Stealing the Show (PolyAm Fam #3)

Chapter 16

sixteen

maggie

“How embarrassing!” I apologized to Raine when we went back to watch the rest of the fireworks show. “He hardly ever gets to drink, and he definitely cannot hold his liquor.”

“Well, it doesn’t help that he had three of those one-million-proof drinks in about three minutes,” Raine said. “It’s kinda cute though, don’t you think? He’s supposed to be all manly and taking care of us, but we ended up taking care of him tonight.”

“A role reversal for sure,” I agreed. “It’s good for him to unwind once in a while. Work has been tough lately.”

“Why’s that?” Raine asked as she sipped the mild fruity drink I made for her.

I looked up at the sky at what was probably the “finale” of the show Jason and Darth put together. It got very loud with consecutive booms, producing oohs and ahhs from the small crowd around us. It gave me a chance to consider what I could tell her about Leo’s job. He didn’t talk about work much, but when he did, it was usually to vent about something that happened with a “client” or something one of his superiors did that, in my estimation, only made him less safe out on the street, not more. I didn’t want to overstep and share something with Raine that he would not share with her himself.

I felt a need to protect him—and that surprised me. I didn’t spend too much time analyzing why because, when the loud booms finished, Raine was still staring at me, expecting an answer.

“Oh, you know, it’s a tough job. There’s growing pressure on cops to be one hundred percent perfect all the time. Yeah, there are bad cops out there, but most are just trying to do their jobs the best they can. It’s hard to be perfect all the time, especially when you have to make split-second life-and-death decisions. I mean, it’s hard to be perfect all the time at any job.”

“Tell me about it.” Raine ran her fingers through her hair. “I know my job sounds easy, but the directors at the theater where I’m working this summer just rejected half of my designs for their big finale next month. I had to redo a bunch of them because, though my designs were historically accurate, the directors didn’t think the costumes were right for their particular cast. You gotta please the directors, of course.”

I smiled. “I get it. I’m always trying to please my clients but still have to adhere to the law, you know?”

“Yeah,” she nodded, “I can’t imagine doing what you do. Or what Leo does, for that matter. I’m not sure I could work a job where I didn’t create something, where I couldn’t use my imagination.”

“Oh, we have to use our imaginations sometimes, just not in the way you do.” I chuckled as a soft breeze rustled my hair and blew up the hem of her dress.

“Damn it! I’ve been fighting the wind all night!” She laughed. “So I guess we’re gonna camp out with Leo tonight?”

“You don’t have to stay if you don’t want to,” I assured her. “I can handle Drunkie, don’t worry.”

A sheepish smile spread her lips as she looked back at me. “I don’t mind staying. It might be fun to hang out with you some more.”

A warmth spread through me as I took her hand in mine and led her toward the camper. We said goodnight and thank you to Cynda and Jason along the way. It was interesting—I felt protective of Leo, but there was something so sweet and vulnerable about Raine that made me feel protective of her too.

I reflected back on that question Leo asked me when we were getting ready for the party earlier today—if I’d fallen in love with Raine. Feeling protective of her was a type of love…wasn’t it? Maybe I needed to reevaluate my feelings.

If all went according to plan, she was going to be the mother of our child. But it wasn’t that fact that drew me in. She seemed na?ve and vulnerable in some ways, but deep down she had an old soul. She had an unwavering kindness and zest for life, an artist’s eye, and a passion for beauty and nature. I loved those things about her. She provided a nice contrast to my pragmatic Type A personality.

“Don’t have too much fun!” Jason called after us as I shut the camper door.

“If this camper’s a-rockin’, don’t come a-knockin’!” Raine exclaimed once it was just the two of us.

I giggled. “Good one. Hey, you want something else to drink?”

“Just water, if there’s some in here?” Her eyes danced with anticipation, like the fireworks had burst inside them instead of in the sky.

I opened the small fridge, and sure enough, it was stocked with water, juice, and sodas. I pulled out two bottles of water and set them on the counter.

“I had such a great time today.” She twisted off the cap and took a swig. “I’ve never been to such a laidback Fourth of July gathering, you know? Where everyone just hung out, and it was so low-key. This introvert really enjoyed it.”

I nodded in agreement. “People are so much nicer to be around when they can be who they want to be and can drop all the pretenses, don’t you think?”

She set her water bottle on the counter and pushed some strands of my hair behind my ear. “I totally agree.”

Before I knew it, her lips were on mine, pressing a tender kiss to my mouth that tasted vaguely of the fruity mixed drink I’d made her earlier. Then her fingers tangled in my hair as our tongues dueled for dominance.

That was one thing I’d noticed—she was usually submissive to me or Leo, but I had a feeling she had her own dominant side. My feeling was confirmed when she pushed me back against the small loveseat and straddled my hips, continuing to kiss me as her hands roamed underneath my shirt to cup my breasts.

“You’re so beautiful, Maggie,” she whispered in my ear before she nibbled on the lobe, sending shivers throughout my body. “I want to worship your curves. Kiss every inch.”

I bit my lip as I stared up at her piercing cat eyes. She’d forgone the heavy black eyeliner today, and she looked so young, so innocent in her frilly daisy dress. I knew she was anything but.

She pulled the dress over her head and yanked it off, sending it flying across the camper. Then she reached down and tugged on the hem of my shirt. “This has to go. Now.”

I obliged, lifting it and tossing it aside. Our bras went next, our bare breasts smushing together as our tongues tangled and fingers threaded through wild, windblown tresses. A need grew in my core as she broke our kiss and lowered her mouth to take my nipple between her teeth. My head fell back as desire flooded through me.

I’d never wanted another woman like I did this goddess writhing over me. I wanted her hands on me, her tongue inside me; I wanted her to come on my face again and again.

Across the camper, Leo let out a long, obnoxious snore, and Raine and I both exploded in laughter. “Damn, he is sure missing out on a lot of hotness,” I said, stroking my fingers across the soft skin of her cheek.

“Let him sleep it off,” she said with a nonchalant shrug. “Tonight is for girls only.”

raine

I woke up sandwiched between two immovable figures. It took me a few seconds to figure out where I was and who the figures belonged to.

Leo and Maggie.

Of course.

It was my first time spending the night with them, and Leo was passed out the entire time. I extracted myself from their limbs and stood up, surprised at how much headroom there was in this camper. But, then again, I was short.

Eh, I’d woken up in stranger places when I was an undergrad.

“Going somewhere?” called a gruff voice as I tiptoed toward the tiny restroom.

I whipped around. “Good morning, Leo. Sleep well?”

He sat up, swinging his legs off the edge of the mattress and rubbing his head. “Pounding headache. Ugh.”

“Well, you had like a million beers and then three drinks that were probably the equivalent of moonshine as far as proof is concerned,” I teased him. “That is one well-earned headache.”

“If you say so,” he groaned. “I don’t even remember coming inside the camper. How’d you guys get me in here?”

“Aris and Noah helped,” I admitted. “Hey, I gotta run. I have a meeting with the dean today about my outstanding bill I still haven’t paid.”

“Oh no, fuck. I forgot to follow up with Beau about the video. He’s supposed to be looking at it to see if someone tampered with the costume while you had it in the lab.”

“I appreciate that. I can make a payment toward the money I owe with the allowance you gave me this month. They’ll just have to take that until I can pay it all off in a few months.” I sighed.

“No, no. That’s not right. Let me go ahead and pay it for you. We’ll call it an advance,” he offered. “Besides, I want to figure out what really happened to the jewelry. I don’t want IU getting your surrogate money, you know?”

“It’s not going to IU.” I laughed. “It’s going to the owner of the jewelry. Some antiques dealer. I don’t remember his name. Or, probably more accurately, IU already paid him, and I’m just paying the school back.”

He crossed his arms over his bare chest. “I don’t care. It’s not your fault that jewelry went missing.”

I shrugged. “No, but I was responsible for it.”

He stepped toward me, ducking a little even though he didn’t need to. “Hey, don’t go yet.”

“I have to pee, man!”

“Oh, okay, do that, but then I want to tell you something.” His eyes held a mysterious gleam.

I hurried to take care of business in the tiny bathroom, then flushed and washed my hands. I wished I had a toothbrush—my mouth felt all kinds of gross, but surely he wouldn’t try to kiss me, right?

“What did you want to say?” I stepped back out into the main part of the camper.

“Come here.” He reached for my hand, and when I accepted, he pulled me toward him. It wasn’t a hard yank, but I still ended up in his lap. “That’s more like it.”

He stroked a hand down my back, all the way to my ass, making me sigh. Then he stroked two fingers down my face. “Sorry I didn’t get to spend more time with you last night.”

“It’s okay. Maggie and I had fun.” I smiled up at him. “There’s always next time.”

“That’s true.” He pressed a kiss to my forehead. “I hope next time you spend the night, I’m a little more coherent.”

“A lot more coherent, I hope.” I laughed as I started to rise from his lap, but he pulled me back down.

“I’m going to call Beau and find out what happened with those videos he was supposed to watch. And you let me know how your meeting goes, okay?”

I nodded. “I will.”

I stood up this time, and he let me. I headed for the camper door, and when I looked over my shoulder, he was staring at me.

“Is there something else?” My question hung in the space between us for a few moments.

He started to say something, then chuckled and shook his head. “See you soon, Raine.”

* * *

Instead of having one person yelling at me, I had the fun experience of having three people yell at me. The Costume Czar herself, the chair of the theater department, and the dean of the whole school.

“It’s been forty-five days,” Dr. Pataski, the chair, informed me with a disappointed scowl on her face.

“I’m aware. Thank you for pointing that out.” I put my hands together in a prayer motion and bowed my head slightly. I wasn’t a spiritual person, but it was a prayer lifted to the heavens to prevent me from going ballistic in this office. My goal was to weasel out of this meeting and finish up my final time at IU, collect my MFA and then get on with my life.

“When do you expect to make the payment?” Dean Chow asked. “This has made it up the chain to the president’s office, and she’s putting a lot of pressure on us to recover the money we’ve paid out to Mr. Wheeler.”

“I completely understand, and I’m sorry you’re in this situation,” I relayed in the calmest voice I could muster. I was a costumer, but right now I was worthy of the Oscar for best actress, I was putting on such a stellar performance. “I am a nearly unemployed broke college student, so I’m doing the best I can. I can make a three-thousand-dollar payment toward the total sum I owe today. But I also know the university police are looking into this matter, and I expect to hear the outcome of their investigation shortly.”

“The university police?” The dean’s eyebrow quirked. “I don’t recall them being involved.”

“Well, they are…somebody named…” I scrambled to remember the name Leo gave me. “Beau Garrison,” I namedropped. Maybe that would help?

“Well, you can pay the three thousand today. See the admin assistant on the way out. But don’t forget that we’ll be withholding your diploma and transcript until it’s paid. Aren’t you set to finalize your coursework and hand in your thesis next month?” Dr. Pataski sneered.

I nodded.

“Right. Well, I hope all your hard work toward your MFA isn’t going to go to waste,” Dr. Wharton, the Costume Czar, said. “I believe I’m on your thesis committee as well. It would behoove you to have this debt paid off before we receive your thesis.”

I pinched the bridge of my nose as I channeled my internal calm person. I didn’t really know anyone who was as chill as I needed to be right now because I was this close to flying off the handle and giving these three women a piece of my mind.

I stood up and forced myself to shake all of their hands. “Thank you for meeting with me. I’ll get you the rest of the money as soon as I can.”

So, I’d need to touch base with Leo to find out what Beau Garrison said—if that was even the correct name. And if he couldn’t help me, then I would need to talk about that advance he mentioned in more detail.

I just hated the fact that Leo and Maggie were already paying me, and I wasn’t even pregnant yet…