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Her skin went hot and her heart took flight. A little squeak escaped her throat.
Auden broke away from the kiss and turned to her, a tentative look on his face. “Um, yeah, so that happened while you were gone. I don’t know how you feel about me and Len, uh…”
Delight fizzed through her, and she pressed her hands against her heart. “Oh my God, I am so happy right now I can’t even tell you.”
Len laughed. “I called it. Dirty voyeur hiding in there.”
“Well, yes, probably,” she said, based on how hot her blood was running just seeing them kiss, “but I’m happy because you two…”
Auden lifted a brow. “What?”
“Were so obviously into each other,” she finished. “And having lines drawn between you when we were all together was kind of weird.”
Len snorted.“Someonetook a while to see that.”
Auden rolled his eyes. “Fine. I’m a little slow on the uptake, all right? We got here eventually, didn’t we?” He gave Len a sweetly conspiratorial look and then turned back to her. “So I guess this means you’re not leaving us?”
She grinned and swiped the tears from her cheeks. “Nope. You’re stuck with me now. Well, until your sister murders you.”
Auden groaned. “We’ll cross that bridge when we get to it.” He reached out and slid a hand onto her waist. “I’m not going to pretend I know what I’m doing here or what the fallout might be if and when we decide to tell anyone. This is new territory for all of us. Complicated territory.”
She nodded, the gravity of the situation still a steady weight in her gut. “I know.”
“We may…lose people,” he said. “And I hate that for you.”
“I hate that for both of you,” Lennox said with a scowl. “Why can’t people just mind their own damn business? We’re not saying they have to be bi or kinky or polyamorous. They can be as boring as they want to be.”
She took a deep breath, looking at the both of them, and then squeezed Auden’s forearm. “I’ve already been disowned just for wanting to go to a state school. I’m not going to lie. It hurts. But also…I think I’m kinda done with having people in my life who only love me if I fit into the mold they made for me. That’s…not love. That’s control.” She gave them a sly smile. “And apparently I only give up control in very specific circumstances to two very specific people.”
Auden’s lips curved into a slow, evil grin. “Is that right, Ms. Lory?”
A shiver ran across her skin at the shift in his tone. “Yes, Teach.”
He gave her a heated look. “I love it when you call me that. And it’s appropriate right now.”
“Oh really? Why?” she asked.
She expected one of them to make a move.
What she didnotexpect was what Len announced. “Because we have a slide presentation!”
She blinked, the screech of car brakes sounding in her head. “You have a what now?”
Auden smirked that dimpled smirk of his and grabbed her hand, kissing her knuckles. “My dearest Shaq, once upon a time, you gave me a stack of research about smoking.”
She closed her eyes in mortification. “Oh my God, are you seriously bringing that up right now?”
“Yes.” He guided her to the couch. “Because we’re doing this the right way this time. We’re not going to give you ammunition to run away again.” He picked up a remote and the TV came on. “We’re giving you what your hungry journalistic brain needs before we take one step more.”
He clicked a button, and a PowerPoint slide came up titledPraise Kink and Why It’s Awesome.There was a cartoon sketch, no doubt Len’s handiwork, of Auden and Len giving a thumbs-up.
She laughed and pressed her hand over her mouth. “Y’all didn’t.”
Len stepped up next to the TV and put on a pair of glasses like he was some hot professor. “Oh, we did. We did it real good, Ms. Lory. There are statistics and graphs. A whole section on polyamory. A breakdown of BDSM roles. I hand-illustrated some slides with filthy art.”
“Wecited sources for deeper reading,” Auden said low against her ear, like he was whispering where he was going to touch her. “There may be pop quizzes. And rewards for good grades. Punishments for wrong answers, though, so you better pay attention.”
To her chagrin, she shivered in anticipation. She pressed her hands over her face. “I hate you both.”
