Best Friends (3 page)

“Well, we’re going to arrest him, so hopefully you’ll have a few days of peace at least.” I felt bad that I couldn’t promise her more. But I didn’t know the guy’s record, and it all depended on what judge he dealt with. Some of them would fine guys like this and some of them would throw them in jail.

“Thanks for coming all the same.” She turned and went back inside, slamming the door behind her.

I slid into the car and gave the perp in the back a stern look. “If he’s done this more than once, he should be charged with aggravated stalking.”

“I agree.” Cheyanne slipped the car into drive and headed to the station. “But it’s not up to me.”

The rest of the calls during the day were pretty mundane. Some petty thefts and a bunch of druggies in cars getting blow jobs from hookers. Sometimes the seediness of the job got to me. I wanted to make a difference in my town, but days like this I felt like it was a losing battle. For every scumbag we pulled in two more seemed to pop up. It was like a masochistic game of Whack-a-mole.

After work Cheyanne and I headed to our favorite watering hole called Frankie’s. All the guys met up there after work when they wanted a drink. The place was old school with dark paneling and vinyl booths. Frankie’s had been around so long there were pictures of Rock Hudson and Errol Flynn on the wall by the door, signed and everything.

Malcolm was already sitting at the bar when we came in. My stomach clenched with lust at the sight of him, which was something new. I was always happy to see my best friend, but I wasn’t usually horny the second I laid eyes on him. As I approached I was positive his gaze swept over my body. There was a funny look in his eyes as I stopped next to him.

“Hey.” He sounded breathless.

I squeezed his shoulder, and the warmth in my gut intensified at the feel of his hard muscles under the thin layer of his T-shirt. “Did you just get here?” I tried not to fixate on his sexy mouth, but it wasn’t easy.

“Yeah.” He pushed a beer toward me. “I already ordered yours.”

“Thanks.” Our fingers brushed as I took my glass. A tingle zipped up my arm, straight to my chest. I kept my face blank, hoping no one could sense the excitement buzzing through my body.

“Cheyanne, what can I get you to drink?” Malcolm asked my partner.

“I’m in a gin and tonic kind of mood.” She slapped his back and sat on the other side of him. “Thanks.”

Malcolm ordered her drink and I sat beside him, allowing my leg to rest next to his. I couldn’t seem to help myself. I felt like I needed to touch him in some way in order to relax. He didn’t move away. If anything he pressed closer, giving me a hooded look. The memory of his lips on my cock took over everything in my head. My heart rate kicked up at the thought of him coming in my mouth, and I swallowed wrong and choked on my beer.

I guess some things were easier to swallow than others
.

Malcolm slapped my back, and I winced. I finally stopped coughing, and I sucked in a breath and laughed. “Thanks. You can stop hitting me now.”

He grinned and switched to rubbing my back, which did nothing to make my hardening erection go down. What was wrong with me? This was my best buddy. We only did what we did because we were bored and horny. It was a one-time deal. I needed to chill out and get back to the friend zone with Malcolm.

“How was your shift?” he asked. Something seemed to smolder deep in his gaze as he watched me.

“Depressing, as usual.” I ignored the fluttering in my gut.
Friends don’t get a hard-on just because their buddy looks at them. Get a grip.

“I keep telling him he should have been a dog groomer. It would have been less stressful,” Cheyanne teased with a smirk over Malcolm’s shoulder.

“Dogs don’t like me,” I said, giving her a fake dirty look.

“Everybody loves you, C.” Malcolm’s tone was velvety.

“
Ha
. That’s a good one.” I shook my head, then took another sip of my drink. The heat of his leg next to mine was distracting.

A girl came wandering up and, big surprise, she stopped next to Malcolm. She was hot: big boobs, curvy hips and long, tanned legs. She had a pretty face too, full lips and bright blue eyes. She ran her red-tipped fingers through her long blonde hair and sighed. “Is it hot in here or is it just me?” She smiled coyly, and Malcolm turned toward her, slipping his arm around her waist.

“It’s definitely you,” he purred.

The irritation I felt at the two of them flirting was unreasonable. Irrational. But that pulsing annoyance was still trapped in my chest like a hot air balloon.
He’s your friend. His sex life is none of your fucking business, stupid.
In fact I should have been trying to find a girl to screw instead of worrying about who my friend might fuck. I scanned the immediate area. There were a few girls that were pretty, and they even had great bodies. But I couldn’t seem to drum up any interest in pursuing them. I told myself they probably wouldn’t be into me anyway.

Cheyanne met my ill-tempered gaze and she arched one brow. “Everything okay?” she mouthed.

I shrugged and turned my attention to my beverage, studiously trying to ignore Malcolm and the girl. I’d seen my buddy work his magic on many a woman. Why was tonight so annoying to me? Every time the two of them laughed stridently it made my jaw clench.

The blonde was giggling louder now and touching Malcolm every chance she got. I guess I couldn’t blame her. He just had that effect on women. I shifted my leg from his, feeling pissy. He gave me a frown when I moved away, and he seemed to focus on me suddenly.

“What’s wrong?”

I shook my head, meeting the gaze of the girl currently wrapping herself around him like a shawl. “Nothing. Who said anything was wrong?”

“Hey, you want me to get you a girl too?” the blonde asked, leaning in to whisper in my ear.

I flushed and gave a hard shake of my head. “I’m more than capable of handling that myself,” I grumbled.

She held up her hands, smiling. “Don’t get mad. You just seem kind of shy.”

“That isn’t shyness,” Cheyanne said under her breath with a laugh.

“I have a couple of girlfriends who like the silent type.” The blonde winked at me.

“No, thanks.” You could have scrambled an egg on my cheeks they were so hot.

Malcolm was watching our interaction with a weird look on his face. “Yeah, C. can get his own women. You don’t need to help him,” he said softly.

“I’m going to get some air.” I stood and downed my beer quickly. Then I wiped my mouth and headed for the back exit. The cool, damp air of the night filled my lungs, calming me a bit.

Behind the bar were the usual dumpsters and trash cans. But there was a little park area about ten feet away with grass and tall, thin aspens. It was a strange little oasis in the middle of all these buildings. In the old days I’d have had a cigarette over there by those trees, but I’d quit years ago. I still got that urge to light up, though, whenever I stepped out here. I made my way to the small grove of trees and sat on a rock, feeling depressed.

When the back door opened, a skip of excitement passed through me as I recognized Malcolm. He looked around and, spotting me, he approached with long, graceful strides.

“Why are you out here?” he asked, sounding puzzled.

“I needed to get out of there. It was too stuffy.” I avoided his glittery gaze, and somehow even in the dark his stare managed to be intense.

“Is something wrong?”

Yeah, I don’t like that girl hanging on you
. I couldn’t say that, now could I? I shouldn’t even be thinking that. It made no sense. We’d gone out and picked up girls all our life together. Why would it be any different now?

“Nope. Life is perfect.” Okay, maybe that was laying it on a little thick.

“I know you too well. What’s bothering you?” His tone was coaxing and he knelt down in front of me.

His cologne filled my nostrils, bringing back memories of our night together at the convention. My chest tightened and I caught my breath. “I’m in a weird mood.”

He snorted. “Yeah, no kidding.”

“You didn’t have to follow me out. I’m fine.”

“Something’s bugging you and I want to know what it is.”

I swallowed nervously. “It’s just the usual stuff, Malcolm. I’ll be fine.”

Narrowing his eyes, he looked confused. Then he blinked a couple of times and straightened. “Well, I’m probably taking that chick home with me. You want to find a girl and we can double?”

We’d done that a million times. Take two girls home and fuck them. It was no biggie to us. We were best buds. We did everything together. Why tonight did I feel like throwing up at the thought of it? I was not even
remotely
interested in sex with some girl tonight. What was more worrisome was I was bothered by the concept of watching
him
sink his dick into a woman.

I stood abruptly, and on trembling legs headed toward my car. “Nah. Sorry. You have to fly solo on the pussy front tonight, dude.”

“C.,” he called after me, sounding frustrated. “What the fuck is wrong?”

I just waved at him and sank into the safety of my car. Then I tore out of the parking lot like the gay police were gonna get me and headed home alone.

Chapter Three

The next few weeks zipped by. I found myself checking out other guys to see if it sparked anything inside of me. I mean, if I was now into Malcolm sexually, it made sense I might be attracted to other guys. But other men conjured none of the strong feelings I’d experienced with Malcolm. I avoided Frankie’s until I could get a handle on what was going on with me and Malcolm. I was embarrassed and afraid that if I hung out with him too much he’d figure out I had issues. I didn’t want to have issues. I wanted everything to go back to how it had been before. But I didn’t know how to make that happen. I now seemed to have the memory of that one sexual encounter with Malcolm burned for all eternity in my brain. But he seemed fine, as if he’d easily forgotten it ever happened.

There was an uptick in crime in our area. The only good part about that was I was able to grab lots of overtime. That made my not hanging out at Frankie’s bar more relatable. Anyone could understand that if I was working a ton of extra shifts I didn’t have time to get drunk and chase girls. And most of my coworkers didn’t even seem to notice I wasn’t around much. But Cheyanne and Malcolm noticed.

“Please come by for one drink.” Cheyanne was walking into the station with me after the end of our shift. “I’m not saying you have to stay all night, but today’s Sandy’s birthday. You’re gonna hurt her feelings if you don’t even show up at all.”

I laughed. “She has no idea who I am.”

“I’m sure that’s not true.” Pursing her lips, she fiddled absentmindedly with her holster.

Holding the station door open for her, I said, “She calls me Carl. She doesn’t even know my name.” The door hissed closed behind us.

“What? No. She told me to invite you.” I noticed she avoided my gaze, choosing instead to stare at a large rubber plant near the front desk.

“Be honest. Did she use my actual name?”

Cheyanne blushed. “Well, I knew who she meant.”

I stopped in the middle of the front lobby, and my shoes squeaked on the linoleum floor. “I’m right, aren’t I? She called me Carl?”

“She’s not good with names. So what?” She seemed to be squashing a smile.

Shaking my head, I said, “I can’t come tonight. You just need to accept that.”

“You mean you won’t.”

I shrugged. “I’m exhausted.” I hadn’t been sleeping well and I felt too tired to go make small talk and pretend I wasn’t miserable. Besides, if Malcolm was there it would be difficult to pretend nothing had happened between us.

Her gaze softened. “I wish you’d tell me what’s bothering you.”

I raked a hand through my hair. “I’m
fine
.” I started walking again. I knew I could trust Cheyanne, but I just wasn’t ready to bare my soul to anyone. What had transpired between me and Malcolm was embarrassing and confusing.

She tucked her blonde hair behind her ear and followed. “You haven’t been to Frankie’s in forever. People are starting to talk.”

“Let them. I don’t care.”

“I’m a good problem solver. But I can’t help if I don’t know what’s wrong.”

I stopped walking again and threw my hands in the air. “Nothing is wrong. Jesus. You need to get married or something so you can nag someone else for a change.” I regretted my words the minute they flew out.

Her mouth dropped open and she pulled her brows together. “Excuse me for giving a shit about you.” Scowling, she went in the opposite direction, her spine straight and her chin lifted.

“Cheyanne, wait,” I called after her, but she ignored me.

Feeling like a jerk, I headed toward my locker. I’d apologize to her later. She was only trying to be nice and I should remember that. Normal people wanted their friends to be interested. I needed to try and be more like that instead of biting people’s heads off because they showed concern. After showering, I changed into my civilian clothes, then headed home feeling tired and grumpy.

I had just enough energy to open a can of vegetable soup for dinner. Stirring the small pot while sipping on a glass of red wine, I gave my phone sitting on the counter a nervous glance. There were a bunch of missed calls from Malcolm. Sooner or later I needed to respond. He didn’t like being ignored.

When the doorbell rang I groaned. With my luck it was a pack of roving Jehovah Witnesses hoping to convert me. I wondered what they’d have to say to me if they knew I’d sucked my best friend’s dick the other day.

Sighing, I went to open the door. My stomach somersaulted when I found Malcolm on my doorstep with a six-pack of beer and a big pizza. He looked nervous, which was highly unusual for my confident friend. “I came by to see if you were dead or just avoiding me.”

I wasn’t used to feeling butterflies in my gut at the sight of my pal. God, he looked so good in a pair of fitted jeans and a yellow T-shirt that clung to his muscled body. Since when did I notice that kind of shit about him? “Unfortunately, I’m mostly alive.”