Breaking His Rules (Feeling the Heat #4)

by Alison Packard

  Taking a long draw from his bottle of beer, he cringed as a woman who didn’t look much older than twenty-one tried her hand at “Before He Cheats.” Carrie Underwood she was not, but her laser-like stare directed at a guy sitting near the stage all but warned she’d have no qualms about taking a Louisville Slugger to both headlights—just like Carrie had in the video.

  “I think she’s sending a message,” Rob said, giving Jake a sidelong glance.

  Jake grinned. “And I think he gets it. He won’t dare look at another woman tonight.”

  “Not if he knows what’s good for him.” Rob glanced around the room the owners had christened the Fireside Lounge. It held a smattering of tables, a couple of well-worn leather sofas and a makeshift stage set up in front of what looked like a brick mural. Opposite the stage was a bar and in the far corner of the room was a fireplace—currently unlit. “I like this place. Something for everyone.”

  Jake liked it too. The few nightclubs he’d been to in his lifetime were filled with people more concerned about impressing each other than actually having a good time. Give him Timbers Tavern any day of the week. But here at Planet Gemini, the eclectic crowd was both friendly and fun-loving, and he got the impression most of them were regulars. Rob was right. The club had something for everyone: comedy, karaoke and dancing. And according to Paige, who’d heard it from one of the groomsmen, Planet Gemini also had a Salsa night and an Italian night.

  “You gonna get up there?” Rob pointed his bottle at the stage where the Carrie Underwood wannabe caterwauled into her last chorus.

  “Hell no. Nails on a chalkboard sound better than my singing.”

  Rob laughed. “Tell me about it. I can’t carry a tune to save my life.”

  Jake took another swig of his Sam Adams and caught a glimpse of Melissa and Paige as they edged around the onlookers and headed toward the stage. The two sisters couldn’t be more different in looks and personality. Paige’s green eyes and waist-length curtain of dark hair were in direct contrast to Melissa’s shoulder-length blond hair and light brown eyes. And whereas Melissa possessed the lush curves of the pin-up girls of the Fifties, Paige was lean and athletic—a combination that would serve her well if she got into the police academy. Each sister was striking in their unique way and had attracted the stares of more than half the men in the club.

  As polite applause greeted the merciful end of “Before He Cheats,” Paige pulled Melissa up on the stage and then took control of the microphone.

  “Who in this joint loves rock and roll?” Paige spoke into the mic and grinned when the crowd reacted with whistles, claps and a few enthusiastic fist pumps. “That’s what I thought. I’m Paige and this is my sister, Melissa.” She gestured toward Melissa who, to Jake’s surprise, didn’t seem at all nervous about being on stage. It could be the effect of the two beers she’d had during the comedy show, or maybe she’d neglected to mention she was into karaoke. “And we’re gonna rock you like a hurricane.”

  “Did she say what I think she said?” Jake asked as the small, and perhaps over-served, crowd cheered with unbridled enthusiasm. He looked at Rob, who shrugged and flashed a wry grin.

  “Honestly, I never know what’s gonna come out of Paige’s mouth.”

  Jake had no problem believing that and as soon as the music started he recognized the song, and for the next five minutes he and everyone in the lounge were treated to a damn fine version of “I Love Rock and Roll.” Mesmerized, he watched as Melissa and Paige belted out the song like they’d been performing karaoke all their lives. Paige did her best Joan Jett sneer while Melissa sang along, matching her sister word for word.

  But what Jake appreciated more than their rendition of the song was how comfortable Melissa seemed on stage next to Paige, and how smoking hot she looked in her dark jeans and sleeveless black top that had some sort of shimmering metallic edging along the hem and neckline. Plus, she had on some seriously sexy red heels that seemed to sparkle every time she moved.

  Earlier, they’d taken turns using the bathroom and when she’d returned to the room, ready to begin their evening, he reacted just like he had when he was thirteen years old and his hormones were raging—he got hard just looking at her. And damn if he wasn’t getting hard right now watching her strut her stuff up on the stage. Shit. In a few hours he’d be sharing a bed with her. He silently cursed the hotel for not giving them a room with two beds, but in reality, it wouldn’t make a difference. Her intoxicating scent already lingered in the room, teasing his senses and making him completely aware of her in every way. In the same bed, or in a bed right next to his, she’d still be a temptation. A temptation he couldn’t indulge in.

  Fuck. It was going to be a long weekend.

  * * *

  Sitting across from Jake at a table near the bar, Melissa glanced down at the shot glasses lined up in front of her. Common sense told her she’d probably regret her alcohol consumption come morning, but right now, the two beers she’d polished off during the comedy show had her feeling too mellow to care.

  Jake had quit drinking after two beers since he was driving, but to her left and right, both Paige and Rob each had the same amount of shots in front of them that she did. Their designated driver, Kenny, the groomsman who’d told them about Planet Gemini and who didn’t drink alcohol, was currently up on stage showing off his karaoke skills. Maroon 5 had nothing to fear as the guy attempted to sing “Moves Like Jagger,” stumbling over the lyrics as he read them off the monitor.

  “Ready?” Paige asked with a grin, looking from Rob to Melissa.

  “Ready,” Melissa and Rob said, in unison. Melissa giggled (something she only did when she was tipsy) and then looked at Jake, who was watching her with something bordering on amusement.

  “Go,” Paige declared, and in less than five seconds Melissa had licked the back of her hand, picked up her salt shaker, coated her skin with salt, licked it again and downed her shot in one gulp. She gasped as she slammed her shot glass on the table, picked up a lime wedge and bit into it. The salt had lessened the burn of the tequila while the fruit enhanced the flavor.

  “Damn. That’s some good tequila.” Paige dropped her lime wedge on the small plate next to her shot glasses. “Shauna could have used some before our meeting today. She’s wound tighter than an eight-day clock.”

  Rob chuckled. “I’ve never heard that saying before.”

  Melissa glanced from Rob to Jake, whose hazel eyes seemed to be fixated on her mouth. She set her lime wedge on her plate and lifted a hand to her lips and brushed away the citrusy drops from the fruit.

  “Our dad says it a lot. Usually when he’s talking about Aunt Beverly,” Melissa said as the effects of the tequila sent a frisson of heat through her bloodstream. Or maybe it wasn’t the alcohol. Maybe it was Jake, and the way he’d been looking at her ever since she walked out of the bathroom in their hotel room. She’d never seen such frank appreciation in his eyes before. It was thrilling and unnerving at the same time.

  After they’d finished their third and final shot, Paige reached for Rob’s hand. “Let’s dance.”

  “Don’t worry.” Melissa smiled at Jake once Paige and Rob left the karaoke lounge. “I won’t make you dance.”

  “Thank you.” Jake grinned and picked up the sparkling water he’d ordered before they sat down. “I’d hate to embarrass you.”

  Melissa was entranced by the open collar of his light blue button-down shirt. Her pulse heightened as she imagined pressing her lips to his neck and tasting his skin. She forced herself to look away before she could imagine what else she’d like to do to him. “You could never embarrass me. And I’m sure you don’t dance as badly as you think you do.”

  “You’d be wrong.” He took a sip of his water then set his glass on the table.

  “Are you one of those people who don’t have rhythm?” She leaned forward and smiled. “Or do you save all your moves for the bedroom?”

  Oh shit. Did I say that out loud? Melissa’s cheeks burn
ed as Jake’s eyes widened.

  “Okay. I’m officially drunk.” Despite her mortification, she managed a weak smile and sat back in her chair. How could she forget alcohol had a tendency to loosen her tongue?

  “So it would seem.” A lazy smile tilted the corners of his mouth.

  “Forget I said that,” she said, and wished she could do magic and make herself disappear.

  “It’s forgotten.”

  Melissa blew out a breath and fanned herself. “Is it hot in here, or is it just me?”

  Amusement lit Jake’s eyes. “It’s a little warm. Do you want to go outside for some fresh air?”

  “Great idea,” she said, and pushed herself up only to almost topple over as the room seemed to whirl around her. “On second thought, maybe not.” She braced her palms on the table to balance herself and drank in a gulp of air. “Why is the floor tilted? Was it like this when we came in?”

  Jake chuckled and stood up. He moved around the table and put his arm around her shoulders. “I think it’s time to call it a night and head back to the hotel.”

  “But what about Paige?” Melissa tried to ignore the way his touch seemed to burn into the skin of her upper arms and grabbed the strap of her purse which she’d hung over the back of the chair. “She’ll worry if she comes back and we’re gone.”

  “You can text her.”

  “Why, that’s a capital idea, Jeeves,” Melissa said in a faux British accent, then giggled at the idiotic remark as Jake led her out of the Fireside Lounge and guided her around the perimeter of the packed dance floor. “Are you sure you don’t wanna dance?” she asked him in a loud voice as they passed by the energetic throng gyrating to “I Gotta Feeling” by the Black Eyed Peas.

  “Absolutely sure.” Jake slipped his hand around her waist. “And honestly, I doubt you could stand up without my help.”

  She sagged against his strong body as the room spun like a top and she thought she might stumble. “Remind me to never do shots again.”

  “You got it.”

  * * *

  “Jake. There’s something I have to tell you.” Melissa pointed a pale pink-tipped finger at him. “It’s important.” She paused to stare deeply into his eyes and when her tongue stroked her lips with a soft sensual lick, Jake had to fight the urge to lower his head and do what he’d wanted to do all night. Taste that tempting mouth of hers.

  “You gotta fight for your right to party.” Her impish smile and the sound of the elevator doors opening snapped him out of the sexual undertow that had almost pulled him under and he guided her out of the elevator and onto the carpeted hallway of the second floor of the hotel. “I love that song,” she added, oblivious to the effect she was having on him.

  “Yeah. I could tell by the way you were belting it out in the truck.” Jake pulled the room key card from the back pocket of his jeans as they reached their room.

  “Thanks for letting me pick the radio station.”

  He let go of her to slide the card into the card reader and open the door. “You’re welcome.”

  “Whoa, Nellie.” Melissa clutched at his arm as she swayed to the side. “Sorry. It’s the shoes,” she said as she steadied herself.

  “I think it’s the tequila shots.”

  “No. It’s the shoes,” she said emphatically as she let go of him and moved into the room. “I don’t normally wear heels this high.”

  Jake grinned and shook his head as he closed the door and tossed his keys and the card on the dresser. Melissa’s tolerance to alcohol was much like that of his brother, J.T., who after a couple of beers was pretty much toasted. Odd for a guy J.T.’s size, but true nonetheless.

  “And you normally drink two beers and four shots of tequila?”

  “It was only three shots.” A cute frown furrowed her brow. “I think.” She flung her purse on the bed and put her hands on her hips as she turned to face him. Her eyes raked boldly over his body. “You know what? I bet I could teach you to dance.”

  “I know how to dance. I’m just not good at it.”

  “That’s because you don’t practice.” She snapped her fingers and did a little shimmy. Jake’s breath jammed in his throat at the sight of her full breasts bouncing under her form-fitting top. “You can’t improve if you don’t shake what your mama gave you.”

  He smothered a laugh. “I’ll remember that. You and Paige were pretty good at karaoke. You didn’t mention that when we prepped for this weekend.”

  “Paige got a karaoke machine for Christmas when we were in high school. We wore that thing out.” She moved forward and stopped in front of him. He put a hand on her upper arm to steady her as she swayed to the left. “There’s a place downtown that has karaoke every Tuesday night,” she continued, oblivious to the fact that she was one soft breeze from toppling over. “We go there a lot.”

  “You have a nice voice.”

  “And you have nice eyes.” She lifted her hand, placed it on his chest and smiled up at him. The beguiling smile of a woman who’d had way too much to drink and who would probably have the mother of all hangovers tomorrow morning. “And the rest of you isn’t too bad either. Can I tell you a secret?” she said, in a throaty voice that sent a spike of heat straight to his dick. “You are so fucking hot,” she continued before he could answer.

  Torn between wanting to hear more about how hot he was and knowing he should stop her before she went any further, Jake reached for her wrist and wrapped his fingers around it. “I think you should go to bed.”

  “Bed shmed. I’m not tired.” Melissa pulled her wrist from his grasp, then turned and walked unsteadily to the sliding door that led to the balcony. She opened it wide, stepped outside and moved to the railing. He watched as she tilted her head to the sky. She’d curled her hair and it swirled around her shoulders like a soft cloud, almost begging him to touch it. “Come see the stars. They’re beautiful.”

  Even as common sense told him not to, Jake couldn’t stop himself from joining her. And as he stood beside her and inhaled her alluring scent, a powerful surge of longing rushed through his veins.

  He thought of his conversation with J.T. and Angie last week and acknowledged they were one hundred percent correct in their assessment of the situation. He had feelings for Melissa—feelings that went beyond their trainer/client status. If he hadn’t been proclaiming to anyone and everyone for the past two years that he didn’t get involved with his clients, he would have already taken her to bed. He would already know what it was like to kiss her lips, to feel the softness of her curvy body against the hardness of his and hear her breathy moans of pleasure as he made her come.

  “Look. A shooting star,” Melissa exclaimed, pulling him from his increasingly erotic thoughts.

  Jake squinted at the dark sky dotted with stars and chuckled. “That’s a plane, Melissa.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “Shooting stars don’t have flashing red lights.”

  “Damn it.” She slapped her palm on the top rail. “I really wanted a wish.”

  “A wish?”

  “Paige and I always make a wish whenever we see a shooting star.”

  “What would you wish for?”

  A soft sigh escaped her lips as she turned toward him. The light from their room played over her face and illuminated the creamy perfection of her skin. There was such sweetness to her beauty that it stole his breath. “Tonight? One perfect kiss. That’s what I would wish for.”

  “Only one?”

  She grinned. “I don’t want to be greedy.”

  “So, if your wish came true, who would you want to kiss you? One of the firefighters where you work?” he asked, annoyed at the thought of anyone else kissing her. Or touching her.

  “No. Someone else.”

  “Who?”

  “You.” She leaned into him and despite the very real reasons he had for keeping things between them professional, her mouth was too tempting and his need for her too great. Holding her gaze, he lowered his head until their lips
almost touched. Time seemed to stand still as electricity crackled like a live wire between them.

  “Jake.” Her breathy whisper echoed into the darkness and whatever control he had snapped. He pulled her tightly against him and crushed his lips to hers. Within seconds, the kiss took on an urgency that staggered him. Wanting to feel every inch of her, he slid his hands down the swell of her sweet ass and molded their bodies together.

  Their tongues met and a shot of primal heat slammed through his body as she wound her arms around his neck and opened her mouth wider, giving him full access. For weeks, he’d been wondering what it would be like to kiss her and now that it was happening it was even hotter than he’d imagined. With a low growl, he sank deeper into the kiss, stroking her tongue with his until she moaned and rubbed against him.

  He wanted more. More than one perfect kiss. He wanted her on the bed, screaming his name as he explored every hill and valley of her voluptuous sexy-as-hell body. He wanted her under him, over him and every variation in between. He wanted it so badly he was almost tempted to ignore the persistent voice of sanity pricking at his conscience.

  Almost.

  With herculean effort, he broke off their kiss and pulled back. She looked up at him with eyes still dazed with passion. She licked her lips, an unconscious gesture that made his dick throb.

  “I’ve been wondering what it would be like to kiss you.” Her eyelids fluttered and then she let out a soft sigh and her head lolled forward as she went limp in his arms.

  Chapter Seven

  Melissa groaned as the sound of a door shutting reverberated in her head like someone had struck a Chinese gong as hard as they could right next to her ear. She opened her eyes then immediately squinted. The rays of the early morning sun streamed into the room like laser beams through the sliding glass door and almost blinded her.

  “Never drinking again,” she muttered as she wiped the grit out of her eyes and rolled to her back. A quick check to her right indicated Jake’s side of the bed was empty. One night down and two to go. To her immense relief, gravitating toward his side of the bed hadn’t been an issue—since she was still wearing the clothes she’d had on last night, it was obvious she’d had way too much to drink last night and passed out cold.