Page 34 of The Grumpy Vet
He huffs. "When did you become so annoying?"
The three of us chuckle and go back to eating our meal in silence. A nice silence. The type of silence that feels comforting. I start replaying various things in my mind about Linus—my first impression of him, everything that Ryde's told me, observations of the guy from watching him around the clinic—and an idea forms.
"Can I offer an unsolicited opinion?" I ask Linus. "Well, it's more a theory, really."
"Go ahead."
I clear my throat. I'm about to possibly throw a major spanner in the works. I could pull it off, or I might fail spectacularly. But fuck it, since when have I ever thought before speaking? "Is there a chance that perhaps when you're around us"—I gesture between Ryde and myself with my forefinger—"you're a little less grumpy and a little more open?"
We both fall silent, waiting to see how Linus responds. He doesn't take as long as I thought he might. "You could be ontosomething. I've been thinking about that myself. And, yeah, for some reason, when I'm with both of you, I feel relaxed and more…myself. If that makes sense?"
Ryde nods. "Yeah. That makes sense."
"I agree. It does." They both turn to look at me. "Apart from Ryde, you're the only person I've opened up to about my body issues, Linus. I'm not ready to share the nickname I've given my belly, but that's because I don't want you to judge me for naming my belly in the first place."
"I would never judge you for that." Linus reaches across the table and takes my hand in his. His other hand finds Ryde's. "Or for anything any of us feel or think ordotogether."
My chest expands, making me realise I must've been holding my breath for some time. "Does that mean you want to keep doing what we're doing?"
Linus nods definitively. "I'm in. If you guys are?"
"I'm in," Ryde says with a smile growing on his lips.
They both look at me expectantly. "As long as I can keep my shirt on while we do stuff, I am definitely in, too."
9
Ryde
The next month passes by in a blur of work and training sessions of both varieties: ones in Linus's carport gym and ones in Linus's bed. We've also fallen into the habit of having long dinners where we spend hours and hours just talking.
Dario and Linus obviously have the most catching up to do since they're new to each other, but the more Linus speaks, the more it hits me how little I know of the guy myself. Apart from what Dad has told me and the little glimpses I've caught here and there at the clinic these past two years, he's done a really good job of keeping to himself.
I never knew he once trained a rescue galah to swear. It ended up being the talk of the town, so the owner of the pub bought it to greet patrons with aG'dayand say goodbye to them with aGo fuck yourself.
Or that despite being a vet, he's afraid of emus. One chased him across a paddock when he was ten, trying to peck at him, and it scarred him for life. I can relate to that one. I'm the same with magpies.
Or that his father built the clinic with his own hands. Literally. That's why the place is as small and cramped as it is and why the wiring is all shoddy.
Or that he met my dad when he rented an apartment from him during his vet training days in Sydney. For some reason, I had it in my head that they met through mutual friends. Dad's a few years older than Linus and has always been smart with money. He bought his first house one year after finishing high school, after saving up all his earnings from working at Maccas, which was enough for a deposit back then. Nowadays, you can't even afford rent on a part-time wage in the city.
Linus tensed up a little during that convo, and I can't say I blame him. We've managed to stay well clear of any Dad-related topics because, yeah, I see it, what we're doing is very un-Dad-friendly material. Dad is a pretty laid-back guy, but I don't know how he'd react to finding out we've been fucking.
Well, not literally, since we haven't gotten that far yet. Sex-wise, it's still blowjobs and make-out sessions. I can't tell which Linus loves more, but there's something about Dario and me making out in front of him that really revs his engine.
I think I'm ready to go further, though. The sexual attraction between the three of us is only growing stronger. I've never wanted Linus more, and the way I feel about and see Dario is changing, too.
I guess that's to be expected since we're doing things we've never done together before.
Like putting on make-out shows that drive Linus wild.
Like sharing Linus's cock, passing it from mouth to mouth until we get rewarded with a waterfall of cum.
Like sharing Linus's load between us until it disappears.
Of courseI'm going to start thinking of him differently. That's only natural. I'm glad that it's not affecting our friendship in any negative way. Dario seems to be just as cool with things as I am. The three of us are living in our own little bubble, and l couldn't be more pleased.
"So what's going on with you?" Wilby asks before stuffing an oversized piece of meat pie into his mouth. "Ishh been agesh shince we lashh talked."
