The Girl Next Door
The Boy Next Door Chapter 22

That went the way I expected it to.

Right down the tubes.

Although, she didn't lose her s**t like the other day, so I guess that's progress.

If I had any brains at all, I'd chalk this endeavor up as a lost cause and cut my losses before I can make matters worse. Hell, had I been thinking clearly, I wouldn't have shown up in the first place. I'd leave the past where it belongs and allow Alyssa to move on with her life which is what she keeps insisting she wants to do.

But I can't. Not when I sense that buried beneath all the hurt and anger are emotions fighting to break free. Until I make sure that there's nothing I can do to rectify the situation, I can't move on.

Decision made, I hang out at the bar. Shane keeps me well stocked with water. As tempting as it is to guzzle down half a dozen beers, or a few shots, I've become enough of a shitshow without inviting more problems.

Two hours later, Alyssa is still on the dance floor, shaking her a*s for all it's worth. I'm barely able to take my eyes off her. She's mesmerizing. That girl has enough moves to give a corpse major wood. The lights flicker and the music continues to pump as she rolls her hips and lifts her hair with slim hands as if putting on a private dance.

Although, it sure as f**k isn't for me.

I drag a hand over my face. It's killing me to watch her out there. And yet, looking away isn't a possibility. I'm all but starving for the sight of her. Every time an a*****e slides in front of her, I have to grit my teeth and talk myself out of stalking over there and ripping her away. I've lost track of how many shots she's tossed back, but it's a lot. Too much. It's a surprise that she's still able to stand upright, let alone twerk in that tiny silver dress that barely covers her a*s.

Alyssa hasn't glanced at me once since stalking away. It's like I don't exist. At this point, I'm not sure there's anything I can say or do mitigate the damage I've inflicted. A pit settles at the bottom of my gut at the realization that I might not be able to fix the damage I so needlessly inflicted.

"You want another?" There's a pause. "Although, I'll be straight with you, man-you have anything more and I'm gonna have to take your keys away. I can't allow you to drive home in your inebriated condition."

I snort out something that barely passes for a laugh. "Nah, I'm good."

Shane leans against the bar as his gaze cuts through the crowd to Alyssa. Her blond head is like a halo glowing under the strobe lights. I pull my gaze away and glance around. Unfortunately, I'm not the only one who has noticed. Dudes are circling her like hungry sharks.

"How long have you two crazy kids been together?" he asks, cutting into my thoughts.

Instead of admitting the truth, I narrow my eyes and glare. "Long enough."

Shane played football until an ACL injury took him out last season. He's always been a fan favorite with the ladies. As much as we're friends and teammates, I'm not an i***t. The interest was apparent in his eyes when they were talking earlier.

He nods toward the dance floor. "You sure she knows that?"

"It's complicated," I grumble, not wanting him to get any ideas. Although, by the looks of it, it's much too late for that. I don't want to knock them from his head, but I will if I have to.

"It always is, brother."

Before I have a chance to respond, he takes off, heading down to the opposite end of the bar to help a customer.

Alyssa's friends come and go. There's dancing and more shots. I caught sight of Beck earlier in the evening but now, he's nowhere to be seen. I glance around and realize Mia is also missing from action. Hmmm. Interesting.

An hour and two more bottles of water later, Alyssa hugs a few girls and gives them a quick wave. A cheerful light fills her eyes as a smile stretches lazily across her face. She looks pleasantly buzzed as she saunters past the bar. Her feet grind to a halt as her gaze collides with mine and all the lightheartedness filling her expression dissolves. The edges of her pink slicked lips sink into a frown as her brows jerk together. "You're still here?"

I straighten to my full height before closing the distance between us. Alyssa might be tall, but I've got a good eight inches on her. The closer I get, the more she lifts her chin to maintain eye contact. "I didn't want to leave you alone. I wasn't sure how you were getting home." And it sure as s**t wasn't going to be with another dude.

"I'm hardly alone." She waves toward the people still filling the club. "So, feel free to take off."

I shake my head. "I'll head out when you do."

A puff of exasperated breath escapes from her lungs. "Then you can go now because I'm leaving."

The physical pull is more than I can withstand, and I take another step in her direction. We're so close that I could reach out and yank her into my arms. The temptation to do that pounds through me like a steady drumbeat. Except I know how it'll end. And that's not well. It'll only piss her off more than she already is. "I'll take you home." I just want to get her into my car and away from all these guys still scoping her out.

"No, thanks." She searches the crowd for an alternative. "I'd rather Uber it home."

Sorry, that's not happening.

"We're headed to the same place. It's a ten-minute drive. I think you can withstand that much time alone with me."

"Wanna bet?" When she attempts to slip past me, I mirror the movement, and block her escape.

Anger sparks to life in her eyes, banishing the mellowness that had been filling them minutes ago. "Get out of my way, Colton."

"We can do this the easy way or the hard way. It's your choice." Unfortunately, I can already tell how this is going to play out. I'm still holding out a glimmer of hope that she'll surprise me and make it easy on the both of us.

Her lips form into a snarl. "You're out of your damn mind if you think I'm going anywhere with you! I'd rather-"

"The hard way it is," I say with resignation, stepping closer before hunkering down and hoisting her up. She grunts as my shoulder connects with her midsection.

For one blissful moment, she's silent as her slender body hangs stiffly over mine. Knowing the surprise will wear off quickly, I hightail it to the exit. Two steps later, all hell breaks loose.

"Colton Davidson Montgomery!" She pounds on my back, trying her damnedest to inflict as much pain as possible with her fists. "Put me down this instant or I'll scream my head off!"

Thankfully, the club is dark, and the music is still pumping around us. Other than a few drunken glances speared in our direction, no one pays us much attention as I stride toward the door. Which is for the best.

This would be a difficult situation to explain.

The second I hit the paved lot, I beeline toward my BMW parked a couple rows back.

"Goddamn it! You have no right to kidnap me!" Even though she continues to pound her fists against my back, she's not inflicting any real damage. Hell, the hits I take in practice are worse than this. The best-case scenario is that she's releasing all of her bottled-up frustration.

When she wiggles against my shoulder, nearly falling off, I smack her a*s with the flat of my hand. "Stay still before you hurt yourself."

"Ow!" She sucks in a sharp, disbelieving breath. "You son of a b***h!"

"Then stop fighting me. All I'm trying to do is take you home."

"I don't want to go anywhere with you! I can replace my own way home!"

With one hand holding her in place, I reach into the front pocket of my jeans and grab my keys before hitting the button on the fob.

Now comes the tricky part. How to maneuver Alyssa into the vehicle without her fighting me and possibly getting hurt. I yank open the door and lower myself down until her high heels scrape against the pavement. With my breath wedged in my lungs, I release her before straightening to my full height. My gaze stays locked on her. It wouldn't surprise me if she tried running-even in those heels-or punched me in the face.

A gentle breeze slides through the riotous tangle of her blonde hair, blowing it around her shoulders as a wild light flashes in her eyes. Her hands bunch impotently at her sides. She's gorgeous in all her towering rage. Even though it's totally perverse, my c**k stiffens to half-mast.

The slinky silver dress clings to every slender curve. Barely does it hit mid-thigh. I'm sure if she bent over, I'd catch a glimpse of her panties.

And she better damn well be wearing panties.

"How dare you!" she growls. The words are low and menacing as her body shakes with barely contained anger. "You have no right to pick me up and cart me out of a club like a sack of potatoes." Her gaze arrows to the two-story brick building across the parking lot. Her face is so easy to read. Every thought flickering across it for me to see.

"Don't even think about it," I tell her. "You won't get far." There's a pause as I tilt my head. "Unless you're looking for me to lay hands on you again."

She gnashes her teeth before baring them like a rabid animal. "I hate you!"

All of the s****l tension simmering in the air between us dissipates. "I know, Lys. There's nothing else I can say other than I'm sorry."

Wetness pricks her eyes. Instead of allowing the tears to fall, they pool in her blue depths, shimmering like crystals in the darkness. That's all it takes for my heart to crack wide open.

"I don't give a f**k about your apologies," she whispers. "You can shove them right up your a*s for all I care."

As she takes a hasty step in retreat, her heel hits a crack in the asphalt and her eyes flare wide as she falters. When her arms pinwheel, I spring forward, wrapping my fingers around her shoulders in an attempt to steady her. Our gazes collide.

I gulp. "Are you all right?"

She shakes her head. "No." Before I can ask what's wrong, she continues, "Do you have any idea how much you've hurt me?"

My throat closes up until it feels like I can't breathe.

When I remain silent, she continues, "Any at all?"

The pain that seeps into her vivid blue depths is enough to kill me. "Yeah, I do. I wish it were possible to go back and change everything about the way we ended." The truth is that I wish I hadn't ended it at all.

"That's not possible. You can't change the past. You can only put it to rest and move on and that's what I've done."

"I don't believe that." More like I don't want to believe it. "I think you still want me."

Just like I still want her.

My gaze drops to her mouth. Those pouty lips that were made for all kinds of sin. I miss kissing them. I miss them wrapped around my c**k as she stared up at me from her knees. Even dredging up the memories makes me throb with need. It's as if she can sense the thoughts running rampant through my head. "Don't."

Her tongue darts out to smudge her lips. Everything in me tightens as I lower my face to hers. We're so close that I can feel her warm breath drift over me. It only drives the fierce need I've always had for her.

"Don't what?" I murmur, ghosting my lips over her soft ones. It takes every ounce of self-control not to close the distance between us and take what I want.

"Kiss me."

"Why not?"

She tilts her head toward mine almost as if angling it to give me better access. "Because...I don't want it."

Losing the battle with myself, I nip at her lower lip before sucking the fullness into my mouth. A whimper escapes as I tug her against me until her breasts are smashed against my chest. A sultry taste that is distinctly hers explodes on my tongue. After all the time and distance that I forced between us, to have her this close is like a wave crashing over me, dragging me to the bottom of the ocean. I'm drowning in the taste and feel of her and I don't care. I don't care if I ever make it to the surface again.

Even though it goes against every single impulse pounding through me, I pull away enough to say, "Are you sure about that?"