Just One Night(43)
Riley reached out and patted her friend on the knee. “Says the woman who’s
getting plenty regularly.”
“I’m serious,” Grace replied, “I know you love Stiletto, but you don’t have to do
anything you’re not ready for for the sake of this article—”
Riley’s mind flashed back to the feeling of Sam’s hands on her. The sound of their
moans mingling as they finally—finally figured out what the other person wanted.
Needed.
“Grace,” Riley interrupted. “I’m ready. Seriously ready. When Sam and I were …
you know … busy, I thought I was going to explode.”
“Yeah, I’m horny as hell myself these days, and it’s only been a year for me,”
Emma said.
Grace looked at her curiously. “A year? What’s that about?”
Emma shrugged and picked at a mushroom on her plate. “Sex just got sort of
disappointing there for a while. I thought I’d take a break.”
“But it wasn’t always disappointing,” Julie said, fishing.
Emma hesitated before answering. “Not always. In fact, it used to be pretty great.”
Grace and Riley exchanged a mischievous glance. “Saaaay … when you were
with Cassidy?”
Emma’s lips pressed together in a firm line. “No comment.”
Julie sighed and helped herself to a bite of Riley’s tiramisu. “One of these days,
you will spill your guts about what happened with you and the deliciously sexy
Alex Cassidy.”
“Who apparently set the bar way too high when it came to sex,” Riley said,
wiggling her eyebrows.
“Back off, McKenna. This evening’s session is about you. We need a plan.
Something to convince Sam that Riley’s worth all this trouble.”
“Hey!”
“Oh no,” Grace groaned. “Last time Emma had a plan, I ended up secretly
videotaping a man in a restaurant.”
“A man who just moved in with you,” Emma said triumphantly.
“She’s got a point,” Julie said. “That stunt in the restaurant with Jake was kind of
the start of a pretty epic love story.”
“I know,” Grace said with a smug little smile.
Riley raised her hand. “We can have both, right? Epic love and a good orgasm.”
“I bet Sam gives great orgasms,” Julie said with a dreamy expression.
“Hands off,” Riley said, stabbing a fork in Julie’s direction before turning back to
Emma. “You. Talk.”
“Okay,” Emma said, rubbing her palms over her thighs as her face scrunched up
in consideration. “You said that he responded to you bringing that Brent guy over
to your family’s house, right? Like the jealousy spurred him into action.”
“Sure, but he also called me on it,” Riley admitted. “That card has definitely
already been played, and I don’t think he’ll go for it a second time.”
“Which is why we’re not going to play the jealousy card.”
“But that’s a classic,” Julie protested.
Emma shook her head. “Sam is smart and determined, and even worse, he
knows Riley. We can’t dress her up in sexy clothes, because he’s seen that and
has managed to keep his hands to himself—mostly. And we can’t parade another
guy in front of him, because even if he fell for it, it might backfire and reassure
him that she’s moved on.”
“So the plan is …”
“We give him exactly what he wants,” Emma said, a satisfied little smile on her
calm features.
“But what he wants is for me to go back to being a little-sister figure who won’t
come between him and his best friend,” Riley protested.
“Exactly,” Emma said, leaning forward. “And you’re about to become the best
platonic little buddy he’s ever wanted and can’t touch.”
“Oh, I like this plan,” Julie breathed. “He’s been trying for years to eradicate the
sexual tension between Riley and himself. But I’ll bet he never thought he’d
succeed.”
“What good does this do me?” Riley asked, trying to keep up. “I want us to
become less platonic, not more.”
“Well, that’s the thing about men,” Grace said, catching on to the plan.
“Sometimes they’re so determined to get what they want that they don’t realize
they were wrong.”
Emma lifted her glass in a victory toast. “Yep. And when he thinks the sexual
sizzle between you two is completely gone, guess what?”
Riley smiled in awe, finally understanding. “Once it’s gone, he’ll want it back.”