The Handy Men Read online

  “Have you ever thought about going into the medical profession?” she asked him.

  “Why? Do you want to play doctor?” He waggled his eyebrows at her.

  Boy, did she.

  Paige looked up at him wistfully and then bit into the jelly doughnut. Of course, she got powdered sugar everywhere.

  “You missed your mouth,” he said, and scooped up a drop of jelly off her chin with his finger. He licked it off his finger. “Mmm, I like how that tastes.”

  Her pulse soared into overdrive. Damn. Paige chewed slowly and swallowed while her scrambled thoughts straightened out. “This was just what the doctor ordered,” she said instead. Dean’s eyes were warm and full of affection.

  “Speaking of which, we want you to come over tonight for board games and barbecue.”

  “I shouldn’t.” Paige wasn’t sure she’d be able to keep her hands off them.

  “You should and you’re going to. I have pork ribs marinating and I’m dying for your potato salad.”

  All of this sexual tension had to be just in her head. He was lusting after her potato salad, while she was masturbating to them fucking her. But her fantasies were harmless, a byproduct of Fred’s wedding invitation and a burning desire to get laid. They were gay and married, a committed couple who never in a million years would consider her sexually. That forbidden fruit was why she was getting so hot and bothered.

  “Now I see,” Paige said, forcing a grin. “You only want me for my world famous—in Connecticut—German potato salad.”

  “Not to mention we want revenge on your coup of the dark blue and green properties.”

  “I’ll take you to school, if you’re that desperate for a lesson.” Paige rubbed her hands together.

  “Them’s fightin’ words.”

  “Bring it.” She loved the friendly competition they had over board games and had been surprised they liked them as much as she did. In fact, she learned to play at the Nutmeg Inn and every summer after dinner she challenged the residents to a game.

  “What are we bringing?” Jack asked, coming down the stairs. He’d already taken off his shirt, causing Paige’s heartbeat to race again.

  She wanted to trace every one of his tattoos with her tongue. Jack’s eyes dipped to her chest, and she wondered if her nipples were poking out of her shirt.

  “Paige is coming over tonight,” Dean said.

  “Great. Can’t wait.” Jack raised his gaze to her face.

  He gave the best smoldering looks.

  “I’m looking forward for some payback,” Jack mock growled.

  “We’ll see about that,” she managed to quip as she made a fast exit. It was time for a cold shower.

  Chapter Five

  Paige was stuffed. She was lying on their big leather couch, her feet resting on Jack’s lap as she leaned against Dean’s shoulder.

  “Pay up,” she demanded, wiggling her toes. “I crushed you, and now you owe me a foot massage.”

  Jack grumbled good-naturedly, but he took off her shoes and tickled her instep.

  “Stop,” she said, rearing her foot back and kicking him gently in the leg. “Don’t be a sore loser.”

  “He can’t help it,” Dean said, easing the recliner that was built into the sofa back so she toppled off his shoulder. Now, her head was in his lap. And so much for her resolution to keep tonight free of sexy thoughts.

  “Relax,” he said when she would have sat back up. “We’ve all been working our asses off. Let’s just lay here and enjoy the moment.”

  Relax? That was easy for him to say. Jack was making goo-goo eyes at her over her feet, and she wanted to turn her cheek to feel the hard muscle of Dean’s thigh against her lips. She forced herself to take deep, calming breaths. They couldn’t read minds, so as long as she played this cool, they’d never have to know about her fantasies. Jack took his foot massages seriously and rubbed his thumb along the center of her foot and pulled her toes. Dean slung his arm around over her, just under her breasts. She closed her eyes against the yearning inside her.

  Just enjoy the moment.

  Then her cell phone rang. The ring tone was set to Carrie Underwood’s “Before He Cheats.”

  “Ignore it,” she said. “Don’t stop rubbing my feet. It’s just Fred.”

  “You’re so bossy,” Jack said.

  It stopped ringing and her voicemail notification came on.

  “What does that asshole want?” Dean grumbled.

  “Probably wondering why I haven’t answered his emails. Or maybe he found out I sold the Long Island house last year without giving him a chance to buy it first. Or he’s wondering if I received his wedding announcement.”

  “What?” Dean said at the same time Jack said, “Are you fucking kidding me?”

  “Yeah. So if one of you or both of you could be my date for the wedding, that would be freaking awesome.”

  They exchanged a look over her head and Paige immediately backtracked. “I’m just kidding, of course. I’m not going to go.”

  “We’ll go with you,” Dean said.

  “Or one of us will,” Jack countered. “But only if it’s what you want to do. You don’t owe that asshole anything.”

  “I know,” Paige said. “It just seems like I’m a coward if I don’t pay my respects to the happy couple.”

  “They didn’t respect you when they were sneaking around a dirty no-tell motel.”

  “It was the Waldorf Astoria.” She peered up at him.

  “It’s seen better days,” he assured her, and rubbed her arm.

  She could cut glass with her nipples. Fuck. How could she get out of here without rubbing against either of them like a cat in heat? This was such a mistake. She was like Pavlov’s dog. She was lonely and needed a man and her ex-husband used to have sex with her…that had to be the reason she was so out of her mind with lust.

  Paige sighed. Who was she kidding? The reason she was so horny had nothing to do with dull Fred. It was because she was cuddling with sexy, muscled men on their couch.

  “No,” Jack said, squeezing her feet comfortingly. “You’re the bravest person I know.”

  She scoffed.

  “I mean it. You left your marriage.”

  “He didn’t give me much choice.”

  “You sank everything you had into the bed and breakfast and are starting a new life. That’s pretty courageous,” Jack said.

  “I don’t feel very courageous most days,” she admitted.

  “Well, you are.” Dean leaned down and dropped a kiss on her forehead.

  Paige almost cooed in delight. It didn’t help that Jack’s magic fingers were making her drowsy and tingly all at the same time. She stifled a yawn with the back of her hand. “I should get going before the last ferry leaves.” Or before my clothes accidentally fall off and I beg you to take me against the wall.

  “You’ve got some time,” Dean said.

  “Besides, you could always stay here,” Jack added.

  She smiled. What a recipe for disaster that would be. “No, I’ve got to get back. But this has been fun. I always like beating the snot out of you two in whatever game we play.”

  “Yeah, if you’re so confident, we should play strip poker,” Jack blurted out.

  Paige caught Dean shaking his head at him and giggled. That was so like them. Jack letting his mouth say shit before his brain caught up with him, and Dean scolding him for it. They were her two best friends in all the world. If she lost them, it would be more devastating than her divorce had been. She needed to pull on her big girl panties and stop with the pathetic little fantasies. It was an impossible situation. She couldn’t sleep with a married man, even if he wasn’t married to a guy. She wouldn’t be a homewrecker.

  “Besides, if you miss the ferry we can always take you in the boat.”

  She looked at Jack. “What?” Paige couldn’t have just heard what she thought she did. It was her hormones messing up her hearing.

  “Take you back in the boat,” Dean sa
id, with another glare at Jack.

  “Oh.”

  Her phone rang again. This time the ringing was Twisted Sister’s “We’re Not Going to Take It.”

  “Who’s that?” Dean asked.

  “My parents. I’m ignoring them, too. Are you sure you don’t want to rethink the courageous part?”

  Jack’s lips twisted into a smile. “No. I know how toxic parents can be.”

  “I’m sorry,” she said.

  He shrugged. “It is what it is. I’ve always been a disappointment to them. Tattoos, piercings, not going to college. Marrying a man was just the last straw for them. They disowned me. They didn’t want a faggot for a son.”

  Anger swirled through her. No one should treat their son like that. “Fuck them.”

  “It’s okay.”

  “No, it damn well isn’t,” she said, scowling. She’d like to give them a piece of her mind and maybe a knuckle sandwich. How dare they hurt her Jack? And he was her Jack, even if he didn’t realize it.

  “Easy tiger.” But Jack smiled, so she backed off. “I’ve got Dean’s parents. They handled it a lot better.”

  “Well, not a lot better,” Dean snorted. “We still make them uncomfortable, and I’m pretty sure they pretend we’re just roommates, but at least we’re on the Christmas card list.”

  Paige rubbed Dean’s thigh in sympathy. “If it’s any consolation, I’m a big disappointment, too. I didn’t used to be. I married well. But then, I didn’t overlook Fred’s little indiscretions and was vulgar enough to divorce him.”

  “Your parents wanted you to stay with him after you caught him banging his secretary?”

  It was also hard to hold on to righteous anger when Jack’s touch was so soothing. “It’s what my mother did.”

  “Ouch.” Dean winced and stroked her cheek in sympathy.

  Which would have been really sweet, but that meant that his upper arm brushed over her breast and Paige was so desperate for him that she enjoyed it like it was a deliberate caress.

  “Barbie wasn’t Fred’s secretary. She works in IT. I guess she liked his hard drive,” Paige quipped to stop the raging feels flowing through her.

  They smirked appreciatively.

  “I thought I had buying the inn all figured out,” she said as the silence threatened to get heated again. “But I didn’t count on closing fees or little things, like you know, needing to eat. I’d relied on Fred’s income for so long I’d forgotten what it was like to not have money in my bank account.”

  “Why didn’t you tell us this?” Dean asked.

  “Because I’m twenty-eight years old and I should be able to do these things for myself. But in the end, I borrowed sixty grand from my parents to get me through until the bed and breakfast opens.” Paige crossed her fingers. “Hopefully.”

  “We’ll get you ready in time.”

  “I know you will.” She took the opportunity to stroke Dean’s arm. The hair tickled her palm as she caressed the curved muscles. “That’s why I want to go to Fred’s wedding. I want to show him how he did me a favor. That I’m happy and enjoying myself.”

  “Are you?” Jack asked.

  “I will be,” Paige said with more enthusiasm than she felt. “Will you be my date for the wedding?” She peered up at Dean.

  “Sure.” He grinned. “As long as there’s an open bar.”

  “If there’s not, drinks are on me.”

  “Why him?” Jack asked.

  “No offense, but my parents would take one look at your tattoos and I’d never hear the end of it. They’re extremely conservative.”

  Jack and Dean exchanged another significant look Paige couldn’t interpret. She hoped she hadn’t hurt Jack’s feelings.

  “Why would your parents go to dickhead’s wedding?” Jack asked, scowling.

  “My father’s company and Fred’s company are very close, and they still consider him if not a son-in-law, then a personal family friend.”

  “Now that’s bullshit,” Jack said.

  It tickled her that he appeared just as protective of her as she was of him. “No, what’s bullshit is making the terms of my sixty grand loan be that I can take as long as I like to pay it back, as long as I do exactly what they say in regards to the inn. If I don’t, they can require the loan needs to be paid in full immediately.”

  “Holy shit.” Jack dropped her feet. “You signed a contract allowing them those terms?”

  “Not in those words, but that’s the gist.”

  Dean asked, “Why?”

  Paige reluctantly slid her feet to the floor and sat up as Dean removed his arm. “It’s not like I had a lot of choice in the matter. Besides, so what if they want to paint the shutters black?”

  “But it gives them so much control over you.” Jack took a swig of his wine.

  “That’s why I’m not answering their calls. If I don’t hear their demands, I’m not in breach of contract and owe them money I don’t have.”

  “That sucks,” Dean said, sounding mournful.

  She rubbed his knee and then pushed herself to her feet before she got too handsy. “It’s not that bad. I’ve only had to change the color of the bathrooms from beige to ecru.” Paige rolled her eyes. “I probably should get back home, though.”

  They walked her to the ferry platform, timing it so she could just walk on. “I had a great night tonight. It was just what I needed. Thanks.” She stood up on tiptoe to kiss Dean’s cheek. He hugged her tight and she probably imagined it lasted longer than it normally did.

  “I’ll see you in the morning.”

  As she leaned up to buss Jack on the cheek, he turned his face and she got his lips. That kiss definitely lasted more than a quick brush. Blushing furiously, she swung around to protest that she didn’t mean it, and to apologize to Dean. But he kissed her on the mouth, too, and she felt a swipe of his tongue.

  She was losing her mind. That was the only excuse.

  “Sweet dreams,” Jack said in her ear.

  “Good night,” Dean said in her other one.

  Paige didn’t even remember the boat ride home.

  Chapter Six

  Jack and Dean were working on a leak in one of the third floor bathrooms. Actually, Jack was. Dean was pacing around the room talking aloud and generally driving Jack bug fuck.

  “I don’t like the storm they’re predicting.” Dean opened up the window and looked out. “The surf is getting pretty gnarly.” He called back over his shoulders.

  “Stop with the surfer talk. It makes me hard.” Jack tightened the pipe, but the fucking thing was still leaking. If he didn’t get this locked down, it could drip all over the new cabinets and cause mold. Not to mention, if it ruined the tile flooring Dean had laid down, he’d never hear the end of it.

  “What doesn’t make you hard?” Dean secured the French doors.

  “This pipe.”

  “They’re talking hurricane force winds and severe thunderstorms.”

  “Really? You let a pipe innuendo go? You must be worried.”

  “In your end go?”

  “That’s better,” Jack said, grimacing as the pipe still leaked. He wiped it dry and then tightened it further. “The weathermen have nothing better to do than scare the shit out of everyone. It’s a little rain. Stop being such a candy ass.”

  “It’s not me I’m worried about,” Dean stood over him. Jack liked the view. Dean’s jeans clung to his muscled thighs. “What if the storm surge floods the inn?”

  “Have to be a hell of a storm surge. It’s not hurricane season.”

  “What if the shutters don’t hold? What if the inn gets hit by lightning?”

  Jack finished with the pipe and sat up, rubbing his hand over Dean’s crotch as he did so. The soft material of the denim felt good over Dean’s cock. “Shut up. If Paige hears you talking like that, she’ll freak out. You need to stay calm for her.”

  “We’re staying here tonight.” Dean stepped away and helped Jack to his feet.

  “If we s
tay here tonight, there’s no way I’m not fucking her in that big bed she has in her room.”

  Dean shook his head. “Not until we’re done here. Or she asks for it.”

  “Leave it to me,” Jack said. “I’ll have her begging for us. I would have been in her pants last week if it wasn’t for you cock blocking me.”

  “I wasn’t cock blocking you,” Dean argued. “Let me do you on the boat was an awful way to ease into a complicated relationship.”

  “There’s nothing complicated about this. All it has to be is sex. Just sex.” Jack pushed by him and gathered up his tools.

  “It’s not going to be just sex and you know it. Our hearts are involved.”

  “Her parents hold her purse strings and they’re ultra-conservative. You can put any Valentine’s Day bullshit spin on it that you want.” Jack shrugged. “But she’s another Stephanie. I’m not getting burned again. Which reminds me, if you’re that worried about the storm, I should go look at our house on Dune Street. We really should put more effort into getting that rented out again.” Jack would have liked to give up the house on the mainland and move here permanently, but Dean didn’t feel comfortable with all the judgment from the locals. Jack couldn’t give a fuck. As far as he was concerned, the only way they’d accept them is if it was shoved in their faces on a daily basis.

  Dean grunted, but it was obvious his mind wasn’t on real estate. “We have to go easy and take our time with this. Get to know how Paige feels. She was so fierce to protect you the other night. She cares about us. Hell, if this was just about sex, I’d suggest we take the train into Manhattan and get our freak on.”

  “Did you just honestly say ‘get our freak on’?” Jack narrowed his eyes.

  “I want Paige. But I want her in our bed permanently.”

  Placing his hand on Dean’s arm, Jack squeezed it. “I want that, too. But we’re not going to get it, so let’s put all of this sexual tension away and just have fun.”

  “What if she tells us to get out of her life?” Dean whispered. “What if those douchebags blackball her inn because of us? She’s worked so damned hard for this. What if we finally get her into our lives and the inn fails because of some narrow-minded idiots?”