Bristol’s skin was hot and flushed, and now, it was prickling. The man looming over her was as tall as Roan, but nowhere near as nice to look at, and his breath smelled like something from a garbage bin had crawled inside of him and died.

“Whaddya say, baby? Let’s go somewhere and get to know each other a little better.” The oaf was clearly wasted. His eyes were glassy and his skin damp with sweat. There was nothing appealing about him, and his intimidating stance, blocking her passage through the bathroom hallway to the bar, was irritating her.

“Thanks, but no thanks. I’m here with someone,” she responded sweetly, trying to sidestep him, only to end up with his arm barricading her escape.

“Ditch him. Ain’t nothing he got that I don’t got,” the man leaned in closer in an attempt to be seductive, “and I guarantee, I’ve got more of it too if you know what I’m saying.”

“Oh, I’m sure you do, Bluto, but you see, I’m not even here with a he. I’m here with a she, so you can’t compare your… er… apples to her oranges,” Bristol lied, plastering a smile on her face.

The guy looked confused for a moment. “Who’s Bluto?”

“The guy from Popeye? Big guy, dark hair, always getting in Popeye’s way?” She rolled her eyes when it was clear the man’s drunk brain couldn’t connect the dots. “Never mind. If you’ll just excuse me, I’ll be on my way.”

“No, no, no, we’re not done talking yet. I don’t mind apples and oranges both in my bed. The more the merrier. Let’s just find your girl, and we’ll take her with us.”

“I said no.” Growing more impatient by the second, Bristol felt her control on her temper slipping. “What part of that didn’t you understand? The N or the O?”

“Hey, I’m just trying to be friendly here,” Bluto actually looked hurt at her snarky words, “no need to be a bitch.”

“If I were a bitch, I would have already fed you your balls, asshole. Instead, I’ve done everything possible to tell you to get the fuck out of my face.”

Shoving hard on his chest, she felt a rush of relief when he stumbled backward, and she was able to slide past him down the hallway. Before she made it more than a couple of steps though, she felt his hand lock onto her wrist. Simultaneously, she locked eyes with Roan who had just appeared at the entrance to the hallway. He quickly took in the situation—from the man holding her to the way she was pulling away—and she knew he would assume the worst.

“Roan, there you are,” she called out, lightening her tone in the hopes they could avoid public bloodshed. “Bluto, this is Roan, my bodyguard for the night. Roan, this is Bluto, and he was just leaving. Right, Bluto?”

Completely perplexed by her words, the drunk man released her arm and stared at Roan without speaking. Bristol jumped at the opening and grabbed Roan around the waist, turning him away from the situation.

“Let’s go get another drink, Roan. You still owe me another dance,” she said, pulling his large frame along with her. She knew he could stop her in an instant if he wanted to, but thankfully, he went along with her. Behind them, she heard the drunk guy saying, “Who the fuck is Bluto?”

Roan let her lead him back into the public space and over to the bar where she ordered two double shots of tequila before he said, “Okay, explain.”

“It was nothing. Just a drunk guy who was hard of hearing. I had already taken care of it when you showed up.”

Roan’s eyes flashed, and he ran his hand over his jaw. “From what I saw, he needs to be taught how to respect a lady.”

“Yeah, well, that’s not exactly a course in modern day schools, and we don’t have time to educate every drunk man in the universe, so how about we drink and spend the rest of the night enjoying the time we have before you leave tomorrow.” Bristol held up the shot glasses. “To coming home safe and sound.”

“I always do,” Roan said before pounding back the shot.

“He’d better come back safe.”

Bristol grinned at Jaden over Roan’s shoulder.

“Storm 2! You made it.” Roan clapped his brother on the back with a one-armed hug.

“Yeah, plans changed, and I ended up with an open evening after all.”

“Good to see you Jaden,” Bristol hugged Roan’s older brother, “how’ve you been?”

“Hanging in. You look good B.” Jaden held her hand and spun her to take in the full view. “I haven’t seen that much leg since the last Rockettes’ show.”

“I fell victim to sister pressure.” Tugging at the hem of her skirt, Bristol felt her cheeks warm under his scrutiny.

“I should have known,” Jaden replied with a loud laugh. “I’m guessing you tried to sneak out in sweatpants, and she had a cow.”

“Pajama pants, and it was at least a large goat. She kept spouting off about keeping up appearances and giving the guys something to look forward to when they come home.”

“What the hell?” Roan choked on the gulp of beer in his mouth, his eyes wide with horror. “Which guy are you trying to seduce? I’ll feed him his nuts.”

“Aww… that’s so sweet, in a creepy sort of way.” She shook her head, “I’m not seducing anyone, just looking good for the boys in uniform.”

“Well, you’ll get no complaints from me,” Jaden winked.

As if his mere presence called a family meeting, the other Storm brothers found their way to them. The five of them made an imposing mural of muscle, charm, and sex appeal. Bristol felt the envious glares of women all over the bar as each man greeted her.

From Asher who was the oldest and lovingly known as Storm 1 to their sister Payton who was the youngest in the family and known as Storm 6, the whole Storm family was extremely close and intensely loyal. In order by name they were Asher, Jaden, Micah, Cooper, Roan, and Payton, but the majority of their friends and acquaintances called them by number for simplicity. It was something their father started when they were young because they popped out year after year, in stair-step order, and until puberty, they all looked like each other. Even poor Payton had looked like a boy until she got boobs in junior high and people started treating her differently. Bristol remembered because it was shortly after she and Roan met and became best friends.

For a few minutes, the exchanges around her were of a more personal nature as the siblings caught up with each other, but she didn’t mind waiting quietly for her turn. She loved seeing Roan with his brothers. The depth of their relationship was obvious.

“Okay, time to dance,” Roan said suddenly, reaching for Bristol’s hand and tugging her away from his pack of brothers.

She followed him to the dance floor, trying not to let her gaze linger on his perfectly biteable backside. If something happened to Roan, she wanted to look back on tonight with only fond memories. Swaying her hips, she matched Roan move for move on the floor until they were both laughing, the uncomfortable scene forgotten.

* * *

“One more for the road,” Bristol said, her body swaying on her tall heels. Roan didn’t mind because it meant he could hold her under the guise of taking care of her.

“Nope, you’ve hit your limit, B. It’s time to get you home.”

She continued to groove to the music as he led her from the bar just as the bartender yelled Last Call. “Tonight, was so much fun, Roan. I’m glad you made me come.”

If only she knew how perverse those words sounded to his ears. “Yeah, you’ve had a blast, but tomorrow, you’ll be paying for those tequila shots.”

“Probably,” she nodded, “but it will have been worth it.” He settled her into the back of a cab, hushing her when she questioned how she would get her car home.

“We’ll handle it in the morning, B, no worries. Don’t I always take care of things?”

Her head slumped onto his shoulder, and she murmured, “Yes you do. You always take care of me. Remember that time I forgot to bring my gym clothes in the ninth grade, and you loaned me your basketball shorts to wear?”

“I remember,” Roan laughed at the random memory. “You tied them to your sports bra with the laces, so they would stay up and wore a tank top with them.”

“My knight in shining armor.”

“Hey, now, I’ve never worn armor in my life. Unless you consider my flak jacket and my… okay, maybe I do wear armor, but it’s not shiny.” The cab ride only took a few minutes, and Roan helped Bristol up to her apartment, damn near carrying her the last flight of stairs.

“Whose idea was it to get an apartment on the third floor of a building with no fucking elevator?” she groaned, holding her head.

“If I recall, you wanted this place because of the rooftop deck. Said you could watch the sunrise whenever you wanted like you were on top of the world.”

“Yes, the roof!” Bristol nodded and clapped her hands excitedly. “Let’s go up there and look at the stars.”

“You need to get some sleep, B,” he protested as she pulled him through the small apartment to the stairway he knew led above.

“I will, but we can look at the stars now, then when you’re gone, I’ll think of you every time I look up at them. I’ll know you’re looking at the same stars, thinking of me.”

Roan knew she probably didn’t intend her words to be so sentimental, but the alcohol was acting like a truth serum, and it shut down her inhibitions. She rarely allowed anyone to see this side of her. Following her up the tiny flight of stairs, he was soon seated on a wooden lounge chair, with her between his legs, her back against his chest, his arms wrapped around her to keep her warm.

“See, there’s my favorite, Ursa Major, the Big Bear,” she pointed upwards.

“Isn’t that the Big Dipper?”

“Yes and no. The Big Dipper is part of the Big Bear, but they’re still two different constellations,” she explained. “My dad taught me that when I was tiny.”

Her voice was wistful when she spoke of her recently deceased father, and Roan hugged her tighter. Having lost his own mother to uterine cancer when he was eleven, he sympathized with her pain.

“Roan, how much longer do you think you can take doing these missions?” she asked randomly.

Stunned silent, he could only shrug behind her.

“You’ve been gone more than you’ve been home. Don’t you get lonely?”

“Sure, every Marine gets lonely occasionally, but I’m one of the lucky ones because I get constant contact. You and my family send me packages, letters, and cards, and I can use FaceTime on some missions, Skype on others. There are plenty of guys over there who don’t have access to any of that.”

“Would you stay if they gave you the option?”

Roan tensed and frowned down at the top of her head, “What do you mean?”

“I don’t know. I just hate when you’re gone. My world seems off-kilter somehow.” She sat up abruptly. “I’m like Lucy with no Ethel.”

“Excuse me?” He felt his eyebrow arch in question. “I am no Ethel. If anyone here is Lucy, it’s me.”

“Nah, Lucy was always instigating trouble, and Ethel just went along with it.”

“Which is exactly why I’m the Lucy in this relationship,” Roan laughed. She shivered, and he tugged her back against him. Instead of resuming their spooned position, she lay sideways against him, her shoulder on his chest, her hands dangerously close to forbidden territory. “If you’re cold, we should go back downstairs.”

“I don’t want to yet. I like having you all to myself,” she sighed and tipped her face up, the pale moonlight barely lighting her face properly. “Have you ever thought about giving it up? The Marines, I mean?”

“Aw, B, of course, it’s crossed my mind. Every man who’s had to watch a friend die or had to kill someone has second-guessed his career choice, but I was born to be a Marine. Giving it up would be like giving up air. My body just wouldn’t work anymore.”

She nodded, “I figured you would say something like that.”

“I always come back.”

“What if this one time, you don’t?” she murmured, her eyes meeting his. Even in the darkness, he could see the haunted sorrow in their depths. It called to him, and for once, he let go of his control and went with it. Pressing a kiss to her forehead, he tugged her higher up his body and met her gaze straight on.

“I will come back, Bristol. I promise.”

Her bottom lip quivered, and his heart nearly split in two. Friendship be damned, there was something about seeing her needy like this that pulled him inside out. Tipping her chin up, he gently stroked her lip with his thumb.

“Don’t cry, baby. I hate when you cry.”

Those lush lips fell open, and she inhaled a shaky breath. Before Roan could speak again, she was kissing him. A jolt of electricity coursed through his body and his cock went rock hard behind his zipper. All the pent-up desire he’d held onto for years exploded into a deeply sexual kiss that had them both gasping for air.

Bristol tasted sweet like candy, and her hair felt like cashmere as he tangled his fingers in it, holding her close. They parted ever so briefly for a breath, then slammed back together, their bodies aligning even as their mouths married together.

Slinging a leg over his, Bristol clung to his shoulders, and rocked her hips, grinding her body against his thigh. He could feel the heat from her through the denim of his jeans, and his balls tightened. He needed to touch her.

Dragging his mouth across her jaw and down her throat, he simultaneously pushed her shirt up to expose her glorious breasts in a red satin bra.

“Jesus H Christ,” he groaned, pressing his face into the valley of her cleavage as she moved to straddle his hips. He drew up his knees, bracing her ass so she couldn’t back away as he revealed her perfect pink nipples to view.

Writhing against him, Bristol reached back and released the hook on her bra, her breasts bouncing free. Roan’s mouth watered as he drew one of the tight nubs between his lips and teased it with his tongue. The sensations running through his body were sweet, but the feel of her against him was heavenly.

Over the years, he’d fantasized about having her in his arms. She was a beautiful woman with curves for days, but he’d never wanted to risk ruining the friendship between them. Now, he couldn’t remember the millions of carefully thought out reasons behind that fear. He could only feel her and the connection between them as he drew her shirt over her head and tossed it away. She reciprocated the motion, and he groaned when her nails scraped the skin on his chest.

Clutching her to him, he rose from the lounge chair, pleased when she wrapped her thighs tightly around him. The movements forced him to release her nipple from his mouth, but she wasted no time kissing him soundly again. Stumbling to the door, he braced her back against it and tugged his lips free for a moment.

“Let’s go inside, B. I want to see you.” He moaned when she pinched his nipple in response.

“You can see me just fine here. If you see more, you might want to close your eyes,” she hissed back.

“Never.” Pushing her gently off him, he felt her wobble on her feet for a moment, then step away from the door. With his hand firmly linked with hers, he led her down the narrow staircase into the brighter lighting of her apartment. He didn’t turn around to take in the view until he reached her bedroom and found her covering her breasts with her other arm.

“Stop that, let me look.”

Bristol worried her bottom lip with her teeth, but dropped her arm to her side, exposing her beautiful body to him. Her skirt rode higher on her hips after their antics, and the view was all legs and breasts. She was exquisite, but there was a look on her face that concerned him.

“What’s wrong, baby?” he asked, stepping close and lifting her lips for a soft kiss.

“Maybe we shouldn’t do this?” she murmured, shivering when he stroked his thumb over her tight nipple.

“Probably,” he agreed, “but now that I’ve seen you, it might kill me to stop.”

He kissed his way down her throat to her chest, then further until he was on his knees, kissing her bare belly button. The soft swell of her belly above her mound was tantalizing, and he covered it with kisses while sliding his hands under her skirt to cup her round ass.

When his fingertips came into contact with the tiny string that split her ass cheeks, he hissed loudly. “It’s a good thing I had no idea you were wearing a thong.”

“I always wear thongs,” she replied innocently, making his blood boil even hotter.

“Jesus H Christ,” he moaned, pressing his nose against the V of her thighs over her skirt. “Show me.”

For a moment, she looked confused, then reached for the skirt, stepping free of his seeking hands. The tiny scrap of black material dropped to the floor, and he sent off a prayer of thanks for the inventor of the panties she was wearing. His brain stopped functioning completely when she spun to show him the full view.

“I’ve died and gone to heaven,” he whispered. When she giggled, he tore his eyes away from her delicious backside to meet her gaze. “Have I ever told you I’m an ass man?”

“Not in those words, but I could have guessed. You spent most of high-school drooling over JLo.”

Roan nodded in agreement and let go of his carefully held control. Leaning forward, he nipped her ass before playfully landing his palm on the opposite cheek.

Bristol let out a squawk of surprise and spun around, bringing her fragrant mound within inches of his watering mouth. In a split second, he’d grabbed her backside and pressed his nose deeper into the valley of her legs, only the thinnest piece of fabric keeping him from tasting her sweet pussy.

She hesitated for only a moment, then spread her thighs, allowing him access to her center. Roughly shoving aside her panties, he buried his face in the damp curls that capped her slit. She was dripping wet, and her clit poked free, a vibrant pink bead of need.

“Oh God!” she moaned as he licked her slit in one long stroke, relishing the explosion of tangy flavor on his tongue. “Roan!”

“Yes, I like that. Say my name again, B,” he murmured against her, making her shiver against his mouth.

“Roan, please! I need more,” she gasped, her fingers digging into his scalp hard enough to leave marks.

He didn’t let up, continuing to tease her delicious pussy with his tongue, lips, and teeth until her knees began to shake, and she swayed, barely able to stand. With a sharp movement of his hands, he buckled her knees, and she collapsed into his arms, bringing her mouth back into reach. Their kisses before were nothing compared to now. Every movement drove them higher and made him hotter. His cock hurt like crazy with the need to sink into her hot flesh, and he hurried to release it as he pushed her back onto the carpet of her bedroom floor.

On her back with her hair spread out like a blanket around her, she stared up at him with huge dark eyes and a plea for more on her lips. Her hands cupped her breasts, holding them up in offering even as her thighs fell apart, exposing her pouting pussy to him.

It was all too much. He barely pushed his jeans off his ass before he was sliding the head of his cock into her tightness. Together, they moaned at the moment of impact. Their coming together like two explosive stars in the night sky. A roaring sound in his ears blocked out everything but the spasming sensation of her body around his. He pushed harder and deeper, gripping her wrists in his and pinning her to the floor as he fucked her. Her head tossed, hair flying as she panted for air and begged him to keep going.

They were never supposed to be here, and yet Roan had never felt more at home as he felt her tightening around him, her pussy milking his cock until he’d completely emptied himself inside her. He’d never felt anything like it in his life.

* * *

Bristol’s mouth felt like it was full of cotton, and she was sweating. She couldn’t remember the last time she was hot while she slept. She usually burrowed into her blankets to fight the chill. Arching her back, she stretched, only to feel a tightness around her middle and her bare feet brush over the crinkly hair of a man’s leg.

The entire night came rushing back in a flash. From the third and fourth tequila shots to the bowl of cereal she’d shared with Roan between rounds of incredible sex. Lord have mercy, the man was dynamite in bed.

It was his arm that encompassed her midsection, holding her tightly against his massive chest in her bed. She’d never realized how narrow her full-size bed was until that moment either.

Roan’s phone beeped from somewhere on the floor, and he jerked awake, his arm releasing her as he sat up. Without so much as a backward glance, he stumbled across the room to scoop up his jeans in search of the beeping phone. When he laughed at whatever message was on it and turned back to face her, Bristol’s eyes couldn’t stay above his six-pack abs. She vaguely remembered complimenting his size last night, but suddenly, she felt the need to do it again.

A blush stole up her cheeks, and she pulled the blanket over her head as Roan stared at her in stunned silence. While she hid from reality, he was stuck facing it, and she swallowed hard when she felt him approach the bed.

“B, you can’t pretend it didn’t happen,” he murmured, sitting next to her, tugging on the blanket.

“Yes, I think I can. In fact, I think it’s for the best. You put on your clothes, and I’ll stay here until I hear the front door close behind you. We will never again speak of this insane moment of drunken awkwardness.”

The blanket disappeared, and she found herself naked with her best friend, only this time, she was stone sober.

“For a military man, you’re terrible at following instructions,” she squeaked, rolling away from him and off the bed. Her robe was in the bathroom, and her dresser was on his side of the bed. That left her with only the closet to hide in.

Thankfully, the moment she was ensconced in the tiny space, she was able to grab a sundress and tug it over her nudity. The door opened, just as the dress covered her bits.

Roan didn’t seem bothered by his nudity or the weirdness of the situation at all as he leaned against the closet doorframe with a smirk on his face. “I don’t see why you feel the need to cover up. I’ve seen it all now, and I plan to see it all again.”

“No. No way,” she said, pushing past him out of the closet. “If we let it, this will ruin our friendship. We’re going to pretend like this whole night never happened. You slept on the sofa, and I slept off the alcohol in my bed, alone. Got it?”

Roan’s eyebrow arched. “I didn’t realize I was so forgettable in bed.”

Rolling her eyes, she began to pace like a nervous animal. “You’re not forgettable. Far from it. In fact, it was the best sex of my life,” she looked up to find him grinning, “that’s why we have to forget it. If we don’t…”

He stalked toward her, slowly, like a cat on the hunt. “If we don’t, what? You’ll want to do it again?”

Her hesitation gave her away as he stepped close to her and lifted her chin, so she had to meet his gaze.

“I’ll meet you halfway, baby. I’ll agree to put it aside until I’m back and we can talk about it more. If I don’t get going, I’ll be late, and I’m not getting stuck with KPERS just because I was arguing with you. For the next eight months, we’ll pretend this never happened. Deal?”

Bristol barely resisted the urge to cry, forcing herself to nod her agreement. Roan released her and scooped his clothes up from the floor.

“I’m going to borrow your shower, then I have to hit the road. Don’t forget to send me some of those peanut butter cookies as soon as possible. I can’t survive more than a month without them.”

While Roan showered, Bristol busied herself making a pot of coffee. She was snapping a lid on a plastic coffee cup when he reappeared, smelling like her honeysuckle soap.

He grinned when she offered him the cup and kissed her forehead like always. Like nothing had happened between them. Even as he casually told her goodbye, she had a terrible sense of foreboding that everything between them was going to change because of their night together.