Saving Kylie

Your choice. You could’ve played Rob’s games. You have before.

She winced again as she imagined the scene she’d witnessed that evening. No fucking way.

Justin laid his hand on her thigh. Even with the layers of cotton between their skin, his heat branded her flesh. “Friends don’t k

iss. Not with tongue.”

His came out to rub at the dip in his lower lip she’d imagined nibbling more than once. She thought she glimpsed a flash of silver in his mouth, then dismissed it. Her thing for him, for lack of a better word, had proven to be as persistent as a sunrise, despite her efforts to pretend otherwise. He’d never given her any reason to think he felt similarly—at least during the current incarnation of their friendship—but that hadn’t shut down the fantasy machine where he was concerned.

Which was crazy. She knew what she’d get with Justin. Decent sex. He was decent, all the way around. Good, responsible, built to last.

Except he had so much more to him than the sum of those particular parts.

Justin knew how to make her laugh on her roughest days. Always had. He loved sports, college basketball in particular, and always brought her a card for every holiday. Along with being an excellent conversationalist, he was a wonderful listener.

He was just plain nice, as proven by the fact he hadn’t berated her for taking out the snowmobile when she hadn’t had a clue what she was doing. Bottom line, she really liked him. A lot.

As for his body…well, she had no complaints. If she’d hoped way back when that he’d do a little more with what he’d been given, that was a small flaw.

And besides, who was good at sex in college anyway? Even if it wasn’t usually her flavor preference, after Rob, vanilla sex sounded perfect.

She just wanted to forget everything Rob related. Hit the big ol’ Pause button and spend the evening with Justin.

Tomorrow she’d restart her life and figure out what came next.

“Especially when one of those friends happens to have a boyfriend,” he added when the silence extended. “A boyfriend she’s had for a very long time.”

Yeah, since not long after she and Justin had shared a bed senior year. She’d been so eager to experience…well, everything. And Rob had been wild, dangerous, and sexually way out of her league.

But she’d learned.

Should she tell him Rob was no longer a factor? Maybe his reluctance to push their boundaries was a good thing. She’d just ejected herself from a volatile relationship. Yes, she was single, but only for a handful of hours. If she rebounded any harder, she’d end up in the basketball record books herself.

Kylie smoothed her hands down her stomach. It was amazing how at ease she felt in Justin’s home, on his couch. She glanced down, noting the plaid boxers and faded SU T-shirt she wore underneath the very frayed comforter he’d wrapped her in. Even wearing his clothes seemed perfectly natural. Maybe sex between them would still be comfortable too.

She’d longed for sparks once. Now she just didn’t want to get burned.

“Hey,” he said, reaching for the folded newspaper resting on the coffee table. “This should cheer you up. There’s a game tonight.”

“Shit, yeah. What time is it?” She had no clue how long she’d been there. She’d drifted in and out of sleep for what felt like hours between bouts of Justin feeding her soup from a take-out container and pouring his liquid cure-all down her throat. “Did we miss it?”

“Almost two a.m.” At her squeal of distress, he patted her thigh. “Don’t worry. Would I ever contribute to you missing a game?” He picked up the remote beside the paper and aimed at the huge plasma TV on the opposite wall. “DVR’d it.”

Forgetting her injuries, she scrambled to sit up. “Did we win?”

He flashed her a grin. “I didn’t watch it. What fun would that be?”

“You’re a gem.” She frowned. “Don’t you have to work tomorrow? Day before Thanksgiving and all?”

“Nope. We had unused snow days last year, so they tacked on an extra day for the Thanksgiving holiday. Works for me. What about you? You have a shift at the bar?”

“No. I’m off till Friday.” She pulled her knees up to her chest to make more room on the couch for him, then bit her lip as her sore lower back protested. “Uh, guess I’m not ready for my usual position yet.”

“You have a usual? I do have my favorites, I’ll admit.” As if he didn’t realize she was gaping at him, he gently lifted her legs and draped them over his lap as he sat back against the cushions. “There. Okay?”

Whoa. He didn’t normally throw out innuendos. That was her job. She flung flirty comments his way while slinging drinks, and he lapped them up with a laugh without responding in kind. Part of his allure was that he seemed safe. She’d be able to handle a man like him. His needs wouldn’t be overwhelming, and she wouldn’t come up lacking when she couldn’t fill her expected role in her lover’s sexual Olympics.

“Yeah, I’m fine.”