Jaxon

“Bro, you’re gonna be late!” Conner called from his bedroom across the hall.

“Not possible,” Jaxon replied. There was no way he’d mess a single thing up tonight. He’d even set every clock in the house ahead to make sure nothing could keep him from making tonight perfect.

Jaxon finished buttoning his midnight blue suit jacket. His eyes paused on his hands. They were nearly healed—the bruises gone, the pink scars across his knuckles fading. It made him smile. He knew his deepest wounds had always been in his heart, but even they seemed to be healing. And he knew it was due to the unbelievable way that Lucy loved him. She accepted him, flaws and all. It was more than he’d ever allowed himself to wish for. It was closure, it was peace, it was love; pure and unconditional.

It didn’t hurt that it finally felt like the worst was behind them. All the charges were dropped against Jaxon. His attorney, who Jaxon hadn’t been sure he liked at first, was actually the shit. Matt and his law firm made sure everything Lucy had been through because of Alex and his family got plenty of media coverage, resulting in a full-scale investigation into the Alvez financial business. It turned out everything Alex had been bragging about was true. His father built his fortune with extortion and embezzlement. And Lucy’s father hadn’t been the only one targeted.

The Alvez’s were going away for a long time and Jaxon was relieved to know Lucy was finally free of them. The authorities were working on a plea deal with her father, who would hopefully be released from prison after some red tape was cleared up. Jaxon knew Lucy was anxious to see him and he planned to be by her side when it happened.

But today, they had better things to look forward to. Like prom, which Jaxon would actually be late to if he didn’t get his ass moving. He took one last look in the mirror admiring the way he looked in the impeccably fitted suit his uncle had bought him. It was a deep blue with a crisp black lapel, and wearing it, Jaxon felt like he actually looked like someone who could have a girl as stunning as Lucy on his arm.

Conner’s head popped into Jaxon’s room. “Bro, stop checking yourself out in the mirror or you’re gonna be late for your big day.”

“Relax, I’ve got this.”

Conner glanced at his watch anxiously and Jaxon hid his smirk, wondering if he should let his brother in on the fact that he’d changed the time on his watch too. Nah, this was too fun.

“You’re gonna be late, too,” Jaxon teased. “And Brooke’s not as forgiving as Lucy.”

“Believe me, I know. And I also know better than to cross a woman with a baseball bat. So let’s go.”

Jaxon laughed and followed his brother downstairs, where Uncle Steven was waiting to send them off.

“Looking good, boys,” Uncle Steven said giving them each a firm handshake and a pat on the shoulder.

Jaxon thanked his uncle again for the suit, but he brushed it off, changing the subject. “Look who came to see you.”

Jaxon was about to ask who, but the words died on his lips when he saw his father emerge into the living room. He was wearing a dress shirt tucked into a pair of jeans that looked new. He was clean-shaven and clear-eyed, and Jaxon found it hard to swallow past the lump in his throat. “Dad? What are you doing here?”

“I wanted to see my two sons go off to prom.”

“They let you out?” Jaxon asked.

His father chuckled softly. “It’s a volunteer rehab center, son. I’m not locked up in there.”

“Oh, right.” Jaxon was still having a hard time trusting that his father really had changed. But he hadn’t touched a drop of alcohol since the day he found out Jaxon was possibly facing charges for assaulting Alex. I guess seeing his youngest son in handcuffs on the news was the wake up call he’d needed.

Jaxon knew they still had a long road ahead of them. Recovery wouldn’t be easy for his father and it would take time to rebuild trust and mend their relationship, but this—his father showing up to see him off to prom—it was a step in the right direction.

“You look good, son,” his father said. “Both of you.”

“Thanks, Pop,” Conner said, slapping their father on the back and pulling him in for a gruff hug.

Jaxon hesitantly did the same.

“I’m proud of you, son,” his father said quietly, crushing Jaxon against him. “I know I don’t say it enough.”

“It’s okay, Dad.”

“It’s not, but I think it will be,” his father replied, emotion shining his eyes. He smiled, pulling himself together to pat Jaxon on the back. “Now get out of here and enjoy your prom night, son.”

Lucy

“Where are my shoes? Where are my shoes!” Brooke shrieked.

As she scurried around the dorm room, the pale pink and blue chiffon of her baby doll style dress floated around her, giving the illusion she was a cotton candy cyclone.

Lucy stifled a giggle, shaking her head at her roommate’s nervousness. She’d never seen Brooke in such a tizzy. “Brooke, you’re wearing your shoes.”

“Oh. Right!”

“Brooke, calm down. It’s just prom.”

“It’s prom with Conner Bradburn!” she squealed, grabbing Lucy’s hands and screaming like she was at a boy band concert. Brooke’s white-blonde hair was piled atop her head and it bobbed like a cotton ball as she jumped up and down.

Lucy couldn’t help getting caught up in her best friend’s excitement. Truthfully, she was a little nervous too. But it was a good nervous—the kind that feels like a fizzy can of soda trapped in your chest.

“Lucy, we did it. We both found our unicorns!” Brooke gushed.

Lucy giggled. “Yeah, we sorta did, didn’t we?”

“Tonight is going to be epic! I still can’t believe Conner actually agreed to come to my high school prom. He’s going to be the hottest guy there. I’m dating the hottest guy at prom!” Brooke shrieked. “No offense, Jaxon’s cute and all, but Conner . . .” Brooke swooned and flopped down onto the couch. “That boy,” she said, fanning herself with her hands.

“Okay, don’t overheat just yet,” Lucy teased. “Save some of that for when you see them in their tuxedos.”

Brooke sat up like she’d just remembered something and darted into her bedroom.

Lucy shook her head, laughing at her crazy best friend. She loved that girl like a sister. A pang of sadness snuck up on Lucy, realizing they didn’t have many moments like this left. High school would be over soon. And while Lucy was ready to leave the drama of her childhood behind, she was going to miss some of the good things that had been a part of it. Brooke was one of those things.

“I got you something,” Brooke said, returning with a gift bag in her hand.

“Brooke,” Lucy gasped. “I didn’t know we were doing presents.”

“We’re not. It’s more of an early graduation present anyway.”

“Should I open it now?”

“Yes! You might be able to use it tonight,” Brooke said, seductively waggling her pale eyebrows.

Lucy flushed scarlet knowing what Brooke was insinuating. Tonight was the night. “Brooke, if this is another box of condoms I’m going to kill you.”

Brooke smirked. “It’s not! Just open it.”

Lucy approached the gift bag with caution. She’d made the mistake of telling Brooke that she and Jaxon hadn’t had sex yet, and were waiting to do it on prom night. Brooke thought that was adorable and couldn’t seem to resist embarrassing Lucy by purposely leaving things like, The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Sex, around their dorm room for Jaxon to see. She’d even gone as far as sneaking a box of Magnum condoms into Lucy’s bag of take out food. When the box of condoms fell out in front of Jaxon, Lucy wanted to crawl into a hole. But Brooke had just cackled like a lunatic and snapped a photo of Lucy and Jaxon looking mortified.

Brooke huffed impatiently as Lucy peered at the gift. “Do you want me to open it for you?”

“No!” Lucy said, pulling the bag closer when Brooke tried to reach for it.

Lucy stopped stalling and removed the glittery white tissue paper from the iridescent gift bag. Inside was a black box. Lucy knew what it was even before she pulled it out. She held the box to her chest and laughed. “A Magic 8 Ball?”

Brooke grinned. “Your very own.”

“Brooke, thank you. I love it.”

“Do you?”

“Yes! Of course.”

“And you’ll use it?”

“You know I will.”

“Good. I thought it would be something to remind you of me when all of this is over,” Brooke said, sweeping her arm in a circle.

“Brooke, don’t make me cry,” Lucy said, feeling tears pricking the back of her eyes. “I’ll ruin all the hard work you did on my makeup.”

“Nah, I made sure that shit is sex-proof.” Brooke laughed and pulled Lucy into a bone-crushing hug. “I’m gonna miss you, Lucy Lu.”

“I’m gonna miss you too, Brooke. So much.”

“Our colleges aren’t that far apart. We’ll still see each other,” Brooke said holding Lucy tight. “We can visit all the time and trade off weekends at the beach and in the city.”

Lucy sniffled. They were both staying in California for college but it suddenly felt like they were moving to different planets. “Promise?” Lucy whispered.

Brooke leaned back and held up her pink. “Pinky promise.”

Lucy giggled and linked fingers with her best friend, her heart aching equal parts sadness and joy. She was going to miss the hell out of Brooke, but she knew that they would always be friends.

“Now go finish getting ready. Our unicorns will be here soon!”

Jaxon

Jaxon drove to campus with Conner by his side. It was nice to have some one-on-one time with his brother. Jaxon had been spending all of his time with Lucy lately and Conner was doing the same with Brooke. They were officially an item now.

“So, have you got anything special planned for the big night?” Conner asked, giving Jaxon a fiendish wink.

Jaxon groaned. “Brooke told you, didn’t she?”

“Yep.”

Jaxon shook his head unable to hide his smirk. “Of course she did.”

“How’d you like the ol’ condoms in the takeout bag prank?”

Jaxon barked a laugh. “That was your idea?”

“Yeah, but my girl executed it brilliantly. She showed me the pictures.”

Jaxon grumbled half-heartedly. He wasn’t embarrassed that his brother knew tonight was the night for him and Lucy, but Jaxon was never really the kind of guy who liked to kiss and tell. He wanted tonight to be for just him and the girl he loved.

“I’m just messing with ya,” Conner said. “I’m really glad things have worked out for you two.”

“Thanks, me too.”

“I just wish we could’ve gotten somewhere with the hit-and-run,” Conner said, his jaw muscle twitching. “I haven’t given up. There’s still some options to pursue.”

Jaxon loved his brother even more for how fiercely he’d worked on the hit-and-run case for Lucy, but she and Jaxon discussed it and they’d come to a decision. “You know I appreciate everything you’ve done for Lucy with her accident, right?”

“Of course.”

“I don’t want you to take this the wrong way, but we’ve talked about it and we’re done pursuing it.”

Conner was quiet for a beat. “Are you sure?”

“Yeah. We could spend our time chasing this thing or we could spend it enjoying the fact that her accident brought us together.”

“I hear ya,” Conner said. “But I still wish I could find that son of a bitch and make him pay.”

Jaxon nodded. That notion had been hard for him to let go of at first. But he had and he knew it was better this way. “We may not have gotten him, but he’s gotta live with what he did. Maybe that’s enough.”

It was enough for Lucy, and that made it enough for Jaxon, too. The accident had served a greater purpose; it brought Jaxon and Lucy together. And that’s all that mattered in the end.

“Well if you change your mind . . .” Conner offered.

“Nah. I think we’re happy walking away.”

Lucy

Lucy heard the boys arrive. Their rich voices filled the living room while she set up the last part of her surprise for Jaxon. Now all she had to do was wait for Brooke to send him into her bedroom, where Lucy was waiting.

Her nerves tingled as she heard Jaxon talking outside her bedroom door.

Good Lord, why was she so bad at waiting when it came to this boy?

She knew why. Because she loved him with all of her heart. And because she had been waiting for him all of her life. But as she watched the doorknob turn she knew she would wait all over again, because Jaxon was her everything. And he was definitely worth waiting for.

Plus, the wait was over. Tonight was their night—for a lot of things.

Jaxon

Jaxon let himself into Lucy’s bedroom after lightly knocking. When he saw her, his face lit up. She was standing in the center of her room in a jade green dress that hugged her body like it had been made for her. Her eyes sparkled, the green and gold startlingly vibrant against the hue of her dress. Jaxon’s eyes swept over her, from the gold and silver beads that embellished the sweeping neckline to the way the tapered waist fanned out into a short skirt, skimming the golden skin of her thighs. His eyes traveled down her toned legs and suddenly stopped.

His breath caught in his throat. “Your boot?”

She wasn’t wearing it. She was completely barefoot—not a brace or boot in sight. And for the first time, Jaxon realized she was standing on a stack of books.

He grinned. “What are you doing up there, beautiful?”

“Waiting for you.”

Goddamn, he loved hearing her say that. Jaxon closed the distance between them and kissed her. He could get used to her at this height; it was the perfect kissing level. Lucy leaned into his embrace and for a minute Jaxon considered skipping prom all together and just staying there, in that perfect moment with Lucy in his arms.

After a passionate kiss, Lucy pulled back, grinning at him. “So what do you think?” she asked, standing on her good foot and showing off the one that was now boot-free.

“Is this physician approved?”

She laughed. “Yes.”

“Then I think I like it.”

“You think you like it?”

“As long as you don’t think being healed is gonna stop me from wanting to carry you places. I want you in my arms all the time, Smalls.”

Lucy grinned so bright, Jaxon’s heart hurt. “I was hoping you’d say that.”

Then she leapt into his arms.

Lucy

Brooke was right; prom was epic.

Lucy spent it dancing with her best friend and swaying to the music wrapped in her boyfriend’s arms—her heart lighter and fuller than it had ever been.

As the party started to wind down, Jaxon leaned in and whispered in Lucy’s ear. “I’ve got something I wanna show you outside.”

“Oh yeah?”

“Yeah. Come on.”

Jaxon led Lucy out of the grand hotel ballroom hosting their prom and scooped her into his arms. She settled against him, happiness washing over her. There was no place she liked better than Jaxon’s arms.

“This is my favorite place,” Lucy murmured, tucking her head against his neck. Good Lord, he smelled heavenly tonight.

“I think I might have a new favorite place for ya,” Jaxon murmured.

“Not possible.”

“I don’t know . . . the place I’m taking you is pretty amazing.”

Lucy picked her head up and stared into Jaxon’s twinkling blue eyes. “Where is this so-called amazing place you think is better than your arms?”

He grinned. “You’ll see.”

Jaxon drove Lucy to a quiet spot overlooking the beach. The sun was setting and nostalgia washed over her. “This is just like our first date,” she said when Jaxon lifted her out of the truck.

“I’m hoping it ends a little better,” he teased.

Lucy poked him in the side and stuck out her tongue. “Just wait until you’re wine drunk, then we’ll see how funny it is.”

“Would you settle for champagne drunk?” he asked, pulling back the cover over his truck bed.

Lucy gasped. The truck bed was full of pillows and blankets and rose petals. Jaxon pulled a champagne bottle out of a small cooler he’d stashed back there and gave her a wink.

“Jaxon! I can’t believe you did all of this.”

He pulled her close, nuzzling her neck. “I told you it’d be worth the wait.”

Lucy’s heart swelled in her chest. “I never doubted it would be.”

Jaxon pulled down the tailgate and set Lucy on top of it. He carefully slipped off her ballet flats and nudged her knees apart so he could stand between them. He looked up at her, his blue eyes glittering like the surface of the ocean behind him. He brushed back a lock of her hair and ran the back of his hand slowly down her cheek. She leaned into his touch. “I love you, Lucy,” he whispered, and then they were kissing.

Jaxon’s firm lips slid over Lucy’s, claiming her over and over again. Her lungs burned as she kissed him back, wrapping her legs around his waist.

“I love you too,” she said breathlessly.

Jaxon pulled her closer and she kissed him until she thought her lungs would burst. But she didn’t care. She never wanted to let him go. He made her feel bright and shiny and new. He was her heart, her home, her future—her whole damn world.

She truly loved this boy with her entire heart and as she shared his breath between passionate kisses, she knew she was ready to share more.

They had made it. The waiting was over. And so was the fear. Jaxon obliterated all the things that had haunted Lucy for so long. She knew that he was her forever. No matter what the future held, as long as they were together, they would make it.

As bliss stole over Lucy, a thought from earlier in the night drifted into her mind. Brooke had wanted to be sure her early graduation gift worked, so she made Lucy ask the Magic 8 Ball a question to test it out. Lucy played along, asking a silly question that she already knew the answer to.

Now, wrapped tightly in Jaxon’s arms, Lucy closed her eyes and let the question she’d asked her Magic 8 Ball swim back to her mind. “Can an accident save you?”

For once, Lucy agreed with the toy’s answer.

Magic 8 Ball says: Without a doubt.