Nailing Studs

by Virna DePaul

  “Hello, Logan. Nice of you to drop by.” She gave me a polite grimace. “Sorry, I know you offered to pull comps, but I won’t be selling the house right away. We’re going to renovate it, then sell after the work’s done.”

  “Oh?” This was a surprise. She didn’t strike me as the type to have big cash stowed away for a major overhaul, and I excelled at looking for those types of details in potential clients. Maybe her workers here had struck her a good deal. “Thought you were selling straight away. So you’re staying a little longer to enjoy…the view?” I chuckled.

  The guys both gave me looks like I better shut the fuck up, and that was how I knew they were both banging her. Or would be soon.

  “Actually, Dom and Taylor are going to work on the house a bit first, before I sell,” Kayla explained. “Get it in better condition so I can get a far better price.”

  Her chest heaved slightly, those beautiful taut nipples of hers pushing through her bra. I didn’t have to see her naked to know exactly what type of breasts they were. The round, full kind with thick nipples that were fun to flick with your tongue. She turned, and I caught sight of her ass and almost went hard. What a fucking fine ass she had, all round and soft and oh so inviting.

  As if Kayla could hear my thoughts, she turned back to me and uncrossed her arms, tilted her chin upward, and gave me an “I dare you” look, the flush on her neck growing deep. When the guys both looked at each other, exchanging secretive glances, Kayla’s eyes held steady on me, a sensual challenge rising in her eyes. Oh, the feeling was mutual.

  “Even though I won’t be selling right away, you’re more than welcome to hang out with us for a while,” Kayla drawled, as if challenging the other men to reject her decision. “I’m about to make breakfast. You look like a man who could…eat.”

  I wasn’t sure how Taylor and Dom were feeling right about now, but my focus was on the sexy as sin woman in front of me. I kept my gaze fixed on hers and let my smile widen. Pushing my way past the two men, I made my way into the house, saying, “I’ll eat what you give me any time.”

  Only when I was fully inside did I turn back to Dom and Taylor, who both looked like the bad kid in the class had just gotten invited to their birthday party. “Come on, boys. We can’t keep a lady waiting,” I said.

  From ahead, Kayla tossed a line over her shoulder, saying “Oh, you’ve got one thing wrong, Logan. I’m no lady.”

  Laughing, I followed her sexy ass down the hall, two grumbling men on my tail. All’s well that ends well, and this was gonna end great—I could feel it in my bones.

  13

  Kayla

  What had happened to my life? Last night I’d had the best sex of my life with Taylor. But it wasn’t just Taylor on my mind now. The three of them—Taylor, Dominic, and Logan—went together like a trifecta of eye candy.

  I started prepping breakfast while Logan, Taylor, and Dom sat on the seats along the kitchen counter and talked about the old days. I could feel the camaraderie between them, but every so often I’d see Dom rolling his eyes and looking at me. It was like he couldn’t decide if he liked having Logan there or wanted to protect me from him.

  “What are you making over here, Kayla?” Logan asked.

  “I…” Tapping the edge of the bowl with the spatula, I fought to focus on what I was doing. “Um…I am making apple pancakes with cinnamon syrup. I would make a baked apple streusel, but I couldn’t get the oven lit this morning. I should replace it, but…” I shrugged, but smiled over my shoulder at the men.

  “Don’t worry, pancakes sound equally delicious.”

  “Oh, I bet you’ve never had something so delicious in your mouths.” I winked.

  They all whistled and Taylor said, “Daaamnnn.”

  Energy swirled inside of me. Those words. They’d come from my mouth. Flirtatious, daring words. It was as if a new Kayla had kidnapped the old one, tied her up, and stuffed her in a closet. The new Kayla wanted to play out this flirting thing as much as she could.

  “I can say differently,” Taylor said, grinning as he lifted his coffee mug to his mouth. That perfect mouth I’d enjoyed ravaging last night. The mouth that had gone down on me and brought me to orgasm.

  My eyes widened. Oh, wait—so that’s what he was hinting at! My pussy in his mouth tasted better than my baking! I fanned myself.

  “I plan to say differently, too.” That was Dom speaking, and when I turned to question him with my eyes, he winked and turned to the new guy. “What about you, Logan?”

  Wait, were they offering me up to Logan, too? Didn’t I get a say in this?

  Logan slanted a look at Dom. “Knock it off, Dom. Be careful what you ask for. You just might get it.”

  I flicked my gaze between all three men. Taylor was watching me carefully, judging my reactions to all this. I knew that part of him wanted me to reject Logan’s advances, but I also knew it turned him on, seeing me have so many choices. Maybe that was part of the thrill, putting themselves up against other guys to see if they’d win the girl. That way, it’d be a challenge more worth pursuing.

  Or maybe the idea of all of us in one bed, naked and fucking, was such a turn-on that each of them was willing to go there.

  “I think Kayla gets to say. Right, Kayla?” Taylor smiled as he leaned on the counter, legs crossed, looking so fucking fine, so cowboy-against-a-wooden-fence delicious.

  “That’s all that matters,” Dom added, smiling at me. “Kayla’s the cook. Kayla gets to say what goes in our mouths. We’re nothing but her guests.”

  And right then, I realized this was more than just three guys all fighting for the same woman. This was about me—about my choice—about my desires. They were pawns in their own game, but I was the Queen, like Taylor had said, and I’d never felt so in charge in my life.

  My skin prickled under their gazes. Deliciously rattled, I turned back to the food. I knew I looked hot from behind because I’d picked the jeans that made my ass stand up a little. An image of me between all three, feeding them my body, then of me kneeling and helping myself to these three men, flashed through my brain. Now that would be my breakfast of champions, I thought, then immediately shook the thought away. Fantasies were one thing, but fantasizing while the featured men were standing next to me? Quite another.

  Logan came over to stand near me. “Guys, you’re making her nervous. Need a hand?”

  “Nope, got it all covered. Thank you.” Quickly, I dropped the rounded batter onto the hot griddle and waited while the pancakes bubbled up. “You live in town?” I asked Logan while Dom and Taylor diverted their attention from me and started talking about the tasks they were going to work on today.

  Logan leaned against the counter next to me. He was different from the other guys in that he was sharper, more concerned with his appearance. “Not exactly. I live about an hour away, in one of the towns east of the San Francisco Bay, but I come to Fosterman every so often to show a client a space or two. This area’s starting to get more developed.”

  “I noticed that. Between restaurants and bed-and-breakfasts, this place seems to be growing. Wineries, too.”

  He nodded. “Yup, and it’s only going to grow faster, better, stronger. So if you’re going to sell, don’t wait too long. Might take a couple of months to sell after putting the place on the market, but a lot of buyers are snapping stuff up, and at high prices. Those prices won’t last.” As we chatted, I noticed the smooth shave of his chin, the way his cheeks naturally drew into dimples as he talked. He didn’t have to try too hard to look sexy. Besides being gorgeous, it was all in his attitude.

  I flipped the pancakes and added butter and brown sugar to the apples I’d prepared and placed in the small saucepan.

  Looking me over, Logan asked, “What about you? Your card said New York City. What on earth would bring you out here, city girl?”

  “To get away from dicks like you,” Dom interjected, and Logan flipped him the bird behind his back. I laughed. His green eyes stuck on me, though.r />
  “Forgetting the past, shall we say?” I told him. “My job laid me off, asshole boyfriend dumped me, and there was nothing left for me there. So I’m here, figuring out my life.” It was all I wanted to say for now. There was so much more to my story, but I had a feeling Logan wouldn’t be as interested as Taylor or Dom. Right now, he looked like he wanted to flip me over and give my knees rug burns.

  “It’s a good place to be,” Logan said. “At a crossroads with so many choices. Not a bad thing, Kayla. Use this opportunity wisely to figure out what you want.”

  From his intense look, I knew there were multiple meanings to what he was telling me, and yes, I knew very well what this opportunity meant for me. I was liking it more and more with every hour that passed. Logan flashed me another quick smile, then joined in on the conversation the other two men were having. I flipped pancakes and stirred the now bubbling saucepan of apple goodness until the apples were soft and sweet and I had a stack of pancakes a mile high.

  “Alright, pull up your chairs,” I said, placing the pancakes and apple compote along with more fresh coffee on the table in the dining nook. The men did as they were told, and soon I was feeling pretty proud of myself as they exclaimed over their breakfast. The conversation drifted away from my cooking and the men started talking about stuff between them I knew nothing about. Every so often, Taylor would pause to explain their inside jokes to me, so I wouldn’t feel left out. Simply by watching them, I could tell these guys had some amazing stories to tell.

  I was sure a few of their stories involved shared women, too.

  “That was delicious,” Dominic said when he was done. “Thank you, Kayla.”

  The others murmured their agreement. I felt happy to have fed them. There was something primal about feeding three hungry men.

  “I’ll start grabbing stuff from the van,” Dominic said, and with one last look in my direction, Taylor turned to follow him.

  That left me and Logan alone in the kitchen. Every nerve in my body sang.

  I began cleaning up, feeling odd having this one man watch me. Even though I’d only known Dom and Taylor a few days longer, Logan was more of a stranger, but his shared past with Dom and Taylor made him more familiar to me.

  He reached for the griddle and the utensils and put them in the sink. To my surprise, he began helping me clean. I raised a curious eye that he caught out of the corner of his eye.

  “What?”

  I laughed. “Nothing, it’s just that…”

  He paused with his hands deep in the soapy water. “I can see the words on those pretty little lips of yours, Kayla, so spit it out,” he said, his eyes tracing my lips before licking his own.

  I rolled my eyes. “I just didn’t peg you as the domestic apron in the kitchen type.”

  He was about to protest but glanced down at his pressed suit and the silk tie thrown over his shoulder. “Okay, fair point,” he laughed. “I actually worked as a dishwasher as one of my many, many jobs to put myself through college.”

  I was again surprised. I assumed Logan had a trust fund stored away by Mommy and Daddy.

  “When I want something,” he continued, eyes tracing down my body. “I’ll fight hard, very, very hard for it.”

  He moved to return a plate he dried to the cabinet above me and his groin shifted against my crotch. I nearly gasped at the pressure of his cock, half hard in his pants.

  “I’m a go-getter,” he said casually, shifting back to the sink and grabbing another plate, leaving me breathless. “And once I see something I want within my grasp, I never, never stop pursuing.”

  He again pressed against me as he put another plate away, and I felt the heat from his groin. I nearly whimpered when it disappeared and he dipped his hands back into the sink.

  “I’m insatiable, really.” Logan whistled while he scrubbed a pan. He glanced over at me. “The phrase ‘give up’ isn’t in my vocabulary, Kayla.”

  I had to stop my overly eager hips from bucking up against his cock when he slid along me, the friction delicious.

  He paused, looming over me. “Do you understand?”

  “Yes,” I squeaked, worried my knees would give out.

  God, I couldn’t take his green-eyed gaze. My lips parted as I looked at him and I nodded absently, agreeing to God knew what. His gaze flicked down to my mouth, and I wondered if he was thinking about pushing me back against the counter and slipping his tongue onto mine.

  At that moment, Dom and Taylor came through the front door with all their gear, shuffling and jangling, creating a cacophony of metallic noises. Logan removed his hand from my side reluctantly. I was expecting Dominic to be glaring at his friend now, considering how he’d reacted at the diner when I’d first met Logan, but to my surprise, once again, he looked totally chill. Taylor, on the other hand, looked downright annoyed—or maybe jealous—which surprised me.

  “Well, um, thanks again for your help with the dishes,” I said loudly, mostly for Taylor’s benefit, but my voice was breathy, throaty. I wasn’t sure who I wanted more at this very moment. Any one of them could’ve intercepted me in an upstairs hallway and banged me against the wall while the other two waited downstairs.

  Logan took a step back, sliding his hand down my arm, letting his fingertips linger on mine for a second. Had I imagined that? Did Dom and Taylor see?

  This can’t be happening. This simply cannot be happening. This moment was like one of those weird dreams that got weirder as the night wore on but there was nothing you could do to stop it. Nor did you want to wake up.

  “Kayla, Dom and I are going to get started in here.” Taylor set down a tool bag and picked up his belt to sling around his waist, clearly marking his territory in a He-Man way.

  Logan nodded, as if he knew he’d outstayed his welcome. He checked his phone and made a tsk sound. “Alright. Well, I have a few clients who’ll kill each other if I don’t arrive soon to referee them, so I’ll be taking off now.”

  “Bye. We’ll miss you,” Taylor mumbled sarcastically around a few nails sticking out of his lips.

  Dominic laughed and showed Logan out. It was nice to see Dom the easygoing one for a change and Taylor as the possessive, grumpy one. I felt good knowing he would get that way for me—because he wanted me all to himself.

  After Logan left, I was tense, not knowing what to expect, but to my relief, Taylor took the nails out of his mouth and smiled at me. “That guy’s a character, but he’s a good dude.”

  So, he wasn’t upset after all?

  “Seems like it,” I said slowly. “I can easily see you all as friends in high school and college. Must’ve been some crazy times, huh?” I asked. Would he ever tell me precisely how crazy things got between them? Would I really want to know? Probably not. I was as possessive of them as they were of me.

  “Crazy indeed,” Taylor mumbled, starting to hammer a piece of wood into the hole in the wall as filler before applying the new drywall they’d just brought in.

  Dom came back inside and sighed, long and loud. “Well, that was interesting,” he said. I nodded in agreement.

  They say if it gets too hot in the kitchen, get out. That was exactly what I was about to do. This part of the house was way too filled with testosterone for me. The lines between reality and fantasy were growing more blurred, and soon, I wouldn’t know the difference.

  14

  Dom

  Good thing we were going to work on repairing holes in the drywall all day, because I needed something quiet and repetitive as I sanded the walls and smoothed the spackle over and over. Getting into a groove allowed me to think. Yeah, I was in agony. I wanted Kayla so fucking badly.

  I hadn’t minded that she was with Taylor first—in fact, I’d actually preferred it. I had to make things clear to both her and myself that I wasn’t in competition with Taylor. That I was okay with her wanting Taylor, as long as she wanted me, too.

  And from the way she’d stared into my eyes and touched me the morning after they were together,
I knew she still wanted me. Bad.

  Apparently, however, she also wanted Logan. I’d seen glimpses of it at the diner, and I’d simply confirmed it when I saw her and Logan again at the house together.

  To my surprise, that hadn’t bothered me either. I hadn’t been jealous. It was as if, somehow, despite my shitty history with women, I knew that there was always going to be a special place for me in Kayla’s heart.

  Yes, her heart. Wasn’t that just fucked up?

  Here Taylor and I had gone and made it crystal clear to her that we both wanted her physically, and that she could enjoy us both physically, yet deep down I was already imagining so much more between us.

  I didn’t want a temporary thing with Kayla. I wanted to get to know her. If things worked out for us, I wanted it to be real. And as much as she seemed more open now to trying new things, I could tell that Kayla was more a relationship kind of woman.

  I wanted that. I wanted commitment. I wanted deep emotional connection. I wanted vulnerability and openness and tenderness. Pursuing that had bitten me in the ass. Hard. But what if?

  What if what I’d gone through with Laura and Ada had happened because they weren’t the ones for me, and fate had just been waiting to give me Kayla? And her me.

  And Taylor. And hell, maybe even Logan, too.

  Smoothing spackle on the patches of drywall Taylor had already screwed into the wall, I pondered the best of all possibilities, not just for me, but for Kayla.

  Wouldn’t it be best for Kayla if she had all of us? I mean, truly, no one man could ever give a woman everything she needed. We could each bring something different to the table, something special she needed or wanted. Taylor would bring his humor and his ability to be your best friend no matter what, I’d bring realness and my sense of knowing exactly what someone wanted and needed, and Logan…well, Logan would bring his dick.

  Nah, Logan would bring his sophistication and his loyalty. He came off as the arrogant asshole in his pinstripe suits, but he had this way of connecting with people. He was loyal, hardworking, and would give Kayla the world if she demanded it. He liked going to the opera and shit like that, the sort of stuff I wouldn’t want to do, but I’d love to take her on motorcycle rides or to the movies. Old movies were one of my weaknesses. I made a mental note to ask Kayla if she’d go to one with me sometime.