“Ry…”

Unable to resist the lure of kissing her a second longer, he claimed her mouth. Her lips parted on a shaky exhale and he took full advantage. Rather than thrust his way inside, he played the tip of his tongue over the edges of her teeth, teasing for deeper access. After the tiniest hesitation, her tongue met his.

Unlike their first kiss, this one was a slow, lush exploration. A promise of pleasures yet to come. He felt it, and he damn well made certain Lacey did too. Sifting his fingers through the silkiness of her shoulder-length blonde strands, he grasped her ass with his free hand. He traced the center seam of her wool slacks, a groan escaping him when he realized she was wearing a thong. He’d seen Lacey plenty of times in a modest two-piece bathing suit that still managed to torment him and make the fit of his shorts uncomfortably snug in the groin. That was nothing compared to the torture facing him now as he imagined the soft cheeks of her ass bisected by the skimpy scrap of fabric. More than anything, he wanted to tug her pants down so he could knead and massage her butt before licking and grazing his teeth over her creamy skin. Then he’d push aside her thong and stroke his tongue from her pussy to her asshole, taking his time to properly worship every inch of her sensitive flesh.

Unfortunately, her office wasn’t exactly the most private place to be at the moment, even with the door locked. Instead he made do by gripping her tighter and rubbing his denim-imprisoned erection against her belly. His mouth captured her gasp. Her hand crept around his neck, grazing his nape as her thigh shifted, sliding along his. He wasn’t sure she even realized what she was doing.

It was a safe bet she had no clue what she was doing to him. He broke the kiss, his breath ragged. “I have half a mind to say fuck dinner and eat you instead.”

Kiss-swollen lips parting, she stared at him, her pupils dilated. Her chest rose and fell on choppy, staccato inhalations.

“If you keep looking at me like that, I’m going to take it as an invitation to make good on my word. Right here, right now.”

She snapped her mouth shut and pulled her hand from him, using it to swipe a lock of her hair behind her ear. “W-what time should I be at Bram’s?”

He battled the urge to grin like a fool. Good girl. “I was just about to drive over there. How about you ride shotgun with me?”

“But my car…”

“If you decide to head home later, I can always bring you back here.”

She frowned. “Why wouldn’t I be going home?”

He tried not to let his disappointment show. “I was hoping you’d be open to the possibility of spending the entire night with us.”

Her eyes became shadowed with worry. “Ry…”

He stopped any forthcoming protest with a lingering brush of his lips over hers. “It’s okay. If you don’t feel comfortable doing that just yet, you don’t have to.” But I’m damn well going to do everything I can to change your mind.

The storm clouds in her irises cleared and she offered a tentative smile. “Thank you for understanding. You’re an awesome friend.”

He hugged her to him and kissed the top of her forehead. “Maybe. I know I plan on getting extra friendly with you before the night is done,” he teased.

A rosy flush bloomed on her cheekbones. Her dusky eyelashes lowered as she stared at his chest and nibbled on her bottom lip. “Sooo…have you and Bram narrowed down which item you’re helping me check off?”

“Wouldn’t you like to know?”

Her gaze jerked upward, and she blinked at him. “Yeah, I would, as a matter of fact.”

“Hence the reason I’m not going to tell you. Far more exciting this way.”

Her eyes narrowed into slits. “I take back all the nice things I just said about you.”

Chuckling, he dropped another kiss on her sulky mouth before steering her toward the door.


The butterflies dive-bombing each other in Lacey’s stomach were either on a suicide mission or had just stumbled out of a kegger party. Regardless, the sensation wasn’t doing much to bolster her confidence and make her feel like a vibrant sex goddess on her way to a night of kinky fun with her best buds.

Smoothing a trembling hand over her jumpy tummy, she tried to relax as Ry parked his truck and shut off the engine.

“Wait there. I don’t want you slipping on your way out.” Ry shoved his keys into the pocket of his leather bomber jacket before climbing from the vehicle. Pulling up his collar in defense of the cold, he hurried to her side and cracked open her door. Snowflakes clung to his glossy, midnight-black hair and his eyelashes. She couldn’t resist running her fingertip over one of the thick fringes. He blinked and grinned at her. “Let me guess. I look like Frosty.”

Sure, if Frosty were over six feet of hard-muscled, sexy man candy.

He slid his hands beneath her coat and stroked the sides of her breasts, making no bones over the fact he was copping a cheap feel before he anchored his palms beneath her armpits and easily lifted her from the cab. He caught her dry look, and his wicked smile widened. The sight of it was enough to bring a surge of wetness between her legs.

Well, at least her nerves had been momentarily banished.

Ry twined his fingers with hers, and the two of them rushed toward the beckoning front porch of Bram’s two-story Arts and Crafts style bungalow. As if he’d been anticipating their arrival, Bram flung open the door and she and Ry trooped into the entry, stomping their snow-covered boots on the waiting mat. Bram helped her from her coat. Like Ry, he couldn’t seem to keep his hands from wandering along the outer swells of her breasts. She glanced up at him and noticed the flushed state of his face. More than likely hers was equally so, but at least she could blame it on the frigid temps outside.

Once he’d hung her coat up in the hall closet, Bram snuggled her in his arms. “I’m glad you decided to come.”

“Ry didn’t give me much choice,” she admitted wryly.

“Hmm, remind me to thank him later.”

A grunt came from Ry. “I’m standing right here. You can thank me now.”

“True, but I’m kinda busy right now.” Bending, Bram slid his mouth over hers. The contrast of his warm lips and breath against her colder flesh was startling. His heat managed to kindle her body in more ways than one. By the time he broke the kiss, her inner temperature had skyrocketed by at least one hundred degrees. They pulled apart and she peeked sideways. Ry was staring at them, his eyes dark and intense. There was no mistaking the obvious bulge tenting the fly of his jeans.

Wow, did watching her and Bram kissing turn him on? The notion was both odd and arousing. Ry had such a strong possessive streak. She could only guess that he tended to be just as territorial when it came to his women.

Mulling back over that last thought, she realized where her misassumption lay. She wasn’t Ry’s woman. Why would he care who kissed her? Furthermore, of course he’d be aroused witnessing the kiss between her and Bram. For Pete’s sake, the two men intended to do a hell of a lot more than that with her together.

The reminder brought her jittery nerves back to the forefront. Despite her best efforts not to allow her mind to go there, she couldn’t help wondering what exactly they had done with the female from their previous threesome experience. Obviously they’d fucked the woman, no mystery there. She’d read enough steamy ménage books to be able to figure out at least the basics of what had gone down.

If she were to be completely honest with herself, what terrified her most was the possibility of being a huge disappointment to Ry and Bram. Most likely that mystery woman had been exotic and sexy, the exact opposite of Lacey. Hell, maybe the female had been the one to proposition Bram and Ry. How could Lacey compete with that sort of brazen confidence?

Yes, it was stupid to compare herself to a faceless woman from their past, but it didn’t change the fact that she was worried she’d come out lacking in retrospect. Smothering her sigh, she knelt and unzipped her boots before tugging them off. She wore thick socks, but she couldn’t help being grateful for the radiant heating Bram had installed with his parquet floors. Her toes curling in appreciation of the cozy warmth, she straightened and hugged her chest.

“How about a glass of wine?” Bram offered, heading toward the kitchen. “I just opened a bottle.”

A fifth of tequila was more in order, but she kept the thought to herself. She didn’t want them to assume she needed to get snockered in order to go through with this. Even though she probably did.

Ry’s palm rubbed her tensed back, and she looked up at him. With his free arm, he gestured toward Bram, indicating that they should follow him.

Good idea. Standing all night in the entry clearly wouldn’t get them anywhere fast. Feeling like a doofus, she allowed Ry to lead her into the kitchen. While Bram grabbed a pair of crystal stemware from the rack and a cold beer from the fridge for Ry, she scooted onto one of the leather-capped barstools fronting the enormous granite-topped center island. She’d sat on this very seat numerous times, but she’d never once experienced the level of stomach-churning anxiety that she did now.

Where was the sexy Lacey from her fantasies? Figures the damn wench would abandon her in her time of need.

Bram settled her wineglass in front of her, and she picked it up to take a fortifying sip. A warm, mellow glow spread through her as the Shiraz settled in her belly. The aroma of garlic and red chilies carried from a pan sizzling on the stove. She licked her lips. “Is that Kevin’s Penne Arrabiata?”