Page 100 of Triple Threat

I went into the walk-in closet and clicked on the light expecting to see a cobble of the bags and boxes that had been delivered from mine and Roan’s DC shopping trip, but no… instead, what I found was everything neatly arrayed and put away. Sweaters and blouses hanging. Jeans neatly stacked and boots and shoes nicely racked and standing by waiting.

He was just too much… and I sank onto the dressing bench in the center of the closet and cast my eyes around the small space, letting myself feel all the things that there was to feel. Love, gratitude, just an overwhelming number ofeverythingall at once.

I rose and selected a matching bra and panty set from one of the drawers. My dresses had been moved in here, and I imagined the wardrobe out in the room now stood empty.

I chose form fitting jeans, a light tee, and a warm, thick sweater to go over it all in a light cream. I found a matching pair of tall, thick wool socks and pulled them on and up over the knee of my jeans, slipping on and zipping up a pair of knee high tall brown riding boots and shrugging the socks down artfully over the tops of them, the way the personal shopper had shown me.

I went in and dried and styled my hair and went over the array of makeup that we’d bought and actuallygladto have such nice stuff to work with instead of whatever I could share that’d been lifted from the drugstore, I spent a bit fixing up my face. I went light, some foundation to even me out, a little natural looking deep brown eyeliner, a dusting of shadow, and a nude lip.

I finished off with a touch of mascara and leaned back from my magnifying mirror to look into the full mirror opposite the counter from me.

I looked… I lookedrich.

I was a whole different person now, and I couldn’t say I regretted it, which made me a little sad and uneasy. I stood slowly and gave myself a final going over and wondered what the boys would think…

There was only one way to find out.

I paused at the wardrobe and opened it up, smiling slightly. Purses and jackets, coats and outerwear. I smiled and opened up the straw purse I’d bought in St. Henri to hide the ties I’d bought for my men and smiled bigger when I found them undisturbed.

I went to the kitchen and Roan looked over his shoulder licking something from his thumb as he whisked something in a bowl. He stopped and his green eyes raked over me as I went over near him and unapologetically turned around, planted my hands on the granite countertop and hoisted my butt up onto it.

“Come here,” I murmured, and he dropped his whisk and stepped over. I parted my knees and pulled him closer between them.

“What are you doing, Poppet?” he asked, grinning when I undid his red, gray, and blue striped tie. He looked so damned dapper in his gray suit with its fine pinstriping and vest.

“I bought something for you in St. Henri,” I said with a smile and pulled his purple tie from my back pocket.

“Oh? Did you now?”

I turned up his collar and looped it over his head as he chuckled and put his hands to either side of my hips and leaned in.

“I’m afraid I don’t know how to tie it,” I murmured tugging his mouth to mine. We kissed, slow and sweet and he leaned back and asked, “Would you like me to teach you?”

“Yes,” I said smiling. “I would like to learn, to do this for you.”

“Alright.”

He showed me once, twice, then unraveled his work so that I could try.

That was where Kyle found us, me on my second try, trying to get the knot as crisp as Conan could get it.

“What are you doing?” Kyle asked me and I smiled.

“You’ll see,” I murmured. “You’re next.”

I got the purple tie straight and tucked beneath Conan’s vest and he smiled, nodding once.

“I think you have the right of it,” he said.

He went and fetched a black chef’s apron and I smiled.

“Come here.” I crooked a finger at Kyle who stepped up and kissed me fiercely.

“What are you doing?” he asked again when I unknotted his tie. He was wearing a black suit, and the blue tie I’d bought him might be a little loud for it, but I didn’t care.

I fixed his tie for him, giving an exasperated sound when I all of a sudden couldn’t seem to get it right. With his patience of a saint, Roan came over and showed me again and I smiled and got it right. Kyle watched me curiously the entire time.

“You bought this for me?” he asked. I nodded. “When?”

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