The COMPLETE Coventon Campus Series: Books I, II, & III

by Wright, Kenya

  “Pipe! Evie!”

  Cold slithered against my skin. I closed my eyes and accepted my fate.

  “No!” I jumped out of my dream and back to reality. “No! Get away!”

  Wait. Everything is okay.

  I squinted through the light in Evie’s hotel room. Too much sun shined into the balcony’s entrance due to my taking down the curtains. We’d kept the balcony door open and never put the curtains back up. I could see some of the outside area, but thank goodness, no one could see us in the bedroom section. Enough things blocked the bed’s views—the desk holding Evie’s computer, a chair, and shadows.

  Still, I gazed in that direction as the curtains lifted and fell, giving me a small view of the balcony area. Even though the breeze seemed hectic, the vase remained on the glass table. However, overnight, the dead roses had fallen to the table’s surface. Brownish faded petals scattered around the vase. The wind blew off a few and carried them away from the balcony.

  Evie lay in my arms. We’d fallen asleep almost immediately after that intense discussion. I’d hoped to propose one day in a grand way, not mumble my hopes out drunkenly while nude in her suite. I wanted to get her back first, prove my dedication, and then ask her the big question.

  She must think I’m losing it.

  “Jay?” Evie yawned and opened her eyes. “What’s wrong?”

  “Nothing.”

  “You screamed a lot.”

  “Nothing. I had a bad dream.”

  “What was it about?” She tried to climb out of my arms, but I held her closer to me.

  “It was nothing.”

  Sighing, she gave up and rested her warm body against me. “Tell me.”

  I would’ve done anything, paid any amount of money to take the shirt and shorts off of her. She had on a thin shirt with a V-neck that dipped low. The whole night, her brown nipples poked against the fabric. My fingers itched to toy with them. I would’ve loved to twist and turn them slowly between my fingers. I would’ve loved to hear her moan, witness her scream my name as I pushed inside of her.

  But, I counted my blessings. She should’ve kicked my drunk ass out, but she hadn’t. She could’ve cursed me out and left Miami after my rushing into her room nude and angry, but instead, she heard me out and let me lie in her bed.

  She loves me. She has to still love me.

  “Jay, what was the nightmare about?”

  “A mob going after me. They looked like zombies almost. No, creatures. But they weren’t, you know?”

  “No, but tell me anyway. What were they doing?”

  “Taking pictures of me, trying to touch me, and the women were biting the shit out of me. I kept trying to fight them off, but it was just too many of them. Then I yelled out for Pipe and you.”

  “I swooped down like superwoman, right? Cape and everything, punching the hell out of people? Had a theme song? Something with horns and a cool guy talking over the beat like Shaft?”

  “No.”

  “No for which part?”

  “No for all of it. You both never showed up. It was dark and cold. There were storms above my head and lightning everywhere. And all of these creatures. I couldn’t see their faces. I didn’t know if they were good or not, just...”

  “What?”

  “Hungry. Thirsty. I don’t know. They tried to eat me and just take all of me. I knew without a doubt that they would destroy me if they got too close.”

  “That sounds horrible. It’s like you have a fear of being alone in the spotlight.”

  “Duh.”

  “No, Jay. I mean like you’re more than terrified. Like you believe you’re going to be destroyed. You know that’s not true, right? There are good people along with the bad. You’ll be fine.”

  I hoped I sounded convincing to her. “I know.”

  “Is this the first time you’ve had this nightmare?”

  “Why?”

  “That means you’ve had this nightmare before.”

  “But, I didn’t answer.”

  “You don’t have to.”

  I rolled my eyes. “I might have had a few of these before.”

  “And are you always calling for us?” she asked.

  “Yes.”

  “And we never come?”

  “Never. I think once I might have seen you both staring at me as they ate me.”

  “That could only be a dream.”

  My stomach tightened. “I know.”

  “Pipe and I would always come if you yelled for us.”

  “I know.” I stared at her for a good minute in silence. She didn’t look away. I could see the truth of her words in her eyes. Evie was easy that way. After all these years, it was easy to tell when she lied.

  I swallowed down my anxiety and whispered, “Do you love me?”

  “Yes, but...”

  “I can’t take the but right now.”

  “We should address the but.”

  I kissed her forehead. “Can we address the but later?”

  “If you can let me get up right now?”

  “Maybe.”

  “Please.” She gestured to my arm holding her probably more snugly than I needed to. I didn’t want to let her go. I craved her skin against mine, her warmth and softness. How many times had I thought about us simply lying bed together?

  She hit my arm, but not hard. “You have serious problems.”

  “Do I?” I released her.

  “Yes.” She ran her fingers through her hair and then gave me a sad look—lips curved into a frown and eyes full of concern. “You know that dream is just about paparazzi and fans, right?”

  My voice sounded weak as I muttered the word, “Yeah.”

  “How long have you been having them?”

  I played it off. “Are you about to psychoanalyze me now? You’ve been around Melanie too much.”

  Her frown deepened. “How long have you been having those dreams?”

  “It’s no big deal, Evie.”

  She formed her hand into a fist and waved it in front of me. “How long have you been having those nightmares?”

  “Since we broke up.”

  She flinched like I slapped her.

  “What?” I sat up in bed.

  “Nothing.”

  “I’m fine.”

  “No, you’re scared.”

  “Because of a damn dream?”

  “We’ve been broken up for a while, and you keep having this same nightmare of you being destroyed by some mob and Pipe and I abandoning you. None of that is going to happen. You understand that?” She targeted me with a hard gaze.

  My chest warmed. I tried to bring the moment back to a lighter topic. “Why are you looking at me like you’re going to beat me up?”

  “Because I feel like beating you up.” She made a show of being close to hitting me. “Pipe and I will always be there.”

  “Pipe won’t even answer his phone right now.”

  “Because he needs us to be there.” She gave me a soft punch to my midsection. I only felt a small bit of pressure. “Why would you think that I would never be there?”

  “I don’t think that.”

  “Jay, I’ll be there if you need me.”

  “You’ve been moving on with someone else.”

  “I’ve just been dating a guy through my laptop. I wouldn’t say I was fully moved on, and whether I have a boyfriend or not, you will always be in my life.”

  Sparks of anger prickled in my chest, but I kept it all at bay. “Whether you have a boyfriend or not?”

  “We’re speaking in hypotheticals.”

  “I proposed to you last night.”

  “I-I’m aware of that.”

  “I don’t like that hypothetical.”

  “Fine. I was just saying.”

  “Let’s not say.”

  “Oh, be quiet, Jay. I’m just trying to say that I will always be there, even in the worst-case scenario.”

  “Have you been thinking about what I asked you?”

 
“No.” She bit her lip. “And we agreed that we wouldn’t discuss that until after Pipe is fine.”

  “Do you think you could marry me?”

  “Jay...”

  “It would be a long engagement. I know you are thinking about graduate school and—”

  My phone buzzed on the night table.

  Evie pointed to it. “You should answer that.”

  My phone buzzed again.

  I groaned. “Fine. You’re free for now.”

  “I’m always free.” She got up and headed for the bathroom.

  Yawning, I checked my phone. The investigator had emailed Malcolm Ward’s schedule. Good. Looks like we’ll be meeting for lunch. Then, tons of missed calls came from my publicist and agent. I didn’t know what was going on, but I didn’t have time to deal with it.

  Water ran from the bathroom. Evie yelled out to me, “Did Pipe call?”

  “No, but I got something else.” I never put on any clothes, so I took the blanket off of me, got out of bed, and put a pillow in front of me. Soft carpet pressed against my feet as I headed to the doorway.

  “So, I have...” I paused and took in the sight of her.

  She was bent over the bathtub checking the temperature of the water and messing with the knobs. Every few seconds, she would turn the hot knob to the right and test the liquid with her fingers again. Her plump ass rose in the air, peeking out from her shorts. Her breasts swung under her. I wanted to touch them both, massage her soft curves of flesh and toy with her nipples.

  My body’s temperature rose. I could’ve ripped her clothes off right there. “Do you need help?”

  I want to help you take off your clothes and lick between your thighs all morning until you come.

  “No, I don’t need any help.” She turned the cold knob and touched the water again. “You said Pipe didn’t call, but you have something. What did you get?”

  “Ward’s address.”

  She stood up and looked at me. “How did you get that?”

  “I hired a private investigator.”

  “And he discovered where he lives?”

  “Well, not that. He figured out where he is throughout the day. I know he’ll be at a particular restaurant during lunch. He eats there every day in the middle of the week.”

  “So we’re just going to walk in on this guy during lunch?”

  “Yes.”

  “So this is Jay’s revenge moment for whatever you’ve imagined he’s done to Pipe?”

  “Pretty much. Yes.”

  She shook her head. “And while you were planning out one of your action movie cliché scenes in your head, did you also tell your investigator to find Pipe?”

  “Y-yeah...no.”

  “Are you kidding me?” She crossed her arms. “Pipe is the priority. Beating the shit out of this guy is second on the list.”

  “So beating the shit out of Ward is at least on the list?”

  “Of course. Let’s go in and scare that bastard.” She picked up a pink bottle covered in roses. “What am I, crazy? Enough is enough. Time to get medieval on his ass and—”

  “You shouldn’t talk shit. It isn’t really that threatening, especially when you’re pouring out flowery fragranced soap.”

  “Just call this guy and make sure he’s focused on Pipe.”

  I saluted her. “I’ll call and tell him. It’s just that I was pissed and wanted to punch someone in the face, so I figured Malcolm Ward would be a good start.”

  “By beating him up?” She twisted the knob that turned the shower on. Fuck. The sound of the water raining down on the tub’s floor and the sight of her soft and curved in the bathroom all brought back memories of when we made love inside one.

  I loved when I held her against me in the shower. Steam rose around us. My hands clutched at her bottom as I moved her up and down on top of me. She would rest her arms on my shoulders. She had no energy to do anything else but take it. All her focus stayed on me. Hot water poured down our shivering skin and music filled the air. Always jazz. Always smooth and lush as Evie.

  Evie’s voice broke me out of my daydreaming. “What are you thinking about?”

  “Nothing.”

  “It doesn’t look like nothing.”

  “Do you need help in the shower?” I gazed at her hungry and needing to have that beautiful pussy in my mouth.

  “No.”

  I stepped into the bathroom and made sure the pillow kept my hardening cock hidden. “Let me know when you’re willing to answer my question.”

  A sigh escaped her lips. “I can’t deal with that now. Let’s focus on Pipe.”

  She guided her gaze along the parts of my body that weren’t hidden by the pillow. “Okay. You should go back into your bedroom and get dressed. Let’s get your ignorant plan over with.”

  “Oh, now it’s ignorant.”

  “Yes, and crazy, but I don’t care. Pipe’s not going to press charges. Someone needs to talk to this asshole.”

  “You don’t think Pipe would?”

  “No. It would cause too much scandal, and as much as Pipe pretends to be a rebel, he never really is with his father. He wants his father to love him.” She stopped, not needing to explain anymore. Pipe struggled with the relationship he had with his dad. Neither one of us could really give him any advice. Both Evie and I had lost ours when we were young.

  “The plan to go to Ward today is crazy.” Evie grabbed a towel from the shelf and placed it on the edge of the sink.

  “Crazy could be good.”

  “Or bad, like your last ridiculous plan of two women.”

  I cringed. “Well...now, I’m asking you to just be my one woman. No one else.”

  “Are we back to that?”

  “You brought it up. Give me a good reason why us getting engaged now is not a good idea.”

  “We just broke up.”

  “Now we’re working toward saving us. Give me another chance.”

  “When you go pro, you’ll be hammered by sports groupies every single day.”

  “There would be no one else that could get my heart now. You’re inside of me. I can’t get you out of my head.”

  She rolled her eyes and put her back to me.

  I held my hands out to the sides. “I’m having nightmares about big-breasted women biting me.”

  She muttered, “They should.”

  “That’s mature.”

  “I don’t think you would be able to stay focused on us. Women would be flirting with you any moment you’re alone.”

  “They do that now, and I haven’t even touched another woman beside you.”

  She glanced over her shoulder. “Bullshit.”

  “No, bullshit.”

  “You haven’t had sex with anybody else?”

  “No. I haven’t touched or flirted with anybody. Some of the team members think you broke my dick.”

  “I should have.”

  “Again, very mature.”

  “You really haven’t had sex with anyone else?” she asked.

  “You think I don’t have any self-control?”

  “I think you’re a normal, single man with the world at his hands.”

  My phone buzzed on the bed. “Look. I’m going to see who’s calling me. I just want you to think about my offer. I know it wasn’t romantic how I brought it to you last night, but even seeing you talk to someone else just killed me. I can’t take it. You want to know about those nightmares? Well, they’re about you. Pipe and you. I need you both in my life. I need you by my side, Evie. You’re my heart. Pipe’s my courage. I need you both.”

  “You have all of that on your own.”

  “I want you next to me.”

  “You have the whole world at your fingers.”

  “If you think I’ve got the world at my hands, then help rule it with me.”

  I wished she faced me. I wanted to see the expression her face. She stood still for several seconds. Didn’t move and never made a sound.

  My phone buzzed some mo
re.

  Why the fuck are people calling me so much this morning?

  “What’s on your mind?” I asked.

  Finally, she moved away from the sink. “I’m going to take a shower, Romeo.”

  “Well, make sure you think about my marriage proposal, Juliet.”

  “And make sure you tell the investigator to find Pipe. And when we see this asshole that hurt Pipe, try to stay on your best behavior.”

  “You’re the one that will probably sock him first.”

  “If so, you’ve got my bail?” She giggled.

  “Don’t even joke like that.” I left her room using the pillow as my shield and the balcony as my mouth.

  She’s going to say yes. She has to. I won’t bring it up anymore. We’ll find Pipe after I scare the crap out of this guy, and then I’ll really propose. How should I do it?

  Below, tons of cars parked in front of the hotel. I leaned over a little. A group of paparazzi sat outside by most of the cars.

  “Hey, Evie. Someone famous is staying at the hotel,” I called after her, but didn’t think she heard. “Oh well, we can’t go out the front. We’ll have to sneak out of the back with hats and sunglasses on. The news is about to surprise some famous asshole.”

  Once I got in the room, I hurried with getting dressed.

  For lunch, Malcolm Ward dined at a restaurant called Havoc. I’d heard about the place before from Pipe. They must’ve eaten there together many times. The biggest thing that I remember is that the menu changed every month and Pipe claimed that the chef caused chaos in the kitchen.

  “You called me at four in the morning to talk about a restaurant?” I asked.

  “It’s not just a restaurant,” Pipe sang over the line. “It’s Havoc.”

  “And Havoc is a good thing?”

  “Why, yes, My Juicy Jay.”

  “I’ve asked you not to call me that.”

  “They sprinkled lavender over tender strips of creamed chicken. It sounds nasty, but I must’ve licked my plate. My date dropped a good thousand on the meal.”

  “Wow. He paid?”

  “Yeah. I finally found someone that can handle my taste.”

  “Who is he?” I asked, my curiosity perking up. Pipe didn’t share much with me because he knew I expected all the guys he dated to be at a high standard.

  “He’s a corporate man.”

  “Your father know him?”

  “Even worse.”