Page 16 of Third Wheel

Her hips moved, lifting her ass up as she clutched the couch cushion she had her face pressed against.

Someone wrapped their hand around her hair.

No, not someone. Kincaid. It was him because Zach was the one holding down the middle of her back while his other hand went to town on her ass. The burn was growing, even though it didn’t match the rock of emotion in her chest. She needed it harder. Though the tingling sensation as Kincaid tugged on her hair helped.

She sensed more than saw him kneel down beside her.

“You’re a good girl, Amy.” His voice was low. Firm. Not gentle, but soft and utterly controlled, and his words completely undid her in a way that she would have never expected. “You didn’t do anything wrong. You deserved so much more than what Jeremy did to you.”

They were all the right words, and they made her choke as the sobs she’d thought were still tightly locked away were suddenly in her throat. Zach’s hand came down again, right on her sit spot, and a small cry leaked out.

It was too soon. Normally, she needed a lot more pain before she could cry, but the combination of Zach’s palm and Kincaid’s voice was ripping her defenses apart like a seam ripper through thread.

“Jeremy should have never treated you like that.”

Zach’s hand came down on her other sit spot.

“You deserve someone who loves you.”

Another burning slap against her heated skin.

“You deserve someone who treats you like a queen.”

And another.

“You’re a good girl.”

Amy’s raw cry as the sobs erupted from her was akin to a wounded animal.

7

Kincaid

Waking up to a woman between him and Zach for the second morning in a row was an odd experience. Especially because it didn’t feel as odd as it probably should.

He turned his head to look at the woman in question. She appeared much more peaceful this morning, though the skin around her eyes was mottled. She’d cried so hard, she’d burst some of the capillaries in the delicate skin around her eyes. But her breathing was deep and even, the lines on her forehead that she’d fallen asleep with had smoothed out overnight, and all the distress had been wiped away.

Which was a relief.

He didn’t think that was quite how her and Zach’s scenes normally went, though he knew she went to Zach to help her with emotional release. That had definitely been a huge pressure valve bursting last night.

Afterward, he and Zach hadn’t needed to talk to know that she was sleeping in their bed again. There was no way either of them was going to leave her. She’d dropped and droppedhardat the end of the scene. Kincaid wouldn’t leave his worst enemygoing through that all alone, much less someone he actually liked.

Quietly, he slipped out of bed, leaving her a robe to put on since they didn’t have any of her clothes in here, and went to get breakfast ready again. Just like yesterday. He was just glad there was something hecoulddo. Last night, he’d felt helpless while she was crying her heart out because it was what she’d needed, and there had been nothing he or Zach could do to fix it.

They’d already done all they could.

She’d fallen asleep clinging to both of them, still shaking from her excess of emotion.

This morning, she would need coffee and something to help restore the energy she’d expended last night.

As he was getting breakfast ready, his phone beeped at him. He glanced over at the display—Mitch was calling. His best friend, outside of Zach. They hadn’t been at the wedding. Amy was friendly with Mitch and his girlfriend Domi, but Domi and her group of friends didn’t get along that well with several of Amy’s other friends, especially not with Noelle.

Quickly rinsing off his hands from the eggs he’d been cracking, Kincaid swiped the answer button and put it on speaker.

“Hey, what’s up?”

“Pretty sure I should be asking you that.” As usual, Mitch’s voice was filled with amusement. He walked through the world, finding the fun in it and constantly clowning around, right up until it was time to torment his submissive, at which point he turned into a sternly sadistic Dom. “I hear you have a new housemate.”

---