Rhett (Rhett #1)(10)
Author: J.S. Cooper

“Wrong impression?”

“Like we’re hooking up or something?” She jumped off of the bed. “Get up, I need to pull the sheets down.”

“It doesn’t matter what people think.”

“Penelope thinks we act like an old married couple, yet we don’t have any of the benefits.” She sighed as she got under the sheets.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” I crawled into the bed next to her.

“It means that we’re intimate in ways that most people aren’t, yet we’re not really intimate.”

“Lots of friends share beds, Clementine.” I stretched my legs out and felt her smooth ones brushing against mine. “We’re mature adults. Who cares what anyone else thinks?”

“It’s just that maybe it’s not healthy.” She sighed and snuggled into the sheets.

“What’s not healthy?” I put my arm around her shoulder and she snuggled into my chest.

“This.” She looked up into my eyes as her arm crawled across my chest. “Maybe we shouldn’t share a bed anymore.”

“That’s stupid.” I glared at her and saw her face flushing. “If we’re comfortable with it, then who cares what anyone else thinks?”

“I guess.” She sighed and I felt her breath teasing my nipple.

“Most people don’t have a friend like us.” I stroked her hair and relaxed back in the bed. “They don’t understand that you can be close with someone, without sex. They’re just jealous.”

“I guess.” She rested her chin on my chest and shifted against me. “I just don’t know if we’re too old to continue being this close.”

“There’s no age limit on a friendship, Clementine.” I shifted my legs and slipped one between hers to get more comfortable. “People are just jealous of how close we are.” I closed my eyes as I felt her fingers running up and down my chest. They felt soft against my skin and I felt relaxed holding her in my arms.

“Did you shave?” She asked me softly and I opened my eyes and saw her smiling at me widely.

“Huh?” I pretended to be ignorant.

“Did you shave your chest?” She grinned widely now. “There’s no hair on your chest.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Oh my god, Rhett, you’re so vain. You shaved your chest.” She said and then giggled as she ran her hands across my chest.

“Oh my god, Clementine, you’re so vain, there’s no hair on your legs.” I imitated her girly voice and ran my hands down her legs. That was a mistake. Her legs felt soft and supple to the touch and I found myself hardening as she shifted against me. Her hip was pressed against my groin and I tried to shift away from her as I became very aware of how close we were. My head started pounding as I moved my hands away from her legs quickly. This wasn’t supposed to happen. I wasn’t supposed to start seeing Clementine as a woman. I wasn’t even sure why my body was reacting this way. It wasn’t as if we hadn’t shared the same bed hundreds of times before. Many times, she hadn’t even worn shorts. I thanked God that she had shorts on now. I’m not sure what I would have done if she’d just been in her t-shirt and panties. Who knows what my hands would have done, where they would have gone.

“Ugh.” She leaned away from me. “I forgot to take my bra off.” I watched as she undid the bra and pulled it out of her t-shirt and threw it on the ground. I avoided looking at her chest. I didn’t need to see her unsheltered br**sts straining against her tank top. “Damn, I have to turn the light off.” She sighed and jumped out of the bed. I stared at her ass as she walked to switch the light off. “Ready for the movie?” She grinned as she jumped onto the bed. I couldn’t stop myself from watching her bouncing br**sts as she moved and I stifled a groan as she cuddled up next to me again. Maybe her friends were right. Maybe we were getting too old for this.

“Yeah, sure.” I muttered and stretched. “Though, I might just go to sleep. I’m feeling tired.”

“So I can choose what I want to watch?” She peered up at me and grinned.

“Yay,” I faked a yawn and closed my eyes. “I’m feeling sleepy.”

“Night, sleepy head.” She whispered and leaned up and kissed my cheek. I felt her br**sts pressed against my arm as she kissed me and I clenched my fists to stop myself from grabbing her around the waist and pulling her on top of me. I frowned at myself. These were not the thoughts I wanted to be having about Clementine.

“Night.” I whispered back and tried to control my breathing as she made herself comfortable next to me. All of a sudden I was aware of how close to naked we both were. Her body felt warm next to mine. Her scent filled my nose and her hair tickled my chest. All of a sudden, sharing a bed with Clementine didn’t feel so innocent. It felt like temptation. And I didn’t like it. Clementine was the last person I wanted to hook up with. It would ruin everything.

Chapter Three

“Shit! I didn’t hear the alarm!” Clemmie sprung away from me and jumped out of the bed like a crazy person.

“So…?”

“I have a study group at eight.” She opened her closet, grabbed a sweater and pulled it on. “Dang it, I can’t even shower.”

“I’ll take an extra-long one. Just for you.” I grinned and watched her running around.

“You’re so thoughtful.”

“I try to be.” I stretched and grabbed the other pillow and put it under my head. “Ooh, now this is comfy.”

“Jerkface.” She turned away and ran her fingers over her hair to smooth it down.

“Is study group that important?” I checked my watch. “You’ve already missed most of the session.”

“Argh.” She frowned at me and grabbed her bag. “I can’t miss the whole thing. I gotta go. See you later.”

“I’ll let myself out.” I grabbed the remote and turned the TV on. “See you for lunch?”

“Can’t.” She shook her head. “I have to study for a test over lunch.”

“Okay.” I shrugged.

“With Penelope.”

“I see.” I stopped myself from groaning out loud. Of course, Penelope had to be involved. I was so annoyed that Clementine was cutting me out of day-to-day activities because she was hanging out with Penelope.