Somehow, being in Jaxon’s arms made that idea a lot less scary. Lucy realized letting go was easy when she had something fantastic to hold on to. And Jaxon was more than fantastic. Jaxon was everything.
Lucy gazed into his eyes. They glittered like molten sapphires and her heart leapt in her chest. Man was she in deep. A rush of desire caught her off guard and she slid her hands up his neck to caress his hair. His eyes shuddered closed and she felt him swallow a low groan deep in his chest.
This was it. She couldn’t wait anymore. She had to tell him how she felt.
Lucy whispered his name. “Jaxon?”
His eyes slid open.
Lucy wasn’t quite sure what she’d been planning to say, but when she saw the way Jaxon was looking at her, everything in her mind went blank. All she could do was press her lips to his in a slow, burning kiss that didn’t end.
That kiss said everything that needed to be said. It was a thank you, a promise, an apology, a vow; and Lucy never wanted it to stop. Apparently, neither did Jaxon. His hands moved to grab her wrists as her fingertips caressed either side of his neck while she kissed him. At first, she thought he’d been trying to stop her, but she quickly realized he only wanted to hold her in place—to make sure she didn’t let go.
Lucy gasped for air, but even having no breath left in her body wouldn’t have stopped her from kissing Jaxon. His breath became hers as they shared the same wisps of warm air between breathless gasps. He pulled her closer, melding their lips together over and over, like he was searching for a way they could fit together that would allow them to never part.
The furious passion that poured out of Lucy as she kissed Jaxon nearly overwhelmed her. She hadn’t realized just how much she was holding back until she unleashed herself. Her heart knocked against Jaxon’s chest and his answered back; his heart thudding against her just as powerfully. Need surged through Lucy like a ravenous beast as her hands explored every inch of Jaxon’s perfect body. The warm water made him slippery and she couldn’t seem to stop sliding her fingers over his defined muscles.
He did the same, pulling his hands down her arms, her back, her hips. His touch left a scorched trail of need causing Lucy to arch against him. When Jaxon finally pulled his lips away from hers, Lucy’s whole body was throbbing with desire.
Jaxon pulled back just enough to look into her eyes. His were blown wide, his dilated pupils turning his irises into thin glowing sapphire rings. “Lucy . . .” His voice was gruff and his chest pressed into hers with each quick breath he took. “What is this?”
She knew what he was asking. And she wasn’t afraid anymore. “It’s the beginning,” she whispered.
“Of what?”
“Of us.”
The smile Jaxon gave Lucy obliterated all others he’d given her before. She wanted to stay in that moment, wrapped in the golden light she felt when he looked at her like that. Lucy could’ve stared at Jaxon’s perfect smile forever, but then he kissed her. And she remembered all the other things she loved about his gorgeous lips—and all the other places she was desperate to feel them.
Jaxon
Jaxon couldn’t stop smiling as he walked back to Lucy’s dorm with her in his arms. They hadn’t even bothered to change out of their swimsuits. It had been hard enough to tear himself away from her long enough to get out of the pool.
Jaxon had managed to switch out Lucy’s splint for her boot and wrap her in a towel before he pulled her back into his arms. She was still wearing the towel and as he carried her toward her building she was still kissing him. He didn’t want her to stop. But he also didn’t want to miss a step with her in his arms.
“Damn, Smalls. I should’ve taken you in the pool a long time ago.”
Lucy giggled against his neck. “I told you I was easy to please,” she said, pressing her lips to the sensitive skin just below his earlobe.
Jaxon shivered anticipating the delicious promise of more kisses to come. He swallowed a low groan and gave Lucy a smoldering stare. “I’ll show you easy to please. Just wait until I get you back to your room.”
Lucy flushed bright pink. Goddamn was she irresistible when she did that. Jaxon smirked. He couldn’t help wondering what else he could do to make her flush that enticing color. He also couldn’t wait to show her all the ways he wanted to please her.
Jaxon picked up his pace. Nothing could dampen his mood.
Except maybe the shadow looming in front of Lucy’s dorm room.
Jaxon knew the instant Lucy saw him. Her body stiffened and her eyes went wide. “Alex?”
The sound of his name on Lucy’s lips was like being doused with a bucket of ice water. Suddenly, Jaxon’s blissful illusion of a perfect night with Lucy vanished into thin air. He reluctantly put her down on her feet, handing her back her crutches.
“What are you doing here, Alex?” Lucy asked, her voice hardened.
“I just want to talk to you.”
“Alex . . .”
“Please,” he begged. “It’s important, Lucy. I don’t want to leave things like this between us.”
Jaxon could see the confliction in Lucy’s eyes. He wanted to put his fist through Alex’s skull. The guy had impeccable timing. Jaxon couldn’t believe this was happening, now of all times.
Come on, Smalls. Just tell him to take a hike. You’re with me now.
But Alex wasn’t giving up without a fight. He pinned her with his dark eyes. “Please, Luz. I’ve known you all my life and I feel sick with the way things are between us. Just give me five minutes of your time. I promise, after that I’m gone.”
Bullshit. That’s just how he was gonna get his foot in the door.
Jaxon blew out a barely contained breath as he tried to keep a lid on his temper. Then Alex started begging in Portuguese. Jaxon hated when he pulled that shit. He knew Alex did it on purpose just to piss Jaxon off.
He took a deep breath and tried to remain confident. It’s not gonna work, dildo. But then Lucy turned around and gave Jaxon an apologetic look. He nearly lost it. She was picking Alex!
“Do you mind if I just talk to him really quick?” Lucy asked.
Jaxon’s mouth somehow said, “No,” when every other molecule of his being was screaming Yes!
Yes he fucking minded. But Jaxon couldn’t get the words out. And then he watched Lucy mouth ‘five minutes’ at him before she walked into her apartment with Alex and shut the door.
32
Jaxon
Five minutes. Five minutes my ass! Pissed didn’t even begin to describe how Jaxon was feeling. He didn’t think there was single word in the English language that could begin to sum up the rage boiling in his veins as he drove back to his uncle’s house.
He felt like a goddamned fool for thinking Lucy would ever choose him over Alex. They had history. And there was the tiny fact that Alex’s family held the keys to Lucy’s future. Fuck! Of course she was going to choose Alex.
Jaxon was more pissed at himself than anything else. He knew he couldn’t compete. The odds were stacked against him. He didn’t have a trust fund and he wasn’t a local celebrity with a budding pro-sports career. All Jaxon had was a dysfunctional family and good survival instincts. His mother was dead, his father was an alcoholic, and his brother and uncle were doing their best to hold the whole hot mess together.
But still, despite all of it, Jaxon had actually let himself believe for a millisecond that he had somehow won the lottery—that Lucy had picked him. That despite the unlikeliness of it all, she was returning the feelings that he’d held in for a long time now. And in that split second of pure bliss in the pool Jaxon had felt his entire world shift. For one blinding moment, everything felt like it was how it was supposed to be. Like maybe his life hadn’t been irrevocably broken for no good reason. In that moment, Lucy was the reason. And if they were together, he knew somehow they were both going to be okay.
But now . . . now he didn’t know which way was up. All he knew was that if he didn’t find a way to get his bo
iling anger out he was going to explode. And he sure as hell knew waiting outside Lucy’s door for five minutes wasn’t going to help. If she was going to choose Alex, there was no fucking way Jaxon was gonna stick around and watch it.
Alex
Relief flooded Alex as he followed Lucy into her familiar dorm. He hadn’t expected her to give him a chance this easily. Especially after he’d seen the way she was looking at Jaxon when they walked up. Lucy had never looked at Alex like that. And the very wrongness of that realization hit him hard. Alex was a proud man, but for Lucy, he was prepared to beg.
In the weeks since he’d foolishly humiliated her by bringing Trista to the exhibition match in San Diego, Alex had started to realize just what he’d lost. He’d thought Lucy would always be there for him. That he could have his cake and eat it too, so to speak. But after having Trista, Alex decided he didn’t really have much of an appetite for cake after all—at least the kind Trista was offering.
Trista was different from Lucy in every way. At first, it had been what had drawn Alex to her. She was bold and flirty and cared about what she wore and who she was seen with. But the more time Alex spent with Trista, the more he found out that was all she cared about. Trista was more obsessed with the spotlight than he was.
She always dressed in the sexiest designer labels and spent hours in front of the mirror making sure her appearance was flawless. And she wouldn’t agree to go anywhere until she knew who would be there, how much exposure she’d get and what the perks were. Then, whenever they went anywhere together, Trista spent the whole time on her phone, taking selfies and posting stories.
Managing Trista’s expectations was exhausting. And for the first time, Alex was getting a glimpse at what dating him had been like for Lucy. Trista treated Alex just how he had treated Lucy—and karma was a cruel bitch. Having Trista blow up his relationship with Lucy was payback for the way he’d neglected her ever since his soccer career had taken off.
Alex felt nothing but regret for his immature behavior. He knew there was no excuse for it, but he was desperate to make things right with Lucy. Because the truth was, the minute he’d lost her, he knew he’d made a mistake.
That old saying was true: you always want what you don’t have.
Seeing Lucy with another guy made Alex want her back. Watching her parade around campus with Jaxon gutted him. But Lucy didn’t cave as easily as Alex had expected. She’d been obstinate about her decision to break up with Alex no matter how persistent he was over the past few weeks. Tonight was the first break in her armor he’d seen.
The moment Alex followed Lucy into that apartment he was flooded with nostalgia for the time they’d spent together. He was going to get her back tonight. Nothing would stop him.
Lucy
Lucy hobbled into the living room with Alex trailing behind her.
“How was PT?” Brooke asked without turning around from whatever she was watching on television.
“Fine,” Lucy replied.
“Hey, Brooke,” Alex said awkwardly.
Brooke whipped her head around and glared at Alex. Then she turned her icy glower on Lucy. “What is he doing here?”
“He just wants to talk,” Lucy warned.
Brooke shut off the television, got to her feet and hit Lucy with one last disapproving glare before stomping to her bedroom and slamming the door.
“Guess she hasn’t changed her mind about me,” Alex said in that teasing tone he used whenever he was nervous.
“Neither have I,” Lucy said, keeping her voice gentle, but firm.
She didn’t want to be cruel. She’d known Alex her entire life and if they could somehow manage to stay friends when everything was settled, she’d prefer that. But it would never be anything more. After tonight with Jaxon, there was no going back for Lucy. He was it for her and she didn’t care what Alex had to say. Her goal was to make that abundantly clear.
“Lindenza . . .”
“Alex, let me stop you right there. I’m not your Lindenza anymore. I’m not your Luz. I’m just Lucy. And if you came here looking for more you’re going to be disappointed.”
“I know. I know I screwed up and I know I don’t deserve another chance with you, Lucy. But I just . . . I don’t know. I feel like shit without you. It wasn’t supposed to be like this. I mean every time I imagined finally getting to the top, you were gonna be there with me, ya know?”
She did know, but a lot had changed from those childhood days when they used to lay in the backyard looking at the clouds and imagining their futures.
Lucy sighed. “Alex, I’m really happy that you’re getting everything you’ve worked so hard for. But I think somewhere along the way our paths started to drift in different directions.”
“I know and I want to fix it. Just give me one more chance, Lucy. I promise I’ll be better. I’ll make us right.”
She shook her head. “No, Alex. We’re beyond anything that can be fixed.”
“Lucy, please. Just one more time . . . For me? For old times?”
“Alex, we’re not those kids anymore. We’re different people now and we want different things. I’m not blaming you, okay? We just grew up, and we grew apart. It’s time to move on.”
Alex ran a hand through his short black hair in frustration. He was starting to pace and Lucy could see anger beginning to color his cheeks. “So that’s just it? You’re just throwing away a lifetime with me for some wannabe from the suburbs?”
“It’s none of your business who I choose to spend time with now, Alex. You and I are not together.”
“That’s just perfect for you, isn’t it?” Alex growled. “Pretty convenient, too.”
“What are you talking about?”
“The fact that you let me and my family support you your whole life until something better came along.”
“That’s not what I’m doing!”
“No? So you haven’t just been stringing me along until you could get your trust fund? Huh? Thought you’d just let me and my family take care of you until you were ready to dump us? You’re telling me that wasn’t your plan all along? Or did Suburbs help you come up with that one?”
Hurt, swift and true, stabbed Lucy in the chest. The fact that he could even think that . . . “Get out!” she ordered, but Alex didn’t move.
He narrowed his eyes. Hate simmered off of him now and he wasn’t even trying to hide it. “You’ll be eighteen soon, so maybe you’ll get your trust fund. But maybe I’ll tell the feds some more shit about your father so he never gets out. It would be a damn shame though. He’s so close to time served. Even if he was serving it for someone else.”
Lucy gasped. “What?”
He sneered at her. “Oh come on. A part of you has always known, haven’t you?”
Lucy’s heart was in her throat. She knew what Alex was eluding to but she had no proof. He was always so careful. But right now he wasn’t being careful. Right now he was pissed and careless. She needed to hear him say it. “Known what?” she baited.
Alex laughed bitterly. “That your father wasn’t even guilty. But he sure made it easy for my father to make it look that way.”
Lucy stood there in complete and utter shock. “No,” she whispered. “No, that isn’t true.”
It couldn’t be. Why would her father have left her with the Alvez’s if that were true? Why didn’t he find a way to prove his innocence? Why didn’t he come back for her?
A strangled sob worked its way free of Lucy’s throat.
Alex only laughed. “You know it’s your fault, don’t you? You’re the reason he did it. Your own father couldn’t stand the sight of you. Not after you killed his wife. You had to know he couldn’t love you after that.”
Alex’s words stung. They were Lucy’s worst fears, so dark and terrifying that she’d never even spoke them aloud. But Alex had no qualms about tearing open old wounds.
He shrugged. “Lucky for you my mother took you in. She always wanted a daughter. God knows why she chose yo
u.” He scoffed bitterly. “I guess it was a win-win. My father got rid of yours and my mother got her daughter. Plus, one hell of a pay out. Maybe I should thank you for killing your mother and making your father hate you. It certainly made my family rich. We didn’t even have to buy your father out. He really made it too easy.”
Lucy gasped. She’d always suspected it, but she never wanted it to be true. If it was true, then it meant that her father had been stolen from her for no reason. Her heart tried to fight the truth but Alex’s sadistic laughter was certainly hard to argue with.
“How?” Lucy whispered. “How could you ever think I would forgive you?”
“Because you don’t have a choice.”
“Get out,” Lucy said between sobs.
“No. I’m not going anywhere. I own you Lucy, whether you like it or not.”
“She said, GET. THE. HELL. OUT.”
Both Alex and Lucy turned to see Brooke step out of her bedroom welding a baseball bat. She held it high over her shoulder and the set of her jaw said she had every intention on using it if Alex didn’t listen.
But Alex still laughed, calling Brooke’s bluff.
She didn’t hesitate. Brooke swung at the lamp closest to her and sent it hurtling across the room toward Alex’s head. He ducked, cursing colorfully in Portuguese.
“That’s right! I’m a crazy bitch. Now get the hell out before I start swinging at your head.”
Alex shook his head and made a rude gesture with his finger, but he finally retreated from their dorm. Brooke ran after him and made sure the door was locked behind him.
“Wait!” Lucy called. “Jaxon’s out there.”
Brooke peered through the peephole. “There’s no one out there.”
Lucy pushed past Brooke and opened the door. She looked up and down their hallway, but Jaxon truly wasn’t there. “I can’t believe he didn’t wait.”
The Accidental Boyfriend: A YA Contemporary Romance Novel (The Boyfriend Series Book 7) Page 22