Page 33 of Love vs The Ooze Monster!
“I don’t want to be disrespectful to my stepfather’s memory.” She muttered.
“You’re not. Lew would approve. Trust me. I think me and him were in synch about pretty much everything.” Boyd turned to lean back against the counter. “Speaking of which,” he crossed his arms over his chest, smugger than anyone had a right to be, “I figured out my inheritance, last night.”
She chewed her lower lip. “Did you?”
“Yep. You know what Lew left me?”
“A book.” She hedged.
“Yep. …And the girl it belongs to.”
Drat.
Mabel had suspected as much. “Well, that can’t possibly be legal.” She sniffed.
“What do I care about the law? I’m a criminal.” Boyd looked her up and down, arrogantly pleased with life. “And your daddy gave you to me.”
“Maybe so, but he had no right to do that.”
“I don’t much care about doing what’s right, either. I just care about what’s mine. That’syounow and I’m keeping you.”
“I’ll decide for myself who I belong to.”
He lifted a shoulder in a nonchalant shrug. “Better decide on me, then. You know what I’ll do to any other fella you look at. I’ve got cement, a big body of water, and plenty of time.”
Double drat.
For some perverse reason, his possessiveness wasn’t upsetting her, at all. Instead, she felt kind of breathless and tingly. Her nipples beaded against the fabric of her very pretty dress.
Boyd slowly smiled, reading her reaction. “Such a little gangster. It’s no wonder I’m so stuck on you Mabe.” He crooked a finger at her. “Come here.”
She shook her head. If she went over there, he was going to convince her to do something disreputable. There was no doubt about it. She was standing firm until he apologized.
Boyd pushed off the sink and prowled towards her.
Mabel took a quick step back. “Don’t even think about it! Lew might have said you were The One, but I’m not convinced he was right. I’m still very mad about Thursday.”
“For the life of me, I cannot understand why you’re upset atme… overyoulying…to me.” He broke it down slowly, stressing words like maybe she didn’t understand what had happened.
Only she did understand. “How could youfireme, though!?”
“Ididn’tfire you.”
She ignored that, caught up in her rant. “You suddenly didn’t want me, anymore! I never, ever expected that, Boyd.”
Boyd’s head canted to one side, like he was suddenly more alert. “I always want you.” The words were unequivocal.
“Then how could you just toss me aside? After everything I thought you and I were building. After theconnectionI thought we had.”
Blue eyes roamed her face. “It wasn’t just the business you thought we were building.” He deduced quietly. “It wasus.”
She stared at him and felt her lower lip begin to quiver.
His expression softened. “Mabel…” He took another step closer to her.
She took another step back.
He stopped, looking frustrated, now. “Ineverwanted you to leave. That wasnevermy intention. I was shocked when you went storming out. I just wanted you to tell me everything between us was real.
