Restoration Hearts

by Kiera Jayne

  “From Granite Ridge?”

  “Yup.”

  “Right. So, let’s check the surrounding towns, then. Maybe even Toowoomba. I’ll bet there are plenty of guys there.” Vaughn’s fingers flew over the keyboard.

  “Like who?” Perie queried, her mouth pouting.

  “We’ll find someone, Perie.”

  Perie rested her elbow on the card table with her chin on her hand and watched him with her pouty face.

  “What was the reason the other guy quit, anyway?”

  “He broke his wrist playing football,” Perie grumped.

  Vaughn sent her a blank stare. “How dare he.”

  Perie sniggered. Then she did her best to hide her smirk and keep her stink face firmly in place.

  “You might be in for a slightly higher fee, but if we’re persistent, we’ll find someone for the job, I’m sure.”

  Perie smiled at the way Vaughn took charge of the situation. He was such a no-nonsense bloke. She scooted closer to him. They called a long list of people with no luck. With a groan, Perie leaned forward against the table and hid her face in her arm. “Fuck. Fuck, fuck, fuck!”

  “Hey, come on.” Vaughn patted her on the back. “We’ll sort it.”

  Perie knew Vaughn was trying to be supportive, but she was having a difficult time believing him. With a dramatic sigh, she glanced at the computer screen and a name caught her attention. “Hey, wait! Stop scrolling!”

  Vaughn did so immediately.

  Perie slapped the table in triumph. “That’s who we’re going to get to help us!”

  “Who?”

  She tapped the screen. “Sam Hardy.”

  Vaughn watched her open the contact list on her phone. As she got up from her seat and headed out to the back verandah, he noted the distinctive skip in her step and frowned.

  Who the heck was Sam Hardy?

  ***

  Perie snuck down the hallway to the front door the next morning when there was a knock. She had just finished breakfast and hadn’t even managed to get out of her pyjamas before the tradesmen rocked up. She swung the door open and there he stood. “Hey, Sam.”

  Sam patted her on the back when she drew him into a hug. “G’day, Perie. Been a while, how are ya?”

  “Yeah, alright.” She smiled up at the middle-aged man. His salt and pepper hair was slightly longer than she remembered, but he still looked as fit as a fiddle.

  His olive-coloured eyes passed over her grey tank top and her blue flannelette pyjama bottoms. “Did I get you up?”

  “No, not at all. I was eating breakfast. Come on in.”

  Sam stepped through the doorway.

  “Sorry about the short notice. I was in a bind after my previous tradie cancelled on me. I know this is a big job, but I’ve already got the materials and with the electrician doing his bit today, I thought it would be best to have you both here in case you need to coordinate anything.”

  Sam held a hand up to Perie, begging for her to slow down. “It’s no bigger than my usual jobs. It’ll be fine, Perie. I might need more than a day, though. The place will need to be fully fitted out.”

  “That’s alright. There are plenty of spare rooms if you need to stay overnight. It would be on the floor with nothing more than a blanket and a pillow, but the offer’s there,” Perie said.

  “That’s nice of you, but you don’t have to do that.”

  “I brought you all the way down here from Toowoomba. It’s only fair that I offer you something.”

  Sam shook his head. “I’ve booked a room at the pub in town.”

  “Okay, then. Excuse me while I get dressed for the day.”

  “Righto.”

  Perie stepped towards the entrance to her soon-to-be bedroom.

  “Perie?”

  She turned back to him.

  “You look good.”

  Perie smiled shyly, noting Sam’s lingering gaze. “Thanks. You, too.”

  Before he could respond, she turned away from him. She made her way to the suitcase and rifled around for a set of clothing.

  “How’s your old boyfriend going?”

  Perie frowned at Flynn, who was leaning against the door jamb to the new bathroom, arms folded firmly across his chest.

  “How many of your ex-boyfriends are you going to hire for this project, Per? Are you collecting men now?”

  Perie rolled her eyes. “Oh, don’t be ridiculous. We need him to install the reverse cycle system. Besides, you seem to approve of hiring Vaughn.”

  Flynn avoided the Vaughn comment and jerked his chin in Sam’s general direction. “I bet he’s still sweet on you.”

  “I doubt it,” Perie snorted. “We haven’t seen each other in ages.”

  “You didn’t see Vaughn for nine years and look at you,” Flynn retorted.

  “You can talk.” Perie tucked her clothes under one arm and moved over to her gorgeous best friend. “Please don’t be jealous.”

  “You can’t deny what you had with Sam was pretty full on.”

  “It burned bright and fast like an asteroid,” Perie agreed. “But Flynn, he never had anything on you or Vaughn. It was a fling, that’s all. You know that’s not what we are. I’m not collecting men, by the way. So, you can shove that comment where the sun don’t shine.”

  Flynn smiled and pulled her into a quick kiss. “You’re a classic, Per.”

  He jumped in surprise when she jabbed him in the ribs and shut him out of the bathroom while she changed.

  WHILE SAM FUCKING HARDY and his electrician mates did their work up in the house, the trio decided to make themselves useful by building the new garden shed. Flynn scowled up at the greying bastard, who was assembling some parts on the verandah. The guy looked even better now, with his premature salt and pepper hair. The farther Flynn kept Perie away from him, the better. He flicked on his saw, pulled his protective mask down over his face, and got to work cutting the timber to length. Vaughn and Perie went about assembling the shed—a rustic thing they would paint a lighter, rustic blue, offsetting the dark colour she planned to paint the main house.

  “What’s he got against that Sam bloke?” Flynn heard Vaughn ask Perie.

  “It’s silly,” Perie said with a shake of her head.

  “Is it?” Flynn threw a length of timber onto the pile. “If it’s so silly, then why don’t you tell Vaughn instead of avoiding the subject?”

  Perie glared at Flynn but turned back to Vaughn. “Sam and I had a thing a couple of years ago when I was still in uni.”

  “A thing?” Vaughn repeated, raising his eyebrows at her.

  “A fling . . . thing . . .” Perie shrugged.

  “Oh, right. I thought it might be something like that.” Vaughn picked up another piece of timber and Perie helped him get it into place.

  “What, is that it? Simple as that?” Flynn exclaimed.

  Perie sighed. “Yes, Flynn, simple as that.”

  Vaughn turned his line of sight to the visitor. With a low whistle, he said, “I can’t say I blame her, to be honest.”

  Flynn frowned. “Not you, too.”

  “Chill out, Flynn. There’s no harm in looking. It doesn’t mean either of us are going to jump his bones. All that’s in the past, right, Perie?” Vaughn looked at her.

  “Yes!” she said exasperated.

  Vaughn rubbed her shoulders. “Good. End of story, okay? Now, let’s leave it be and get this shed finished.”

  Flynn took note of the pain on Perie’s face and regretted the way he’d let his jealousy get the better of him.

  “Hello!”

  Flynn, Perie, and Vaughn all turned to see Brooke make her way across the backyard, a black purse hugged to her side and a couple of shopping bags in the other hand.

  “Mum! What are you doing here?” Flynn asked.

  “I came for lunch, like I said I would,” Brooke replied.

  Flynn glanced down at the timber surrounding them. “We have a fair bit to do, Mum.”

  Perie and Vaughn
glanced at each other.

  Perie whipped her hat off and wiped her brow. “I could do with a break.”

  “Me, too.” Vaughn tossed his gloves onto the ground.

  Brooke smiled. “Good. I brought lots of goodies.”

  Vaughn quickly relieved Mrs. Cooper of her shopping bags and led the group to some logs that had been salvaged from the bush for use as the garden bed borders. Perie sat between the guys, taking comfort from the shade of the bottlebrush tree above their heads. She watched Brooke fish out some small bottles of Italian lemonade, fresh sourdough bread, Hungarian salami, and all the trimmings one needed for the most epic salad sandwiches ever. Finally, a packet of biscotti for a sweet after-lunch finisher.

  Perie’s face lit up. “I’m already salivating over this spread!”

  “Well, don’t just look at it, dive in!” Brooke ordered.

  None of them hesitated.

  Brooke laughed and looked up at the house. “So, tell me, how’s it all coming along?”

  “It’s taking shape,” Perie said with a nod.

  “It seems to be a big job.”

  “It is, Mum, but it’ll be worth it in the end. Old houses look amazing when they’re restored,” Flynn answered.

  “I agree. How are you doing, Perie?” Brooke glanced cautiously at her son. “Am I allowed to ask that yet?”

  “You are,” Perie answered. “I’m doing better. I think it helps that Denise’s bedroom is all but gone.”

  Vaughn squeezed Perie’s knee in a subtle show of comfort.

  Brooke cocked her head to one side. “It is?”

  Flynn nodded. “It’s the main bathroom, now. I mean, it’s the bones of the main bathroom, but you get the idea.”

  “It’s going to be so fancy.” Brooke’s eyes lit up at the idea.

  “The whole place will be. You should see the virtual tour Perie designed on her computer. It’s incredible. I reckon it’ll be even better in real life,” Vaughn said.

  “I do the same for my clients. It helps to visualise the space as it could be, instead of just looking at a two-dimensional plan. It’s fabulous software,” Perie explained as she pressed her leg against Vaughn’s.

  “Great idea.” Brooke fell silent. She shifted in her spot and wrung her hands together.

  Flynn cocked his head at her. “What’s wrong, Mum?”

  “I’ve decided to go to Bali,” she blurted.

  “What?” Flynn nearly spat out his mouthful of sandwich.

  “I need to see Megan. I need to see that she’s okay and happy.”

  “She is,” Flynn said.

  “You don’t know that.”

  “Yeah, I do.”

  “How? From a phone call or two? That’s not good enough. I want to see her life and maybe meet . . . her fellow . . .” Brooke rolled her hand in the air.

  “Innes,” Perie offered.

  “Thank you, yes. Innes.” Brooke gave a single nod.

  Flynn grinned. “You want to give him the once over, hey?”

  “It’s not like that,” Brooke snapped.

  “Sure, sure. You’re her mum. How could you resist? Plus, it’s a good excuse for a holiday.” Flynn chuckled and wiggled his eyebrows.

  “Now, about you two . . .” Brooke gestured at Flynn and Perie.

  Flynn leaned back, suddenly suspicious of his mum’s tone. “What about us two?”

  “When are you and Perie finally going to make it official? You’ve been off and on for a decade now. Are you going to make a commitment to each other or not?” Brooke demanded.

  “Ah, yeah, about that . . ..”

  “Oh, no more excuses, please! Just admit it. You’re soul mates. You have been since birth! It’s time to stop pretending.”

  “The thing is, Brooke, it’s a bit complicated,” Perie said.

  “Only if you allow it to be.”

  Flynn rested his hand on Vaughn’s shoulder and took Perie’s hand in his own, while Vaughn squeezed Perie’s knee. “We’re all soul mates.”

  Brooke stared at the three of them blankly.

  Vaughn studied her. “Are you alright?”

  “Brooke?” Perie asked.

  “Say something, Mum,” Flynn said.

  “You’re all soulmates?” Brooke slowly repeated.

  “Yeah. It actually started in high school. We didn’t understand it then and we all went about things the wrong way. It was why Perie and I didn’t talk for those few years.” Flynn rubbed Perie’s arm.

  “I thought something like that had happened between you. But I didn’t think it was this . . .. I thought perhaps Vaughn was gay and inadvertently cheated on Perie,” Brooke asked.

  “I did. I didn’t mean to. Like Flynn said, we didn’t understand what was happening,” Vaughn reiterated. “But I’m not gay, I’m bisexual. Which means I’m attracted to Perie and Flynn.”

  “We are bisexual,” Flynn added.

  “You all love each other?” Brooke asked.

  Flynn swallowed nervously.

  “Yep.” Vaughn’s succinct answer made Flynn snap his surprised gaze back to him. “I mean, I love these two and I know they love each other. Maybe they love me, I don’t know for sure yet. I can only speak for myself.”

  “Vaughn!” Perie wrapped him up in a giant hug. “Vaughn, I do love you, so much!”

  Flynn cupped the back of Vaughn’s head. He swallowed once again, the emotion in him strong. He wanted to do things to this man to prove to him how he felt. He wanted no doubt to be left within the ex-soldier. “There’s no question, Vaughn. No question.”

  Flynn saw tears well in Vaughn’s dark eyes and before he knew it, his own vision went blurry. Fucking oath, he loved this man and he didn’t care if his mum witnessed to it. Squashing Perie between them, Flynn kissed Vaughn fiercely for a few moments. When he broke away, he stared directly into the man’s soul. “I love you with my every breath.”

  Brooke clasped her hands together in front of her heart and beamed. “I suppose that answers my question. Congratulations.”

  ***

  As was typical of a hot summer’s day, a thunderstorm arrived that afternoon, bringing with it a downpour that sent Perie into a panic about the new bathroom being damaged. Flynn attempted to reassure her that it was protected by the flashing on the outside, but she insisted on standing guard in the room in case.

  Vaughn was nowhere to be seen, and that concerned Flynn. Maybe he hadn’t believed Flynn’s declaration during lunchtime? Flynn finally found Vaughn sitting on a sawhorse underneath the house, peacefully watching the rain come down with a beer in hand.

  Flynn paused underneath the edge of the veranda.

  Vaughn swallowed his mouthful of beer and looked over at Flynn standing there in the rain. “You’re getting wet.”

  “You don’t believe me, do you?” Flynn asked, ignoring Vaughn’s comment.

  Vaughn frowned.

  “When I told you I loved you earlier, I don’t think you believed me. You haven’t said a thing about it since.”

  “What do you want me to say?” When Flynn stayed silent, Vaughn continued, “I was overwhelmed, Flynn. Sometimes I get like that. I’m not always sure how to express myself.”

  Flynn’s shoulders relaxed. “So, you do believe me?”

  Vaughn set his beer down on the dirt. He got to his feet and made his way over to Flynn, then cupped the other man’s face in his hands. “Beyond a doubt, Flynn. I love you, too.”

  Vaughn pulled Flynn closer and kissed him deeply. Flynn responded in kind, passion flaring inside of him. Vaughn’s lips were strong against his, taking command, showing Flynn exactly how he felt. Flynn’s hands grappled with Vaughn’s shirt and he drew it up over his head. His shirt joined Vaughn’s on the dirt. Vaughn moaned as Flynn nibbled his way down Vaughn’s abs as he undid Vaughn’s pants. Vaughn’s cock busted loose, begging for attention—and Flynn was more than happy to provide it.

  Vaughn leaned back against one of the house stumps as Flynn drew his cock into his
mouth and worked him in and out in a strong, steady rhythm. “Oh shit, Flynn.”

  “Mm. I love how you taste,” Flynn muttered. “I love how you smell.” He brushed the tip of his nose across Vaughn’s tummy and kissed it. “I love the sounds you make when I do things to you.” Flynn sucked on one of Vaughn’s balls.

  “Fuck.” Vaughn shuddered.

  “I love how you look out for Perie and treat her like the world’s most precious treasure.”

  “She is,” Vaughn told him.

  Flynn chuckled and grazed his teeth ever so lightly along Vaughn’s shaft. “I love how you always put me in my place. It’s the fucking sexiest thing in the world; one minute you’ll be grouchy with me, then the next you’ll kiss me or stroke me and hold me close. You’re gruff on the outside, but I know what lies beneath is soft and gooey. I love it all.”

  Their gazes connected as Flynn licked the tip of Vaughn’s cock.

  “I wanna fuck you,” Vaughn groaned. “Ugh. So bad!”

  Flynn was on his feet and dropping his pants in a flash. Vaughn smashed his mouth against Flynn’s in a desperate kiss before he spun him around to lean his hands on the sawhorse. Vaughn eased his fingers into Flynn’s arse, working him open.

  “Ahh! Just fuck me, will ya?” Flynn responded.

  “Calm down, you impatient bugger. I’m trying to prep you,” Vaughn responded.

  Flynn pushed his arse against Vaughn’s cock. He was certainly persistent. Vaughn lathered his cock with saliva and hoped that would be sufficient enough for the act they were about to perform. He slowly pushed his length into Flynn’s arse and had to take a deep breath. Fuck, he was so tight, he made Vaughn want to come immediately. He pushed in farther, easing himself inside slowly, allowing Flynn’s body to adjust to his girth. Eventually, Vaughn broke through the tightness and settled himself up to the hilt, his balls dangling against Flynn’s.

  “Oh god, that feels good,” Flynn moaned and rocked gently against Vaughn.

  Vaughn moved gently within him.

  “Oh, yes. Please fuck me.”

  Vaughn didn’t have to be asked twice. Fingers digging into Flynn’s hips, he dragged his cock almost all the way out before driving into him again. Slowly, but surely, he picked up speed. Eventually, all thoughts fell away and an animalistic instinct took a hold. Vaughn became a slave to his dick as he fucked Flynn hard and revelled in the other man’s cries of pleasure.