The Promise (Neighbor from Hell Book 10)

by R. L. Mathewson

  “Because you did,” he said, just to get a reaction out of her.

  When her eyes narrowed on him and she took a step closer, he decided to do the same until they were nearly chest to stomach and she was forced to tilt her head back in order to glare up at him. He wasn’t surprised when she muttered a curse a second later and rushed over to the sink, carefully climbed back up, winced, shifted, winced again, and crossed her arms back over her chest and narrowed her eyes back on him.

  “They were hives from a science experiment that went wrong and you damn well know it,” she bit out.

  Nodding, he moved closer so that they were almost eye-to-eye and said, “I also told them that you had lice.”

  She gasped, “You bastard!”

  “You had it coming,” he said, moving closer and before she could open her mouth to argue, he added, “You burnt my eyebrows off with that experiment.”

  “No one told you to come into my room,” she said evenly even as she spread her legs so that he could step closer.

  “The green smoke that was pouring out of your window said otherwise,” he said, placing his hands against the counter so that he could lean in closer and glare at the little brat that was lucky to be alive.

  “I had it handled.”

  “Just like the spelling bee?” he said, mostly to piss her off.

  “That was an unfortunate accident that couldn’t be avoided,” Joey said, moving to shift closer only to wince and promptly return to glaring.

  “And ninth grade orientation?” he asked as he grabbed hold of the towel and moved her closer so that she could properly glare at him only to force himself to bite back a groan when her breasts pressed against his chest.

  “Was a simple misunderstanding that got out of hand,” she said, her breath catching as he used his hold on the towel one last time and brought her closer.

  “So is this,” he said as he watched her lips part on a soft moan and he realized that he was about to break his promise.

  Chapter 22

  “Reed?” she said, licking her lips nervously as the man that was making it difficult to think glared at her.

  “Do you know what I did for the past ten years, Joey?” he asked, which she normally would have taken as a good sign, but since he’d asked that question through clenched teeth and followed that up by placing his hands on the counter on either side of her hips so that he could lean down until they were eye-to-eye and she was left regretting so many things.

  She opened her mouth to venture a guess only to quickly rethink that decision and settle for a simple shake of her head, which seemed to appease the large angry man. Nodding in approval, he reached up and gently pushed a strand of her hair back as he leaned in closer so that his mouth was next to her ear.

  “For the past ten years, Joey, I haven’t thought about you,” he whispered seductively, making her swallow nervously.

  “I haven’t wondered about you, asked about you, or thought about you, and do you know why?” he asked as she felt his hand close over her hip.

  She shook her head only to close her eyes on a shaky breath when she felt his lips brush against her ear. “Because for the first twelve years you made my life a living hell. I worried about you every single fucking day and it only got worse when you left. But when you decided to let me know just how much you hated me, I stopped worrying. I stopped caring. But now…” he said softly, letting his words trail off so that he could brush his lips down the side of her neck, leaving a trail of goosebumps in their wake and making her breath catch.

  “Do you know what I think about now?” Reed asked in a seductive whisper that made it difficult to think as he kissed her chin.

  “N-no,” she managed to get out only to groan when she felt his hand slide over her hip and settled over her bottom.

  “You,” he said, brushing his lips softly against hers. “I think about you, Joey.”

  It was on the tip of her tongue to tell him…

  Well, she really wasn’t exactly sure what she should tell him, but she was sure that it had something to do with the fact that they probably shouldn’t be doing this. There were a hundred reasons why, but as he reached up and cupped her face while he continued to gently brush his lips against hers, she couldn’t think of a single one. She also couldn’t remember it ever feeling this good to be in a man’s arms before, she thought with a shaky sigh as he ran his hands back down her neck and over her back.

  “You’re so damn soft, Joey,” Reed said with a groan when she met the next teasing brush of his lips with a soft moan.

  She could honestly say that when she’d imagined what she would be doing when she finally went on sabbatical that Reed kissing her on his bathroom counter hadn’t been part of the dream. But maybe it should have been, she thought as she slowly returned the kiss and-

  Groaned when he suddenly pulled away so that he could glare at her.

  Great, they were back to this already, she thought, biting back a disappointed sigh even as she tried to tell herself that this was for the-

  This was definitely for the best, she decided when she suddenly found herself picked up so that the man, who normally looked like he was on the verge of burying her in a shallow grave, could pin her up against the wall and kiss her. She’d never been kissed like this before, she thought, unable to help but moan as she wrapped her arms around him and held on as he proved all the rumors that she probably shouldn’t have heard when she was little were true.

  *-*-*-*

  He was definitely going to hell, but as Joey wrapped her legs around him and released a little whimper when she realized just how badly he wanted her, he realized that he didn’t fucking care. The only thing he cared about was the small woman that he had pinned up against the wall that was releasing the sweetest fucking moans that he’d ever heard.

  She was so fucking soft, he thought as he ran his hands over her thighs, so smooth, and so fucking sweet, he thought as he kissed her. Needing more, he ran his hands over her thighs, pushing her shirt out of the way so that he could run his hands over her hips and slide them down the back of her panties so that he could finally get his hands on the generous ass that he’d been obsessed with for the past three days.

  So fucking soft, he thought as he cupped her ass and used his hold to pull her tightly against him. The needy little whimper that she made had him carrying her toward his bedroom. When she threaded her fingers through his hair and used her hold so that she could tilt his head back and suck on his tongue, he thought he’d lose his fucking mind.

  She was a demanding little thing, he thought, growling in approval as he leaned over to place her on the bed, sliding his hands up to the waist of her panties and pulled them down as she continued driving him out of his fucking mind. Unable to stop kissing her, he awkwardly reached down and pulled off his shoes and socks, tossing them aside before he wrapped his arm around her and joined her on the bed.

  When he reached the pillows, he rolled over onto his back so that she was lying on top of him. As she adjusted herself over him so that she was straddling him, he ran his hands over her thighs and cupped her bare hips. When she pulled back, he moved to follow her only to find himself pushed back on the bed as she sat back on his lap, tearing a groan from him as her ass rubbed the underside of his straining cock.

  “So, I have a few follow up questions,” the woman that was driving him out of his fucking mind said.

  “Of course, you do,” he groaned, his lips twitching despite the fact that he’d seriously fucked up, but as he laid there, running his hands over her bare hips and back down her thighs, he found it difficult to care.

  “Now, by ‘You’ did you mean that you were having homicidal fantasies and just trying to decide how to dispose of my body?” she asked and if she hadn’t followed that with a soft moan that had his balls pulling up tight as she shifted on his lap he would have assumed that she was completely fucking oblivious.

  “No, I already figured that out years ago,” he said as he ran his hand
s back over her hips.

  “Are you planning on luring me into a false sense of security before you set your trap and finally get your revenge?” she asked on a shaky moan as she placed her hands on his arms while he gently caressed her legs.

  “No,” he said, shaking his head as he watched his hands slide back up her thighs and disappear beneath her tee shirt because revenge was the last thing on his mind.

  “I see,” she murmured softly as she released her hold on him to grab the hem of her tee shirt.

  “Are you sure?” he asked only to groan when she pulled her shirt off and tossed it aside.

  “Mmmhmm,” she murmured as he laid there, trying to remember how to breathe as he took in the large lightly tanned breasts tipped with hard pink nipples, the soft curve of her stomach, and the soft thatch of dark curls between her legs, but it was that small Celtic tattoo around her navel that had his attention.

  “Good,” he said absently as he cupped her hips so that he could trace that incredibly sexy tattoo with his thumb before he ran his thumb down her stomach so that he could trace her slit.

  For a moment, he was simply content lying there, running the pad of his thumb gently over her slit, noting just wet she was and just how soft her pussy was as she shifted on his lap, lightly grinding down against his trapped cock. Licking his lips, he ran his gaze back up, taking in the way her breasts lightly bounced, the way her nipples strained and found her watching him with a curious frown.

  “What’s wrong?” he asked as he sat up so that he could wrap his arms around her simply because he needed to touch her, something that he wasn’t going to look too deeply into right now.

  “You know this can’t go anywhere, right?” Joey asked as she reached between them and began toying with his tie.

  Sighing, he leaned in and kissed her, “I know.”

  Nodding, she said, “My life is back in Pennsylvania.”

  “And my life is here,” he murmured in agreement as he pushed her hair back so that he could press a kiss against her shoulder.

  “And I’m pretty sure that we’d end up killing each other sooner or later,” she pointed out as she brushed her lips teasingly against his, playfully nipping his bottom lip and making it really hard to focus on anything other than rolling her over onto her back and finding out just how tight she was.

  “That went without saying.”

  “True,” she whispered in agreement only to gasp when he slid his hands back over her bare bottom and moved her against him. “And then there’s Jackson,” she said with a heavy sigh.

  “And then there’s Jackson,” he agreed, matching her sigh with one of his own even as he pulled her closer.

  “Which is why I think we should keep this between us,” Joey said only to drop her head back with a moan when he kissed her neck. As he gave her generous ass a squeeze that had her moving against him even as he couldn’t help but wonder if she understood what she was suggesting.

  Chapter 23

  Oh, she’d definitely lost her mind, but as Reed rolled her over so that he could kiss her as he ran his hand over her breasts, she realized that she didn’t care.

  At least, she didn’t care right now, but something, mostly the fact that she was pretty sure that she’d just suggested having a friends with benefits arrangement with Reed Bradford, told her that she would most likely care a great deal later. Much later, she thought, deciding that she should probably focus, especially since Reed had crawled off the bed sometime during her slight panic attack and was now proceeding to drag her to the edge of the bed.

  “Let’s get something straight,” Reed said as he pulled her to the edge so that he was standing between her legs and she couldn’t help but wonder if it would still be considered friends with benefits if they weren’t friends. Then again, maybe this would just end up being a onetime deal, she thought only to gasp when he pressed his thumb against her clit and slowly started to caress it with teasing circles.

  “Lost you for a second there,” he said, sounding amused as he reached up with his free hand and pulled his tie loose.

  “It happens,” she admitted somewhat distractedly as she watched him toss his tie aside and began working on his shirt buttons.

  “I’m sure it does,” he murmured, his lips twitching as he pulled his shirt free while he watched his thumb tease her as she laid there, torn between watching him undress and closing her eyes on a moan.

  God, that felt good, she thought on a moan when he ran his thumb down, teasing her core and-

  “Are you sure about this, Joey?” he asked, and if he hadn’t decided to follow that question up by releasing his belt and unsnapping his pants so that the thick tip of his erection could push past his waistband, she probably would have been able to answer him.

  “Joey?”

  “Hmmm?” she murmured absently as she watched him push his pants down and-

  Made her wonder if it was even physically possible for that thing to fit inside-

  “Oh, god!” she gasped when Reed pulled her even closer and slid that very large appendage in question over her slit so that it was resting between her legs.

  “Now, where were we?” he murmured thoughtfully and just in case she decided to let her mind wander again, he pulled back and slid that very large appendage that felt really good over her again so that when he pushed back it slid between her lips, teasing her clit with every breath she took.

  “You were doing that again?” she said, sounding hopeful.

  Lips twitching, he reached down and cupped her hips as he did it again. “Are you sure about this, Joey?”

  “Very sure,” she said, nodding as she threw the large cock resting between her legs a hopeful look only to moan as she watched it pull back and-

  “Mmmmm.”

  Make them both moan when he slid it between her legs again.

  “What about Jackson?” he asked as he did it again.

  “Really shouldn’t be mentioned at a time like this,” she couldn’t help but point out even as she placed her hands over his as her head dropped back against the bed on another moan.

  Chuckling, he said, “True.”

  “Any chance we can talk about this later?” she asked, having a really difficult time focusing.

  He stopped moving.

  She really didn’t want him to stop moving.

  “This is just sex, Joey. There are no rules, expectations, or promises It’s never going to be anything more than sex,” he said, and as much as she appreciated the fact that he was doing his best not to lead her on, and she did, she really did, she decided that perhaps it was time that she cleared a few things up.

  *-*-*-*

  “So,” the woman that had taken him by surprise said as she let the tip of his cock slide free from her incredibly talented lips, “let me see if I understand this correctly. This is just sex.”

  He opened his mouth to answer only to end up releasing a loud groan when she decided to tease the underside of his cock with her tongue, which she apparently took as an answer since she nodded her head in agreement as she slid her soft, warm hand down his cock. “So, I shouldn’t expect hand-holding, terms of endearment, professions of your undying love, dates, flowers, heart-shaped boxes of chocolate or a future that involves anything more than glaring?” she asked, blinking up at him as she continued to run her hand slowly over him.

  When he moved to open his mouth this time, she gave the tip a firm squeeze that left him unable to do anything more than groan. Nodding to herself, she continued, “And this will also stay between us, because believe it or not, I value my reputation and I also don’t want to do anything that would hurt my brother. So,” and this is where she paused so that she could take the tip of his cock in her mouth and gently sucked on it, making his knees buckle, “we’re going to keep this our little secret, right?”

  And if she hadn’t followed that question up by squeezing his cock, he probably would have been able to do more than nod like an idiot.

  “Good,” Joey s
aid, nodding in approval only to release his cock and lay back on the bed, pausing to steal his pillows along the way before she laid back with a satisfied sigh that had his lips twitching as he followed her onto the bed.

  “You’re going to drive me out of my fucking mind, Joey,” he admitted with a groan as he settled himself between her legs as he leaned down and kissed her.

  “I have that effect on people,” she said, nodding solemnly as she wrapped her arms around him.

  “It’s good to know that you haven’t lost your touch,” he said as he kissed his way back down to her neck as he reached between their bodies and palmed her breast as he shifted so that his cock was lying back across her wet slit.

  “It’s an undervalued skill,” Joey said with a forlorn sigh and a little wiggle that had him grinding his cock against her.

  “You should put it on your resume,” Reed somehow managed to get out when he realized just how fucking wet she was.

  “It’s down at the bottom between my aspirations for world domination and my love of origami,” she said, making him chuckle only to make him groan when she rolled her hips against his.

  Unable to help himself, he moved against her, sliding his cock over her slit as he kissed his way back to her mouth. When she ran her fingers through his hair and moaned his name he thought he’d fucking explode. She was so warm, so soft, and so unbelievably fucking wet, he thought with a groan as he ground himself against her only to moan when she wrapped her legs around him so that the next time he pulled back he found the tip of his cock pressed against her core.

  Knowing that it was time to stop so that he could grab a condom, he reluctantly kissed her one last time and-

  Groaned when he felt the tip slip inside her.

  He’d never felt anything this good, he thought as he licked his lips and tried not to think of how good her wet sheath felt cradling the tip of his cock. He had to pull out, he told himself only to groan when he felt her sheath tighten around him. He’d never been tempted to take this risk before, but then again, nothing had ever felt this good before. He always wore a condom.