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Erika nodded. “Yeah. We have a good time and…” She paused, refusing to say Doug was a nice guy again, even though he was. She should put some effort into thinking of better descriptors, but unfortunately, every time she pictured Doug in her mind, the only word that came to her was nice.
“Still no sex yet?”
He knew the answer to that question. After all, he’d stopped her before she could invite Doug in the other night, and she hadn’t seen him since.
She should tell him to mind his own damn business, but given the conversations they’d had over the past month or so, it seemed that the last barrier to full disclosure in their friendship had fallen.
“Nope. Not yet,” she replied.
Blake looked pensive when he glanced her way again. “Why not?”
“Because, unlike you, I don’t fuck on the first date.”
He smirked. “Maybe not, but you and Doug,” he drawled out the damn name again, “have been on a lot of dates.”
“Six dates is not a lot of dates,” she pointed out.
“It’s a record for you.”
She sighed, realizing how sad that truth was. “I’m just taking things slow.”
Erika expected Blake to make some joke about her going overboard on the slow thing, but instead, she got the sense he approved.
Parking near their building, Blake opened her door for her, the two of them walking inside arm in arm. “I’ll grab Corky and take her out before bed,” Blake offered, following her into her apartment.
Corky, as always, was waiting for them, her tail wagging a million miles an hour as she yapped happily. Erika kicked off her shoes by the door, a bad habit she’d accepted long ago that she would never break. One of these days she was going to invest in a shoe caddy to keep by the front door. Her heels were added to the current pile of shoes residing there, which included her running shoes and the flats she’d worn to work today. She was sort of surprised Corky hadn’t used any of them as chew toys.
Blake trailed behind her as she walked to the kitchen.
“Want some coffee?” she offered. “I think I have some decaf pods.”
He nodded. “Sounds good. While you make it, I’ll walk Cork.” Blake grabbed Corky’s leash from the hook she’d hung by the door, while Erika put a pod in the machine and pressed the button to brew the first cup. Then she headed to her bedroom, quickly stripping off her dress and putting on her comfies. She tugged on a soft cotton long-sleeve tee and pajama bottoms, adding fuzzy socks to keep her feet warm.
She’d just finished adding the creamer to their coffees when Blake returned.
“You changed,” he said.
Erika handed him the cup of coffee. “Getting dressed up is fun…for a little while. These pajamas are a hell of a lot more comfortable.”
Blake set his cup on the counter without taking a sip. Instead, he reached out, grasping her waist and pulling her close to him. “I was hoping to strip you out of your dress.”
She blinked a couple of times, trying to figure out if she’d heard him right. Before she could question him, he pressed his lips against hers in a kiss that was as hot and hungry as the one he’d given her a few days earlier.
This time, Erika was better prepared. Placing her hands against his chest, she pushed until he broke the kiss.
“Erik,” he murmured, clearly unhappy about stopping.
“You can’t keep kissing me,” she said, wishing her voice sounded less breathy.
He narrowed his eyes. “Our kisses haven’t been one-sided, you know. You’ve been kissing me back.”
“I know,” she conceded. “But I shouldn’t have. Blake, all the reasons we had for not going out three years ago are still there. God,” she said, running her fingers through her hair. “If anything, there are even more reasons. We’ve become friends, best friends, and we have Corky. I’m not going to deny I’m attracted to you, but…” She could see Blake composing a whole list of arguments, ready to fight her. She couldn’t let him. “But I’m dating Doug now. He’s perfect for me, and I really want to give our relationship a chance.”
The desire she’d seen in Blake’s eyes faded. It appeared she’d offered the one argument he couldn’t refute.
It was a shame it was a lie.
The more time she spent with Doug—and Blake—the more she could see Doug wasn’t the one. While she hated that she was putting so much stock in sparks, she couldn’t help wanting a man who offered the best of both worlds, someone who wanted a long-term committed relationship, who also knocked her socks off in bed.
