Resisting the Bad Boy - Nice Girl to Love, Vol 1 (Can't Resist #1)(5)

“OMG! That was insane!” screeched Skylar when they finally managed to dive under cover.

Chortling in agreement, Abby clutched her side and tried to catch her breath. A long distance sprinter she was not.

As soon as she was physically able to speak without gasping, she pushed Skylar into the house. “Go in and get warmed up. I’m sure your uncle has an old t-shirt and drawstring swim trunks you can borrow while you throw your wet clothes in the dryer. If he doesn’t, or if they look to be made out of some fancy materials worth more than your ipod, text me and I’ll drive back over here with some spare clothes.”

“Wait, you’re going? You can’t walk back to your house in all this rain. Come in and wait it out.”

She shook her head. “I don’t think it’s going to let up, kiddo. I’ll be fine. A few more minutes of rain won’t kill me.”

“Well at least let me find you an umbrella. I’ll go check the closets.” Skylar bounded down the hall, clearly knowing where she was going in this museum of a home.

“Don’t track water onto the carpet!” Abby hollered after her, marveling over the echo that bounced off the crown molding and pristine marble floors. Why a hardcore bachelor needed such a huge, extravagant house was beyond her.

Realizing that she was dripping all over the flagstone porch, she went over to the covered walkway near the garage to wring out about a gallon of desert rain from her hair. Normally, she loved having long, thick hair that could knock out an innocent bystander if she attempted to do a shampoo commercial hair flip. Today was not one of those days.

Bent over the way she was, she almost toppled onto her head when a voice called out from above. “What are YOU doing here?”

Abby shut her eyes and shivered. Not because she was soaked and freezing her ass off. But because she was suddenly very hot. Tear-your-clothes-off broiling. And the dangerous spike in her temperature had everything to do with that low, raspy growl. Or rather, the man behind the growl.

Connor.

She dragged in a slow breath and let the heat of his deep voice warm her like a luxurious fire for a beat…until it occurred to her—a few brain-foggy seconds later—that his clipped question earlier had been absolutely dripping with disdain.

Startled, she turned around to confirm her suspicions.

Sure enough, he was positively glaring at her, his lips curled in a contemptuous sneer. “Don’t worry, I’m not going to introduce myself to you again, Abby. What happened? Did you get lost on the way to Brian’s? Or did you follow the yellow brick road here thinking it was paved with gold?”

Her jaw dropped. “Excuse me?”

“Honestly, after how Brian’s gone on about you over the years, I never figured you for a brother-hopper. I can’t believe you’d do this to him. What was the big plan? Sneak back onto my property and attempt to seduce me in that trampy get-up?” His eyes dropped mockingly to her drenched chest, which was basically naked under the now transparent fabric plastered to her body like shrink wrap. “Did you really think that was going to tempt me enough that I’d forget you’re dating my brother?” He scoffed coldly and drilled her with a glower. “Let’s face it, honey, you’re not exactly the wet t-shirt type.”

Trembling with an equal amount of outrage and hurt, Abby shot him with the most lethal look she could muster before scrambling back to the porch and grabbing her book bag on the fly. Without another word—though she had a few choice ones in mind—she took off down the driveway.

Away from that colossal *.





CHAPTER TWO



CONNOR WATCHED ABBY flee his lot, upset and clearly mortified. While a part of him felt like a jerk for what he’d said to her, just picturing how bummed Brian would be about all this was enough to send those guilty feelings packing.

It’s not as if she was the first woman to show up at his house half-dressed and looking for a good time. But she was the only one he’d ever had to turn away because of his brother.

Running off with her tail between her legs was the very least she deserved for screwing with Brian. Connor just hoped Brian wasn’t too serious about her yet. The fact that they’d been best friends for so long surely complicated things. But no matter. He’d be brutally honest and help Brian nip the doomed relationship in the bud before she broke his heart down the line.

There would be no backseat-brothering on this one.

He’d done enough of that to last a lifetime.

Standing idly by while Brian had limited his life to just plain existing for the past year had been torture. But it had been a cakewalk compared to watching him spend a decade waiting for a horrible illness to slowly kill the love of his life.

Connor wouldn’t wish that on his worst enemy.

It had been heartbreaking to witness. When the dementia specific to her disease had begun stealing everything that was sweet and good in Beth—along with all her memories of her husband and child—Brian had simply held her, whispering reminders of how much she was loved. Every day.

Honestly, Connor wasn’t sure he’d have been able to survive it had the roles been reversed. He still got chills thinking of the day he’d heard Beth’s slurred voice screaming for Brian to take Skylar and leave, let her kill herself to end it all.

Damn that disease. And damn the universe for this Abby fiasco on top of it all. Couldn’t it give Brian a break for a change?