Friend Zoned (Barnett Bulldogs #2) (16 page)

One he’s blissfully unaware of.

Everything within me instantly relaxes at the realization.

I almost smile in relief.  “It’s not,” then I quickly throw in, “I just don’t want to be in your way.”

He rolls those big blue eyes like I just said the stupidest thing ever.  “Seriously?  Why would you even think something like that?  Plus, we have the spare bedroom.  It’s no problem at all.”  For just a moment, his eyes continue searching mine as if he’s trying to get to the bottom of what’s going on inside my head.

Yeah… good luck with that, buddy.  I don’t even understand what’s going on inside my head right now.

“You don’t have to ask.  You’re always welcome here.”

Not wanting to act any weirder than I already am, I nod my head in acceptance.

And really, it’s just one more night.

What can possibly happen in like, twelve short hours?

Absolutely nothing.

That’s what.

I’ll hole up in Dylan’s old room with claims of studying my little tushie off.  Then I’ll hit the sack early and clear out even earlier.

It’ll be fine.

Everything will be fine.

“Okay, well, I think I’ll just head over to the dorms and pick up a few things.” Another outfit, clean underwear, a few books for class tomorrow...

“Here.”  He tosses his keys at me.  “Just take the truck.”

Because I have damn good reflexes, I catch them midair.  “Are you sure?”  It’s not like I haven’t driven his truck before.  I have.  Lots of times.  Especially to visit my grandparents.

“Yeah, Vi, I’m sure.  What are you going to do?  Walk back over here loaded down with stuff?”  He shakes his head like I’m making a big deal out of nothing.  And maybe I am.  Who knows anymore?  “Just take the truck and then we’ll figure out what to do for dinner.  Okay?”

Yeah, that actually sounds really good.

And you know what?

It almost feels as if everything has somehow slid right back to the way it should be.  Well, except for watching him drink down that damn Gatorade...

“Thanks.  I’ll be back in about thirty minutes.”

“Alright, I’m just going to jump in the shower.”  That being said, he slides past me.  I actually catch myself trying to get a whiff of him as he heads towards his bedroom.  He should smell all gross and disgusting from working out.

He doesn’t.

“I’ll see you in a little bit,” I call after him.

Clenching the keys tightly in my hand, I slowly open my fingers before flexing them.  Then I head for the door.  By the time I get to his pickup parked out in front of the building and pull it into gear, I realize that I’ve forgotten to grab the keys for my dorm.

Crap.

Slipping back into the parking space, I shut off the truck before jumping out and heading into the apartment building.  Using Sam’s key to open the door, I fly inside.  I’m just turning the corner into the short hallway that leads to Dylan’s bedroom when I realize that the bathroom door is wide open.

And there Sam is drying his hair.

Naked.

Like… completely naked.

As in not one damn stitch of clothing on.

Unable to move a single muscle, I stand there, completely transfixed by the sight before me. An odd sort of paralysis slides its way through me as my eyes lick over every exquisite inch of him.

And he is, without a doubt, exquisite.

I mean, sure, of course I knew Sam was ripped.  He works out religiously and has been playing football for a good fifteen years.  I’ve also seen him without a shirt covering that toned chest of his.  Why just this morning I saw him without a shirt on.  Not to mention last night…  Although I can’t exactly say that my eyes lingered on his broad strapping chest for very long before dropping down to his-

Gulp.

And there it is.

He isn’t hard.

Another gulp.

Not like this morning.  His thick cock just lies there, nestled between those tree trunk sized thighs of his.  Even though he isn’t stiff, his size is still rather impressive.

I’m pretty sure I just gasped or (god forbid) moaned or emitted some kind of sound because he suddenly lowers the towel from his face as his bluer-than-blue depths stab my saucer sized ones.  Surprise flashes in his eyes right before they flare wide.  Neither one of us utters a single word.

Not.

One.

Damn.

Word.

And, yeah, I’m still totally immobilized over here.  My brain is hastily sending commands like-
close your eyes!  Run!  Turn away! 
But my body isn’t receiving the signals.  So I’m kind of stuck just standing here all slack jawed like some sheltered young virgin who has never seen a real live penis before.

Which we all know is the farthest thing from the truth and yet, here I am, still gawking away.  It’s definitely not one of my finer moments.

All Sam has to do is reach out, slamming the door in my face, and the horror currently taking place would thankfully be over. But he doesn’t do that either.  He simply stands there, his eyes holding mine.

No, that’s not quite right.

They’re not just
holding
mine.

More like
blazing
with heat and intensity and...

Oh god… I’m really going to hate myself for what happens next but I just can’t seem to help myself.  I really can’t.  My eyes drop once more to his long thick-

Erection.

When the hell did
that
happen?

Because suddenly, he’s rock hard.

Rock.

Hard.

No lie.  All the saliva dries in my mouth as I continue staring at his gorgeous cock.

Holy shit
.

I seriously did
not
just think that!

“
Violet
.”

The low growly sound emanating from somewhere deep within his chest has my wide eyes snapping back up to his now flashing ones.  Even though my throat is ridiculously dry, like I haven’t had a sip of water in days, I gulp again.  I don’t think I’ve ever seen his blue eyes flash with such intensity.  It’s enough to finally have me breaking free from the stupor that’s been holding me paralyzed.

For some strange reason, my fight or flight response kicks in.

I find myself turning tail and running from the apartment before racing down the steps as fast as my Converse clad feet will take me.  Because I still have his keys clenched tightly in my hands, I jump back inside the pickup, throwing it into reverse before peeling out of the parking lot.

Holy shit.

I just saw Sam with a massive boner.

And all I could do was stare at it in total and utter fascination.

This is bad.

Really, really bad.

Chapter Fourteen

When I finally find the courage to slink back to the guy’s apartment, it’s well after midnight.  Everything is dark and silent.  I don’t even realize that I’m holding my breath until it comes hissing out slowly in relief.

I just don’t think I can face Sam right now.  I really don’t.  I’m so freaking embarrassed.  Embarrassed to have seen him like that and then be caught so dumbstruck by the sight of his cock.

His very
hard
, very
thick
cock.

Gulp.

I really need to stop thinking about that.  It’s one thing to feel it nestled against my ass in the wee hours of the morning, separated by at least two layers of clothing and quite another to catch a glimpse, alright way more than a glimpse, all up close and personal like that.  If I had to, I could probably render a pretty accurate description to a sketch artist.

Or pick it out of a line up…

Oh god… this is terrible.

And we’re certainly not going to talk about the fact that I kind of wanted to get even more up close and personal with said cock either.

Unfortunately I haven’t been able to think about anything else since the incident happened.

I should really be able to laugh this whole thing off.  We both should.  Hell, maybe he already has.  But I wouldn’t know because I’m too chicken shit to actually find out.  He did try texting earlier, but I couldn’t bring myself to respond.  I needed some time to pull myself back together again.  I just want to shake this whole thing off and move on.  But I can’t.  Our entire relationship seems to be teetering on the brink of disaster.

For a good hour or so, I debated the merits of just grabbing some stuff from the dorm and crashing at my grandparent’s place, but there are books I need for class tomorrow which are in Dylan’s room.  Plus, I have Sam’s truck.  As well as his keys.  I can’t exactly hijack it, now can I?

Well… I suppose I could.

But if I puss out now, things between us will only get weirder than they already are.  And I don’t want that.  So yeah, I’ve come back to face the music but that doesn’t mean I’m not relieved to face it tomorrow morning rather than tonight.

This has got to be like the forth bullet I’ve dodged today.

I don’t even know anymore.

I’ve lost count.

Quietly I tiptoe into the bedroom I’ve been staying in before huffing out yet another relieved breath as I quickly close and lock the door behind me.  As I do, everything within me very nearly collapses.  I just want to dive under the covers, squeeze my eyes tightly shut and fall asleep.  Maybe when I wake up tomorrow morning, this whole cock incident won’t seem nearly as bad as if feels right now.

Christ.

Now I’ve mentally dubbed it
the cock incident
.

Perfect.

Just… perfect.

I change quickly before hopping onto Dylan’s queen sized bed.  Any other night, I would wash my face and brush my teeth.  Maybe even take a nice hot shower.  But not tonight.  Nope.  Because there is no way in hell I’m chancing another run in with Sam.  I’ll just go straight to bed and scrub everything extra hard in the morning.

Sliding under the covers, I suck in a deep breath before closing my eyes.  Yes.  This day is thankfully over and when I wake up in the morning, I’ll realize that what happened between us wasn’t such a big deal after all.

So I saw his cock…

Who cares?

I mean, we’re both adults here.  It’s not like I haven’t seen half a dozen other cocks before.

Okay… so maybe it’s been a while since I saw one so long and thick.

As that thought settles within me, I flip restlessly onto my side trying almost desperately to dislodge the image from my head.  There had been a nest of dark blond curls that his erection had risen up from.  And then there had been those heavy looking ba-

My eyes snap open.

What the hell am I doing?

No… seriously?

I throw myself over onto the other side before huffing out a frustrated breath.  Then I pound my fist into the pillow trying to even out all the fluff.

No more thinking about Sam’s girthy cock.

Goddamn it!

Sam is my friend.  My
best
friend.  Next to my grandparents, he’s all I have in this world.  I’m just not willing to risk our friendship over a little bit of sexual attraction.  That would be the very definition of shortsighted and stupid.  There is absolutely no way you can have sex with someone and remain best buddies after the fact.  It just doesn’t work that way.  Not only do I have a terrible dating track record, but I’m barely friends with the guys I’ve already slept with.  Oh sure, they’re friendly enough when I see them out and they’re trying to get back inside my pants, but other than that?

Not so much.

I’m not willing to risk an eight year friendship for that.

After about fifteen more minutes it becomes glaringly apparent that I’m not going to be able to stop thinking about what happened with Sam.  Not that anything actually happened… because it most definitely did not.

You know what’s even worse than the fact that I can’t stop thinking about the massive erection he had?

That my panties are now drenched and I’m so completely turned on that I can barely think straight.  My clit is literally throbbing to some imaginary deep bass tempo.

Pulsing, pulsing, pulsing…

Yup, I’m a total deviant.

So when my fingers tentatively slide their way inside my panties, I don’t even bother trying to fool myself about what’s going on.  I know
exactly
what has stoked the flames of my desire to such a fevered pitch.  And it has absolutely nothing to do with Liam Garrison’s kiss earlier today either.

Truth be told, I haven’t even thought about that kiss.  Not one damn time.

Committing to the fact that this is going to happen, because I have the feeling that if I don’t take care of business now, I won’t be sleeping a damn wink tonight, I slide my panties down my legs before kicking them off under the covers.  Then I close my eyes and widen my thighs, groaning softly at the very first flick of my fingers over the smooth flesh before zeroing in on my already throbbing clit.