Chapter 16

Harry

“I think I should be going now.” Sarah jumped up from the couch, her cheeks bright red. “I have things to do tomorrow, and I’m tired, so I should head home.”

“Okay.” I nodded. I stood up slowly, my limbs feeling heavy, my lips tingling from that brief moment when we’d kissed. It hadn’t even really been a kiss. I mean, a kiss would have been full-on, there would have been tongue, there would have been passion. We’d be on the couch right now if we’d actually started kissing. We hadn’t actually kissed. It had been a slip of the lips. Yet, the way her lips had grazed mine for those few seconds had felt more magical, more tingly than any kiss I could ever remember having in my life.

Things were starting to get complicated, too complicated for my liking. Feelings were starting to develop that shouldn’t have been. Sexual chemistry, sexual tension, it was all rising to the surface, laying claim to the fact that maybe men and women couldn’t be best friends. All my life I’d grown up thinking that was just a myth.

Sarah and I had always been platonic, there had never been anything more. I’d never even looked at her as more than that. She’d just been someone in my life, but now, even before the makeover, there’d been something that had changed between us, something developing that I couldn’t explain. I couldn’t put my finger on it, and last night, it’d all come spilling out, when I’d seen her there, walking down the catwalk, so beautiful, so confident, so strong.

She was more than just my best friend. She was more than just a girl who used to sneak into my bedroom to watch movies. She was more than the girl that used to call me on the phone crying when she failed a test. She was a woman. She was a strikingly beautiful, curvaceous, luscious woman, and I wanted her. I wanted her. I could admit it to myself, though I would never admit it to her.

“Harry?” She touched me lightly on the arm.

“Yeah?” I said.

“Do you want to exchange all our gifts before we go to your parents’ house or ...” Her words trailed off. She was frowning. “You okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine. What about you?”

“Yeah, I’m fine, too.” She laughed, but the high pitch sounded false. I knew she’d felt that something new between us, too. That’s why she jumped off the couch.

“You’re going to go home now? You’ll be okay? Do you want me to get you a taxi?”

“I’m okay. You know I can walk from here. It’s not far.”

“I don’t want you walking by yourself in that dress, Sarah.”

“Harry.”

“It’s late at night. Please, let me walk you home then, okay?”

“Okay, if you’re sure.”

“I’m sure. I could do with the exercise.” I went and grabbed our coats, and then we walked to the door.

I walked her home quickly. Both of us were pretty quiet as we made our way to her apartment. That was unusual for us, we normally always had something to say. I opened and closed my mouth several times as words came to me, but I stopped myself from saying anything. I could feel my heart racing as we walked. I could smell the gasoline in the air. The air felt heavy between us and yet there was nowhere else I wanted to be. Sarah stopped at the entrance of her building and looked at me with a small smile. Her blue eyes gazed at me softly. Her irises were as familiar to me as my own. My heart thudded as I surveyed her face. She was nervous and unsure of herself. I could see it in her eyes. I knew her so well. Maybe even better than I knew myself.

“Thanks for being a gentleman. Thanks for being my friend, Harry. I appreciate it, you know?” She gave me a warm smile and then hugged me. I hugged her back, trying to ignore the feelings that were stirring in me as her breasts crushed against my chest. I’d never had these feelings before. I’d never noticed how warm and silky her skin was, how soft her hair felt. A whiff of gardenias filled my nose as we hugged, and I stilled at the perfectness of her scent. Oh no. I was in over my head.

“Good night, Sarah.” I pulled back from her and watched as she went into the building without another word. I stood there until I saw her enter the elevator and then I made my way back home. I reached my apartment door and then I froze. I didn’t want to go to bed. I didn’t want to end the night like this. I needed to see Sarah again.

I hurried back down and caught a cab back to her apartment. I didn’t want to waste time walking again. I told myself that I needed to talk to her about our plans for Christmas. She still wasn’t confident that she wanted to come home with me early, and I needed to convince her. I also needed her to accompany me on all my business trips and parties for the season. There was no way that I could go alone, and it was really too hard for me to find another woman to take at this last moment.

She’d understand that she needed to come, and at least it would satisfy my father and the board of directors. Sarah could be my one woman. That’s what they wanted, right?

I decided not to use my key to let myself into her apartment. I went to the front desk and asked them to call her.

“You can go up, Mr. Huntington. You always do,” the guy behind the desk said.

“I know, but I just thought ...”

“Are you trying to be nice now? She doesn’t have anyone up there, promise.”

“Okay,” I said, and walked to the elevator. I got into it and listened to the music playing. It was a Frank Sinatra song, “Strangers in The Night.” I smiled to myself. Sarah loved that song. For some reason, she just loved Frank Sinatra. She could listen to his music over, and over, and over again, singing to me about the two lonely people.

It was strange. I didn’t have a long-term relationship, but I’d never felt lonely. Not once in my life. Sarah had always been more than enough. I frowned at the thought. I didn’t want to delve too deeply into what that meant.

I got out of the elevator, and made my way to her apartment, took out my key, opened the door, and walked in. The apartment was dark, but I could see a light coming from her bedroom, and I realized that she must have been watching TV before falling asleep. I remembered, just as I made my way to her bedroom, that I’d forgotten to call or text her to let her know I was on the way. Then again, I never really did, did I? I just took it for granted that she’d be there and that she wouldn’t mind me just showing up.

What if she got a boyfriend? What if she started being physical? She wouldn’t put up with me showing up without notice then. The thought made me feel sick. I realized that things had to change, but I was loath to do so. I didn’t want things to change. I didn’t want her to be with anyone else.

The thought struck me, and I just stood there in the hallway listening to her TV. Sweat was pouring down my face. I had to figure this out. I had to ensure that I could get her out of my system and still be best friends. I didn’t know the best way to do that, but I was going to have to think about something fast. I continued making my way down the corridor and then called out to her.

“Hey, Sarah, I’m here.” I knocked on her bedroom door. “I came back because I forgot I needed to ask you something.”

“Harry, you cannot just keep coming into my apartment like this.” She sounded tired and furious through the door.

I opened her bedroom and stopped dead as I saw her laying on top of her bed in a black silk negligee. My jaw dropped as she gazed at me, looking like some sort of sexy siren.

“Have you heard of knocking?” She blinked at me.

“I knocked.” I swallowed hard as I gazed at her. It should have been illegal to look that sexy this late at night. I shifted as I gazed at her. Why was I sweating?

“Did I say you could enter?” She sat up slightly and her hair fell forward over her shoulders and covered her breasts. My breathing was coming heavier now as I gazed at her long slender legs.

“What are you doing?” My eyes narrowed as I looked at her and then I looked around the room. “Are you here with someone?” I could feel myself growing hot.

“No. Why would I be here with someone? Who would I be here with? You literally just walked me home thirty minutes ago.” She leaned over, grabbed the remote and paused the TV.

“You’re wearing a negligee.” I looked at her again and I couldn’t help but admire the way it clung to her body. I tried to ignore how flimsy and see-through the material was. Was that a lace negligee? I tried not to look at her breasts too closely in case I saw her nipples. I did not want to see Sarah’s nipples.

“I told you I got myself lingerie and I told you that I’m going to wear it in my bedroom.” She smiled at me sweetly. “Got a problem with that, Harry?”

“I’ve got no problem with that, but I would have preferred you gave it to one of the girls. I would have loved to see one of them in that. And then maybe bada boom, bada bing something could have happened.” I shook my head. “But instead, you got them...”

“Oh Harry, is that all you think about? Sex?”

“No, Sarah. That’s not all I think about.” I walked over to the bed and sat down at the end of the mattress. I stared at her face and glared at her, trying to show her how inappropriate I thought her outfit was.

“Harry, I know you’re not acting like a jerk because of my chosen bed attire. You do know I can wear whatever I want to bed, right? Or are you going to try and tell me this is inappropriate in the privacy of my own room?”

“Whatever.” I shook my head. “I noticed you were wearing a negligee, and mentioned that it was a bit weird, that’s all.”

“Why didn’t you say it looked nice or I looked nice or something?”

“What do you want me to say, Sarah? You’re wearing a sexy negligee, your breasts are practically popping out. If you were to jump up out of this bed and walk in front of me, I’d most probably see your ass. What do you want from me?” I looked at her sexy body and swallowed. I wanted to touch her so badly.

“I just want you to actually see that I’m a woman. And not a little girl anymore. Not just a tomboy. I am all woman, and I am desirable and men want me.”

“Whoa. Where is this coming from? Please don’t tell me you’re upset because I asked you to buy those three girls Christmas presents.”

“Harry, I don’t care about them.” She shook her head and moved out of the bed and walked toward the bathroom. My eyes followed her, and I licked my lips.

As she walked, I could see that her legs were long, tan, and smooth. Her ass looked pert and I wondered if she was wearing underwear. Maybe it wasn’t such a good idea to have come back here.

“What are you doing?” I watched as she opened a drawer and pulled out a pair of sweatpants.

“I’m going to put on some pants if that makes you feel more comfortable?” She shrugged and rolled her eyes.

“I don’t care if you put pants on or not.” I shook my head and pulled my shoes off.

“So you’re staying over?” She stood there, staring at me.

“Is that a problem?”

“No.” She shook her head. “I’m just getting ready to watch a movie and was thinking about doing something else but...” She smiled to herself.

I frowned as I looked at her face. Was there something different about her? And was she teasing me? “Hmmm?”

“Yes, Harry?”

“Have you been up to something?” I wasn’t sure what I expected her to answer.

“What are you talking about?” she said innocently.

“I don’t know. You’ve just got that look on your face and I know that look. When you’ve got that look on your face, it makes me think you’re up to something bad.”

“Harry, have I ever been up to anything bad? I’ve known you for over twenty years and I’ve always been a good girl.”

“Sarah. You’re not a good girl.” I laughed. “You’ve been up to plenty of bad things.”

“But Harry, you forget.”

“What do I forget?”

“You forget that most of the things that I’ve been up to that are bad are because of you. You’re the one that influenced me into doing those things.”

“That’s true.” I laughed again. “Hey, got to love me.”

“Yeah, Harry, I certainly do.”

“Do you mind if I crash here tonight?”

“Harry, really?” She cocked her head to the side. “When have I ever minded?” She dropped the sweatpants on a chair and walked back to the bed. “Move over.”

I stared at her bare legs and then my eyes roved all the way up to her face looking at every curve and expanse of skin. I could feel a stirring in me that was all too familiar. Sarah looked sexy in her little outfit and I couldn’t help but feel that she was a woman that I wanted to get to know better. But I obviously couldn’t do that because she was my best friend.

“Sarah, why don’t you put on some proper clothes?” I shifted over on the bed as she moved next to me and I could definitely see her nipples. I shook my head at her. “I don’t think that’s appropriate attire.”

“Excuse me.” She raised her eyebrows and looked at me. “Are you fucking joking me right now? Why is this not appropriate attire?”

“Well, it’s not appropriate because...” I stopped myself. I wasn’t about to tell her that I was hard as hell. “Fine, if you want to sit there and wear that and catch a cold because it’s cold tonight, you do you. That’s not on me. If you want to wear it. I don’t care. I loosened my tie and unbuttoned my shirt before taking them both off and laying them on the ground. “And I’m not watching any romance movies, so don’t even think about it.”

“Fine, Harry, you can choose.” She rolled her eyes as she handed me the remote control. I left it on the mattress as I pulled my pants off and sat there in my boxers. I could see her eyes on my chest and I grinned. “Like my six-pack?”

“Whatever. Why did you come back tonight?”

“I need to make sure you know that you will be my date for all my work events in the next month. No excuses. And you also need to commit to coming home with me early.”

“Harry...” She sighed.

“Nope, no excuses. You screwed me with my dates and now you’re my only option.”

“I’m not your only option. You’re Harry Parker Huntington and you can get any woman you want.”

“Hmm, you know what I just thought of?”

“What?”

“I never actually gave you permission to buy that.” I touched the hem of her lacy garment.

“Harry, are you really going to say that to me? After I went and bought all your girlfriends presents, you’re not going to let me get lingerie for myself?”

“Well.” I just shook my head. “You want that as your Christmas present then?”

“Harry, this is not my Christmas present. I chose it for myself.” She started laughing and poked me in the chest. I laughed and grabbed her hand and pulled her toward me.

“Whoa, soldier, hold up, hold up,” she said hurriedly as her body fell into mine. She was leaning forward and her breasts were showing off even more to me. I could see the top of her breasts stretching the lacy material and my eyes flickered down to her nipples. They were pressing against the loose lace and I could see them very clearly. Immediately I felt the hardness in my boxers shifting.

Shit, I knew the reaction was just because I was seeing breasts and it had nothing to do with her. But this was a bad situation. There’s no way I wanted to be getting hard around her. I let go of her hand and she reached over to tickle me.

“What are you doing?” I rolled away from her, but she didn’t stop. She was giggling as her hair fell into her face and she threw her leg over me. “Sarah.” I pushed her onto her back and held her hands back. She was smiling and breathing hard as I leaned down and looked into her face.

“Are you going to choose the movie?” She fluttered her eyelashes at me, and I groaned.

I couldn’t have stopped what happened next, even if someone handed me a million dollars. I leaned down and kissed her, pressing my lips hard against hers. She moaned and wiggled on the bed as she kissed me back, her lips parting. I groaned as my tongue entered her mouth. She sucked on it eagerly and I let go of her hands so that I could caress the side of her face. She immediately put her hands around my neck and played with my hair. I shifted positions so that I was on top of her and ran my hands down the sides of her body. She gasped as my fingers traced the side of her breasts and I groaned against her lips as she wrapped her legs around my waist. I moved against her, grinding my hardness into her and she moaned once again, running her fingernails down my back. My fingers reached the bottom of her lingerie and pulled it up, my fingers tracing up her silky legs. Her body was trembling beneath me and I kissed down her neck. I ran my hands up to lightly rub her nipples through the thin material and she moaned loudly, making me even harder.

“Oh Sarah.” I moved my lips down her neck and pushed the top of her garment to the side so that I could take a nipple into my mouth.

Her back arched as I sucked on her tender bud and I could feel the heat growing inside of me. I wanted more. I needed more.

I moved my hand down and spread her legs open beneath me, my fingers running up to her panties. I rubbed her and she squirmed. Her panties were soaking wet, and I groaned as I slipped two fingers inside of her panties. She cried out as I rubbed her clit and bit down on her nipple at the same time. She was driving me crazy. I could hear her panting as I touched her, and I slid one finger inside of her tightness. Her pussy clenched on my finger and I groaned. She was so tight. I slid another finger inside of her and looked up at her face. She was staring at me with lust in her eyes, her lips parted, her hair framing her face. She was making short little gasps as I touched her, and I leaned up and kissed her hard.

“Harry...” she moaned, her eyes begging me to continue. My thumb rubbed her clit as I fingered her, and her body started buckling.

I groaned as I reached down to slip my cock out of my boxers. I pulled my fingers out of her and rubbed the tip of my cock along her wet slit. Fuck, I was going to come just from skin-to-skin contact. I was out of control. I wanted her so badly. And then I looked back at her sweet, beautiful face and remembered that this was Sarah. This was my best friend. And this was not how I wanted her to lose her virginity. I groaned as I pulled back and rolled onto my back.

“Harry?” She looked dazed as she stared at me, her lips still trembling.

“Fuck,” I groaned again as I looked at her exposed breasts and spread legs.

I rolled back over, pulled her panties to the side and lowered my face between her legs. My tongue devoured her clit, sucking and licking, enjoying the sounds she was making. She tasted like the sweetest dessert and I groaned as she closed her legs in on my face. My tongue entered her with as much force as my cock wanted to and as I ate her out, I could feel myself growing harder and harder. She started screaming a few minutes later as I brought her to orgasm with my tongue and I grinned when her body finally stopped shaking.

I then jumped up off of the bed and hurried to the restroom because I knew I couldn’t remain on the bed in this state without fucking her senseless. I closed the door behind me, grabbed my cock and moved my hand up and down. All I could think of was her face. Her smell. The way she’d moaned. And soon after I grabbed her towel and erupted, my body shaking as I imagined her lips on my cock sucking me dry. I leaned back against the door as I came and closed my eyes. Tonight had forever changed our friendship and one thing I knew for sure was that I needed more of her. I had to have more of her. Sarah was the sexiest woman I’d ever met and there was no way I was walking away from this situation. I needed to make her mine in every way. I just wasn’t sure what she was going to have to say to that once I walked back out of this bathroom.