Free Game on by Cheryl Douglas Page A

that so? “Ryan said, grabbing her
wrists and flipping her onto her back with her arms pinned above her head. “You
wanna try sayin’ that again?”
    “I’m not afraid of you.”
    “Oh yeah?” He looked up at Lena. “Maybe you
better tell her how dangerous I can be.”
    Lena laughed as she reached for Dom’s hand
to lead him up the stairs. “Stay strong, Bri.”
    When it was just the two of them, the
energy in the room seemed to shift. Their breathing became labored as Ryan’s growing
arousal pressed into the V of her open legs.
    “What’re you doing?” she whispered.
    He released her hands, but didn’t move.
    “Ry…”
    “Sssh,” he said, lowering his body on top
of her. He brushed the hair off her face and stared into her eyes. “Have I told
you how beautiful you are?”
    She couldn’t breathe when he looked at her
like that. Ever since the first time he’d kissed her, the kiss she spent years
trying to forget, she always wondered whether he would try again and whether it
would be as explosive as the first time.
    “I love that perfume,” he said, positioning
his face in the crook of her neck.
    “You should; you bought it for me.” The
words sounded breathy when he started skimming his lips over the delicate skin
at the base of her neck. Almost of their own volition, her arms circled his
neck, holding him prisoner. “This is a bad idea,” she whispered, tipping her
head back and suppressing a moan when his tongue found its target. “We’re in
your parents’ house.”
    Ryan chuckled as his hand moved beneath her
thin cotton shirt to cup her breast. “You think this is the first time I’ve
made out in my parents’ basement?”
    She couldn’t suppress her smile. He was so
outrageous, and she loved everything about him, from his sense of humour to the
way he stood by his brother when he was going through a tough time. If only
they didn’t stand to lose so much by exploring their obvious attraction for one
another. Ryan was the best friend she’d ever had, and she wouldn’t risk losing
that relationship for anything.
    His mouth hovered just above hers and she
knew he was giving her a chance to stop him from taking this further. She
wanted to, she knew she should, but she told herself she just wanted to satisfy
her curiosity. She needed to know if that first kiss had been so explosive
simply because he’d been drunk and horny, so she could put it out of her mind,
once and for all.
    “Kiss me,” she whispered.
    Ryan growled as he threaded his hands
through her hair and stole her breath in a kiss so intense she never wanted it
to end. Their tongues mingled as he deepened the kiss, mapping her mouth,
taking her further into the abyss of desire than a kiss ever had before. She reached
for the hem of his shirt to pull it over his head when she heard Evan’s voice
like a splash of ice water, dousing her excitement.
    “Shit,” Ryan muttered, reluctantly getting
off of her. “Yeah, we’re down here. What do you want?”
    Evan paused on the bottom step, looking at
both of them before glaring at his brother. “I wanna go. Now!”
    Brianna knew Evan was trying to protect her
from becoming his brother’s next casualty, but in that moment, she wished he’d
never ventured downstairs.

Chapter Seven
    This time it was Ryan who was trying to
block Evan out. No such luck.
    “What the hell were you thinkin’ mixin’ it
up with Bri?”
    I was thinking I want to be intimate with
the woman I love. “It’s none of your business; just stay out of it.”
    “Like hell. Brianna’s like a sister to me.
If you think I’m gonna stand by and watch you treat her like you do all those
other-”
    “Watch it, man.”
    “I’m serious. I never said shit all those
times I saw women comin’ and goin’ from your place like you had a revolvin’
door on your bedroom. But this is different. This is Bri. I love her.”
    “Yeah, so do I.” Ryan knew Evan loved
Brianna like a protective big brother. He would be