Friends & Lovers Trilogy by Bethany Lopez Page A

of coffee.
    Once she’d gotten her caffeine fix, she
looked at the clock and decided that it was late enough to give
Colin a call.
    “’ Lo,” he said gruffly,
answering on the third ring.
    “ Hey, Colin, it’s Bree. You
asked me to give you a call.” Even though that was true, she felt
nervous now that she was talking to him.
    His voice got softer. “Good mornin’. I’m
glad you called. I was just getting dressed, so I didn’t even look
to see who it was before I answered it. I’m happy it’s you.”
    She smiled at his response, and felt herself
grow warm at the thought of him pulling his clothes on after a hot
shower.
    She cleared her throat. “Um… well, I was
wondering if you wanted to do something today. I have to work
tonight, but not until five.”
    “ That would be great. I’m
working later tonight, too, because we have inventory, so that
works out perfectly.”
    Briana swore that she heard a smile in his
voice. “Well,” she began, “I was thinking that I could come over
and make you lunch. I’ll pick up everything at the market, then
come by. Will that work for you?”
    “ That sounds
great.”
    “ Okay, I’ll be there in a
little bit.” She smiled as she disconnected, then ran to the
bathroom so she could shower and get ready. She shaved, lotioned,
and primped. She put on a red sundress with white sandals and blew
her hair dry. She was trying to look effortlessly casual. It took a
lot of work.
    When she finished she headed to the market
and picked up ingredients for Chicken Milano, with fettuccini
noodles, salad, and asparagus. As an afterthought she grabbed a
bottle of red wine, and headed to the register. She really wanted
to impress Colin with this meal.
    When she arrived at his place, she felt
butterflies in her stomach as she carried the bags up the
stairs.
    Before she could knock, the door flew open,
and Colin stood before her, all sexy and smiling. She took in his
bare feet, cargo shorts, and grey T-shirt, before reaching his face
and the flash of dimples. It was all she could do not to sigh and
stare, but she gathered her wits and smiled up at him, lifting the
grocery bags to show him what she’d brought.
    He leaned over and kissed her on the cheek,
as he took the bags from her hands and moved to the side to allow
her access inside.
    “ Hi,” he said as she walked
past him.
    “ Hi,” she said back, her
smile still in place.
    They walked back in to the kitchen and Colin
began taking the items out of the grocery bags. “What do you need
me to do?” he asked when everything was lined up on the
counter.
    “ If you want to start
cutting the vegetables for the salad, I can get started on the main
course. Is it okay if I rummage through your kitchen to find what I
need?”
    “ Sure. Mi casa, es su casa.
My mom loaded it up when I moved in, so I should have everything
that you need.”
    “ Cool.”
    Briana started to prep the chicken. While
she worked, she was conscious of Colin standing next to her
chopping and building the salad. Her body seemed to hum and her
pulse quickened at his nearness. She watched his bicep flex with
every slice of the blade, and started to feel lightheaded.
    She cleared her throat and focused on the
chicken, getting it breaded and placed in the sauce so she could
put it in the oven. Once that was done, she put the pasta water on
to boil.
    “ Do you have a grill?” she
asked.
    He stopped cutting and looked up at her. It
seemed like a current passed through the air, and she knew that he
was as aware of the sexual tension as she was.
    “ Hmm?” he asked. “Did you
say something?”
    She laughed, her eyes blurring a bit as she
met his gaze.
    “ Do you have a grill?” she
asked again.
    “ Yeah. Do you need me to
light it up?” he asked, placing the knife on the cutting board and
waiting for her answer.
    “ Um, yeah.” Her lips felt
as dry as her mouth and she licked them quickly out of habit. His
gaze followed the flick of her tongue and stayed