Insatiable by Opal Carew

could Brent continue his friendship with Evan? How could she?
    He squeezed her hand, then moved away. He poured some of the steaming hot coffee into his cup and took a sip, then placed the mug on the counter. “As soon as Brent gets up, I can pack the rest of my stuff,” Evan said. “Unless you’d rather I go right away.”
    Oh, God, the problem was, she didn’t want him to go. And she had a sinking feeling that if he went through that door now, she’d never see him again.
    She stared at him, unable to utter a word, her heart tearing in two.
    He loved her. And as much as she loved Brent, she knew she was falling in love with Evan, too. She didn’t want him to walk out of her life altogether. Her heart ached at the thought she might never see him again.
    Sure, she’d almost married Brent, but he’d walked away and … maybe he wasn’t the right man for her. Maybe Evan was. If she let Evan leave now, she’d never know.
    If she let him walk out now, she could be making the biggest mistake of her life.
    “Crystal? Do I leave now or later?”
    She shook her head and set down her coffee mug. “I don’t want you to go at all.”
    She stepped toward him and caressed his raspy cheeks, then pushed up on her tiptoes and pressed her lips to his. He hesitated, and she feared he would draw away, but then he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her tight to his body. Although she had initiated the kiss, his mouth claimed hers with passion, his lips hard on hers. His tongue glided along the seam of her mouth, then pressed inside. She opened, welcoming him, her body sizzling with desire for this man.
    At the sound of a clearing throat, Crystal dodged back from Evan. Oh, God, Brent stood in the doorway, staring at them. Guilt surged through her as she glanced at Brent, then away.
    The ensuing silence grated on her nerves and sent the tension level in the room skyrocketing. God, she didn’t know what to say.
    Finally, after what seemed like forever, Brent broke the silence.
    “You’ll notice I’m not leaving.” He folded his arms across his chest. “I intend to fight for you.”
    “No need,” Evan said. “We were just saying good-bye.”
    Evan walked across the room and picked up his suitcase, which was sitting by the table.
    “I’ll go pack the rest of my stuff and be on my way.”
    Crystal glanced from one to the other, her stomach clenching. If she didn’t say something … if Evan walked out that door …
    Evan stepped through the kitchen doorway to the hall.
    “Wait,” she cried.
    Evan stopped and turned around. Brent sent her a sharp glance.
    “We can’t let him go,” she said.
    Brent’s eyebrow arched. “I have absolutely no problem letting him go.”
    At his wry tone, Crystal swallowed. How could she tell Brent she wanted Evan to stay? Of course he didn’t want Evan hanging around. He saw him as competition.
    And he was competition.
    But she had to remember that it wasn’t just Brent’s happiness on the line here. It was hers, too. And Evan’s. And it was important that she get this right. She shouldn’t just fall back into her relationship with Brent because he wanted her to. Maybe she should want to, especially after a two-year relationship and her promise to marry him. But life wasn’t as simple as that. Brent walking out on her opened her eyes to some things. One, that she had strong feelings for Evan. And two, that maybe Brent wasn’t the rock she’d come to believe him to be.
    “I know you want Evan to leave. That you want to spend the next two weeks alone with me. I know you want to talk about what happened so we can get past it and move forward with our relationship.” She couldn’t bring herself to mention marriage. There was too much uncertainty inside her.
    At the sour expression on his face, she realized that he didn’t want to talk about it at all.
    Right, he’s a guy. What was I thinking?
    “But … I’m afraid that…” She hesitated. “If Evan goes back now…” She