Between Friends (Friends with Benefits) by Vristen Pierce Read Free Book Online Page A

out.”
    I followed behind her and dropped down onto the sofa. Doodle jumped up between us. I stroked his silky hair absentmindedly. “You know Justin and I have been… seeing each other occasionally.”
    Nina nodded. “And I said that was a mistake. Mm-hmm”—she took a sip of her drink—“go on.”
    I smiled. “Well, yeah, I guess you were right.”
    “You have more than the hots for him now, huh? Ugh.” Nina slapped a palm to her forehead. “Stupid.”
    “Gee, don’t hold back on my account.”
    She sat back and crossed her legs. “You know I love you, so I have to give it to you straight. This is such a huge mistake waiting to happen.” She considered it for a moment. “Actually, it’s probably too late to fix it, so, you know what? Never mind.” She grabbed the television remote and flipped the channel to Univision. Her interest became firmly fixed on the screen as a gorgeous, dark-haired couple embraced passionately.
    For some reason, the woman was obsessed with the network, even though she didn’t know a lick of Spanish. “Ooh,” she said as her eyes grew big, “this must be that new telenovela that just started.” She nodded. “
Yo como áspero
.” Nina wagged her eyebrows at me before turning her gaze back to the television.
    “Nina, neither of us knows what that means.” I gave her a light punch in the shoulder. “Will you focus?”
    She gave me a confused look. “What?”
    “Don’t ‘what’ me.”
    “Whom?”
    “Nina!”
    “Wha—” She held up her hands. “We’re not doing that again.”
    “You just told me that I’ve made a huge mistake that probably can’t be fixed and then you start watching
Yo como esperado
like it’s no big deal?”
    “Um, it’s
Yo como áspero
and it
is
a big deal.” Nina held a hand out toward the TV. “Have you seen the ads for this show?”
    I narrowed my eyes and pressed my lips together. I loved Nina; I really did, but sometimes…
    “Don’t go getting that look.” She laughed. “Sorry.” Nina turned the TV off and turned to face me. “You have my full attention.”
    “You mean it?” I had to admit it; I was skeptical.
    “Yes, nothing’s more important than being there for my best friend when she needs me,” she said earnestly.
    I gave her a meek smile. That was an oddly sweet thing for her to say.
    “Besides”—she jerked her head in the direction of the television—“I’m taping it anyway.”
    Now
that
was Nina. I ignored the temptation to give her another, slightly heavier punch, and dove into my relationship fears. “The break up with Nathan was the last straw for me—at least for a very long time.” I sighed. “None of my relationships work. I have to face it. And that’s exactly why I don’t want to tempt fate by getting into another one. All I need is to be dumped yet again.” Maybe it was crazy to even attempt self-preservation at this point, but I needed to try. I had to give credit where credit is due: Nina actually gave me her full attention the entire time I ranted. After I finished, I sat back. “Help me.”
    “Okay, first of all, take a deep breath.” She watched me for a moment. “No, seriously, take a breath, Stace, take a breath.”
    I complied and I had to admit I did feel slightly more composed afterward.
    “Now,” she continued, “you’re seeing Justin on at least a semi-regular basis, you’re having lots of sex with him, you’re having long talks with the man about everything and nothing.” Nina took her own deep breath just then. “Face it; the two of you are already in a relationship. Get over it.”
    I scoffed. “We are
not
dating.”
    Nina gave me a blank look.
    “We’re not,” I repeated, wanting to convince myself as well as Nina.
    “Have you seen anyone else since you’ve been seeing him?”
    “Well, no—”
    “Aha!”
    “That’s not because I have feelings for him.”
    She crossed her arms. “Then why is he the only one you’re seeing?”
    I shrugged and picked at