Sara Stone - Full Exposure

“Thank you.” Georgia slid off her stool and followed him into the living room.

“I’m your big brother, Georgie. That’s what I’m here for.” He sat on the couch and picked up the remote. “But no chick flicks. I can’t stay awake watching some shirtless dude.”

She laughed, despite the swirling emotions inside. Liam was here for her, always. And how was she repaying him? Sleeping with his best friend and boss. But no, it wasn’t just sex—she was falling in love with Eric. And she refused to walk away from love just because it was complicated.

ERIC WOKE TO small hands pushing against his shoulder. He opened his eyes. A stuffed giraffe stared back at him.

“Georgia says you have to get up.”

Rolling until his back lay flat against the hardwood floor, Eric found Nate staring down at him. “She’s here?”

Nate nodded, pointing to the door. Lifting his head, Eric spotted her, leaning against the entrance, holding a steaming cup. It was as if he was waking from his own nightmare. Except this time, Georgia had come back, leaving him wondering if he’d emerged in a dream.

“We let you sleep in as long as we could.” She stepped into the room and held out the mug. “Coffee?”

“Thanks.” He stood, tucking his dress shirt back into his pants before accepting her offering. After she’d driven away, he’d returned to Nate’s side and spent the night in yesterday’s suit. But that was only one reason he felt as if the lines between dream and reality had blurred. He’d watched her drive away last night and assumed he’d lost her. And now she was standing in front of him with a cup of coffee.

Lifting the mug to his lips, he studied her. She’d traded her jeans and T-shirt for a red polka-dot sundress with buttons running down the front and sandals. But the young, feminine clothes bore a sharp contrast to the determination he saw in her brown eyes.

“You came back,” he said softly, unable to hide his awe. “I thought you were gone.”

“I needed to think,” she said. “And after I take Nate to school, we should talk.”

“Whatever you need,” he said. The idea of redefining this relationship, thrusting it back over the line, ripped at the raw, hurting place inside him. But he’d stand by those words and do as she asked. If it was in his power to help her, he would, no matter what it cost him.

AN HOUR LATER, Eric was sitting at the kitchen table, checking his email and notifying his assistant that he’d be arriving late this morning. He’d showered, shaved, and dressed for the day in a fresh suit, shoving his emotions aside as he went through the routine actions.

He’d called a few independent investigators, asking them to drop by his offices that afternoon. If the DOF insisted on blaming his crew, and Liam in particular, he wanted confirmation from an outside source before he let his best friend go.

“Is now a good time?”

He looked up. Georgia stood in the doorway, twirling her keys in her hand.

“Yes.” He closed the laptop and stood, heading toward her. “Did Nate get to school OK?”

She nodded but didn’t move from the doorway. “Were you planning to tell me about the fire investigation and Liam?”

Eric froze in the middle of his kitchen. “No. He asked me not to say anything. Not until we knew more. He didn’t want to worry you. Who told you?”

“Liam did.” She slipped the keys into a pocket hidden in her sundress and folded her arms across her chest. “I drove to his place last night. He thought you’d sent me to question him.”

His hands formed tight fists. “Did you tell him the truth?”

She cocked her head, studying him. “I explained about my nightmare, but I left you out of it. And I didn’t tell him about us. I couldn’t. Not when he told me you might fire him.”

“I’m hoping it won’t come to that.”

“Do you believe him? Do you think he is telling the truth about stopping the chainsaws before the fire restriction took effect?”

“I believe in his intentions,” Eric said slowly. “I know he meant to do the right thing and follow the law. But there is a chance he tried to push the crew, to fell one last tree, and got too close to the time limit.”

“No,” she said firmly. “He didn’t.”

“I hope you’re right.” He wanted to believe his best friend. But he couldn’t fudge the truth to protect him. Not when it came to a forest fire that had the potential to cost hundreds of people their lives, never mind the crews who’d worked around the clock to put out the blaze. It was one thing to overlook a spark. People made mistakes. It was another to violate the fire code. Even by a few minutes.

“Either way I’m hiring a private investigator to find out,” he said.

“And until you learn the truth, you don’t want to tell him about us.”

He looked into her brown eyes, so familiar, yet different. “Georgia, last night, you said yourself that this—us—it’s too much. And I think you’re right. I think you need more time to heal. I want to do what is best for you.”

He stepped closer, needing to touch her. But she moved to the side, out of his reach. “I’ll be there for you, as a friend,” he added. “Whatever you need. You have my word.”

“You’ll always be my friend, Eric,” she said. “But I want more. After I left here last night . . .”

He saw the far-off look in her eyes and his concern snowballed. What had she done after she’d run from him last night? The idea of her seeking another rush flat-out terrified him. More than anything he needed her safe.

“After I left, I realized that the nightmares, the fears, those might always be a part of me. Hopefully, they’ll fade. I don’t know. I’ll ask the shrink the next time I see him.”

He raised an eyebrow. “You’re going back to therapy?”

She nodded. “I have something to say. I’m ready to talk to him. And you know why? Because I’ve figured out how to live my life to the fullest.”

“How?”

“I’ve fallen in love with you. You’ve always been a good friend, Eric. But what we have, it is more than sex. I trust you. I feel safe with you. But most important, I’m happy when I’m with you. You’re my friend, I’ve loved you practically forever, and now I’m in love with you. What could be better than that?”

She’d fallen in love. Hope surged, but doubt rose quickly to greet it. “Georgia, after everything you’ve been through, after what you said last night, how can you be sure—”

“That I’m in love? I know what I feel, Eric. The guilt that I lived, the need to feel worthy, that is still there. It might never go away. Falling in love with you didn’t ‘fix’ me. I was never broken.

“The other night you told me that who I am is enough. And you were right. I deserve to move forward with my life. I want to live every day to the fullest loving you. I want to spend the nights making love to you—wild, crazy, kinky, whatever you want, Mr. Straightlaced. I want to build a future with you. And you don’t need to worry I’m going to bolt. I won’t. I told you last night I’m strong. I can do this. Please say yes, Eric. Tell me you meant what you said last night when you told me you loved me.”

“Georgia, it’s not that simple.” She’d spun a complete one-eighty in a matter of hours. He wanted to believe her words. But the idea of pushing her too far, of sending her running away again . . .

“Eric,” she demanded, “did you mean what you said last night?”

“Georgia, I’ve always loved you,” he said. “And now . . .”

“We’re more. We’re lovers,” she said softly. “Don’t be afraid, Eric. Not of this. Not of us.”

“That’s not it.” Wasn’t he supposed to be the one looking out for her fears? He didn’t want to walk away. But he had to. For her.

“Eric, watch my hands.”

He stepped back. “No, Georgia. We can’t.”

Georgia touched the top button on her dress, pushing it through the hole. Her hand dropped to the next one. He knew he should leave, but his feet remained rooted to the floor, unwilling to walk away from the woman who, right or wrong, had become necessary to his life.

She undid the next button and the one below that until the dress fell open, revealing the soft slopes of her breasts. Lifting her hands to her shoulders, she drew the fabric down her arms, slipping one arm out, followed by the next. She slid the dress down her body, releasing the fabric at her hips, allowing it to fall to the floor. Stepping out of the center, she reached behind her back and undid her bra. It fell away from her breasts, joining her dress on the floor. Her hands moved to her hips, stripping away her underwear as she closed the space between them.

“Georgia,” he said, his voice strained.

She wrapped her arms around his neck. Staring up into his eyes, she ran her fingers through his short hair. She’d always been beautiful. But there was something about the certainty of her movements and the way she touched him without hesitation. Georgia wasn’t holding back. She was offering him everything—her body, her touch, her love.

But he couldn’t take it.

“Georgia, we can’t do this,” he said, closing his eyes, resting his forehead against hers.

“Shh.” She placed one finger over his lips. “Let me love you, Eric. Here. Now. It’s just us. Marie’s off today. Nate’s at school. It’s just you and me.”

She arched up, capturing his mouth, kissing him deeply as he fought to hold back. But with every naked inch of her pressed against him, his willpower headed for the door. He’d figure this out. He swore he would. If he’d screwed up, he’d make amends and make damn certain he chose the right path forward.

He reached for her, running his hands up from her lower back. His mouth still locked on hers, taking everything she offered, he trailed his fingertips over her ribcage around to her chest.