Friends Upgrade (3 page)

Without taking his lips off hers, he backed her up and leaned her against the closed door. He moved his hands from her face and began to explore other parts of her body, mainly her breasts. When she let out a squeak, it seemed to bring him back to earth.

He looked at her with a wild, hungry gaze that she’d never seen, not even from her former boyfriends. It frightened her. She saw a different man, not her buddy. Not her pal, but a man that had need in his eyes.

“Judith,” he barley breathed out. “I...I’ll talk to you tomorrow...after I make our reservations.” He just about ran out the door.

Unable to speak, Judith stood there, looking at him as he got on the elevator. Not once did he turn back to face her. Being stunned stupid, words escaped her at the moment. Yet her mind buzzed with questions.

Judith ran to the window and watched him get in his car and drive off. She wanted to know what had gotten into him. But deep down, she really didn’t want to know the answer. Any admission on his part could ruin the friendship, opening a whole can of worms.

Putting her fingers to her lips, she could still feel the burn of his kiss. And what a kiss. What did he mean by it? That would bug her for a good while. Their kisses never went further than platonic, sweet, sometimes “Hollywood” air kisses. Where did this come from?

She could have been tired from the party and going to the mall. Or she could have been caught up in the moment. But with a kiss like that, the moment his lips touched hers, rational thought flew out the window. She may have been dead tired, but his kiss brought her back to life.

Judith shook herself and headed toward the bathroom. She ran her bathwater and sat on the edge of the tub, pouring the bath salts that Doug bought for her for a “just because” present. She smiled looking at all the bath gels and oils he purchased for her. Lucky woman, having such an attentive and thoughtful man for a friend. She had more “just because” presents from him than from all of her ex-boyfriends combined. Damn. Doug turned out to be a better male friend than her exes. He sure kissed better.

Okay, she needed to get that kiss off her mind.

After the tub finished filling, Judith took off her clothes and sank into the relaxing warmth of the water. As she felt herself drifting, she thought back to what he asked her earlier this afternoon.

Did she, like many of the women, have an orgasm as he entered the room? She’d skirted the truth by playing the BFF card, knowing if she told him the truth, she would have been embarrassed.

How do you tell your best friend, especially a male best friend that you can’t wait to go to bed at night because you know that you’ll be having the most erotic sexual dream about him? That every time you heard his voice, your body tingled and your palms sweated.

But she couldn’t go there with Doug. Been there, done that, got burned, kicked to the curb and forgotten.

Yes, she had a firsthand account of what mixing sex and friendship could do. The outcome had shocked and scarred her: kicked to the curb, no one having her back, and bitter feelings of betrayal after giving her most precious gift away. Judith swore never again and she meant it.

Judith had put her trust in people that she thought were her friends. They had all made a pack that no man or woman would come between them. And if any of them found someone special, all would share in their happiness.

Little did Judith know that the one man would be in their inner circle. Ironically, a friend.

They’d run around together—Terri, Lana, Mark and Judith. They were always seen together on campus, at the mall or movies. If one person were missing from the group, people would ask questions. They were that tight.

Until that faithful night.

Mark Jaxon, a.k.a, campus cutie, Harvard heartthrob, you name it. Terri and Lana would tease and flirt with him. He flirted back, but didn’t take them seriously. At least that’s what he told her. .

Instead he had his eyes on her. She remembered the first phone call that became the catalyst for the whole fiasco.

“Hey, Judith.”

“Hi, Mark, what’s up?”

“Nothing much. I was wondering if you would like to go see the new horror flick.”

“Uh, you know Terri and Lana hate those types of movies. I’m not that trilled myself about them.” She chuckled.

“Well, I wasn’t thinking about going with them anyway. I just wanted it to be you and me.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah. Um...I’ve been meaning to ask you something.”

“Go on.”

“I thought maybe you and I can, you know, be more than friends. I think you’re sweet. I love being around you and...”

“Whoa, whoa! How about Terri and Lana? If I’m not mistaken, I think Lana really likes you. And you know what? I don’t think it’s a good idea anyway. I know what you’re about to say. We should just keep our relationship at friends.”

“But I feel something more than friendship with you. Besides, they’re just flirting, they don’t really mean anything by it.”

That’s where it went downhill. She fell for that line. It was easy to do. He flirted with all the girls, even Terri and Lana. He tried once with her, and she stopped him cold. But he persisted and persisted. It seemed like he was on a mission with her.

So they dated, but in secret. At the time, Judith thought it best. Not that they were trying to hide their relationship. No, she just want to reveal anything to the others until she and Mark were solid. That only lasted so long.

One day, Mark spent the night, one of many. But this time, the next morning Lana called to see what Judith had planned for the rest of the weekend. She was in the shower, so Mark answered the phone. He claimed he absentmindedly answered, not really thinking. It was in the early morning hours, so it didn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out what happened.

Judith tried to explain, not only to Lana but to Terri also. She felt she betrayed both of them. But the real betrayal was yet to come. Mark was making his rounds with all of them, and no one was the wiser.

She was such a fool. She swore to herself never to trust another man, no matter how good he seemed. And it wasn’t just the fact that her friends turned on her, but she felt that she failed them, too. She should have been honest in the first place. She should have been a better friend and followed her first mind. These were her first real friends after high school and she hoped to have a lifetime relationship with all of them.

But she let her heart speak to her—and Mark—and it all blew up in her face.

It happened a few years before she met Doug.

Doug was an angel. In the ten or so years they’d known each other, she knew he was the exception to the creep factor like Mark. But still, she knew when it came to certain things in life—money, sex, politics, and religion—people that you thought you knew could turn into something quite different.

Judith’s cat, Felix jumped on the edge of the tub and meowed, bringing her back to the present. She felt the sting of tears in the back of her eyes. She couldn’t go through that again. It still hurt. It’s been over eleven years, but the wound was still fresh.

Doug.
He meant everything to her and if that meant denying her true feelings for him and never sleeping with him, so be it.

Did she think he was as callous as Mark? No, but like Terri told her from the beginning, men change after they get what they want, no matter how well you know them or how long. Men didn’t see sex the same way as women.

She thought that Terri would be in her corner after the fiasco. But it seemed women got pissed at other women for what men did! If a husband cheated on his wife with another woman that didn’t know he was married, the wife went after the woman—not her husband.

How did that work?

Judith had found herself on the losing end of that relationship. Something she didn’t want happening to her and Doug. Their relationship had weathered much worse and survived but Sex, she knew it wouldn’t.

Besides, she loved having a male best friend. It gave Judith the luxury of having a hot guy on her arm without the hang-ups of sexual complications. Male friends gave her a different and sometimes more honest perspective on things.

Doug met her needs emotionally and spiritually. He gave her the strength to get through some of the most trying times in her life. He provided way more than a shoulder to cry on or someone to help demolish a pint of Haagen Dazs on a bad day. He comforted her like she imagined a good friend would do, like a good boyfriend, like a damn good husband.

She didn’t want to lose that. .

Judith started reading one of her many romance novels while soaking in the tub. After reading a few paragraphs, she realized she needed to read something less stimulating, especially with Doug still on her mind and on her lips.

From day one when they met, she fantasized about him.

They met at a local coffee shop and became regulars. It got to the point that when one of them didn’t show up, they would ask the barista if she had seen the other. They ordered each other’s coffees and scones, if the other ran late.

The friendship began to grow. They went from coffee buddies, to lunch buddies, to hanging out after work. Before she knew it, they were at each other’s homes , making plans for Friday evenings and the weekends.

Her other friends didn’t buy the whole “platonic” thing. How could you just be friends with someone that looks like some god out of Greek mythology? You must be doing something and just not telling us, some would say.

She wished.

Six-four of statuesque male beauty, Doug couldn’t be touched in the “fine” department. Not overly muscular, but very lean and ripped, with a six-pack, strong arms and legs that she had the pleasure of ogling when at the beach. A dreamy face with light blue eyes, thick brows, dimples and a smile that lit up a room. His shoulder length, dark brownish hair always had the look of being windblown and unruly. But that fit him perfectly. His locks tickled her cheeks when he hugged her and as she mentioned to him earlier, she loved how it gave him that bad boy appearance.

She couldn’t wait for those hugs. He told her that everyone should be hugged first thing in the morning. So when he picked her up to go to work, he gave her a great big bear hug. Those would be icing on the cake after the dreams she’d had the night before.

She sighed and sat her book aside before smoothing more mango banana bath oil on her skin and reaching for her towel.

“Need help with that?”

Judith jerked up, splashing water all over the floor. “Doug, I thought you went home.”

He strolled in the bathroom and took a seat on the edge of the tub. “I was going to, but then I got to thinking.”

“About what?” Judith tried to cover herself with bubbles, but found none.

“About us.” He stood, took off his shirt and tossed it aside before reaching for his belt, not once taking his gaze off her. “I want us to stop introducing ourselves as best friends. I want to say, this is my woman and I want you to say this is my man.”

“B-but we never even really kissed, except for an hour ago.” Her body started trembling both from fear and anticipation.

That she knew of, Doug had never seen her nude before, not even by accident. She scooted down more in the water.

“And I loved it, and I know you did too.” His pants were off and he stood before her naked. Her mouth went dry at her first glimpse of
him
au naturale. Strong, powerful and imposing, Doug’s body could put the Statue of David to shame. His legs, long and muscular, his six-pack looked solid, and his chest just beckoning for her to lay her head upon it.

Judith looked into Doug’s eyes and saw that same hunger andand desire. Desire for her. She felt...sexy, feminine. To think, she brought this out in him.

Doug stepped into the tub and sat opposite of her. “Now, let me do what I always wanted to do.”

“What’s that?”

“Make love to you in the tub.”

Boy oh boy!

Doug got in the tub, repositioned himself so his legs were behind him, then laid his body on hers. Judith loved her roomy jet tub.

The feel of his skin and the mixture of the oils felt so erotic. He must have been feeling the same sensations, because he began rubbing his body up and down over hers.

“Oh, Doug.” She reached for him, grabbed his arms and slid down further in the tub. “You feel so good. I feel like I’m gonna come right now.”

“Not so fast, hon. Your body needs some TLC.”

He reached for her bath oils. “I always loved the smell of this on you. I need to buy you some more.” He poured some of it in his hand and smoothed it over her breast. “I’m going to feast tonight.”

Judith lay there enjoying the feel of Doug’s strong hands massaging her breast. Her nipples got so hard, they ached to the point of unbearable pain. Doug leaned in, took one of her sensitive buds in his mouth and began to suckle.

“Mmm, you taste so sweet, and I don’t mean from the oil.”

Judith scooted up a bit more to balance herself better. She took one hand and rubbed it over the hard body of her best friend. “God, you feel so good.” The water and oils made the muscles in his body an erotic journey for her hand.

He looked up at her and smiled. His mouth went to her other breast, applying a bit more pressure. Doug couldn’t hide his excitement; she felt his hard cock against her thigh.

“Let’s see how these oils work in more...intimate areas.” Doug sat up, took the bottle of oil, and poured some in his hand. “Spread your legs.”

She did. Doug looked down and thought a moment. Then he reached down in the water and grabbed her left leg. “Put your hands on to the sides.”

After some adjusting in the tub and regaining her balance, Doug took her legs and propped them up on the edge of the tub. “Comfy?”

She nodded. She never felt so vulnerable and open to him—literally.

“Good.” With a wicked grin, he spread the oil between the folds of her pussy.

“Oooh, Doug!” She didn’t know which made her respond with such intensity—being touched in such an intimate area, or being touched by her best male friend? The same man she had lattes with in the morning. The same friend that made her laugh while watching bad movies.