by L A Cotton
“What do you hate more, Caitlin? That he wants me—a nobody? Or that he no longer wants you? That he never wanted you in the first place?”
The smirk fell from her face, but anger flashed in her eyes. I didn’t give her time to answer, shouldering past her and into the building. When Laurie and Kyle caught up to me, my heart raced in my chest so fast I felt lightheaded.
“What the fuck, Cous?”
“Kyle’s right, Lo, don’t give her an excuse.”
I ripped my locker door open and started trading textbooks. “An excuse? Are you kidding me? She came after me or have you both forgotten that?” My eyes snapped to Laurie’s. “If I remember rightly, you were plotting your own revenge only the other week.”
“Lo, come on, you know we haven’t forgotten, but she can make life very difficult for you and next year…” Laurie’s voice trailed off as I slammed the door shut, my gaze settling on her face. The truth of what she was saying sinking into my chest.
“Maverick will be gone.” My shoulders sagged with realisation.
“Cous.” Kyle slung his arm around my shoulder. “She’s just pissed Lions called her out last—”
Laurie shot him a wide-eyed look and he spluttered, choking on whatever he’d been about to say. I glanced between them. “What aren’t you telling me?”
“Nothing, come on class awaits.” Laurie tried to tug me down the hallway, but I was watching Kyle. He wouldn’t meet my eyes.
“Kyle, what’s going on?”
“I … hmm… I. Aw, shit, babe.” He shot his girlfriend a pleading look. “I can’t lie to her.”
“Kyle,” Laurie breathed out. “Fine, fine.” She shot him another incredulous glare and then focused her attention back on me. “Caitlin and Devon got into it at The Shack. Everyone saw it. She was saying some stuff and he just went off at her.”
“Stuff? What stuff?”
“It doesn’t matter.” She slid her arm through mine. “But Devon shut her down. He stood up for you, Lo.”
“Me? She was talking about me?”
Of course she was.
Bitch.
“I should’ve throat punched her when I had the chance.”
Kyle chuckled. “That’s the spirit, Cous. Class calls. I’ll see you two ladies later.” He stole a kiss from Laurie, ruffled my hair, and disappeared down the hallway but not before turning back around and calling, “And, Cous? Behave!”
I was still seething about Caitlin. And Devon? I didn’t know what to make of that. After trying to talk to me on the first day back, he hadn’t tried again. But he defended me against Caitlin? Against the girl he’d wanted all along?
“Uh oh,” Laurie leaned in, whispering and I twisted my face to hers.
“Uh oh, what?”
“You have that look.”
“What look?”
“The look someone gets when they see a stray dog in need of rescue.”
“No, I don’t.” I winced at the defensive edge to my voice and she chuckled under her breath, patting my hand.
“Sure, you don’t. Just be careful. That is a mess you don’t want to get in between. He’s my friend and I kind of feel bad for him, but you’re like family, so take my advice and stay away from Devon, Lo.”
My mouth opened to reply—to tell her I didn’t intend on going anywhere near him—but I snapped it shut at the last second, letting her warning swirl around my mind.
~
After Summer’s birthday dinner, I headed straight to the pool house, much to Dad’s disapproval. I paused in the doorway, watching Maverick as he slept. The gentle rise and fall of his bare chest. How the sculpted muscle rippled with each breath.
“Are you going to stand there all day?”
“I thought you were sleeping.” I stepped further into the room and his darkened gaze snapped to mine as he pushed up on his elbows with a pained groan.
“How was the dinner?”
“It was… interesting. I thought Nick was going to throw up all over his pasta. Gentry, my dad, and Kyle were a little intense.”
“Man, I would have paid to see that shit.” He sighed flopping back onto his pillows.
“You need to heal, Maverick.”
I’d missed him, but Rebecca insisted he stay home. Macey had spent the whole time throwing me daggers and somehow, I ended up sitting beside Beth, who sat next to her mom, which meant I had to use a six-year-old kid to evade Stella’s attempts at polite conversation. The whole thing had been awkward and strained. But in true Stone-Prince style, no one mentioned it.
“No, I need to get the fuck out of here before I lose my mind.”
Dropping into the chair, I kicked off my Converse and nudged my toes against his arm. His brows quirked up as he slid his hand over my feet, kneading gently. It felt so good I groaned.
“It won’t be much longer and then you can get back to the team.”
He shrugged, refusing to meet my gaze. “Doesn’t matter. My fate is pretty much signed and sealed.”
“What if there was another way?” I didn't want to bring it up before, not until I knew for sure that it could work.
But now I knew it was a real possibility, I just needed Maverick to see that.
“UCLA was my back up plan and he still managed to fuck it up.” Maverick rolled onto his side with a pained groan. “There is no other way, Lo. You don't get it, my father, he's...”
“I get it.” I lowered my feet, leaning toward him, propping my elbows on my knees. “But what if there was a way? Gentry thinks he can find a workaround in the contract, he just needs you to buy him some time, right?”
“Yeah, so?”
I rolled my eyes at his shitty attitude. Maverick was growing more and more agitated by the second.
“I did a little research and there's a bunch of colleges with rolling admissions. You could retake the SAT and—”
“London,” his voice had an edge to it. A warning. It rippled through my bones like nails on a chalkboard.
“Prince,” I shot back. “You can't let him win. You can't let him dictate your life. It's not fair. You're one of the best players in the state. Basketball is your dream. I was reading about Steinbeck University and they’re a Division 1 team, Maverick.” Kyle and Coach Callahan had explained to me that if Maverick wanted a shot at going pro he really needed to be competing at the highest level.
“Steinbeck University?” He shuffled upright and swung his legs to the side of mine. Our thighs brushed, and tiny sparks fired up my leg and into my stomach.
“Yeah. Their record isn’t brilliant but with you they could have a great team. Kyle said—”
“Stone knows about this?”
“I had to ask someone for help. I don't know about these things.”
“You did all this?” His hand scrubbed over his face. “For me?”
“You can't give up, Maverick. It's your dream. And any dream is worth fighting for.” I rummaged in the bag at my feet and pulled out the envelope, handing it to Maverick. He stared at it as if it was contagious.
“I... I don't know.”
“Take it. Just think about it, please.” I pushed it at him until his fingers curled around the paper. His eyes didn’t leave the packet, but I saw uncertainty in his stare, felt the defeat radiating from him.
“The tests are...” he swallowed hard and it was the first time I realised what an issue this was for him.
Maverick Prince was infallible. Untouchable. He commanded the basketball court effortlessly. Ruled the school hallways with silent domination. But he had secrets.
And this one was perhaps his most unexpected.
“But the school can help. Coach Callahan and Miss Tamson are already on board, and I read Steinbeck has an excellent program for students who need extra support.”
“Lo,” he breathed out. His voice softer than before but still defensive.
I sat up and took his hands in mine. “I'm just saying, think about it. I can help. Kyle will pitch in. People want to help, M
averick. Maybe Coach Callahan can reach out to their coach?”
He stared at me as if seeing me for the first time. Confusion swirling in his inky depths.
“What?” I whispered, overwhelmed by the raw intensity in his eyes.
“I fucking love you.” His hands ensnared my wrists, tugging me forward. I crashed against him, my hands flying to his chest.
“Maverick, what... what are you doing? I could hurt you.” I stared at him through wide-eyes.
“If you pull away it’ll hurt more.” Notes of desperation lingered in his voice as his breath fanned my face. “I need you, Lo. Please.”
He hated this—the powerlessness. But I was here. For him.
I would always be here.
“Lie back.” I commanded, pulling away slightly. Desire flashed in Maverick’s hooded gaze as he shuffled back on the bed, stretching long legs out in front of him.
Without thinking too much about it, I stood up and started unbuttoning my shirt. His eyes followed me down, trailing over my skin. He didn’t speak but I saw the effect. The quickening of his chest as it rose and fell. The way his Adam’s apple bobbed. When the material slid off my body, my hands glided down to my jeans and I pushed them over my hips, wiggling out of the denim until I stood before him in only my underwear.
Maverick moved, hissing in pain, but I narrowed my eyes and said, “Lie. Still.”
“Lo, you’re killing me here.”
And I was.
His resolve was slipping. It was right there, in how his fists pressed into his sides or how his jaw clenched tight, the muscle ticking rhythmically.
“Let me do this for you.” I crawled forward, straddling his hips, my own heart hammering in my chest.
His hand shot out to steady me as I lowered down over him, but I caught it, shaking my head with a grin. “My show, Maverick.”
“London.” It was a growl. Low and throaty and a sign of how much it was killing him to relinquish his power. But I didn’t let it deter me. I leaned down, careful not to put any pressure on his ribs and brushed my lips against his.
Maverick
She was going to be the death of me. But I could think of worse ways to go. Lo’s lips danced over mine, her hips rolling over my rock-hard dick, grinding onto me.
“Fuck, Lo,” I choked out and she grinned against my mouth, aware of exactly what she was doing.
“Maverick, stop trying to take control,” she whispered as I tried again to hook my arms around her.
“London,” I warned again. I didn’t hand over power. It made me vulnerable. Weak. It made me feel fucking useless. I needed to feel in control.
At. All. Times.
But this was Lo. She wasn’t out to hurt me or get one over me. She was here for me—with me.
Lo eased away from me, the sudden movement sending licks of cool air dancing across my chest. She stared down at me, her skin flushed with need. But something else was there. Grit. Fierce determination. My girl had a wicked glint in her eyes that had me groaning and my dick straining painfully against my shorts.
“My. Show,” she said again, raising an eyebrow.
Fine.
She wanted to play it that way, I’d let her think it was all her show. I nodded slowly, swiping my thumb across my bottom lip as I watched her rise onto her knees giving her enough room to work my shorts down my legs. My dick sprang free, her fingertips grazing the tip. I thought I might explode right then. It had been too long—too fucking long—since I felt her wrapped around me. Warm and soft and perfect.
Lo sunk down on me and my head dropped back, my eyes shuttering, as I breathed out a long groan. She felt so good. Like soft velvet. And, for a moment, she erased all the pain radiating through my body.
But I needed more.
As if she heard my silent plea, Lo rolled her hips, setting a slow torturous pace. Long dark hair hung over her shoulders and I wanted nothing more than to bury my hands in it, but my muscles were like lead.
“Oh, fuck,” fell from my lips as she moved again, and pleasure exploded through me. “Condom,” I rasped out as an afterthought. “We need a con—”
“Pill, I’m on the pi—oh, God.”
That was good enough for me. Now I’d felt her—all of her—there was no way I’d ever have her any other way. And I loved it.
I loved her.
Fuck, did I love her.
“Are you okay?” She paused, glazed eyes snapping to mine.
I stared up at her, unsure how to answer that because I wasn't okay. I was so fucking gone. Completely at her mercy. Lo owned me. Plain and simple. She had ever since that night on the beach. And I'd walked away.
I'd lost her once, but she was here now. She was mine, and I’d do everything in my power to keep it that way.
“Maverick?” Her voice softened, and I gave her a wicked smirk.
“Show's over,” I said somewhere between a groan and a growl. Reaching out, I clamped my hand around her waist. She gasped as I lifted her gently and pulled her back down, flexing my hips up at the same time. It hurt like a bitch. Indescribable pain rippling from my pectorals down to my groin but it was worth it.
Worth it to see Lo's eyes half-closed with pleasure, to hear her labored breaths and my name falling from her lips in a whispered prayer.
“Maverick, God,” she panted, tracing her fingertips over my bruises. “More, Rick, I need more.” Lo leaned forward, barely able to stay upright, lost to the sensations washing over her.
She needed this as much as I did. It was right now, like this, that all the bad shit—all the stuff with her dad, and the accident, and my dad, and our fucked-up families—disappeared. There was just the two of us.
And it was fucking perfect.
I flexed my hips again, changing the angle. My fingers dug into soft flesh, anchoring her on top of me. I could stay like this forever. Lo wrapped around me like a glove. One of my hands skated up her toned stomach and over her perfect tits. Her body shuddered, and I did it again. What I really wanted was to pull her down to me and lick and suck until she was writhing above me and screaming my name, but my pain threshold was already at breaking point.
Lo’s moans turned into a string of whimpers as I went at her harder. Faster. Beads of sweat rolled down my forehead as I tried to push down the agony and focus on her.
Lo.
Lo.
Lo.
The world stilled, went quiet, and then shattered into stars as I came. Lo flopped down beside me as I tried to catch my breath. My gaze followed her. Flushed skin, eyes heavy with desire, I gulped down the rush of emotion in my chest.
“What?” Her voice washed over me.
“You.”
She smiled, tracing patterns along the ridges of my stomach with her fingers. “Me?”
There was so much I wanted to tell her, to confess. But the words lodged in my throat. I reached for her, brushing her hair out of her face. “Thank you. I needed that.”
A slow smirk tugged at her lips as she stared at me. And I swear, in that moment, it was like she could see into my soul.
“Will you think about it?”
“About what?” I played dumb, still riding the high of her body pressed against mine. Her moans. How she looked when she came apart around me.
“About Steinbeck University.”
“Yeah, I’ll think about it.” I don’t know who was more surprised I’d said it, me or her. But I wanted college. And I wanted basketball. Fuck, did I want basketball. It’s all I’d ever wanted. From what little I knew about Steinbeck University, it was a good school but their team, The Scorpions, was a different story. They’d never made it past the sweet sixteen in their sixty years of Division I basketball and even then, they had only reached the finals a handful of times. They weren’t a team known for molding players into pros. But it was closer to home. Closer to Lo. And it was all I had right now.
“If he finds out—” Darkness edged into my euphoria.
“He won’t. He doesn’t have to know.
We can be careful. Maybe they’ll even have a scholarship you can apply for.”
It didn’t matter. It was never about the money. Mom had trust funds in place for me and Macey, and Gentry would take care of Kyle and Summer. It was only ever about protecting them from my father. By letting him control me—my future—it kept them out of his claws. But if Gentry meant what he said; if he could find a way out of his contract with my father, maybe I had a shot at a future I wanted. A future I earned without his name or money or loaded threats.
“Maverick?” Lo brushed her nose across my shoulder. “What is it?”
“I want it, Lo. Steinbeck University and basketball, and you, and a future without being his puppet.”
I wanted it so much I could taste it. But I wasn’t foolish enough to think there wouldn't be a price to pay. Nothing in this life came free. And I knew my father which meant I knew things were about to get a whole lot worse before they got better.
~
“Didn’t expect to see you up and about yet.” Kyle shot me a questioning look and I went to reply, but Mom beat me to it.
“He’s not supposed to be up and about yet.” Her eyes narrowed, dropping to my arm which hung protectively over my side.
“I can’t sit around any longer. I’m going out of my mind.”
“Maverick,” she sighed. “You need to heal. And if you’re back at school, don’t for one second doubt I don’t think you’ll be back on the court.”
“I won’t, I promise. But I can still watch; help Coach run plays. Be there for the team. I’m the captain, Mom, I should be there. Besides, Coach won’t risk me getting injured any more than I already am.” With regionals looming, I needed to be there.
She pinched her temples and I saw the stress etched in her features. Since our conversation about my father, she’d aged.
“I’ll be fine.”
“Of course he will, he has the lovely Lo to look after him; right, brother?” Macey appeared from behind me and made a beeline for the plate of bagels.
“May as well get over it, Mace. Didn’t you get the memo? Prince and Lo are the real deal.” He was joking but it wasn’t helping things.
“Kyle,” Mom said at the same time as I groaned, “Stone.”