University Park Series Box Set: Books 1-3 (40 page)
Read University Park Series Box Set: Books 1-3 Online
Authors: CM Doporto
The large door was slightly ajar and a
low light filtered through the crack. I slipped through the opening and gasped
when I saw Raven laying on the hospital bed with wires connected to his arms as
several monitors kept tabs on his vitals. His eyes were closed and he looked
peaceful as his chest rose and fell in steady movements. Thank God, he was
alive.
I tiptoed to his bed and eased beside
him. Taking his hand in mine, I held on to it and raised it to my lips. I
kissed his fingers and then pressed his palm to my cheek, dying to feel his
touch. His hands were cold and didn’t hold the usual warmth that I had grown
accustomed to. I figured it was because he’d nearly died and it would take a
while for his body temperature to get back to normal. Damn, he made me so mad.
I wanted to yell at him and kiss him at the same time.
As I lowered his hand, he stirred and
his eyes cracked open. “Le-xi?”
Tears streamed down my cheeks and my
heart leaped at the sound of his voice. It felt so good to hear him call my
name. “Yes, it’s me. I’m here.”
He cleared his throat a few times as if
struggling to talk. “What are you doing here?”
“Shh.” I rested his hand next to him.
“You’re going to be okay.”
He shifted and kicked the blanket that
covered him. “Is it really you?” He cupped my cheek with his hand and sighed.
“Yeah, babe, it’s really me.”
Instinctively, I placed my hand on top of his, relishing in his familiar touch.
It felt so good.
So right.
“I never thought I’d see you again.” He
blinked slowly as he flashed me a lopsided smile.
“Well, here I am.” My heart soared and
unfettered emotions flayed from me. Never had I cared this way about anyone
before. It made me only want to get closer to him and never leave his side.
“Come here.” He held open his arms open
wide and I crawled into the bed, wrapping my body around his. The coldness of
his body made me shiver, but I refused to let go.
I promised myself I’d never let go.
Never again.
He took long, slow breaths as the
monitor above us beeped in perfect tune with his heart and I rejoiced at the
sound. His fingers threaded through my hair and I rested my head against his
chest. We kept a steady gaze on each other and it released the familiar
feelings that I’d been missing over the past week.
“What the hell happened?” Slowly his
eyes widened as he took in his surroundings. “Where am I?”
“You’re in the hospital.” A lump formed
in the back of my throat and I looked away, trying to hold back the tears. I
didn’t want to upset him. “Shawn brought you here.”
“Aww, hell.”
“Just rest.” I gave him a gentle smile
even though I was ready to rip him a new one. “You’re going to be okay.”
Silence filled the air and he closed his
eyes for a moment. His jaw tightened and his nostrils flared. The beeps on the
monitor increased as his breaths quickened. He opened his eyes and darkness
filled them. “Why are you here, Lexi?” His body shifted as he gently pushed me
away. “You’re not supposed to be here.”
An unwanted agony gnarled and twisted
inside of me and my heart stilled. Did he really not want me to be here with
him? Was he truly done with me? I knew that it wasn’t the right time to discuss
what had happened between us, but I couldn’t help it.
“Raven, tell me that everything you
wrote me was a lie. Tell me it’s not true. All that we’ve shared and the time
we’ve spent together, tell me it wasn’t for nothing. Tell me it meant
something.” Tears poured from my eyes like a fountain turned on high. I
couldn’t repress the feelings I had for him. He had to know exactly how I felt.
“Please tell me that I didn’t walk away from everything for nothing.”
His eyes glazed over and he took my hand
in his. He pressed his lips together and then took a deep breath. “It was all a
lie, Lexi. Everything I said in that text. I didn’t mean one word.”
I squeezed my eyes tightly together,
trying to stop the waterworks from freefalling, but nothing would stop them.
Raven did want to be with me.
“Then why did you tell me that? Why did
you leave me?”
His chest rose and fell and his face
twisted in confusion. I couldn’t tell if he didn’t want to tell me or couldn’t
remember. I was willing to give him a reprieve after everything that he’d been
through. I was just relieved to hear that he didn’t mean it.
“It’s a long story and I’ll explain it
to you later.” He pulled me in his arms and drew my face to his. Our gazes
connected, binding us together like when we first made love. “I’m sorry about
everything, but know this, I love you, Lexi Thompson, and I’m going to prove it
to you, over and over again, just so you know and never forgot.”
The entire room spun around me and I
felt like superwoman in his arms. Raven knew how to make me feel bullet proof
and I was going to do whatever it took to protect us from the world that was
trying so desperately to tear us down. I wouldn’t allow my mom to keep us apart
and no wrecking ball, no matter how big, would destroy us. I would stand strong
and not let anyone or anything in this world come between us ever again. Even
if we were broken, I knew that together we could have all that life promised
us. All we had to do was fight for our love, and I was willing to do that as
long as he was.
I stared him deep in the eyes and said,
“I’m going to fight for you. As long as I have you by my side, I promise to
give my life to you. Because I love you, Raven. I love you more than anything
in this world and I’m going to stay right here next to you, just to make sure
you know it.”
Our lips reunited and I knew that
together, we were invincible.
Σ
To be continued
in
The Winning Side
Book 3
from the
University Park Series
Book
3 in the
University
Park Series
By
CM Doporto
The
Winning Side
Book
3 in the
University
Park Series
Version
5
The
Winning Side Copyright © 2014 CM Doporto
All
rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book, or portions
thereof, in any form without written permission except for the use of brief quotations
embodied in articles, reviews, or posts.
Published
by:
http://www.cmdoporto.com
Cover
design by Cora Graphics
Edited
by Monica Black and Jessa Markert
Copyright
2014 by CM Doporto
This
is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product
of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to
actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, educational
facilities, events, or locales, is entirely coincidental. Any trademarks
mentioned herein are not authorized by the trademark owners and do not in any
way mean the work is sponsored by or associated with the trademark owners. Any
trademarks used are specifically in a descriptive capacity.
eBook ISBN: 978-1-502208-50-7
Paperback ISBN: 978-1505756821
I’d like to thank my husband, son, and mom for their
continued support. Lord knows I couldn’t do this without each of you.
A huge shout out to my critique partner, Sam. Your
help has been wonderful and I’m glad we work well together. Many thanks to my
street team, CM Doporto’s Heroes and Heroines. I appreciate your dedication and
time with supporting my books and getting the word out. A big thank you to
Smexy Fab Four for managing my street team and Wickedly Innocent Promotions for
all the support. Thanks to Cora Graphics for creating another beautiful cover!
Many, many thanks to Monica for the edits on this book. You’re awesome! And
Jessa for stepping in and helping with edits, too.
I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the bloggers
and reviewers who take the time to read and post reviews. Your support of indie
authors helps get the attention of readers we work hard to obtain.
A huge thank you to you, the reader. Without you
there would be no one to read my story. I appreciate you taking the time to
read it. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did writing it.
Most of all I want to thank our Heavenly Father for
providing me with the opportunity to do what I love, write.
To
anyone who’s had to fight for the one they love,
this
book is dedicated to you.
And
now three remain: faith, hope, and love.
But
the greatest of these is love. 1 Corinthians 13
I wasn’t the only one caught in The
Raven’s trap. He was too, except his trap was deadly. He’d been clean for nine
months, sixteen days, and thirteen hours before the temptations of the world
trapped him once more. It would be hard as hell to pull him away from it for
good, but I was determined to help him do it. No matter the cost.
“Relax. Everything is going to be okay.”
I flipped the back of his collar, tucking it over his tie.
“I can’t relax, Lexi. I really eff’d
up.” Raven stared into the mirror, working his tie into a perfect knot. Worry
etched deep into his temples and his entire body looked frail, like he’d been
hit by a train. Then again, he’d almost died from alcohol poisoning mixed with
hydrocodone. He was lucky to be alive.
“I know, but you’re going to march into
the coach’s office and plead your case to him.” I encouraged him the best way I
knew how, even though I wanted to punch him in the face. I had to put my
feelings aside and support the man I loved. He needed me and I feared that if I
didn’t give him what he needed, he might never recover from the blow. Maybe a
part of me felt guilty about the stunt my parents pulled — even though Raven was
responsible for his choices and needed to be held accountable for them.
He turned to me, resting his hands on my
waist. “But, what if he refuses to give me another chance?”
“Don’t think that way. You have to keep
a positive mind about this, Raven.” I lifted his chin, aligning our eyes. “I
know it’s not easy, but you have to believe in yourself and know that you can
turn things around for good.”
“You believe me, don’t you?” His lips
twitched to the side.
“As long as you’re telling me the
truth.” I held my gaze steady to his, watching for any signs of dishonesty. I
saw regret, pain, and anguish all circling around in the centers of his eyes.
The strong, well-built quarterback that could topple a two hundred and fifty
pound guy looked so vulnerable. So fragile. The weakest I’d ever seen him. I
had to trust my instincts and believe he was telling me the truth.
“I promise you, I didn’t take those
pills. Someone must have slipped them in my drink. When I woke up in the
hospital, I didn’t know what the hell had happened.” His shoulders slumped and his
chest crumpled inward like all life had been sucked from him. “All I wanted to
do was drink away the pain… drink away the memories of you and me.”
Tears welled in my eyes and I quickly
blinked them away. I had to be strong, strong when Raven was at his weakest,
even when all I wanted to do was sob with him in the misery we both
experienced. “We’ll talk about it later. Now isn’t the right time. You have to
get your head together and tell Coach what happened.”
“What if he doesn’t believe me?”
“Hopefully he will.”
“What if he tells me I have to play?” He
shifted his weight. “To be honest, I don’t think I can. I’ve never felt so
weak.” He sat on the edge of the bed, looking feeble. He was in no condition to
play football. He ran his hands over his head repeatedly, but it did nothing to
tame his messy hair.
I zipped up his duffle bag. “Maybe he’ll
allow you stay here instead of going to the hotel. I think you need to rest all
day and see how you feel.”
“No doubt that’s what I need. But when
the media gets word that I’m not available for the press conference, they’re
going to wonder what the hell happened.”
I sucked in a deep breath. He had a
point and I had no idea how he was going to get around what happened thirty-six
hours ago. “Maybe he’ll say you have the flu and its unknown whether you’ll
play.”
“I’ve played with the flu, this is
worse.” Raven fell against the mattress and I couldn’t help but feel sorry for
him. He had a lot riding on him. That stress, coupled with a near death
experience, was enough to put any man down.
I crawled across the bed and hovered
over him. His mesmerizing eyes had lost some of their luster and his smooth tan
skin looked gray and pale. But regardless of not being one-hundred percent, he
was still damn hot.
“This wasn’t how things were supposed to
be,” he sighed.
“I know, but we’re going to make the
best of it, regardless of what happens.”
“You promise?” A hint of sadness crept
through his voice.
I cupped his cheek. “I told you I would
stay by your side because I love you. All I ask is that you’re honest with me.”
He placed a soft kiss on my lips and I
prayed, yet again, he was being honest with me. Because feeling his touch made
me want to forget about everything that had happened and allow him to make love
to me as we shut the world out, but reality reminded me that we had more pressing
issues at the moment. We were facing a new reality — Raven being kicked off the
team and losing any chance of being drafted.
“Raven, let’s go.” A strum of knocks
sounded at his door and then it flung open.
I rolled to the side and saw Josh
standing in the doorway. “Make out later, we have a bus to catch.”
Josh was dressed similar to Raven,
wearing a starched, white, button-down shirt with a tie and dress slacks.
“I have your jacket,” Shelby yelled from
the living room.
“I don’t know, man.” Raven rose slowly. “I
don’t think I can make it.”
Josh adjusted the bag in his hand. His
brows knitted tightly together as he appraised Raven from head to toe. “You
feel that bad?”
“Yeah, I really do.” Raven leaned to the
side and nearly tipped over when he reached for his duffle bag.
“Whoa.” Josh extended a hand, keeping
him from toppling. “What are you going to tell Coach?”
“I’m going to have to tell him what
happened. I can’t hide it.” Raven looked at him with sleepy eyes. I wasn’t even
sure he could make it to the training facility at this point.
“You’re fucked.” Josh shook his head,
his nostrils flaring. “But I don’t think you have much of a choice.”
Raven shuffled past Josh. “Thanks for
the support.” He patted him on the shoulder and then walked down the hall.
Josh looked at me for a moment and I
shrugged. “It is what it is.”
“Damn it!” Josh stomped his foot and
then spun on his heels, trekking out of the room.
I grabbed my purse and coat and then went
to the living room. Raven pulled on his jacket and I picked up his bag. “I’ll
carry this for you.”
He placed a kiss on my forehead.
“Thanks, baby.”
“I’ll drive.” Shelby took the keys from
Josh’s hand. He hesitated for a moment, but allowed her to take them. His face
was beet red and scrunched with fury. I think he knew what was about to happen
and he was pissed about it. The star quarterback wouldn’t be playing in the
bowl and the team might lose without him. Raven remained silent. He knew it,
too. I followed them out of the apartment, locking the door behind us.
After we all piled into Josh’s truck,
Shelby drove toward the training facilities. The sun shined brightly and the
sky was crystal clear, a stark contrast from the somber mood looming inside the
vehicle. Banners hung from the light poles, waving in the crisp January wind,
reminding the city to support the university’s bowl game.
Luckily for Raven, it was in Arlington,
just a twenty minute drive from Fort Worth and not out of town. Then again, if the
game would’ve been out of town, Raven wouldn’t have been at Jared’s. Typically,
the team would leave several days before the game, but since it was local, they
were only leaving two days ahead instead.
A large purple and black bus waited in
front of the stadium along with family, friends, and fans — everyone faring
goodbye to their favorite college football team, wishing them good luck, and
cheering for them to bring home the trophy. Many of them were probably waiting
to see their number one quarterback. Would Raven be able to hold that title?
“Did you call Coach?” Josh asked.
Raven stared out the window with his
head pressed against the glass. “Yeah, I told him I needed to talk to him before
we left.”
“You should’ve come up here first thing
this morning,” Josh huffed. “Avoid all this unneeded attention.” He shook his
head, eyeing the crowd and the people running to see who was inside the truck.
“I know, man. But I literally couldn’t
get out of bed.” Raven voice sounded weak. A part of me kind of hoped the coach
wouldn’t allow him to play — not because I didn’t what him to partake in the
biggest game of the year, but because I feared for his safety. He could really
get hurt.
Josh took a deep breath and flung open
the door the second Shelby put the truck into park. He grabbed his bag and
slammed the door shut, shouldering past the groves of people.
“Josh, wait!” Shelby scurried after him,
trying to balance herself in stacked heels and the huge handbag hanging off her
arm. Her wavy blonde hair whipped around her as she followed Josh inside the
facility.
We got out of the truck and Raven shut
the door. A few people called for his attention while snapping pictures of him.
He gave a slight wave as he leaned against the door, unable to hold up his own
weight. I stood in front of him, adjusting the collar of his jacket. “You look
handsome.”
“No I don’t. I look like shit.” He ran
his hand over his face.
“Well, you might feel like shit, but you
still look good.” I winked.
“Thanks for being here for me, even
though I don’t deserve it.” His eyes wandered off toward the crowd behind us
and it seemed like he was having a hard time concentrating.
“I’ll be here, waiting. I’m not leaving
until I know what the coach tells you. And your mom will be waiting for your
call.” I gripped my waist with my hands and looked around at all the smiling
faces. I couldn’t deny that I was slightly peeved that I wasn’t among the
elated crowds. Instead, I was the one with a knotted stomach and baited breath.
If they only knew.
“You can wait inside.” Raven took my
hand and we walked toward the double doors.
While the fans waved, Raven put on his
game face, smiling back and giving a big sweep of his hand. I smiled at
everyone, playing the perfect part of the girlfriend, even though we hadn’t
discussed why he had left me in the first place. My first priority was getting
the story straight regarding what had happened at Jared’s place, and then
helping him pull himself together for his discussion with the coach.
I was relieved when the doctor showed
Raven’s medical report to Trish and me. Armed with the facts of what he had
taken gave me a basis to go from — he had drank way too much alcohol, but
hadn’t been doing cocaine like I’d thought. The doctor said he had the
equivalent of three hydrocodone pills in his system, which wasn’t that high of
a dose, but coupled with large amounts of alcohol was nearly enough to kill
him. I had honestly feared that he had been snorting cocaine, popping pills,
and slugging down bottles of liquor.
I still had to find out why he’d sent
that text to me. Though, deep down, I knew my mother had something to do with
it. One step at a time. I had to take everything in strides and stay calm, but
most of all, supportive. The talk about us would have to wait.
I sat outside the coach’s office with
Shelby at my side. Josh was too pissed to wait with us and went to the bus
instead. He told Shelby that he couldn’t be around when Raven got out of his
meeting, claiming he needed to decompress before he beat Raven with his fist. I
agreed that he should distance himself because Raven couldn’t take an ass
kicking right now. He could barely stand on his own.
“Lexi?” a voice called from down the
hall.
I turned to see Shawn sprinting toward
us.
“What’s up with him?” Shelby asked.
“I don’t know.” I perched on the edge of
my chair, contemplating whether to meet him halfway or just wait. I stood up
slowly and took a few steps in his direction. “What’s wrong?”
Shawn took several deep breaths.
“Where’s Raven?”
“Talking to the coach.” I shot Shelby a
questioning gaze.
“Shit!” He slammed his fist in the palm
of his hand. “I really need to talk him. I’ve been texting and calling him
since early this morning. I even went to the hospital.”
“He got released yesterday evening. He came
home and went straight to bed.”
Shawn took another deep breath and
gripped his waist. “I have to interrupt their meeting.”
“Wait,” I held out my arm, “can you tell
me what’s going on?”
Shawn looked at me and then at Shelby
before motioning for us to come closer toward him. “I saw Jared slip some pills
into Raven’s drink.”
The air in my lungs stalled and the room
spun around me. I sucked in a deep breath, trying to steady myself. “You saw
him?”
“Well, sort of.”
I grabbed a fistful of his shirt. “And
you didn’t stop him?” I seethed.
Shawn held up his hands. “Hold on, let
me explain.” He whipped out his phone from his pocket and I released his shirt.
I smoothed out the wrinkles with the palm of my hand, deciding that I should
give him the benefit of the doubt. He swiped his screen and then hesitated for
a moment. “Promise me you’re not going to get pissed when you see this picture.”
