Bump and Run: Branston Bandits #2 by Piper James

Author:Piper James [James, Piper]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2023-04-13T16:00:00+00:00

I’m just finishing up a late lunch when there’s a knock on my door. I answer it to see Miles, unexpected with a nervous grin on his face. I give him a stilted greeting, then awkwardly invite him in.

“Did things just get weird?” he asks, tilting his head to study me.

I blow out a relieved breath. He gets it. “A little.”

Miles furrows his brow. “Listen, I know you said you wanted to just be friends, but––”

“I do,” I interject. “I do want us to be friends. We crossed a line last night, and we can’t undo that, but I stand by my decision. It’s too risky for us to be together when things could get messy later on down the road.”

My stomach twists as I say the words. A mixture of disappointment in myself and guilt at what feels like a lie churn in my gut, but I can’t take the words back. I’m committed to making sure nothing I do blows up the harmony in my and my friends’ lives.

He looks disappointed, but sucks it up, giving me a blank stare. “Okay, Roxy. Whatever you want.”

“Really?”

He gives me a sad smile. “Of course.”

I lunge forward and wrap him in a tight hug, relief and regret warring inside me. He groans and hugs me back, pressing our bodies together as he nuzzles my neck. I feel my body wake up as heat floods through me.

“This isn’t very friend-like,” I joke even while lifting my chin to give his mouth better access.

“Well, you’re making this very hard,” he murmurs against my skin. “In every sense of the word.”

A laugh barks out of me, and his hands slip down to grope my ass.

“Miles.”

“Roxanne.”

I suck in a shuddering breath, his growling tone and use of my full name affecting me just like it has from the beginning. “You’re not playing fair.”

Keeping his grip on my ass, he leans back to meet my gaze. “What if we compromise?”

I arch a brow. “Compromise…how?”

“We’ll be friends, just like you want, but…with benefits.”

I pull out of his arms, then prop my fists on my hips as I give him a disbelieving glare. “Friends with benefits? Really?”

Ignoring my tone, he shrugs. “Seems like a logical solution. We want each other, but being in a romantic relationship is too complicated. So we hang out like we’ve been doing, as friends, and if––no, when––we both decide we want to get a little frisky, we allow ourselves to do so. It’s a win-win situation.”

I pause to consider it, staunchly ignoring the excitement that’s replaced the guilt and regret in my gut. “What if one of us decides to start dating someone?”

“Then we suspend the benefits and remain friends.”

“You make it sound so easy.”

“It’s as easy as we make it. We can do this, Roxy. I know we can. What do you say?”

It’s almost embarrassing how quickly I cave and latch onto his idea. Almost.

“Okay. Friends with benefits, it is.”

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