Perfectly Toxic (The Sterling Shore Series Book 9)

by C. M. Owens

  I laugh humorlessly. “I’m well aware. So was the board. But my dad had been grooming me for the business since I was fourteen. I spent all my summers as his assistant, and I interned in all departments as well. I was working as many hours as him, even though I was only paid for eight. Cash under the table too, since I was too young.”

  “Sheesh. I spent my summers waitressing so I could hang out at the movies and stuff.”

  I nod, sliding my hand up her leg. “I got to have fun during the school year, but even then I was still having to be tested for things at work, such as new policies and new procedures. He’d call me and email over whatever new company we were about to acquire, so it cut into my social time pretty heavily.”

  She frowns, and it creates a weirdly cute wrinkle on her forehead.

  “I hate that you didn’t get to be a kid.”

  “Who says I can’t be a kid now?” I ask with a shrug. “I did it because I wanted to, because he wanted me to. My dad loves that place, and I gave up some time to help him keep it. Now it’s being run by a father and son team who have the utmost respect for the company. I even still have a say in any major changes they try to make.”

  “Sounds pretty perfect,” she tells me, settling in closer.

  “It is. My mom is happy I’m finally home, but I haven’t gotten over to their house yet. I’m waiting until I have the first month’s numbers in my hand under new management, otherwise my father will grill me.”

  She frowns again. “Can’t he just be happy you’ve done all this?”

  “He is. But he’s a little obsessed with that place. Anyway, I don’t want him to stress, so I want to wait until I have the proof the company is in good hands before I show him.”

  “It sounds like you have a good relationship with your parents, even if I do think your father should be more concerned about you than a business.”

  It’s hard not to smile. Is Bella getting protective over me?

  “You’re cute when you care,” I tell her, watching her roll her eyes. It’s her favorite thing to do when she gets uncomfortable or if things get too serious.

  “What about you? You tight with your folks?”

  She tenses, but slowly relaxes. “My parents… No, not really.”

  “Why?” I ask without thinking that I’m probably crossing a line too soon.

  But she shrugs as though it isn’t a touchy subject. “My parents were raised old-school, and they’re very religious too. However, they forgot what being Christian means. I was raised to know right from wrong, and my mother was constantly judging people and casting metaphorical stones. That’s why I hate myself for labeling you. She did that. All the time. Probably still does.”

  She blows out a harsh breath, and she trails her fingers over my stomach.

  “I told Allie I was growing apart from them, which is true. They couldn’t stop judging, and I quite frankly don’t give a damn about what anyone does with their life as long as it’s not hurting them or anyone else. I don’t care about someone’s sexuality, or religion, or even their vices. I choose to judge people based on how they treat me, and that’s the only judging I do.”

  “Unless those people have tattoos and a cocky smile?” I pry, trying to make her smile.

  She grimaces instead, and I regret the words.

  “Yeah. Sorry. I’m a little mixed up at the moment. You would have liked me six years ago.”

  “I’m pretty sure you’re naked in my bed because I like you now.”

  This time, she does smile. I’m almost positive I haven’t ever had a naked girl in my bed all night, and certainly not just to talk to.

  “Anyway, Mom told me I wasn’t the daughter she wanted, and she said Allie was dragging me to hell with her. I told her she’d get to hell before either of us. The conversation ended when she slapped me across the face. My father turned away and said nothing at all. I left and didn’t look back. We’ve spoken over the phone since then, but those conversations were just as bad, so I gave up on reconciliation a few years ago.”

  She shakes her head as though she’s clearing it, before continuing.

  “Anyway my grandparents had started a savings account for me long before they died. It helped us make ends meet on those tight months. Since then, it’s been Allie and me against the world with Angel as our sidekick. But Allie doesn’t know the whole story about why I shut my parents out.”

  For some reason, I want to kick Wren’s ass right now. Partially for getting Allie pregnant and not giving her his last name. And partially for taking Allie away from Bella when she found him again.

  Pretty sure this isn’t normal.

  “Sounds like me and Rye,” I admit for some stupid reason. I guess I feel like I owe her something since she just shared with me.

  “You were there the night Allie came to stitch him up, weren’t you?” she asks, leaning back. “Didn’t he hit you?”

  That night was a bitch. “Yeah. But I didn’t care. I only acted like I did so that Brin would stick around. I actually had hoped she’d stay there, but I had her back when it was too much. Rye surprised me with that punch.”

  “Do you think he’d ever hit her?”

  I burst out laughing, and she raises up, shoving at my chest.

  “I’m serious. He’s your best friend, and yet he hit you? It worries me.”

  Still laughing, I shake my head. “Yeah, well, no. Don’t worry. Rye would cut his hands off before he’d ever hurt Brin like that. Guys are different than girls. Sometimes we take a few swings at each other, but that doesn’t mean we’re going to attack you.”

  “I honestly know nothing about you, and I just spent the night in your bed,” she says randomly, lying back down. “So I guess I don’t know what you’d do if you got pissed.”

  Ah, so it’s not so random.

  “I’d say a few dickheaded things. Then I’d go to the gym and work myself until the burn left me numb. Or I’d go get drunk off my ass. That’s about it. I’ve never hit a girl before and never will. I’m not that kind of bully. As for not knowing me, this is how you get to know people.”

  She laughs while covering her face. “No, dinner is how you get to know someone. Not hot and dirty wall sex that leads to a bedroom conversation.”

  “No?” I muse, running my lips over her arm. “You go to dinner, and either there’s stilted, forced small talk and a quick recap of your history—sunny side up. Or you go to dinner, and there’s a lot of oversharing and you realize the person is a nut job. Or you find someone who has the same friends you have, have amazing sexual chemistry with, have epic sex with, and then learn the real stuff about each other. Sounds much better than a phony dinner date.”

  Her stomach growls as though it was waiting on the perfect opportunity, and she covers her face as I laugh.

  “Okay, so maybe there’s one drawback to not having dinner. Your stomach is seriously loud.”

  “Shut up,” she groans, hiding her face again.

  “Come on. I’ll drive you to your house. You can change, and I’ll take you out for breakfast.”

  “I have my car here,” she says on a sigh.

  “But that’s not a real date,” I point out, smirking when she does the eye roll thing again.

  “Fine. I need a shower though.”

  “How convenient. So do I.”

  She jabs her finger into my chest. “Don’t even think about it. I’m too hungry for another round of sex, and my stomach is too embarrassing to withhold food from.”

  I laugh as she climbs up, pulling her shirt on. It’s a good view to admire. “You shower here. I’ll shower at my house.”

  Somehow, it doesn’t even bother me that this is a little less than casual. Maybe I was wrong about this relationship stuff.

  I tug her back down on top of me, and she comes willingly, running her fingers all along my chest. And I can feel every single touch.

  “What’s this?” she asks, running her finger over my spider web tattoo.

  Tensing, I try
to play it off. “Think that one is self-explanatory.”

  She rolls her eyes. “No, there’s a large scar the lines are on top of. How can you have a spider web tattoo over a scar?”

  “I think I’ve shared enough for one day,” I tell her, still playing things cool. “So unless you have anything to add, I say it’s time to get ready for breakfast.”

  “One thing,” she says, getting up again and toying with the ends of her shirt. “Let’s keep this quiet from the group.”

  I groan while sitting up, glaring at her.

  “Why the hell would we do that?”

  She nibbles her lip for a minute, as though she’s choosing her words carefully. I’m trying not to get pissed.

  “You know how you hate being labeled?” she finally asks.

  “Yeah?”

  “Well, so do I. I’m not as close to them as you are, and I don’t want to just suddenly be Ethan’s girl. They’re just now starting to call me their friend instead of Allie’s best friend. Allie and I only had each other for so long, and it feels good to have others now. I don’t want to mess that up.”

  Ah fuck.

  “Fine. But you know they love you already. Hell, they may even like you more than they like me. At least they let you know Ash was going into labor.”

  “I just happened to be with them when they got the call. I doubt I would have found out otherwise. Unless Allie called me, of course.”

  I sigh hard, but I tug her back onto the bed, brushing my lips over her shoulder.

  “This is going to be trouble. I already know it.”

  “How could it? We’ll get to be friends in front of them, which will help us get to know each other a little better, since we’re still relatively strangers. And we’ll get to explore the sexual chemistry and epic sex you were talking about when no one else is around. It’s not like you can fuck me on a table in front of them. Besides, sneaking around is always fun. I’m sure you missed out on that when you were a teenager.”

  I cock an eyebrow.

  “Nice delivery,” I state dryly, watching as she bites back a grin. “Just don’t think you’re still going on your loser dates.”

  Her smile slips, and I tense. No way does she think I’m actually going to be such a pussy-whipped ass as to let her go on dates with other guys while she’s fucking me on the side.

  “Bella, I mean it, I—”

  “We didn’t use condoms,” she interrupts, clearing her throat. “I was under the impression this was going to be a monogamous thing.”

  I relax, but she looks tense.

  “It is monogamous,” I tell her, watching her relax this time. “So this is a relationship or whatever?”

  I sound like a damn kid. But if it’s not a one-night stand, I’m not the type of guy who is able to share.

  She stifles a laugh. “This is dating. Sort of. We kind of skipped a few steps. But it’s not a relationship, per se. Which is why I’m not ready to announce it to the group until we see where this is going.”

  Women are too confusing, so I decide not to figure out what she’s saying at the moment.

  “I’ll go grab that shower. Then I’ll run you home. You’re welcome to use one of my other bathrooms since you won’t shower with me.” I wink, making things light again.

  “I might use one of the others then,” she says with a shrug. “But all my hair stuff is at home.”

  I kiss her shoulder then climb out of the bed in just my boxers. When I turn around her eyes are on me, and I smirk before ducking into the bathroom, wondering what the hell I’m doing.

  A girlfriend was never on the agenda, and I’m pretty sure that’s what Bella just became, even though she’s trying to say we’re just dating. Just dating involves dating, and it also involves dating other people. Then again, she told me from the beginning she was a relationship girl, so it’s not like I feel duped.

  Plus, I might beat a guy with his own arms if he laid a hand on her, so I’m definitely onboard with the not dating anyone else rule.

  Shaking out of my thoughts, I turn the water on and toss my boxers off. Maybe it’s good no one else finds out just yet. After all the hell I’ve given the guys for being pussy whipped, there’s no telling what hell I’d catch in return for being back a few weeks and suddenly in a damn relationship.

  Just as I step under the spray, the door to the shower opens, and every thought in my head turns to dust. Bella steps in, fully naked, and she’s wearing that sexy little grin on her face.

  My eyes slide down her body, taking in the sight as she steps closer and slides her hand up my chest. I felt the sheets beneath me all night. I felt the air trickling across us. I felt the pillow against my cheek. I felt her against me all night.

  The feeling seems to come and go, but Bella’s touch is fucking perfect every time. And I feel it every time too.

  Which is what made me call the sex epic. I’ve always felt sex, but never to that extreme. I had no idea it was numbed. Or maybe it wasn’t. Hell I don’t really know anything.

  “I changed my mind about the shower,” she says as she leans over and flicks her tongue over my nipple ring.

  On second thought, having a girlfriend seems like a damn good idea.

  Chapter 23

  BELLA

  My wall hates Ethan Noles, because he loves fucking me against it.

  My fingers dig into his shoulders, clutching him as he makes use of my poor wall once again, kissing his way up my neck as he drives in and out of me with careless abandon.

  He knows how to use his body, and we’re like two teenagers who can’t get enough of each other.

  I try to kiss him, but his movements are so rough that I’m worried about bashing our mouths together. That’s one thing I can’t get enough of—how out of control he gets when he goes several hours without seeing me.

  He doesn’t stop until I’m crying out his name, and his body stills against mine as he bites down on my neck to muffle any sound he might make.

  His fingers are digging into my ass so hard that there are probably going to be fingerprint bruises, but I don’t care.

  “Hi,” I say to him, giggling when he laughs against my neck.

  He barely came inside before he was tearing my pants off and throwing me against the wall.

  “At least round one is out of the way,” he says against my neck, the vibrations of his deep voice eliciting a shudder from me.

  “How romantic,” I deadpan, but then I smile as he slowly lowers me back to the floor, pulling out of me at the same time.

  He slaps my ass as I head into my room to use my bathroom, and I flip him off without turning around. Ethan Noles is genuinely not romantic, and I’m unsurprisingly happy about that.

  I’ve always liked them rough around the edges, but I’ve never been overly fond of the aftermath when things blow up in my face.

  After I clean up and put on a pair of comfortable shorts, I find Ethan lounging on my sofa, lazily watching some sports channel.

  “Not in my house,” I tell him before swiping the remote.

  He doesn’t argue, until I turn on my favorite show, which happens to be a little too feminine. Ethan hates for things to be too feminine.

  “Be glad I like your pussy, or I’d be an ass right now and take that remote back.”

  “Be still my beating heart. With crass poetry like that, you’re going to ruin me.”

  He laughs lightly while sliding in behind me, wrapping his arm around my waist as he kisses his way down my neck.

  “You’ve yet to allow me to wow you with my skills. You’re too busy ripping my clothes off like a barbarian and taking over,” I tell him, trying to ignore how good his lips feel.

  He grins as he continues to kiss down my neck, and I arch against him when he finds a particular spot behind my ear that hits all the right nerves.

  “I’ll let you ‘wow’ me later. It’s not my fault you work all the damn time, and I’m forced to wait.”

  “Girl’s gotta earn a living,
” I say absently, glancing at the clock that shows I have to be up in less than seven hours to start the day all over again.

  I have to get more sleep than I’ve been getting the rest of this week. Otherwise, I won’t be worth a damn at work, and that’s not a good thing.

  His big hand is spread over my stomach, holding me in place like I’m about to try and get away.

  When his phone rings, he ignores it, just like he usually does when he’s with me. If it’s on him, he’ll check it, but if it’s sitting somewhere that will force him to get up, he doesn’t bother. It’s one thing I really enjoy about him, since most of the guys I’ve been seeing lately are more interested in who has ‘liked’ the latest picture of them on whatever social media platform they’re obsessed with.

  Ethan doesn’t even have social media. I know, because I tried to cyber stalk him. I’m a creeper like that.

  “So you and Rye are tight?” I ask, making conversation so that this feels less like a hook-up and more like something that could develop into a real relationship.

  “Yeah. He lived with me for a while when we were teenagers. I wouldn’t say we’re as tight as you and Allie though.”

  “Hmm. I didn’t know that. Why’d he live with you?”

  “He was going through some stuff, and my parents suggested he move in with us.”

  His lips rake over my shoulder, even though it seems to be less seductive and more… sweet? Ethan Noles doesn’t do sweet, so I have to be wrong.

  “Before I forget, my mother is having some big dinner thing in a couple of weeks to welcome me back home.”

  “But you’ve been home for a while now.”

  “I know, but she doesn’t really care. It’s her way of getting me over there.”

  “You don’t want to go over there?”

  “I don’t mind it, but hanging out with my parents hasn’t been high on the agenda. I’ve been playing the good son for the past decade.”

  I only wish I could ‘hang’ with my parents. Hell, if they ever apologized for being hypocritical assholes, I’d happily do it. But I don’t foresee that ever happening.