Rule's Seduction (The House of Rule 4)

Her heart beat loudly in her ears as she realized her fairytale was coming true. “Yes. Oh, yes.”

His hand went to the length of her hair, caressing downward to land on the curve of her lower back. “I want you so damn bad, Erin. I want to spend every day with you, I want to have a family with you—and I swear, I’m going to figure out what this damn ‘fairytale’ means—and then I’m going to make sure you have it.”

She was suddenly so happy she knew it must be visible on her face. She was so happy that her heart flipped over. Lifting a trembling hand to his cheek, her eyes clung to his. “I have it. The fairytale? It’s complete. You made it happen, by opening up to me. By loving me. I don’t need anything else. Only you and our life together.”

****

When Max heard those words, a rush of relief and all-consuming pleasure settled in his heart. Finally, shit, finally—he could have Erin and know that she truly wanted to be here with him. He wasn’t going to have to worry anymore, he could to go to sleep holding her in his arms at night, knowing that she’d still be there the next morning.

Now all he wanted was to get her back to the house, get her warmed up and dried off, get her to a safer position than the one they were in now. With the life-changing words they had spoken still fresh in his mind and heart, his protective instincts went into overdrive. Holding her close, he pressed his lips to her temple as he considered the task at hand—getting them both home safe. With her tucked firmly to his side, he walked with her to the entrance. He took a long, assessing look at the treacherous, rain soaked terrain that awaited them. He decided that in the time that had passed since he found her there in the ruins, the rain had let up just enough for them to make the drive back. And the threat of flooding meant there was no time to spare. He leaned down, letting his lips graze the shell of her ear, and said, “Let’s go home, okay?”

She shot him a seductive grin and began nodding her head.

He didn’t wait any longer. He pulled his rain jacket off and bundled her into it and then led her through the rain to the ATV. The drive back seemed to take forever as he maintained a white-knuckled grip on the steering wheel and negotiated the slick, rain saturated roads. He had to be careful, but he could hardly wait until he had her naked on their bed again. His heart pumped blood ferociously as he visualized exactly how quickly he’d get her into their suite once they were out of the weather.

But his plans were not to be.

As they pulled into the front of the house, what he saw there made his gut clench into knots of impatience, tension, and he had to admit, pure, unadulterated fear. Her brothers—all three of them—stood on the front porch of his house, five of his men surrounding them. His men wore angry expressions on their faces, but he was relieved to see that their weapons were still holstered.

His throat closed up as his mouth flattened into a grim line. He took three steady breaths as he put the ATV into park and cut the engine. He had to calm the fuck down, and he needed to do it now. Erin wouldn’t leave him—he prayed like hell that she wouldn’t leave him—ever.

Erin gripped the edge of her seat and mumbled, “Shit. Not now.”

Max pulled her chin around until her eyes met his. “It’s all good, sweetness.” He ran his thumb across her jaw, unable to stop himself. “That is—as long as you’re staying here with me?”

Her eyes softened as she took in every detail of his face. Her hand came up and clutched his shoulder. “They’d have to drag me away, kicking and screaming.”

Her words sent a rush of heated relief down his spine—and a wave of blood to his groin. “It won’t come to that,” he said as he smiled into her eyes. “Your brothers are good men. Believe it or not, I respect them, and that’s made this entire ordeal even more messed up.”

She nodded her head. “They’re good men, but they’re hot-headed.”

He smiled, his fingers trailing over her cheek. “But we can handle them, right?” There was no question that he could handle them, but he didn’t want Erin upset.

She rolled her eyes as if she’d been handling her brothers her entire life. “Right.”

He cracked a half-smile, and asked, just to be sure, “Are you ready?”

She took a deep breath. “Yes.”

His temples began to throb. “They’re going to try to get you to go with them.”