by Jodi Redford
Within seconds he detected the telltale signs of her approaching orgasm. The increasing tension in her limbs. The rapid acceleration of her breaths. The endless cream coating his mouth and jaw. With one final toggle of his tongue, he sent her crashing into the abyss of pleasure.
Not leaving her time to come down from the wave, he shucked his clothes. One glance in Mason’s direction verified he’d done the same. Additionally, he’d had the foresight to grab condoms from the bedroom. Nash ripped his open and quickly sheathed his cock before lifting Regan into his arms. He squeezed her butt. “Wrap your legs around my waist.”
She accommodated the request, another gasp springing from her as she sank down onto his cock. The feel of her wet, snug pussy hugging him tight? Fucking heaven. He bobbed her on his dick, intensifying the sensations. He dropped down onto the ottoman and arched her away from his chest slightly. The wet sounds her pussy made as it greedily clung to his pistoning shaft lured his gaze to where they were joined. The sight of his wet dick shafting her deep tore a groan from his throat. He shot a desperate glance to Mason. “Bro, better jump in the action quick because I’m about to lose it.”
“Yes, please,” Regan gasped. “Because I don’t know how much longer I can hold off from coming.”
That announcement managed to light a fire under Mason’s ass. He joined them on the edge of the ottoman. Nash hiked Regan up slightly, just enough to make room for Mas’s cock. All three of them groaned at the extra snugness of her pussy as she stretched to take them both. She was hot and liquid around them. Shit. She hadn’t been exaggerating about her looming climax. One or two pumps of their cocks and she was likely to break apart on them.
Testing his theory, he surged deeper inside her, forcing Mason’s cock along for the ride. Regan clawed at his shoulders, her head falling back.
“Fuck yeah, baby. Do it. Come all over us.”
She heeded the command with a shuddery wail, her body shaking as her pussy vised them in a chokehold before spasming around them, giving the best internal cock massage known to mankind. There was no goddamn way he could last through that. Gritting his teeth, he slammed headfirst into the nerve-frying wall of pleasure. He didn’t need to look at Mason’s face or hear his buddy’s groan to determine he was right there with them. The pulse of his cock alongside Nash’s was a dead giveaway.
For an endless moment, the only sound in the room was their labored breathing.
What had just transpired seared him all the way to his soul. Yes, the sex had been fucking out of this world. But it went deeper than that. Even when he’d first spotted Regan back at the beginning of the week, something inside him had been drawn to her. A conviction that she was special. The one who could fill the missing third in his and Mas’s life. Now he didn’t just question the possibility. He knew it for fact.
Now he just had to convince her and Mason of it.
CHAPTER TEN
T his was the inherent problem with being greedy. If you kept gorging on your favorite addictions, sooner or later you’d need a twelve step program. Only she had a bad feeling no program in existence would cure her of Nash and Mason. It didn’t matter that they’d been virtual strangers to her four days ago. During the time they’d spent with her they’d become something wonderful that she hadn’t even realized she needed.
But they didn’t feel the same way for her. She couldn’t keep clinging to this fantasy of a forever.
Without warning, Harper’s words drifted through her consciousness. “Nothing worse than ruining a beautiful memory by expecting more out of a one night stand.”
God, what made her think that she was even cut out for a fling? It wasn’t in her to cut ties. Shit, she’d stayed in a mediocre relationship with Steven all those years because she didn’t have it in her to walk away. And look what an asshole he’d been. But Nash and Mason were two incredible men with the biggest hearts she’d ever known. They’d gone out of their way to make her time with them so very special, in and out of the bedroom. Shoving them out of her heart would be an impossible task.
But one she needed to do.
Sighing, she zipped up her garment bag and folded it over the bedroom chair. She wasn’t leaving until the morning, but at least everything was ready and packed to go. She didn’t want to worry about that stuff tonight. Not when she already had enough to dread over.
Like saying goodbye to Mason and Nash for good.
An awful heaviness weighing at her heart, she trudged to the kitchen and drained the few remaining dregs of coffee from the pot. The distinct sound of the front door opening snapped her to attention. Adrenaline spiking her pulse, she shot up from her chair. “H-hello?” She inched toward the block of knives, ready to grab one if necessary.
“Regan? It’s Tanya Llewelyn.”
The tension immediately vanished and she relaxed her shoulders. Her client. Not an intruder. Thank God.
Tanya stepped into the kitchen, her eyes bloodshot and complexion shallow. Immediately concerned, Regan pushed away from the counter. “Are you okay?”
Her client smiled weakly. “Yes. Sort of. Jim’s dad was rushed into the hospital after suffering cardiac arrest. We’ve been camped out in the waiting room since two this morning.”
“Oh my God. I’m so sorry.”
“Thank you. The docs say he’s going to make it, but Jim’s still a basket case. Naturally. I’m just picking up a sweater. I swear they have that waiting room temp set at arctic.” Tanya combed her fingers through her hair. “I must look terrifying.”
“Absolutely not.”
“You’re a sweetheart to lie like that.” Tanya dropped her arms. “Anyway, we really do appreciate you watching the house for us while we were gone. At least that’s one thing we didn’t have to worry about.”
“No problem. D-did you want me to stay until you’re done at the hospital?”
Tanya shook her head. “I plan to be back before Buzz and Woody’s dinner time. They’ll be fine until then.”
“Okay. If you’re sure.”
“Yep. Now go and have some fun for the rest of your weekend. At least one of us will.”
After grabbing her belongings from the guest bedroom and transporting them to her car, Regan slid behind the wheel and stared in the direction of the neighboring bungalow. Nash and Mason wouldn’t be home until after five. That was eight hours from now. An awful long wait to camp out in their driveway just to say goodbye.
A goodbye that made her queasy every time she thought about it.
Why are you postponing the inevitable? Maybe this was fate stepping in, telling her that their sexy fling had its shining moment in the sun, and now it was time to move on.
Her heart squeezed, so hard she thought she’d pass out from the pain. Or possibly join Mr. Llewelyn’s father in the ER. She swallowed past the misery congesting in her throat. “It’s your own damn fault, you big idiot. Pull up your big girl panties and get on with it.”
Furiously swiping at the tears collecting in her eyes, she reversed out of the drive and headed toward the ferry. And away from a future that was never meant to be.
~*~
T he problem with sitting other people’s houses is she always came back to her tiny apartment and a mountain of backed-up mail. This time was no exception. Only she chose to ignore it in favor of moping on the couch. Everywhere she looked, she was reminded how empty her life was. Yes, she had her books. And more than likely a handful of new manuscripts to edit in her inbox. But right now those felt like piss-poor substitutes for a nice warm body to cuddle up to.
Or more specifically two bodies to cuddle up to.
Eyes scratchy from the endless flood of tears she’d been unable to curb during the three hour drive to Grand Rapids, she curled into a ball and flicked on the TV set. After the static cleared a movie popped on. She stared at Channing Tatum decked out in his G.I. Joe camo, her
stomach pitching. Fumbling with the remote, she quickly clicked the Down button, changing the channel before fate could continue kicking her in the teeth.
Her cellphone chirped and she jumped, her heartbeat singing at the sound. Until she remembered that neither Nash or Mason had her number. The fact that they didn’t should have gone a long way in proving that she did the right thing cutting the cord.
So why did she still feel a gaping hole in her heart?
She grabbed her phone, and after spotting Harper’s name on the display, clicked on the receiver. “Hey.”
“Jeez, you sound like shit.”
She grimaced at the truth behind that statement. “Just tired after the long drive.”
“Long drive? Where are you at?”
“Home. My client had a family emergency, so my week was cut short.”
“Damn it. I wish you’d stopped by before leaving.”
Regan swallowed down the bitter ball of regret. “I’m sorry. I just needed to hit the road.” Before she did something stupid. Like beg Nash and Mason to live the white picket dream with her and live happily ever after with a big brood of mini G.I. Joes and Janes.
“Something’s wrong. I can tell. Regan, talk to me.”
The flood of tears started up again and she snuffled, the blubbery sound obnoxious even to her own ears. “I didn’t want to tell them goodbye.”
A lengthy silence filled the void after her admission. Finally Harper’s voice came back on the line, filled with a gentle sympathy that only made Regan cry harder.
“Oh honey, I’m sorry. But look at it this way, if they’re too stupid to realize they’re letting the most wonderful woman in the world slip between their fingers, you are way better off without them. Fuck ‘em, I say. I hope you walked away from that goodbye with your head held high like the amazing, kickass woman you are.”
“You don’t understand. I didn’t tell them goodbye. I-I couldn’t do it.”
“What do you mean?”
She grabbed a tissue and blew her nose before answering Harper. “If I’d waited around I would have talked myself into prolonging the inevitable.”
“Wait a minute. They didn’t kick you to the curb. You did.”
“No, that’s not what I did at all.”
“Oh, you are full of shit. That’s exactly what you did.”
She scrunched her forehead. “Why are you yelling at me? For Pete’s sake, you’re the one who said it’s better not to ruin a one night stand with fantasies of a future.”
“I was talking about me , you blockhead. Good God, you would have to pick that as the first time you ever take my advice.”
“But you were right. My heart would only get broken more if I’d stayed.”
“What if you’re wrong? What if you just walked away from two guys who are absolutely crazy about you?”
She crumpled the tissue in her fist, her eyes waterlogging again. “Why are you trying to make this more difficult for me?”
“I’m not. I just don’t want to see you throw away a chance at true happiness. You deserve it. Probably more than just about anyone I know.”
A sniffle escaped. “I love you, jerk.”
“You too, bozo. Please think about what I said, okay? Before it really is too late.”
They continued chatting for a moment before Harper had to get ready to leave for the club. Once Regan was alone with her thoughts again, the uncertainty returned.
It was easy for Harper to talk about taking chances. She wasn’t the one putting her heart on the line. What if Nash and Mason rejected her? She didn’t think she could take the heartbreak and pain of that.
But what if they did have deeper feelings for her? She would never know if she didn’t ask. Didn’t try to see if they could make a tentative start at something more than a fling.
The memory...or a lifetime.
She knew which one she wanted to the depths of her soul. Now she just had to drum up the courage to go after it.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
M ason frowned as soon as he spotted the familiar car in the Llewelyn’s driveway. “Looks like Tanya’s home.” Another realization hit him. Regan’s car was nowhere to be seen. He glanced toward Nash and noticed that his buddy seemed to be processing the same fact.
His pulse missing a beat for no apparent reason, Mason climbed from his vehicle and pocketed his keys. There was no cause for the doubt beginning to creep through him, but it was there nonetheless. As Nash would say, his Spidey senses were kicking into overdrive.
He just prayed to God they were wrong.
Without needing to visually verify that Nash was right behind him, he led the way to their neighbor’s cottage and rapped on the door. Several minutes passed before Tanya cracked open the door and peered at them blearily. She looked like death warmed over. “Oh my God, I’m so glad you guys woke me up. I fell asleep on the couch.” She glanced at her watch. “Damn it, I was supposed to be back at the hospital over an hour ago.”
“Hospital?” Panic punched Mason in the gut. “Did something happen to Regan?”
“No.” Tanya frowned. “How do you know Regan?” Her expression cleared and she shook her head. “Duh, obviously you probably met her while she was here. Lovely girl. I don’t know what I would have done if she hadn’t been here to watch the house. Especially with the situation with dad.”
“Something happened to your dad?” His brain was starting to function again now that he knew Regan wasn’t hurt.
“Jim’s. He’s going to be okay. God, what a nightmare though.”
He rubbed her shoulder, offering what little comfort he could. Meanwhile, everything inside him was screaming to know where Regan was. To ease his mind and troubled thoughts. “Speaking of Regan, did she mention anything about when she’d be coming back?”
“Coming back? No. I’m pretty sure she headed home. I told her to enjoy her weekend. I assume that was her game plan.”
Just like that, his heart plummeted. She left. Without even saying goodbye. What the fuck.
Tanya glanced at her watch again. “Hate to cut this short, but I need to hit the road.”
“Of course.” He and Nash stepped aside as she snatched her purse and locked up the house. She rushed down the steps, shouting a goodbye as she bee-lined for her SUV.
“Well, at least someone knows how to say goodbye.”
At Nash’s growl, he turned and eyed his buddy. “I can’t believe she’d do that. Just run off.”
“Me either.” Nash stacked his arms over his chest. “Think we should track her down and give her a good spanking for being naughty?”
“Sounds like an excellent plan.” With that determination firing his blood, he yanked his cellphone from his pocket. He pulled up Tanya’s number.
She answered on the second ring. “Mason?”
“Hey, sorry to bother you with everything going on, but Nash and I were thinking we’d like to hire Regan to housesit for us when we’re out of town next month. Any chance you’ve got her number handy?”
A pregnant pause preceded Tanya’s chuckle. “Why do I get the feeling I’m about to play matchmaker here?”
Damn. Busted. “Err...”
“I don’t have it on me, but her business number is on her website.”
Mason memorized the URL Tanya spouted off. “Thanks. Got it.”
“Just remember to invite us to the wedding.”
After he hung up he let that notion tumble around his brain. He shifted his focus to Nash. “So which one of us should marry her?”
A broad grin lit his best friend’s face. “We can both do it. Won’t technically be legally recognized on one of our ends.” He cleared his throat. “Not that I’ve looked into it or anything.”
Mason chuckled. “You’ve always been the best wingman.”
“Damn strai
ght.” Nash held out his phone. “Here, I’ve already got her website pulled up.”
Best, indeed. Mason punched the number on the screen into his keypad and hit send. Regan’s prerecorded message popped on. Her sweet voice filling him with a mix of happiness and extreme frustration, he waited for the beep and then cleared his throat. “Regan, it’s Mason. Sweetheart, why did you go?” His heart pounded, making it difficult to get the words out. Shit, he probably should have practiced what he’d say beforehand. “When you get this, call me back.” He hung up, feeling like the biggest dumbass on earth. “Well, that sucked donkey balls.”
“Yeah, pretty lame, dude. Better let me pop the question for you. I’ll hide in the bushes like Steve Martin did in Roxanne.”
Sad to say, it wasn’t a bad plan at all.
They both turned as a car rolled down the street, heading in their direction. Mason blinked. “That looks like—”
“Regan,” Nash finished, disbelief and hope underscoring her name.
She pulled into the driveway and he and Nash booked it down the steps. Her eyes wet, she jumped out of her vehicle and rushed toward them. They met her halfway and Mason scooped her into his arms. Hugging her with every bit of love and determination zipping through his veins, he pressed his forehead to hers. “Baby, don’t ever scare us like that again.”
Her cheeks damp, she swallowed roughly and squeezed him tight. “I didn’t know if you’d want me to stay. This was only supposed to be a fling.”
“Says who?” he and Nash demanded together.
“I...I just assumed.”
He lowered her to the ground and cupped the sides of her face. “You know what they say about those pesky assumptions.”
She peered into his eyes, hers filled with tears and uncertainty. “So what are you saying? You want to extend the fling?”
“No.”