Rules of the Game (Rule Breaker, #2)

by Jessa Wilder

“Seriously? You do realize you terrorized me on the daily?” “I’ve always been a little obsessed with you.” I kissed her forehead and entwined our fingers. “Fuck, I wish we didn’t have away games this weekend.”

“You thought I’d want to keep this a secret?” “Kinda.” She shrugged. “You’ve never been big on PDA.” “Oh yeah? What’s this?” I circled her waist and pulled her chest against mine. She giggled, the sweetest sound I’d ever heard, and I dropped my forehead on hers. My tone turned serious. “Do you want to come with me to hang out with the guys?” “Yes.”

“About fucking time.” He slapped my back. “You bringing her out tonight?” Warmth filled my chest. “I’m never doing anything without her again.”

“You mean, do I love that one of the star hockey players has turned into an absolute simp for me?” She raised a brow playfully. “Yeah, a girl could get used to it.”

“You fucking better. Now, come on before I change my mind and we stay in tonight.”

What if you realize whatever this is wasn’t what you actually wanted and—” I kissed her words away and dropped my head to hers. “You have every right not to trust me, but baby, I’m going to fix that because there will never be anyone else for me than you.”

“This is Piper, and all you need to know is she’s special to me, and if you do anything to piss her off, you’ll be bag skating for the month.”

My focus was caught on Piper. The way she lit up when she laughed or her cheeks tinged pink whenever anyone mentioned me. My gaze roamed over her features, and my ribs contracted until it felt impossible to breathe. I was so fucking in love with her. I wished Marcus could’ve seen it because he had nothing to worry about. I would never hurt her again.

I scanned the area. None of the guys were paying attention to us, and River was still facing away. His cheeks were tinged pink. Fucker. I passed Piper a beer, and she drank half in two gulps. I chuckled. “Easy, Killer.” She looked up at me. “Take me home.” “Gladly.”

“You made my jersey today?” I breathed out the words, unable to fight the sense of wonder. He brushed his lips against mine. “I couldn’t come to your game without it, could I?”

“You have no idea how much I wish I could stay. I’m proud of you, Piper.”

his eyes were glued to my jersey. “That better be mine.” I smirked, fighting the urge to tease him, and turned to show off his name on my back. He rubbed his thumb over his bottom lip. “Fuck, I love you with my last name.”

“What does that mean?” I asked, searching her face. Her skin had a worrisome gray tint to it. She scrunched up her nose. “Women stuff.” I raised a brow and wrapped my arms around her lower back, tugging her closer. “You’re on your period?” Pink stained her cheeks. “Can we not talk about it?” She grimaced, and my hands tightened. “Does it hurt?” She rolled her eyes, some of her usual life coming back. “Yes, cramps hurt.” I led her back to her bed and pulled the comforter over her before placing her laptop beside her. “I’ll be right back, okay? I’ve just got to grab something, and we can hang out here tonight.”

Me: What do girls need when they get their period? Jax: How the fuck would I know? Jax: You are such a simp. Me: Listen dickhead. One day a girl’s going to knock you on your ass and I’m going to thoroughly enjoy rubbing it in. Jax: Never. Gonna. Happen.

SYDNEYYYYY

“Thank God you finally got your head out of your butt. I thought your dad and I were going to have to stage an intervention.”

“I’m happy for you, Lucas. You two were meant for each other.”

“You didn’t have to do this, Lucas,” she said and slipped a piece of chocolate between her teeth. “I wanted to. I’ll always want to take care of you.”

“From now on, I’m always going to be here when you need me.” I kissed the top of her head and hit Play on the movie.

“I told you all the places I wanted to go. Places that I thought would help heal me. But really, I just needed to be near you.” Jax rolled his eyes. “Fucking buttering me up won’t get you out of this.”

I smirked. “It’s a safe bet that if I teased you about something, I actually felt the complete opposite.” She hit my arm, and Jax groaned. “No foreplay in front of the kids.”

“He earned it.” I laid my head against hers as we sat together in silence until Jax stepped into the room, and his face crumpled the second their eyes met. Jax sat on her other side and pulled her into a fierce hug. His shoulders shook with the force of his tears. I got up and walked over to his other side and wrapped my arms around him as tears pooled in my eyes. We’d lost someone irreplaceable, but we still had each other.

Goose bumps ran up the side of Piper’s neck as she stood at the cliff’s edge. Memories of how different our lives had been the last time we were here flowed through my head as Jax and I flanked her.

She opened the lid to the jar and made a quiet, pained sound before emptying its contents over the edge. “I miss you, Marcus.”

“I’m so fucking sorry, Marcus. I’m sorry we fought the last time we spoke. I’m sorry I went behind your back instead of explaining to you just how much I fucking love her.” Tears froze my cheeks, and I wiped them with my jacket sleeve. “I’m sorry I didn’t take care of her for you this past year. I promise I won’t make the same mistake again.” I tossed a stone into the water and watched the small splash. “I love you, man.”

Relax… She wasn’t the one who was about to see her boyfriend be auctioned off to another woman. My thoughts stalled on the word boyfriend, and tingles spread through my chest. There wasn’t any doubt in my heart that Lucas loved me, and I trusted him. Before the night was out, I would make that perfectly clear.

I swore my heart skipped a beat when he reached back into the bag and pulled out a garter and stocking. His fingers trailed over my sensitive skin, his eyes focused where we touched, and I’d never felt this attractive in my life. He made me feel like I was sex incarnate. He kissed my thigh above each band, then stood and slipped my bra over each arm, turning me to do up the back.

“Nothing is too much for you.”

“I have to go with the guys.” What was going to happen tonight assaulted my thoughts, and I pulled away and bit out, “Oh, right. The auction.” “Are you jealous, Killer?” His smirk told me he knew I was. I rolled my eyes. “I don’t get jealous.” “Sure you don’t.” He chuckled.

I glared at her and then faced the stage, ready to have every nerve in my body rebel. Lucas was already looking at me, a cocky smile on his face. Whatever look I gave him didn’t have the desired effect. I could see his chest shaking with his laugh. He would pay for that.

“Ten thousand. Going once, going twice—” The redhead was cut off when Misty stood up, shouting, “Fifteen thousand.” The air was sucked from my lungs, and my mouth dropped open. “What are you doing?” She scrunched her nose. “Winning. What does it look like?”

“What the hell are you doing? That’s my paddle.” “Yes.” She looked entirely too calm for someone who’d just dropped that kind of money. I leaned in close, suddenly worried that she’d lost her mind. “Misty, can you even afford that?” “No.” She stretched out the word, and then her lips formed a catlike smile. “That’s why Lucas is paying.” I reeled back. “What?” “You didn’t think he was going to let anyone else win, did you?”

“He was so passionate about hockey that you couldn’t help but be swayed to play. Hell, he’s the reason why Jax and I are here today. Marcus’s respect for the game transcended from standard teenage competitiveness to a true love of the sport.”

“It’s because of that love that I’ve started the Marcus Adams grant. It funds underprivileged kids in the community to be able to play.”

“I love you. I trust you. Please don’t make us wait anymore.” His eyes bored into mine, and his voice cracked. “I have loved you since the day you moved in next door. I’ve spent my time loving you when you weren’t looking, afraid that if I had you, I wouldn’t survive losing you.”

“I will never do that again. You make me strong, Piper. You’ve made me see that life isn’t worth living without you by my side.”

“Take me home, Lucas.”

“You look stunning in this, babe, but I can’t fucking wait to peel it off of you.”

“I love you, Piper.” Blue eyes met mine, and she grazed her fingers over my jaw. “I love you, Lucas.”

Piper’s mouth broke from mine. “Did you just rip my dress?” “Maybe.”

My gaze traveled down to where the garters held up her pantyhose, then further to her heels, which were several inches high. I groaned in the back of my throat, thanking every deity in existence for whoever had brought her to me.

“Lucas, are you listening to me—” I sank to my knees in front of her, cutting off her words. “I know you’re pissed about the dress, but I will buy you a hundred dresses. I will give you whatever you want.” I placed a kiss on her inner thigh. “I’ll gladly get on my knees for you.” Another kiss a few inches higher. “Grovel at your feet.” Piper sucked in a breath as I kissed her directly over her clit. “I’m fucking obsessed with you.”

“I’m going to tie you up, Killer, and then I’m going to make you come so many times you beg me to stop.”

“Face the window and kneel for me, baby.”

“You’ve ruined me,” she said with a dry, raspy chuckle.

“Come for me, Lucas.”

“Fuck, woman. You’re going to kill me.”

“I’m not done worshiping you yet.”

Her words penetrated my chest, wrapping around my heart, and held me in place. I’d been an idiot for waiting so long. I gripped the side of her face, tilting it, and captured her mouth in a slow, possessive kiss filled with everything I didn’t know how to say. By the time we broke free, we were both gasping, and she held on to my shoulders for support.

Her gold hair fell over her shoulders, the ends dipping in. She looked like a siren tempting me into the cliffs.

“You’re mine now, Piper, and I’m never letting you go.”