Wrong (Breaking the Rules) (9 page)

Trent and I had been poring over all of the bank statements Mom had emailed to me earlier this morning. We were the only ones in the office, which was about right, considering it was Saturday.

“Everything looks normal,” I declared, tossing a statement on the table. It was getting close to time to head over to Mom’s. I really hoped Pepper would show up. She wasn’t responding to my texts.

“Keep digging. He had to have put it somewhere. Was he a signer on any other accounts that maybe your mother might not know of?”

“Well, he was a signer on our trusts of course. He was the administrator.”

“Do you have those statements?” he asked, excitement lacing his voice at the prospect of another avenue we could search.

“They’re at the house. Why don’t you go on home? I’ve got to be over at my mom’s for dinner soon. Let’s just meet back here tomorrow and I’ll bring Jackson’s and my trust statements. Hopefully we’ll get to the bottom of this.”

“See you tomorrow, man,” Trent said as he stood.

I sure as hell hoped we would figure this out and soon.

“Mom? Where’s my favorite lady?” I called from the living room. She burst from the kitchen and ran straight into my arms.

“I’m still upset with you, Jordie. You haven’t visited in weeks. Jackson definitely moved into first place for favorite son.”

I heard Jackson laughing in the kitchen at her proclamation. But I knew the way to her heart. As I held up the Godiva chocolates, she gasped.

“Who’s your favorite son now?”

Mom snatched them from me, grinning from ear to ear, and everyone laughed. Someone knocked on the door, interrupting our silly exchange. When I opened the door to Pepper, I smiled broadly at her. She looked beautiful in her tighter-than-normal long-sleeved t-shirt and holey jeans. They hugged her curves, and I couldn’t help but scan her body, appreciating each part of it. When my eyes made it back to hers, she glared at me.

At seeing Andi behind me, her face lit up, making my heart skip. I would have done just about anything to be the recipient of that look.

“Mom, this is Andi’s roommate, Pepper. Pepper, this is my mom, Trish.”

Pepper started to reach to shake her hand but Mom pulled her in for a hug. The look on Pepper’s face was priceless. Clearly, she was not used to being hugged by strangers.

“It’s so nice to meet you, Pepper. You are such a lovely girl. Perfect for my Jordie.” She released an open-mouthed Pepper and hurried back to the kitchen. “Roast is ready!”

Pepper turned on her heels and pointed her finger in my face. The fiery glare she gave me had me wanting to kiss her fiercely. I couldn’t help but drop my eyes to her lips when she spoke.

“This is not a date!” she hissed to me. I grinned at her because she was so damn cute when she was pissed. “I’ve got somewhere to be in an hour so let’s get this over with. She then angrily huffed off into the kitchen.

Dinner was great because I could steal glances at Pepper while she ate and conversed with everyone. She even smiled a few times. That’s all I wanted these days. I just wanted to see that woman smile. When she stood and excused herself from dinner, I followed her to the front door.

“Can I see you later?” I asked, looking down at her. She seemed affected by my proximity, so I leaned in a little closer. Her breathing quickened even though she still appeared pissed at me. Instead of answering my question, she asked one of her own.

“Who is the guy on your Facebook? I went on and looked at him because it has been driving me crazy. For some reason, I know that face, but I can’t place from where.”

I groaned because I didn’t want to tell her. She was going to be livid. “His name is Trent. He’s a buddy of mine from Princeton.”

“What’s his last name, Jordan? I need to know.” She looked extremely angry at this point. Obviously my smart girl had pieced it together.

“Sutton,” I sighed heavily.

“You motherfucker. He backed out of the sponsorship so you could take it!” she hissed under her breath, not wanting to cause a scene.

“Yes! It’s because I wanted an excuse to see you. You wouldn’t give me the time of day otherwise.”

“You’re damn right! You tricked me. That was so deceptive. Please, I would prefer if you would only talk to me about business-related things from this point on. I can’t fucking believe you forced yourself into my life like this.”

“Pepper, I did it because from the moment I laid eyes on you, you’re all I can think about. You’re beautiful, smart, and sassy as hell. I want you more than anything I’ve ever wanted before. There’s nothing you can say or do to push me away. I’ll continually pursue you until you’re mine.”

“Well, I just feel like a prostitute. A really expensive one. You paid seven hundred fucking thousand dollars just to date me. Do you know how insane that makes you? Step over, Julia Roberts. There’s a new Pretty Woman.”

“You are far from a prostitute and you’re sure as hell no pretty woman. You’re a fucking beautiful goddess!” I grasped her cheeks with each hand and pulled her in for a kiss. Her body lost some of its rigid fury, melding against mine, as her tongue darted out to meet my own. She tasted like wine from dinner. She was delicious.

Before the kiss could last any longer, she tensed up. Jerking away, she slapped me hard across the cheek and bolted out towards the front door. I grabbed at her hand but she yanked it away, and I was helpless as I watched her hurry away from me.

I couldn’t concentrate during the movie with Daddy. He’d said that he missed me and wanted to spend more time with me, but I knew it was just so he could check up on me. The whole Cole situation had him freaked out.

Jordan was absolutely crazy. My blood boiled over with rage when I thought about what he had done. And even though I wanted to be pissed, I couldn’t help but smile about it. For the girl who had never been popular and never dated, I’d sure done well for myself, catching the eye of the incredibly successful and sexy Jordan Compton.

If I were a normal person, I’d have done anything to date someone like him. He was tall, muscular, and handsome. That wasn’t what made me attracted to him though. He was smart, witty, and funny, which were qualities the beautiful people didn’t always possess. For someone who had the stress of a big company on his shoulders, he sure was a happy, easygoing guy.
And his smile
. God, his smile lit up the damn room.

Why am I being so difficult about everything?

It didn’t matter anyway. Someone like him would lose interest in a girl like me. It was just wrong. I was pretty sure I was destined to be one of those lonely cat ladies. Too bad I hated cats.

Daddy dropped me off in front of the apartment and waited until I was safely in the doors before pulling away. Once I’d made it to our floor, I fumbled with my keys to unlock the door. I dropped them and stooped to pick them up. When I stood back up, a hand snaked around me and covered my mouth.
Shit! Cole!

Screaming, I clawed at his hands as tears rushed down my face.

“Pepper! Chill, it’s me, Jordan. I was playing with you, not trying to scare you.”

My fear turned to indignation as I turned around and socked him as hard as I could in his face. The crack of his face against my fist resounded down the hallway.