BULL (The Buck Boys Heroes Book 1)

by Deborah Bladon

  Aurora’s boyfriend, dressed in his police uniform, greets me instead. “Hey, Trina.”

  I smile at Eldon. “Hey.”

  He glances over my shoulder. “Aurora wanted me to open a missing person’s file since you haven’t been around much. She’ll be glad to know you’re alive and well.”

  I let out a light chuckle. “I’m good.”

  “Do you have a minute?” he asks, adjusting his belt. “I could use a friend to talk to.”

  I step aside, surprised that he wants to talk.

  It’s not that we’re not friends, but Eldon and I have never had a discussion alone.

  I’ve only ever spent time with him when Aurora has been around.

  “Of course,” I answer with a smile. “Please, come in.”

  Before I shut my apartment door, I peer down the hallway, wondering where Aurora is and hoping everything is all right.

  Eldon runs a hand over his short-cropped brown hair before he takes a bottle of water from me.

  He cracks open the lid and swallows more than half of the water in one gulp.

  Something isn’t right.

  His top lip is peppered with sweat, and his left knee has been bouncing since he sat down on my couch.

  I take a seat in a chair across from him, crossing my legs before I lean back. “How’s Aurora?”

  When he glances up at me, I see a glint in his eye. “Beautiful. Perfect. She’s great, Trina. She’s so great.”

  That lures a gentle smile to my lips. “I’m glad to hear it.”

  Nodding, he finishes the water that’s left in the bottle. “What’s been going on with you?”

  I can’t exactly tell him the truth. Hell, I can’t go anywhere near the truth, so I skip around it. “Work’s been busy. I spent some time at the bakery. That’s always fun.”

  “I love the peanut butter cookies from there.” A deep belly laugh escapes him. “They’re my addiction, but I have to limit myself. I stop in once a week for one.”

  “For one?” I question with a perk of both brows. “How do you stop at one?”

  “It’s not easy,” he confesses. “But, the job requires me to be in shape, so sugar is off-limits for the most part.”

  Nodding, I breathe a sigh of relief at the fact that I avoided saying anything about Graham.

  I’m semi-surprised that I didn’t since I haven’t stopped thinking about him since our conversation in his study.

  The last few days he’s been immersed in work from daybreak to sunset. I viewed that as a gift since I’m still contemplating what he said about us sleeping together.

  I want to go to bed with my husband, but I know my heart. Getting emotionally attached to a man I’m divorcing soon isn’t the right move for me.

  “Can you keep a secret, Trina?”

  I almost laugh out loud at Eldon’s question. I’m keeping the biggest secret of my life from everyone I care about. It’s locked up tight inside of me.

  I study him, wondering where this conversation is headed. “I can.”

  He leans forward, resting his forearms on his thighs. “Aurora’s folks are out of town right now. I wanted to talk to them face-to-face, but they’re in Indiana for her cousin’s wedding. I met the guy once. He was in the city for a night. We invited him to dinner, but he took us out to a restaurant in Tribeca. I admit it was great, but…”

  “What is it, Eldon?” I interrupt because that’s the most he’s ever said to me at one time, and I can tell that he’s nervous. “What’s going on?”

  He scrubs at his forehead while his blue eyes search my face. “Aurora’s birthday is coming up.”

  I’m aware. I’ve been planning out the perfect gift for her for the past two months. I finally decided on a scarf from the Ella Kara boutique. It’s pricey, but I picked it up last month and tucked it away in my closet. I know Aurora will love it.

  When I was at the café one day, a woman came in wearing the same scarf. Aurora asked her about it. As soon as the woman left, Aurora made a comment to me about how expensive it must be.

  “I know.” I smile. “I can’t wait to give her my gift.”

  “That’s why I’m here.” He taps his shoe against the floor. “I need your help with my gift for her, Trina.”

  “I’d love to help.”

  “I got her a ring.”

  “What?” That pops out in an almost scream. “Are you going to ask her to marry you?”

  “Damn right I am. I’m doing it on her birthday.” He chuckles. “I want the night to be perfect. I’m planning a surprise party. You’re invited, of course. One of her brothers is flying in from Arizona to be there. The other is driving up from Pittsburgh. I can’t wait to give her the ring. I think she’s going to love it. I hope she’ll want to wear it forever.”

  My gaze drifts to the pot of the houseplant and my rings hidden behind it.

  I’m beginning to wonder what it would feel like to wear those rings forever.

  His shoulders hunch forward. “I have a small favor to ask. Hell, it’s a huge favor, Trina. I’m not one to ask for anything, but this is for Aurora.”

  “Ask,” I insist. “Please, ask me.”

  “Your brother-in-law is Aurora’s absolute favorite singer,” he pauses. “Do you think there’s a chance that you can get him to sign a birthday card for her? I’ll buy the card. Having his autograph would blow her mind. It would be the icing on the cake for the night.”

  I had no idea Aurora was a huge Asher Foster fan.

  “Consider it done.” I skim my hands over the front of my skirt. “Don’t worry about the card. I’ll talk to Asher and handle that.”

  “Seriously?”

  “Seriously.” I chuckle. “We’re going to make Aurora’s birthday one she’ll never forget.”

  “I don’t know how to thank you.” He smiles, pushing to his feet. “Who would have thought that a random hook-up would lead to a lifetime commitment?”

  I stand too and chuckle. “Is that how you met? It was a random hook-up?”

  Shaking his head, he laughs. “Aurora never told you that story?”

  “No,” I answer quietly. “She never mentioned how you two met.”

  “On an app,” he confesses. “It was supposed to be just sex. We agreed to that after our first meet-up. Actually, we agreed it would last through the summer, and then we’d part ways. No harm. No foul since we both were looking for something strictly physical.”

  “It didn’t go as planned,” I state the obvious.

  He pats the center of his chest. “My heart didn’t get the memo not to fall in love with her. That taught me that we don’t control everything. Sometimes, you just have to jump in headfirst and see where fate takes you.”

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  Graham

  My wife has gone above and beyond this past week when it comes to setting my schedule.

  Today she hit a record for the number of meetings she could pack into a nine-hour window. I finished the last thirty minutes ago and decided to walk home.

  It wasn’t far.

  It gave me time to clear my head and think through the discussion I had with Trina the other night.

  So far, she hasn’t refused my idea to consummate our fake marriage, but she hasn’t accepted either. That’s mainly because I’ve barely seen her since work has been my sole focus.

  “Mr. Locke!” Eugene, the doorman, rushes at me as soon as I approach the building. He swings the door open with a flourish. “How was your day, sir?”

  “Good,” I answer brusquely, then consider what my wife would do. “How was your day?”

  “Sir?” Eugene asks from behind me as he follows me into the building.

  I spin to face him. “How has the day been for you? How’s your wife?”

  He studies my mouth like he’s trying to decode an alien language. “All right on both fronts.”

  I dip my hand into the front pocket of my suit pants and drag out the bills I deposited in there after I bought lunch for mysel
f.

  The three dollar sandwich I picked up at a bodega was a hell of a lot better than the overpriced lunches I typically indulge in.

  I glance down at the ten and five dollar bills in my hand. I shove them back in my pocket and reach for my wallet.

  I pluck a hundred dollar bill out of that and shove it at Eugene. “This is for you.”

  His blue eyes travel over my face. “That’s far too generous, Mr. Locke.”

  The gray-haired man has opened the door for me for years now. The majority of that time, I grunted out a greeting to him or ignored him altogether.

  Trina would never do that, and if I’ve learned anything from my wife, it’s to treat people with kindness.

  I saw it in how she interacted with Bette, and I’ve heard from Lloyd how kind she’s been to the doormen, including Eugene.

  “Buy something for your wife.” I reach for his hand and tuck the money into his fist.

  His hand trembles. “I don’t know what to say, sir, other than thank you.”

  “You’re welcome.”

  “Your beautiful wife arrived home twenty minutes ago,” he informs me as he slides the money into the pocket of his jacket. “Mr. Abdon left shortly before that. He told me he was headed to visit one of his favorite places.”

  I was hoping to have a moment alone with my bride, so this is a gift.

  “She’s lovely, sir.” Eugene smiles. “Mrs. Locke always lights up the lobby when she gets home.”

  I pat him on the shoulder. “She’s an incredible woman. I’m going to head up to see her.”

  “Enjoy your night.” He straightens his jacket. “If you need anything, you know where to find me.”

  All I need is to hear my wife say she wants me as badly as I want her. Hopefully, that’s about to happen.

  I exit the elevator and am greeted with a sense of silence that weighs on me.

  I suddenly wonder if Trina snuck out when Eugene was helping another resident. As I waited for the elevator in the lobby, I noted how he took off to aid an older woman carrying what looked to be her weight in shopping bags.

  Eugene scooped them up easily as soon as he opened the lobby door.

  “Trina!” I call out into the vastness of this place I call home.

  Truthfully, aside from the study, it hasn’t felt like home until recently.

  I’d attribute that to having Lloyd and Trina as temporary houseguests, but it’s more than that.

  I’ve enjoyed the light-hearted banter I’ve shared during dinners with Lloyd and the unspoken greetings in the kitchen in the mornings between my wife and me.

  Lloyd is oblivious to the fact that we haven’t spent the night wrapped around each other in my bed.

  For the most part, I’ve spent most nights tossing and turning for hours until I drift off to restless sleep.

  That has nothing to do with the comfort level of the mattress or the unfamiliar surroundings.

  I’ve gotten caught up in too many what-if thoughts and moments spent listening to the steady even breaths of my wife as she slept in the next room.

  “I’m here.” Her voice travels from the east wing. “I was looking for something.”

  I turn to see her on the approach.

  She’s wearing ripped jeans and a light blue blouse.

  I suppose some would call it a casual look, but it looks elegant and sophisticated on her.

  Trina Shaw is a timeless beauty.

  She’d steal a man’s breath regardless of the century.

  “What were you looking for?” I ask.

  She moves to stand in front of me. “I found it.”

  I gaze down at her hands, grateful to see the rings on her finger. “Is it invisible?”

  That pulls a laugh from her. Her hand dives into the front pocket of her jeans. She tugs out a diamond stud earring. “It’s this. It must have fallen out of my ear in the library the other night.”

  “I’m glad you found it.”

  “Me too.” She shrugs, dropping the earring back into her pocket. “It’s not real, but my sister gave me the earrings as a gift years ago. They have a lot of sentimental value.”

  I make a mental note to buy her a pair of diamond stud earrings tomorrow.

  They may never hold any value to her beyond their purchased worth, but she deserves them. Her beauty will always surpass them, but it will certainly complement the earrings.

  “Lloyd went out for a couple of hours.” She sighs. “He looked so happy, Graham. Is it wrong to hope that he’s feeling better and that he’ll…”

  “Have more time?” I finish her sentence.

  She chews on the corner of her bottom lip. “I’m not a doctor, but he looks better since he arrived in New York. There’s more color in his cheeks. He’s walking with more bounce in his step. He seems to have more joy.”

  I’ve noticed it too and attributed it to my wife.

  She’s changed my life. How could she not do the same for Lloyd?

  “Maybe that’s wishful thinking,” she continues, “I’ve gotten to know him better since I started living here, and I don’t want him to die.”

  I watch as her bottom lip trembles.

  “I don’t want that either,” I confess.

  “We’ve made him happy, haven’t we?” she whispers. “I mean this marriage, and our living together, it’s been good for him, hasn’t it?”

  Nodding, I take a step closer to her. “It has been good for him.”

  Her gaze trails over my face stopping at my lips. “I’m getting used to being married to you.”

  I fight off a smile. “Are you?”

  She steps closer to me. “It’s not nearly as bad as I thought it would be.”

  Tossing caution out the goddamn window, I drop a hand to my wife’s hip, hoping like hell she doesn’t slap me across the face. “It’s better than you thought it would be.”

  Her hand moves to cover mine. “It’s going to get even better, Graham.”

  Not wanting to read between the lines, even though I’m pretty fucking sure she’s talking about sex, I act dumb. “How so?”

  That earns me a tap on my cheek from her palm. “Don’t pretend you don’t know exactly what I’m talking about.”

  I tug her closer so she can feel what she’s doing to me. I want her to know that I’m hard as nails just from standing close to her. “You want me to fuck you, Mrs. Locke.”

  Her eyes meet mine. “If we’re stuck with each other for the time being, we might as well make the best of it.”

  I bark out a laugh. “Frame it however the hell you want to, but you want me, Trina. You can’t deny that.”

  She rests her hand on my shoulder as her lips glide over my cheek toward my ear. “If you’re as good in bed as you were in the library, I’m going to enjoy being your wife until we’re divorced.”

  I claim her lips in a soft, lush kiss that leaves her breathless in my arms.

  “You’ll enjoy it,” I whisper as our lips part. “I promise you’re going to enjoy it a hell of a lot.”

  She lets out a faint moan. “Prove it.”

  Chapter Thirty-Five

  Trina

  “We’re going to use condoms,” I tell him as I slowly unbutton my blouse.

  Graham eyes me from where he’s standing near the bed. His bed.

  We’re in his bedroom. I’ve called it home since the day we married, but this is the first time he’s been in here with me for longer than a minute.

  He gestures to the nightstand. “I have condoms.”

  I silently berate myself for not peeking in the nightstand drawers before now.

  I never thought to, or maybe my subconscious kept me from doing it out of fear of what I’d find inside.

  “Your clothes,” I say as I reach the last button. “You’re not undressing.”

  That’s not the whole truth.

  He’s removed his tie and suit jacket. Both landed on a chair in the corner of this room, but he hasn’t taken off his shirt or pants.

 
; He’s been watching me with his arms crossed over his chest.

  “I will,” he whispers. “I don’t want to miss a moment of this.”

  I’ve never shied away from showing my body to a man. I won’t with my husband either.

  I slide the blouse from my shoulders and toss it on the same chair where his clothes are.

  Before I remove my bra, I undo my jeans. The entire time I keep my gaze on Graham’s face.

  “You’re staring at me,” I accuse, suddenly wanting to cut through the intensity of his expression.

  “How could I not?” he asks as he stalks toward me. He takes sure and measured steps as his fingers make quick work of the buttons of his shirt.

  By the time he’s in front of me, his entire chest is exposed. Then the shirt falls to the floor at my feet, granting me my first view of my husband’s naked torso.

  Damn.

  He’s all cut muscle and planes of smooth skin.

  I reach a tentative hand out to touch him. Trailing a fingertip over his shoulder, I trace a path down his chest to his abs.

  Before I realize what’s happening, his hands are on the waistband of my jeans.

  “You’re torturing me, Mrs. Locke,” he whispers. “I want you now.”

  I drop my hands to his belt buckle and answer his plea as I help him lose the rest of his clothes.

  “I didn’t want this,” he hisses the words out between clenched teeth.

  I glance up at him as I trail my tongue over the swollen head of his thick cock. “You’re a liar.”

  A deep belly laugh rolls through him as he yanks on my hair, causing a jolt of pain. “I want to be inside of you.”

  I slide my mouth over him again, taking him even deeper.

  That lures a loud groan from him.

  I pull back, letting his cock drop from my lips. “You are inside of me.”

  That earns me a look that promises that I’ll pay later for making him wait to fuck me.

  He reaches down to grab hold of my arms, yanking me to my feet.

  His lips find mine in a rushed kiss before he twists us around and tosses me onto his bed.