"Hey, bring me a soda when you come out!" yelled Nick.

“Nice manners, Nick. What about please?” scolded Howie. “She's not your slave”

“But I’m comfortable here” Nick flashed a smile at me that could melt the North Pole and snuggled closer to Becky.

“Nick,” she laughed, “be a gentleman and get sodas for all of us.”

“But I like it right here” he said, and to emphasize the point, he slid his hand behind Becky’s head and pulled her into a long, passionate kiss.

“It's ok,” I laughed, “I was going in anyway. I’ll bring out a cooler.” I got up, leaving my friend, Leigh, still sitting by the pool. I headed into the house, but could not resist turning back and standing in the doorway watching Kevin swim effortlessly in the pool in the fading light of day.

A towel flying at my head suddenly made me realize that I was just standing there staring, holding my breath, my heart pounding. Howie laughed as I jumped. “You sure you don’t need a hand?” Several sarcastic answers flashed through my mind but I just smiled and shook my head. He knew how I felt about Kevin. It seemed that everyone knew how I felt except the one person that mattered most. I took a deep breath and reminded myself that we were all just friends and if Kevin had wanted it to go any farther, he would have made it happen by now. I forced myself to stop watching him and went in the house.

The cooler was downstairs in the den. My mind was on overload between thoughts of Kevin and the conversation Leigh and I were having so I was half way across the dimly lit den before I realized that I was not alone. I froze midstep when I saw Brian laying back on the couch, wearing only swim trunks that were now down just enough for him to be stroking himself, breathing heavily as his hand ran up and down his length. Oh, my God…at that moment he looked so incredibly sexy. Every muscle in his body tense, his head thrown back and his eyes tightly shut as he focused on the feeling of pleasuring himself. I held my breath for a second hoping he didn’t know I had come into the room, planning a silent escape. Not my luck. Crystal blue eyes locked with mine.

“I’m sorry, Bri” I said and turned to run out of the room. I had no intention of embarrassing him.

“Wait” his voice was husky and breathless, and so incredibly sexy. Was this really the same Brian I had played checkers with last night? I had never thought about him as anything but a friend.

“Don’t go.” His eyes never left mine as he stood up and came over to me.

“I’m sorry, Brian. I didn’t know you were here.” I said.

“Don’t be sorry,” he said softly. I was drawn into his eyes as he reached out and touched my cheek. His face was flushed and his breathing not quite back to normal. He pulled me close to him and hugged me tightly. I wrapped my arms around him, enjoying the feel of his body pressed against mine. He kissed my cheek and then my mouth. When he gently licked my lips I could not deny him. I opened my lips to his and his tongue caressed mine tenderly yet with so much passion that my knees felt weak. I forgot everything except the feeling of his tongue exploring my mouth, his hands running up and down my back and his body excitedly pressed against mine. He moaned softly and pulled away to catch his breath…and I almost moaned Kevin’s name. I bit my lip to stop myself…the whole time I was kissing Brian, I was fantasizing…wishing that it was Kevin.

“I love you.” Brian said breathlessly.

“Brian, wait…” I started but he cut me off, blue eyes blazing with anger, knowing what I was going to say,

“Damn it, you know he doesn’t love you!” he shouted. Brian never cursed. It broke my heart that I had hurt him, made him this angry.

“Brian, please…” I begged.

“He doesn’t want you” he shouted, “He told me I could have you.” His words cut like a knife.

“Bri, I’m sorry, I don’t want to hurt you…you’re my friend!” Tears were stinging my eyes. How did this all happen?

“Then let me love you.” he whispered. “He will just keep breaking your heart!”

“I’m sorry, Bri…It’s not that easy…I can’t just stop loving him. It would not be fair to you for me to tell you anything else.” The tears in his eyes were starting to slide down his cheeks. He let me put my arm around him and wipe his tears away. “Brian, I need to tell you something .” I held my breath and waited for him to nod so I could continue. “It would break Leigh’s heart if I was with you.”

I heard the breath catch in his throat, “What?”

I took a deep breath and prayed. “Leigh is so in love with you. She keeps begging me to talk to you for her. We were just trying to figure out what I should say to you.”

His eyes softened and he smiled, “I really like Leigh” he said. “If you’re sure…”

I smiled at him and kissed his cheek. “I’m sure…now, don’t move a muscle…I’m sending help.” I winked. He blushed at the thought and then laughed.

I picked up the cooler and turned around to go back upstairs just in time to see Kevin moving out of the doorway and my heart stopped. I wondered how much he had overheard. I ran into the hallway but he was already gone. OK. I was not going to catch a break today. I decided that I was going to at least make something good happen for Leigh and Brian. I set the cooler down outside and discretely told Leigh that poor Brian really needed some relief and she was elected to help him out. She blushed at the idea but disappeared into the den with a huge smile before I could say another word.

I wandered around the house trying to find Kevin without success. I needed to explain things to him. As I passed by the den, I caught a glimpse of Brian and Leigh in a passionate kiss. At least the night would be good for them. I knew I had made the right choice with Brian even if I didn’t have Kevin and I quietly pulled the door closed so no one would disturb them. Not that there was much chance of that since everyone else had moved to more private places.

I needed some time to think. The moon had risen and the breeze was cool and fresh in the summer night. I sat at the edge of the pool and let my feet hang in the water, trying to figure this mess out. The only sound was the wind rustling through the trees, and I felt Kevin’s presence before I heard him. “Can I ask you something?” he said quietly. He knelt down behind me and touched my shoulder.

“Of course, Kev, you can ask me anything.” I shivered despite the warm night. I went to turn around but he sat down behind me and put his arms around my waist, letting his feet dangle in the water with mine, his body pressed against my back. I closed my eyes and used every ounce of my self control not to make a fool of myself. I took a deep breath and leaned back to rest my head against his shoulder, and he sighed softly.

“Did you mean what you told Brian?”, he finally asked. I had a feeling that he already knew the answer but just wanted to hear me say it.

“Every word.” I answered. He leaned his chin against the back of my head and held me tighter, then moved his head onto my shoulder, his voice a deep whisper in my ear. “Brian was wrong, you know?” he whispered. “I do love you.” He buried his face in my neck.

“I love you, too” I whispered and I heard him catch his breath.

“I didn’t want to get into a big fight with him.” He tried to explain. “I figured it was better to let him have you than to ruin our friendship. I didn’t know how hard that would be until I saw you in his arms. I can’t do it…I want you” He was struggling to stay in control of his emotions. I was no longer in control of mine. I slid around in his arms and wrapped my fingers in his long dark hair as he leaned in to kiss me. His powerful arms pulled me close against him and his tongue caressed my lips as soon as our mouths met. I stroked his tongue with mine and he moaned with desire. I was afraid to open my eyes and find out that this was just my imagination again but when I finally did, I was staring into green eyes filled with love. And I knew I had made the right choice.