So Toxic(Bad Boy Next Door Book 4)(320)

She closes her eyes. “But telling them we were married?”

I suck in a deep breath and let it out slowly. “That’s also the truth. And I fucked it up. I should never have left you, Lou.”

“But you did leave, Buck. You did.”

I did.

My thoughts scramble, but I find the one I want most. “Only because it was best for you. It was the deal we made, Lou. And by the time you turned eighteen, you had that scholarship and a way out. All I did was free the path for you to take it.”

I drop to the bed. The memory of that day rushes through my mind as I sift through the facts, trying to grab hold of one that will show Lou I was doing what was best for her, not myself.

Lou pushes her fingers over her face and into her curls. “Did it seem like I wanted to be free?”

“We made a deal. I was just standing by it.”

“We made a deal in the aftermath of a shitty childhood.”

“That’s right. Marry to get you out from under your mom and keep you out of the child welfare system, and then divorce when you turned eighteen. Then you’d be in charge of your future.”

“Fourteen months, Buck. We were married for fourteen months. A lot happened in that time.”

Nothing happened during those fourteen months, except that her mom hit the road after I forced her to sign the papers for Lou and me to get married. It took threatening her with the cops for what she and that douche tried to do. The only other thing that happened was that Lou flourished in peace, living with Delores and Manny.

I can’t fathom what she means. “What happened, Lou?”

“You happened, Buck. You.”

“Me? But I didn’t change. Nothing changed. Well, not until that last night.”

Her head falls back, and she growls. “You drive me fucking crazy, you idiot. I fell so deeply in love with you that there was no coming back. That last night was just the beginning for me, but for you it was the end.”

“No. It was never the end for me. That’s where you’ve got it all wrong.” I snag her hand, pulling her close. “I still love you, Lou.”





My heart doesn’t know whether to shit or go blind. Confusion reigns, and I’m at a loss.

Buck slides his hands behind me and up my back, dragging me closer until my breasts press against his chest. “Tell me you missed me, Lou. Tell me you love me.”

I pull back a bit and brush the hair from my eyes. “I—you—that’s not fair…”

He leans in, swiping his mouth roughly across mine. “Life’s not fair.”

Buck nips my bottom lip. His tongue delves in; its velvety softness slides along mine. My chest quivers as I meet him halfway, my hands moving to his nape, as I push closer.

His fingers find the exposed skin below my cutoff T-shirt. His kiss deepens as he tightens his grip. A small throb beats its way to my pussy as he drags kisses along my jaw to the pulse point on my neck. He stops to gently suck, heating my blood so it sends warm moisture to my slit.

His hand moves to my bare breast. He twists my nipple, just enough to pinch, heightening my senses.

I slide my hands over his pecs, down his washboard abs, and under his hem. The skin beneath my fingers is as hot as my pussy. I push his shirt up as I find his flat nipples and return his tweak. He gives me a little grunt, so I do it again.

“Fuck, Woman.”

“We’ll get to that.”

He looks into my eyes. His sparkle with mischief as he pulls my top over my head, baring my tits. He takes them in both hands and pushes them up. He doesn’t break eye contact as he slips his tongue over one beaded nipple after the other. He grates his teeth across one, and then the other as he squeezes. The sensation shoots straight to my pussy, eliciting more cream.

My breath comes heavier as he sucks them, soothing the raw nerves.

He moves back up, his mouth plundering mine. His big hands knead my tits as he walks me backward to the bed.

“I’m going eat that pussy, Lou. I’m going to lick you from hole to hole, and tickle everything in between, but not until you tell me you missed me.”

My entrance tingles at his words. I bite my lip. “Why’s it so important to you for me to say that?”

He pushes me down onto the bed and whips his shirt off. He pops the button on his jeans. “Because…”

I grab his waistband and pull his pants to his knees, freeing his stiffened cock. “That’s no answer.”

His eyes narrow for a moment, as though considering his words as he steps out of his pants. “I want to know that I wasn’t the only one living in a special kind of hell reserved for those who’ve lost their other half.”

My hands clench, nails digging into my palms as I close my eyes, my breath trapped in shocked lungs that refuse to work for the moment. The ability to speak must be something that can shut off, because that’s what his words have done to me. Though, even if I could utter a word, I don’t know what I’d say.