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My body pulses with heat, but there'll be time to remind myself exactly how wild they can be later.

Fortunately, my dad redirects the conversation onto safer topics. I mumble "uh-huh" at all the right intervals as we discuss a couple more issues related to settling my grandmother's estate.

For all that it was just the two of us for so much of my life, my father and I have never been close. That's painfully clear as we steer around difficult topics and stick to polite chatter over logistics.

When we ultimately run out of things to talk about, we say our goodbyes. I hang up and toss my phone aside, then drop my head into my hands.

I'm sitting on the guest bed that's nominally mine, for all that I have yet to sleep in it since my first night. It's nice to have a space of my own for moments like this.

When I'm talking to the one human being on this earth that I can legitimately call family, and that conversation only leaves me feeling lonelier than I was when I started.

I give myself a moment.

But the moment doesn't last. I drag myself up and finish what I nominally came in here to do—get dressed and ready for the day.

Life on the mountain is pretty casual, and I spend a lot of my day doing real work, so making myself presentable doesn't exactly take me long. When I emerge, it's in leggings and a T-shirt, with a long, stolen flannel draped over it all. My hair isup in a messy bun, and my face is naked except for a swipe of lipgloss and concealer.

The guys still greet me as if I'm the most gorgeous thing they've ever seen.

I trade Adam a kiss for a plate of pancakes and Sergio a grope of my ass for coffee. I sit down to Cayden and Jax each placing a hand on one of my knees, while Deandre sits opposite me, his long leg extended so that his foot touches mine. And it's so easy to sink into this life I'm sharing with these men. I can almost forget the way talking to my dad made me feel.

Almost.

Putting on a brighter smile than I really, feel, I dig into my breakfast. "So," I say to Deandre, "think we can get that order finished up this morning?"

We've been making good progress, so it seems doable.

But he gives me a funny look. "Didn't I tell you? Me and Cayden finished it up last night. Nothing left to do except let these lugs"—he jerks his thumb at Jax and Sergio—"get it crated up and sent off."

"Oh." A mysterious unease settles in my abdomen.

"We made quick work of it. I got you and Cayden to thank for that. Couldn't have done it without you."

Cayden rolls his eyes. "We're a team, man. Of course I help out."

I nod along, but the comment didn't quite seem meant for me. I'm here, and I'm helping. But part of the team? I'm not so sure.

"Sooo…" I trail off, waiting for him to let me know what they'll need me to do next.

"So nothing," Deandre says. "Workshop's closed for a couple of days. We earned it."

"Really?" Why does that make my throat feel tight?

"I worked out the schedule," Adam confirms. "Rejected a couple of requests and negotiated longer lead times on the rest. You guys deserve a little time off. I won't let you get so crunched again—not if I can help it."

"So you don't need me today?"

Deandre shines a wide, loping grin at me. "Always need you, baby girl. But nah, the workshop can get by without you for a while."

That should fill me with relief. Helping out in the shop for half my days has seriously delayed my work on my grandmother's house. I should be happy to get back over there.

Especially since work isn't the only thing I've been doing over there.

I let my mind wander for a moment to the other project that's been eating into my time.

Ever since I accepted that I loved—and was happy to be lovedby—all these men, the creative urge has been prickling at the back of my mind. A couple of days after our group sex adventure, I gave up and dug through my old stuff, tucked away in a corner of Grandma's attic.

The paints hadn't been the newest or the highest quality, but they'd been there. A quick online order filled out my supply. I've cleared out a corner of an old parlor and turned it into my studio.