Rewriting the Rules Read Online Free Page A

holding her eyes on me. “I didn’t get a chance to send you the cards or letters.”
    “Why’s that?”
    She shrugs and doesn’t respond right away. Her mind is reeling, trying to come up with an excuse, and I can’t figure out what she’ll say.
    “Honestly, I didn’t think it would matter.”
    “I’m not sure why you would have thought that. It would have been nice to hear from you and know how you’re doing. It’s been four years, Charlotte. You can’t pop back into my life and expect me to be okay with this. What happened with Shawn?”
    “I broke up with him.”
    A look of shock plasters on my face. From what I’ve heard, they were on the way to getting married. “I thought you were happy and in love.”
    “Things changed. I never really loved him. I did it for Will . . . to make him happy.”
    “You can’t always do everything for your brother.”
    “He gave up his life for me. He could have been playing soccer in Europe and made a career out of it. I held him back.”
    The ding goes off and I take the plate of food over to her. “Wine?” She nods and I grab an open bottle of red wine and pour her a glass. I need to figure out a plan for Charlotte, and fast. Making her leave with nowhere to go isn’t an option. If Will finds out Charlotte came to me and I dismissed her, he’ll kick my ass. I have respect for him, so I’ll treat her nicely.
    “I get it,” I mutter and sit down at the kitchen table with her.
    “I need to lay low for a few days. Unless you want to go tell on me to my big bad brother.”
    “No need to get smart, little one. Just answer a few questions.” She nods. “Are you hurt? Did someone hurt you?” She shakes her head. “Okay. You can stay here for a few days and then you’re telling Will.”
    I don’t push her to tell me more. I’m not usually this big of an asshole around people I care about. The problem with Charlotte is too many years have passed by and I don’t know who she is anymore. I don’t want her thinking she can count on me or expect a shoulder to cry on. She needs to stay far away because I’m not someone that can be trusted with her. Even though she was someone I loved and cared about before, seeing her now is only causing the feeling of betrayal and regret to reignite.
    Watching her eat, I notice she’s free of makeup and still looks beautiful, but I can see the creases on her forehead from worry and the dark circles under her eyes from the lack of sleep. Her shoulders are sagging and the tight grip she has on the fork and knife leaves me to think she’s holding a secret, possibly several secrets.
    Charlotte doesn’t pick up and leave without a reason or plan. Regardless of what’s going on, it doesn’t involve me and I can’t get mixed up with her.
    I drink the glass of wine I poured and sit back watching her. It seems like my looks are being unanswered or she’s staying away and not pushing me. Good girl. Even so, seeing her before me is making my dick twitch again and my heart is beating too damn fast. As much as she’s changed and grown up, she’s still my Charlotte. The girl I first knew is now a sexy and beautiful woman waiting for me to make my move.
    Only I won’t.
    I can’t.
    I have to stay away.
    I’ve known Charlotte her whole life. Her brother, Will, and I have been friends since we were babies, and when she came into the world, she became part of both of us. The years went on and my feelings evolved from annoyance to lust to love. Falling in love at eighteen was something I didn’t expect. We had a strong friendship and she invaded my fantasy every night. My hand and cock became best friends. Thinking about her, her naked body underneath me, brought on a hard and fast orgasm. She was everything I wanted, until the day she left and never looked back.
    When her parents died, Will took on the caregiver role and gave up his opportunity to play soccer in Europe. He continued to play for U of M, but I knew he regretted the