Friends and Lovers

by Vristen Pierce

  I squeezed my eyes shut, concentrating only on the sensation of him filling me. I was blissfully coming apart as my pussy began convulsing around his cock. When he wedged a hand between us to rub my clit, I screamed before biting down on my lip. “Oh my God,” I said, panting. “I’m coming.”

  “That’s right,” he said in a harsh whisper. “Come for me.” He rubbed my clit harder and I gasped.

  Sweat trickled between my breasts and the night air cooled it against my skin. I grabbed onto his shoulders as tightly as I could while the delicious pressure inside me built. My entire body tensed before a scream escaped my lips once again.

  Justin grunted as he rammed his cock into my pussy a few more times. He cried out and collapsed against me, pressing my back into the façade of the building. We struggled to catch our breaths.

  I narrowed my eyes at him and tried not to smile. “Damn you for making me get so loud out here.”

  He smirked. “Well, you wanted a screaming orgasm, right?”

  * * *

  Evan made it to the entrance of The Biker Alley and stopped. Shit. Another fight had broken out. A couple of thick-necked bouncers were breaking it up, but it would still be a while before he’d make it inside. He thought about texting Justin or Stacy to let them know he’d be in as soon as he could, but decided against it. He’d just go in through the back exit.

  He walked down the dimly lit alleyway, and as he neared, he heard the familiar sounds of sex. He smiled as he slowed his steps. At least someone was getting lucky; it didn’t seem to be Evan’s night. He debated whether he should take a chance on interrupting the busy couple or turn around and wait for the front entrance to get the all-clear.

  Just then, he heard a scream of ecstasy and he froze. He knew that particular scream all too well. Stacy. Evan’s gut twisted as his eyes finally made out the forms against the building. He didn’t know why seeing Justin and Stacy together shook him to the core. It wasn’t as if he hadn’t known they were seeing one another.

  Still, being faced with it brought out an irrational jealous streak in him. He swiftly turned and made his way to the front of the building. Rather than heading for the entrance, however, he headed back to his truck.

  There was no way he wanted to be around either of them tonight. It wasn’t possible without revealing his jealousy to them. And how much of that would Stacy take? Evan’s guess was, not a lot. No, it was best for everyone if Evan just left and pretended he’d never seen his best friend fucking the woman he loved.

  Shit. The woman Justin loved, too, or so he said. What a bastard. The one relationship Evan ever had that was capable of actually turning into something, and Justin had to screw things up.

  Evan got into his truck and started the ignition with a slightly shaky hand. Staring through the windshield, he made no move to pull out of the parking space.

  He took his cell phone out of his pocket. He’d just text Stacy an excuse. Got swamped with last-minute things for the bar. Sorry I won’t be able to meet up with you two.

  How much longer could they really do this?

  Everything seemed so simple at first. Right. Back when he’d been blissfully in denial. It was easy to pretend he was the only one dating her, sleeping with her, especially before he fell in love with her.

  Things were different now.

  He drew in a few deep breaths as his heart rate slowed. There was no choice but to get it together. The only other option was to lose his best friend, the woman they loved, or both.

  Yeah, putting a lid on his jealousy was definitely a better alternative.

  Too bad it seemed like an impossible one, though.

  Nine

  For once, I appreciated Justin’s disregard for speed limits. I was close to being late for work, thanks to letting him talk me into spending the night with him. Fortunately, I had some suitable clothes at his place so all I had to do was jump in the shower, dress, and hop onto his motorcycle. I was so frazzled, I hadn’t even thought to demand we take his car instead.

  As we pulled in front of the high-rise Innovative Images building, I cursed that fact. The account manager who’d just landed Valiance Corp. roaring in to work on the back of a Harley—yeah, totally normal.

  Justin parked and I hopped off. I gave him a quick kiss before turning to go. “I’ll call you,” I said. He got off the bike and I frowned. “Where are you going?”

  “I’m walking you up.”

  “That’s okay, really.” Last thing I needed was coworkers seeing me with yet another boyfriend so soon after seeing me with the first.

  “I don’t mind.”

  I chewed my lip as I stared up at him.

  Justin laughed. “What’s the big deal? Come on.” He grabbed my hand and turned, but I stayed put. He glanced back. “What’s wrong?” Eyes shining with amusement, he faced me. “Are you ashamed of me?”

  I smiled. “Not even a little.”

  “No?” He bent down and kissed me.

  No longer caring that I was right in front of my office building, I wrapped my arms around his neck and returned the kiss with fervor.

  “Oh my,” I heard a familiar voice say.

  I broke the kiss. “God.”

  “What?” Justin asked.

  I forced a smile as I turned in the direction of the voice. “Julia,” I said, hoping I sounded happy to see her—and Cassie, right at her side, no less—instead of mortified.

  “Hello, hello,” she said, her gaze landing on Justin and staying there.

  “Julia, Cassie, this is Justin. Justin, this is Julia and Cassie—a couple of my superiors here at the agency.”

  They smiled and nodded before he turned back to me. “I’ll see you later, Stace.”

  “Sure thing,” I said, pleading with him silently not to say or do anything that would make this already awkward situation worse.

  Justin’s eyes took on that mischievous glint I knew all too well.

  Don’t do it, I begged silently.

  The bastard leaned down to give me a slow, toe-curling kiss that had my insides melting. Then he gave me a wink and a light slap on the ass before getting back on his motorcycle and taking off.

  Cassie placed a finger beneath Julia’s chin and pushed up. “Close your mouth, Jules.”

  Julia sputtered. “I thought… what about the other guy? Is this your new boyfriend? You and the other hottie broke up?”

  I averted my eyes and headed for the rotating glass doors. “Uh, no.” And speaking of Evan, other than one text last night, I hadn’t heard from him. He was probably still swamped with things to handle at the bar. I made a mental note to offer him help with getting ready for its grand opening.

  Julia easily kept up with me. “No? So who’s Justin?”

  I shrugged. “My boyfriend.”

  “Your”—she paused for a few seconds before throwing her head back and laughing. “Nice!”

  “Julia,” Cassie said as we headed for the elevators in the lobby, “stop. This isn’t any of our business.”

  Julia scoffed as we got on an elevator. “Are you kidding? Did you see that tall, dark blond, sexy hunk of granite with the tattoos back there? And do you remember tall, dark, dimpled, and handsome? I’m making this my business.” She turned to me as the doors slid closed. “I don’t know how you did it, girl, but teach me. Please.”

  * * *

  Nina munched on popcorn as she sat on my couch later that evening, watching one of those telenovelas she loved so much. “Oh my God. Rodrigo is totally gonna find Mariela in bed with Hector.” She turned to me with wide eyes. “Dude!”

  “I know, right?” I mumbled absentmindedly as I flipped through some paperwork I’d brought home from work. Since I was staying in tonight, Evan and Justin were coming over. Anything that hadn’t been done by then probably wouldn’t get done at all. They had ways of distracting me. Various fun, dirty ways.

  Nina elbowed me in the side. “Okay. I rarely spend time with you anymore. The least you can do is talk to me while
I’m here.”

  I frowned. “I don’t watch this stuff. I can’t discuss it with you.”

  She patted her lap and Doodle jumped up on it. “Then talk about something else.”

  I gave her a look of disbelief. “While one of your precious soap operas is on? No, thank you.” Nina had a habit of totally tuning me out and making me repeat everything once her show had ended.

  “It’s on a commercial. Make it snappy and we’re cool.”

  Laughing, I rolled my eyes. “Fine.” There was definitely something weighing on my mind. “I talked to one of the execs from Valiance Corp. at work today—”

  “The corporation you went to London for?”

  “Yeah—huge. They deal in mergers and acquisitions. Anyway, Mr. Foss, the exec, told me there was a place for me with them.” I leaned in and dropped my voice in reverence of what I was about to say. “A place for me as a senior account manager.”

  “Whoa. That is awesome.”

  “I know!”

  Smiling, she bounced up and down. “You’re definitely taking it, right?”

  “I don’t know.”

  “What?” she cried.

  “It’s not a position at Innovative Images, Nina. It’s a position with them—in London.”

  Her face fell. “Oh,” she said quietly. “And if you were to leave again, this time it would be… permanent.”

  “Exactly.” We stared at each other for several long seconds. I cleared my throat and gestured to the TV. “Your show’s back on.”

  Nina turned, but this time it didn’t seem as if she was too enthralled with the sticky situations Rodrigo, Mariela, and Hector were getting themselves into. Once another commercial break took place, I’d put her mind at ease.

  The job offer was nice, but I couldn’t leave Oklahoma again. Not now—and for good? I hadn’t gone a single day without seeing Evan or Justin since I’d been back. I couldn’t even imagine never seeing them again, at this point. No, Oklahoma was it for me. My family was here, Nina was here, and… my men were here. How could I go elsewhere indefinitely?

  About twenty minutes later, Justin and Evan came in, laughing and arguing about one thing or another. They were well past the point of knocking if the door was unlocked and Doodle was accustomed to their arrivals, separately or together. He ran over to greet them and, as always, they took turns showing him attention. I turned back to the stove where I was getting dinner together.

  “Hey, boys,” Nina called from the living room.

  “Hi,” Evan said. “More Univision? Good Lord.”

  I laughed when I heard her say, “Don’t judge.”

  “What’s up, Nina?” Justin called before giving me a quick kiss. He sauntered out of the kitchen just as Evan came in.

  He turned me around to face him. “Hi.”

  I smiled. “Hello.” The smooch he gave me was anything but quick. His tongue rubbed against mine and I melted against him. It was ridiculous, but it seemed like I hadn’t seen him in forever. The kiss eventually ended and I tried to catch my breath. “Why didn’t you show up at The Biker Alley last night?”

  He looked beyond my shoulder and shrugged. “There was no way I was making it in time for the band’s last set. I’ll catch them next time.”

  “I hope you know you’re making it up to me,” I said teasingly.

  He flashed me those dimples. “My pleasure.”

  I got some plates down from the cabinet. “How’s the bar coming along? Ready for opening night? I’m happy to help you, you know.”

  “As ready as I’m going to get.” He smiled. “And thanks, but I’m good. Everything’s coming together nicely.”

  “And you’re sure about the name?” I still giggled whenever I thought about it. Evan had decided on the name 50/50. I’d liked it, thinking it was a hip way to allude to his partnership with Justin. Evan, however, told me that the name alluded not only to that, but to the fact that he and Justin shared me as well.

  He smiled, but it looked strained. “I’m… sure.”

  I turned to him and my voice lost all humor. “Are you all right?”

  “Yeah.” He placed a gentle kiss on my jaw. “I’m good, just hungry.”

  I nodded, though I didn’t quite believe him. “I’ll fix the plates.” He left the kitchen. I was still staring at where he’d stood when Nina bounded in. “Guess who wants to get together tonight?”

  “Uh…” She merely raised her eyebrows, which meant, shit, she really did want me to guess. “James?”

  She frowned. “Viper.”

  “Who?” I thought about it. “Ah, the infamous ex with the—the—”

  “Wicked tongue,” she finished, nodding. “Gotta run.”

  “What about dinner? What about all this ‘We never spend time together anymore’?”

  She waved me off. “Like you mind being left alone with these two.” She walked out. “Later, girl,” she called.

  I smiled and turned back to the plates. She was right. I really didn’t mind at all. After getting the table set, I went into the living room. “Dinner’s ready.” I looked around. “Where’s Justin?”

  Evan was leaning back on the couch, aiming the remote and flipping through channels. “Shower. He was practically covered in oil and God only knows what else.”

  “We’ll wait.”

  Evan dropped the remote on the couch and stood up. He shook his head as he advanced toward me. “I don’t want to wait,” he said in a low, husky voice. “I told you I was hungry.”

  I licked my lips as he pulled his shirt over his head. “Do you… ah, have to get undressed to have dinner?”

  Evan chuckled as he grabbed my waist. He hauled me up against him. I pressed closer to his erection and he cursed under his breath. “I never said I was hungry for dinner.”

  “Mm,” I said. “True.”

  A knock on the door made Doodle bark.

  I groaned.

  “Shit,” Evan said with a sigh. He kissed me before letting me go.

  I answered the door and my smile vanished. “Nathan.”

  “I won’t leave things the way we did at the lounge, Stacy.” He invited himself in. “I need to talk to you.” He came up short when he spotted Evan, still shirtless, lying casually across the couch. Glancing at me, he lowered his voice. “Sorry. I didn’t know I was interrupting.”

  “Hope the food’s ready because I am starv—”

  Nathan turned and did a double take as Justin entered the living room. Naturally, he was naked and damp, with only a towel around his waist.

  Justin cleared his throat. “Starving,” he finished before he disappeared into the kitchen.

  Nathan slid his gaze back to me. “Uh, walk me out, Stace?”

  Lord help me. I’d never wanted to get into this with anyone and here I was yet again. First, Julia and Cassie knew of my unconventional dating habits and now Nathan? I may as well take out an ad in the paper, get it all over with at once. “Sure.”

  I closed the door behind us after we walked out of the apartment. “I’m sorry you had to find out this way, Nathan.” Really, I was sorry he’d had to find out at all.

  He scoffed. “Stacy, really. What the hell has gotten into you?”

  I folded my arms. “Meaning?”

  Nathan lowered his voice to a stage whisper. “Since when do you date white guys?”

  “I’ve broadened my horizons.”

  “I’ll say.” He looked past me to the closed door. “You’re dating both of them and they not only know that, they’re happy to show up over here together?” His brown eyes took on a look that perfectly blended suspicion with disgust. “What kind of kinky shit are you into now?”

  I jutted my chin out and stared daggers at him. “Let’s just say I know a little something about DP now.” I laughed at the horrified look on Nathan’s face, but I didn’t stick around to enjoy it long. “See you later, Nathan.” I walked back into my apartment and shut the door right in his face.

  “Do we even want to know?”
Justin smirked as he had a seat at the table.

  “That was Nathan.”

  Evan walked over to join Justin. “Ah, the infamous ex.” He took a seat on the other side of the table.

  “He’s not infamous.” I frowned. “Did I really talk about him that much?”

  “All the fucking time.” Justin took a swig of beer.

  “God, yes.” Evan groaned and let his head fall back.

  I laughed. “Shut up.” In any case, they wouldn’t have to hear about him anymore. I highly doubted Nathan would ever want anything to do with me again. My best shot at the marriage and kids thing? Gone. Strangely enough, I just didn’t care as much as I’d thought I would.

  What mattered to me now was enjoying the time I had with not one, but two men who meant the world to me. I had to savor every second.

  There was no telling how long it would last.

  Ten

  Nina and I stared up at the lit sign above the door. 50/50. It looked great. “Come on,” I said, grabbing her hand and rushing inside. Well, we tried to rush inside. We were stopped by a big guy covered in tattoos.

  He held up his hand. “ID.”

  We laughed. He merely continued to stare down at us.

  Nina shrugged. “Let’s take it as a compliment.” She began rifling through her purse in search of her license.

  Evan walked up behind the man and clamped his hand on his shoulder. “It’s cool, man. These are my friends—they’re legal. Well, this one”—he took my hand and pulled me to him—“is my girlfriend, Stacy.” He gave me a kiss. “This is her best friend, Nina.”

  She waved and I said hello.

  The man’s stern face morphed into a warm smile. “Nice to meet you both.”

  We walked in and Nina leaned close. “He’s not bad.”

  I rolled my eyes and laughed. “You’re incorrigible.” I looked around. “It looks amazing, Evan.” Even though it wasn’t yet nine o’clock, the place had a decent crowd already. “I’m so happy for you; I know how much you’ve wanted this.” I gave him a big hug. “I knew you could do it.”

  He gave me a tight squeeze. “Thanks, babe.” He pulled back to look at me. “I doubted it would happen for a while there, but you kept me going.”