Breaking All the Rules Read online

  “About us.”

  That did it. She stilled. Her hands shook slightly as she lowered the utensils back to the plate. He watched her stiffen and when she opened her mouth, he placed his hand over it.

  “No, Alyse. You don’t get to say there isn’t an us because you don’t mix business with pleasure. We’ve mixed way beyond that. We can’t stay away from one another. And I for one, have no desire to.” He drew his hand away and leaned over to kiss her. She tasted of Alyse and maple syrup. A taste he much approved of.

  “You’re my boss.” She shook her head. “I can’t be in this situation. If things go bad between us, you could just fire me.” Her fingers scrunched the napkin a few times. “I can’t lose this job because of hurt feelings.”

  Wild sat forward and took the tray from her. She hadn’t finished but he didn’t care. This was more important to him. Once it had been moved, he lifted her over him. She tucked the sheet beneath her arms and stared at him.

  “Listen to me, Alyse. One, I can’t hire and fire anyone on my own. I am partners with my brothers. No one person can make that decision. Not that I would I’m just telling you that to get it out there. Second, and more importantly, why are you thinking things would go bad between us? I’m thinking we need something more permanent.”

  Her eyes widened.

  “Yes, you heard me right. Alyse, there was a connection between us in Belize. You know it. I know it. Why are you fighting it so hard?”

  “This job is important to me, Wild.”

  “Am I?” He rested his hands on her hips as he held her gaze. Those amazing green eyes she had, peered through to his soul.

  “Yes. You’re very important to me.”

  “And that scares you.” He could see that fact.

  “It does.”

  “Can you tell me why?”

  “Other than my brother, his wife and my nephew, no one’s meant anything to me.”

  “Until me.”

  She nodded. “Until you.”

  “Why would pursuing what we have, here, now, risk that?”

  She shrugged. “I don’t know.”

  Her insecurity flared and he slid his hands up her spine, drawing her in closer.

  “Let me tell you something, Alyse Lamar. I’ve fallen in love with you. I want you in my life. I want you as my wife. The mother of my children, if we decide to have any.”

  “You’ve fallen in love with me?”

  “Yes.” He never believed he would have said those words to a woman first. It didn’t matter, for he felt how he did. “I know you love me. Look at how hard we fought to stay away from one another, Alyse. It killed me every time I saw you go off with one of my brothers. I want you to fly me, not them. To be there for me when I come back. I want to be there for you when you come back.”

  “You’re my boss.”

  “So, I’ll give up my part of the company and just be an employee like you.”

  “This is your family’s business.”

  “You mean more to me,” he said honestly.

  She was silent for a moment, her lips pursed, head angled to one side. “No, you can’t give it up for me.”

  He arched a brow. “I can’t?”

  “No.”

  “Why not?”

  A sexy smile teased her lips. “Give me some time, I could learn to enjoy sleeping with the boss. Karen says she gets perks, perhaps I would too.”

  He sank his hand into the hair at the nape of her neck and put their lips near touching. “I’d be sure to give you all the perks you want, and all the perks you could handle.”

  “I don’t want to lose what we have, either, but I have to think about Ricki.”

  “Baby, I’d never take away money from you, I know how important he is to you. Let me help.”

  “No, this is a family issue.”

  He slid his hand around to the side of her face. “Then let me become family and help. You know already my family loves you and thinks of you as a Wilder. You may as well just give in and take my name.”

  She kissed him. “Slow down there, Marine.”

  He rolled them over so she lay beneath him. “Don’t think so, baby.” He pulled back and stared at her. “Tell me one thing.”

  “What’s that?”

  “Do I have a chance?”

  “Better than anyone ever has.” She tugged him back down and rejoined their mouths.

  Wild groaned low in his throat and realized that she wasn’t quite ready to discuss marriage. A chance, he’d take. He would take anything she offered as weak as it may make him sound. This woman, the one here, now, in his arms was everything to him. I vow you’ll know it every day, Alyse.

  Epilogue

  CHRISTMASTIME THE FOLLOWING YEAR

  Alyse looked up when Karen called her name. “What’s up?”

  She laughed as her friend walked—more waddled—up to her. Karen was nine months pregnant and looked ready to pop any day.

  “Don’t laugh,” she snapped. “You’ll look like this soon enough.”

  “You could have stayed seated and I would have come to you,” she said. Alyse had no intention of even addressing her other statement. “What’s going on?”

  “They’re home.” Karen’s smile was brilliant and Alyse knew hers wasn’t much dimmer.

  She shoved back the chair and glanced down to the door that led out to where people entered after disembarking from the planes. Something had come up and they had called saying they were going to be delayed. Wild and Rhodi had been gone for a good two months and she was thrilled to hear they were finally coming home. Correction, that they were home now.

  Alyse headed for the door, wanting to run out there but she waited for Karen. Once she was bundled up they exited together. The cold Montana wind bit into her cheeks but Alyse didn’t care. Wild was home. That was all that mattered. Karen holding onto one arm for a bit of extra balance they made their way to where the plane had just taxied to a stop.

  She leaned toward the jet when the door opened and the steps lowered. Rhodi was the first one off and his grin told the world how happy he was to see his wife again. He jogged over to them and Alyse released Karen so they could enjoy their reunion.

  “Auntie Alyse!” The cry preceded a sight which brought tears to her eyes.

  Her nephew Ricki stood at the top, her brother Richard behind him. Hand over her mouth, she blinked back her tears as she ran toward the jet and the hug which she knew was waiting.

  “Ricki!” She wrapped her arms around him. “What are you doing here?”

  Behind her brother came Carla, his wife. She hugged them as well. “What’s going on?”

  “We were brought to spend the holidays with the Wilder family. Don’t worry,” Richard said. “The doctors said it was okay as long as he wasn’t out in the cold long. Speaking of which, Ricki, we need to get you inside.”

  Her brother squeezed her arm. “We’ll be inside when you come in.”

  She tipped her head back and stared up the steps to see Wild standing at the top. His gaze was on her and as it always did, warmed her so she no longer felt the cold weather surrounding her. He crooked his finger at her and she walked up the steps to him. He stopped her the step below him and kissed her. Held her close and made her remember what it was like to be in his arms. And the real thing was so much better than her dreams.

  “I’ve missed you,” he said softly.

  “I missed you, too. Thank you for bringing my brother and nephew here.”

  “I know you wished you could see more of them.” Another heated kiss. “So, Santa delivered this year.”

  She smiled at him. “Santa?”

  “Sounds good to me, will you be my hot and sexy Mrs. Claus?”

  She knew it was partially a joke. Every time one of them returned, he would ask her in a roundabout way to be his Mrs. Something. Normally, she laughed and shook her head no. Today, she placed her hands on the side of his rugged face.

  “Yes.”

  He blinked. “W
h…what did you say?”

  “Yes. I want to be your wife, Wild. I love you.”

  He gave a loud whooping yell, lifted her off her feet and backed into the plane. “Eric,” he called. “Leave. Come back for your things later. And tell them to leave this jet alone for a moment or two. Then tell her brother she’ll be in shortly. We have some celebrating to do.”

  Eric left with a laugh and wave. Wild closed the door and stared at her, as he went to work on his clothes. When he held her close, connected to her on the most intimate of levels, he moved slow, heightening their pleasure.

  “I love you, Wild,” she murmured in his ear.

  He didn’t speak but she didn’t need him to. She knew he loved her as much if not more than she did him. He showed her daily and Alyse knew, he would continue to do so for the rest of their lives. And all of it—this, her happiness—began one night in Belize.

  About the Author

  Aliyah Burke is an avid reader and is never far from pen and paper (or the computer). She loves to hear from her readers and can be found on Facebook or Twitter at @AliyahBurke96.

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