Page 27 of Taeja

Damon chuckled. “Do you always say whatever comes to your mind?”

“Yes. You know this already.”

Damon hummed before glancing at his brother, then at her. “Like I said earlier, there is no one else but you, baby.”

“And like I said earlier, that’s not what your father said.”

A chill ran through her, and she looked at Zain. His locs weren’t obscuring his face, so she could see him in all his glowering glory. Maybe he wanted to scare her, but all he managed to do was fuel the sexual desire inside her.

On the car ride over, she told them she wouldn’t be having sex with either of them tonight, and they promised to obey her wishes. She truly hoped they had better self-restraint than her because she never could go too long without stripping for them.

“Baby,” Damon said while sitting before her, blocking her view of Zain. “Our father talks a lot. That’s who he is.”

“You always share your women?” Taeja asked, dreading their answer.

Damon looked away, and it made her heart sink. She was starting to regret leaving Aaliyah’s house.

“Most times…”

“Why?” she asked the question she should’ve done long ago.

Damon cleared his throat. “Do you want an answer to that?”

She crossed her arms and glared. “Yes, Damon. If mi neva waa know, mi wudn ask.”

He sighed and looked away again. Damon tapped a finger on his thigh, making Taeja realize he was choosing his words carefully.

Finally, Damon met her eyes again. “It started the summer before we went to college. Zain had a thing for our neighbor, but he never told me, so Ididn’t know. I had a thing for her too, and I told him because they were closer than me and her were. I thought he could help me with approaching her. That’s when Zain told me he liked her, and… I think you can fill in the rest.”

“No. I want the full story.”

“You’re something else, you know that?” Damon asked with a hint of a smile that made her heart swell. “Okay. Most times, things weren’t the best at home with—” He paused to shake his head. “She suggested we share her, and Zain and I had a small falling out over it. After we thought about how we’d been sharing everything before we were born, we went along with it. It took some getting used to, but since then, we share our girlfriends most times.”

“And why didn’t any of them work out?” Taeja asked, trying to keep her anger at bay. She hated the thought of another woman being with them. She hated not being their first. Even more so, she hated the thought of unknowingly doing something wrong and pushing them away. They were the first men to show genuine interest in her, and she didn’t want to ruin it.

Damon shrugged. “Different reasons. Sometimes, they end up not being able to handle both of us. Or they love one of us more than the next and try to pit us against each other. Other times, they’re just not what we’re looking for.”

“What are you looking for?” she asked, wondering if their needs were aligned.

“I just told you. Someone to love.”

“And fuck,” Zain added.

Damon spun around to glare at Zain while Taeja bit back a small smile. She always loved how blunt Zain was. He reminded her of herself.

She took a brief moment to ponder their confession. “That’s it?”

Zain’s eyes further narrowed. “I don’t filter my words, Taeja. We want you.”

A weight lifted off her shoulder, and hope blossomed in her chest. All she’d ever wanted was to be wanted, and here were two men who wanted her. Could the night possibly get any better?

“Do you want us?” Damon asked, hesitant to hear her answer.

Glancing between the brothers, she cleared her throat before standing. A chilling tension gathered in the room as she walked to the nearby dresser, leaned on it, then crossed her feet by the ankles. Their eyes raked up her exposed legsuntil they settled on hers.

Taeja’s heart thrummed wildly. These men always managed to push away some of her boldness and make her feel shy.

“Yes. I want you both,” Taeja said, watching with a small smile as Damon’s tense shoulders slackened and Zain’s narrowed eyes returned to their normal state. Inhaling a deep breath, she asked what was now heavy on her mind. “Why did you choose me?”

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