Three Rules I’d Never Break by Remi Carrington

Chapter 21

Ilifted my head off the pillow and felt around for my phone. Why was it buzzing in the middle of the night? Normally, I would’ve slept through it, but when Eli worked the night shift, I woke up at the slightest sound.

After rubbing sleep out of my eyes, I picked up the phone.

Stay inside with the doors locked until you hear my knock. Do NOT open the door for anyone else. Eli’s text made it impossible to go back to sleep.

I lay there in the dark for thirty minutes, maybe an hour. Time did funny things in the wee hours of morning. When I heard a thunk near the back door, I sat up and tiptoed into the hall.

The handle jiggled.

I shot off a text to Eli. Are you at my back door?

If Eli wasn’t the person at the door, I wouldn’t hear the end of this. Eli would lecture about the dangers of living in a retail space. Hopefully, he could cope for one more week. The house was so close to ready.

The screen lit up with Eli’s name. I swiped and whispered, “Hello.”

“Move to the front of the store. Do not open the door for anyone except me. Hear me?”

“Yes.” I hurried to the front.

“I’m on my way.” Eli stayed on the line.

Peeking around the edge of the blinds, I watched as Eli ran across the street. Blatantly jaywalking. Was jayrunning a thing?

When he darted onto the walkway in front of the store, I touched my hand to the glass. He acknowledged with a quick tap, then motioned for me to move back.

Huddled near a rack of negligees, I waited. But I couldn’t help a quick look every few minutes. Two other deputies were parked in the lot. Eli’s vehicle was still parked across the street.

One more week. That was what I kept telling myself.

I glanced at my phone every few minutes, expecting that an hour had passed. Time dragged out as I waited.

Men shouted somewhere outside, and I burrowed into the corner, forcing myself not to go check on Eli. If I stepped outside, he’d be furious. He was trained to deal with bad guys. I wasn’t.

The voices quieted, and I held my breath as footsteps approached the front of the store.

Eli tapped out his knock on the front door. Thank goodness! I peeked out just to make sure it was my favorite deputy before turning the bolt.

He burst in and clutched me to his chest. For several minutes he stayed quiet. When he pulled back, he cradled my face.

“Only a few more days. No more than a week.” I said that as much to reassure me as to reassure him.

Eli shook his head. “I won’t be able to sleep. Please, will you stay at my place overnight until the house is ready? Please. For me.”

“I don’t . . .” Only one room in his house had a bed. “There isn’t . . .”

“I’ll stay here.”

“Eli, I run a business here. You can’t sleep during the day or even walk to the shower without customers seeing. That won’t work.”

He lifted my chin. “Tonight is my last night shift for a month. The house will be ready before I have to work nights again. It’s just a week. Please.”

“You’ve said that a lot.”

“Is it working? I can beg.” He acted like he was going to drop to his knees.

I pulled him back up. “All right. I’ll pack a bag in the morning. Sherlock will be happy with the new arrangement, I’m sure.” I patted his chest, acting braver than I felt. “You probably need to get back to work.”

“I do. Tomorrow I’ll fill you in on what happened tonight.” He turned toward the door. “You okay?”

I nodded. “Thanks for looking out for me.” There was a chance I wouldn’t sleep the rest of the night, but he didn’t need to know that.

His gaze swept over me. “It’s kind of funny to me that you own a lingerie store but sleep in a flannel nightgown. It’s cute though.” He didn’t give me time to respond before slipping out the door.

It closed behind him, and I bolted the lock.

He waved as he walked toward the other officers.

I hadn’t even teased him about crossing in the middle of the street.

* * *

Every timeI closed my eyes, I saw the knob on the back door jiggling. It brought back the fear from the nights huddled in my mom’s back seat, hoping I wouldn’t be spotted.

Sleeping was a lost cause. Two hours after Eli left, I rolled out of bed and packed a bag.

It would be a little weird sleeping in Eli’s bed, but after all the commotion, I wasn’t sure I wanted to stay overnight at the store. The thought of someone breaking in while I slept made me cold.

After changing out of my flannel nightgown and into leggings and a baggy t-shirt, I knocked at the doughnut shop long before it opened.

Tessa shoved the door open. “What’s wrong? Why are you awake?”

“Someone tried to break into the store last night. I never got back to sleep.” I pulled my hair into a ponytail. “I’m going to go to Eli’s, but I didn’t want you to worry about me. Issa is covering the store today, so I can go sleep for a while.”

She hugged me. “I’m so sorry. Eli mentioned something had happened. He showed up right after I arrived to make sure nothing was out of place in the shop. He’s probably freaking out about what happened.”

“You think? Until the house is finished, I’m sleeping at his place.” I waggled a finger in her face before she could utter a word. “And he is sleeping in my store.”

Tessa laughed. “Eli staying in a lingerie store is kind of funny.”

“All kinds of funny, but I’m too tired to laugh about it right now.” I pulled my phone out of my pocket. “I should probably warn Eli that I’m going over there.”

I waved as I walked to my car, then texted Eli. Can’t sleep. Going to your house.

The phone rang as I started the car. “Hey. You got my message.”

“I’m glad you’re going over there. Lock yourself in if it makes you feel more comfortable. I have a key.”

“Thanks.”

“I’ll see you in a few hours.”

“If I’m asleep, wake me. Okay?”

“Sure thing. Gotta go.” He ended the call.

I drove to the goat farm. Boingo didn’t run out to greet me. He was probably with the other goats, sound asleep.

Once I was inside, I dropped my bag near the door and flopped on the sofa. The man had no throw pillows, so I wandered back to his room and stole a pillow off his bed.

I lay down and closed my eyes. The pillow smelled like Eli, and feeling protected, I relaxed.

* * *

I shiveredand pulled the blanket up over my shoulder. Blanket? I hadn’t grabbed a blanket. Prying my eyes open, I lifted my head.

Eli smiled. “I was going to wake you up . . . in a few minutes.”

“I don’t even want to think of how bad I look. I think I was drooling.” I pushed up to a sitting position and tapped the couch.

He moved next to me. “You can go back to sleep. I’m about to crawl in bed. There is a doughnut for you on the counter. And coffee, but I’m not sure if it’s still hot. I told Mom I’d pick up Sherlock this afternoon. Don’t forget that we are having dinner with my parents tonight.”

“Your mom’s birthday dinner.” I leaned my head on his shoulder. “Tell me about last night.”

He sucked in a deep breath and held it for a few heartbeats before blowing it out. “A man in Bexar County shot his ex-girlfriend. There was a manhunt, and his car was found broken down on the interstate. He made his way into town on foot and searched for a place to hide out.” Eli stroked my hair as he talked. “I texted you when they sent out word that his car had been found near our exit.”

“Did he have a gun when they found him?”

“He did, but he was arrested without anyone getting hurt. They found him in the empty space at the end of the strip mall.”

“You haven’t said ‘I told you so.’ I’m a little surprised.”

He flashed a small smile. “That would just make you mad. Then the automatic sprinklers would come on, and I don’t handle tears well.”

“Never would’ve guessed.” I snuggled closer. “You jaywalked for me.”

“I’d break a lot of rules for you, Delaney.”

I didn’t want him to break rules for me. Especially since I had no plans to break any more of my rules for him.

Some rules were not made to be broken. Those rules kept me from turning out like my mom.