Forbidden Heat

Finally, Trey drew away. He smiled, then

kissed her. As he slipped free of her body, she felt a sudden sense of loss. It was so comforting sharing that intimacy with him. Feeling so close to him.

Then suddenly she realized just how intimate this felt . . . with just the two of them here. Like two actual lovers. Two lovers in a relationship.

Heat drained from her face as she realized she’d been playing a dangerous game. She’d been having casual sex with her two friends, having fun and hoping to play matchmaker . . . but along the way, she was in danger of losing her own heart.

“What’s wrong, sweetheart? You just went white as a ghost.”

His charming smile along with the concern in his warm brown eyes made her feel loved. But she knew it wasn’t love. At least, not romantic love. It was the caring of one friend for another. Very intimate friends.

She enjoyed getting close to them, but she had to make sure she didn’t blow this whole thing out of proportion. She could have sex with Trey and Jake. It didn’t mean anything deeper than three close friends sharing some intimate time. The thought of being in some kind of long-term relationship with two men—two men with a long history together and a host of unresolved issues—was simply ludicrous.

“I’m fine. I was just wondering what happened to Jake.”

“Danielle?”

Danielle clung to sleep, despite the voice curling through her consciousness.

“Danielle? Wake up, sleepyhead.”

Warm lips caressing her neck sent tingles through her. She opened her eyes, murmuring soft sounds of approval.

Trey gazed at her and smiled. “Hey there. We need to get a move on if we’re going to go windsurfing today.”

She reached for him and drew him forward. He gave her a brief kiss, then stroked her hair behind her ears.

“Come on, sweetheart. It’s time to get up.”

“Mmm. Time to come back to bed.” She wanted to snuggle against his warm, masculine body again.

He grinned, but drew back, tugging on her hands. “Tempting, but you assured me last night that you wanted to try windsurfing again, and if we don’t get there soon, the boards will all be rented.”

She closed her eyes again. “Windsurfing is nice, but bed is nicer.”

Bright light shone on her face and she grumbled and opened her eyes again, shielding them with her hand. Trey had opened the blinds and allowed the sunshine to blaze in the window.

“It’s a beautiful day outside. It’s supposed to hit eighty degrees and the wind will be about seven knots. It’s the perfect day.”

“Okay, okay,” she grumbled as she pushed the bedclothes aside and sat up. Hickory grumbled from the end of the bed, then leapt to the floor and stalked off.

“You aren’t really a morning person, are you?” he teased, then wrapped his arms around her and kissed her silly.

“Well, when you start my morning with a kiss like that . . .” She stroked her fingers through his hair, then captured his mouth again for a lingering kiss.

He drew away and chuckled. “Oh no you don’t.” He took her hands and drew her forward. “We need to get going. How long will it take you to throw on a bathing suit and shorts?”

“All right already. You’re really worried about no boards?”

“If we’re not there in”—he glanced at his wristwatch— “say forty minutes, I’d say we lose.”

“Okay. Five minutes.”

Danielle unzipped her suitcase, sitting on the dresser, and rifled through it for her bathing suit. Seven minutes later, they stepped out into the bright sunshine. A warm breeze caressed her cheek. Trey opened the car door for her, then handed her a travel mug full of an aromatic vanilla coffee blend. As he got into the driver’s seat, she sipped then placed the mug in the cup holder beside her seat.

“What about Jake?” she asked. “He wanted to come, too, didn’t he? Do you think something happened to him last night that stopped him from showing up?”

“No, he knew when we’d planned to go so he’ll probably assume we’re still picking him up.” Trey handed her his cell phone. “Do you want to give him a call to let him know we’re on our way?”