by Marie York
“I wish we could, but we can’t. I promised the guys I’d stay till they got back.”
Annoyance rushed through me. “Why is it your problem that they want to traipse all over Europe?”
“Because they already asked me to stay, and I said yes. I’m not going back on my word.” He held his arm up to me. Despite my disappointment, I laid beside him. He pulled me close. “Just be patient,” he said and kissed my head.
Patience had never really been my thing, but if my future depended on it, I guess I could make an exception.
Chapter 3
I took my seat and read over my flashcards for the nine hundredth time. I hated presenting in front of people. The whole ‘imagine them in their underwear’ thing never worked. It just made me even more uncomfortable.
My breathing picked up as the clock neared the top of the hour. I tried to gulp back the nervous ball lodged in my throat, but it was useless; that thing wasn’t going anywhere.
Jaxon slid into the desk next to mine and my heartbeat lost all control, thrashing against my chest, and dammit, all I could picture was Jaxon in his underwear. All hard muscle and sexy lines, while he looked down at me with that impenetrable gaze. I sucked in a loud, unmistakable gasp for air.
His eyebrows turned down in concern. “You okay?”
I forced the image of his almost naked body out of my mind. With a deep, steadying breath I met his eyes and forced a smile. “I just hate talking in front of people.”
“Whatever you do, don’t imagine them in their underwear.”
My eyes widened then I recovered with an awkward laugh. Oh God, I hope he couldn’t read minds because he would get a glimpse of himself in a pair of black boxer briefs that clung to his big, hard, throbbing—
A sexy smirk landed on his too perfect lips. “Trust me.”
I shifted to control the ache in my core.
“You don’t want to,” he said. “You’ll scar yourself for life.”
I found my bearings and held onto those suckers with every ounce of my being. “Oh, I know,” I said. “I did it once and I could never look at the professor the same way again, or look any of my classmates in the eye afterward.”
He smiled, and I nearly melted into a puddle. “I bet.” He moved closer, the air in the room seemed to vanish as his heat invaded my space. “I wouldn’t mind imagining you in your underwear though. Cotton, silk, lace, nothing at all? So many choices.”
An inferno consumed my cheeks, cutting off my oxygen supply and making it impossible to breathe.
“Good day, class.” The professor walked in, thank God, and placed his briefcase on the desk.
I took slow steadying breaths, trying to manage my out-of-control hormones, but as soon as the air around me began to cool, Jaxon rested his hand on top of mine, sending another rush of fiery heat coursing through my entire body.
I glanced up, catching his dark brown eyes.
“You’re going to do fine,” he said. “Okay?”
I nodded unsure I could get my brain to produce a single word.
“Miss Scott and Mr. Reed, you’re our only presentation today,” The professor said while adjusting the buttons on his cuffs. “Make it count.”
My eyes locked on Jaxon, and I swallowed the nervous lump in my throat. His confident gaze mixed with his encouraging touch gave me the calm I was desperately trying to find, yet couldn’t.
Jaxon squeezed my hand, and I took comfort in the gentle gesture. “Let’s go kick ass,” he said with a wink.
I gathered my flashcards, and he put his hand back on mine. “You don’t need these.”
He ripped the cards out of my grasp and I grabbed for them unsuccessfully. “Are you crazy?” There was no way in hell I could do this presentation without those cards. Everything I planned to say was written out on those cards. Without them, I would be a fumbling mess.
He tucked the cards in his back pocket and headed to the front of the class. The calm his touch brought only moments ago vanished as I hurried after him. I caught up to him engulfed in frantic panic and leaned toward his ear.
“Give me my flashcards.” I reached for his pocket, but he caught my hand, holding it tight until we were standing in front of the room.
“Flash drive?” Jaxon held his hand out.
I crossed my arms over my chest, noticing how his eyes drifted to my pushed-up cleavage. “Give me my flashcards,” I demanded in a hushed tone.
He seemed undeterred as an annoying smile settled at the edges of his mouth. “We can’t do our presentation without the PowerPoint.”
“I can’t do the presentation without my flashcards.”
“Forget it.” He shook his head, and leaned over the keyboard, hand resting on the mouse. “I have it in my email.”
Damn him!
Was he trying to get us an F? Because this was a sure-fire way to do so. Those flashcards were my saving grace. I’d spent hours making them, tailoring everything around the very words that were currently locked away in his pocket.
I retrieved the flash drive and held my hand out to him. He reached for it, and I pulled my arm back.
“Flashcards.” I cocked an eyebrow and waited. I didn’t care that the entire class was staring at us. All I cared about was getting those damn cards back.
He stepped toward me, surrounding me in the most amazing scent, a mouth-watering combination of wood, leather, and exotic spices. He left barely a gap between our chests. His fingers wrapped around mine and I froze, allowing him to take the flash drive from my grip. Before stepping away, he leaned down, his lips mere inches from my ear and whispered, “You don’t need the cards. Believe in yourself.”
I tried to speak, but all that came out were a few stuttered sounds. He walked over to the computer and plugged in the flash drive. Our presentation popped up on the overhead: Similarities between the Pop Art Movement and The Renaissance Era. He stood up, taking his position in front of the screen.
His gorgeous eyes landed on mine and he cocked an eyebrow. I snapped out of my stupor and headed to the other side of the screen.
My mind focused on the flash cards in his pocket. How the hell was I going to do this without them?
“All artists have a method and motivation from which they draw from,” Jaxon started. “Both eras pulled from their culture and the current events of their time.” Confidence oozed over his words. His body mimicked the exact same poise. I envied him and watched in awe as he continued his part without once looking at a single note.
He finished up his slides, and introduced me to the class. Fear and uncertainty churned my stomach. A tremor ran through me, my hands shook and the room seemed to tilt on its axis.
I didn’t know how to start. I had it all written out on my cards that were still hanging out in Jaxon’s back pocket. I wished I could crawl in there and hide, but there didn’t seem to be any genies around granting wishes today.
Jaxon came up beside me to switch places and lowered his head to mine in passing. “You got this.”
I didn’t know if it was his words or the way the warmth of his breath gave me a much-needed jolt, but something in my brain clicked.
I pointed to my slide, and without a single note, the words came to me. My eyes made contact with the professor as well as my classmates as I stood like Jaxon, confident, and spoke with the self-assurance I didn’t think I possessed, but somehow, Jaxon knew I did.
Excitement bubbled inside me and I was floating. Jaxon ended the presentation, and the professor got to his feet, giving us a standing ovation. Stunned, I stood there smiling and managed to mutter a thank you.
Jaxon draped his arm over my shoulder, causing a kaleidoscope of butterflies to take flight in my stomach. He pulled me tightly to his side in celebration —the butterflies losing their damn minds—as we walked back to our seats.
When we neared our chairs, he reached into his pocket and retrieved my flashcards. He held them out to me, and when I went to grab them, he pulled back just as I did to him ea
rlier. With a cocky smile he said, “Told you so.”
I snatched them from his hand and rolled my eyes. “Whatever. I’m not amused.”
“I just wanted you to believe in yourself for once.”
“I believe in myself,” I grumbled.
“You don’t. But you should.”
I glanced over to him, my gaze catching his. I was about to ask him what the heck he was talking about. Why he would even think that? It’s not like he knew me. A few presentations together didn’t make him an expert on all things me. But before I could get a single word to come out, the professor dismissed the class and Jaxon was gone.
Chapter 4
Dee flopped onto her bed and the springs protested with a loud creak. She crossed her legs and had a big ridiculous smile on her face. She stared at me, obviously waiting for me to acknowledge her. I thought about ignoring her, but with the silly grin on her face, it was impossible.
I laughed. “What do you want?” That smile definitely didn’t come without a favor in tow.
Though, there was a happy glint in her eye and a giddiness in the way she sat that was almost contagious.
“I want you to meet Cole.”
“Wow, that serious, huh?” It had been not even a week since Dee went on that first date with Cole, but they’d spent every day together since. When she was home, she walked around like she was floating and I constantly caught her daydreaming when she wasn’t texting. We saw each other less and less which sucked, but I tried to look at it as preparation for tomorrow, when we would say goodbye to our home for the past four years.
Dee bit her lip, but obviously couldn’t hold back her ridiculous smile. “He’s amazing and we have so much in common.” She faded out into another daydream before snapping her finger and sitting up at attention. “Oh! I haven’t seen you. Guess what?”
“What?”
Dee scooted to the edge of her bed. That ridiculous smile reappeared, and she practically bounced with energy. “I got into Michigan!”
A loud squeal flew out of my mouth and we both jumped up and down until we were holding each other and bouncing together. “I told you, you’d totally get in. I didn’t doubt it for a minute.”
“You didn’t and I love you for that. You kept me sane these past few months. I don’t know what I’m going to do without you.”
“Exactly what you’ve been doing all along. And like you said the other night, I’m not going anywhere. We’ll still have our Sunday movie night; we’ll just do it on FaceTime.”
“I’ll keep my Sunday nights open for you.”
“Now what about Cole?”
Dee smiled even bigger, if that was even possible. “It turns out he applied to the program at Michigan too and he got in.”
“Shut up.” I smacked her shoulder.
“I never believed in fate, but…” She shrugged. “Maybe there is such a thing.”
“I like to think there is.”
We hugged again, and I looked around our small space. “Maybe we should pack,” I said, and we both busted out laughing.
“Tomorrow. Tonight, you and Kyle are coming out and meeting Cole.”
“Are we now?”
“Yes. He and his friend will be at O’Malley’s at nine which means we have two hours to get ready.”
“Two hours? How will I ever get ready in such a short amount of time?” I joked.
“Not all of us wake up beautiful, bitch.” Dee grabbed the dress she’d be wearing for the night and headed to the bathroom.
I picked up my phone and texted Kyle.
Going to O’Malley’s with Dee to meet her new boyfriend. Meet us there at nine.
I tossed my phone on my bed and went over to the closet. Outside of these walls it was hot and disgustingly humid. Jeans were completely out of the question. I reached for the mini skirt Dee made me buy, but I never wore. It was black and shorter than anything I ever thought of going out in public in. But it was our last night together, and I was in the mood to party. Not too much, since we had to pack in the morning, but enough to always remember the night.
It was going to be epic.
Two hours later, Dee and I, arms linked together, strutted into O’Malley’s in our equally short skirts and equally high heels. Dee spotted her man in the corner and waved before guiding me through the sea of people.
She wasn’t kidding. Cole didn’t just wear glasses. Oh no. He rocked them. The thick black frames accentuated his blue eyes and gave him that studious look. His dark blond hair had the perfect wave that bordered windblown and styled. Dee unlinked her arm from mine and threw her arms around Cole’s neck.
A bright smile spread wide across his face as he dipped his head and kissed her sweetly. She pulled back, biting her lip as if she was savoring the moment.
“Cole, this is Lyla. Lyla this is Cole,” Dee said.
Cole reached his hand out to mine and I accepted it.
“It’s nice to meet you,” Cole said. “Dee has told me so much about you.”
“Likewise.” I smiled and added, “My boyfriend should be on his way soon.” I felt the need to acknowledge Kyle’s current absence.
“No problem.” Cole nodded over my head. “My friend is running a little late, too.”
“Since when are the girls on time?” Dee joked, and we laughed.
“Let me get you guys a drink.” Cole held his hand up to the bartender and after pouring shots for a group of guys, the bartender came over to us. “I’ll have the IPA on tap, she’ll have a glass of pinot, and Lyla what would you like?”
“A glass of pinot is perfect, thanks.”
The bartender gave a nod and got to work getting the drinks together. Cole whispered something in Dee’s ear and she beamed. She was glowing with happiness and I couldn’t be happier for her.
Cole handed us our glasses and told the bartender to put it on his tab, earning him even more brownie points from me. He grabbed his drink and turned back to us.
“I heard you got into the program at Michigan as well. Congratulations,” I said.
“Thank you. I’m really excited.” He snaked his arm around Dee and kissed her head. They were super cute together, and while I was so happy for my best friend, I was slightly jealous. My boyfriend was currently MIA and even if he was here, he wasn’t the biggest fan of public displays of affection.
“You should be excited. It’s a hard program to get into.” I gave Dee a wink, since I knew how hard she broke her ass. “I think this calls for a toast.” I held my glass up. “To a successful future.”
“To success,” they repeated, and we all took a sip of our drinks.
Cole cut his sip short and gave a curt nod. “There he is.”
I turned, glass still on my lips, to greet Cole’s friend, and nearly choked on my wine. I tried to keep my eyes from popping out of my head. Tried to control my racing heart. Tried to ignore the heat shooting straight to my core. But it was useless.
Jaxon Reed just had that effect on me.
“Girls, I’d like you to meet—”
“Jaxon,” I said as he approached, cutting off Cole’s introduction.
“Lyla.” Jaxon’s lip tilted and his voice was as silky smooth as it always was. His eyes travelled down my body, skimming over my tiny skirt and then back up. I meant to avoid his gaze, but momentarily blinded by the shock, I caught his eye. We stood there staring at each other, neither one saying anything.
“Wait. You know Jax?” Cole asked, and I snapped my attention away.
“We’re in Art History together,” Jaxon said.
Dee’s eyes widened then she laughed, and I knew she figured it out. I had mentioned the hot guy in my class a few times. Her hand shot up and so did that stupid smirk of hers. “This is the uh…” I elbowed Dee in the side and she turned an evil glare on me. I silently pleaded with her not to finish that sentence.
“The what?” Jaxon asked, an amused grin tugging at the corners of his mouth. He leaned his arm on the bar, his biceps bulging against
his tight white t-shirt as he signaled to the bartender.
“The guy in my Art History class,” I blurted out then took a huge sip of wine, hoping it would wash the embarrassment away.
“So you talk about me,” Jaxon stated, and I hated the cockiness that exuded from him, but more than that, I hated how much I liked it.
My internal temperature skyrocketed to a new high as I tried to come up with a response. “I don’t. I mean. We did a lot of projects together this year, I might’ve mentioned it.”
“Sure.” He turned to the bartender to order a beer. He gave her a panty-dropping smile, and she giggled when she walked away to get his drink.
“How do you know Cole?” I asked, trying to gear the discussion as far away from me as possible.
“We went to high school together,” Cole said as Jaxon took his beer from the love-struck bimbo behind the bar.
“Did you really?” Dee asked and Cole nodded. “That’s awesome. How’d you guys wind up at the same college? Was it planned?”
Jaxon laughed. “No.”
“Just a coincidence?” I asked.
“You could say that,” Jaxon replied.
“I applied for academic reasons,” Cole explained.
“And why’d you apply?” I asked Jaxon. There was so little I knew about him and the mysterious air that he surrounded himself with intrigued me.
He took a swig of his beer and shrugged. “It was the farthest place I could go to get away from home.”
His words hit me like a slap to the face and resonated deep inside of me. Part of my decision to come here was to run away. My parents overbearing ways were too much to handle. Defying them and picking the school of my choice was a major turning point in the way they controlled me. I severed the cord and took off, never looking back and there was nothing they could do about it. Well, except for cutting me off financially. But I managed on scholarships and the random jobs here and there.
I went to ask Jaxon another question to get him to elaborate when a hand landed on my shoulder. I spun around coming eye to eye with Kyle. “Hey!”
