It was cooling off by the time they'd finished, and Avery went in for her third shower in twelve-ish hours to wash the chlorine from her skin and hair. Carrying the bag, Carter marched upstairs with Mason in tow and walked into Avery's room. He pulled out the black boned corset he'd bought and laid on Avery's bed.
"You really think she'll wear that? Get dressed up like some sex toy?" Mason asked skeptically. The underwear and halter had been one thing, but this was putting her in straight up lingerie.
Carter eyed Mason levelly. "She will do anything we want," he responded. "She's completely aware of what's going on. We don't need to dance around it anymore, like putting on a movie, which you should know considering you had sex with her while I was out."
"And you had sex with her right in front of me on the couch," Mason countered. "Which hurt her. I was showing her that it didn't need to hurt, and frankly, she liked it."
Rolling his eyes, Carter folded his arms over his chest. "Just as much as she liked it when I spanked her in the kitchen," he said deviously. "You know what she said to me when I'd finished?" Carter gave Mason a moment, quirking a brow at him. "She said,
I want you
. She wants to play, Mason. If you're not up for it, by all means, take off to the bonfire. I'd love to be with her alone tonight."
"What the fuck is wrong with you?" Mason asked, astonished. "We're supposed to be in this together, and you know I have my reservations about that in the first place, but I've put it aside because I want her. You just want to use her."
"We really doing this?" Carter demanded angrily. "You think just because I want to play up the punishment side that I don't want her?"
Mason was feeling just as pissed. "You've always known I had a thing for her growing up."
"Oh, my sincere apologies that I didn't want to hit on a thirteen-year-old when I was nineteen," Carter drawled. "That it took her becoming an adult to find her attractive. Of course it's different now. A six-year gap doesn't mean anything anymore."
"I see," Mason said, nodding his head as he squinted his eyes at his brother. "It's a competition now?"
Carter grinned. "I guess it is, since you're making it one," he responded. Holding up a finger, he added, "Just don't be surprised when you find out that she actually likes playing rough."
"You don't know that," Mason disagreed. "She's too inexperienced to know what she wants."
"She's learning what she wants," Carter replied confidently, stepping closer to his brother so they were shoulder to shoulder. "Try to remember, this whole thing started as a punishment, and she had an out. She decided not to take it, knowing full well what it meant. And if you don't believe me, just ask her. When she gets out of the shower, give her that out again. See if she wants to go to the bonfire. I haven't been wrong yet."
With that, Carter left the room. Mason walked over to Avery's bed, picked up the corset and studied it. She'd look incredible in the matte black, he had no doubt of it. And he didn't know why he was letting Carter get to him like this. They'd never really fought, at least not over anything serious. Battles over what to watch on TV, yes. But maybe it was that they'd both realized that there was much more on the line than who got to control the remote. It was fair that Carter had fallen for Avery, even though it irrationally pissed him off, since he'd fallen for her ages ago.
He should have known it would turn into a competition. Though their personalities were very different, they'd always been competitive. What he couldn't determine was if Carter was right about Avery. Which was probably where his anger stemmed from. Deep down, he had a feeling Carter had tapped into something. He was sure that none of this would ever be happening if it wasn't for Carter. Then again, if this hadn't ever happened, maybe he'd have eventually worked up the courage to make something happen on his own, and Carter wouldn't have ever stood a chance.
Setting the corset down in defeat, he left the room. No point in considering the
what-if's
; they were in it now. And he sure as shit wasn't leaving. Despite his reservations on Carter's rougher play, his desire for Avery won out. He didn't think a day could go by ever again when he wouldn't want to be with her.
Returning to her room after a long shower, Avery spotted the corset on her bed. Wrapped in a towel, she lifted it, holding it out with a scrutinizing gaze. It was fairly simple, though she'd never worn a corset before. Matte black with no real pattern, boned throughout with laces in the back and eyehooks down the front. It didn't even have a heart-shaped top or underwire, nothing resembling a bra-like structure. It instead cut straight across, though angled down in the back.
Tossing it aside, she set to drying her honey-colored hair in front of the mirror, every so often eying the piece of lingerie warily. Her heart was already pounding. She'd been well aware that everything had been leading up to a night with Carter and Mason, but now it was near. She felt a pit low in her stomach that felt a little like light cramps, from nerves along with what she'd learned was arousal.
Once finished drying her hair, she ran her curling iron through the ends to create some body, then pinned it to the side so it fell over her shoulder. A little light makeup was put on, just mascara and clear gloss. She applied lotion to her entire body, then slid on another pair of black panties, similar to the ones she'd worn this morning. Finally she picked up the corset, working out just how to put it on.
Her first attempt had her trying to tie the laces in the back, which was futile. After retying the back, she wrapped it around her and worked the eyehooks up the front. It was a bit tighter when she reached her chest, taking some real effort, but once finished, she turned to the mirror, studying herself.
