Read Online Lessons in Rule-Breaking by Christy McKellen - Free Book Online
Authors: Christy McKellen
Ads: Link
enough to ward off any uninvited bedfellows.
Her thoughts drifted back to Xander and what he would be doing right now. Perhaps he’d be in the shower, washing off the grime of the day, water and suds cascading down that impressive body of his as he soaped himself down?
The mere thought of it made her blood fire round her body again.
Her legs were twitching now as she lay there desperately trying to turn her thoughts to something innocuous so she could drift into a much-needed sleep.
Between the apprehension of dealing with Xander again and the worry about warding off the bugs, she seemed to have kicked herself back into a state of anxious alertness.
Sighing, she burrowed deeper into the covers and started counting sheep. She had a horrible feeling it was going to be a long night.
FOUR
Xander had to check the address of the hotel that Rosa had given him twice before he finally concluded he was in the right place. Was Jess really staying in this dump?
An unfriendly receptionist finally gave him Jess’s room number and he walked along the grimy corridor and banged on her door with an unnerving sense of discomfort.
He’d woken up early that morning after a dream about Jess where she’d been buried under an avalanche of snow and he’d not been able to get close enough to rescue her. It was the most bizarre thing he’d ever dreamt—not least because he barely knew her—and the sense of loss it provoked had left a dragging sorrow in his chest that unnerved him so much he’d had to get straight up and go for a walk to clear his head.
Apparently his subconscious was feeling very guilty about how he’d treated her the night before. So, here he was, cap in hand and ready to apologise for his insensitivity in the hope he hadn’t driven her away for good.
The door finally swung open to reveal a rather dishevelled-looking Jess, still in her pyjamas and with her normally immaculate bob of hair sticking up wildly around her pale face. The dark bags under her eyes made him suspect she hadn’t slept well either.
Her face went from ghostly pale to beet-red in the space of a second when she realised it was him at the door and her hands flew straight up to flatten down her thatch of hair.
‘Xander? What are you doing here?’
‘I came to invite you over for breakfast and to say sorry for being an idiot last night.’
Jess stared at him in wide-eyed astonishment. ‘Wow. Am I dreaming or did Xander Heaton just apologise to me?’
He snorted and leant against the doorjamb, watching in amusement as she took a stumbling step back into the room.
‘It’s real. Consider me humbled.’
She dipped her head and gave him a genuine smile. ‘Apology accepted. Thank you for coming all the way over here. That’s very decent of you.’
He batted her praise away, but acknowledged the feeling of satisfaction it brought, relieved she seemed to have forgiven him for his egotism. ‘You were right. I was being an idiot.’
‘Yeah, well, I wasn’t exactly sweetness and light last night either,’ she said, pulling her arms tightly across her chest, which only drew his attention to the large swell of her breasts. ‘I’m sorry for being so narky.’
‘Okay. So we’re both sorry. That’s great. Let’s put it behind us.’
‘Good idea.’
They stood looking at each other and an awkward silence crept up, making the air between them hum with tension.
‘Nice place you have here,’ Xander said, in an attempt to break it, shooting her a mischievous grin.
Her shoulders tensed. ‘Yeah, it was the only room I could find at short notice.’
There was a loud scratching noise that seemed to be coming from inside the wall next to him.
He frowned hard. ‘What the hell is that?’
She shrugged, her expression giving away her own disgust. ‘Cockroaches, I think.’
The thought of her staying here in such awful conditions made him shudder. No wonder she looked as though she hadn’t slept all night. A sudden overwhelming urge to
Her thoughts drifted back to Xander and what he would be doing right now. Perhaps he’d be in the shower, washing off the grime of the day, water and suds cascading down that impressive body of his as he soaped himself down?
The mere thought of it made her blood fire round her body again.
Her legs were twitching now as she lay there desperately trying to turn her thoughts to something innocuous so she could drift into a much-needed sleep.
Between the apprehension of dealing with Xander again and the worry about warding off the bugs, she seemed to have kicked herself back into a state of anxious alertness.
Sighing, she burrowed deeper into the covers and started counting sheep. She had a horrible feeling it was going to be a long night.
FOUR
Xander had to check the address of the hotel that Rosa had given him twice before he finally concluded he was in the right place. Was Jess really staying in this dump?
An unfriendly receptionist finally gave him Jess’s room number and he walked along the grimy corridor and banged on her door with an unnerving sense of discomfort.
He’d woken up early that morning after a dream about Jess where she’d been buried under an avalanche of snow and he’d not been able to get close enough to rescue her. It was the most bizarre thing he’d ever dreamt—not least because he barely knew her—and the sense of loss it provoked had left a dragging sorrow in his chest that unnerved him so much he’d had to get straight up and go for a walk to clear his head.
Apparently his subconscious was feeling very guilty about how he’d treated her the night before. So, here he was, cap in hand and ready to apologise for his insensitivity in the hope he hadn’t driven her away for good.
The door finally swung open to reveal a rather dishevelled-looking Jess, still in her pyjamas and with her normally immaculate bob of hair sticking up wildly around her pale face. The dark bags under her eyes made him suspect she hadn’t slept well either.
Her face went from ghostly pale to beet-red in the space of a second when she realised it was him at the door and her hands flew straight up to flatten down her thatch of hair.
‘Xander? What are you doing here?’
‘I came to invite you over for breakfast and to say sorry for being an idiot last night.’
Jess stared at him in wide-eyed astonishment. ‘Wow. Am I dreaming or did Xander Heaton just apologise to me?’
He snorted and leant against the doorjamb, watching in amusement as she took a stumbling step back into the room.
‘It’s real. Consider me humbled.’
She dipped her head and gave him a genuine smile. ‘Apology accepted. Thank you for coming all the way over here. That’s very decent of you.’
He batted her praise away, but acknowledged the feeling of satisfaction it brought, relieved she seemed to have forgiven him for his egotism. ‘You were right. I was being an idiot.’
‘Yeah, well, I wasn’t exactly sweetness and light last night either,’ she said, pulling her arms tightly across her chest, which only drew his attention to the large swell of her breasts. ‘I’m sorry for being so narky.’
‘Okay. So we’re both sorry. That’s great. Let’s put it behind us.’
‘Good idea.’
They stood looking at each other and an awkward silence crept up, making the air between them hum with tension.
‘Nice place you have here,’ Xander said, in an attempt to break it, shooting her a mischievous grin.
Her shoulders tensed. ‘Yeah, it was the only room I could find at short notice.’
There was a loud scratching noise that seemed to be coming from inside the wall next to him.
He frowned hard. ‘What the hell is that?’
She shrugged, her expression giving away her own disgust. ‘Cockroaches, I think.’
The thought of her staying here in such awful conditions made him shudder. No wonder she looked as though she hadn’t slept all night. A sudden overwhelming urge to
Similar Books
