Monroe, Melody Snow - Leather and Lace [The Callens 1] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) (11 page)

Her face burned, and she swiveled back around. She recognized the next man up. He worked in the lumberyard. “Go, Nathan.”

Wade tugged her waist and laughed. Damn him.

Once the competition was over, they wandered back to the parade, which was close to the end of the route. “Is Heath here?” They hadn’t run into him.

“No. He wanted to organize the party at the house. Speaking of which, we ought to get back and help before the crowd descends. You mind?”

“No.” In fact, being around so many people made her a bit claustrophobic.

“I’ve got to set up the fireworks.”

She stiffened. “Isn’t that dangerous?”

He looked down at her and smiled. “You worried about me getting hurt, babe?”

Yes
. “No.” If anything happened to him, she’d be devastated.

He chuckled and led her back to the bike. To avoid the crowds, he took the back streets out of town. She was relaxed enough with Wade that she could enjoy the ride back even more. Too soon they arrived at his house. He parked in front and helped her off the bike.

He took the helmet from her and she shook out her hair.

“You should wear it down more often. You’re beautiful.”

Had Wade Watson said those words? Ever since high school she’d dreamed of catching his attention. It wasn’t until he announced his ménage plans for her that fateful day that she’d blocked him from her mind. Or at least she’d tried to all those years. She’d mostly succeeded at keeping the image of her with the two brothers at bay until her accident. Now he and Heath never left her thoughts for long.

“Thanks.” She nodded to the fire truck parked in front. “What’s that doing here?”

“I asked Shane to help me with the fireworks. In case anything gets out of hand, he can save the day.”

Damn
. Shane, a local firefighter and arson investigator, was her brother’s best friend and roommate. She needed to do some damage control before word got back to her family.

Wade led her inside and walked her straight through to the back of the house. There must have been fifty people bustling about getting ready for the party. Tables were set up next to kegs of beer. American flags were hung from every perch.

She spotted Heath. “I’m going to see if Heath can use my help.”

“Sure.” He sounded a bit disappointed, as if he liked hanging out with her.

Was he really interested? Now that her cast was off, his job as protector was done, though despite their differences, they’d built a strong connection between them.

She wandered across the yard. “Hey, Heath.”

He spun around, and she nearly melted on the spot. He was wearing cargo shorts and a tight T-shirt. He looked so
GQ
.

“You came! Sorry about the switcheroo. I thought I had everything under control, but at the last minute, a couple of people cancelled.”

Initially, she hadn’t been happy that Wade took his place, but she’d had a wonderful time. “I lived.”

He leaned over and kissed her forehead. “I’m glad.”

Her pulse rate dove. She wanted him to really kiss her, only she didn’t have the guts to make the first move. “What can I do to help?”

He lifted her chin. “I can think of a lot ways to help me, but why don’t you see about the kids’ area.” He lowered his gaze. “You do like kids, don’t you?”

His chest inflated, almost as if he was holding his breath. “Yes. I’ve got six siblings, remember.”

He grinned. “How many are you planning on having then?”

What was he getting at? “I haven’t thought about it.”

“Then you better start.” He winked. “Now go make sure the kids’ area is safe.”

Someone called to him, and he trotted off. Her feet remained glued to the ground. Why did he want her to think about how many kids she wanted? Was he volunteering to be the dad?

Sam inhaled and headed toward the large, inflatable house. Both Heath and Wade had been acting strange since her cast came off, but she didn’t have time to ponder their actions today. As she headed across the lawn, she wiped the sweat from her forehead. She couldn’t remember the last time
Intrigue
got into the mideighties. She hoped this wasn’t an indication that the rest of the summer would be as hot.

As she got near her destination, she spotted Shane by himself clearing the area for the fireworks. Since Wade wasn’t nearby, she sauntered over to him.

“Hey, Shane. What’s going on?”

“Sam. What are you doing here?”

She wanted to know the answer to that question herself. “Helping out.”

“Good.”

Shane was probably the least emotional person she knew, which made him a great firefighter, but she wasn’t convinced he wouldn’t mention her being here. “Do me a favor and not mention that you saw me to Cody.”

He shrugged. “Sure.”

She smiled and eased away. Shane was as good-looking as Wade and Heath, but he held himself back way too much as if he was afraid of letting loose. She could almost see invisible fingers pointing at her, as if she, too, had put a wall up around her.

“Not true.” She quickly glanced to make sure no one heard her talk to herself.

She’d promised Heath she’d check on the jumping house. The workers turned on the air pump, and she got to watch the house grow to its full ten-foot height. Once it was inflated, the men went on another part of the property. She stuck her head inside. The odor of plastic was rather intense.

“Want to try it out?”

She spun around. “Wade.”

“Come on. Take off your boots.”

Dare she get in the enclosed area with him? He tugged his shoes off. It was now or never. As soon as she removed hers, he pulled her inside. A bubble of laughter escaped. When was the last time she got to act like a kid? Okay, at the parade, she was totally silly. Growing up, she’d felt she needed to set a good example to her younger sisters.

His first jump made her stumble, but he caught her before she tumbled on her butt. Wade held her hands. Together they jumped up and down until laughter took her breath away. He lifted his legs, tilted backward, and landed on his butt and back. He let go of one of her hands, but the force was still enough to drag her down. She landed next to him and bounced. She’d landed on her injured arm, but surprisingly she felt no pain.
Wahoo!

He pulled her on top of him and the world seemed to stand still. His lips parted and his eyelids lowered. Cupping the back of her head, he pulled her closer. The moment their lips touched, every nerve exploded. Wade shifted, and his cock settled between her legs.
Oh, my
.

She expected tension to ripple through her, but instead, a strong desire to experience him swept through her.
Go for it
. She ran her tongue along the seam of his lips. He groaned and opened up, but it was his tongue that took charge. Their breaths came out fast and furious, and his hands ran all along her back.

“I want you.” He moaned and captured her mouth again.

“Me, too.”

Dear God, I never should have said that. It just came out.

Her panties got wet thinking about what it would be like to have Wade Watson, man extraordinaire, inside her pussy, pumping hard. She arched up to get a good look at him. He was a gorgeous, hot, hunky man. Sam shut off her brain and thought only with her body. His hand cupped her breast and lightly squeezed.

“So you are definitely all woman.”

She rolled off him and punched his arm. “You can be such a jerk.” He still seemed to think of her as a guy. Is that why he kissed her? He wanted to see her reaction? Well, she’d show him a reaction. She laughed at him then kissed him quick.

He clasped her shoulders and looked up at her, his intensity off the charts.
Uh-oh
. If they didn’t stop right now, there was no telling what she might do. She could definitely imagine what would happen if they were buck naked. Most likely a bunch of kids would arrive early and have a different kind of show.

Kids’ giggles registered, and he sat up. “Come on. We’ve gotta get out of here.”

No kidding.

After they put on their boots, the masses descended. “Just in the nick of time.”

He straightened and pinched her butt. “We’ll continue this later.”

Her stomach did a somersault. When he walked off, she wondered if she’d just made the mistake of her life.

Chapter Eight

For the next several hours, Sam monitored the jumping house. Finally, one of the mothers came over to relieve her.

“Go get something to eat. I’ll make sure the kids behave.”

As much as Sam liked listening to the children laugh and screech, she didn’t mind taking a break. Throughout her chaperoning duty, she’d only spotted Heath and Wade periodically. Since both seemed incredibly busy, she decided to wander about and enjoy the atmosphere. She was hungry and tried out the food. Everything was fabulous. Heath had spent quite a long time grilling up barbecued ribs, chicken, and steak. A local shop had catered the rest of the food.

The beer flowed freely, and there were groups of men tossing a football, a few playing a bean toss game with their children, and others milling about. All in all, the party seemed to be a huge success if the laugher was any indication.

She wandered over to the pony trail. It was getting dark, but Wade had set up torches to keep the place well lit. Two men seemed to be in charge of walking the ponies around in a circle. The black pony in front carried a four-year-old, and the one in back had a kid who looked about eight.

She loved listening to their excited shrieks and watching their eyes go wide as they traveled around. Heath’s question about wanting children came back. She did want kids, but there was no way she could manage a new ranch and have a family at the same time. Marriage would have to wait, not that anyone was asking.

Two hands clasped her waist. “You ready to watch the fireworks?”

Her shoulders relaxed, and she turned around. It was Heath. She smiled. “Sure.”

“Wade’s doing the honors and Shane’s supervising.”

Kids had been running around with sparklers all afternoon. Now that the sun was setting, it was time for the big festivities to begin.
Intrigue
was having an event of its own, but this private affair would be cozier.

Heath had a blanket and spread it out near where most of the families sat. She dropped next to him. He lifted the hair off her neck and kissed her below the ear. “You have a good time today?”

Her breath caught. What was up with these men? They’d been on their best behavior since the accident, and now that she was healed, they were coming at her at rapid-fire speed. Her brain and heart didn’t know how to handle the stimulation, but the part between her thighs knew exactly what she wanted. Did they really mean it all those years ago when they said they liked to share their women?

Could she handle making love to both men?

Try it.

You’ll like it.

“Yes.”

Heath moved behind her and pulled her back so that she was leaning against him. She looked around to see if anyone had noticed. Before she scoured the entire group, she decided she didn’t care who noticed them. These two men made her feel special, and that was all that mattered. She’d worry about her actions tomorrow.