The Rules (2 page)

Trenton chuckled. “Come on, man.” He dropped onto the black sofa in the living room and propped his feet on the ottoman.

Gavin sat in the matching chair and glared at his brother. “You no good…you’ve been holding out on me.”

“What do you mean?” Trenton asked innocently.

“Terri!” Gavin said in a fierce whisper. He took a sip of beer and then set the can on the table beside him. “What
in the hell
is wrong with you? I’ve been here for months and you never introduced me to all that fineness?”

Trenton shrugged. “I didn’t think—”

“No, you didn’t think. At all. Your head is so full of Alannah, you forgot about me.”

“She doesn’t run in our circles, and I already hooked you up with several women since you’ve been here. What happened to Sharon?”

“She’s crazy.” Gavin stuffed the last bite of the sandwich into his mouth and dusted crumbs from his hands. “She’s ready for marriage and kept dropping hints. When a bridal magazine ‘accidentally’ fell out of her shoulder bag, I knew it was time to move on.”

Trenton chuckled. “She always did have a thing for you.”

“Lucky me.”

The women came back with the Yorkie scampering behind them. The three of them entered the kitchen, and he leaned toward Trenton.

“What’s the deal with Terri?”

“She and Alannah are good friends. They’ve known each other a couple of years.”

“You ever…?”

“Hell no!”

“Don’t act like you’ve never slept with two friends.”

“
We’re talking about Alannah
.”

“Right, right, Mother Theresa. I forgot.” Gavin sipped his beer.

“I’m not talking about her personality. I’m saying I wouldn’t sleep with one of her friends.” Trenton shot him a glare like he couldn’t believe Gavin suggested such a thing.

“If it’s that serious, why don’t you just marry her then?”

“Maybe I will.”

Gavin’s gaze jetted to his brother’s unsmiling face. “Are you serious?” he whispered.

“Thinking about the future, that’s all.” Trenton shrugged and his eyes gravitated to the kitchen where Alannah was removing pots and pans in preparation to cook.

“Listen, I love Alannah, okay. She’s a great woman, but don’t rush into anything. You’re still young, and there’s plenty of ass out there.”

At almost thirty-three, Gavin didn’t feel anywhere near ready for marriage, and he was two years older than Trenton.

“I’ve had plenty of ass,” Trenton said drily. He swigged his beer.

Gavin stared at his brother. “So you’re saying you’re done?”

“I told you that already.”

“I thought you were just saying that. You know, basically she’d be your main woman, but on the side you’d still have…” His voice trailed off at Trenton’s vehement head shaking.

“She’s not the main one. Alannah is the
only
one.”

Stunned, Gavin didn’t know what to say at first. “Okay, then,” he finally managed. Trenton had clearly lost his mind, but he doubted the monogamy decision would last. “So what’s the deal with Terri?”

“There’s no deal. She’s a friend of Alannah’s.”

“What does she do?”

“Works at a salon doing nails or something.”

“She got a man?”

“I think so.”

“I sense you’re holding out on me,” Gavin said. “What’s the problem? Is she a nice girl or something? Cause I don’t like the nice—”

“No, she’s not nice.”

“Then what’s the problem?”

Trenton sighed and rubbed a hand back and forth across his head. “She’s Alannah’s friend. Don’t cause problems for me.”

“Don’t worry, little brother. I won’t.”

Trenton glanced at the kitchen to ensure the women weren’t paying attention and they weren’t, busy talking and laughing as Alannah prepared to cook. “You better not,” Trenton said in a low voice. “Cause when you’re gone on your next adventure, I’ll be the one stuck here in the dog house.”

Gavin laughed and shook his head. “Everything will be fine. I won’t mess up your perfect little relationship. You and Alannah can remain blissfully living in sin, all right?”

Trenton shot him a dark look but didn’t respond, and Gavin’s eyes strayed to Terri, the kind of woman not easily overlooked, no matter the setting.

He had to get to know her better.

With Gavin right behind her, Terri stepped into the elevator, anticipating her date with a hot, fragrant shower before slipping into bed to get some rest. The work grind started again in the morning. After working a long day, the last thing she wanted to do was exercise, but Alannah convinced her to take yoga a couple times per week. Admittedly, it could be rather relaxing after a long day.

She hadn’t been the least bit surprised when she said goodbye and Gavin chose the same moment to leave and offered to ride down with her. She knew he had been checking her out in the way she always knew a man was checking her out. She sensed it. The weight of a man’s stare was tangible and easily recognized.

Gavin didn’t hide his interest at all. He surveyed her from across the elevator, a small smirk on his lips, arms crossed, and back to the wall.

Terri met his gaze without flinching and the smirk shifted into a sexy smile. His cognac-colored eyes, startlingly light against his dark brown skin, brightened, but a subtle shrewdness in them made her very aware of her own body—in a way she never cared when other men watched her.

“I have a feeling pickup lines won’t work on you,” he said.

“You’re right. They won’t.” She took a slow, easy breath to keep her pulse rate calm.

Gavin Johnson was one fine man. He stood a couple of inches above six feet, his hair cut in a neat faux hawk that gave him a reckless, edgy vibe. A black pullover stretched across his wide torso, chest muscles outlined beneath the material, and roped forearms revealed by sleeves shoved up to his elbows.

“In that case, when can I take you out, Terri?”

“You can’t.”

He cupped an ear. “Excuse me, I didn’t hear you.”

She tilted up her chin and boldly made eye contact. “You. Can’t.”

No way was she getting involved with Gavin Johnson. A wealthy man like him was used to having his own way. When he said jump, people didn’t ask how high—they stayed suspended in the air until he allowed them down again.

His brow furrowed, which made him look kind of cute.

“Are you actually turning me down?”

She couldn’t tell if he was joking or genuinely surprised, although she didn’t doubt the latter.

One hand on her hip, she said, “I know that may be hard for you to comprehend, but yes, I am.” She made a show of ignoring him and glanced up at the numbers on the panel as the elevator continued its descent.

Despite her closeness to the Johnson family, Alannah never revealed much about them, which meant Terri collected information from the gossip blogs and social media like everyone else. Unlike the rest of his family, Gavin courted attention by having active social media accounts. Images from sporting events, parties, and lavish vacations around the world littered his timelines.

If there was an extreme sport, he made sure to conquer it, and often shared shots of himself training, revealing a ridiculously fit physique with grooved muscles covering every square millimeter of umber skin, and chronicling each achievement of his goals. He was an excellent surfer, having mastered the waves off the east coast of Australia. Photos of him, his team, and their guides on top of Mount Kilimanjaro showed them hugging and wearing exultant smiles. A few years ago, he completed the Tevis Cup, a 100-mile endurance ride completed on horseback, and afterward donated one hundred thousand dollars to help preserve and maintain the historic trail.

“You have a man or something?” Gavin asked the question in a way that suggested he didn’t care.

“Something like that.”

“That means you don’t.”

“I don’t have to tell you my business.”

He walked to the middle of the cabin and braced a hand against the back wall. Damn, he smelled good. Masculine, but not the least bit overpowering. Clean and fresh, reminding her of the ocean.

“You don’t have to tell me your business, but I’d like for you to.”

Terri glanced at him sideways. “Why?’

“Isn’t it obvious? I like you.”

“You don’t know me well enough to like me.”

“I like what I see,” he said, the timbre of his voice dropping several octaves.

Tiny shivers danced over her skin, and the pace of her heart upticked as his gaze dragged over her shape.

“Typical male,” she said.

If she had a dime for every man attracted to her body, she could stop working. Men had been ogling her curves since she hit puberty.

Gavin studied her with nerve-wracking intensity. “There’s nothing typical about me.”

Terri’s knees turned to gelatin. His self-confidence was sexy. “You sure about that?” She arched a brow, feigning nonchalance.

“I want to get to know you.”

“You want to screw me.”

“True.”

The blunt answer surprised her so much she didn’t move when the elevator doors glided open.

“But I want to get to know you, too,” Gavin added, managing to sound sincere. “I don’t see why we can’t be friends.”

“I’ve seen your Instagram and Twitter accounts. You already have a lot of friends.” Terri exited the elevator.

Gavin came up beside her. “No more than the usual.”

“I consider millions of followers way more than the usual, and a lot of them are female.”

They walked together across the marble floor of the lobby, bright lights shining down on the expensive furnishings and the residents coming and going.

Gavin chuckled, a smug sound that confirmed her assessment of his online friendships.

With such a huge following, if he tweeted about a product, sales shot up and the item could very well go out of stock. One time he posed in a black and red scarf with frayed edging. Not only had the photo received thousands of likes, but within twenty-four hours the scarf sold out of stores around the country. He could parlay his celebrity status into lucrative contracts, but she’d never heard his name linked to any endorsement deals.

“So are you saying I don’t have a shot?”

“I’m afraid not.”

He frowned. “Did Trenton or Alannah tell you something not-so-nice about me?”

“Nope. I just don’t need a man right now.”

Not now, not ever. Experiencing independence for the first time, Terri lived her own life on her own terms and loved it. No man would ever take away her freedom again.

“Because…?”

She stopped a few feet from the exit, where a doorman opened and closed the door for incoming and outgoing guests.

“Because I don’t.”

“So your relationship with your ‘something like that’ boyfriend isn’t serious?”

“My relationships are never serious.”

“Well, damn. You might be the woman of my dreams. Why aren’t they ever serious?”

“I just like to have fun. Men are in my life for one reason only, and that’s to make me feel good. Otherwise, I don’t need them.”

His eyebrows shot toward the ceiling, and she took pleasure in knowing she shocked him.

“What about sex?”

“I’m talking about sex.” She pursed her lips a little, a trick she’d learned that gave her already full mouth a more pouty appearance.

His gaze ran over her with overt interest. “So how many of these non-boyfriends do you have?”

“Only one right now.”

“What’s this chump’s name?”

She angled her head to the right. “Why does he have to be a chump?”

“Because he’s with you and I’m not.”

Terri shook her head and started walking again.

“You’re not going to tell me?”

“It’s none of your business, Gavin.”

“Can’t hurt to tell me his name. I’m not asking for his social security number and address.”

She sighed heavily. What difference did it make? They’d never meet each other anyway. “His name is Douglas.”

She walked out into the cool night air and headed to the waiting car. Trenton thought the location of the yoga classes was questionable and always made sure she and Alannah had a driver at their disposal to drop them off and pick them up from class. The minute the tall, brawny man saw Terri, he exited the vehicle and opened the back door.

“Yep, that definitely sounds like a chump name,” Gavin drawled.

“It does not.” Despite herself, Terri giggled. He was incorrigible. “It’s a perfectly fine name for a strong man.”

“What does Dagwood do?”

“Douglas,” she corrected, though she knew he’d intentionally screwed up the name. “He’s a bank manager.”

They arrived at the car, and Gavin waved away the driver. With a brief nod, the man went to sit in the front seat.