Unbreakable Rules (Too Many Rules Book 3) by G.L. Snodgrass Read Free Book Online Page A

smart," Ryan said with a frown. "Maybe you should wait until my mom gets home. I could give you a ride."
    His statement startled me. Things had been going fine until then. I didn't need someone telling me what I should or shouldn't do.
    "I think I can handle a little shopping trip, Ryan," I answered. It might have been a little snippy, but I hadn't had my morning coffee.
    He shrugged his shoulders and returned to his cereal. I hoped I hadn't offended him, but come on.
    "I should probably get going," I said. "Thank you for helping me out last night. You guys were great. I can't imagine spending the night all alone without any lights. Thanks."
    Everyone nodded and said no problems. The typical response. What's more, I was pretty sure they were being honest. I placed my empty bowl in the sink while Amanda gave Brantley a goodbye hug.
    Ryan walked me to the door, holding it open.
    "Thank you for rescuing me last night Ryan. You're my hero," I said as I patted him on the shoulder. A sudden urge to reach up and kiss him on the cheek flashed through me. What would my friends think if they knew I was thinking about kissing Ryan Hardy? An even bigger question was why was my stomach all fluttery.
    He seemed to read my mind because he turned red and stepped back.
    "If you need anything, or if you get bored, you're more than welcome to come back over. We'll probably be sitting around with the shakes and sweats craving our MP3 players and computers."
    Smiling up at him, I patted his shoulder again, then called for Brantley. Time to go face the quiet of Nana's.
.o0o.
    Okay, maybe Ryan was right. Almost every store was closed and all the stoplights were out. Making our one-horse town a clogged up mess. To top it off, even those stores that were open were as dark as a cave.
    Our town only had a few places that I might be lucky enough to find what I needed. Not unless I wanted to hitchhike about twenty miles towards the Seattle suburbs. Mom would have loved that. She could have used that against me for the next three years at least. 
    The stores were empty and looked like a picked over carcass washed up on the beach. All I could find was a Nr. 4 birthday candle that had fallen back behind the paper plates. It'd give me, at least, thirty minutes of weak light. I didn't think things could get much more ridiculous until I reached the check-out counter and realized my debit card wasn't going to work.
    The Clerk, an older lady, was writing on a large yellow legal pad next to the open cash register. She was adding up people's purchases and making change. Luckily, I had barely enough cash to cover the candle, a couple of lighters, and a bottle of Sprite. I didn't even bothering asking about flashlights or more candles.
    As I left the store, my stomach tightened up when I thought about how much we depended upon electricity. Ryan's speech was starting to make a little sense.
    I sighed in frustration. Pulling my jacket tight and zipping it closed I started the walk home. The walk into town had been fun, invigorating. The walk home soon became a drudge. One foot in front of the other. The realization that I had failed to find any kind of light for the night weighed heavily.
    A deep roaring vroom behind me made my shoulders shiver. I knew that sound. Jarret's brand new Mustang. It had to be.  I'd know that sound anywhere. Whipping around I watched it approach and then zoom past. Jarret behind the wheel as oblivious as ever. A whoosh of wind ruffled my hair as his car turned the bend disappearing out of sight.
    What was he doing out here? There was nothing on this road, but some old farms and Ryan's neighborhood. I knew for a fact that there wasn't a person out here Jarret would ever stoop to talk to.  Shrugging my shoulders, I continued on. Secretly thanking the powers that be that he hadn't stopped and offered me a ride. The thought of getting in a car alone with Jarret McGee set off way too many alarms.
    Ryan's driveway was still empty. His mom