by Marla Monroe
I’ve got to stop thinking about them. This book won’t edit itself.
Diana mentally shut the door on the two intriguing men and settled down to work. When she looked up again it was to see that it had indeed begun snowing as had been forecasted. So far it wasn’t coming down hard, but that would change according to the weatherman. They were in for a blizzard that would close down the town for several days at least. She felt for anyone on one of the nearby mountains—they’d be snowed in for at least a week.
She’d nearly bought a house up on one of the mountains. Then the relator had pointed out the downfalls of doing that. She settled instead on the little three-bedroom house just outside of town that had a long back porch that she often sat on during the spring and summer. She’d been living in Cozy for nearly two years now and loved the little town. Though she missed her friends back in Boulder, the move had been necessary.
After the attack, she hadn’t felt safe living there any longer. She’d packed up her house and moved several states up where she prayed that she was safe. Though they’d never caught the man who’d attacked her in her own home, Diana felt safer there in Cozy with her state-of-the-art security system and multiple deadbolts. Though she didn’t believe her attacker would follow her to Montana, she wasn’t taking any chances.
After the attack, she’d had to see a therapist in order to get control of her fear. Though she still had the nightmares, Diana could function once more. Where before she’d been too afraid to do anything other than sit in her chair with all the windows covered and a phone in her hand at all times, now she was able to get on with her life.
Though the police had searched for her attacker, they’d never located him. Just thinking about how he’d talked to her, calling her by her pseudonym, had her breaking out in a cold sweat. Diana shivered and shut down that line of thought. She had work to do. Thinking about the past wasn’t going to get it done and would only depress her. It had been hard leaving all her friends and the house she’d loved. Starting over was never easy even under the best of circumstances.
I’m wallowing again. I need to be editing.
Felicity lifted her head and meowed as if knowing she needed the support. Diana smiled and scratched the feline between the ears before buckling down and opening up the document to begin the arduous task of editing her work.
* * * *
“Text her,” Quinn said. “If you don’t, I will.”
“Jeez, Quinn. It’s only been a few hours since we saw her. Let’s wait until tomorrow and ask how she’s doing in all the snow. That will be less stalker-like, don’t you think?” Kyle chuckled at his friend’s enthusiasm since meeting Diana.
“I guess. I just don’t want her to forget about us. She’s hot, man. All I can think about is getting my hands on her breasts and seeing if she’s sensitive enough to come just from my hands there,” Quinn said.
“Think we need to get to know her a little before we jump her body, man.”
“I know. It’s just she’s the first woman we’ve both agreed on in a long-ass time,” Quinn said.
Kyle agreed. Usually only one of them was on board when they met a woman. If they both weren’t attracted to her then sharing her would never work. Now when they finally had their house finished and were living somewhere that being in a ménage relationship wasn’t going to be so out there with several other like-minded families living on the mountain, their dream was just around the corner. He understood his friend’s anxiety to make contact.
“You know she might not be interested in going out with both of us. This may all be a big let-down, Quinn,” Kyle said.
“I refuse to accept that. Positive thinking, Kyle. Positive thinking,” Quinn said.
“Don’t you have a book to write?” Kyle asked, crossing his arms.
“Yeah. Is this you telling me I’m interrupting you working?” Quinn asked.
“Bull’s-eye.”
“Sorry. I’m just keyed up.”
“I am, too, but texting her now would be too soon. Go write.”
Kyle watched as the other man drew in a deep breath and stomped off toward his office. He looked down at the bare bones of the trinket box he was carving for a customer for his wife’s fiftieth birthday. The top was supposed to have a tree of life. The one that showed the entire tree including the roots. So far he’d gotten the outline carved out, but still had a long way to filling out the entire tree. This was the part he liked most of all. The gradual reveal of what was to be once he finished.
After he’d done all the carving on the box, he would add the hinges and the latch then stain it and polish it before preparing it for shipment. He normally did his carving in the mornings then worked on a finished project in the afternoons when he wasn’t as fresh. The last part of the process was adding the polishing cloth, the note, and shipping it off.
Kyle half expected for Quinn to return within the next hour to mope around the kitchen. He was always the one who wanted to get right on something. He hated waiting and would pester the crap out of Kyle until he gave in and they did whatever it was that was eating at his friend. How he could write such intricate murder mysteries considering how impatient he was, Kyle had no idea. The man was brilliant though and would draw you in with the first sentence from one of his books.
To his surprise, Kyle managed to finish the scroll work he’d been doing before Quinn made an appearance again.
“Hungry?” Quinn asked.
“Yeah. What’s for dinner?”
“Why are you asking me?”
“Because you’re cooking unless you want a can of soup and grilled cheese sandwiches again,” Kyle said.
“Fuck, I wish you could cook. How about down and dirty spaghetti?” Quinn asked.
“Suits me. I’ll even butter the bread when it’s time,” he offered.
“Garlic butter. I’ll fix it and you can spread it.”
Kyle grinned. Spreading a little butter on bread was easy. Even he could manage that. Though Quinn wasn’t making the spaghetti from scratch this time, the jar kind would be just as tasty and quick. Thirty minutes later they were sitting at the table eating.
“Heard anything from the others?” Quinn asked.
“Last I heard Selena and Caro were uncomfortable as hell now that they are in their last trimester, and Lacy is just getting past the morning sickness. They guys are all pussy whipped and going on and on about nurseries and baby beds. I couldn’t stand all the female hormones coming off them while they filled me in,” he said.
“When did you talk to them?” Quinn asked.
“Last night. You were finishing up in the office when I called and checked in. Caleb and Austin are worried as hell that Selena will go into labor while we’re snowed in up here. Latest prediction, according to the weather app on my phone, is for ten inches,” Kyle said.
“I bet Jasper and Phillip are just as freaked,” Quinn said.
“Phillip more than Jasper. Jasper is confident that Caro will be fine for another couple of weeks.”
“Fuck, can you imagine having our woman up here during the snow and pregnant?” Quinn asked.
“Don’t. My stomach knotted when Caleb went on and one about how they’d put together an emergency birthing kit in case they had to deliver the baby themselves. I don’t even want to think about that shit.”
“Fuck, no. Condoms for January through March to keep from having a winter baby. Make that part of our master plan,” Quinn said.
They’d created a master plan for their lives when they left the army. Set up their businesses, locate a home base, and build their house and Kyle’s shop. They’d invest their money so that they could retire early and enjoy their family. They’d achieved the first part of their plans, but still had to find their woman and marry her then start a family. They would spoil her rotten and make sure she never had to worry about anything. She wouldn’t have to work and could buy whatever she wanted that made her happy.
Yeah, it was a solid plan, but the hardest
part was proving to be finding that special woman who could take on two men as her husbands. While a lot of women out there were all for a little experimentation and enjoyed a threesome at least once in their lives, very few were up to actually making it a relationship that lasted through marriage.
They weren’t going to give up though. There was someone out there for them. Their friends had proven that by finding their forever women. He and Quinn would, too. It just took time and patience. Something Quinn had very little of. Truth be told, Kyle was having trouble with being patient now, as well.
After dinner, Kyle cleaned up the kitchen while Quinn found a program on TV they both wanted to watch. Though they had very different tastes, they could usually agree on what to watch on TV. Both of them liked the Discovery Channel and the History Channel. They liked football though they tended to root for different teams. Made for some interesting arguments between them.
The only thing lacking is a woman. Maybe Diana will be that woman. I wouldn’t be at all disappointed if she is.
Later that night Kyle stepped into the shower with thoughts of the curvy redhead in the forefront of his thoughts. His cock had been half hard ever since they’d loaded up her groceries at the store that morning. Now, as he pictured Diana spread out before him like a feast, Kyle gripped his dick and pulled on it. He imagined she’d taste sweet like honey. He’d lick her until she came all over his tongue screaming his name.
Kyle squeezed the base of his cock and tugged on it over and over, running the palm of his hand over the head to smear his pre-cum over his dick as he thrust his hips in time with his tugs. Damn, he needed to come. Just picturing her face as she climaxed had his balls drawing up. He’d never gotten this close this fast when masturbating before. Just the thought of how she’d taste and the sounds that would come out of her mouth as he ate her pussy and shoved his fingers deep in her cunt had his cum boiling in his balls.
With each tug of his shaft, he grew closer and closer to spewing his load. His ass clenched as he reached between his legs and carefully squeezed his balls. Just as he began to blow, he slapped one hand against the tile wall even as he rose on his toes while he erupted into his hand and all over the shower’s tile. His balls burned as he emptied them in a wave of white-hot fire.
As he came down from the endorphin-induced high, Kyle leaned his head against the cool tile and wondered if Diana would live up to his fantasies of her. He certainly hoped so. He was ready to find their woman and start a family. He was sure that after visiting with his friends once they had their children in their arms, he’d be jealous as shit.
It was their turn.
Chapter Three
Her phone chimed, letting her know she had a text message. Diana rolled over in bed to pick up her phone to see who had texted her. It was nearly ten in the morning, but she’d worked late into the night and hadn’t managed to push herself out of bed yet.
Stifling a yawn, Diana held the phone up and pressed the message icon and smiled in surprise. It was Quinn. Somehow, she’d expected Kyle to be the one to text her since she’d had the most interaction with him. That it was Quinn was interesting.
Morning. Did you weather the snow okay?
She smiled and texted back. Yep. It snowed hard after midnight. I bet we have a good eight or nine inches.
The next message came from Kyle as part of a group text that included Quinn.
Hope you are up if you were still up after midnight. Quinn couldn’t wait much longer to check on you.
Diana smiled. They were cute. I’m awake but hadn’t made myself get up yet.
Quinn. Sorry. I should have waited until this afternoon.
Kyle. Told you.
Quinn. Shut it asshole.
Diana giggled. Where are you guys?
Kyle. We live up on the mountain. Got a good ten inches of snow here.
Diana smiled. Lucky men. They were up there where she’d wanted to be. Snowed in though, right? No coming down the mountain in this mess.
Quinn. True. Wouldn’t be so bad if we had someone here to keep us occupied though.
Diana. Rolling my eyes here.
Quinn. Just saying.
Kyle. Going to let you go now.
Quinn. Hope you have a good day.
Diana. You, too, guys.
She scrolled back to the beginning and read through the texts again. They really were too cute. She bet they’d even been in the same room when they’d texted her. Diana rolled out of bed and stretched. It was time she got up and got going.
As was her normal routine when she got up every morning, Diana filled Felicity’s bowl then brewed a cup of hot chocolate with her Keurig. She sat in front of her patio door and sipped her drink while she looked out at her frozen, snow-covered backyard. She loved the snow. There was nothing as pretty or as peaceful as fresh snow. Later, she’d bundle up and go out and make a snowman and just listen to the overwhelming quiet that only happened after a good snow.
Instantly she thought of Quinn and Kyle. It would be fun to make one with them.
What is wrong with me? I don’t even know them. I’ve shared a few texts, and that’s all.
Diana decided she’d spent far too much time alone lately. She needed to get out more come spring. She couldn’t get serious over two guys she’d just met. And hey. Two guys? Not happening.
It was still interesting though that they had both wanted to chat with her. Were they lovers and into sharing a woman occasionally or something? Considering the kind of books she wrote, Diana wasn’t surprised by much of anything anymore. She’d met all types of people when she’d gone on book signings. People from all walks of life read her books. Since the attack though, she hadn’t done any. She was too afraid she’d attract another looney who thought they were perfect for her.
And he was still out there somewhere. They hadn’t caught him even after two years. Diana doubted they ever would. He’d been too smart. Had it not been for her neighbor waking up at midnight with a case of the munchies, she might not have gotten away.
Diana shook her head and stood. She wasn’t going down that particular memory lane. Not today. She had too much to do. She carried her empty mug to the kitchen and rinsed it out before setting it in the sink. She scrambled up some eggs and made toast to go with them. Her stomach growled as she sat down to eat. It had been too late to eat a snack before she’d gone to bed for the night, or actually early that morning. Now she was starved.
After cleaning up she walked through the house, picking up Felicity’s giant rat toys and deposited them in her toy box, a square wicker box. At some point she’d decide it was time to hunt, and the games would begin.
Diana jumped in the shower then dressed in sweats and a pair of thick socks. She had a small heater under her desk that would keep her feet nice and toasty while she worked. She was nearly finished editing her book. She couldn’t wait to start on the next one.
Felicity yowled right on cue as she walked into the bedroom she’d turned into her office. The frisky feline jumped down from her bed and raced out of the room. Diana rolled her eyes. At least she’d be getting her hunt over with early, so it would be easier for Diana to concentrate on her edits.
* * * *
Quinn drew in a deep breath then let it out slowly as he stretched his arms. His hands were cramping. He looked over at his phone and realized it had been over six hours since he’d last stretched his legs. He turned off the music he liked to write by and stood. As he thought about getting something to drink, he wondered what Diana was doing. He felt bad that he’d gotten her up when he’d texted. It had never occurred to him that she would still be in bed at ten.
Don’t know why. When I work late, I might not get out of bed till noon.
That made him wonder what she did for a living. He’d have to ask her the next time they chatted. That made him smile. Next time. He couldn’t wait. Yeah, he was pretty impatient. Kyle could handle holding off on things, but once Quinn got something in his head he wanted to go afte
r it right then.
He strode into the kitchen to find it clean and empty. He doubted his friend would have braved the slippery slope out back to go to his shop, so he wondered where he was and what he was up to. Not enough to check yet though. He was hungry.
Quinn grabbed the makings for ham sandwiches from the fridge then built two sandwiches that he paired with a beer at the kitchen table. A few minutes later Kyle walked into the room, wearing jeans and a flannel shirt.
“You look very lumberjacky there, partner.”
“Fuck you. I was cold. I went out to shovel a path to my shop. It’s still fucking snowing out there. I thought for sure it would have stopped by now.”
“Yeah, I noticed. Have you checked the forecast?” Quinn asked.
Kyle pulled his phone out of his back pocket and scrolled through his apps to find the right one. Quinn waited as Kyle skimmed over it.
“Well?”
“Looks like it’s going to stop later this evening. Still going to be cold as a witch’s tit in a brass bra though for several days. Doubt we’ll get any melting the rest of the week. Sucks,” Kyle said, shoving his phone back in his pocket.
“You planning to work tomorrow? Going to be tough getting up and down that hill,” Quinn said.
“Tell me about it. Fell twice while I was shoveling that shit. Made it all the way down though. Only trouble is that with it still snowing out there I’m going to have to shovel it again tomorrow before I can do any work.”
“Why don’t you work in the kitchen?” Quinn asked.
“Everything I need to work on now is down there. Nothing for it. I’ve got to get down there. I’m already behind on two projects.”
“What do you think she does for a living that she was still in bed at ten this morning?” Quinn asked.
