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Chapter Eight
The emotions on her face ranged from genuine confusion to dazed passion. Eric had never before wished for the ability to kick himself in the balls, but he was kind of feeling the urge right now.
Damn.
It would sure cure the raging erection he was sporting, not to mention it was a form of self-punishment for calling this to a halt.
“I’m sorry... what isn’t a good idea?” Her words were husky. She shook her head. “Kissing me?”
He exhaled slowly, trying to calm his dick down. “Where kissing you could lead.”
She paused and glanced down the hall. “Well, truthfully, I was hoping for my bedroom. But that seems to be a problem now?”
And crap, if he wasn’t fully hard before, he sure was now. Eric shifted against the discomfort now straining against his jeans.
“God, I want that more than anything, Hannah,” he muttered thickly, stroking the back of her neck and meeting her gaze. “But you’re James’s ex. There’s this whole damn Bro Code thing.”
“Not like a literal one.” Her brows drew together in dismay.
“Well, sort of, yeah. Guys have these rules with their friends. Hell, girls probably have them too. Rules about dating and sex. Don’t sleep with your friend’s ex is probably one of the biggest rules.”
“So...” She paused, seeming to choose her words carefully. “You tell me that you have feelings for me. You come to my apartment with cheesecake and kiss me, only to immediately regret it because your conscience over this supposed ‘Bro Code’ kicks in?”
Pretty much exactly that. He struggled to find the words, but with their bodies still pressed together and her breasts crushed to his chest, it was hard to stay solid in his resolve.
“Listen.” She licked her lips and trailed her hands over his chest in a way that lifted every hair on his body with awareness. “James and I are over. I even spoke to him on the phone the other day and really explained that to him.”
She’d finally answered one of his calls?
“I know he’s a good friend of yours, but if we sleep together, it’s just sex. He never has to know it happened.” She shrugged. “It’s not like we’re going to end up together or anything.”
Ouch. Why the hell did that cut to the bone?
Yeah, he’d nursed a little crush on her for years. And, yeah, he’d fantasized more than once about her naked beneath him. But had he really imagined it could be more than that?
The sharp pressure in his chest made him realize maybe he’d been hoping for more.
But in reality, that couldn’t happen. James was still one of his best friends, and he’d be crushed if Eric got serious with his ex.
“I’m going to be really honest with you, Eric.” She gave a husky laugh and lowered her lashes. “I’ve never had sex with anyone besides James. And even with him, it’s been a while. Like, long before we broke up.”
Eric blinked in dismay as her words sank in. They hadn’t been sleeping together before they’d broken up?
Eric hadn’t really thought about it before, but James and Hannah’s relationship with the opposite sex was limited to each other. They’d basically grown-up together. They’d only been active sexually with each other.
No wonder James was taking it so hard.
“I need to get back out there. Back on the horse, as they say. I have—” there was no denying the embarrassment that swept across her face now “—needs. Desires, as they say.”
He bit back a groan and fought the temptation to claim her pink lips again, still swollen from his kiss.
Would she be a shy lover? Bold?
“I want to start having sex again. Preferably with you.”
Okay, so she was probably on the bold side. There was no stopping the groan that escaped him now.
“I trust you, Eric. We’re friends, right?”
