Coming Clean by Inez Kelley

cork in a sea of fate. Somehow, his course was set and the ride promised to be delectable. His mouth watered in anticipation.
    The almost-visible acknowledgment of his sincerity triggered Cade’s predatory grin. Excitement bordering on arousal coursed through Grant as he recognized the look. This was Cade closing in on a sexual encounter. He’d seen it in bars, at ball games and once in a hardware store. A seductive quality washed through Cade, invisible yet present in the languid way he moved, the heavy-lidded slant of his eyes, the simmering gaze.
    He bent his leg until his knee made contact with Grant’s thigh. Masculine heat warmed where they touched. A burn formed as he held his breath, aware that this step, this move, contained a challenge. So far, nothing more than words had been exchanged. It was crunch time, either walk away or commit to more. Cade was allowing him an escape or a foothold. The choice was his.
    Purposefully, Grant flexed his leg half an inch and bumped back. A warm, hard palm landed above his knee. Grant’s lids dropped without thought as the heat increased through his jeans with a gentle squeeze. He lowered his right hand to Cade’s thigh. A single thumb stroke shouted his understanding.
    Inside the denim, Cade’s muscle tightened. Challenge accepted.
    “How drunk are you?” Cade’s husky tone slid out with a seductive purr.
    “I’m not. I know exactly what I’m doing.”
    The firm hand on his leg slid higher, massaging his thigh. “Will this—anything that happens—screw our friendship? I don’t want to lose that.”
    “No, it won’t. I can’t lose you, either. You’re more than a friend, Cade, you know that. You’re part of me.”
    “So this is what, like a new level of best friends?”
    “I don’t know,” Grant said. “But it’s something that’s been brewing for years. I think it’s time we owned up to it, don’t you?”
    “Yeah, I do. Come on, let’s get off this hard-ass floor and go…to the living room or something. Can you stand?”
    “Yeah.”
    Cade rose effortlessly then cupped Grant’s elbow to steady him. All he felt was immediate crackling warmth until a sharp twinge zinged the second he put weight on his foot. He sucked in a fast breath.
    Cade stepped in front of him and gripped his shoulders. “Okay?”
    “I think so. I almost forgot about it. Just took me by surprise.”
    He looked straight into Cade’s eyes and his stomach lurched. Sparks flying was a metaphor Grant rarely thought about except literally, as in grounding wires and blow torches, but it wouldn’t have surprised him if a bright arc of electricity sizzled between them. They stood close enough for him feel the hot breath on his cheeks, smell the sweet dust of birch and soft maple, see the flare of nostrils when Cade inhaled deeply. Not one word was said but Grant knew exactly what Cade was thinking, could read it in his eyes.
    “Go ahead,” Cade whispered. Hot butter on warm bread, the slightly Southern voice bathed the space in intimate sensuality. “If this is something you really want, I need you to make the first move.”
    The words jolted through Grant like a thousand volts. His chest rose with his slow inhale before he cupped Cade’s jaw, skimming a thumb across his mouth. Strength and firm bone filled his palm, foreign, different and alluring. A soft tongue darted out, licking a tiny taste of his skin. Grant shivered, closed his eyes and dipped his head.
    He took the step he’d been too terrified to take over twenty years ago. He kissed his best friend.

Cade Crosses a Line
    The grazing kiss barely touched their lips but Cade didn’t try to return it. This was Grant’s exploration and he allowed it, unhurried and uncontested. His heart jackhammered, pummeling his ribs. The desperate need to deepen the light peck scoured through him but he refused. He would not let loose the famished need inside him too quickly and fuck this up.
    Once the first contact was breached, the