Drilled - Jayne Rylon Page 0,16
you. Were you trying…?”
Mike squeezed Morgan and Kate. This might be a bit of a sensitive subject for Morgan and Joe since they’d struggled so hard to have their first child and had been blessed unexpectedly with a second. They might have opted for more if fate had permitted, and here he and Kate were having one by chance.
“No.” Kate yawned and sat up a bit, reaching one hand out to Joe, who patted her fingers then enfolded them in his own. “You know I would have told you if we decided something that life-changing. It just happened.”
She got quieter then and looked away, out the giant windows overlooking the pristine lawn that stretched down a rolling hill toward the dark, loamy onion fields streaked with green that lined the valley in the distance.
“You okay?” Morgan wormed against Mike until she could see Kate’s face. He tried not to notice how warm and soft and pretty she was, his wife’s best friend, who was also sometimes his lover. But when he looked up at Joe, whose mouth was tipped up on one side, he knew his friend was not oblivious to the effects the two women had on either of them, which were magnified when they were together.
“It’s just freaking me out a little, to think of doing this by myself.” Kate bit her lower lip. “I know Mike might need to be up here helping Joe sometimes, and that’s fine. Totally fine.”
She held Joe’s hand tighter.
“But the other two times I did this, you were doing it too. With me.” Kate cursed under her breath. “Sorry. That’s selfish and I don’t mean to hurt your feelings because I know you always hoped you might get lucky again…”
“Hey, it’s fine. I promise.” Morgan chuckled then. “Dirty diapers and baby proofing a house and all that… I think I’m beyond that stage of life.”
“What if we are too?” Kate looked past Morgan to Mike. “Are we really ready to do this again? And on our own? I mean…you won’t be there, will you, Morgan? Even after the summer. Look at this place. I can see how happy you are here. You’re not coming home, are you?”
Morgan looked to Joe then. They both frowned. Morgan took a deep breath. “I’m not sure, Kate. We haven’t been out here that long, but it’s hard to deny that it feels like it could be somewhere we belong. Joe is going to find his footing with the foreman thing, I know it. Especially with Mike coaching him for a bit. And Devra and I have been talking about some really exciting plans. There’s a small storefront for rent near hers. With the cost of living here, a lot more things are possible…”
She looked up at Joe. “Sorry, I was going to talk to you about that the other day, but then the accident happened and I wasn’t sure if it was the right time and…”
“Wow.” Mike looked at Morgan and Joe and his guts twisted a bit. This was it. They weren’t coming home. He believed, as Morgan did, that Joe only needed a bit of time to gain his confidence. Then he’d be ready to lead and to grow his own business. “Yeah, I mean, Joe would be a dumbass to give this up just to come back and work for me. Look at where you are. It’s gorgeous. And if there are real prospects for you here, plus family, you’d be foolish to give that up.”
“You don’t want me back?” Joe asked.
“Shut the fuck up, idiot.” Mike would have punched his shoulder if he could have reached across their wives. “Of course I do. But that doesn’t mean I’m blind. I can see why this would work for you and how you’ve outgrown us.”
When he looked up again, both Kate and Morgan had glassy eyes. If they started bawling he’d lose it too, and he didn’t want any of them getting that upset, Kate especially, on one of the happiest days of his life.
“We can talk more about this shit later.” Mike sat up and hauled Morgan and Kate into his lap, playfully crushing them both to him before laying a smacking kiss on each of their temples. “Why don’t you guys give us the official tour? I didn’t see much when I carried Kate up here, and she was already passed out. After that we can call the crew.”
“Good idea.” Kate turned her head for a proper kiss, then squeezed Morgan one