More than Once

5

“Brett?” She was kidding, right? One look at her face told me she wasn’t. I had zero desire to pretend to be some other guy on Christmas Eve, but after getting her fired, how could I possibly say no? I owed her this favor at the very least. “Anything else I should know?”

“Nah, I never told them that much. Just that I was dating a nice, handsome guy.”

I arched an eyebrow. “Hmm, not sure I fit that description.”

“You know you do, pretty boy.” She met my gaze head-on. “Look, after tonight you don’t have to see me again. Once the holidays are over, I’ll tell them we broke up, and we can pretend it never happened. So are you in or out?”

The smart thing to do was to say goodnight and high-tail it back to my car. I wasn’t ready to get involved with any girl, let alone one who turned my insides out with a single look or the slightest touch. But there was something about her that I couldn’t walk away from, not this time.

“All right, I’ll pretend to be your boyfriend tonight…but only if you agree to go on a real date with me later.”

CHAPTER THREE

BECCA

“A date?” I asked, certain I’d heard him wrong.

“Yes, one date,” Andrew said. “Just you and me and a nice, quiet restaurant with great food. If you don’t enjoy yourself, you never have to go out with me again.”

“Why the hell would you want that?”

Andrew lightly touched my cheek, making my breath catch. “Because since that night, I’ve never stopped thinking about you.”

His touch sent a rush of primal heat through me, but I couldn’t meet his eyes. “You have a funny way of showing it.”

“I know, I know. I’m sorry. I wanted to call you, but after Tara… I just needed some time to get my head straight. And you could have called me, too.”

He had me there. But I’d known from the beginning that Andrew and I weren’t meant to be. Guys like him didn’t go out with girls like me. And if they did, they always ended it soon after. Brett was the perfect example of that.

Andrew had been the same. He’d said he would call me after we hooked up, but he never had. As the months passed without a word, it became obvious I was a brief mistake he wanted to quickly move on from. Why would it be any different this time?

“Look Andrew, you’re a ni—”

“Wait.” He held up his other hand. “Just stop right there.”

I blinked. “What?”

“You’re about to say I’m a nice guy, but you think we should just be friends, right? Believe me, I’ve heard that line more times than I can count.”

Shit, that was exactly what I was going to say. “Um…”

Without hesitation, he pressed me against the side of my car, his fingers sliding to the back of my neck and into my short hair. I gasped and heat flared between us, so hot I was sure it was melting every inch of snow in the entire parking lot.

“You didn’t think I was ‘nice’ that night, did you?” he asked, his voice low, his eyes locked on mine.

“No,” I whispered. Memories of that night still haunted me in the best way. I’d lie in bed when I couldn’t sleep and slide my hand between my legs, remembering the way he’d pounded into me, the way he’d held me down, the way he’d been rough and demanding and completely in control. We’d given each other exactly what we’d both needed, but I never imagined he would want anything to do with me after that. Because in the morning, we’d both gone back to who we were: the good guy and the bad girl.

But now Andy, the vulnerable, broken-hearted nice guy I’d met before, had vanished, and in his place was Andrew, who was bold, assertive, and really f*****g sexy.

“One date,” he said, his mouth so close to mine I could feel the words against my lips. “One date and then you can tell me to get lost. But give me a chance first.”

I was painfully aware of every inch of Andrew’s hard body pressed against mine. He seemed…bigger than I remembered. More muscular. I could tell from the way his collared shirt hung from his frame, and I was tempted to rip it open and see exactly how much he’d changed underneath. Not that I’d had any problem with his body before—but now he had a confidence to him that was all new, and he wore it damn well.

The Becca of a few months ago would have grabbed him and kissed him senseless, then suggested they go back to his place. Actually, the Becca of a few months ago had done exactly that. But now I was trying to be good and that meant not making out with guys I barely knew in the middle of parking lots.

Ugh. Being good was no fun at all.

“One date,” I said. “But don’t expect anything more.”

“I don’t.” His face hardened for a split second, and he added, “Don’t worry. I’m not looking for anything serious.”

“Ah, I see. You want that kind of date.” I gave him a teasing smile, but I wasn’t all that surprised he was after s*x and nothing else, not after the night we’d had together. I couldn’t decide if I was disappointed or relieved. Both?

He shook his head. “That’s not what I meant. Nothing has to happen if you don’t want it to. But moving to Dallas has been lonelier than I expected and it’d be nice to have someone to go out with. As a friend, if that’s what you want.” He slowly traced a line from my lips down to my chin and along my neck. “If it leads to nights like the last one we shared, well…I wouldn’t complain.”

I shivered at his touch, wishing he would continue lower. “I’m not looking for anything serious either. But I wouldn’t mind a friend with possible benefits.”