Chapter 3: The First Taste

Nicole's whispered words hung in the air like a challenge, and she immediately wanted to take them back. What had she just agreed to? Her heart hammered against her ribs as Eva's smile widened, transforming from merely beautiful to absolutely devastating.

"Patience, darling," Bryce's voice rumbled from behind Eva, rich with amusement. "Our Nicole is already trembling."

Our Nicole. The possessive phrase sent an unexpected jolt through her system, equal parts terrifying and thrilling. She wasn't anyone's Nicole—she was boring, predictable Nicole from marketing who went to bed at ten-thirty and had never done anything more adventurous than ordering wine with lunch.

"I'm not trembling," she protested, then immediately proved herself a liar when Eva stepped closer and her hands visibly shook around her whiskey glass.

"Of course not," Eva agreed solemnly, though her eyes danced with mischief. "You're just... enthusiastic."

The word was loaded with promise, and Nicole felt heat creep up her neck. Through the floor-to-ceiling windows, lightning continued to illuminate the city in stark flashes, each one seeming to sync with her racing pulse. The storm outside was nothing compared to the tempest building in this opulent room.

"Tell me, Nicole," Eva continued, her voice dropping to that hypnotic whisper that seemed to bypass Nicole's rational mind entirely, "have you ever been kissed by a woman?"

The blunt question made Nicole's breath catch. "I—no. I haven't."

"Would you like to be?"

The world seemed to stop. Nicole was dimly aware of Bryce settling into one of the leather armchairs, his intense blue eyes fixed on them both with predatory focus. But most of her attention was consumed by Eva, who stood close enough that Nicole could feel the warmth radiating from her skin.

"I don't know," Nicole whispered honestly. "I've never thought about it."

"Liar," Eva said gently, reaching up to trace the line of Nicole's jaw with one finger. "You've thought about it. Maybe not consciously, but some part of you has always wondered what it would feel like. What you've been missing."

Nicole's breath hitched as Eva's touch sent electricity racing through her system. "How do you know that?"

"Because I can see it in your eyes. That hunger you've been keeping locked away." Eva's thumb brushed across Nicole's bottom lip, making her gasp. "You're starving, sweetheart, and you don't even realize it."

The truth of those words hit Nicole like a physical blow. She was starving—had been for years without understanding what she was missing. Every relationship, every kiss, every intimate moment had felt like she was going through the motions, following a script for a life that didn't quite fit.

"Eva," Bryce's voice carried a note of warning, though whether he was cautioning patience or encouraging boldness, Nicole couldn't tell.

"Shh," Eva murmured, never taking her eyes off Nicole's face. "She's ready. Aren't you, beautiful?"

Nicole wanted to say no, wanted to retreat to the safety of her careful, controlled existence. But Eva's touch had awakened something in her that refused to be silenced—a desperate, aching need that made her feel hollow and electric all at once.

"Yes," she breathed, the word escaping before she could stop it.

Eva's smile was radiant. "Then close your eyes."

Nicole obeyed without thinking, her lashes fluttering shut as Eva's hand cupped her cheek. For a moment, there was only the sound of rain against glass and her own thundering heartbeat. Then Eva's lips brushed against hers, soft as silk and warm as summer.

It was nothing like kissing a man. Where masculine lips were often demanding, Eva's were coaxing. Where men took, Eva offered. The kiss was gentle at first, almost reverent, giving Nicole time to adjust to the foreign sensation of soft skin and sweet breath.

But then Eva's tongue traced the seam of Nicole's lips, and something inside her shattered.

A sound escaped her throat—part gasp, part moan—and her hands came up to grip Eva's bare shoulders. Eva responded by deepening the kiss, her tongue sliding against Nicole's in a dance that made Nicole's knees go weak.

This was nothing like the mechanical kisses she'd shared with David or any of the other forgettable men in her past. This was fire and honey, gentle dominance and sweet surrender all rolled into one devastating package. Eva kissed like she was trying to steal Nicole's soul, and Nicole found herself more than willing to let her take it.

When they finally broke apart, Nicole was breathing hard, her lips tingling and her body humming with an energy she'd never experienced. Eva's hazel eyes were dark with satisfaction, her own breathing slightly unsteady.

"Beautiful," Eva murmured, her thumb tracing Nicole's kiss-swollen lips. "Even better than I imagined."

"You imagined?" Nicole's voice came out husky and unfamiliar.

"From the moment I saw you on the street, soaked and beautiful and trying so hard to pretend you weren't watching us." Eva's smile was wicked. "I wondered what you'd taste like. What sounds you'd make."

Heat flooded Nicole's cheeks, but she found herself leaning into Eva's touch rather than pulling away. "And?"

"Sweet," Eva purred. "And hungry. So very hungry."

A slow clap echoed through the room, making Nicole jump. She'd completely forgotten about Bryce, lost in the haze of Eva's kiss and touch. He was still seated in his chair, but his relaxed posture couldn't hide the intensity burning in his blue eyes.

"Magnificent," he said, his voice rough with approval. "Both of you."

Nicole expected to feel embarrassed, exposed, violated by his observation. Instead, the heat in his gaze sent another jolt of electricity through her system. He wasn't judging or leering—he was appreciating, like a connoisseur admiring a work of art.

"She tastes like whiskey and rain," Eva told him, her hand still cupping Nicole's face. "And possibility."

"I can see that," Bryce replied, rising from his chair with fluid grace. "The question is, what does our Nicole want to do with all that possibility?"

There was that possessive phrase again—our Nicole—and this time it sent a thrill rather than panic through her system. When had she become theirs? When had she started wanting to be?

"I don't know," she admitted, her voice barely above a whisper. "This is all so..."

"Overwhelming?" Eva suggested gently.

"Intense. Different. I've never..." Nicole trailed off, unable to articulate the storm of emotions and sensations coursing through her.

"Never what?" Bryce asked, moving closer until she was surrounded by both of them—Eva's softness on one side, his masculine strength on the other.

"Never felt anything like this," she confessed. "Never wanted anything like this. I don't even know what 'this' is."

"This," Eva said, pressing another soft kiss to the corner of Nicole's mouth, "is the beginning of your real life. The life you were meant to live instead of the one you settled for."

"And we," Bryce added, his voice a low rumble that seemed to vibrate through Nicole's bones, "are going to help you discover exactly what you've been missing."

Nicole looked between them—Eva with her wild beauty and knowing smile, Bryce with his dangerous magnetism and piercing eyes—and felt something fundamental shift inside her chest. She was standing at a crossroads, and for the first time in her life, she could see both paths clearly.

Behind her lay safety, predictability, a life of quiet disappointment and unfulfilled longing. Ahead lay uncertainty, intensity, and these two magnetic strangers who saw something in her that she'd never seen in herself.

Her phone buzzed again in her purse, a sharp reminder of the world outside this gilded cage. David, probably. Or maybe her mother, checking in on her boring, safe daughter's boring, safe evening.

But as Eva's fingers traced patterns on her skin and Bryce's eyes promised pleasures she couldn't even imagine, Nicole realized she didn't want to answer that phone. Didn't want to return to her careful, controlled existence.

For the first time in twenty-five years, she wanted to be reckless.

"Show me more," she whispered, the words carrying the weight of decision. "Show me everything."

Eva's answering smile was pure sin, and the look that passed between her and Bryce was loaded with dark promise. Outside, thunder crashed over the city, but inside this apartment, Nicole felt like she was finally, truly alive.

The storm was just beginning.