Hammer It Home: Powertools, Book 6

by Rylon, Jayne

  “Mo.” Joe closed his eyes and wrapped an arm around his wife from behind, snugging her to his chest. “Don’t say shit like that. It’s life. Chance. If he’d stayed at the site, maybe he’d have fallen off the roof instead. No one can know what the future holds. Dave wouldn’t like to hear you talking such crap.”

  It might have been his imagination, but Joe thought he saw Dave’s eyelid twitch.

  “Fine.” Morgan didn’t sound convinced. Still, they only had a few more minutes. They could argue later. In private. Regardless of Dave’s state, Joe believed their tone of voice and any strain they harbored could affect his friend. Dave had always been very sensitive to those sorts of things. Trouble between crewmembers would set him on edge until they’d resolved their differences.

  “Tell him the good news, cupcake.” Joe nuzzled Morgan’s hair. Their joy generated powerful positive energy, sparked by the new life embedded in Morgan’s womb. Pride and tenderness swamped him.

  His wife leaned in even closer, perching delicately on the edge of the bed. She took Dave’s hand and, with infinite gentleness, scooted it the inch or two necessary to close the gap between his fingers and her lower abdomen. “It’s true, Dave. I’m pregnant.”

  Neither of them had managed to say the words without shedding a tear yet. This reiteration was no exception. Morgan pressed Dave’s palm to the fullness of her belly. “Thank you for all your sacrifices for me and my family. I love you. I swear I will be here every step of the way. Whatever Joe and I can do for you, we will. I hope you know that. You’re strong. And you have the most gorgeous woman on Earth to come home to. Sleep tight, sweet dreams. Naughty ones too.”

  Joe sniffled when his wife leaned forward to kiss the man he’d considered his best friend for nearly a decade. He hadn’t imagined it possible, but his adoration multiplied.

  “We’ll be in again as soon as they let us,” Joe promised Dave. “Until then, we’ll take care of Kay. Don’t you worry about a thing. We’ve got her. Just like we always swore we would. You concentrate on healing up. Okay? See you later, masturbator.”

  The only response was the beep of a timer.

  A nurse popped her head in the door. “I’m sorry. Mr. Rosewood needs his rest now. You may rejoin your friends in the waiting room.”

  Joe nodded. “Please take good care of my brother.”

  “You got it, sugar.” She smiled.

  He collected Morgan’s hand, granting her a moment to toss a lingering glance over her shoulder before they ambled along the linoleum channel toward the rest of the crew.

  “You shouldn’t lie to a man just because he’s injured.” Joe tsked at Morgan.

  “What’d I say?” She tipped her head to the side. “You don’t think he’s going to be okay? Eventually, I mean. It’s going to be hell. But if we don’t have faith in him…”

  “Not that, cupcake. You told him Kay was the most gorgeous woman on Earth. Clearly that title belongs to you.” Joe tugged on her wrist until she tottered to a halt. He surrounded her in his arms, squeezing tight. “I can’t believe you thought this was in any way your fault. You bottled that all up and didn’t tell me? I’m disappointed, Mo. I thought we were beyond that stage. Look what happened when we avoided our emotions on the baby junk.”

  “Sorry.” She had the decency to look ashamed. “I didn’t really understand myself. The grief overwhelmed me. I just felt this horrible dread in my gut. The instant I saw him, it all unlocked, then came pouring out.”

  “From now on, you tell me when something’s bothering you, and we’ll work through it together.” He wiggled his brows. “I know a great way to reduce your stress.”

  “Joe. Morgan.” Devon waved to them from the end of the hall. “Could you come here? The police would like to ask you a few questions.”

  Morgan’s arm tensed in his grip. “I know hearing about it won’t change anything. It scares me, though. To know. To speculate about just how close we came to losing him. Plus I’m sorry, I do still feel responsible.”

  “We’ll get to that in a minute.” Joe kissed her knuckles. “If you’d rather go to the cafeteria, I can come find you when this is finished.”

  “Being away from you is worse.” She laid her head on his shoulder even as they picked up their pace. “Let’s get through this, then maybe we can go find some lunch. Even though we slept in late, I’m really wishing I could take a nap right about now.”

  “Remember what Ofelia said.” Joe evaluated the dark rings under Morgan’s eyes. “Everything about your body is different. Listen to what it’s telling you. We’ll take some time out. Catch a rest, okay?”

  She bit her lip, then nodded.

  When they rounded the corner, they found the rest of the crew, along with Joe’s cousin Eli and one of his mechanics, Alanso Diaz, gathered around a young police officer. His explanation was already in process. He brushed a hand over his close-shaved hair before he got to the meat of the matter.

  Grimacing, he turned toward Kayla. James and Neil flanked her, each man cupping one of her elbows in their dinged-up hands. “Eyewitnesses corroborate the report from the skid analysis. The brakes went out on a semi. We’re verifying the records now, but his rig hadn’t maintained inspections. After what I saw in the field yesterday, I’d be glad to testify as an expert witness for your family. The truck hopped the barrier and came at your husband head-on. The tracks on the road show he attempted to avoid the collision and probably mitigated the impact as much as possible, but the bumper of the eighteen-wheeler caught the bed of his pickup and spun it around. The guys I talked to said they think three or maybe four cars hit him as he veered off the road.”

  Kayla didn’t utter a single word. Her face went ashen.

  Alanso cursed violently in Spanish from the rear of the group.

  “What about everyone else?” Devon asked in a whisper.

  The cop shook his head. “There were five fatalities. I haven’t been at this all that long, four years now, but this is the worst I’ve seen. Hopefully for a long time. The truck jackknifed, then rolled. Driver was killed instantly. The trailer crushed a car being driven by an elderly couple who had no chance. Two of the cars that careened into your friend’s truck also didn’t fare as well. His skilled driving, the safe following distance the witnesses said he maintained and an epic stroke of good luck helped your friend make the best of a nasty situation. About a half dozen other people are seriously to critically injured, though it looks like all of them will pull through now. I would have been here last night, but it’s been a total cluster getting this all sorted out.”

  Joe had to stop his train of thought when he imagined, all too vividly, those horrifying moments Dave had spent wrestling his truck through the chaos.

  “When you have a chance, we’ll need you to come down to the lot, take some pictures for insurance and let us know what to do with your husband’s vehicle.” The officer didn’t sound as though there were anything to salvage.

  “We can take care of that.” Eli nodded when Mike looked to him and Alanso. “No problem.”

  Morgan trembled beneath Joe’s arm. He gazed down at his wife, alarmed to find her unsteady on her feet, hooded eyes half closed. “I think Mo’s had enough for now. Mike, you mind if we crash at your place for lunch and a nap since you’re closest? We’ll come back this afternoon for a shift with Kay.”

  “Really, you should all take a break.” Kayla’s monotone hurt Joe’s heart. “There’s nothing we can do now. They’ve declared him stable. Go ahead, Mike. Take Kate too. Eli and Alanso can meet you back there to catch up. No reason this should be all doom and gloom. You don’t get to see each other often, and I can tell this is draining everyone.”

  “What about you?” Kate tried to protest.

  “We’re here. We’ll stay.” Neil looked to Devon and James for confirmation. The three of them stood united, keeping Kayla strong.

  “Thank you,” Morgan mumbled. “You’re right. I feel like a wimp, not able to be a rock for you. R
ight now, it’s just…too much.”

  Joe followed as she lurched for the bathroom. He didn’t give a fuck about the sign marked Ladies. He held his wife as she lost her breakfast, rubbing her back and wiping her face with cool paper towels after the bout had passed.

  “Come on, cupcake.” He lifted her in his arms. “You’re okay now. We’re gonna go take a nice nap together.”

  “So sorry. Love you.” She was asleep before they reached the parking lot, Mike and Kate close on their heels. The couple’s identical grimaces matched Joe’s.

  Morgan stretched, basking in the late-afternoon sun that poured through the oversized windows in Kate and Mike’s living room. Sparkles danced across the surface of the pool outside, making the walls glitter. Thank God for the privacy fence the crew had installed pronto after Mike moved in.

  Someone had laid out the sprawling feather mattress in the middle of the floor. She’d pit-stopped only to use the restroom, brush her teeth and strip down before collapsing onto the soft nest complete with the cozy patchwork quilt Kayla had sewn for their friends’ Christmas gifts last year.

  Beside her, Joe snuffled, then rolled to his side, enveloping her in the shelter of his embrace. The furnace of his chest alleviated the need for any covers. She kicked them off. Naked felt more and more comfortable to her. The crew had changed her irrevocably.

  A smile spread across her face when she reached out blindly behind her. Hard, hot muscle filled her palm.

  “Watch what you’re grabbing there, girly. The good stuff is down and to the left.” Mike’s sleep-roughened drawl had her cracking up. She couldn’t stop giggling. Especially not when the foreman took advantage of her sprawl to tickle the spot on her hip that set her off every time. The crew hadn’t let her off the hook since they’d discovered the sensitive area.

  She shrieked. Jerking around, she retaliated by pinching his nipple with just enough twist thrown in that it couldn’t be entirely pleasurable.

  “What’s wrong?” Joe bolted upright. Fight or flight kicked in. He grabbed Morgan, tucked her beneath his arm, and searched for imminent danger.

  “Calm down, tiger.” Kate half-smiled around a yawn as she reached across the pile from the far side of Mike to pat Joe’s calf. A soothing litany poured from her as easily as if she’d rehearsed it a million times. “No one’s coming after Morgan. You’re safe. We all are. Even Dave is pulling through. There’s nothing to be afraid of.”

  “Dave!” Morgan clutched her hands over her heart, afraid her chest might rip open when a spear of agony pierced it. Breath locked in her lungs.

  “Quit it, you two. He’s hanging in there.” Mike switched from playful to serious in an instant. “That stubborn motherfucker is not going to quit on us. It won’t be easy, but I honestly think he’s going to be okay. I know it. Deep down. Don’t you give up on him, okay? He deserves better from us.”

  “You’re right, he does. So much better.” Tears dripped off Morgan’s jaw onto her bare breasts. “I’m a horrible damn friend. I didn’t remember. I forgot he was hurt. Alone. In that awful room.”

  “You just woke up, Mo.” Joe tipped her face toward him with two fingers beneath her chin. “After being sick and exhausted and scared shitless. Your mind is probably trying to protect you. You should let it.”

  Kate and Mike huddled closer, coming to kneel beside her. “Dave is never by himself. None of the crew is. We’re all there with him. Thinking about him. Loving him. Even if we’re not touching.”

  “I know you ladies are probably going to rip my balls off for saying this…” Mike angled away from Kate and Morgan just a bit. Enough to put his impressive family jewels out of clawing distance when he continued, “But these pregnancy-hormone jobbies…they’re making you temporarily insane. I mean that in the nicest way possible. We won’t hold it against you, seeing as how we adore you and all. Holy shit, though. What purpose could this possibly serve in nature? Kate’s kind of coming around now. You’re in the thick of it, Morgan. Right at the worst possible time. Believe me, this is not the calm, rational woman I know and love. You even said damn. You never curse.”

  “Tell them what you told me at the hospital.” Joe dropped his forehead on her quivering shoulder. “I could see you didn’t believe me. Get some more opinions.”

  “What is he talking about?” Kate took Morgan’s hand. None of them were fazed by their lack of clothing anymore. They had nothing to hide from each other, she reminded herself.

  A confession lodged in Morgan’s throat. She had to try several times to spit it out. “If it weren’t for me, Dave never would have gotten hurt in the first place. And now I’m so fucking self-centered, all I thought when I woke up was thank goodness I feel better. Dave isn’t going to be okay any time soon. He’s not going to wake up pain-free for…a very long time.”

  A hiccup interrupted her. Mike, Joe and Kate stared. Mike sputtered but didn’t formulate a response quick enough to keep her from unburdening herself. “I put him there, and I didn’t even remember. He could be the man who gave us a child. Look how I repay him. Not by caring for his wife—by detracting from her support, by letting some mild discomfort take me out of the loop, by even forgetting he needs me this time!”

  By the end of her tirade, she was shouting like the guy outside the sketchy gas station in the heart of downtown, who ranted that civilization was doomed because people drank too many Slurpees. Waving her hands and foaming at the mouth would be the next stop. As if having an out-of-body experience, she could see it happening, yet couldn’t stop herself from escalating.

  “Shh. Cupcake, calm down.” Joe tried to avert disaster. It was far too late for sensibility.

  “You’re not listening to me! I fucking nearly got our friend killed and then FORGOT he was alive and suffering!” Every dog in a three-block radius barked and howled when she really hit her stride.

  “Oooo-kay.” Mike abandoned logic. “Enough is enough.”

  The men exchanged a look over her head. Joe nodded.

  “Oh, no. Whatever you’re doing with that mind-meld bull, you just quit it right now.” She wagged her finger at them. “It isn’t going to work, misters.”

  “We’ll see about that.” Mike pounced. He ensnared her legs, keeping her from thrashing when Joe pressed her backward. Neither of them treated her roughly. Their infinite care couldn’t be confused for leniency though.

  “Do you know how adorable you are when you’re pissed?” Joe’s placating murmurs only riled her further.

  “This isn’t a joke, guys.”

  “It’s hard to take you seriously when you spout such nonsense.” Mike shook his head. “If you weren’t pregnant, I’d already have you over my knee.”

  Morgan shivered.

  “Yeah, that’s right. You like being spanked, don’t you?” He pinned her legs with one arm so that he could stroke himself a few times. Then he turned to his wife with a wink. “Do you want in on this or are you still feeling this morning?”

  “Go, have fun.” Kate patted his cheek. “Help her relax before she shatters.”

  The foreman kissed his wife. His hands roamed until she winced into his mouth. “Sorry, babe.”

  She retreated, sitting with her shoulder blades propped on the coffee table, which they’d shoved aside to make room for their bed. “No, it’s me that should be sorry. It’s just that everything is super-sensitive right now. Morgan, you’d better enjoy this while you can. I think I’m going to watch from over here.”

  Mike lunged for Morgan, devouring her mouth in a heated kiss. The intensity with which they joined had Morgan forgetting about her desire to break free and continue her rant. Some of the steam bled from her as Joe grounded her in reality. Sensing her surrender, his hands on her wrists loosened, then travelled up her arms. He cupped her breasts, massaging in the lingering moisture from her tears.

  She groaned. Kate was right. The light touch already felt a million times more potent than usual. Soon it would be overwhelming.

  The
sound brought Mike’s attention back to her. His eyes shone when he saw what Joe did to her, how she’d splayed her legs and arched her spine at the barest beginnings of contact.

  “It’s been a little bit now since Kate could enjoy me going down on her.” He licked his lips. “Can you handle it, Morgan?”

  “Let’s find out.” She abandoned everything other than the bliss the two men above her bestowed. They knew exactly how to distract her from life’s worries. How could she say no?

  Mike started at her knee, nibbling a trail up her thigh. Joe held her shoulders at an angle so she could watch. She wanted more. Wanted to give him something in return. She reached for his hard-on with a clumsy grab, close enough Mike caught her intention. He paused his journey to instruct Joe. “Give her your cock. She wants to taste you.”

  Joe grabbed several pillows. He arranged them beneath her, then shuffled closer to her side on his knees. She angled her head toward him, opening her mouth and stretching her neck until he fed himself to her inch by inch.

  The head of his cock felt warm and soft against her tongue. She flicked the muscle over his firm shaft, savoring every curse, sigh and groan that dropped from his lips. When Mike reached the apex of her thighs, she gasped, allowing Joe to advance farther into her mouth.

  As if he could sense her desperation, Mike didn’t screw around. He buried his face in her pussy and ate as though she were his favorite meal. One of his broad fingers followed quickly, burrowing inside her drenched pussy.

  “Love watching him play with you.” Joe groaned. “Almost as much as I love the way you suck me, cupcake. Having him here means we both get what we want. That’s right, just like that.”

  Morgan hollowed her checks, enjoying the taste of her husband. He was right. Not many women could relish the thrill of pleasuring their men without sacrificing some ecstasy of their own.