SWNOVELS Pucking Sweet: Chapter 50
Our sailboat races over the choppy water, a spray of sea air hitting my sunglasses as I laugh, flipping them up into my hair. The weather is perfect for a sunset cruise. Perhaps a little chilly out on the open water, but Steve and Mike, our deck crew, provided me with a big striped beach towel to drape over my legs.
Colton and Lukas sit to either side of me, laughing and talking. I haven’t felt this relaxed in ages. We ate all the snacks I brought, and now we’re just stretched out on the blue canvas deck cushions, enjoying this time together.
I’ve felt protective of what we have, like I want us safe and hidden inside a little shell. Hard-sided and resilient, it will keep the world out and just let us be…whatever it is that we are. No mothers with strong opinions, no sisters with biting jokes, no strangers with narrowed looks.
Out here on this open ocean, I feel completely free.
“Let’s take a picture,” I say, pulling out my phone. The boys lean in and Colton takes the phone to snap a few selfies. They get increasingly obnoxious, starting with kissing my cheek, and ending with Lukas licking my face. “Ugh—stop it,” I cry, wiping my cheek as he laughs. “Can you be serious for two seconds, please?”
He snatches my phone, taking a look at the photos. “Oh yeah, this one’s a keeper.” He shows me the last picture—my face of alarm as he squeezes my cheek, his tongue out, mid-lick, Colton’s face next to mine, laughing.
“Erase that one,” I cry as Colton says, “Send it to me.”
“Already sent it,” says Lukas, handing me back my phone.
He behaves as we take a few more pictures, even offering to take the camera so I can get a few of just me and Colton. Then Colton takes the camera but keeps cutting Lukas out of all the shots. They fight until they nearly send my phone over the side, and I have to tuck it away for safekeeping.
We settle back against the deck cushions, and I smooth my hands down their thighs. Turning to Colton, I smile. “Are you having a good time?”
He tucks my wind-whipped hair back from my face, kissing my cheek again. “This is great, baby. I needed the fresh air.”
“We both did,” says Lukas, stretching out with his arm around my shoulders, ankles crossed, feet bare. “Sometimes it feels like the only place I exist is on the ice, in the gym, or on the seat of a damn plane.”
Their schedules really are grueling. I see how hard it is on the families too. The players with kids miss so much—birthdays, doctor’s visits, recitals. Walsh had to attend his girlfriend’s first baby wellness check from a bus this week. Lukas said he video-chatted in, showing them all the live sonogram. They get the summer to recover, but during the season, these men are living and breathing hockey 24/7.
“I’m glad we could do this together,” I say, snuggling in a little closer to Lukas to give him another kiss. I just can’t help myself.
Colton scoots into the space I’ve made, tucking me in tighter between them. He snakes his hand around me, cupping my breast, and I gasp, grabbing his hand. “Col—they’ll see us.” I glance over my shoulder to where Steve and Mike stand at the helm, still chatting.
“So?” says Lukas, stealing another kiss, his own hand roaming as he slips it under the large, striped beach towel.
I let their petting go just a minute too long—Colton’s tongue is in my mouth, and Lukas is kissing my shoulder with his fingers brushing over my panties—when Steve comes padding over in his flip-flops. “We’ll be anchoring here in a minute to watch the sunset,” he calls out.
The three of us break apart, Lukas dropping his hand away from me under the blanket.
“Don’t stop on my account,” Steve says with a chuckle. He’s a young guy with a beachy Matthew McConaughey vibe. “Y’all poly?”
I blink, heart suddenly racing. Oh god, the sandy-toed, sun-kissed boat captain wants to know the parameters of our relationship. I can literally feel the walls of our protective clamshell snapping shut as Colton says, “Yeah, we are.”
“It’s new,” Lukas adds, his hands still on me. “Just consider us a trio of sea explorers.”
“These be strange tides,” Steve says with a wink.
Oh my god, what is happening right now?
“I’ve dabbled myself,” he goes on, readying to drop the anchor as the boat slows. “Love is love is love, am I right?”
“Definitely,” Colton replies, his hand brushing down my arm.
“We’ll stay here about thirty minutes,” Steve goes on, hands on his hips as he glances around at the blue patch of water. Off in the distance, you can still see the shore. “That sun’ll go down quick. Then it’ll be back to the marina. You love birds have a nice time,” he adds, walking away. “Mikey and I will make ourselves scarce. If this boat’s a’rockin,’ we won’t come knockin.’”
On that note, he leaves, Colton and Lukas laughing to either side of me.
“What the heck was that?” I hiss, sitting up.
“What was what?” says Lukas.
“You just told Steve that we’re in a relationship.”
Lukas glances to Colton, confused. “Is that not what this is? I mean, I don’t have all the words for it, but I’m pretty sure the term ‘poly’ applies to a ‘two guys, one girl’ situationship, right?”
“Neither of us is French-Canadian,” Colton adds. “So, I don’t think we can use ‘ménage à trois’ without sounding like assholes.”
Lukas snorts. “Yeah, I’m not calling us that.”
My heart is racing so fast as I glance between them. “Well…what would you call us?”
Lukas narrows his eyes, his smile turning to a smirk. “Uh-oh. Brace yourself, Coley. Poppy wants to have the talk. You realize it’s only been, like, a week, right?” he teases at me.
Is that how time works? I’ve been so swept under in all this that it wouldn’t surprise me in the least if you told me I’d been with these two for a decade.
Colton crosses his arms, his pretty dark eyes locked on me. “What are we allowed to say here that won’t scare you off?”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean, I’ve been told I’m too Leo to function,” he replies to another laugh from Lukas. “I’m not saying anything that might risk sending you running.”
“Yeah, please don’t,” Lukas urges. “I mean, you’re a literal angel, Pop, but I doubt you can run on water.”
I roll my eyes at him, turning my attention back to Colton. These boys like to tease, and they love games. Fighting a smile of my own, I hold his gaze. “Truth or dare, Colton.”
“Oh shit,” Lukas mutters, sitting up.
Colton smirks. “Dare.”
I was ready for this. “I dare you to label us. Tell me what we are.”
He’s quiet for a moment, considering. Then he takes my left hand, slowly turning it over, his fingers brushing featherlight over mine in the softest, most tantalizing caress. “At the moment? You’re my girlfriend.” He glances to Lukas and grins. “You’re his girlfriend too. If anyone asks me outright, I won’t lie and I won’t hide. You’re ours, Poppy.”
My whole body is humming as I lose myself in the intensity of his attention.
“If you’re asking me where this is going…then I’ll say it’s going here.” He holds my hand up by the wrist, his finger stroking down my ring finger. “I won’t speak for Lukas, but for me it’s going right here.” Leaning forward, he kisses the tip of my ring finger. Then he lets me go. His gaze is fire as he turns to Lukas. “Truth or dare, Nov?”
Lukas groans, glancing between us. “Guys, I hate this game.”
“Yeah, because you know you have to be real with us,” Colton challenges.
He sighs. “Fine, but I’m only going once. Truth.”
Colton smiles. “If you could have a beer with any hockey great, who would it be and why?”
Lukas opens his mouth, then shuts it, like a fish. “I—wait, what?”
I turn to Colton. “Yeah, what?”
“You’re my partner in this too,” he says at Lukas. “I know you well enough to know that you don’t like being expressive with your feelings verbally. And I respect you enough, that I would never force that on you. I’ll be the Leo, loud with all his feelings. You be a Scorpio, and just keep showing us with actions, yeah?”
Slowly Lukas nods. “Okay, yeah.”
“And when you’re ready to talk, we’ll both listen,” Colton adds, his hand absently trailing down my back.
“Fine.” Lukas sits back. Then he looks to me. “Truth or dare, Popsicle?”
“Truth,” I say, ready for anything.
He opts for a softball question. “Tell us something we don’t know about you.”
Honestly, I’m grateful for the question. I smile, ready to steer this conversation away from the choppy waters of relationship labels and back toward sexy fun. “Well, funny you should ask,” I say, perching up on my knees.
They both raise a brow, intrigued by my sudden change in tone.
I flash them a devilish smile. “Something neither of you know is that I’ve been wearing a butt plug all afternoon…and tonight, if it’s okay, I’d like to try having anal.”