Dearest Series Boxed Set

by Lex Martin

  Daren.

  God, I don’t know why last night made such a difference, but the stupid butterflies in my stomach are rioting at the thought of him.

  If someone had told me I’d be grateful I found my ex cheating on me, I would have laughed in their face. But right now, I am grateful because it brought me to this point. It brought me Daren.

  Which reminds me.

  Pulling out my phone again, I slide my finger over the images until I find the one I want. The one of Jacob and that girl.

  And then I hit the delete button. Because that part of my life is over.

  Feeling lighter than I have in months, I head back to the kitchen.

  A stupid grin pulls at my lips as I pull out what I need from the fridge. Eggs, cheese, mushrooms, tomatoes. I crack several eggs in a bowl and am about to start whipping them when two large hands come around my waist.

  “Jesus Christ, you scared me!” I just barely get the bowl down on the counter in one piece.

  Daren burrows against my neck and kisses me. “I thought you had to work.”

  “My schedule changed at the last minute, so I’m working from home. Well, here for now, but I was about to get out of your hair.”

  He growls against my ear, sending goosebumps down my arm. “Stay. If you don’t have to go, don’t. I have practice, but I shouldn't be too late.” His hands wander under my t-shirt. “Mmm. No underwear. Easy access.”

  I laugh and attempt to keep myself upright. “I’m trying to make you breakfast.”

  He nibbles on my neck for a moment before he stops with a growl. “I need to get going. I wish I could just hang out with you today.”

  He nuzzles against me, and my heart floods with emotion.

  I open my mouth to say something, but nothing comes out.

  Daren slowly spins me around. I wrap my arms around his neck.

  He grins. “Gotta say I like seeing you in my kitchen first thing in the morning.”

  Jesus. Could he be any sweeter? How on God's green earth did I ever resist him in the first place? “Go shower. I'll make you a quick omelet before you go.”

  His face burrows into my neck, and he just holds me for a few minutes. When he steps back, for the first time in my life, I totally understand what it means to be captivated by someone's stare. The emotion behind Daren's eyes makes me hold my breath.

  He clears his throat. “What are you doing tonight?”

  Thinking about my to-do list, I shrug. “Just paying bills. Doing some laundry and a little research. Why?”

  “Think you could do that another night? I'd like to take you out.”

  I still. “Like as in a—"

  "As in a date.”

  He wants to take me out. A real one. Teenage Maddie nearly passes out.

  We've been on lockdown at his place since we started getting together. Him asking me out definitely makes this feel more like a relationship. My stomach flutters at the thought, but before I can get carried away, I remember the reason we've been hiding out in the first place.

  I start to open my mouth, and he shakes his head. “We'll be careful. You won't get busted, babe. I promise. I'd never do anything to jeopardize your career.”

  Staring back at him, seeing the sweet expression on his beautiful face, the last thing I want to do is say no. Because, holy shit, Daren Sloan wants to take me on a date. We've been sleeping together for weeks, so I'm not sure why this makes me practically giddy, but the thought of us spending time together like a real couple does funny things to my heart.

  Taking a deep breath and a leap of faith, I nod. “Okay. Let's do it.”

  Thirty-Five

  - Maddie -

  Smoothing my hands down over my silky midnight blue shift dress, I look down at my phone to check the time. Seven fifty-eight PM. I’m two minutes early.

  It feels odd to be standing on the corner of Boylston Street in the middle of Copley Square, but this is where Daren told me to wait. I balked when he said he’d meet me here because nothing about this location feels like the “we’ll be careful” promise he made me this morning. And even though everything inside me wants to duck behind that carefully manicured bush a few feet away, I can’t stop thinking about what he asked me this afternoon when he sensed my reservation on the phone. It was four simple words: “Do you trust me?”

  I didn’t have to think. I just answered. “Of course.” Because I do trust him. Wholeheartedly.

  But that doesn’t mean I’m not nervous.

  Those words, though, they’re enough to get me to this point. To take that leap.

  So here I stand. On the corner of one of the busiest streets in the city, hoping like hell this doesn’t blow up in my face. Taking a deep breath, I try to focus on that word. Trust. Yes, I trust you, Daren.

  The clop clop of horse hooves draws my attention, and I look up to see a black carriage roll down the street. One minute later, it stops in front of me. The driver side door pops open, and an elderly gentleman gets out, walks around and opens the passenger side.

  His gravelly voice calls out, “Miss McDermott, your ride awaits.”

  What? I look at the old guy, who seems harmless enough, but I’m from Southie, and I do not just randomly get in vehicles, horse-drawn or not, with total strangers.

  “Maddie.” From the shadows in the back seat, Daren leans down and shoots me one of those killer smiles.

  My stomach flips at the sight of this man who’s now decked out in a suit and tie, looking altogether like he stepped off the cover of GQ Magazine. Boston’s sexiest bachelor is right.

  I glance around, and pedestrians stroll by, totally not giving a second glance to the carriage. Or me. Or the hot man waiting for me.

  Jesus, Maddie. Relax. You'll be hidden back there.

  Laughing, I clasp his outstretched hand and plunk down next to him. “This is crazy.”

  “Maybe, but I owe you that date, Wildcat. It’s about six years overdue.”

  I bite my lip, realizing that he’s counting back to when he first asked me out in high school.

  “This is so damn sweet of you.”

  He leans closer, wrapping his arm around me and pressing his lips to my neck. “You are so damn sweet.”

  My fingers immediately thread through his hair as I tilt my head to give him access. “Where are we headed?”

  “Toward the harbor. A friend of mine owns a great French restaurant, and he’s giving us run of the back terrace that overlooks the water.” He pulls back and studies my face. “It’s secluded. Don’t worry.” He leans back, and I know he’s sensing my nervousness.

  “Daren. This is great. I don't mean to be a spaz about work. I’m sorry I’m being so paranoid. Thank you. I love that we’re taking a horse-drawn carriage. I’ve never been in one.”

  I lean up and kiss him. His hand cradles the back of my neck, and I close my eyes, relishing how much I love being with him and how hard he’s trying to make tonight perfect.

  Snuggling into him, we watch the city pass by as we meander through the cobblestoned streets. When we reach Mon Ami, we duck into a back entrance and walk out onto the most majestic view of the ocean. Because the terrace is elevated, there’s no way anyone on the street can see us.

  Daren’s friend, a chef named Christophe, serves us himself. Once he takes our order and pours two glasses of wine, we’re alone on this beautiful deck. Twinkle lights decorate the alcove and a cool breeze blows off the water.

  “You always come through in a clutch?” I ask, appreciating how my words get those dimples to pop out. “When did you have time to plan this?”

  His eyebrows lift. “I’m not sharing trade secrets.”

  I laugh, totally enthralled by having all of that charm leveled at me. “Well, I’m impressed. But that’s nothing new. You always seem to impress me.”

  Those dimples deepen. He watches me until I start to squirm, and then he raises his glass of wine and waits for me to lift mine before he whispers, “To taking chances.”

 
“To taking chances.”

  Thirty-Six

  - Daren -

  I’m not sure why it’s taken me so long to do this, but taking Maddie out was the best damn idea I’ve had in a while. I hadn’t realized how much I needed to get her out of my condo. Not that I don’t love spending time with her there. I do. But this girl deserves to be treated special.

  “So you and Jax actually buried Clementine in mud all the way to her neck? And she didn’t kill you?” she asks, laughing, before taking a sip of her wine.

  “Oh, she definitely tried to kill us. But we were seven. I’m sure if we tried that today, you’d never find our bodies. But that wasn’t half as bad as when we dyed all of her white socks pink. Her mom was pissed and thought Clem had screwed up her own laundry by accident, so she refused to buy her new clothes. All through sixth grade, she walked around with pink socks.”

  Maddie’s eyes widen. “You and Jax sound like little terrors.”

  “We were. I’m surprised Clem never poisoned our food or put a hit on us.”

  “I’m pretty sure if you had filled my training bras with pudding and frozen them, I might have considered those possibilities.”

  I snicker. “I guess we were little bastards. That poor girl never ate a Pudding Pop again.”

  She covers her mouth to chuckle. “So what’s the worst prank you and Jax played on each other?”

  Pausing, I shake my head. “We did a lot of crazy shit, but the most embarrassing was probably when Jax de-pantsed me in seventh grade in front of all of the eighth grade girls.”

  A snort of laughter leaves her, and she covers her mouth. “Well,” she says, raising an eyebrow when she’s done laughing, “I’m sure you gave those girls plenty to talk about.”

  I can’t help but grin. “Probably the highlight of their year.”

  “Oh, lord.” She looks toward the exit and then points toward the back. “We should call back Christophe. You might need help getting that ego out of the restaurant when we’re done eating.”

  I chuckle, and she winks back at me. Damn, this girl is cute.

  “What about you, Maddie? Please tell me I’m not the only one who got in trouble growing up. You strike me as the kind of girl who always followed the rules.”

  She frowns, and her shoulders sag. “I was kind of a boring kid.”

  I set my fork down and reach over to grab her hand. “That’s not possible. A girl who covers sports? Nothing boring about that.”

  A smile tugs her lips. “My dad loved that I covered sports. That was our thing. Football, basketball, baseball, hockey–he loved it all. Took me to games when he could afford it. It was tough for him as a single dad, but you’d never know it. He was just the kind of guy who always looked on the bright side, always thought I could do anything I put my mind to. He made me believe I could be a broadcaster even though I was really shy growing up.”

  “Really? I’d never take you for being the shy girl.”

  “It was hard to overcome–don’t get me wrong. Taking journalism classes in high school helped because I could prepare questions ahead of time and know what I wanted to ask. It took some of the pressure off.”

  I run my thumb along her wrist and watch as goosebumps spread up her arm. “You couldn’t have gotten me to admit this in high school, but when you interviewed me back then after the championship game, I was nervous as hell. I was so sure I sounded like an idiot when you sounded so polished and self-assured.”

  “I did not sound self-assured! My hands were shaking, and I was almost positive you could hear my heart hammering in my chest. I thought I was going to pass out from holding my breath. You made me forget to breathe, Daren.”

  Her face flushes, and she glances down, looking mildly horrified at her confession.

  I laugh and reach down to scoot her chair closer before I plant a kiss on her cheek. “I know the feeling.”

  When we’re done with dinner, I grab her hand and lead her across the street for a quick stroll. It’s ten o’clock on a Tuesday night, so I know we don’t have to worry about the tourists who typically frequent the wharf-side park.

  Once we’re under an ivy-covered archway and covered in shadows, I press her up against a pillar and kiss her until her hands tangle in my hair and her chest is heaving.

  I brush my nose with hers and love the desire in her eyes when they flutter open. “I could kiss you all night, but I know you need to get up early. Let’s get you home.”

  Her eyebrows furrow. “You, uh... don’t want me to stay with you tonight?”

  I kiss that spot on her forehead and leave my lips there until she stops frowning. “Of course I want you to stay with me. I always want you to stay with me. But if you come back to my place, we’re not sleeping.” Her chest vibrates against mine as she laughs. “So, let me get you home. You need some rest.”

  Dipping my head, I kiss her neck, and she moans. “I can’t believe you’re taking me home.”

  “My dick can’t either. He’s livid.” She laughs, and I bite down on that soft spot underneath her ear, and that laughter turns into a breathy sigh. “But tonight’s not about sex.” Her fingers thread through my hair again, and it’s taking every ounce of willpower to not give in. “Tonight is about showing you how special you are to me. I know we’ve done things backwards, but had we met under normal circumstances, I would've wanted to take things slowly and show you that you’re worth the wait.”

  She lays her head against my chest, and I kiss her hair. “Daren, if you’re not careful, you’re going to make me clingy.”

  I squeeze her just a little tighter. “I’d like to see what clingy looks like. Are we talking with clothes or without?”

  She laughs again, and the sound does stupid things to my heart. Yeah, I’m in deep with this girl.

  When I drop her off at her door, I kiss her nose. “Want to come over Thursday night and play Plants and Zombies? ”

  She pushes up on her toes and places a soft kiss on my lips. “Can I be the Fire Pea? I like the Gatling gun.”

  “Sure thing, Wildcat. ”

  She winks at me. "It's a date.”

  Thirty-Seven

  - Maddie -

  The waitress sets down my coffee, and I realize I’m smiling like an idiot. I’ve never been one to daydream, but Daren does that to me. Puts me in this strange place where all I want to do is fantasize about the next time I’ll see him.

  I shake my head, trying to focus.

  As I sit in the coffee shop waiting for my lunch date, nerves perk up in my stomach. Daren and I might be undefined, but there’s one person I want to talk to if I hope to move forward with him.

  I spot her gorgeous blonde hair across the room and wave to her. When she reaches the table, I get up to hug her. “Clementine, it’s great to see you.”

  “It’s been too long! I don’t think we’ve hung out since that sex toy party Jenna had at the beginning of the summer.” She shakes her head with an embarrassed grin and tosses her stuff into the booth before scooting in. Her roommate Jenna throws these crazy parties where all the girls go home with vibrators. It’s way over the top and tons of fun.

  I was a little apprehensive about what Daren would think about me hanging out with Clem, but when I told him, a huge smile broke out on his face, and he told me to give her a noogie for him.

  Grinning at Clem, I tell her, “Jenna would probably love the book club my roommate Sheri belongs to. They read tons of smut.”

  She nods and leans closer conspiratorially and whispers, “My new novel is a little smutty.”

  “It’s the first thing on my TBR list. I’ve just been slammed with work. Sheri’s out of town right now, but when they have their next get-together, I’ll give you guys a heads up, and you can check it out.”

  “Sounds like fun. You know, I’ve been reading more erotica lately because Jenna bet me I wouldn’t, and I have to admit some of it is pretty good. But that girl is pushing me to write dirtier books, and that shit isn’t happening. No way am
I writing sex scenes about a cock stroking her folds like a free-range chicken.”

  I nearly choke on my iced tea.

  We talk more about books, and she fills me in on her new novel and what she’s been up to since graduation. We’ve been gabbing for a while when I finally get the nerve to say what’s on my mind.

  “Clem, you know how grateful I am to you for getting me that interview, right? So many big things happened for me after that segment.”

  “No thanks are necessary. Besides, you took it easier on me than Matt Lauer would have.” Clementine got thrown into the limelight last fall when her identity as a well-known young adult author got blown by a former professor. For the average person, this wouldn’t have been a big deal, but she’s the heiress of two business tycoons, so she had media trucks parked on her street for days when her pen name was leaked.

  “I don’t know about that. You answered some pretty uncomfortable questions.” Like whether the cheating boyfriend in her book was based on Daren, which she denied. I can understand why. I would’ve lied too. At the time, Daren was up for the Heisman, so their names made headlines for weeks.

  I’m so glad Daren and I had that talk last week. I’d never be ready to hang out with Clem like this if we hadn’t. But now comes the hard part.

  I take a steadying breath and decide to rip off the Band-Aid. “I actually wanted to talk to you about something, and I’m not sure how you’re going to take it.”

  Her eyes widen dramatically. “You can’t just drop that on my lap. Spit it out.” She laughs, and I continue.

  “Okay, you know how I met Daren the day I interviewed you?”

  She nods.

  “And you know how I’ve been interviewing him every week for that sports segment?”