Page 5 of Breaking All The Rules
Another frown. “These aren’t my pajamas. Well…”
She gave a half shrug as she looked down at her clothes, then back up at him, pursing her lips, which drew attention to her lusciously full mouth. Austin—God help him—would bet his last penny that mouth tasted deliciously sweet right now.
“I guess, technically, I did wear them to bed last night,” she said. “But that’s only because I couldn’t be bothered getting out of them and it was too cold to sleep naked.”
Okay… “And the”—he glanced down at the two bunny heads with floppy ears on her feet—“slippers?”
This time she shoved her hand onto her hip. “Is wearing slippers outside illegal in your quaint little corner of Eastern Colorado?”
Amused, despite her inference that they were some backwater town, Austin shook his head. “No.”
She dropped her hand. “It’s cold.”
It had been said like it was a perfectly reasonable explanation for wearing bunny slippers out in public. “Yes,” he affirmed. “It’s cold.” But surely she had boots? Wear-outside-in-public boots? “What’s your name?”
She stiffened, and her eyebrow kicked up. “I don’t have to tell you my name.”
“Well actually, ma’am, you do. Under town ordinance five eight three, section one, all persons must furnish ID if requested by an officer of the law.” Austin knew few town ordinances by heart, but that one was his bread and butter. Policing 101.
“Oh, right, you’re a rules guy. Of course.” She folded her arms. “Just like Charlie goddamn Hammersmith.”
Austin sighed. “All right, I’ll bite. Who is this Charlie Hammersmith?”
“My asshole ex-boss.”
“Okay.” He wasn’t sure that made it any clearer but whatevs.
“I’m not telling you my name.” She glared at him mutinously. “I’m claiming my constitutional right to silence.”
Oh…Jesus. Give me patience. “You’re not under arrest, ma’am.”
“So arrest me.” She held out her wrists. “Cuff me.”
In a different set of circumstances, Austin would have taken the greatest of pleasure in cuffing Credence’s mystery woman, but that wasn’t what she’d meant. “I’m not arresting you.”
“Why not?” she demanded.
“Because there isn’t a town ordinance against being a pain in the ass.” He’d have committed that one to memory for sure. “Nor is it an arrestable offense.”
Unfortunately.
“Fine.” She dropped her arms and stuck out her chin. “What about jaywalking?” She brushed past him, stepping onto the road near the hood of his vehicle. “Is that against the law?”
Austin sighed and turned to face her. “Yes. Town ordinance four six seven, section two A.” He was just making this shit up now, but she didn’t have to know that.
“All right, then.” And she walked into the middle of the road.
“Ma’am…what are you doing?” Given there wasn’t a car to be seen anywhere up or down the street, Austin wasn’t particularly worried about her being run down.
“I’m jaywalking. Arrest me.”
“Ma’am.”
She held out her hands again. “Take me to the pokey.”
Austin couldn’t help himself—he threw back his head and laughed. The pokey? She’d been watching too much television. “Ma’am, most people I know try to avoid going to the pokey at all costs. What’s your story?”
“I’m a rule breaker,” she said, frowning at first, as if she wasn’t sure about the label, then nodding as if deciding she was okay with it. “That’s right. I’m a rule breaker now.”
