Sweet Seduction (Sweet #3)(45)

Nathan blinked owlishly. Ooo-kay. "You mean you and him ..."

Micah nodded. "Yeah, a threesome. Right before Gray was shot and Faith was kidnapped."

"Wow, I'd have never guessed."

"Exactly."

"What are you getting at here?" Nathan asked.

"I've also seen Serena naked," he continued.

"That doesn't really surprise me. About Damon, I mean. He seems to have pretty relaxed standards about that sort of thing," Nathan said dryly.

Micah lifted one eyebrow and stared back at Nathan. "I think you'd be surprised. Damon doesn't share what is his. He's pretty damn primitive when it comes to Serena. It's a long story, but I saw her naked. Touched her even, but it wasn't sexual. I never had sex with her. I was there for a get-together, and he and Serena had a slight misunderstanding. She tried to embarrass him in front of his guests. He punished her for it."

"Whoa, he hurt her?" Nathan asked aghast.

Micah scowled. "Do you think I'd have any part in hurting a woman? Ever? That's not what their relationship is about. I don't expect you to understand it. That's not what I'm getting at anyway."

"What are you getting at then?"

"The point is, I see both women all the time. There isn't any awkwardness because none of us has any reason to be embarrassed or ashamed. Julie is a cool customer. I don't think much would make her tuck tail and run. She might twist your balls up for f**king her on the sly, but if you and her keep seeing one another, you aren't going to have to worry about me and her acting like fourth graders around each other."

"You know how to get to the heart of the matter, don't you," Nathan murmured.

"I understand your reluctance to keep doing it this way," Micah said as he stared down into his drink. "If she was my woman, I wouldn't be hip on her f**king another guy, unless it was at my instigation."

Nathan cocked his head then shook it. "I guess it's just not the turn-on for me that it is for you. It's hot in a  p**n  kind of way but it makes me all itchy and knots me up inside to see another man's hands on her body. I've done it her way. I've given her the fantasy she wanted. But now it's time to do things my way for a while."

Micah chuckled. "Let me know how that works for you. Julie doesn't seem like the type of woman you can easily bring to heel."

Nathan gave him a disgusted look. "I don't want to bring her to heel. I just want to be the only guy in her bed."

"Fair enough. Takes balls to own up to what you've done and be honest. Most guys would keep their mouth shut and hope she never found out."

"I may wish I'd done just that if she tries to remove my balls with a rusty spoon."

"She's one hot woman, Tucker. You're a lucky son of a bitch if you rope her."

Nathan grinned. "Don't I know it. Don't I know it. And hey, Micah. This is awkward as hell for me, but I wanted to say thanks." He almost groaned as the words came out of his mouth. What kind of moron did it make him to be thanking his buddy for f**king his woman? But better it was Micah than some other jerk who had no regard for Julie's pleasure and well-being.

A flirty grin curved Micah's mouth upward and a gleam entered his eye. "Not a problem at all. Remind your girl when the time comes that you've got her hog-tied and under your palm that she owes me one."

"Oh? What does she owe you?"

"Nothing yet. But she will," he added with unrestrained glee. "She definitely will."

Julie stepped into the hallway and paused at the top of the stairs. She should go. Exhaustion whispered in her ear and made her muscles sag like overcooked pasta. But the murmur of voices from the opposing end of the hallway drew her.

She'd never actually been by the common room when it was in use. Damon had given her a tour of the facilities when no one had been around. But he'd told her about it, and her curiosity had been firmly piqued.

Straightening her T-shirt and smoothing her hands down her jeans, she walked quietly down the corridor, blinking as the lighting got stronger.

When she stepped into the doorway, she scanned the room, disappointed that for the most part, everyone seemed to be standing around. There was one couple stuck in a far corner going at it like rabbits, but that seemed to be it. So much for public debauchery.

Then her gaze lighted on a woman in the middle of the room, a woman that every eye was upon. She was completely nude, her long black hair sliding down her back like a veil of silk. Her hands were bound together at the wrists above her head and then tied to a heavy wooden beam that formed an upside down U.

Dear God, it was Serena.

Julie's breath caught in painful anticipation. What the hell was Serena doing here? Well, here and naked. She shouldn't be surprised that Serena was here, given that the place belonged to Damon. But what on earth was going on?

She leaned against the doorframe, hiding most of her body in the hallway. She gripped the frame with her hand and peered around it to see what was happening to Serena.

When she saw Damon approach Serena, her lips pursed and she frowned. He had a ... he had a whip in his hand. Good God, was he going to beat her in front of everyone? What the hell could she possibly have done to deserve this kind of treatment?

She knew that Serena and Damon had a very . . . nontraditional relationship. Nontraditional being a code word for Serena being completely and utterly submissive. The slave to Damon's master.