Two

Sandra’s stomach fluttered at the thought, which was crazy because he’d been over a dozen times before. Of course, always with Aimee. They were sort of a threesome, friendship-wise. But right now, looking into his striking blue eyes, she thought of a threesome of another sort. Threesomes like Aimee had suggested on their list. Sexy, erotic threesomes.

But right at this moment, she’d be fine without the third. Just Devlin and her.

She locked gazes with him and tipped her chin up.

*   *   *

Devlin stared at Sandra, who gazed at him with warm olive green eyes, her full lips looking soft and kissable. His stomach clenched, and he couldn’t help himself. He leaned in and captured her lips. Oh, God, they were every bit as soft as he had imagined.

Her arms curled around his neck and she drew closer to him. Her soft breasts pressed against him. He wanted to shove away his jacket and pull her tight to his chest, to feel if her nipples were hard with desire, just as his cock pulsed to life at her proximity.

Damn, he wanted her.

Her tongue slipped between his lips, gently exploring, and he groaned, then sucked it into his mouth. Everything about her was so soft and warm. His body hardened even more. He felt his resolve weakening, his need for her growing.

Her hand stroked down his back, then wrapped around his butt and squeezed. His cock lurched to full attention.

She had never, ever done something like that before. Through the haze of desire, he remembered how many drinks she’d had tonight. Three since he’d shown up at the bar. He didn’t know how many before that.

He couldn’t take advantage of her. And that’s what he’d be doing if he continued this now. With great power of will, he eased away from her.

“Let’s get you inside.”

Her eyes lit up, and he realized she’d misread his comment. Still, he opened the door and guided her forward, then closed the door behind them.

When he turned back, he saw her bent at the waist, unfastening the strap on her shoe. Her very round, very sexy derriere was right in front of him, her short, flowing skirt barely covering the essentials. He wanted to reach out and stroke her lovely round ass. His cock twitched. What he really wanted to do was lift that skirt to reveal the luscious curves underneath, to stroke her naked backside, then draw her against him. His cock ached with need.

She shifted to unfasten her other shoe and swayed a bit to the side. He grasped her hips to steady her and she eased back against him.

The bulge in his pants nestled snugly into the heat of her delightful backside. She shifted a little as she tugged at her shoe, and he tightened his hands around her hips. She was driving him crazy with need.

“Sorry. The strap is stuck.”

“Let me help,” he offered.

She stood up and turned around to face him. She pushed her long, glossy black hair behind her ear and started to lift her knee, raising her foot in the air. Worried she’d topple over, he crouched down in front of her and captured her foot. Conscious of her long shapely legs in front of him, he unfastened the ankle strap on her high-heeled shoe, then drew it from her foot.

She smiled, her eyes twinkling delightfully. “Thanks.”

She placed her foot on the floor, then walked away from him, a definite sway to her hips.

“Want some coffee? I just got a new Hawaiian blend in decaf.”

“Uh … no, I’d better go.” If he stayed here any longer, he might just give in to his intense desire.

She stopped and turned around. “Are you sure?” She walked toward him, then trailed her fingers up his lapels and gazed into his eyes. “I thought maybe you might want to stay and talk about that … uh … that list Aimee and I made up earlier.” She smiled as she tugged on his shirt collar, then rested her hands on his shoulders. “Do you think I should maybe try out any of those things? I’ve never had a man tie me up. I think it could be pretty sexy.”

His breath caught at the thought of Sandra tied up. Naked. Lying on his bed.

His hands started to tremble and he rolled them into fists to stop himself from grabbing her and tossing her over his shoulder, then carrying her off to the bedroom.

The delicate scent of her mango shampoo filled his senses. Intoxicating. She lifted her chin, bringing her lips closer to his, holding them mere inches from his own. Expectantly.

He couldn’t resist. He captured the lips she so willingly offered again. So soft. So alluringly sweet. He wrapped his arms around her and glided his tongue into her velvety mouth. She tasted of sweet pineapple, coconut, and rum. He swirled his tongue inside her mouth and her tongue joined his, then plunged inside his mouth. He almost gasped at the urgent need flooding through him.

He wanted her. Badly.

She tugged on his jacket and pulled it from his shoulders. It fell to the floor. Then she pushed at his open shirt as she nuzzled under his chin. Her soft lips caressing his raspy skin sent quivers through him. His shirt dropped to the floor, leaving him in only a T-shirt, and she grasped his hand and lifted it. He felt her round, firm breast against his palm, beneath the thin fabric of her soft silk blouse. The nipple peaked to a hard bud.

His groin flooded with heat as he caressed her.

Oh, man, what was he doing? He’d promised himself. If he moved ahead with this now, took her to bed as his hormones demanded, he’d ruin everything. He’d mess up any chance he had of winning her for the long haul.

And that was too important to blow for one night of passion, no matter how sweet the experience would be.

Summoning all of his willpower, he drew his hand from her ample breast and released her lips. Her eyes, still closed, quivered a little, then her eyelids opened. She stared at him, her olive eyes dazed.

“Sandra, I’ve really got to go.”

Slowly, comprehension seeped in and Sandra drew herself back. “Oh. Um, okay. Sorry.”

“Sandra, you and I … this…”

“No, I understand.” She stepped back, her cheeks flushing.

He grasped her hand, stopping her escape. “No, I don’t think you do. Look, we’re friends and I wouldn’t want to do something to ruin that.” His heart thundered in his chest. He wanted to say more, to be more reassuring, but he had to get away from her before he caved. He squeezed her hand. “Okay? Are we good?”

She gazed at him, her chin trembling a bit, but finally she nodded.

“Yeah. We’re good.” She shifted onto her tiptoes and kissed his cheek. “You’re a good friend, Devlin. Thanks.”

He nodded and picked up his shirt and jacket. “Anytime, friend. You going to be okay?”

She nodded. “Yeah. Of course. Thanks for the ride home.”

She followed him to the entrance and he opened the door.

“See you next week,” she said.

“Sure thing.”

As she closed the door behind him, leaving him in the abandoned hallway, he wondered if he’d just made the worst mistake of his life.

*   *   *

Sandra leaned against the door and sucked in a breath.

Oh, damn, how embarrassing. What the hell was I thinking?

She pushed herself from the door and walked to the bedroom, her cheeks still burning.

Devlin was her friend. And now she’d gone and thrown herself at him. How could she face him again?

Especially since he was so clearly not interested.

She stripped off her clothes and pulled on her pajama pants and cotton camisole. She went into the bathroom and grabbed her hairbrush, then gazed in the mirror as she pulled the brush through her long black hair.

For a little while there, she’d thought he’d been interested. She’d been sure she’d seen more than a spark of interest in his eyes. But clearly that had been the piña coladas affecting her brain.

She picked up her toothbrush and squeezed some toothpaste onto the bristles. She began to brush her teeth with vigorous strokes. What an idiot she’d been. If he’d been interested in her, he would have shown her by now. Sure, he knew she’d sworn off relationships after her divorce, but that never stopped a guy from trying when he wanted a woman. As her friend, maybe Devlin was more inclined to respect that boundary, but wouldn’t he have hinted at his interest somehow?

She rinsed her mouth and stuffed the toothbrush back into its stand.

If he had been interested. Which clearly he wasn’t.

She strode into the bedroom and climbed under the covers. Now, if she could just forget the sting of her embarrassment and fall asleep, maybe tomorrow she could forget the whole thing. Or, at least, act as if she’d forgotten about it. Devlin, sweet guy he was, wouldn’t bring it up again. He was that kind of wonderful.

Remembering the kisses they’d shared, the feel of his muscular body against hers, her insides warmed again and, at the memory of his hand on her breast, her nipples ached. Oh, God. She had actually taken his hand and …

She pulled the covers over her head. How could she ever face him again?

*   *   *

As soon as Devlin got into his car and closed the door, he grabbed his cell phone and tapped in Aimee’s phone number.

“Hey, Aimee. I didn’t wake you, did I?”

“You kidding? You know I’m a night owl. So, did you make a move on Sandra?”

His heart skipped a beat. “Why would you ask that?”

“Oh, like I haven’t known you’ve had a thing for her from day one.”

He saw no reason to deny it. Aimee had a way of reading people.

“You’ve never mentioned it.”

“Why should I? You knew how Sandra felt about starting a relationship and you respected it.”

“Does Sandra know that I’m interested?”

“No. A guy would have to send her an engraved invitation with his intent before she’d believe he wanted her. So are you planning to pursue her?”

“Yes, but not yet. I want to form a real relationship with her. She won’t be ready for that with the first guy she goes out with. After swearing off men for a year, she’ll want to do some … I don’t know … experimenting before she settles down with one guy.” Roughly, he figured he should give it about six months.

“So you want to give her time to sow a few wild oats, then you’ll sweep her off her feet?”

“I’m not sure about that.”

“Well, don’t underestimate sweeping a gal off her feet. It’s really quite romantic.”

Romantic. He liked that.

“So how can I help?” she asked. “That is why you’re calling me, right?”

He smiled. Aimee really was sensational. If he didn’t have it so bad for Sandra …

“Well, I was thinking about that list you and Sandra made tonight,” he said. “Maybe we could get her to fast-track through her sexual exploration by doing the items on the list.”

“And you’d like me to arrange this miracle somehow.”

“Well, that would be nice.”

“And how would you feel knowing Sandra’s off having a threesome with a couple of other guys? Won’t you be jealous?”

“Sure, but I’ll live. And, say, if you could arrange it so I could watch…” He trailed off, a grin on his face.

“Well, sure, why not? It’s not as if it’s going to be hard to get her to follow the list in the first place. What’s that one small addition?”

He chuckled. “That’s the spirit.”

After he ended the call and slid his cell phone back into his pocket, he settled into the driver’s seat and stared out the windshield. Rather than the cars parked across from him in the apartment building parking lot, what he saw were images of Sandra naked, between two men, crying out in pleasure. His fingers curled around the steering wheel as his groin tightened in need.

He glanced up at Sandra’s window on the eighth floor. The light was out. She’d be in bed by now. Probably in some skimpy, slinky teddy.

His cock pushed painfully at his jeans.

He should just open the car door right now and stride up there. Tell her what he wanted and take his chances. The memory of her responding to his kisses, her body responding to his touch, sent his hormones skyrocketing.

Why wait when every indication told him she wanted him right now?