A Million Tiny Pieces (16 page)

Alex
giggled, her grin splitting her face from ear to ear. “I know you’re probably
expecting me to give you a hard time. And I would, except I’m so happy to see
you smiling.”

“It’s
been a while, huh?” Mia looked down at her lap again. Truth was, there for a
while, she hadn’t been sure she’d ever smile again. When Damien had cheated on
her, she’d stood tall and done what needed to be done, but her heart had been
ultimately broken.

“Too
long. So what about Tarik? You didn’t kiss him?”

Mia
laughed. “Why in the world would I kiss two guys?”

“I
don’t know. Maybe to see which one is the better kisser. That’d be why I’d do
it.”

“Oh,
my goodness, Alex. Are you serious?”

“As
a heart attack.”

“Do
you think that’s really okay?” Mia asked, her voice soft.

“Why
wouldn’t it be?” Alex questioned excitedly. “You’re not married. Good grief,
woman. You need to live a little.”

“I’ve
never dated two guys at one time. Not that I’m doing that now,” Mia tacked on.

“Well,
it sure looks like it to me. So, they’re walking you to school. They both
danced with you at the charity ball. According to the tabloids, you were seen
at dinner with Phoenix, then yesterday having lunch with Tarik. What else have
you done, you little minx?”

“It’s
much more innocent than I’m sure they made it sound. I don’t see them much.
Really. They’re out of town most of the time.”

“Away
games,” Alex said. “By the way, Johnathan is a little jealous. He wants to know
when you’re inviting us to dinner with Phoenix.”

Mia
laughed. “I’m sure he is. I don’t know that
I’ll
be having dinner with
Phoenix.”

“So
why don’t you ask him out? Or, hell, ask ’em both.”

Mia
couldn’t believe her friend was suggesting she do such a thing. It felt like a
betrayal even though she had her suspicions that they would be all for it.

“Oh,
come on,” Alex stated. “They know about each other, right?”

“Well,
yeah. But...” Mia wasn’t even sure what her argument was going to be. “Can I
ask you a question?”

“Of
course.”

“Are…”
Mia paused to take a swig of her wine, tempted to down the rest of the glass
just so she could get the question out. “Are threesomes really that common?”

Surprisingly,
Alex didn’t laugh in her face, which was what Mia thought would happen.
Instead, she smiled. “More common than you think.”

“Have
you ever…?”

“No,”
Alex answered immediately. “Johnathan is far too possessive for that. And I can
guarantee you that I’m never letting another woman touch my man.”

“So
is it a bad thing if a man wants to share a woman with another man?”

“No.
To each his own, Mia. And yes, I know where you’re going with this. I’ve seen
the stories about Phoenix. I’m nosy like that, which is the only reason I even
bother to read that crap.”

Mia
knew her friend was quite fond of the gossip magazines. They used to sit for
hours and make fun of the stories, and the people, that they read about.

“Do
you think there’s something going on between them?” Alex questioned, surprising
Mia with the direction she’d taken the conversation, although it was something
she’d wondered herself.

Mia
frowned. “What do you mean?”

Alex
held out her empty glass, and Mia moved to refill it, anxious to hear what Alex
was getting at. She wasn’t disappointed. Well, she was and she wasn’t. It was
all in how she took what Alex said next.

“Phoenix
is a very newsworthy guy. He’s been known for his bedroom’s revolving door over
the years. But I also recall a story about—”

“Him
and Tarik together,” Mia said, completing Alex’s sentence. “I read that, too.
Seeing them together, sure, it seems like there might be some … chemistry
there.”

“But
they clearly like women, too.”

“I
think so. Hell, I don’t know,” Mia said, exasperated. She laughed, a hysterical
sound that announced her discomfort with the conversation, although she’d been
the one who wanted to talk about this. “I really don’t know how any of that
stuff works. I thought that was just something they did in porn. Or erotic
books. I had no idea that normal people did that stuff.”

“Normal
people?” Alex asked, laughing. “There are all kinds of kinks out there, Mia.”

“Well,
I didn’t know that,” she said a little sensitively. “Remember, I was a virgin
when I met Damien.”

“Oh,
right. The sweet little innocent virgin.”

“Shut
up,” Mia huffed, still giggling. “I don’t understand why they might be
interested in me if they’re actually lovers.”

“Ever
heard the term bisexual?”

“Of
course I have.” Mia pondered that for a second, following with, “Oh.”

“Exactly.
And it’s really not as uncommon as you think.”

“Really?
Well, there was this one story…” Mia thought back to the story she’d read about
Tarik and Phoenix together.

“Clearly
I’m falling behind on my reading. What story?”

“Apparently
Phoenix took home some chick, and according to her, things got a little freaky.
Something about his bodyguard going down on him.” Mia worried her lip for a
moment, thinking about that as she recalled the article. The mental image that
she came up with had her feeling the need to fan herself. It wasn’t a bad
feeling, which surprised her. She’d never been into that. Then again, with
Damien, she hadn’t really been into anything. When it had come to their sexual
encounters, she’d been generally left lacking, although he’d tried to turn it
around and blame her most of the time. These days, she was at the mercy of the
books she read. Well, those and her trusty vibrator.

“Earth
to Mia. You’re still blushing.”

Mia
focused on Alex’s face, the mental image dissipating. “So, you really think
they’re bisexual?” she asked, her curiosity unmistakably piqued.

“You
know them better than I do. What do
you
think?”

“I
don’t know them that well,” Mia admitted.

“Well,
honey, if I were you” — Alex’s smile widened as she held up her glass for a
toast — “it’s time you get to know them better. Just go for it. I mean, hell,
what do you have to lose?”

Her
heart.

That
was what she had to lose. But she didn’t bother to tell Alex that. She was her
best friend; she already knew how Mia’s heart worked.

A week and a half later

MIA
COULDN’T BLAME the annoying beep of her alarm clock for waking her before the
sun was up. It hadn’t even gone off when she found herself lying in bed,
staring up at the ceiling, her mind replaying the dream she’d been woken from.

She
almost wondered whether or not it had only been a dream — it had seemed so
real. So much so that she really wished she hadn’t woken, so she could see
where it might lead. In all her life, she’d never experienced anything like
what had happened in her sleepy brain.

Apparently
she’d been thinking too much about the whole threesome, ménage, bisexual stuff.
She’d actually spent the better part of the weekend doing even more research
because it fascinated her. Why, she had no freaking clue. The idea of two men
sharing one woman… Well, it seemed… The only fitting word would be hot. Yes, it
was
hot
.

Touching
her lips with the tips of her fingers, she smiled at the memory of her dream.
Her entire being had been affected by what had happened. In her dream, she’d
been in her kitchen, and Phoenix and Tarik had both been there. It had started
out innocent, the three of them simply talking, but it had quickly escalated
into something significantly … hotter, for lack of a better word. Phoenix had
kissed her, overwhelming her with his scent, his touch, the way his lips moved
over hers — very similar to the way it had been when he’d kissed her for real. But
then Tarik had pressed up against her back. She’d felt the warmth of his lips
on her neck, his calloused hands along the skin of her stomach as he touched
her, pulling her against him while they both proceeded to pleasure her beyond
anything she’d ever known before.

Turning
her head now, she looked at the blue numbers on the clock. She should be
asleep. She didn’t have school on Tuesdays, which meant she had the opportunity
to sleep in, yet no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t keep her eyes
closed. That dream… It’d felt so real. And part of her was scared to give
herself over to it once again, fearful that she’d want something she knew she wasn’t
equipped to handle.

Maybe
she should go to the gym. She’d put it off since she’d moved in, always coming
up with one excuse or another, but it all boiled down to, she didn’t want to
put forth the effort. But maybe it would help to get her mind out of the gutter
and back where it needed to be. She was supposed to be focused on herself, on
her education, not dreaming about wicked sexual encounters with not one but two
men.

A
rumble of thunder echoed outside her bedroom window, and Mia turned her head to
the opposite side. The pitter patter of raindrops against the glass was
soothing, but not enough to lure her back to sleep, so she did the only logical
thing she could come up with. She kicked off the blankets and forced her legs
over the edge of the bed. When her feet hit the floor, she stood and went to
the bathroom.

Ten
minutes later, she was dressed in her workout clothes — the ones she’d had to
take the tags off of when she’d pulled them from the back of her closet.
Feeling determined, she practically skipped into her kitchen.

Pulling
the carton of orange juice, along with an apple, a mango, and the leafy kale
from the refrigerator, Mia realized she was humming. Retrieving a banana from
the holder on the counter and the small jar of protein powder she’d picked up
last week, she headed for the cabinet. Pulling out a glass, she hefted her
items over to the sink and set everything on the cutting board. She smiled.
She’d always wanted to make a smoothie, and she’d heard that they were good for
her, so why not?

That
could be considered living in the moment, couldn’t it?

It
only took her a few minutes to prepare the fruit and to get the juicer set up.
Once that was done, she tossed everything inside, adding two scoops of protein
powder and some orange juice, then set her glass in the designated spot and hit
the power button.

“Yuck.”
The kale caused it to turn green instantly, looking not at all appetizing.

Figuring
she had come too far to turn back now, Mia flipped off the switch when it was
finished and picked up the glass. She swirled the nasty-looking liquid around
as she studied it.

“Now
or never,” she said aloud.

Smiling
to herself, Mia tipped the glass to her lips and took a drink, nearly spewing
the juice through her nose when it proved to taste as disgusting as it looked.
Her nostrils flared as the aftertaste lingered in her mouth. Lunging for the
open carton of orange juice still sitting on the counter, she took a swig.

Okay,
so maybe health drinks weren’t her thing. She probably looked ridiculous. Did
people really drink that stuff?

Staring
down at the green liquid, she scrunched up her nose at the memory of the taste.
She was procrastinating; she knew that much. That was what she did. Especially
when she was about to go do something she dreaded, like exercise.

Figuring
she would never get it done if she didn’t just go, she grabbed her iPod, her headphones,
and her house key before venturing out into the hall. Waiting for the elevator
was an exercise in futility, and she was half tempted to go back to her condo
rather than wait. But finally, it arrived on her floor, blessedly empty.

She
hit the button for the second floor and waited, watching the countdown of
numbers above the doors. When they finally opened, Mia stepped out into a plush
entry that rivaled the lobby on the first floor, with its dark hardwood floors
and soothing taupe walls with bright white, modern trim. There was even a vase
of fresh flowers on a small table beside the keypad. Mia moved in that
direction and punched in the four-digit code she’d selected when she had moved
in. There was a click when the lock on the glass doors disengaged, allowing her
entry. She walked in to find there were two people there, one older man on a
treadmill and another guy in the corner with the free weights, his back to her
so she couldn’t see his face. Neither of them were paying her any attention.

Mia
didn’t really have a preference when it came to cardio equipment, usually
favoring
no
equipment to any of the fancy machines in front of her. But
she was there for a reason, so she opted to go with the treadmill because it
seemed the least complicated to figure out.

It
only took her a few minutes to hit the correct buttons, and then finally the
machine came to life, and she began to walk. Well, stroll was more like it.
Compared to the older guy running full out, she looked like a slacker, so she
upped the numbers until she was moving at a brisk pace, but that was where she
drew the line. She could easily do this for a little while.

Somehow
she managed to put her headphones in and not fall on her ass, so she kept
going. It wasn’t long before she realized the older guy had left, and she was
alone in the gym with the man still working with the weights. She kept glancing
over at him, trying to get a look at his face, but he was well hidden in an
alcove lined with varying sizes of weights. Not wanting to get caught staring,
Mia focused on the TV in front of her, the one attached to the machine. How did
people watch these things? She felt as though she might get seasick trying to
keep her eyes focused on the people talking on the screen. She considered stopping,
because not wanting to get sick was a viable excuse if she’d ever heard one,
but noticed only fifteen minutes had passed. Then again, that was fifteen more
minutes than she’d gotten yesterday. And it wasn’t like anyone would know.

She
was about to hit the stop button when she noticed movement in the mirror in
front of her. She looked up into the reflective glass to see…

Oh,
crap.

Phoenix
was walking toward her, his head down, his headphones in his ears. She didn’t
think he realized she was there until he got on one of the treadmills several
machines down. Without preamble, he hit the buttons, and his machine started
up.

Trying
desperately not to stare, Mia knew she was failing miserably. And when
Phoenix’s eyes met hers in the mirror, she knew her first attempt at working
out might very well be her last.

To
her surprise, Phoenix abruptly turned off the machine he was on and stepped
down, then headed toward her. He climbed onto the one beside her, but his
attention wasn’t on the machine.

Pulling
her headphones from her ears, she forced a smile when she noticed he was still
staring at her.

“Good
morning,” he greeted.

“Hi,”
she said, realizing she was breathless and she’d only been going … three miles
an hour. God, she really was a slacker. But Phoenix didn’t know that, so maybe
he would think that her rapid pulse and lack of oxygen was related to the
exercise and not to the fact that she was once again thinking about that kiss
they’d previously shared, or the dream that kiss had clearly morphed into. “I
didn’t know you came here,” she blurted out when she couldn’t think of anything
else to say.

“I
usually don’t. I prefer to run outside since it was the one thing I had to
fight Tarik on and actually won. He prefers to keep an eye on me, as you very
well know. But” — Phoenix nodded his head toward the windows — “it’s raining
too hard.”

Now
why hadn’t she thought about that? Thanks to the weather, he was forced inside
to work out. If she’d known that, she would’ve stayed in bed.

Then
again, maybe not. Maybe this was her subconscience’s way of making sure she saw
him.

“Oh,”
she said by way of response — articulate she was not, but she blamed the
treadmill — glancing over her shoulder to look out the window only to notice
that Tarik was standing behind her.
She squeaked in surprise, grabbing for
the rails on the treadmill to keep from going down head-first. Phoenix reached
over and stabbed the emergency stop button, saving her from an embarrassing
incident. Well,
more
embarrassing.

“Mornin’,”
Tarik greeted in that rough tone she’d gotten so familiar with.

“Good
morning,” she whispered, looking back and forth between the two men. They were
both standing on the treadmills on each side of her, sandwiching her between
them.

Her
heart began a rapid thump against her ribs, and she briefly wondered whether or
not they could hear it.

“I
didn’t know you worked out here,” Mia told Tarik, realizing it was the same
thing she’d said to Phoenix.

“Every
day,” Tarik answered, leaning back against the rail of the treadmill and
crossing his massive arms over his enormous chest.

Someone
seriously needed to turn on the air conditioner.

“I
usually don’t come here,” she said, realizing they probably already knew that,
but she couldn’t stop herself from nervously rambling. Neither man said
anything. Clearly they were already aware of her lack of exercise.

“No
classes today?” Phoenix asked casually, mirroring Tarik’s stance by leaning
against the rail on the other treadmill, his body facing her.

“Nope,”
she said, looking straight ahead at the small TV screen, doing her best to
appear unaffected by their nearness. It wasn’t nearly as easy as she’d thought
it would be. “I suppose you both have to work?”

“Depends,”
Phoenix answered with a mischievous grin.

“On?”
Mia asked, knowing full well she should ignore him, but she couldn’t.

“On
whether or not you want to do something today.”

“Like?
It’s raining,” she said, stating the obvious. “So that eliminates anything
outdoors.”

Okay,
so evidently this working out thing was affecting her brain. Maybe it
was
the lack of oxygen that was making her ask stupid things. She should not be
encouraging this man. Especially not after the dream she’d had … the one that, in
her opinion, had depicted what her future would hold if she did.

“There
are plenty of things to do indoors,” Tarik stated, and Mia felt her face flame.

Phoenix
chuckled, his eyes pinning her in place when he followed with, “Get your mind
out of the gutter, little girl. He wasn’t talking about that.”

Mia’s
face felt like it was on fire, and she couldn’t take any more. Grabbing her
condo key from the small ledge on the machine, she turned away from them both,
unable to hide her embarrassment, nor could she keep from laughing.

The
next thing she knew, Phoenix’s warm hands were on her bare shoulders, turning
her to face him. When she looked up into those glittering green eyes, she had
expected to see heat, but what she hadn’t expected to see was the amount of
pure, unadulterated, unprohibited desire reflecting back at her.

No
man had ever looked at her the way Phoenix was looking at her now.

Except…

Oh,
God.
Mia’s heart kicked into high gear as she looked up into Tarik’s golden eyes as
he stood beside Phoenix, looking down at her as though he was waiting for her
to say something.

“What
do you say? Want to have some indoor fun? And seriously, I’m talking about
something away from your place. And mine.”