Page 14 of Needing More
Vic pulled his motorcycle up to the back of the gym and stopped it at the open door. Earlier he had tried calling Hayden and Joel and was surprised when Sapphire answered Joel's phone.
"Hi, Vic." Her smooth voice was edged in a hint of a smile that made him picture her beautiful face. In the background, he could hear the clinks and clatter of the coffee shop.
"I was looking for Joel," he began. "I decided to take your advice and get away from that farm for a little bit and thought I would go hit the gym."
"Well, you're in luck. Both Hayden and Joel just went across the street. They said they were going to get in a workout and then work on the locker room area since the new remote dorms will be opening any day now."
Vic winced. That was just another thing he hadn't been able to get to. When they had bought the building a few years back the three of them had sat in the living room above the café and brainstormed on turning it into the perfect gym. Vic had been more than excited by the project. He had envisioned running the place, hiring a manager, and expanding it over time. He had big dreams for the place.
That sure as hell wasn’t happening now, he thought bitterly. Between his father and all the chores at the farm and still trying to help run the bar at night there just wasn't enough time and energy left over.
But today, he was at least going to get a workout in with his brothers. Today, he would at least get to feel like his old self again.
"Thanks, I’ll head over there," he told her.
"No problem. Come by and see me before you head back home. I got a fresh batch of cookies I made for you. I was going to send them to you via Joel but since you're here already we don’t have to play the game of whether Joel will eat them or not."
Laughing, he agreed and said his goodbyes. Staring at his phone he swiped away from Joel's contact icon to hers on his phone. Having linked her phone number to her Facebook profile, he stared back at Sapphire's almost hostile expression etched into her stunning face. Vic smiled. He kind of liked how she met the world with thorns and venom while keeping the soft, silken part of her reserved for friends.
Shoving his phone in his pocket, he unstrapped his gym bag from the back of his bike and walked up to the open back door.
He could hear the clanking of metal and the sounds of voices from deep within. Vic stepped through the bare bones locker room and stopped just outside the open doorway that led to the open gym floor. Joel and Hayden were only a few feet away, both standing in front of the free weights in front of the partially mirrored walls. The remaining mirror panels were laying in a box on the floor needing to be put up.
"God, I swear last night was the best night yet," Joel groaned, tilting his head back to the high ceiling as he curled the weight in his hand. "The things she lets us do," he sighed.
Vic stilled.
He intended to sneak up on them as they were working out. He wanted to see the happy surprise on their faces as he joined them for a workout. But he couldn’t move. This conversation was private. Vic knew if he intruded now the reaction he imagined wouldn't be quite the same. The private world that existed between them and Sapphire, a world Vic tried to tell himself didn't exist, would close between him and his brothers like a vault door. Their conversation would shutter and they would share a knowing look between them as they shifted their conversation to safer topics for his sake.
Was he losing them too?
Resentfully, Vic stepped backward even as Hayden spoke.
"Yeah, she's been very very open lately," Hayden chuckled.
Joel looked thoughtful. "You think open enough to try a plug?"
Unknowingly, a shudder of male desire swept through all three men as each of their minds envisioned Sapphire getting her ass trained.
Vic's hand tightened on the strap of his gym bag as he stood in the shadows and listened.
Hayden set the weights in his hands down on the metal bar with a heavy clank. "I think," he turned to Joel and smiled. "I think if we start off small—very small—judging by the tight fit my tongue endured last night, that we can safely proceed."
Joel smiled with unholy anticipation and tilted his head back with a groan even as he curled the weights faster in his hands. "Fuck yes," he purred. "Soon we'll both be able to…hell, I can barely say it. I'm so looking forward to it!!"
Hayden's knowing laugh was the last thing Vic heard as he stepped back out into the light of the back alley. He tossed his bag angrily on the back of his bike and ran a hand over his tied back hair.
For a minute, he stood there and let the resentment and jealousy brew. He let them mingle together as he thought about Sapphire and her sharp gaze and his father and his sharp words. Fuck! He mentally roared the word in his mind as he reached for his bike's handles and kicked the stand back. He wanted to start over, to somehow go back in time and do it all differently.
Quietly, Vic walked the bike down the alley and parked it at the end of the street as his mind played out the different scenarios. If he could do it all again, he would have ignored his father and his fucking farm. Let the old bastard take care of himself. And if he had done that, maybe…maybe he could have been there too when Hayden first saw Sapphire that day walking to school. Maybe he wouldn't be relegated to the sidelines as he watched his brothers fall deeper and deeper in love with the girl that was impossible not to want.
Walking to the café, he pulled open the door and blinked at the two customers at the counter with Julie at the cash register.
Looking up, Julie smiled at him. "Hey, Vic."
"Hey Jules, where's Sapphire?" he asked, ignoring the interested looks the two customers were giving him. Everyone in this town was nosy to a fault. Continuing, he gave Julie a mischievous smile. "I was promised a payment of cookies and I've come to collect."
Laughing, Julie pointed over her shoulder. "Sapphire just got off from her morning shift so, she and Finn are in the back lounging in the pool arguing about what I think was which was the best house in Hogwarts."
