“It’s not like he’s going that far,” I soothed. “It’s less than a five-minute walk over to his place. You can go visit anytime, or he can come back.”
She nodded. “Yeah. I’m so glad Mike is nice about all this. At least now, because he doesn’t have to work for a while, there’ll be someone there for Bryson when I’m too busy with work.”
“I’ll help out as much as I can, too,” I promised. “Also, I have something to give you.”
She looked at me curiously. We’d shared presents already, but I had something special I’d left in her room. I dragged her upstairs with me, then sat down on the bed and tugged her into my lap. I opened the nightstand drawer and pulled out a wooden box about the size of my fist.
“What’s this?” she asked, twisting it around in her hands.
“Open it and see,” I said.
She met my eyes, then looked down at the box. She opened it slowly and smiled at what was inside. It was a wooden heart, wonderfully carved with the words, ‘Kenji loves Lydia 2017’ carved into one side of it.
“Is this…?” she asked, tracing it with a finger.
I breathed in, a little anxious. “It’s made from wood repurposed from your old fence. I figured it brought us together, so it shouldn’t go to waste. Even though it was old, it really was good wood.”
She hummed. Still, besides the small smile on her face, there was no reaction. I was waiting anxiously for her response.
After a few minutes of just staring at it and tracing the words with her fingers, she closed the box and placed it on the nightstand. Then, she shifted in my lap, so she was straddling me instead of sitting sideways. She wrapped her arms around my neck and sighed as she pressed her forehead to mine and met my gaze.
“If that was you symbolically giving me your heart, then know that you already have mine,” she said with sincerity. “For as long as you want it, Kenji.”
I smiled. I did love how she said my full name.
“I love you, Lydia,” I whispered. “So much.”
“I love you too,” she told me just as quietly. “Now shut up and make love to me.”
Our lips pressed together, and we kissed in between chuckles. I stood up and turned us around so I could lay her down on the bed, and there was no more talking or laughing that night.
Instead, we loved each other.
Author’s Note
Thank you for reading Boxer Next Door.
This book also contains free bonus stories for your enjoyment. Please refer to the Table of Contents to find out more.
F Buddy
Sneak Peek
Chapter One
Scarlett
“Come on, Scarlett, this is the last wedding of the year!” Zach said as he swung me in his arms, his blue eyes gleaming at me under sparkling lights.
I giggled like a school girl, squirming a little. “Stop, Zach, you’re making me dizzy! Besides, I paid a lot for this hairstyle and you’re going to mess it all up!”
He laughed and swung me around more, and I couldn’t help but laugh along. Zach always seemed to be upbeat, no matter the situation. Of course, everyone is supposed to be upbeat at weddings, but I knew if I weren't with Zach, I wouldn’t be this happy. He was the joker in our small circle of friends from college.
“You need to let that dark hair of yours down a little more often, anyway, Scarlett. It’s too lovely to have piled on your head like that.” He waved at my hair and I tried a bit of deflection.
“I still can't believe this is happening,” I murmured when he let me down, looking at the festivities going on around us.
“I’m more surprised they took this long. They’ve been engaged for ages.”
I looked up at Zach with brown eyes full of badly hidden sorrow because watching everyone else felt a little bit painful. No, I didn’t begrudge the bride and groom their day. I was happy for them, but... I was not entirely happy about being at another wedding.
“Does anything faze you?” I asked, curious about how we were the only two in the group that hadn’t even gotten engaged, let alone married. I brushed a lock of blond hair out of his eyes as we stood there.
With any other man, a man as handsome as Zach, I’d feel awkward. At 25 we were both young, single, and he was hot as hell. He was also one of my good friends, so the moment was easy, carefree.
He shrugged and let me fix his hair. “I don’t see why this has to.”
I sighed. Of course, it wouldn’t. I was probably the only one even a little bothered.
I smiled as he pulled me into another spin, but even without seeing it, I knew it was less happy than before. I tightened my arms around his neck.
Fuck, this was getting way too depressing for a wedding.
The song we were dancing to ended and I pulled away. But Zach tightened his arms around me and grinned.
“How about another dance?”
He didn’t even wait for an answer, but spun me into the next song. I went with it and resolved to forget my problems.
If he weren't one of my closest friends, then I would end the night with him for comfort. The four Musketeers; me, Sasha, Donny, and Zach were coming to a dramatic end. Just two of us were left out of our little group; even our other friends had all married or settled down.
I should be happy for them. I glanced at them out of the corner of my eye as we spun on the dance floor, and a small smile crossed my lips. I could honestly say I was happy for my friends.
“God, I’ve been a bridesmaid how many times this year? This must be the fifth time, and we’re only in March. I’m happy for them, I am. But I just want to get out of here.” I looked up and noticed Zach watching me with a troubled expression on his face.
I smiled a little sadly. “What does it matter?” I shrugged. “They wanted me here, so I came. I’ve smiled. Cheered, cried. And now I want to be done.” I shut my eyes and leaned closer into Zach, burying my face into his shoulder. “It would be so much better for everyone if I just left…”
But I didn’t make a move to pull out of Zach’s arms, and I wasn’t sure if I imagined him tightening his arms around my waist to keep me in place.
I’d been drinking just before he came and dragged me into a dance. I might have had too much and would probably have had more if he hadn’t stopped me, and that might have turned into a disaster. He’d dragged me to the white tiles without so much as a by your leave, and suddenly we were dancing. The constant movement had helped me a bit, but it didn’t completely stop my thoughts.
In my mind, I’d rather be anywhere but here. The wedding was nice, but why did I need to stay for the whole reception? It had been hours already, the speeches had come and gone, but no one seemed to be ready to leave, and I couldn’t bring myself to be the first.
Maybe I was feeling down, seeing my old friends finding happiness and settling down when I couldn’t seem to hold anyone down, but the last thing I wanted was to create a scene and ruin what was supposed to be a special day for the couple. So, in a way, I owed Zach.
Besides, he was a good dancer. And I had to admit, dancing with him was the most fun I’d had all day. It helped me to de-stress, from dealing with Sasha when she had a little freak out in the morning, to all the hours I’d had to be on my feet because I was a bridesmaid, to being forced to act all happy when I couldn’t say that I was.
Hell, I had to run away from giving a speech, because I was pretty sure I would have broken down crying on the microphone and everyone would have known how I really felt. It would have been so embarrassing. Not to mention I might have lost a few friends.
Except maybe Zach. He was a good guy like that.
“Don’t worry about them. If you really wanted to be married then you would be by now,” Zach murmured into my ear, his cheek pressed against my temple. “They’re happy, and you will be too when a knight comes and sweeps you off your feet, and you let him date you for more than two minutes.”
I hit him playfully and said, “It’s more of a case of they do
n't want to date me for more than two minutes. I don’t know if it’s my pale skin or what? They come, and then they go.”
Like a cat in heat, they come and go in my life. Damn! I felt sad thinking about my life. And yet, there I was: happy for other people like it was the easiest thing in the world. But if I wasn’t happy for them then that would make me a bad friend, wouldn’t it?
I sighed heavily and leaned further into Zach.
“Trust me when I say this. You’re beautiful, Scarlett. I’m sure you’d look exceptional in a wedding dress.”
I pursed my lips, just shy of pouting because I didn’t believe him. He must have noticed the petulant look on my face because he chuckled.
“Seriously, I don’t think you of all people should worry about something so silly.”
“So it’s silly to wonder if I’ll be alone for the rest of my life?” I asked, my voice tight with irritation.
He chuckled again, a little louder. “Not that, that you’re even insecure in the first place. You’re still young. You’ll find someone you want to settle down with that will want the same as you. It’s only a matter of time.”
I huffed and pulled away from his shoulder so I could look up at him with a frown. “Yeah, well, if this ‘someone’ could hurry up, I’d be really fucking grateful.”
“Do you want someone right now?”
“That’s a stupid question,” I said, arching an eyebrow. “If I had someone, why would I have come to this reception alone?” I sighed and looked away from his eyes. “I date, a lot, and that is my biggest problem. I have no shortage of partners, and the only reason I’ve dated so many people is that all my relationships don’t work out in the end.” Then I paused to glare up at him. “And besides, it’s not like you’re that much better off than I am. How many relationships have you failed at?”
If I’d had the hope of the jibe hurting him even a little, I would have been disappointed, since he just grinned back at me. I wanted to curse at him as it seemed to amuse him because his smile grew wider.
“Who wants a relationship in the first place?” he retorted. “Yeah, I came here solo just like you, but it’s not like I didn’t have someone, it’s because I didn’t want someone.”
My eyebrows shot up.
“How could you even say that,” I breathed out. “Relationships are important. How could you think that when all your friends are getting married left and right?”
“Not all of them,” he teased, winking at me.
I smacked his shoulder. “Be serious here, please!”
He rolled his eyes. “So what? Everyone’s getting married, good for them. Eventually, they’re gonna come to me looking for a drinking partner to relieve some stress. And I’ll be there to help them. You want to know why? Because I’ll be the only bachelor left.”
My shock melted into confusion and annoyance. He said it so proudly! Like he didn’t care his friends were settling down and leaving him behind. It was the opposite for me; I couldn’t help but let it bother me. When I was feeling particularly uncharitable, I wanted to shout at them all to stop for a bit and let me catch my breath.
The next person to ask me to their wedding would get a fist to the face.
I grimaced thinking about it because I knew I’d never really hit someone. I’d accept their invitation with a smile. Besides, I’d get to see an actual wedding and maybe daydream of my own, if it ever happened.
Just not a bridesmaid again, I pleaded silently.
“Why are you so hung up on relationships, then?” Zach challenged. “So this is the fifth wedding you’ve been to this year. How many boyfriends have you gone through?”
I felt my face flush, knowing it wasn’t a flattering number.
“Why aren’t you taken?” I muttered trying to think of a way to detract the conversation away from me and my relationship failures.
Zach just laughed at me.
“Relationships are a fool's game! I fuck, I move on! It’s the best recipe for life, no expectations!” he admitted.
“You’re all about the booty call!”
“Yeah, that much isn’t wrong, but it’s not so much a relationship as… Scratching an itch. I honestly don’t want to be in one, and all the women I've been with know I'm not the settling down type.”
My eyebrows jumped again, though I wondered why I was surprised at all. It was just so… Zach. He didn’t act like he wanted to be tied down, so I always wondered about his relationships. Our little group of friends met up often for vacations and day trips to unwind. Everyone had the option of bringing a significant other, and I hadn’t missed that he brought different people every time, even more than I did.
In our circle, he and I were always the odd ones out.
“So you just have a string of booty calls…?”
He laughed, and I was sure if I’d looked around he would have drawn some attention. But my eyes didn’t deviate from Zach’s.
I didn’t understand him because I just didn’t understand why he didn’t want a relationship. It wasn’t all I thought about, I had a life that revolved around more than finding a boyfriend, but it was a big, central part of my thoughts. Especially when I thought about the future and how I wasn’t exactly growing any younger, just waiting for the perfect love match to smack me in the face.
Zach would probably laugh at me, long and hard, uncaring of the audience, if he knew what I was thinking.
“I’m not sure I’d put it quite like that. I don’t usually see most women after we spend a night, or a few nights, together. I love the single life, and I don’t get attached. I can do whatever I want that way.”
I gave him a dark smile. “So you’re afraid of commitment?”
“Not really. I just don’t see the point of relationships. I love the sex, and I can get plenty of that without the drama, so I’m pretty happy.”
Then he had a thoughtful look on his face. Had I been just a little bit more sober, it would have put me on the alert. As it was, when he leaned closer, eyes going half-lidded, I didn’t move away.
“There is one good thing about having so many partners, though. I know how to fuck. What am I saying? I’m amazing at it!”
His lips, a dark red that had always held my attention, drew nearer and I felt as if I was holding my breath. Then I blinked, there was no way Zach was coming on to me, not after all of this time as friends!
“Very funny. I’m sure all the ladies just love your ego,” I said, and turned my face away. But he drew me back with a finger under my chin.
He grinned at me, a tempting sexy grin that I just couldn’t look away from.
“If you’re game, I can show you just how good I am and you can judge for yourself. You don’t want to be here, and I don’t mind leaving, so what do you say… shall I try to make you feel better?”
Any other time, I would have scoffed at the suggestion and rebuffed him, maybe smacked him and walked away. But then I’d be walking back into the thick of the wedding and the happy atmosphere. Zach was guarding me against it in a way, keeping my focus on him. I knew I’d probably just run out of the reception or go back for some more drinks, and either option would cause a scene.
Going to bed with Zach, though… No one would think anything of it if we paired off without saying goodbye to anyone; a lot of people had probably already done it. And besides, I didn’t exactly fancy going home and to my bed alone. Sex with Zach was a much better option.
With that in mind, I held his gaze, and said, “Yes, please.”
Chapter Two
Zach
The moment she said yes to me, my heart started beating faster and my body heated up, getting me more than ready. If we weren’t in a hall full of people we knew, I would have ravaged her mouth right there on the dance floor.
“I’m sorry, could you repeat that for me?” I teased.
She thumped her hand against my shoulder, a slight pout on her lips, and the light blush on her cheeks growing darker.
“You heard me just fine,
” she grumbled. Then she smiled almost coyly at me as she leaned in closer, and I felt desire curling low in my stomach. “If that wasn’t a serious offer, can I propose it instead?”
I arched an eyebrow, looking at her seriously. “Are you sure this isn’t something we’re going to regret in the morning?”
I was all for taking Scarlett to bed. I was so close to it, and a part of me cursed myself for questioning her, but the last thing I wanted was to regret it. It wouldn’t be because of something I’d end up doing—I’m good in bed, with a high approval rate from the women I’ve slept with. But this wasn’t just any woman—this was Scarlett, the girl I used to fantasize about, almost since the moment I met her. Only, at the time, she’d been dating someone else. They broke up not long after, but by then, we’d become close as friends, and I didn’t want to rock the boat. My thoughts hadn't changed though, so her coming to bed with me wasn’t something I took lightly.
“Trust me, Zach,” she murmured, “I’ve never been more sure of anything. I want to spend the night with you.”
I could have disputed her words. She was acting all depressed and she was clearly looking for some way out of it. But the gaze she leveled on me was serious and sober. Then her hands were tightening on me, her body swaying closer in the next spin, pressing those soft full breasts I’ve fantasized about touching so many times against me in a way I could not ignore. It was hard to resist when I could feel her soft curves against me, and all I could think was how wonderful it would be to do this alone, naked.
“I gave you a chance to back down,” I muttered. “Remember that in the morning.”
She smirked, then glanced around the room, curious, before turning back to me.
“So, how do we sneak out of here without being seen?”
I scoffed at the idea. “There’s no way. This place is packed, and there’s only one exit. We’ll be leaving together—none of that covert shit where one of us goes first—so people are bound to notice.”
Boxer Next Door Page 16
