We were just friends but dinner turned into a threesome and we’ve been having sex as a ‘throuple’ ever since
SITTING round a restaurant table in Berlin, the British man chatting easily to two women look like any other trio of pals.
But Bishop Black, 36, Carmen Canela, 26 and Lina Bembe, 38, have a unique sexual relationship which they describe as a “casual throuple”.
The three-way romance started out as a friendship but the sexual attraction was so strong that the trio hooked up and have been sharing a bed ever since.
“No one was dating anyone first,” explains Lina.
“The three of us just happened to be friends with similar sl***y proclivities.”
Unusually the throuple – who all have “fluid sexuality” – have no rules or restrictions on who can sleep with who but treat their threesome more like “friends with benefits.”
“I feel good about having friends I can trust and feel intimate with the way I do with Bishop and Carmen,” says Lina.
“I really hate when people try to put labels on connections that simply don’t need labels.”
‘Horny’ trio couldn’t resist threesome
Bishop, a video and stage performer from the UK, first met Lina, a model and director from Mexico, on a festival project in Berlin five years ago.
The friendship quickly blossomed, with the couple hanging out as friends on a regular basis.
Two years later, they met photographer Carmen, after she contacted Lina to model for a shoot and independently met Bishop on a night out.
“I was sitting on a bench drinking coffee after a night partying and I saw Bishop passing by,” says Carmen.
“I told him I really love what he does and that we should meet one day to take photos and we did. It was nice spending time together and after that we connected.
“I was already in contact with Lina, we were talking about taking photos together and so on.
“One night, Lina and I met for dinner at my place, it was very organic and I felt like I already knew her.
“We had dinner and wine, and after that went to have some drinks with Bishop.”
Bishop says the attraction was there all along adding: “I had been adamant not to complicate a work relationship with sex but I think we were pretty into each other.”
With both Lina and Carmen in other relationships at the time, the three began hanging out as friends.
But, after the girls broke up with their respective exes, a casual dinner date ended in the “horny” threesome ending up in bed.
“It felt good and exciting,” says Lina. “It was really fun.
“I didn’t have any nerves, because at the end of the day we’re friends. There were no signs of anyone feeling weird about it or having second thoughts.
“I trust Carmen and Bishop, so that was key in feeling good and relaxed about things.”
Bishop says there was no moment when they decided to become lovers – it happened naturally.
“We just enjoyed each other’s company as friends and enjoyed being intimate with each other,” he says. “And as friends we just like to have sex with each other.”
Sex with two or three ‘no problem’
Unlike many three-way relationships, theirs doesn’t have any restrictions or rules.
As for when and how they have sex, it’s a very loose arrangement and there’s no jealousy if two of them meet up without the third.
“First and foremost, we’re dear friends,” says Lina
“But we are also horny, and it just more or less happens whenever it does.
“There’s nothing romantic – in the normal sense – about our thing, but you can call it a relationship.
“Sometimes we have sex with the three of us, sometimes just two of us.
“We don’t feel the need to inform each other at any point. If it’s brought up later, there’s never any problem.”
Bishop says that no one is made to feel guilty for hooking up as a pair because of their busy schedules.
“We understand that we all have different lives and when we are together, it’s good,” he says.
‘We are definitely in love’
Like other couples, the trio enjoy date nights out at restaurants and also enjoy cooking meals at home.
Pre-pandemic, they also loved going for drinks together at bars and clubs.
Bishop says being part of a throuple means all the fun without the constraints of a conventional relationship.
“The best part of being in a throuple is open communication with each other,” he says.
“There’s three times the fun and no pressure to behave as if we are in a so-called ‘committed relationship’.
“It’s not in a conventional way but we are definitely in love with each other.”
Luckily, their family and friends are very accepting, with the trio saying they have been supported despite their unconventional love.
“My closest friends are family to me and we are always respectful with each other,” Carmen says.
“My mum just laughs very awkwardly about my whole life, but she is sweet and very supportive.”
“The most important members of my family know my lifestyle. If people ask me, I wouldn’t feel the need to hide it from them,” added Bishop.
The three lovers are careful to address any problems and nip potential rows in the bud.
“Of course, there are sometimes misunderstandings like in every relationship,” Carmen says.
“We don’t have a protocol but we definitely think it’s best to talk face-to-face and we don’t assume anything.
“We believe in having adequate space to process things.”
Each member of the ‘throuple’ brings something different to the table, helping to keep things balanced in the relationship.
“Lina is very caring, an amazing listener and she always knows what to say,” Carmen says.
“For me, she is always on point and I love that about her. Bishop is extremely creative, funny and deep.
“I’m sure people who don’t really know him well say he is a very cold person but he isn’t at all.
“He is sweet and he truly cares about the people around him.
“I am blessed to have them in my life – I really love them.”
The trio, who have recently started making films for erotic site Lustery, have no plans to move in together or have children – but just want to enjoy the here and now.
“I don’t think so much about the future – I try to work on thinking in the present and the moments we are together,” Carmen says.
“I would be happy if in 10 years we are still in each other’s lives but if that’s not the case then I am very blessed to have had the connection I have with them right now.”
Lina adds: “I want our friendship to continue evolving and to be able to see each one of us becoming better, happier versions of ourselves. I want to continue cultivating the bonds of care and trust that exist between us.”