sunset and ocean. The pier itself was blocked in, painted enough to map out the tones and values, but still needing details.
As I handed the phone to Aaron, I pulled my glasses back on. “This looks great! I definitely want to see it when it’s done.”
Kelly smiled shyly.
“Wow.” Aaron used his fingers to zoom in on something, then zoomed back out. “Yeah, I want to see it when it’s done too.” Handing the phone to Kelly, he added, “The water and the sunset are amazing.”
“Thanks.” Kelly pocketed his phone. “It’s still wild, having a place to actually paint. I still want a studio at some point, but right now I’m using the dining room since it has a lot of windows, and… I mean, it’s so amazing not being in anyone else’s way. No one else is telling me I have to move all my crap. All I had to do before I left was shut off the lights, put some plastic wrap over the paint I want to use later, and dump out my water.”
“Makes all the difference, doesn’t it?” I asked. “We had a tiny place for a while in Chicago, and we could either have a kitchen table or a place for me to paint.”
“Ugh, it sucks. It’s so much easier when you don’t have to spend so much time setting up your entire workspace every fucking time, and then break it down when you’re done.”
“Yep.” I nodded toward Aaron. “We ended up eating on the couch for a few months because of that.”
“Really?” Kelly asked.
“Well, yeah.” Aaron smiled at me. “He needed a place to work. So we both got really good at balancing plates on our laps.”
Kelly sighed. “God, I would’ve loved to have lived with someone who was that supportive.”
“Makes a big difference,” I said. “But you stuck with it and got to where you are even without a studio. I’m looking forward to seeing what you can make now that you’ve got the space.”
He blushed again, but he smiled. “Yeah. Me too.”
A minute later, the first two sandwiches arrived. Shortly after, Kelly’s came. The conversation wandered while we ate, and all the while, it amazed me how easily Kelly fit into this part of our life. This had been a lot like date night for us—something we did as a couple. Once in a blue moon, Tom would join us if he was heading to lunch at the same time as Aaron, but the vast, vast majority of the time, it was just Aaron and me. That was the way we both liked it.
But now, Kelly was here, and he…fit. Just like he did in our bedroom. In our bed after the lights were off. In our living room when we just wanted to hang out, or when someone’s head wasn’t in the game enough to play, or when we were all too damn tired for anything. We’d brought him in for kink and pain, and he’d brought so much more to the table.
Part of me was kind of unnerved by that. Were we getting too close? Were we all getting in too deep? But the boundaries were clear. Aaron and I had both been emphatic about what we did and didn’t want out of this, and Kelly knew where we stood. The friendship, banter, and intimacy didn’t mean we’d stepped into poly territory. It just meant we were all as comfortable with each other as we needed to be.
Right?
Aaron’s phone chirped, and he swore. As he shut off the alarm, he said, “Ugh. I have a client coming in. I need to get back to the office.”
My usual disappointment hit, but I didn’t let it show. “Okay. See you tonight.”
“Definitely.” He looked at Kelly, an eyebrow arched. “Both of you?”
“Fuck yeah.” Kelly grinned. “I’ll even be on time this time.”
Aaron laughed. “Yeah, you don’t want to see what happens when he has to punish someone for being late.”
Kelly’s head snapped toward me, and he lost some color. I just grinned.
Chuckling, Aaron got up. “All right, I really have to run. Do you care if anyone here knows you’re, um, with us?”
Kelly shook his head. “Are you kidding?” Playfully, he shielded his face. “No, no, please don’t let anyone figure out I’m with the two hottest guys in the room.”
Aaron laughed and rolled his eyes. Then he tipped up Kelly’s chin and, right there in the coffee shop we visited multiple times a week, he planted a quick kiss on Kelly’s full lips.