nods. “Sweeter nectar.”
I close my eyes, deciding if I should share. Once I close my eyes, my mind is filled with Marshal's words of encouragement: the way he supported me at my parents' house, the way he filled me and surrounded me, the way he's never lied to me, and the way my core clenches at the emptiness that comes after his monster cock pulls out of me.
But…
I know.
Marshal is my friend.
I know I don’t want to lose that.
We made our agreement before we were even teenagers. We might have amended our agreement so that we now have benefits, but this situation won’t last forever.
This is Marshal Michaels.
He lives in the right now.
I refocus on Linda. She may be naïve, but she’s also the voice of reason. “…your parents…?”
I shrug again. “It seems as though they never really liked Jack. My dad apparently would have voted him off the island.”
Marcy’s eyes widen. “What island?”
Linda nods, going on as if Marcy hasn’t spoken. “He had an air.”
“What does that mean?” I ask, suddenly defensive that neither my friends nor family approved of my ex-fiancé.
“It means…good the hell for you.”
I can’t help but smile.
“Marshal?” Linda asks. “Are you still willing to hook me up?”
“I don’t remember that I ever was. Remember, Marshal and I have a few agreements and understandings. He’s not allowed to date my friends.”
“Hmm,” Ashley says. “You called him...?”
“I did. He’s been great. Very supportive.” I take a sip of the still-hot coffee. "Like he's always been."
“Like, jock-strap supportive?” Marcy asks.
I nearly spit out my coffee and look at her. “Jock strap?”
“Supportive in the nether regions,” she confirms as she wiggles her eyebrows.
I take a deep breath, trying to hold back my smile. “Maybe.”
“Anything more?” Ashley asks.
I shake my head again. “No. Maybe. I don’t know. We've been friends forever. That’s all it will ever be.”
Ashley stands. “Eric and I were friends long before we were lovers. Two kids later, I think there’s something to be said about dependability and reliability. Has Marshal always been that person for you?”
“Yes,” I reply sheepishly.
“And have you been that for him?”
“Yes.”
“Do you love him?”
I don’t have to think about my answer. “Yes.”
“Like a brother?” Linda asks.
I take a sip of my coffee. “I don’t know how to define it anymore.”
“I think you can safely answer that you’re not setting me up with him,” Linda says with a grin. “And here I was willing to give you up for him.”
“No, you weren’t.”
A smile spreads across her face. “Never. I think you should see where this goes.”
“I think I want that.”
“And I’m not even mad about your present,” Ashley says. “I’m going to keep it.”
“Well,” I say, “I’m getting a new bed. I’m not keeping one where Jack screwed a bimbo.”
“Burn that baby,” Marcy says.
“That was my first thought.”
“Bonfire at Sami’s,” Linda says.
Marshal
After scanning my membership card, I make my way from the front desk toward the treadmills. The gym is filling fast, not unusual for early on Friday morning. As I walk to the locker room, I’m not thinking about the chick with the tits and ass. To be totally honest, my mind is filled with Sami. I woke this past Sunday morning in her apartment and in her new bed. My body was wrapped around hers. She was sound asleep and snoring. Okay, not snoring. She was breathing in rhythm, and it was adorable. The way her lips were parted, my mind went to all sorts of possibilities.
Instead of acting on any of them, I tucked my arm beneath her and pulled her close. The way she cuddled against my chest was everything I never wanted but found instantly lovable.
With each passing day of this amended agreement, I continue questioning my existence.
I’m Marshal Michaels.
I fuck.
I move on.
Never.
Never ever.
Never have I woke, cuddled, and been happy about it. There was this one time in college. I’ll blame the alcohol and the fact that the chick was a cheerleader and so flexible…but the point was…I woke…she cuddled.
I got my ass out of Dodge.
Sunday morning, I didn’t run. I lingered as the scent of strawberry shampoo tickled my nose and Sami’s curves fit perfectly against my planes. As she slept, I didn’t move. My dick did…because, well...Sami was there.
Cuddling.
Breathing.
And just there.
Unlike the time in that crazy-small bed in the gross off-campus house, this time Sami didn’t have an issue with my morning wood.
Morning sex was nearly as great as nighttime.
Every time with her is off the charts.
In my apartment.
In the boathouse.
At her place.
It is as