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piece of chocolate brownie with vanilla ice cream and layered with hot fudge sauce on
top. Three cherries sat on top of a mound of whipped cream and Lauren laughed for the
first time all day.
Okay. I give in. Take away this grilled and good-for-me salmon and give me my
fork!
Ah, ah, ah, cherries first, Beth commanded, lifting one of the red fruits in a toast.
Sarah followed suit and Lauren picked up the remaining cherry.
To Lauren, who has just lost her BDSM cherry!
To Lauren!
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Blushing and ducking her head, Lauren added, To me! They clinked the fruits
together then popped them into their mouths. Both Lauren and Beth pulled the stem off
and dropped it onto the plate, but Sarah s mouth worked a moment, then she opened it
to show a perfectly formed knot in the stem.
Show-off.
Lauren loved these women their foibles, their helpful empathy, their friendship.
Lifting her forkful of chocolate brownie, she toasted them. To friends.
To friends!
* * * * *
John strolled through the lot of a used-car dealer, listening to Will find fault with
every truck they examined.
I ll know it when I see it, he kept saying, stubbornly refusing several perfectly
good trucks.
There must be a really good reason you don t want to give up that truck. John
shook his head as they headed back to the rust bucket.
He s never told you the story?
John turned at the voice behind him and grinned. Phillip, what are you doing
here? Don t tell me you re looking for a new winter rat? Phillip drove a beautiful
sports car in the summer and stored it for the winter so the salt on the roads wouldn t
destroy the paint or the frame.
Phillip shook his head as he took John s proffered hand. Nope. Was driving by and
couldn t believe I saw that deathtrap sitting there. Gave me hope Will had come to his
senses and was doing some serious shopping.
Yeah, well, John-boy here keeps pestering.
You have a hole in the floor.
Details, details. Will waved his hand dismissively. It still runs good.
With an air of long-suffering, Will climbed into his truck. I ll look at one more
dealership and if I don t find anything there I like, you have to agree to stop nagging
me to get a new truck.
John leaned on the open window of the passenger door. Could be a deal if I knew
the story behind why this one is so special to you.
Phillip came up to lean with him. If you don t tell him, I will.
Surrendering, Will blurted it out. I like to take Jill for a ride in the bed of this truck,
all right?
John turned to glance back at the truck bed. The metal showed through the paint
where scratches and dents gave evidence of some hard hauling. A large black, plastic
toolbox stretched the width just under the window to the cab and John noted the rings
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evenly placed along the side rails used to tie down a tarp to keep the bed dry. Nothing
unusual for a truck bed. He shrugged, clearly not getting Will s meaning.
Naked, Will muttered.
Narrowing his eyes, John leaned over and flicked up the catch on the toolbox. The
inside had been divided into two compartments. One side held the normal tools one
might expect from a handyman a circular saw, a sander, a drill case and a smaller
toolbox that John was sure would be filled with hammers, screwdrivers, wrenches and
other small hand tools.
But the side farthest from him and closest to the driver held more interesting items.
Several coils of strong, scratchy rope, a roll of duct tape, a bag of cable ties and one
leather hood the kind that laced up the back. The kind with a built-in gag and no eye-
holes. Suppressing a grin, John let the top slam shut.
Seems to me a man of your& interests& might want a more dependable truck,
John told his friend, his voice dry and droll.
Seems to me a man s wife might want a truck more dependable. Wouldn t want to
see the bed fall off the truck while she was back there. Phillip s tone matched John s as
they drove their point home.
Will leaned back and whined, But we ve had such good times there.
The two men laughed and Phillip gave John s arm a playful hit. I ll meet you at
Bonner s. Forget used. He needs something brand-new and sturdy.
Deal.
Then lunch on me if he buys a new truck.
John grinned at Phillip. Bribery?
Phillip shrugged. Something s gotta work.
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