Double Dare (A Neighbor from Hell Book 6) (9 page)

              “Darrin Bradford!” his mother gasped, acting shocked. “What is wrong with you?”

              “Many things,” Reese muttered under his breath, taking a bite of food as he shook his head in disgust.

              “I’m glad you’re here, Marybeth. I wanted to see if you’re still planning on flying down with us for the trip,” his mother said with a warm smile that looked a bit hopeful to him. Ever since he’d dragged Marybeth over to her and told her that he was keeping her, his mother had been holding out hope that they’d get married one day.

              “She’s not going,” Darrin bit out evenly, grabbing two biscuits off the large platter in front of him as his father and brothers all rolled their eyes and shook their heads as they sighed heavily.

              “Yes, I am,” Marybeth said as she sat down in the empty chair next to him.

              “No, you’re not,” Darrin said as he scooped some mashed potatoes on her plate and started to load it up with food.

              “Yeah, I really am,” she said, taking a sip of his lemonade.

              “No, you’re really not,” he said, throwing his arm over the back of her chair as he took the glass of lemonade from her and finished it off.

              “You really need to get over it,” Marybeth said, stealing a bite of potato salad off his plate.

              “You really think I’m going to be able to get over this kind of betrayal?” he demanded, as he reached up to play with a lock of her hair, loving the way that it felt sliding between his fingers.

              “I had lunch at a buffet with Zoe without telling you. It wasn’t the first time and it won’t be the last time so get over it,” she said, stealing one of his rolls off his plate just as a loud gasp drew everyone’s attention to the other end of the table where Trevor stood, looking absolutely furious.

              “She told me that she was running errands!”

              Sighing, because it looked like it was going to be a long fucking night, he grabbed his glass of lemonade and refilled it as he watched his brother Danny, who rarely smiled, grin as leaned down and kissed his girlfriend. As he placed his glass on the table and reached over and stole Marybeth’s glass of lemonade so that he could fill it, he couldn’t help but wonder if he’d been going about this thing with Marybeth the wrong way.

              “Are you still mad at me?” she asked, her words ending on a moan as Darrin’s hand snaked beneath the back of her pants and cupped her bottom.

              “I’m not mad at you,” Darrin promised as he brushed his lips across her throat.

              “Are you sure?” she asked, licking her lips hungrily as she shifted on top of him and pressed down against the large bulge straining against his zipper.

              “Mmmhmm,” he murmured as he kissed his way back up to her mouth while he used the hold he had on her ass to pull her down harder as she ground herself against him. “Very.”

              “Then why don’t we go inside?” she suggested, not sure how much more of this she could take as she reached past him and grabbed onto the back of the bench seat of her truck.

              “I have a better idea,” he said as he removed his hand from the back of her pants and wrapped his arms around her, holding her as she leisurely ground herself against him.

              “What’s that?” she asked, admittedly distracted as she kissed and nibbled her way down his jaw and neck.

              “We could drive up to New Hampshire tonight and be married by morning,” he whispered hoarsely, making her roll her eyes, because she knew that he wasn’t serious.

              He was a Bradford, which according to all of those frightening stories that his family liked to share around the dinner table, meant that he probably wouldn’t give her any type of warning before she was dragged across state lines kicking and screaming.

              “Ah, no,” she said, deciding that she wasn’t doing a very good job if he was able to joke around. She shifted so that the next time she moved against him it would-

              “Then have dinner with me tomorrow night,” he suggested, cutting her off.

              “Are you really trying to use sex to distract me so that I’ll agree to make you dinner?” she asked, chuckling softly as she playfully nipped at his jaw. She shifted once again so that she could-

              “No, I’m trying to ask you to go out with me tomorrow night.”

              “No,” she said with a slight shake of her head as she pressed down and moved to-

              Gasp in surprise as she suddenly found herself picked up and set aside. Before she could ask what was wrong, Darrin was sighing heavily in typical Bradford fashion as he pulled his keys out of the ignition, grabbed his phone and opened the door. He jumped out and left her sitting there wondering what just happened.

              It took her a minute before she realized that the big bastard was trying to get her back for all those photos that she’d sent him today. Narrowing her eyes on his retreating form, she grabbed her bag, climbed out of the truck and hurried after him.

              “Nice try,” she said with a sad shake of her head as she walked past him and went inside. She opened her door and stepped inside her apartment, already deciding that she was going to make the bastard run out and get her a pint of Ben and Jerry’s ice cream before she allowed him to crawl in bed with her tonight.

              “Did you change your mind about dinner tomorrow night?” he asked, still standing in the small foyer when he really should be finding a pen and paper so that he could take down her ice cream order.

              “I was planning on making lasagna tomorrow night,” she said, mostly to distract him, but to her surprise, the promise of food didn’t seem to interest him.

              “So that’s a no then?” he asked with a curious tilt of his head.

              “No, that’s an offer to make you a home cooked meal, watch a bad horror movie followed by a night of sex,” she reminded him.

              “Sorry, I can’t do that,” he said with a shrug, instantly putting her on guard, because she knew him well enough to know that look of determination on his face meant that he was up to something, something that she was not going to like.

              “Can’t do what?” she cautiously asked.

              He sighed heavily. “I can’t let you treat me like a whore anymore,” he announced with typical Bradford flourish, making her roll her eyes.

              “Treat you like a whore? Really?” she asked dryly with a sad shake of her head, because really, only a Bradford would turn himself into a martyr over sex.

              “You know damn well that you’ve been treating me like a dirty, disgusting whore,” he said accusingly with a glare. “Well, I won’t have it anymore! Do you hear me, woman? I will no longer be subjected to sliding inside your incredibly delicious body unless you start acknowledging our love!”

              “Meaning?” she asked with a sigh, knowing that he would eventually get to the point.

              “Meaning that I will no longer allow you to have your dirty way with me anymore.”

              “Y-you’re ending this?” she asked, struggling to remain calm as her heart beat furiously in her chest.

              She knew that she was going to have to end this one day for both their sakes, but she wasn’t ready, not yet. She just needed a little more time before she had to give him up.

              He snorted at that with a shake of his head. “Like I’d let you get away that easily.”

              “Then what are you doing?” she asked, wondering if she had any beer in the fridge, because she was pretty sure that she was going to need a drink after this conversation.

              Possibly two.

              “What am I doing?” he asked, his lips kicking up into a sensual smile as he moved closer to her until there was barely an inch of space between them. “I’m giving you the ultimate double dare,” he said as he leaned down and brushed his lips tenderly against hers.

              “And what’s that?” she asked suspiciously, watching his every move as he stood up and stepped back.

              “To marry me.”

*-*-*-*

              Perhaps he should have found a better way to do this? he thought as Marybeth’s shocked expression quickly shifted to disbelief.

              “You can’t be serious!”

              “Yet, I am,” he said, enjoying her distress probably more than he should.

              “I’m not marrying you!” she shouted with a panicked expression, but that was understandable under the circumstances. He had sprung this on her out of the blue after all.

              Then again, it was more warning than most women received from the men in his family.

              “Yes,” he said, leaning down and brushed his lips against her stunned ones simply because he couldn’t help himself, “you are.”

              “We’re not even dating!” she sputtered, sounding a bit hysterical.

              “We are now,” he said with one last kiss and a wink as he stepped away, deciding that she probably needed a minute to process all of this.

              “No, we’re not! We’re just having sex!” she pointed out almost desperately, making him sigh.

              She was so damn cute when she was on the verge of going for his balls, he thought with a smile, which by the looks of the glare that she was suddenly sending his way, she didn’t appreciate. He decided that it would probably be for the best if he clarified a few things for her.

              “We’ll be married by the end of the year, guaranteed,” he said, deciding not to prolong this explanation when she opened her mouth to cut him off and most likely tell him to go to hell. “But first, we are going to date, which means that all this bullshit about keeping what’s going on between us a secret ends now.”

              “And if I don’t agree to this?” she asked with a stubborn glint in her eye as she crossed her arms over her chest and tried her best to stare him down, which was just fucking sad.

              “Well,” he said, leaning back down to brush his lips against hers, making sure to tease her bottom lip with the tip of his tongue and nearly forgetting himself when she moaned softly before he remembered his purpose, “until you start letting everyone know just how much I mean to you, Marybeth, I’m going to keep my dirty little hands off your delectable little body.”

Chapter 13

             
God, would this night never end? she wondered as she glanced over her shoulder to find the manipulative bastard following her up the stairs.

              “What are you doing?” she couldn’t help but ask, especially after that little declaration that he’d just delivered.

              “Going to bed,” he said, looking adorably confused.

              “I see,” she murmured as she pointed to the right, “then you must be lost, because your apartment is over there.”

              “I sleep better with you,” he said with a shrug and a yawn that had her turning right back around and walking the rest of the way up the stairs, wondering why she hadn’t killed him yet.

              “That’s really too bad, because I believe that you just decided that you’d be sleeping alone for the time being,” she said, taking some perverse satisfaction that she would get the last word on the subject tonight.

              “I don’t remember saying that,” he said, sounding thoughtful as he followed her into her bedroom and started pulling off his clothes and tossing them aside.

              “Then what was that little declaration downstairs?” she asked, yanking her top-drawer open and grabbed a pair of pale yellow lacy panties before slamming the door shut.

              “You mean my marriage proposal?” he asked, making her right eye twitch.

              “That wasn’t a proposal,” she bit out, storming off towards the bathroom, only pausing long enough to reach down and snatch up his discarded shirt.

              “Then what would you call it?” he asked, pulling back the covers and climbed in her bed with a satisfied sigh that had her hands twitching with the need to strangle the cocky bastard.

              “Typical Bradford bullshit,” she snapped, shaking her head in disgust as she headed into the bathroom and slammed the door shut simply because it felt good to do it.

              “Because I want to marry you?” he asked, sounding amused.

              “Shut up!” she snapped, hating him more with every passing second.

              “Aw, is little Marybeth mad that she can’t have her dirty little way with me?” he asked in the most condescending tone that she’d ever heard and that was saying a lot since she’d grown up around Bradfords.

              “Bastard,” she muttered, grabbing her toothbrush and squeezed an insane amount of toothpaste on the bristles before she shoved her toothbrush in her mouth and took her frustration out on her teeth.

              “Admit that you’re in love with me and I might consider letting you have your dirty little way with me,” he said, sounding way too pleased with himself, she decided.

              She should just accept that things were over between them and move on. It was the right thing to do and she’d probably never get a better opportunity than this, but she just couldn’t do it. It went against everything that she believed in to let the manipulative bastard get away with this.

              Jaw clenched, she decided that if he wanted to play games with her that was fine, because she was more than capable of taking this to the next level, something that he should have considered when he’d come up with this asinine plan. Ten minutes later she was showered, her hair was brushed, her makeup touched up and she was wearing his shirt sans panties.

              Biting back a smile, she opened the bathroom door and bit back a smile when she saw Darrin, lying back on her bed wearing a cocky smile that told her everything that she was about to do to him was completely justified.

*-*-*-*             

              “Get out,” Marybeth said as she walked into the room, pulling the long beautiful black hair that he loved running his fingers through at night, up into a messy ponytail. The movement caused his shirt to ride a little higher, revealing the curve behind her knee, which was one of his favorite places to kiss.

              “Sorry,” he said with a long drawn out sigh just to piss her off because it amused him and helped take his mind off the fact that he’d just condemned himself to a week or two of celibacy, “I just can’t do that.”

              Shaking her head, she sighed heavily as she walked over to what he liked to think of as her side of the bed and yanked open the nightstand drawer. “Fine then stay,” she said, sounding irritated as she reached in the drawer, “but this might be awkward.”

              “What might be awkward?” he asked with a frown as he watched her, wondering if she was going to try and use some bullshit excuse to kick him out of this bed.

              It wasn’t happening.

              He was staying.

              End. Of. Story.

              “Your replacement,” she said as she pulled her hand away and closed the drawer.

              “My
-Oh, fuck…no
,” he said on a groan when she held up the small little pink tube that he’d bought for her last year when he had to make a trip up to New Hampshire for a week of training and wanted to make their late night chats a little more interesting.

              “You’re not leaving me with much of a choice,” she said absently as she made a show of opening the tube and testing out the battery.

              The small tube came to life with a soft buzzing noise that had her shaking her head with a small sigh as she made a show of grabbing a new battery and sliding it in. When she was done, she gestured for him to move over.

              “You can’t be serious,” he said, praying like hell that she was kidding.

              “Yet, I am,” she said mockingly as she grabbed both of her pillows and placed them against the foot of the bed.

              “Marybeth,” he said tightly as he watched her climb on the bed and lean back against her pillows with that damn tube that he should have never given her, securely in her right hand, “don’t even fucking think of it.”

              “Think about what?” she asked innocently as she leaned back and shifted to get more comfortable, drawing the shirttails up in the process and exposing more of her thigh to his greedy eyes.

              “You know what,” he bit out, fisting his hands in the comforter to stop himself from reaching over and running his hands over her smooth legs.

              “Do I?” she asked, cocking a brow in challenge as she drew both legs up and slowly, ever so fucking slowly, let her legs fall open, giving him one hell of a view.

              He couldn’t help but groan when his eyes locked on the moist pouty lips between her legs. He knew from experience just how soft they were, how good they felt against him as he slid inside her. He licked his lips, imagining just how good it would feel to trace the wet slit with his tongue.

              “So, I’ve decided something,” she said, drawing his attention to the slender fingers playfully toying with one of the buttons on the shirt she was wearing.

              “What’s that?” he asked, struggling to focus on what she was saying while he watched her flick open one of the bottom buttons, giving him an even better view in the process.

              “That until you agree to
my
terms I’m afraid that I’m going to have to keep my dirty little hands to myself,” she said as she slowly ran her hand over the exposed skin and down between her legs, ending with a soft gasp and a groan that had his breaths coming a little faster.

              A pained groan escaped him as he watched her very talented fingers slowly pull back over her slit and just before he could take his next breath, they were sliding back down. She spread her legs a little more as she shifted her hips, giving him a better view of those fingers as they traced her slit.

              “
Shit
,” he groaned, shifting as he absently reached down to adjust himself when his boxers became a little too tight for comfort.

              “Just as soon as you agree to my terms…” she said, letting her words trail off meaningfully as she dipped her finger between her slit and teased the little pink nub that was begging for his tongue.

              “What terms?” he found himself asking, mesmerized by the sight in front of him and barely aware that he had shoved the covers off his lap and was absently rubbing his aching cock through his boxers.

              “That you forget this whole marriage business and we go back to the way things were,” she said, licking her lips as she watched him, her fingers slowly teasing her clit.

              Eyes locked on what was going on between her legs, he stubbornly shook his head. “Not happening,” he said, chuckling even as he enjoyed the view.

              “Yes,” she said, using her fingers to spread those pouty little lips between her legs to give him a better view, “it will.”

              “Really?” he asked, reaching into his boxers and pulled out his cock as he shifted his gaze to her beautiful face to find her watching his every move.

              “Mmmhmm,” she said, licking her lips hungrily as he slowly stroked his cock, deciding to play this game with her. She’d quickly learn that she had no chance in hell of beating him, something that she should have learned by now. He was determined to have her and he would do whatever it took to make that happen, even torture himself.

              “You think you’re going to tease me into losing control?” he asked, leaning back and getting more comfortable as he continued to lazily stroke himself.

              “Think?” she asked, tearing her gaze away from his cock to meet his gaze. “No,” she said, shaking her head with a smug smile that he easily matched. “I know.”

              “Really?” he asked, chuckling as he shook his head in wonder. “Do you really think that you could hold out longer than I can?”

              “Is this a challenge?” she asked, licking her lips with a soft little moan as she shifted, drawing his attention back to what she was doing between her legs.

              “No,” he said as he continued to watch Marybeth tease herself, “it’s part of my original dare.”

              “Part of the dare?” she asked on a soft groan as she shifted her hips restlessly, a sign that normally told him that she was to the point that she needed something inside her, but right now it told him that he was going to win this fucking thing.

              “Mmmmhmm, part of the dare,” he murmured thoughtfully as he ran his eyes over her, taking in the flush staining her cheeks, the way she nibbled her bottom lip, the way her hard nipples were pressing against the light blue shirt, her glistening fingers moving between her legs as her hips shifted slightly, demanding more than she was going to be able to give.

              “How exactly is this part of the original dare? This sounds more like a bet.”

              “Because I’m going to use your obsession with my body to win, sweetheart,” he said, licking his lips as he imagined taking those dainty little fingers in his mouth.

              “How exactly?” she asked, placing her leg over his and giving him an unobstructed view of her needy little core that his cock considered home.

              “We’re going to see who breaks first, sweetheart,” he said, knowing that if she played along that she’d break that much sooner.

              “That’s it?” she asked, sounding amused as she started to move her fingers south.

              “Not exactly,” he said, giving his cock a gentle squeeze as he watched her fingertip draw a circle around her core, teasing them both.

              “What else?” she asked as she continued to try to tempt him to end this.

              “If you can break me first, I’ll never mention marriage again,” he promised, deciding to offer her something that she wanted in order to lure her into going along with his plans.

              “And if I give in first?” she asked, running her foot provocatively over his thigh.

              “Then you’ll marry me.”