BY TWO P.M. BOTH MIA AND WENDY WERE ON THEIR WAY to being hammered. Which was pretty funny because the one thing Nathan could always count on with Mia was her control.

She really must have needed to let loose this weekend, because she’d sampled every glass of wine at every winery, and since he wasn’t much of a wine guy, she’d finished off his glasses, too. He made sure she ate whatever snacks were offered, because he wanted her to have a good time and not get sick.

Then again, he’d known her a long time. She knew her limits. Right now she was laughing at something Wendy said.

He loved her laugh. She went into it full barrel, tilting her head back, her whole body shaking. When Mia relaxed and let go, she could have fun with wild abandon. That’s the way he wanted to see her all the time. Throwing out those inhibitions and allowing herself to have fun. As he sat back and took a sip of the beer he and Jamal had managed to score at this awesome winery, he was content to just watch her.

“Does she know you have a thing for her?” Jamal asked.

Nathan turned his attention to Jamal. “I don’t have a thing for her. We’re friends.”

“Uh-huh. I have friends who are women, and I don’t look at them like that.”

“Like what?”

“Like you want to strip her naked and lick every inch of her skin. Which is the way I look at Wendy. Not the way I look at my women friends. My women friends? I look at them as if they’re dudes. Do you look at Mia like she’s a dude?”

He slanted his gaze over to Mia, who had leaned over to whisper something to Wendy. They were currently sitting in an outside courtyard at the winery. Nathan and Jamal were up at the bar while Mia and Wendy sat at one of the tables. He focused on Mia, on the way her capris hugged her well-toned calves, and the way her delicate fingers moved as she carried on a conversation. He wanted her fingers in his mouth. He wanted to suck on them as he pumped his cock inside of her.

Goddamn.

“No,” he answered in response to Jamal’s question.

“Does Mia know about it?”

“Know about what? There’s nothing to know. We’re friends and always have been and that’s all we’re ever going to be.”

Jamal slanted a look at him. “But it doesn’t sound like that’s what you want.”

“It’s what she wants.”

“Oh, she’s friend zoned you.”

He shrugged. “I’m not sure that’s really what she wants. She’s afraid to lose the friendship, though. I keep trying to tell her we won’t.”

Jamal lifted his beer and took a sip, then studied the women before looking back at Nathan. “Are you sure you wouldn’t, though? Mixing sex with friendship can be a dangerous game.”

“Maybe. But I value the friendship as much as she does. I just happen to think we can have both.”

“You sure she wants you? Maybe she has a guy.”

Nathan shook his head. “She doesn’t have a guy. I’d know if she did.”

“How?”

“Because we’re friends and I know everything about her.”

“Okay. Then if you want her, go after her. Just know there are risks.”

Nathan took a long pull of his beer, then set it on the bar and motioned for the bartender to give them another round. “Yeah, I know. It’s what kept me from pushing it with her.”

“I guess you have to decide if the sex is worth the risk of the friendship.”

He took the beer the bartender offered, wrapping his hand around the bottle. “Yeah.”

Looking at Mia, listening to the sound of her laughter, he knew he could maintain the friendship. They had too much to lose to let that go.

He wanted her. Hell, he’d always wanted her. There had been other women after her, but he’d always come back to Mia. He’d respected the sexual wall she’d put up between them, but he’d never stopped wanting more.

He noticed how she looked at him, the way she touched him, and it went beyond friends. With every day they spent with each other, they were growing physically closer. He just had to convince her to break down that wall and add sex to their relationship.

Maybe this weekend would be a good time to test the waters.

“Let’s go join the women,” Nathan suggested.

“Yeah, let’s do that.”

They pushed off the bar and went to the table.

“Hey, babe,” Wendy said as Jamal leaned over to brush a kiss over her lips.

“Hey yourself. Are you having a good time?”

“I’m having just the best time.”

Nathan pulled up a chair next to Mia. “How about you? Having fun?”

“Yes. Are you?”

He lifted up his bottle of beer. “I am now.”

She laughed.

“We need to refine your palate. Let’s go into the tasting room.”

“You do realize I drink wine on occasion.”

“Of course I do. But let’s go play with some wine.” She pushed her chair back and stood. “We’ll be back.”

“We’ll be right here,” Wendy said.

Mia took Nathan’s hand as they walked into the tasting room. He had no complaints about that so he let her guide him inside. Since they had VIP passes they were allowed to go in and taste the wine as often as they wanted to at the wineries.

Mia went to the counter. “Okay, white or red?”

“Don’t care.”

“Fine. First, take a sip of water to cleanse your palate from the offending beer.”

He tried not to laugh. “Sure.” He took a couple of sips of water.

She wrinkled her nose as she studied the menu, then chose a pinot noir. “This winery has an incredible pinot. Smooth and very flavorful. I think you’ll like it.”

He took a sip. Surprisingly it was pretty decent. “It’s good.”

Mia’s face lit up as if she’d just given him the best gift ever. “So you like it?”

“For wine, I like it.”

“Excellent. I’ve already asked for two bottles of this, so you’ll probably end up having some next time you come over.”

“Or, I’ll have a beer, which you always kindly keep stocked for me.”

She grasped his arm. “You know, Nathan, someday I will make you a wine lover.”

“Or not.”

She shook her head. He picked up a slice of cheese and hand-fed it to her, watching as her lips closed over it. Watching her throat work as she swallowed made his dick twitch.

Yeah, okay, so he had it bad for Mia. She didn’t need to know how bad.

He used his thumb to swipe the corner of her mouth, noticing how her focus remained on his face. This wasn’t a friends-only exchange. He felt the connection between them, the heat as they stood close.

But he was going to give it time. He gave her his signature grin. “Now you can wash it down with more wine.”

“A total win for me.” She took another glass of wine and sipped it, then handed it to Nathan. “This one is very good. Try it.”

He turned the glass around where her lips had been and took a drink, noticing the way she watched his mouth. When she licked her lips, he knew what she wanted. If they weren’t in a public place he’d put the glass down and kiss her.

But she was also more than a little inebriated, and when he made the suggestion, he wanted her sober. So right now it was fun and games and nothing more.

But he still wanted a taste of her, and this was as close as it was going to get for now.

“Good?” she asked, her voice sounding a little raw.

He leaned in closer. “Yeah. Really good.”

A tour group had come in, crowding them together. When a couple pushed up to the counter, Mia laid her hands on Nathan’s chest.

“Your heart is beating fast,” she said, tilting her head back to look up at him.

“Is it? Must be because your body is against mine.”

“Nathan. What are we going to do about this?”

He was about to give her an answer, but Jamal had made his way through the crowd.

“Hey, limo guy said it’s time to move on. You two ready to go?”

Mia blinked, then gave Nathan a look of regret. She turned to Jamal and smiled. “Absolutely.”

Nathan led her through the group and outside, where Mia met up with Wendy without once looking back at him.

Yeah, not the right time now.

But soon.