He let himself in with the key Orlando'd given him, followed the acrid scent of cigarette smoke to the back porch. "Since when d'you smoke?" Karl asked, refusing to soften at the sight of Orlando, looking very young and impossibly frail. He'd never once viewed Orlando in terms of weak. "Since now, I guess." But Orlando stubbed out the cigarette on the railing. He pulled his knees to his chest, bare toes sticking from beneath the frayed hem of his jeans. "I've been waiting for you." "You didn't answer the phone when I called." But just knowing that Orlando hadn't simply run out did a lot to lessen Karl's anger. He dropped onto the chair beside Orlando, studied the angular profile for a few minutes. "Having regrets about all this?" "No." Quick, decisive headshake. "He wanted it. We wanted it." "You wanted it. I was just the conduit." Orlando chewed on his lower lip. "You really didn't --?" "He's not my type," Karl shrugged. "But you wanted him, and wanted me to go get him, so I did." "Guess I wasn't thinking about the consequences." "We're men. When do we ever think about the consequences?" "It doesn't bother you that he doesn't talk to you anymore?" Orlando asked, tilting his head to study Karl as if he was a specimen under a microscope. "Not really." Karl shrugged again, tugging the hem of his shirt down against the dying breeze. "He wanted you, he was fascinated by me, and he knew what he was doing when he came home with us. Hard to have regrets or feel sorry for his regrets when I remember how he begged us to fuck him harder." Orlando managed a small smile at that. "He did do quite a bit of begging, didn't he?" "Yes. He did," Karl replied, voice soft, but clear. "Begged you to fuck him, me to fuck him, begged us to use him. We gave him what he wanted. We took what we wanted. If the aftermath is tricky, it's because we allowed it to be tricky." "Dom's not going to forgive either of us." "Dom can go fuck himself." The steel crept back into Karl's voice. "He was too chicken-shit to make his move and he's still too paralyzed at the idea of coming in after us and not measuring up." "You don't like him very much, do you?" "I don't like pussies who masquerade as concerned friends," Karl replied. "And, to be completely honest, Orlando, I could give a royal fuck about Dom and his miserable failure to be a man and go after what he wants. And I could give two shits about whether Elijah ever so much as looks at me again. I only care about what you think about all this." Orlando smiled and edged closer to Karl's chair. And Karl finally allowed himself to feel relief. "I think maybe...we should just stick to testing each other's limits from now on," Orlando said, chewing his lower lip again as he looked at Karl. "That's fine with me." Karl glanced down when Orlando's fingers wrapped over his, warm and real. "Threesomes are rarely about all three parties, anyway. Besides, I rather like having you all to myself," he added, with a quick wink. "I know." Orlando smiled, eyes dark with mischief. "And I rather like you keeping me." He leaned closer, brushing his lips against Karl's ear. "However, if you wanted to maybe push Dom's buttons a bit, help him along into Elijah's arms..." "Ah, fuck, but you're evil," Karl laughed, letting his head fall back. He couldn't think of anything more poetically perfect.
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