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“Mmm.” She smiled wryly. “Of course I want to join you. I can wait, though. I’m not all balanced on a knife’s edge of repressed testosterone-y man needs like you are.”
He laughed. “The hell you aren’t.”
“Well, maybe I am a little. I’m a woman, though. I come from a long line of waiting my turn to come,” she teased.
With a snort, Liam pulled the clean thermal over his head. “The only waiting you do is for me to recover enough to put on a repeat performance.”
Kat leaned against the wall, unable to contain a grin. “You’re so quick to deliver the encore. I’m crazy spoiled, I admit it.”
“Damn right you are.” He closed the distance between them and palmed her hips, drawing her close enough that she could feel him against her lower belly. The simple yet suggestive contact melted her on the spot. She looped her arms around his neck and kissed his throat, rubbing her lips back and forth across the golden shadow of his morning beard.
If they weren’t expecting Hunter any minute—or if she’d remembered to give Hunter a key the last time he’d stopped by—she would back Liam up to the bed and remind him just how much he’d spoiled her. Instead, she contented herself with pushing her hands through Liam’s silky hair and fastening her mouth to his. Liam rubbed his tongue against hers and angled his hips so she couldn’t miss his growing erection. She was on the verge of unzipping his cargoes and wedging her hands into his shorts when his phone vibrated. The doorbell chimed a few seconds later.
“Hunter’s here,” she murmured against his lips.
Liam squeezed her ass one last time before releasing her. “You sure you don’t want to join us?”
“Yes. Go on. You can both make it up to me later.”
“I’ll be disappointed if you don’t hold me to that.” Liam kissed her again before leaving the room and heading downstairs.
Kat waited until she heard their masculine voices mingling, and then she pulled the attic access down again. She might as well sort through a few more boxes.
* * *
Less than an hour later, Kat joined Liam and Hunter in the kitchen, where Liam had brewed and poured coffee for three. Hunter and Liam stood side by side in front of the sliding doors that overlooked their tiny deck. She paused on the threshold so she could watch the two of them together. Over the course of the past week, Hunter had shed some of his instinctive evasion of casual touches. He had even become more generous with handing them out. While Kat watched, Hunter brushed his fingertips across Liam’s lower back for no apparent reason besides touching. The gesture warmed her in more ways than one.
“Coffee smells great,” she said, stepping into the kitchen. “It was freezing up in the attic.”
Liam turned around, his smile relaxed and easy. “I thought you were going to shower off some of that attic dirt.”
“I went back up, so I didn’t see the point in getting cleaned up just to get all dusty again.” She crossed to Hunter and turned her face up for a kiss, which he gave without a moment’s hesitation.
“Happy New Year,” she murmured against his lips.
Hunter stroked her nape. “I think it’ll be a good one, yeah.”
Kat slid her arms around his waist and squeezed. The puddle of warmth in her belly spread, not stopping until Liam spoke again.
“Why’d you do that? I thought you’d already gotten the last of the Christmas stuff.”
His tone was casual but Kat winced anyway. This wasn’t a topic she wanted to just leap into, especially not while the topic of relationship limits loomed. But she couldn’t ignore him. She reluctantly released Hunter and faced Liam. “I did. I was sorting through some boxes so we can start making decisions about what to keep and what to ditch.”
“What? Why are we ditching stuff?” Liam’s voice had lost all mellowness.
Hunter settled his hand on her shoulder, keeping her from sidling away from the mounting tension. “Yes, why are you ditching stuff?”
She looked between the two of them,
settling her gaze on Hunter. “If this is going to work long term, we’re going to have to follow you to your postings. We’ll need to sell the house, be able to move to go with you. At the very least we’ll need to pare down our possessions so we’re not hauling the same unopened boxes from state to state.”
Hunter stared at her. “Sell the house?”
The choked sound from Liam forced her to look at him. He was ashen, the stricken expression both confusing and troubling.
“You can’t sell the house,” Hunter said flatly.
She frowned. “Of course we can. We’ll likely make a decent profit.”
