Indiscretions — Madelynne Ellis

Genre: M/F/M Menage; Historical
Length: Novella (18, 918 words)

Eighteen months into a delicate ménage à trois relationship, Lucerne, Viscount Marlinscar is feeling the strain. He's engaged in a constant tug o' war as both his lovers compete to win his affections. Only, Lucerne's not so eager to choose. Matter of fact, he's beginning to wonder if he's not the one that's being left out, considering the effort Vaughan and Bella pour into tormenting one another.
When the three lovers attend a society music recital, jealousy again rears its head, which convinces Lucerne that it's time to take matters into his own hands. The decision doesn't go down at all well, particularly with Vaughan, who shows his displeasure by dishing out erotic punishments to both Lucerne and Bella. However, the tug o'war isn't over until there's a winner, that is, unless the lovers can put aside their differences and decide that all three can have the passion and satisfaction they derive only from each other, no matter which one of them is in the middle!

Publisher's note: These characters first appear in A Gentleman's Wager, a previous book in the Georgian Rakehells series.

Excerpt:

Lucerne fixed him with an uneasy frown. He took a stiff pace backwards, suddenly defensive. “Who exactly do you envisage being in the middle?”

Vaughan laughed. “Not so game for my affection now, Lucerne? You disappoint me. I thought you were more open than that.”

Defensively, Lucerne poured his tall frame into one of the library's narrow wingback chairs, where he folded his arms across his lap. “Open is one thing. I am however no acrobat. I don't think I could hold that position for more than forty seconds, let alone sustain it with a cock in my mouth, breasts enveloping me and a lit candle anywhere near my arse.”

A bright image of peeling creamy blobs of hardened candlewax from off Lucerne's belly, his buttocks and groin, played inside Vaughan's head. Had he never punished him so? The thought of introducing Lucerne to such delights enchanted him. Lucerne would protest, claiming pain didn't excite him, but the truth was it aroused him far more than he cared to admit.

Besides, denial of any kind had always acted like a drug upon Vaughan. “Another time, perhaps,” he muttered. “What about you, Bella?”

Bella rubbed at her cheeks, which had turned a gaudy shade of scarlet at the mere suggestion. Her reply rolled out of her unevenly. “The person at the centre is clearly a man, which I am certainly not. So I couldn't possibly take such a position, even if it were in the bounds of possibility to do so. Are there not any more sensible arrangements in this tome of yours?” She flicked over several pages, her eyes growing rounder and hungrier over each successive image. “What is this?” she demanded.

Vaughan retrieved the book with its leather unmarked binding from her and returned it to shelf behind a locked glass door. “It's privately published, circulated only to a select few connoisseurs.” On another occasion he might allow her to study it further. For now, he preferred to preserve its secrets in favour of more mundane pleasures. “About your proposition -- I would suggest that we find somewhere more comfortable, but I do find that discomfort can be equally, if not more satisfying, can it not, Lucerne?”

“I wouldn't know.”

“Oh, you know, Lucerne. You know exactly how much you like to be made to squirm.” Lucerne shook his head. “I think you're mistaking me with Bella. What I like is straightforward. It's less about dominance and more about enjoyment.”

“Are you saying you don't like what I do to you?” Vaughan sallied forwards, stopping when his knees were level with Lucerne's and a mere fraction of an inch divided them. He braced his hands on the arms of the chair and leaned over Lucerne, so that their eyes met on a level. Their gazes locked.

“Haven't you punished me enough?”