JJ
Miller and I didn’t meet under ideal circumstances. Honestly, I’m not even sure how I noticed him while I fought with Grayson Wright over a stupid comment I’d made to his boyfriend and my longtime friend, Chase, about why he’d been promoted so fast at Wright Creations. The whole fight had happened fast, but when it was over and the dust had settled, I found myself looking into the lightest blue eyes I had ever seen. Those eyes twinkled with mischief and captivated me right away. I would have introduced myself to him right then, but Jack Murphy forcefully escorted me out of his bar. Damn him and his cock-blocking ways.
My split lip throbbed, and my heart ached painfully in my chest as I walked to my car in the dark. Once again, I had lashed out at the only person in the world who meant anything to me.Why?If I was honest with myself, and I always tried to be, I’d have admitted I’d reacted out of fear. My hurtful comment had been a knee-jerk reaction and a self-defense mechanism I had perfected over the years. If I lost Chase, then I’d have no one.So why not push him away and get it over with?
“Hey! Your wallet fell out of your suit jacket.”
The unfamiliar voice was deep, a little raspy, and very sexy. I turned to see who it belonged to and found myself looking into the twinkling blue eyes I had noticed in the bar. I allowed myself a minute to admire the rest of his physical attributes. He was tall and lean, and he walked toward me with an almost predatory gait. The sexy stranger exuded confidence and sensuality that I wanted to sample for myself. His blond hair shone under the streetlights when he passed beneath them. I just knew the strands would feel silky between my fingers, and I imagined gripping his hair while he sucked me off with his lush mouth.
“It must have flown out when Gray knocked you off your stool.” He said this with a bit of snark and familiarity that let me know he was acquainted with Chase’s boyfriend. “Although, you got a few good hits in yourself, Jagger.” He must have opened my wallet, looked at my license, and saw my name.
I’d hated my name since I was old enough to realize it was odd, which was probably around the time I started school. The other kids mercilessly made fun of it, and I had heard enough snotty remarks about my mom’s character and the reason I had the name to last me a lifetime. No kid should hear stuff like “I bet his mom was a groupie, and he knocked her up” or “No way Mick would tap that nasty ass. God only knows where it’s been.”
Somehow, hearing my name roll off the beautiful blond stranger’s tongue made it seem less offensive to me. There was no derision in his tone or in his expression. I only saw the same curiosity I felt about him reflected back at me. Even in the dim light, his eyes sparkled and implored me to be a little bad. I felt the effect of his crooked smile in the pit of my stomach and my groin. “I go by JJ,” I told him.
His head tilted to the side as he studied me closely. “That doesn’t suit you either.”
“It doesn’t?”Who was this guy?
“No. That’s the kind of name you give a boy, andyouare definitely all man.” My body heat rose as his perusal continued. My flesh tingled from head to toe as if he’d touched me everywhere instead of just looking at me. “I think Jag suits you better.”
“Jag?” I scoffed a little. I couldn’t help myself. No one had ever questioned what I wanted to be called, but this guy was.Arrogant much?“And just who might you be? It’s obvious you know Clark.” I liked to use Clark instead of Grayson because that was what Chase had called Gray until he’d learned his real name. It irritated Gray, which worked out pretty nicely for me.
“Clark? Oh, yeah.” The blond shrugged slightly. “I can see the resemblance to Clark Kent.” The mysterious man walked closer and held out my wallet to me, which I accepted and slid into my suit coat pocket. “My name is Miller Brexler. I’m Gray’s best friend. You must be Chase’s best friend whom I’ve heard so much about.” He tilted his head and raked his gaze over me again. “And his former fuck buddy.”
“Yeah, that’s me.”
“What are you going to do now since that avenue is closed?” Miller asked.
“Do you meanwhoam I going to be doing? Are you looking for a dial-a-dick friend, Miller?” I had gotten close enough to feel his body heat, but I couldn’t say when exactly that had happened. It was as if my body had moved of its own volition, reacting to the chemistry between us. “Would you like to submit a résumé?” Miller’s nostrils flared slightly, which told me I wasn’t the only one who felt the connection.
“As tempting as I find the idea, I think I’d better pass.” He raised his hand as if to touch me but let it fall back to his side instead. “I think us hooking up might complicate things for our friends and their budding romance.”
I released a deep breath, unaware I had been holding it. Had I wanted him to say yes or no? I’d just met the guy, and it wasn’t like he had the only available ass in town. Still, I felt a keen disappointment over his answer, even though I knew he was right.
“All right, then,” I said.” It was nice to meet you, Miller. I’m sure our paths will cross again.”
That crooked smile of his reappeared, making me want to kiss it clean off his face. “Definitely. Drive safely, Jag. I’m going to head back inside to make sure Gray doesn’t get into any more fights.” Miller walked backward a few steps like he wasn’t ready to look away from me yet. He offered me one last crooked smile before he turned around and headed back to the bar.
I turned and began walking to my car, even though I wanted to continue to watch him. His subtle reminder about my scuffle with Gray had brought me back to reality and reminded me how much I had hurt Chase. The self-loathing I felt was enough to erase the warm tingly feelings Miller had given me.
I pulled out my phone once I reached my car and tapped out an apology text to Chase. I’d hurt him deeply and regretted the awful thing I’d insinuated. I expected Chase to ignore me for a few days, but he made me suffer for a few weeks before taking pity on me. We hashed things out and I found myself on equal footing once more, except when my mind conjured up images of Miller and his baby blues. It happened more than I liked, and I chalked it up to him being a forbidden fruit I’d never get to sink my teeth into.
Oh, how I wanted to, though.
Miller
Ifound myself in uncharted territory once Gray met and fell in love with Chase. Even when Gray had been in a long-term relationship with Devon the douche, he’d still made time for us to hang out. After he and Preston had started their own company, our buddy time had been reduced but not nixed completely. But that all changed when he fell in love. Now, his whole world revolved around Chase and the private time he could carve out for them.
At first, I was concerned he was rushing into another relationship too soon. Gray had been miserable during the last several years of his relationship with Devon, so any good friend would worry. Then I’d met Chase and really gotten to know him, and I could easily see why Gray was so enraptured with the guy. He was sweet, funny, and loved Gray so much I knew I could rest easy.
Gray had found his happily ever after; the kind that sorta made me gag because it’s almost too sweet, but at the same time, I couldn’t help but envy it just a teeny-tiny bit. I never really got caught up in the one-guy-forever concept because I didn’t think I’d ever findthatguy—the one I’d want to look at every single day for the rest of my life, forsaking all other tight asses until death do us part. I just didn’t see monogamy working for me.
I missed hanging out with Gray, but I understood things had changed, and I needed to adapt or get left behind. That’s how I found myself joining a summer basketball league with a bunch of strangers, albeit some super sexy ones. I had a thing for basketball shorts and the way they hung on a man’s body. I loved how the silky fabric draped over the round curve of a man’s ass then hung loosely over his thighs. It made me want to slide my hands beneath the shorts to feel the hard length of their hamstrings and quadriceps. I was a complete sucker for a set of toned legs. My eyes locked on a particularly scrumptious specimen on the opposite side of the court. I had played against several teams over the summer, but I was positive I hadn’t played against him. There was something familiar about the sexy stranger.
I couldn’t see his face because he had his back to me, stretching in preparation for the game. The fabric of his navy-blue shorts pulled tight against his ass as he stretched his hamstrings and calves. I found myself so completely distracted by his tall, lean body that I forgot my team had begun passing drills until a basketball hit me in the head.
“Miller, are you all right?” Josh, one of my cute teammates, asked.
