diff --git a/buffer.go b/buffer.go
index cb979a3..7c10522 100644
--- a/buffer.go
+++ b/buffer.go
@@ -2,6 +2,8 @@ package cmux
 
 import "io"
 
+var _ io.ReadWriter = (*buffer)(nil)
+
 type buffer struct {
 	read int
 	data []byte
@@ -38,13 +40,18 @@ func (b *buffer) resetRead() {
 	b.read = 0
 }
 
-func (b *buffer) Write(p []byte) (n int, err error) {
-	n = len(p)
-	if b.data == nil {
-		b.data = p[:n:n]
-		return
-	}
-
+// From the io.Writer documentation:
+//
+// Write writes len(p) bytes from p to the underlying data stream.
+// It returns the number of bytes written from p (0 <= n <= len(p))
+// and any error encountered that caused the write to stop early.
+// Write must return a non-nil error if it returns n < len(p).
+// Write must not modify the slice data, even temporarily.
+//
+// Implementations must not retain p.
+//
+// In a previous incarnation, this implementation retained the incoming slice.
+func (b *buffer) Write(p []byte) (int, error) {
 	b.data = append(b.data, p...)
-	return
+	return len(p), nil
 }
diff --git a/buffer_test.go b/buffer_test.go
index ba1f00d..f098b80 100644
--- a/buffer_test.go
+++ b/buffer_test.go
@@ -6,8 +6,31 @@ import (
 	"testing"
 )
 
+func TestWriteNoModify(t *testing.T) {
+	var b buffer
+
+	const origWriteByte = 0
+	const postWriteByte = 1
+
+	writeBytes := []byte{origWriteByte}
+	if _, err := b.Write(writeBytes); err != nil {
+		t.Fatal(err)
+	}
+	writeBytes[0] = postWriteByte
+	readBytes := make([]byte, 1)
+	if _, err := b.Read(readBytes); err != io.EOF {
+		t.Fatal(err)
+	}
+
+	if readBytes[0] != origWriteByte {
+		t.Fatalf("expected to read %x, but read %x; buffer retained passed-in slice", origWriteByte, postWriteByte)
+	}
+}
+
+const writeString = "deadbeef"
+
 func TestBuffer(t *testing.T) {
-	writeBytes := []byte("deadbeef")
+	writeBytes := []byte(writeString)
 
 	const numWrites = 10
 
@@ -54,7 +77,7 @@ func TestBuffer(t *testing.T) {
 }
 
 func TestBufferOffset(t *testing.T) {
-	writeBytes := []byte("deadbeef")
+	writeBytes := []byte(writeString)
 
 	var b buffer
 	n, err := b.Write(writeBytes)