Two Hot to Handle: MMF Romance Pt. 01

"Who are you telling? I was sure he'd never forgive Grace for leaving us, but maybe he doesn't have too. I've known he's been unhappy for a while and I thought it was something between us but maybe it's beyond that. Were great as a couple, but amazing as a threesome. Is it crazy to think she could be our third?" Dylan searched Sammie, but he knew that's not who had the answers he was looking for. He'd never tell Logan, but he'd felt like there had always been a missing piece. Grace hadn't fit and he knew that from the start. But Logan had believed she was the one. He wouldn't be so quick to open up this time, but he could hope it would be different, couldn't he?

As Sammie was about to say something, the alarm sounded and the station became a flurry of activity. In a blink Dylan was guiding the truck out of the station with all seats but Logan's filled. He glanced over to the ambulance pulling out of the station and saw it too was missing a passenger. Simultaneously through his headset mic and the rig unit radio Dylan called out "Logan was at the court house as of an hour ago. Dispatch please send the response info to his personal. He will meet on scene via the chief's truck. Do we have a 20 on Jack?"

Reggy, the paramedic driving the ambulance keyed up "Jacks at the market. We'll have to run me solo and one of you guys will have to jump on the box if needed."

Dylan responded "Affirm. Dispatch please show Jack unavailable. We'll keep you updated on resource locations as they change. Both Truck 22 and Medic 22 en route."

Dylan moved the truck fluidly through the small town with the ambulance trailing him. He occasionally turned on his sirens, but for the most part there was no need. It was noon on a Thursday. No weekend tourist meant no traffic. The units arrived at Daisy Roland's home on the outskirts of town. Dylan, Sammie, Red, and Reggy retrieved their equipment and went inside. After a few minutes the sound of tires on gravel announced Logan's arrival. Dylan look up from Reggy's monitor as Logan walked in and was paralyzed by what he saw.

Standing in the entryway next to Logan was a fully uniformed Mari. She sported a class B collared shirt with paramedic patches, the county first responder badge, and a gold pin with her name and credentials: Mariesa Lyncroft, EMT-P. SCT certified. Her left arm was covered with tattoos that seemed to be a battle between angels. Some looked like typical angels but some looked darker. Her auburn hair was pulled into a high ponytail. A stethoscope rested around her neck. What took Dylan's breath away was the look on her face. She looked happy, determined, and focused. She filled the room with a sense of calm and it was obvious to everyone in the room that she was in charge.

"If you're okay with it Reggy, Mari would like to take over care." Logan spoke up. Although it was phrased as a request, Logan's meaning was clear. Regardless, his words seemed unnecessary. Mari was already providing care.

The five men watched as Mari seamlessly assessed Mrs. Roland determining she was having a cardiac dysrhythmia. Mari and Reggy assessed, treated, and loaded Mrs. Roland in the ambulance as naturally as if they had done so a hundred times prior. The four remaining men stood and watched as the ambulance pulled away to transport Mrs. Roland.

Red let out a low whistle. "I hope she stays. She's good. Don't fuck this up Cap, Dill." He then walked over to the chief's truck and headed back to the fire house.

On the way back to the fire house the inside of the truck stayed quite. Sammie fit in a short lived nap and each of the other men was absorbed in his thoughts about what he had just witnessed and the hopes for the future.

At the station the men relaxed and snoozed. Logan was sorting supplies when Dylan sat in a chair nearby.

"You work quickly."

Logan smiled and looked up at his best friend and life partner. "You know I always get what I want."

Dylan rolled his eyes and relaxed into the chair. "What do you know about her?"

"She's amazing. She's thirty-two. She's currently employed by the SF Fire Service. Been there since she was 21 but she has a flexible relationship with a flight team out of one of the hospitals there. I don't know what happened, but something bad happened eight months ago. She was injured, but it seems like more happened than that. She seems skittish around sirens. She almost started hyperventilating when I saw dispatch's message and hit code 3 in the chief's truck."

"Sammie mentioned that she tried to take off when we got to Earl yesterday."

Logan nodded one time. "She did. I had to chase after her. I want to know what happened, but I don't want to come on too strong, too quickly."

Dylan laughed. "Janine just dropped off Mari's bags but said Mari could get Bruiser at dinner with her parents tonight. I don't think you're moving slow Cap."

Logan just smiled and shrugged. "Whatever. She has a month and a half before SF Fire is expecting her back. We have six weeks to make her stay."

Dylan smiled, but there was sadness there. He slapped Logan on the back a couple times as he walked away, but his mind was already elsewhere. They barely knew Mari and she didn't know them at all. She didn't know they were together or that they had eyes on her to join their relationship. Fuck, she probably didn't even know Dylan's name. What if just Mari made Logan happier than just he could. What would happen to his life if Logan decided to leave him. It was obvious that his was already obsessed with Mari. He hadn't been like this with Grace. Dylan didn't know how to react to Logan's instant connection to Mari. Was it possible that after all this time, Logan just needed a new relationship. One that Dylan wasn't part of?

Logan

Logan watched Dylan walk away. Why couldn't Dylan be as excited about Mari as he was? His heart ached for the relationship he had with Dylan and Grace. The three of them were perfect. Both men needed a woman in their life. They couldn't give each other everything they needed to be happy. He could feel Dylan growing increasingly frustrated with him. Lately they had felt disconnected. Dylan was spending more time than usual working out and Logan had caught him staring at him with a hurt look on his face several times. He couldn't figure out what he did to upset his relationship, but he wanted to fix it. He was sure that Mari was that fix.

Other than being drop dead gorgeous, she seemed so caring. In the short time he'd known her she had done so many selfless deeds. He was sure that she was the nurturing soul that Dylan needed in his life after hearing Janine's stories about her two week stay in the inn. She had picked up breakfast for one of the other guests who had trouble with the stairs. She had babysat for a couple at the inn so they could have a date night. Janine even said she'd caught her and Bruiser cleaning the kitchen. In two weeks she had already made a huge impression on the people of Elk. Janine had told him that if he didn't make her stay his sister's yearly Christmas visit would involve her sleeping at his house instead of the inn. Logan's smile grew as he thought about it. She already had a place in Elk. He just had to make her see that. And he had to get her and Dylan to see that the three of them could work.

He loved Dylan more than anything, but he was not a nurturer. Dylan needed someone who would take care of him. Someone who wouldn't upset him with rough words and irregular attitude. Someone to be gentle. Logan licked his lips. He was not able to be gentle with Dylan. Dylan was his and every time he touched him it ignited passion too primal to be gentle. He needed a woman there between them. Someone who could take what they both had to give. Someone who could handle his controlling dominating sexual need. Someone who would reciprocate Dylan's tender loving. He had to make this work.

As he finished up inventory the ambulance pulled in the fire house bay. He was headed out to the bay, but stopped in the doorway instead. Dylan had met Mari as she was getting out of the rig. They were both laughing and Mari was leaning on his shoulder. Logan decided to give them space and headed for the common area.

Sammie and Red were sitting on one of the couches watching some vampire movie. Logan yawned and propped his feet up. He dozed off waking up once when Reggy came in and took a spot on a third couch and again when Red got up and disappeared into the men's dorm. The next time Logan woke up he blinked toward the clock. It was five thirty in the evening. Dylan was sitting at the end of the couch with his feet on his lap.

Dylan slapped one of his boots. "That impromptu run this morning kicked your ass, huh?" Logan laughed lightly and barely pushed the toe of his boot into Dylan's side. Dylan grunted and pushed Logan's feet off his lap. As Logan sat up he looked around, dazed he'd fallen asleep so deeply.

"Red, Jack, and Reggy went to Queenie's for dinner. Emma came by and stole Sammie away. You, me, and Mari are headed to Earl and Berta's dinner in about fifteen minutes."

Logan nodded. "How'd we snag an invite? Berta hates feeding us. Says well eat her out of house and home before we're full."

Dylan looked at Logan pointedly "I don't know. Janine was involved." Logan could see the questions in his eyes. He wanted to know all the details of Logan's plan. But he couldn't tell him. How could he tell his life partner that he can't love him the right way? Dylan wouldn't understand anyway.

Logan pretended he didn't pick up on Dylan's tone or implied questions. "Cool. I'll go change into a clean shirt. Mari was only doing a couple hours today so she's not on call tonight. Where is she?"

Dylan looked past Logan and the look on his face made Logan follow his gaze. Mari was coming down the hallway in a form fitting black mini dress that stopped half way up her thighs. She wore four inch wedged heels and large diamond hoop earrings. Her hair fell down her shoulders in soft waves. Logan groaned out loud and Mari's eyes went large.

"Is this inappropriate? You said Berta is an amazing chef and I wanted to dress nicely, but maybe I should just do jeans." She turned to walk back down the hallway. Logan watched her take two steps. He couldn't look away from the sway of her ass. She was stunning. He wanted to stop her from changing, but couldn't seem to speak. Suddenly Dylan had closed in on her.

Logan watched as Dylan gently grabbed Mari around the waist. His fingers sunk into her soft hips and Logan had to bite his check to stifle another groan. He couldn't move as he watched Dylan lean in close and whisper something in her ear. Whatever he said made her turn the sexiest shade of red. The color crept across her chest and into her cheeks. Logan promised himself to make her turn that color as much as possibly in the future.

As Dylan continued to whisper in her ear, Mari turned her head and glanced at Logan. He boldly readjusted his cock as she watched. He wouldn't go further than that, but he wouldn't leave her wondering if he was attracted to her or not.

Mari

Dylan was practically pressed against her whispering in her ear about how hot she was and how attracted to her Logan was. It felt off to have a man whispering to her about another man but it also felt good. Mari watched as Logan stared at her hungrily and Dylan splayed his hands over her hips. Mari's mind raced and she couldn't help but imagine that the wall behind her was Logan and she was trapped between the two men. Mari quietly moaned as the images raced through her head. In response Dylan leaned in further and his hard cock pressed into her stomach.

Mari shifted her gaze up into the green eyes staring down at her. What the hell was going on? Dylan was obviously attracted to her but seemed to be encouraging something between her and Logan. And she was picturing something between all three of them. Mari heard Logan stand and she turned to watch him come closer to her and Dylan. His eyes shifted between each of them and she could feel the heat rolling off him in waves. Firemen were supposed to put out fires, but these two seemed to be perfect at starting them too. Logan was now close enough to touch her. He smirked at her in his sexy cocky way.

"You're even more beautiful flushed and aroused" Logan said. Mari stood with Dylan holding her and Logan leaned into her neck. Mari's breath caught in her throat as she waited for what would come next. Logan remained bent down breathing heavily on her neck for several heartbeats before gently kissing the sensitive spot where her jawline and neck meet. The touch was surprisingly gentle and before Mari could process what was happening Logan was stepping back. He walked further down the hallway and glanced at Dylan before disappearing into the men's dorm. "Can I have ten minutes?"

Dylan nodded in reply and suddenly Mari was very aware that he was still pressed against her and now they were alone. It was Dylan's turn to step away and Mari unexpectedly felt lonely, empty. That was an absolutely absurd way to feel. She could not have feelings for either of these men. It was too soon and impossible because she was still so in love with Joe. The heat of her arousal and the small sense of loss she felt when Dylan pulled away shifted into crippling guilt and dread. She felt like a traitor to her own heart. Maybe this dinner was a bad plan. Actually maybe this whole move into a fire station with a crew she didn't know was a bad plan. She had been so excited to see if she could be on an ambulance again that she had basically let these strangers make all her decisions. Maybe she wasn't ready to return to service yet.

What if she had a flashback and someone died as a result? Lost in her thoughts Mari barely registered the sound of someone trying to talk to her. She looked up at Dylan, but didn't really see him.

All of Logan's talk of a slow system had made her temporarily forget that regardless of how busy the system is, people would be counting on her. If she had a breakdown on a call and someone didn't get the care they needed because of it she would never be able to live with herself. And with that thought the guilt reared its head again. Maybe she had already done enough that she would never be able to live with herself. Maybe Joe would still be here if she hadn't been so stubborn. Maybe the baby...

As her emotions began to spiral out of control Dylan closed the space between them and pulled her into a tight hug. He spoke softly "hey. I don't know where your heads at, but you're okay. Everything's okay." He used one hand to raise her head. When her gaze met his he continued. The smile on his face was radiant. It felt like it wrapped her in warmth and happiness and she almost wanted to believe him. Almost.

"You know what fixes any problem? Cheesecake." Impossibly, his smile grew bigger and she felt herself offer him a small smile. His voice dropped to a low whisper. "And I have a secret stash."

Dylan

It was alarming. How quickly her emotions took hold of her. But Dylan could relate to feelings so strong that everything else seemed to fade away. He pulled Mari behind him as he headed for the kitchen. He smiled as he thought about what a relationship with someone so sensitive would be. He'd always been the most sensitive one. Logan was loving, but he expressed himself in a very domineering way. He wasn't exactly cold, but he wasn't warm either. Grace had been down right frigid.

Dylan gave his head a small shake to fend off thoughts of his old relationship. He had to try to cheer Mari up. He had no idea what was going on in her head, but she'd looked terrified almost instantly. Tonight was about welcoming her to Elk. And he was determined that she would enjoy herself without the burden of whatever tragedy she seemed to be forcing herself to relive.

Dylan stopped in front of the fridge and spun around to face Mari again. It was a small thing, but it was another chance to hold her. With as much flourish and drama as possible, Dylan looked side to side suspiciously and resumed his hushed tone from the hallway.

"What you are about to see is top secret. I am trusting you with one of my most valuable secrets. You are welcome to help yourself to my stash anytime, but if the boys figure it out ..." He shuddered and gave her his best look of despair. Mari let out a small laugh and crossed an X over her heart.

"To the grave." Dylan nodded and opened the fridge. From the back of the bottom shelf he pulled a plastic green container labeled Kale Pesto. He also grabbed the milk and set them on the counter. As he grabbed a couple forks and glasses Mari opened the container and burst out laughing. Inside was an entire cheesecake completely smothered with cherries.

"Dylan you are a man after my own heart." Dylan beamed. He hoped she was right. They spent the next five or so minutes sharing the cheesecake. Dylan was thrilled. Mari seemed back to her upbeat amazing self and there were no remnants of her sudden mood change. Dylan heard the men's dorm door close and gave Mari a big wide eyed expression. She whole heartedly laughed, but caught on. They quickly packed away the cheesecake and stored it in the fridge just in time. Logan gave them both questioning looks when he walked in, but from the look on her face Mari was going to play up the unassuming damsel role. Dylan shrugged at Logan, but he felt his heart skip a beat. Maybe there was hope that this could turn into something.

Logan

The ride to Earl's was too short. There was no time to enjoy Mari squeezed between him and Dylan on the bench seat of Dill's old Chevy stepside. He grinned to himself as he sped up a bit. Dylan glanced his way and then nodded in understanding. As they neared the old dirt road turn off Logan pressed the breaks hard and cursed under his breath as he took the turn sharply. Mari slid closer to Logan and was now snuggly sandwiched between the two men. He reached over and lightly touched her thigh.

"Sorry. Almost missed the turn." Dylan draped his arm over the back of the seat and leaned into Mari. "You okay?" Mari nodded and Logan could practically felt her blush. In no time they were parking and seconds later Earl's front door flew open. Bruiser flew across the driveway barking and whimpering. Mari laughter filled the air around them as Dylan helped her out of the truck. Logan walked around the truck and burst out laughing at the sight before him.

Mari was on her knees placing quick small kisses all over Bruiser's face and he seemed to be dancing. He quickly shifted his weight from foot to foot and his tail drummed the ground. The pair were obviously overjoyed to be reunited. This greeting lasted several minutes before Berta graced the porch and hollered for them all to come inside, including Bruiser.

"Go ahead Mari. Dill and I have some bags to bring in for Earl and Berta." Logan stated.

"Are you sure. I can help." Mari started walked toward the truck bed. Logan grabbed her arm and lightly pushed her toward the porch. He gave her ass a small smack. "No thank you." Logan smiled to himself. He hoped she was blushing.

The men gathered the bags together. When he heard the screen door bounce shut he cleared his throat. Dylan looked up. Logan smiled at him and thought about taking Dill right here in the bed of the truck. That would be one way of clueing Mari in on the nature of their relationship. Dylan smirked and Logan admired how sexy the dirty blond green eyed man looked. He didn't wear cocky smirks very often but when he did Logan found him irresistible. Logan dropped his bags back into the truck bed and closed the space between himself and Dylan.

"I need you." Dylan laughed and Logan enjoyed swallowing his laughter. Their kiss deepened quickly and after a few minutes Dylan threw his head back laughing heartily.