WICKED GAMES (Wicked Bay #4)
COVER REVEAL & EXCERPT
BY L A COTTON
BLURB
Lo Stone thought her life was finally on an even keel. As if being a senior and having to think about her future isn’t bad enough, she’s a stranger in her own house. And the longer she goes without seeing Maverick, the harder it is to ignore the little voice of doubt whispering in her ear.
They thought the games were over, but the war is only just beginning...
***
*can be read as a standalone
EXCERPT
“Maverick?” I gasped at the sight of my boyfriend leaning against the hood of his car. “What are you—”
He stalked toward me, buried his hands in my hair, and kissed me. Deep and slow and full of unspoken promises. Our tongues tangled together as he guided me against the side of his car, pressing into me, showing me just how much he’d missed me.
“Maverick,” I murmured, curling my hands into his t-shirt.
“Fuck, I’ve missed you,” he breathed between kisses.
When he finally pulled away and stared down at me with those intense eyes of his, my mind cleared. “Why are you here?” I arched a brow. I wanted to believe it was because he missed me and just had to see me but there was something glittering his eyes.
“I missed you,” he repeated.
“Maverick...”
His walls slammed up and he narrowed his eyes. I let out a heavy sigh, able to see straight through him. “Kyle told you, didn’t he?”
“It should have come from you.” He gave me a pointed look that I felt all the way down to the pit of my stomach.
“That’s not fair.” I stepped back, running a hand through my hair. “I called last night to tell you and you were—”
“Shit, I know.” He tilted his face skyward and let out a long sigh. “This, me being away, it’s harder than I thought it would be.” When his eyes met mine again, my shoulders relaxed, the annoyance ebbing away.
“I know. We both just need to give it time.” I slid my fingers through his belt loops, pulling us together. “And we both need to relax a little. I can’t freak out every time you go to a party and you can’t freak out that I’m working here.”
He stiffened but I yanked harder. “Maverick.”
“I won’t pretend to like it, because I don’t.” His dark gaze flicked behind us to Hitters. “But I trust you, Lo, and I know you need this.”
“Thank you.” I leaned up pressing a kiss to his jaw, but Maverick dipped his head, capturing my lips in a breath-taking kiss.
“Maybe we should take this somewhere else,” I whispered. “Unless you have to get back to SU?”
“I don’t need to be back until morning. You have me all night.” His voice was thick with need, and it softened something inside of me.
“Perfect. I’ll text my dad and let him know we’ll be at the pool house.”
His eyes danced with desire as he kissed me again and then opened the door for me. I slid inside and waited for him. There was so much I wanted to ask but I didn’t want to ruin the moment either. So I sat quietly while he drove us back to his house.
“I can’t believe you’re here,” I said as he pulled into the drive away and cut the engine.
“I wanted to see you.”
“Wanted to or needed to?”
“Both, I guess,” he admitted, reaching over and sliding his fingers into mine. “I’m not going to lie to you, Lo, I was pissed when Kyle told me about Hitters. But mostly, I was pissed it came from him and not you.”
“Maverick, I— you’re right. I should have told you. I should have made you listen. But Gus is good people. And Sarah and Liam seem really nice. And it means I don’t have to be there so much.”
His expression softened. Maverick didn’t need me to spell it out for him, he knew how hard things had been since Stella and Bethany had moved in a little over a week ago. “Come on, let’s go inside. We’ve missed you.”
“We?” I asked as I climbed out of the car. Maverick smirked, holding out his hand for me.
“Yeah, me and him.” He dropped his eyes to his crotch and I rolled my eyes.
“Oh my god, you’re turning into Kyle.”
“I thought you dug that cocky humor he has going for him?”
“Gross.” I smacked his arm. “That’s my cousin you’re taking about.”
“When you say it like that...” Maverick grimaced and pulled me into the yard. The Stone-Prince house had become my second home over the summer. Which was weird since I once hated the place and everything it stood for. But now I kind of loved it. Not to mention the fact it housed three of my favourite people.
“Should we go inside and say hello?” I flicked my head to the main house, but Maverick was already pulling me toward the pool house.
“We can say hello later or in the morning.”
I couldn’t hide my smile at that. Even if it was only a flying visit, Maverick was home and didn’t want to waste a single second of it.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Edgy. Angsty. Addictive Romance.
Author of mature young adult and new adult novels, L A is happiest writing the kind of books she loves to read: addictive stories full of teenage angst, tension, twists and turns.
Home is a small town in the middle of England where she currently juggles being a full-time writer with being a mother/referee to two little people. In her spare time (and when she’s not camped out in front of the laptop) you’ll most likely find L A immersed in a book, escaping the chaos that is life.
Home is a small town in the middle of England where she currently juggles being a full-time writer with being a mother/referee to two little people. In her spare time (and when she’s not camped out in front of the laptop) you’ll most likely find L A immersed in a book, escaping the chaos that is life.
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