Off Limits

Chapter 2 - Living by his rules

"This is your daughter?" Easton asked James.

Easton stiffened, and his gaze dropped to my lips for only a second. He quickly straightened himself and pursed his lips. My dad joined him at his side.

"Yeah!" My dad said as he clapped at his back. "Isn't she a peach?"

My cheeks turned crimson, which earned me a smile from Easton.

"Sure is" He mumbled.

I secretly swooned a little; I could only hope I could hide my affection for him.

"I didn't realize she'd be so..."

Easton paused for a moment; it seemed like he was looking for the right word. His gaze was still right at me, and he flicked his tongue on his lower lip. His hard stare made me feel nervous.

"Be so what?" I asked. I couldn't take his silence anymore.

He didn't finish that sentence. Instead, he asked me; "How old are you, kid"?

I rolled my eyes at that. I'm most definitely not a kid, and I hated that this gorgeous man just thought of me as a child.

"I'm 18," I said through gritted teeth.

Easton only smirked. My dad was oblivious to us as he stared at something that was shown on TV. Suddenly Easton started sniffing the air.

"Is something burning?" He asked.

I could smell it too, smoke.

My dad snapped out of whatever trance he was in and screamed "My casserole!"

He was out of the hallway faster than I've ever seen him move. I wasn't worried, my dad always does this. He can't cook for the life of him, but it's sweet that he keeps trying. I suddenly realized that Easton and I were alone. He didn't follow my dad to the kitchen, and I hadn't moved either. I couldn't move even if I wanted to. How the heck could someone be this good-looking? This must be some kind of sick joke.

"Are you done staring?" Easton sneered. Perfect, he just caught me openly checking him out. Once again I want to sink through a hole.

"Sorry, I just... zoned out."

Did I just apologize? Wow, I have it bad already.

"Right," Easton said with a bored expression on his face.

It made me wonder how old he was. There's no way he could be older than 30. If I would guess, I'd say around 26-28.

"What are you thinking?" Easton asked.

"How old are you?" I asked.

"Too old for you."

Easton smiled, probably because he knows that I think he's good looking. Now he probably thinks I asked because I'm interested in him. I mean, I am - obviously. Not that I'd ever tell him that, or anybody else for that matters. Or, maybe he said that to remind himself that I'm off-limits to him, and in reality, he's actually into me! Yes, that sounds way better, I'll go with that.

"How nice that you remind yourself of that." I fired back, proud of myself for such a witty comeback. Easton laughed and looked genuinely amused. Jerk.

"I'm 28." He admitted.

"Sorry, I was expecting you to be a kid, not an almost adult." He continued.

Almost adult? Oh heck no.

"What do you mean almost? I am an adult."

"Sure you are," Easton said, mockingly.

He still saw me as a kid, great. Don't ask me why, but somehow, I wanted him to see me as a woman.