More Than a Playboy (12 page)

Lily’s mouth turned down at the corners. “I guess that’s it then.” She looked away. “I...I’m going to miss you...I mean I’m going to miss you and Mel—together.”

Did this woman have even the tiniest inkling of how much he wanted her? “I was hoping we could remain friends, Lily.”

Stunned, she gaped at him. “Us?”

He forced a smiled, trying to keep things light. He didn’t want to scare her off, but he wanted her to know that he sought a relationship with her—even if it was merely friendship to start with. “Yes, Lil. Us.”

“I don’t think that’ll work.”

“Why not?”

“I’m Mel’s friend, I owe her my loyalty.”

“I’m not asking you to be disloyal to Mel. I’m simply suggesting that we keep our friendship too.”

“That could get awkward. You know how it is when couples break up.” She held her coffee mug close to her chest as if using it as a shield to keep him at bay. “There’s always the friends split—her friends and his friends. Then, there’re the friends you made together. Who gets whom... it turns into such a mess. Since I was already Mel’s friend when you started seeing her, I don’t think I can be yours any longer, Justin.”

The way she said his name sent warmth spreading from his chest to his belly. If Lily couldn’t even bring herself to be his friend, what chance did he have of
 
being anything more? An unfamiliar desperation gripped him. He’d never needed or wanted a woman the way he did this one. Once she walked out of his apartment, he had no doubt she’d be walking out of his life forever.

The realization hurt like hell. He wasn’t sure whether he was strong enough to let her go without making a monumental fool of himself. But he did know one thing; he’d kick himself for the rest of his life if he didn’t kiss her at least once before she disappeared.

Justin shrugged, took her mug out of her hands, and placed it beside his. “Then I guess I have nothing to lose.”

He saw the stunned expression in Lily’s gaze as she realised what he intended. He liked that he caught her off guard.

Her shocked gasp was lost in his mouth as he covered her lips with his. He’d waited, it seemed, a lifetime to kiss Lily Harper, and now he had the chance he wasn’t letting it slip away.

For a second, she kissed him back. He slid his arms around her, bringing her into contact with his body. She was warm and supple. Her curves fitted perfectly, and she tasted so good. Then she tensed in his arms, pushed at his shoulders, her hands balling fistfuls of his Oxford shirt as she clung to him. He wasn’t sure whether she was pushing him away or trying to stop him from releasing her. It didn’t matter, he was finally kissing Lily, and she was as satiny and as sweet as he imagined.

“Justin...” her unsteady voice was no more than a breathy whisper. “Justin, we can’t.” But she plastered her lips back to his.

His own breathing was pretty ragged too, but who could blame him? He’d lusted after Lily for months. She’d been in a relationship with Wayne when he started dating her friend and roommate. Sometimes he thought the only reason he continued to date Mel was so he could see Lily.

She had no idea how he felt about her, and now her relationship with Wayne was over, he didn’t want to wait for some other guy to swoop in and snatch her away. Not two minutes previously, he’d decided to let her go but, like the initiation of this kiss, he’d hate himself if he didn’t try to win her first.

He changed the angle of the kiss, taking it deeper, delighting in the way Lily responded to him. The way she returned his kisses, her hands released his shirt to roam over his back with the same restlessness that ran through him.

“Justin, we can’t,” she said again. Her words said one thing, her action another. She continued to drive him crazy with her caressing hands and the way she rose on tiptoe and danced her hips against his arousal.

“Then make me stop, Lily, because I don’t think I know how to stop kissing you now I’ve started.”

She moaned and tugged at his shirt until he heard the telltale pop of stitching giving.

He slid his hands into her honey hair, framing her face with his palms. If he’d known she tasted so incredible, he would’ve took the opportunity at Christmas to kiss her under that mistletoe someone had placed above the door in the cloak cupboard. When she’d opened the cupboard to retrieve his coat they’d both looked up and saw the fake shrubbery pinned to the ceiling. They’d paused, stared first at the festive foliage then at each other. Seconds had passed while Justin debated the wisdom of giving into the desire to kiss her properly. But he was aware of Mel and Wayne in the next room, as well as several mutual friends crammed into the flat, so he’d smiled and gave her a brotherly peck on her cheek.

“Merry Christmas, Lil,” he’d whispered, his voice rusty. Her eyes had gone a shade darker, and he swore they shared a ‘moment’.
 
Then more people from Mel and Lily’s small Christmas party joined them in the tiny hall as everyone said goodnight. He’d left with a heavy sense of disappointment mixed with relief that he hadn’t done something stupid that would’ve embarrassed Lily.

“Is this a dream?” she asked between kisses.

He drew his hands out of the lustrous spill of her hair, and gathered her tighter against him. “If so, I hope it never ends.”
 

Mouths fused, he cupped her butt, and rocked against her with the same fervour she danced her hips against his. He needed more... like her wrapped naked around him in his bed. “I’ve wanted you for so long, Lil. You must have noticed.”

“Don’t say that.”

“It’s true. Wanting you and not being with you is like torture.” He needed to bury himself so deep inside her neither of them would know where he ended, and she began.

Her hands dove under his shirt, her fingers cool on his burning flesh. Justin tugged down one of her dress straps, kissed her throat, the sinew at the side of her slender neck, and worked his way down toward the swell of her breast. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he registered that he was moving too fast, but he was too inebriated by Lily to gather the strength he needed to pull back. He eased her dress down enough to uncover her breasts, unable to resist closing his mouth on one pebbled nipple.

She gasped the sound raw with desire as she sunk her fingers into his hair to cradle his head. “Justin...yes...
oh
...”

Encouraged by her husky pleas, he bunched the skirt of her dress in his hands and rucked it up until his palms encountered her firm butt. A quick roam over her neat bottom told him she wore a thong. The discovery nearly brought him to his knees.

“Lily.” Her name tore from his chest on a low groan.

All these months, he’d dreamed of making love to her, but in none of the wild and lusty scenarios had she ever been drunk, and he had never taken advantage of her. She’d never shown any interest in him as more than a friend, and if he made love to her tonight, while she was intoxicated, she’d never forgive him. Hell,
he’d
never forgive him!

As much as it pained, Justin knew what he had to do. He forced his mouth to stop suckling her nipple, smoothed down her dress, and put her away from him.

“I want you, but not like this, Lil.”

Her confused gaze nearly made him forget his honourable intentions and pull her back into his arms, but he wanted her to know he respected her enough to wait. “When you sober up, we’ll talk.”

He handed her back her coffee.

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More Than Friends
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* * * * * *

MEET THE AUTHOR

Monique DeVere grew up on a plantation on the beautiful island of Barbados, where her childhood was all about exploring and letting her imagination run wild. She spent her teen years in the UK where she still lives with her amazing hero husband, four beautiful children, and two incredible grandkids.

Monique wrote her first novel at age fifteen but had her heart set on becoming a doctor until she discovered that raising her kids was far more desirable. Since writing had always been her favourite pastime, she naturally turned to writing as her preferred job and has had short stories published and read on radio.

Sure that medicine is her second calling, she still has a desire to heal, and has gained degrees in Homeopathy and Herbalism and currently has her eye on a Holistic Nutrition degree course.

However, her first love will always be writing. She loves to create fun, emotional romances and movie scripts. Her stories come in three categories: sweet, sensual, and sizzling Rom-
Coms
.

Monique loves to hear from her readers. You can contact her by visiting her website:
www.
moniquedevere.co.uk
or blog:
http://moniquedevere.blogspot.co.uk
to learn more about her and check out her other books.