David’s confused look is so cute. However, I don’t want to spoil the fun just yet.
I silently guess how long my people will take. I know I told him an hour, but I’m thinking maybe within 30 minutes is more accurate.
Beep.
Beep.
I can’t say that I’m not irritated by this too. It is almost like we have a huge bullseye on our backs, and everyone is aiming to take us down.
I turn and walk into the kitchen. My confident smile still on my face while I open the refrigerator. David has been too upset and worried to think about a meal. So, I’m going to try and make something instead.
I scan through the refrigerator, but I have no idea what I’m doing. Before David was here all the time fixing my meals, I usually ordered food.
I bite my lower lip while I continue to look for something that seems easy to make and appetizing.
Da
I bite my lip, trying to hold back another a chuckle, as David stomps down the sidewalk next to me. He finally has figured out what Max was referring to last night, but he is still mad that I didn’t tell him sooner. It is more like pouting, though.How could such a fierce, tough guy pout for so long?Chance and Paul step in line with us as we head towards the medical buildings. The silence doesn’t last long as Chance nudges my arm. “Hey, Alex. I see those social media posts that had you were tagged in have all disappeared. Did you have your people do that, or did the people realize who they were messing with and take the posts down on their own?”I quickly glance to my side as the muscle along David’s jaw twitches.I turn back to my friend and flash him a mischievous smile. “It was bothering David too much, so I had my people take it down.” I lean t
I glance around my quiet apartment as my stomach twists. Is my hunch correct? Is David going back to his apartment tonight?My heart aches as the question swirls in my mind.A faint noise by the front door has my breath hitch as my head whips around in that direction. The jiggling of keys seeps into the apartment. Could this be David?I want to run to the door and open it to find out. However, my feet are frozen to the floor and all I can do is to stand there staring at the entrance, waiting.The next few long seconds seem to drag on for minutes before the door finally opens and David walks in. Relief washes over me as I catapult forward and jump onto him. “You are here.” I don’t let him answer before I capture his lips in a passionate kiss.My legs wrap around his waist as my arms slide around his neck. I deepen our kiss while my fingers rake through hi
With my arm wrapped around Alex’s waist, we quietly walk along the sidewalk towards the medical buildings. As students hustle past, I lean over, kiss his cheek, and softly ask, “Have you calmed down yet?”It has been a few days since Tiffany had insulted him and he is still fuming. Luckily, Brandon and his father were able to quickly defuse the situation, and we could talk about what I should expect going forward. I also made it clear I only have one person in my heart, and it is Alex. I don’t have room for anyone else.She didn’t want to accept it, but she finally did.When she found out exactly who Alex is, it is then our turn to throw insulting remarks. The only thing helping her is Alex’s grandparents really didn’t let anyone take pictures of him as he was growing up. People know the name, but they don’t have a face to go with it. He also uses an alias at th
I open the Dean’s door and walk in. He still has his desk phone’s receiver to his ear, but motions for me to sit down on a chair in front of his desk as he says, “Hold all my calls.” Then he places the receiver back down in its cradle and turns his attention towards me. His cold eyes and stern look have little impact on me, unlike most of the other students here who would be shaking in their boots by now. “Please sit down, David. I just have a few things I need to resolve for your upcoming event. It shouldn’t take too long.” I stride over to his desk and take a deep breath as I sit down. My mind runs through the various forms and applications I have filled out for the event and wonder if I filled something out wrong. However, I could have sworn I did everything right. My eyebrows furrow. “Is there something wrong with something I filled out for the event?” He shakes his head. “N
I can’t stop smiling. As soon as he says yes, I look across the table at Brandon and wink. Even if we have nothing in the area, we will find a friend with something so we can go.When Kai blurts out the location of the town, I immediately pull up a map on my phone and start searching. My smile falters a bit when I realize I have nothing remotely close to that area.However, when I glance across the table at Brandon, my smile immediately bounces back as his eyes sparkle, and he nods.Yes! We have a hotel close by.I immediately start researching the area. I barely notice the food when it arrives or the conversation. The clatter from others in the restaurant fades to a soft buzz in the back of my mind. I have a mission and I need information.As I continue to scroll through the internet, a fork loaded with food appears in front of me. Without thinking, I open
I have spent every extra minute planning and double checking with my staff about this one weekend. I don’t think I’ve even worked this hard, even studying for my classes. However, if everything goes well, it will be all worth it.I have coordinated everything with Brandon regarding the room assignments. He wanted to put us in the penthouse with him and the rest of our friends, but I’m being selfish and want a room for myself and David. I have paid for the presidential suite, even though Brandon keeps refusing to take my money. It doesn’t matter at this point. I’m going to get my way.I look through my bag one last time and make sure I’ve remembered everything. You would have thought we were going to be gone for weeks with everything I’ve packed, but this is the first time David and I have been away together as a couple. No. Let me correct that. As an engage
I glance back across the Hotel’s parking lot. A few additional vehicles have followed us here, but Alex keeps telling me to not worry. He says it is his people with additional supplies for the meals, but something in my gut says there is something more to it. Not to mention, he constantly kept looking at his phone the whole way here. However, I can’t worry about it right now.I grab a couple of bags from the storage compartment under the bus and put them on the ground before I turn back to get more.Max, after helping with a few bags, backs off to the side and claps his hands together. He then clears his throat and announces, “Everyone needs to check in with the hazing team. They have set up a table right next to the reception desk. We have assigned two people to each room. If there is a problem with your assigned roommate, please let us know right away.”As soon as he finishes, someon
I walk through the group of students and overlook what they are doing. Luckily, the Dean could locate someone quickly, and we were able to get to work rather fast. However, I still can’t get rid of this uneasy feeling that keeps gnawing at me.I have yet to know what other university is helping. Our contacts have put us in a completely different area of the school from each other.I turn and hesitate for a moment as I stare blankly into a camera, while Trevor silently motions for me to do something. My eyebrows furrow together, but I refrain from doing anything while I’m being recorded.I take a deep breath and smile. “As you can see, we have an excellent group of volunteers here today cleaning up the destruction and mess left behind by the tornado.” I continue to recite whatever facts I can remember about the storm, the project, and the community.When I finally get to th
My stomach flutters as I look into the mirror. The day has finally come, and much faster than I had originally planned, but I’m not afraid. I want it this way. I scan my reflection from head to toe and make sure nothing is out of place. My white tuxedo almost glows, while my hair is shines. I move my black tie a little until it is just where I want it. The corners of my mouth curl upward and I softly whisper, “Perfect.” Chance walks into the room and grunts, “Of course you look perfect. I wouldn’t expect anything less.” He marches upside me and stares at me through the mirror. “I still can’t believe you have actually given up your Casanova title and all the girls. But I’m glad you have finally found your true happiness. Too bad your grandparents aren’t here to see you, though. However, I’m sure they are looking down upon you, though, and are cheering for you.” Paul steps into the room a
My eyebrows knot together as I look at David. What have I missed? I’m sure we have covered everything.As my mind continues to run through our game plan, David flashes me a huge grin and pulls me flush against his firm and muscular body. His deep husky voice sends a warm shiver through my entire body as he chimes, “This.”Before I can register what he has said, his moist lips capture mine in a passionate kiss.Heat rushes through my body as I snake my hands around his neck and pull him tighter against me. However, before my lust can surge and consume me, the moment crumbles to pieces when Paul and Kai pull us apart from each other.I whip my head around and glare daggers at my friend. At the same time, the cheers and whistles from the crowd in the cafeteria, along with their clapping, roars through my ears. I quickly swallow my words and scan the crowd.Paul nudges my arm. 
I walk into the cafeteria with my head held high and my smirk shining bright. This is the day I’ve been waiting for. Today, we will end this headache and teach the person a lesson.With a spring in my step, I stride over to our usual table. I nod at the additional engineering students at and around our table.My smirk grows bigger as a spark dances around in my eyes as I greet my friends. “Hey, guys. Are you ready for this?”Brandon flashes me a brilliant smile as he nods. “I’m ready. My father has everyone on standby and waiting for our signal. Then they will end everything for us.”I nod and sit down next to David. I give him a quick kiss on the cheek. “Hey, babe. Did you miss me?”He turns and smiles back at me. “Yes, I did. Are you going to give me something special to ease my frustrations for wai
Steam rolls off me as I march into the hazer’s office. All eyes immediately turn towards me as I roar, “Tell me you know who this bastard is! I want the person strung up and taken care of right away!”I storm behind my desk and whip around, facing everyone. I narrow my eyes and slam my hand down on my desk. “I WANT ANSWERS, NOW!!!”An eerie silence falls over the room as I snarl and plop down in my chair. The image of Alex’s concerned face flashes through my mind. We have so many people working on this, and someone knows something.Plus, this has dragged on for far too long. This whole thing needs to end, and soon. One way or another, I’ll make sure it ends.Kai clears his throat and shifts in the chair in front of my desk. “We have looked at everything, but we keep coming up empty. What do you want us to do?”I raise an eye
I wrap my arm around Alex’s waist and rest my chin on his shoulder. I softly ask, “Babe, are you alright? You haven’t been talking much the last few days or bickering with Chance.”He hasn’t been doing a lot of things since we left that meeting with his parents. I called my parents to let them know what had happened, and my mother showed up the next day and spoiled him. Even though she was able to get him to smile, the spark in his eyes was still gone.I have lost count of the number of times she told him she is his mother and no one else matters. However, I can understand how Alex is still fixated on his parents picking their business over their family and him. I can’t even imagine the pain he is going through.Later, Brandon’s father confessed he would have helped them had they said they wanted Alex over any business deal. Unfortunately, now, his parents are stuck d
David wraps his arm around my waist as we walk into the restaurant. “Baby, are you sure about this?”I nod and glance over my shoulder at the others. “As long as our friends are here and Brandon’s father, I have nothing to worry about. My parents won’t do anything to make him think less of them. They want his approval. Plus, they don’t want any rumors getting out about them, which is why I picked a popular restaurant for our meeting. Whatever their problem, it must be important, otherwise they wouldn’t have agreed to meet here. They would have requested someplace else a little more private.”Even though my words come out cold, my gut twists and my heart aches. This is all a game to them in order to get ahead in the business world. Why do they insist on roping me in on it, too? They could have had a good life without involving me.He kisses the side of my h
I shake my head and stare across the cafeteria table at Brandon. “My gut is telling me it is someone close. I hate to admit this, but I think it is someone really close to us. I’m hoping I’m wrong. I work very hard to only have trustworthy and reliable people around me, but this all seems a little too personal.” He presses his lips together. “I understand what you are saying, but I still don’t believe it is someone who is close to us. I can vouch for Kai. He would never do anything like this. You already know David is livid about everything that has happened, so you know it isn’t him. Plus, he doesn’t have anything to gain by doing it.” He glances around the almost completely empty area before he turns back to me. “I still put odds on it being your parents or the girl who they wanted you to marry. You were too pissed off and were shooting daggers are your parents to notice the look in the girl’s eyes.&
I sigh as I stare up at the night sky and lean against the balcony railing. Images from earlier dance through my mind. I knew the press conference meant everyone will know about us, but I honestly didn’t expect some upper classman to act like that. I know he knew who David was because the whole campus is talking about us now.I’m almost tempted to teach the guy a lesson, but engineering is David’s territory. I’ll let him and the other hazers handle it. I’m sure they have something up their sleeves.A faint smile dances across my face.Buzz.What is it now?I take a deep breath and pull my phone out of my pocket. I hesitate for a moment as I stare at the notification.Before I chicken out, I tap my phone. The message pops up along with a picture of me hitting the guy this afternoon. The corner of my mouth curls downward as I stare at th
I walk down the hallway towards the hazer’s room while ignoring all the whispers and murmurs swirling around me. Unfortunately, I can’t miss one particular cocky voice as he snickers, “If I knew the Casanova was going to go for guys, I would have swooped him up first before anyone else could have gotten their claws into him. He is an amazing catch.”My feet instantly stop, and I slowly turn my head towards the group of upper classmen just a little farther down the hall. The one who is spouting all the nonsense chuckles as he nudges the guy beside him. “You know I would. He is so fine.”I raise an eyebrow and shoot daggers at the arrogant jerk. When he opens his mouth to say something else, still oblivious to my presence, I cut him off. “Alex is very particular in what he likes. You would never pass his standards.” I emphasize ‘you’, while I narrow my eyes a