Page 22 of Crushes and Confections

“I genuinely had given up,” she finally admitted. “You’ve only dated men and I thought you weren’t interested.”

It’s because no women had lived up to her. None I’d met had her humor, her expressive eyes, our easy friendship, none of the things I loved about her but was stupidly afraid to admit. Instead I’d wasted the years being her loyal best friend and leaving her open to be swept off her feet.

Thank god she wasn’t.

The thought alone had my chest aching and I rubbed it absently as we had a silent stare off. She finally reached over and took my hand again. For the first time in a long time I let myself enjoy the feeling, soaking in her presence and letting it ground me.

“So what does this mean now?” Claire asked bluntly. Her eyes flitted between the two alphas then back to me, waiting for someone to speak up. Apparently Vance was our spokesperson since neither Adrien or I volunteered.

“It means we put out in the open if we are all on board with giving this a shot,” Vance explained. “Now that we’ve all met and are all interested, we see how this goes.”

“I agree,” Adrien said. “We don’t jump into things lightly. I want you to be certain and if you are, I want us to take the time to give this chemistry a chance.”

“I’d like that,” Claire said. Her voice was quiet but we all heard her easily. My poor Claire Bear was out of her element. Hell, so was I.

“This has gotten heavy, and we all seem to be done with the main course. Let’s go sit in the living room,” Adrien suggested. “I’ll make coffee.”

“I can help,” I offered as Vance helped Claire walk to the other room. My eyes followed them until they turned the corner and when I looked back, the other alpha was watching me with amusement.

“They’re a sight, aren’t they?” Adrien mused. I swallowed hard, something about the alpha’s presence making me feel seen. I’d never shied from the spotlight, but this was different, more intense.

“So are you,” I flirted. He saw right through me and stepped closer. Looking up into his green eyes had all of my bravado fading away.

“You know, I find you so intriguing,” he husked, in a low enough voice I felt it vibrate right through me. “So strong and outspoken unless confronted. It makes me wonder just how submissive you are.”

“You wish I were submissive,” I laughed nervously. Yet the thought of me on my knees for these two alphas, Claire and I side by side as they gave us orders, had my cock stirring to life. I may be submissive in the bedroom, but there’s no way in hell I was going to give him that information for free.

“Stop flirting and get the coffee!” Vance called out. There was amusement in his voice that had the moment bursting between us. Adrien seemed just as dazed as I was and that thought had pride filling me. I loved that I could affect someone like him.

“How do you and Claire take yours?” Adrien asked as he finally shook it off and led me to the kitchen.

“Claire likes it sweet, I like it to taste like coffee,” I answered, already opening the fridge to grab out creamer. Adrien got out a tray and loaded it with sweeteners, stirrers, and made everything look fancy. When he was finished and satisfied with the display, a small adorable smile took over his face.

“No coffee for you?” I questioned, noticing he’d only put out three cups.

“I’m more of an espresso person if I do partake, but I don’t need that much caffeine this late. What we do need now is something sweet,” he said to me. Again he was moving through the kitchen and compiling a small snack board of confections and little pastries.

“It’s beautiful,” I told him. It wasn’t like I could help him much since I didn’t know where anything was so I spent the time appreciating the man at work. He was intense and focused, yes, but he was doing it out of passion and I was seeing that now.

“Thank you, Riley,” he said as he picked up the coffee tray. “Will you bring this one?”

“Of course,” I said quickly, forcing myself to focus on anything but him for a change.

Vance and Claire were sitting on the couch, not touching but I could tell they both wanted to. I appreciated that they were letting her set the pace. She deserved to not be rushed.

There was a fire going in their fireplace and their soft sectional was perfect. Adrien settled next to his husband while I sat next to Claire. It would be interesting to see how that dynamic shifted as we got to know each other.

“These are amazing,” Claire groaned as she let a truffle melt on her tongue. The moan she let out as her eyes rolled back had the scents in the room amping up. Omega pheromones had never seemed suffocating before, but now that it wrapped around her peaches and cream scent, I felt like I was drowning.

“Uh, Claire Bear. Rein it in, it’s not that kind of party,” I teased. As she met my eyes, I let her see how I truly felt. I knew mine were full of lust and her face flamed red.

“Shit. Sorry,” she squeaked out.

“Don’t apologize for that, I like when you enjoy my chocolates,” Adrien said in a gravelly tone.

“You have no idea how captivating you are,” Vance agreed as he took a long sip of his coffee.

“So, how about a movie?” Claire asked in a strained tone. From the sweet scent of her slick I could tell she was both loving and hating the attention. She would be so much fun to tease when things progressed.

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