Cari Quinn [Love Required 04] No Promises Required [Entangled

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.“She had the baby months ago, and you know she’s tiny.Besides, I thought you were having second thoughts.”Jill had half a mind to do the show despite her serious misgivings just to show Vic she wasn’t a kid anymore.Okay, so she was still a virgin.But even that little sign of innocence was about to vanish in a night of orgasms.Assuming Bryan ever showed up.Where was he, anyway?“I’m not having second thoughts,” Jill said.“I’m just…”“Stalling?”“Maybe.”“Listen,” Vic said.“I know I’m giving you a hard time, but this is going to be a blast.You’ll regret not joining in.” She widened her baby browns.“Come on, this is one of our last hurrahs as freewheeling besties.”Just what she wanted to think about right now.Her best friend was on the verge of marrying an amazing guy.Goodbye Friday-night parties, hello responsible dates at home.Vic would probably have married-person stuff to do, like knitting socks or pressing trousers or learning how to make casseroles.Which had its own kind of appeal.But Jill had no intention of settling down until she had a chance to let down her purple-streaked hair and party.She’d been the vanilla bean in their rocky road circle of friends for too long.Now was the time for her to go after what—who—she wanted.Which begged the question: why would she pass up this opportunity to shake her groove thang? Sure, it didn’t look likely Bryan would be here in time to see their show—she’d checked the audience several times already—but there was still a chance.Wasn’t it worth taking the risk to get a shot at the man she couldn’t stop fantasizing about?“I know I’d be missing out,” Jill said.“I’m not leaving—”“But?”“Let me step outside.Just give me a second to catch my breath.” And possibly take a few bracing sips of tequila from that flask she’d tucked in her purse for the occasion.“Is that code for ‘slip out the door and never come back?’”“No.I swear!” She dumped her lip gloss in her purse and pulled her bag over her shoulder.“I’ll be right back.”Vic cocked an eyebrow.“If you leave, I’m so going to kick your ass.”“Would I do that?”“In a New York City heartbeat.”Jill laughed and opened the door.“Worry about making Cory’s eyes cross.”“Ass.Kicked,” Vic called as Jill pulled the door shut behind her.Relief swept over her as she glimpsed the empty hall leading to the side exit.Perfect timing.No one would notice her.And if she decided after all that this was a bad idea…well, Vic hadn’t wanted her onstage anyway.She rushed down the hallway, her mind already dancing with images of a black-and-white movie marathon and ice cream with hot fudge.Hell, she was even pretty sure she had a can of chocolate whipped cream leftover from that horrible date with Howard the Winker, who’d talked a way better game than he’d played.He’d seemed horrified by her idea of making him into a human sundae on their way to possibly actually having sex.Since then, she’d adopted a new plan of action for if and when she ever managed to become intimate with another man.She’d skip the kinky sundae toppings and go straight vanilla at first so as not to scare off her suitor, then work on integrating the extra goodies into the banana split later.Of course, then she’d heard Bryan was coming into town.And she’d be damned if she let that opportunity slip her by.Not just the man she’d wanted since high school to be her first.He had a reputation for wicked ways.Maybe ways wicked enough that she could throw caution to the wind and give her naughtiest fantasies free reign with him in the bedroom.Ugh.One more reason to hate that he was nowhere in sight.She pushed open the door and hurried outside, shivering in the chilly February air.She should’ve worn a jacket.It might be a good idea to get one from her car.She started around the building and towards the darkened parking lot.She stared up at the star-sprinkled sky, searching as she always did for the Big Dipper after Vicky had told her where to look.Total sham.She could never find—As she rounded the corner of the building, she bumped into something rock-solid and let out an undignified yelp before her mouth brushed a ridiculously soft sweater.Even the taste of cotton, however, couldn’t distract her from the massive pecs under her hands as she grappled for purchase.“Wow.You’re hard.”Oh Lord, had she really said that?He laughed.“Not yet, but you’re off to a good start.”Heat flared into her face.She peeked up between her bangs and gasped.Shit, shit, shit.It was Bryan.“Easy, darlin’.” Rich, masculine laughter flowed over her, somewhat mitigating the embarrassment of colliding with the solid wall of muscle that made up Bryan’s chest.He steadied her on her heels.“Didn’t your mama ever tell you to watch where you’re going?”That voice.It was deep and honeyed and capable of singeing off a woman’s panties from the fifty-yard line.She’d had dreams about that voice.Some of them even while she was asleep.She took another peek from under her bangs.Bryan Townsend—Vicky’s older brother—gazed down at her with an amused smile lifting his smug mouth.The man radiated confidence, from his carelessly shaggy hair right down to the blindingly white sneakers bumping into her heels.Here was a guy who would never run from the opportunity to shake his thing onstage if it meant completing a seduction.And now that she knew he was here—now that he was so temptingly close to her—she was glad she hadn’t left.For years, she’d done everything she could to get his attention.After Jill’s family had moved into the Townsends’ neighborhood as a kid, she’d spent lots of time at their house.That equaled lots of opportunities to be around Bryan until he’d moved away for football.He was more than five years older than she was, and off-limits in more than one way: Best friend’s brother, older, so experienced that he had a constant parade of chicks following him day and night.Sheesh.Off-limits in more than one way? Try every way.Until the night of Vicky’s seventeenth birthday party, when Jill had teased Bryan into kissing her.Even now she could remember the taste of cinnamon and ginger on his tongue.He was already playing football by then, drafted to a decent team, and he’d been so full of himself, smiling, talking up his role as second string quarterback, making her laugh with his friendly taunts.He’d had a beer or two, and she’d used every bit of her wiles to get him alone.He was her first crush, her first kiss…hell, she’d wanted him to be her first everything, but he’d backed off after that night, rarely speaking to her when he came home.They’d had a few conversations, usually centered around her mom, who Bryan had grown close to over the years after his own had left the family to “find herself [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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