Bad Boy Next Door Novel – Talon was the bad boy next door. He made it his goal to make my life a living nightmare. From his leather jacket and motorcycle to his cocky personality and playboy reputation. I knew I had to avoid him at all costs. I had the perfect boyfriend and an amazing social life. All that jerk wanted was for me to break up with Isaiah. But I wasn’t going to let him ruin my perfect life. “Talon, this is my boyfriend, Isaiah.” The smirk on Talon’s face as he takes Isaiah’s hand and shakes it makes the back of my neck burn again. His searing blue eyes move to me. “Of course you are,” he smiles and winks. That wink is etched in my memory. That is what he is. Meeting him was inevitable. A set moment in my life. No matter where I was or what I did, we were going to crash into each other. All that was left to do was fall.
Wren The delivery truck is gone by the time I’m bundled up and heading out of the house. But the figure is still there. Only now, the long black coat is draped over the edge of the porch, and the boy I saw yesterday is crouched at the side of a motorcycle, meticulously rubbing a blue microfiber cloth to make the black body of the bike gleam. He catches me staring at him. “Have you never seen one before?” he asks. I’m taken aback by the arrogance in his voice, but something draws me across the yard toward him. His intensely blue eyes flicker up to me again. “I’ve never seen one come out of the back of a delivery truck at the crack of dawn,” I say. “What’s wrong? Didn’t get enough beauty sleep? Looks like you need it. The company was meant to deliver it yesterday. They didn’t, so they rectified their mistake,” he says. “How long have you had it?” “Two years.” He rises up to standing and faces me. “I don’t give out rides.” I turn my head at him.
“That’s funny, I don’t think I asked for one.” “All girls do,” he says. “I’m just being pre-emptive.” “No, you’re being cocky and rude. Perhaps you should make an effort to get to know more people before you start making generalizations like that.” I head to my car but turn around a few steps later. “And by the way, around here, it’s not considered polite to wake up the entire neighborhood because you think someone needs to rectify a mistake.” Not bothering to give him a chance to respond, I cross the rest of the way to my car and get inside. I crank the engine and turn on the heater, waiting for it to warm up enough to take the chill out of the air inside the car. I don’t want to look his way when I drive past, but my eyes are drawn to him involuntarily. I remember the name my mother used when talking about him. Talon. It’s a fitting name for him.
He glances up at me, but I look away. Rather than going straight to the animal shelter, I stop by the donut shop. I didn’t drink any of the coffee I brewed at the house, but now feel the need to wrap my hands around a cup. The interaction with my new neighbor left me breathless, but I don’t know why. Even long sips of dark roast swirled with caramel don’t quiet the strange shaky feeling inside me. The door leading back to the kitchen opens, and a familiar voice calls out to me. “Only you would willingly be up this early in the morning on a Saturday, Wren.” “Aren’t you here willingly?” I ask Samantha, one of my closest friends. She drops down in the booth across from me and slides a plate with a fresh cinnamon donut across the table. “I’m here to work,” she says. “That’s different.” “Well, I’m going to volunteer.” “Bree told me something interesting. Apparently, her nephew is coming to stay with her for the rest of the semester. Sounds like you’re getting a new neighbor.” The mention of Talon quickens my heart unexpectedly. I force it away as a reaction to his smug arrogance.
“I know. Actually, I just met him.” Samantha’s eyes widen. “You did? What’s he like? Don’t you think it’s strange he’s showing up in the middle of the school year? There’s got to be a story there.” “I can believe it. From the less than a minute we spoke this morning, I’m already ready for him to head right back where he came from. He is arrogant and entitled. He looked at me like he was expecting me to lap up milk from his hand. Obviously, he’s the kind of guy who thinks the world revolves around him.” Samantha eyes me suspiciously. “Wow. That sure is a lot of emotion for someone you only interacted with for less than a minute. You’re sure there isn’t a little something else happening there?” I take a long gulp of my coffee and roll my eyes at her. “Absolutely not. It makes me cringe just thinking about having another conversation with him. Besides, I have Isaiah.” “Yes, you do. For almost five years. Pretty impressive for high school,” she says. I stuff the rest of the donut in my mouth and stand. “I’ve got to get going. I’ll see you at school on Monday.” “See you then,” Samantha says.
My breath swells in my lungs. I can’t seem to get it to move in and out the way it’s supposed to. Talon is so close to me, I can feel the heat radiating off his body, and his breath touch the skin on the side of my neck. He leans down to talk to me in a low, controlled voice. My skin tingles, and there is a second where it’s like the awareness of where I am disappears. Finally, I snap out of it. “I don’t know anywhere like that,” I insist. He gives a snort of derisive laughter and steps back from me. “Of course you don’t. I should have known,” he mutters. “What’s that supposed to mean?” I demand, but I know exactly what he means. He’s right, not that I’ll confess that to him. “You’re too much of a prude. Show me the theater,” he says. Before I’ve completely processed the sudden veering in the conversation, he swaggers off toward the front of the school.
I follow after him, and soon we slip through the heavy double doors at the front of the theater. It’s dark inside except for the illumination of a single spotlight in the center of the stage. A boy sits on a wooden chair directly in the center, shaking and stumbling his way through a monologue. We walk back out into the open commons. I’m about to bring Talon over to the gym when I hear my name bouncing through the hallway. We both turn toward it, and I see Samantha rushing toward us. “What are you doing out of class?” she asks almost conspiratorially, as if I’m going to have a secret to tell her. “Hi, Samantha,” I say. “Mr. Whittaker decided to make me the official tour guide of the school. You remember I told you about Bree’s nephew. I gesture toward Talon. “This is Talon. Talon, this is Samantha. She works at your aunt’s store.”
Talon looks Samantha up and down and smiles. “It’s nice to meet you. I’m sure you’re a lot of help to Aunt Bree.” I roll my eyes at the blatant flirting, but Samantha looks like she’s about to explode. Her eyes sparkle, and color flushes her face. She nods. “I try to be. It’s a lot of responsibility managing all those craft supplies.” This may be one of the most awkward and uncomfortable interactions I’ve ever seen. But Samantha doesn’t seem to notice it at all. Somewhere in her mind, she’s living out her own romance novel. “Don’t you have somewhere you should be right now?” I ask. “Like class?” Her eyes widen a little like she has snapped back into reality. “Oh. Right. Wren, I’ll see you after school. It was nice to meet you, Talon.” “I’m sure I’ll be seeing much more of you,” Talon says. It makes my stomach twist, but I’m not sure why.
Samantha scurries away, and I turn to Talon. “Is there something else you particularly want to see?” I ask. “What were you doing up so early on Saturday?” he asks. The question throws me off. I shake my head slightly. “What?” “I don’t think it was that challenging a question. Why were you up so early on Saturday morning?” “If you recall, an incredibly rude person had a delivery truck show up when the sun was barely up and woke up the entire street,” I say. “And you needed to get into your car and drive away from the chaos that was absolutely nothing going on?” he asks. “What business is it of yours what I was doing?” I ask. “Just trying to be neighborly. Isn’t that what people do around here?” “I was on my way to the animal shelter,” I tell him. “Sudden irresistible craving for a new cat?” “I volunteer there on the weekends.” “Of course you do,” he rolls his eyes. “You say that a lot, you know,” I point out. “Say what?” he asks. “‘Of course’. ‘Of course you do’. Or ‘of course it is’. You say it a lot.”
“Maybe because the world is just so predictable. It never ceases to amaze me how paint-by-numbers some people’s lives are,” he shrugs. “Or maybe because you put yourself so high above everyone else, you can’t possibly imagine anything having significance to another person,” I say. “You really don’t have to be so defensive. I’m only saying you doing volunteer work fits right in with the rest of what I know about you.” “Which is nothing,” I say. “I know the teacher acts like you hung the moon. And that some guy brought you home Friday but didn’t even stay for ten minutes.” The back of my neck burns. “The teacher appreciates my work ethic and good grades. I actually give him respect, unlike you. And that guy who brought me home on Friday happens to be my boyfriend.” “Your boyfriend?” Talon asks, seemingly shocked by the revelation.
I don’t know if I like the look of surprise in his eyes or if it makes me angry. That seems to be a common thread in my feelings toward this guy. “Yes. We’ve been together for almost five years.” The justification tumbles out of me before I can even control the compulsion. “Five years and he doesn’t stay after dropping you off on a Friday night?” Talon asks. “How… sweet.” “Don’t you dare try to bring him into this.” “And what is ‘this’, exactly?” “Is everything alright? Wren? You okay?” As if I somehow called him to me by talking about him, Isaiah comes through the commons toward us. His eyebrows knit together as he searches my face, and his hand slides into mine.
“Everything’s fine. This is Talon. He’s new here,” I say. “I just moved in next door to Wren,” Talon says. If I didn’t know better, I’d think there was a hint of challenge in his voice. Whether he noticed it or not, Isaiah doesn’t flinch. He holds out his hand toward Talon. “Good to meet you. Welcome to town.” “Talon, this is my boyfriend, Isaiah.” The smirk on Talon’s face as he takes Isaiah’s hand and shakes it makes the back of my neck burn again. His searing blue eyes move to me. “Of course you are,” he smiles and winks. That wink is etched in my memory.