Rule Number Five: A College Hockey Romance (Rule Breaker Series Book 1)(2)

“What?” I asked, ignoring the rasp in my throat.

“I said I’d see you at our place.” His voice practically screamed, I told you so.

The brunette propped her elbows on the table, her back straight and her ass angled out behind her. My pulse kicked up, sending my blood rushing down. Jesus fucking Christ.

“The brunette is mine.” I growled the words, and Alex just laughed, smacking my shoulder.

“Yeah, buddy. Tonight’s going to be a good fucking time.”

As soon as she bent over, all my attention focused on where her fingers glided over the thin band of visible skin between the top of her sock and the bottom of her skirt. I was already walking before she stood. I didn’t know who this girl was, but tonight, she was fucking mine.

Alex walked right up to the blonde and gave her a cocky smile. “Besides being sexy, what do you do for a living?”

He should’ve been arrested for that line, but it hadn’t let him down yet. By the way the blonde smiled, it wouldn’t fail him now.

The librarian choked on her drink and shook her head. She looked like she was about to say something, but her friend cut in.

“Does that ever work for you?”

Alex moved closer, his voice dropping low. “Don’t know. Does it?”

I didn’t hear the blonde’s reply because now the brunette’s attention was on me. Her teeth ran along her bottom lip as her gaze slowly worked its way up my chest. That’s it, baby. Look at me.

As if she heard my thoughts, her eyes flashed to mine, startling when she found me already watching her. I ran my thumb over my bottom lip, exactly where she gnawed on hers. As a result, her cheeks flushed a deeper pink. So fucking adorable.

“I’m Alex, and this dickhead’s Jax. He’s been dying to talk to you, so I took pity on him and brought him over.”

Fucking asshole. I cut him a glare, but I was distracted when the librarian introduced herself. “Sidney.”

Her name felt good rolling over in my head, but before I could say anything, a guy cut between us, wrapping his arm around her waist and handing her a drink. “Drink up. Curtis wants to dance.”

He was tall, but not as tall as me, with a lean frame and perfectly styled hair. When she smiled up at him, a jolt ran through me, and a muscle ticked in my jaw. Disappointment mixed with something much more dangerous coursed through me. I tipped back on my heels, needing to get a grip on myself. This girl was fucking trouble.

The guy leaned in closer, his mouth just above her ear, but he spoke loud enough for me to hear. “Oh, he’s hot and jealous.”

The fuck? He gave her another squeeze, then let go, burying his nose into the neck of the man behind him. In the seconds it took for me to catch up to what was happening, the shorter guy had wrapped his arms around him. Sidney gave them a warm smile, and relief flooded me, knowing the guy was already taken.

He held his hand out. “Hey, man. I’m Anthony, and this is Curtis.” He pointed to his boyfriend, who grinned at me.

“Jax.” I took a long sip of my beer, and everyone looked at me with identical smiles, but not Sidney. Her gaze was fucking molten. Oh, she liked me jealous. If she stuck around, I had a feeling she’d get what she wanted.

Her friend—I thought she said her name was Mia—grabbed Alex’s hand and began tugging him to the dance floor. “Let’s dance.”

He didn’t need any encouragement, already heading in that direction, and Anthony and Curtis followed them.

“We’ll catch up in a minute.” I stalked toward Sidney, happy she didn’t contradict me. No, her gaze was warm on my skin, and there was a slight smile ghosting over her lips. I practically towered over her, her slight frame completely blocked out by my larger one.

The group gave us knowing looks, then dispersed into the crowd.

A giant balloon floating above the table caught my attention. I swear my heart stopped dead as I stared at the blue congratulations balloon with a baby on it. All the blood drained from my head, and my attention went back to Sidney.

I swallowed hard. “Is that for you?”

Her mouth twitched and pulled to the side before she let out a laugh. “You should see your face right now.”

Her voice lowered with a subtle rasp, only made sexier by her amusement at the same time her grin grew, until it was practically blinding with pride. “My internship at Parliament was accepted today. Apparently, this was the only congratulations balloon available.” She laughed. “Anthony thought it was hilarious.”

Not pregnant. My muscles relaxed, and the circulation returned to my body as I slowly registered her words. “No shit, seriously?”

“Don’t be too impressed. I need another letter of recommendation. Those two got a little prematurely excited.” She nodded, watching me a bit too guarded. I fucking hated that she lost some of her confidence.

I leaned in closer. “Hey, you’ve got this.”

“How can you know that?”

I’m overwhelmed by the need to wipe the unsure look from her face. “I bet you’re at the top of your class, right?”

She bit the side of her cheek before answering, “Yeah.”

“You’ve already got other recommendations?”

“Yeah.” She stood straighter now. Good.

I pushed harder. “Do you think you can kick your internship’s ass?”