The Winning Side

by C. M. Doporto

  The Winning Side

  Book 3

  in

  The University Park Series

  By CM Doporto

  The Winning Side

  Book 3 in

  The University Park Series

  Version 2

  The Winning Side Copyright © 2014 CM Doporto

  All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book, or portions thereof, in any form without written permission except for the use of brief quotations embodied in articles, reviews, or posts.

  Published by:

  http://www.cmdoporto.com

  Cover design by Cora Graphics

  Edited by Monica Black and Jessa Markert

  Copyright 2014 by CM Doporto

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, educational facilities, events, or locales, is entirely coincidental. Any trademarks mentioned herein are not authorized by the trademark owners and do not in any way mean the work is sponsored by or associated with the trademark owners. Any trademarks used are specifically in a descriptive capacity.

  eBook ISBN: 978-1-502208-50-7

  Table of Contents

  Table of Contents

  Acknowledgements

  Dedication

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Epilogue

  About the Author

  Acknowledgements

  I’d like to thank my husband, son, and mom for their continued support. Lord knows I couldn’t do this without each of you.

  A huge shout out to my critique partner, Sam. Your help has been wonderful and I’m glad we work well together. Many thanks to my street team, CM Doporto’s Heroes and Heroines. I appreciate your dedication and time with supporting my books and getting the word out. A big thank you to Smexy Fab Four for managing my street team and Wickedly Innocent Promotions for all the support. Thanks to Cora Graphics for creating another beautiful cover! Many, many thanks to Monica for the edits on this book. You’re awesome! And Jessa for stepping in and helping with edits, too.

  I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the bloggers and reviewers who take the time to read and post reviews. Your support of indie authors helps get the attention of readers we work hard to obtain.

  A huge thank you to you, the reader. Without you there would be no one to read my story. I appreciate you taking the time to read it. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did writing it.

  Most of all I want to thank our Heavenly Father for providing me with the opportunity to do what I love, write.

  Dedication

  To anyone who’s had to fight for the one they love,

  this book is dedicated to you.

  And now these three remain: faith, hope, and love.

  But the greatest of these is love. 1 Corinthians 13

  Chapter 1

  I wasn’t the only one caught in The Raven’s trap. He was too, except his trap was deadly. He’d been clean for nine months, sixteen days, and thirteen hours before the temptations of the world trapped him once more. It would be hard as hell to pull him away from it for good, but I was determined to help him do it. No matter the cost.

  “Relax. Everything is going to be okay.” I flipped the back of his collar, tucking it over his tie.

  “I can’t relax, Lexi. I really eff’d up.” Raven stared into the mirror, working his tie into a perfect knot. Worry etched deep into his temples and his entire body looked frail, like he’d been hit by a train. Then again, he’d almost died from alcohol poisoning mixed with hydrocodone. He was lucky to be alive.

  “I know, but you’re going to march into the coach’s office and plead your case to him.” I encouraged him the best way I knew how, even though I wanted to punch him in the face. I had to put my feelings aside and support the man I loved. He needed me and I feared that if I didn’t give him what he needed, he might never recover from the blow. Maybe a part of me felt guilty about the stunt my parents pulled — even though Raven was responsible for his choices and needed to be held accountable for them.

  He turned to me, resting his hands on my waist. “But, what if he refuses to give me another chance?”

  “Don’t think that way. You have to keep a positive mind about this, Raven.” I lifted his chin, aligning our eyes. “I know it’s not easy, but you have to believe in yourself and know that you can turn things around for good.”

  “You believe me, don’t you?” His lips twitched to the side.

  “As long as you’re telling me the truth.” I held my gaze steady to his, watching for any signs of dishonesty. I saw regret, pain, and anguish all circling around in the centers of his eyes. The strong, well-built quarterback that could topple a two hundred and fifty pound guy looked so vulnerable. So fragile. The weakest I’d ever seen him. I had to trust my instincts and believe he was telling me the truth.

  “I promise you, I didn’t take those pills. Someone must have slipped them in my drink. When I woke up in the hospital, I didn’t know what the hell had happened.” His shoulders slumped and his chest crumpled inward like all life had been sucked from him. “All I wanted to do was drink away the pain… drink away the memories of you and me.”

  Tears welled in my eyes and I quickly blinked them away. I had to be strong, strong when Raven was at his weakest, even when all I wanted to do was sob with him in the misery we both experienced. “We’ll talk about it later. Now isn’t the right time. You have to get your head together and tell Coach what happened.”

  “What if he doesn’t believe me?”

  “Hopefully he will.”

  “What if he tells me I have to play?” He shifted his weight. “To be honest, I don’t think I can. I’ve never felt so weak.” He sat on the edge of the bed, looking feeble. He was in no condition to play football. He ran his hands over his head repeatedly, but it did nothing to tame his messy hair.

  I zipped up his duffle bag. “Maybe he’ll allow you stay here instead of going to the hotel. I think you need to rest all day and see how you feel.”

  “No doubt that’s what I need. But when the media gets word that I’m not available for the press conference, they’re going to wonder what the hell happened.”

  I sucked in a deep breath. He had a point and I had no idea how he was going to get around what happened thirty-six hours ago. “Maybe he’ll say you have the flu and its unknown whether you’ll play.”

  “I’ve played with the flu, this is worse.” Raven fell against the mattress and I couldn’t help but feel sorry for him. He had a lot riding on him. That stress, coupled with a near death experience, was enough to put any man down.

  I crawled across the bed and hovered over him. His mesmerizing eyes had lost some of their luster and his smooth tan skin looked gray and pale. But regardless of not being one-hundred percent, he was still damn hot.

  “This wasn’t how things were supposed to be,” he sighed.

  “I know, but we’re going to make the best of it, regardless of what happens.”

  “You promise?” A hint of sadness crept through his voice.

  I cupped his cheek. “I told you I would stay by your side becau
se I love you. All I ask is that you’re honest with me.”

  He placed a soft kiss on my lips and I prayed, yet again, he was being honest with me. Because feeling his touch made me want to forget about everything that had happened and allow him to make love to me as we shut the world out, but reality reminded me that we had more pressing issues at the moment. We were facing a new reality — Raven being kicked off the team and losing any chance of being drafted.

  “Raven, let’s go.” A strum of knocks sounded at his door and then it flung open.

  I rolled to the side and saw Josh standing in the doorway. “Make out later, we have a bus to catch.”

  Josh was dressed similar to Raven, wearing a starched, white, button-down shirt with a tie and dress slacks.

  “I have your jacket,” Shelby yelled from the living room.

  “I don’t know, man.” Raven rose slowly. “I don’t think I can make it.”

  Josh adjusted the bag in his hand. His brows knitted tightly together as he appraised Raven from head to toe. “You feel that bad?”

  “Yeah, I really do.” Raven leaned to the side and nearly tipped over when he reached for his duffle bag.

  “Whoa.” Josh extended a hand, keeping him from toppling. “What are you going to tell Coach?”

  “I’m going to have to tell him what happened. I can’t hide it.” Raven looked at him with sleepy eyes. I wasn’t even sure he could make it to the training facility at this point.

  “You’re fucked.” Josh shook his head, his nostrils flaring. “But I don’t think you have much of a choice.”

  Raven shuffled past Josh. “Thanks for the support.” He patted him on the shoulder and then walked down the hall.

  Josh looked at me for a moment and I shrugged. “It is what it is.”

  “Damn it!” Josh stomped his foot and then spun on his heels, trekking out of the room.

  I grabbed my purse and coat and then went to the living room. Raven pulled on his jacket and I picked up his bag. “I’ll carry this for you.”

  He placed a kiss on my forehead. “Thanks, baby.”

  “I’ll drive.” Shelby took the keys from Josh’s hand. He hesitated for a moment, but allowed her to take them. His face was beet red and scrunched with fury. I think he knew what was about to happen and he was pissed about it. The star quarterback wouldn’t be playing in the bowl and the team might lose without him. Raven remained silent. He knew it, too. I followed them out of the apartment, locking the door behind us.

  After we all piled into Josh’s truck, Shelby drove toward the training facilities. The sun shined brightly and the sky was crystal clear, a stark contrast from the somber mood looming inside the vehicle. Banners hung from the light poles, waving in the crisp January wind, reminding the city to support the university’s bowl game.

  Luckily for Raven, it was in Arlington, just a twenty minute drive from Fort Worth and not out of town. Then again, if the game would’ve been out of town, Raven wouldn’t have been at Jared’s. Typically, the team would leave several days before the game, but since it was local, they were only leaving two days ahead instead.

  A large purple and black bus waited in front of the stadium along with family, friends, and fans — everyone faring goodbye to their favorite college football team, wishing them good luck, and cheering for them to bring home the trophy. Many of them were probably waiting to see their number one quarterback. Would Raven be able to hold that title?

  “Did you call Coach?” Josh asked.

  Raven stared out the window with his head pressed against the glass. “Yeah, I told him I needed to talk to him before we left.”

  “You should’ve come up here first thing this morning,” Josh huffed. “Avoid all this unneeded attention.” He shook his head, eyeing the crowd and the people running up to see who was inside the truck.

  “I know, man. But I literally couldn’t get out of bed.” Raven voice sounded weak. A part of me kind of hoped the coach wouldn’t allow him to play — not because I didn’t what him to partake in the biggest game of the year, but because I feared for his safety. He could really get hurt.

  Josh took a deep breath and flung open the door the second Shelby put the truck into park. He grabbed his bag and slammed the door shut, shouldering past the groves of people.

  “Josh, wait!” Shelby scurried after him, trying to balance herself in stacked heels and the huge handbag hanging off her arm. Her wavy blonde hair whipped around her as she followed Josh inside the facility.

  We got out of the truck and Raven shut the door. A few people called for his attention while snapping pictures of him. He gave a slight wave as he leaned against the door, unable to hold up his own weight. I stood in front of him, adjusting the collar of his jacket. “You look handsome.”

  “No I don’t. I look like shit.” He ran his hand over his face.

  “Well, you might feel like shit, but you still look good.” I winked.

  “Thanks for being here for me, even though I don’t deserve it.” His eyes wandered off toward the crowd behind us and it seemed like he was having a hard time concentrating.

  “I’ll be here, waiting. I’m not leaving until I know what the coach tells you. And your mom will be waiting for your call.” I gripped my waist with my hands and looked around at all the smiling faces. I couldn’t deny that I was slightly peeved that I wasn’t among the elated crowds. Instead, I was the one with a knotted stomach and baited breath.

  If they only knew.

  “You can wait inside.” Raven took my hand and we walked toward the double doors.

  While the fans waved, Raven put on his game face, smiling back and giving a big sweep of his hand. I smiled at everyone, playing the perfect part of the girlfriend, even though we hadn’t discussed why he had left me in the first place. My first priority was getting the story straight regarding what had happened at Jared’s place, and then helping him pull himself together for his discussion with the coach.

  I was relieved when the doctor showed Raven’s medical report to Trish and me. Armed with the facts of what he had taken gave me a basis to go from — he had drank way too much alcohol, but hadn’t been doing cocaine like I’d thought. The doctor said he had the equivalent of three hydrocodone pills in his system, which wasn’t that high of a dose, but coupled with large amounts of alcohol was nearly enough to kill him. I had honestly feared that he had been snorting cocaine, popping pills, and slugging down bottles of liquor.

  I still had to find out why he’d sent that text to me. Though, deep down, I knew my mother had something to do with it. One step at a time. I had to take everything in strides and stay calm, but most of all, supportive. The talk about us would have to wait.

  I sat outside the coach’s office with Shelby at my side. Josh was too pissed to wait with us and went to the bus instead. He told Shelby that he couldn’t be around when Raven got out of his meeting, claiming he needed to decompress before he beat Raven with his fist. I agreed that he should distance himself because Raven couldn’t take an ass kicking right now. He could barely stand on his own.

  “Lexi?” a voice called from down the hall.

  I turned to see Shawn sprinting toward us.

  “What’s up with him?” Shelby asked.

  “I don’t know.” I perched on the edge of my chair, contemplating whether to meet him halfway or just wait. I stood up slowly and took a few steps in his direction. “What’s wrong?”

  Shawn took several deep breaths. “Where’s Raven?”

  “Talking to the coach.” I shot Shelby a questioning gaze.

  “Shit!” He slammed his fist in the palm of his hand. “I really need to talk him. I’ve been texting and calling him since early this morning. I even went to the hospital.”

  “He got released yesterday evening. He came home and went straight to bed.”

  Shawn took another deep breath and gripped his waist. “I have to interrupt their meeting.”

  “Wait,” I held out my arm, “can you tell me what’s g
oing on?”

  Shawn looked at me and then at Shelby before motioning for us to come closer toward him. “I saw Jared slip some pills into Raven’s drink.”

  The air in my lungs stalled and the room spun around me. I sucked in a deep breath, trying to steady myself. “You saw him?”

  “Well, sort of.”

  I grabbed a fistful of his shirt. “And you didn’t stop him?” I seethed.

  Shawn held up his hands. “Hold on, let me explain.” He whipped out his phone from his pocket and I released his shirt. I smoothed out the wrinkles with the palm of my hand, deciding that I should give him the benefit of the doubt. He swiped his screen and then hesitated for a moment. “Promise me you’re not going to get pissed when you see this picture.”

  I rolled my eyes, but braced myself. God only knew what I was about to see. “Okay, I promise.”

  He held up his phone, showing us the picture. I stared at it for a moment. Macy had her lips firmly planted on Raven’s while he squeezed her butt with one of his hands. “I don’t want to see this skank making out with my boyfriend.” I pushed his hand away from me.

  “Wait.” Shawn shoved the phone into my hand. “Look at what’s going on in the background.”

  Hesitantly, I took the phone from his hand and expanded the picture. In Raven’s other hand was a glass, and Jared was dropping something in it. “Holy shit. Did Jared drug Raven?” I looked at the picture closely, zooming in to get a better view. It wasn’t completely clear, but something small, like a pill, had fallen from Jared’s fingers into Raven’s drink.

  “Let me see that,” Shelby said, trying to catch a better glimpse.

  I handed her the phone. “Where did you get this picture?”

  “From a girl I know. She was taking pictures of everyone that night and apparently snapped this one. She sent it to me last night. I have to show it to Raven.”

  I grabbed the phone from Shelby’s hand and shoved it into Shawn’s chest. “What are you waiting for? Get in there! You need to show him and Coach.” I pointed toward the coach’s office.