I mutter something inarticulate as she proceeds to use me as a chair. Wolfie grumbles something under his breath, and I stare into the fire, trying to focus on anything but the way she feels in my lap.
For a moment, I think that I can do this, but the soft weight of her ass pressing into my groin quickly becomes too much. The scent of her shampoo makes my heart rate accelerate, and my body starts to respond. My cock swells, and I’m sure Maren’s about to notice.
When I shift her weight, she meets my eyes, and I can’t help but notice the challenge in her expression. It’s the same feeling that I got when she came to visit the store. We share a silent moment, neither of us looking away. She knows exactly what she’s doing to me, so why isn’t she moving away?
I’m so distracted and on edge that I can barely focus on the conversations happening around us.
After a little while, a couple of people wander off, ready for bed, and pretty soon, only a few of us are left.
“I think I’m going to turn in,” I say.
Maren rises from my lap and gives Wolfie a hug good night. “Me too,” she says, giving me a heated look.
I grab the empty beer bottle from beside my chair and give Wolfie and Connor a fist bump. “You guys will make sure the fire’s out?”
Connor nods. “We got you.”
I wish I could douse my raging attraction to Maren the same way they’ll douse the fire.
“Thanks for grilling,” Wolfie says.
“My pleasure. Night, guys.”
Maren is already heading up the steps and into the house. I follow her, but linger in the kitchen while she climbs the stairs to the bedrooms. The last thing I need right now after that sexually charged bonfire encounter is an awkward hallway run-in with her.
After several minutes, I finally make my way upstairs and pause at the top. The door to Holly and Maren’s shared bedroom is closed, but so is the bathroom door, light escaping from under it. I hear the water running and guess it’s Maren brushing her teeth.
Inside my bedroom, I strip out of the clothes that now smell like a campfire and quickly rinse off in the shower. After putting on a clean pair of boxer shorts, I pull back the blankets and climb into bed.
When it’s finally quiet and I’m sinking deep into the mattress, I realize something is very, very wrong. The sound of feminine moaning is coming from the bedroom next door, and it’s loud. Really loud.
What the fuck?
I know that voice. It’s Holly, and she sounds like she’s really enjoying herself, maybe even a little too much. But with who?
I climb out of bed and venture out into the hallway to investigate. But when I open the door, I stop short because Maren is standing there, looking as confused as I feel, dressed only in a T-shirt that barely covers her panties.
The moans turn to pants, then screams.
My wide eyes meet Maren’s. “Is that . . .”
“Holly,” she says.
“But with who?”
“I was in the bathroom when it started. I figured you went in there.” Her voice is soft, almost tentative, and she drops her gaze to the floor.
“God, no. I have no interest in her.”
Maren’s posture changes, her back straightening. It draws up the T-shirt an inch higher, so I can see the front of her panties now. They’re soft white cotton. I want to peel them off her with my teeth.
“Well, if you’re not in there, who is?”
I shrug. “I think it’s just her.”
At this, Maren’s eyes widen. “Is she trying to make you jealous?”
I shake my head. “No, I think she’s trying to make you jealous.”
Maren’s brows draw together. “I don’t understand.”
I lick my lips, trying to shake off the strange vibe that’s filling the hallway. The moaning hasn’t stopped. Not even close. “Holly always thought I had a thing for you. Maybe she wants you to think that she and I are in that room.”
Maren laughs nervously at the suggestion that I had a thing for her. “Well, that’s obviously not true.”
My throat dries out, and I don’t say anything else. Maren shifts nervously, tugging her T-shirt lower.
After a beat of awkward silence, I say, “Come on, you can bunk with me.” What choice do I have? She can’t exactly stand in the hallway all night.
Maren follows me inside the bedroom, dark but for the moonlight. We lie down cautiously, each taking a side of the bed, and I give her as much space as I can, careful not to make inadvertent contact.
I have no idea how I’m going to keep my hands to myself. I really should have rubbed one out earlier when I had the chance.
There’s one small blessing, though. It seems that Holly has ended her performance. I can’t believe her, and I really don’t know what I ever saw in her.
Now that it’s quiet again, my heart is pounding so hard, I have no idea how Maren doesn’t hear it.
Just then, she turns toward me. “I can’t sleep,” she whispers. “Can you?”
“No.”
With the softest featherlight touch, Maren reaches out, placing her fingertips against my jaw. Slowly, she turns my face toward hers. Our eyes meet in the darkness, and I’m still trying to make sense of the heat I see reflected back at me when she leans in and kisses me.
It’s the smallest movement—at first. Just the soft brush of her full mouth against mine.
But then I shift, pushing up on my elbow to lean over her, and Maren responds with a small, pleased sound. Her mouth is hungry and hot and moving against mine, making endorphins flood my system.
When I part my lips and her tongue slides easily inside, my entire body jolts at how good it feels. Her warm mouth is incredible.
My brain is a scrambled mess of lust and want. Heat and emotion.
I should leave. But as my control quickly crumbles,
