Eric Courtland, his wife Ally and husband Nick have been living the sweet life for the past decade, tucked away in their luxurious Tuscan villa. But when a family crisis brings them back to the States, blackmail and an unexpected revelation threaten the delicate balance of their marriage.
Weathering this storm may take everything they have – and still tear them apart.
Read an Excerpt
Nick woke alone in his own room the next morning. He’d fallen into a black pit of sleep the second Eric had tucked him in last night, packing him off to dreamland with a gentle kiss on the shoulder. A quick glance at the clock told him it was closing in on ten. Groaning, he tried to sit up, but it was a losing battle. Ten hours of sleep, and he was still wiped out. Being exhausted all the time was starting to feel weirdly normal.
He waited a few minutes before making another attempt, and had just managed to swing his legs over the side of the bed when the door opened, and in came Eric, robe knotted loosely at his waist, carrying a breakfast tray. The heavenly aroma of fresh-brewed coffee made Nick sigh in sweet anticipation.
“I knew you’d be waiting for this.” Eric poured two cups and brought them over, then sat down beside him. “Sorry I wasn’t here when you woke up. Allison’s had a rough morning.”
“Is she okay?”
“She will be. She’s had some tea, and now she’s going to try and get a couple more hours’ sleep.”
“Oh.” He couldn’t help letting his disappointment show, though he regretted the syllable the moment it was out of his mouth. “I was hoping to get back to the hospital sooner than that.”
“No need. I’ve already called, and your mother’s going to be having tests run all morning. So there’s not much point in us showing up until after lunch.”
“How’d you get them to give you all that information?”
“Easy.” He grinned. “I pretended I was you.”
Well, of course. Eric never let a little technicality like the truth get in his way. “I’ve been thinking of what’s going to happen once they release her. She’ll need physical therapy for her leg, maybe speech therapy, too, and who knows what else. I don’t want to send her to a convalescent home, but I don’t see any way around –”
“I think you’re getting a little ahead of yourself,” Eric cut in, “but I can see where you’re going. And there’s no reason she needs to go to a convalescent home. We can get a private duty nurse to take care of her, and there are plenty of therapists willing to do house calls for the right amount of money. I promise you, she’ll get the best possible care.”
Nick tried to come up with the right response, but there was only one thing he could think to say. “Thank you,” he murmured. “I really appreciate this… and everything else you’ve done for her these past few years.”
“You’re both my family, Nick. I’ll do everything in my power to take care of you.”
Coffee mugs now hastily set aside, Eric wrapped his arms around Nick’s waist and drew him close, their lips meeting in a slow, deep kiss. Nick let out a broken sob and fell back against the mattress, pulling his husband along with him. Hands dropping to Eric’s waist, Nick fumbled with his belt until it loosened at last, burgundy silk flowing away to reveal smooth, bare skin. He fastened his lips on his favorite spot, the softly-beating pulse in Eric’s throat, flicking his tongue, worrying it lightly with his teeth. The familiar hitch in Eric’s breath told him he was on the right track, until Eric pulled away, eyes sparkling with mischief. “Let’s not get started on something we won’t finish.”
“Oh, I have every intention of finishing it.”
“But I have something different in mind.” His hand traveled downward, grasping Nick’s half-hard cock, stroking slowly at first, then faster, bringing Nick to the brink of orgasm before easing off. He did it again, and then once more, until he had Nick panting like a racehorse, both hands twisted in the sheets, doing multiplication tables in his head to keep from losing it. It was the sweetest agony Nick had experienced in a long time, and he didn’t want it to stop.
“You like this, don’t you?” Eric teased, dipping down for a moment to lick away the pearl of pre-come pooled at the tip of Nick’s cock.
“Y-You like it even more.” At Eric’s inquiring look, he added, “Being in control, I mean.”
“Is that a complaint?”
“I’m not stupid.” He grinned. “So are you gonna blow me now, or just keep on teasing me till Ally wakes up?”
“Now who’s in control?” A familiar spark of challenge flickered in Eric’s eyes, and Nick found himself in precisely the right mood to take him up on it.
“All right, then,” he growled. “Get down there and suck me.”
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Reviews
- “Menage fans will not be disappointed by this triad… Grant makes you care about these characters. She builds just the right amount of suspense to keep the pages flipping… Eric, Ally and Nick made a great case for keeping an open mind about unconventional relationships.”
- – Rainbow Reviews (Four Stars)
- “Triad is simply brilliant. It will take you on an emotional roller coaster ride that consists of laughter, tears, anger at the injustice of it all, and joy every time Eric, Nick and Ally manage to overcome a trial or tribulation… The characters leap off the page and draw you into their world where there is no doubt you will experience the adventure of a lifetime.”
- – Whipped Cream (Five Stars)
- “Kudos to Ms Grant for a superb novel of love and the intricacies that men and women face when they’re lucky enough to be loved by more than one person in a fulfilling relationship.”
- – Ecataromance
- “Triad is… a wonderfully written story that grabbed me and held on through the whole book… Ms. Grant touched on so many subjects that anyone can relate to; love, heartache, aging parents, death, life, illness, not to mention scorching hot sex! Not too many times can an erotic story evoke such strong feelings that you can feel like you are holding back the tears, only to want to be laughing out loud the next minute… Ms. Grant knocked it out of the park with this one!”
- – Dark Dive Reviews (Five Delightful Diva, Recommended Read, December 2009 Top Pick)
- “When a series comes to an end there is so much expectation and so much that you hope will happen, that you wish would never happen and all in all you want to know the final outcome but it is with regret that you see off a set of characters that you might have hated or loved in equal measure.
The Courtland Chronicles is that series for me. I love this series – I love the characters, I love the settings and more over I loved the fact that this was a series with a difference and it stuck right out of the pack like a toy that I must have.”
- – Erotic Horizon
- “The story has suspense and a few melancholy episodes that are sure to make you misty, but the new joys brought to the couple will take some of the sadness away. Cat Grant has written a wonderful ending to this series, and I’m beyond pleased with the final story.”
- – Scandalous Minx at Literary Nymphs Reviews (4.5 Nymphs)
- “Cat Grant wove a brilliant tale of love, loss, and betrayal… The tension and build up carries the whole story from beginning to end… The characters are brilliantly written, each voice is as strong as the other and although their personalities are different from each other, you end up rooting for all of them.”
- – Amanda, Dark Diva Reviews
