My Lucky Charm (16 page)

Brandon

“Well, I guess you’re meeting Maxwell Lane. I hope you’re prepare
d since he’ll probably be an ass,” Leah says.

Pa
ul opens the front door and gives her a stern look.

“Are you tryin
g to get me fired?” he asks with an aggressive whisper.

“Sorry, Paul,” she says guiltily before I follow her into the great room.

I spot her dad immediately, recognizing him from television and magazine photos. Wearing khakis and a white dress shirt with the sleeves rolled up his forearms, he’s on the phone with a computer in his lap.

I’m sure it’s the latest one of his creations. There are a few other people in the room wearing suits. One male is on a phone, a lady is flipping through some documents, and another male is on a laptop.

Mr. Lane eyes us before he hangs up his phone.

“We need some privacy please,” he says, causing the room to empty in
a minute at most. Does that mean I need to leave?

He walks over, staring at Leah the entire time. He looks pissed. “Don’t ever do that again. You’ve had us very worried. If you’re upset with me, then we’ll discuss it.

“You’re almost an adult, so don’t storm off like a child, and you need to go upstairs to see your mother. She’s been crying, so let her know you’re OK.”

As she’s about to leave,
he hugs her. Leah marches away without even a backward glance, and I can’t believe she’s leaving me here alone.

“I’m Maxwell,” he says, reaching his hand out for me to shake.

“I’m Brandon, sir. It’s nice to meet you.” I give him the firmest hand shake I can.

“Have a seat, Brandon.” He ushers me toward
a chair before he sits back on the sofa. He picks up a glass tumbler in front of him and takes a drink. I’m guessing it’s liquor. It looks like the same amber color I see in my mom’s glasses.

Martha enters t
he room. “Excuse me, sir. I wanted to see if you need another drink or if Brandon would like something.”

Mr. Lane
glances to me.

“Um, I’ll take a water please,” I say. My throat is dry from this intimidating man whose daughter I love to touch.

“I want to thank you for finding Leah.” He leans back, stretching his arm out across the top of the sofa, drink in the other hand. Then he stares at me … and stares at me. Thankfully, Martha brings my water.

“Leeza really likes you, and I beli
eve she’s determined to stay in Boulder. Take good care of my baby girl, and don’t hurt her.”

He says thi
s pointedly, a threatening look being sent and received across the room. “If you treat her good and keep her safe, I’ll see that you don’t pay a penny for your education.”

“That’s generous of you
, sir, but I’m determined to get a football scholarship.”

He smiles at me. “Well, then I’ll cover graduate school, but I guess we have some time before tha
t. A lot could change by then.”

“I have no intentions of hurting Leah, I mean, Leeza, and I’ll keep her as safe as I possibly can.”

“Then we should get along just fine. I leave in an hour, so I’d appreciate it if once you speak to Leeza, you could give us some time alone.”

“Of course, sir.”
There are only a few moments of awkward silence before Leah enters the room. I stand immediately.

“Would you walk me out?” I ask her. I’m trying to show the man I can at least follow directions since he obviously thinks I’m not smart en
ough for his daughter. I guess it could’ve gone worse, and he did in a roundabout way give us his blessing. For now, anyway.

Leah

Brandon asks me to walk him out, and neither he nor Maxwell is giving anything away about what they’ve discussed.

We walk through the spacious foyer to the door. I want to go out on the porch with him, but I’m sure the cameramen have
their long zoom lenses ready.

“Is everything OK?” I ask, searching his face for answers.

“Yes. He wants some time alone with you before he leaves.”

“Was he rude to you?”

“No. He said he knows you’re staying here, and he told me to take care of you. He also thanked me for bringing you back.”

My eyes w
iden. That was better than I expected.

“It’s odd
you were worried about my parents accepting you. I think I have bigger worries here,” he says.

“Yeah, I guess so, but all that matters is how much I like you. Listen, thanks for not giving up on me. I was
just overwhelmed by all of this.”

He gives me a short kiss and hug.

“I’ll see you at school in the morning, right?” he asks.

“Yes, I’ll be there. Let’s hope it’s a better day.”

“It will be. I’ll make sure of it.” He winks at me and exits the door.

I’m a lucky girl to have a guy that will fight for me this much, and I believe with all my heart that whether I had money or not, he would
’ve fought for me the same. Yes, I love him already.

I go back
inside and visit with Maxwell for about an hour before he needs to leave for the airport. Martha serves dinner to his entourage, so that gives us some time alone.

Shockingly
, he apologizes for insinuating that he didn’t believe me about Joseph Hartford. He also says he likes Brandon, which truly surprises me. Maybe I’ll work on forgiving him after all. I made him promise not to fire Paul, and once he leaves, Paul hugs me hard.

“Don’t ever run off again. I wanted to hug you earlier, but I didn’t want your boyfriend glaring at me any more than he
already does. I was really worried about you.”

“I’m sorry, Paul. I’
d had all the stress I could handle from this move. I won’t do it again, and Maxwell was right about it being childish.”

“Don’t be too hard on yourself. Your father can be childish.”

“I knew there was a reason I liked you. You’re a teddy bear inside,” I say, pointing to his chest. “I really don’t see how you were ever a marine, a Boy Scout maybe but marine, not so much.”

“W
hile we’re talking about the sappy stuff, do you know anything I could get for Casey? Does she like flowers or candy, or should I take her somewhere? I don’t know. She’s so friendly, and I’m quieter, so maybe I should let her find someone more outgoing.”

“Stop, Paul. She really, really likes you. She lights up whenever she sees you. Take her to Flagstaff Moun
tain but at night. I can’t get over how captivating it is. It’s really romantic, too, and that makes memories. Flowers are good but more easily forgotten. Trust me on this,” I say, taking hold of his shoulders.

“I can do that. Thanks, Leeza, I mean, Leah.” Paul smiles
at me before he walks away. I’m Leah here, and I have family that loves me, a big brother and friends. Now, I need Brandon to love me, and I need to figure out what to do about his friends.

Brandon

I
t’s almost lunchtime, and it’s been a drama free day. I plan on keeping it that way, so Leah and I can get into a whole lot of trouble later in what I’m now calling
our
special hideaway.

In a matter of a few days,
I’m not as fazed by the media, and she thinks they’ll leave soon. When we got to school this morning, Tyler told her there were Brandon fan pages on the Internet. Several photos of me have been online and in the magazines, so I now have a fun club like my little brother.

When he said it, s
he scrunched her forehead and frowned as she looped her arm through mine, tugging me closer. It’s kinda sweet how she’s jealous. The other girlfriends I had made me feel like I could be easily discarded, especially Amber.

F
or the first time ever, I don’t feel disposable, and now I get it. Leah’s never felt that. That’s what she’s looking for, to feel secure and wanted enough to stay in Boulder … to stay with me. I can tell her all day long, but she needs me to show her.

I hang back a few minutes before lunch to make sure Leah will be
in the cafeteria. This is difficult due to the unknown backlash I could receive but she’s worth it. I get my tray and walk past my normal spot. I see Gabe and Jarred look up first and smirk. Then Gabe taps Sierra on the arm. She’s engrossed in conversation with Leah.

“Can I sit with you?”

“Brandon Jennings, asking to eat at our table. Unbelievable,” Gabe says.

Leah’s head whips around. First a look of panic
washes over her face, and I watch her glance to where I normally sit. Then she looks to her friends while I stand there looking more like an idiot every second that passes.

“Well, do I need to eat somewhere else?” I ask her with
a grin. She slides her cute butt over, so I can sit down next to her on the bench. After taking a seat, she leans right over and kisses my cheek.

“Thanks
, everybody,” I say.

Troy chuckles. “No prob, man.”

“What’s wrong, Parker? I’ve never seen you at a loss for words? I ask.

He points behind me, so I begin
to turn around, and I’m surprised like the rest of them when I watch Anthony slide in next to me.

“You guys mind if I sit here?”

“Why not? It looks like we’re the popular table now,” Troy says, shaking his head. I don’t think the guys are as hip about this, but they don’t run us off. My friends would’ve laughed them right away from the table. I look to Anthony.

“You don’t have to
do this, man.”

“I want to
. That whole table is irritating to no end. I need to get to know my girl here, anyway. It appears she’s sticking around.” He looks to Leah, giving her a grin and a wink. I’ve always been able to count on Anthony to have my back.

“Welcome
,” Sierra says.

“So, what’d you guys think of that band at Scope?” A
nthony asks Sierra and the guys.

I look to Leah and smile. She’s giving me the sweetest grin, and I can tell I’ve made her day and taken a huge burden off her shoulders.

“Leeeah,” Parker chimes.

“Wha
aat?” she asks, singing back while never taking her eyes off of mine.

“After we
go out to eat tonight, I’m coming over to check out your room.”

“Sorry, Parker. I have a date in my room. In my very, special, secret room.” She winks at me, and I’m fighting a hard-on instantly.

“You have a special room?” Parker asks in the highest tone I think I’ve ever heard.

“It’s
special alright. I might let her show it to you, but you can’t stay in there,” I say, staring into Leah’s ocean eyes.

H
er brows lift. “You’re deciding this, huh? I thought it was my room.”

“That’s
our
room now, Lucky Charm.”

“Yeah, I think I’m going to vomit. I’ll see you guys tonight,” Jarrod says before he gets up from the table.

I think it’s going to take a while for him to come around if ever. I can’t blame him. I’d be pissed too if I missed out on a shot with Leah.

Leah

It’s been the best day ever. I got a kiss between every class from Brandon, he and Anthony officially joined our group at lunch, and now we’re all going out for Mexican food.

Parker gives
the cameras a good show. I think he’ll be LA bound after graduation. I know he’s wanting to do something in fashion. The other guys aren’t too comfortable with the attention but handle it well for my sake.

“Don’t you want to sit next to Leah?” Sierra asks Brandon when
he sit across from me in the large booth.

“No, I’d rather
stare at her cute face.” He winks at me, and I get the same butterflies I had the first time we went out to eat. I suddenly feel his foot glide up my calf. I have to hide a giggle.

H
e took his shoes off. OK, I’ll play his game. I use my toes to slip off the shoe on each foot. Everyone’s talking, so I don’t think anyone notices. They might when we have to put them back on.

I keep tryin
g not to take glances across the restaurant, but I can’t help it. Since Paul had to come, anyway, he brought Casey. They look really good together.

“I’m glad he found a distraction,” Brandon says.

“He’s like a brother, Bran.”

“I’m not worried about him putting the moves on you. I
just want to be the only one who protects you.”

“
I know you would if needed. He’s mainly here to spy on me for Maxwell, but let him worry about whether someone’s creepin’ around. That leaves more time for you and me to get into trouble.” I rake my foot up his leg.

“I’m ready to go to your room,” he says, his green eyes now dark and serious.

I mouth the word “soon” to him from across the table, and he mouths the word “now.”

We finally leave, and the paparazzi houn
d Brandon and me until we’re in the car. I guess his fan club will keep growing until these annoying cameramen leave. I don’t like to think of other girls drooling over him.

After we say hi t
o Mom, Brandon piggybacks me to my room and to what he’s now referring to as
our
secret, music, troublemaking hideaway. He’s too cute.

We tu
rn on Poison’s album
Look What the Cat Dragged in
and chillax on the beanbag. I curl up against his side and rest my hand on his chest.

My gaze wonders to
the bottom of his shirt. I’d really like to lift it up and see his abs. I can’t resist so I do it.
Holy Smokes.
That’s a slab of pure perfection.

“Whatcha doing there,
Lucky Charm? How much trouble are you trying to get into?”

I giggle and feel my face warming.

“I wanted to check out your abs, and they’re even better than I imagined.” I slowly lift my head to look at him, and as I expected, he’s giving me that heated stare.

“You get to tutor me tomorrow, and I get to touch you in the cubicle.”

I burst into laughter. “You’re so bad.”

“You started it.”

“Yeah, I guess I did this time. Did your friends harass you about sitting with me at lunch?”

“Not much. I thought Cole would, but Anthony i
nformed me at practice that Cole’s now screwing Amber. He’s the one who told me he’d kick my ass if I took her back, but Anthony says he’s not dating her, only banging her, so that makes it OK in Cole’s mind.

“It’s d
efinitely time to put some separation between that bunch and me. I can still see the guys I like to hang out with at practice and games.”

“It’s probably not right to say we’re better than someone else, but I believe you’re a better person than most of them. I can’t believe your friend would sleep with your ex that soon.”

“He probably wouldn’t have if I was single, but he knows I’m happy with you. I can say with all honesty that he can have her. I don’t care.”

I glide my palm down his cheek
.

“Thank you for today. I know it wasn’t easy for you
.”

“You’re more important than any of them, Leah, and I’ve realized from the little time I’ve spent around your friends that they can be mine, too. Who knows, ma
ybe we’ll start a trend.

“
Others might see that they don’t have to only hang out with those in their cliques. If you still want to thank me though, you can give me a kiss.” He gives me that devilish grin and rolls me to my back.

He’s
on his side looking down at me and everything feels right. For the first time in my life, I truly feel wanted. Sliding his hand up along my neck and far into my hair, he presses his lips to mine and gives me a gentle kiss.

I expect him to devour my mouth, but instead, he lets my l
ips go and gazes at me with deep affection.

“I love you, L
eah Lane.”

Tears sting my eyes as I smile at him.

“I love you too, Bran.”