His Best Friend's Little Sister

by Vivian Wood

  It was way too late for a cleaning crew. Was there someone squatting here? A burglary? This was the last thing he needed to deal with.

  With remarkable silence, he descended the last of the steps and slid around the corner. “Hands up! Don’t move!” The ease in which the Navy slipped back into him was incredible.

  This was no burglar. A breathtaking redhead was facing away from him, wrapped only in a towel and slowly raising her hands. “Please don’t hurt me,” she said, gripping the towel until the last second before letting it fall to the floor. Her auburn hair fell in waves to her waist, crowning the crest of her perfect ass and heart-shaped hips. They curved in toward shapely calves, each inch of her flesh more perfect than the last. Henry felt his cock stirring—an instinct he hadn’t entertained for a long time. Slowly, she turned her head as he lowered the gun. “Henry?”

  “Ellie?” he asked. Their eyes locked for what seemed like minutes. Henry could see the profile of her breast and the stiffness of a pink nipple. It was like she was letting him drink her in, drop by drop.

  Damn. When did Ellie get so beautiful?

  4

  Her face was on fire as she snatched up her towel—acutely aware that she had to bend over right in front of him to do so. “What are you doing here?” she spat, struggling to secure the towel around her.

  “Vacation,” he shrugged. He was back to normal now, but she’d caught that glimmer in his eyes. He’d looked at her in a way he hadn’t since that time six years ago at the party. Right before she’d vomited all over him. In the years since, she’d seen him a few times. At the inaugural ball, of course, and damn if he didn’t look incredible in a tux. Other times there had been occasional get-togethers, parties hosted by Eli, and other excuses to gather for one celebration or another. However, each of those times, he’d been reserved. She’d tried, at first, to search his eyes for some hint of what she’d seen once, but it was never there. Until tonight.

  “Vacation?” she asked, wrapping her arms across her chest. What’s the point? He’s already seen everything.

  “I didn’t expect…” he began. “Well… it makes sense that you would be in hiding, but…”

  “You’ve seen the video. Great,” she said. “That’s just great. I guess everybody’s… I’ll be right back.”

  Rushing upstairs to her bedroom, Ellie pulled on the first thing she saw. She couldn’t believe Henry had seen the video. Naturally, everyone had. It had gone viral and was even picked up on national and global news stations. All the “juicy stuff,” as Sam called it, was blurred out of course, but you could still tell the girl Sean was ramming was a ten. A ten. Seriously, Sean? You had to go and show the whole world that I wasn’t good enough for you?

  Pulling on faded jeans and a thin T-shirt, she cringed again and again over what had happened downstairs. Of all the people to walk in on her here, Henry was the last one she could have imagined. Every time she’d seen him in the past few years, from birthday celebrations to the occasional run-ins at the store, he was always with a pretty blonde glued to his arm. Always blonde, always. He really does have a type, she thought. And I’m clearly not it. It’s a good thing he’d never met Sam. There would be no stopping that power couple. And there was no way she could handle her best friend marrying the only guy that had ever made her feel like this.

  Besides, for two of those years she’d had Sean. Or at least she thought she had. Damn, and she’d been so careful about picking out her first official boyfriend, too. Everyone had said what a great guy he was, so intelligent and caring and compassionate. He’d spent a summer in Nicaragua volunteering to build community water wells, for Christ’s sake! And he had the nerve to cheat on her?

  At first she’d been thrilled to show him off like some kind of prized pony. “He’s majoring in pre-law,” she’d told Henry and the random blonde of the moment the first time they’d met.

  “Oh, well good for you!” was Henry’s reply. She’d been so pretentious. Had she really thought that would impress anyone, especially Henry? Henry had earned his MBA while in the military and completed three tours. Why on earth would some barely legal kid majoring in pre-law impress him? Remembering that moment made her cringe even more. And the worst part? Seeing him tonight, even after the towel dropped, her heart squeezed the same way it used to—in a way she thought it never could again.

  His footsteps echoed on the stairs. Why couldn’t he have been that loud when she was downstairs in just a towel? She held her breath when he reached the landing, listened as he shuffled through something in the room next door. What is he doing? Is this… is this when something is supposed to happen between us? If she was supposed to move now, make some kind of noise or give a hint that he should come in, she just couldn’t. She was frozen. When she heard him shut his door and head back downstairs, she could finally exhale.

  Glancing in the mirror above the bedroom vanity, she made a face and a brief attempt to smooth her brows and pinch her cheeks. You’re a mess. A mess! She hadn’t even washed her hair, just folded it under a towel. Without a whit of makeup, she felt truly naked and wholly vulnerable. If she’d known Henry was going to see her naked, she would have done things differently. Brazilian wax, salon-worthy blowout, and that no-makeup makeup look Sam had been trying to teach her. I really am just a kid, she thought. Nothing, not even a degree from Georgetown, was going to change that.

  That same familiar feeling pulsed from her center, but she forced the thought away. Stop acting like a lovesick teenager, she scolded herself before going downstairs.

  “Groceries?” she asked, watching him unpack the bags on the counter. “Looks like you plan to stay awhile.” He shrugged again, lowering his gaze. “Must be some fascinating… frozen broccoli there,” she said.

  His laugh was a polite one. “Sure.”

  “What are you really here for?” she asked.

  “I told you that already.” His face hardened, and he turned his full attention to putting away frozen foods and pantry items.

  She wasn’t having this. This was her getaway. Following him around the kitchen, brow furrowed, she goaded him on. “Well, I’m planning on staying here indefinitely,” she said. “Eli said it was okay.” She knew she was acting like a brat, but she couldn’t help it. She’d barely been here for a day, and already her plan of complete and utter solitude was ruined.

  He paused, one can in each hand. “He did?”

  “Yep.”

  “Then this little… mix-up… is my fault. I didn’t tell him I was coming.”

  She raised a brow. “Oh. Are you expecting some company?” This is just perfect. When can we expect the next little blonde in your string of so-called relationships to show up? As if Sean humiliating her in front of the entire world wasn’t enough, now she had to put up with Henry flaunting some blonde flavor of the month in front of her.

  “No. Are you?”

  “Me? No! No, my boyfriend… well, ex-boyfriend… he…”

  Henry just nodded. “I get it. I’ll leave you to it. If it’s okay, I’ll stay tonight, then figure out where to go.”

  She chewed on her lip. Should she invite him to stay? Just the two of them, like she always imagined. However, those harsh words from six years ago still rang in her head. You’re too young for me, and you always will be. It was tempting, but she knew herself better at twenty-two than she did at sixteen. He was a vice that she shouldn’t play with. Besides, he’d already made it perfectly clear that he had no feelings for her. And never would.

  “Well, I guess we should have something for dinner,” she said, breaking the awkward silence. If there was a sliver of room for an invitation, she just closed it.

  “It seems like all you have are frozen French bread pizzas and apple slices,” he murmured, digging through the fridge.

  She blushed. How did he always put her on edge—and on the defensive? “Yeah. I’m not much of a cook.” Stop making excuses! He’s the one who showed up here uninvited, not you. You don’t have to explai
n anything to him.

  “Luckily for you, I am.” He gave her that half-smile that always made her feel like a middle school kid with a crush. “I brought plenty of options. How do you feel about steak?” He pulled two prime chops out of a bag and held them up for her to inspect.

  “Uh… great?”

  “You’re not so sure, huh? Don’t worry, you will be after I whip these up.” With another half-smile, he shooed her out of the kitchen. Her kitchen. How did he do that? “You can snack on your apple slices if you’re really starving,” he called after her.

  “Oh, be quiet and get to cooking!” she yelled back, curling into the couch and turning on the TV. The weather reports had been calling for heavy snow tomorrow—perfect for her mood. The cabin had been covered with a generous dusting when she arrived, but she missed out on seeing the big, fat flakes for herself. Nothing else compared to snow at the cabin, cuddling against the fire and having no distractions, no worries, and no notifications of yet another hateful comment on the video that had ruined her life.

  The sounds of solid, knowledgeable cooking were a comfort. Ever since her mom had gone full-on globetrotting yogi, she’d largely given up on the feeling of a traditional home. But this, the warmth from the fire, the moon lighting up the crystal snow on the porch outside, and the scent of delectable steaks searing in the kitchen, this she could get used to.

  Ellie leaned forward so she could catch a glimpse of Henry at the stovetop. His sleeves were rolled up, allowing his forearms to flex while his hands expertly worked the skillet. Deep in her chest, her heart squeezed tightly again. She never would have believed this all those years ago. Henry and her, alone in an isolated cabin, him cooking them a romantic dinner. It was too good to be true, and she knew it all too well. Just for tonight, she’d let herself entertain the fantasy of them being together, even if all it ended with was a delicious dinner.

  It was a good thing he was leaving tomorrow.

  5

  “Ellie? Dinner’s ready.” He leaned into the doorway to the living room to find Ellie leaning over the fireplace—perfectly displaying every curve of her ass in those threadbare jeans. Ellie was not just beautiful, she was hot as hell. Why had he never really noticed before? “Ellie?”

  “Oh!” she said as she looked over her shoulder. It was the perfect view. Her gorgeous face crested over the fullness of her backside. Slip off that see-through white shirt and turn her jeans inside out, and it was the same view he’d be enjoying while taking her from behind. “Sorry, I didn’t hear you,” she said, straightening up. “I was just adjusting the fire.”

  “Dinner’s ready,” he repeated, clearing his throat. Is she blushing, or is it just the fire?

  He could hear her behind him, padding down the hall toward the kitchen with bare feet. “So, no bodyguards out here, huh?” he asked.

  “Oh, no. Eli called them off, thank God. Apparently being in a remote cabin gives Mr. President enough peace of mind to leave me be. Besides, how awkward would it be running off to be alone—except for the four agents that have to watch me sleep?”

  “And run around in towels.” Henry smirked, and she playfully batted at him.

  “I have no apologies! You’re the one sneaking around in someone’s cabin without permission.”

  “Yeah, yeah. But I make up for it with some incredible steaks. Here, have a seat,” he said, pulling out a chair at the breakfast table for her.

  “Wouldn’t you, uh… wouldn’t you rather eat in the dining room?” she asked.

  “The dining room! Fancy. Good idea,” he said. Why didn’t I think of that? It’s just one night, and it’s Ellie. You can do this. You can resist her.

  The formal dining room was rarely used when he'd come here with Eli. Initially the group would try to make use of it, turning the thick wooden table into a makeshift poker table. They tried to gather for formal “men’s meals” of meat and potatoes, especially after a day of fishing to show off their catches, but it never really stuck. The formal dining room was more intimate than a group of friends could handle, the darkest room in the house with its own fireplace and elegant mantel. The buffet lining one side of the wall held the good china and solid silver flatware, while the butler’s pantry connecting it to the kitchen was stocked with fine, etched crystal stemware they never dared touch.

  The crystal stemware ban was lifted tonight as Henry pulled out all the stops. “M’lady.” He gestured to a chair, much grander than those in the breakfast nook. As Ellie slipped into the tufted, hand-carved chair, he couldn’t help but catch a glimpse of her breasts below the deep scoop neck of her shirt. The bra she'd slipped on was thin enough to allow the outline of her nipples to show through. “Wine?” he asked, and she nodded. Thank God I picked up a good bottle, he thought. He'd been close to going with the bargain brand, but upgraded at the last minute to treat himself at the encouragement of the local shopkeeper.

  “You’re such a gentleman!” There was a twinkle in her eye, but he got the idea that she was only half-joking.

  “You can thank Aunt Mary for that. Well, and probably the fact that you simply pick some things up by the time you’re thirty-five.”

  “Who’s Aunt Mary?” she asked, swirling the deep burgundy in her glass.

  “You don’t remember Aunt Mary? She used to drop me off at your house. She’s who took me in after my parents passed.”

  “Oh, I’m sorry. I don’t… I was really young. I’m sorry, I didn’t mean—”

  “It’s okay. I’m sorry,” he said. “Actually, now that I think about it, Aunt Mary wasn’t dropping me off after you were, oh, probably five or six. It’s no wonder you don’t remember. Sometimes I forget how young you are.”

  She opened her mouth to say something, then snapped it shut. The comment stung. He should’ve known to stay away from that dynamite. “Tell me about her,” Ellie said instead.

  “Well, she was a very devout woman. Really religious. She tried to pass that onto me, but it didn’t stick much.”

  “You don’t believe in God?” Ellie asked suddenly, lowering her glass.

  “Not like Aunt Mary did,” he said with a laugh. “Go on and eat. Try the steak. The tempura vegetables, too.” He watched her cut into the filet. Perfect medium rare, he thought. Sometimes he didn’t get the middle quite right.

  “Oh my God,” she murmured through her first bite. “This is amazing.”

  “It seems Aunt Mary made a believer out of you, at least,” he said.

  Ellie laughed, swallowing her bite and letting her head fall back. Auburn sheets of hair bounced off her shoulders before cascading down her back. Damn, she really is beautiful.

  “Did she teach you to cook?” she asked.

  “Of course. She was a Home Ec schoolteacher at the high school until she retired. Nobody could cook a steak like her,” he said, cutting into his own filet.

  “Well,” Ellie said, slipping another morsel between her plump lips, “I think you did her proud with this.”

  Watching her eat was sensuality beyond anything he’d seen before. Every time she took the food into her mouth, her eyes rolled back slightly and he caught just a glimpse of how he imagined her in bed. Why are you imagining her in bed?

  “That was absolutely incredible,” she said as she finished, pushing the plate away. “Seriously, it may be the best I’ve ever had.”

  “No room for dessert? I have berries the grocer swears are lifechanging.”

  “Hmm,” Ellie said, moving her hand across her abdomen. “Maybe later. Or for breakfast. I can’t eat another bite.”

  A part of him was grateful. He didn’t think he could handle watching her ways with strawberries. “Here, I’ll take that,” he said as she stood up with her plate.

  “Don’t be silly! You cooked, the least I can do is help clean up.” Squeezing through the butler’s pantry, Ellie stumbled a bit, falling into his chest. “Oops, sorry! One too many glasses of wine, maybe.”

  “Yeah, you seemed to love that bottle. It revve
d up your appetite, too.” Her cheeks flushed, and she glanced down. “I mean—you normally just eat like a bird. That’s all.”

  “You know, I often hear the expression ‘eating like a bird,’ but it’s really a falsity. Because birds eat a tremendous amount.” She glanced up through her eyelashes at him.

  “What are you talking about?” he asked with a nervous laugh. She was still pressed into him, the mirrored cabinet doors of the butler’s pantry multiplying their images ten times over.

  “I'm paraphrasing, but it's a scene from Psycho! Don’t you know? Norman Bates says it.”

  “You’re the psycho, quoting serial killer lines at me in some secluded cabin!” He pushed her through the door into the kitchen.

  “Norman Bates was a fictional character. He was barely even based on real serial killers,” she said, rinsing her plate at the sink.

  “The fact you even know that is disconcerting.”

  “Ha ha. You know, it’s a good thing you’re leaving tomorrow. Otherwise, I’d get so fat with you cooking all the time.”

  “Oh, really? You know, you could use some good feeding,” he replied, coming up behind her and nudging her out of the way to finish cleaning. Ellie fell silent beside him. “What’s wrong?” he asked, but she just shook her head. “Hey, I didn’t mean it like—”

  “It’s fine.”

  “Let me just… I’ll finish these. You go back to the living room, and I’ll bring in a fresh bottle. I think you’ll like this one, too.”

  By the time he’d finished the dishes and aerated the new bottle, Ellie was curled up on the couch wrapped in a luxe blanket. “There’s room enough in here for two!” she called. Clearly, she was still wrapped up in the wine from dinner—and over the moment in the kitchen.

  “I’m not sure you need another glass,” he said, sitting down next to her. “But I need at least a little help making a dent in it.” However, one glass turned into two.