Lucas arched an eyebrow at him. “And that’s all you’re going to say about it?”
Ignoring the speculation in his brother’s eyes, he said, “I’m curious whether Violet is considering it.”
“Come on!”
Josh sighed. “It’s not what you’re thinking, at least I hope not.” Lucas was probably imagining the worst.
“So…you want to be whipped like a bad boy by a flogger-wielding Domme?”
He let out a slow breath, knowing Lucas turned into a comic when he was tense or unsure of himself. “Fucker, I know a Domme who could have you happily licking her boots within fifteen minutes, so don’t disrespect.”
“Sorry. I was injecting humor,” Lucas said, jostling Josh’s chair, trying to lighten things back up. “It’s part of my charm.”
“You have no charm. I keep telling you this. Fine. I talked to Ethan because I was intrigued by the dynamic between him and Grace, and I realized what’s been missing in past relationships. Violet reminds me of Grace in some ways. Ethan said he knew someone who could guide me if I ever wanted to try more formal play. That’s why he introduced me to Joseph.” Ethan had also suggested a beginner’s rope tying and bondage class Sheriff Hank Stinson and Travis McDaniel would be teaching for a private group that was starting soon. Out of curiosity, he’d contacted Hank and signed them up for the first class, which would take place in a couple of weeks.
His brother’s wide, devilish grin was contagious. “So you’re saying you want to do more than just explore your kinky side?”
Josh’s reply was a shrug. “Given our interest in Violet, would it be a problem?”
Lucas’s eyes sparked with interest as he crossed his arms over his chest. “No. I know I kid, but to be honest, I’d be more likely to say kinkiness runs in the family. Isn’t Hazelle House predominantly a BDSM club environment?”
Josh shook his head. “I thought the same thing, but his indoor-outdoor venue is large, and he tailors events to meet the needs of the group. Next weekend happens to be a fantasy-fulfillment-themed weekend. If Violet is going, I plan to be there, too. And you?”
The broad smile on Lucas’s face and the twinkle in his eyes said it all. “Just tell me what to pack.”
Chapter Two
Violet bit her lip as her friends responded to her statement with wide eyes. They were sitting around a tall table at the Dancing Pony, having just arrived after a long day at work. Cassie Resendez, owner of Divine Drip, and Jessica Bright, optometrist at Divine Vision and Optical, blinked at her before taking sips of their margaritas. Violet had her back to the room, so she knew she wouldn’t be overheard.
“Since when do you talk with Joseph Hazelle?” Cassie asked over the loud music. “I’ve met him a couple of times, and he renders me speechless.”
Violet shrugged. “We’ve been friends a while. Grace introduced me to him one night when he came in here. He’s not that scary.”
“The hell you say,” Jessica whispered. “He’s so dark and mysterious. I’m with Cassie. He steals my ability to speak.”
“Funny, he seems to know just how to get me to open up.” Her words really got a reaction from them, and she flapped her hands. “Not like that, not like that! Yes, he’s a Dom. No, I’m not his sub, although he helped me see that I do have submissive tendencies. He’s invited me to gatherings, but my schedule hasn’t allowed it, and to be honest, it never seemed like a great fit, but this one coming up… The timing is better now.”
“What happened?” Cassie asked.
“Bodie called.” She looked down at her hands. She could almost see the pleading in his eyes. It was lucky she’d turned him down over the phone because she knew she could never tell him no to his face. But the deed was done. She was done.
“Oh, girl.”
“I told him to not call anymore.”
“What about Victor?” Cassie asked.
“Victor knew he was calling and had given him his blessing.”
“I’ve never met Victor, but I think I hate him,” Jessica said, and then made a growly sound. “Asshole.”
Violet shook her head. “I was so naïve. I should’ve seen the signs. I wanted to see the best in him, and in our relationship.”
After taking another sip of her margarita, Jessica said, “I think it’s great you’re thinking about going on this fantasy weekend. You’ve got to get a life outside of work, or you’re going to go crazy.”
Violet and Cassie both laughed, and Violet said, “Physician, heal thyself.”
“What? I’m building up my client base, which takes time. And what free time I have is taken up with baby Bella.”
Cassie smirked. “Riiiiight. No time for hot, sexy redheads.”
Violet snickered. “Whatever.”
Cassie said, “You’re both just making excuses.”
Violet and Jessica both chuckled, and Violet put her pinky and thumb to her jawline. “Hello, pot? This is the kettle…”
Cassie burst into laughter and then said, “Okay, we’re all pathetic, I’m just waiting on my fantasy woobie—or woobies—to show up. You’re the one with the golden opportunity here.”
“I’m focused, that’s all. I can let loose when it’s warranted.”
Jessica nodded, but there was disbelief in her tone when she said, “Prove it.”
“How?”
“Go on the fantasy weekend.”
“I’m not one hundred percent sure about it yet. I mean, yeah, I have fantasies, but…” There were so many variables. She had a fantasy all right. But it was exactly that. A ménage fantasy. Something she planned to never revisit because she couldn’t risk being hurt by two men ever again. It’d been too much, and a girl had to set limits. Besides, what if she went to the event and drew the attention of someone she wasn’t interested in or intimidated by? What if she had the same results as last time, or worse?
As if sensing her increasing doubt, Jessica said, “Okay. Then loosen up your businesswoman persona and have some fun tonight. Say yes to the next cowboy who walks up to you.”
She could handle a dance. No biggie. “Okay, if it’ll shut y’all up. But I’m not getting drunk or doing anything else crazy.”
Cassie said, “It’s a start, and I’m proud of you. And you should give Mr. Hazelle’s invitation serious consideration. I find him intimidating, but I don’t doubt you’d be in good hands. Who knows where it might take you. I know you miss Bodie, and it hurts, but you’re better off without him. That was an unhealthy relationship—him giving you periodic booty calls.”
“I know. I rationalized it for a long time, but I’m done.”
Cassie smiled as she looked over Violet’s shoulder. “You sure?”
Violet nodded decisively. “I’m done with him. And I will never take another chance with a ménage ever again. It’s all well and good to have a fantasy involving two big, sexy lumberjacks having their wicked, woodsy, well-hung way with me. It’s another in practice.”
Jessica’s eyebrows nearly reached her hairline as she also looked over Violet’s shoulder and elbowed Cassie. “Never say never, my friend.”
Solid warmth bracketing her shoulders alerted her to the arrival of two very hard bodies on either side of her tall chair. She looked up from one man to the other, her living, breathing, walking, talking fantasy. Josh and Lucas Abbott.
An enigmatic smile crossed Josh’s lips, the one that made her brain short circuit because it always left her wondering what he was thinking. She grinned at him like a dummy before smiling at Lucas as he kissed her hand. Kissed her hand.
They were brothers, but they were so different. Josh was more serious. Tall, with a swimmer’s body, he moved with animal grace. Lucas was more prone to tease, and he had a sturdy, almost stocky build, like a weightlifter. They were both definitely fantasy material. Too bad it was a fantasy she had no intent of pursuing.
Josh glanced down at her hair, and a wave of warm shivers washed through her as he stroked the length and tugged ever so gently at
the ends. It took a concerted effort to not roll her eyes back and tap her foot on the chair leg. Her brain went a little fuzzier as Josh spoke to her, gestured between him and his brother, and then looked at her.
Figuring she could kill two birds with one stone by shutting up the girls’ pestering about her social life, and indulging in a little harmless fantasy, she said, “Both of you? Sure, why not?”
She’d watched several of her friends who were involved in ménages dance with their men together rather than only in pairs at the last New Year’s Eve bash. Looked simple enough. She grinned at Cassie and Jessica, who were gaping so widely their jaws should’ve been on the floor.
You said prove it, girls.
At a short but sturdy five feet two inches, she appreciated it when Josh and Lucas helped her down from the chair, and she shot glances at both of them.
Josh’s eyebrow was quirked, and his eyes were a little wide, and Lucas beamed like a kid who’d gotten a pony from Santa. They were more subtle than the girls, but even they looked surprised.
“Wait,” she said as she drew them to a stop at the edge of the dance floor. “What did you ask me?”
* * * *
Josh said, “I asked you if you wanted to fuck.”
Lucas Abbott braced to get socked in the jaw by the blonde beauty blinking in shock at his brother. A flush rose in her cheeks and confusion showed in the furrow of her brows as her gaze ping-ponged between him and Josh.
A healthy sense of self-preservation kicked in, and he kept his trap shut. Josh was the one who had given in to the challenge, so it was his gut she should punch.
Josh had the good grace to turn three different shades of red before he finally said, “I’m sorry, Violet. Our friends put us up to it. They bet we could say anything to a lady and get away with it. We’ll understand if you want to walk away…after you punch me in the mouth.”
She looked between the two of them and giggled, and Lucas let out the breath he’d been holding. Violet was a good-natured woman who didn’t rile easily, which was one of the things he loved about her. Had loved about her practically since the moment he’d met her the year before.
Keep that thought to yourself, moron. The L-word is likely to scare her off, especially in light of what she said as we walked up.
Her beautiful whiskey-brown eyes twinkled as she said, “I think we should kill two birds with one stone. Cassie and Jessica have been pestering me to get out and have more fun. Why don’t the three of us dance once and then leave together? I bet that’ll shut your friends and mine up for a while.”
Relieved she wasn’t mad, Lucas said, “If it’ll help you out, we’re game. Would you like to go get a cup of coffee somewhere? It’s kind of stuffy in here tonight anyway. Too much hot air.”
Her hand felt delicate in his as she tugged them toward the dance floor. “Sounds good. I’m feeling a little too warm myself. Then we can talk without having to yell over the music and noise.”
Before Lucas could say anything, Josh took the lead. “You got it.”
Lucas focused on her and ignored their buddies at the bar. He and Josh were damned lucky she was so easygoing. A lot of women would’ve been furious at discovering they were the object of a wager, especially one involving the use of the word “fuck” in a pickup line. Josh’s pride hadn’t let the chicken challenge go unanswered, and this time it’d worked in their favor.
Josh pulled her to him and led them in a slow, easy-to-follow rhythm, and Lucas wondered if that was all there was going to be to it until Violet turned. He’d been perfectly content feeling her curvaceous backside rubbing against him until he got to enjoy the sensation of her plush breasts pressed to his chest. Taking a chance, he leaned down and kissed her forehead.
Her cheeks were pretty pink as she looked up at him. The way she bit her full lower lip made him hunger for a taste of it, and he thought back to another conversation he’d overheard months before between her and a customer. He’d been in the storage space above her newly renovated office, working on the wiring, when a customer had approached her in the small bookshop portion of the Emporium.
His curiosity had been piqued when the lady had waved her closer, and in a quiet voice had said, “Violet, I’m looking for a book I read a while back. I loaned it out to a friend and never got it back.” The customer glanced around her as if she was afraid to be overheard.
Violet’s eyes twinkled, and she nodded. “What’s the title?”
“That’s the problem. I read it a long time ago, and I can’t remember the title, just the story line.” She went on to mention a couple of authors who might have written it and then said, “It’s a sci-fi erotic romance set partly on a space ship.”
“How many heroes?” Violet’s question had made him pause and smirk.
How did the author keep up with all the extra elbows and knees?
“Two.”
Lucas nodded and gave himself a thumbs-up as he watched Violet quiz her about the story, her eyes growing brighter as she nodded. The customer said, “They barely save her from a sexual predator on Earth and whisk her aboard their ship. She’s out cold, but they have to continue on their mission. When she awakens, it’s to find she’s not even in the Milky Way galaxy anymore.”
Violet picked up the storyline at that point. “And when she wakes up, she tries to escape, not realizing she’s in outer space. One of the heroes chases her around the ship. He finally backs her into a corner in the cargo hold, and she kicks him—”
“Right in the balls,” the customer said with a giggle as she blushed and nodded while Lucas cupped his balls through a wave of nauseated sympathy pain.
“I know exactly which book you’re talking about. It’s one of my favorite capture fantasy stories.”
Capture fantasy? That’s a thing? He edged closer so he could hear her better as she continued speaking.
“I loved the way the heroes were take-charge alphas, but they weren’t assholes incapable of love. They wooed her, even as they seduced her, and got her past the shock of both of them wanting her. All the choices were hers, but in the end, she chose them. And the sex was hot enough to melt my Kindle.”
“But you have a copy in paperback, right? I like the way a real book feels in my hands, not that there’s anything wrong with e-books. I just prefer paper.”
“You bet. I know right where it is. You’re putting me in the mood to reread it.” Violet led her away as they chattered on and located the exact book for her before they journeyed to the front of the store to ring up the purchase.
Lucas pondered that conversation and the one they’d overheard as they’d walked up. It sounded like Violet had a vivid fantasy life, and it was just one more thing to love about her, even if she swore up and down ménages weren’t for her.
There was no point in asking her now, though, because the music was too loud to have a decent conversation. Plus, she might bolt if he questioned what she’d meant about never taking another chance with a ménage. Their beautiful girl was full of surprises. And her “wicked, woodsy, and well-hung” fantasy? He didn’t think he was deficient in the “well-hung” category, and he had a whole damned closet full of flannel.
Now he just had to be a little patient to find out if he’d be packing any of it in a suitcase soon.
* * * *
Violet thanked Josh when he slid the bottle of honey over to her as they sat in a booth at Rudy’s, the only eatery still open at ten o’clock in Divine on a Friday night. She watched the golden liquid drizzle onto her spoon, and heat filled her cheeks when she glanced up and caught him watching her with an enigmatic smile on his face.
“So you thought I’d sock you in the jaw for offering a fuck?” she asked after making sure no one was within earshot as she swirled the loaded spoon into her coffee. Josh was always so self-possessed, and it did her heart good when he squirmed a little. Lucas, on the other hand, looked nothing but amused.
“Offending you was the last thing I wanted,” Josh replied as he
lifted his mug to his lips. She wondered what it’d feel like to kiss his sensual mouth.
She was willing to bet he was an expert in the art of kissing. He and his charming brother probably both were. Delivering the perfect amount of pressure, enough to make her tilt her head back. Warm, as his lips brushed across hers, testing before going deeper, just a flick of velvety tongue, cajoling her into stroking back with hers. Hands resting gently on her hips before sliding up to pull her closer or risking the move downward to palm her ass cheeks. A hint of a husky groan as their aroused bodies pressed closer together. Her pussy quivered, and she squirmed, very aware of the welling warmth blooming between her thighs.
“You okay?” Lucas asked. His tone was soft, drawing her gaze, and the knowing smile on his lips made her wonder if he wasn’t reading her mind.
Something made her go with honesty. “It was nice seeing you working around the shop today, Josh. The shop isn’t the same without you two around all the time, hammering and sawing. I’ve missed that.”
“All our noise and sawdust?” Lucas asked.
Violet shrugged and then nodded. “You guys were neater than some contractors I’ve known. I didn’t mind it much.”
Josh slid his hand across the white Formica tabletop and brushed her manicured fingertips with his thumb. “I liked being back there for a day, too.”
Lucas sipped from his coffee mug. “Everything going okay at the Emporium?”
“Yes. My customers love the work you and your brothers did.” She hated small talk but couldn’t think with the two of them gazing at her.
She was about to comment on the weather when Josh sat forward and said, “Did that guy call you again today?”
Her eyebrows nearly hit her hairline. It was his way to get to the point. He probably hated small talk as much as she did. “How do you know it was a man calling me?”
Josh tilted his head and slid his callused fingertip over her knuckles. “When we asked you out a few months ago, you said you were seeing someone. We assumed it was the guy who called and texted you all the time while we were working there. Your phone rang while I was there today, and I noticed you were upset when you hung up.”
Lumberjack Weekend [Divine Creek Ranch 21] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) Page 3