Page 17 of Replay
I’m the first out of my seat when the lecture ends, my eyes staying on the prize the entire time. Thankfully I’ll have time to drop the seeds before he gets a chance to see Emmarys. She has class for the next two hours, a fun fact that I know after swiping her class schedule from the very chatty and easily persuaded girl at the front desk. I hope she isn’t majoring in a career that requires their employees to practice HIPPA since she just blatantly went around the rules. Maybe I should feel bad but I don’t. I should know everything about Emmarys and having her class schedule just makes it all the more easier for me to know how I can best support her and be there for her during hockey season. I’ve already planned to have her favorite breakfast sandwiches and omelets delivered to her off-campus housing on game days. My girl will want for nothing and I plan to show her exactly how well I can take care of her. She may think she likes her boyfriend, but no one will ever love her harder than I do.
I have to walk past Jax Kellan and all his buddies on my way to the coffee shop, and thankfully, I’ve made a name for myself enough that one of his friends notices me right away. I watch out of the corner of my eye as he nods his head at me and they all turn to look.
“Sheppard,” one of the guys yells, and I turn, keeping my face in the same mask I used to wear in Texas.
“Hey, man.” I nod my head at the guy and my eyes shift among the group of hockey players and women who look to be their girlfriends.
“Thought that was you,” the same guy says, “we’re stoked to have you here, QB. I’m Neil and this is Alex, Striker and Jax.”
I nod my head in the same greeting at them all. “I’m happy to be here,” I tell them.
Jax tilts his head at me thoughtfully and his lips turn up in a smirk. “What did bring you here? No offense but our team is not as highly ranked as what you’re used to.”
I turn my eyes to his and run my fingers along my jaw. “Some unfinished business actually.”
His friend, Alex, whistles low. “That sounds ominous. Must be about a chick.”
Striker scoffs and shakes his head. “No way. No offense, ladies.” He gestures to the women around him. “But greatness doesn’t just drop and change plans because of one girl.”
I don’t answer and a slip of silence falls among us before Jax asks the million-dollar question. “Where are you from again?”
“The Midwest. Ever hear of a town called Crimson Bay?” My lips tip up in a smirk when I answer.
“Oh shit, so you must know Reign Thorn and those guys. I think Carter and Leif are all from the same town too,” Striker says.
“Yeah, there’s a few people from the Bay that go to school here.” I nod my head and my smile grows when Jax shifts slightly, his eyes narrowing. I notice the way his hand fists in his lap but I’m not sure if his buddies do.
“Yeah, but that doesn’t mean they all went to the same high school. There was a private school and a public school in that town, right?” he asks, practically asking if I knew Emmarys.
“All Saints Academy is the private school, that's where I went and played ball. Didn’t really see many of the kids from publicschool unless there was a party,” I divulge and watch as he relaxes some. Good. I want him to think he’s winning before I topple the queen from his empire and make her mine.
“Nice meeting you guys.” I stick out my hand and shake every one of theirs. “I got to run before my next lecture. The football team is hosting a party this weekend after the game, maybe I’ll see you there.”
“Yeah, man.” Neil holds out his phone. “We’ll be sure to be there. Have to celebrate our new QB.”
He gives me his number and I shoot him a text with the football house party information as an invite. “Sounds good. See you later.”
One more flick of my hand and I feel confident enough leaving their little group that I’ve planted the right seeds. Jax Kellan doesn’t stand a chance. If Emmarys tries to defy me, she’ll learn how dirty I’m willing to play in order to get what I want. I am still livid at my ex-girlfriend for deciding to give the guy a chance and actually date him. Jealousy rages through me to the point it makes it hard to breathe. I don’t even want to think about all the things she’s given him that should be for me only. Her eyes, her smiles, her mouth. My throat constricts with despair imagining his hands on any part of her body to the point it is soul crushing. Not that I blame him entirely, Emmarys is beautiful inside and out. Any man with eyes and a brain would want to make her theirs. Which is why I can’t let him have her. No matter what has happened between them, I’ll forgive her, I’ll get past it if it means I’m the only and last man for her from here on out. I just have to get her there first. Unfortunately for Jax, that makes him collateral damage. He seems like an okay guy, someone maybe I could have been friends with in another life or on another timeline, yet I feel zero guilt knowing I am going to blow up his world and crush him. All is fair in love and war.
emma
. . .
Avoidance should bemy new middle name for how well I’ve mastered it this past week. Despite Hawke’s demand, that I have no intention of following, I have been using every excuse possible not to be around my boyfriend. I know I need to tell Jax about my history with Hawke before it blows up in my face, but I’m scared of how he’ll react. He knows I had my heart broken in the past and that was why I was so hesitant to date him. I never told him who the guy was and he never asked. Everyone has been treating Hawke and his friend like royalty on this campus. If I tell Jax now, something tells me he’ll feel like I lied. Worse, I don’t want him to feel threatened or worry that I’m going to follow through with anything Hawke tells me to do.
My friends keep telling me that my time is running out, and after seeing Hawke accost me the last time, they are even more adamant that I need to handle it. What I don’t tell them is that I’m scared. I feel pulled in different directions. My heart wants to leap into Hawke’s waiting arms while my head refuses to give him another chance. My gut is twisted, debating, feeling doubt about Jax’s response and then I second-guess how much I trusthim. Which is why I’ve been running from both men and hiding until I can figure out how to feel.
The campus that used to feel huge suddenly feels small, and the walls feel like they’re closing in around me. How did this happen? I was moving on and then Hawke just shows up. I’m the worst person ever because I willingly walked away with him to talk. I listened to what he had to say and my traitorous heart felt something like excitement at his words. When we went our separate ways after my prom night, I never expected to see Hawke again. Too much time passed. How can he even think he still loves me when I’m not the sixteen-year-old girl he dated and first had feelings for. We’re different people. I’m a different version of myself than I was back then.
Riley and Sam have both warned me that they don’t think Hawke will give up, and that I need to make a decision. Well, that was Sam’s advice. Riley sort of just smiled wickedly and told me there was nothing I really could do and I should just let Jax down easy. Being with Reign though has warped her mind about dating. Not that I’m an expert either, damn it. I should be cuddling my boyfriend more, meeting him for coffee between classes and kissing him after practice when he walks me home. Instead, I’m ducking and dodging around campus like a ninja, praying no one finds me so then I won’t have to face the conversation with Jax about Hawke and I won’t have Hawke staring me down, waiting for me to dump my boyfriend. It's a great plan, and I’m so absorbed in the plot that I don’t hear the footsteps behind me. I have zero chance to escape before a body slams into my back, a hand moves across my mouth, stifling the scream of surprise that lodges in my throat, and I’m shoved into a dark, empty classroom.
The door closes and the body in front of me shuffles us back until I’m caged against the closed door. The room is dark exceptfor the cracks of sunlight filtering in through the closed curtains. My eyes blink rapidly while I struggle to get free.
“It's just me, sweets.” Hawke’s voice is low, his breath against the sensitive skin on my neck sends shivers all over. “I’m going to let go of your mouth, don’t scream. Unless you want everyone to find out about us.”
My eyes narrow and he chuckles when he pulls back, making out my features in the dim lighting. His hand drops. “Let me out of here, Hawke.”
His head shakes and he turns, pressing his body further into mine. His knee pushes my legs apart and I’m very aware of the heat that gathers in my lower belly, feeling the strong muscles in his thighs rub against me. “I can’t. I can’t let you go, Em. I’ve been patient but you’re pushing it.”
