The Rules of Heartbreak: An Enemies-to-Lovers/Next-Door Neighbor Romance (The Heartbreak Series Book 1)

by Brittany Taylor

Colton reaches across the bar and holds out his hand. The corner of his mouth is slanted, and I can already see the slightest bit of relief flicker in his eyes. “You’re hired. Can you start right now?”

  Chapter Five

  I haven’t seen Sloan since she was lying on top of me yesterday morning. I also haven’t been able to stop thinking about the whole situation between us in general.

  It’s fucking ridiculous.

  I don’t know anything about her other than that she’s Ellie’s daughter from Minnesota. It’s not that I’m interested in getting involved with Sloan—far from it—but I also can’t deny how sexy she is in her crop top or how my dick perked up when she landed on top of me, even when my head hit the pavement.

  But my quick erection faded the moment we stood up and she started asking questions. She was pushing me for details about her mother. It was there, written on her smooth, gorgeous pale face. Her dark blue eyes sparked at the thought that I might tell her any detail about Ellie, anything at all.

  But I couldn’t.

  I couldn’t tell her about her mother, a mother she clearly had no interest in until her death. Why does she suddenly care now?

  I know it’s shitty to lie to someone you barely know, but it didn’t occur to me to bother telling her the truth.

  Sloan is a mystery, and I’ve spent the past hour of my morning run trying to understand where she fit into Ellie’s world and why in the past two years that I knew her, she never mentioned having a daughter. Did she and Ellie have a falling out before her death? That would explain why I never saw the house up for sale. Maybe she inherited it.

  The clouds fill the sky today, and I’m thankful for the momentary reprieve they offer. Thunder rumbles in the distance, the darker clouds moving closer. The puffy edges touch the outskirts of my neighborhood, and I’m glad I was able to get my run in before it starts to rain.

  My feet hit the asphalt of my street, bringing Sloan’s house into view. Sweat drips down my bare back and chest, soaking into the waistband of my shorts. I slow down, watching as she paces in front of her bushes. Her long hair is tied back into a high messy bun. She’s wearing a similar crop top to the one she wore yesterday, only this one is a bright blue. I stop when she bends down, her spandex shorts riding up on her thighs, accentuating her curves.

  Fuck.

  I start to wonder whether she lives here alone, or maybe she’s in a relationship. I’ve considered the possibility that she might be. There was a man with her the day she moved in, helping her carry boxes inside her new house, but I haven’t seen him since.

  I shouldn’t care. I don’t want to. Whether or not Sloan is in a relationship doesn’t change how I feel about being in one.

  I step backward onto the sidewalk in front of my house and remove one of my earbuds. My playlist still plays through the one I’ve left in, the music fading and blending with the sounds of the impending storm.

  Sloan hasn’t seen me. She’s too involved with her bushes. I tilt my head to the side when I watch her walk into her garage and come back out with a large pair of shears in her hands.

  I rest my hands on my hips, curious to see what she plans on doing with them. The blade is nearly as long as her thigh, and each bush is taller than the windows spanning across her house.

  Ellie neglected her yard in the last few weeks before she died, and I didn’t have the time to take care of it since I was working on opening the restaurant.

  She groans and drops the shears onto the grass then walks back into her garage. She comes back out a few seconds later, carrying a small ladder. It isn’t nearly the size she needs to be able to reach the top of the first bush. She uses it anyway.

  She still hasn’t noticed me watching her, and I’m sure if she were to catch me staring, she’d think I was a creep. But this is too good to miss, and I’m not about to stop her from wanting to work on her own house.

  She begins to step up the small ladder, staring at the top. “Stupid fucking bush.”

  I stifle a laugh, covering my mouth with my closed fist. It’s ridiculous, really. I don’t have time to stand here, watching Sloan attempt to trim her unruly bushes. I need to get back to working on my motorcycle since it’s been out of commission for the past two weeks. I also need to clean up and head over to the restaurant.

  There is humor and amusement in watching her, and I can’t break my eyes away from her. She obviously doesn’t know what she’s doing.

  She stands on the top step, lifting her heels to reach higher. The shears wobble in her hands as she reaches for a branch. Her calves flex as she lifts one foot off the step, balancing herself with the tip of one foot.

  This isn’t going to end well. I already know it.

  As if the universe read my thoughts, my phone pings inside my pocket.

  Sloan snaps her head to the side at the sound, catching me watching her from across the street. “What—” It’s the only word she manages to get out before the ladder starts to topple over, her feet flying out from under her. The shears fly in the air above her as she falls backward. She quickly shields her face with her arms and falls against the mulch in her garden bed.

  Before I even realize what’s happened, I’m already running across Sloan’s lawn.

  When I reach her, she’s lying flat on her back with her eyes squeezed shut. The shears landed a few feet away from her, thankfully.

  “Are you okay?”

  Her eyes crack open, staring up at me. She groans then closes them again. “Oh, great.” She rolls to her side, slowly moving to stand. “It’s you.”

  “What the hell were you thinking?” I point to the ladder now resting on its side in the grass.

  “What do you think I was doing?”

  “Looked like you were trying to kill yourself to me.”

  “I was trying to trim the bushes.” She brushes the dirt from her legs and huffs, stomping over to where the shears landed, not once bringing her eyes in my direction.

  “Maybe you should be a little more careful when you’re standing on your tiptoes while holding twenty-four-inch scissors.”

  Her full bottom lip pops out from her teeth, her chin dropping slightly. “You are unbelievable.”

  I challenge her, staring back at her with as much annoyance as she’s dishing out to me. I don’t know where this feeling is coming from. I somehow get a rise out of pushing Sloan to the edge.

  “You’re the one who can’t seem to keep both of your feet planted on the ground.”

  “Look,” she says, brushing hair away from her face, “I’m alive and still in one piece. You can go back to doing whatever it is you were doing before you ran over here.”

  Her fingertips ghost across her smooth full lips, brushing away a few specks of dirt. Her eyebrows knit together as she stares up at me, her dark eyes clouding over under the dark grey sky.

  “Fine.” I hold my hands up. I don’t need to put up with her brush-off. I’m the one who rushed over to make sure she wasn’t severed in half by a gardening tool. I start walking back to my house then hear the sound of metal clanking. I stop and turn around. She’s climbing the ladder again.

  “What are you doing?”

  “I told you,” she says, continuing to reach for the branch. She’s only made it to the first step on the ladder. “I’m trimming the bushes. I have work later, and they’ve been bugging the shit out of me.”

  “Sloan, stop.” I reach for her hand, stopping her from taking another step. I don’t know what’s come over me. A part of me doesn’t want her risking another fall, and another part of me wants to ask her where she works, but I stop myself. I don’t care enough to question her about it.

  Her blue eyes widen and fall to where my hand is holding on to hers. I follow her gaze, just as surprised as she is.

  I quickly pull my hand back and reach for the shears.

  She yanks them back, her eyes narrowing to two thin slits. Her long black eyelashes nearly brush against her skin. “What are you doing?”

 
“I’ll trim it for you.”

  “What?” A laugh erupts from her mouth. She nearly snorts as if she can’t believe I’m offering to help.

  “Come on.” I roll my eyes and tip my head back, urging her to step down from the ladder. “I’m taller and can reach the branches in the back.”

  “Oh.” She giggles. “You’re serious.” Her well-manicured eyebrows arch above her dark blue eyes. Her mouth still has that subtle curve to the corner of it, thinning her full lips just enough to make me want to know what it might feel like if my teeth were to ever graze them.

  “I am serious.” I fight the twitch beneath my running shorts, my dick perking up at this new idea of mine.

  She thinks about it for a moment, considering if she should take me up on my offer. I can tell she’s surprised by it. She props her hand on her hip and tilts her head slightly to the side. Her mouth follows suit, the corner twisting in a way I haven’t seen. Her eyes spark at the idea, but then her expression changes. The corner of her mouth relaxes, falling back into its natural place, and she straightens her gaze on me.

  “I think I can handle it.” She tentatively steps back. I don’t miss how her eyes roam over my body. She not-so-subtly tucks her bottom lip between her teeth, taking in my outfit. Her eyes stop on my bare chest. “I wouldn’t want to keep you from your morning run.” There’s a bit of sarcasm laced into her voice. She pauses, letting her words linger between us before she shifts her eyes back to mine.

  “Sure.” I don’t bother telling her I’ve already finished my run and that’s when I found her attempting to trim her bushes.

  Instead, I simply nod then leave her to deal with her yard on her own. I’m not going to argue with her, no matter how much I might be enjoying it.

  It’s only been two days since I’ve been down to the bar, but Colton texted me yesterday telling me he already hired a bartender to help for the summer. Usually, I would be upset about him hiring someone without me knowing, but given our current circumstances, I don’t give a shit. We need the help, and I’m not in a position to care about the details. It’s a relief, and I feel a bit less stressed than I have for the past week.

  When I walk into the restaurant, I find my sister, Vada, behind the bar sitting on a barstool. She’s leaning over the counter, laughing as she scrolls through a few TikTok videos.

  “Hey.” I walk past her, flipping a chunk of her curly hair. “Nice to see you working.”

  Her smile fades when she closes her phone and turns to me. “We don’t open for another hour, and I could say the same about you.” She tilts her head to the side, studying me. “It feels like you haven’t been here in a while.”

  “What are you talking about?” I pull a bowl of limes from the small refrigerator and begin slicing them. “I was here the other night.”

  “I guess.” She stands beside me and leans her elbow on the counter. I continue cutting without looking at her. “But you weren’t here for very long. Didn’t you promise Colton you were going to play?”

  “Leave it alone, Vada,” I warn, tossing a few slices of lime into a separate bowl. What is it with her and Colton wanting me to perform again?

  “Okay.” She nods. She doesn’t push me, and I’m thankful for it. I decide to change the subject.

  “Colton told me he hired a new bartender.”

  “He did.” She immediately perks up, her grin widening. Vada and I were never very close growing up. Although she’s only three years younger than me, we never went out of our way to spend time with one another. We had separate groups of friends, and when I was in college at UT, she was still stuck back in Texarkana with our mom.

  A few years back, I was surprised when she told me she wanted to follow the same path I took by going to the University of Texas, only she decided to major in English literature.

  My sister was well on her way to becoming editor in chief at The Austin Daily News when I called her to tell her about what happened to Hailey. She didn’t hesitate to put her promotion on hold to help me here at the bar. Sometimes I feel guilty that she hasn’t gone back to the newspaper full time, but then another part of me has enjoyed her company the past year. In a way, it’s brought us closer. I know she wants to go back at some point, but she hasn’t mentioned when. Until then, I plan on enjoying having her here while it lasts.

  “I was the one who introduced her to Colton.” She decides to start helping me and grabs a lime from the bowl. “It was perfect, actually. She came in here for lunch yesterday and was sitting here at the bar when Colton stormed in complaining about how I was texting him too much when he was in class.” Her voice tenses at the mention of Colton.

  There is a history between Colton and Vada, one I don’t understand. I’m sure neither of them talks to me about it for many reasons, one being that they’re my best friend and sister.

  “Anyway,” she continues, “I was talking to him about how we needed an extra bartender when she just offered. She said she just moved here and only needs a job for the summer since she’s a teacher.”

  “Huh.” I nod, amazed how coincidental it is that our new bartender came in here when she did. I think back to Sloan and how, like our new employee, she just moved here as well. I just hoped this new bartender isn’t as accident prone as she seems to be.

  “You know, she told me she’s single.” Vada nudges me with her elbow before she walks over to the sink to wash her hands.

  “No.” I shake my head. What is it with her and Colton wanting me to start dating again?

  “Oh, stop.” She dries her hands then grabs a washcloth. She starts wiping down each of the chairs lining the bar. “It wouldn’t hurt to give her a chance. Not only does she have a stable career, she’s fucking gorgeous. Plus, she’s only working here for the summer.”

  “Vada, I said no.” I feel like a parent scolding their child for asking to buy them a toy for the hundredth time, only we’re siblings who are twenty-six and twenty-three. “You know I have no interest in dating, and I don’t want to.”

  “I don’t see what the difference is. You’ve been out with Kylie a few times. You left with her the other night.”

  I roll my eyes, annoyed by this conversation. “I never went out with Kylie, and it never went that far.”

  “Yeah, but—”

  “No. No ‘but’.” I sigh, finishing off the limes and placing them in the caddy of drink garnishes. “I really fucking wish you and Colton would drop this. I don’t need to date. I’m fine. You don’t see me prying into your love life, do you?”

  She pauses, stopping her hand mid-wipe. Her green eyes cloud over with sadness. I already know what’s caused them to shift. It’s the same reason Colton’s voice changes when he talks to me about dating. “No.” She clears her throat. “You don’t.”

  “Okay then. Stop trying to change what can’t be undone.”

  I stop and stare at my sister, hoping she understands where I’m coming from. She presses her lips together then continues with her wiping down of the counter. I reach my hand across the bar and stop her, forcing her to look up at me.

  “I get that you want to help me move on,” I tell her. Her eyes line with tears threatening to spill over. “But I’ll figure it out on my own. Okay?”

  “Yeah.” She nods.

  “Good.” I pull my hand away from her and turn around to open the register.

  “Colton said he’s looking to hire a performer to start playing every weekend.”

  “What?” I stop counting the cash and turn to see Vada standing on the opposite side of the counter.

  Two dark royal blue eyes stare back at me, freezing me in place. It’s been storming all afternoon, the rain starting not long after I left Sloan alone to trim her bushes. Water drips down her face, soaked into her hair and t-shirt.

  “Sloan,” Vada says, crossing the dining area to meet her near the entrance. She stops and trades glances between the two of us when she catches us staring at one another.

  “What are you doing here?” I
ask her.

  “What? You work here too?” Sloan whispers, the same confused expression as mine written across her face. She isn’t wearing her usual crop top or skintight leggings. No. She’s wearing cutoff, frayed, denim shorts and a t-shirt. Printed on the left side of her chest, directly above the perfect swell of her breast, is my name and the logo of my restaurant.

  It takes my mind several seconds to catch up with what I’m seeing. “You—” I point to her. “You’re our new bartender?”

  “Wait,” Vada interrupts, wagging her finger between us. “You’ve met Sloan before?”

  “She’s my neighbor. She just moved into the house across from mine.” I keep my eyes glued to Sloan, even though I’m answering Vada. I don't understand why she’s here, in my bar.

  Sloan’s eyebrows immediately dip and her cheeks flush. It’s the same expression she had this morning when she found me standing above her and the toppled-over ladder: annoyance.

  “Well…” My sister sighs, walking back over to the counter to finish her cleaning. She leaves us standing in the same places we haven’t moved from. “Small world, huh Dallas?”

  “Dallas?” Sloan asks, cocking her head to the side. “You’re Dallas?”

  “That is my name,” I tell her. “I own this bar.”

  Her eyes move past me, over my shoulder, to the brick wall behind me. In thick white letters, my name and logo are painted across the black background.

  She moves her eyes back to mine. Her pink painted lips curl to the side in a smirk, and her dark blue eyes shimmer under the golden lights above.

  “Nice to meet you, Dallas. Looks like you’re my new boss.”

  Rule #2

  Don’t, under ANY circumstances, get involved with another man—no matter how tempted you may be.

  Chapter Six

  The hits just keep on coming.

  If I wanted to, I could make a list of all the embarrassing moments I’ve had with my new neighbor since the first day I saw him, the same new neighbor who also happens to be my boss—my incredibly gorgeous, rude boss named Dallas.