One Night With Her Best Friend (4 page)

“I
wish you wouldn’t say such ridiculous things.”

She
exhaled a laugh, and this time her amusement wasn’t bitter. “You know what the
worst thing is?”

“What?”

She
felt a light brush against her hair, almost as if he’d kissed her. He’d
probably just adjusted his head. She kissed him sometimes, but he never kissed
her.

“The
worst thing is you were right.”

“About
what?”

 “About
how he was more an imagined piece of my plan than the real thing. I was never
really in love with him.”

“You
weren’t?” He sounded guarded in a way she hadn’t expected, but her mind was too
fuzzy to work through why that might be.

“No.”
Her face was still pressed against his shirt, and the fabric was slightly damp
now. “It sounds awful, but I’m not sure I’m even going to miss him.”

“That’s
good, right?”

“I
suppose. But it proves I’ve been a total idiot, and I don’t like feeling that
way.”

“It’s
probably good for you.” Aaron’s tone was dry and natural again—familiar.
“You’re too smart, competent, and beautiful for your own good. Everyone should
feel like an idiot occasionally.”

She
giggled. Then realized what he’d said. She pulled out of his arms enough to
look up at his face, although her body felt chilly where it had been pressed against
his. “You really think I’m smart, competent, and beautiful?”

He
rolled his eyes. “You know perfectly well I do.”

“But
I mean
really
. Even if we weren’t best friends. You’d think I was
someone to be interested in? Someone to love?” After she spoke the words, she
regretted them—since they sounded too needy, and she didn’t like being needy.

His
face twisted briefly. She didn’t know why. “This is the truth, Kate. I don’t
understand why every man in the world isn’t in love with you.”

The
hoarse words surprised her so much she stared at him. Then her face crumpled
and she reached out, letting him draw her into his arms once more.

This
time, she didn’t cry. She just leaned against him, stroking his back and
shoulders through the soft cotton of his t-shirt. His body was lean and hard,
and she was suddenly aware of it.

She
was also aware of his warm breath as it blew against the bare skin of her shoulder.
She could hear and feel him breathing—noticed it in a way that didn’t make any
sense.

She
felt something brush against her hair again, and this time she looked up to see
what it was. When she did, her lips were just an inch away from his.

He
wasn’t smiling, but his eyes were warm in the way she’d known—she’d loved—for
so many years. As she gazed up, she saw the warmth intensify into something
tense, something hot.

His
hot tension was somehow contagious. She suddenly felt it in her chest, in her
belly, between her legs.

It
was impossible not to recognize. It was wrong. It should have terrified her.

But
it didn’t.

At
this moment, it was exactly what she needed.

Without
questioning the impulse, she leaned up and forward, closing the small gap
between their mouths. Her kiss was gentle, tentative—just her lips brushing
lightly against his—but shivers of excitement ran through her body at the
touch.

She’d
started to draw back when Aaron finally responded. Without warning, he took her
face in both of his hands and kissed her hard. He was hungry and urgent and
shifted the mood in an instant.

She
sucked in air through her nose as he deepened the kiss, his tongue demanding
entry and then tangling with hers. Pleasure and need welled up with equal force,
and she clutched at his hard shoulders, desperately needing to hold on.

When
he finally pulled his mouth away, he didn’t draw back. He leaned his forehead
against hers and breathed, “Kate.” He was hot. Coiled so tightly she could feel
it in his body.

“Aaron,”
she replied, breathing in embarrassing gasps. She was trembling again, but for
an entirely different reason now. Arousal pulsed in her so intensely it ached.
“What…what…”

Instead
of answering her unfinished question, he kissed her again.

Maybe
that was answer enough.

Kate
didn’t even try to process what was happening. She gave herself over to the embrace,
to the desperate need coursing through her. They kissed eagerly until she clawed
at his shoulders and he eased her down onto her back on the couch.

“Aaron,”
she breathed as he mouthed his way down her throat, sucking on her throbbing
pulse until she couldn’t stop squirming beneath him. She was so turned on it
was almost embarrassing—since he hadn’t done any more than just kiss her yet.

His
teeth grazed the sensitive skin at the hollow of her neck, and she arched up
helplessly. “Oh, God, Aaron!”

He
lifted his head and gazed down at her, as if checking something in her
expression. She’d never seen his eyes like this before—primal, almost black—and
they made her shiver.

He
leaned down and kissed her with surprising tenderness, gently tugging at her
bottom lip as he pulled away.

Suddenly,
her chest ached as much as her arousal.

She
was soon distracted from the surge of emotion when Aaron’s hands slid behind
her back until he’d found the zipper on her dress. She wrapped her arms around
his neck and mouthed his jaw as he unzipped her, loving the feel of his rough
bristles against her swollen lips.

He
stared down at her possessively as he slid her dress down her body.

Despite
the overwhelming sensations, a flash of humor couldn’t be suppressed. “What are
you staring at? You saw me in my underwear just a few hours ago.”

He
made a choked sound and smiled—his characteristic grin transformed into
something else. “And I almost dragged you into bed then too.”

She
grabbed handfuls of his t-shirt and managed to pull it over his head. Then she
ran her hands over his hard chest. She would have caressed him more, but her
efforts were hampered by his reaching around to unhook her bra.

As
he pulled the lace fabric away from her skin, he murmured hoarsely,
“Beautiful.” He eased her back down onto the couch and cupped both breasts in
his hands, twirling the nipples with his thumbs. “Very expeditious.”

She
couldn’t process his words because her vision blurred with pleasure. She
pressed up into his hands with a breathless sound.

Then
he leaned down to mouth one breast, brushing and teasing it until she moaned in
delicious frustration and couldn’t keep her hips still, shamelessly trying to
rub her arousal against his weight.

He’d
moved to the second breast when something finally clicked in her mind. She connected
his last words with their conversation earlier, and they suddenly made sense.

She
shook with half-suppressed amusement, even as he gave her nipple a gentle tug
that made her jerk in need.

He
lifted his head at her laughter, his forehead wrinkling. He was perspiring
slightly, his skin glistening in a way she liked.

His
obvious confusion made her laugh harder, and soon he was smiling in response.

He’d
always smiled when she did. She couldn’t remember a time when he hadn’t.

“I’m
glad you’re having a good time,” he said at last, his voice slightly strained
despite the warmth in his eyes. “But I’ve got to say it’s not good for my ego
to have you laugh at my attempts to please you. You might at least
pretend
I’m halfway competent.”

She
giggled uncontrollably at his aggrieved tone.  “Believe me, you’re more than
competent. I just finally got the ‘expeditious’ comment.”

 “Ah.
I see. It was a delayed reaction. You’re not usually so slow.”

She
gave a huff. “I was distracted. But, in the interest of restoring your damaged ego…”
She grabbed one of his hands and slid it down her abdomen and under the
waistband of her panties.

His
expression changed as he caressed her intimately and realized how wet she was.

Kate
gave a little squeal of pleased surprise when he yanked down her panties with a
sharp jerk of his hands.

She
made a different sort of sound when he slid two fingers into her slick channel.
“I guess that means your ego is restored.”

He
made a guttural sound of affirmation as he lowered his mouth to one of her
naked breasts as he fingered her. It wasn’t long before her body tightened with
pleasure, and she reached up past her head to grab the armrest of the couch to
hang onto.

She’d
always been able to reach orgasm during sex, but she couldn’t remember ever
losing control so quickly before. Improbably soon, she could feel a climax
coiling deep inside her.

She
heard herself making silly sounds of pleasure as her body started to shake.
“Gonna come,” she mumbled, gripping the soft fabric of the couch, her inner
muscles clamping down around his fingers inside her.

His
mouth around her nipple, Aaron hummed in approval, the vibrations from the
sound intensifying the sensations.

When
she felt his teeth graze her skin, her climax broke, and she shuddered and
moaned as waves of release washed over her.

She
was still gasping as her body relaxed in satisfaction. He lifted his head and
gazed down at her, his eyes even more hot and possessive than before. Tremors
from her climax continued to flutter as he gently withdrew his fingers, sliding
them deliciously against her clit as he did.

She
grinned. “At the risk of over-inflating your ego—which should be in pretty good
shape at the moment—you’re really good at that.”

He
smiled back. For a moment, neither looked away, sharing a look of absolute
understanding.

She
was suddenly struck with the knowledge that this was Aaron—
Aaron
—and
she’d never dreamed of being with him this way.

Even
now, she wasn’t sure why they were doing this, what it meant, how wrong it
really was.

Before
she could think through the implications, however, he leaned down and kissed
her hard again, slipping one hand under her bottom and using the other to wrap
one of her legs around his hip.

She
moaned against his mouth at the feel of his body against her aroused flesh. He
was hard. She could feel him beneath the rough fabric of his trousers.

She
rubbed herself against him eagerly as the kiss grew deeper, more urgent.

He
groaned low in his throat, and the uncontrolled sound made her want to preen.

Aaron
wanted her. He
really
wanted her. She could hear it, feel it, sense it.

When
their mouths finally broke apart, she could see how much he wanted her from the
tension in his face and the hard bulge at the front of his pants.

She
reached out instinctively and massaged him, loving how he huffed in response.

Suddenly
impatient that he wasn’t yet as naked as she was, she started to undo his
trousers.

“Should
I try to find a condom,” he asked hoarsely, helping her pull off the remainder
of his clothes.

“You’re
healthy, right?” She reached out to take his erection in one of her hands and
brushed along its length with her thumb.

“Yeah.”
He jerked his head to the side as she stroked him.

Thrilled
with his response, Kate caressed him more firmly. “Me too. I’m on birth
control. We’re fine.”

“Good.
I’m not sure how much longer I can wait.” He moved over her again, causing her
hand to slip off his hard length.

She
parted her thighs to make room for him, and he settled between her legs. She shook
with eagerness as he lined himself up at her entrance.

Just
before he slid in, he lifted his eyes from where they were on the brink of
intimate connection. “Kate, are you sure about this?”

She
didn’t know the answer to that question and didn’t want to think about it
anyway. Almost groaning with impatience, she slid her hands down his back until
she gripped the tight flesh of his ass. “Would you hurry up?”

He
made a choked sound that might have been a laugh and then pitched his hips
forward, easing himself inside her.

Her
body stretched and clung to the penetration, and she released a pleased sigh as
he pulled back once and reentered at a slightly different angle.

“Good?”
he asked when he was fully sheathed inside her. He held himself up on his
forearms, his gaze hot as it raked over her naked body and flushed face.

“Yeah.
Good.” She arched up slightly, feeling tingles of sensation at the tight
friction of his flesh against hers. “So good.”

He
slid one hand down her thigh the way he had earlier, raising her leg until
she’d wrapped it around his hip. She lifted her other leg as well, and they
both moaned as he sank inside her more deeply.