Page 84 of Lilacs and Leather

“Please, sir, I need your cock,” Lydia echoes, her body shaking as she holds herself on the edge of climax.

I don’t need telling twice. I free my throbbing cock with a few deft movements, my hand still working Lydia to keep her poised on the brink. I bend her forward slightly, withdrawing my hand only long enough to line up the tip of my cock with her perfect pussy. I thrust forward with one smooth roll of my hips, letting my head fall back as I growl through gritted teeth. She shouts a curse, my name falling from her lips, but I don’t care. Being inside of her, feeling the warm, tight heat of her around me is pure bliss. I thrust slowly, letting her adjust to the stretch before I pick up the pace. I grip her hips with bruising fingers, rocking her back hard enough that she gasps with each one.

I open my eyes and nearly jump when I find Mateo standing at the edge of the bed, cock jutting out from his body and standing nearly vertical. He’s a specimen of an alpha, lean muscle with a trim waist and broad shoulders, and his cock is no exception. He rips the blindfold from Lydia’s face, and steps onto the mattress. There’s enough space for him to position himself directly in front of us, and he takes Lydia’s chin in a hard grip, his other hand tilting his cock toward her mouth.

Lydia moans, not needing any instruction before she wraps her plump lips around the head of his cock. I slow my thrusts, setting a steadier pace to let her focus for a moment on Mateo. His hand twitches toward her hair, but I slap it away before he can finish the movement. His eyes look to me in question, but I shake my head. This is hardly the time to explain, especially once Lydia starts thrusting back onto me, taking over the pace in my distraction.

“That’s right, little one. Make yourself come on my cock,” I purr, following her lead.

I go still and she moans, her hips moving faster as she chases her orgasm. One of her hands comes up to grip the base of Mateo’s cock, working in tandem with her mouth to make him forget all about his question. Her moans get higher and louder, and I revel in the feel of her slick channel as she fucks herself down onto me, lost in the race to orgasm.

I run my hand up her spine, massaging her tight muscles and I nearly lose myself in the feel of her. She’s perfect, so beautiful and adventurous and kind and everything that we didn’t know we needed. My breath rushes from my chest, her orgasm making her shout around Mateo’s thick length, and I feel her gush over my slacks.

“I need to be inside of you. I’m not going to last much longer. Please,” Mateo gasps.

Lydia pulls away from him and looks back to me. The glassy need in her eyes, the cherry red flush of her face, everything about the wanton angel beneath me makes my heart clench. I pick up my pace again, and Lydia whines.

“Please,” she breathes, high and desperate.

My orgasm hits me out of nowhere, crashing down my spine and across every inch of my skin. I thrust forward into her, spurting deep as I can feel my heartbeat in my scalp and down to my toes. When I’m spent, I collapse back, allowing Mateo to lean down and scoop Lydia up. He throws her to the bed, barely letting her head hit the pillows before he’s pounding into her.

I can hear him rattling off a string of filth, but my eyes stay on Lydia’s face. Her eyes are closed, and I know she’s lost in a sea of endorphins. She bites her lower lip, her groan shaky as she comes again. She practically glows from the pleasure coursing through her veins, and I’ve never seen anything more exquisite.

Mateo comes with a shout and goes still, resting on his forearms as he pants. The room smells like lemons and ozone and lilacs and sex, and I breathe deep. I want to bottle this scent, to keep this a slice of this moment forever. But I settle on memorizing the way Lydia’s hands look as they stroke up and down Mateo’s back, the serene smile I see for a moment before she buries her face in the crook of his neck.

I get up and shed my clothes at last, dashing into the bathroom to get a damp washcloth. By the time I get back, Lydia is turned on her side, Mateo spooned against her back and half asleep. I slip into bed in front of her, and she moans as I clean her up as much as I can with Mateo clinging to her like a barnacle.

“You okay?” Lydia asks softly, looking up into my face with a little smile.

“Great, thanks,” Mateo mutters, voice muffled against Lydia’s back.

Lydia laughs, pinching Mateo’s arm to get him to loosen up enough to allow me into the cuddle pile. Mateo pokes her ribs, making her squeal with laughter. I smile at the pair, my heart full to bursting with…

It hits me like a ton of bricks, and I stare down at Lydia as she snuggles into my chest. I can see it clearly in my mind’s eye, lazy Sunday afternoons with Lydia, Mateo, and me, or even Lydia and Lucas and me curling in bed basking in the afterglow. Waking up together, her face the first thing I see. I close my eyes and let the emotions crash down over me.

I love her.

And nothing has ever felt more right.

Thirty-Two

Lydia

Clearing the air between Rhett, Mateo, and me had been the best possible thing for our relationship.Their reasons for keeping the secret were completely understandable now that I knew the entire story, and it helped us move into a much better place together. I opened up to Mateo about Darren and was pleased, but not entirely surprised, when he asked Rhett to let him know whenever he wanted help hiding the body. True friendship, through and through.

I saw little of Alexandra after I learned about her involvement with Seth, and I didn’t have any trouble admitting that it bothered me that she was keeping away. I spent time with Rhett and Mateo, and even Lucas when he wasn’t working, but something always came up when Rhett would propose another family dinner or outing. Whenever we did cross paths, our interactions were cordial, but our conversation never went deeper than small talk. Lucas assured me it wasn’t personal, but it didn’t stop me from feeling like it was.

Rhett and Jason finally met via video call, and they got on like a house on fire. Jason works for my father’s general contracting business, and their shared interest in building and architecture helped to smooth the awkwardness of a first-time meeting. They exchanged information by the end of the call, and it secretly relieved me to know that someone else had a way to get in touch with my brother should something bad happen to me. Jason messaged me privately after the call, and admitted that Rhett was worth keeping around, even if he’s an alpha.

We didn’t tell Jason about my relationship with Mateo or Rhett’s relationship with Lucas, mostly to avoid the inevitable judgement. Jason and I had been raised in a borderline fundamentalist Christian cult, and the dogma was pretty clear on the “proper” structure and purpose of the dynamics. Alphas were meant to be the leaders, with their omega serving them and providing a home for the children they made, and betas were the balance between them. There’s a lot of contradictory scripture about whether sex outside of a bond or marriage is truly acceptable in the eyes of the Sky Daddy, but an alpha taking a beta as a bond mate was supposed to be a last resort if there weren’t any omegas to be had, and the beta was most definitely not supposed to be of the same sex. An omega was supposed to find one alpha to pledge themself to, with other alphas being allowed to bond if the prime alpha allowed it for the purposes of breeding. I’d spent a lot of time deconstructing those beliefs from my head, but I’d only been able to do that because I got away from the constant barrage of preaching. Jason wasn’t nearly as indoctrinated as my parents thought he was, but I didn’t feel comfortable enough to trust that he wouldn’t immediately withdraw his good opinion of my choice in a partner if he knew the whole truth.

Mateo didn’t take offense at the decision not to tell my brother, even if it made me feel guilty. To assuage that internalized guilt, I spent more time with Mateo than I had before. He liked to go out, and it made me nervous at first, but after we went out for dinner a few times and it went unreported, I stopped feeling paranoid and could finally enjoy the time Mateo spent with me. Everton is a fascinating place with a rich history of boom and bust, and we explored the city together, as well as the surrounding area. He showed me more of his hidden gems, like a corner store that made the best barbeque I’ve ever tasted, where to find the best coffee, and even a private beach on a nearby lake. There were so many things that I didn’t even know existed, and finding them with Mateo was an adventure every time.

The first weekend of June comes with a bittersweet feeling in my heart. It was supposed to be the weekend of Jason’s visit, and I miss seeing his face and scent even though we talk almost every other day. It’s also bittersweet because the awning repair project is finally complete. The city had a small ceremony to thank the St. Clair Foundation for their work in preserving the history of Everton, but overall, it was a rather boring and anticlimactic finish to something that changed my life. Despite the reassurances from both Rhett and Mateo that nothing would change between us, it still made me a little sad to know that Mateo wouldn’t have an excuse to just hang out with Gabby and me while we work under the pretense of supervising the repairs.

Wila’s closes early on the first Friday after the official end to the project, as the B.O.A. is having a meeting. Wila complains the whole time we go through closing duties, but it’s half-hearted. Once the shop is closed, I check my phone as I walk out to my car.

Rhett: I’m so sorry, but I’m going to be late. The tour ran over, and I still have to stop over at Alice’s.