Cabin Fever (11 page)

“Come here, you.” Patrick clasped her wrists, pulling her toward him. He kissed her, starting with her forehead, then her cheeks, and finally her lips, where he lingered. “You’re so sweet,” he breathed.

“Ahem!”

He faced her toward the doorway where Sean stood with a bottle and glasses. “Starting the celebrating without me?”

“No, just got carried away,” He walked toward Sean, then took the bottle and corkscrew.

“At least you’re warming her up. You are warmed up, aren’t you, honey?” Sean flashed her a disarming smile.

She was more than warmed up. How about burning up! But she wouldn’t show too much enthusiasm. She didn’t want to get these two men too excited. She didn’t think she could handle them coming at her, over-aroused, at once. Her pussy quivered at the thought.

“Umm…are we going to be doing anything tonight?” Sandra put it all out there. She really needed to prepare herself physically, but also emotionally. If they both wanted to make love to her at the same time, she needed ample warning.

“We’ll do anything you want, honey.” Sean sat on the edge of the bed.

“I would like to talk first.”

He looked over at Patrick, who nodded. How much of this had they already discussed?

Thinking back, whenever she had a new man in her life, these two had cut them down quick. Mind you, nothing was really wrong with the men she’d dated. Granted, none of them were Superman, but they’d been decent. Yet, after the guys finished ripping them apart, she saw all their flaws, along with some that didn’t exist.

Funnier yet, when the guys dated someone, their romances never lasted longer than a New York minute. Each of them gave all sorts of reasons why she didn’t work out. She worked too much or was not into her job. Too clingy or not responsive. But never the “perfect” woman. Sandra told them that they would never find the perfect person. The idea was to find someone who was perfect for them.

So for a while, all three of them had remained dateless. So here they were—together—alone—and unattached.

A perfect solution for a complicated issue.

“So, what do you want to talk about?” Sean relaxed on the bed, scooting next to her.

“About what happened earlier. Does Patrick know about you…?”

“Of course.”

She swung her head so fast, she felt her neck crack. ”Patrick, you’re okay with it?”

He cocked his head a bit and grinned slightly. “I’m coming around to it. I must admit, however, Sean’s watching me pleasure you did turn me on. And knowing it got him off was icing on the cake.”

Sandra knocked the side of her head with the palm of her hand.
Men are complicated
. If she wasn’t mistaken, only a few weeks ago each of them had been acting jealous of the other. Now all of a sudden—Woodstock!

“So you like being watched?” She pointed to Patrick. “And you like watching?” She faced Sean.

“It’s not so much that. It’s who we’re with. Since it’s you, with someone I care about, that makes a difference.” Patrick joined them on the bed. He sat on the edge facing the window, but put his hand on Sandra’s leg and massaged it.

Sandra nodded slowly. It seemed to make sense, in a twisted sort of way.

“Now, if I remember correctly, you were pretty excited by me being in the doorway. Am I right?” Sean asked, with a knowing grin.

“Well…yeah….”

“Come on, Sandy.” Patrick’s hand crept a little higher. “There is nothing to be ashamed of. You let yourself go, got caught up in the moment, and had a wonderful orgasm. Now, is that bad?”

She crossed her arms over her chest. “Well, since you put it that way, of course not.”

“Trust us, we’re not trying to force you to accept something you’re leery about, or not comfortable with. However, we do want you to consider the…possibilities.”

Sandra had thought of the possibilities. On the surface it seemed like a win-win situation. She could live out a fantasy with two gorgeous men in her life. Those stories she read in her magazine, she could actually act out. They
were
far away from home. No one knew them here. She could have a freakin’ good time.

What could go wrong?

Then it hit her. Plenty.

Their business relationship could suffer, might even deteriorate. And their friendship could be ruined altogether.

Nope, she’d already taken a chance by letting Patrick make love to her. And even though he and Sean agreed to share her, emotions were too unpredictable.

“You guys, I understand where you’re coming from. But it’s too much of a risk.”

“Back to our friendship again, huh? You must not think much it, if you’re afraid loving us will tear it apart.” Sean cocked his head.

“Think about it. Somebody’s nose is going to be bent out of shape.” She moved to stand, but Sean pulled her back down.

“Nonsense. Patrick and I have discussed this in great detail. There’s nothing that would please us more than to please you.”

Sandra sat there a moment, and thought something was more than a bit odd. When did men want to…? “Say, have you two engaged in this before?”

They looked at each other, then back at her. “We haven’t. Does that make you feel better?”

“Definitely not. It means you’re unsure what to expect. This is a new adventure for you, too.”

“But Sean and I are willing to try this out with you and
only
you.” Patrick smiled. “It’s because we both love you that we want to share. And we’re sure it’s right.”

“I admit, I love both of you, too. But—”

“You can’t decide who you love more?” Sean finished for her.

“Well, love can be different. I love Patrick maybe differently from you.”

“But you still love us.”

“Yes.”

“Then…?” Sean let the question hang.

She shook her head. “I really have to think this through. We have a couple of more weeks here, so there’s no rush, if it’s all right with you?”

“No problem at all.” Patrick stood up.

“Just let us know,” Sean followed his best friend. “By the way, whatever you decide, we’ll respect that, and it won’t change anything.” He winked at her and shut the door behind them.

Sandra sat on the bed, stunned. She couldn’t believe the turn of events. She’d been reading about it and secretly fantasizing about it. She couldn’t deny the way Patrick made her feel, or how she got off on Sean watching them. However, she could count the many reasons why it wouldn’t be a good idea.

On the other hand, the pros outweighed the cons. They were friends, very close, shared everything. She could see this as experimentation, one of those crazy things she would put in her diary. A night of fun, crazy sex. She trusted the guys. They told her they wouldn’t change their minds about their friendship if she didn’t go through with it. So obviously this could be just for fun. Maybe if she kept repeating that, she could convince herself.

“So what’s on the to-do list today?” Patrick asked, as he sat down at the breakfast table. Sean had been cooking something that smelled good enough to wake him out of a sound sleep. Waffles.

“Funny you should ask. I’m not sure which is the more pressing issue. Getting this place fixed, or Sandra.”

“She doesn’t need to be fixed.” Patrick smirked.

“What do you think then? You think she’s open to the whole idea?” Sean quickly flipped the sausages. “I’m beginning to have doubts.” He shrugged. “When do you think she’ll tell us either way? Like she said, we have a few weeks here. She could wait ’til the last minute.”

“I don’t think I can last that long. I’ve had her already, Sean, and I loved it. I want to be with her again.”

“Well, even if she decides not to go the ménage route, I’m sure it will work out for you before we leave.”

Patrick leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms. “Are you all right with that, considering it was our idea from the beginning to have a ménage?”

“I have no choice in the matter now. The door has been opened. One of us was surely going to walk in. It just happened to be you first.”

Patrick rubbed his chin. “That’s noble of you.”

“I’m being practical.” Sean set three plates on the table. “Even if she decides not to go for it with us, she may come to me eventually. She did confess to loving both of us.”

Patrick nodded. “Yeah. I see your point. We may not be in bed together, but we would still be sharing her.” He paused and grabbed the salt and pepper. “But that’s not what you want, is it?”

Sean piled eggs and sausages on the other plates. “You know me like a book.”

“I do.”

“I’ll admit, the prospect of having Sandra at the same time has turned me on for months.”

“Weeeelll. We have to help her make up her mind. Look at it this way, she didn’t straight out say no. So she’s entertaining the thought. Of that much, I’m certain,” Patrick said.

“Come on, now. You’re aroused, too. Otherwise you wouldn’t go along with it.”

“Hey, I never said the idea didn’t turn me on. On the contrary. But I’m the cautious type. I like to tread lightly.”

“Hopefully with everything going on, she won’t think too hard on this. I’m hoping she gives in to her desires and goes with it.”

“Sandra is a bit more conservative than you and I. Although, I kinda wonder, after the other morning,” Patrick mused.

“How hard do you think she can fight her interest in us with all of us up here alone?”

“Cabin fever, huh?”

“Gotta find something to do to pass the time.” Sean smiled and set down a pitcher of pineapple juice. “Sandra, breakfast is ready!”

“Coming!”

“Let’s stay quiet about the discussion last night, unless she brings it up. We’ll talk about the renovations.” Sean took a seat.

“By the way, any word from your uncle?”

“No. Of course when I called, I probably sounded a bit pissed. Even though we’ve decided to turn this into a spa, it was fucked up, him dumping this on me.”

“Uncle Travis wouldn’t be Uncle Travis if he wasn’t trifling.” Patrick chuckled.

“What’s this about Uncle Travis?” Sandra, bundled up in her fluffy terry cloth robe, joined them at the table.

Patrick could smell the fresh strawberry bath gel from across the table. He could eat her again instead of breakfast.

“We’re talking about the lodge soon to be health spa, if we play our cards right.” Patrick lifted his eyes skyward. “Uncle Travis knew what he was doing when he put this in our lap.”

“Don’t you two worry. We’ll make it the best health spa in the Rockies. The last laugh will be ours.” Sandra patted both the men’s hands. “Mmm, waffles, eggs, and sausages.” She dug in.

“Speaking of which, who’s up for going to Home Depot?” Patrick asked, lifting his mug.

“I would go, but the snow kinda knocked the wind out of my sails last time,” Sean said. “Besides, I want to go over the cabin from top to bottom.”

“Okay, I’ll go alone. Anything in particular I’m looking for?” Patrick asked, rubbing Sandra’s arm. She smiled up at him and continued eating.

“Lots of books on do-it-yourself remodeling. Ask about local contractors, too.”

“All right, then.” Patrick polished off his breakfast, wiped his mouth, and got up from the table. “I’m going to bundle up and take off. The weather is clear, but we don’t know how long it will last.”

“Thanks. This lodge is huge. There’s a wing I haven’t even been into since we arrived.” Sean took the last gulp of pineapple juice. “Well, I guess that’s our to-do list.” The other two followed him out of the kitchen.

“I got my list and note pad.” Patrick pulled on his coat. “Give me a call if you two think of anything else.”

“Sure will.” Sean trailed him to the door. “Watch it out there. The roads are still slick.”

“Got the chains on.”

***

Shoulder to shoulder, but not quite touching Sandra, Sean watched Patrick pull out of the driveway.

“Where do we start?” She put her hands on her hips looking around.

He rubbed the back of his neck and scanned the room. “Let’s start from the top and work our way down.”

“Okie dokie.” She rubbed her hands together. “Let me find my camcorder and notepad.”

He loved her enthusiasm. “Good idea. We can film the areas, write stuff down, and email several contractors at once.”

Sandra nodded. “Technology, gotta love it.”

The first room they stepped in held a computer desk and bookshelves.

“Okay, I am scanning the room now.” She turned left to right. “Oh. Those beams are cracked.” Sandra pointed at the ceiling.

“Damn! Oh no.”

“What?’ She switched off the camera.

“Termites.”

“Don’t say that.”

“I’m afraid so.” Sean picked at the wood in the corner of the room. “Yep.”

She blew out a breath. “I wonder how much that’s gonna cost.”

“Not even going to think about it now. Let’s go one room at a time.”

Sandra nodded and returned to filming. After the third bedroom, they sat down on the window seat for a break.

“How many bedrooms does this monstrosity have?” Sandra asked.

“From what I remember six, including the master.”

“They’re all huge, too, and in need of repair. It’s more than we can really do ourselves.”

“I can think of one thing that will save a ton of money right off the bat.” Sean scooted closer.

“What’s that?”

“Demolition.”

She laughed. “Now that, we could do.” She focused on something outside the window.

He couldn’t let the opportunity pass. He leaned over and rested a hand on her leg, peering over her shoulder. “Whatcha looking at?”

“Nothing in particular. Well, actually, I had a thought about the landscaping.”

He groaned. “This
is
a money pit.”

Sandra shook her head. “Hey, wait. This place is paid up.”

“Yes, that’s true.”

“Let’s have someone come and appraise it. If Travis does hand the house over to you, we can use the equity toward improvements.”

“Sounds good to me.”

“And you make Uncle Travis put up the rest, out of his retirement money. It’s the least he could do for dumping this place on you.”