Page 4 of Breaking the Rules
Chapter Two
Hunter
This is not the time to be hard.
And that is not the woman to be hard over.
But Emma isn't the gawky kid who used to look at me with doe eyes.
She's all legs and energy.
I drape my towel over the couch.
Crouch over my suitcase. Find a clean pair of boxers. Jeans. A black t-shirt.
This room is mine for as long as I want it.
Brendon was welcoming.
He's the only person who gave a shit about helping me piece my life back together.
He asked one thing in return: look out for his little sister.
And here I am, still hard.
But, God damn, the way she stared.
It's different now.
It's been forever.
That must be it.
Because it sure as hell can't be that I want Emma Kane.
That's out of the question.
I repeat the explanation to myself as I dress, but it doesn't stick.
This is my self-destructive streak acting up.
Lusting after the one woman I'm not supposed to touch—
That certainly sounds like me.
I pull out my cell. Consider texting Brendon. Decide against it.
What am I going to say?Sorry, I gave your sister a show. But damn was she into it. Would you mind if I took this back to her room and fucked her senseless?
That isn't happening.
Even if everything was different, Emma is a good kid.
I'm not.
I push my suitcase aside. Sit on the leather couch I'm currently using as a bed. Open my sketchbook to the sleeve I'm doing tomorrow morning.
It takes forever, but, eventually, I concentrate on the gig I need to ace.
