Page 17 of The Handy Men
"You're such an asshole sometimes." Dean groaned.
Jack rubbed him through his jeans. "If we stay tonight, we're telling her exactly what we want from her. If she says no, then we have our answer. I can shrug off any embarrassment and make it better so we can all still be friends."
Stroking the hair off Jack's shoulder, Dean pulled him in for a kiss. Jack speared his tongue into Dean's mouth, feeling Dean's cock twitch and harden under his palm.
"She's not going to say no," Jack said. "But you need to protect your heart. I had to learn that the hard way with Stephanie. She's your Stephanie."
Dean shook his head. "No, she's my Paige."
* * *
Paige frowned at the storm clouds rolling in and zipped up her hoodie against the powerful wind coming off the water. Ducking into the general store, she decided to pick up some supplies in case she lost power.
"Better batten down those hatches, Paige," Caillie Berns said. Caillie was the local potter and always dressed like she was going to dance in a gypsy caravan. Caillie had been a good friend of Paige's mother. She remembered the two of them drinking wine on the porch all day long during the summer. Or at least it seemed like all day. Back then she didn't understand why they didn't go fishing or swimming or play volleyball. Now, she could appreciate just swinging on the glider and emptying wine bottles like it was her job. Today, Caillie had on a patchwork blouse that billowed out when she walked, and a flowy gauze-like skirt. In the basket slung over her arm was a bunch of celery, almond milk, and two avocados.
"Stocking up on the essentials?" Paige asked.
Caillie nodded. "The ferry is leaving early today. If the storm's bad, we might be isolated for a few days."
"Oh crap," she said. "I've got to get back and tell Jack and Dean so they can beat the storm home." Paige had plenty of bread, milk, eggs, and toilet paper. All she needed was some candles, matches, and D batteries. For her flashlight. She put another set in her basket, too. For Mr. Buzzy.
Caillie hung around while Paige gathered her products. "How are things going with the renovations?"
Paige looked up from trying to decide between the apple cinnamon jar candle and the fresh linen scent. She got both. "Good," she said with a sigh. "We're going to get everything done with a week to spare." She hoped.
"You should have started earlier," Caillie said, swaying in the aisle to music that only she could hear.
"Yeah, well legally I couldn't until the closing was final. I was lucky Jack and Dean had time to help me.”
"Lucky, huh?" Caillie drawled.
Paige brought her things up to the front to check out while Caillie continued to dog her steps. "How's the pottery going?" Paige asked, trying to make small talk, even though she just wanted to get back to the Nutmeg Inn. "Do you have enough inventory to last the summer?"
"Oh yes, definitely. Let me know if you want to add to the serving platters. I can do mugs to match."
Not this year. Her budget was stretched super thin. But Caillie was very talented and matching mugs would look polished and professional. Maybe she could squeeze a few more bucks out of the budget. "Okay, I will."
"How do you like Jack and Dean?" Caillie asked.
Paige brightened as Mrs. Milligan scanned and bagged her items. "They are truly the best. I would be lost without them.” She handed Mrs. Milligan her credit card. "I can definitely give them a good reference if you need anything done around the studio."
Aside from being excellent handymen, they were smart, funny, and the best friends she could ever hope for. The fact that they took all the glares and frowns from the townspeople without ever being snarky or rude made them saints in her book. They had really helped her through a difficult time in her life, and she would never forget that.
"I wasn't talking about their handy man gig. I was speaking more intimately." Caillie waggled her eyebrows.
Paige almost dropped the bags that Mrs. Milligan handed her. Had Caillie watched Jack and Dean in the pavilion? Maybe it wasn't the first time. Maybe they did that every Thursday and she was the last to know. "What do you mean?" she asked, needing to make sure it wasn't all in her wild imaginings.
Grabbing her arm, Caillie tugged her into the alley between the general store and the fish market. "Everybody knows they're swingers."
"Playground swings?" Paige's brain couldn't comprehend her words at first.
Caillie groaned. "Don't play dumb."
Paige's face heated up when she realized what Caillie meant. "I wasn't aware of that."
"They’re pretty kinky. They used to date a local girl a few years ago."
Paige blinked. "Which one?” She didn't think the guys were bisexual, but she wasn't surprised.
