The Promise (Neighbor from Hell Book 10)

by R. L. Mathewson

“He’ll live,” Jackson said, chuckling.

  “And Reed?”

  “Still looked pissed when he took off,” he said, making her bite back a groan.

  “At me or Matt?” she asked, really hoping that it wasn’t her since she wasn’t ready for this to end yet.

  “Matt.”

  “Did he go with Reed?” she asked, reaching down to shove the hem of the large tee shirt that Jackson had lent her down past her knees in an attempt to ward off the chill making its way into the tent only to give up with a sigh and crawl inside her sleeping bag.

  “He already called it a night and went to bed,” Jackson said as she took in the empty spot to her right.

  “He did?”

  “We’re sleeping in his old tent,” Jackson said, making her frown.

  “I thought it was too small.”

  “It is, but we decided that it was preferable to getting bitch slapped all night,” he said, which explained why she woke up sprawled across the tent alone this morning.

  “I move around a lot in my sleep,” she said, shrugging as she curled up on her side and got comfortable.

  “I remember,” Jackson said, chuckling.

  “You do?” she asked, surprised that he remembered something like that.

  “It’s hard to forget waking up to find your little sister shoving her knee into the middle of your back before she shoves you off the bed and follows that up by shoving all the books that she’d hid under her pillow off the bed and onto your head,” Jackson said, making her frown.

  “We never had to share a bed,” she said because her grandparents had put a second twin bed in his room for all those nights when she got scared and needed to sleep with her big brother.

  “You don’t remember anything before the accident?” he asked, making her stomach turn because she didn’t remember anything before the accident.

  But she remembered the accident.

  Every. Single. Heartbreaking. Second.

  “No,” she said softly.

  “God, you always hated sleeping alone. I think if you’d screamed your head off mom would have been able to handle it, but you would just lay there, crying quietly with the saddest little expression on your face. It would break mom every time. She’d scoop you up and carry you into my room so that she could curl up with you in my bed. As soon as I had my arms wrapped around you, you’d fall asleep.”

  “I don’t remember that,” she said with a sad smile.

  “After we went to live with Grandma and Grandpa, you used to sneak into my room every night with a stack of books and that old teddy bear that you used to carry everywhere. You’d climb into my bed, shove that old teddy bear between us, crack open a book and read until you passed out next to me. By the time you started getting violent, Grandpa asked Mr. Bradford to build a second bed so that you wouldn’t end up killing me in your sleep,” Jackson said, making her smile.

  “You were a violent little thing,” he said, chuckling.

  “Still am,” Joey said proudly.

  “That’s what I heard,” he said, making her wince since she had a pretty good idea what he’d heard.

  “It was an accident,” she said because there really was nothing else that she could say, was there?

  “Which part? The part where Dr. Miller fabricated his work or the part where he screwed you over and tried taking credit for yours?” he asked, making her sigh.

  “I meant the part where he had a heart attack,” she mumbled, still wondering what had compelled her to say yes.

  “You didn’t give him a heart attack, Joey. He had a panic attack because he’d realized that he’d fucked up. It had nothing to do with you,” he explained, making her frown.

  “Wait, how do you know?” Joey asked, immediately feeling like an idiot because there really wasn’t much that Jackson couldn’t find out.

  “I also know that Anderson is planning on bringing you back in two months with a substantial raise, a new contract, and a heartfelt apology so that you can re-design their Forensics Program in time for Fall Semester,” he said, and just like that, she felt herself relax.

  “Oh, thank god,” she said, closing her eyes and sighing with relief because it was almost over.

  In two more months, she would have her well-thought-out, organized life back and she would-

  “Hopefully by then, Reed will be able to find a new teacher,” Jackson said, making her realize something important.

  It was almost over.

  Chapter 38

  “I’m sorry,” Joey said as soon as he opened the tent door.

  “I see,” he said, placing the bag that he’d gone into town for in the corner as he took in the small woman sitting in the middle of the tent, wearing a large tee shirt that better not belong to Matt, hugging a flashlight against her chest, and looking so damn miserable that it had him inwardly promising to make this up to her.

  “Really sorry,” Joey assured him as he closed the tent door behind him.

  “And what are you sorry about?” Reed couldn’t help but wonder as he sat down next to her and pulled the bag closer.

  “For making your brother cry,” she said, nodding solemnly only to frown when they heard Matt yell, “I didn’t cry!”

  “They’re on the other side of the campfire,” Reed said as he focused his attention on the bag.

  “Oh,” she murmured absently as she shifted closer to see what he was doing and gasped when he handed her a small bottle of Dr. Pepper and followed that up with a bag of food from McDonald’s that he hoped was still warm.

  “Bless you, sir,” she said with a sniffle, hugging the bag as she quickly moved between his legs and sat back against him with another, “Bless you.”

  “Are you hungry?” he asked, wrapping his arms around her and pressed a kiss against the side of her neck as he savored the way that she felt in his arms.

  “Starving,” she said even as she held up her Big Mac so that he could take a bite.

  “Jackson didn’t manage to catch anything?” he teased.

  “I caught plenty!” his best friend said in outrage from his tent, making Reed chuckle.

  “He really did,” Joey admitted with a nod as she took a bite of her burger. “And then he made the mistake of cutting them open in front of me.”

  “Bit squeamish, are we?”

  “Very,” she admitted, moving her attention to her fries. “What about Matt and Jackson?”

  “Dropped their food off to them when they informed me that I drew the short straw again,” he said with a forlorn sigh.

  “Wait! I volunteer as tribute!” Matt yelled, which was immediately followed by the sounds of rustling and-

  “Ow! You mean bastard!”

  “What else do you have in that bag?” Joey asked, holding up a fry for him as she glanced into the bag and went still.

  “Is that a Kindle?” she asked on a reverent whisper as she reached into the bag with trembling hands and picked up the reason that he’d abandoned her earlier.

  “I couldn’t find anyone that could fix the one the little bastard broke-”

  “It was an accident!”

  “-so, I bought you a new one. I managed to get it charged on the way back. I even managed to sign into your account and download all your books,” he explained as he ignored the little bastard that was lucky to be alive.

  “I love it. Thank you,” she said in an awed whisper as she handed her unfinished burger back to him, swiped across the screen and quickly became absorbed in a book on The Dark Ages.

  Realizing that he’d lost her for the night, he finished off her burger, secured the bag filled with junk food in his backpack while Joey crawled back onto her sleeping bag and curled up with her new Kindle. Once he was done, he pulled off his shirt, tossed it aside, laid down, and closed his eyes, resigning himself to another night of not being able to touch her. He wasn’t sure how he was going to survive, but he didn’t have much of a choice, he thought only to groan when he felt Joey climb onto his lap.


  “We can’t,” he whispered, biting back another groan as he reached up and cupped her face as he leaned up so that he could meet her halfway for that kiss that he’d been dying to give her for the past two days.

  “What if I promise to be very quiet?” she whispered softly against his lips as her hand slid down his stomach and unsnapped his jeans.

  “I’d say you were lying,” he whispered back only to drop his head back on a soft groan when he felt her small warm hand slide beneath his boxer briefs and-

  “Do you want me to stop?” she whispered as that same hand wrapped around the tip of his cock and teasingly stroked him.

  “No,” he said, reaching for the hem of her tee shirt and pulled it off her.

  “Good,” she mumbled on a soft gasp when he kissed his way down her neck as his hands reached between them and cupped her breasts.

  Her hand continued working his cock with slow teasing strokes as he kneaded her breasts, biting back a groan when he felt her nipples harden against his palms. He gave her breasts one last squeeze before he trailed his fingertips down her sides over the small of her back and down the back of her panties. He grabbed her bottom and pulled her down tightly against him as he sat up, forcing her to release her hold on him so that she could wrap her arms around him.

  “You smell so damn good,” he whispered, groaning when he caught the scent of her favorite shampoo.

  “Jackson found out where the showers were for me,” she said as she shifted on his lap.

  “You had enough quarters?” he asked, not bothering to point out that he’d actually been the one to find it and that he’d texted the information to Jackson so that he could bring her, knowing that she would probably want a hot shower after that unexpected dip in the lake. He’d picked up some quarters while he was out just in case she didn’t have any.

  “Just about,” she said, running her fingers through his hair.

  “How many did you bring?” he asked, kissing his way back to her mouth.

  There was a slight pause and then, “Twenty dollars.”

  He pressed a kiss against her jaw as he did the math and realized that she’d spent nearly two hours in the shower. Releasing his hold on her bottom, he ran his fingers through her hair, noting that it was still damp.

  “Is everything okay?” he asked, knowing exactly what this meant.

  “Everything’s fine,” she promised him with the saddest fucking smile that he’d ever seen.

  “Joey, what’s-”

  “I missed you,” she whispered against his lips, driving his need for her to a dangerous degree.

  He liked knowing that she missed him. He shouldn’t, but then again, there were so many things that he probably shouldn’t be doing when it came to her. He shouldn’t be thinking about her all the time. He shouldn’t want her, shouldn’t need her like this, shouldn’t be touching her with his best friend only ten feet away, shouldn’t get sick to his stomach thinking about her leaving, and he sure as hell shouldn’t be falling in love with her.

  *-*-*-*

  “Lay back,” Reed whispered softly as he picked up the flashlight and turned it off, leaving them in total darkness.

  Knowing that he would never let anything happen to her, she did what he told her and closed her eyes. She listened as the wind gently blew the leaves around their tent, the crackling of the campfire, and the sounds of their breathing. She trembled as she laid there, and it had nothing to do with the cold air enveloping her and everything to do with Reed.

  “You missed me?” he asked as he ran his fingertips teasingly over her legs.

  “Maybe,” she whispered because she felt that it was imperative that she didn’t tell him just how much she missed him.

  Or just how much she was going to miss him.

  “Maybe?” he asked in a seductive whisper as he trailed his fingertips over her knees and thighs.

  “Did you miss me?” she countered, licking her lips as she felt his fingers move higher.

  Chuckling, he pressed a kiss against her stomach as those trailing fingers found her panties and slowly began pulling them down. “Every single minute,” Reed said, making her sigh only to make her breath catch when she felt his mouth kiss a trail down her stomach and-

  “Oh, god,” she whispered when he pressed a kiss against her slit.

  “Did you miss me, Joey?” he whispered, pressing another kiss against her slit.

  “Yes,” she admitted softly, arching her back on a soft sigh as she ran her fingers through his hair.

  “How much did you miss me?” he asked and before she could answer, he was running his tongue between her slit.

  “Too much,” she admitted on a soft moan that turned into a startled gasp when she felt his tongue slide inside her.

  He felt so damn good, she thought as he ran his hands over her body as he continued to lick her, sliding his tongue in and out of her as she laid there, helpless to do anything more than run her fingers through his hair and bite her bottom lip as she struggled not to moan. She’d never been with a man who knew her body like Reed did. He’d taken his time to learn what she liked, what she didn’t, and knew exactly what it would take to drive her out of her mind. He also knew how to make everything better with a simple touch. Sometimes all it took was one look at Reed to make everything better.

  She was going to miss him, she thought sadly, running her hands down his back as he kissed his way up her body. She was going to miss falling asleep in his arms every night, the way he smiled, and-

  Realizing how close she was to crying again, she reminded herself of the promise that she’d made herself a few hours ago and focused on enjoying the time they had left with him and pray that it didn’t kill her when it came time to say goodbye.

  Chapter 39

  Back in Bridgewater, MA…

  “Well, this is fun,” Garrett said, sighing heavily as he looked around him, taking in the dirt driveway that consisted of rocks, holes, and broken roots, which eventually bled into the lawn that consisted of rocks, weeds, and briars that went around most of the property before coming to a dwindling end around one side of the driveway where his uncle and cousin were still arguing.

  “You’re fired,” Uncle Jared said, getting in Trevor’s face.

  “Fine,” Trevor said evenly, “Then you can be the one to tell Zoey.”

  Garrett noted the look of pure panic on his Uncle’s face before he shifted his attention to his cousins, the James brothers. They were all wearing matching Rerum Highland Construction shirts and standing near their trucks glaring as their little sister and boss, Rory, sat on the hood of her truck sipping another hot cocoa. Her husband Conner read through the information they had on the decrepit old house behind them while he absently caressed the large swell of her stomach. Rerum Construction had more than enough work to keep them busy up in New Hampshire, but when they’d heard that one of their great-grandfather Noah’s houses was coming on the market, they’d decided to come take a look.

  That of course, had led to Uncle Jared panicking and dropping everything to get here two weeks early so that he could get his hands on this property before anyone else had a chance to grab it. When he went to grab Reese, he’d discovered that Trevor had grabbed him first and had an hour on him. That’s when Uncle Jared decided that he needed him for his legal skills and showed up at his apartment early this morning just when he’d finally decided to call it a night.

  “I can’t see,” Mikey said, drawing his attention to the house that was going to take a fortune and a miracle to fix to find Reese doing another walk around, making note of everything that needed to be fixed, replaced, or torn down while Mikey, wearing an old Red Sox baseball cap that Garrett had been meaning to destroy, took it upon herself to climb onto Sebastian’s back.

  Sebastian, who was too fucking serious for a kid his age, merely tossed the small rock that he’d been examining aside and helped his best friend up. Once she was settled on his back, she wrapped her arms around his shoulders, started rolling
the baseball that she was always carrying between her hands, and said, “You may now carry me.”

  “You’re too good to me,” Sebastian drawled, shifting the small bundle on his back and went to follow Reese when a small black SUV pulled into the driveway.

  “The house is mine,” Trevor said evenly.

  “We’ll see,” Uncle Jared snapped back.

  “The house is ours,” Craig said with one last glare before turning his attention to the SUV and watched as the small group that they’d been waiting for climbed out.

  “That’s going to leave a mark,” came the softly mumbled words that had his cousin Matt turning around and-

  “Ow! You mean bastard!”

  Jumping the hell out of the way as Reed leaned down and picked up the small little thing that had tripped over a root and helped her to her feet.

  “Stupid boobs,” she mumbled with a sad little sigh as she reached up and dusted off her shirt, drawing Garrett’s attention to a large pair of breasts with, “Never Trust an Atom. They Make Up Everything,” written across her black tee shirt, making his lips twitch as he took in the rest of her, noting the adorable expression on her face, followed up with a second glance at those breasts and-

  Felt the appreciative grin on his lips slowly die as the hairs on the back of his neck stood up and had him looking over to find Reed, who was one of the kindest men that he’d ever met and who always wore an easy smile on his face, glaring at him. Garrett glanced from Reed, who looked ready to tear him apart back to the small woman beside him and felt his lips pull up into a shit-eating grin that quickly disappeared when he looked back at his cousin.

  “Holy-”

  “Don’t,” Garrett said quietly when his cousin Bryce started to say something that was going to get them both killed.

  Bryce quickly shut his mouth when he caught the murderous expression on Reed’s face and as one, they averted their gazes to the right only to find Jackson, Reed’s best friend and a hardened Marine that they’d quickly learned not to fuck with when they were kids, standing there, giving them a look that had them clearing their throats and deciding that tormenting their cousin would be a very bad idea.