Breaking the Rules (15 page)

“If I tell you something, can you keep it between us?” Julia asked, leaning in so Carly could hear her whispering.

“You know you can trust me.” Carly felt like a huge pile of crap as soon as the words came out of her mouth. Sure, Julia could trust her to keep a secret, but Carly didn't deserve that trust. Briefly, she debated coming clean once and for all.

Julia stared into her mixed drink as if it held the answers to all of life's questions. “I had a job offer right before I moved her
e and I'm thinking about calling her.”

It seemed everyone in Brooklyn was intent on keeping ridiculous secrets from one another. How had they ever had functional relationships on any level when they guarded the skeletons in their closets like they did?

“Okay, and that's a big secret for what reason?”

Julia lifted her gaze to look at Carly. “Because it's in New York.”

Carly's mouth dropped open just a bit. Of all the things Julia had to say, that wasn't something she expected. If only life wasn't so complicated, this could be the answer to all of her problems. She could have a true friend living in New York, possibly even moving in to Tatyana's bedroom, and she wouldn't be lonely. But that would mean telling Julia the truth. No way would she be able to sneak Adam in and out of the apartment without his sister noticing.

***

Adam was having a terrific time. He and Micah won all but one of their games, he'd had dinner with the woman he knew he was falling in love with and his sister was becoming a friend, not just someone with whom he shared DNA. All told, not many things could make it any better. Of course, he knew the three pitchers of beer he and Micah split fueled his merry mood.

As they walked back over to the table where the girls were sitting, Adam felt his
good mood slipping away. More than anything, he wanted to pull Carly from her bar stool, spin her around and kiss the hell out of her face. But he couldn't do that. He had to pretend as if they were just friends if he had any hope of getting lucky a couple more times before she boarded the plane.

“Dude, it feels like someone just put a match to your fuse,” Micah laughed, noticing Adam's soured mood. “I feel an explosion in the very near future.”

Adam flipped him off and turned towards the bar. He needed to get his shit together before he sat down at the table with everyone. Micah was right; if Adam couldn't pull it together, Julia would put the pieces together before last call, and it wouldn't be pretty. He glanced over his shoulder to see Carly trying to watch him without the others noticing. He cocked his head to the side, silently asking her to join him at the bar. Rather than going to the open area closest to their table, he walked around to the end of the bar where the drunken crowd would obscure them.

“Hey, stranger,” Carly said as she casually slipped her hand around Adam's waist. She couldn't know it, but touching him just then was one of the worst things she could do. He wanted to go home and strip her out of her denim shorts and
babydoll t-shirt. She'd never believe it, but her body was his temple and he wanted to worship her for as long as he could.

The corner of Adam's mouth turned up in a half-smile. “Hey, yourself. I've missed you tonight.” He groaned, realizing how cheesy he sounded.

Carly laughed, bumping her body against his side. “I've been right there,” she said, pointing to their table. “How could you miss me?”

Adam leaned in closer to her. “Because all night, I've had to look at you sitting there, thinking about how badly I wanted to slide my hands under your shirt, taking those gorgeous tits in my hands.”

When he saw her chest freeze as she tried to catch her breath, he continued. “I've been thinking about how easy it would be for me to sit down on the stool next to you and slide my fingers up the leg of those short fucking shorts so I could run them over your clit. If I did that now, I bet you'd be wet for me, wouldn't you?”

Carly nodded her head, seemingly unable to form words. “Shit, I even thought about telling you to meet me down in the basement so we could sneak into the banquet room. There, I would pull off your shorts and bend you over the table.”

Shaking her head, Carly playfully slapped Adam. “Knock it off. I thought we were playing it cool tonight.”

“No, you wanted to play it
cool. I wanted to tell her. So, we compromise,” Adam laughed, signaling for the bartender to get them another round. “Did you not like my suggestions?”

He slid one hand along the back of Carly's shorts. Very carefully, his fingers dipped below the fabric. He didn't want anyone to see, and he wasn't trying to be overtly lewd, but he needed to feel his woman's skin on his hand. He cupped one ass cheek, gently squeezing while they waited on their drinks.

To his surprise, Carly didn't pull away. Instead, she called out for the bartender to grab two shots of tequila instead, and then turned to give Adam a better angle to slide his fingers down her ass into her wet folds. He knew he needed to stop. If they had been sober, neither one of them would do something so sexual in public, and Carly would be mortified knowing they were acting like this just feet away from Julia, but he was just drunk enough that he didn't care. He caressed her opening, bending the first knuckle to dip inside her eager pussy. She wanted him just as badly as he wanted her.

Just when Adam thought he might bring Carly to climax in the middle of the damn bar, Ashley, the all too observant bartender, shot him an evil glare. She knew damn well what he was up to
, and she didn't approve. Adam slid his hand out of Carly's shorts, chuckling at her protest of his absence.

“What the fuck was that?” She hissed, glancing over to see if they'd been caught.

Adam stuck his middle finger in his mouth, the same finger that had just been inside Carly. He would never get sick of the sweet taste of her juices. “You didn't object,” he pointed out.

Carly growled as she narrowed her eyes on him. “I didn't tell you I wanted you to fuck me right in the middle of the bar either, did I?”

“Well no, but that's a good thing because I don't know if I want anyone else to see your gorgeous, naked body. And when I do take you later, you will be absolutely naked.” He was pushing his luck, he knew, but it was fun to press her buttons.

Carly rolled her eyes, turned on her heel and stormed away without her drink.

***

When she got back to the table, Carly knew she had screwed up. She said she was going to help Adam carry the round of drinks back from the bar, but she returned empty handed.

“Uh, Carly? Did you forget something?” Julia asked as Carly sat down, burying her head in her hands. How could she have let things get so out of control? “Honey, are you okay?” Julia lightly rubbed Carly's back.

“Yeah, I just needed to sit down
. Too much to drink,” Carly lied. Well, it wasn't really a lie; she did need to sit down because Adam had her so close to coming at the bar she felt like her knees were about to give out. “Micah, can you go help Adam?”

“Not necessary,” Micah said. “Just a little bit further and he'll earn his waitressing badge for not dropping any of the drinks.”

Carly looked up to see Adam trying to carry four pint glasses through the crowded bar. She felt bad for storming off, but he'd left her with no choice after his little antics.

When Adam got back to the table, he set the glasses down and looked around, trying to figure out where to sit. The small, round table they had commandeered early in the night didn't lend itself to lovers trying to keep their distance, especially when accompanied by
a couple who had no problem getting close to one another. Seeing his dilemma, Micah laughed. “Man, just go sit by Carly. She doesn't bite. Well, if you ask politely, I bet you could get her to give you a little nibble.”

Carly's head shot up from where it had been resting on the table. “
Shut up, Micah,” She snapped. She knew Micah wouldn't be able to keep his mouth shut. All of them had kept his secret for years and he was incapable of keeping their secret for a week.

“Easy there, killer. You don't have to bite him if you don't want to.” Micah slapped Adam on the back. “
Hey Adam, I bet if you play your cards right, you could take Carly home tonight and show her that big bed of yours.”

This time, both of the women whipped their heads in Micah's direction. “Not. Fucking. Cool.” Adam growled, pushing Micah back.

Carly was so pissed, she
could barely see straight. She shoved back her stool and pushed her way through the crowd. She was in no shape to drive just yet, but she needed to get away. Luckily, The Oasis had put in a charming outdoor beer garden.

“
Carly, what’s going on?” Julia called out after her. Carly didn’t respond because anything she said would only make things even worse than what Micah already had.

As soon as she stepped outside, Carly
realized she had essentially backed herself into a corner. A six-foot privacy fence surrounded the entire beer garden. It shouldn't have mattered since she wasn't trying to run away, but seeing the tall fence panels made Carly feel claustrophobic. She flopped onto one of the patio chairs on the lower level, doubling herself over, trying to keep the tears from falling. Whether they were tears of frustration or rage, she wasn't sure, but they were threatening to spill out of her eyes, and Carly didn't feel like creating more of a scene than their group already had.

“So, you
wanna tell me what that was all about?” Julia asked curtly. Carly shook her head, not wanting to get into it.

Carly replayed Micah’s words trying to see if there was any way out of telling Julia what was going on. Even faced with the fact that Julia wasn’t drunk enough to misunderstand her boyfriend’s words, Carly couldn’t bring herself to admit she was in love with Adam. It wasn’t even about Julia at this point. Now, it was all about Carly and her own irrational fears.

It felt like she was at a turning point with Adam. She couldn’t deny that she had done something she swore she would never let herself do. She gave herself, mind, body and soul to a man. And when the time came, shards of her heart scattered everywhere would be all that remained.

“I needed some air, that’s all.” Every word out of Carly’s mouth was one more lie she would have to find a way to dig herself out from under when she finally felt strong enough to admit how she felt.

“That’s bullshit, and we both know it,” Julia snapped. “For one thing, if you needed air, you wouldn’t be doubled over bawling like a baby.” Julia’s tone softened, and Carly felt even guiltier for what she was putting everyone through because of her own insecurities.

Carly shrugged. “It just sucks,” she sighed. “I thought I would come home, spend some time
with everyone and then go back to New York. Now that I’m leaving in the morning, I seriously don’t wanna go. Pretty crazy, huh?” She looked up, expecting Julia to tell her it was insane to wish she was staying here instead of going back to the city, but it was probably the most honest thing Carly had said to Julia since she arrived in Brooklyn.

“Are you sure that’s all it is?” Julia sat on the arm of Carly’s chair, wrapping an arm around her shoulder. Gran was right. Carly might not have had the love of her parents as a child, but plenty of people loved her. There were even people who loved her even when they were apart. “Did Micah upset you with his comment about you sleeping with Adam?”

Carly shook her head. How was she supposed to answer that question? Yes, it bothered the hell out of her, but not for the reasons Julia thought it would. It pissed her off that he opened his mouth, knowing she wasn’t ready for everyone to know. Then again, as far as he knew, she was keeping it a secret from Julia because of her emotional state. Maybe it was time she let Micah know what was actually going on so he would understand where she was coming from.

“You want a few minutes out here?” Julia asked once Carly stopped sobbing. She really needed to get a grip before everyone thought she was insane. Carly nodded
, and Julia walked back inside after a quick hug.

***

Adam didn't know how to feel as he watched Carly walk out of the bar into the outdoor beer garden. Part of him wanted to chase after her to make sure she was okay. Seeing that Julia was chasing after her, Adam decided to stay where he was. If, by some freak chance, she hadn’t caught on to what Micah had said, Adam wasn’t going to be the one to say anything right at that moment, especially with as upset as Carly seemed by Micah’s comment.

“Micah, that has got to be one of the shittiest things you've done in recent years
,” Adam barked at the friend he normally looked at as a brother. “You had no fucking right to say what you did.”

Micah bit his lower lip, dropping his eyes to the floor. “Yeah, I fucked up, yet again. It seems to be what I'm
good at.” Adam almost felt sorry for the guy. Julia had only been back a couple weeks and Adam knew Micah had spent much of that time admitting to his past mistakes and apologizing. He didn't need even more shit from Adam. And, in the grand scheme of things, Adam felt like Micah might have done him an enormous favor.

“No need to go all pansy on me,” Adam joked, trying to lighten the suddenly heavy mood.
“You warned me there would be an explosion; I just didn't think you would be the one causing it.”

“Well, on the bright side,
if Julia knows, you won’t have to keep your hands to yourself anymore.” Micah wrapped his arm around Adam's shoulder, pulling him in for a masculine hug. “Admit it; it killed you tonight to keep your hands off her.”

Adam chuckled. “Yeah, that did suck. Then again, that's probably why I had my hands all over her when we were up at the bar.”

“Come on, let's shoot one last game while those two are outside talking,” Micah suggested.

Before he could put the quarters in the table, Julia came storming back inside. “Micah Anderson, you’re an asshole, you know that?”

Adam stared at his older sister, trying to figure out what was going on. Sure, Micah was the one with the big mouth, but this was far from how he saw the night ending. If anyone should be the asshole in her eyes, it should be Adam for not being honest sooner. Not wanting to fuel her rage, Adam sat on the bar stool to see what was going on.

“Why do you have to turn everything into something sexual? You know damn well Carly sees Adam like a little brother.” Adam’s eyes grew wide as he listened. Somehow, Julia was
still
in the dark. “Would you make comments about me biting him or him getting lucky with me if she weren’t here for you to pick on? Now she’s out there, upset, and you’re laughing it up in here.”

Julia stormed out the front door, leaving the men wondering what was going on.

***

Carly followed Adam into the house, neither of them saying a word. As she started shoving her clothes into her suitcase, wanting to get packing out of the way so she could sleep a few minutes longer in the morning, Adam came up behind her, rubbing her upper arms. “Carly, are you going to talk to me?”

“I need to get this stuff together,” Carly said softly. She continued packing, not turning to look at him. If she turned around, she knew she'd melt at the sight of his blue eyes, and she wasn't in the mood to forgive him. He was the one who couldn't keep his hands to himself and had opened his big mouth so Micah, the king of the big mouths, knew they were seeing one another.

Adam slid his hands to Carly's hips, pulling her away from the side of the bed. “Baby, I don't want us fighting before you go back.”

Carly didn't want that either. Hell, she didn't know what she wanted anymore. This was why she didn't get into relationships; they were too complicated. She leaned her head back against Adam's chest, allowing him to wrap his strong arms around her waist.

“I'm sorry. I just...”
I just what? Why is this such a gigantic deal? Julia even realized what Micah said, so why should it matter at this point? If you'd just let Adam be honest, there wouldn’t have been a problem in the first place.

Turning her in his arms, Adam brushed the hair away from Carly's face, placing a finger under her chin to bring her gaze to meet his eyes.
“Why are you so upset? She just figured it was Micah being stupid and drunk. Your dirty little secret is still safe.” Now, more than ever before, that’s exactly what Adam felt like. Carly had the perfect opportunity to tell Julia they were a couple and she chose not to. Why?

Carly shook her head, trying to look down at the ground, but Adam wouldn't let her. “I think I'm
angrier with myself than anything. I hate the fact that I’m too weak to tell her. It would have been easy to say something tonight, but I didn’t. And I hate myself for putting you through this without being able to explain it to you.”

Adam pulled her closer to him, pressing the side of her head against his chest. Carly stayed there for a minute, not saying anything, just listening to the rhythm of Adam's heart beating. “It's going to be okay, Peanut. We all screw up sometimes.”

“Right, but good friends don’t hide things from one another,” Carly whispered. Admitting when she screwed up had never been her strong suit. “Good girlfriends like to be seen with their men, not freak out that people will find out.”

“
Shhh,” Adam said, rubbing his hand over her back. “It's going to be okay. I promise.”

Carly's shoulders relaxed. She didn't consider herself
high-strung under normal circumstances, but nothing about tonight had been normal. She pulled away slowly, knowing that she truly did need to finish packing. Like it or not, she needed to be in her rental car in less than eight hours, headed for the airport.

As she gathered her toiletries from the master bathroom, Carly felt tears pricking at the corners of her eyes. She didn't want to go home. In a way that she couldn't explain and
certainly wasn't comfortable with, Adam's house felt more like home to her than the little fifth floor walk-up ever had. But thoughts like that served no purpose; there was no way she could afford to have thoughts like that. Eventually, the day would come when the spark would dim between her and Adam until they realized the cold, hard reality that nothing in life is forever.

She took a moment to compose herself before returning to the bedroom. Adam was catching
Sportscenter, and he knew her well enough that he'd undoubtedly picked up on her mood. “Peanut, everything okay in there?” He called out before she was ready to face him again.

“Yeah, I'm just getting everything ready to go. I'm going to have to leave some of this here. I don't want to check it
, and I can't fit everything in my little baggie.” She didn't see how Adam could constantly travel. She hated trying to make sure she did everything just right so the TSA wouldn't give her a hard time.

Adam chuckled. “If
you left it up to me, more than just your shampoo would stay here.” Carly gaped at the closed door separating them. She heard his words, but could he genuinely mean them? Not that it mattered, she reminded herself, because she had a life to get back to. “Hurry up; I don't want to fall asleep without you next to me.”

Sometimes, Adam knew just the right thing to say. In this case, the right thing was also the wrong thing. She wanted the same thing he wanted
, to fall asleep in his arms, not just tonight, but every night.
Stop it. Just stop thinking shit like that.

***

Adam and Carly were getting to be old pros at saying goodbye. Sometimes, it felt like that was what they spent the majority of their time doing. But this time, Adam was having a hard time facing the fact that she was leaving him. Something was different this time, but he couldn't put his finger on it.

“Thought you might have fallen in,” he joked when the bathroom door finally opened. One look at Carly's face had Adam's entire body tensing. Something was wrong, but it wasn't the night's events, not unless she was going through some sort of weird mood swing about it. “Hey, are you okay?” He asked, holding out his arms for her on the bed.

She pulled the covers back on her side of the bed, settling into his arms. Believe it or not, this was Adam's favorite time with Carly. Sure, the sex was satisfying, but cuddling with her felt much more intimate. She had a vulnerability about her when she relaxed that she didn't have any other time, even when they were making love. “Hey, what did I tell you about moping? You really do know how to make a guy feel like he's doing something wrong.”

He pulled her body down so
that she was laying with her head on his arm. He rolled to his side, gently tracing circles on her stomach, over her tank top. Carly's breaths grew shallow, and he knew they were finding their way back to a happier place, a place where they would be able to enjoy each other before she left.

“Want to tell me what's going on?” As easy as it would have been for him to slide his hands under the hem of her cotton top, he knew they needed to talk.
The only way they would ever be able to make things work between them since they spent so much of their time apart from one another would be to discuss things.

Carly looked up at him with her sea green eyes, which surprised him. Normally, when she was upset, she refused to make eye contact with him, knowing her eyes betrayed her with their expressiveness. “You're going to think I'm stupid.
I
think I'm stupid,” she sighed.

“That would never happen,” he assured her. “Now, tell me what's going on so we can move on to more pleasant activities.” His statement got the desired reaction
as the corners of Carly's mouth turned up into a slight smile.

“Part of me doesn't want to go,” she admitted, looking away from him. He didn't try to force her to look his way, knowing this had to be hard for her. Hell, it was hard for him, even if they were the words he wanted to hear more than he knew. “But that's just stupid.”