I couldn’t make out any reply from inside the bungalow as Nolan and I got to work. It wasn’t our first rodeo, so we didn’t waste time admiring the problem; we set about attaching the cable to the obstruction and operating the winch on the front of the truck.
The fallen tree moved easily, which was a relief for all of us.
“Thank God,” Poppy said, finally stepping forward toward the bungalow again. She ran up and tapped on one of the windows.
Muriel appeared at the window, looking somewhat amazed.
“Hey, baby girl. I called in a favor and got Cooper and Nolan to come down with their truck and a winch... look, you’re free.”
As we approached, Cameron swung open the door. “Freedom! Come on in, bold rescuers. Welcome to our little prison.”
He seemed in remarkably good spirits for a guy who’d spent half a day trapped, but then I noted that even though it was already the afternoon, all three of them wore bathrobes. I sure hoped we hadn’t interrupted anything. Whatever happened, good for them, I wasn’t gonna judge.
Muriel blushed before racing off, presumably to get dressed.
“When did the tree fall?” I asked.
Cam and Hugh looked at each other. “It was, um, late,” Cameron finally answered. “Or early, I guess. Before the sun came up.”
“Yeah, the middle of the night,” Hugh nodded. “Sounded like some sort of explosion. Scared the hell out of us.”
“No doubt,” Nolan clapped him on the shoulder. “It’s a good thing none of you were nearby when it happened.”
I had to bite my tongue hard to keep from asking where the sheriff’s deputy and a reporter for the local paper had slept during the storm.
There was no question that it was one million percent not my business, but damn, I was curious.
“I gotta go get dressed and get to work. All police leave is canceled in a crisis,” Cam said. “You and Nolan are welcome to join and help out the clean up if you don’t have anything else going on. I know it’s probably not how you’d planned on spending the afternoon, but it really would make a huge difference to the people around town who are still waiting for someone to come along and give them a hand.”
“We were going to a wedding.” I winked and turned back to Nolan. He gave me the barest hint of a shrug as if to say he didn’t mind. It was up to me. “Sure,” I answered for both of us. “We just gotta give Poppy a ride back to her parents’ place.”
“Or, why not take me with you?” Poppy’s voice was as sweet always. “I don’t have anything else to do, and I’m sure y’all could use an extra pair of hands, right?”
Extra hands and extra lips and an extra mouth... and tits...
“Right, yeah, of course.” I swallowed hard and shifted my weight from one foot to the other to keep my sudden erection in check. “That sounds good to me. Nolan?”
“Do you need to ask?” he smirked as he started to reach for her, then abruptly shoved his hand into his pocket.
“I guess that’s settled, then,” Poppy said, taking her place between us again.
Cam disappeared into the bowels of the bungalow and reappeared fully clothed in the time it would take Clark Kent to spin into his superhero costume. Muttering another word of thanks, he dashed out the door.
He’d left by the time Muriel reappeared and asked Poppy, “What happened to you during the storm?” She glanced between the three of us. “How did you end up with Cooper and Nolan?”
“I’ll tell you all the details later,” Poppy answered and then looked at us and bit her lip before adding, “I’m helping them with the rescues.”
“We appreciate y’all coming out here to help us,” Hugh said. “I should get going—the paper will want me running all over town to report on the damage.”
“No problem. We need to get back out there, too,” I said.
“Next time, Muri, I’ve got a feeling we’ve both got a lot to talk about.” Poppy waggled her perfectly manicured brows.
Muriel flushed scarlet. “I’ve no idea what you’re talking about.”
“Uh huh, I’m sure.”
Watching those women engaging in coded conversations about the threesomes they both enjoyed was highly amusing, and I’d have happily stood and watched them for a few more minutes, but Poppy brought an end to it all by marching to the door. “We’ll leave you to get dressed, Hugh. See ya later, Muriel.”
Chapter Twelve
Cooper Price
As Poppy, Nolan, and I said goodbye to Muriel and got back into my truck, I wondered if I’d misread the situation with Poppy.
Yeah, she’d told us we’d only have a few nights together. Nothing had changed on that front.
But it had to be a good sign that she still wanted to spend the day with us even if it meant dealing with the aftermath of the storm, right?