“Stop!” Wayne had returned and stood by the bed. “I can feel your mind working overtime. It was what it was. Sex between two males. Deal with it and decide what you want to do next.”
The harsh tone of Wayne’s voice made Sebastian’s stomach clench. “I’m sorry.”
Wayne punched him in the arm.
“Ow! What did you hit me for?”
“Your brain needs resetting,” Wayne snapped. “I want to explore this with you, dammit. We don’t have to go around holding hands, but I enjoyed the hell out of that jerk-off. I like kissing you, and I want to sleep in this bed with you tonight. Don’t act like a girl and go all weird on me.” He slapped a face cloth on Sebastian’s stomach. “Clean up.”
Sebastian caught the cloth before it dropped onto the sheets and rubbed away the stickiness. Suddenly everything was all right. He dropped the cloth on the floor to pick up later. “If your other dates go weird then you must be doing something wrong.”
“Asshole.” Wayne slid back under the covers. He wrapped his arms around Sebastian. “What are we going to do about the Maxwell quote? Can we fit the job in before the end of February?”
The residual tension in Sebastian faded at Wayne’s cool acceptance of the change in their relationship. He thought over the jobs they had lined up, considered the available crew. “We could put the new wet room in for them, but the kitchen project would need to wait until April. Unless we hire more crew. What do you think?”
“My stepbrothers are looking for work during the weekends.”
“They’d need to commit. We can’t have them ditching us to go out with their mates.”
Wayne smiled and pressed a kiss to the curve of Sebastian’s shoulder. “They’d listen to you. Mum thinks they’re old enough to accept the responsibility.”
Sebastian resettled his body, deliberately crowding Wayne. A part of him was surprised at the situation he found himself in, even though it was something he’d thought of for months. Wayne didn’t shy from the contact, and warmth wove through Sebastian. “We could take them on for a trial period. Tell them to come and see me before school starts.”
“It’s better if you’re in charge of them. They never listen to a word I say.”
“Because you play the doting big brother and they twist you around their little fingers.” His words forced another truth on him. Wayne loved his adopted family, his parents and his siblings. He wasn’t sure how they’d react if they realized the depths of Wayne’s intimacy with him. The burst of realism stayed with him for much of the night.
* * * * *
Her bed felt like a solitary island. Really lonely. Jen turned onto her side and wriggled to find a comfortable spot. How could this happen after one night? She’d hated spending the entire night in bed with Giles. In fact she’d never spent the night with her very first lover either.
When sleep remained elusive, she switched on the bedside lamp and picked up the list she’d started after Gaby had dropped her off.
The things she needed to do this week. There had been a message from the real estate agent on her answer phone. She was bringing a prospective buyer to view the house in the morning. Could Jen make sure the kitchen was clean, and if possible, put out some flowers? Maybe put on a pot of coffee or bake a cake to make the house smell inviting?
If the house sold she’d need to get rid of some of the furniture. Unless the prospective buyer wanted to purchase the contents from her. Jen jotted a note to remember to ask the real estate agent.
Her mind drifted to Wayne and Sebastian. Heck, tell the truth. She hadn’t stopped thinking about them all day. A sense of excitement filled her every time her thoughts detoured to them, and she knew she’d decided to go ahead and explore where Wayne’s crazy idea took them.
Gaby managed her two men, and they were happy. Jen might have held a few doubts at first and worried about Gaby, but her fears had proved groundless. It was possible to enjoy a healthy relationship with two men at the same time. All the threesome needed was open communication and trust. The willingness to compromise if necessary.
Funnily enough, trust wasn’t an issue for her. She’d worked for Wayne and Sebastian full-time ever since her mother had died, and before that she’d had a part time job with them. Both men possessed integrity and honesty. No, it was the practicalities that scared her most.
What exactly were the logistics when it came to three lovers in a bed?
Or maybe she was overthinking the situation.
When the clock in the lounge struck six, Jen decided she might as well give up trying to sleep and plunge into her day. But at least she’d come to a decision. She’d ring either Wayne or Sebastian later today and invite herself for dinner. If she gave a broad enough hint they might even invite her for a sleepover.
Chapter Six
“They want to buy your house.” Excitement glittered in the real estate agent��s eyes, highlighting her model-perfect appearance. Immaculate blonde curls, a form-fitting black suit and high-heel red shoes showcasing long, slender legs all screamed sex appeal. When combined with her calm efficiency she was guaranteed success in her chosen field. “At your asking price.”
“But you said we’d probably have to drop the price and the buyers would come to me with offers.” Jen didn’t have to pretend bewilderment.
“They liked your house from the moment they walked in the door. They’ve been looking for the last year. And, they’re cash buyers, so the only condition on the sale and purchase agreement is the requirement for the house to pass a building inspection. They’re so keen they’ve already lined up a friend to inspect the building for them.”
A knock on the front door interrupted the agent’s enthusiasm. Jen’s head was spinning, her thoughts a riot of emotions, the uppermost being what the heck had she done? She found herself at the door without even remembering walking from the kitchen where she’d been making a pot of coffee.
She inhaled a deep breath and opened the door.
“Liam? Has something happened to Gaby?”
“I’m here to inspect your house for Gary Seymour. I thought you’d only just listed your property.”
“Yesterday,” she said faintly. “I thought I’d have months to get used to the idea.”
Liam squeezed her shoulder in a sympathetic manner. “This is a big house for one person. Your mother wouldn’t want you to struggle to look after it.”
Jen nodded, knowing he spoke the truth. But there were so many memories, both good and bad. She’d be leaving them behind. “Where do you want to start?”
“Inside, I think.” He bent to unlace his boots and set them out of the way.
“You know the way.” Jen left him to his task and returned to the kitchen. “That was Liam. He’s come to do the inspection.”
“I told you the buyers were keen. Would you like to sign the agreement now?”
“When do they want to take possession?”
“As soon as possible. My buyer asked if next Friday would work for you.”
“That’s not long!” Jen wanted to say no. She wanted to shove both the agent and Liam out of her house and pretend this had never happened. Then she thought of Gary Seymour. He had a family—three boys and a girl from memory. She thought of her mother and finally nodded. “Okay.”
“Excellent.”
The agent took her through the paperwork and after reading everything she signed the agreement, albeit with a shaky hand.
Liam finished his inspection and left. The agent departed not long afterward, leaving Jen alone with her shock. She had so much to do. Where was she going to live?
Her mind darted to Wayne and Sebastian. She’d talk to one of them. On automatic pilot she reached for the phone and rang the office. “Hi, Libby. It’s Jen. Do you know where Wayne and Sebastian are this morning?”
“They’re working out at the Portman property, but they have the council inspector there this morning.”
Best she didn’t interrupt them. “Can you ask them to rin
g me when they check in?”
“Sure thing, Jen,” Libby said. “Oops, there’s the other line. I’ll talk to you later.”
Jen hung up and wondered where to start. She needed to pack her personal possessions, organize storage for the furniture she wanted to keep and find somewhere else to live. No problem. She could get that done in the allotted time.
Her morning passed in a blur of business. She organized to pick up cardboard cartons from the supermarket and started packing her clothes in the suitcases she’d unearthed from the attic. Her precious mementos were next, wrapped carefully in newspaper and packed in another suitcase. She picked up a photo of her and her mother, the last one they’d had taken together before her mother had become bedridden. Tears filled her eyes as she stared at her mother’s smiling face.
“Jen!” A familiar masculine voice hollered through the house.
“Wayne, I’m up here in the bedroom.”
“Right where we want you,” Wayne said from the doorway.
“Don’t tell her that, numbskull. You’ll scare her.”
Wayne stepped inside her bedroom, followed by Sebastian.
“What’s wrong?” Sebastian scanned the cases and the mess on top of her bed. “Are you going somewhere?”
“A phone call would have done,” she said faintly. With the two men in her bedroom it seemed to have shrunk.
“We had to come into town to do a couple of quotes,” Sebastian said.
“And we figured we might score a kiss,” Wayne added as he lifted her to her feet. Seconds later his mouth descended on hers, stealing her breath.
“My turn.” Sebastian batted Wayne away and rubbed his forehead against hers. “You okay?”
“I feel a bit dazed. I’ve sold the house and have to move out in less than two weeks.”
Instead of kissing her mouth, Sebastian kissed the tip of her nose in a teasing manner and released her. She stared, a little bemused. She’d never pictured him as playful. He was the serious one while Wayne joked around all the time. This was different. Despite the dark shadows under his eyes, he looked…content.
“Where are you going to move to?” Wayne asked.
“I don’t know. I figured I’d check the flatmates wanted section of the local paper and see what I could find.”
Wayne and Sebastian exchanged a glance then looked at her.
“Move in with us,” Wayne said.
A whoosh of heat hit her, stealing her thoughts. Her mouth opened but not a sound emerged. She swallowed and tried again. “No, that’s not a good idea. I’m not ready—”
“There’s another spare room. We’ve been using it as a gym but it’s no trouble to reorganize things. Sebastian and I both like you. We want to help out,” Wayne said.
“We want you,” Sebastian added. “But we’d never pressure you. You know that, right?”
Jen stared at them, noted their earnest expressions and finally nodded. “Okay. We all sleep in our own rooms.”
Wayne grinned. “Sebastian and I have started sharing ‘cause it gets lonely in the middle of the night.”
Jen’s gaze whipped to Sebastian. The tips of his ears turned pink as she watched.
“Wayne.”
“She’ll work it out sooner or later. It’s better to be up front with Jen. You’d prefer honest, eh?”
“Honesty is good. How big is my room? How much furniture will I be able to fit in it?”
“It’s a fraction bigger than my room,” Sebastian said.
“You looked around Sebastian’s room? I’m jealous,” Wayne said, putting on a pout.
“You know she’s seen my room. Remember? We had torrid, hot sex,” Sebastian said. “Before you came to join us.”
“Oh, yeah.” Wayne winked at her. “Couldn’t have been that good. She got dressed straightaway.”
“No parading around naked,” Jen said, putting on a stern face.
Both men grinned.
“Or in your underwear.” After all, a girl could only handle so much. “Maybe this is a bad idea.”
“Jen, you can trust us both,” Sebastian said. “We’d never force you into anything you weren’t comfortable with, but we do like you. A lot.”
“We might try to seduce you every Tuesday,” Wayne added.
Sebastian checked his watch. “We’d better go or we’ll be late. We’ll come around after work and help you with packing. Maybe we could move some of the furniture and stuff tonight too.”
“Thanks. That would be great.” Her panic faded now that she had a plan.
Both Wayne and Sebastian planted a swift kiss on her lips and left. She stared at the open doorway, her fingers tracing her tingling lips, and all she could think was that she wished it were Tuesday.
The hours passed rapidly. Gaby arrived just after five, demanding details because Liam had been useless with the important info. After filling Gaby in on her plans, her friend was full of smirks.
“Wayne and Sebastian are perfect for you. You’ve known them for ages.”
“But I’m nothing like the women they usually date,” Jen said, picturing the leggy, stick-thin women she’d seen them with in the past.
“All men go through that phase. You should have seen some of the women Liam and Fletch dated. Just take things slowly and do what seems right.”
“I want to jump them. The only problem is deciding which one to jump first,” Jen said in a glum voice. “My mother is probably stirring in her grave at my wicked thoughts.”
“That does it. I’m signing you on as an official tester. The pay isn’t much, but it might help with your book costs.”
“I forgot to ask Wayne what he wants me to pay for rent. What if I can't afford to stay with them? I still have to budget to make my money last until I complete my degree. I mean, I can't spend it all.”
“Stop being stupid. Pull your weight around the house and pay a share of the bills. That’s all you need to do. Somehow I don’t think Wayne thinks of you as a tenant. I’ll collect a tester kit for you tomorrow. All you need to do is sign a disclaimer and a privacy statement and you’re good. Wayne and Sebastian will need to sign one too if you decide to recruit them to help you. I’ll add them to the disclaimer statement.”
“Whatever. Gaby, can you help me clean out Mum’s room? I haven’t done much more than dust and vacuum in there since Mum died.”
“All you need to do is ask,” Gaby said. “Why don’t you have a garage sale? I’m sure the money will come in handy. I’ll help you. Alice might be willing to lend a hand too,” Gaby said, mentioning her boss.
Wayne and Sebastian arrived at six and Liam and Fletch turned up not long after. Despite her protests, Wayne and Sebastian loaded her bed and the other furniture she’d decided to keep onto the back of the truck they used for delivering supplies to sites.
“Don’t be silly,” Gaby said. “You might as well move now because it will make it easier to clean up here.”
At eight, they stopped for the night and ate the pizza Jen had ordered. At nine-thirty everyone left. Jen attempted to take her car, but Wayne hustled her into the truck and the three of them drove home together.
Home.
Although it was weird, the thought felt comfortable already. Exhausted from the physical activity, she helped unload the last of the boxes off the truck, made up her bed with clean sheets, had a shower and fell into bed.
A foreign scratching on the window woke her. She froze, the small hairs on the back of her neck prickling. When the fingernail-on-blackboard sound came again, she leapt out of bed and found herself halfway down the passage. She peeked into Sebastian’s room. Empty. Stumbling a few more steps, she peered inside and made out two lumps on the bed.
“Wayne,” she whispered.
“What is it?” Sebastian asked in a rumbly voice.
“A noise scared the crap out of me.”
“Jen?
She’d woken Wayne as well. Feeling a bit stupid, she gnawed on her bottom lip, shifting her weight from foot to foo
t in indecision.
Wayne reached over to turn on the light and sat up in bed. “What are you doing here in the middle of the night?”
The sheets puddled in his lap, highlighting his naked chest and sexy tattoo. Sebastian rubbed his eyes, and she noticed his torso was naked too.
“Jen?” Wayne prompted.
Jen stared at them, overtaken by a sudden yearning to be in the middle of the bed between the two hard bodies. “I couldn’t sleep in a strange room. It’s Tuesday,” she blurted.
Wayne bit back his need to chuckle. She’d remembered his Tuesday seduction rule and clearly wished she hadn’t blurted it out. She looked so cute with her long, curly hair hanging down around her shoulders and the thin purple nightgown skimming her body. As she moved self-consciously, her brown curls bounced and shifted, giving him a peek-a-boo show of her breasts. His heart twisted, a warm sensation gripping him.
Seb moved away from him and crawled out of bed. He crossed the distance to where Jen stood and ran the back of his hand over her cheek in a tender gesture. That one action brought the rightness of this strange situation to Wayne. He watched Seb grasp Jen’s hand and tug her toward the bed. With gentle hands, he guided her down and slid in beside her.
“Turn off the light,” he said once he’d settled. “I’m tired.”
Wayne switched it off. At first Jen held her body tense, but gradually she relaxed. He could smell the scent of soap and clean woman and his cock perked up a little. Not yet. This was a delicate situation and he needed to handle it carefully. He’d take his cues from Jen. Seb was a little easier to read because they’d known each other for so long, but he’d take things slowly with Seb too. While he loved to have sex with a woman, he’d enjoyed his experiments with Seb. It had taken him a long time, but now he understood. Seb needed him, and he needed Seb. Together they were a balanced team.
“Want to fool around a little?” he whispered in Jen’s ear. “We’ll have to be quiet because Sebastian gets grumpy if he misses his sleep.”
“I…maybe I should go back to my own room,” she said in a rush.
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