shut his trap.

Lucian and I exchanged a grin. I didn’t know if he had siblings, but this was like coming home. My brothers and I were always at one another.

“Either way, it sounds fascinating with the co-topping,” Lucian said. “If you ever host a demo together, I’d like a front-row seat.”

“Count me in,” I said. “One of my first ventures into kink—it was actually the first time I came to DC—I watched two cousins demonstrate interrogation with their partner, and it was heady as fuck. They had a connection that went so far beyond verbal communication.”

Lucian looked intrigued.

Reese hummed and finished another wing, and he exchanged a brief glance with River. “We’ve hosted a couple—when I convince his antisocial ass to join me. But, uh…” He cleared his throat and shrugged. “A lot of people obviously think it’s strange seein’ us together in that atmosphere.”

Understandable, I guessed, but…fuck it. “Youse’re consenting adults. Others can fuck right off.”

“Agreed.” Lucian inclined his head. “It seems, even in a culture of the unconventional—with kink, alternative lifestyles, relationship dynamics that defy social norms—we’re incredibly judgmental at times.”

Reese seemed to lose some tension in his shoulders, so I hoped that meant he knew he had nothing to worry about in our company.

“To the unconventional,” I said, raising my beer.

* * *

Lucian didn’t live far from the steakhouse, so we decided to walk.

He and Reese were immersed in a conversation some ten feet behind River and me; last time I’d overheard a portion of it, they’d been discussing punishments. Lucian appeared to have a creative knack for it, without calling himself a Sadist.

River and I were talking DC—and Winchester; I’d shown him the listing.

I wanted his “antisocial” take on my moving there.

I was far from antisocial, but at the same time, I really didn’t want to live smack-dab in the middle of a larger city.

I’d grown up that way. My whole life had come with a touch of shoebox.

It’d actually been an upgrade to get to the barracks in the service.

Not only was I used to sharing everything with others, but I’d been free of my brother’s terrorizing.

Mainly, Cullen’s. He and I could go at each other like archenemies, even though we’d always have each other’s backs.

“Fellas, you can take the next left across the street,” Lucian called.

I looked back and acknowledged what he’d said. “Aye-aye.”

“…but it’s not like we wanna stay there forever,” River was saying. “It’s close to work. That’s the one perk. But in the future, we want a house with a bunch of hedges and trees to shut out the rest of the world. I don’t like the feelin’ of staying on top of each other.”

“Exactly how I feel,” I said. “I want a piece of land too, where I can grow food and keep chickens.”

“Sounds nice,” he commented. “In other words, you should definitely call the listing agent in Winchester.”

I should. I was going to.

* * *

Lucian’s place was hella nice. He lived in an older building, with high ceilings and wooden floors, and it was highly possible he’d hired a decorator when moving in.

The living room looked like a page straight out of Upper-Class Bachelor Living .

Everything was in dark blue, brown leather, and oak.

Two big couches, big TV, big fireplace, bookcases filled with books on economy and…

whatever. His liquor cabinet would impress any bartender, and he hadn’t been lying about the poker table. It stood in the corner, beckoning us.

We just had to wait a while. Lucas had texted to say he was done for the night, so he was on his way over.

“Make yourselves comfortable, gentlemen,” Lucian said. “There’re mixers and ice in the kitchen.” He opened the cabinet and grabbed a nice bottle of whiskey.

I had my eyes on a bottle of bourbon instead, the very kind I wanted mixed with Coke.

River and I collected our poisons and headed for the kitchen, where he stupidly convinced me to start with a shot of vodka.

Sadly, a Marine rarely said no.

I threw it back and made a face—and I looked forward to the reward. Being away from bars and clubs relaxed me, and I was hoping for a good buzz to enhance the happy.

“The vampire’s loaded,” River muttered. He was eyeing the black marble countertops and the appliances that looked brand-new.

I grinned lazily and leaned against the island.

Meanwhile, someone put on music in the living room, and classic rock flowed through the place.

I felt good. Relaxed and comfortable.

“One more for the road.” River poured two more shots. “Don’t make me drink alone.”

I chuckled. Fine. One more wasn’t going to hurt.

I downed it quickly, then put my shot glass in the sink.

While we prepared our next drinks, I asked if he and Reese had anything scheduled, kink-wise, in the near future. I’d be back in approximately nine weeks for a quick weekend, so if he knew of any events…

“Afraid not,” he said, adding ginger ale to his vodka.

Lucian had lemon and lime on the counter too.

“We’re headin’ out soon. We’ll be going back and forth between Bangladesh, Laos, and DC a lot over the next year, so if I find myself at home on a weekend, I won’t set foot in a club.

” He threw me a quick glance. “But text us when you’re in town. If we’re home, we’ll meet up.”

I nodded once and topped off my drink with half a Coke. “I didn’t know there was such a high demand for American IT guys in Bangladesh and Laos.”

“True, they usually come to our universities instead to learn all our tech,” he said, not missing a beat.

“But yeah. This is gonna be big. They don’t have the infrastructure to handle organized crime, especially now when everything’s getting more digital.

Who needs a courier when you can send encrypted messages, you know?

They have some ground forces, but their tech belongs in the eighties. ”

I side-eyed him. What he said made sense—perfect sense, actually, and I wasn’t unfamiliar with joint operations to crack down on organized crime, which obviously included people who worked in IT and so on.

There was just something about River and Reese that made me believe there was more to what they were divulging.

Something other than an IT guy with a security escort for “just in case” scenarios since they often traveled to third-world countries.

River finished his bartending by squeezing some lime juice into his drink. “I wanna see Lucian’s coffin. He didn’t offer us a grand tour, and that’s what I’d like to call suspicious behavior from a polite guy like Lucian Leroux.”

I grinned and shook my head. “What’s this obsession with vampires about?”

“It’s my attempt at being funny,” he deadpanned.

I laughed. “All right, vampire hunter. Let’s take a grand tour without the guide.”

“Aces. But, for the record, I prefer vampire slayer.”

“Okay, Buffy.” I took a swig of my drink and followed him out of the kitchen, and he veered right, down a hall.

The bathroom was…a bathroom.

Across the hall was Lucian’s bedroom, and River and I stopped in the doorway.

Hot damn. That was a big bed. Dark colors in here too, green and burgundy, and—was that a camera? Yup. He had a nice camera on a tripod in the corner.

“Someone shoots homemade porn.” River had spotted the setup as well. “That’s hot. Good camera too.” He walked over there to inspect. “I kinda wish Reese and I had footage of when we hooked up with Lucas.”

They’d hooked up? Huh.

“Is he a switch or…?” I just knew he was a Daddy Dom. A damn sweet one, at that.

“Nah,” River responded. “Just an occasional bottom who likes it rough.” He looked back at me. “It wouldn’t surprise me if he’s got hopes for tonight.”

Oh really.

I took another sip of my drink, and it was impossible to keep my mind from considering possibilities.

I hadn’t gotten laid in a while… Long enough for me to eye everyone with interest. Okay, not everyone; I was frustratingly picky, even for one-night stands, but at this point, I wouldn’t turn down anyone in this condo.

The twins were obscenely sexy, same with Lucian, who had a polished air about him that I wanted to mess up with a rough round in the sack, and Lucas ticked tons of boxes too.

His dominance was quieter but nevertheless there, and he was one of those men who…

How should I put it… I wanted to see how far his patience extended by pushing buttons.

He reminded me of Sloan in that regard. Not that I wanted him. He was my best friend, despite that he usually canceled on me.

“You’re interested.” River smirked at me.

I let out a chuckle and finished my drink. The booze was working its way through my system. My tongue already felt looser, and I didn’t hesitate to be honest.

“We’re basically standing in a porn scene, and you’re tellin’ me an occasional bottom might show up with hopes,” I said. “Fuck poker.”

Speak of the devil…