Poppy’s eyes commanded his as she pulled down her shorts in one fluid movement. Beneath that threadbare denim, just as he knew it would be, there was nothing—save for that strip of dark blonde hair. She reached behind her back and unhooked the white lace bra. As the strappy material fell away from her chest, she smiled.

“You like what you see?” It was Sarah, Poppy’s friend with the long, layered dark brown shaggy hair. Sarah’s olive skin complemented Poppy’s creamy complexion perfectly. Ryan felt his hardness pressed against his jeans. But when he tried to stand up from the straight back chair, Poppy and Sarah both pushed him down. Sarah’s touch was soft and gentle. Poppy’s was a little more demanding.

“No, no, no,” Poppy said with a laugh. “It’s called a striptease. You’re not allowed to take any of the tease out of it.”

“At least not yet,” Sarah said. “Help me?” she asked Poppy as she turned her back to Poppy and flipped her hair forward. Poppy maintained eye contact with Ryan as she unzipped Sarah’s floral dress that barely covered her ass.

Poppy slowly peeled Sarah’s dress down her shoulders. Her fingers grazed across her friend’s bare breasts and made the nipples harden instantly. The flimsy material fell to the floor, and Sarah stepped out of it. She left her black heels on. “Sarah!” Poppy said. “You could have left something more for me to take off.”

Sarah shrugged, smiled at Ryan, and ran her fingers through her own triangle of dark hair. “I didn’t want to frustrate the poor guy more than you’ve been managing for the past twenty years,” she said.

He kept his eyes on Poppy even as Sarah moved onto his lap and faced him. His body responded naturally to having a pretty girl on his thighs, and her hair tickled his neck as she kissed his jaw. Poppy stood behind her friend. Her long golden hair covered her breasts. “Show me,” he told Poppy, and it was as if she understood him completely. She grasped her hair in one hand and lifted it up, exposing her breasts for him with those perfect pink nipples.

“Switch,” Poppy told Sarah as she placed a hand on her friend’s shoulder. Sarah got up without a word, and Poppy took her place. She straddled Ryan, her breasts touching his chest. Without another word, her lips found his. They kissed deeply, and his eyes closed. It may as well just have been the two of them. He felt Poppy start to grind against the fly of his jeans.

“Sharing is caring.” Sarah’s voice broke the trance. When Ryan opened his eyes, Sarah was right there, cheek pressed against Poppy’s. He was just inches away from them as their tongues intertwined. Still, even as Poppy got lost in her friend’s mouth, her hands continue to roam across Ryan’s chest. Her hard nipples were impossible to resist. He lowered his mouth to them.

Poppy responded instantly. “That feels good,” she said. “Harder.” He nibbled on her breasts and rolled her nipples between his lips. Poppy’s eyes rolled back in her head and Sarah moved behind him. Right as he went to slide a finger through Poppy’s wetness, Sarah grabbed his hands and held them behind his back.

“No touching,” Sarah whispered. “Not unless we tell you to.”

Ryan awoke with a jolt, drenched in sweat. What the fuck was that?

He grabbed the towel off the chair next to the bed and started wiping himself down. The ache between his legs was almost unbearable. Since when do I dream about Poppy like that? And her friends? Especially Sarah, Jesus.

Ryan glanced around the room, disoriented. It took him a few seconds to figure out his location. Stateside. You’re stateside. The obnoxiously loud clock clicked from 3:01 to 3:02. It felt like the middle of the night, but the glaring sun streaming through the windows meant it had to be afternoon.

He pushed himself up in bed even as the jet lag clung tight. It was his new apartment, that was all. He was still getting used to all the angles and shadows.

All around him, boxes reminded him of his new life. Is this it? A handful of boxes and a mattress without a sheet? He looked down at his new mattress and could make out sweat stains already. Well, it was nice while it lasted.

As he moved into the bathroom to brush his teeth, he shook his head at the dream. Poppy was his best friend, and had been for two decades. And as far as Sarah went? He’d only met her a few times. She was pretty enough, but annoying as hell. Either he was hot for her and didn’t know it, or it had been a lot longer since he’d gotten any action than he realized.

When he’d met Sarah for the first time, he couldn’t tell what Poppy saw in her. Then again, people probably said the same thing about Poppy and him. I guess you never can gauge a friendship from the outside looking in.

He could only imagine what Poppy would say if she knew about the dream. She’d probably laugh. Yeah. Or shudder.

It wasn’t like he’d never thought about it before. Hell, you always think ”what if” with a female friend. But they’d been friends for so long. It was the longest friendship he had. There was a part of him that thought it would be almost incestuous. Not that he thought of Poppy like a sister, but what if that was how she thought of him? Like a brother?

It wasn’t worth risking their friendship anyway.

Ryan spat mint toothpaste into the sink. As he gazed into the mirror, he couldn’t believe it. He’d only been discharged from the SEALs for three days, and he was still getting used to civilian life. The complete lack of a schedule was throwing him for a loop, that was all. No wonder he was having these crazy dreams.

He pulled on his jersey shorts, a well-worn Navy T-shirt and running shoes. In the condo gym, there was only one other person and the elderly woman in a pink tracksuit didn't even look at him.

Ryan had the free weights to himself. Years of perfecting a lifting regimen meant he didn't even have to think about reps or rest periods. Instead, he could lose himself in daydreams and plans while he took his arms and chest through their Tuesday workout.

Poppy didn't even know he was coming home, and he had the whole thing planned out. He’d low-key found out her rotation schedule at the hospital over the past few weeks, and Poppy had thought he was just interested in her daily life. Tomorrow, he’d pick up a bouquet of red poppies and surprise her at the end of her shift. It was cheesy, sure, but ever since he’d given her that poppy corsage in high school, it was their inside joke.

As he headed back upstairs, he ticked through the groceries he’d picked up yesterday. It was going to be cereal and milk for dinner unless he was up for another run to the corner market. He splashed water on his face, and dumped half a box of cornflakes into a salad bowl meant to serve an entire table. Ryan poured whole milk over the flakes as he called his brother Eli and put him on speakerphone.

“Hey, man! What’s up? You back?” Eli’s voice always brought him back to their basic training days.

“Yeah,” Ryan said between chomps and slurps. “Just the other day. Jet lag is still kicking my ass though.”

“What the hell are you doing? It sounds like you’re feeding a starving Saint Bernard over there.”

“Gotta feed the muscles,” Ryan said between more spoonfuls.

“You still eat like you’re twenty years old,” Eli said. “That’s going to catch up with you one day. Mark my words, you won’t always have abs with a diet like that.”

“It’s cereal. That doesn’t even count. Besides, I can’t help how much I eat. I’m still a growing boy.”

Eli laughed. “Yeah, a growing boy at thirty-something years old.”

“Don’t hate on the metabolism, asshole,” Ryan said. It was good, this banter. He’d missed it since Eli had left the SEALs a few years ago.

“So. You seen Poppy yet?” Eli asked. He’d only met her a few times, but meeting Poppy once was all it took to see how special she was.

“Nah, not yet. I’m planning on surprising her tomorrow,” Ryan said as he lifted the bowl to his mouth to drain the cereal-sweetened milk.

“You? Actually planning something without the MCPO making you?”

“Hey, I can plan,” Ryan said. “I don’t like to, but I can do it.”

“Maybe getting out did you some good,” Eli said.

“Maybe so.”

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to bring all that up,” Eli said. “I mean, it’s kind of bullshit they discharged you for that knee—”

“It’s okay, man. Really,” Ryan said. “Probably for the best. I mean, at least I finished that last tour with no serious injuries.”

“Yeah. But, still.” Ryan heard a rustling on Eli’s end and a soft murmuring. “Hey, I gotta go,” Eli said suddenly. “Duty calls.”

“Okay, hit me up when you wanna meet up.” It had been months since he’d seen Eli, and even though he missed his battle buddy, it was Poppy who he always thought of first.

Energized by the late lunch, he couldn't sit still. Does it really matter if I see her today or tomorrow? He knew Poppy was at the hospital until eight o’clock. What would an early surprise hurt?

Before he could talk himself out of it, he grabbed the motorcycle keys and loped downstairs. Poppy always chided him about his impulsiveness—said he’d surely get himself into trouble with it. But he couldn’t help it. There was something electrifying in going with his gut. “You’re an impulse marketer’s dream!” Poppy always told him, and he took it as a compliment.

He just hoped the florist at the hospital had red poppies. Big, beautiful fresh ones that would make Poppy give him one of her world-stopping smiles.