My Sister's Best Friend

at the flower shop

"You f****d your sister's best friend?" Ren, my part-timer whisper-yelled. "Who also happens to be the great Andrew Johnson, billionaire tycoon with the sexiest ass?"

My cheeks burned, and I nodded, my eyes on the bouquet of roses I was trying to arrange. "It was a mistake," I murmured, the thorns of the roses stinging my fingertips.

My core twitched in protest. It did not think it was a mistake. In fact, it was ready for more.

But my mind was a chaotic mess of thoughts.

What would Sienna say if she knew?

What would her reaction be?

Would she hate me?

Would she believe that I didn’t mean for it to happen?

I knew Sienna would be devastated, not just because of their childhood pact, but because she had always been protective of me.

"But he's such a player," Ren said, his voice a mix of concern and disbelief. "What if he's just using you?"

I shrugged, trying to play it off. "It's not like that. It's a one-time thing. We won't do it ever again."

Ren raised an eyebrow. "You say that now, but you know how these things go."

"It's different." I insisted, even though I wasn't entirely convinced. "We both know it can't go anywhere."

Ren's expression was skeptical, but he nodded, returning to his work.

The bell over the door jingled, signaling a new customer.

The two of us turned around with smiles on our faces to welcome our guest.

Drew stepped into the flower shop, his piercing blue eyes locking onto mine. The same eyes that had held me captive last night in the throes of passion.

"Hey, Elara." He greeted me casually, as if nothing had changed.

My heart hammered in my chest, and my hands grew slick with sweat. "Drew," I said, my voice wavering slightly. "What are you doing here?"

"Just picking up some flowers," he replied with a shrug, his eyes raking over me in a way that was anything but casual. "You know, for the office. And I heard the best place to get them was here."

My cheeks flushed red as I realized the implication behind his words. Was he really going to pretend like nothing had happened?

"Ren, can you help Drew with the flowers?" I managed to squeak out, needing a moment to compose myself.

Ren gave me a knowing look before turning to Drew with a forced smile. "Sure, what can I get you?"

Drew's eyes never left mine as he spoke. "Just a simple bouquet of a dozen red roses."

I felt a knot form in my stomach. Red roses? Did he have to pick the most cliched flowers of all?

"Roses, got it," Ren said, turning away from us.

Drew stepped closer to me, his eyes smoldering with a hunger that made me want to melt into the floor. "Alone at last," he murmured, his voice low and teasing.

"What do you want?" I hissed, trying to keep my voice steady.

Drew leaned in, his breath hot against my cheek. "Just to talk."

I nodded stiffly, leading him to the back of the shop where we had a small seating area for consultations.

Once we were out of earshot, Drew's expression grew serious. "We can't ignore what happened last night, Elara."

I swallowed hard, the memory of his touch making it difficult to form words. "I know."

"But you want to." He stated, his eyes searching my face.

I took a deep breath, willing my racing heart to slow down. "Yes, I know we can't ignore it, but we also can't let it happen again."

Drew leaned against the counter, his arms folded over his chest. "Why not?"

I met his gaze, my voice firm. "Because it's wrong, Drew. And because it's dangerous."

He leaned in closer, his eyes searching my face. "Dangerous?" He echoed, a hint of amusement in his voice. "How so?"

I swallowed, trying to keep my voice steady. "You know what I mean. If Sienna finds out, it'll ruin everything."

Drew's smile was a slow, lazy curve of his lips. "So, we keep it our little secret."

The way he said 'secret' made me want to smack him. "It's not a game, Drew," I snapped.

"I know." His eyes grew serious, the playfulness from moments ago vanishing. "I know it's not. But I also know that I can't stop thinking about you."

The way he said it made me want to believe him, made me want to throw caution to the wind and give in to the fire that had been burning between us for so long.

But I couldn’t. "Drew, you know how much Sienna means to me. She is my sister. I can't risk losing her trust."

He nodded, his expression unreadable. "I get it. But what about what we feel?"

"We can't let feelings dictate our actions," I said firmly, though my voice wavered.

Drew's gaze softened. "But what if they do?" His hand reached out, his fingertips grazing my arm, sending a shiver down my spine. "What if I can't stop feeling this way about you?"

"You don't mean that," I said, trying to convince myself more than him. "You're just caught up in the moment."

"Maybe I am." He confessed. "But I want to be caught up in this moment a little longer if it is this beautiful."

I tried to ignore the way his words made my heart skip a beat. "Drew, we can't do this. It's not right."

His hand traveled up to my neck, his thumb tracing the line of my jaw. "Why not?"

The question hung in the air, thick with the weight of his touch. I knew I should push him away, but the memory of his body against mine was too fresh, too potent to ignore.

"Because..." I began, but the words died on my lips as he leaned in closer, his breath a warm caress against my skin. His eyes searched mine, and I could see the raw need reflected there.

With a sigh of surrender, I gave in. "Okay," I whispered. "Three months. Three months to work each other out of our system. But we have to be careful."

Drew's grin was triumphant. "Three months," he agreed, his voice low and full of promise. "But it starts now."

"Now?"

"Now."