Forbidden Fling

My incredible dream begins to fade as I wake to the embrace of strong arms and the strangely comforting aroma of day-old cologne—a mixture of spice and leather—combined with musk and cinnamon. Before I can fully process the possibility that my dream may not have been a dream, soft sheets kiss my skin as I’m pulled closer to a warm, hard body.“Good morning. How are you feeling?” Trevor asks in a deep whisper, his voice dragging me from a dense, sleep-induced fog as butterfly kisses pepper the top of my head. His tone is thick with the gravelly stirrings of waking.As I process his question and the reality that I’m in bed with a man I hardly remember, my eyes pop open to a dimly lit hotel suite. Pushing through the sensation of reality versus dreams, my pulse quickens as I slowly lift my chin, bringing my gaze upward from the bare chest before me, to a thick neck covered with a day’s beard growth, and then all the way up to his green eyes, now open and filled with as much question as m

Trevor hands me a bottle of red Gatorade after untwisting the cap. “Here you go. While you were still sleeping, I went to the store off the lobby and bought you this.” He shrugs. “I hope you like red. It’s my favorite after a little too much to drink.”“You didn’t happen to find something for a headache, did you? I’m going to be a terrible maid of honor.”From the bedside stand he grasps a small packet of over-the-counter pain relievers. “Before you’re too hard on yourself, you only had three shots.”“Three?” Why does it feel like I drank the whole bottle?“Three,” he repeats before he shrugs. “Or four. How about you tell me what you remember?”After a long drink of the Gatorade and swallowing the pain relievers, I lean back against the headboard and begin to recall. “My flight was delayed...”I go on sipping the Gatorade and talking about my misfortunes while traveling from London, where I now live and work, to Indiana for Kimbra’s wedding. It wasn’t getting to the United States that

“Yes?”“The bellhop is here. He needs to see you.”“See me?”His voice becomes softer, more of a stage whisper. “Apparently, he thinks I’m trying to get a key to your room for nefarious reasons. He will only give it to you.”“A key...”The clue is a figurative light bulb to my lost memories.Last night I couldn’t find my key. My heart beats faster. It was more than just my key. It was my purse that I also couldn’t find. I’d lost it. Oh God. My purse has my ID and my room key. They wouldn’t give me one without the other. No ID, no key. No key and I can’t get into my room. In my room is my passport. Without that, I can’t get back to London.My hands begin to shake as I search the bathroom for something to wear. I can’t go to the door and speak to the bellhop wearing only Trevor’s shirt and my panties. Just then, another soft knock taps on the bathroom door. The door opens a crack, and Trevor’s hand comes into view, holding a soft white hotel robe.“Thanks,” I say with a grin.The too-bi

“Um, no…” I scoot over so the other side of the small sofa is available. “I’m not staying long if you need both seats.”He laughs. “I think I can fit in just one.”A blush fills my cheeks. “I wasn’t…” I look him up and down, recalling my affection for corn-fed Midwesterners. There’s no reason to assume he would need more than one seat, not by himself, even with his broad shoulders—he has a trim torso and what appears to be a nice firm ass. My new home may be filled with great accents and fun words, but there’s something about sexy men from my homeland.The good-looking man sets his glass of beer on the edge of the fire pit and extends his hand. As he speaks, my gaze is fixed on his stunning green-eyed stare.“I’m Trevor. Thanks for letting me crash your party.”My head turns from side to side, taking in my solitude. “Not much of a party.” I accept his handshake. “Shana.”“They seem to be having one inside.”“Around the piano? Yes, they’re having fun. Honestly, I’m here to relax. Besid

“Cynthia, my pretend date, is engaged to my friend Eric,” Trevor says. “He’s also an engineer. We work for the same firm in New York. He’s been working on a project here in Indianapolis. When I was talking to them about Duncan’s wedding, Cynthia said she would be coming to town to visit Eric and would be happy to be my date. At first, we joked about it, but then it seemed like a good idea. Eric knows it’s not real. Heck, he thinks it’s funny. So, I RSVP’d for two.“You see, Duncan and I are as different as night and day. We get along, yet there’s always this brotherly competition. He went through some shit when we were young, but well, since then, he can never do anything wrong. It’s not that I want to be like him. I’m happy. It’s that I sometimes feel...”“Don’t tell her not to come,” I say, reaching out and touching his arm.Trevor covers my hand with his. “I am most certain that I’d rather be with you.”“I’d like that. But if you and Duncan are in competition, wouldn’t picking up t