A Boy I Used to Love (A St. Skin Novel): a bad boy new adult romance novel

by London Casey

  “He attacked the other driver,” one of the officers said.

  “Shit,” River said.

  “What?” I asked.

  “I made sure he’ll never do that again,” Axel said.

  “Did you kill him?” I asked.

  “No,” the same officer said. “But he…well, he gave him a good lesson. Even though it’s illegal to do that.”

  The officers dragged Axel away.

  He called out, “I’m sorry to you all! I love you, River. Don’t be mad at me anymore!”

  “Nobody is mad at you, asshole,” River said.

  He started to move but Tate grabbed him again. “River. Stay here. I’ll follow and see where this ends up, okay? Stay with Lacey.”

  Tate left the room.

  As loud and wild as it got, it was suddenly quiet.

  I looked at River and started to cry again.

  “Doc, when the hell can we get out of here?” he asked.

  “As long as she doesn’t show any signs of serious concussion, I’ll get the paperwork together right now.”

  “Thank you,” River said.

  The doctor left, and River came to my side again. He hugged me, and I clawed at him, vowing to never let him go.

  “I always knew Axel was loyal, but shit,” he whispered. “I’ve never seen him do that before.”

  “I knew he meant nothing by what he said. I wasn’t mad at him. He’s grieving.”

  “I know, darling.”

  “River, look at me.”

  Our foreheads then touched. “I’m sorry I let everything in our past get to me the way it did. I should have never-”

  “That doesn’t matter anymore, Lacey.”

  “The world is trying to keep us apart, River.”

  “No it’s not. It’s testing us. But this time, we fucking pass the test. Nothing can tear this love apart, darling.”

  “I love you, River.”

  “I love you, Lacey,” he said. “You’re going to be okay. I’m going to take care of you for the rest of your life.”

  We kissed.

  Somewhere in the recess of my heart, I wondered if that was going to be the moment when River would actually propose to me. After all, he was crouched and almost on one knee.

  But that didn’t happen.

  He didn’t propose.

  That was going to come later.

  River

  A MONTH LATER

  The brakes squeaked as the truck came to a stop. I looked over at Lacey, a red bandana covering her eyes. She had her arms crossed and she was pouting, but that was all part of the fun. I never thought in my wildest imagination I’d see just how beautifully powerful she was. Every day was a battle for her, and she did it with a smile on her face and never once failed to make me smile, too.

  “We’re here,” I said.

  “Can I take this thing off?” she asked me.

  “Not yet,” I said as I opened the truck door.

  I ran to the back and got the wheelchair out.

  Yeah, the feeling hadn’t completely returned to her legs. It was painfully slow for Lacey, and the more that time went by, the more it seemed a wheelchair would be needed for the rest of her life. I already had a plan in place for that. I wanted to do what I set out to do years ago and buy Lacey a house. And whatever accommodations the house needed, they would be done.

  But before all of that planning, there was one thing I needed to do.

  I opened the passenger door and lifted Lacey up.

  “Kiss me,” I said.

  “I can’t see you.”

  “Good.”

  I planted my lips to hers. There was nothing sweeter…unless I let my lips travel down her perfect body and rest between her legs.

  I held her and kissed her for a little while.

  Finally, she broke the kiss. “I hate not being able to see. I already feel useless as it is.”

  “Never,” I said.

  I turned and helped Lacey down into the chair, then reached for the bandana and pulled it off.

  We were in front of the cabin.

  Lacey quickly turned her head and looked up at me. “River?”

  “I know, it’s not much of a surprise. But I promised you that no matter what happens, we would have fun. I said I’d carry you, and I meant it. Or push you around.”

  “Thanks,” she said.

  I took her to the big ass rock where it all started.

  I stopped and leaned against the rock.

  “What?” she asked.

  “How can you not feel beautiful right now?” I asked.

  “Look at me.”

  “Look at you. Warrior. My beautiful warrior.”

  “Stop. I’m not that person.”

  “Yes, you are,” I said. “Everything will be okay.”

  And so far, things had been okay. Axel wasn’t charged with what he did to that drunk driver. And the driver was charged, put in front of a judge, and sent to jail for a good little while. I got myself a new truck, too. But I’d trade everything I owned for Lacey to be able to walk. In my heart, I knew she’d walk again. Even if she didn’t believe it.

  “Want to know how I know that?” I asked.

  “What?”

  “Because I have you. And you have me. Nothing else in this messed up world matters. It’s always been us, Lacey. From that old house that burned down to this big ass rock. To the cabin I bought from Richie. And to…”

  “You bought the cabin?” she asked.

  “Yeah,” I said. “He gave me a hell of a deal on it.”

  “River…”

  I reached for her hand. “Lacey, I wanted to buy that house for us, and it burned down. So, I bought the cabin instead. This is our home away from home. Speaking of which, we’ll start looking there too. I want you to pick out your dream home.”

  “River, no. I don’t need a dream home. Wherever I live, I just want you there.”

  “And that’s exactly why I know it’s always been about us. You and me. And the ring in my pocket is just the next step.”

  “The…what?”

  I dropped down to one knee before Lacey. I held her left hand tight and reached into my pocket. It was a brand-new ring. I had a nice little influx of cash thanks to Tate helping me market some of my designs. Not to mention that all I did while waiting for Lacey to show up was work and save money. It was time for me to do something fun, even if that meant spoiling the hell out of the woman I loved.

  “River,” Lacey whispered.

  “I’ve been waiting for this moment for a long time. I pictured it a million times, and it was never like this.”

  “Because I’m in a wheelchair,” Lacey said with a smirk.

  “No. Because of how real it feels. I’ve never been so sure of anything in my life. Everything I’ve ever done was for you. The good, the bad, the time we lost. Fuck all that, Lacey. All we’ve got is today and to hope for tomorrow. So now, I’m living for today. And today…I’m asking you, Lacey, to marry me. Become my wife. Become my everything. Will you?”

  “Yes,” Lacey gushed. “Oh, River, yes! Yes a million times! Yes!”

  I slid the ring onto her finger and then slid my hand behind her neck and kissed her.

  Lacey started to cry.

  My thumb wiped away a few tears.

  “Hey, no tears.”

  “I want to stand and kiss you. Like I used to do.”

  “Then let’s figure it out,” I said.

  I took Lacey by the hands and nodded. I didn’t speak another word. I pulled, she fought to stand, and I waited. I had nothing but time. Nothing but patience. Nothing but love.

  It took a few minutes, but I got Lacey onto her feet. She was shaking. She was crying. I knew that if I let her go, she would fall.

  But here’s the best part of it all…

  I would never, ever let her go.

  Lacey

  MONTHS LATER

  I cried out River’s name and bit his shoulder. He plunged deeper, harder than maybe I’d e
ver felt him before. I shut my eyes and felt the warmth of my body tingling everywhere. He grunted as he reached his climax and held there. Our bodies were so intertwined, it was wild.

  Slowly, he kept loving me. Pulling, pushing, planting a little kiss on the top of my head.

  I broke from his strong shoulder as my mouth craved the taste of his. We started to kiss, and I wanted nothing more but for him to get hard again and have me again. And I actually, fully intended on him doing just that.

  But then I felt a kick from inside my belly, and River jumped back.

  He went to his knees and propped himself up. His right hand touched my stomach, and his eyes went wide.

  “Was that?”

  “Yeah,” I said.

  “The little man just kicked me,” he said.

  “Little man or woman,” I said.

  “A kick like that? That’s a boy for sure.”

  I laughed. “We’ll find out soon.”

  River eased away from me, leaving me with another round of warm tingling. His hands never could keep from touching me, which was an amazing reassurance with all the bodily changes I was going through and would keep going through.

  He leaned forward and kissed the small but growing baby bump.

  “I’m grabbing a shower,” he said. “I have to get to the shop soon. Busy day for me.”

  “Yeah, me too. I need to study.”

  “That’s what I like to hear. You keep up your classes at this rate, and you’ll be able to deliver your own baby.”

  I laughed again. “Stop. That’s just weird.”

  River insisted I enroll back into med school. I couldn’t argue with him. I was taking things slow. I honestly had no idea if I would ever actually become a doctor. But I promised River I would go until I was too pregnant to care.

  I moved to my side and watched as River walked to the bathroom. I admired his beautiful back and rock-hard ass. Goddamn, he was so fucking sexy. It made my toes curl.

  We were still in his apartment. For now, at least. But we would need a bigger place soon.

  I touched my stomach and sat up on the bed. I swung my feet to the edge and bit my lip as I applied pressure to my feet. I stood up with ease. If someone was there to watch, they’d never know that I was told there was a good chance I’d never walk again.

  But look at me go!

  I walked to the mirror and stood sideways. I touched the little baby bump smiled.

  If it wasn’t for River, I wouldn’t have walked. Not only did he lift me up the day he proposed, he kept doing it every day. Hours on end, he would forever be there with me, helping me take step after step.

  Time was the craziest, funniest, cruelest, and kindest thing in existence. And yet in the blink of an eye, it could just vanish.

  I shut my eyes and swallowed down a lump in my throat. I was actually happy. Finally happy.

  “Hey, darlin’.”

  I looked over my shoulder, and River had his head poking out of the bathroom door. He had a sexy grin on his face.

  “Yeah?”

  “For the record, I have plenty of time to get to work.”

  “Are you inviting me into the shower with you?” I asked.

  “No, I’m demanding it. Get that beautiful ass of yours over here, let’s finish our morning the right way.”

  He winked and vanished behind the door.

  I heard the water turn on.

  I looked in the mirror one last time.

  River may have been a boy I used to love.

  But he was a man I would share forever with.

  THE END.

  From the authors:

  Thank you so much for joining us in the world of St. Skin! The response to In Her Words was really overwhelming. Not just how many readers grabbed a copy of the book, but the amount of readers who emailed us. There’s not a day that goes by that we don’t get some kind of mail from a reader telling us how much Cass and Diem meant to them. The original plan was for this book to get published much later, but when In Her Words became a worldwide bestseller, it was proof that St. Skin was a hit! So, thanks you to you – THE READER – this book, A Boy I Used to Love, came out on an early release.

  This book touches us because of the past love concept. Making that forever promise and then keeping it. Bringing River and Lacey to life was not easy. The way we wrote it was Jaxson took care of the past parts while London took care of the present. Then we brought the two parts together to mix them to create this novel. It’s quite the process and the book reflects that.

  Also, please be sure to email us and tell what you thought! If you have any questions, let us know! Now it’s time for us to get back to work on more St. Skin stories to share!

  One more thing! Make sure you get over to the official St. Skin Facebook fan page here: www.facebook.com/stskinseries

  London (Karolyn) & Jaxson

  Please be sure to leave your review for A Boy I Used to Love (A St. Skin Novel) right now. Find the book on Amazon here: http://amzn.to/2jUsnmh

  About the Author

  Stay social with Jax:

  Facebook: www.facebook.com/JaxsonKidman

  Newsletter (part of the Outlaw Romance Obsession team): http://eepurl.com/b9BDKb

  Email Jax: JaxsonKidman@gmail.com

  Amazon Page: http://amzn.to/2lgfpLG

  Stay social with London (Karolyn):

  Facebook: www.facebook.com/KarolylnJamesAuthor (the official Outlaw Romance Obsession fan page!)

  Newsletter (part of the Outlaw Romance Obsession team): http://eepurl.com/b9BDKb

  Email Jax: KarolynJamesWrites@gmail.com

  Amazon Page: http://amzn.to/2jUsnmh

  Also by London and Jaxson:

  Jaxson Kidman is the bestselling author of several novels, including:

  Hard Knox

  Slam Her

  Outlaw King

  Look for his upcoming novel, Hate Me

  London Casey (Karolyn James) is the author of the bestselling series, Back Down Devil MC

  These books have no set reading order. They are all stand-alone novels set in the BDD MC world. She is also the author of several stand-alone novels, including:

  This Crazy, Forbidden Thing

  The Man. The Game. The Baby.

  Steal His Heart

  Look for her upcoming novel, A Dirty Wedding Proposal

  This book is a work of fiction. Any references to historical events, real people, or real locales are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination, and any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  First electronic edition March 2017

  Copyright © 2017 by London Casey (Karolyn James) & Jaxson Kidman

  All rights reserved, including the right of reproduction in whole or in part of any form.