by Virna DePaul
I rubbed circles across his chest. “You can’t force love,” I whispered.
Taylor lifted my chin with a finger so my eyes fell onto his. “But maybe it’s me,” he said. “Maybe I’m… missing something.”
I smiled. “I think it’s quite the opposite.”
Taylor frowned. “What do you mean?”
“I think you have a strong, pure, powerful love inside of you. You know what love is and you know what love isn’t. And you’re not afraid to wait for it,” I explained. “I was so worried with forcing it to please the other person that I’m not sure I even know what it is anymore. But you do, Taylor, and you’ll find it. I just know it.”
He kissed my forehead and ran his fingers through my hair.
“Thank you,” he whispered.
I felt him exhale, like a great pressure had been removed from his chest. “For what?” I asked softly.
“Just...thank you.”
We laid together in peaceful silence before Taylor whispered, “Mind if I stay over?”
I lifted my head and looked at him. “But won’t Dom…”
“I’m pretty sure he’s going to guess what happened anyway,” he consoled me, and then plastered a cocky grin on his face. “By the smile on your face tomorrow, at least.”
“Hey, you,” I teased, landing a playful slap on his chest. “Don’t get too cocky. I’m still the one in charge here.”
“Sure, sure,” he chuckled. “And I’m your loyal subject, my Queen.”
I smiled. “That’s better.”
“And the Queen is hotter than fuck, by the way.” He grinned.
“Taylor, are you sure?”
“Kayla…” He turned on his side and stroked my cheek. “Dom and I entered into this knowing what it took. Why do you think he left early? We know when to give each other space.”
“I understand, but it worries me, that maybe he gave us space a little too easily. Like…maybe he thought it was a foregone conclusion that we’d be together first. Not that I’m sorry I was with you,” I said quickly, not wanting to hurt his feelings. God, was I messing things up already?
Taylor sighed. “I hear you, believe me. I wondered the same thing. All I can say is, Dom’s a big boy. He knows what he wants. What he needs. He wants and needs you. If he wasn’t okay with letting us have tonight, he would have made that clear.”
“I guess…”
“It’s alright, sweetheart. I love that you’re looking out for all of us here. You just need to trust that we’re looking out for you, too.”
“Okay,” I whispered. “I believe you. And I’m fine with you staying over.”
He pulled me against his side and I snuggled into him. And when I fell asleep, it was with a smile on my face.
10
Taylor
To Kayla, it probably seemed like I fell asleep right away, but the truth was, I was floored and couldn’t speak. I wanted to lie here and replay everything that had happened in my mind. I’d just had sex with this fabulous woman who was not only beautiful, but smart, fucking adorable, could bake like a dream, and really seemed to care about me and Dominic. The way she was always worried about whether or not we’d be okay with this went to show the type of woman she was.
We could be something amazing, the three of us. Dinner had shown that, with the way we all got along, bouncing off each other so effortlessly.
I really liked this woman curled up against my chest. At first, I’d been bummed that she’d be leaving town after the renovations were over and her place sold, but thinking about it now actually made my heart ache. I didn’t want her to go. I was having too much fun, and I didn’t just mean the good fuck we’d had.
Would the three of us realistically be possible? It hadn’t worked with me, Dom, and Laura and Dom got hurt in the end. Despite that, Dom was willing to pursue his attraction to Kayla, even knowing she was attracted to me, too.
Like Kayla suspected, however, I believed he was hedging his bets. Making sure he didn’t get blindsided again. Hell, that was the reason he’d insisted I take Kayla home alone, knowing what would happen.
He’d known it and so had I.
Selfish bastard that I am, I hadn’t argued with him.
Because I was just as obsessed with Kayla as Dom was.
What I felt for Kayla was entirely new to me, new and exciting and terrifying. From the moment I’d laid eyes on her, the thought of being with Kayla woke me up at night when I dreamed of her and made my palms sweaty when I saw her and made my chest clench when I thought of her. Was this what I’d been missing with Laura? Was this what I’d been waiting for? Was this what I thought I would never experience? Couldn’t experience?
And could it be shared?
I was all for it.
Yeah, I’d love to fuck her with Dom here, sandwich her between us and come at her from all sides. Nothing sexier than watching a woman take on what should effectively be more than she could handle but handle it just fine. I wanted to see how much Kayla could handle. Maybe even throw Logan in the mix, given what Dom had told me about their run-in with him at the diner. Something told me she’d rise to the occasion, and then raise the bar.
I didn’t know what would happen, but right now, I was growing sleepy, so I stroked Kayla’s cheek and kissed the top of her head, breathing in the intoxicating scent of her hair. In the still of the night, I whispered goodnight.
Kayla had proven herself able to care about both Dom and I, and for that, I cared for her. When the construction was done and the house sold and Kayla left Fosterman to go find her fortune, we’d have to worry about how to say goodbye.
But for now, she was here.
Right where she belonged.
11
Kayla
When I woke the next morning, it was to the late-morning light drifting through the window and the realization that Taylor was no longer in bed beside me. The sheets felt cold and I snagged them up close.
I’d slept most of the night, only waking once—to find Taylor’s mouth between my legs. He’d brought me to a fast, hard orgasm, but when I’d tried to reciprocate, he’d pulled me into his arms and whispered for me to go back to sleep. I hadn’t argued. My mind still numb and my body still trembling with my release, I’d practically passed out, but not before marveling that Taylor’s generosity seemed to know no bounds.
I sat up, looking around. He hadn’t left during the night, had he? Because if so, I’d be pissed, which might make me seem possessive, and clingy, and ungrateful after all he’d done to pleasure me but it was also true. If he’d left without saying goodbye, especially after making such a big deal about sleeping over, it didn’t matter if it made sense or not—I’d feel used and abandoned. He’d have to come back to work on the house and I’d have to face him and…
But then, suddenly, the bedroom door opened and Taylor made his way inside, hair a little damp and wearing a different outfit than the one he’d taken me out in the night before. Immensely relieved, I blinked at him for a moment.
“Where did you go?” I asked, feeling a little stupid.
He plopped down on to the bed next to me and planted a kiss on my cheek. “Showered and changed into the clothes Dom brought me.” He tipped his head toward the window.
I peered outside to see both Taylor’s car and the work truck sitting outside. I jumped up, clutching the sheets close to my body. “He’s here already?”
Taylor nodded, a grin on his face as he raked his hand through his hair. He didn’t seem bothered whatsoever, but my heart was racing at the thought of Dom knowing what had happened between us the night before, of him coming in and seeing us like this. Which obviously he already knew, since he’d brought Taylor a change of clothes.
For a second, I saw red as jealousy reared its ugly head. Boy, they had this down to a science, didn’t they?
“I can see where your mind is going, but it’s not like that,” Taylor said quietly. “He doesn’t normally bring me a change of clothes, but I needed to have
something to work in, so I texted him.” He squeezed my hand.
His assurance eased my worry. “Okay, thanks. I’m just nervous, I guess. Not used to this.” I pulled my hand out from his and hopped up awkwardly, then went over to the closet to pull out something to wear. “Just so you know, I’m still going to go down there and pretend that none of this happened.”
He fell silent. I glanced back to find him looking a little hurt by my words. “You don’t regret this, do you?” he asked.
Memories of last night flooded through my head, now lit by the glow of the morning light and looking even better than they had in the darkness. “No, I don’t,” I assured him. “I really don’t. I just…give me time to get used to this, okay?”
His expression loosened, and that adorable dimple in his cheek showed once more as he gave me a quick grin. After standing, he came over and kissed my cheek. “I get it. And again, it’s okay, Kayla, on my part, too. I enjoyed what we did, but I know you have feelings for Dom. Explore them. Be with him. Hopefully, you’ll still want to be with me, too, but if not…I’m a big boy. I can handle it.”
Wait, had he said feelings? Taylor hadn’t said attraction. He hadn’t said lust or desire or need. Feelings. He’d said feelings. I knew my body wanted Dom. I knew my breasts wanted his fingers on them, my lips wanted his lips on them, my body wanted his body on it. In it. But did my heart want him? Did my soul?
I knew the answer.
I’d been ignoring how close I was getting emotionally to Dom, to Taylor. I’d been pretending it was just physical, just sex, just two, three bodies. Because I could walk away from sex. Walking away from more would be harder.
Feelings meant I was entering dangerous waters. And I hadn’t even realized it.
I wasn’t going to argue that he was a big boy, because oh boy, we’d learned that last night, hadn’t we? But the reassurance felt good. I eyed him a moment longer and was about to open my mouth to respond when there was a knock at the door that made me jump.
“You decent?” Dominic’s voice came through the door.
“Nope,” I yelled back. “Give me a minute.”
I looked over my shoulder, a little embarrassed about the fact that Taylor was still in the room. But then I saw the way he was leaning back and watching me, enjoying the sight of me like this half-naked, and I turned away and let the covers drop. The morning light spilling through the window bathed me in warmth, but my skin still prickled beneath his gaze.
“You were right,” I muttered, as I pulled on jeans and a T-shirt.
“About what?” he asked.
“The fact that I’m going to have a big-ass smile on my face the rest of the day,” I admitted, then planted my hands on my hips and struck a pose. “Do I look alright?”
“Fucking fine,” Taylor said, stepping forward to gently brush a strand of hair off my face. “And thank you for not hiding again. You really are beautiful. Ready?”
“As I’ll ever be,” I sighed, finally following him out into the hall.
Dominic waited there, grinning. Well, as much of a grin as Dom could have. “Good night last night?” he asked.
Taylor murmured, “A gentleman never tells,” before wandering off to start work for that day.
“Yeah, but you’re no gentleman,” Dom called after him, as Taylor’s laughter echoed down the stairwell. Dom turned to me. “Right?”
“Uh, um, well, I mean...” I felt myself flushing bright red. “I wouldn’t…”
“Hey, it’s cool, I’m only playing,” Dom said, eyeing my outfit. Was he trying to imagine what I’d look like naked? Was he imagining when his turn would come? “I can be playful every once in a while, you know. Want some breakfast? I could make you something, if you worked up an appetite.”
He was fishing for information, but like Taylor, I wouldn’t tell. Whatever happened, happened, right? Dominic’s own words.
“I’m good. Besides, I’m the cook here and you’re going to be working hard enough as it is. Why don’t you let me make you breakfast?”
“You sure? You don’t have to.”
I took a chance and rested my hand on his chest. The muscles there tightened and he inhaled a swift breath. I caressed his chest, then leaned up and placed a light kiss on his cheek, so very close to his lips, before backing away. Considering what I’d done last night with Taylor, it felt more natural than I’d ever thought possible.
“I want to, Dom. I want to take care of you. To make you feel good. You know that, right?”
His eyes darkened and he placed his hands on my waist, pulling me to him.
I could feel the hardness of his cock pressing through his jeans. Did I care that I’d just spent the night with Taylor and was already flirting with Dom? No, I didn’t. This was our arrangement, our agreement, and once I’d gotten all my worries out of the way and saw for sure that no one would be hurt, it came more easily than I imagined.
Right as we were locked in that pose where I so easily could’ve kissed him, we heard a knock come from downstairs. Dom and I both cocked our heads as we heard the door open.
Taylor’s voice suddenly echoed up the stairwell. “Logan! Good to see you, but what the hell are you doing here?”
Logan. The thought of that oh-so-fine man all dressed in his business suit as sexy as fuck hit a primal part of my mind and suddenly my senses were in overdrive. I must have taken in a sharp breath because Dom’s grip on me tightened.
“You remember Logan, don’t you?” he said, his tone more of a challenge than a question.
“The real estate agent from when we went out to lunch. Friend of yours, right?”
The flicker of a smile I thought I caught on Dom’s face was there one second, gone the next. “Something like that.” He backed away from me, and at first I thought he was mad, but instead, his expression held something unique…like he had a secret he wanted to tell me and he hoped I’d like it.
I hoped I’d like it, too.
12
Logan
When I saw my old buddy, Dominic, at the diner the other day with a sexy-as-fuck woman, it was clear something was up. I knew the score between Dom and Taylor from back in the day, and I knew when Dom was getting possessive over a chick. He’d get this look in his eye like I better not come any closer, and the moment I laid eyes on Kayla Pratchett from New York City, that was how Dom turned.
She was hot, sitting there in the booth in her jeans and T-shirt, and she was hot now coming down the stairs with Dom. The way her eyes sparkled, how pink her cheeks were, I figured they’d just got done fucking.
I was still mid-shake with Taylor, who was saying something I wasn’t paying attention to. How could I? Kayla commanded the attention in the room. Damn, she had gorgeous tits and hips. I loved the extra cushion on her—something I could sink my teeth into. And the way she smiled—innocence mixed with vixen. She was a woman who wanted more than she’d been willing to take.
Not for long.
I gathered my charm. “I came by to say hello. Miss Pratchett gave me her card the other day. I promised her I’d run the comps on her place.”
“Well, you ran them. You can go now,” Taylor said with his wise-ass smile. “I’m kidding, man. Come on in. It’s been ages since I’ve see you.”
“You working on this house?” I asked, when really I meant were they working on Kayla. With both of them here, all that was missing was me. Taylor, Dom, and I had done the foursome thing before, back in college with Laura. That woman had had it bad for Taylor, but Dom was the one who’d fallen in love with her. Sharing had been fun, only the whole thing got fucked when Laura tried to get Taylor to declare his undying love—which he’d never do. After that, things had been tense between all of us, but especially Dom and Taylor. He stopped going out with us. He stopped talking to us. He’d certainly stopped fucking a woman with us. Eventually, friendships had been repaired, sans Laura, of course, but Dom had thrown himself into one meaningless fuck after another and work.
Years later h
e met Ada, who I knew was trouble, and he’d fallen hard all over again. Only then Ada left him for some other guy who’d come along. According to rumors around town, he’d taken that break-up just as hard as when he’d gotten his heart broken by Laura.
Me, that’s why I stayed away from long-term relationships. They never worked out in the end, though something about this woman had stayed in my head the last two days. In the diner, she’d caught my eye because of her gorgeous looks and delicious body, but also there was an honesty in her eyes. She seemed open to the world, ready to embrace all life had to offer and offer just as much back. I found her intoxicating. So, apparently did Dom. And Taylor.
I never expected him to try sharing a woman again. Ever. But last night, I’d been coming back from a late business meeting and saw Kayla, Dom, and Taylor exit a restaurant on Main Street. Dom had given her a kiss on the cheek but she’d gone home with Taylor.
And I knew.
Oh, hell yeah, I knew.
And I’d wondered. If Dom was willing to share with Taylor again, maybe he’d be willing to share with me, too. Assuming Kayla was willing of course. I knew Kayla was attracted to me. The question was whether she was attracted enough to include me in whatever arrangement she had with Dom and Taylor.
Taylor clapped a hand on my shoulder and steered me toward Kayla. “I’ll let Kayla fill you in on what’s going on.”
Kayla came up to me and extended her small hand. Her eyes were clear and hazel, as bright and pretty as they’d been the other day. The skin of her neck was flushed like she’d just finished having a good orgasm or been worked up by Dom upstairs. A light smile was at her lips when she saw me, like her life was too good to be true with these three, big guys filling her…uh…foyer.