Between the Studs

By Brigham Vaughn

After a busy and successful year at her bakery, divorcée Aimee Lucas decides to splurge on a bathroom renovation. The owner of Lucas’s Fine Cakes and Pastries is tired of lackluster Valentine’s Days, so she’s looking forward to a solo celebration this year. Why bother with a mediocre date when she can relax in a tub with a glass of wine?

Joshua Ward and Matt Mitchell co-own a construction company, but there’s a bit more to their partnership than they let on. Although both men have caught the eye of many a homeowner, they never mix business with pleasure.

When Aimee hires J&M Construction to remodel her bathroom, she never expects to find a date. Much less two.

As the project continues, Aimee, Matt, and Josh find themselves drawn to one another. Matt and Josh are happy together, but they’re looking for a woman to be their third, and it quickly becomes clear Aimee might just be whom they’ve been searching for.

With Valentine’s Day quickly approaching, they all have decisions to make. Can Matt and Josh broach the subject without losing their customer? And will Aimee decide she just wants a fling with the hunky contractors, or is it time for her to take a leap of faith on something more?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Brigham Vaughn
• Release date: Feb 14, 2018

Brigham Vaughn

Brigham Vaughn is starting the adventure of a lifetime as a full-time writer. She devours books at an alarming rate and hasn’t let her short arms and long torso stop her from doing yoga. She makes a killer key lime pie, hates green peppers, and loves wine tasting tours. A collector of vintage Nancy Drew books and green glassware, she enjoys poking around in antique shops and refinishing thrift store furniture. An avid photographer, she dreams of traveling the world and she can’t wait to discover everything else life has to offer her.

Book preview

Chapter One

I really shouldn’t be doing this, she thought. But that ass ...

Mrs. Lucas?

Aimee snapped out of the trance she’d been in.  She cleared her throat and turned to look at Matt Mitchell, the broad-shouldered, scruffy hunk she’d hired to redo her bathroom.

To be fair, she hadn’t known he was broad-shouldered or scruffy when she set up the initial meeting. She definitely hadn’t known he was such a hunk. When she mentioned to her close friend Paula that she was looking for a contractor to do some remodeling, she had recommended J&M Construction. Paula absolutely raved about the guys who had renovated her kitchen three years ago, just before Aimee had moved into the house next door. 

And from the moment they’d knocked on her front door, Aimee had been grateful that she’d taken Paula’s advice.

Aimee caught sight of Matt staring at her expectantly, and she offered him a sheepish smile, hoping he hadn’t caught her staring at Josh. Sorry. What did you need?

Just needed to see if you’d made a final decision on the finish for the hardware yet. We need to make sure everything’s in stock or we’ll have to special order, which will slow things down, and I know you had a hard deadline of February 1st .

After years of disappointing Valentine’s Days with lackluster men, this year she’d decided she was going to spend it alone. To hell with expecting a man to spoil her, she was going to plan her own spectacular Valentine’s Day. During a particularly grueling—if successful—year at the little bakery she owned, she’d made an impulsive decision to treat herself to a new bathroom.  Something that she could really relax in. What better way was there to unwind after a long day in the hot kitchen or hunched over the desk in her office?

Forget visiting a spa on her brief vacations, she was going to have a spa-like bathroom to luxuriate in, right in her own home. And Valentine’s Day seemed like the perfect time to splurge on herself.

Construction had begun just a few days after Christmas, and her house had been utter chaos since. Gorgeous, gorgeous chaos.

Matt cleared his throat, and she blinked. Damn it, woolgathering again. What have we been talking about again? Oh, yes, hardware finishes. Yes.  I did make a decision. I wrote everything down and think it’s all on my desk. I’ll bring it right up.

I’ll come down with you. Time for a refill on my coffee anyway. Matt held up his mug and winked while Aimee tried not to swoon. That man knew how to pull off a wink. She just wished it wasn’t the only thing he was pulling off ...

You go on ahead then, she said hastily before she got lost in her fantasies again. And I’ll bring it into the kitchen.

Sure thing, Mrs. Lucas.

Aimee, she corrected. Please, you really should call me Aimee.

Aimee.

She shivered. Was it her imagination or did Matt’s voice get a little deeper when he said her name?

Technically, she was Ms. Lucas now. She hadn’t been Mrs. anything since the divorce papers had been signed three years before, and she wasn’t about to go back now.  She’d never changed her last name to her ex’s, so at least she hadn’t had to go through the whole name change process.

Tom—shithead that he was—hadn’t liked her keeping her maiden name when they got married.

But her father’s bakery, Lucas’s Fine Cakes and Pastries, was an institution in this town and when she’d taken it over after his death, she hadn’t been willing to change the name on the sign or lose that last link to her father.

She missed him so much. Her father, not her shithead ex. There were plenty of things she missed about being in a relationship, but none of them had to do with him. Kicking him to the curb was the best decision she’d ever made.

The sound of heavy boots on the wooden stairs made her realize she’d gotten lost in her thoughts yet again, and she hastily followed Matt down to the first floor. She wasn’t sure if she should blame a lack of sleep or the gorgeous men traipsing through her house for her distraction lately. She suspected it was the latter.

Matt veered left into the kitchen while she headed right toward the little sunroom off the living room that she used as a home office.

She quickly retrieved the list and glossy brochures from her desk and met Matt in the kitchen. He was still doctoring his coffee so she had a moment to look him over. Like Joshua Ward—the equally hunky worker Matt had caught her ogling earlier—he was tall, with the kind of muscular arms that made her fantasize about getting thrown around in bed. Not to mention an ass that would make a grown woman weep. Or, in her case, embarrass herself daily.

Where Josh had blondish-brown hair and hazel eyes, Matt’s hair was darker brown and his eyes were a rich shade of honey-brown. She’d pictured threading her hands through his hair as she guided him between her thighs, and she could just imagine him staring up at her as he brought her to orgasm ...

These muffins are great, Mrs. L—I mean Aimee.

Oh, good. I’m glad you liked the raspberry chocolate. She smiled, hoping her face wasn’t too flushed from the fantasy she’d gotten lost in. Think I should sell them at the bakery?

If you did, I’d buy dozens! He shot her a cheeky grin. Josh and I are sure gonna miss working for you!

Since the two gorgeous men had arrived on her doorstep for a meeting about her bathroom remodel, she’d been using them as test subjects for her new ideas for the bakery. She’d missed having someone to cook for who wasn’t a paying customer. Even before she knew how attractive they were, she’d planned to bribe the guys working on her house. Josh and Matt had been given unlimited coffee and baked goods since they’d arrived. Since the project was ahead of schedule and they’d been nothing but conscientious about her house and belongings, she figured she’d made the right choice. It was a win-win in her books.

So, is that the final decisions for the hardware? Matt gestured with his coffee mug.

Oh, yes. She set the sheet on the marble slab of the island where she rolled out pastries. This is what I was thinking.

Hmm. Matt slid closer. Close enough that Aimee could smell the warm, spicy scent that always clung to him, even when he was covered in sawdust and sweat. Let me take a look here.

He ran a finger down the page, humming to himself as he read it over and compared it to the picture brochure. His hands were large, with blunt fingers roughened from work. She wondered what they’d feel like on her breasts or dragging down her thighs. She shuddered.

Cold? Matt had leaned his elbows on the counter, and when she glanced over, she realized he was close enough that she could see the little flecks of gold around his pupils.

Must have had a bit of a chill, she lied. She couldn’t seem to look away. I’m fine now.

He smirked at her. You sure are.

She blinked, wondering if she’d heard him wrong. Had he really said that she was fine?

Why am I the only one working around here?

Aimee glanced up to see Josh leaning against the doorframe into the kitchen. She couldn’t tell from his expression if he was annoyed or not. He was always a little more serious than Matt, his enigmatic expressions hard to read compared to Matt’s wide smiles and open expressions.

Matt laughed as he straightened. We’re working on the finish details.

Sure. Josh shook his head and shot them a disgusted look, but she caught a glimpse of a twinkle in his eyes. I think you’re a bad influence on him, Mrs. Lucas.

Aimee, she corrected. She swore she’d break them of that habit by the time they were finished with her project. Mrs. Lucas made her feel old. Although she suspected the guys were roughly five years younger than her, making them in their early thirties to her thirty-seven. Thank God they didn’t call her ma’am.

Fine. Then I think you’re a bad influence, Aimee. Josh offered her the lopsided grin that always made her knees go a little weak.

I try! she said cheerfully, relieved to realize he had just been joking around.

As long as you saved me some coffee and muffins, he said, you can be as bad as you want to be.

For you? Always. She pointed toward the platter. There’s a new flavor of muffins for you to try too.

Mmm. You spoil us. Josh sauntered in her direction and grabbed the mug he’d left next to the coffee pot earlier. With the three of them between the counter and the island, her rather roomy kitchen was starting to feel a bit snug. Not that she minded being trapped between two gorgeous men, but ... She cleared her throat. So I was just going over the hardware finishes with Matt. I don’t think any of them were the ones you said were special order so that’s good.

Yeah, I bet you want us out of here as soon as possible, Josh threw over his shoulder as he refilled his mug.

I never said that! Aimee protested with a laugh. Sure, it’s been a little loud and chaotic, but at least, I get to test my baked goods out on you.

You just like us for our stomachs, Matt teased.

No, that’s not true! There are other perks.

Name one.

Umm. She wracked her brain for something that wouldn’t out her as a pervert and came up blank.

Mmmhmm, that’s what I thought, Matt said, his tone triumphant.

Josh’s forearm pressed against her right elbow, and Aimee glanced over at him.

Since Matt can’t seem to focus today, why don’t you go over what you want with me?

Aimee knew Josh was referring to the plans for her bathroom,