The Difference Between Somebody and Someone (The Difference Trilogy Book 1)

by Aly Martinez

  “That’s actually why I wanted to meet up for coffee today. I kinda sorta met someone too.”

  Cupping his ear with his hand, he blinked rapidly. “I’m sorry, what?”

  “So, um, you remember Mr. Tall, Dark, and Nice Ass who gave me the safety pin?”

  His back shot straight and his neck snapped back. “At the courthouse?”

  “That’s the one.”

  He leaned back in his chair, crossing his leg ankle to knee, only to shift in his chair to do the same on the other side. “Care to elaborate on that?”

  “Well, his name is Bowen. He’s six-four, nerdy and broody at the same time, and quite literally the sexiest man I’ve ever laid eyes on.”

  Aaron snapped his fingers. “I’ve seen him. Get to the good stuff. Did he ask you out the day of the settlement hearing? How long have you been seeing him? And why the hell haven’t you told me until now?”

  “You’ve had a lot going on,” I defended. “I didn’t want to be all hearts and rainbows while you were dealing with doom and gloom.”

  He huffed, knowing I had a point, and twirled two fingers in the air. “And what about the rest of it? Is he who you were with last night while you were lying to me about a girls’ night out with your imaginary girlfriends?”

  “If you must know…” I rested my elbows on the table, partitioned off my mouth as though anyone else in the empty coffee shop were paying us attention, and whispered, “Yes, I was out with Bowen having the best sex of my entire life. I’m talking multiple orgasms from a man with a huge cock who didn’t need an instructional video on how to find my clit. And I swear, if you give me one single ounce of shit about it, I’m going to launch myself over this table in front of Sexy Barista Lady and rain down hell over you for not sending child support for our brother-cousin children.”

  His jaw hung open, and it was almost a shame I didn’t know exactly what part of that verbal tornado had packed the biggest punch.

  Leaning back, I mirrored his position and casually took a sip of my coffee. “But to answer your original question, no, he didn’t ask me out at the courthouse. I Googled him, found out he was an accountant, showed up at his office, spilled bubble tea all over his waiting room, and then asked him to help me with my father’s taxes. When he’d finally agreed, I promptly charmed the pants off him by learning how to use his EpiPen.” I primped my hair even though it was currently in a messy ponytail.

  How, after all these years, Aaron still found himself speechless, I would never understand. That didn’t make the sight of his bulging eyes and gaping mouth any less entertaining.

  His lids fell shut and he drew in a sharp breath. But he held it in as he waved his hand in front of his face. “First, please never say clit again. I beg you. I’m completely content with the assumption that you have the anatomy of a Barbie Doll. Do not ruin that for me.” His eyes finally opened, a confusing amount of concern crinkling his forehead. Damn, I would have to buy him his own face cream after this. “Second—and let me get this straight—you elbowed this man in the face, stalked him down, asked him to be your accountant, and then had sex with him?”

  I chewed on the inside of my cheek. “You make it sound so aggressive. Let’s try this version: My cursed dress broke and he saved the day with a safety pin. Then a few days later, when I saw him inside a pub, I stopped to say thank you. There was a lot of frowning and debate about my plant budget. But he ended up buying me and Margret a drink anyway.”

  “Margret?”

  “A plant.”

  “Another one?”

  “Anyway… Then I looked him up, gave him back the safety pin, to which he decided to stalk me down and give me a cactus. Then we did the accounting stuff, and as of last night…the sex stuff too. Better?”

  He put his elbows on the table and steepled his fingers in front of his mouth. “And you like him?”

  “Oh my God, Aaron. So, so much. When he’s not being all mercurial and obtuse, he’s sweet and funny—even when he’s not trying to be. And when he looks at me…” I let out a soft moan. “I don’t know how to describe it. It’s like the entire world vanishes. I don’t care if it’s cheesy. I’ve never felt like this before.”

  His jaw flexed and he squinted as he mulled it over. “You can’t say that. You’ve known him, what? All of two weeks?”

  “Yep. Funny enough, most of that time, he didn’t even want to give me the time of day. But I am telling you, there is something about him I can’t shake. It’s something big. Huge, even.”

  He winced, lifting a hand to stop me, probably assuming I was headed back to the topic of sex, but this thing between me and Bowen was so much more than that.

  “You know, I’ve never said this before, and if things fizzle out, I will eat every single one of these words. But I really think I could fall in love with him.”

  “Christ,” he whispered, scrubbing his thumb and forefinger over his eyes. “You’re serious about this?”

  “I am.”

  “And it doesn’t concern you that he’s a survivor who is going to come with his own load of baggage?”

  “Oh, come on, Aaron. You and I have enough issues to fill this coffee shop ten times over. Are we really judging people because of them now?”

  He stared at me for several silent beats, something I couldn’t quite figure out passing through his features. “I just want things to be easy for you for once.”

  “I don’t want easy. I want passion and fire, spontaneity and security. So what if he’s a survivor? There are exactly twenty-six other people who truly understand the situation we’ve been through. And considering I don’t even have a vagina as far as you’re concerned, my dating pool is down to twenty-five. But honestly, it could be ten thousand and I’d still want him.”

  He blew out a controlled breath. “All right.”

  “Really?”

  “Don’t act so surprised. I don’t care who he is as long as he makes you happy. Though you should hold off on telling Mark for a while. He and that bartender just broke up.” He took a sip of coffee.

  My head snapped back. “What bartender?”

  “It seems I’m the only one without a secret lover these days.”

  “Wait, wait, wait. He’s been seeing someone and didn’t tell me? What the hell?”

  Aaron scowled. “Oh, look, it’s little Miss Hypocrisy.”

  I rolled my eyes. “Who is she? And how did you find out before me? What did he even wear when they went out? I’ve dressed him for every date he’s been on since high school.”

  Using the back of his fingers, he brushed off the shoulder of the tan slim-fit sweater Mark would have rather thrown himself off a bridge than put on. “Curious, isn’t it? He’s been single all this time.”

  “Oh, hush. Spill the deets.”

  “No.” He laughed. “What kind of friend would that make me? And you just give this thing with Bowen some time and see where it goes. If it fizzles, then there’s nothing to tell Mark anyway. If it turns into something more permanent, Mark will be happy for you too. But maybe figure it out before you pour salt in his wound.”

  I pursed my lips. Omission because I hadn’t seen him recently was one thing, but I hated the idea of flat-out lying to him long term. But then again, the few times Mark had been in a relationship, they’d always ended with him being shredded. He was a big guy with a big heart; when it was ripped out, the gaping hole left behind was massive.

  “Hold up. Was it one of his bartenders? He has to know better than to date someone who works for him. Right?”

  Aaron shook his head. “Just leave it alone.”

  “You suck.”

  He smirked. “I can live with…” The bell over the door rang, and Aaron’s words trailed off as his eyes grew wide.

  I didn’t have to look to know who’d walked in. He’d called me as I’d pulled into the parking lot to see if I wanted to join him for an early lunch. I had. Absolutely. I also wanted to introduce him to my best friend. So I’d told him to meet
me at the café five minutes before Aaron had to leave.

  “Be nice,” I whispered to Aaron before turning in my chair. The minute Bowen’s eyes found mine, a devastating smile curled his lips.

  I walked over to meet him, and he did not delay in pulling me in for a hug. The scruff on his jaw brushed my cheek, sending a chill down my spine as I remembered what it felt like on the inside of my thighs.

  He put his lips to my ear and whispered, “Why do I feel like I just crashed a party?”

  “It’s fine. You’re just early.” I tilted my head back, puckering my lips, ready and waiting for his signature greeting, but his mouth never made it to mine. He was too busy staring at Aaron over my shoulder.

  “You told me you wanted me to meet your friend, so I came right away.”

  I pressed up onto my toes and stole a peck. “Come on. I’ll introduce you.”

  Like a gentleman, Aaron stood up when we reached the table.

  Unlike a gentleman, he stood there without so much as a hello.

  “Bowen, this is Aaron Lanier, my best friend. Aaron, this is Bowen Michaels, my…” I twisted my lips, unsure how to finish that thought.

  Bowen, on the other hand, was not. Hooking an arm around my hips, he pulled me against his side. “Her man.”

  Her man? Um, yes please.

  My body hummed, a fire igniting inside me. Fuck. Now was not the time to throw the man—my man—to the ground and mount him.

  “Nice to meet you,” Aaron said, finally extending a hand to Bowen.

  Bowen cupped it firmly. “You too. I’ve heard a lot of good things.”

  Aaron’s gaze slid to mine. “As of about ten minutes ago, so have I.”

  “In that case, my timing seems impeccable.”

  “It appears so,” Aaron mumbled, dropping his hand and settling back into his seat.

  Bowen grabbed a chair from the table beside ours and dragged it over, sliding it so close to mine they touched. Once seated, he slid his arm across the back of my chair. “So, what do you do for a living, Aaron?”

  “Computer engineering at Rubicon.”

  Bowen’s eyes perked. “The body armor company?”

  Aaron fidgeted with his coffee cup. “Yep.”

  “Very nice.”

  “Yep,” Aaron repeated.

  My shoulders sagged as a wet blanket of silence fell over the table. Okay, so this was not the bellows of laughter, instant connection, and planning future vacations together I’d hoped for when introducing two of my favorite guys. But it wasn’t bad, either. Aaron could be slow to warm up sometimes, and Bowen, well… I had no idea what he was like around new people. If the initial situation I’d had with him was anything to go by, Aaron would be the proud recipient of a cactus sometime next week.

  “Hey.” I looked at Bowen. “Can I grab you a coffee?”

  “Thanks, but I can get it, babe.”

  “No, I don’t mind.” I stood up and put a hand on each of their shoulders. Both were wound like a rubber band ready to snap. “It will give you guys a few minutes to get to know each other better.” I cut Bowen a teasing side-eye. “Let me guess. Americano black?”

  He pitched his lips to the side. “Close. Milk. Two Splendas.”

  “Right. That was my second guess.”

  Bowen smiled and Aaron just sat there, his face unreadable, like a true conversationalist.

  Awesome.

  Shaking my head, I walked to the counter, hoping like hell I didn’t come back to find them both scrolling on their phones.

  “Hi. What can I get you?” the barista asked with a gorgeous white smile. I hoped to God Aaron had already secured a date because there was no way this woman didn’t have a stack of applications waiting in her inbox.

  I placed my order and desperately fought the urge to put in a good word for my friend. After at least a dozen failed blind dates, he hated when I meddled in his love life, and I was already needling his patience with this ambush.

  It didn’t take but a few minutes for her to pour the coffee, and after a pit stop at the cream and sugar bar, I was on my way back to the table.

  Much to my absolute delight, the guys were hunched forward and talking when I approached, but my glee was short-lived.

  Aaron’s hand was balled into a fist, resting on the wooden top between them. “…because I will fucking kill you. Do you understand me? And I’m not even the one you need to be worried about. If Mark—”

  “Hey!” I scolded, setting Bowen’s cup on the table. “Seriously? I walk away for two minutes and you’re issuing death threats?”

  Aaron clamped his mouth shut and had the good sense to look sheepish.

  Bowen chuckled, momentarily stealing my outrage. “Remi, it’s okay. Cut the man some slack. He’s your best friend. It’s his duty to threaten my life if I were to hurt you. I’d be disappointed if he didn’t.”

  “Well, that’s just…” I flicked my gaze between the two of them. A brawl didn’t seem likely, though I had wrestled Aaron to the floor over the remote a time or two, so I was fairly confident Bowen could hold his own. “Unnecessary.”

  He reached out and caught my hand, pulling me back onto my chair. “And that is exactly what I was about to tell him.” Grinning, he returned his attention to Aaron. “You have nothing to worry about. I assure you I have Remi’s best interest at the forefront of my every thought. No consequence you could ever issue me would be worse than the hell I would suffer if she got hurt—in any way.”

  “Awww.” I tilted my head back and peered up at him. Okay, so it was seriously sweet. Still wildly unnecessary. But sweet nonetheless.

  He shot me a wink and looked back at Aaron. “So, how do you feel about baseball? Remi and I talked about catching a home game sometime. We’d love it if you’d join us.”

  I slapped a hand over my mouth. He might as well have offered Aaron a root canal.

  Aaron frowned. “So very tempting, but I’m sure I have to work.”

  “Weekend night game?” Bowen offered, the side of his mouth twitching.

  “Especially then.” Aaron glanced at his watch and then pushed to his feet. “Speaking of, I should probably get back to the office.”

  Bowen immediately stood and extended a hand. “Well, it was great to meet you.”

  “Yeah,” Aaron mumbled. “You too. I’ll see you at home, Remi.” He slanted his head. “Or is tonight another girls’ night out?”

  Bowen grinned and gave my hand a pointed squeeze. We didn’t have plans, but I was certainly more than willing to make some.

  “I’ll let you know.”

  With that, Aaron put his hand out as he walked past, and I slapped it in a low five. He went straight to the counter, whispered something to the barista that made her giggle, and then headed out the door with nothing but swagger in his step.

  My eyes darted to Bowen. “Well, that could have gone better.”

  He finally took a sip of his coffee. “What are you talking about? I thought it went great. He’s a nice guy who obviously cares about you a lot. I automatically like him.”

  “Good, because death threats aside, he’s the best.”

  “I have no doubt he is.” He dipped his head and pressed a kiss to my lips. “Now let’s talk about this girls’ night. You want to do dinner after work then head back to my place for a movie? I’m not great at nail polish or face masks, but I make killer popcorn.” He kissed the back of my hand and then lowered it to his lap, hidden by the table. Resting my hand right on top of his cock.

  My eyes flashed wide, and I bit the inside of my cheek. Not the least bit scandalized, but thoroughly turned on. And just because the torture could not be limited to me, I traced my thumb up his thickening length.

  “Easy,” he rumbled.

  I leaned in close enough for my breath to whisper over his ear. “Or we could skip dinner and order takeout?” Using my palm, I gave his cock as much of a stroke as his slacks would allow.

  He caught my wrist, his heated gaze holding mine.
“Chinese it is. Pack an overnight bag.”

  Bowen

  “Yes,” she breathed, hunched over in the shower. Her soft curves were pinned to my front, hot water cascading down around us, my fingers playing between her legs, teasing her clit. “Bowen!” she gasped, reaching up to grip the back of my neck.

  She was about to come again. I could feel it building, her muscles tightening, her legs shaking. She was barely even breathing anymore. At this point, I could write an entire fucking manual on how to make this woman come.

  It had been a long night of lovemaking. We’d started with a picnic of moo shu chicken laid out across the coffee table, but my main course was a very naked and wet Remi Grey.

  My body ached. Muscles I hadn’t known I had screamed from overuse. And we both had to get showered, dressed, properly caffeinated, and then off to work.

  Still, I wanted more.

  “Wider,” I ordered, nudging the inside of her thighs with my hand.

  I couldn’t get enough of her, and only part of that had to do with her body. Though I couldn’t keep track of how many times I’d gotten her off, my number was significantly lower, but only because biology was a merciless son of a bitch.

  She must have been sore, but she stepped to the side and opened her body for me yet again. Insatiable.

  So much for getting cleaned up before breakfast.

  I drove into her from behind with devastating control. Her beautiful round ass pressed against my hips as I bottomed out inside her.

  “Oh, God, yes,” she moaned, folding over and slapping her hand against the wall for balance.

  I worked her slow and gentle, sliding a hand up the delicate curve of her back before curling it around to cup her breast. Her echoing moans were a symphony as I started a rhythm of deep thrusts.

  She stepped over the edge first, her tight heat milking the orgasm from my cock.

  How I remained upright would forever be a mystery, but as I came with her name torn from my throat, I folded over on top of her. Panting and spent, my thighs on fire, I rested my head between her shoulder blades.