Alex

Alex paced back and forth in the living room of Lucy’s dorm. Luckily, Brooke had decided to disappear into her bedroom, because Alex couldn’t take much more of the disapproving glares she was sending his way.

He turned to one of his cameramen. “When Lucy comes through the door make sure you get a shot of her leg, then pan up to our kiss. We might need a few takes. I’ve gotta really milk the sympathy since we couldn’t get any hospital footage.”

“Got it.”

Alex checked his watch again and grumbled. This was taking way too long. He had other appearances to make tonight. He swore in Portuguese and wondered if Lucy needed a reminder of just what was at stake if she continued to disappoint him. She wasn’t the only girl on campus vying for his attention. And in his opinion she needed to do a better job of making him feel appreciated. She hadn’t been putting in a lot of effort lately. He doubted she’d even dressed up today. Maybe the no makeup thing would work to his advantage though, especially if her bruises were still visible. But he at least hoped she wasn’t wearing sweats. Alex Alvez couldn’t been seen with his girl looking basic.

Alex nodded to his cameraman. “Mike, why don’t you see if you can find a dress in Lucy’s closet? Something sexy, and white, preferably. It’ll look good against the background of all the red roses.”

Mike nodded then disappeared. Alex headed to the kitchen and grabbed another beer while he waited.

Mike came back out of Lucy’s room holding a long black dress. “I couldn’t find anything white, boss. How’s this?”

Alex shook his head. “Too formal. Check with her roommate,” he ordered nodding to Brooke’s closed door.

Mike looked skeptical, but Alex just gave another nod toward her door and continued to enjoy his beer. The cameraman let out a sigh but did as he was told.

Alex heard him knock and then exchange words with Brooke in nervous hushed tones.

Brooke opened her door all the way and stormed past Mike into the kitchen, glaring at Alex. “She’s not a doll for you to parade around!” Brooke yelled.

“She’s whatever I tell her to be,” Alex ground out after slamming the rest of his beer.

“She has a broken leg, Alex. She needs to rest. So if you’re so worried about being a good boyfriend all of the sudden why don’t you put the cameras away and spend some time taking care of her?”

“Why don’t you mind your own business, Brooke? You don’t want the rumors to start up again do you?”

Brooke gave him a simmering glare. She looked like was she was going to say something more, but she didn’t. Instead she marched back to her bedroom and slammed her door just like Alex knew she would.

Ever since Alex’s teammate Luis hooked up with Brooke freshman year and then shared topless pictures of her with him, she’d been easy prey. Trista McAllister had been into Luis at the time and when she saw the photos she decided to make Brooke persona non grata numero uno on campus.

Trista spread those pics all over the internet. She and her groupies slut-shamed Brooke so bad freshman year she’d almost dropped out. Alex could’ve stopped the whole thing since Trista did everything he said, but Brooke was a pain in Alex’s ass. She and Lucy had become friends and he knew Brooke was badmouthing him to Lucy, so he let Trista’s smear campaign continue for a while.

If Brooke had dropped out of Saint Andrews it would’ve made Alex’s life easier, but the damn girl proved more resilient than he’d given her credit for. It didn’t concern Alex that much though. Brooke’s reputation was trashed after Trista’s slut crusade, and it’s not like Lucy would ever leak the real reason she was dating Alex.

He felt pretty damn invincible—just like always.

Lucy

Lucy tried not to let Alex’s phone call and Jaxon’s strange reaction ruin her good mood. This was the first good day she’d had since the accident and she was determined not to waste it.

“So what kind of pizza do you like?” she asked as Jaxon pulled into the Saint Andrews parking lot.

“Pizza?”

“Yes, for our ice cream and pizza party. What kind do you want?”

“I don’t know. Any kind is fine.”

Lucy scowled. “Really? So you’re good with SPAM and anchovies.”

“You’re joking, right?”

She laughed. “Of course.”

“Just checking. You are the girl who thinks ice cream and wine goes together.”

“Hey, don’t knock it till you’ve tried it,” Lucy said playfully.

“I’m good with pepperoni,” Jaxon offered.

Lucy grinned. “I can work with that.”

She followed Jaxon to their golf cart, which was waiting right where they’d left it in the parking lot. After he’d helped her in and started down the path to her dorm she pulled out her phone and dialed her favorite pizza place.

“Hi, can I order three large pies? One pepperoni, one veggie lovers, and one chicken, spinach and feta with garlic sauce.”

Jaxon whistled low. “Damn, Smalls. Who ya inviting to this pizza party?”

Lucy swatted at him, unable to hide her grin at hearing her nickname. She continued with her order. “Can I add a pint of Cherry Garcia, a pint of Half Baked and . . . hold on one sec.” She turned to Jaxon. “What’s your favorite flavor of Ben and Jerry’s?”

“Does it have to be Ben and Jerry’s?”

“That’s all they carry at Pints & Pies.”

“Where?”

“Only the best pizza place in town. Focus! Ice cream.”

Jaxon shook his head, holding in a smirk. “Okay, you’re kinda putting me on the spot, Smalls, but I’ll go with Peanut Butter Cup if they have it.”

“Good choice!” Lucy returned to the order. “And one pint of Peanut Butter Cup, please.” She rattled off her address and phone number and then confirmed the order. “Perfect. See you in forty-five minutes.”

Jaxon’s smile was full blown when he parked the golf cart by her dorm and sauntered around to her side to help her with her crutches.

His grin was infectious and Lucy tried not to giggle as he raised his eyebrows at her. “What?”

“You sure like food for someone who looks like she never eats.”

“I eat!”

Jaxon scooped Lucy off her golf cart seat like she weighed nothing at all. Then he curled her like she was a barbell for effect. “If you say so, Smalls.”

She couldn’t suppress her giggle. “Put me down.”

“Can’t. Gotta get my workout in if you’re gonna feed me junk.”

Lucy couldn’t deny the fact that she really wasn’t struggling too hard to get out of Jaxon’s arms. She knew it was wrong, but she couldn’t help leaning into his warmth. It felt so good to be snuggled against him, and Good Lord did he smell good. Get a grip, Lucy. You have a boyfriend.

“So you’ve really never eaten at Pints & Pies?” Lucy asked, trying to distract herself from the way Jaxon’s arms made butterflies hatch in her stomach.

“I’m not a big junk food fan.”

“Pizza and ice cream is not junk food.”

Jaxon raised his eyebrows again. His eyebrows were so expressive. “I’m pretty sure pizza and ice cream is the definition of junk food.”

“You say junk food, I say main food group.”

“How are you so small if you live off junk?”

“I blame swimming. It’s an incredible workout. I burn tons of calories, or at least I used to. Maybe I should rethink my ice cream and pizza addiction now that I can’t swim, huh?”

“Nah, I think you could do with a few extra pounds. It’d make carrying you around campus more of a challenge.”

She snorted. “Oh, so I’d be doing you a favor by getting fat?”

“Yep. You’re sorta cutting into my workout time, so pack on a few extra pounds so I can multi task, will ya?” Jaxon teased, curling her like barbells again.

Lucy giggled. “Well in that case . . . maybe I’ll call back and order more.”

Jaxon

Lucy squirmed and giggled in Jaxon’s arms as he teased her about her junk food habits. He’d never seen someone light up with so much excitement just talking about ice cream. And damn it if he didn’t love her even more for it.

Love? That’s not what he meant. Well not like that. He just meant . . . Shit, who was he kidding? The girl was melting her way into his heart faster than an ice cream cone at the beach. She was adorable and bright and the way her nose scrunched up when she laughed made Jaxon want to abandon all his reservations and just kiss her already.

Lucy was busy rattling off her top five Ben & Jerry flavors when the door to her dorm opened. The figure that stepped out popped the bubble of bliss that Jaxon had been living in.

“There’s my girl,” Alex crooned.

Lucy immediately tensed in Jaxon’s arms. “Alex? I didn’t think you’d still be here.”

“Obviously,” he said, giving Jaxon a cocky glare.

Jaxon lowered Lucy to her feet. The last thing he wanted to do was let go of her after feeling her tense, but the way Alex was sizing them up made Jaxon realize the longer he held Lucy, the more shit Alex would probably give her.

Lucy crutched her way toward Alex and he slung his arm around Lucy’s shoulders pulling her into an aggressive hug as he forcefully kissed her on the lips. Jaxon had to look away, but the sound of Lucy’s crutch hitting the ground called his attention back. Alex was crushing her toward him awkwardly and she lost her grip on one of her crutches trying to keep her balance.

“Take it easy, bro,” Jaxon warned. “The girl’s got a broken leg.”

Alex looked Jaxon up and down as he handed the crutch back to Lucy, who looked like a deer in headlights. “Right,” Alex finally drawled slinging his arm possessively around Lucy. “Thanks for taking care of my girl for me,” then he steered Lucy toward the door. “Come on, lindenza. I’ve got a surprise for you.”

Jaxon’s eyes followed Lucy into her dorm. He could see red roses exploding from every surface as a camera crew shined lights in their direction. Lucy turned back to look at Jaxon who felt like a third wheel lurking in the doorway.

“I’m gonna take off,” Jaxon said, retreating.

“But, what about Pints & Pies?” Lucy asked.

“Maybe some other time.”

Disappointment clearly clouded Lucy’s pretty eyes, but before she could say more, Alex called her name, claiming her with another possessive kiss.

Jaxon forced himself to shut the door and walk away. He felt sick. What the hell did she see in that douchebag? Lucy being with a guy like Alex contradicted everything Jaxon’s heart told him was true about her. She didn’t seem like all the other girls on campus—like her only goal was to nab some player with a nice car and a trust fund.

In the short time Jaxon had spent with Lucy he’d witnessed her depth and strength and humor. The girl had drive. She’d been through hell and back with her car accident and even though she didn’t have anyone but her quirky roommate to help her, she didn’t complain.

Lucy was a fighter and she seemed determined to make the most of her life, despite her accident. She’d thanked Jaxon, saying she was grateful to have another shot at life. That’s why he couldn’t understand why the hell she was throwing it away on some douche canoe with flashy ball handling skills.

Seeing Alex kissing Lucy had pissed Jaxon off more than it should’ve. He shoved his hands in his pockets to keep himself from punching something as he stalked away from her dorm. Fine, if that’s the way she wanted to treat her second chance at life that was her right, but he didn’t have to stand around and watch it.