Travis (21 page)

What
the hell was wrong with him? His heart was pounding like he’d just run ten
miles. The only thing Gage could think about was the argument he had with
Travis and his need to push the man into responding. When he’d seen Travis at
the lake, he had been bombarded by a red haze of anger when he realized who was
in the truck with him. The mere sight had sparked something dark and possessive
in his gut.

Shit,
they’d almost gone toe to toe the night before because Travis was insistent
that Gage wouldn’t be asking Kylie to stay with him while she handled the
renovations on his house. He’d understood what Travis was stating, but the way
the man went about it was all wrong. If they stood half a chance of this
working, there was no room for jealousy between them.

Yet
the green eyed monster had reared its ugly head. Last night with Travis and
then again this morning with Gage. That didn’t bode well for where this was
headed. How did they expect to share Kylie in any way with them both pulling
the alpha bullshit that should be relegated to animals in the wild?

And
still, they both seemed to be dedicating much of their energy to taunting one
another. When Travis bolted toward him at the lake, Gage had wanted a reaction
and he’d certainly gotten one. For one second, Gage had seen more than just the
anger and resentment that Travis had been consumed by lately. But that’s the
way Travis had always been for as long as Gage had known him. Detached. Aloof.
Promiscuous. The man didn’t do relationships, and Gage knew from being Kaleb’s
friend exactly how stand-offish Travis was. The man was centrally focused and
everything revolved around work, whether it was Walker Demolition or the new resort,
and his extracurricular activities, which were random and one-nighters at best.

But
Gage had sensed some emotion in Travis recently. It started when Travis kissed
him that first time, then the second, but most importantly, he’d seen it when
he brought Kylie to Kaleb’s house. He’d set out to get Travis fired up, and it
worked. Not quite the results Gage was going for, but something had changed.

And
the absolute last thing he expected to come of this was some sort of twisted
ménage, although Gage damn sure wasn’t against it happening. He just hadn’t
expected it. He anticipated that he and Travis would collide in the most passionate
of ways. Eventually. But for Kylie to be involved, becoming the center of both
of their attention was somewhere out of left field.

His
thoughts back tracked to the day he’d made love with Kylie at her house. The
way she rode him, giving herself over to the passion that erupted when they
were in the same room together still made Gage’s head spin. The memories caused
a strange constriction around his heart. One that had become persistent over
the last couple of months.

Gage
leaned over, putting his hands on his thighs as he tried to catch his breath.
He was beginning to think he was having anxiety attacks. He was overwhelmed,
and he didn’t know whether this was something he’d brought on himself or if it
had something to do with the two people who were now under the same roof as he
was.

When
the door swung open, Gage stood to his full height quickly, not wanting to let
Travis see him at a weak moment.

“You
ok?”

Why
did it sound like Travis cared? From what Gage knew, Travis only cared about
himself. That reminded him of what Travis had said to Kylie earlier:

You
were never my play thing, Kylie. Never. Nor would you be now. What I felt for
you, I’ve never felt for anyone else.

If
there was something more inside of Travis, was it possible that there was a
chance he’d feel the same about Gage at some point? At least something more
than the chemistry that he knew flickered between them like the electrical
storm that was brewing outside.

“Fine,”
he growled, turning to walk away before Travis had a chance to see what was
written all over his face.

Travis’
strong fingers gripped his bicep. Before Gage could pull away, he found himself
being pushed up against the wall, Travis all up in his face. He wasn’t
intimidated easily, but the reaction his body gave to Travis’ aggressiveness
wasn’t what he expected. Although Travis was a few inches taller, Gage was
bigger. But it didn’t seem to matter because even at two hundred and ten
pounds, Gage felt as though Travis could take him down with a breath. His entire
body reacted as though he were a submissive and Travis was his master, which he
knew damn sure wasn’t the case.

“When
are you going to get tired of running?” Travis asked, his face incredibly close.
Close enough that Gage could see the stubble on his chin and the storm clouds
brewing in his impassioned blue eyes. Somewhere along the way Travis had
ditched his cowboy hat, his dark hair haphazardly spiked like he’d run his
hands through it one too many times.

“I
didn’t run,” Gage answered, knowing it was a lie. He’d been running for months
now. Ever since Travis cornered him at the Walker’s house. Ever since he made
love to Kylie.

“The
hell you didn’t.” Travis’ voice lowered, his head moved in closer. “You’ve run
from me since the first time.”

“What
do you care?” Gage asked, trying to push him away without much effort.

“I
don’t want you to run.”

Gage
stared deep into Travis’ eyes, wishing like hell he could see right into the
man’s soul. What was he getting at? Aside from wanting to fuck? “No? You’d
rather I stand here and give you what you want? Is that it?”

“And
just what the hell do you think I want?”

“Me.”

“You
don’t want me to want you?”

Gage
didn’t know where this conversation was going, but, Lord help him, he was
getting hard. Here he was, trying to piss Travis off, getting way too defensive
and the look in Travis’ eyes backed up his words. Now, more than ever, Gage
wanted this man.

He
didn’t respond. He couldn’t say a word, so he just stood there, staring,
waiting… Hell, he didn’t even know what he was waiting for.

Travis
gripped his chin, and Gage’s entire body went rigid. It didn’t matter how the
man touched him, but whenever their skin came in contact, his body lit up from
the inside out. He sucked in a breath, anticipating what Travis would say or do
next.

“If
I didn’t know better, I’d think you wanted me to kiss you,” Travis goaded.

Reality
slammed back into Gage at the tone of Travis’ voice, and he pushed him at the
same time he flipped their positions so that Travis was pinned against the
wall.

“Yeah?
You think that’s what I want from you?”

Travis
glared, not an ounce of fear in his expression. Gage could sense that he was
being taunted and damn it all to hell, he didn’t give a fuck.

Slamming
his mouth down on Travis’, Gage took everything Travis offered and then some.
There was no hesitation when he shoved his tongue into the hot recesses of
Travis’ mouth, tasting him, damn near inhaling him. And when Travis gripped the
back of his head, holding him close, unwilling to let him back off, Gage found
himself pressing fully against Travis’ rock hard body, a deep, rumbling growl
emerging from his chest.

Fucking
hell
.
Gage wanted to strip Travis bare right there in the kitchen and bury himself
deep inside of him until neither of them could breathe from wanting that release
that seemed just out of reach. The game they’d been playing was becoming more
than a little tiring, and Gage wanted more. Hell, he wanted anything and
everything Travis would give him.

Groaning
as the kiss slowed and intensified at the same time, Gage thrust his hips
forward, seeking the friction he desperately needed. That’s when Travis snaked
his hand between their bodies, stroking Gage’s steel hard cock behind the
zipper of his jeans.
Fuck. Shit.
He was surprised he didn’t come right
then and there. He was unable to remember his own name when Travis slid his
fingers into his hair, angling his head just slightly so he could delve deeper,
his tongue thrusting, dueling… robbing him of everything that he was.

Long
seconds passed before they separated, both of them struggling to suck in
oxygen. As though Travis was worried he would try to get away, his hand
tightened in his hair, holding him as their foreheads pressed together.

“You
don’t know how bad I want you. How long I’ve wanted you.” Travis’ words
penetrated the fog inside of his brain, but Gage still wasn’t sure what to make
of them. He was beginning to want something from this man. And the more he was
around Travis, the more he wanted.

More
than sex.

The
sex he could handle. There wasn’t anything that Gage shied away from and having
been attracted to both men and women most of his life, he didn’t think twice
about what he wanted from Travis when it came down to sexual gratification. It
was the other things Gage was beginning to crave. Emotional attachments,
tomorrows. The happily ever after shit that everyone else seemed to find but
him. He wondered whether Travis would ever be able to give anyone those things.

A
sudden gasp had Gage breaking away from Travis as though they’d just been
busted doing something illegal. They both turned to see Kylie standing in the
doorway, her hand over her mouth as she stared back at them, her eyes wide as
saucers.

Before
Gage could say anything, Kylie turned and ran up the back staircase to the
second floor. He couldn’t do anything except stare after her. He tried to put himself
in her shoes, to see what she had seen from her perspective, but it didn’t
work. Gage had no idea how she interpreted the two of them together. If the
look on her face was anything to go by, she didn’t see it with the same desire
she’d portrayed when Gage had kissed Travis in the truck.

Travis
pushed away from the wall and turned to go upstairs, but Gage didn’t move. As
Travis disappeared up the back stairs, Gage realized that the water upstairs
had never come on, the old pipes weren’t rumbling and creaking.

Shit.

How
long had Kylie been standing there?

♂♀♂

Taking
the back stairs that led to the second floor, Kylie fled from what she’d just
seen. Her mind was fast tracking through a multitude of emotions. Lust,
excitement, and all of a sudden, a heart weary fear. They all flooded her as
she tried to come to terms with what she just saw.

The
interaction between Travis and Gage was so powerful, she had a hard time
understanding how there was room for her. Well, it didn’t take much to understand
how it would
physically
work. But, that’s not the part she feared.
Surprisingly, she could contribute her excitement to that aspect of it. But the
connection between the two of them was something that seemed impenetrable from
someone on the outside, and she wondered whether they even realized it.

Travis
wanted Gage.

Gage
wanted Travis.

And
if she were to rationalize the situation, she had a hard time figuring how she fit
in with the passion that was so potent between them, she’d physically felt it
as she stood in the doorway.

By
the time she made it back to the small bedroom that she had escaped to earlier,
she was out of breath, but the shock still hadn’t worn off. Not only had she
wanted to be a part of that, she had been turned on by what she saw. The way
Travis trapped Gage against the wall, then vice versa… the influx of heat and passion
was palpable in the still, humid air.

 She
slipped into the small bathroom and closed the door behind her, but there
wasn’t a lock. She knew one, if not both, of them would come after her – maybe
not until they were finished – and she wasn’t sure she wanted to see either of
them right then.

She
was just so confused. Like she was living in an alternate universe, and
everything was not the way it was supposed to be. Shouldn’t she be jealous? Of
at least one of them? Travis was her husband for chrissakes. And Gage… well,
there for a while she’d dated him. Kind of. Now the three of them seemed to be
involved in this decidedly strange triangle. And she was torn between the heat
generating in her core when she watched them and understanding whether this was
real or not. And if it was real, was her heart at risk once again?

For
the last few hours she’d ignored that particular organ, not wanting to accept
how real this could be. Nonetheless, she couldn’t turn a blind eye to what she
desperately yearned for no matter how damn horny they made her.

Sliding
down the wall, she sat on the floor, dropping her head in her hands and closing
her eyes, but as soon as she did, the vision of Travis and Gage kissing
assaulted her and heart be damned, her blood reheated. It was the hottest thing
she’d ever seen.

Still,
she couldn’t wrap her mind around how this situation would even play out. It
didn’t matter that she ached for both men, or that she knew given half a
chance, they’d give her what she wanted – in the sexual sense at least. Kylie
couldn’t help but feel there was something significant going on between the two
of them. Something more than sex.

It
sounded like a bad case of lust, based on the words she’d heard, but watching
them, and maybe they didn’t even realize it, she knew there was something else
there. They were both strong, powerful men, yet when they were like that, it
was as though those hard exteriors dissolved and what remained were two men who
needed each other.

So
what was her problem? Well, aside from the fact that she wanted them to turn
that intensity on her. Desperately. Was there room for her in this? Or was it
one of those right place right time scenarios and these men, who were so
interested in having a threesome as they refer to it, were including her
because it was convenient.

Ok,
so she was overthinking this.

“Damn
it,” she whispered in the dimly lit bathroom, lifting her head to glance
around.

All
sorts of erotic images danced through her head as she looked over at the
shower. This was an old house, and the shower was small, barely large enough
for two people, much less two gigantic men. But that didn’t stop her from
fantasizing about what it would be like to have both of them naked in that
shower.

She
was reading too much. Maybe she should try a different genre for a change.
Romantic suspense or something like that. Hell, maybe a good murder mystery
would do her some good because the fleeting thoughts of what it would feel like
to be plastered against Travis’ body while Gage stood in front of her, doing
all of those wicked things with his tongue…

Holy
shit
.

Taking
a deep breath, Kylie contemplated getting up, but she couldn’t find the energy
to move.

What
were they doing now? It was clear she’d interrupted a rather intimate moment
between the two men. Were they still kissing?
Oh, man
. The thought sent
a lightning streak of sensation straight to her clit.

Scrubbing
a hand over her face, Kylie tried to erase the thoughts. She needed to take a
shower. A really cold one. Maybe that would clear some of the cobwebs from the
logical part of her brain, and she’d stop thinking with her…

A
strangled chuckle escaped. Was she really sitting there thinking about sex? The
idea amused her. Granted, she was downright intimate with her vibrator these
days, but other than her battery operated boyfriend, Kylie was lacking anything
promising in her life. At least when it came to sex. She’d been engulfed by a big
fat dry spell.

Until
recently.

And
technically, this could be an end to that, couldn’t it? Maybe a few romps
together, some nights spent rolling around in the sheets with two sexy cowboys…
The idea had merit.

“Get
it together, Prescott. You don’t know what you’re asking for.” She said the
words out loud, but it didn’t help. She could try to talk herself out of this
for the next three hours, and it wouldn’t matter.

It
wouldn’t do a damn bit of good either.

Kylie
wanted what they’d started in the truck earlier. She even wanted what they’d
started in the kitchen without her.

And
she wanted to be the filling in that sandwich, dammit.

♂♀♂

Travis
moved with purpose. Somehow he managed to pull himself away from Gage and move
up the stairs. He couldn’t help but wonder what the hell was going through
Kylie’s mind. He had an idea. Or at least he thought he did.

Up
until the moment in his truck when Kylie had ground her perfect hips, forcing
her clit to rub against his straining cock until she came, or in Gage’s truck when
Travis had pulled her shirt off, baring her beautiful body to both of them,
he’d thought he knew what Kylie wanted from him which equaled a whole hell of a
lot of nothing.

He
also thought he had pegged her years ago as being a one man woman. Literally.
Now, he was questioning quite a bit of his logic. But there was one thing he
was absolutely certain of, he was going to implode if they kept this up. These
back and forth emotions were wearing on him, tearing at his resolve and Travis
had a feeling he was going to crack.

It
took him a minute or two to maneuver through all of the empty rooms on the
second floor before he found the one with the closed door. He didn’t hear any movement
on the other side, but he knew that’s where Kylie was. It was the only room
with a light on, and she was nowhere to be found.

Tapping
on the door with the tips of his fingers, Travis called out to her, “Kylie,
come out here.”

Barging
in would’ve been his usual M.O. but Travis was feeling somewhat generous today.
Ok, that was a bold faced lie. He didn’t want to barge in because the last
thing he wanted to do was piss her off. Although he wasn’t sure that ordering
her around was in his best interest either, but it was undoubtedly the lesser
of two evils.

Almost
a minute passed before the door creaked open and Kylie stood before him,
looking like an angel even with her disheveled hair and her wrinkled shirt. Or
maybe because of her unkempt appearance, he wasn’t sure. She was so beautiful,
it wouldn’t matter what she wore or how her hair looked. Travis would still be
awed by the sight of her.

Keeping
his tone firm, he said, “Come here.”

She
paused only briefly before she stepped out of what appeared to be a bathroom
and into the room he was in. He’d like to assume it was a bedroom, but since it
was lacking a bed, to him it was just a room. With a floor. And a hot woman.
Who was looking at him like…

Without
thinking, because she interrupted his thought processes when she was near,
Travis reached for her. Much to his relief, she practically fell into his arms
as he pulled her against him. He wasn’t sure whether she was angry, upset, or confused,
but it didn’t matter as long as he could hold her in his arms.

When
she leaned back, he half expected her to lay into him for what she’d seen in
the kitchen. What he didn’t expect was for her to push up on her toes and kiss
him senseless. The insistent press of her lips against his got his blood
pumping, and every drop headed right back to his dick where it had spent most
of the day thanks to Kylie and Gage.

He’d
like to conclude by the way she was kissing him that she wasn’t mad. Then
again, angry sex could be hot as hell…

No.
no angry sex. Just sex. Good old fashioned sex.

Shit.
He had to stop thinking with his dick. At least for five minutes. That would be
five times longer than he’d ever managed before, but…

When
she looked back up at him, it was only to ask him where Gage was, but before Travis
could answer, the man was walking through the door. His movements were tentative
initially, but something in Kylie’s body language must’ve settled him because
he was up against her in seconds.

Oh.

Fuck.

If
he took the best feeling he’d ever had and multiplied it by a zillion, he still
wouldn’t come up with what he was feeling right then.

Kylie’s
much smaller body was pressed between them both, Travis against her chest, Gage
at her back and the sudden longing to take a minute, strip, and then start over
again was rather intense.

“Do
you still want this?” Kylie surprised him with her question, but he answered
her anyway.

“I’ve
always wanted this, baby.”

“With
me?”

Why
she sounded so uncertain he didn’t know. Maybe seeing him and Gage in the
kitchen had given her the impression that there wasn’t room for her in this,
but that was obviously not the case.

Although
he was still a little nervous about whether Kylie knew what she wanted, he was quite
confident that, for the first time in his life, he’d found a man who wanted the
same thing he did. And it just so turned out that they both wanted her.

“I’ve
never wanted anything more,” he whispered as he pressed his lips to hers. She
was pliant in his arms, her soft curves molded to his body, making him yearn to
get this moving along.

In
his defense, his dick had been playing inflate/deflate for the better part of
the day. And the damn thing was tired.

“I
don’t know how this works,” she admitted, continuing to deliver small kisses
against his mouth. “But I want to find out.”

Hot
damn!

Travis
looked over her head at Gage and waited for a signal. As much as he wanted
this, he needed them to all be on the same page. A curt nod was all he
received, but then there was a devilish smile that came right on its heels.

“Let’s
move this to the shower,” Kylie suggested.

And
the woman said she didn’t know how this worked.