Between Friends

by Lolita Lopez

  “Shit,” Eddie growled as his hands slapped at the counter behind him. Mick flicked his tongue around the purpling head of Eddie’s dick, getting the skin nice and wet before sucking it between his lips. He twirled his tongue around the blunt tip while bobbing up and down. His own erection throbbed as he swallowed Eddie’s deeper and deeper into his mouth.

  Movement to his left caught Mick’s attention. Lips still wrapped around Eddie’s cock, he glanced over and saw Whitney sidling up to Eddie’s side. She lifted his shirt over his head and tossed it aside. Her greedy fingers ran up and down the muscled ridges of his stomach. Eddie’s hand disappeared in the loose waves of her hair as he drew her mouth to his and kissed her with what looked to be nearly ravenous need.

  Mick braced himself on Eddie’s thighs and went to town sucking the bigger man’s cock. He deep-throated until his nose was nestled in Eddie’s crisp pubic hairs and then pulled back to slurp the crown. Eddie and Whitney continued to make out like horny teenagers in a borrowed car. Eddie had one hand on Whitney’s breast and the other on Mick’s head as he pumped his hips. Mick welcomed the plunge of Eddie’s dick as it slid in and out of his mouth.

  When Whitney’s hand grasped the base of Eddie’s cock, Mick smiled. So she wanted to help? Mick concentrated on the ultra-sensitive head of Eddie’s cock, especially that little bump on his frenulum, while Whitney stroked the bottom two-thirds of his shaft. It didn’t take long for their tag-teaming effort to drive Eddie over the edge. He roared as he came, his hot cum jetting from the slit in his cock and spraying the inside of Mick’s mouth.

  Eddie slid in balls-deep. Mick worked his head slowly side to side as he pulled off Eddie’s cock. Before he could swallow, Whitney was bending down to kiss him. Surprised by her wanton action, Mick parted his lips and felt her tongue slide between. He’d never figured Whitney for the type to enjoy snowballing, but she seemed rather enthusiastic as she let her tongue move around the inside of his mouth to gather Eddie’s cum.

  When Whitney broke their kiss, she swallowed and licked her lips. Eddie let loose a low moan at the deliciously naughty sight. Mick’s cock ached and demanded attention. Eddie fisted the front of his scrub top, hauled him to his feet and spun him around until his back hit the counter. While Eddie dropped to his knees and untied the drawstrings of his scrub bottoms, Mick shared increasingly more-desperate kisses with Whitney. He couldn’t get enough of her or the salty taste of Eddie’s cum clinging to her tongue.

  “Christ!” Mick exclaimed as Eddie attacked his cock. The suction was just right, the depth perfect. Eddie fondled Mick’s balls, rolling them back and forth between his fingers the way Mick loved.

  Whitney pawed at his chest and sucked his lower lip between her teeth. She applied a little pressure onto his soft flesh, just until it smarted, and then let it free. Her tongue flicked against the spot she’d just nibbled and then delved inside his mouth again. Her fingers walked down his tummy and then even lower to clasp his cock in the same way she’d done Eddie’s. Mick moaned into her mouth as she caressed his stiff length in the perfect dance with Eddie’s mouth.

  Eddie’s cock-sucking was too good. Mick thrust his hips and fucked Eddie’s hot, wet mouth until both men were gasping for air. Whitney’s fingers squeezed a bit tighter as she stroked his shaft. Mick’s toes curled against the floor as his balls tingled and drew up tight against his body. There was no stopping his orgasm. Like a runaway freight train, it slammed into him and knocked the breath right out of his lungs. His knees wobbled as he jerked and shot ropy bursts of cum into Eddie’s receiving mouth.

  Blissed out of his mind, Mick watched Eddie swap his cum with Whitney in the most intimate of kisses. She clutched at both of them, her fingers gripping their forearms as she let Eddie kiss her until she was breathless.

  Mick wanted nothing more than to fall to his knees and bury his face in her pussy, but she stopped him. Even Eddie seemed a bit thrown by her reaction. Her voice husky, she explained, “This is enough for me tonight.”

  “You’re sure?” Mick didn’t like the idea of Whitney going to bed unsatisfied.

  “Positive.” She smiled at them and allowed Eddie to draw her and Mick into his big bear hug. “I’m not ready to go any further right now. I need some time.”

  Mick finally understood. It was common for patients who’d escaped near death to experience some level of sexual dysfunction. “That’s okay,” Mick hurried to assure her. “You take all the time you need, sweetheart.”

  Eddie kissed her temple. “We’ll be right here waiting when you’re ready.”

  Chapter Fourteen

  Whitney stepped out of the shower and onto her plush bath mat. She pulled the towel from the nearby rack and buffed her skin and squeegeed her hair. The towel went back on the rack, and she slipped into her bathrobe. She left her damp locks loose as she left the bathroom and settled into the chair in front of her vanity.

  The front of the robe gaped and revealed the shiny, pale-pink scar running down the center of her chest. She pushed the robe open a little more and let her fingers slide down the raised bump of tissue. When she’d first spotted the ugly incision, she’d been horrified at the thought of being disfigured, but the scar was pretty as far as scars went.

  Apparently suturing had come a long way since the days of the Frankenstein-like stitching she associated with big wounds. There hadn’t actually been any sutures on the top layers of skin, just some kind of glue and Steri-Strips. Once the strips had peeled away on their own, the wound healed as beautifully as Mick had promised. The hard and unnatural feeling of metal along her breastbone still freaked her out occasionally, but she was getting better about it.

  It had only been four months, but Whitney had all but gotten used to the thin line peeking out through the necklines of her tops and dresses. Her coworkers didn’t even seem to notice it anymore. When she met with new clients or people she hadn’t seen in a while, they tended to stare a bit and then look away as if embarrassed. Some of them asked questions, but most didn’t dare. There seemed to be some kind of unspoken rule about inquiring about those kinds of things.

  She peeled back the sides of the robe to look at the other scars marking her once-flawless skin. The bullet wound in her shoulder had healed much like Eddie’s. The incision on her belly wasn’t quite as nice as the one on her chest. Long and curved, it looked a bit gnarly in spots. She’d never be able wear a bikini without it taking center stage, but that was okay. Better to endure interested stares than, you know, death.

  She laid her hands on her tummy. Her first post-shooting period had finally arrived the week prior. It had been a bit more uncomfortable than normal but over rather quickly. She’d switched her OB/GYN care to Dr. Cardenas, Mick’s friend, and liked the woman much better than her old doctor who seemed to be in and out the door of the exam room in three minutes flat. Dr. Cardenas sat with her for a full fifteen minutes, discussed Whitney’s concerns, and even walked her through the possible methods that might be required to get her pregnant in the future. She’d left that initial meeting calm and content and no longer afraid of what the bullets had done to her lady bits.

  Of course, Dr. C hadn’t had a definitive answer as to why Whitney’s libido had tanked. Counseling had done little to bring that spark back. Well, that wasn’t entirely true. She got hot watching Mick and Eddie go at it like horny weasels, but then who wouldn’t? Two ridiculously sexy men bumping and grinding? Uh, yeah, she’d have to be made of stone not to get turned on by that.

  It wasn’t exactly the turning on that was the problem. It was the coming.

  Whitney had tried a few times in the privacy of the shower or her bed to get her juices flowing again, so to speak. She’d think of Eddie hammering Mick or Mick’s lips sliding along Eddie’s cock while she rubbed her clit or played with a vibrator. She always got wet, but then nothing happened. It was frustrating as hell and made her want to punch someone in the face.

  Deep down inside, Whitney suspected it was fear. Fear her h
eart might short-circuit if it beat too fast. Fear her still-healing lung would burst from all the hard breathing. Fear the long-since-healed artery feeding her uterus would tear and she’d bleed to death.

  Fear. Fear. Fear.

  And she was sick of it. Just absolutely disgusted. Enough was enough, she decided. It was time to live again. Really live.

  As if on cue, her cell phone chirped. Whitney walked over to her bed and picked up the phone. Her finger tapped the screen and brought up the text message. It was an invite to a private party at The Blue Door, one of LA’s most exclusive clubs and her favorite haunt. There were some great perks to working in the fashion industry, and super-secret invites like this were part of them.

  Whitney made a split-second decision and texted back her friend. She was going to this party and would bring a plus one.

  She tossed the phone back on the bed and left her bedroom. The clack of fingers dancing across a keyboard led her to the office where Mick sat behind his desk. Stacks of medical books and printed pages clamped together with multicolored binder clips covered the surface. He’d been knocking back iced coffees from the looks of the dregs in the clear plastic cups.

  “Busy?” she asked with a teasing smile on her face.

  Mick looked up from his laptop and smiled. He rubbed his jaw and stretched his arms high overhead. “Not anymore.”

  She walked over and sat on the edge of his desk. “Any chance you’d like to blow off this study for the rest of the night and go out for dinner and dancing?”

  Mick’s gaze flicked from the pile of work on his desk to her. He didn’t hesitate. “Love to.” His wheeled chair squeaked as it moved closer to her. “I’ve had just about enough of collating data today.”

  “You should get an assistant.” A frisson of excitement shook her belly as Mick’s hand rode the curve of her calf up and over her knee and then disappeared beneath the hem of the robe.

  “I’ve got a gaggle of interns I could rope into this,” Mick said thoughtfully as his fingers stroked her inner thigh.

  “You’d be surprised at how quickly you’ll get volunteers to sift through all of this. You remember what it was like when you were an intern hungry for recognition and opportunity, right?”

  “Mmmhmm,” Mick answered as his lips danced over her knee cap.

  She enjoyed the sensation of his soft mouth pressing kisses to her leg but gently stopped him when he started to explore further. “Later,” she said with a hint of promise in her voice. “But first I want dinner.” She slid off the desk. “And dancing.”

  “Yes, dear,” Mick said with a laugh. He shut down his laptop, turned off his desk lamp, and followed her out of the office. “May I pick out my own outfit this evening, Mother?”

  “Behave.” Whitney smacked his arm. “Yes, you may but no sweaters!”

  As Mick sarcastically laughed behind her, Whitney returned to her bedroom and went straight to the closet. She flicked through the hangers until she found the perfect flirty number. Black. Slinky. Ruched. The kind of dress that transitioned seamlessly from restaurant attire to club wear.

  She plucked a pair of strappy heels from her shoe rack and then dug through her lingerie drawer for something sexy. Eventually, she picked a pair of cotton-lined black lace boyshorts and a matching pushup bra with padded cups and feminine lace overlay. She slicked on a layer of coconut-and-lime-scented lotion before slipping on her undies and sitting down to fix her hair. She went simple with a little smoothing serum to tame frizz and a quick blow dry to create waves. Makeup took a bit more time but not much. No watch or necklace, she decided, but definitely the bracelet Mick had given her for Christmas and the earrings Eddie had picked out for her birthday.

  By the time she got around to picking through the contents of her big purse for the must-haves, Mick was standing in her doorway. She glanced over and gave him a critical once-over. He’d gone for the classic look with black pants, a white shirt, and a black jacket, double button front with a notched collar. Whitney whistled appreciatively and transferred her cell phone, wallet, keys, and small necessities-only makeup bag into a clutch.

  Mick laughed as he crossed the room. He surprised her by kneeling down to put on her shoes, his nimble fingers fastening the straps without fumbling. Quite a feat for any man considering the teeny-tiny size of the buckles.

  “I’m impressed,” she said with a smile.

  “I’m a surgeon,” he replied matter-of-factly and rose to his feet.

  She giggled. “Well…there’s that.”

  Mick took her hand and led her out of the house. They played musical cars as she backed out and slid into the open space where Eddie’s truck had been that morning and Mick backed out of the spot she’d been blocking. Whitney got into the front seat and buckled her seat belt.

  “So what would you like for dinner?”

  “It’ll have to be some place quiet. It’s Saturday night, and we don’t have reservations. You know how rough that can be at the hot spots.”

  Mick made a face as he turned off their street. “No joke. Have you been craving anything? Mexican? Thai? Indian?”

  Whitney’s nose wrinkled. “I’m not sure I’m up for all that spiciness tonight.”

  “What about that yummy burger place that does the upscale sliders?”

  “Oh! The place where Eddie took us, right? Oh my god. They had the best beer there!”

  “It was Czech I think.”

  “Sorry you’re driving tonight.”

  Mick laughed. “Yeah, sucks for me.”

  “Too bad Eddie had that training thing this weekend. He’s going to be so pissed when he finds out we ate at his fave burger joint.”

  Mick shrugged. “So take him next week. I switch to nights on Monday, so he’ll have you all to himself most nights for the next few months.” He reached over and held Whitney’s hand. “I’m glad we’re getting out tonight. Kind of a last hurrah.”

  Whitney pouted. “I wish you weren’t switching around your schedule.”

  “Maggie’s baby is due in the next five weeks, and I feel like it’s the right thing to do to give her days for a while. It’ll be a hell of a lot easier for her and Charlie to deal with daycare and all that if she isn’t on nights.”

  Although Whitney hated the wrench this new scheduling would throw in their routine, she secretly was happy Mick had stepped up to help out his colleague. A lot of men probably wouldn’t have given up their cushy day schedule that they’d earned via seniority for a new mama. It spoke volumes about how much Mick valued family.

  Mick eyed her as they sat at a red light. “What you thinking about, Whit?”

  “You. Chivalry. Kindness.” She lifted his hand and kissed his knuckles. “Stuff like that.”

  “Aw,” he said with a playful gleam in his eye. “I’m touched.”

  She snorted. “You’re a dork.” She pointed to a side street. “There’s better parking on that side, remember. Eddie even found a space for his truck.”

  “The man is like a walking GPS. Knows every street, every shortcut, every construction zone.” Mick shook his head as they looked for parking. “Don’t know what we’d do without him.”

  “Get lost. A lot.” She spotted an open space. “There’s one!”

  Mick hit his blinker and scooted into the space. Whitney checked her lipstick as she waited for him to come around and open up her door. It was one of those things that it seemed only Mick and Eddie did. In all her years of dating, no other man, save those two, had opened her car door.

  His hand settled in the small of her back as they headed into the cozy little place. There was a mixed crowd, mostly dates it seemed, and most dressed to head out for dancing or a movie or maybe even the theater. They were seated in a corner booth and ordered their drinks, peach iced tea for Mick and a beer for Whitney.

  “Look at all these people on their damn cell phones.” Mick frowned as he scanned the restaurant. “That is so rude.”

  Whitney caught sight of a nearby diner’s
phone. “They’re playing that word game. I hear it’s addicting.”

  “Word game?”

  Whitney leaned across and plucked his cell phone from the inside pocket of his jacket where he’d tucked it away before leaving the house. She went straight to the app market, located the game, and selected the free version. While she waited for it to download, she tried to go back to the main screen but accidently swiped her finger twice and went a screen too far. Internet search results for engagement rings popped up.

  “Shit,” Mick swore and quickly took the phone from her. “You weren’t supposed to see that.”

  “Um…sorry?” Her mind reeled. Engagement rings? Did Mick want to marry her? Or was he helping Eddie shop?

  Stunningly, Whitney discovered the idea of getting engaged, of marrying one or both of them, no longer scared her. If anything, it lent her an amazing sense of calm and completeness. With everything they’d been through, there was no doubt in Whitney’s mind they all belonged together. All those other things that had troubled her, the logistics of kids and the views of others, no longer mattered. She’d come to the realization that she couldn’t live her life in fear of offending or making others uncomfortable. If she was happy, that’s all that mattered.

  “So…er…yeah.” Mick rubbed the back of his neck. He looked incredibly uncomfortable. Even his cheeks were flushed. “I guess I’ve, uh, ruined the surprise.”

  “No.” Whitney touched his fingers. “I ruined the surprise. That’s what I get for messing around on your phone.”

  Mick humphed. “So…uh…well. I mean, you know.” He growled in aggravation as he fought to find the right words. “Are we totally off base here? Are we going too fast?”

  She shook her head. “No. Just right.”