Game On (Entwined Hearts) (15 page)

Finally, Jake nodded and lifted his eyes. “Good idea. Let me talk to my landlords. I’m going month-to-month right now, but I’d like to give them some time to advertise the place before I leave. I’ll pay you the same rent I’m paying the Liganos.” Jake held up his hand before Hunter could respond. “I’m not poor. If you want, we can put it toward tearing the bathroom apart and putting it together again with an extra-large tub and shower stall.” He paused. “That is, of course, if we can convince her to stay more than just overnight. That’s a whole other discussion she’d have to be here for.”

Hunter crossed his arms. “I haven’t brought the idea up yet of her moving in, but I hope it’s going to happen. I figure if we make it as comfortable as possible, she’ll consider leaving her mother’s house.”

Jake took another sip. “Isn’t she going to think we’re moving too fast? I mean, technically, we’ve only been together less than a month.”

“Depends on how you look at it. We’ve logged some serious time already—it’s not like we just met and are working on taking off the rough edges,” Hunter said. “If we’re both living here in the same house, we can make it easier for her to decide, show her what she can get if she moves in with us. Two men on call, no waiting. Not too many women who would pass up an offer like that.” He lifted his arm and flexed it. “Especially for two hot men like us.”

“Dang.” Jake smiled. “You got this all figured out.”

“It was her idea in the first place. I’m just extrapolating it down the line,” Hunter said. “I’m not sure how much further ahead she’s thought, but it’s the next logical thing to do.” He looked at his watch for the third time in five minutes. “What is she doing today?”

Jake gestured toward the front door. “She’s over in Burgettsville, doing interviews today. Some idiot paternity suit, from what she’s told me. Guy’s wondering about his son even though the kid’s a spitting image. He’s doing it to nag the ex-wife into giving up custody and letting him have the kid back.”

Hunter let out a chuckle. “Good luck. Angie won’t let him get away with anything. She’s a damned good lawyer.”

“Yes, she is.” Jake laughed into his coffee. “Woman can get what she wants, when she wants it.” He lifted his mug. “And she wants us.”

Hunter grinned and clinked his mug against Jake’s.

Jake wasn’t sure why he’d gone to Hunter’s house so early. He put it down to nerves, the anxiety of the ongoing relationship with Hunter and Angela swamping his thoughts, the memories still clear in his mind’s eye.

How she trembled in his arms, how her plump lips looked as she came back to earth and her breathing steadied while she lay curled around the two men. It was addictive, seeing her in that state. All he could think about was how he wanted more.

The physical work helped calm him, the simple task of disassembling the double bed and moving it into the garage a welcome distraction. The side tables and a dresser followed, leaving the bedroom almost empty.

“Your officer out with the flu?” Hunter asked as they wrestled the slats up onto a shelf.

“Yeah.” Jake swore as he caught his finger between two boards. “Told everyone to get their shots, but sometimes the shot doesn’t work. Caught the bug from his kid. He’ll be back in a day or so. Still have to put in a few hours today to make it work out.”

Hunter led him back into the house. “The delivery guys will take away the old mattress, so we don’t have to wrestle it down the stairs.” He headed into the living room and flopped onto the couch. “I also paid to have them assemble the new bed, so that’s done. Done,” he repeated.

Jake wiped the sweat from his forehead. “For the record, I have no idea where she got this idea from.” He pointed at himself, then at Hunter. “This, I mean. It wasn’t anything we ever discussed when we were together, not even joking.”

“Me, either,” Hunter answered. “And, to tell you the truth, I don’t think I could have gone for it till after high school. I was too young to figure it all out, make it work without going insanely jealous.”

The sound of a delivery truck pulling into the driveway cut off all further conversation. Hunter levered himself up off the sofa with a grunt. “Hope she appreciates all this work we’re doing for her.”

“Hey, if you want to sit back and watch all night ’cause you’re too tired—” Jake ducked as a rolled-up magazine flew by his head.

“Watch and learn.” Hunter headed for the door. “There’s more to making a woman happy than only being good in bed.”

“And I’m going to take lessons from you on this?” Jake pushed him aside and opened the door. “We’ll see about that.” He raised a hand and waved to the approaching workmen.

It was close to three o’clock when Jake headed for the front door with a final nod to Hunter. The two of them had ended up helping the deliverymen as they dragged the new furniture up the stairs and removed the old mattress and box spring.

The manual labor helped settle the nervous butterflies in Jake’s stomach.

Hunter wasn’t nearly as cool as he pretended to be either. Jake had caught him frowning as he studied the master bedroom, moving at least one piece of furniture around without help from anyone.

He shifted the dresser to one side, a foot closer to the closet in the far corner.

He shoved it back into the original spot, careful to put it back in the exact same place.

Jake hadn’t said anything about the other man’s fussing.

“I’m out of here. Give Angie my love, and I’ll see you after eight. Don’t worry about feeding me—I’ll catch something on the fly.” He eyed Hunter, who, like himself, was a hot, sweaty mess after hours of moving furniture. “Don’t start without me.”

“I’ll do my best.” Hunter laughed. “Can’t speak for her, though.”

Jake shook his head and opened the front door.

Angela let out a sigh as she pulled into Hunter’s driveway. It’d been a long, frustrating day of hunting after wrong addresses and difficult interviews even when she got the right house number. She’d reached Burgettsville easily enough, but her GPS had turned her in circles as she scoured the streets for the right houses.

Add in a vengeful mother hovering over her daughter and advising her what to say and what not to say to Angela, and the day was pretty much a slice of annoyance pie.

But this, on the other hand, was a wonderful end to the day.

She’d gone home first and dropped off her briefcase and phone, not wanting anything to interfere with her evening. It’d taken a few more minutes to grab her overnight bag and inform her mother she’d be at Hunter’s if there were any problems.

Mary-Ann had smiled, nodded, and waved. In that order.

Now, as she approached the front door, she could hardly hold back a shiver at the pleasures that lay within.

Waiting for her.

The door swung open before she could lift her hand to knock.

Hunter smiled and pulled her into a tight hug before kissing her, generating enough sparks to set a forest on fire. He wore a blue dress shirt and khakis, his hair damp from a recent shower.

“Welcome back,” Hunter said. “Hope you’re okay with meat loaf. Mashed potatoes on the side and for your healthy veggie quota, string beans.”

“Sounds wonderful. I’m starved—had a burger and fries at one of the travel plazas. Greasy as hell and heavy on the belly.”

“You look exhausted.” Hunter frowned as he walked her to the couch. “That bad a day?”

“To varying degrees.” She closed her eyes and rolled her shoulders back. “It never fails to surprise me how selfish people can be.”

“You’re here now. Relax and let me get you a drink.” He went to the kitchen. “Name your poison.”

She settled on the couch with a groan, sinking back into the cushions. “White wine if you’ve got it.” Angela wiped her forehead with the back of her hand. “Long and short of it: Asshole dad wants to get his son back, get full custody. I don’t believe for a minute he’s doing it for the kid.”

Hunter pulled a bottle from the wine cooler and busied himself with opening it. “Was it shared custody before?”

“Yes, but the child support was low and with no rider to deal with cost-of-living increases, inflation, and so forth. Woman’s having a hard time making ends meet, has the kid beg his dad for more money. She’s had enough of the situation, mentions officially applying for more child support, and he freaks out, demands a paternity test. Putting pressure on her to give him up, to get back at her.”

Hunter approached her, glass in hand. “You’ve done all you can today. Tomorrow you can bust his balls.” He gave her the wineglass. “I know you’ll shut him down.”

She took a sip and sighed at the cool, dry drink. “God, I needed this. Thank you.”

Hunter perched himself on the edge of the couch. “How about we eat dinner and you take a nice hot bath? Relax, recover, reinvigorate yourself. Jake should be back anytime.”

She looked around, berating herself for not having noticed that Jake wasn’t there. “What happened? I thought he had the entire day off.”

“He did but then had to work a few hours. Has a man out sick.”

Angela shook her head. “Probably that damned flu bug. Mom’s got it, but she won’t slow down and take the time to get well. She’s self-dosing with handfuls of vitamin C pills and plenty of that awful menthol rub on her chest.” She paused. “Did you say ‘bath’?”

“I know you like your tub time.” He smirked. “Then you’ll be nice and rested and ready for the evening’s entertainment.”

“Ooh.” She couldn’t help batting her eyes. “We’re going to eat popcorn and watch old movies?”

“If you like.” He lowered his voice. “Then Jake and I are going to have our way with you every which way you can think of.”

The low rumble shot straight to her heart. She pressed her legs together to subdue the tingling, her inner core trembling with the memories of their last night together. “I can think of a lot.”

“Good.” Hunter smiled. “But first”—he reached out and tapped the tip of her nose—“we eat.”

The meal Hunter served was the perfect comfort food. It erased the memories of the cheap pseudo-edible dishes she’d suffered earlier in the day.

Angela couldn’t suppress the anticipation building inside, the desire taking over her thoughts. It’d been a busy week, and she’d seen little of both men, thanks to everyone’s schedules and commitments.

She placed her fork and knife on the plate, eyeing the last bits of potato with regret. “If I finish this off, I won’t be able to move.”

Hunter swooped down and took it away. “Sure as hell don’t want that.”

Angela laughed as he swept the remains into the garbage bin and loaded the dishwasher. “So what’s on the menu for dessert?”

“I thought you said you were full.”

“There’s always room for dessert.”

“Yes. There is.” He tilted his head to one side, his eyes raking her with intensity.

Angela flashed back to his office visit.

“Unfortunately, I don’t have any ice cream.” He licked his lips. “But we’ll manage.” His tone changed, low and dominant. “Go upstairs and get into the bath.”

She caught his eye and tilted her head to one side just as he had. “Join me?”

Now Hunter shook his head. “Unfortunately, the tub’s not big enough. Yet.”

Angela got up and walked to the couch, where she’d put her overnight bag. “I’ll put this in the bedroom—”

“No,” he interrupted her. “I’ll take it. You go straight into the bathroom, get the water running. I’ll be up soon enough to see how you’re doing.” His eyes twinkled with mischief. “Humor me. It’s a surprise.”

She matched his smile. “Okay. See you in a few minutes.”

There was a small bottle of bubble bath on the edge of the tub, and Angela used it liberally, pouring it into the hot water rushing out of the tap and watching the sweet-smelling foam surge up. It was a common brand, typically found in Christmas stockings and given away as presents for friends you barely knew. She’d fallen in love with it years ago because of the lovely scent.

But she hadn’t had the time to take long, leisurely baths when she’d worked in Philadelphia. Usually, if she was lucky, she could grab a shower and dry her hair while looking over legal papers, eager to please her employers.

These days, there was no rush to do anything or go anywhere. If she wanted to close the office early, she did so. If she wanted to stay late, she would and could.

If she wanted to lock the front door and enjoy a decadent rendezvous with one of her men—she did it.

And tonight . . .

She was getting what she wanted.

They all were.

Angela stripped and edged her way into the water, gasping as its heat enveloped her.

Heaven.

She sighed and laid her head back against the ceramic edge. The old claw-foot tub had a quiet beauty about it, dominating the bathroom with its presence.

The shower stall in the corner was nice, but there was something about a long, hot bath that cleared the senses, the heart, the soul, washing the day’s stress away.

She’d put her hair up into a tight bun held in place with a scrunchie from her purse, and now Angela brought up her knees to slide her body down and let the water lap at her chin. She closed her eyes and sighed, the heat seeping into her muscles.

“Don’t fall asleep.”

Angela opened her eyes to see Hunter leaning on the wall, watching her. He held up a red silk robe and hung it on the edge of the door.

“I didn’t pack that.”

“I know. Consider it a present. I already put your overnight bag in the bedroom.”

“Another present? Thank you.” She gestured at the bottle now sitting by the sink. “You remembered.”

“Your favorite bubble bath? Sure I did.” He moved closer. “Wasn’t sure you would remember it, though. What with you being in the big city and all. Plenty of fancy expensive stuff there.”

“Expensive doesn’t always mean good.” She watched him approach. “And sometimes the best isn’t what you expect it to be.”

Hunter knelt and ran his fingers along the edge of the tub. “True.”

The doorbell rang, startling her.

Hunter smiled and gave her a light kiss. “That’ll be Jake.”

She made as if to get out of the tub, and he frowned.

“Stay right there.” He wagged his finger. “You need someone to wash your back.”