Tuck watched as Shane took a half step closer to Paige and smiled. They’d come up with a plan to woo her that included brushing against her, crowding her a little, teasing her, using terms of endearment, and flat-out flirting with her. This seduction would be different than the one they’d gone through with Sarah. Before Shane had come up with the idea of the ménage relationship with her, he and Tuck had almost come to blows when they’d realized they both wanted the same woman. At first, Tuck had thought his boss was going to fire him to ensure he got the girl, then he’d thought the guy was crazy with his inane suggestion which eventually benefited all three of them. One woman. Two men. Seriously? But the more Shane had explained and talked about it, the more Tuck wanted to give it a try. He’d known Shane was bisexual—pretty much the whole town did by the time Tuck had taken the job a half hour from where he’d grown up. Shane had assured him, though, his only intention was to give Sarah the love and attention she deserved. Little did Tuck know that’d been a white lie. Shane had definitely wanted a full ménage relationship, meaning everyone did everyone.
While the two of them had seduced Sarah, Shane had been also seducing Tuck. The first time Shane had kissed him, the two of them had been alone in the barn arguing about something Tuck couldn’t even remember. Things got heated and the next thing he knew he’d been shoved up against a stall, and the other man’s mouth had smashed onto his. The only thing that was burned into his brain was how stunned he’d been. Not so much at the fact Shane had been kissing him, but at the instant hard-on that’d resulted. Shane had known what he was doing, though. He’d given Tuck the space he’d needed for a few days after that, yet not letting him get too far away. By the time the two men had finally had sex, with Sarah’s consent and enthusiastic voyeurism, Tuck had wanted Shane as much as he’d wanted the woman they’d both fallen in love with. It’d been several more months before Tuck allowed Shane to drag him out of the closet.
While there had been numerous attempts at public shaming, they were no more than what he’d already faced being involved in the threesome in the first place. His parents and sister had been his rocks since the beginning—while the relationship was unconventional, they saw how happy he was and had given him their blessing.
Once the dishes were all put away, Tuck reached for his crutches. He waited until Paige stepped over to wipe down the table, as she always did. Pushing off the chair, he stood then wobbled, “accidentally” falling toward her.
“Oh, Tuck!” She lunged at him, one strong yet soft hand landing on his chest, the other at his waist as she steadied him.
It was all he could do not to groan at her touch. Over Paige’s head, he saw Shane silently chuckle and wink at him.
“Are you okay?” she asked.
“I’m fine, now, darlin’.” The concern in her eyes flared to heat when he covered the hand on his chest with his and gave her the lopsided grin Shane had always told him was sexy. “Thanks for rescuing me.”
He could have sworn she stopped breathing as she stared into his eyes. No one said a word. Shane just watched the exchange and shifted his hips to give his growing hard-on some room in his briefs. Tuck was tempted to do the same.
Paige licked her lips, then dropped her gaze to the floor. Pulling her hands back, she bent over to pick up the crutches from where they’d fallen at his feet. The polite thing to do would have been to hop backward a bit when she ended up at eye level with the bulge in his sweatpants. Yup. There was no way to hide that.
When she stood again and handed him the crutches, her face was beautifully blushed, and Tuck wondered if her nipples were the same color.
“Um . . . Shane, would you . . . um . . . help Tucker back . . . um . . . to the couch? I—I’ll finish up in here.” She wasn’t looking at either of them as she snatched up the sponge she’d been using to wipe down the table and began to use it again.
Instead of doing her bidding, Shane closed the distance between them, gently grabbed her wrist, and took the sponge, before tossing it back into the sink. “The kitchen is clean enough, Paige. You’re done for the night. C’mon into the family room and relax. We get to watch an adult movie tonight, since Ari is sleeping over at Nicole’s house.” Two Friday nights a month, the two young girls had a sleepover, alternating houses.
Paige’s eyes had widened when Shane had said “adult movie,” causing Tuck to laugh. “Shane didn’t mean that kind of adult movie, darlin’, but if that’s what you want to watch, we’re more than willing to accommodate you.”
With amused expressions, both men raised their eyebrows as they waited for a response. Her blush deepened.
“Uh . . . no—no. I’ll just . . . um . . . go to my room and read for a bit.”
Shane rolled his eyes as he grasped her shoulders and turned her toward the door to the family room. “He’s only kidding, sweetheart, but I wasn’t. You’ve been working hard all week and deserve some downtime. We’ll even let you choose the movie.”
As his husband urged Paige into the other room and to take a seat on the couch, Tuck followed, hobbling on the crutches. His foot was feeling better, and he’d switched from the prescription pain killers to over-the-counter ones. Taking his usual seat on the couch, he brought his foot up to rest on the pillow he’d been using. Meanwhile, Shane steered Paige to sit to Tuck’s left, and then sat down on the other side of her, sandwiching her between them, yet giving her a little space.
Picking up the remote, Shane turned on the TV and then scrolled through dozens of movie channels. “Let me know when you see something you like.”
At his words, Paige seemed to relax a little into the cushion. Had she thought they were going to jump her? Hell, no. The plan was to make her come to them. They’d let her know soon enough what they wanted, then would pray she didn’t run on them. What they had in their favor was she hadn’t freaked out when Shane had told her about their wife, and the fact she’d been reading a lot of ménage books. And damn, some of them were really hot! Tuck had selected a few of them on the Kindle during the day and had skipped around to listen to some of the sexier scenes. Talk about hard-ons! When Shane had returned to the house just before dinner, Tuck had followed him into their bedroom, on his crutches, and practically begged him for relief. His husband had been all too happy to help after a thirty-second shower to rid himself of the sweat and grime covering him.
Tuck was surprised when Paige pointed at the TV screen. “Oh, James Bond! Let’s watch that one.”
“Really?” Shane asked, even though he clicked to select the channel.
Smiling, Paige nodded her head. “Yup. My dad loved Sean Connery as Bond, but I’m a total Daniel Craig fan.” She jumped to her feet, and both men started, wondering what she was doing. “I’ll be right back. I can’t watch double-oh-seven without popcorn.”
The husbands glanced at each other and grinned. They were liking Paige more and more as each hour passed. Tuck hoped it wouldn’t take long before the time was right to try to push her out of her comfort zone.
Even with Daniel Craig standing there, shirtless, Paige couldn’t concentrate on the movie. She was hyperaware of the strong, handsome men sitting on either side of her. Something had been different today. Both, especially Tucker, had seemed to be . . . well, flirting with her. While Shane had always been friendly and even a little flirtatious, today it’d felt like a . . . seduction? No, that wasn’t the word . . . or was it?
She sighed to herself. It’d probably been inevitable. After she’d worked for them all these weeks, a friendship had developed between them, and they were more comfortable around her now, as she was with them. That was all there was to it. If you’re so comfortable around them, then why are your shoulders so tense? Why did your heart pound in your chest when Shane put his arm along the back of the couch behind you? And why did you get all those funny feelings deep in your core every time Tucker’s hand brushed against yours when they ended up in the popcorn bowl at the same time?
Ordering her subconscious to shut
the fuck up, Paige stood as the ending credits began. “I think I’ll turn in.”
“Okay,” Shane replied as if her statement had been expected.
And why are you so disappointed with his response?
Oh, shut up!
She had to get out of the room before she started verbalizing the conversation ping-ponging around in her head. Shane’s bare feet were resting on a small pillow he’d placed on the coffee table, so Paige had to go the other way. As she rounded the corner, she stubbed her toe on the leg of the table.
“Ouch!” Cringing at the pain, she stumbled . . . right into Tucker’s lap—again. How the hell do I keep doing that?
His arms wrapped around her to prevent her from sliding off onto the floor, as Shane jumped up. “Are you all right?”
Without waiting for an answer, he knelt down beside them and lifted her left foot. He took off her fuzzy sock, with the safety-grip bottoms, before she could stop him, and inspected her toes. His touch was gentle and mesmerizing. “Doesn’t look like you broke any.” Not letting go of her foot, he glanced up and grinned. “I like the hot-pink polish. It’s sexy.”
His gaze bored into her, and she suddenly realized Tucker’s hands were slowly caressing her arms. Paige gulped. She couldn’t look away. Couldn’t stand. Couldn’t deny the tingling sensations she felt at their combined touches.
“Paige.”
With great effort, she turned her head toward Tucker. His gaze was as searing as Shane’s. Ever so slowly, he leaned forward. It wasn’t hard to figure out what he was doing once his eyes zoomed in on her mouth. He gave her every chance to back away—to say no, she didn’t want this. But that was the last thing she wanted to do—at least, she thought it was. The heat from his body under hers was dizzying. From his position next to them, Shane did nothing but watch and run his hands over her foot and ankle.
Tucker’s face stopped a scant inch from hers. “I want to kiss you, darlin’. Will you let me?”
She gaped at him, unable to formulate a response.
Shane moved forward and whispered in her ear. “Let Tuck kiss you, baby. I’m dying to see his mouth on yours.”
Her gaze dropped for a fraction of a second before returning to Tucker’s face. Her clit was throbbing just from their nearness and words. What she wouldn’t give to have one of them touch her there. It’d been a year and a half since she’d kissed a man . . . since she had a man in her bed. Her marriage had been over the moment she’d realized her husband was a criminal. She’d taken her wedding ring off the night he’d been arrested, when she knew she’d never be able to look at him the same way again. Yes, she’d grieved when he’d committed suicide, but aside from court and on the news, she hadn’t seen him since his arrest.
Tuck waited. Clearly, if she wanted this kiss to happen, she’d have to close the last bit of distance between them. If she did, though, it would change everything. It was a huge risk. If she took it, what would happen next. Her sex drive knew what it wanted to happen, but was she just a new toy for them? No. Nicole had told her as far as everyone knew, Sarah had been the only woman who’d ever been in bed with the two men at the same time. This wasn’t just a fling they were asking of Paige, but could she handle more than that? Two men? Yeah, it happened in a lot of the books she read, but this was real life.
She had no idea how much time had passed before Tucker raised his hand and lightly cupped her jaw, his thumb brushing across her cheek. “Some other time then, Paige. The offer will stay on the table until you’re comfortable taking it.”
There was no disappointment in his gaze, just understanding, but she still felt the need to apologize. “I—I’m sorry.”
Shane set her foot down and took her hand in his. “There’s nothing to be sorry about, sweetheart. We didn’t expect this to happen so soon. We wanted to . . . well, seduce you a little bit. But fate decided to step in. When we hired you, we had no idea we’d come to want you, but we do. You’ve brightened our lives in the short time you’ve been here, but you’re not ready, and we understand. You might never be. Just know, whether you say yes or no, your job here is safe. Having a relationship with us is not mandatory.” A wicked grin spread across his face. “Although, it would definitely be worth it.” He stood and helped her to her feet, but before he let go of her hand, he bent down and placed a soft kiss on her forehead. “Sleep well.”
As if she could fall asleep at all after everything that’d happened today.
Chapter Nineteen
After taking the saddle off his horse, Rufus, Shane let him loose in the small paddock near the barn, then strode toward the house. The only thing that could make doing the Monday paperwork bearable was seeing Paige. Three days since their shared movie night, and she still hadn’t given them an answer. Then again, it’d been busy around the ranch. A brush fire, probably from a carelessly tossed cigarette, had kicked up across the main road on Saturday and spread quickly. All available personnel from Triple-R and the surrounding farms and ranches had joined the volunteer fire department to put it out. If it hadn’t been for their quick response once someone had spotted the smoke and an evening rainstorm, it could have spread out of control. As it was, it’d taken a few hours to put it out.
Then, yesterday, Arianna hadn’t been feeling well. She’d picked up some sort of stomach bug and had spent the morning puking and then the rest of the day sleeping on the couch or watching the TV. They’d taken turns cuddling with her, which she’d loved. Shane had thought she’d need to stay home this morning, but she’d woken up looking and feeling fine and had wanted to go to school. With no fever and a healthy appetite at breakfast, she’d gotten dressed, and Paige had escorted her to the road for the bus.
Tuck was walking around again, albeit gingerly, and he’d headed out to work, using one of the ranch’s ATVs instead of his horse. After joining him for a bit, Shane had headed back in to do the dreaded paperwork. He stopped and collected the files that were waiting for him on Nicole’s desk and carried them into the house. Paige was busy dusting the living room, which they rarely used, and the vacuum was standing next to the couch. Once again, he noticed the small changes she’d made around the place. He thought it was nice how she’d managed to keep many of the details Sarah had lovingly put into decorating the house, yet give everything an updated look. He glanced around and felt a kick in his gut. There were photos of Sarah everywhere. What did Paige think of them hitting on her in a house so full of memories of a dead woman?
“Hey. You okay?”
Her question caught his attention. Damn, she was so pretty. They hadn’t planned on letting their feelings be known the other night, it’d just happened. Since Paige hadn’t taken off running, they figured they still had a chance with her. “Uh . . . yeah. Sorry. Just daydreaming.”
She smiled. “Happens to me all the time.”
With a wink, he said, “I’d love to know what . . . or who you’re daydreaming about.”
“I’m sure you would, but my lips are sealed.” Her eyes were dancing as she teased him right back. “Now, go do your paperwork. I’ve got cleaning to do. My bosses are slave drivers.”
A full belly laugh erupted from him. “Yes, ma’am. Wouldn’t want to get you in trouble with your bosses, now, would we?”
Shane was halfway through his paperwork when he heard the doorbell. He wondered who it was but didn’t get up. Paige would let him know if he was needed. He heard her footsteps in the hall and then the foyer. An alarmed cry and the door slamming had him jumping up and running out to her. With wide eyes, he took in the sight before him. Paige was paler than a ghost. She’d slid down the back of the door into a squat and her hands were trembling. He rushed toward her. “Baby, what’s wrong? Who is it? Tell me what’s wrong.”
Her eyes were huge, and tears rolled down her cheeks. “They—They found me. I’m so sorry, Shane. They’re outside.”
Whoever it was, he was going to kill them for terrifying her. “Who are they, Paige?”
“The press. Th
ere are reporters out there with cameras and . . . and . . .”
“Sh.” Taking hold of her shoulders, he helped her up. He ignored the doorbell as it rang a few times in succession, but the sound had Paige nearly jumping out of her skin. Stepping back, away from the door, he pulled her with him. “Sh. It’s going to be okay. Go into my office and call Tuck on the radio. Tell him to get back here as fast as he can. Where’s Seth?”
Her whole body was shaking. “He—He went into town—to the feed store. I’m sorry, Shane. I never meant—”
“Hush. Go in my office and call Tuck,” he repeated. “I’ll take care of these assholes.” He’d fucking rip them apart. “Go.” He gave her a gentle shove toward the hallway, and waited until she disappeared around the corner, before turning around and yanking open the door. Two men and one woman immediately shoved voice recorders and microphones at him. There were two cameramen standing behind them, filming the whole thing.
“Where’d Paige Winthrope go?”
“Is she working here? What does she do?”
“Did you know her husband swindled their friends out of millions?”
“Is she really your housekeeper?”
With rage on his face, Shane stood to his full height and stepped forward, forcing them to move back. He didn’t know what the hell was going on or how these people found out Paige was here, but he wasn’t letting them anywhere near her. “Get the fuck off my property! You’re trespassing, and, around here, we shoot trespassers.”
Apparently, the threat was one they’d heard before because they ignored it and continued with their rapid-fire questioning.
“Are you aware who you hired?”
“Where’s Paige? We want to ask her some questions.”
“You’re Shane Wilson, right? Are you and your husband in a relationship with Paige?”
Seth’s white truck pulled up, and he jumped out, taking in the chaotic scene with narrowed eyes. The female reporter gestured to him. “Is that your husband?”
Don't Fight It: Hazard Falls Book 1 Page 11