by Amelia James
I tucked my phone in my pocket. “I kept his ass out of jail so he owes me big, but he likes to be paid.”
Will took another drink and shuffled his feet. “I don’t have that kind of money.”
I patted his shoulder. “This one’s on me. I owe you for helping me with Kaylynn.”
“Kaylynn… the blonde with the asshole husband? He’s still in jail, right?”
“Yep, and last time I talked to him, he believed she’s dead.”
“Good.” He nodded. “How is she? Do you ever hear from her?”
I slid closer and lowered my voice. Force of habit. “I saw her on my way out here from Charleston. She’s doing well under the circumstances. Got remarried.”
He glanced around and matched my tone. “Same kind of guy?”
“No. I checked him out. He’s safe.”
“Are you disappointed?”
“That she moved on?” I shrugged, then reconsidered and shook my head. “I wasn’t the right guy for her. At the time, yes, but not permanently. I’m glad she’s happy.”
He nodded and raised the plastic cup to me. “Me too.”
Lightning flashed over our heads and rain poured down on the field. We scrambled to the stairwell for cover, but got drenched before we made it.
Will stared at the blackened sky. “Game over.”
“Let’s go.” I wrung out my suit jacket and draped it over my head as we ran across the street.
“Where’d you park?”
“At my office.” I jumped as thunder exploded over my head.
“How far is that?”
I groaned, “Six blocks.”
“I’m right down the street. Come on, man. I’ll give you a ride.”
We jumped into his truck. “This isn’t same the piece of shit you usually drive.”
“Found it on Craigslist when you guys were in Chicago last week. Needed something to get around in.”
Walking six blocks would’ve been faster than driving it. Everyone had left the stadium at once, creating a confused line out of the parking lot. I used the opportunity to force Will’s hand. “All right, be honest with me. What’s your choice? Going after Talia or getting over her?”
He ignored the guy waving him through and looked straight at me. “I’ll never get over her.”
Damn it. “No more bullshit, but you’re still gonna—”
“I can’t take her from you.” A sly smiled twisted his lips. “Well, I could, but I won’t.” He waved at the other driver then got serious as he turned back to me. “I’ll respect your relationship.”
“Thank you.”
“My pleasure. No, hers. It’s all about her.”
I grinned. “Yes, it is.”
He glared at me as he pulled out into the street. “Enough gloating.”
“You need to get laid.”
“No, I don’t.”
I smirked at him. “Right, you need a girlfriend.”
He shook his head. “No….”
The light turned red, and I considered the women I’d met since moving here. “And I know the perfect chick.”
“Someone you haven’t fucked.”
“Well shit, that’s a short list.”
“No kidding.”
I backhanded his shoulder. “Claire.”
The light changed and he headed toward my building. “Your secretary?”
“Paralegal. She gets all pissy when I call her my secretary. That’s fun.”
“Hm….” His eyes glittered as if he was picturing her naked. “She’s definitely appealing.”
“And she’s looking for a guy with lots of time on his hands.”
He scowled at me. “Hey, I’m no slacker. I’m… changing careers.” He stopped at the light next to the Marriott. We both stared at a certain fourth-floor window.
I shook off the carnal memories. “Left at the next intersection. She thinks you’re hot.”
“Claire?” He turned into the parking garage. “Now we’re onto something.”
“I’ll give her your number. No pressure. If you want her, all you have to do is say yes.” I directed him to my parking space.
“That works. Get out of my truck before you soak the seat.”
I opened the door and jumped out. “Let’s shoot pool tomorrow night. Don’t tell me you have plans.”
He smiled. “If Claire calls me, I’m ditching you.”
“I would too.” I shut the door and watched him drive off. Even with the pouring rain, the evening had gone better than I’d hoped for. Now if I could get Claire to occupy Will’s heart, Talia and I would be rid of his shadow.
But she loves you.
And you.
Talia’s heart didn’t belong to me alone. Driven by the sudden need to get home and claim her, I unlocked my car and took off.
***
Traffic sucked on the way home, too, but I walked in the front door and peeled off my wet shirt before Talia even realized I’d come in.
“Hey baby, you’re home already?”
“Game got rained out.”
“Mmm… so did you.” She brushed her fingertips over my damp skin.
I wrapped my arms around her and bent her backward as I kissed her. She giggled and clung to my shoulders while I nibbled her neck. Warm strawberries and soap mingled on her skin, and my cock stiffened as I breathed in the scent of her. “I missed you.”
“How’d it go with Will?”
Damn it. I pretended I hadn’t heard the question and nipped the spot at the base of her neck that sent shivers down her spine. Her nipples perked up and I rubbed one through her thin cotton shirt.
But she stepped back and looked at me, her eyes pleading for an answer.
“Fine.”
“That bad?”
“No, it was good. We’re good.”
She smiled and moved closer. “I’m so happy to hear that.”
“He told me he won’t try to take you away from me. He’ll respect our relationship.”
“Oh….” The light faded from her eyes and her smile stuck. “Yes, I suppose that’s good too.”
Did she want us to fight over her? This is Talia you’re talking about, dumbass. “I’m gonna hook him up with Claire. I think they’ll be good for each other.”
“Is he interested in her?”
“He said he’d ditch me if she asked him out.”
“That’s nice.”
Shit. Getting Will to move on was easy. Getting Talia over him…. What would it take? I could give her all the hot, nasty sex she wanted, but still she wanted him. Maybe I should take my own advice.
“Look at me.” I curled my finger under her chin. “I know it’s gonna be hard to see him with someone else. If you need help dealing with it, let me in.” Maybe I’d never own all of her heart, but I’d take as much as she’d give me.
She nodded and laced her fingers with mine. “It’s okay. We’ll be okay.”
I was hoping for something stronger, more definitive. Words meant a whole lot more when supported by concrete evidence. Maybe I’d find the proof I needed in our bedroom. “Why aren’t you naked?”
“Um….” She fiddled with my belt, and I slid my hand under her tank top to fondle her pretty little tits. At least she was naked underneath that. “I wasn’t expecting you so early.”
I pinched her nipple and she squealed. “No excuses. My kitchen floor needs to be desecrated.” I grabbed the waistband on her shorts and tugged her through the living room.
“But wait.” She skidded to a stop. “Look what I found.” She stood next to my favorite leather chair. “Is this the same one we fooled around in that first night?”
“Yeah, I kept it. Got rid of everything else from my Chicago condo, but this….” I sat down and beckoned her to join me. “This is my trophy.”
She stood between my splayed knees, twirling her hair around her finger. “And I was the playing field?”
Will and I had run all over her, competing against each other to gain ground while
leaving her torn up and beat down. “Yeah. I’m sorry.” I leaned forward and wrapped my arms around her thighs, pressing my lips to the skin between her shorts and her top.
She ran her fingers through my hair, massaging the hurt from my head. “I’m stronger because of it.”
I circled her navel with my tongue. “I’m proud of you, darlin’.”
“Hmm….” She stroked my bare shoulders. “I think your trophy needs to be tarnished.”
“It already is.”
“Then we need to polish it up.” She grabbed my hair and pulled my head back. “Make something beautiful out of it.” She unzipped her shorts and let them fall to her ankles.
Do you really need more proof? “You’re beautiful.”
She grinned and crawled onto my lap. “As I recall, I was wearing nothing but my shirt and panties. And you were sitting here just like this—no shirt and a great big hard-on in your pants.” She grabbed my dick through the tight fabric. “Did you know I’d come?”
I pulled her string-bikini aside and fingered her wet slit. “You always come for me, babe.”
She moaned and rode my hand while she unzipped my pants. “Did you know I’d get up in the middle of the night?”
“I waited up for you. I’d spent the whole evening flirting with you, making sure you’d want me when you knew you shouldn’t. That’s why you came to me.”
She yanked my pants down to my knees. “Evil bastard.”
I pulled her shirt over her head. “Horny slut.”
She dragged her breasts over my face, and I caught a nipple between my teeth. “What were you planning to do to me if I said yes?”
Memories hit me hard and fast. Secret conversations when her back was turned, plans and contingencies over beer, locations scouted and hiding places arranged. “We couldn’t find a place for Will to watch, so he waited in the bedroom.” Shit, why did I bring him up? “I had you all to myself.” That may have been the only time we were ever alone.
“And if I hadn’t run away?”
I kicked my pants across the room and yanked her panties off, then helped Talia to her knees while I slid under and licked her wet pussy. She braced her arms on the back of the chair and quivered. She gasped and moaned as I sucked her sweet flesh, tormenting her with sweeping licks and tiny bites. Sweat slipped on leather and she slammed down on my mouth. I thrust my tongue in deep and rubbed my nose against her clit.
“Oh God, yes!” She shuddered and trapped my face between her thighs. Then she slid down, dragging her body against mine. “I want your cock in my mouth.” Her tongue teased my skin. “Was that on your agenda?”
“Anything you wanted.” I leaned back and grabbed her hair as her lips circled my dick. Fire fused us together, searing my body to her mouth. She slapped my cock with her tongue, and mashed her fat nipples into my thighs. Anything she wanted. That one strategy never changed, never failed.
Heat flared along my cock, sending me to the boiling point. She lingered, pushing me to the edge and back again. The woman knew my body so well that she could bring me to the brink of disaster and leave me hanging there while she played.
Talia climbed up my chest, dragging her wet flesh against my throbbing cock. “I want you.”
“I love hearing that.”
She slid down, keeping my erection outside her primed pussy. “Was fucking me part of the plan?”
I grabbed the back of her neck as she crawled up again, forcing her to look into my eyes. “Fucking you was goal number one from the day I met you.”
She smiled as we kissed. Our tongues mated and our bodies mingled. She grabbed my cock and shoved it into her cunt. The armrests left us little room to move, but we managed to slip and slide into each other, fucking and kissing like I’d wanted to do that first night.
Talia slipped from my arms and banged her knee on the floor. “Ow.”
“Like this.” I helped her stand and turned her back to me as I pulled her down on my lap.
“Ooo… perfect.” She moaned and slid her arms behind my neck, exposing the full length of her naked body to my hands.
I fondled her tits, pinched her nipples, stroked down to her abs and fingered her hot bud, all the while wishing for more hands to please her. I shoved her thighs apart with my knees, spreading her legs and watching her eyes squeeze shut as my cock drove in and my fingers circled her clit. I’d enabled her wild imagination to conjure up another lover, but that’s what she wanted, so I indulged her fantasy.
I pressed my lips to her ear. “My fingers are his tongue.”
“Oh!” Her hand fisted in my hair and she rode me, gasping and squirming.
I held her tight, impaled on my cock and licked by my fingers.
Her body turned hot and sweat sprinkled her skin. “What if Will had caught us that first night? What if we’d all done this together from the beginning?”
My cock stiffened, pounding for release. All three of us, all the time. No secrets, nothing hidden. Just pleasure, pure and simple. Passion shared. Lust united. Oh shit. My hard-on splintered. “Fuck yes!”
“Yes!” Talia arched off me, yanking my hair to its roots.
The pain melted into pleasure, and we curled up in that chair, breathing as one. Something foreign crept into my heart. Not happiness—I knew that feeling. Happiness plus… gratitude? Talia had chosen to be with me, and the urge to thank her nearly dropped me to my knees, but worshipping her didn’t feel like enough.
Something’s lacking. Like a picture without a frame or a massive jigsaw puzzle with one final piece missing, the finishing touch that made everything complete escaped my grasp.
Will had brought us together, but now I was asking him to stay away. How could I do that to my friend?
Do we have another choice?
Something to Think About
Claire called while I was doing a walk-through in a rental house. I wandered away from the landlady and out to the concrete patio. “Hey, how are you?”
“Great, thanks Will. Are you busy?” Her words spilled out in a breathless rush.
“Trying to find a place to live.”
“Oh… I can call back.”
No pressure, Alex had said, and that seemed to be Claire’s approach, too. A bright red cardinal fluttered from one Aspen tree to the next then took off toward the mountains. Must be nice to just fly away. “No, I’m glad you called. This is the third place I’ve seen today, and I like it the best.”
“Cool. Tell me about it.”
I heard silverware clinking against ceramic. Probably on her lunch break. She wouldn’t call from work… unless Alex told her to. He’d do that. “Older home, built in the 60s. Nice yard. I could put a grill on the patio.”
“Where is it?”
I’d seen too many houses in the last couple days, and had no idea how to find my way to any of them. “Um… it’s off West Colfax.”
“That’s a nice area. Easy to get to downtown or the mountains.”
“Good.” I walked back into the house and looked around. “The rooms are kinda small, but the kitchen is huge. Lots of counter space, island stove, double ovens, new fridge. A chef’s wet dream.” Is that why I’m stroking the faucet like a…? Damn!
A smile lightened her voice. “Alex told me you like to cook.”
“Yeah, I’m pretty good at it.”
A high-pitched giggle pierced my eardrum. God, I hope that’s a nervous laugh. “He also told me you might like to go out sometime.”
“With you, yes.”
She paused, then rushed her words again. “What are you doing this weekend?”
“Unpacking, hopefully. I’m flying to Chicago tomorrow and driving a moving truck back, but I should be here by Friday or Saturday.”
“Would Sunday work for you?”
“Yes, it would.”
Her tone turned confident, her voice rich and almost seductive. “Great. The first time we met, you asked if I’d play tour guide, so let me do that.”
“Sounds good.”<
br />
“Call me when you get back, and we’ll decide where to meet.”
“I’m looking forward to it, darlin’.”
A little sigh escaped her. “Me too. Bye.”
A big sigh dragged my shoulders down. For the first time in too long, I had a real date. Not just a fuck date, but an I-like-you/you-like-me, no-nookie-required afternoon with relationship potential. Oh hell. I’d never even done that with Talia.
Talia. If I got involved with someone else, I’d never get her back. Why am I thinking about getting her back? I’d promised Alex I’d stay away. Damn it. Move on. It’s time.
I stuffed my phone in my pocket and went in search of Mrs. Baker. “The kitchen is worth the rent all by itself. I’d like to put a deposit down, ma’am.”
She cringed. “Call me Sara Jane.”
Dressed in a tailored suit and lots of jewelry, the woman looked the same age as my mother, and her eyes crinkled when she smiled. My mom had taught me to call my elders “sir” or “ma’am.” It was expected in the South, but around here, people thought I was calling them old.
She handed me a document. “You’ll need to fill out an application so I can check your credit history and verify employment.”
Shit. “My credit is good, but I don’t have a job here yet.”
Her bracelets jingled as she jammed her hand on her hip. “You moved all the way out here without a job?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
She gave me a look.
“Sorry, habit. It was foolish, I know, but….” No job, no home, no woman… nothing but a beat-up truck. What the fuck have I done to my life?
A perceptive smile touched her lips. “It was a girl.”
“Yeah.”
“Leaving her or chasing after her?”
“She’s here in Denver, but I’m not a stalker—just stupid.” I filled in my name and previous address, listed Alex as a reference, and… Talia?
“She said no,” Sara Jane ventured.
Talia didn’t know the meaning of the word. “She didn’t. Her new boyfriend did.”
“Ah. So now you’re stuck here.”
Not really. I could go back to Chicago with no trouble at all. But even if I’d agreed to leave Talia alone, some stubborn part of me believed we weren’t quite finished. “Seems like a good place to start over.”
