She enjoyed getting close to them, but she had to make sure she didn’t blow this whole thing out of proportion. She could have sex with Trey and Jake. It didn’t mean anything deeper than three close friends sharing some intimate time. The thought of being in some kind of long-term relationship with two men—two men with a long history together and a host of unresolved issues—was simply ludicrous.
“I’m fine. I was just wondering what happened to Jake.”
“Danielle?”
Danielle clung to sleep, despite the voice curling through her consciousness.
“Danielle? Wake up, sleepyhead.”
Warm lips caressing her neck sent tingles through her. She opened her eyes, murmuring soft sounds of approval.
Trey gazed at her and smiled. “Hey there. We need to get a move on if we’re going to go windsurfing today.”
She reached for him and drew him forward. He gave her a brief kiss, then stroked her hair behind her ears.
“Come on, sweetheart. It’s time to get up.”
“Mmm. Time to come back to bed.” She wanted to snuggle against his warm, masculine body again.
He grinned, but drew back, tugging on her hands. “Tempting, but you assured me last night that you wanted to try windsurfing again, and if we don’t get there soon, the boards will all be rented.”
She closed her eyes again. “Windsurfing is nice, but bed is nicer.”
Bright light shone on her face and she grumbled and opened her eyes again, shielding them with her hand. Trey had opened the blinds and allowed the sunshine to blaze in the window.
“It’s a beautiful day outside. It’s supposed to hit eighty degrees and the wind will be about seven knots. It’s the perfect day.”
“Okay, okay,” she grumbled as she pushed the bedclothes aside and sat up. Hickory grumbled from the end of the bed, then leapt to the floor and stalked off.
“You aren’t really a morning person, are you?” he teased, then wrapped his arms around her and kissed her silly.
“Well, when you start my morning with a kiss like that . . .” She stroked her fingers through his hair, then captured his mouth again for a lingering kiss.
He drew away and chuckled. “Oh no you don’t.” He took her hands and drew her forward. “We need to get going. How long will it take you to throw on a bathing suit and shorts?”
“All right already. You’re really worried about no boards?”
“If we’re not there in”—he glanced at his wristwatch— “say forty minutes, I’d say we lose.”
“Okay. Five minutes.”
Danielle unzipped her suitcase, sitting on the dresser, and rifled through it for her bathing suit. Seven minutes later, they stepped out into the bright sunshine. A warm breeze caressed her cheek. Trey opened the car door for her, then handed her a travel mug full of an aromatic vanilla coffee blend. As he got into the driver’s seat, she sipped then placed the mug in the cup holder beside her seat.
“What about Jake?” she asked. “He wanted to come, too, didn’t he? Do you think something happened to him last night that stopped him from showing up?”
“No, he knew when we’d planned to go so he’ll probably assume we’re still picking him up.” Trey handed her his cell phone. “Do you want to give him a call to let him know we’re on our way?”
She took the small sleek phone and pressed the On button, but nothing happened. She tried again. “I think your battery needs charging.”
“Damn. Well, we’ll be there in a couple of minutes.”
Ten minutes later, they pulled up in front of Jake’s charming brick two-story house. Trey opened her door and offered a hand to help her from the car, and they walked up the stone path through Jake’s bright-colored garden to his front door.
Trey rang the doorbell. The inside door opened, and Rico, naked except for a navy towel draped carelessly around his waist, glared at them through the glass of the storm door.
“Yes?”
“Uh . . . is Jake in?” Danielle asked.
“Yes. He’s in the shower right now.” He grinned wickedly. “And I’m just about to join him. I’ll tell him you came by.” With that, he shoved the door closed in their faces.
Danielle blinked, then stared at Trey. His closed expression gave nothing away.
Jake had started up with Rico again? The guy certainly was good-looking but . . . with Rico’s jealousy . . . Jake must know that it would put an end to what she and Trey and Jake had going. An end to any hope of getting back with Trey . . . at least for now.
Well, what could she expect? She had pushed this whole thing on Jake. Maybe he hadn’t wanted to be a part of it from the beginning. Maybe he feared Trey would never want to continue the relationship. Maybe seeing Rico’s continued longing for him had boosted his spirits and made him want to be with someone who wanted him . . . not someone avoiding anything deeper, like Trey.
But she had seen the change in Trey. Surely Jake had, too. If only he’d given it a bit more time.
Sadness careened through her. If Jake was seeing Rico now . . . it meant the end of their relationship. But she still wanted to be with Jake.
She mentally shook herself. What the hell was she thinking? She was doing all this so that Trey and Jake could be together. Not for herself. Of course, she enjoyed the sex with them . . . the way they made her feel wanted . . . the way they made her feel loved . . .
Oh God, had she really let this become about her? How could she expect to build a relationship when she was seeing two men at once . . . at the same time? Was she really doing this because she hoped something would develop between her and Jake? Or her and Trey?
Oh, damn, her feelings were so mixed up. Of course she’d love to be loved by either one of these special men .
