Page 14 of Off Limits
Taylor’s mouth pressed into a hard line. “When I left, she was the last one here. She said she’d wait for you and walk out with you.”
Brady inhaled, holding the breath for a few seconds, like Jane had taught him to lower his heart rate. “I wish she would have walked out with you.”
“Brady! What did you do?”
He looked away, staring at the framed twenty dollar bill they’d first collected when they opened the doors to Dog Tired. They’d hung it on the wall to remind them all of what they’d accomplished. “I slept with her.”
Taylor sucked in a breath and slapped his hands on the arms of the chair. “You what?”
He didn’t say anything. He’d admonished himself longer and harsher than Taylor ever could.
Taylor crossed then uncrossed his legs. Leaning forward, he rested his elbows on his knees. “Jesus Christ, Brady. Rex is going to flip his lid.”
“I know. That’s why we’re not telling him.” Brady shifted his gaze back to Taylor.
“We’re, as in you and Jane?” He quirked a dirty blonde eyebrow at Brady.
“As in you, me, and Jane.” He waved a finger between them.
“God damn it.” He clasped his hands together. His jaw ticked. “You couldn’t just walk away, could you? Now you’re pulling me into this and asking me to lie to our best friend.”
“I tried. Believe me, I tried.” He shook his head, jaw tight with the memory of all the ways he’d tried to steer things in a different direction.
At first, he’d made a gallant effort—dodging her looks, keeping the banter light. But it hadn’t lasted. His resolve had cracked, then crumbled. She’d never been so bold. Never made it so clear she wanted him.
Sure, they’d flirted. Caught each other staring too long. Let touches linger when they shouldn’t have. But there’d always been a line. A silent, mutual understanding.
Until last night. Until they shattered it.
“So, you put up a fight to her seduction but you couldn’t hold her off? Come on, Brady. You’ve had a thing for her forever and she for you.”
“She came after me. I was in here working.” This was a true statement. He hadn’t initiated things between them, but he made the conscious decision to take her offering. And he’d do it again.
“You did it in here?” Taylor leaned back in his chair and rolled his eyes.
Heat rose to his cheeks. Even though Taylor was his best friend and they shared many things, he didn’t usually kiss and tell. What happened between him and a woman was between them. He had never been one of those guys who bragged about his hook ups like they were conquests.
“You do remember we have security cameras in the brewery, right? If Rex looks at them, what is he going to find?”
“The cameras aren’t inhere.” He huffed, but he hadn’t even thought about the surveillance cameras. She’d literally wiped his mind of anything but her. “But he will see her storming out the front door and speeding away in her Jeep.”
“So you fucked her and sent her packing? Smooth, Brady. Real smooth. You’ve scorned your best friend’s sister.”
“That’s not what happened. For fuck’s sake.”
“Explain.”
“She caught me off guard. She came onto me strong and despite knowing better, I gave in. It’s stupid, I know. But it’s Jane. She’s the only woman I’ve ever had a connection with. It just happened. Afterwards, I told her it couldn’t happen again and she was pissed.”
Taylor shook his head.
“It didn’t end there.”
He jerked his head up. “What does that mean?” Taylor flailed his hands in the air. His exasperation would be comical if the situation wasn’t so dire.
Brady proceeded to tell him about the flat tire, Jane’s trip on the lawn and his begging for one night.
“You’re a dead man walking, dude.”
