WhatFriendsAreFor Read online

  “I think I’d have met Clint eventually no matter what,” Mischa said with a smile. “That man was definitely meant for me. But yeah, it worked out better with him and Jonas rooming together in college. Or more importantly, Jonas dragging him back here on some of those breaks from college.”

  “So did you give him any clues about your weekend away?” Dee asked with a snicker as she sliced fruit.

  “Nope,” Mischa replied with a huge grin on her face. “I don’t want him to have any clue what’s planned.” She was quiet for a minute. “I’ve been looking at some of the stuff I bought though, trying to get familiar with how to use them. Have either of you ever used a butt plug?”

  Jacey didn’t miss that fact that Mischa was looking at her when she asked or that Dee immediately looked her way too.

  “I can honestly say that I’ve never used one,” she admitted.

  “But you’ve had anal sex,” Dee blurted.

  Jacey thought of Jonas and how amazing he was. “Yeah, I have.”

  “And you say that like a woman who really, really enjoyed it,” Dee added.

  “I did. I do.” Jacey glanced back out toward Jonas.

  “You two?” Dee asked. “Already?”

  “Oh yeah.” Jacey sighed.

  “Good for you.” Mischa laughed. “Did he rock your world?”

  “My feet still aren’t too steady on the ground,” Jacey admitted.

  “I knew that man would be good for you,” Mischa said.

  “He really is,” Jacey replied. “He’s the most amazing guy. He treats me like I’ve never been treated before. Like I’m special, important.”

  “Well, you are,” Dee added.

  “’Bout time you gave that man a chance to show you how it should be,” Mischa stated.

  “I told him I love him today,” Jacey confessed.

  Dee stopped and got a little teary eyed. She pulled Jacey in for a hard hug. “Oh, Jacey, I’m so happy for you.”

  “I’m glad you finally realized that you love him,” Mischa said with a snort. “I was worried that we might have to hit you over the head with something to wake you the hell up. But then Clint had a better idea.”

  “What?” Jacey asked.

  “He decided to ask a friend from work to push Jonas into going out on a date,” Mischa told them. “A certain redhead who I believe you saw briefly.”

  “Clint set that up?” Jacey asked, in full glare mode.

  “Ohh, he’s good,” Dee said with awe.

  “I told you that man was meant for me,” Mischa said. “And yes, when I told him how aggravated it made me that you just refused to see what was right in front of your eyes, he said that we needed to change the view then. So he asked Bronte, that’s her name, if she would go out with Jonas. He did tell her that she had to make sure Jonas was miserable the whole time, though.”

  “He said she wouldn’t stop talking,” Jacey admitted with a laugh.

  Mischa laughed. “She’s really a great girl, Jacey. And I think you owe her for this.”

  “We’ll have to invite her to the next girls’ night,” Jacey said with a sigh. “I guess I do owe her. Where’s she from? I don’t think I’ve ever met anyone with a name like Bronte.”

  “East coast,” Mischa answered. “Just moved here a few months ago. Clint felt sorry for her because she’s so quiet at work and didn’t seem to know anyone. So we’ve had her over a few times. I’ve met her for lunch. She’s nice, quiet, but nice. Her parents are writers and her mother was, or is obsessed with all the Brontë sisters and their work. Thus the name.”

  “Think she can handle our language and subject matter on a GNO?” Jacey asked.

  “Yeah,” Mischa said with a laugh. “More importantly, I think she needs to.”

  “Why didn’t you mention her to us before?” Dee asked.

  “Because I was checking her out,” Mischa replied. “Ours is an exclusive group, ladies.”

  “Amen,” Dee agreed.

  “I’ll drink to that,” Jacey said and finally hit the button on the blender for their first batch of margaritas.

  As soon as it stopped, Mischa continued. “Then Clint had the idea of waking Jacey up. So I waited.”

  “That man of yours is so devious,” Jacey said. “I might have to try to drown him in the pool today.”

  Mischa laughed. “Or give him a big ole smooch for being the one to give you that push.”

  “Yeah,” Jacey agreed with a laugh. “I might just have to do that instead.”

  They took long sips of their drinks and moaned with pleasure.

  “Nothing better than sun, fun, food and a clear blue pool to kick off the summer,” Mischa said.

  “Yeah, this cookout was a great idea,” Jacey said. “Good thing none of you already had plans.”

  “We would have changed them if we did,” Dee responded with a shrug.

  “Looks like the guys need another round of beers,” Jacey said. “I’ll just run them out and give that man of yours a big smooch.”

  Mischa laughed. “Go for it! Warm him up for me.”

  Dee laughed, reaching for the fruit-and-cheese tray to take out to the table, her drink in the other hand. Mischa grabbed the veggies. Chips and salsa were already on the table.

  “Here’s one for you,” Jacey said, handing a cold beer off to her brother and giving him a smooch on the cheek.

  “Ahhh, just what I wanted,” he sighed, taking a long pull.

  “I thought I was what you wanted,” Dee said and Jack turned to take the tray from her and set it down before pulling her close for a scorching kiss.

  “Every day in every way,” he murmured.

  “One for you.” Jacey laughed and handed a beer to Jonas before moving on to Clint.

  “And one for you,” she said with a grin. Reaching up, she took his face in her hands and placed a loud kiss full on his mouth before hugging him close. “Thanks, Clint,” she whispered for his ears alone.

  “You’re welcome, little sister,” he murmured, softly hugging her back.

  “So how come I’m the only one who didn’t get a kiss?” Jonas asked as she stepped away from Clint.

  “It’s because my man is so sexy, he makes the rest of you pale in comparison,” Mischa said as she dropped her tray onto the table.

  “Only for you, baby,” Clint told her, coming up to wrap his arms around her and pull her back against his chest. He nuzzled her neck and shoulder until she turned her head up for his kiss.

  Jacey walked back to Jonas. She took his beer from him and set it down before stepping into him and running her arms up his sides to his shoulders. “Maybe I just wanted to save the best for last,” she said.

  Wasn’t that just what she’d done? Sure, there had been plenty of men before Jonas, but looking into his eyes, she knew that there would never be another like Jonas. He was the best in so many ways. And she hoped, prayed, that he would be her last.

  She leaned up and kissed him softly on the mouth, gradually letting him turn the kiss into something deeper. When she pulled back, the words just tumbled out. “I love you, Jonas.”

  He grinned and hugged her tighter. “I love you too, Jacey.”

  “So who’s ready for the pool?” Mischa asked and pulled off her cover-up, tossing it aside.

  “I definitely need a cool dip with you in that, honey,” Clint said.

  “Man, I’m going to look so pale next you,” Dee sighed as she removed her cover-up too. “You make me want to tan.”

  Mischa laughed. “All the tanning in the world won’t give you my gorgeous skin tone, baby.”

  “I like you just the way you are,” Jack told Dee just before he pushed her into the pool.

  She came up sputtering. “I’m going to kill you slowly, Jack,” she swore, shaking her soaked hair out of her face.

  “I’ll help,” Mischa said and gave him a shove in after his girlfriend.

  They were all laughing when he surfaced and wrapped his arms around Dee.

 
“You going to let your wife push me around like that?” he asked Clint with a grin.

  “You know, everything changes when you get married,” Clint said with a sigh.

  “And I know you mean that in an ‘Oh, my god, I’m the luckiest man alive’ kinda way,” Mischa said with her hands on her hips.

  Clint gave an exaggerated sigh and scooped her up in his arms. Mischa squealed and wiggled but he held her firm.

  “When you’re married, you jump in together,” he said and plunged feet first into the deep end.

  They both came up laughing and Mischa wrapped around her husband. “Togetherness is important.”

  Jonas opened the grill and flipped the steaks, moved the tin-foil potatoes around a bit. When he shut the lid again, Jacey was there waiting. She’d tossed her cover-up aside and now had on her little red bikini. He automatically reached out and put his arm around her, pulling her into his side.

  “I’m glad we decided to cook out,” she said.

  “Me too,” he told her.

  “I wonder how long everyone will stay,” she said as she leaned her head on his shoulder.

  “Why?” he asked. “You have something going on later?”

  “Well, I told you that we went to the toy store, right?”

  “Yeah, I seem to recall you mentioning that.”

  “I picked up a little something while I was there, something that I think you might enjoy trying out with me.”

  “What’s that?” he cleared his throat and asked.

  “I picked up this set of beads. I think they’re packaged as anal love beads.”

  “Oh fuck, Jacey,” he groaned.

  “Oh, I’m hoping we get to that later,” she whispered, going up on her toes to nip his earlobe.

  “Whose idea was this cookout anyways?” he muttered.

  She laughed. “I guess I shouldn’t tell you about the hot little red-and-black number I brought to wear for you tonight then, huh?”

  “Unless you don’t mind our friends seeing just how happy I am right now, you might want to hold those thoughts for later.”

  “Hey, you two,” Dee yelled. “Come in and play for a bit.”

  “Yeah, Jonas,” Jacey teased. “Come in and play for a bit.”

  Jonas groaned. “Damn, woman, you’re going to kill me.”

  Jacey laughed and reached up to take his glasses off and lay them aside. Then, grabbing his hand, she pulled him toward the side of the pool. “We can at least get wet before you have to check the grill again. Besides, I have a feeling you might need to cool off.”

  “Vixen,” he murmured and pulled her to stand in front of him. He wrapped his arms around her waist, holding her close against his chest.

  “Ready?” he asked.

  “Yeah,” she said. “I’m ready.”

  With his arms around her she was ready for anything. Together they stepped off the edge. They came up smiling and Jacey turned around to wrap her arms and legs around her man.

  “I don’t think I’ve ever been this happy,” she confessed.

  “Me either. And this is only the beginning, Jacey,” he promised. “It’ll only get better from here.”

  “Better,” she sighed. Everything was better now that Jonas was so much more than a friend.

  About Lacey Thorn

  Lacey Thorn spends her days in small-town Indiana, the proud mother of three. When she is not busy with one of them, she can be found typing away on her computer keyboard or burying her nose in a good book. Like every woman, she knows just how chaotic life can be and how appealing that great escape can look. So toss aside the stress and tension of the never-ending to-do list. For now, sit back, relax and enjoy the ride with Lacey as she helps you to unlace and unleash the woman inside.

  Lacey welcomes comments from readers. You can find her website and email addresses on her author bio page at www.ellorascave.com.

  Tell Us What You Think

  We appreciate hearing reader opinions about our books. You can email the author directly or you can email us at [email protected] (when contacting Customer Service, be sure to state the book title and author).

  Also by Lacey Thorn

  Bare Love 1: His Bare Obsession

  Bare Love 2: Bare Confessions

  Bare Love 3: Bare Seduction

  Bare Love 4: Bare Devotion

  Bare Love 5: Running Bare

  Bare Love 6: In the Bare

  Bare Love 7: Stripped Bare

  Ellora’s Cavemen: Jewels of the Nile III anthology

  Enforced Love

  Shifter’s Veil: Into the Mist

  Shifter’s Veil: Through the Veil

  Island Guardians 1: Earth Moves

  Island Guardians 2: Fanning Her Flames

  Island Guardians 3: Washed Away

  Island Guardians 4: Breathing Her Air

  Island Guardians 5: Mystic’s Call

  Jack’s Dee-Light

  Marquetti Amore 1: Merciful Angel

  Marquetti Amore 2: Seducing Sampson

  Marquetti Amore 3: Burning Dante

  One Good Man with Cindy Spencer Pape

  Print books by Lacey Thorn

  Bare Love 1 & 2: Bare Beginnings

  Bare Love 3 & 4: Tres Bare

  Island Guardians 1 & 2: Earth and Fire

  Island Guardians 3, 4 & 5: Final Guardians

  Ellora’s Cavemen: Jewels of the Nile III anthology

  Marquetti Amore 1, 2 & 3: Mi Amore

  One Good Man with Cindy Spencer Pape

  Ellora’s Cave Publishing

  www.ellorascave.com

  What Friends Are For

  ISBN 9781419942136

  ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

  What Friends Are For Copyright © 2012 Lacey Thorn

  Edited by Shannon Combs

  Cover design by Irene Adler

  Photos: Fotolia.com

  Electronic book publication November 2012

  The terms Romantica® and Quickies® are registered trademarks of Ellora’s Cave Publishing.

  With the exception of quotes used in reviews, this book may not be reproduced or used in whole or in part by any means existing without written permission from the publisher, Ellora’s Cave Publishing, Inc.® 1056 Home Avenue, Akron OH 44310-3502.

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  This book is a work of fiction and any resemblance to persons, living or dead, or places, events or locales is purely coincidental. The characters are productions of the author’s imagination and used fictitiously.

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  Table of Contents

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