It was only later, when they stopped at a nearby gas station to clean themselves up, that Samantha started to think about Renee. About how sleeping with her best friend’s brother would affect their relationship. About Tristan, about what happened between them might mean for their future.

She didn’t even know if Tristan wanted a relationship, if he wanted to date her, or if he even wanted to see her again after this weekend. This was something she should have checked on before riding him like a wild pony, but in truth, she wasn’t sure she wanted to know. She wasn’t sure if she wanted a relationship, either. Single for the first time in six years, and not twenty-four hours later, she was sleeping with another man. Not just another man—with Tristan.

Her mother had a word for girls like her. It started with the letter S, and wasn’t the most flattering. Sucking in a breath, she pulled a bottle of water from the fridge, then walked down the aisle looking for something to eat. She’d hardly touched her breakfast, skipped lunch, and after the best sex in her entire life, she was ravenous.

She was standing in the center of the aisle, contemplating the selection on the mini-mart shelves, when Tristan came to stand behind her. He wrapped his arms around her waist, hugging her so hard it felt as though their bodies were melding together as one. She hesitated a moment, but the feeling was too wonderful, and eventually she couldn’t resist anymore and let her body sink against him.

“What are you doing?” he asked.

She smiled at his question. It was whispered, soft, breathy in her ear, and made her whole body tingle from head to toe. “I’m trying to decide between salt and vinegar, or barbecue,” she answered.

“Ahhh…” he began. “A tough choice.”

She smiled. “It is. Because I like the way the vinegar feels against my tongue, but the barbecue is sweet and smoky.”

He groaned. “Are you doing that on purpose?”

She laughed. “What?”

“Making your food sound so erotic.”

She bit her lip, because that wasn’t exactly what she was going for, but she would be lying if she said she didn’t like his response.

He pushed away from her then and walked down the aisle to grab a soda out of the fridge. “Get them both, Samantha.”

“Both?”

“Yes, because after your description”—he bit his lip, cocking one of his lopsided grins—“we’ll need them both.”

“We?” She laughed.

“Yes, we.” He then winked at her, walked over to the counter, and paid for all their things.

* * *

When they got back to the Mustang, the sun had completely disappeared from the horizon, leaving the night sky pitch black and covered with stars. She threw her bag to the back seat, just as Tristan’s phone rang in his pocket. She opened the door, then glanced up to see his brows constrict. This wasn’t the first time he’d received a phone call that seemed to bother him, and for some reason it made her stomach twist in knots.

He placed his soda in the front seat, held up his finger, indicating he’d be just a minute, then walked to the back of the car and answered his phone. “Hello?”

She heard a woman’s voice through the receiver, but he moved farther away from the car, and eventually she couldn’t hear either of them any longer. She was sure he had friends, business associates…family that were women—who would call him for a variety of reasons. But it still made her chest tighten. He was fit, tall, and one hottest men she’d ever seen in her life… And she was just…her. It was hard not to feel self-conscious around him, to feel secure enough in herself to be wanted by the most popular guy in school.

God! She was making herself sick. She was acting like she was still in high school—only worse. Back then she seemed to have a good head on her shoulders. Now, she may as well be one of the groupies he had twisted around his little finger.

She settled into her seat, fastened her seat belt with clumsy fingers, and closed her eyes—she didn’t like this. Didn’t like this one bit. She opened her bottle of water and took a large mouthful, hoping to cleanse the bitter taste that had crept up her throat. What was she doing? Why was she acting like this? Why was she suddenly so insecure? But at the same time, how could she possibly believe this could work? He was Tristan, the brother of her best friend, the hottest guy at West Valley, and she felt like a sixteen-year-old girl again.

He topped off the gas a moment later and climbed into the seat beside her. His playful grin was back in place, but she sure didn’t feel as confident as she had a moment before.

“What should we open first?” he asked. “Salt and vinegar, or barbecue?”

Her stomach rolled with all the unknowns, and she turned toward him. She wanted to ask who he was talking to, wanted to ask what he wanted…but she didn’t do either. She looked down to the two bags between them and made a decision. There wasn’t going to be a future for her and Tristan. This was a temporary relationship, a rebound from one place to another. She wouldn’t allow it to be more than that. She wouldn’t allow him to hurt her.

“Salt and vinegar,” she said. The moment the decision was made, her mood instantly lightened. She looked up again and handed him the bag.

“Good choice,” he said with a wicked grin. He then ripped open the bag with his teeth, causing a few chips to fall to his chest and scatter across his lap.

She plucked one from his chest and popped it into her mouth. “Mmm… That’s good”

He grinned back at her and pulled back out to the road. “If you keep making noises like that, we’re never going to make it to the wedding.”

She licked her lips, then took another long drink of water to wash it down. She liked it this way. Playful, sexy, fun…and easy.