Feeling satisfied, Justin said, “Let’s plan a weekend getaway so we can be alone with her. But don’t think for a second she’s just going to jump on board with the ménage. She’ll need convincing. I haven’t been able to get her to open up about it at all.”
“Why not?”
Justin said, “I can’t read her mind but knowing her like I do, she’s not willing to risk what we have to ask for it. She’s her own woman but we’ve always respected each other’s boundaries. For her, bringing up a ménage would cross a line. Trust me when I say she will take you at your word when you’re serious about something. It’s been twenty-two years since I said I don’t share and she refuses to even hint that she’d be open to a ménage, even when I’ve given her the perfect opening.
Trying to imagine the four of them on the king-size bed, he said, “This is going to be tight for all four of us until Wes and Evan can build us a bigger bed, which will make it even more crowded in here.”
With just him and Charity in it, it was fine, but add two more to the mix and…damn. Charity was not going to like this. He knew she liked to have her space and their closet and dressers were already at maximum capacity.
Ransome craned his neck to glance in the closet which was blocked by shoeboxes, purses, and tubs of winter clothes and then turned his gaze to the window, which was half-blocked by the headboard. “I have a suggestion.”
Anticipating his idea, Justin said, “Shoot.”
“If we move in permanently, you’ll have access to two more incomes. We could help fund a house renovation and expansion.”
Casting a glance into the master bath, with its tiny window and outdated fixtures, Justin said, “If you’re willing, that would help a lot.” In the meantime, he might be able to sell some more of the things he’d been creating in his spare time. There was a Divine Market Days coming up and he’d been thinking about renting a booth. He still couldn’t quite believe people paid money for what he made.
Val said, “We could do a lot of the work ourselves.”
“That’s right,” Ransome added. They’d worked construction when they’d left home, before bounty hunting had come along and proved to be a lucrative, if more dangerous business venture.
Val’s phone rang and he frowned at it and then said, “I have to take this. Be right back.”
With a nod, Ransome went back to staring at the bed. He chewed his lip and asked, “If this works out, where do we sleep?”
Justin chuckled and clapped Ransome’s shoulder. “I get the right-side edge. Charity gets the rest. Guess you’ll switch off on her other side. Good luck with that because she’s a restless sleeper.”
Ransome snorted and hitched his thumbs in his jeans pockets. “Won’t be a problem. Sounds to me like she’s just not properly worn out before she falls asleep.”
Justin’s barking laughter filled the room and he gave his equipment a congratulatory squeeze. “More like she can’t help it because she dreams about me all night. I’m that good in the sack.”
“Horseshit,” Ransome replied, gripping his own nuts. “One sex-induced coma and you’ll see the difference.”
Justin gave him a friendly single-finger salute, “More like boredom-induced coma.”
Val poked his head in the bedroom with his phone held to his chest and said, “If you’re done comparing dicks and enjoying the claustrophobia in this tiny bedroom, we have a situation we could use your help with, Justin.”
“We?” Ransome said, looking confused.
They followed Val to the kitchen and into his phone he said, “Jessica, stay on the line. I’m putting you on hold for just a minute while I tell the guys, okay?” He touched the face of his phone and then laid it on the table.
Justin looked up at Val expectantly, noting his serious demeanor.
“Jessica? Is that Jessica Bright?” Ransome asked, a frown forming on his face. “Is she okay?”
“She’s okay for now, but it sounds like she’s had better days.”
“Where is she?”
Val cut him off and said, “Let me bring Justin up to speed.” Ransome nodded and Val continued. “We met Jessica a few months ago. We’d been contacted by a friend in the same line of work who was busy on another job and needed an immediate pickup on a guy he’d been trying to locate for a while. It was local for us and wouldn’t take long so we took the job. Guy’s name was Trevor Dornan. All we had to do was show up, bag him, and deliver him to our friend. We didn’t know many details about him.”