MenageaDare (18 page)

“Is there any reason to be concerned about Evelyn’s health?”

“She’s fine, thankfully.”

“Thank goodness for that.”

“She hates needles and going to the doctors because they
remind her of her mother’s cancer treatments.”

“Poor baby,” Jaxon said, wanting to hold Eve right then.
“Let’s go check on her.”

Taking Remy’s hand, he guided the big man out from behind
the bar, gestured to the crew on standby and kept going toward Eve’s side of
the club.

Taylor Anderson sat next to Eve. The two women were talking
about whatever women talked about when they wanted to exclude men. Sounded to
Jaxon as if shopping and a trip to the day spa were in order over the next few days.

Remy and Jaxon reached the table where Eve, Gabriel and a
redhead Remy assumed was Taylor, Sawyer Hamilton and his foreman Travis Ross
were sitting.

As they claimed chairs on either side of Eve, all eyes
settled on Remy when he took her hand. On Eve’s left, Jax took her other hand.
If they objected, Remy was ready to take them on. He wanted this, Eve and
Jaxon, in bed, tonight, longer hopefully.

Chancing a look at Eve, he found her staring at him and
shared a smile with her. Man oh man, she was beautiful. In that little
black-and-silver number she wore, she reminded him of a classic Hollywood
starlet.

A waitress came over wearing a miniskirt version of a saloon
girl’s dress. Chaps over Wranglers, clean shirts, cowboy hats and boots with
fake spurs that clinked when they walked made up the waiters’ uniforms. The
bartenders wore black pants, white shirts, vests, armbands and bowler hats.

The waitress took orders all around the table and shimmied
away on high-heeled cowboy boots. Jax told her to bring out an extra-large
portion of nachos with everything, a couple bowls of popcorn and more pretzel
pieces.

The Truth or Dare Club resembled an old-time saloon. The bar
had barrel stools. There were booths, rectangular picnic tables, round tables
and a couple of antique-looking tables with faded felt tops that looked like
gambling tables in a real saloon.

“Remy, Gabriel’s invited us to see his magic show while
we’re here,” Eve told him, squeezing his hand. “Would that be all right?”

“Would love it,” Remy said. “Assuming Jax will be with us.”

“I will,” Jax stated. “We’ll get VIP treatment.”

“Are you on the town council too, Gabriel?” Remy asked him.

“I am,” Gabriel answered. “The theater’s located on the
backside of this place. It’s one of the original buildings.”

Eve sat up. “How many buildings are left from when Dare was
a boomtown?”

“Most of them were temporary, including tents and ramshackle
quarters. The Truth or Dare Club was the saloon. The hotel you’re staying in
was once the brothel.”

“Tell us more,” Eve encouraged, clearly fascinated with the
historical aspects of the town.

“A good bit of the boarding house remained,” Jax said. “Once
it was rebuilt, it became the restaurant where we had lunch.”

“The police station is bigger now, but it was the jailhouse
and sheriff’s office,” Sawyer shared. “It was so small that there was barely
enough room for two prisoners at a time. At night, the sheriff slept in a
utility room in the back.”

“Plumbing was crude, mostly outhouses,” Jax added. “The
Hamilton family tried to save Dare by labeling it as a historical landmark but
ended up selling it at auction.”

“The problem with the town was that while the silver mine
was successful enough for my great-grandparents to open a jewelry store and
eventually turn it into a franchise, there wasn’t enough here to make the
history books,” Sawyer commented.

“No Wild Bill Hickok or Billy the Kid, you mean?” Eve
clarified.

“There were a couple bad apples,” Sawyer answered. “But most
were ordinary people of their day trying to establish themselves in the West.
Once the silver mine closed, the town became irrelevant.”

“So that’s where you came in,” Eve said to Jax.

“If it hadn’t been for Sawyer, his grandfather and Gabriel,
it’d have been impossible to save the town and fund the rebuilding. Now we draw
a lot of attention from celebrities looking for a small-town getaway without
the gossips tracking them down.”

“You’re good at turning a profit,” Eve pointed out. “Gabriel
told me you used to own clubs in Reno, Vegas and California.”

“Exotic dance clubs catering to straight and gay
communities,” Jax admitted, inclining his head. “I guess you could say I’m an
unconventional entrepreneur. My Mama worked herself to the bone to put me
through college so I could earn my MBA. The least I could do in return is take
care of her.”

“You’ve a degree in business?” Remy asked, impressed.

“That and English literature,” Jax confirmed.

“Mind if I ask how old you are, Jaxon?” Eve inquired.

“I’m thirty-five.”

“You look so much younger,” she said, eyeing him closely.

“Thank you, baby girl,” he replied, picking up her hand and
kissing the back of her knuckles. “I work hard to look this pretty.”

“Crazy question,” Taylor began, propping her elbows on the
table and looking right at them. “Are the three of you on a date?”

“Yes, we are,” Jax replied.

Taylor flushed bright red, her freckles standing out. She
was pretty. Judging the looks Gabriel was sending her, the illusionist was busy
counting freckles.

“Whoa, that’s something I’ve never tried,” Taylor admitted.
“Not that there’s anything wrong with it.”

“Nor will you,” Gabriel remarked sharply.

Taylor turned her head, baring white teeth. “For your
information, if I choose to engage in orgies or have Jax train me up in his
mountain house, I will.”

“You will not,” Gabriel said.

“Next thing you’ll do is claim you’ve never had sex with
more than one person at a time,” she argued.

“Can’t claim sainthood, darlin’,” Gabriel replied smoothly,
attempting to charm the redhead. “But as soon as you became
my
driver
and mechanic, I’ve behaved.”

“Am I supposed to be impressed?” Taylor challenged.

“You don’t want to test drive my Ferrari or vintage Aston
Martin, the Spyder?”

“If you had a stock car, maybe I’d be interested. The
Ferrari, sure, someday I’ll give it a whirl.”

“Did I ever tell you that I adore Taylor, Gabriel?” Jax
asked. “She’s not one of your groupies.”

“She’s beautiful when she’s angry, isn’t she?” Gabriel
replied, buddy to buddy.

Taylor slapped the table. “Hey! Stop referring to me as if I
don’t have ears.”

“Can I nibble on them?” Gabriel inquired.

“You do, I’ll kick you where the sun doesn’t shine.”

Remy automatically covered up his family jewels on the
chance Taylor lashed out and kicked the wrong guy. Gabriel simply stretched out
and looped his arm back behind Taylor’s chair, tightening his arm and kept her
right where he wanted her to be.

“Try it, darlin’, see where you end up.”

“Not where you’d think, stud muffin,” she assured, turning
her eyes to Eve. “Eve, don’t be offended by my questions about your
relationship with Jax and Remy.”

“I’m not,” Eve told her. “This is a first for me.”

“Damn good thing,” Remy claimed, letting go of her hand and
setting his arm around her shoulders. Jaxon copied him, resting his arm over
Remy’s.

“Have to say I can see the appeal,” Taylor admitted. “I
mean, come on, Jaxon’s the prettiest man I’ve ever seen. Remy, I’m still
getting to know you, but your female ghost hunting fans must be nuts over you.”

“Thank you, Taylor,” Remy said, feeling himself flush
because he knew his Twitter and social media following was extensive and a
majority of his fans were female. “I’d like to think I reach an audience far
and beyond Twitter though.”

“I’m sure you do,” Taylor insisted. “When Jaxon explained
that you and Eve were in town to do paranormal research, I admit I looked at
your website. Hope you’ll teach all of us here in Dare what ghost hunting
entails.”

“I’ll be glad to do that,” he promised confidently.
“Anything specifically you’d care to know?”

“On the site, you had descriptions of some of the equipment
you use. What do you use most frequently?”

“The easiest and smallest to take into a hunt is a small
digital voice recorder. During an investigation of say a cemetery, I’ll ask a
series of questions, pausing between them. If I hear something in the background,
even if it’s a car passing or a shout, I’ll mark it with a vocal clue.”

“Is that how you get EVPs?” Taylor asked curiously.

“Electronic voice phenomena, yes, exactly,” Remy told her,
pleased to be able to share his knowledge with someone who seemed genuinely
interested.

“Ha, Gabriel, Taylor thinks I’m prettier than you,” Jax
pointed out when Taylor stayed quiet for a bit.

“She’s trying to make me jealous,” Gabriel said.

“Am not,” Taylor argued.

“Are too,” Gabriel replied.

“Can we not get into a sparring match before Avery and
Trevor get here? The last thing we want to do is spoil their big night.”

“Sorry, Jax,” Taylor apologized.

“It’s okay. I’m hot, feel free to say so.”

Apparently Jax wasn’t the least bit shy about his physical
appearance. Remy leaned across Eve’s back, intentionally vying for Jaxon’s
attention.

“She’s right, Jax. You are beautiful,” he said.

Jax’s violet eyes slanted to the left, and the smile he
offered made Remy’s heart swell with pride. Men shouldn’t necessarily be
considered beautiful and still be masculine, but there was no doubt Jax was a
balance of the two.

“Thanks, Remy, I’m glad you like what you see.”

“I do,” Remy whispered.

Eve turned her head, looking at Jax too. “You’re both
extremely handsome, my own personal sex god and a vampire.”

“Be careful, baby girl,” Jax warned. “A sex god and a
vampire can be very demanding of your time. Keep your strength up, and get rest
when we let you.”

“I’m not afraid to get a little sore. Are you?” she
challenged Jax.

“Not as sore as our god’s ass is going to be when I’m done.”

“If I don’t come, you get a bare-ass spanking,” Remy vowed.

“If you don’t come, none of us will. It’s all or none.”

“Three for all, all for three,” she joked.

“Mostly, yes,” Jax said.

Eve tensed, turning her head back and forth between them.
“What does that mean?”

“There will be times when Remy will want you all to himself.
Same as he’ll want me all to himself and vice versa.”

“Will you want me that way, Jaxon?” she asked, sounding a
little uncertain about her standing with Jax.

Jax leaned in and brushed a kiss to her temple. “Oh yeah,
we’ll have plenty of one-on-one time. Whatever you do, don’t agree to anything
with me if your heart isn’t in it.”

“I’ve never wanted anything more.”

Jax kissed her cheek. “Remind me to order Remy pineapple
juice chasers with whatever he drinks tonight.”

“Why’s that?” she whispered.

“Some say pineapple makes cum taste better, seems to work
for me. Not that Remy needs it, he’s earthy, raw, sex, I’d say.”

“He is sex incarnate,” Eve confided, making Remy feel a
whole lot better about the three of them.

The waitress returned, setting drinks around the table,
another daiquiri for Eve, cherry noir vodka on the rocks for Jax and a rum and
Coke for Remy. A waiter came up behind the young woman and laid out their food
in the center of the table, along with extra plates, napkins and utensils.

Jaxon whispered to the waiter, who headed for the bar. A
minute or two later, he returned with a big glass of pineapple juice. What the
hell? Was he really going to worry about the taste of his semen? If he wanted
his lovers to swallow, he would.

As the nachos were devoured, the clock struck nine. Almost
on the button, the house band filed out from a red velvet curtain, followed by
Hazard Osbourne and Avery Grant.

Avery wore a red dress. She looked hot, but Remy didn’t feel
the gut-deep arousal he felt whenever he was near Eve.

Then again, Jax’s scent caught Remy’s attention. Shifting
around to look at him, Remy’s heart sped out of control. Jax had moved closer, still
touching Eve, including her.

“Something wrong, Jax?” Remy asked, speaking loud enough to
be heard over the sudden bass riff up on stage.

“I want the two of you, badly. Come on, let’s go stand with
Avery. Trevor’s going to propose soon,” Jax said. “We’ll dance, socialize for a
bit then head over to our hotel room.”

“Okay,” Eve agreed. Remy inclined his head.

Together they helped Eve to her feet, escorting her to the
dance floor. The rest of the guests at their table followed, keeping close.

Avery grasped Eve’s hand, squeezing in support, her eyes
darting back and forth between Remy and Jaxon. Finally, her gaze landed on
Remy, looking for an explanation. He nodded, hoping to give her a clue as to
what was going on.

Avery mouthed a warning. He did the same, assuring her that
he would take care of Eve. With that,
Wild Thing
morphed into a song
called
Bad Things
, capturing Avery’s attention.

From there on out, Avery no longer worried about the three
of them because Hazard came down off the stage, took her hand and led her to a
chair that’d been brought out exclusively for her.

Things slowed down, the band went quiet and Hazard grabbed
an acoustic guitar, singing a country version of Train’s
Marry Me
. Next
thing Remy knew, the guitar was set aside and he went down on one knee,
producing a gigantic ring from his pants pocket.

“Yes!” Avery shouted, watching in awe as Hazard slid the
ring onto her finger and stood up, catching her in his arms as she leaped out
of her seat in joy.

“That was the most romantic thing ever,” Eve declared. “I
thought Ethan’s surprise wedding for Morgan was the best. This topped that.”