Misadventures in a Threesome Read online

  Misadventures in a Threesome

  Elizabeth Hayley

  This book is an original publication of Waterhouse Press.

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  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental. The publisher does not assume any responsibility for third-party websites or their content.

  Copyright © 2019 Waterhouse Press, LLC

  Cover Design by Waterhouse Press

  Cover photographs: Shutterstock

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  All Rights Reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic format without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights. Purchase only authorized editions.

  For Scott, our editing Swolemate

  Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Acknowledgments

  Don’t miss any Misadventures!

  Excerpt from Misadventures with My Ex

  More Misadventures

  About Elizabeth Hayley

  Chapter One

  “One more rep. You got this!” Maddox encouraged the woman on the workout bench as she pressed two dumbbells into the air above her chest. “Hell yeah! Good work.” He grabbed the weights from her hands as she sat up.

  “I don’t know why I let you abuse me like this,” Blake groused as she struggled to reach for her water that was just beyond her grasp. Instead of getting up, she leaned precariously off the bench until she was nearly parallel to the floor.

  “Because all you talk about is how you want to look good in your wedding dress,” he replied, scooping up her water and handing it to her so she didn’t end up sprawled on the floor…again. This girl was seriously something else, though Maddox couldn’t deny he got a kick out of the tiny redhead.

  “I’m starting to question my priorities,” she said.

  “Too late now. You’re already committed.”

  “I feel like I should be committed for signing up for this. If I wanted to be tortured, I’d go down to that place on Fourth Street that pretends it’s just a cocktail lounge. With the amount of leather I’ve seen walking into that place, it would probably be more economical for them to start skinning their own cows.”

  Maddox laughed and grimaced simultaneously. He knew the place she was referring to, and he also knew they hosted leather nights in the back part of the club every so often. Not because he’d been but because his best friend and co-owner of Transform Gym, Wilder, knew everything and everyone in town. They’d talked about going down and checking it out one night, but it really wasn’t either of their scenes.

  Maddox had always been more inclined to turn his pain inward than inflict it on others, and it was much too serious for fun-loving Wilder. They also both preferred to keep relationships casual, which tended to negate the level of trust-building that was required in BDSM.

  “Let’s go do some abs, and then you can get out of here,” Maddox told her, walking away before she could argue.

  Trailing after him, she argued anyway. “Why do we keep having the same conversations? I don’t have abs. How can I work on something I don’t even have?”

  “It’ll help you get them.” He grabbed an ab mat and a medicine ball and led her over to an empty section of the gym.

  “I’m not saying I don’t have defined ones. I’m saying I don’t have that muscle group at all. I was born without them. I’m an anomaly.”

  “You’re an anomaly, all right. Lie down.”

  “I feel like it’s not a compliment when you say it,” she muttered as she flopped back on the mat.

  Maddox handed her the ball and instructed her through a variety of exercises to strengthen her core. Despite her grumbling, she always did everything he asked of her, which made Maddox enjoy working with her.

  As he counted her reps, he saw movement out of the corner of his eye. He turned his head, and his eyes went wide as he caught a glimpse of Wilder marching through the gym with a sledgehammer slung over his shoulder.

  “Wilder! What the fuck are you doing?”

  Wilder Vaughn ignored his business partner as he strode purposely toward the portion of their gym that remained empty. He was a man on a mission, and that mission was forcing Maddox’s hand. Mad was the best guy Wilder knew, but Jesus Christ he could drive a saint to drink. Or to wield a sledgehammer.

  “I’m knocking down walls.” The walls in question were attached to a neighboring business the men had purchased over six months ago. After the sale had gone through, they’d begun to gut the place, only for Maddox to dig in his heels when they’d gotten to the point when they’d have to bring in outside help. But no more. Today they’d make some decisions regarding the space if Wilder had to put holes in every wall in the gym.

  “I’ll be right back,” Wilder heard Maddox say to Blake.

  “Please don’t hurry on my account,” Blake said.

  Maddox appeared just as Wilder walked through the tarp blocking off the unfinished portion of the gym. He reached out and grabbed the handle of the sledgehammer that had been resting on Wilder’s shoulder. “Where did you even get this?” he asked as he tried to wrestle the tool away from Wilder.

  The two men locked stares and grips as they battled for control of the sledgehammer, which would ultimately decide who would have control of the entire situation. Control was something Maddox clung to, while Wild was typically content to hand over the reins. Except when it affected his livelihood. Or when Maddox was being a stubborn ass.

  Wilder understood Mad’s reticence. A lot could go wrong with a remodel and expansion, and the unknown tended to scare the ever-living fuck out of Maddox. There were no guarantees in the fitness business. A gym could be hot one minute and desolate the next. But Wild and Mad had owned a thriving business for almost eight years. Growing it was the next logical step, and if Wild needed to beat Mad over the head with his hammer to see reason, then so be it. “I bought it,” Wild gritted out. “If you won’t hire someone to expand the gym, I’ll do it myself.”

  Maddox barked out a laugh. “You can’t even hang a shelf without it falling down within twenty minutes.”

  “Right. Which is why I’ll be perfect at demo work.” Wilder gave a tug on the sledgehammer, gritting his teeth.

  “You don’t even know which of those walls are load-bearing.” Maddox gripped his hands around the mallet, refusing to let go.

  Wilder planted his feet and fell backward with all his weight as he pulled. “I’ll figure it out,” he bit out through the exertion of trying to wrangle the object away from Maddox. Goddamn, this fucker is strong.

  With a smirk, Maddox let go of the hammer, causing Wilder to crash to the floor.

  “You dickhead,” Wilder yelled as he scrambled up and reached for the tool he’d dropped. When he had it, he bolted down the hall.

  “You’re so fucking juvenile,”
Maddox called after him as he gave chase. He reached Wilder just as he’d pulled the sledgehammer back like a baseball bat, ready to take a swing at the drywall. Maddox threw himself between the wall and hammer just as Wilder began his swing.

  Wilder barely had time to react, letting go of the hammer and sending it flying to the right in an effort to avoid hitting Mad. “Are you crazy? I could’ve killed you.” Which was kind of what Wild felt like doing in the wake of Maddox’s stupidity.

  “You’ve been slowly doing that for years.”

  “Funny guy,” Wilder muttered as he walked over to the hammer and picked it up. He turned back to Mad. “We need this space, Mad. And I’m tired of waiting for you to let someone in here.”

  Maddox sighed, and Wilder knew he was wearing his friend down. This topic had been a weekly argument for the last six months. Their gym was functional and had a solid client base, but both men agreed they could attract more people if they increased their offerings. Currently, they had one large multipurpose room that had a variety of classes cycle through it, which could be problematic when a Zumba class followed kickboxing and they had to rush to get the equipment out in time.

  They intended to use the extra space to build a yoga studio and a bigger spin room. But while Wilder had been able to convince Maddox to purchase the place, Maddox’s anxiety had forced the renovations to halt. Maddox didn’t do well with change. Wild knew that.

  Mad was a thinker—an overanalyzer, really—and a chronic worrier. In his quest for perfection, he’d found himself unable to make any progress on the project. Something that was making “act now, worry later” Wilder insane.

  Scrubbing a hand over his face, Maddox looked at Wilder. “I’ll call the contractor as soon as I’m done with Blake.”

  Wilder’s eyes widened like he was a kid on Christmas morning. “For real?”

  “Yes. I swear.” Maddox and Wilder had already had someone in who’d come highly recommended. All that needed to be done was officially hire the guy and his crew.

  “So I can put some feelers out for some new class instructors?” Wilder was nearly bouncing with excitement. This was the moment he’d been waiting for—the one where he’d turn their little gym into a state-of-the-art fitness facility and they’d move from their two-bedroom apartment into neighboring palatial estates.

  “Knock yourself out.”

  “Hell yeah!” Wilder yelled as he kissed the top of the sledgehammer. “I knew this baby would get your attention.”

  “Such an asshole,” Maddox muttered.

  “An asshole who gets to hire some new instructors,” Wilder called over his shoulder as he walked away, his gait light and bouncy. Wild could guess how Mad was feeling. He recognized the flexing of Mad’s fingers and ramrod straightness of his spine for what it was: a man trying to quell his anxiety.

  And while Wild had no interest in sending Mad spiraling into a full-blown panic attack, he did think Mad needed a push every now and then. Sometimes it was the only way to break him out of his rigid mold and get him moving so life didn’t pass him by. But Wild also knew when to take his victory and run. “I’ll be in the office drafting some ads if you need me.”

  Chapter Two

  The first time Jasmine Pritchett interviewed for a job, she was fourteen years old and had thought getting paid minimum wage at the local pizza shop would result in her financial independence. It hadn’t. And now, at twenty-five, she found herself in a similar predicament: hoping this job would result in financial independence. Thankfully, according to one of the owners of the gym, the position paid significantly more than her low-paying pizza shop gig.

  The man who now sat across a desk from her had introduced himself as Wilder. He was at least a foot taller than her five-four frame and had enough muscle on his body to make him appear even larger than he already was. From behind a pair of reading glasses he’d put on when they’d sat down, he studied her résumé closely. His light hair was shaved close on the sides into a high fade, and the longer top was styled into textured, messy spikes. As he played with his bottom lip, she noticed the nuanced hues of his short beard: blonds to light reds with a few grays even. She wondered how old the man was.

  She also wondered if he was thinking she was underqualified for the trainer position. Surely she was. Though she had several fitness certifications, Jasmine’s experience in the field was minimal, as was her education. She didn’t hold a bachelor’s degree or even an associate’s in sports science—or in anything, for that matter.

  What she did have that she hoped would give her a leg up on her competition was persistence. She’d never been one to retreat just because the opposing army seemed stronger. And she didn’t plan on backing down this time either. If these men questioned her abilities, she’d prove herself one way or another. Even if it involved getting the larger of the two into a firefly pose, which—now that she thought about it—she’d actually like to witness.

  Jasmine smiled at the other man who had introduced himself earlier as Maddox. There wasn’t much else to do, since Wilder was still reading her résumé. She wasn’t sure if that was a good sign or a bad one, but she hoped that if they weren’t interested, they wouldn’t have bothered calling her in the first place. She’d only been here ten minutes, and things already felt unbearably awkward.

  Maddox wasn’t sure what to do with his eyes. Wilder had been looking at this woman’s résumé for at least a full five minutes, which was way too long, especially since Maddox assumed Wild would’ve looked at her résumé before calling Jasmine in for an interview.

  Now Maddox was stuck exchanging glances with the dark-haired woman as if the two of them were participating in some sort of reverse staring game. The instant the two made eye contact, it was a race to see who could look away first without appearing as though they were doing so. Maddox cleared his throat and held out his hand to Wild—an act intended to move the interview along. Maddox also wanted something to look at other than Jasmine’s dark-green eyes, which already transfixed him.

  He took notice of the way her fingers rubbed against her palms as if they had a mind of their own, and he wondered if she was nervous. He hoped it was the silence that had her uneasy and not Maddox’s stern demeanor. There was no doubt the army had hardened him, changed Maddox in a way that caused him to stay on guard when he didn’t need to, and unfortunately that backfired on him from time to time—especially around people who didn’t know him.

  “You have a pretty extensive résumé, Ms. Pritchett.” Wilder offered her a smile before handing the paper to Maddox, for which he was thankful.

  “I do?”

  Her reply sounded like a question, and Maddox could only guess that was because her previous work experience ranged from helping the elderly with chores to cutting hair to selling essential oils. Thankfully she did have a few certifications that qualified her to coach classes at Transform, or Maddox would’ve wondered why the hell Wild had called her in. Though the picture of her at the top of the page would have answered that question.

  “I mean, thank you, Mister…”

  “Vaughn,” he said. “Wilder Vaughn. You can just call me Wild.”

  Jasmine nodded and gave him a small smile. “You can call me Jaz.” Awkward silence followed until she broke it. “Does your personality live up to your name?”

  The question wasn’t new to Wild, but the way she’d asked it was. Like the idea that he might be a little bit crazy both intrigued and frightened her. Usually comments of the sort had come from high school teachers or previous employers. A time or two it had come with a warning from a date’s father, but never from someone interviewing for a job in his gym.

  “Depends,” he answered honestly. “If by wild, you mean fun, then yes. And between the two of us”—he gestured to Maddox—“I’m definitely the funner one.” He was sure the comment would’ve earned him a solid punch to the arm if a prospective employee weren’t sitting across from them.

  “‘Funner’ isn’t a word,” Maddox correcte
d.

  Wild rolled his eyes at Maddox, which made him laugh. That always did. Sometimes a raised eyebrow would follow when Maddox caught Wilder talking excitedly about getting matching Hawaiian shirts and tickets to Jimmy Buffett or stumbled around crashing into furniture in their apartment because he’d had too much tequila at Max’s Public House after work…or starting demolition on their gym because his business partner hadn’t yet hired the contractor they’d agreed on.

  Mad’s words always said Stop, you’re acting like a fool, or something of the sort, but his eyes said something entirely different. They settled somewhere between What am I gonna do with you? and I’m only intervening because I care. That usually made Wild that much more eager to do whatever it was he’d been up to because he didn’t want to offset the delicate balance of their friendship—a balance each man contributed to. Maddox would never let Wild do anything…well, too wild. And Wilder would never let Maddox become so serious about life that he wouldn’t enjoy living it. Wild hoped, at least.

  “I’m more fun, then,” Wilder said. “And also more ambitious. If I had it my way, I would’ve expanded the gym and hired someone like you months ago,” he said to Jasmine.

  Now Maddox rolled his eyes. “Ambitious is one way to put it. Though I’d probably go with crazy.”