“Of course not,” she said over her shoulder. “But it explains…the muscle.”
Danny bent toward her, nipping at her ear. “We’re big; doesn’t mean we don’t know how to be gentle.”
“When it’s needed,” Jake said, finally unleashing the growl and enjoying the way she shivered in response.
“
Jesus,
” she groaned. “And I thought this was going to be a tedious evening.”
“Place yourself in our hands,” Jake said, whispering in her ear while locking gazes with Danny. “I promise you won’t be tempted to yawn even once.”
The second song ended and Jake stepped away, giving Danny another silent message, this time to give her some room.
They trailed Camille back to the table, but she didn’t take her seat. She gathered her small clutch purse and gave them an apologetic smile. “I think I’ll head home.”
Jake felt a twinge of disappointment, more than he should have at striking out with an attractive woman. Not wanting to question why it was so important he couldn’t let this particular lady get away, he touched her elbow. “Did we come on a little too strong? We didn’t mean to scare you.”
“You didn’t, but you’re both a little overwhelming. And I’m really not sure what the hell I want.”
“How about we buy you a drink? We’ll keep our hands to ourselves. I promise,” he added, aiming a glare at Danny.
Danny’s lips twitched, but he nodded.
“I don’t know. It’s been a long day.”
“It’s been a long week for us. All we were plannin’ on when we came here was one beer then bed. We’ve been up over thirty hours straight.”
Her gaze slid past Jake to the bar and Malcolm one more time. Then she lifted her chin. The tightening of her lips said she wanted to err on the side of caution.
“We’re the good guys here,” Jake broke in, knowing she was about to refuse. “We’re firemen. We rescue kittens from trees—”
“And children from burning houses,” Danny said, his expression free of carnal intent.
“And women from slimeball lounge lizards.”
Her lips twitched then stretched into a grin. “You’re persistent. And I have to admit I’m flattered. All right. One drink. But let’s head to the patio. It’s stuffy in here.”
Jake breathed a sigh of relief then gave her a smile and his arm, and led her past the bar and Malcolm, to whom he delivered a silent warning. Once outside, they found a table next to the wrought iron fence. Danny held out a chair for Camille then slid into the seat next to her.
Jake stifled his irritation but sat backward in a chair directly opposite her, watching her mobile features reveal every thought that flitted through her mind.
Her gaze swept his shoulders then Danny’s. The pale light shining from the distant parking lot lamp was just enough to reveal the tension in her lips, the quickening rise and fall of her chest.
Either she was uneasy or she was aroused. God, he hoped it was the latter.
A waitress approached, carrying a tray loaded with a pitcher of margaritas and several glasses. “Hey, the guys who ordered this took a hike. Would you like some?”
Jake nodded and handed her money while Danny poured the drinks. Not their usual fare, they both preferred beer, but Camille’s appreciative moan made the sacrifice worthwhile.
“What is it you do, Camille?” he said softly to calm her.
“I, uh, own a business. A women’s clothing shop.”
He wondered at the quick downward sweep of her lashes and the blush that stained her cheeks. “What do you like to do in your free time?”
“There hasn’t been a lot of that lately. I usually catch up on chores around home, go through paperwork… Not very exciting, huh?”
“Any boyfriends?” Danny asked.
“Not a one. I haven’t dated in a while.” She lifted her shoulders in a careless shrug and drew a deep breath. “But enough about me. What do you guys like to do besides spend hours in the gym?”
Danny grinned then raised an arm and flexed it. “Have to work out to carry those women and children from burning houses.”
Jake cleared his throat. Danny wasn’t helping with the macho crap. “We work out when we’re on shift. It can get pretty boring waitin’ for shit to happen. When we’re off, we play league soccer. Hang out. Pretty boring too, huh?”
“Just different,” she said then looked around as though searching for something else to say.
“Sometimes we hike,” Danny said. “Along park trails, through the mountains. You should come.”
“I’m not that fit.”
Jake hated the sudden awkwardness that entered the conversation. Camille was looking for excuses to brush them off. “We wouldn’t expect you to keep our usual pace,” Jake said. “And I’d carry your sleeping bag.”
“Wouldn’t have to do a thing other than put one foot in front of the other. You have legs,” Danny said. “We noticed.”
Her lips crimped at the sides and her glance settled on Jake. “Thanks for the invitation, but we all know this isn’t leading anywhere.”
“Why’s that?” Jake asked, although he thought he knew. “We’re all single and healthy. We’re attracted.”
“Is it because we don’t have degrees or a high-powered job?” Danny asked, his expression closing.
She blinked as though surprised. “Not at all. This can’t go anywhere because you’re both too young.”
Jake sat back and snorted. Did she really believe that line of crap or was she looking for another excuse to brush them off? “You’re not exactly ready for a cane.”
Her brown eyes snapped. “I’m thirty-eight. You can’t be any older than what, twenty-five?”
Danny shrugged and nodded.
Jake bit out, “I’m twenty-seven.”
“So, eleven years there,” she said to him then turned to Danny. “Thirteen for you. It wouldn’t work.”
“Afraid of what everyone would say?” Jake said slowly.
“No, but I’m old enough to want my…encounters…to be meaningful.”
Jake’s eyes narrowed. “Think I’m not looking for a relationship?”
“I’m not,” Danny said. When Camille and Jake leveled their gazes on him, he lifted his eyebrows. “Just bein’ real. I’m along for the ride.”
Jake glared at Danny.
Really not helping here, buddy.
“The lady’s laid it out,” Danny said. “I respect that. But she’s missing something.”
Camille’s expression was no less set, but she didn’t interrupt.
Danny sat forward and dropped his voice. “Right now, you don’t have anyone in your life. You’ve already admitted it’s been a while since you’ve dated. You might even have a little fear, right? About getting intimate with someone. But two someones…doesn’t that intrigue you at all?”
If Jake hadn’t been staring, watching every change of expression, he might have missed the sudden yearning she quickly blinked away.
Jake leaned forward, sensing a crack in the walls she’d constructed to keep the men at bay. “Camille, if you don’t want to be alone, we won’t do anything you’re not comfortable with. This thing can be casual. Among friends.”
Camille snorted. “Fuck buddies, you mean? I’m not like that.”
“Neither am I,” he said quickly. “But I’m attracted and I’d like a chance to get to know you better. And before Danny blurts something that completely puts you off, he’s harmless. But he does know his way around a woman’s body.”
Camille didn’t look away, but her face lost its stubborn rigidity. Shadows of uncertainty darkened her eyes. “This would just be between us? I couldn’t stand it if I ended up as firehouse gossip.”
“We’re not assholes.”
She gave a shaky laugh. “God, I can’t believe I’m even considering it. It really has been a long day.”
“And a long-ass week for us. But can you think of a better way to kick off a weekend?”
She shook her head, looking distracted and starting to sweat. “What do they put in these margaritas?”
He smiled tentatively. “A little dash of inhibition?”
Her gaze pulled away from his, locked with Danny’s for a moment. Then again, she swept their shoulders. She took a deep breath and laughed as though surprised with herself. “All right, then. But this has to happen at my place.”
“Your place,” Jake agreed quickly.
“And you’ll leave when I ask you to.”
Danny nodded. “Kick us to the door. We won’t be offended. A lady needs her space.”
Camille’s lips pursed and she blew out a steady breath. “Would you guys mind leaving now? I’m afraid I’ll lose my nerve.”
Jake leaned over the table. He slid his forefinger under that sexy notch, and rubbed his thumb over her lower lip. “I’ll ride with you.”
Her tongue darted out and wet the upper bow. “Afraid I’ll change my mind?”
Jake smiled slowly. “No, but I wanna breathe in your perfume. Danny’s cheap-ass cologne kinda kills the mood.”
Chapter Three
Camille’s hands shook as she inserted the key in her apartment door. The two burly men flanking her hadn’t given her an inch of space to breathe, hadn’t left her alone a single moment to rethink this plan.
It had all happened so fast. One minute her focus was Malcolm and the contract his company had been on the verge of offering. Then in the blink of an eye, she’d been seduced away from her purpose by two slick firefighters with bodies to die for. Was she really going to make love with both of them? Was she that desperate?
The lock clicked. Jake reached around her and shoved open the door.
She shouldn’t have been excited by the urgency his action telegraphed. Alarm would have been a more natural reaction, but she did like the way he took charge. How long had it been since a man did anything other than follow her politely inside?
Danny pushed her through the door. His hands were already tugging away her jacket and going for her blouse, reaching around her to unbutton the long row while he touched her intimately down her front.
Too late, she remembered the creamy, ultrafeminine floral bra she’d donned at the shop. As soon as her blouse opened, her nipples peeked above the “shelf”.
Danny’s breath hitched, jerking his chest against her back. His hands cupped her bare flesh, squeezing.
Jake closed the door behind them and stalked past, pulling his t-shirt over his head. All she could do was gape. With a strong male body heating up her backside and all that luscious muscle to view while she was being stripped, she knew she was in way over her head.
When he glanced back, Jake’s face was taut, his gaze narrowing on her mostly naked chest. Looking at him was like eyeing a tiger at the zoo, only there weren’t bars between them to keep her safe.
Holding her gaze, he strode toward her and knelt, his gaze smoldering. He eased his hands under skirt.
Her breaths shortened when his fingertips traced the tops of her thigh-high hosiery. His fingers lingered, slipped inside the snug bands and let them go.
The snap and the darkening pleasure etched on his face made her knees weak. He rolled the hose down, lifted one foot at a time to slip off her pumps and the stockings. Then he was back under her skirt again, swooping upward. His hands stopped at the edge of her lacy panties then traced the elastic around her hips.
The rise of his eyebrows and the amused quirk of his lips was all the reaction he gave. Hidden under his skirt, he tugged the slender elastic, tightening it between her buttocks.
She bit her lips rather than bleat a breathy “Jesus” because she had the feeling she’d be praying for release over and over again this night.
How the hell had she gotten herself in this situation? Did she really want rescuing? Maybe she just needed them to slow down so she could catch her breath—or so she could savor the scandalous delight.
It was her sister’s fault. Amy’s newfound happiness with her husband had Camille rethinking her own life choices. Including the one that had excluded any long-term relationships. How could she have known she’d have such a long drought of partners?
She’d wanted the career and the opulent storefront. However, the soft chubby-cheeked baby she’d held in her arms last weekend had reminded her that time was marching on and she wasn’t getting any younger.
If she was going to find Mr. Right, she had to get out more. Malcolm had seemed an appropriate choice. She’d mistaken him for a gentleman.
These two enthusiastic men weren’t on her agenda at all, but then again, she needed some practice. What would one night of freaky sex hurt anyway?
It wasn’t as if they were ever going to see each other again. They didn’t run in the same circles. They could have their choice of women given their attractiveness and sheer
maleness
. So it wasn’t likely that either of them would give her another thought past this delicious moment.
She could do this…let some of the pent-up yearnings she’d ignored unravel a bit. And she couldn’t think of two better candidates for the job.
Jake was the taller of the two, his shoulders nearly as wide her doorway. He’d had to duck to step inside. He was handsome in a rough-hewn way with a blunt nose and chin. His eyes were a startling blue. Even his close-cropped brown hair appealed. For as large as he was, he moved with grace. She remembered the way he’d danced, his body surrounding her, supporting her with his thigh and the tender crush of his fingers.
Danny, only slightly less tall and broad, was still mouthwateringly masculine. His brown eyes danced with easy humor until aroused then glinted darkly, his expression growing almost feral. Scary, in a completely sexy way.
And she was going to experience them both. Somehow, she knew they wouldn’t be one-minute wonders. And that the competition between them would only spur them to provide her greater delights.
If Lacey could see her now, she’d be shocked. And beside herself with laughter. Steady, much-too-sensible Camille was about to be the filling in a very naughty sandwich.
“You’re thinking too much,” Jake said, still kneeling at her feet. Her blouse was open, her bra hanging off her arms, and Danny was peering over her shoulder at her breasts while he played.
The corners of Jake’s mouth curled, and he grabbed the hem of her skirt and began to roll it upward, baring the length of her legs then passing her crotch until the fabric bunched around her waist.
Out of reflex, she pressed her knees together, but he wasn’t having any of it. Jake slipped his hands between her legs and pushed apart her thighs.
Danny pinched her nipples, distracting her, and then Jake leaned closer and pressed kisses on her upper thighs. When his fingers grazed her sex through the delicate lace, she jumped, gasping. But he only smiled and planted his thumbs on her outer folds, pressing through the fabric to spread them open. He gave a quick glance upward and winked, catching her open-mouthed expression.
She swallowed hard as he stuck out his tongue and touched her
there
. Rubbing it over the lacy fabric above her hooded clit. Just that one little spot when she was ready for him to plunge deep. But the teasing little flicker sent darts of electric pleasure zinging toward her womb.
Danny pinched her nipples harder and she quivered, jerking softly against his chest.
Jake burrowed deeper and latched his wicked lips around her clit and suckled, the moist sounds obscene in the silence that surrounded them. She was the only one nearly naked. The only one exposed.
“Are you close, sweetheart? Tell me when you’re close,” Danny whispered in her ear.
“Almost there,” she moaned. Her breath caught and her eyes widened because amazingly she was beginning the spiral.
Jake leaned back and smoothed his hands up the outside of her thighs, soothing her while she caught her breath. He lurched upward and grabbed her waist, hoisting her off the ground. Danny’s hands fell away.
“Put your legs around me,” Jake growled. “Where’s the bedroom?”
The man didn’t waste words on sweet talk, but she wasn’t complaining about the lack. She wound herself around him and nodded toward the hallway.
“Not too late to kick us to the door,” he said against her ear.
“I’m okay with this,” she said, her voice muffled against his neck. As long as he held her, she wasn’t willing to end this until she had the pleasure his taut voice promised.
He strode through the open doorway. The light flickered on above them, and inwardly she groaned because she’d hoped they might do this in the dark.
But guys liked to look, didn’t they? And the lamp light was golden, forgiving of any small flaws. Compared to their masculine perfection, she felt herself at a decided disadvantage. Men didn’t swarm her. Women couldn’t take their eyes off either one of them.
Or maybe they didn’t give a damn that her attractiveness didn’t quite meet their standard. She’d been an easy mark. A damsel in need of rescue. And they were the heroic kind, weren’t they? What they didn’t know was they’d saved her from more than just an overzealous lounge lizard.
She’d started the evening staring at a long weekend and knowing she needed to make plans. A professional planner with the ultimate project in mind—a major life makeover. Only she’d been afraid she’d back down, decide it might be too late to set another course.
Her two husky firemen had saved her from her own cowardice. Now she hoped she’d have a little self respect left after a night of debauchery. And God, she hoped she was about to be debauched.
She wanted what they’d promised with their hot stares, masculine swaggers and strong hands—hot, silky-slick sex.
Danny hoped like hell Camille didn’t change her mind now. Not for a moment did he think she was the kind of woman to indulge in a quick, nasty fling. And he’d bet money she’d never taken on two men at once.
Which intrigued him all the more.
Everything about her reflected a keen intelligence and a quick wit. That she wasn’t hard on the eyes either had him wondering how she hadn’t been snapped up. She was wife material. Two kids, house in the suburbs kind of woman.
Jake had to be reacting to that image on some level, because if anyone was ready to settle down, it was him. Jake was a serial dater, who’d been close a time or two, but hadn’t yet found his perfect match.
Danny almost felt sorry about the fact he’d spoiled any chance of something lasting happening this time by being here. He doubted that either Jake or Camille would be able to get past the fact there’d been another person in their bed the night they first hooked up.
Not that he felt enough regret to step aside. The woman called to him on a completely different level than his usual hookups.
He’d been surprised by the surge of lust he’d felt when she strolled into the bar. She wasn’t his type. Wasn’t flashy and rail-thin. Something about her confidence, the nearly regal tilt of that chin made him want to see her completely undone. Completely spent. He wanted to scuff the polish a bit and see what lay beneath.
That Jake was willing to share in order to get her into bed only added to Danny’s determination. His cock hardened to steel at just the thought of it sliding along any part of Jake’s body by accident, which should have caused him some alarm, but tonight he had the urge to go with the flow. See where this led, no matter the consequences.
Jake was moving way ahead of him—kneeling on the mattress, laying her down on the center of plush sage silk bedding that looked as well-groomed and prissy as the woman had before they’d stripped her.
Jake leaned back and stared down at her, a muscle working along the side of his jaw.
Danny knew how he felt.
Her eyes were wide, her expression tense. Lying nearly naked like that, vulnerable, made a man feel powerful.
Watching the flex of muscles along Jake’s lower back and buttocks as he slowly dry-humped the woman did its own number on Danny’s libido.
Danny let Jake have his moment and began to strip while the couple had eyes only for each other. He’d change that soon enough. No way was anyone in this room escaping without reaching ultimate satisfaction.
Jake swallowed hard again, not believing he’d gotten Camille this far. Her clothing didn’t cover a thing. But he wasn’t satisfied, wouldn’t be until she lay in nothing, every inch of creamy flesh laid bare.
He slipped his hands beneath her and found the button at her waistband. “Lift up a little bit.”
“Can’t, you’re holding me down.”
“Right. Sorry,” he said, blushing because he couldn’t think. He slid a denim-clad thigh between hers, easing her open.
“How you gonna slide the skirt down?”
“Damn,” he muttered then did the only thing he could think of. He bent over her, captured that glossy mouth and kissed her.
Her thighs eased open, lifting, rising to cup his hips, and he rocked between her legs while his mouth rubbed over her soft mouth.
Juicy-wet silk.
Just like he’d imagined.
Clothing rustled, and he knew Danny was undressing, getting ready to join them on the bed, but it was Jake between her thighs, claiming her, settling his weight against her.
Her rose-brown nipples spiked, poking at his chest. Her belly undulated, stroking her pussy against his clothed cock.
He licked along the seam of her lips, waiting…
She gasped and he stroked inward, tasting her for the first time. A tiny moan seeped into his mouth, and he growled, deepened the kiss and framed her cheeks with his palms to hold her there.
The bed dipped beside him. “Let me get her out of those clothes, Jake,” Danny said quietly.
Jake broke the kiss then leaned his forehead against hers while he gathered the strength to move.
Camille stared into his eyes and a little smile curved her lips. “Have to move or we won’t get anywhere…”
“I’m not in any hurry.”
“Speak for yourself,” Danny grumbled.
“Damn, can’t move,” Jake whispered just above her mouth.
“I’ve been naked for five minutes,” she said, her lips pouting. “Doesn’t seem fair.”
Jake grinned at the tiny frown that drew her brows together. “Make it quick.”
He straightened and climbed off her, keeping his gaze averted from Danny’s body, because he wasn’t sure how he felt about watching his friend when he was aroused and ready to make love to a woman. Sure they’d showered in open stalls in high school, at work, but they’d been polite, never venturing a glance south.