"We didn't use a condom." My voice came out panicked. For fuck's sake, I was still inside her. 

Karma's face was a mixture of emotions. I couldn't discern one from the other. She covered her mouth with her hand. "Oh, God. Nathan!" Her eyes went wide. "I'm not—I'm not on birth control."

My heart stopped beating. I felt like I was having a heart attack or a stroke. Maybe a seizure. Then...she laughed. Hard 

"I'm just kidding," she said as she chortled. "I'm on the pill." 

I groaned and fell beside her on the bed. "That's not fucking funny, Karma. I thought I was going to have a panic attack." 

She was laughing so hard I thought she was going to run out of air. I had to admit though, it was good to hear her laugh. But I was going to pay her back for that. 

Once she sobered, I said, "It's all good. I forgive you." 

"Really?" she asked playfully. 

"Yeah," I breathed, "by the way, how was the sexcycling?"

I felt her body stiffen next to me. "What did you say?" 

I smiled to myself. I knew I was going to get into a lot of trouble for this, but it was too good to pass up. 

I turned my head towards Karma."Isn't it all about keeping your number down?" 

Her cheeks turned red with embarassment. She shot up in sitting position and looked at me with horror. "How did you know that?"

My cocky smile had no shame. "I was sitting at the table next to you when you were talking to your friend." 

Karma's mouth dropped before she grabbed her pillow and started hitting me with it. "You easedropper! I can't believe you listened!"

I laughed as I grabbed the pillow from her. "In my defense, I considered leaving. But then my name was brought up and I couldn't help myself." 

Karma glanced away from me and I didn't have to be a psychic to know why. She knew that if I listened to her whole conversation, then I heard everything. I sat up next to her and reached out to tuck her hair behind her ear. 

"Karma, look at me." 

After several moments, her eyes met mine. 

"Has it really been four years for you?" 

"Yes," she answered quickly. A little too quickly, actually. 

One thing that made me and Karma work so well all those years ago, was the fact that we called each other out on our bullshit. Karma was never a good liar. At least...she could never lie to me.

"You could never lie to me, gorgeous," I reminded her. 

She cleared her throat and took a deep breath. I tried to ignore the rise and fall of her breasts. It was nearly impossible. "It's been...twelve years." 

My stomach dropped. My breath froze in my lungs. My ears started ringing. "What did you say?" I asked her quietly. 

She grabbed her pillow from me and held it to the front of her naked body. She was never bashful in front of me and I could tell she was feeling cornered. She didn't want to talk about this. But that was the thing—we needed to talk about this. 

She kept her gaze low when she finally spoke. "After I moved to Florida, I didn't date for a long time. I wanted to focus on school and getting settled into a new place." She let out a long breath. "It was over a year before I tried to sleep with someone."

Hearing her say the words was like a knife to the heart. I had no right to be jealous or pissed that she tried to hook up with someone, but I couldn't help how I felt. The word mine whispered through my mind and I pushed it aside. We may have slept together—and Karma Fitzgerald may be a lot of things—but she wasn't mine. Not anymore. 

"So after me..."

She shook her head. "There was...no one else after you." She picked at the corners of the pillow. "It didn't seem right, Nathan. That's the only way I can explain it. I'm not trying to make you feel bad or anything," she said as she met my eyes, "I just... couldn't do it." 

Knowing that no one else has had the pleasure of her beautiful body besides me made my chest ache. There had been no one after me. That's what she said. This whole time, she's been mine.

Still. Always. But I knew better than to think like that. As much as I wish it could be different, she and I couldn't be together.

"What about you?" she asked. 

Goddamit. How was I going to explain this without feeling like a douchebag? I wish I could just lie to her. That was one of the reasons I had to break up with her the way I did. If I said I cheated on her or something, she wouldn't have believed me. The only way that would have worked was if she caught me in bed with another girl; and there was no way in hell I would do that to her. I didn't even want another girl when I was with Karma. No, I couldn't lie. I needed to be honest with her. 

"It was two years for me." I saw the surprise on her face. Considering the way I left things, it was to be expected that she think I moved on quickly. "Even after two years it wasn't easy, Karma." 

She turned her face away from me. "How many after?"

When I didn't answer, she got up from the bed and started pacing. Naked, I might add.

"I don't want to know the answer to that question, do I?" 

When I started to tell her, she covered her ears. "No, don't. I don't want to know. It doesn't matter anyway. It's—it's none of my business."

I got up from the bed and walked around to her side. I stepped in front of her to stop her pacing. "Karma, look at me." 

She didn't. She crossed her arms over her chest and turned away from me. I placed my hands on her shoulders and gently turned her to face me. I wasn't oblivious to the fact that we were both standing in the middle of her room, buck ass naked. That's how comfortable we were together. 

Karma let out a shaky breath. "Nathan, if the truth is going to hurt me, then I don't need to hear it. I know I have no right and no claim over you. I understand that. So, it doesn't matter." 

"It does matter, Karma." I ran my hand over my face. "After the two years, I've—I slept with four women."

Karma stared at me like I grew three heads. "Four? Four!" She grabbed the pillow off the bed and hit me with it repeatedly. "Damn you, Nathan Jenkins! I thought you were going to say twenty or one hundred. Four?"

This woman was crazy. "What—why are you hitting me?"

She huffed at me. "You are so infuriating." 

I rubbed my hand over my head. "Okay, we need to talk about this." 

She frowned. "We are talking, Nathan." 

"We're talking about the past. We need to talk about this. Tonight. Us having sex." 

Her eyes grew heated as she ran her gaze over my body. "Oh, yeah," she said a little too breathlessly, "that." 

I took a deep breath. This was one of our...problems. The sex between us was fucking amazing. When we were dating, the two of us were insatiable. 

I snapped my fingers. "Focus, Karma." 

She shook her head. "Right." She eyed my body again. "We should put some clothes on." 

I walked over to my side of the bed and put my jeans back on while Karma slipped on her silk robe. When I looked back at her, I cursed under my breath. The robe didn't help. It clung to her skin perfectly. She might as well be naked. 

"I want ice cream," she said with a smile. 

I flashed her a cheeky grin. "Just like old times, huh?" 

She chuckled and started out of her bedroom. "Some things never change." 

I followed her downstairs to the kitchen and I winced as my bad leg cramped. I really needed to get back into therapy. Perhaps Karma and I could do another session tomorrow. The longer I put this shit off, the worse it was going to get. I needed my leg to get better. I couldn't stay like this forever. 

Karma opened the fridge and pulled out a pint of Ben & Jerry's. She sat it on the counter before she boosted herself up to sit on top. She opened the ice cream and pointed to the small drawer by the fridge. "Spoon, please."

I opened the drawer and grabbed a spoon. When I turned back towards her, I didn't hand it over. Instead, I scooped out some of the ice cream and held it out to her. "Just like old times. Open up, gorgeous." 

Her eyes never left mine as she opened her mouth and closed it around the spoon. I felt myself growing hard in my jeans as I watched her. God, she was amazing. 

"So," she said casually and took another bite, "you said you wanted to talk."

Acutally, talking was the furthest thing from my mind right now. I stepped between her legs and placed my arms on the counter on either side of her body. She sat the ice cream down and wrapped both her arms and legs around my body. 

"I know we aren't back together." 

"Mhm," she said with a nod and kissed my bare chest. 

"And I know we aren't going to get back together." 

"Yes." She ran her nails down my back.

"So, I think that leaves one option." 

The corner of her mouth lifted in a smile. "And what's that?" 

I leaned into her body, kissing and sucking at her neck. Her soft moan almost had me coming right there. My lips went to her ear. "What did your friend call it? Oh yeah," I nipped the lobe with my teeth, "friends with benefits."

She leaned her lead to the side; already lost to the effects of my kiss. "You really think we can do that?" 

I slid my hands along her smooth thighs. "Yes." 

She clutched at my shoulders as I inserted a finger into her wet heat. "How long do you think we can keep that up?" 

I leaned back a little and met her gaze. It was so intimate to finger her as I looked in her eyes. Her heels dug into my back and I loved how it felt. 

"How about this, gorgeous: what happens in Florida, stays in Florida." 

Before the last word left my lips, her hands were pushing my jeans down just enough to free my erection. 

"Deal," she said quickly before taking posession of my mouth in a hungry kiss. 

I withdrew my fingers and untied her robe and I took her hard nipple into her mouth—sucking at the small bud hungrily. I became impatient as she ran her hands over my body. I laid her back on the counter and spread her legs wide. The granite island was the perfect height to take her. 

I paused for a moment and looked at her. Her pale skin stood out against the black counter. Her red robe was splayed open under her body. Speaking of her body...DAMN. In some ways, she hasn't changed a bit. But on the other hand, her body filled out very nicely. There was more of a curve now than before. Her tits had definitely gotten bigger. They overflowed my hands and I fucking loved it.

Unable to wait any longer, I pulled her to the edge and slammed into her. She called out my name in a deep moan. Then I fucked her—over and over again—right here on the counter.

Just like old times.