Ty would never believe it, of course. He’d probably have a heart attack if he found out. The truth was, she supposed, that they’d just known each other too long. He had certain ideas about who she was, what she was about—ideas that had been true for a very long time—but what he didn’t realize was that she’d grown up. For God’s sake, she was thirty-one years old.
Yet Ty, she knew, still saw the silly, playful teenager she’d once been, the girl who was good for some laughs and a little harmless flirtation. And she guessed he also now saw her as a competent receptionist and accountant—she was pretty much his Girl Friday at the bicycle messenger service situated in the heart of the French Quarter, where bike traffic often moved a lot quicker than vehicles. But when it came to sex, she was certain he thought she was a much nicer girl than she actually was, not to mention a much nicer girl than she wanted to be. And that was definitely her loss.
Just then, the front door opened again, admitting Ty’s best friend, Jack Wade. Jack ran a P.I. business just a couple of blocks away. “Hey there, Mia.”
“Hey,” she returned with a smile. She’d known Jack nearly as long as Ty, since they’d both hung out with Tim back in college. Jack’s dark good looks complemented Ty’s sandy beach boy image perfectly. She’d even heard rumors among common friends that Jack’s recent bride, Liz, had let the two guys share her one night early in their relationship. The very thought made Mia’s pussy hum with desire.
“He in?” Jack pointed toward Ty’s office.
“On the phone,” she said, “but he shouldn’t be long.” 10
Mardi Gras
Jack lifted his elbows to the counter and leaned over. “Well, while I’m waitin’, I can tell you what I came to tell him. Liz and I are ringin’ in Mardi Gras with a big party Saturday night, and you’re invited. You bring the mask and the beads, we’ll provide the jambalaya and the alcohol. Think you can make it?” A party at Jack’s place? Where Ty would almost certainly be in attendance? It wasn’t the first such occasion—Jack liked to throw parties from time to time—but even knowing nothing new would transpire between her and her sexy boss, it was still an invitation Mia couldn’t resist.
She smiled up at Jack. “Sure. Sounds fun. What time?”
“Starts at eight.” He grinned down at her. “Liz’ll be glad you’re comin’—she thinks you’re sweet.”
Mia resisted the urge to roll her eyes. Even Jack’s wife—who by all accounts had been a prim and proper lady before meeting him—thought she was sweet? She was doomed. But she forced a smile. “It’ll be nice to get to know her a little better.” Just then, they both heard Ty hang up the phone, so Jack made his way into the office.
“Well, if it isn’t the old married man come to pay me a visit,” Ty greeted him with a laugh, and Mia decided it was time she do something constructive—for the first time so far today.
Rising from her desk, she tried to ignore the slight swell of her cunt as she leaned in the office door. “Ty—Dan and Annie are out on early runs, but Bobby’s not here yet and there’s a delivery due at Jackson Square by ten. Since it’s quiet, I’m going to walk it down there before it’s late.”
Her boss nodded. “Thanks for taking up the slack for him, sweet thing. You’re the best,” he concluded with a wink, and as usual, her pussy surged.
* * * * *
11
Lacey Alexander
“You ever think about settlin’ down, gettin’ married?” Jack asked in response to Ty’s greeting.
Ty drew back with a slight laugh. Up until a year or so ago, that question wouldn’t even have appeared on Jack’s radar screen. But marriage had changed his best friend—
at least in some ways. “Me?” he asked. “No way, compadre.”
“Come on now, ami, it’s not like I got the plague or somethin’. In fact, you well know what I got—a beautiful, sensual woman who loves to fuck as much as I do. Not exactly a life sentence or anything.”
Oh yeah, Ty knew what Jack had in Liz, all right. And if he could find a girl like Liz—well, who knew, maybe the “M” word wouldn’t sound so terrible. But as it was, he just didn’t think it was in the cards for him.
“Besides, you’re gettin’ just as old—just as fast—as me,” Jack added.
True enough. He’d just turned thirty-six. Hard to believe, given that his libido felt like it belonged to a kid of nineteen, but he knew his mother and sisters back home in Michigan had just about given up on getting him married off. Which was just as well, the way he saw it. “You know how it is with me and women,” Ty replied.
Jack leaned back slightly, quirking a grin. “No, ami—how exactly is it?” Ty put his feet up on his desk, stretching out as well. “I know a lot of women who like to fuck and who do it damn well. But I’ve yet to meet one who…” How to explain?
“…has anything more to offer.”
Jack blinked. “Not sure what you mean.”
“Just that I never have any trouble connecting with chicks sexually, but in my experience, girls who like to party aren’t girls who make me feel…well, anything more than a stiff dick.”
Jack tilted his head. “I thought that once, too, but then Liz walked through my door and changed everything. Just takes findin’ the right one is all.” 12
Mardi Gras
Ty gave his head a shake. “You got lucky, but that doesn’t mean there’s a Liz for every guy. The girls I meet are either a hundred percent cute and sweet, or a hundred percent
