force, he could be okay with them being the last three people left alive on the earth. Sure, he’d mourn the loss of some people, but his whole universe sat on this couch. They’d been his friends, his family, his salvation when he wasn’t sure which way was up.
Her fingers dug into his scalp, combing through his hair in an almost distracted way. Carrie might not mean to tempt him with her gentle ministrations, but lately…
He’d been tempted. He wasn’t a poacher, or he’d never considered himself one before, but her boyfriend was an asshole. Besides, no one Carrie dated would ever love her as much as he and Grady did. Sparing a look at his other best friend, he saw the way Grady’s jaw tightened as he leaned his head on her shoulder. He sensed he wasn’t the only one who began to ask himself the tough questions, the what if variety questions.
“Well, you’ll both have to let me up if we’re crunching numbers. I’m going to need another beer to face the paint costs. Did we really need a new sign? I mean, I can’t be the only one who wonders these things.” Carrie punctuated her question by popping him gently in the forehead with the palm of her hand. “Move it, Bennie-boy.”
Rolling and groaning in complaint, Ben sat up and leaned against the back of the couch. “Grab me one too, since I’m pretty sure Grady is going to cry like a baby when I tell him how much that new distributor is costing us.”
Once she left the room, Grady’s head swiveled toward him. “She didn’t answer about date night because rumor has it there’s trouble in paradise.” Grady waggled his brows.
“No way. I thought she was really happy with him.” His response didn’t give away, he thought, the tiny surge of pleasure the idea of her single brought him. He hadn’t liked her asshole boyfriend and he didn’t mind the idea of him and Grady having her to themselves again, not one little bit.
“Yeah, you can save the bullshit for her. I’m thrilled the fucker is gone too. Manda told me, since she heard a rumor he’s been cheating,” Grady said, then chugged his beer. Raising his voice, he added, “Snag me another one too, Care-bear?”
“No problem! I’m making nachos too, if no one minds?”
“Sounds great,” Grady answered. Turning back to Ben, he snorted. “She burns nachos. I hate them from the microwave.”
Focusing his eyes on the lame movie, Ben didn’t answer right away. His mind was too busy playing out a hundred different fantasies featuring their best friend naked to immediately shift gears. “Then go make the nachos yourself,” he finally muttered. If he were being totally honest, fantasizing about Carrie was almost as routine as beer and bills on Thursdays. Lord knew he’d been practicing that particular hobby for about as long as he could remember, and he’d always been pretty good at ignoring his response to her touch…but he’d found it harder and harder to lock down his reactions to her touch now.
“Someone has his nuts in a knot. Ben, I’ve told you before, I think we should flat-out talk to her. Tell her how we feel and—”
Ben cut him off with a wave of his hand. “Look, any kinky shit we got into before was different. Sharing a woman? Yeah, that’s hot as fuck, but she’s not just a woman for us to screw. She’s our friend, our family, and we love her so—”
Grady snagged his shirt, tugging him forward so they were eye to eye. “If you were anyone else, I’d clock you for that little speech alone. Luckily, I know you’re aware that I love her as much as you do, and nothing that happened between us would be so simple as a fuck.”
Swallowing hard, Ben shrugged off Grady’s grip. “Which is why we can’t risk it. She’s too important. We can’t mess this up.”
Grady grumbled, but sat back on the couch as Carrie entered with a platter of nachos and three beers in her fist. “What are you two bickering about?”
“Sex,” Grady answered easily, his charming
Her fingers dug into his scalp, combing through his hair in an almost distracted way. Carrie might not mean to tempt him with her gentle ministrations, but lately…
He’d been tempted. He wasn’t a poacher, or he’d never considered himself one before, but her boyfriend was an asshole. Besides, no one Carrie dated would ever love her as much as he and Grady did. Sparing a look at his other best friend, he saw the way Grady’s jaw tightened as he leaned his head on her shoulder. He sensed he wasn’t the only one who began to ask himself the tough questions, the what if variety questions.
“Well, you’ll both have to let me up if we’re crunching numbers. I’m going to need another beer to face the paint costs. Did we really need a new sign? I mean, I can’t be the only one who wonders these things.” Carrie punctuated her question by popping him gently in the forehead with the palm of her hand. “Move it, Bennie-boy.”
Rolling and groaning in complaint, Ben sat up and leaned against the back of the couch. “Grab me one too, since I’m pretty sure Grady is going to cry like a baby when I tell him how much that new distributor is costing us.”
Once she left the room, Grady’s head swiveled toward him. “She didn’t answer about date night because rumor has it there’s trouble in paradise.” Grady waggled his brows.
“No way. I thought she was really happy with him.” His response didn’t give away, he thought, the tiny surge of pleasure the idea of her single brought him. He hadn’t liked her asshole boyfriend and he didn’t mind the idea of him and Grady having her to themselves again, not one little bit.
“Yeah, you can save the bullshit for her. I’m thrilled the fucker is gone too. Manda told me, since she heard a rumor he’s been cheating,” Grady said, then chugged his beer. Raising his voice, he added, “Snag me another one too, Care-bear?”
“No problem! I’m making nachos too, if no one minds?”
“Sounds great,” Grady answered. Turning back to Ben, he snorted. “She burns nachos. I hate them from the microwave.”
Focusing his eyes on the lame movie, Ben didn’t answer right away. His mind was too busy playing out a hundred different fantasies featuring their best friend naked to immediately shift gears. “Then go make the nachos yourself,” he finally muttered. If he were being totally honest, fantasizing about Carrie was almost as routine as beer and bills on Thursdays. Lord knew he’d been practicing that particular hobby for about as long as he could remember, and he’d always been pretty good at ignoring his response to her touch…but he’d found it harder and harder to lock down his reactions to her touch now.
“Someone has his nuts in a knot. Ben, I’ve told you before, I think we should flat-out talk to her. Tell her how we feel and—”
Ben cut him off with a wave of his hand. “Look, any kinky shit we got into before was different. Sharing a woman? Yeah, that’s hot as fuck, but she’s not just a woman for us to screw. She’s our friend, our family, and we love her so—”
Grady snagged his shirt, tugging him forward so they were eye to eye. “If you were anyone else, I’d clock you for that little speech alone. Luckily, I know you’re aware that I love her as much as you do, and nothing that happened between us would be so simple as a fuck.”
Swallowing hard, Ben shrugged off Grady’s grip. “Which is why we can’t risk it. She’s too important. We can’t mess this up.”
Grady grumbled, but sat back on the couch as Carrie entered with a platter of nachos and three beers in her fist. “What are you two bickering about?”
“Sex,” Grady answered easily, his charming
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