by Dee, Bonnie
“Much as you’re a snotty bitch, I like you too.” His voice came out hoarse. An electric current crackled between them, like the ionic charge in the air before a thunderstorm.
Brianne turned in his arms to face him, her skin sliding excruciatingly against his. The moonlight shone on the pale top swell of each breast mashed against his chest now. His pulse pounded in his ears and he could hardly breathe as he struggled to remember the guy code, but all he could see were Brianne’s magnetic eyes drawing him in.
“No,” he whispered, but she was already pressing her mouth to his. Her lips were soft and yielding and tasted like beer and strawberry lip gloss. Her tongue flicked delicately over his closed mouth sending a shiver through him. The forbidden nature of this only made him crave her more.
Brianne moved her legs to straddle his, bracketing his hips with the heat of her thighs and settling her ass on his lap.
One of his hand wrapped around her back while the other burrowed into the abundant softness of her hair and cupped her neck. Her neck felt delicate in his palm. Brianne’s powerful personality made it easy to forget how petite she was physically. A cute, adorable doll he wanted to cuddle and hold and do nasty things to.
Insanely, he felt if they kept their mouths closed when they kissed, somehow it wouldn’t count. But when Brianne deliberately rubbed her crotch against his erection and his lips parted to gasp, she plunged her tongue inside. Eric stopped pretending it wasn’t really happening and surrendered, attacking her mouth with two years’ worth of pent up desire, mauling her lips and sucking greedily on her tongue.
Time was suspended as they kissed and kissed. He latched onto her lower lip with his teeth and lightly tugged then sucked it into his mouth and let it go with a wet pop. The fullness of her lips was so satisfying he could simply kiss her like this all night in every way he could think of. He slid his hands down her back and gripped her ass to press her against him more firmly. The pain across his mid-back from the hard driftwood log balanced the pleasure of Brianne’s pussy grinding against his erection.
Reaching between them, her hands snaked under his T-shirt to roam across his stomach, then rose higher toward his chest, pushing his shirt up. Eric broke off the kiss and lifted his arms to let her take it off him. She skimmed her hands over his bare chest and pinching his nipples lightly. He groaned and his entire body shuddered. If he didn’t control himself, he’d come just from her touch.
She slid her hands over his shoulders and up his neck to cup his face in both palms. One long, intense minute ticked by as she gazed into his eyes, before leaning in to kiss him again, slowly and deliberately. Her tongue possessed his mouth as she kissed him deeply enough suck the life out of him.
Eric felt powerless. He could no more resist Brianne’s erotic assault than the sand could resist being drawn out to sea by the receding waves. This was better than any fantasy he’d ever had because he could smell, taste, feel and see her. Her soft little moan into his mouth was like a match striking, and fire burned through him. He couldn’t summon up enough conscious thought to care about what this meant to his friendship with Josh.
He released her lips at last and moved his mouth to her jaw, licking and nibbling soft flesh just below the hard bone. He kissed a trail down her neck and sucked on the pulse point at the base of her throat. Her heartbeat thundered against his lips, and he loved that sign she was as aroused as he was.
Brianne tilted her head back to offer her throat and twisted her fingers in his hair. He was immediately extremely glad he hadn’t shaved himself bald. He kissed his way along her collarbones then over the swells of her upper breasts, lightly cupping the bottom curve of one through the fabric. It fit his hand perfectly, heavy and full. When he lightly squeezed, she gave another moan that made his already throbbing cock even harder.
She reached behind her neck to untie her halter. When her chest was bared, he pulled back to stare at them, dumbstruck, awestruck, enthralled by the sight of breasts he’d only had seen portions of spilling out of tiny bikini tops. They were round and firm with rosy nipples that promised the sweetness of ripe berries.
He leaned to take one in his mouth, nuzzling soft flesh with his lips before sucking in the nipple and rolling his tongue over it. The other small bud was erect and firm between his fingers.
Brianne continued to comb her fingers through his hair and make those delightful whimpers. Her other hand stroked over his belly and worked at unfastening his jeans. Eric’s stomach twitched when her warm palm glided over it, and his dick strained in anticipation of her touch. Her hand was almost inside his fly before his wits caught up with what was happening.
Grabbing her wrist, he pulled her hand away. If she touched him, he wouldn’t stop, and if they went further than they already had... He didn’t even want to think about the lies he’d have to tell Josh. Bad enough keeping silent about this little make-out session. Eric hated liars worse than anything—people like his mom, who had said she’d send for him after she got settled, but never did.
“No. Wait!” He pulled away from Brianne, panting. “We can’t.”
“Why not?” She sounded breathless, too.
He knew the obvious answer—because of Josh—would piss off Brianne, so he said, “No condoms,” though he actually had several he’d put in his pocket in case he got some action at the party.
Brianne slid her hands over his shoulders, leaned in and whispered, “That’s okay. There are things we can do without them.”
His stomach did a lazy and his arousal ratcheted up another impossible notch at the images her words conjured. His mouth went dry as sand, but he managed to croak, “Besides, we’re both a little drunk. We shouldn’t do this.”
She sat back and glared at him. “We can do whatever we want. Josh and I may not have officially broken up, but there’s no doubt we’re over. It’s summer vacation, my last one before leaving home. I’m not going to sit alone every night like some kind of widow while he’s off doing whatever the hell is keeping him so busy he can’t call me.”
He had a hard time concentrating on Brianne’s face. His gaze kept drifting back to her chest. Her breasts bounced in indignation. It would be so easy to give in to what she wanted. God, he wanted it! But he reluctantly reached for the strings of her halter and slipped his hands behind her neck to clumsily tie them.
He trailed a hand over her neck and cupped her jaw, then traced his thumb over soft lips, swollen from his kisses. “I’m sorry. Really sorry, believe me. But I don’t want to do this. It’s wrong.”
She frowned and he thought she was going to argue some more. Instead she sighed and crumpled against him, wrapping her arms around his neck and burying her face in the crook of his neck. “It’s not fair!” Her breath tickled his skin. “I just wanted to feel...” She never finished the thought.
He held her tightly, and stroked her hair, his fingers memorizing the texture and weight of those curls because he knew he’d never feel them again. This night had been one incredible mistake, never to be repeated.
Her pulse beat against his chest and her breathing grew ragged. She was crying, which made him feel like an absolute shit. Women’s tears always killed him, whether what they were crying about was his fault or not.
“I’m sorry,” he murmured.
She slapped a palm against his shoulder. “Stop it! Don’t apologize. You’re probably right.” Her voice was muffled against his neck.
At last, she sat up and rubbed a hand over her eyes, smearing her make-up even more. She drew a shaky breath and when she spoke again her voice was steadier. She’d become bossy, no-nonsense Brianne again. “Let’s forget this happened and go get pizza.”
He reluctantly let go of her waist. She stood, leaving his lap cold and empty. She shook the sand from his T-shirt and tossed it to him. He caught it and pulled it over his head, grains of sand sifting into his eyes and making them sting.
Brianne grabbed his hand and dragged him to his feet, and they walked side-by-side but not to
uching, up the dark beach toward the light and noise of the party.
Chapter Two
The next afternoon Eric and Carl were laying sand-colored carpet in the living room that could easily have encompassed their entire apartment when Josh finally called. Eric stared at the caller ID as the phone played the tune Josh had programmed for his ring tone “We Are the Champions.”
If Eric answered, what could he say? Would his guilt be obvious in his voice? Could he bear to keep the secret? Would he be selfish to blurt it out simply to take the burden off himself and to receive the punishment he felt he’d earned?
For all Josh’s overbearing ways and ego-centrism, he could be very perceptive about the nuances in other people’s voices, or in Eric’s case, silences. He’d always been able to read his friend’s moods, guess his thoughts, even when Eric didn’t say a word.
“You gonna answer that, bro?” Carl set the stapler on the floor and rose. “I need a smoke break anyway. I’ll be outside.”
Guilt pressed down on Eric’s chest like a physical force. But he knew it would only get worse the longer he postponed. Might as well take the call. “Hey.”
“Hi. What’s up?” Josh’s cheerful voice sounded completely normal, as if two hours rather than almost two weeks had passed since they’d last talked. As if he hadn’t stopped communicating with both his best friend and his girlfriend. As if had no idea Eric had been groping and kissing Brianne the previous evening.
Eric pictured his friend: the dark, floppy hair he constantly pushed off his forehead, blue eyes that looked into you rather than at you, a wide, smiling mouth, always talking or laughing. Josh was his polar opposite in every way. He was keyed up and outgoing where Eric was slow to make decisions and self contained. Josh was tall and lean, built for long-distance running but too impatient to pace himself, which was why he was a sprinter. Eric with his compact, muscular body could have been a wrestler if he liked sports, but preferred the endurance of a solitary long distance run.
When he first moved to Rolling Hills fall of his junior year, Eric was a fish out of water in the upscale community. He only attended through a fluke that included his street in a school district of mostly wealthy families. He’d walked through the halls that first day feeling like an alien, his clothes, shoes and haircut announcing him as an outsider. But Josh had recognized something kindred in him despite all appearances to the contrary and adopted him as a friend. Something about their very differences balanced out and forged a friendship.
A friendship Eric had effectively destroyed last night. He feared his intuitive friend would read everything in his voice as he finally answered, “Not much. Working. Wasting time. The usual.”
“This conference has been amazing. I am so loving Boston. Wish I was going to school here instead of New York. The other day we went to this club...”
Josh chattered on for the next few minutes, sharing all his new experiences. All Eric had to do was throw in an occasional “Mm-hm” or “Sounds cool.” He thought he was going to get out of the conversation without speaking another word, let alone discussing Brianne.
“So, have you been getting any play this summer?” Josh asked.
Eric’s thoughts flashed to Brianne’s closed eyes and parted lips, her head thrown back in pleasure as he kissed her throat. He almost felt the texture of her smooth skin under his hands, her silky hair sifting between his fingers. “Mm,” he grunted, which could be taken as either a yes or no.
“Dude, you’ve got to find a girl and hook up. It’s been way too long since you dated Amber. I mean, I know you’re the master of solitary brooding, but really, it’s time to move on.”
Images chased through his mind: Brianne’s breasts rising and falling as she breathed, her neck curving beautifully into her shoulder, the red marks on her knees when she brushed the sand away, her dimple flashing when he offered her the last slice of pizza at the restaurant on the pier. And later, after he drove her home, her eyelashes fanning against her cheek as she bid him goodnight. It had been all he could do not to kiss her again.
“Ask Brianne to hook you up with one of her friends,” Josh advised.
“Mm,” Eric said again. He had never felt so low in his life.
* * * *
After work that night, he emerged shower-damp from the bathroom wearing only shorts. He was exhausted from carrying heavy rolls of carpet in almost hundred degree heat, ripping out the old, bringing in the new and sweating like a slave. Now he wanted nothing more than to collapse on the couch, beer in hand, and watch a few hours of baseball until he fell asleep. It was one of the few good things about sharing an apartment with his brother—no one to give him shit about knocking back a beer after a long day’s work.
He pulled out the hide-a-bed and the living room became his bedroom. Lying down on rumpled sheets, he picked up the remote and flicked on the TV.
Someone knocked on the apartment door.
It was unlocked so he yelled, “Come in,” expecting one of Carl’s buddies. When he glanced up, Brianne stood in the doorway, the golden glow of the setting sun shining around her like a halo and turning her auburn hair to flame.
She walked in and closed the door behind her. “Hi.”
Eric’s body went numb. “Oh, uh, hi.” He felt like someone in a horror movie who stupidly invites a vampire inside. There was nothing he could do now but accept his fate. He steeled himself for the inevitable “we need to talk” conversation girls seemed to love having. She’d tell him what a huge mistake they’d made—which he already knew—and want to discuss how they would handle this once Josh got back. He was too tired for that conversation.
“Thought I’d hang out for a while. What are you watching?” Her voice was light and nonchalant. “Baseball. Great.” She flopped on her stomach on the sofa-bed, the opposite direction from Eric. The bed sagged and bounced, but luckily didn’t collapse. She rested her chin on her hands and gazed at the television.
He stared at her curvy body in a short skirt and oversized sweater, her bare feet resting on the sofa back so he could see the dirt on the soles of her feet. She took up half his space and sucked all the oxygen from the room.
“Can I get you something to drink?” he asked.
“Diet 7UP. If you don’t have that, then Diet Sprite, but not Sierra Mist. It’s too sweet. If you don’t have either of those I’ll take Pepsi. Not Coke, Pepsi. Diet, of course. And if you don’t have any soda then juice, but not apple. I hate apple.” She rattled off her order in typical Brianne staccato without looking away from the TV.
“Okay.” He rose from the creaky sofa-bed and headed toward the kitchen.
“If you don’t have any soda or juice, I’ll take iced tea, but only with sweetener, no sugar. One and a half packets if you have them and if you don’t, I’ll just have ice water. Thanks.”
Eric got himself a beer and Brianne a Sprite from the fridge —not Diet since he didn’t have it, grabbed a bag of store brand cheese puffs from the cupboard and returned to the living room.
She’d reversed her position, reclining against one of his two pillows with her legs stretched out in front of her. She seemed to be settling in for the evening, and he wasn’t sure how he felt about that. His skin prickled as if he had a fever. His cock had begun thickening the moment she’d walked through the door, and having her lying next to him in bed wasn’t helping keep the erection at bay. Nor was the fact he only had on a pair of loose fitting shorts. He considered putting on a shirt, but the apartment was just too damn hot.
Eric handed her the can and dragged his gaze away from her bare feet and smooth, tanned legs that went all the way up to her short blue skirt. She rubbed the toe of her left foot along the length of her calf to scratch an itch. The heat in the room instantly increased about ten degrees. Brianne glanced at the Sprite, noted it wasn’t diet, then took a long swallow anyway.
Eric sat on the sofa-bed beside her, keeping a good foot and a half of space between them. He opened the bag of cheese curls and offe
red it to her.
She delicately picked out one piece of puffed orangeness with the tips of her fingers, popped it into her mouth, then licked her fingers clean. Her pink tongue mesmerized him for a moment. He quickly turned his attention to the game, fished out a handful of puffs from the bag and crunched them methodically one by one.
It was hard to concentrate on baseball with Brianne lying right next to him, but after a while he got into the game and kind of forgot she was there. When his team made a triple play, Eric yelled, “Yes!” and knocked over the snack bag, scattering cheese puffs across the bed. The station went to commercial break, and he started to pick up the mess.
Brianne helped pick up the snack food, distaste wrinkling her pretty nose. “God, boys are pigs. Look at you.”
Eric looked down. There was orange dust all over his bare chest. He tried to brush it off, but only smeared it with orange-stained fingers. He gave Brianne an embarrassed grin.
She was staring at his chest, her lips parted. Her tongue darted out to lick them and her expression mirrored his thoughts—a mental image of her licking his skin clean. She looked at him and for the space of five heartbeats their gazes locked.
Eric swallowed. His cock went from flaccid to rock hard in seconds flat, and tented his loose shorts. He jumped up from the couch, holding the cheese curls bag in front of his crotch, then fled to the kitchen where he dumped the bag on the counter.
He went into the bathroom, repeating a silent mantra, Josh is your best friend, over and over. After washing up and brushing his teeth, he stared at his reflection in the wavy mirror; blue eyes dilated until they were almost as dark as Brianne’s, dirty blond hair in a wild tangle since hadn’t gotten around to combing it after his shower. His chest, still damp from rinsing it off, rose and fell with his nervous breathing. “What the fuck are you thinking, asshole? Send her home,” he told himself.
He finger combed his hair then headed back to the living room where he sat in the battered vinyl armchair a safe distance from the sexy girl sprawled on his bed. She’d shaken out the sheets to rid them of cheese dust and re-made the bed, smoothing out the covers. Brianne glanced at him, a small smile crooking the corners of her mouth as though she were laughing at him for not daring to sit closer. Then she turned her attention back to the TV.