Page 5 of The Dixon Rule

“Are you listening to me?” she grumbles.

I lift my head. Oh, she’s still lecturing. Totally spaced out. “Sure. No parties in your apartment.”

“And no parties in the pool.”

I raise a brow. “Now you’re speaking for the whole building?”

“No. The building is speaking for the building. Did you not read your homeowner’s packet?”

“Babe, I just walked in here.”

“Don’t call me babe.”

“I didn’t even reach my front door before you dragged me in here.”

“Well, read your HOA package. We take this stuff very seriously, okay? The association meets twice a month on Sunday morning.”

“Yeah, I’m not doing that.”

“I didn’t expect you to. And frankly, don’t want you there. Okay—” She claps her hands as if she’s leading one of her cheerleading practices. Diana’s the cheer captain at Briar. “Let’s summarize the rules. Go easy on the parties. Wipe the equipment down after you use the gym. Don’t have sex in the pool.”

“What about blowjobs in the pool?”

“Look, I don’t care who you want to suck off, Lindley. Just don’t do it in the pool.”

I grin at her. “I meant I would be on the receiving end.”

“Oh. Did you?” Diana smiles sweetly. “I think the most important thing for you to remember is, we are not friends.”

“Lovers, then?” I wink at her.

“We are neither friends nor lovers. We are floor mates. We are quiet, respectful residents of the Red Birch building in Meadow Hill. We don’t annoy each other—”

“I mean, you’re kind of annoying me right now.”

“—we don’t cause trouble, and, preferably, we don’t speak.”

“Isn’t this considered speaking?”

“No. This is the conversation leading up to the future conversations we won’t be having. In conclusion, we’re not friends. No shenanigans. Oh, and stop screwing my teammates.”

Ah, so that’s what all this is about. She’s still salty because I messed around with a few of her cheerleaders last semester. Apparently one of them, Audrey, caught feelings and was so distracted at practice she fell off the pyramid and sprained her ankle. But how is that on me? When I’m on the ice, I’m able to push everything out and focus on hockey. Banish all distractions and excel at my sport. If Audrey couldn’t block out a dude she hooked up with once, that sounds like a her-problem.

“All right,” I say impatiently. “Are there any more Dixon rules, or may I please be excused? My furniture isn’t gonna assemble itself.”

“That’s all. Although, really, there’s only one Dixon rule that matters. No Shanes allowed.”

“Allowed where?”

“Anywhere and everywhere. But mostly just in my vicinity.” She smiles again, but it lacks any trace of humor. “Okay, we’re done here.” She points to the entryway. “You can go now.”

“So it’s going to be like that, huh?”

“Yes, I literally just told you it was going to be like that. Happy housewarming, Lindley.”

I dutifully leave her apartment and return to mine, where Will and Beckett are tackling the assembly of my new sectional couch. Will’s using a knife to slice open the plastic that the big cushions come in, while Beckett crouches on the hardwood floor, trying to figure out how to lock the main section to the chaise. I opted for a dark-gray color because it’ll be easier to clean. Not that I’ll ever get the chance—my mother insists on sending a cleaner to my house every two weeks. She did the same for the townhouse I shared with the boys. According to her, my cleaning abilities will never be anything other than subpar. I disagree. I think I could at least make par. Gotta aim high in the cleaning world.

“Sorry about that,” I tell the guys. “Dixon needed to chew me out for a while. It’s how she shows her love for me.”

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