Just Between Us (2 page)

Ryan knew he could never have his friend the way he really wanted to, but getting to hang out with him, to experience the wicked sense of humor that few were aware of and enjoy the laid-back camaraderie they’d developed over the years, was enough.

He slid on a pair of briefs, tossed the towel in the hamper, and scooped up the phone. Sure enough, there was a text from Sam.

Up for dinner? I’m 30 mins out

Already on his way from the city. Ryan wondered if he was driving himself or taking a car. Both had their advantages. He couldn’t deny himself the sight of Sam behind the wheel, confidently shifting, dark eyes intent on the road, and occasionally flashing him a white-toothed grin. It was enough to have him at half-staff.

But if Sam had let his driver bring him up in the car, then they’d be in the back…alone together. There was something intimate about it. It was just the two of them, able to focus on each other and not have to worry about the road, or other drivers, or where they were going. He always felt as if the heat of Sam’s body burned into him in the back of the town-car, even if they weren’t sitting any closer than they would in the sports-car.

Ryan hit redial and tucked the phone between his ear and shoulder as he tugged on his jeans. If Sam was driving, he wouldn’t answer, but if he was being driven...

“Rye.” Sam’s deep voice rumbled across the line, warm and full of pleased affection.

“You on the road?” Ryan pulled open his closet and grabbed one of his vintage t-shirts.

“We’re coming up on the exit now. You got plans for tonight? I’m in the mood for a Broker burger.”

“Mmmm.” Broker’s had the best burgers in town; delicious, heart-stopping, artery-clogging, mouth-watering burgers. They were Ryan’s favorite. Of course Sam knew that. “Good thing I got some time in at the gym today.”

Sam laughed, the rough chuckle sending a stab of want deep into Ryan’s gut. “Is that a yes?”

“You kidding? To a Broker burger?” Ryan pulled the t-shirt over his head, momentarily muffling his voice. “That’s a fuck yes.”

“Rye? You there?”

Ryan could picture the frown on Sam’s face, his straight, dark brows drown over his slightly crooked nose – broken in 11th grade when he’d gotten hit in the face with a pop fly ball during a championship game. Ryan remembered the incident vividly. He had been the one who’d hit the ball.

“Yeah, here.” He yanked the shirt the rest of the way down. “You want me to meet you there?”

“Steve’s almost at your place. You about ready?” Sam mumbled something to his driver that Ryan couldn’t hear.

Ryan sat down to put on his socks and shoes. “Now that I’ve got my shirt on, I’m good to go. I’ll be out front.”

Sam’s car pulled up a few minutes later, gleaming black beneath the streetlights. Ryan was already locking his door when his friend stepped out of the sleek luxury vehicle.

“Holy shit, Ryan McConnell actually ready when he says he’s going to be.” Sam grinned, clutching at his chest in mock surprise. A lock of black hair slid over his forehead. “This has to be a sign of the apocalypse.”

“Screw you, Sam.” It was a common comeback between them, and Sam had never picked up on any hint of just how much Ryan would like to do just that.

This time, he raised one dark brow and the corner of his sensual mouth curled upward. “You wish.”

Ryan’s mouth dropped open. That was a new one. Sam’s usual response was an eye-roll and flat, ‘Real mature, McConnell.’ Ryan snapped his mouth shut, trying to hide his surprise, and coughed. “What?”

Sam just laughed at Ryan’s stunned reaction. “Get the hell in the car. I’m starving.” He held open the door for Ryan, his grin wolfish. Ryan studied his friend’s face, wondering if he was reading too much into Sam’s comment. Sam cocked his head a little as Ryan remained standing a few feet away. “Coming?”

Ryan’s dick twitched at the low tone of Sam’s voice. He swallowed hard. “Yeah, of course!” He ducked past Sam, surreptitiously adjusting his crotch as he slid into the seat. Sam slid in beside him, closing the door and pressing the button to lower the partition.

“You remember where Broker’s is, Steve?”

“Sure thing, Mr. Cavell, but uh...” The driver trailed off, meeting Sam’s gaze in the mirror with a sheepish grin. “You sure it’s gonna be safe for you there?”

Steve had a point. Firebrand had catapulted Sam to super stardom. There was no doubt he’d be recognized, even at the hole-in-the-wall eatery. Ryan had seen the reaction of fangirls to the author’s presence. Their fanaticism for his characters was only exceeded by their adoration for Sam himself.

Not that Ryan could really blame them. The man was gorgeous. Dark hair and eyes, tan skin, killer smile, tall – taller than Ryan’s 6’1” frame even – and sleekly muscled. If he wasn’t afraid of losing his best friend, he’d be just as obvious in his lusting as those fangirls.

Remembering stories Sam had told him about having his clothes ripped and his hair pulled, Ryan reconsidered. He wouldn’t be that bad…probably.

Sam just shrugged at his driver’s words and lightly shoved Ryan’s shoulder. “Rye here can be my bodyguard, if you’re worried, Steve. He won’t let anything happen to me. Right, Rye?”

Ryan rubbed his hand against his jaw, trying not to think about how he would like to guard his friend’s body…with his own. “Yeah,” he managed to grind out. “We’ll manage, Steve.”

The driver nodded and pulled out into traffic. The hairs on the back of Ryan’s neck pricked as Sam closed the partition. Feeling the increased sense of intimacy that the privacy barrier always gave settled over him like a heavy blanket.

***

Ryan didn’t know what his problem was. He’d always managed to keep his desires under wraps around his friend before, not even allowing thoughts of Sam’s darkly good looks and fit body into his mind when they were alone. He couldn’t deny that Sam had been featured in more than one hot dream, but it was impossible for him to control himself then.

For some reason, he was more on edge than usual tonight. He could smell the slightly spicy, citrusy scent of Sam’s cologne in the enclosed space, and the occasional brush of their knees made his heart want to jump out of his chest. Ryan gritted his teeth, resisting the urge to reach out and lay his hand on Sam’s muscled thigh, right beside the impressive bulge of his friend’s crotch.

“So, uh... you were mentioned in class today!” Ryan jerked his gaze up to Sam’s face, grateful to find him absentmindedly tucking his phone into his pocket.

“Oh?” Sam rested his right ankle on his left knee, thighs spread wide, and rubbed one long fingered hand across his chest. “Your little fangirls took time out of their Ryan worship to discuss little ol’ me?”

Ryan snorted, rolling his eyes. “Trust me, they were all about Sam Cavell today. You even managed to win over the punk girl.”

Sam laughed. “Yeah, the bad girls always dig me, I guess. Think maybe it’s the spy thing in the books?”

Ryan managed a rusty chuckle at the thought of the women Sam has gotten involved with. He tried as hard as he could to tune out the details whenever Sam talked about his love life. “Must be it.”

Ryan’s heart thudded in his chest as he breathed in the tangy aroma of Sam’s skin. Blood pooled in his groin, his cock lengthening against his thigh. He was so thankful when Steve pulled into the parking lot of Broker’s he practically leapt out of the car. His body was just out of control today.

Sam followed after him slower, chuckling. “Guess you’re hungry too.”

{ 3 }

The burgers were phenomenal and the beer was plentiful. A few girls asked Sam for autographs, but fortunately, there were no aggressive fangirls.

Sam listened, grinning, as Ryan regaled him with tales of feud between the bio teachers and chemistry teachers vying for lab space and the antics of his students. Sam’s interjections and observations were few but always made Ryan laugh. The tension that had built up on the car ride over was gone, leaving nothing but the easy friendship they always had.

***

“I don’t think I’ve ever felt so full,” Ryan groaned, patting his stomach as they exited Broker’s nearly two hours later.

Sam snorted, shaking his head. “I find that hard to believe.” He got into the car, leaving his door open for Ryan.

Ryan climbed in, smiling at his friend. Sam lounged back against the right-side door, right leg on his left knee again with his foot in Ryan’s direction. His arm draped over the thigh, fingers resting just inches from his crotch, a beacon for Ryan’s gaze. He willed his eyes to stay on his friend’s face.

His blood buzzed pleasantly from the few beers he’d had, making his heart thump heavily while sitting so close to his gorgeous friend’s spread legs. He was so intent on not paying attention to the temptation Sam presented that he didn’t even notice when the car began to move.

The silence between them was heavy, but not awkward. Ryan leaned back against the seat with a sigh, enjoying the feeling of having a belly full of good beer and better burgers, the company of a friend, and not having to worry about driving himself home.

“So, Ms. Archer is still trying to get in your pants?” Sam asked, shifting on the seat. His foot brushed Ryan’s hip. Ryan chuckled at the mention of the PE teacher and her obvious, and fruitless, flirtation.

“I don’t know how else to make it clear it’s not going to happen without getting rude. She’s a nice woman, but...you know…” He trailed off, shrugging. The truth was, he had no interest in anyone. Well, anyone but Sam. And he could hardly say that.

“Not interested?” Sam’s head tilted, a smile playing around the corners of his mouth. Ryan studied his friend’s gaze, wondering if he suspected the truth, but saw nothing but friendly interest in his enticing eyes.

Ryan shook his head. “Whatever. I’ve been talking all night. What about you, big shot? When’s the next book out?”

Sam frowned. Ryan knew that the celebrity, attached with being a top author, was a part of the job his friend wasn’t fond of. He loved writing the books, but the craziness that accompanied a book release was not his favorite topic.

“Four months. They want it out in time for Black Friday.”

“Which one is it?” One of the perks of being a writer’s best friend was getting to read the books before they were out.

“It’s the last one in the Chance trilogy. Manhunting.”

Ryan rolled his head toward Sam, eyebrows raised. “Is that the one with the bounty hunter chick?” He remembered it well; a case of mistaken identity, a stubborn bounty hunter, and a down on his luck pawn shop owner. The book was much lighter than Firebrand, full of a lot of humor and steamy opposites-attract sex.

“That’s the one. Thankfully, the tour will be a lot smaller than the one for Firebrand. Only about 10 cities this time.” Sam cracked the knuckles of his right hand, stretching his arm along the back of the seat.

“How many days?” Ryan didn’t really want to think about Sam being gone again before he had to, but he wasn’t going to avoid the subject.

“A little over two weeks.”

Ryan nodded. “That’s not bad at all.” Especially compared to the last one. That one had been over the course of months. Sam got breaks in between, but not much down time. Until now.

“Yeah, it should give me plenty of time to work on the next one. Jeanne is all about that.” Sam chuckled.

Ryan knew his friend’s agent was a barracuda. Sam was lucky to have her in his corner when it came to contract negotiation, but she didn’t let Sam slack either. Ryan grinned at the thought of the slender, silver-haired ball-buster. He quite liked her sharp wit. “Oh yeah?”

Something moved across Sam’s face, a shadow behind his eyes that was there and then gone. His jaw ticked. He looked away from Ryan, toward the partition, and then back again.

“Yeah…hey, can I ask you a question?” Sam suddenly leaned slightly toward him, elbows resting on his spread knees. Ryan turned toward him, startled by the intent expression on Sam’s face and the deep, serious tone of his voice.

“Sure. Of course. What’s up, Sam?”

The dark-haired author clenched his hands into fists, took a deep breath, and then blew it out. “What would you say if I told you that the leads of the next book were both men?”

Ryan had been studying Sam’s face, the dark haze of stubble along his strong jaw, not used to seeing him so close up. It took several seconds for Sam’s words to sink in.

“What?” The word came out slightly strangled, but Sam didn’t seem to notice.

“One is an arson investigator, and the other is a federal agent. There’s an organized crime element, trafficking humans, a leak in the bureau. A lot like Firebrand only... not.” Sam shrugged.

“And they’re... uh... they get together?” Ryan swallowed, his throat dry. His brain was stuck on the fact that this was Sam asking him what he’d think if he wrote a romance novel about two guys.

“Well, yeah.” Sam frowned. His shoulders hunched forward slightly. “Is that... would it bother you?”

“N-No,” Ryan croaked. “Why would it bother me?” Sam’s leg brushed his side, the warmth of him scorching through Ryan’s clothes. He wanted to shift closer…closer to Sam’s insanely desirable body, but then, it would be too obvious.

Sam’s gaze was steady on his, determined. Ryan resisted the urge to fidget under the scrutiny, his mind whirling as he tried to figure out how he should react. Was Sam testing him? Had he guessed Ryan’s secret and was trying to tell him nicely that it
bothered
him? The thought of Sam ending their friendship made his heart drop.

This new silence seemed to last hours. With a forced chuckle, Ryan shrugged. “Anyway, won’t that be kind of har... er... difficult?”

“Huh? Why?” Sam leaned closer, brows furrowed, his hoppy breath wafting against Ryan’s cheek.

“You’re not gay.” He blurted the words, eyes widening.

Sam ducked his head, rubbing a hand over the back of his neck. “Yeah, well...” He leaned back suddenly, slouching against the seat. “Not exactly.” A flush tinted the tan planes of Sam’s cheeks.

The confession detonated in Ryan’s chest with all the force of a hydrogen bomb. He tried to suck in a breath as his lungs seized. Sam was watching him, gaze steady. Ryan’s cock jumped, even as his brain struggled to process Sam’s words.