Changing the Rules

by Sindee Lynn

  “I already know what a great guy he is,” she said making her presence known. “I only hope he can forgive me for taking so long to figure it out.”

  Dylan’s head snapped up. She felt his gaze rake over her body perhaps in an effort to assure himself he wasn’t hallucinating.

  “Sasha,” he whispered.

  “Well I can see I am no longer needed here,” Sean said giving her small bow before walking away.

  “What are you doing here” Dylan questioned.

  She noticed he hadn’t moved closer to her. He was still leaning against the bar. So she moved closer to him. When only a breath of space separated them she glanced up at him. The look of wariness tore at her heart.

  “I wanted to say I’m sorry. Sorry for making you pay for the mistakes of someone else.”

  Tears clogged her throat, threatening to spill forth. Dammit as much as she’d cried in the last two weeks one would think she didn’t have any left.

  “I love you, Sasha,” Dylan whispered close to her ear as he drew her to his chest. “I would never do anything to intentionally hurt you.”

  Sasha looked up at him and saw the love shining brightly in his eyes. The first tears began to fall from her eyes.

  “I know that. I knew it then but I was just looking for any reason to run away from what I was feeling I guess. So when the pictures came out I used them as the perfect excuse. I’m so sorry Dylan.”

  She pulled him tighter against her and whispered the words her heart had been singing for weeks, maybe even since the first day she’d seen him.

  “I love you Dylan Matthews.”

  Dylan pulled back and stared into her eyes. For once Sasha didn’t try to hide her feelings. She allowed them to show from the depths of her soul.

  “I think we should leave because if you keep looking at me like that I will be forced to take you to one of this mansion’s many bedrooms and have makeup sex that will really give them something to talk about.”

  A shiver ran through her body at the thought. It had been a long two weeks and her body had missed his.

  “Um before we go,” she said turning to give him a mischievous look flashing in her brown eyes. “Do you know a Gladys who has a daughter named Tiffany?”

  Dylan frowned in confusion but nodded his head.

  Sasha grabbed his hand and headed them away from the bar back in the direction she’d come from.

  “Good. I’d like to meet Gladys. I’ll explain on the way. Then we can leave and have all the make up sex we both can handle.”

  Chapter 22

  Dylan watched Sasha cross the parking lot and enter the building. He rushed over to the building’s maintenance supervisor to make sure everything was ready.

  “Are we all set Harold?” he asked with a pat on the man’s back.

  “That we are Mr. Matthews. Good luck to ya,” Harold said and walked away shaking his head and chuckling. Wait ‘til he got home and told Margie, his wife of more than thirty years, about this. Being the softy she is she’d think it the most romantic thing.

  Dylan moved to stand behind one of the big artificial trees in the lobby. He had been planning this for weeks. His timing had to be perfect. Just then he saw Sasha enter the building and head towards the elevator. God, but she looked gorgeous today. She wore a black skirt that stopped just below her knees. He could see the hint of a blue blouse peeking out from the collar of her black cropped jacket. He loved the color blue on her. His hungry gaze traveled down her slender body and stopped when he noticed a large amount of leg showing as she walked. His blood started to boil as he got another peak of leg. The closer she got he noticed the reason. There was a split in her long skirt that had to run from mid thigh down the length of the skirt. What was she trying to do kill him? No, better yet he decided as he noticed he was not the only one watching her cross the lobby, she was trying to get someone else killed.

  Dylan saw Sasha halt before the elevator doors and appeared to be reading the sign. “Lobby elevators closed for maintenance. Please use the alternate elevators located at the other end of the building.”

  ***

  Sasha couldn't believe this. How could they shut down the elevators in a building that had over fifty floors? Sure she could walk all the way to the other side as they suggested, but geez. She looked down at the shoes she had worn today. Not a good way to go anyway you looked at it and the stairs, which were right beside the elevators, were a definite no. How tacky would it be for her to take her shoes off and walk to the other side of the building to catch the elevator? She was weighing the pros and cons when she saw a man walk up in a maintenance uniform and remove the sign.

  “Excuse me does this mean the elevators are okay and back on?” she asked praying he would say yes.

  “Yes ma’am. We are all done with the maintenance,” the man replied and pressed the up button for her. When the doors swooshed open he gave a slight bow and waved her in. “Your chariot awaits ma’am,” he said with a huge smile.

  Sasha smiled back at him and entered the elevator. “Thank you kind sir.”

  She pressed the button for her floor. The doors were closing, when a foot thrust itself between the closing doors.

  “I would have waited,” Sasha mumbled under her breath, not believing anyone could be that stupid. Didn’t they know the elevators didn’t care about body parts?

  When the doors opened to reveal Dylan standing there smiling at her, Sasha swatted him with her hand.

  “You idiot. Don’t you know that’s dangerous?” she asked now smiling too.

  Just the sight of him had her heart pounding in her chest as if she’d run a race of some kind. Even after all these months it never ceased to amaze her. One would think after almost eight months of dating and seeing each other on a daily basis it would eventually get old. But as of yet it was still just like she were seeing him for the first time.

  “No amount of pain is too great to endure if it means I can be alone with you. And good morning to you as well gorgeous,” he said, pulling her into his arms and kissing her soundly on the lips.

  She reached around his neck to pull him closer. As their kiss deepened she played with his hair, which now touched his shoulders. He’d let it grow out since she’d told him he looked sexier that way.

  “Wow,” she said still wrapped in his arms. “What a way to start the day. Good morning to you as well.”

  “A better way would have been for us to wake up this morning in each other’s arms,” Dylan said running his fingers through her hair.

  “I couldn't agree more, but you didn’t get back into town until early this morning. It was too late for me to drive over there and I wouldn't hear of your taking the long drive to me. You were exhausted when you called to tell me you were back in town.”

  “You could have just been there waiting for me when I got home. I gave you a key months ago. One I feel it necessary to remind you that you refuse to use. I gave it to you for times like last night Sash. I still don’t understand why you refuse to use it,” he said kissing her on the temple. His roaming hands moving from her hair down the slim line of her back to cup her firm butt cheeks in his hands.

  Sasha sighed, closing her eyes. She dropped her head on his chest and kissed his chin. This was an old argument with them. She had told him repeatedly ... bump ... thump ... her eyes flew open. What the hell?

  The elevator had stopped its upward rise. Okay, Sasha said to herself, I will not panic.

  “Uh Dylan tell me the elevator didn’t just stop,” she said raising worried brown eyes to gaze into Dylan’s much brighter blue ones.

  “Yes, I do believe it has,” he said nonchalantly. His hands gripped her ass a little firmer and pulled her closer to his hardening body.

  “Stop that,” she told him trying to pull out of his embrace. What was wrong with him? The elevator had stopped.

  “Shouldn't we call somebody or something? Don’t they have one of those phones in here?” she asked trying to remain calm, but all she c
ould think about was the elevator drop in that movie about the speeding bus with the bomb under it.

  Dylan loosened his grip on her slightly and glanced over his shoulder.

  “Yeah I guess there is one.”

  Sasha looked up at him as if he had lost his mind. Why wasn’t he calling somebody to get them out of here? Well, if he wouldn't then she would. She pulled out of Dylan’s arms and moved towards the emergency phone, but he merely pulled her back into his embrace and secured his hold around her slim waist.

  “What’s your rush? Besides you didn’t answer my question.”

  Sasha frowned up at him. “What question?”

  Dylan gave a sigh of impatience.

  “You were about to tell me why you refuse to use your key to my house,” he said placing a kiss on her wrinkled nose.

  Here they were stuck on god only knows what floor in an elevator and he was talking about house keys. It was confirmed he had lost his mind.

  “Dylan in case you hadn’t noticed we really have a bigger issue to worry about right now.”

  Dylan shook his head at her and bent down to touch his forehead to hers.

  “Right now the only thing I am concerned about is your issue with my house keys. So come on tell me.”

  Sasha gave a sigh of frustration. Maybe if she told him for the hundredth time he would stop this nonsense and they could get out of here.

  “I don’t believe we’re having this conversation again and at a time like this.”

  “Sasha just answer the question.”

  “The reason I don’t use your house key is because the house is just that. It’s yours. I don’t feel I have a right to just come and go as I please. I would feel like I was intruding in your personal space,” she said.

  Dylan simply grinned at her monotone answer.

  “And if you had every right to intrude on my personal space?”

  “What?” she asked the frown between her brows deepening.

  “I said, and if you had every right to intrude on my personal space. What then?”

  “Dylan there is no way I would ever feel like that unless I lived there. And before you ask, I am not shacking up with you. My mother and father adore you but they would both have heart attacks if I moved in with you. That is after my father had killed you for compromising his daughter. And I for one would like to have them and you around for a little bit longer.”

  The smile he gave her confirmed what she’d been thinking. He had lost his mind. They needed to find a way out of this elevator.

  “I am not suggesting we shack up,” he said finally releasing her from his arms.

  Maybe the close quarters was cutting off oxygen to his brain because he wasn’t making any sense at all. Just then she looked at Dylan and noticed he was lowering himself to the elevator floor. Her mouth opened in a perfect ‘o’ and not one word came out. Her brain had stopped processing any more thoughts other than to question why he was on his knee in front of her with a black box.

  Dylan took Sasha’s cold fingers in his and rubbed his thumb along the back of it, causing more butterflies to take flight in her already quivering insides. Tears pooled in the corners of her eyes as she continued to glance down at the beautiful man kneeling before her. Her heart was so full of love for him.

  “Sasha, I have loved you from the moment I saw you on this very elevator all those months ago. And in the last several months that love has only grown. You have come into my life and given it meaning again. Everyday I see you and I know in my heart with you is where I belong. Sasha Bernadette Jordan will you marry me?”

  Sasha felt the tears falling from her eyes and didn’t try to stop them. She touched the side of his face. When his gaze met hers, she saw tears shining in the brilliant blue eyes gazing back at her.

  “Yes. All day every day yes.”

  With shaking hands he lifted the velvet box to reveal the most beautiful ring she had ever seen. An emerald cut diamond winked up at her. Never in her wildest dreams had she ever imagined a ring like the one Dylan was placing on her finger. He rose to his feet and lifted her in his arms. He twirled her around the small confines of the elevator, stumbling when the elevator began moving again. He pinned her against the elevator wall.

  “You know that first morning I saw you on this elevator this is what I wanted to do,” he said against her parted lips.

  Sasha reached around him and hit the stop button. She slowly unbuttoned her jacket, letting it fall to the floor. When she reached for the buttons on her blouse she lifted her gaze to Dylan’s, whose eyes were glued to her hands.

  “We wasted the first ride. Let’s not waste this one.”

  The End

  About the Author

  Growing up Sindee Lynn's love of reading was nourished by her aunt who used to bring her bags of Harlequin Romance novels. Those books are still at her childhood home. Today she is the single parent of an active teenager, which means she does not have much free time but the time she can squeeze in for herself she spends on writing.

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  www.passionatewriterpublishing.com