Will shoots daggers at me from the other side of the living room. We hold each other’s gaze for a few seconds before I lean back against the couch and Will reaches for the TV remote.

“What were you doing with my sister?”

“I was only trying to help her get ready.”

Will clicks on the TV and flips through the channels, shaking his head at me. “That’s not what it looked like to me. Do you like Mia? You know, you can tell me if you do.”

Yeah, right. The second I say yes the two of us will end up beating the shit out of each other in the middle of Mia’s apartment. And I would deserve every single punch.

“No. Mia is too proud, and she has nothing decent to wear. I offered to have my girl at Boyds pick something out for her. It wasn’t a big deal. Don’t read into it.”

“Sorry, man. I didn’t mean to jump down your throat. Thanks for helping Mia out. She won’t take anything from me.”

He blows out a puff of air and drops the remote on the coffee table in front of us. Will folds his arms over his chest and leans back with his eyes focused on the playoff game on the screen. There’s so much sadness in his eyes as he watches what could have been our shot at the Cup.

We were both bummed out about being knocked out of the playoffs by the Penguins, but Will has taken this loss harder than the rest of our team. It’s as if he takes our loss as a personal failure when it was on all of us.

After a major loss on the road, Will was already at his limit. Then, we had to come home to a flooded apartment, all because the woman upstairs fell asleep in the tub with the water running. The situation sucks, but we have to make the best of it. Mia is just another complication to our already complicated lives.

“How do I look? Do I pass as “club appropriate” or am I still underdressed?” Mia walks into the room, using air quotes to ask her question.

I almost laugh at the silly expression on her face. But I can’t take my eyes off her. She’s beautiful, a complete fucking knockout.

My eyes fall to Mia’s long, toned legs and the tight leather skirt that rides up her thighs. I travel up the length of her delicious body, taking in the strapless gold top that’s practically plastered over her tits, her cleavage popping out and on display. She’s wearing heels. Not flats or boots. She ditched her usual attire. When she’s going to work, Mia reminds me of someone’s grandmother with her frumpy sweaters and knit pants. And when she’s home, it’s emo all the way.

Where has she been hiding this outfit? Damn. I bite the inside of my cheek to keep myself from making any obscene facial gestures. Will notices every movement I make around Mia. Right now, my dick is getting hard just thinking about burying my face between her legs. And her tits. Fuck.

“See, I knew you had something in that closet.” Will hits the off button on the remote and pushes himself up from the couch.

The room falls in silence without the game providing us with a distraction. I haven’t been able to peel my eyes from Mia since she walked into the living room. She seems to have the same problem as me.

After holding my gaze for far too long, Mia glances at Will and smiles. “I clean up good, huh?”

Will moves toward her and studies her clothes. “Well, I’m not thrilled about the length of your skirt or the low-cut top, but they have standards at The Sixth Floor. They would never let you in wearing jeans. Stay close to Ethan and me. I don’t want anyone coming near you. Okay?”

She nods, her stare shifting between Will and me. “You have nothing to worry about.”

But he does. He just doesn’t know it.

I hate myself for thinking of Mia in any way other than Will’s little sister. She makes it too hard for me to separate my friendship with Will from my desire for her. The two cannot exist together, and I value Will’s friendship too much to ruin it over my feelings for Mia.

“Don’t drink too much,” Will says. “No dancing with any guys.”

Mia rolls her eyes at him. “Yes, Dad. Anything else? Do you want to check my homework before we go out?”

I laugh, but Will doesn’t find it funny. He shoots me a pained look, and then his gaze falls back to Mia. “I’m serious.”

“Yeah, whatever, Will. This was your idea, not mine. I’ll just dance with Ethan then if you’re going to be such a buzz kill.”

Will pulls his phone from his pocket, tapping on the keys at a feverish pace. “Yeah, stick with Ethan.”

Am I violating my best friend’s trust? I haven’t done anything wrong. Yet. But I know I will. How can I stop myself when Mia licks her lips at me or flips her blonde strands over her shoulder, giving me come fuck me eyes? She’s a fucking temptress, and she knows it.

“Uber will be here in fifteen minutes,” Will says, turning on his heel to head into the kitchen. “We need to get a good buzz going before we get to the club. Do you have anything other than this old bottle of vodka?” He digs through Mia’s freezer and holds up the almost empty bottle of Stoli. “Any chance you have some Jack around here?”

“No.” Mia pushes her hands onto her hips and frowns at Will. “You can take it or leave it. And I expect you to replace whatever you drink. That’s all I have left.”

Mia glances at me before following behind Will, and I trail behind her, taking in the sight of her body. Her ass. Those legs. I’m so fucking screwed.

One month. I can do this. Deep breaths.

Even I don’t believe myself. Why would Will?

* * *

No one has ever looked more out of place in a club than Mia Roman. She glances up at the ceilings, memorizing every detail of the room, as the cocktail waitress leads us upstairs to the VIP section Will had reserved for us earlier. Will hits on the waitress, as per the usual, and I keep Mia at my side. My hand grazes her ass when I have to pull her closer to make room for a drunken couple to pass us on the stairs.

I should stop touching her before Will sees us, but he’s busy with the blonde bombshell and staring at her huge rack. So, I keep my hand on Mia’s ass for a few seconds more, just to test her limits. She flashes me a warning look and tips her head to Will as if telling me to stop. But she doesn’t force me. She wants me to keep touching her just as much as I want to continue navigating every surface of her body.

Once we reach the VIP area, I sit on the couch next to Mia, while Will continues to chat up the waitress and give her our drink orders.

“I can see why you insisted on dressing me,” Mia says. “This place is nice. I wouldn’t have fit in with my normal clothes.”

I shake my head. “Nope. I’m sure the bouncer would have let you in because you’re with Will and me. But at least now you look the part.”

“As what? One of your puck bunnies.” She rolls her eyes and makes a gagging sound. “People probably think I’m fucking you and Will. Gross.”

“Let them think what they want,” I tell her. “And fucking me would not be gross.”

She laughs. “I don’t know about that.”

Before I get the chance to respond, Will plops down on the other side of Mia and slides his arm along the back of her neck. “So, what do you think, baby sis? Not so bad, right?”

Mia gives him a fake smile. She’s so easy to read.

“Yeah, it’s great. Thanks for forcing me to come out with you.”

Liar. It’s so obvious that Mia hates it here. She folds her arms across her chest, as if uncomfortable in the tight shirt, but all it does is push her tits out even more. And I’m an asshole for noticing.

Will releases Mia from his grip and leans forward to grab a bottle of vodka from the ice tub on the table in front of us. He sets it down on the table and reaches for three highball glasses, filling each of them with Absolut and cranberry.

What is this girly shit he’s making us?

Will hands a drink to Mia. “Try to have fun. It wouldn’t kill you.” Then, he passes one of the glasses to me, before taking a sip of his own.

“Stop nagging me, Will.” Mia lifts the glass to her lips and gulps down half the liquid in one swig. “Let me do my thing without babysitting me for once.”

Will cocks an eyebrow at Mia, his expression softening by the second. “Be careful. You know I worry about you.”

For as long as I have known Will, he has always treated Mia as if she’s a piece of fine China. Her parents treat her the same way. She’s not the delicate little girl I once knew. Not even close. So, why does he still treat her like a child? If Will had more confidence in his sister and her ability to handle herself, then he wouldn’t be up my ass about her all the time.

Mia pounds the rest of her drink and gets up from the couch. “I know, Will, and I will be fine. I can take care of myself. Now, if you don’t mind, I want to go downstairs and dance without you chaperoning me.”

Will sinks further into the couch and kicks his shoe up on the table. “Ethan is going with you.”

He glances at me as if he’s waiting for me to escort Mia. Not that I have an issue with dancing with her. But is he going to watch us? If so, I have to be careful what I say and do around her. Because dancing with Mia could be dangerous for us both.

“You coming with?” I ask Will.

He shakes his head. “No, I texted that girl I met last night. She should be here in a few. I also have the waitress to keep me company.” Will flashes a cocky smirk and then winks.

Will stole the better of the two girls from me last night, leaving me with the annoying friend who talked my ear off all night. She had irritated me to the point that I didn’t even want to kiss her. All she cared about was how much money I make and what it’s like to be a professional hockey player. That conversation gets old, as do the gold diggers.

So, I drank my ass off and hung out at the bar until it was time to head to Mia’s apartment. Knowing I would see Mia, I was somewhat on my best behavior. I didn’t want to smell of another woman. That would have given her another reason to hate me.

When we reach the dance floor, the club is in full swing. Sweat glistens off the bodies of those grinding on each other, the people surrounding us throwing elbows in our direction as we push our way through the crowd. I have to move Mia in front of me to keep her out of their reach. With my arm hooked around her stomach and my hand on her shoulder, I steer her deeper into the throng, out of Will’s line of sight.

He told me to dance with Mia. Will gave me his permission. Does that make this right? Fuck if I know. I’m so confused about the entire situation. Until I know if Mia could be more than just sex, I can’t cross the line. I cannot fuck up. I have done so much of that in my life as it is already. But what’s one more mistake?

We eventually find an open space in the middle of the floor, giving us just enough room to join our bodies together. Mia spins around so that we are facing, presses her palms to my chest, and looks up at me. Her bright blue eyes slice right through me, gutting me. Nothing around us matters. When I look at Mia, there’s only the beautiful girl I have had feelings for since I was in high school. Back then, I knew it was wrong. Now, it’s even more forbidden. But that’s part of what makes the idea of us so exciting.

My skin pricks with electricity when Mia slides her hands up my arms, gripping my biceps with her fingers. She begins to sway her hips with a sensual look in her eyes and digs her nails into my skin. We don’t need to exchange words. She wants me. I want her. There’s nothing left to say. But where is Will?

I glance over my shoulder and up at the balcony where we left Will and let out a sigh of relief that he’s not standing there. His date must have arrived by now and keeping him more than entertained. Good. Because I need Will distracted and drunk.

Mia turns around so that her back is facing me and rubs her ass on my thigh, slowly making her way to my growing erection. I’m thankful no one can see how turned on I am by Mia. And even more thankful that Will is not here to see this.

She knows what she’s doing, dropping low enough that I get a nice view of her ass. For a girl who never leaves the house, Mia sure has some moves. And she sure as fuck knows how to work her killer curves.

She wants me to touch her back, and yet I have my hands at my sides, allowing Mia to do what she wants to me. If only she knew just how much she’s doing. With Will not around, what could it hurt? What’s one dance?

I lean forward to whisper in her ear, and she stills from my breath on her skin. “Keep doing that, little lamb, and I’m going to bend you over and fuck you right here on this dance floor.”

Mia stops shaking her ass and tilts her head back so that our eyes meet. Sweat dots on her forehead and brows, her glassy blue eyes burning a hole through me. “I’d like to see you try, E.”

She hasn’t called E in years. Most of the time, it’s dickhead or douchebag.

Moving my hands to her hips, I pull her into my chest. “Is that a dare?”

She smiles in acknowledgment.

Game on.