At least that was his plan until he stood in the doorway watching her walk up the sidewalk toward him. I’m fucked—totally fucked. Her legs looked impossibly long as she approached him with a smile on her face. She was wearing skimpy jean shorts and some kind of sheer top—wait, was that her bra? Upon closer inspection and since his eyes were now glued to her tits, she appeared to be wearing a bathing suit top with a filmy excuse for a shirt over it. She looked smoking hot, and despite his two earlier hand-to-gland sessions, he was hard as stone. Thank God he’d worn his loose swim trunks, although he didn’t think they concealed nearly enough. Swallowing audibly, he croaked out, “Um . . . wow, you look—good.” That’s putting it mildly.
She reached out to touch his arm and it went straight to his dick. Sweet Jesus, down, boy. He silently begged his wayward body part to behave before everyone at the party labeled him as a pervert. “Thanks,” she replied, looking pleased by his compliment despite his shaky delivery. “This place is packed. I had to park down the street.”
“Josh throws a hell of a party. You hungry?” he asked and promptly wanted to groan when she licked those plump lips.
“Starving. The shop was so busy today, we worked through lunch. Something smells amazing.”
Without thinking, he took her hand and threaded their fingers together as he pulled her inside. “Let’s get you something to eat, then.” And maybe a blanket to cover up with. Soon his smile was replaced with a frown as he caught sight of countless guys ogling her when she walked by. His narrowed his eyes and tightened his grip on her, silently making it known that she wasn’t available. He knew a big majority of the men here and none of them were good enough for Zoe. She was far too innocent to handle what some of these assholes were into. Shit, she really needed more clothes on. What was she thinking? No sooner had that thought occurred than he realized she looked like most of the other women around them. He might not like it, but this was a pool/beach party and her attire was the accepted norm for this type of event.
They reached the grill, where Josh was expertly flipping burgers. The other man motioned to the nearby cooler of beer and Dylan pulled one out and handed it to him. Josh nodded his head in thanks before noticing Zoe standing next to him. His friend’s mouth dropped open as his eyes tracked down her scantily clad form, then back up again. Dylan glared, feeling his jaw twitch. I’m going to kill the bastard. He saw the exact moment that he recognized her. There was shock, then interest. No way, fucker. “Zoe? Babe, you look absolutely amazing. It’s great to see you. Come on over here and give me a hug. It’s been too long.” Is he kidding me right now?
Dylan was seething as Zoe, seeming to think nothing of Josh’s enthusiastic greeting, stepped forward, and was immediately engulfed in an embrace that went on for far too long. “Thanks for having me,” he heard Zoe murmur against the other man’s chest. No doubt dirty thoughts were flying through his friend’s head before Dylan managed to pull her back. He put his arm around her, anchoring her to his side to keep the same shit from happening again. Josh didn’t miss the possessive move on his part and shot him a questioning look.
He shook his head and gave Zoe a squeeze. “Let’s get you some food, sweetheart.” They went through the buffet-style line and loaded their plates down before finding room at one of the nearby tables. He’d taken a few bites and was beginning to relax when a guy’s worst hell happened to him. Not one, but two of the women that he’d slept with in recent months took the vacant seats on his other side. Fuck, what else tonight? Normally that wouldn’t really bother him, but after having sex with Zoe, it seemed beyond awkward. And unfortunately Carey and Kristen were usually very vocal and flirty. He’d be on pins and needles wondering what would come out of their mouths. Maybe he could hurry this meal along and get Zoe away before any harm was done. “It’s really hot out here, isn’t it? If you’ll finish up, we can take a dip in the ocean. Sound good?”
Before Zoe could answer, Carey draped an arm on his shoulder as she pushed her huge tits against his arm. “I certainly need to cool off. I’m literally overheating for some reason.” For the love of all that’s holy.
“I’d love to take the plunge with you and Carey,” Kristen purred as she winked at him. She might as well be holding a billboard, because her meaning couldn’t be clearer. Dammit, he knew he’d regret that one crazy night with both of them. That was something he didn’t want Zoe knowing about.
When he finally worked up the nerve to glance over in her direction, she was staring down at her hamburger as if it held the secrets to world peace. She knows. Shit! How could she possibly not? Ignoring the others, he nudged his knee against Zoe’s and asked quietly, “Food okay, honey?”
She looked up, giving him a forced smile before saying, “Sure, it’s great.” She tugged on the hem of her shirt as if suddenly self-conscious about what she was wearing. He’d never regretted the way that he lived his life before, but in this moment, he was more than a little embarrassed. Zoe had met different women who he’d hooked up with before. It had always been a standing joke between them. She called them his “bimbo of the night.” Ironically, Carey and Kristen seemed to fit that description perfectly.
“Hey, Dylan.” Carey tugged on his sleeve. “Why don’t we get out of here? Maybe go back to your place like last time.”
“That was amazing,” Kristen piped in, “and your apartment is freaking amazeballs.”
Shoot. Me. Now. Dylan closed his eyes for a moment while he attempted to regroup. He had to get them away from the two idiots before this got even worse. Did these women have absolutely no class? For all they knew, he could be here with his girlfriend. Wasn’t it obvious that he and Zoe were together? Hell, they’d probably invite her to join in next. Zoe took the matter out of his hands when she got abruptly to her feet. “I’m going to go for that swim now. You, um . . . have a good time.” Before he could stop her, she was striding across the sand.
He stood, intent on following her, but turned to the women remaining at the table before he left. “Listen, ladies, we had fun together, but that’s over. I’d be very grateful if you wouldn’t mention it again, as it’s upsetting to my . . . er, Zoe.”
Carey and Kristen both appeared stunned by his speech. Hell, maybe he was a tad bit as well. But he didn’t want them following after him and spewing more sexually laced invitations. “Are you, like, married or something now?” Carey asked, clearly not thinking that could even be possible.
Impatient, he put his hands on his hips and shook his head. “No, I’m not. It’s . . . kind of complicated. But I’d really appreciate it if you’d cool it with flirting.”
Without waiting for an answer, he gathered their empty plates and tossed them in the trash before going after Zoe. There were several other people already in the water, so it took him a few minutes to locate her. He’d expected her to be alone, so he was surprised to see that she was standing waist deep talking to fucking Josh. How had his friend even managed to get away from the grill and in the ocean in such a short amount of time? Apparently a skimpy swimsuit was just the right motivation for him. Zoe appeared relaxed again now and completely clueless to the fact that Josh had his eyes plastered to her chest where the outline of her nipples were clearly visible through the wet material. “Aren’t you supposed to be cooking?” he snapped at the other man as he made his way to Zoe’s side.
Giving him an amused smirk, Josh said, “I had Craig take over for a while. I felt a sudden need to cool off and I ran into your lovely best friend, so it’s my lucky day.”
Dylan didn’t miss the emphasis he put on the friend part. What kind of game was the bastard playing at? He was deliberately baiting him and he had no idea why. He’d always liked Josh; he was one of his closer friends. But Dylan also knew that the other man was a major player, and if he thought Dylan would allow him to try something with Zoe, then he was sadly mistaken. As soon as he could get him alone, he’d set him straight. “Isn’t t
hat nice,” he managed to get out while attempting something approaching a smile.
Josh looked like he was fighting back laughter while Zoe gave him a questioning look before asking sweetly, “Where’d your friends Candy and Mandy go?”
“I think you mean Carey and Kristen, and I have no idea. We’re not friends. I barely even know them.” That much was technically true. He’d learned long ago you could sleep with a woman without knowing all the intimate details of her life.
Both Dylan and Zoe turned to stare at Josh as he started laughing. “Man, that must have been awkward as hell for you, bro,” he gasped out. Dylan pinched the bridge of his nose as he attempted to control his temper. He was struggling to deal with emotions that he’d never experienced before and he didn’t mind admitting that he was confused and agitated. As he stood there wishing he could close his eyes and end up in some alternate reality, he had to wonder if his life would ever be the same again.
• • •
Despite her earlier anger at Dylan and his bimbos, Zoe found herself feeling sorry for him as Josh continued to antagonize him. She had no idea what was going on between them because they’d been friends for years. The other man had never paid much attention to her when their paths crossed. He was polite, but that was about it. Today, though, no doubt thanks to her new swimsuit, he appeared to be fascinated with her. She couldn’t take all the credit, though. She thought that he also simply enjoyed riling Dylan up, which pissed her off.
Carey and Kristen had been a bad reminder of the type of women that Dylan usually went for. They were gorgeous, eager to please, and up for anything. She’d joked with him for years about that very thing and it hadn’t bothered her that much when they weren’t sitting inches away fawning all over him. It did give her some comfort that he didn’t appear to be returning any of their affections. In fact, he looked distinctly uncomfortable with the whole thing and he followed after her within moments of her storming off. Unfortunately for them both, though, Josh had been right on her heels when she’d walked into the water and his eyes had barely left her chest since then. She really wasn’t used to this type of overt male appreciation, and it left her wanting to cross her arms and turn away. She’d made the mistake of submerging her upper body before Dylan arrived and now the tiny top was almost X-rated. Why did I let Dana talk me into this one? I could have gotten another nice, conservative one-piece.
The tension surrounding them was thick enough to cut with a knife. Tired of being the star of whatever spat these two were engaging in, Zoe turned and tossed over her shoulder, “I’m going for a swim. I’ll see you later.” Not bothering to wait for a response, she dove into the water and swam as far as she could before surfacing. She didn’t look back; instead she settled into a leisurely swim and felt the weight of the last few minutes fall away as she enjoyed the tranquility of the ocean.
She wasn’t sure how far she’d traveled when she flipped onto her back before promptly letting out a scream. Dylan was doing the same thing inches away. How had she not heard him swimming that closely to her? “Take it easy,” he murmured as she flailed about in the water for a moment before settling down.
“You scared me to death,” she hissed. “Where did you even come from? I thought you were still with Josh.” Looking around, she added, “God, he’s not out here somewhere, is he?” She looked down as if expecting him to come up from underneath her at any time. She doubted he was above swimming underwater to check out her bottom half.
Dylan had his eyes closed as if his early tension had never existed. “Nope, he went back to the house to be the host. It wasn’t much fun to torture me after you’d gone so he gave up pretty easily. Thanks for that, by the way. My hands would probably be around his neck by now if you hadn’t taken off.”
Moving over to float side by side with him, she asked curiously, “So what’s the deal with that? He’s one of your best friends, right?”
“He is,” Dylan agreed. “But he can get a little cocky at times, especially if he thinks he’s getting under my skin.”
“That’s what I’m not clear on. You two seemed to be having some silent battle. I felt like I was the only one of us not getting it.”
Dylan remained silent for so long that she thought he wasn’t going to answer and she’d decided not to press the issue when he said quietly, “I didn’t like the way he was looking at you. You’re right, we are friends and have been for a long time, but you and I are closer. I know I’m not a saint—far from it—but Josh makes me look good. This is a tame evening for him. Generally, his parties are far worse. He’s into some weird shit, and trust me, you don’t want any part of it.”
Attempting to keep her voice level, Zoe asked, “Have you ever . . . you know, shared someone with him?” She squeaked in alarm when he promptly disappeared underneath the surface in a flurry of flailing limbs. “Dylan!” She had taken a deep breath and was going after him when his head popped out of the water. Apparently he’d ingested a mouthful of water at some point because he was coughing and sputtering. “Are you all right?” she asked as she moved over to pat his back. Dylan was a strong swimmer so she’d never seen the ocean get the best of him.
“Fine,” he choked out. “You . . . um . . . kind of broke my concentration for a moment with that question.”
She wrinkled her nose, trying to remember what they were talking about, then it hit her. “Ohhh, you mean the sharing one. I guess you don’t need to answer it. If it was enough to make you almost drown, I’m pretty sure I can figure it out for myself,” she added dryly.
“Let’s swim back in some,” he suggested. Motioning her ahead of him, she reluctantly retraced their earlier path until she was able to stand with the water just past her chest. She felt his hand on her back as he came up next to her. She was surprised that instead of putting some distance between them, he turned her until they were facing each other, then pulled her loosely into his arms. Her nipples immediately turned to stone as they nestled against his muscular body. He dropped a kiss onto her forehead before saying, “You know I’m not a saint, sweetheart, nor have I ever claimed to be.”
You have no right to be jealous. Don’t let him see that it bothers you. “I was just kidding, Dylan. Lighten up,” she joked as she attempted to pull away.
She froze in place, forgetting all about putting distance between them when he admitted softly, “I don’t know what we’re doing. I’m totally confused about us. I know I’m sending mixed signals because even I recognize them. It’s just that . . . things are supposed to be one way, but the lines are blurring.” Looking at her intently, he asked, “Please say you’re having the same issues; otherwise I’m going to pretend I never said what I did.”
Zoe laid her head against his chest, comforted by the steady beat of his heart beneath her ear. “I’m with you,” she confessed. There was no way she could tell him that she’d had those types of feelings for him for years. He wasn’t ready to hear that. She didn’t want him to feel as if she orchestrated this whole thing to get his attention, even though she had. She’d done it out of love, though, and not some need to trap him.
He breathed what sounded like a sigh of relief before saying, “Thank God, because that was going to be awkward as hell. I know we were only supposed to be a one-time thing, but I’m having trouble separating my friend from my lover. In my mind now, you’re both and . . . I like it. I’ve never been a relationship guy. I work too much for a woman not to feel neglected after a while. Shit, I’m not even sure what I’m proposing here. I guess what I’m trying to say and making a mess of it is that I’d like to see what this is between us. Even suggesting this scares the hell out of me because I don’t want to lose you if things don’t work out in that way between us.”
“That’ll never happen,” Zoe assured him as she ran a hand up and down his back soothingly. “I can’t imagine my life without you in it. We don’t have to make a big deal out of this. I’m attracted to
you in a way that goes beyond simple friendship and I think you’re saying that you are as well.” When he nodded in agreement, she added, “Then how about we take each day as it comes? I know you spend a lot of time at the office and you know I live at the shop some days. It’s who we are. We’ve always made time for each other and I say we continue to do that. Only maybe in a more romantic way than we normally would. Does that make sense?”
“Yeah, baby, it’s perfect.” Dylan grinned before slowly lowering his head and taking her lips with his. His tongue teased and plundered her mouth, while he slid his hands under her ass and pulled her against him until she wrapped her legs around his waist. “Fuck, you feel so good,” he groaned as she ground herself against his rapidly hardening length.
Zoe lost all awareness of time and place as they swayed with the currents while devouring each other. She had no idea how he’d even managed it but somehow her nipple was in Dylan’s mouth and he was sucking and biting the sensitive peak until she was on the verge of coming from that alone. “Dylan . . . I need,” she gasped out as he kept one hand on her ass to hold her in place and wedged the other one between them, sliding it inside her bikini bottoms. She whimpered as he touched the bundle of nerves there, nearly sending her into orbit. “So good,” she cried as she rode his hand. She was mindless to anything but the mounting tension in her body as she sought release.
“That’s it, sweetheart,” Dylan growled as she began shaking. The pressure that had built to an almost unbearable level suddenly broke and she was spiraling out of control. “You’re so beautiful,” she heard him say as she shamelessly took her pleasure. When she collapsed limply against him, he removed his hand and held her tightly for a few moments as her breathing calmed and she returned to her senses.