the curve of her buttocks. Deep shivers shook her. He grew hard against her thigh. Her mouth dried up, and her head spun, but this time it wasn’t from the tequila shots.
This time, it was from him.
Her brain madly tried to grab on to sanity and the million smart reasons to pull apart and laugh. They were still drunk and half-naked together in bed, and even the most reasonable of couples would find themselves tempted. It was simply a physical reaction.
Except, she’d never felt this way about Pierce before.
And they weren’t laughing.
“Taylz?” He breathed her name in his familiar husky voice, but this time it reeked of an intimacy and question she didn’t know how to handle.
Dragging in a deep breath, she raised her head, determined to get back on track.
Her gaze stumbled on his.
Fierce, fiery heat lashed out at her. His hand fisted in her hair, tipping her throat back as he studied her face with a strange longing, as if the civilized barriers between them had crumbled to ruins, and all that was left was the fragile line between primal want and the easy friendship they’d shared for years.
Her heart beat madly in her chest. She licked her lower lip, suddenly wary, and that wolfish gaze followed her gesture, his body slightly shaking. And in that stunning moment, sure that sanity would rule and she’d be able to ease back, Taylor did something that would forever change their course.
She leaned in and kissed him.
Chapter Eight
He’d lost his mind.
Pierce felt as if he was in a strange place between dream and reality, where every action had no consequence or worry. When he’d glimpsed the sadness on Taylor’s face, his entire insides twisted in pain, and he only knew he’d do anything to make her smile again. He’d regretted his stupid, drunken statement about her love life at the bar the moment he’d uttered it, but seeing how deeply he’d cut her had broken him.
Over the years, they’d embraced a hundred times. Hell, a thousand. There’d never been anything sexual between them, so he’d been comfortable holding her close, stroking her back, soothing her worries. That’s what he’d always done.
Until his body had betrayed him.
The moment had turned so quickly that he couldn’t slow it down. Suddenly, his dick was hard, and her soft, warm body was melting against his. Her nipples tightened and pressed into his chest. Their bodies tangled together. He’d struggled with the sudden urge to kiss her, blaming the weakness on alcohol, and for a few seconds, Pierce believed that his mind had won. He’d been ready to pull back and save them both.
Until she’d kissed him.
And he kissed her back.
God, he had no choice. Once her mouth covered his, he was lost. Her lips were soft and sweet, clinging and responsive to every movement, every bite and lick, driving his hunger higher and harder.
His fingers twisted in her hair when she parted her lips with invitation.
Pierce wasn’t a saint. With a groan, he dove in deep and explored the slick interior of her mouth. He tasted the sting of tequila, the tartness of lime, and the unique flavor of a woman he’d loved since he was in high school. His senses swam as they kissed each other with a ferocity that overtook rational thought and drove him to press her back into the pillows, his teeth tugging on her lip, swallowing her throaty moan in satisfaction.
Her hands were everywhere—tugging down his pants to cup his ass, scraping her nails against his chest, slipping downward to squeeze his erection with hot hands that pushed him straight to the edge.
He cursed, chanted her name, and stripped off her clothes with rough, clumsy motions. She lifted her hips, helping him divest her of the black lace thong, then parted her legs to his questing hand.
“You’re so wet,” he growled, his fingers plunging into her pussy, loving the way she tightened and pulsed around him. “God, you feel so fucking good.”
“More,” she demanded, arching and rotating her hips against his hand. “I want you all over me. Inside me.”
“Yes, me, too.” He curled his fingers and thrust harder, his thumb teasing her hard clit.
Her body jerked in response, and a rush of wetness leaked down her thighs. Her teeth sank into her lower lip and she moaned.
“You like that?”
She nodded, slowly opening her eyes. He fell into those golden-brown depths, filled with lust and heat and a want that drove the breath from his lungs.
He feasted on the long