Linda Alvarez - The Mammoth Book of Threesomes and Moresomes

Whether or not we’ve ever actually had sex with more than one person at a time, I’d be very surprised if it’s not something just about everyone has fantasized about at some point. For many of us, I have no doubt that it’s a fantasy to which we return, in one variation or another, again and again.

For me, the thrill lies in being the focus of so much attention — sexual attention — and, in the realm of make-believe at least, the more the merrier. Three is decidedly not a crowd, and nor is more.

Unfortunately, the reality of these encounters seldom lives up to the fantasy. I think this is mostly because a sexual relationship between just two people is already sufficiently complicated, without the exponentially increasing complications brought by each additional lover. The chances of being with two or more other people and everyone being sexually attracted to each other, and in the mood for sex, are — let’s face it — generally very slim indeed.

This book makes no claim to being a guide to how to “open up” your relationship, or otherwise engage in group sex. However, many of these stories may very well inspire you to try something similar — with your partner, if you have one (or partners, if you have two or more), or by finding a couple (or group) if you’re solo.

These stories explore different variations of the menage a trois and group sex in erotic fantasies from diverse writers — some male, some female — who conjure for us from their intimate imaginations almost every possible permutation of sex between more than two people. More than simply who is taking part, however, and what they are doing to each other, these writers explore, most importantly, why their characters are having sex.

This anthology contains a greater number of longer stories than any other collection I have edited. Partly this is due to the sheer size of a Mammoth book, which allows for much greater scope than a standard collection printed with fewer pages to keep costs down. A Mammoth undoubtedly provides a much broader canvas on which longer stories, and more of them, can be told. More importantly, though, the dynamics in a relationship between three or more people are complex and demand space to be set out and fully explored.

While I have chosen a few stories that are straightforward raunchy fantasies — sometimes we just need to get off, there and then — I have also selected some highly literary explorations of menages a trois or group sex, which are emotionally insightful, beautiful and — sometimes — heartlessly cruel.

Sometimes, in these tales, an additional partner is included in the context of a “traditional” relationship between two people — either as a one-off to act out a certain fantasy or celebrate a special moment, or as a more permanent arrangement.

Sometimes the sex is spontaneous, a welcome surprise for those involved, who embrace the pleasure that’s offered to them; at other times it is premeditated, a gift offered by one or more people, or something planned and longed for.

The stories come from a number of different sources: some were solicited from writers with whom I’ve worked before, or whose erotic writing I have read and admired; some were stories that I’d previously read and couldn’t forget; finally, some of the writers I’d invited to contribute recommended their own favourite stories, or writers. Even with quite so many pages to fill, there was no shortage of excellent material.

Finally, I made a public call for submissions to fill the last few slots, hoping to be pleasantly surprised, both in terms of subject matter and fresh, new writers. And I was delighted by the material I received, even if I did have to sift through a lot of chaff to get at the few golden kernels that lurked in the pile — a metaphor, in a way, for the search for additional sex partners and the intense thrill of unanticipated pleasure which success can bring.

These stories are fantasies. Sometimes, the fictional characters engage in behaviour that is unsafe in terms of sexually transmissible diseases. While I hope these stories turn you on, if you feel inspired to act out your own fantasies involving sex with multiple partners, I urge you to practise safer sex.

For now, though, follow these writers along their many winding paths of erotic adventures with multiple partners, and allow your imagination to be beguiled.

Linda Alvarez

Lacey Savage

“You want to fuck another man, don’t you?”

My husband isn’t a great communicator. But whatever his faults — and he has many — I’ve never been able to accuse him of being anything less than direct.

That night, he might as well have asked whether I remembered to drop off his dry-cleaning, or if I’d paid the gas bill before the date came due. His face remained smooth, unperturbed, marked only by the fine lines that had just recently started to appear at the corners of his eyes. He waited for my response with the kind of fathomless patience he’d exhibited when attempting to housebreak our puppy, Sam. Alas, Sam never took to peeing anywhere but in people’s shoes, so we gave him away less than a month after rescuing him from the shelter. Richard had expected an eager, panting creature desperate to please. What he got was a stubborn animal.

Unfortunately for Sam, Richard already had one of those. And I was already housebroken.

“Don’t be ridiculous.” I took a bite of my dry salad. In the booth behind me, a woman moaned after every bite of her fragrant lobster bisque.

I swallowed the mouthful of tasteless lettuce and cursed the stupid diet I’d decided to follow a week earlier. Seven days of eating like a gazelle, and I was no closer to fitting into my never-worn little black size four dress than I’d been when I could happily devour chocolate sundaes with whipped cream.

My mouth watered. Just then, I couldn’t think of anything I wanted more than a dollop of rich whipped cream. Except maybe for my husband to stop talking. We’d always done better together when we didn’t speak.

“Don’t lie to me, Dana.”

I sighed and set my fork down. “You really want to talk about this, Richard? Now?” I indicated the restaurant around us with a sweep of my hand. From the sparkling chandelier that scattered fragmented golden light over my bland salad, to the affluent clientele dressed in tailored suits and skintight gowns adorned with glittering jewels, Antoine’s wasn’t the kind of place where a scene would go unnoticed.

As always, Richard had picked the restaurant. He read a stellar review in last weekend’s Times and decided it would be the perfect spot for us to celebrate our tenth wedding anniversary. I agreed, already fantasizing about showing up in a black, backless little number that barely came down to mid-thigh. I pictured myself two sizes thinner, fabric draped around my curves like a second skin. I wanted to be the hottest woman here. A goddess, a sex kitten. The object of every man’s fantasy.

All right, so my dreams have never been rooted in reality. If I’d realized that happily-ever-after endings were as unlikely as fat-free chocolate cake, I never would have walked down the aisle.