Page 8 of I Hate You More

“Caesar, for the last time, you don’t have to wait for permission.” Spencer patted his leg. “Come on, boy. Come say hello.”

At this cue, Caesar bounced up and ambled closer. His greeting was an enthusiastic—if wet—one, and Spencer might have allowed himself a moment to enjoy it if not for the sharp whistle that sounded from the other side of the house. Thegarageside.

“Some help you’re turning out to be, Caesar. You’re supposed to help me adjust the height of the tire jump, not wander off the moment my back is turned.” Caleb appeared beside the garage. He had a wrench in his hand and a whistle on his lips, both of which fell a few inches when he saw Spencer. “Ah. I didn’t hear you drive up.”

“I see you got yourself home okay,” Spencer said in as level a tone as he could muster. “You weren’t late getting back?”

Caleb reached down and patted his ankle. “Not by so much as a second. Sorry to disappoint you.”

Spencer felt his jaw grow tight. Contrary to what his brother thought, he wasn’t disappointed to find Caleb back home where he belonged. If anything, he felt nothing but deep, abiding relief. Even though it wasn’thisjob to ensure that his brother followed the conditions of his house arrest—that was what his parole officer and ankle monitor were for—he still felt responsible.

“That was a pretty big risk you took, stopping by like that today,” Spencer said.

“You know me. Always living on the edge.”

“You’re supposed to go straight to the parole office and come straight home. No detours.”

“Stopping by to help my brother with his dog show isn’t a detour,” Caleb said, showing no sign of remorse. He grinned. “Especially since you needed all the help you could get. Have you everseena woman as beautiful as that one?”

No. Never. Not once in the entire thirty years Spencer had been living on this planet.

“I didn’t notice anything out of the ordinary,” he lied.

Caleb didn’t fall for it. “Bullshit. You were knocked just as far sideways as I was. That’s the only explanation for why you were so mean to her.” He sighed and held a hand to his chest. “Now, if it weremydog show and a woman like that came sauntering in…”

“If it were your dog show, you’d have done the exact same thing,” Spencer protested. “There are certain rules we have to follow, and she was in violation of at least half of them. You know that as well as I do.”

“Some rules were made to be broken. Especially with a prize likethatwaiting at the end. Did you read her application all the way through? She used to be a beauty pageant queen. I’ve never dated one of those before.”

Spencer clamped his mouth shut against the retort that sprang to his lips. What hewantedto say—that breaking rules was what had gotten them into this mess in the first place—would only set Caleb’s back up. And what heshouldsay—that no human being, however gorgeous, was a prize to be won—stuck in his throat.

The truth was, Rubywasthe most beautiful woman he’d ever seen. She was a terrible dog handler, obviously, and he was pretty sure she was going to end up being a huge pain in his ass, but there was no denying her allure.

Considering Spencer was an expert on the subject of clinically objective beauty, that was saying something.

Before he could come up with something safe to reply, Caleb gave a short whistle that caught Caesar’s attention. With an apologetic glance at Spencer, the dog trotted over to Caleb and planted himself at his feet. If Spencer hadn’t already been feeling uncharitable toward his brother, that would have cemented it. Caesar washisdog. He’d raised that bulldog from a puppy—loved him, sheltered him, and cared for him every day of his life.

In the three months that Caleb had been living with Spencer, however, the dog had decided he preferred the company of the second Wilson twin.

Just like everyone else.

“And before you yell at me for pretending to be you, remember that it’s been three months since I’ve seen any woman except Next-Door Nancy.” Caleb sighed and shook his head. “These are desperate times, and I, brother dear, am desperate.”

“What have you been doing to Nancy?” Spencer demanded.

“For shame, Spencer.” Caleb winked. “A gentleman never tells.”

Considering that Nancy was a sixty-five-year-old retiree with a penchant for gardening and automotive repair, Spencer was pretty sure Caleb was messing with him. Which made sense. That was what Caleb did best, pushing every button Spencer had before he’d even set foot inside the door.

Still…

“Dammit, Caleb. We talked about this. You can stay here until your house arrest is up, but you can’t go around alienating my neighbors.”

Caleb held up his hands and took a step back, a laugh hanging from his lips. “‘Alienating’ isn’t the word I’d use to describe what we’re doing.”

“Just do your six months, keep your head down, and stay out of my business. That’s the deal.”

“I didn’t realize you considered Nancy your business.” Caleb laughed louder, his hands still up as if warding off an incoming attack. He continued backing up, each step a little slower than the last. “Message received. I’ll step aside and clear the field. She’s all yours. I’m sure you’ll be very happy together.”