Page 54 of Merging Wright

By mentioning the timeframe, I’m hoping Jane will want to leave.

But her lip knowingly curls. The glow in her face starts to brighten even more. “I’m in. I want to stay.” Excitement fills her voice.

“I can’t leave you here alone, though.” There is no fucking way I will leave my wife with my twin brother.

Jane’s shoulders fall. Her enthusiasm visibly dissipates. Her hands are underneath the table and I’m guessing her leg jiggles. A fact I’ve noticed about Jane is her leg would bounce with anxiety or eagerness as we waited out a client’s decision. There are so many details I’ve catalogued about her over the years. How many times have I wanted to reach over to stop the jostling motion and then keep my hand on her thigh, skimming her leg, leading between them?

My hold on the chair tightens. “I’ll have to stay with you.”

Jane’s face returns to that brightness. She’s nearly beaming, but the lip chewing begins.

“You’ll stay with me.” Is there a question in Jane’s voice?

“Things are going to get messy. We might have to do some of the construction work ourselves.” While Myles owns the construction company, he’s more a contractor than a worker. We can speed things up if we join the montage of volunteers and workers we need.

Jane’s rickety wooden chair creaks, and I have my answer about her bouncing leg. She’s excited about this project. She’s hungry for it. I’ve seen her like this in the past. A type of electricity vibrates off her.

“Do you even know how to use tools?” My voice drops, an innuendo beneath the asking. She certainly knew how to work my tool on our wedding night, and I need another crack at her. I need another glance at the blueprint of her body, to memorize the sounds she makes as she builds to an orgasm. I want to restore the connection we had that night.

“I know my way around a paintbrush, and I’m good at demolition and cleanup.” Jane pauses. “I can hammer if you need me, too.”

Sweet Jesus. Yes, let’s hammer and nail and every other construction term that’s sexual.

“What about you?” Jane tips up her chin, challenging my abilities.

“I rebuilt that truck.” I nod toward the dining room window where the Chevy remains parked outside.

Her mouth falls open. “What?”

“I’d been wanting a truck, and Fischer taunted me with giving me one. If I got an A in Chemistry. If I did this. If I did that. I jumped through every hoop of his for a year. That thing arrived from the heap. You never mentioned it needed to run, he mocked. I fixed it up with every dollar earned mowing lawns, working fields, and doing odd jobs. My only tools were me and a mechanic’s book.” And Myles on occasion, but I leave that part out.

Jane stares at me, and I recall how I was as a kid. “I liked to take things apart and put them back together.” And sometimes I’d watch Fischer rebuild that classic MG his son destroyed. Only Myles was allowed near that precious car, but it didn’t mean I didn’t inspect it for how parts fit.

“That’s impressive.” Jane’s hands lift above the table and clasp underneath her chin. “So, you agree Myles can be our general contractor? You’ll work with him?”

My mouth falls open, but Jane continues. “You’ll stay with me?”

Did her voice drop? I exhale, turning my head a second, willing away the possibility of hope that she wants me to be here because she wants to be with me. “I’ll stay.”

Jane lets out a little squeak, surprising us both at the sound. The expression on her face is a combination of excitement and determination. Her gem-colored eyes sparkle while her cheeks flush a rosy-shade that makes her look like a blooming flower. I’m nearly blinded by her smile.

It kicks me in the chest.

Because Jane is finally giving me one of those smiles she grants to everyone else.

Only, this one is extra special because it’s aimed at me.

26

Playlist: “Come and Get Your Love” – Redbone

(from Guardians of the Galaxy)

[Jane]

Nothing could have shocked me more than Mach’s agreement to hire Myles. While the difficulty of the decision was written in his expression, he wasn’t blind to reason. We needed Myles. Whatever their issues were, Myles had a vested interest in this inheritance scheme as well as Mach. And while I wanted to use Myles’s company, the decision had to come from Mach.

What also surprised me was how much I wanted to work on this project.