Not Just Friends (Brookfield) (6 page)

Connor
shook his head. He wasn’t officially seeing Alyssa, even though he wanted to
be. And Connor wasn’t ready to tell his friends about her anyway.

Stan
shrugged. “See ya.”

Connor
gave a slight wave and relief washed over him once they were gone. He decided
to play a video game for a little while and maybe pop over and surprise Alyssa.
The last thing he wanted was for her to think he wasn’t interested, since he hadn’t
gone inside the night before. But he knew if he had, they would’ve wound up
naked and sweaty in her sheets. As much as he wanted that, he wanted to
establish something between them first. Get a solid path started before sex
entered the picture.

At
the fridge, he took out a can of soda and headed for his man cave. He plopped
down on the couch, grabbed a video game controller, and decided to let the game
begin. In a few weeks the new version of this game was coming out. He’d
pre-ordered it already—of course. Connor had also scheduled a few days of
vacation so he could devote his time to winning the game.

Sure,
some would frown upon that, but he worked hard and never took his vacation
until a new game released. He’d veg out on the couch for a few days, get rested
up, and return to work ready to take on the world. Or at least the stock
market.

* * * *

Alyssa
warmed her meal as she always did. Maybe her brother was right. Perhaps it
would be healthier if she ate anything other than these microwavable meals. But
they were so darn convenient. She shrugged and waited for it to cook.

She’d
sat down that day and talked with the girl she’d hired about working a little
more. Alyssa needed more time off. She couldn’t be at the shop all the time.
And the first step to not being a workaholic was to delegate work. So tonight,
she was letting Tina close. Alyssa wasn’t fooling herself though. She knew once
the girl left, she’d run down there and check everything. However, if Tina did
it right, she wouldn’t have to double check again.

The
microwave dinged and Alyssa pulled the tray out. She got a fork and pot holder,
and carried everything over to her small table. After removing the lid, she
stirred the white sauce with the noodles.

A
knock sounded from the door that led to the bookstore. Maybe Tina required some
help. Alyssa pushed her chair back and went to see what was needed. But when
she opened the door, she didn’t expect to see Matt there.

“Uh,
hi.”

“Can
I come in?” he asked.

Was
that a good idea? Alyssa chewed on her bottom lip a moment then stepped back,
letting him enter. “I was eating. Was there something you needed in the store?”

“Nope.
You know I don’t read.”

How
could she forget? He always picked on her when she spent an entire day with a
book in her hand. “Oh, well, I assumed since you came from that way that this
was book related.”

He
chuckled. “Nah, I came by to see you so we could finish talking about why I
came by last night.”

Alyssa
sat back down at the table. “You talk. I’m going to eat.”

“Have
you given any thought to what I said?”

She
slid the fork from her mouth. “No, not really.”

“I’m
disappointed. I had hoped you’d at least thought about it. It took a lot for me
to come back.”

Alyssa
smirked. He always thought of himself first. He didn’t care that he’d seen her
with a man the night before. “I’m seeing someone.”

“He’s
a little out of your league, isn’t he?”

Why
did everyone keep saying that? Perhaps it was because they didn’t know the real
Connor. The one she did. He’d shared a side of him with her that no one else
knew about. “Thanks for the vote of confidence.”

“I
didn’t mean anything mean by it. It’s just he sends off a certain persona. And
you’re, well, you’re Alyssa. Down-to-earth bookworm who rarely wears more than
a light layer of powder on your face.”

“Yeah,
I got it. He’s handsome and I’m plain. You’re not the first one to mention it.”

Matt
shrugged. “Anyway, I really am sorry about what happened with Diane. We never
really got to talk about it and what happened that night.”

“I
caught you on your front porch. You had my sister pressed against the door and
your tongue in her mouth. What else is there to say?”

“I
didn’t expect it. The kiss came out of nowhere.”

“I’ll
give you that. But, like I told you before, you wanted it. If someone had
kissed me while I was seeing you, I seriously doubt my hands would’ve been all
over him with my legs wrapped around his waist. I would’ve been stiff as a
board, hands at my side, in shock. Unless I had wanted it as well.”

Matt
raked his hands through his blond hair. “I’ve apologized until my face turned
blue. I’m not anymore. Let’s move past this.” He scooted his chair closer and
took her hand. “We were good together. Come on, we can be again.”

Alyssa
gazed into eyes. She licked her bottom lip, but not to prepare herself for a
kiss. Matt however took it as a sign and leaned toward her. She pushed back,
almost falling out of the chair. “Matt, no.”

He
still held her hand with an almost death-grip. She tried to yank free, but he
gripped tighter.

“You’re
hurting me. Stop.”

“I
want you.”

“Well,
you’re not going to get me this way. Now let go!” she demanded.

“One
kiss. That’s all I want, and if you don’t feel anything, I’ll walk
away—forever.”

Alyssa
hesitated but then wondered if it was all she could do to get him to leave.
Matt pulled her close to him again, bringing her body into his. She felt sick
touching him. His lips were inches from hers. She held her breath and braced
herself.

“What’s
going on?” A male voice sounded from behind Matt.

The
distraction was all she needed. She pulled away from Matt and saw Connor there.
Oh crap!

Matt
spun around. “Hey, dude, what’s up?”

Connor
crossed his arms. “Am I interrupting something?”

“Yeah,”
Matt answered.

Connor’s
focus was on Alyssa. She knew she was white as a ghost. She couldn’t find the
words, but she shook her head, hoping Connor would see through what had just
happened.

“I
think you should leave,” Connor said, looking at Matt.

Alyssa
let out a sigh of relief and pushed her way past Matt and over to Connor, who
put his arm around her. “Go, Matt.”

Matt
flung the chair into the table and stomped past them. She waited for him to say
something ugly, but instead, he exited toward the bookstore. Alyssa inhaled
deeply then leaned against Connor.

“You
okay?” he asked.

“Fine.”

“Is
there anything you need to tell me? Things looked rather heated when I came in.
I thought I heard you holler when I was in the store, but it didn’t look like
you were in distress when I rushed in.”

“He
said if I let him kiss me and I didn’t feel anything, then he’d leave me
alone.” Alyssa glanced up at Connor, seeing his jaw tighten. “I didn’t want
to.”

Connor
was quiet. He walked away from her and paced her small dining area. “You should
tell your brother about him. Let him know what’s going on. Maybe he can have a
talk with him.”

“I’m
sure he’s harmless.”

“You
can never be certain.”

She
smiled. “You forget I was involved with him for over a year. He couldn’t even
kill a spider.”

Connor
groaned. “You’re not a spider. And jealousy can make someone do something
stupid.”

“I
can agree with that.” She sat back down and thought about eating more of her
dinner. “What brings you by?”

“I
wanted to make sure you were okay.”

“Oh,
really? Why wouldn’t I be?”

Connor
rubbed his face and then sat down at the table with her. “I wanted to make sure
you weren’t upset over last night.”

Oh,
when he made it clear he didn’t want to have sex with her. “Why would I be
upset?”

“I
did want to, you know.”

Alyssa
reached out and took his hand. “I understand.”

“You
do?”

“Yes,
we’re friends. And you don’t want to ruin it. The kiss was a mistake. I get
it.”

She
let go of his hand and pushed back from the table. Taking her now-cold dinner,
she tossed it in the trash as she willed the tears away. The kiss wasn’t a
mistake for her. It had been right and perfect. But there was no way she could
hear those words from him first.

Alyssa
removed a bottle of water from the fridge and then spun around. She gasped.
Connor was right there. Close. He took a step toward her.

“That
kiss was not a mistake.”

The
thumping in her chest picked up. Before she had a moment to think, he yanked
her to him and kissed her hard. In her shock, she dropped the water bottle on
the floor, but then wrapped her hands around his neck.

Chapter Eight

Connor
was not going to let Alyssa go on thinking they were just friends. Damn it! He
wanted a heck of a lot more than a friendship with this woman. And he planned
to kiss her until she got it through her thick skull. Because, apparently, the
advances he had been making so far hadn’t clicked yet.

And
after seeing that guy here again, it was now or never to make his claim on her.
Alyssa was his.
Mine. Mine. Mine.
And he wasn’t going to share her.

Reaching
down, he lifted her by her butt. Her legs wrapped around his waist and he set
her on the counter. The kiss was sloppy, but he didn’t care. He had to have
her. Taste her. Breaking the kiss, his lips trailed down her neck, to her
collar bone. Alyssa arched her body, leaning her head back. Man, this woman was
a goddess and she had no idea.

He
was harder than a rock and craved to be inside her. While he knew he wasn’t
about to take it that far—he hoped—he did want to explore.

Her
breathing picked up as his tongue swirled around her earlobe. He gripped her
face, bringing it to his. She gazed back at him and he once again claimed her
lips.

“Oh
God,” she moaned.

Connor
let one of his hands drift down and caress her belly, slowly bringing it up to
her breasts. He let his thumb rub over her nipple and he was satisfied to find
it hard.

“Connor,”
she whispered.

The
sound of his name escaping her lips about sent him over the edge. It was music
to his ears.

Out
of nowhere, it was as though he lit a fire in her. She was greedy and taking
him. She clutched his ass and one hand came around front to his erection.

“Ah,”
he groaned.

Her
grip was tight as she stroked him. He had to get her to stop. He pulled his
body back, but she didn’t allow him to move away. Oh God, if she pumped him one
more time—shit!

Connor
yanked his body away from her, embarrassed at what had just happened. He wasn’t
a fucking fifteen-year-old boy.

“What’s
wrong?” Alyssa asked with a confused expression.

“You
didn’t do anything.” He smiled. “Well, actually you did.”

“Did
I do something wrong?”

“No,
you did it far too good.”

It
was as though a light bulb went off in her and her gaze found his groin, where
he was certain she could see the wet spot through his khakis. He wasn’t sure
what reaction he’d expected from her, but she started to giggle like a school
girl. It felt fitting.

Alyssa
hopped off the counter. “I have some sweatpants that will probably fit you.”

“You’re
far too little to have anything that will fit me.”

“Follow
me.”

Connor
did and when he entered her bedroom and saw her bed, he felt himself harden
again. Go figure. But at the moment his pride was too shot to even attempt
fooling around with her again. He watched as Alyssa dug through a drawer and
removed a pair of navy blue sweatpants.

“Here,
these will fit you.”

Taking
them from her, he held them out. “Thanks.”

“Bathroom’s
right there if you want to clean up.”

He
had to bite his tongue. The urge to ask her to join him was strong. Instead, he
nodded and went into the restroom.

* * * *

Alyssa
sat down on her couch and couldn’t help but grin. She’d made him orgasm. She
had made Connor Phillips come! That was something she had never thought would
happen in her life. And she was also certain that at this point, she and Connor
weren’t just friends. Friends didn’t do what they had done in her kitchen.

Her
face beamed with happiness and she wasn’t sure it could be removed. Zoe hopped
up in her lap. She scratched behind the cat’s ears and did her best not to talk
to her. That would be the moment he’d reenter the living room and realize he’d
just kissed a nut job.