Not exactly unthinkable, really. As they stood there in his kitchen, she realized how gorgeous he was. Tall and muscular with dark bedroom eyes and a strong jaw and amazing forearms and long legs.
She’d been thrown off the horse, metaphorically speaking. Getting back on was the best thing she could do for herself right now. Easing the pain of rejection by having a revenge fling would make her feel better. And who better to do that with than with Owen’s best friend? Wouldn’t that dig the knife in perfectly?
“So let’s just say that I wanted to have a no-strings fling. Would you be game?”
“No.”
Okay, that was an abrupt answer. She pursed her lips and studied him. “Why? Because you’re Owen’s best friend and concerned about his feelings?”
“His feelings? Trust me, I’m as angry with Owen as you are right now. He’s my friend, but I’m pissed at what he did to you, Erin. But fucking me isn’t going to make you feel better.”
“It might. And I want to do it with someone I trust. Someone I know won’t hurt me.”
He pushed off the counter and came over to her, stopping just inches away from her. “You’d risk losing our lifelong friendship for what? So you can ease some ache that isn’t going to get any better by having sex?”
He had a point. She valued her friendship with Jason and wouldn’t want to do anything to lose that. But at the same time, she wanted to hurt Owen. And doing Jason? That would hurt her ex-fiancé in a major way.
“I’d be using you,” she said.
“Yes.”
“Does that hurt your feelings?”
He paused before answering, and she wondered why.
“No. But I’m more concerned about your feelings. Your heart. Haven’t you been hurt enough?”
“This won’t hurt me, Jason. Because my heart won’t be involved.”
“Right. Because you don’t care about me.”
She laid her hand on his chest, feeing the rock-hard muscle there, along with the rapid beating of his heart. “I do care about you. I’ve always cared about you. Just . . . not that way, if you know what I mean.”
“Yeah, I know what you mean.” He took her hand and wrapped both of his around it. His fingers felt warm and powerful surrounding hers, and she realized how much she needed to feel . . . wanted.
He put her hand down. “I’ll think about it. In the meantime, I should drive you home.”
She nodded, trying not to show the disappointment she felt. “Sure.”
He didn’t say much on the drive back to the house, then dropped her off in front. She slid out of the truck.
“Thanks for taking care of me last night.”
“No problem,” he said.
She lingered, her hand on the open truck door, not knowing what to say, but not wanting to say good-bye just yet.
“So . . . you’ll think about it and let me know?”
“Yeah. I’ll think about it. See you later, Erin.”
“Okay. Bye.”
She shut the door and walked up the steps, realizing he was waiting there until she went inside. With a sigh, she opened the door and walked in, then peeked through the glass to watch him drive away.
Okay, so she’d planted the seed. With a little push, she knew she could get him there. Not that she was irresistible or anything, but she and Jason were lifelong friends. He’d come around in time. And if he didn’t, well, that’d be okay, too.
She just wanted some fun. She deserved that, didn’t she?
She went up to her room, grateful not to find her wedding dress hanging prominently on her closet door anymore. After sending up a mental thank-you to her mom or sisters for removing the dress, she stripped and climbed into the shower, scrubbing away last night’s makeup and hangover. When she got out, she combed out her hair and changed into a clean pair of leggings and a T-shirt, then dried her hair and went downstairs.
It was nearly lunchtime, which was good because she was starving.
“You’re home,” Brenna said, coming up to hug her. “Where did you go last night?”
“Jason’s house.”
Honor came up behind her and put an arm around her. “Are you all right?”
“I’m fine. A little tired and worn out, but I’m good.”
“She stayed with Jason last night,” Brenna said.
Honor’s brows rose.
“I stayed at Jason’s house last night,” Erin corrected. “I did not sleep with him. Unfortunately.”
Brenna frowned. “Unfortunately?”
“Yes. I’m trying to plan a revenge fling, and Jason is being uncooperative.”
They made their way into the dining room, where her mother and father were already seated. Erin turned to her sisters. “We’ll discuss this after lunch.”
The last thing she wanted was to have a conversation about sex—or her wanting sex—with her parents in the room.
Her mom hugged her. “You look rested.”
“I passed out on Jason’s couch. With his dog. Puddy and I slept there all night.”
Her dad laughed. “Puddy is a fine pit bull puppy.”
“Well, he cuddles like a champion, that’s for sure.”
Her mother patted her cheek. “I’m glad you got some rest. Still, there are dark circles under your eyes.”
Nothing like brutal honesty from your mom. “Probably from all the stress and crying, which I’m now over.”
“Are you?” her mom asked.
“Yes. Now we put Owen and all the wedding nonsense behind us, and we move forward.”
Her dad made a harrumphing noise. “Until that boy shows his face in town again, and then he and I will have a conversation.”
Erin sighed. “Dad, please.”
“He needs a talking-to. Or a swift kick in the ass.”
“No, he needs to be ignored. By all of us. For the rest of his life.”
“Let it go for now,” Erin’s mother said.
She wanted to argue, but then Louise, their cook, brought out lunch, and food took precedence. She dove in and ate, glad to have her appetite back after days of not wanting to eat. She stuffed herself with salad and ham and vegetables until she could barely move. When she was finished, she went outside to walk it off, relieved to have another day off to allow herself some breathing space before she had to go back to work tomorrow.
Her sisters came up on either side of her.
“Okay, so about Jason,” Brenna said.
“Yes,” Honor said. “We were just getting to the good part when Mom and Dad came in.”
She knew her sisters weren’t going to let that go.
“There is no good part. We ate fried chicken, then I propositioned him. He said no.”
“Why did he say no?” Brenna asked.
“This morning he told me that we’ve been friends since we were kids, and he doesn’t want to do anything to ruin that.”
“Aww,” Honor said. “That’s sweet.”
“And honorable,” Brenna said.
“Yeah, whatever.” Erin would have rather had great revenge sex last night.
They walked along the side of the house toward the backyard, heading toward the gazebo. It had always been their sanctuary, a place where no business was conducted and no guests were allowed. Erin often took her lunch break out here, especially in the spring, when it was finally warm outside and the flowers were up and the grass was green again.