Take What You Want (39 page)

“
Glad
you remembered,” Chase said.

“
A
promise is a promise,” Alex said.

Was it possible to hear a
smile in someone's voice? Chase felt stupidly giddy to hear Alex
speak and grateful Alex couldn't see the blush on his face.

“
How
was work last night?” Chase asked.

“
Exhausting,
but the sounds we're creating are fantastic,” Alex said. “We
didn't quit until after ten last night. Then, we went to dinner and
I bumped into Dagger and his partner, Ryan.”

“
Sounds
like a great night.”

“
It
was really nice seeing Dagger and Ryan,” Alex said. “I
had heard they were back together, but seeing it for myself felt
really good.” Alex waited for Chase to say something, but his
pause dragged on too long. “I told them about you and Danni.”

“
What'd
you mean?” Chase asked.

“
I
mentioned I'd met someone,” Alex said. “I also invited
them out for a visit when I get back.”

“
So,
you
are
coming back?”

Alex chuckled softly.
“Yeah, I'll be back this weekend,” he said. “You
and I have some unfinished business.”

“
What
would that be?” Chase asked.

“
Something
about my ass …”

“
Jesus!”
Chase said, and quickly walked around the corner of the house at
which he was installing windows. “You can't say shit like that
to me when I'm surrounded by co-workers.”

“
Why
not?” Alex teased. “Does it make your cock hard?”

“
What
do
you
think?” Chase asked.

“
I
think your cock is beautiful and should be awed and appreciated –
like a piece of art.”

Chase laughed. “Would
you like me to pull it out right now for my fellow carpenters to
admire?”

“
No,
I'd rather you save it for me to admire,” Alex said.

“
And,
you're doing the same for me?” Chase hated asking the
question, but he really did need to hear the answer. Hearing Alex
tell the stories of his past hook-ups, Chase had been nervous every
day Alex was gone, thinking he might fall back into old habits once
he got back in familiar territory. It wasn't like Chase had any real
claim on Alex, but they had agreed not to see anyone else and Chase
hoped Alex had kept that promise.

“
I'm
not interested in being with anyone else, Chase. I thought you
understood that.”

“
It's
good to hear you say it,” Chase said. “Hurry back.”

“
Saturday,”
Alex said. “I'll let you know my schedule, soon as I book the
charter service. Let's try and have dinner together Saturday night –
all three of us.”

“
I'd
love that,” Chase said. “I'll mention it to Danni.”

“
See
you soon,” Alex said, and ended their call.

-0-

Alex kept to his schedule
and was back at his Vineyard estate by mid-afternoon on Saturday,
even though doing so meant staying up all night so he wouldn't miss
his pre-dawn flight back east. He didn't mind the inconvenience one
bit because he was eager to see Chase and spend some time with Danni.

Chase met him in the
driveway with a welcoming hug, then pulled back when he realized
Danni might be watching them. He bent over and lifted one of Alex's
travel bags sitting at their feet. “I'll help you carry this
inside.”

Soon as they reached Alex's
kitchen, Alex tugged Chase in for a kiss. “I missed you,”
Alex said, wiping the moisture from Chase's lips with the pad of his
thumb.

“
Me,
too,” Chase said.

“
Are
we still on for dinner tonight?”

“
Absolutely.”

“
Danni
joining us, too?” Alex asked.

“
That's
the plan,” Chase said.

“
I'm
relieved to hear that, Chase. It will be a good opportunity for me
to get to know her and for her to see what I'm all about, too.”
Alex glanced at the digital clock on the front of the microwave.
“How about you guys come over around seven or eight? That'll
give me a few hours to shower and catch a cat-nap.”

“
Sounds
like a plan,” Chase smiled. “I'll see you soon.”

-0-

A few hours later, Chase and
Danni stood in Alex's kitchen making awkward small talk. The tension
was stressful for Chase, with him wanting Danni to find a way to
accept Alex. This night was important to all of them. If things
went well, Chase hoped this might bring them closer to the
possibility of having the menage relationship he hungered for, with
Alex joining them.

It
had been over a week since he had been with Alex. Besides a few
stolen kisses since his return, Chase hadn't attempted more, for fear
it would upset Danni, but his restraint wouldn't last forever. He
ached to touch and taste every part of Alex and feel Alex's body
stretch to take him inside. The thought of that had his cock
starting to fill the front of his shorts.

At the very least, Chase
wanted to have an open conversation with Danni and Alex about having
a threesome. He'd had a couple of private conversations with Danni
about it and at first she had dismissed the idea. During the second
conversation Danni had become more pliant and had asked questions
about the specifics, even admitted the idea sort of turned her on a
little; which Chase took as a positive sign. Still, she hadn't given
him a clear answer. If she really wasn't interested in the menage,
he hoped she'd give him her blessing for him to see Alex alone. And,
if that couldn't happen, he didn't know what the hell he was going to
do. He wouldn't cheat on her, that much was a certainty, but being
without Alex didn't sit well with him, either.

Tonight
they were simply having dinner together, and hopefully after a few
drinks; a serious conversation. Alex offered to do the cooking and
wanted to grill his now infamous marinated steaks. Alex was mixing a
pitcher of margaritas when Chase felt his cell phone vibrate in his
pocket. He pulled it out and glanced at the caller I.D. and groaned
loudly when he recognized the number.

“
Damn
it,” Chase said. “I have to take this.” He lifted
the phone to his ear and said hello. “Yes, Mr. Jacobs,”
Chase said. “The plumber adjusted all the joints yesterday and
put new compound around them. Is there still a problem?”
Chase glanced at Danni and rolled his eyes, then walked outside to
the pool patio, leaving her alone with Alex.

Alex poured the margarita
mix into a glass and handed it to Danni, then filled a glass for
himself.

“
Jacobs
is an asshole,” Danni said above the rim of her glass. “How
much do you wanna bet Chase is going to have to drive all the way to
Chilmark to placate the rich bastard.”

Alex
chuckled and sipped his drink. “I guess that'll mean more
margarita's for us.”

A
moment later, Chase walked back into the kitchen. “The plumber
is meeting me out at Jacobs,” Chase said, stepping beside
Danni. “You guys go ahead and eat. I'll have something
later.”

“
Are
you kidding me, Chase?” Danni scoffed.

“
There's
a pipe leaking all over the floor in his utility room,” Chase
said. “He's afraid the new basement room we built is going to
flood.”

“
He
could put a bucket under it and have you look at it tomorrow, during
normal work hours,” Danni said.

Chase slid his muscled arms
around Danni's waist and pulled her to him. She fought the embrace
at first and he jerked her tighter to his chest until she stilled.
He brushed his lips to hers, then gave her an open-mouthed kiss.

“
All
I have to do is meet the plumber and let him inside,” Chase
said. “I won't be long.”

“
You
say that every time you get a client call,” Danni said.

“
These
calls help pay the bills, babe,” Chase said, kissing her again.

Alex
watched their interaction from a few feet away where he was leaning
against the counter. It made him hard as hell to see them touch and
kiss. What he wouldn't give to close the distance between them and
press himself to Chase's backside; feel his heat, taste the skin at
the nape of his neck. His gaze dropped to Chase's ass; perfectly
outlined in his snug shorts. When his eyes lifted, he caught Danni
looking at him over Chase's shoulder.

Caught
admiring the goods, Alex thought. He smiled at Danni and looked
away.

“
I'll
see you guys in a little while,” Chase said. He gave a wave in
Alex's direction and made his way toward the glass sliding doors and
slipped outside.

Danni turned to face the
sink. Her fingers tightly gripped the edge of the granite counter.
She stood there silent, staring into the sink basin. “It will
be hours before he gets back here, you know,” she said.

Alex shrugged. “No
reason why we still can't eat,” he said, and started walking to
the door. “I'll go start the grill.”

Danni knew Alex had left the
room without having to look. The distinct sandalwood scent that
clung to his skin and clothing was suddenly gone and oddly that made
her feel very alone. She glanced out the window above the sink. Her
eyes followed him moving around the patio grill. She watched him
bend to light the propane burners, then sit in a chair beside the
table; his head resting in one of his hands.

She stepped back from the
window and refilled her margarita glass. If she went home, Chase
would be angry she had acted so rudely to Alex. If she stayed with
Alex, she feared she'd say something hateful and that wouldn't be
good, either. She sighed loudly and swore under her breath, then
lifted up the pitcher of margarita mix and walked outside.

Danni spotted Alex's empty
glass and poured him another margarita, then sat down in a chair near
him, but not next to him. Alex thanked her for the drink and drank
half of it in one long gulp.

“
You
don't have to cook for me,” Danni said. “I'm really not
that hungry.”

“
Me
neither,” Alex agreed. “But, Chase will be hungry when
he gets home.” He stepped to the grill and lifted the lid,
then removed the platter of steaks from the mini refrigerator beside
the grill station and laid them both across the hot grids. A loud
sizzling sound buzzed up around Alex and then came the aromatic
scents of spices from the marinade.

“
Smells
good,” Danni said, once the sound from the steaks had subsided.

“
My
own secret recipe,” Alex said with a grin.

“
I
was going to ask for the recipe, but if it's secret, then I guess you
won't be revealing it,” Danni said.

Alex laughed. “I
don't mind telling you,” he said, his eyes drifting to her.
His smile faded when he saw the intense look on Danni's beautiful
face and tears making her eyes shimmer.

“
Have
you told him?” Danni asked.

Alex's gut told him Danni
wasn't talking about the marinade recipe, but he couldn't risk
revealing too much, too soon. He collected his thoughts and said,
“Chase doesn't have much interest in how the food is prepared,
only that it is, and he can eat it.”