A Different Side (University Park #4) (36 page)

I was certain the new routine would be a hard workout, equivalent to an ass whipping. “Yeah,” I gave him a slight nod, “I’ll reach out to you over the break.”

“Do you want me to take something to the car?” Luke pointed to her bags along the wall.

“I’ve got it.” I quickly darted to them. The least I could do was carry her bags. I mean, what kind of boyfriend was I? Hearing myself say that was a little weird. I’d get used to it — it would just take some time.

“Whatever,” Luke mumbled on his way out.

I turned to Lexi. “I can’t believe Luke is your brother.”

“I can’t believe you two know each other.” She looked just as shocked as I did.

“Small world.” I hitched a bag over my shoulder. “And you’re right. You two look nothing alike.” I took the opportunity to give Lexi a thorough once over. Damn! I was one lucky dude. Lexi was hot. Her cheeks flushed and she wrapped her arms around her body. I got the impression I had messed up.

I set her bag on the ground. “What’s wrong?” I peeled her hands away from her body. “Did I embarrass you?” One by one, I locked fingers with her, pulling her close. Touching her was pure heaven. My body hummed with delight. Lexi knew how to get my blood flowing in all the right places.

She nodded and stared at the floor. “Yeah, kind of.”

“Well, get used to it.” I nuzzled her ear, dying to roll my tongue up and down the nape of her neck. She squirmed in my arms, unable to control herself any longer.

“Because I’m going to be doing a lot of staring.” I nibbled on her ear and a low whimper escaped her lips. I definitely had her in my trap.

Score!

“And touching.”

“Raven,” she whispered, “why are you telling me this when you know I have to go?”

I pulled back and looked at her. “That’s just it, I don’t want you to go.”

She glanced at the girl behind the front desk. “But they are about to shut the dorms and my mom is waiting.”

“I know.” I rubbed my thumb along the top of her hand, taking every opportunity to touch her. “I was kind of hoping we’d hang out today.”

“How will I get home? I don’t have a car.” Her pouty lips looks so damn sexy. I wasn’t about to let her go home. Not now. Maybe not ever.

And I had the perfect plan. “I can take you home later. If you want.”

“Seriously?”

“Yeah. Your parents live in Dallas, right?” I just hoped her parents wouldn’t flip and go ape-shit crazy on me when I dropped her off.

The gold streaks in her eyes shined and her lips spread into a huge smile. “I’ll tell Luke.”

I picked up her bags. “Let’s go.” Lexi practically ran outside. It was exciting to see how anxious she was to be with me. I honestly couldn’t wait to spend the rest of the day with her.

“I’ll be right back.” Lexi lifted to the tips of her toes and planted a quick kiss on my cheek.

Luke was leaning against his car, smoking a cigarette while texting. I kept my distance, giving her some privacy, even though I could hear what she was saying.

“Ready?” Luke tossed his cig to the side and started to round his car.

“I’m not going home,” Lexi blurted.

Luke stopped and turned around. “You’re going with him?” His eyes darted in my direction and then back at her.

Lexi adjusted her knee-high boots and for a moment, I got distracted. “Yes. He’s going to take me home later.” She looked over her shoulder at me.

“I promise I’ll bring her home when ever she’s ready,” I informed Luke.

Luke shot me a doubtful look and then opened his car door and got in. He shut the door and rolled down the window. He told her something, but I couldn’t hear. Lexi nodded and I prayed he wasn’t going to cause problems between us. Then again, Collin was his roommate and buddy. I was certain it was hitting a soft spot with him.

Lexi threw her hands up in the air and yelled, “Why does everyone keep telling me that?”

By the tone of her voice, Luke was probably warning her about me. Telling her she was making a big mistake and should go back to Collin. I let out a heavy sigh as the voices re-entered my mind. I shook my head, refusing to listen to them.

Lexi gripped the door and leaned in, telling him something. The way their heads were darting back and forth, I knew the conversation wasn’t going that well. Luke started his car and Lexi seemed pissed. They continued talking for a minute or so and I hoped the talk was making a turn for the better. I really wanted to spend the day with her, but if she came back and told me Luke insisted she go home, I promised myself not to get mad. Better to keep the peace. There would be plenty of time for us to be together.

Lexi nodded and then stepped away from the car. Luke revved his engine and drove away.

“Everything alright?”

Lexi picked up her purse from the ground. “Yeah. We’re good.” I wanted to believe her, but her face told another story. Was she having second thoughts about being with me?

“Your brother’s a great baseball player and trainer.” I tried to ease the tension.

“Thanks. I grew up watching him play.” She grabbed one of her bags and started to reach for another one, but I told her I had it. We walked down the sidewalk and I led the way to my car.

“Too bad he prefers to be a trainer.” Even though I didn’t know Luke that well, I did know he had a passion for fitness. He wasn’t afraid to share that with Josh, Shawn, and me. Lucky for him, he was good at it, even though he wasn’t bad at baseball either. He wasn’t as good as Collin, but he had a shot at going pro.

“I know. He plays to appease my parents.”

We crossed the street to the parking lot across from the dorms, near the stadium. I opened the trunk and placed her bags inside. “Sometimes we have to do things even though we don’t want to.”

She tossed in the bag she was carrying. “True. But at what point do you finally say, ‘I’m going to do what I want to do’?”

I closed the trunk and pressed my weight against it. I thought about all the things she’d told me about her parents. I guess Luke didn’t have it that easy either. I felt bad for both of them. At some point, parents needed to back off and let their kids make their own decisions. Usually it was when they graduated from high school, but I guess their parents didn’t know when to let go. Helicopter parents. That’s what they were. “I guess when you realize that it’s not what you want or you just can’t handle it anymore.”

“Exactly.”

I unlocked the doors and we got in the car. I turned up the heat and Lexi placed her hands over the vents, wiggling her fingers.

“Are you cold?”

“A little.”

I took her hands and brought them to my lips. I breathed warm air across her fingers and she smiled. I loved seeing the happiness in her eyes. All I wanted to do was make Lexi happy. Show her how much she meant to me and how much I wanted to be with her. Gently, I placed soft kisses on the top of her hand and then made a trail up her arm. She shivered and a moan escaped. I loved it when she whimpered for me.

“Better?” I glanced up.

She inched closer to me. “Yes, much better.”

She shifted in her seat, trying hard to keep things under control. But she wouldn’t be able to for long. I was ready to show her The Raven’s charm and affection. I stared deep into her eyes. “I promise you, it will only get better.”

“I’m holding you to that promise.” Her lips brushed against mine and I kissed her softly.

I could taste it now.

Her love.

I was already wasted on it.

And I was ready to drink more of her sweetness.

The odds might have been against us, but it didn’t matter. All roads were leading us directly to each other. The signs couldn’t be ignored any longer. We couldn’t back down now. We could make it together. There was no turning back and I had no regrets. I was ready to run every red light with Lexi by my side. I pulled out of the parking lot and raced down the street.

We ended up in downtown Fort Worth. Tiny white lights decorated the trees, reminding us Christmas was only a few weeks away. The town hall had large presents wrapped in shiny red and gold paper stacked along the steps and people were standing near them taking pictures. At the entrance of the courthouse was a tall nutcracker saluting townspeople. The entire downtown looked like a scene from one of those Hallmark movies that my mom watched during the holidays. It was perfect.

“This is so pretty.” Lexi peered out the window.

The tone in her voice told me I had made a good decision.

“I heard there’s an outdoor ice rink near the city Christmas tree. Do you want to go check it out?”

“Sure.”

I parked the car and we got out. Slipping my fingers through hers, we walked hand in hand down the street. Christmas music played in the distance and people shuffled in and out of shops, carrying bags. The smell of cookies and gingerbread reminded me of the baking Mimi did during holidays. Being with Lexi made Christmas that much sweeter.

“Have you ever been here before?”

“No, never. My family tends to hang out in the downtown Dallas and Northpark area. But I think I like it here better.” We passed by a couple sitting on a bench, sipping on coffee as they talked and laughed. “It feels quaint and friendly. Dallas has a pretentious crowd that can make you feel out of place, if you know what I mean.”

“I know exactly what you mean. I’ve never hung out in Dallas, but we definitely had places like that back in Louisiana.”

We crossed the street and headed to the town square. A huge thirty-foot Christmas tree was in the center, decorated with lights, huge red balls, and snowflakes larger than my hand. Fake presents surrounded the Douglas Fir along with a gingerbread house and snowman.

“It’s so beautiful.” Lexi’s eyes lit up.

“Just like you.” I squeezed her hand and winked.

“Thank you.” She giggled. “Now, it feels like Christmas. Thank you for bringing me here.”

“Were you not in the Christmas spirit?”

Shaking her head, she said, “Not really. Since I missed Thanksgiving dinner, it didn’t seem like the holidays.”

“And now it does?”

“Most definitely.”

“Good.” I placed a soft peck on her forehead. “So, is there anything on that list of yours that you’d like to do?” I had to remind myself I was on Lexi’s timing, not mine. My clock felt like a stopwatch, flying through the minutes. But whatever she wanted to do, I was game.

“Um, well, I haven’t thought much about that list to be honest with you. Besides, I thought you said we’d make it up as we went along.” She elbowed me in the ribs.

“I did say that, didn’t I?” I shot her a playful grin, wondering what the night might have in store. “Hey, I have an idea. Have you ever been ice skating?” I pivoted us to the large outdoor ice rink behind us.

Lexi shifted from on leg to the other. “A long time ago.”

“Then, let’s do it.” I pulled her toward the rink and she took a step back.

“Oh, I don’t know.” She tucked her hair behind her ear, nervously. Damn, she looked so cute. “I know I won’t be able to balance myself.”

“I promise I won’t let you fall.” I latched onto her hands and took slow strides backwards. “Come on, Lexi. You know you want to go skating with me.” I winked, teasing her. “I won’t take no for an answer.”

“But I thought you said you wouldn’t do anything unless I asked you to.”

I stopped and eyed her for a moment. “I was referring to other things.” I leaned closer, nuzzling the length of her neck. Her body tensed and then relaxed, but I didn’t stop, caressing the tender spot over her pulse. I needed her totally submerged in my trap.

“Oh, okay. I’ll have to remember that,” she said in between giggles.

“If you really don’t want to, we don’t have to.” I stopped flirting and put on a serious tone. I didn’t want to force her to do anything she didn’t want to do. I just wondered what it would take to get her to let go and have a good time.

She hesitated for a moment. Her eyes darting to the ice and then back to me. “No. I want to.” A huge smile spread across her face. “Let’s have some fun.”

“Seriously?”

“Yes, let’s do it.” Her eyes were wide, her fear turning into excitement.

“Cool. This is going to be fun.” I led her toward the rink.

“I’m warning you now, I’m going to be like a newborn deer on the ice. Please don’t let me get hurt.”

“Don’t worry, Lexi. I’ve been ice skating for years.” I wanted her to know I’d be there for her, protecting her the entire time. It was an easy step toward proving she could trust me.

“Seriously? I mean, you don’t look like the Disney on Ice type.”

“Thanks,” I grunted. “Actually, one of my coaches in middle school said it taught great coordination, so I decided to give it a try and he was right. I’ve been skating ever since.”

“I wish I would have gotten that advice when I was younger. You saw how horrible I was at playing football and that was on dry ground.”

“You weren’t that bad.” I nudged her. “Give yourself some credit.”

We entered the park area and I stopped at a vendor outside the rental desk. Turning to Lexi, I asked, “Do you have any gloves?”

She pulled the lining from her coat pockets. “No, why?”

“Because it would be a good idea to protect your hands.” I picked a pink and brown knitted cap and matching gloves. “Do you like these?”

She held them against her chocolate brown coat. “Yes, they’re perfect.” I reached in my pocket and handed the lady some money. “I can pay for them.” Lexi dug around in her purse.

I motioned for her to stop. “Just consider them a gift from me.” I took my change and stuffed it in my pocket.

“Thank you.” One by one, I helped her slip on the gloves. Then I placed the hat on her head and tugged on the knitted braids hanging on each side of her face. “Damn, you look so sexy.” I wanted to remember this moment, so I pulled my phone from my pocket. “I think I need a picture.”

“What?” She froze and then ducked her head. “No, I’m sure I look silly.”

She was far from silly. Perfect in every way. Damn, I wanted her so bad. “No, you don’t. Come on, baby, smile for me.”

She shot me a seductive smile, and I was ready to tell her to forget about skating, we were going back to my apartment. I took a deep breath and calmed the ragging desire inside of me.