Page 113 of Just Friends
She rattled off a list of what they’d done at the spa: a massage, a facial, a salt scrub, a mani/pedi, a blowout. “And one other thing I might be forgetting, too,” she added, tapping her chin.
I knew her well enough to suspect she was being coy. “What is it?”
“Who knows?” She tried to hide a sneaky smile, and now I wascertainshe was keeping something from me. “Maybe it’ll come to me later.”
“Well, whatever it was, it worked.” I feasted my eyes on her—even with the sky growing darker, she radiated beauty. “Because you’re fucking glowing.”
“Glowing, huh?” She giggled. “That’s a nice way of saying ‘sweating like a pig.’ ” She pinched my jacket sleeve. “I don’t knowhowyou’re wearing that suit in this heat, by the way.”
I laughed. “After thebanya,trust me, this is nothing.”
“So you really had a good time in the sauna, huh?” she asked.
“I did. I needed it, honestly.”
“Derek made it sound really awful. Poor guy was red all over.”
“Yeah, Reavo wasn’t a fan.”
“Derek told me something else, too,” she said coyly.
“And what’s that?”
“He told me a couple hotties were all over you at the pool, and you turned them down.”
I smiled. “Without a second thought.”
“Proud of you, slugger.” She punched my shoulder. “But why? Were they not your type?”
“It had nothing to do with their type,” I said. “They just weren’t what I want.”
“Oh? What do you want?”
“You haven’t figured that out yet?”
“I want to hear you say it again,” she whispered, biting her lip.
I wrapped my arm around the small of her back and pulled her close. “You, Pipes. I want you.” I leaned in for a kiss, but just before our lips touched, she shrieked and jumped away.
“Don’t! You’ll get hard all over again! You’re finally soft—” She took a quick glance between my legs. “—well,sort of.”
I glanced down, too. I was still rocking a semi, but I’d deflated enough that I wouldn’t look like a sicko walking around in public, at least.
Robbed of my kiss, I muttered, “Alright, alright. Let’s head down there.”
We left Reavo and Katerina’s room together and made our way to the elevator at the end of the hall. As we walked the plush floor, I reached for her hand. It was such a small thing, and yet the feeling of her hand clasped in mine made my giddy heart thump in my chest with the most pure, uplifting bliss I’d ever experienced. I felt like a kid all over again, holding a girl’s hand for the very first time. Which in a way, I guess I was. Because I’d never reallytrulyheld hands—at least not with someone I had such deep feelings for. With every beat, my heart opened more and more, a rush of bright warmth flooding my center.
I pressed the button on the control panel. While we waited for the elevator to arrive, I draped my arms around Piper from behind and held her near. The fruity-herbal scent of her hair invigorated my senses, luring me closer. I kissed her crown of braids.
“You’re so beautiful, Pipes,” I whispered in her ear. “You know that?”
She looked up and gave me her eyes. “You’re quite dashing yourself. I’ve always loved you in a suit, you know.”
“Even though I don’t have my red pocket square?”
She laughed. “What’s the deal with this pocket square, anyway? Is it really that big of a deal?”
“Eh, I doubt it’s ahugedeal.” I grumbled with a touch of uncertainty. “But your friends are right about Mr. Sullivan, anyway. He’s ex-military and so he’s got this idea that his players should all look sharp and coordinated.” I paused. “Well, that’s what the boys tell me, anyway—I haven’t met him yet.”
