Brooke

Brooke jumped off her bed and raced to the door when she heard knocking. She forgot Lucy didn’t have her key. She’d mentioned her purse and everything in it had burned up in the car accident.

“Coming!” Brooke shouted, silently cursing herself for not remembering to leave the door unlocked as she rushed through the common area.

Brooke threw back the lock and hurled the door open only to nearly pass out at the romance novel scene unfolding in her doorway. McHotty was holding Lucy in his arms like she was a fallen angel and he was sworn to protect her. Holy hottness! Jaxon was like every book boyfriend Brooke had ever drooled over all rolled into one. She couldn’t suppress the sigh that escaped her lips as she gawked at them, frozen in place.

“Are you going to invite us in?” Jaxon asked.

Dang, even his voice was swoon-worthy. But it did the trick, breaking Brooke from her daydream. “Only vampires need to be invited in, Hero-boy. You a vampire?”

Lucy smirked as Jaxon’s brows knitted together in confusion. “Should I know what the hell she’s talking about?”

Lucy laughed, shaking her head. “Sometimes I don’t even know what she’s talking about. But just tell her no or she seriously won’t let you in.”

Jaxon swallowed what sounded like a growl, but then answered Brooke. “No, I’m not a vampire.”

Brooke shrugged. “Good enough for me.”

She opened the door further to allow Jaxon to enter their tiny foyer with Lucy still in his arms. The guy was a giant. He practically had to duck to get in, but then Brooke noticed it was probably because he had Lucy’s crutches slung over his back like two battle-axes. Holy tits, batman. Was this boy for real?

Brooke could practically hear the answer materializing in her Magic 8 Ball across the room: Signs point to yes!

“What took you so long?” Brooke asked when she finally found her voice.

“It’s good to see you too,” Jaxon fired back.

Brooke winced. “Sorry. It’s just I thought Alex was bringing you home hours ago,” she said, looking at Lucy who seemed overly content in Jaxon’s arms.

Brooke didn’t blame her. What girl wouldn’t wanna take up residence there?

Lucy noticed Brooke’s perceptive gaze and signaled for Jaxon to put her down. Once she was on her feet, Jaxon unstrapped the crutches from Lucy’s duffle bag and handed them to her.

“I was starting to worry about you, Luce,” Brooke pressed.

“Sorry. I guess Alex just lost track of time,” Lucy replied.

“Don’t cover for him.” Jaxon retorted. He turned toward Brooke. “Her jackass boyfriend stood her up,” he added with surprising bitterness.

Brooke was starting to like this guy more and more. But wait . . . what? That was low, even for Alex. “Are you serious?” Brooke asked.

Lucy only shrugged, which was her typical response when she didn’t want to talk about something. “I’m just happy to be home,” she said changing the subject. “I never knew I could miss my own bed so much. All I want to do is take a shower and go to bed.”

“Uh, I hate to point out the obvious,” Brooke stated, “but I don’t think you can shower with that massive cast on your leg.”

“Yeah, you can’t get that wet,” Jaxon confirmed.

Brooke watched Lucy’s face fall. She looked so devastated that Brooke just wanted to hug her. “I can help wash your hair in the sink if you want.”

“I want to take a shower,” Lucy whined, sagging on her crutches.

Jaxon gently rubbed Lucy’s back. “Don’t pout, Smalls. We’ll rig you up a shower, right, Brooke?”

Brooke arched a blonde eyebrow. “We will?”

Jaxon shot her a look that said, ‘just agree with me, man, our girl is in a fragile state.’ At least that’s what Brooke thought he was trying to convey, so she went along with it. “That’s right, we totally will, Smalls.” She added the ‘Smalls’ with a questioning look at Lucy, who tried to hide her grin.

“One MacGyver medical shower coming up,” Brooke added.

Jaxon grinned. “I like the spirit. Alright, we’re gonna need some trash bags, duct tape, towels and two step stools that are the same size.”

“On it!” Brooke announced jumping into action.

“What can I do?” Lucy asked.

“You can take a load off,” Jaxon said scooping Lucy into his arms again.

Jaxon

“Where’s your bedroom?” Jaxon asked.

“Wow, bold move. I usually like to go on a first date with a guy before I invite him to my bedroom.

“Is that all it takes?” Jaxon teased.

Lucy rolled her eyes.

“You know . . .” Jaxon started. “I think we’re probably at third or fourth date status already. I mean I have seen you in your underwear.”

Lucy smacked his arm, but her grin returned, making Jaxon’s heart speed up. Apparently, making her smile had become Jaxon’s new life goal without him knowing it.

He continued his teasing as he carried Lucy into her bedroom. “We also made out if you count the whole mouth to mouth thing,” he added, getting a giggle out of her.

“Wow, I never realized how easy I was.”

“Ah, it’s not your fault, Smalls. You wouldn’t be the first girl to fall for the Bradburn charm.”

“Is that what it is?” Lucy asked, not trying to hide her smirk.

Jaxon winked. “So I’ve been told. Although, I think Conner got the devil’s share of it.”

“I don’t know,” Lucy admonished. “I think you do alright.”

Shit, if his heart didn’t just high-five his lungs . . . Jaxon wore Lucy’s compliment like a badge of honor before reluctantly putting her down on her bed. He turned on the light in her room and took in the space. “Nice place.”

“So you really don’t live on campus?” she asked.

“I prefer to spend time with my family.”

“I’ll bet. If my family was around I’d want to spend as much time with them as possible.”

Jaxon’s heart sank. He was an idiot. Here he was going on about his family in front of a girl who didn’t have one. “Lucy, I’m sorry . . .”

She seemed to pick up on his vibe and waved him away. “Don’t worry about it. I think it’s really nice that you want to spend time with your family. I mean they seem pretty cool.”

Jaxon laughed. “Well, you met the better half so far.”

“Oh come on, I bet your parents are awesome.”

Before he could stop himself the words were tumbling out of his mouth. “My mother was the best, and my father . . .” Shit. Jaxon started a conversation he didn’t intend to have. It certainly wasn’t one he knew how to finish.

How the hell did this girl make him want to spill his guts? What could he say? ‘My mother died and it sorta wrecked my father so I stay home to help take care of him?’

Jaxon rubbed the back of his neck, not really knowing where to go now that he’d started down this rocky path. He felt Lucy slide her hand into his and he finally met her gaze. Her eyes were full of understanding. “You lost your mom?”

Jaxon swallowed hard. He hadn’t talked about this with anyone outside his family or therapist. He didn’t trust his voice, so he nodded.

“I’m sorry,” Lucy said, squeezing his hand with so much compassion that he truly believed she meant it.

“My father . . . he just sorta needs me around. That’s why I don’t live on campus. Conner and I live with my Uncle Steven right now. It’s easier with all of us looking after my father.”

“He’s lucky to have such a supportive family.”

Jaxon rubbed his face. There he went again, spewing things he hadn’t meant to. What was wrong with him? This poor girl didn’t want his life story. She’d just needed a ride home from the hospital.

Luckily, Brooke came bounding into the room at the moment, her arms full of supplies. “Okay, I think I’ve got everything. Will these work?”

Jaxon laughed as Brooke held out her loot. The damn girl looked like a walking carnival. Everything she held was some bright shade of pink, purple or blue. Even the freaking trash bags were cotton candy colored. Why the hell did girls have to be so girly? He shook his head, thoroughly amused. “Yeah, we can make do.”

“Can you grab the step stools, Jaxon? They’re in the kitchen closet.”

“Sure.”

Lucy

Lucy watched Jaxon leave the room and felt her heart tear. This poor guy. Here he was taking care of her when he had his own struggles to deal with. From the way he choked up just mentioning his mother, Lucy had a feeling that the loss was recent, and it broke her heart.

She’d lost her own mother—but that was different. She’d never known her, yet still Lucy had always felt the hole not having a mother left in her heart. And she missed her father terribly. But at least she could still cling to the hope that one day they’d find a way back to each other and make up for the time they’d lost. She didn’t know what she’d do if she didn’t have that hope to hold on to. It was what kept her going. Death was so final, and Lucy hated that someone as young as Jaxon had to learn to deal with it.

“You okay?” Brooke asked.

“Yeah. Just tired.” Lucy wasn’t sure Brooke bought it, but she didn’t feel she had the right to share Jaxon’s story without his permission. And it wasn’t a lie. Lucy was exhausted.

Just watching Brooke scurry around setting up supplies in the bathroom was making Lucy tired. “Maybe this shower thing isn’t such a good idea,” she said through a yawn.

“No! It’s totally gonna work,” Brooke replied. “I watched a YouTube video on how to shower with a broke leg while I was gathering supplies. Hero-boy knows his shit. This is everything on the YouTube list,” she said, pointing to the pile of things that now littered the bathroom floor. “Besides, you’ll feel so much better when you’re clean.”

Lucy hoped Brooke was right.

Jaxon walked back into the room carrying the step stools. “Found ‘em.”

Lucy noted his casual tone was back and the honest moment they’d momentarily shared had evaporated.

* * *

The rest of the night passed rather quickly, and it was full of a lot more laughter and success than Lucy had expected. Jaxon and Brooke managed to set up their MacGyver medical shower without completely destroying Lucy’s bathroom. Brooke helped Lucy change into a modest one-piece swimsuit so she could shower in front of Jaxon without going to ‘fourth base’, as he put it. And Brooke had been right; Lucy did feel a lot better after she was clean.

“Okay, all done,” Lucy called.

Brooke pulled back the shower curtain and grinned at Lucy. “I think I might test out this MacGyver shower. Bathing sitting down seems like it could become a new trend for the perpetually pampered—AKA: moi.”

“Just help me up,” Lucy teased flicking water at her best friend.

“I got her,” Jaxon said swooping in. He gently slipped his hands under Lucy’s arms and lifted her off the step stool she sat on in the shower.

While Jaxon helped Lucy stand, Brooke wheeled a desk chair over. Once wrapped in a fluffy pink towel, Lucy sank down into the chair.

“We did it!” Brooke exclaimed, high-fiving each of them.

“Now for the final test,” Jaxon said, starting to unwrap the powder blue trash bags from Lucy’s cast.

Her leg was starting to throb. It’d been propped on the other step stool outside the shower the whole time Lucy bathed. The angle was awkward, but it had been worth it to feel clean. And when Lucy saw the cast looked perfectly intact she gave a sigh of relief.

“Woohoo!” Brooke cheered.

Jaxon gave her another high-five and Lucy giggled. “You guys are the best.”

“This was all Hero-boy,” Brooke admitted.

“How come you know how to do all this?” Lucy asked.

Jaxon shrugged. “I come from a family of doctors and cops.”

“How is Sergeant Sexy?” Brooke asked, wiggling her eyebrows.

Jaxon groaned. “You’ve got to stop calling him that.”

“How ‘bout Deputy Delicious? Oh, or Officer Hot Buns? I could go on.”

Jaxon looked appalled. Turning to Lucy he asked, “Is she always like this?”

Lucy laughed. “Always.”

“Is your brother single?” Brooke asked.

“Yeah, but he’s also twenty-two.”

Brooke sighed. “There’s just something so sexy about older men.”

“And that’s my cue to leave,” Jaxon said, looking stricken again.

“Oh relax Hero-boy, I’m just teasing,” Brooke quipped. “Kinda. But what about you, are you single too?”

“Yes, but if you call me Hero-boy again I really am leaving.”

Brooke put her hands up. “I just call ‘em like I see ‘em.”

Lucy sighed. “Brooke can you see if you can find my hairdryer? I think it’s under my bed.”

“Yeah, sure.”

When Jaxon and Lucy were finally alone in the bathroom, she sighed. “Sorry about that. Brooke was raised by wolves.”

Jaxon laughed. “It’s alright, so was my brother. They actually might be a good match.”

Lucy smiled. “I’ll try to get her to find you a better nickname, but it does sound like saving people is in your blood.”

“I guess,” Jaxon admitted.

“What about you?” she asked. “Do you want to go into law enforcement or the medical field?”

“I was sorta thinking EMT but . . . I don’t know.” Jaxon rubbed the back of his neck. “Sometimes I’m not sure I’m cut out for it.”

“Are you kidding?” Lucy asked. “You saved my life! You get my vote.”

“Mine too!” Brooke called from the bedroom where she was trying to dig the hairdryer out from under Lucy’s bed.

“Seriously,” Lucy said, lowering her voice. “I don’t know if I officially said it or not, but thank you for saving my life, Jaxon.” She took his hand hoping she could convey her gratitude. “I wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for you.”

He smiled and for a minute she saw a flicker of the openness he’d allowed her to witness before. But just as quickly, it vanished. “Anytime, Smalls.”

Brooke

After Jaxon left, Brooke helped Lucy dry her hair. She methodically ran a brush over Lucy’s auburn locks until each strand was silky and straight. Then she dried it halfway with the hairdryer, finger-combed some product through and braided it into two thick pigtails. During the whole process, Brooke remained uncharacteristically silent.

“Everything alright?” Lucy asked when Brooke finally finished her hair.

“Yeah. Why?”

“You’re being strangely quiet. And you’re only quiet when you have something on your mind.”

“It’s just good to have you back,” Brooke said patting her friend’s shoulder. She did have something on her mind, but now wasn’t the time to talk about it. “Alright, your hair is all done. Now you’ll have perfect, glossy waves tomorrow.”

“Thanks, Brooke,” Lucy said squeezing her hand. “And I mean for everything, not just my hair.”

“Hey, that’s what best friends are for.”

Brooke helped Lucy change into an oversized nightshirt and settled her into bed. Then she found Mr. Pickles and set him in Lucy’s arms. “Need anything else?”

“Nope, this is perfect.” Lucy snuggled her stuffed dog to her chest. “It’s good to be home.”

Brooke smiled. “It’s good to have you home.”

She turned the lights off on her way out of Lucy’s room and left the door slightly ajar, just in case. Brooke had made Lucy promise to call her on her cell phone if she needed anything in the middle of the night, but she knew how stubborn Lucy was. The girl hated asking for help and Brooke wouldn’t put it past Lucy to try to do everything on her own. At least if the door was cracked Brooke would stand a chance of hearing Lucy if she had to shout for help.

Despite how long the night had been, Brooke still wasn’t ready for bed. She padded into the shared living area that connected their separate bedrooms and made herself a cup of night-night tea in their small kitchen before settling on the couch with Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. But even Harry couldn’t hold Brooke’s attention tonight. She couldn’t stop thinking about what she’d witnessed between Lucy and Jaxon.

At first Brooke had thought she was letting her hopeless romantic imagination run away with her. But the more time she spent with Lucy and Jaxon tonight, the more she was certain she hadn’t imagined the sparks. There was something real between those two. If Brooke had to put the feeling they gave her into words she’d call them star-crossed lovers.

It was a story old as time. Two souls meant for each other, brought together by chance, kept apart by misfortune. Lucy’s car accident was the chance and Alex was the misfortune in this situation. Brooke was still simmering over how he’d stood Lucy up at the hospital. Seriously, who does that? Especially when someone like Jaxon is waiting in the wings.

Alex was an even bigger twat-waffle than Brooke gave him credit for if he thought he could continue to treat Lucy like she was disposable when a guy like Jaxon was around to pick up the pieces. That boy was a catch. Easy on the eyes, good in a crisis and surprisingly fun to talk to.

Brooke was surprised how much she liked Jaxon. She didn’t give her stamp of approval easily, but Jaxon was slowly earning it. She still had some questions about him. Like why didn’t he live on campus? Why was he single? And there was something Brooke couldn’t quite put her finger on. She just couldn’t shake the feeling that Jaxon was hiding some lingering secret behind his charming smile, and Brooke wouldn’t rest until she got to the bottom of it.

She found herself wishing for her Nonni. She lived in Portland, but the woman had a sixth sense when it came to these kinds of things. She could take one look at a person and tell what kind of heart they had. Her Nonni had told Brooke she had the same gift too, but Brooke was still learning to hone her talents.

Brooke was fiercely protective of Lucy. The girl was her best friend and had stood by Brooke’s side when no one else at Saint Andrews had. And she would be damned if she didn’t have Lucy’s back now.

She was tired of watching Alex get away with treating Lucy like crap. Brooke still didn’t know what the deal was between Alex and Lucy. It had to be something more than blind love or fear of being alone for Lucy to put up with Alex’s selfish behavior for this long. Brooke had voiced her opinion that Lucy could do better for years to no avail. She’d often wished someone would come along and put Alex in his place, and now Brooke was desperate to find out if Jaxon was going to be that guy—the one who would fight for Lucy and show her she deserved better.

Brooke put Harry Potter down and walked straight to the Magic 8 Ball resting on her bedroom shelf. She picked it up and silently voiced her question. Slowly, she turned the ball over and watched the answer float through the blue-tinged liquid.

Brooke practically squealed when she read the answer. Magic 8 Ball says: You may rely on it.

Jaxon

The ride back to his uncle’s house passed in a blur. Jaxon was consumed by all the thoughts he’d tried to keep at bay the whole time he was at Lucy’s dorm. The way her skin felt like silk. How the color reminded him of golden tea with a splash of milk. How her long, dark hair dripped down her back in garnet waves. The way it smelled like coconut and vanilla, and reminded him of the beach and summer and happiness. The way her eyes were a perfect mixture of burnt caramel and jade, with flecks of gold that shined like glitter in the center. Her heart-shaped face and her plump pink lips haunted him. Her shy smile, her laugh . . . he couldn’t shut it out.

For some reason it was easy to shove those thoughts down when Jaxon was with Lucy tonight. It was like his first priority was her safety. But now that he didn’t have worry dominating his mind, everything else raced at him. Everything about Lucy seemed built to consume him.

Feelings slammed into Jaxon’s raw heart with the strength of freight train. He hadn’t even seen Lucy coming—and now it was already too late.