Kayla's Gift: Powertools, Book 3 (2 page)

Kayla ushered them out of her living room and onto the front porch, crossing her arms over her chest to ward off the intense chill. It could be a hundred below yet she’d rather endure the sting of the wind for a couple seconds than add another layer of clothing to her frame.

The more she went nude, the more it stifled her to be dressed. The holidays she’d spent with her family had driven her insane with discomfort. A few moments longer and she could retreat to the bliss of her fireplace.

Dave tugged on his leather jacket while the other two men piled into their beast of a truck.

“Drive safe.”

Now that the guys prepared to pull out of her yard, a rebellious fraction of her mind wished she’d accepted Dave’s offer. Several days without their easy company seemed like an awfully long time. How could that be when she’d only met them six weeks earlier?

“We will.” He buttoned the flattering coat, inspiring a gulp.

She’d never seen him wear the thing before, never mind fasten it to the neck. Sporting something so constricting would suffocate her. Still, she wouldn’t complain about the extra time his actions granted them.

“Call if you need anything, baby.”

Like a hot construction worker to keep me toasty?
Hopping from foot to foot to prevent her toes from numbing—still preferable than stuffing them into the prison of heavy shoes—she indulged her stubborn streak, which refused to abandon the porch until he’d vanished from sight. She chaffed her arms.

Snowflakes swirled around them, drifting onto her hair. When one landed on her bottom lip, she licked the miniature puddle it left behind.

Dave’s eyes slitted a moment before he growled, “Fuck this.”

Kayla gasped between his parted lips when he swooped in to taste the moisture for himself. The kiss caught her completely off guard. He hadn’t telegraphed a single hint he’d noticed the electricity arcing between them. Not once had he taken their flirtation beyond harmless.

Until now.

She sank into his loose hold.

His tongue stole its first taste of her mouth. The gust of passion he inspired knocked her off balance.

She wrapped her arms around his neck to keep from losing her footing. When she thought she might try to crawl up him right there at the top of her stairs, in plain sight of his best friends, he retreated with a sigh.

Dave stroked wisps of hair from her cheek. “You’d better head in before you catch a chill.”

“As though I could have a cool molecule left on my body.” She touched her lips with her fingertips.

“What
was
that?”

10

“I think it’s called a kiss.” He laughed.

“Jesus. Not hardly. I’ve kissed plenty of guys before.”

Dave frowned.

“None of them fired me up like that. Amazing.”

“How about we work on it some more after the storm?”

She couldn’t speak so she nodded instead.

“Call me, Kayla. Let’s talk.”

“Promise.”

Dave pivoted and leapt down the stairs, grinning at her over his shoulder as he loped to the truck. If Neil had pressed his face any closer to the driver’s side window for a peep at the exchange, he’d have left a nose print on the glass. The instant he spotted his friend approaching, he turned the key in his truck’s ignition.

The powerful engine roared.

Then it sputtered.

Right before it died.

11

Chapter Two

“How could you have checked the spark plugs so fast?”

“For the fourth time, they’re fine.” Neil knocked Dave away then dropped the hood with a resounding
clunk
. Six inches reduced visibility to shit considering the giant snowflakes buffeting them all.

Kayla caught the tail end of the closest thing to a brawl she’d witnessed from the men as she returned to the gathering. She’d scooted inside long enough to slip on her boots and a hoodie when she realized something had gone way wrong.

“It’s probably the battery.” Neil paced beside his friends. “This frigid weather could have sapped it if it were on the edge. By the time we haul Kayla’s car over and jump it, plus run the engine long enough to guarantee we don’t end up stranded in a snow bank halfway down the mountain, it’ll be too late. This storm is nuts.”

“Hell, I’m not sure leaving now would be a great idea.” James scratched his chin. “This could be a blessing in disguise. It’s coming harder than we expected. Driving in this would be unwise.”

The three men faced her as one.

So much for a peaceful,
naked
vacation. “Come inside. You’re welcome to stay.”

“Are you sure…”

“Yes.” Kayla grabbed Dave’s hand to tug him toward the house. Neil and James shrugged then followed. She shivered despite her recent additions.

The guys shucked their boots and jackets as she headed for the kitchen. After working nearly twelve hours straight, they had to be starving in addition to cold. “What would you like for dinner? I’m guessing salted-caramel hot chocolate and Morgan’s day-old spice cookies aren’t going to cut it tonight.”

The crew had fallen in love with her specialty beverage, spurring her to consider making it a staple at the spa. She’d brewed it for them every day at quitting time. Except today, since they’d tried to beat the storm. Tried and failed.

“You don’t have to wait on us. I know you were hoping for some down time. Why don’t you relax by the fire, read or do whatever it is you do in the evenings? We can fend for ourselves. Stay out of your hair.”

Dave approached behind her, inciting another chill.

When she trembled, he wrapped her in his heat. His strong arms banded around her, tucking her close to the furnace of his chest. She wished their offensive sweaters didn’t create barriers between them. Long, thorough strokes of his broad palms infused her with warmth and dampened her pussy.

“Don’t be ridiculous. This isn’t exactly a mansion.” She glanced around the log cabin. Open floor plans didn’t allow for much privacy. A low bar separated the kitchen space from the main living area and a steep, narrow staircase led to her loft bedroom. The laundry room and extended pantry sat on the far side of her bathroom, the only truly walled-off space.

“We’ll have to figure out the sleeping arrangements. You’re the biggest. You should take my bed.”

She grimaced when she realized she couldn’t accommodate them all comfortably. If she were petite, she could bunk on the chaise. At close to six feet, no one would call her dainty. Hell, James was shorter than her by a few inches and Neil only had her by a little bit. “I can fit on one couch, and I think James can manage on the loveseat but Neil—”

“Neil and James sleep together. They can have the bed.” Dave didn’t make a big deal of his revelation. Neither of his friends seemed to mind the sharing.

She stepped from the shelter of his hold in time to catch a glance James and Neil exchanged. They smiled at each other with a perfect combination smoky sweetness. How hadn’t she guessed at their relationship before? She supposed the seamless interaction of all the guys had disguised the couple’s intimacy. Could more than lifelong friendship be at play in the crew at large?

“I’ll be good on the rug by the fire. That thing must be a foot deep. Don’t stress.” Dave grinned. “In fact, why don’t you let
me
cook for
you
? This could be fun.”

“Oh crap, you’d better supervise.” James nudged Neil toward the kitchen. “Last time he said that he made chili so spicy I couldn’t sit for a week.”

Neil chuckled. He landed a playful smack on his boyfriend’s ass before he joined Dave.

“Yeah, you weren’t laughing then.” James flung the rebuttal at his lover’s back before asking her,

“Are you okay with this?”

James didn’t look away or fidget.

“With the three of you crashing my alone time or your love for another man?” She sensed, more than heard, the two guys in the kitchen focused on their discussion.

“Both, I suppose.”

“Don’t insult me. You really think I’m some kind of ass cookie?” Kayla smothered James in a bear hug. She may have been taller but his lean, muscled arms embraced her with impressive strength. She rested her cheek on his forehead, encouraging him to snuggle into her chest. “You’re always welcome in my home. If anything, I’m jealous. Your boyfriend is smoking hot.”

“Better watch out, James.” Neil’s usual teasing floated over the bar. “I think you’re riling Dave. No telling what he’ll put in your food if you don’t take your stare off her breasts.”

They both laughed as they broke apart, any trace of discomfort banished.

13

Plates piled with spaghetti and meat sauce along with a basket of garlic bread perfumed Kayla’s house with savory steam. Her stomach rumbled, blocking out the sound of ice pinging off the windowpane for a moment. Snow drifted higher than her shins on the porch. Steady streams of precipitation streaked past the light post, showing no sign of stopping anytime soon.

She tugged at the waistband of her jeans when her fingers encountered the denim. Though loose, it still irritated her abdomen. James set one more bundle of wood on the floor of the laundry room before shucking his coat, unwrapping his scarf and peeling off his gloves. She wished she could undress.

He joined them at the dinner table, stomping his feet to regain circulation. “Shit, it’s colder than a well digger’s left ass cheek out there.”

“Want me to warm you up?” Neil’s crooked grin inspired a moan to slip from her parted lips.

“What’s that, Kay?” Dave teased.

“I said, ‘Let’s eat.’”

The guys grinned, but didn’t hesitate. They dug into the meal. For several minutes, silence reigned, dotted with the occasional clinks of artistic handmade silverware against heavy earthenware plates, mugs settling on the rustic table and the obnoxious beep of Dave’s cell phone.

“Shit! I forgot. I had…plans.” He stalked from their gathering, already hauling the device from his pocket. Urgent whispers drifted from the far side of the cabin, where he huddled in the corner, facing away from their gathering.

Kayla dropped her fork. It clattered off her plate and skidded onto the floor. Did he have a date? Had his kiss been impulsive? Did he regret the brief collision still burning her lips? Was some other woman waiting for him—dressing up and putting on makeup in hopes of luring him into her bed after dinner and a movie?

Neil reached behind him in the cozy space to withdraw a clean utensil from the drawer on the bar.

“Oops, here.”

When she didn’t accept his offering immediately, James patted her shoulder. “Hey, don’t go there.”

“Hmm?” She tried not to focus on the wisps of raspy conversation floating into the kitchen.

“It’s not what you think. That didn’t look good, but I’m sure there’s some other explanation.” James sent her a soft smile. “Dave’s been knotted up over you since the moment we spied you on the porch as we pulled up for our consultation. He hasn’t seen anyone…any women, since then.”

Kayla swore a blush dusted James’s cheeks. Could he mean…? And why was the idea so appealing to her when she wanted Dave for herself? In a matter of hours things had spiraled out of control. The howling wind couldn’t counteract the heat blazing through her kitchen, igniting insanity.

“So, what do you two plan to occupy yourself with over the next few days? Sorry to say I don’t even have a TV,” she rambled to avoid eavesdropping on Dave.

“I think we’re capable of entertaining ourselves.” James winked at Neil.

14

“That should be interesting.” Dave ambled to his place at the table, straddled the chair and resumed devouring his dinner. “I don’t mind hearing, seeing…whatever. But Kayla didn’t sign up for the live edition of Skinemax.”

Her spine steeled. She stretched the neckband of her soft shirt, trying to ease the constriction on her throat. So now he thought her sheltered because she didn’t have a Friday-night hookup to blow off? “How the hell would you know what I’m interested in? Forget voyeurism. Maybe I have guys over for foursomes all the time. Women too. Maybe I’m a freak who enjoys roaming the mountainside in the buff and hooking up with anyone who flips my switch.”

“Whoa. What the hell just happened?” Dave shot glances to each of his friends as though begging for a lifeline.

“I think you pissed her off.” Neil attempted to hide his smirk behind his napkin. Too bad no sauce had stained his curved lips. “Moron.”

“Tell her who called.” James earned a glare for his intervention. He shrugged then blew her a kiss.

“It was Joe.”

“Why?” Neil tilted his head. “Did he and Mike run into trouble?”

“Nah.” Dave adjusted his woven-cedar placemat. “It took longer than they hoped, but they made it home fine.”

“Man, maybe you’re dumber than I thought.” Neil refused to drop the subject no matter how hard she concentrated on transmitting her thoughts to him.

Shut up. Shut up. Shut up.