Page 48 of Nailing Studs

When it became clear I wasn’t going to talk to Dom or Taylor when they showed up to work, both had taken to calling or texting me to see how I was doing. Logan did, too, but I couldn’t answer any of them. It wasn’t because I had no idea what was supposed to happen next or that I was scared shitless that things were going to take a kinky turn into something I couldn’t control or wasn’t ready for.

It was because I absolutely loved being with them.

There was nothing scarier than that. I finally understood what I thought I’d accepted all along—that while we’d probably all be together again, what we had was temporary. Which was supposed to be fine with me, so I couldn’t figure out what the heck was going on in my head to make the temporary part of this massive hook-up no longer okay.

As soon as the house was fixed up enough to sell for a decent asking price, we’d all be going our separate ways, and that idea made me want to burst into tears. Some warrior woman I was turning out to be.

* * *

I’d spent the day rearranging furniture and cleaning the loft, taking care to avoid the nest with the baby birds who were making a racket—as much care as I took to avoid Dom and Taylor. Later in the afternoon, I’d heard the sounds of them packing up for the day, and dashed into the bathroom for a quick shower.

With the grime washed off me, I wandered into my bedroom and slung on a pair of jeans and an old T-shirt, my new outfit of choice. Even after the shower, though, my nerves were still jangled. Maybe I could bake a pie to calm myself. The day before I’d found a great farmer’s market in Fosterman and had bought a bunch of mixed berries. Berry pie with vanilla ice cream sounded great right about now.

I’d just stepped out of my bedroom to head downstairs when I heard a creak on the bottom step. Oh, god—they hadn’t left!

“Hey.” A deep voice suddenly called back from below—Dominic. I froze as his voice continued up the stairwell. “You might as well come down, Kayla, my sweet. You can’t avoid us much longer, gorgeous. You’re going to talk to me, one way or another.”

I closed my eyes for a moment, the dominance in his tone making me shiver, and then I somehow plucked up the courage to head downstairs. As I descended the steps, I could see all the improvements they’d achieved today. Hanging from the middle of the living room ceiling was a sparkling new chandelier, the crown molding had been put up, and wow…this place was really coming alive.

It all made my heart ache that much more, knowing our time together was ticking away. Maybe I could punch a hole in the ceiling or accidentally-on-purpose pull a few cabinet doors off their hinges to keep my men coming back?

I finally made my way to the first floor, arms wrapped around myself. Dominic waited in the hallway. He stood there, hands braced on his hips, like he was ready to do battle. His grimace told me I needed to be wearing body armor rather than a faded T-shirt and pair of skinny jeans, but shit, even forged steel wouldn’t protect me from his fiery gaze.

“Are you okay?” he asked with more calm than his expression belied.

“Yeah, sure, fine. How are you?” I smiled sheepishly.

“Cut it out, Kayla. We know you’re not okay. You’ve been avoiding us for two days.”

“I just needed space, Dominic. It was overwhelming for me, you know.”

He watched me a moment, then sighed. “Look, we know. That’s why we haven’t pressured you, but you’re also ignoring our calls, and…” He dropped his hands off his hips, letting them dangle. “If what we did was too much and you want to cancel our renovation arrangement, just tell us.”

“Oh, God, no!” I suddenly wanted to cry. The thought of not having Dom, Taylor, and Logan killed me. “No, that’s not it at all. I loved what we did together. I want more…of you…of all of you. But I’m scared I enjoyed it too much.”

“You did?” His eyebrows took on a lighter, less menacing look. “You do?”

“Yes. I’m scared that when it’s time for us to say goodbye, I won’t be able to do it. Or I’ll make a fool of myself and throw myself at your feet and cling to you or something. All of you.” My laugh was shaky, at best. “God, I’d be three guys’ worst nightmare at that point.”

“Hey,” Dominic said softly, moving to me. He held out his arms, and I leaned into him. As he pulled me close, I closed my eyes and inhaled that intoxicating scent that was so specifically him. “We all enjoyed what we did. To hear that you’re not regretting it is music to my ears. You’re anything but a nightmare for us, Kayla, and we’re all afraid of being hurt. Of that day when we need to walk away and don’t want to. Hell, with my history, it probably scares me most of all…”

I backed out of his hold, not to get away from the emotions surrounding the two of us but to better see his face. “I know I’m scared to death of getting hurt and I wasn’t even engaged, like you. What happened with your fiancée?” I asked.

He sighed heavily and the strength seemed to ebb from his bones. He sat heavily on the bottom step, motioning for me to join him. “She met someone else. Simple as that. I was hurt, of course. She claimed to love me. How could she throw away a good thing after all the years we’d spent together? But now I know it wasn’t easy for her. She did love me. She just loved someone else more.”

I reached out and squeezed his arm. “What about Laura Fontaine?”

He side-glanced me. “How do you know about Laura?”

“She was the first real estate agent I spoke to, the one Taylor recommended. I guessed you didn’t know he did that.”

He shrugged. “Nope.”

“So, what happened? I mean, I already figured out that you guys shared a relationship with her.”

“Yeah, it started out good. She was Taylor’s girlfriend at first, but then she met me and…well, things progressed. Logan joined us a few times but the way Laura acted… I believed that she and Taylor were in a relationship, but that she and I were too. That it was more than just sex. That we were a committed unit. Only it turned out I was more like Logan than I thought. We were extras, there for her to get off and to use to get her end goal—Taylor.”

“I’m sorry,” I murmured.

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