Friendship on Fire (Love in Bloom: The Bradens, Book 3) Contemporary Romance

by Melissa Foster

  After the next stop, they settled into the hard seats, and soon there were only three other people on the train with them.

  “It smells a little like cigarettes and stale food, but you can’t smoke in here, can you?” Riley asked.

  “It’s from the people. Pack enough smokers into any confined space and you’re bound to have some residual odor. I close my eyes and imagine the rumbling beneath me is a roller coaster, or a toboggan, and then I can actually smell it,” Josh said.

  “You can smell the crisp air of a snowy mountaintop? In here?” Riley asked with a smile.

  “I’m a designer. I can design anything in my head. Then all I have to do is convince my brain to believe it. Try it,” he said.

  Riley closed her eyes and let out a sigh.

  “Think about being back home. Remember that hill behind the high school?”

  Riley nodded.

  “Remember as a kid how everyone would sled all day when they closed the schools? Pretend you’re there.”

  Riley knew exactly where he was talking about. The problem was, every time she and Jade had gone there, they’d spent half the time pretending not to stare at Rex and Josh. As she tried to force the smell of the Colorado winter air, thoughts of Josh brought the smell of Clive Christian cologne. Riley felt her cheeks flush.

  “Is it working?”

  “Better than I’d imagined,” she said. When she opened her eyes, the last person was stepping off the train. “This is the Brooklyn Bridge stop. Isn’t that the last stop?” She rose to her feet. “Don’t we have to get off?” Why are you still sitting down?

  “Everyone thinks this is the last stop.” Josh rose to his feet and put one strong arm around her waist, pulling her against him. “We’re all alone. No eyes, no ears.”

  He lowered his mouth, and Riley nervously rose on her tiptoes to meet him. Last stop? Where are we heading? The minute their lips touched, her anxiety fell away. She’d trust him to take her anywhere. When he deepened the kiss, she couldn’t imagine how her legs were still holding her up. The train lurched to the side, and they drew apart. Josh held the metal pole with his free hand, stabilizing them, clutching her close with the other.

  “See, there’s no reason to be afraid of the subway,” he said. “Just be smart. Were you nervous?”

  Only about being so close to you. “Not really.”

  “Good. Everyone’s got someplace to be, and you’ll be taking the train to and from work. That’s safe, Ri. I don’t want you worrying about going places. The subway is a must in New York.”

  “I know. I feel much better about it. I might not ride it alone at night for a while, but I think I can do the morning commute without worrying too much. It’ll just take a little getting used to.” She couldn’t believe he had remembered her comment about needing to master the subway. His thoughtfulness tugged at her heart. “Thank you,” she said.

  “Here. Sit with me. The train’s going to make a sharp turn, and when it does, you’re going to see the most beautiful, forgotten subway station in New York.”

  “Forgotten?”

  The train slowed, screeching against the rails as it made its way around the loop. Riley and Josh shaded their eyes and peered through the windows.

  “Oh my God. What is that? It’s so ornate. Josh, it’s glorious.” And just as fast as it had appeared, it faded back to concrete. Riley came away from the window with her mouth agape.

  “It’s built below City Hall. They renovated the station a few years ago, but they never opened it to the public. It’s beautiful, isn’t it? It’s dark, so I know it was difficult to see,” Josh said.

  “It was incredible. Does everyone in New York know it’s here?”

  Josh shook his head.

  “How did you know? Wait. Don’t tell me if you found it with some other woman.” She cringed at the thought. She’d seen the magazine pictures of Josh with beautiful models on his arm and she tried not to think about it. Stop it. Everyone has a past.

  “You’re so cute.” He put his arm around her. “My real estate agent.” He kissed her cheek. “He told me about it.” He kissed her neck, and Riley closed her eyes, relishing in the motion of the train and the feel of Josh’s lips. “At least in here we don’t have to hide.” He took her in another kiss, and his hand gripped her rib cage; his thumb brushed the underside of her breast.

  Heat rushed through her, and as the train slowed at the next station, Riley had only one thought. I’m already sick of sneaking around.

  Chapter Ten

  THIS IS A DREAM. It has to be. Riley stood at the entrance of Savannah’s apartment building—her choice. Josh had invited her to his apartment, but she worried that being seen coming or going from Josh’s apartment might raise eyebrows. She hated worrying about that, and when they were kissing on the train, she’d been ready to forget about sneaking around, but when the cool night air hit her cheeks, she realized that reality would be waiting for her at eight o’clock the next morning.

  From the first time Josh’s lips touched hers, Riley had a hard time thinking about anything else. The musical had been a romantic and very enjoyable distraction, and helping her overcome her fear of the subway was the most thoughtful thing he could have done, but now, holding Josh’s hand, knowing they were on the cusp of crossing the line between employee and lover, all she could think about was being close to him.

  Her fingers trembled as she fumbled with the key. Josh reached around her, pressing his body against her back, and put his hand over hers, settling the key into place. His breath was hot on her neck, and she closed her eyes as he turned the key, soaking in the feel of him against her.

  The door swung open, and Riley’s nerves caught fire. Oh my God! I’m going to have sex in his sister’s apartment. This is wrong on so many levels. Josh wrapped his arms around her from behind, kissing her neck, then nibbling her earlobe and whispering in her ear.

  “Let’s go inside so I can kiss you some more.”

  The hell with wrong. Riley spun around and grabbed the collar of his shirt, pulling him into the apartment. He kicked the door shut behind them. She’d stifled her desire for him for too long. She wanted him, damn it, and she wasn’t going to let something like who owned an apartment stop her from doing what her body and heart had been yearning for forever. The need was too great. She worked the buttons on his shirt as they made out like horny teenagers on their way toward the bedroom. It’d been too long since she’d felt such a craving for wantonness. Josh pulled back long enough to rip his shirt off and toss it aside. He reached for her dress, and Riley reached for the light switch.

  “I want to see you,” he said.

  Not after all the skinny models you’ve dated. “I’m a little embarrassed,” she admitted.

  He cupped her cheek with his hand—a mannerism that she’d already come to long for—and whispered, “You’re the most beautiful woman I’ve ever met.”

  I don’t care if it’s a lie or the truth. You just got major brownie points. She reached for a candle on the bookshelf. “Okay?”

  “Perfect.” Josh took a pack of matches from the shelf and lit the candle, then set it down on the bedside table. He pulled his wallet from his pocket and set it beside the candle.

  There were only three steps between them, but three steps felt like a giant abyss. Riley moved toward him, and he met her halfway, reaching his hand beneath her hair and gripping the base of her head. His hand was large and warm, and as he pulled her into a kiss, she wanted to touch him, to feel her skin against his, but she hesitated. Will he think I’m too forward? His tongue explored the curve of her mouth and the fullness of her lower lip; then he took her lip between his teeth, sending a sizzling need through her revved-up body, and just when she couldn’t hold back any longer, he raised her dress over her head. He kissed her again, and she reached for the button on his pants, drawing them down without ever missing a beat of his warm mouth against hers. Josh stepped back, raking her body with a slow, hungry leer.

 
“My God, Riley, you’re exquisite.”

  She looked down at her black lace bra and the line of her thong. What she saw was so different from what he did, but somehow, the way his eyes lingered over the curves of her hips and the fullness of her breasts gave her confidence. She stepped out of her heels slowly, savoring the heat that filled the space between them. She wanted to remember this moment forever. His sculpted chest and arms were so different from what she’d envisioned beneath his fine suits. Even her fantasies hadn’t come close to the hardness and definition of his perfect body. Oh God. He’s so handsome.

  There was no music, no other noise in the room besides their heated breaths. Riley swore she could hear her heart thundering against her chest. Moonlight filtered in through the curtains, casting shadows that danced with the light of the flickering candle across the thick comforter. When Josh reached for her, Riley closed her eyes, wanting to luxuriate in the feel of his hands as they explored her, and she didn’t want to think past the next few breaths. She pushed away the worry of tomorrow, and when she felt Josh’s breath on her cheek, she opened her eyes.

  He kissed her again, and she wrapped her hands around his muscular back. His skin was hot, his muscles rock hard beneath her palms. She slid her hand to the curve of his back, just above the waist of his boxers, wishing she could stop her fingers from trembling. Riley had been with only three men, but she was able to distinguish the difference. The nervousness she felt was caused by more than just being with any man. She was trembling because the man she was with was the only man she’d ever really wanted. Josh.

  He drew back from her lips, kissing her neck, her chest, then running his finger along the scalloped edge of her bra, just before lowering his mouth to the tender crest of her breast. She sucked in a breath. His tongue was hot and sensual as it ran beneath the lace. She’d dreamed of what his mouth would feel like on her for so long that she nearly melted beneath his touch. He reached behind her and unhooked her bra, setting her heavy breasts free. His hands were there to greet them, caressing her, taunting her nipples with his thumb and forefinger until she could no longer repress a pleasure-filled moan.

  Josh guided her down to her back on the bed, perching above her and looking deep into her eyes. He brushed her bangs from her forehead and smiled.

  “You okay?” he asked.

  Riley’s voice was lost in his touch. “Mm-hmm” was all she could manage.

  “I don’t want you to do anything you don’t want to, Riley. I wanted to take things slowly, but…”

  She reached up and touched the prickly shadow that’d formed on his cheek. He was no longer Josh Braden, designer, employer. He’d become just Josh, the sweet, sexy man she’d had a crush on for years. She’d be damned if she was going to stifle one more urge.

  “I don’t want to go slow,” she said, and reached for his waistband with her other hand. She slid her hand beneath the soft cotton and touched him with a long, slow, teasing stroke, evoking a groan from him just before he lowered his mouth to her breast. Riley arched into him as his tongue teased and tasted her nipple, bringing every nerve to the surface of her body. He moved from the right breast to the left, bringing his hand up to replace his mouth; then he drew his tongue down the center of her stomach to her belly button. Riley closed her eyes again, savoring the feel of his hands gripping her hips, holding her still as he licked circles around her belly button, then plunged his tongue in and out. She writhed beneath him, wanting him to take her further.

  RILEY’S CURVES WERE luscious and full, different from all the other women Josh had been with. She moved with him, not at him like most women did. His other dates were always directing, showing, taking. But not Riley. The roundness of her hips filled his palms, sending desire pulsing through him. He hooked his thumbs in her thong and lowered the lacy string to just below her hips, then nipped at the sensitive area above her hip bones. She moaned and squirmed, arching into him. He wanted to rip that thong from her body and plunge into her, deep and hard, but he held back. He wanted to savor their passion, to live in it while it was new and unscathed. Who knew what tomorrow would hold? Josh had lived his whole life for tomorrow. Tonight he was living for now.

  Riley wrapped one leg over his hip, sending shivers down his back. He moved up her body, taking her mouth with his while simultaneously slipping his hand beneath the tiny cloth of fabric between her legs. Her silken skin was wet and warm. He slid one finger inside of her, moving in rhythm to each thrust of his tongue in her mouth.

  She met his efforts with an arch of her hips, pulsing against his hand as he slid a second finger into her warmth. She tangled her hands in his hair and pulled him harder against her, kissing him deeper, bringing his need to take her to the surface. She moved her hips faster against his, but he wasn’t ready to bring her over the edge. He withdrew her fingers and she groaned, a deep, torturous groan. His need swelled with the sound of hers, and he moved them back in slow and deep, then quickened his motions to match each thrust of her hips until he felt her tighten and pulsate around his fingers. Her head fell back, her mouth open, and her eyes clenched shut. She gripped his shoulders, her nails digging into his skin.

  “Josh,” she called out into the darkness. “Oh…Josh,” she said in a throaty voice. She breathed in short, fast pants, until finally, blissfully, her legs parted and her eyes fluttered open.

  He lowered his mouth to hers again, feeling the satisfied fatigue of her kiss and arousing all sorts of licentious desires within him. He moved slowly down her body until his mouth hovered just above her sex. Josh hadn’t gone down on a woman in years. It was such an intimate act, something he’d never do with a woman who was using him to move ahead, or with someone he didn’t see a future with. He was different from many men in that way, and when he was younger, he’d worried about that moral guideline, wondering if he were somehow strange to hold such a thing in high regard. Now, with Riley lying beneath him, her eyes filled with trust, her body open to him, and her heart filling his, he knew he’d been right to savor the sacred act. He lowered his mouth between her legs and licked the insides of her thighs. Her skin was salty and sweet, and the smell of her arousal drew him in. He brought his mouth to her center and lapped slowly and gently. Riley gripped the sheets in her fists as he quickened his pace. He gripped her thighs as he brought her to the edge of another climax, her muscles tensing beneath his palms, and her insides tightened against his tongue. With one hand, he drew down his boxers and kicked them to the floor.

  Riley moaned his name in a hurried breath. She panted with each arch of her back, and Josh could wait no longer. His erection throbbed with need. In one swift move, he slid to the side and grabbed a condom from his wallet. He tore it open with his teeth and slid the latex over himself. Riley grabbed his biceps and pulled him to her. He entered her moist heat and lowered his mouth to hers, thrusting hard and hungrily, meeting her need and feeding his. She wrapped both legs around his waist as he drove himself deeper, harder. It had been too damned long since he’d felt this good.

  Her body tightened and spasmed around him just as his own orgasm reached for release.

  “Ri, open your eyes,” he said.

  She smiled, and he slowed his pace just enough to plant a long, sensual kiss on her lips before allowing his body to have its climax in perfect succession to hers. Her eyes fluttered closed as he arched with one final thrust against her, and then he sank into her, sated and fulfilled. Their bodies relaxed against the mattress.

  “Wow,” she whispered.

  Her body glistened in the candlelight. Josh reached for her hand. “Wow is right,” he said, and he knew that come tomorrow, he’d have a hell of a time keeping his feelings for Riley a secret.

  Chapter Eleven

  RILEY AWOKE TO the sound of her cell phone vibrating on the bedside table. She reached for it without opening her eyes, and then she remembered the night before—and the missing piece. Did we say goodbye? She shot up in bed, pulling the covers against her chest. Her eyes scann
ed the bedroom. Josh’s clothes were gone, his wallet, too. Thank God. Oh no. Did he sneak out? Like a one-night stand?

  Her phone vibrated against her cheek, and she clicked the Talk button. “Hello?”

  “You were supposed to call me last night.”

  “Jade, thank God,” Riley whispered frantically into the phone as she climbed from the bed. She didn’t know if Josh was outside the bedroom door, still in the apartment.

  “What’s wrong?” Jade asked.

  “Nothing. Everything. Hold on.” She set the phone on the nightstand and pulled on a T-shirt and underwear, then picked it back up. “It was a definite date.”

  “Why are we whispering?” Jade whispered.

  “Because I can’t remember saying goodbye to Josh after…you know.”

  “You and Josh?” Jade screamed into the phone. “Really? This is wonderful!”

  “No, it’s not. I mean, it’s wonderful, yes, but it’s also scary as shit.” She tiptoed into the living room and, seeing that she was alone, breathed a sigh of relief.

  “Why is it scary?”

  “Because. Now I’m sleeping with my boss, and you know Cruella will eat that up and spit me out for all to walk on.” Riley noticed a note on the counter in the kitchen. “Hold on,” she said as she retrieved and read the note.

  Good morning, beautiful. Back soon. J.

  “Oh my God.”

  “Riley, clue me in here,” Jade urged.

  “It’s a note from Josh. He’s coming back. What time is it?” The sun was just beginning to rise over the crest of the trees.

  “Six your time,” Jade said.

  “Isn’t it like four in the morning there? Jeez you get up early to take care of those animals. Why would he leave and then come back before six in the morning?” Riley went into the bathroom and turned on the shower. There was a freshly used towel hanging neatly on the towel rack. “He showered,” she said.

  “And you what? Slept through him getting ready and leaving after you had sex?” Jade’s voice carried an entertained tone.