I wink at her, not wanting to tell her the whole story right now. "We are. Do a shot with me," I tell her before she asks any more questions. I'm drinking and having a good time. When I realize that Parker has gone quiet, I turn and look at him, putting both hands on the sides of his neck. "The whiskey is starting to get to me."

  He looks at me worriedly. "Are you okay?"

  He’s gazing at me under hooded eyes, and his fingers dig into the soft skin at my waist. I know he can feel my shiver. Being this close to him is definitely having an effect on me. "I'm good."

  I run my fingers up and down his neck. "You don't seem like you're having a good time. This party is for you, you know."

  He leans his head to the side as if giving me better access, and I brush my fingers through the hair at his nape. He readjusts underneath me, and I move to give him more room. That's when I feel it. His erection is pushing against my ass. I move softly at first, and he groans, laying his head back on the chair. It's only then that I realize the power that I have right now. It's power that I never dreamed I would have. He's looking at me, and I can see the question in his eyes. I'm about to ask him about it when Tammy interrupts us.

  "So, Parker, how long are you in town for?"

  He answers her, but the whole time he's staring at me. "Just a week, and I plan on spending all of it with Haven." His words hold a promise that I wish was true, but I know it's all an act. We’re supposed to be acting like we’re together. It’s a game we’re playing, but still even knowing that, his words have an effect on me.

  I lean back in his arms and rest my head on his shoulder. He holds me to him as I curl up in his lap. I can feel Tony and his girlfriend's eyes on me and I can feel the jealousy from Tammy as she stares between Parker and me, but I tune it all out. For years, I imagined Parker holding me. I don't know if it's the liquor or what, but I refuse to not revel in the feeling of being in his arms.

  Everyone is talking and having a good time all around us. Every now and then, Parker chimes in on the conversation. I let my eyes close. I know that by tomorrow I'll probably be the talk of the town. This is Redwood, and everybody is in everyone's business, but I can't seem to make myself care at this point.

  Parker lets one hand trail up and down my back. He rubs me soothingly. I lie limply in his arms, enjoying the closeness. If there is ever a night that I wish would never end, this is it. I've had way too many drinks, and I'm fighting to keep my eyes open. The last thing that I remember is pressing my lips against his neck.

  Chapter 10

  Parker

  As soon as I feel her lips on my neck, my body is hard as stone. It's been torture sitting here with her in my arms and every eye in the place watching us. She shifts in my arms, and it's then that I feel her tongue against the side of my neck. Unable to sit here any longer, I lean forward, holding her to me. I turn to my brother and give him the look, letting him know that I'm out of here. He nods, looks at Haven and then at me, and gives me a thumbs up. I look around the table at everyone that has gathered around to see me and whisper to them, which is funny to think about because the bar is loud, but I don't want to wake up Haven.

  "I'm going to get out of here, guys. I'll see you again before I leave." They all nod and go back to talking. I stand up and pull Haven into my chest. Her arms are looped around my neck, and I start to walk out with her.

  The bouncer at the front door steps out in front of me. "Where are you taking Haven?" Haven jostles in my arms and points at the bouncer. “Hayes, it's okay." She pats me on the chest. "This is Parker. He's my best friend and as of tonight, my fake boyfriend."

  Hayes looks confused. He looks over my shoulder and then back at me. "It looks like Briony thinks you're okay. No funny stuff though." I want to laugh at that. This man is obviously protective of Haven, but he must not realize that I'm the last person on earth that would ever hurt her.

  "Sure thing. Thanks for looking out for her," I tell him as I walk past. I carry her easily to my truck and put her in the front seat. She doesn’t want to let go of my neck, and she kisses me again there. I let her too. I’d be stupid to pull away now. She makes her way up my neck, and when I feel her lips wrap around my earlobe, I suck in a deep breath.

  I force myself to pull away. I fit the seatbelt around her and latch it before shutting her door. I take my time walking around to my side of the vehicle. I’m trying to get my breathing and my common sense back. Nothing can happen tonight. No matter how much I want it to.

  Neither one of us says anything as I drive back to her house.

  When I pull into her driveway, I walk up to the house and find the hide-a-key and unlock the front door, leaving it open. I then run back to my truck and pick her up and carry her in, kicking the door to the house shut behind me. I walk with her through the house, and she mumbles into my chest. "You're always so good to me, Parker."

  There are so many things I could say to that, but instead I just say, "Yeah." I set her down on her feet next to her bed. I'm holding on to her when something catches my eye on the wall. With one arm around her, I look at the vanity mirror. All around it are pictures of me through the years. There’s the one of us at our first Halloween party, the one where we went to homecoming together. The picture of me standing between her and her date for prom. And there’s more of me in my football uniform, and in most of them, I’m not even looking at the camera. It’s as if she captured them without me knowing.

  I look at Haven in my arms, and she smiles up at me. "You're not supposed to see those." "Why not?" I ask her.

  She pulls out of my arms and sways on her feet. She sits down on the edge of the bed and starts taking her shoes off. She starts talking, so all I can do is just stand there and watch her. "Because if you see all the pictures on the wall, you're going to know."

  She removes her shoes and then her socks. She falls backwards on the bed and starts to undo her pants. I stand where I'm at, frozen to the spot. Huskily I ask her, "What will I know if I see all of these pictures?"

  She's kicking the jeans off her legs, and I should be looking anywhere but at her, but I can’t take my eyes off her. She’s sprawled out on the bed, and I gulp as I look at her in her black satin panties.

  I’m about to take a step toward her when she sits back up and points to the dresser. "Hand me that shirt."

  I look at the dresser and see that she's indicating my Army shirt that I gave her last night. I reach for it and hand it to her. She sets it easily in her lap and then pulls off her shirt. I hold my breath, seeing her for the very first time. Her matching black bra barely holds her. I knew from all the hugs we’ve given each other that she was large-breasted, but I had no idea.

  She reaches behind her, and I don’t move. I don’t even fuckin’ breathe. She unclasps her bra and lets it fall from her shoulders. Everything in me is telling me to go to her, but I don't. I stand my ground. I take in her large breasts with her pink, puckered nipples. The need to taste her is intense, but when she starts to pull the sweatshirt over her head, I shake my head, trying to come to my senses.

  I almost forget what we're talking about until I hear her muttering as she's putting the Army shirt over her head. "Because when you see them, you'll know how much I love you. How much I've always loved you. But you're my friend. My best friend." When her head pokes out of the shirt, I see her rolling her eyes. "And I know I'm not your type."

  She stands up and pulls the cover down her bed. She leans over, her panty-clad ass up in the air, and it has my mouth watering. She climbs into her bed and pulls the cover up over her waist, but she's not done talking. She has one arm thrown over her head.

  "I have to tell you something Parker, and you can't be mad."

  The way her voice has changed makes me nervous. I move over to the bed and sit down next to her. "I promise I won't be mad."

  She opens her eyes and stares up at me. "Promise me you won't be mad."

  I smile at her this time and repeat, "I promise I won't be mad."

  She reaches out for my hand and holds on to it with a death grip. "I saw you in the shower." At first, I don't understand what she's saying, but then it all clicks. She starts to ramble on. "I forgot my phone and had to come back in for it. That's when I heard you and I saw you in the shower." Speechless, all I can do is stare at her. I recall saying her name when I came. Did she hear that? I want to know, but I don't dare ask.

  She leans up on her elbows, clenches her eyes shut, and then opens them again. "I drank too much."

  I laugh and brush a piece of hair off her face. "Probably a little too much."

  "Will you kiss me?"

  She blurts it out and then stares up at me with hope shining in her eyes. Speechless, I stare back at her. I want to kiss her. Damn, I want to kiss her badly, but I know it wouldn't be right, not with her drinking.

  I'm about to explain to her exactly that when she lies back down on the bed and shakes her head. "Forget it. I know you don't think of me that way. I was just hoping..."

  Her voice trails off, and she looks so sad. I can't resist her. I lean forward and put a hand on the bed on each side of her head. Her eyes pop open, and she stares up at me as she licks her lips. "Just a kiss," I tell her.

  She nods, her eyes wide. "Just one kiss."

  I lean down slowly, and as soon as my lips press against hers, it's like every prayer I've ever made is finally being answered.

  There's a calmness that overcomes me, and at the same time, it's like there's electricity jolting through my body. Both of her hands go to the back of my neck. I want to touch her, but I don't dare, so I keep them both firmly planted to the bed. I know I need to stop this before it goes any further, but she is way too tempting. She groans, and I take full advantage, pushing my tongue in her mouth and tasting her sweetness. All of it is way too much, and I grunt and pull away from her, panting.

  "Go to sleep, Haven. We're going to have that talk tomorrow." She's already lying back with her eyes closed. I walk to her bedroom door and lean against it, watching her. I know I'm doing the right thing, but damn, it's hard.

  Chapter 11

  Haven

  I groan as I lift my head off the pillow. I try to open my eyes. I barely peek through my lashes, and when the brightness of the room hits me, I clench my eyes shut again. Damn, that hurts.

  Awake now, I let images of last night start to play through my head, being at the bar, drinking shot after shot of whiskey, sitting on Parker's lap, and him bringing me home.

  In an instant, I sit up, mouth wide open as I remember. I put my head in my hand. Oh my God. I told him I watched him masturbate. I let my head fall back and stare up at the ceiling. I told him I loved him. I start to panic as I look around the room for any remnants of him still being here. At least I didn't throw myself at him.

  And then I remember... the kiss.

  I practically begged him to kiss me. "Fuck," I mutter. I throw the covers off of me and sit up on the side of the bed. The room starts to spin, and I sit here trying to figure out my next move. There's a glass of water and two aspirin sitting on my nightstand, and I can't help but think Parker's still taking care of me.

  I take the two pills and gulp down the water. And that's when I hear my phone ding. "Ignore it," I tell myself.

  And then it dings again. Damn it. I stand up and find it on top of my dresser. I look at myself in the vanity mirror in nothing but my panties and Parker's Army sweatshirt.

  I grab my phone and look at it, seeing Parker's name. I hold my breath as I open the message. "We need to talk."

  I clench my eyes shut and shake my head. I'm not ready to deal with this yet. The next text says, "Take the water and Tylenol. Shower and meet me in the living room."

  I freeze after reading that. He's still here. I almost drop my phone when I realize that he is in the very next room.

  I look at my hair that's in knots on my head, the mascara that's trailing down my face. I'm a mess. I grab some clothes out of my drawer and head over to the bathroom. I shower quickly, thinking the whole time of how I'm going to handle this. I need a plan.

  All the options start playing in my head. I try to think of all the different scenarios. When I’ve lathered my hair and body and let the water rinse me clean, I finally think I may have come up with a good plan.

  It was the whiskey.

  I'm just going to tell him that the whiskey was the reason everything happened last night. I had way too much to drink. Plus, he's the one that asked me to act like I was his girlfriend. I was just playing a role. So of course, it's going to make me think things. The game on top of the liquor—I didn’t know what I was doing.

  I finish washing up and start to get dressed, repeating my story over and over in my head. As I brush my hair, I look at myself almost sadly in the mirror. This is probably going to change everything. I brush my teeth and try to mentally prepare myself for what’s about to happen. I can't imagine my life without Parker in it, and it seems I've probably fucked it all up in one night. I should have kept my feelings to myself.

  I toss my toothbrush into the cup onto the counter and walk back into the bedroom. My eyes are drawn instantly to pictures of Parker all over my wall and mirror. "Damn it," I say. He was in here, and I know he saw all of the pictures. He probably thinks I'm stalking him, that I'm some kind of psycho. I won't blame him if he walks out of here and never talks to me again. I take a deep breath and prepare myself to go out into the living room to talk to him. It's now or never.

  Chapter 12

  Parker

  I'm a nervous wreck. I've barely slept all night long. I don't know how long I stood at Haven's bedroom door and watched her sleep. I've imagined every way this can play out today. The good and the bad. I want things to change, but a part of me doesn't. A part of me is scared of the change. Every thought is going through my head until I see her. When she walks out of her bedroom door and looks at me curiously, I know. I know that everything is going to change, but it's going to be okay. It has to be.

  She walks into the living room, and I stand up. She holds her hands up in front of her. "Let me go first."

  I nod, and she crosses her arms over her chest. "I need to tell you that I'm sorry. I don't want anything to change between us. I had too much to drink."

  I walk toward her until I'm standing right in front of her. As I get close, she lets her voice trail off. I want to reach out for her, but it's important that I don't pressure her in any way. “I want everything to be different.”

  She seems taken aback. “It doesn’t have to be. We can forget about last night, Parker.”

  She doesn’t get it. She seems visibly shaken by my words, and her eyes start to tear up. I can't hold back any longer, and I reach for her, pulling her into my arms. "Was everything you said last night true?"

  She shrugs her shoulders. “I was drunk last night.”

  I grab her shoulders. “You know some people say that alcohol only brings out how you really feel.”

  She’s staring over my shoulder, refusing to look at me.

  She doesn't answer me or even respond to what I just said. I wait patiently for her to say something, anything, but she doesn't. I know she's scared. Hell, I'm scared, too, but I'm more scared of losing her. I gently wrap my arms around her and pull her against me. I rest my head on her shoulder. I need to be upfront and honest with her. That’s the only choice I have. "I've been a fool, Haven. Everything that we've been through together, all the times that you were there for me, I should have known. It took me a long damn time to figure it all out. But now I know. I always think of you. The whole entire time I'm gone, you are the only thing that keeps me going. If something happens, heck anything happens, you're the one that I want to talk to first and tell all about it."

  I pull back and look down into her face. She's looking at me in amazement. I cup her face with my hands. "I love you, Haven. Hell, I've always loved you, but it's different now. You're my best friend. You'll always be my best friend, but I want more."

  She's searching my face and finally says something. "You're not mad at me?"

  I laugh because mad is the absolute last feeling I have for her. "No. I have no reason to be mad at you. If anything, I'm glad that you decided to drink whiskey last night. If not, I never would've known."

  It feels so good to let it all out, but it's killing me that she still is looking at me with a worried look on her face. "I can't lose you, Parker."

  I don't even blink when I answer her. "I promise you that no matter what happens, you will not lose me."

  We stand in each other's arms, staring at one another. She smiles and goes up on her tip toes. "Is this where you kiss me now?"

  There’s no holding back for me. It’s as if I need to prove to her my feelings in just one kiss. With my hands on each side of her neck, I angle her to the side to deepen the kiss.

  She moans, and her hands go up my chest and rest there. I nip at her lip, and when she opens for me, I plunge my tongue into her sweet, mint-tasting mouth. She groans and grips the front of my shirt. The need to touch her everywhere has me holding her tighter. Her body trembles, and she pushes her pelvis against mine. I’m a strong and disciplined man, but Haven is wreaking havoc on me. She is the only person that can possibly push me to my limits.

  I pull back, breathless, and lean my forehead against hers. “Fuck, that’s good.”

  She blinks up at me, pulling back. “Almost too good... I never imagined...”

  When her voice trails off, I lock my hands at her back. “So you’ve thought about this before?”

  Her watch dings, and without looking at it, she pulls back nervously. "I have class."

  My heart is racing in my chest. I don't want her out of my sight, but I know she needs to go. "I'll take you and I'll pick you up afterwards. Then we can go eat."

 

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