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  “Oh?”

  “I haven’t met him yet, but we’ve chatted a few times. I have to tell you, he’s concerned about Gage.”

  “Why?”

  “Glad you asked.” Sydney leaned closer. “Because for the past six-plus months, Gage has been obsessed with a certain blonde—that’s you—living in the Abberwicks. He nearly had a coronary when you moved, and when he manipulated you into your first date, he was beside himself with glee. Derrick said, and I quote, ‘It’s damned embarrassing to see a man make such a fool of himself over a woman he’s never even met’.”

  “And this is the guy you’re considering dating?”

  Sydney shrugged. “He’s got a great phone voice. Makes you think of sex, wicked and dark. And he’s an architect to boot.”

  “Whatever.” Hailey rolled her eyes. “Gage makes his own furniture, did you know that? And it’s beautiful.”

  “Mm-hmm. So tell me again what he does for a living.”

  “He’s a construction worker,” she said defensively.

  “Is that what he told you?”

  At Sydney’s somber tone, Hailey sat up straight. “Not exactly. Why do you ask?”

  “You said he works with his brother, and his brother’s an architect. Derrick Warren, co-owner of WCC—Warren Construction Company. They make close to a million a year. High-end jobs, with the occasional smaller stuff.”

  Hailey stared, incredulous. “Are you serious? Because Gage never mentioned it.”

  “I did some research. But whatever he does, the man is seriously hung up on you. According to Derrick, he’s in love, and it’s frightening.”

  After a short pause, Hailey admitted, “Gage told me he loved me a few weeks ago.”

  “What?”

  “I thought he was just basking in the afterglow.” She blushed. “You know. After some good sex? How was I to know he meant it?”

  “What did you say when he told you?”

  “Nothing.”

  “Nothing? You didn’t even acknowledge it? Hailey, you need some serious help.”

  “Oh, Sydney. I thought it was just sex talk. Gage…he’s so special. He’s the only guy I’ve ever felt so free with. And I’ve wanted him since day one. But it’s not just the sex. This week together, we’ve had so much fun. And he makes me laugh.”

  “Funny, but he never struck me as the funny type.”

  “But he is. He’s almost as bad as I am. Hell, our first date he brought up his dad’s death at the table.”

  “Maudlin, but not so bad.”

  “And he told me that he loves big-breasted women,” she muttered. “With wide, full asses.”

  Sydney choked on her drink. “He did not.”

  “Yep, just as he was putting the moves on me.”

  “And that worked?”

  “Have you seen the man or haven’t you?”

  “Okay. But is he that bad?”

  Hailey thought about it. “I just think he doesn’t try too hard, or at least not with me. And I like that. He doesn’t fake the way he feels. He’s not into games, and we have a good time together.”

  “Even without the sex?” Sydney looked skeptical.

  “Well, I admit it’s been a week of frustration, but a fun week all the same.”

  “So what are you saying, exactly?”

  Hailey sighed. “That I’m going to put us both out of our misery, and maybe try out the L-word on him soon.”

  Sydney lifted her glass. “To the future, and to you and Mr. Tool.”

  “To the Tools. I like that.”

  Sydney rolled her eyes. “You would.”

  ———

  Gage slumped over his mother’s counter on yet another Saturday morning, committed to the course he’d set. The past week had been surprisingly enjoyable, and expectedly frustrating as hell. Having opened the floodgates on his libido, stopping sex cold-turkey was harder to bear than going without for months at a time. But he couldn’t deny the progress he thought he’d made with Hailey.

  Instead of tearing each other’s clothes off each night, they’d learned something new about one another. Hailey loved mysteries. He hadn’t known that. And she attended aerobics twice a week, hated wearing pantyhose, and had a surprising thing for silk—which he planned on exploiting just as soon as she put an end to this insane celibacy.

  He’d been jerking off every night and finding less and less satisfaction. Coming in his hands just wasn’t the same as releasing into Hailey. Hell, even the thought of getting her pregnant made him harder than stone and shockingly content. Imagining a little blonde girl with his eyes made his heart hammer, and he could all-too-easily envision Hailey rocking his baby to sleep each night.

  Damn, but she had him wrapped around her little finger. And he still didn’t know how she felt about him. That “I love you” he’d uttered still hung in the air between them, though she had yet to address it. Instead, they’d watched movies, fished—hell, she’d caught more than he had—cooked together, and taken long walks through her neighborhood and along the Riverwalk. They’d even attended a bluegrass concert, and he’d been stunned to actually enjoy the music.

  “You’re in way over your head,” Derrick murmured. “Sucker.”

  “Excuse me? Who was it who still owes me some comp time for a certain redhead’s phone number?”

  Derrick cursed him under his breath. But when Dylan suddenly showed up with Hailey under his arm, Gage was struck mute.

  “Hi, Gage. I hope you don’t mind, but Dylan invited me.”

  Dylan grinned slyly at Gage, and gave his woman a thorough once-over when she wasn’t looking.

  “Have I mentioned my brother is gay?”

  Hailey blinked. “Really?” She glanced at Derrick, who stared back incredulously.

  “Not me, him.” He nodded at Dylan.

  “Actually, he prefers that no one label him,” Barbara said as she joined them in the kitchen. “And Hailey, I’m so glad you could come. Gage has been telling us so much about you.”

  Hailey narrowed her eyes at him. “Really?”

  “All good, mind you.” His mother held out a stool. “Please, sit. What can I get you?”

  “I’d be happy to help, if you’d like,” Hailey offered shyly, and his mother beamed.

  “Pretty and capable, how wonderfully different, hmm, Gage?”

  “Mom.” Gage wanted to cringe. Great, why not mention all the other women he’d dated to the woman he’d finally fallen in love with? Like he’d thought, a few minutes with his family and Hailey’d bolt for sure.

  “Did he ever tell you how we met?” Hailey asked in a wicked voice.

  His brothers both grinned, and he groaned.

  “No, as a matter of fact,” his mother said. “He just mentioned he’d met an incredible woman and wanted to know how best to impress her.”

  “It was at a friend’s apartment. We were having a party and we took a few quiet moments to look out at the stars.” Hailey’s voice quieted. “I was looking up at Orion and made a wish, and then I saw Gage.” She glanced at him, and what he thought he saw in her eyes made his heart thunder with hope.

  “Oh, that sounds so romantic. What did you wish for?”

  Dylan shook his head. “No, no, Hailey. Don’t tell us. Don’t you know anything, Mother?” he asked with exasperation and a wink at Gage. “If you tell your wish, it doesn’t come true.”

  “Mine finally did,” Gage said in a thick voice, “the minute I laid eyes on a feisty blonde with more brains than sense.”

  Barbara glanced at him in surprise and then understanding. “You know, Hailey, I’d just love it if you could help me with these tomatoes. So tell me, where are you from originally? I didn’t catch an accent…”

  Within the hour, his mother had all but collected Hailey’s social security number. Barbara passed a plate of rolls to Gage and smiled.

  “Did you know, Hailey, that twelve is my favorite number?” She gave Gage a meaningful glance, but it was Dylan who filled him in.<
br />
  “Do the math. That’s one spouse and two kids per each of us. Hell, do us all a favor and make triplets. I’m not marrying any time soon,” Dylan whispered. And as he stared at Hailey, his expression softened. “Besides, your kids will be so pretty. And smart. I like her, Gage, I really do. She’s nice.”

  “You could do much worse,” Derrick whispered on his other side. “In fact, if memory recalls, you have.”

  “Keep it up, smartass. I have an in with the best friend. Remember that.”

  Derrick grumbled, his frown growing as their mother honed in on his singledom.

  After breakfast, Gage offered to take Hailey home since she’d arrived with Dylan.

  The drive home was pleasant but silent. All the way, Gage wondered what Hailey thought, if his mother and brothers had perhaps scared her away. Lord knew, Barbara could do it all on her own.

  “Gage, I hope I wasn’t intruding. Dylan stopped by work last night, introduced himself, and surprised me with an invite, and I couldn’t keep myself from meeting your family.”

  He shrugged. “I’d have taken you to meet them before now. I just didn’t want them to scare you away. My mother can be hard to take.”

  Hailey reached for his hand on the wheel, and in the process her breast brushed his shoulder. Fire lanced through his groin, and he clenched his teeth to keep his cool.

  “Your mother is a wonderful woman, and I can definitely see you in your brothers.” She grinned. “You’re all a bunch of smart-asses.”

  Laughing, he pulled up in front of her house. He cleared his throat. “Well, we’re here.”

  “Yes. We are. Look, Gage, I’d like you to come in for a minute. Do you have the time?”

  Shit. He had nothing but time. “Sure.”

  They entered together when the phone rang.

  “I’ll be right back,” she said and left him for the bedroom.

  He sat on her couch and flipped on the television. But the sight that met his eyes had him doing a double-take. There on her screen, a familiar blonde actress, Belinda the porn star, and her friends cavorted and frolicked through some rousing foreplay, anal and oral sex.

  Glued to the scene, he could only stare, totally bemused as to what his video was doing in Hailey’s DVD player.

  “Uh, Gage?”

  He tore his gaze from the screen only to find himself tongue-tied again. Hailey stood in the hallway looking uncertain. She wore her hair in a twist off her neck, the silky strands clinging to her neck provocatively. A corset pushing her ample breasts together increased her impressive cleavage and accented her slim waist and full hips. He could see the side of her bare ass, and hardened like a stone. Fuck me, she’s wearing a thong under that thing. The corset showed a slim expanse of her belly before the sheer red thong she wore took over. And, try as he might, he couldn’t make out any blonde hair below her bellybutton.

  “You shaved?” he asked in a hoarse voice.

  She nodded and her breasts bounced, her nipples peeking over the lacy front of the material.

  “Hailey, please tell me this means our celibacy is over. I’m ready to come in my jeans, and I don’t think I can take much more of your outfit without jumping you.”

  She smiled and walked slowly toward him, making him take note of the fuzzy high heels she wore. It suddenly dawned on him she wore a similar outfit to the one Belinda wore in the movie, and he swore.

  “You’re killing me, baby. Just killing me.”

  When he was a breath away from reaching her, she stopped him with her hand. “Wait. I have something to say.”

  “Say it fast.”

  “Did you mean what you said that night? When you said you loved me?”

  He froze, not sure what she wanted to hear.

  “Tell me, please.”

  Her brown eyes looked so deep, so pure, that he wanted to drown in her. “Yes,” he answered. “More than I ever thought possible. More than I deserve to, probably.”

  Were it possible, her eyes smoked. “Say it.”

  “I love you.” The words fell simply, truthfully, from his lips.

  “Oh, Gage. I love you too.” She sniffed, and he quickly sealed her mouth with a kiss, distracting her from her tears.

  “Baby, you don’t know how long I’ve waited to hear you say that.”

  “A week?” she said breathlessly, her breasts nearly in his face.

  He groaned and licked the tip of one rosy crest. “How about six months? Love at first sight, Hailey. And the more I’ve come to know you, the more I love you. Warts and all.”

  She giggled, a sound he’d never heard Hailey make, and then she groaned as she reached for his jeans. “Gage, I’ve really missed you. But I don’t have the patience to wait for Belinda’s seven-ways-from-Sunday sex. Could you just love me now?”

  He shoved his jeans to his knees and ripped the thong from her body. “Sure thing, honey. Because I’m two seconds from losing it, seeing you in that thing. Shit, Hailey. I’ve had dreams about this.”

  She grinned, a naughty smile that had him moving with lightning speed. In seconds, he had her shaved pussy bare, her back flat against her floor.

  “I can’t wait,” she moaned. “Fuck me, Gage.”

  Without waiting another second, Gage thrust hard and fast into her. They both groaned at the sensation of joining, of oneness. His cock stroked. The sensations of her warmth and wetness clinging to him, of her body accepting him all the way, made his orgasm approach lightning fast. And as he pumped into her, she cried out her climax.

  “That was quick,” he gasped before following her over the edge. “Too quick.” Rasping until he could again breathe normally, Gage remained within her, loving every precious second. “Damn, Hailey, you really had me worried this week.”

  “The lack of sex killing you too?”

  “Not as much as the lack of your trust.” He scowled. “That sounded way too much like something Dylan would say. But it’s true. I love you, Hailey. With or without the sex, it’s you who I want to be with. I want you to dog-ear all my books with your saved pages. I want you to cook for me.” He winked. “You to hug in bed, you to argue a movie with. And you’re still wrong about Stargate, by the way.”

  She pinched him. “I’ll never agree.” She paused, then spoke in a quiet but steady voice. “I’m willing to see where this takes us, Gage. As far as you want it to go.”

  “Sorry, honey, it doesn’t work that way. I know how far I want us to go. How about you?”

  She stared up at him and tenderly grasped a lock of hair that had fallen across his forehead, tucking it behind his ear. “I want the whole package, Gage. Forever.”

  He let out the breath he’d been holding. “Me too. I love you, Hailey. And I want to marry you, have kids with you. But when you’re ready. I’m willing to wait as long as it takes.”

  She smiled with happiness, her eyes brimming with tears.

  “Hell, baby. Don’t cry now.”

  “I won’t.” She sniffed. “But I can’t marry you unless you agree to give up your side job.”

  “Side job?” He suddenly paled. “Oh. Speaking of jobs. I don’t believe I mentioned what I really do for a living.”

  “You’re a construction worker.”

  “I work construction, yes. But I actually own part of the company.”

  “I know. Sydney told me a few days ago. And Dylan mentioned it when he invited me last night.”

  “Great,” he growled. “You might have mentioned it earlier. I was worried about how you might take it.”

  “What? That you deliberately led me to believe you had little money, that you were a blue-collar stiff?”

  “That, yeah. But it wasn’t that I didn’t trust you. Okay, in the beginning it was. But Hailey, I just wanted you to like me for me, not for my money or, God forbid, Derrick.”

  She laughed and hugged him. “I get it, believe me, I get it. And don’t worry. Derrick and Dylan are handsome, but not nearly as hot as you are.” She clenched him tight and nipp
ed at his earlobe. “So when do we try all of Belinda’s Delights?”

  “All of them?” he rasped, his cock hardening all over again.

  “Well, not yet. I’m still in the midst of proposing here. Now about your side job. It has to go.”

  He blinked in bewilderment. “You’re proposing?” He paused. “What side job are you talking about?”

  “No more Mr. Tool.” She laughed. “I think it was Faith who first came up with the name after we saw you gloriously naked, and well-hung, that fateful Friday night. That hammer between your legs had us all sleeping with pleasant dreams.”

  Gage flushed a deep, fire-engine red. “Hell, Hailey. Mr. Tool?”

  She laughed harder and he joined her.

  “Well, you’re certainly the most handy man I’ve ever met. And I plan to keep you around.”

  “No problem, baby. This is one show you’re going to enjoy for the rest of your life.” He leaned up to pry her corset open. “Now about Belinda’s Delights…the first rule is to be completely naked.”

  “And the second?” she asked, love shining in her eyes.

  “Is to never again agree to breakfast at my mother’s without my express permission.”

  “Gage.” She laughed, then moaned when his lips found her breast.

  “That’s Mr. Tool to you. And only to you.”

  About the Author

  To learn more about Marie Harte, please visit www.marieharte.com. Send an email to Marie at [email protected] or join her Yahoo! group to join in the fun with other readers as well as Marie! http://groups.yahoo.com/group/M_Hgroup

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