Page 36 of Taming Bull

His brow furrowed. “But didn’t you hear what I told you? We can’t be together, Lily.”

Wait. What?

Was he brushing me off? Did he think that stroll down memory lane would shake me loose? Sure, it hurt to hear about his past, but it didn’t change the way I felt about him one bit. “Um. Excuse me?” I asked. “Why the hell do you believe we can’t be together.”

“You look just like Amber. I’m talking spittin’ image. It would be too much. I can’t take you home. I mean, can you imagine what that would do to her parents? What it would do to mine? And you would hate it. Everyone looking at you sideways and talkin’ shit… Talk about resentment. How do you think you’ll feel toward me when my family doesn’t accept you?”

His eyes were pleading with me to understand, but I didn’t. I didn’t get what he was saying at all. Every excuse he coughed up was so far beyond my realm of understanding, it might as well have been Latin. “You don’t think your family will accept me?” I asked. “Have you even told them about me?”

His mouth closed.

My heart sunk. “No. That’s what I thought.” My voice was trembling, and I couldn’t stop it. Swallowing, I willed myself to be strong. I might never have another opportunity to spill my guts to Bull, and I refused to let my anger lay waste to this chance. “I never pegged you for a quitter.”

He’d been playing with a hole in his jeans, but my response startled him out of it. His gaze snapped to mine, and whatever he saw in my expression caused him to shoot to his feet and run a hand over his head. “I’m not. You know I’m not.”

“Yes, you are. You’re quitting on us before you even give us a chance.”

“God, Lily, be reasonable. You look like my dead fiancé. The daughter of my parents’ best friends. I can’t take you home. This thing between us can never be more than platonic.”

Oh my God, hewasgiving up. I’d poked the bear, but I didn’t really expect him to roll over. No, I wouldn’t let him roll over. Not if I could help it. Not today. I stood and met his gaze once again. “How convenient for you.”

“It’s not convenient,” he fired back, his face twisting in anger. “It’s a shitty situation, but there’s nothing I can do about it.”

“For starters, you could have fucking talked to me before you made up your mind about how I’d feel. News flash, Bull, I’ve known about Amber for a few weeks now.”

“You have?”

“Yes, but it hasn’t changed the way I feel about you. I want to be with you. You’re my best friend, but I want more than that. I want everything. I know shit between us won’t be easy, but nothing in my life ever has been.”

“I know!” He threw his hands up. “And you deserve more. Of all people, Lily,youshould get easy. You deserve more than me.”

He looked so broken, so absolutely devastated, I had to go to him. Desperate for his touch, I put my hands on his chest and met his gaze. A storm raged in his grey eyes, and the dark bags beneath them made me suspect he’d been having as much trouble sleeping over the past two weeks as I had. He looked like shit. Tortured, tormented, letting me go hadn’t been any easier on him than it had been on me.

Well, it was time to put an end to this bullshit, because I wasn’t going anywhere. Enough talking, it was time for Plan B.

I ripped my shirt over my head and tossed it to the floor.

Bull’s eyes widened. His gaze shot to my chest, and the flames that ignited behind his eyes threatened to catch me on fire. “Wh-wh-what are you doing?” he asked.

I’d always been kind of shy about my body, but his obvious appreciation and the desperation that I was in danger of losing him emboldened me. I reached between my breasts to the front clasp of my lacy black bra. “Words are great and all, but I’m sick of talking.” I released the clasp. My breasts sprang free, as I slid the straps over my arms and dropped it on the floor.

The cool air shocked my nipples, pebbling them immediately. Or maybe they stiffened in response to the bulge I could feel growing against my stomach. Either way, the girls needed some attention. Grabbing Bull’s hands, I placed one on each breast. He squeezed, closing his eyes in agony.

“God, Lily, don’t…”

“Don’t what? We both want this.”

“But we can’t—”

“Hush. You’ve already told me the reason we shouldn’t be together.”

My voice came out husky and deeper than normal as the callouses of his hands ran over my smooth skin. Electricity shot straight to my core, heating me from within. The room was chilly, but my body felt like it was on fire. I reached for the button of his jeans. He sucked in a breath as my fingers grazed the bare skin under his shirt. Unfastening the button, I tugged down his zipper.

“Now, let me show you all the reasons we should.”

10

Bull

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