I bite the inside of my lip as I peek around the corner of the door and scan the enormous crowd inside the banquet hall. My stomach twists as my eyes stop on the multiple cameras being setup.
I didn’t think there was going to be this many people here.
I take a deep breath as little beads of sweat form down the middle of my back.
David’s husky voice whispers into my ear. “Baby, everything is going to be alright. I’ll be right next to you.”
His muscular arms snake around my sides and across my stomach as I lean back against his firm chest. His warmth wraps around me like a comforting blanket.
I slide my hands across his arms. My voice almost trembles as I ask, “Are you sure about this? You can’t change your mind once we go through with this.”
He pulls me tight against him as he softly chuckles. “Baby, you already know I’ll never let you go. I’ve worked too hard to g
Thank you for reading my story. I hope you are enjoying it, and don't forget to vote. I would greatly appreciate it.
Fear courses through my veins as I stare out at the sea of people. The constant flashes have spots dancing around in front of me, but I pull myself together and stand tall and strong next to Alex. He has made one of the hardest decisions in his life, and I’m here to support him. His words only slightly register in my mind as I stand tall like a statue. I have his entire speech memorized. He has been practicing it several times a day for the last few days. Even though my stomach twists as the flashes keep bombarding us, a sense of pride filters through me as Alex calmly keeps going. He doesn’t let the occasional shouts from the reporters or the constant flashing from the cameras disturb him. He is a true professional. I wish I could be like that someday. When he finally ends his speech and another stream of flashes blast us, while the reporters shout various questions at us.
I slowly open my eyes and tentatively roll towards my clock. However, no matter how slow I go, every part of my body aches. We were too wild last night, but I liked it.David had said something about making me pay, and I think I’ve paid him double or more.I blink a couple times, trying to will my eyes to work, but after a few moments, I give up and lay my head back down on the pillow. Maybe if I get some more sleep, I’ll feel better.Just as I close my eyes, David’s deep and husky voice rings out. “Baby, don’t you dare go back to sleep. It is already late. We missed breakfast, but I’ve got lunch ready. I’ve also brought in some medicine, so you will feel better soon.”Medicine. I definitely need some of that.I open one eye and mumble, “I just need the pain killers. I should be better in a little while. However, next time,
I scan the area and the crowd of students while trying to find anything out of place or unusual. As my eyes dart back in the opposite direction, Paul nudges my arm. “Are you alright, Alex? You seem a little on edge today.”On edge. Ha. That is an understatement.I shrug my shoulders. “You tell me. I thought the press conference would stop everything, but instead, I get a message from the crazy person telling me they won’t stop. I came out and told the world about my relationship with David to stop the crazy stalker from trying to ruin my life. But the joke is on me. The idiot won’t stop. I think they might have even been declaring war on me. I don’t know who it is. It is someone close to me, though. They know too much information about me and David. Luckily, they weren’t able to figure out who my boyfriend is so far, but I’m su
I walk down the hallway towards the hazer’s room while ignoring all the whispers and murmurs swirling around me. Unfortunately, I can’t miss one particular cocky voice as he snickers, “If I knew the Casanova was going to go for guys, I would have swooped him up first before anyone else could have gotten their claws into him. He is an amazing catch.”My feet instantly stop, and I slowly turn my head towards the group of upper classmen just a little farther down the hall. The one who is spouting all the nonsense chuckles as he nudges the guy beside him. “You know I would. He is so fine.”I raise an eyebrow and shoot daggers at the arrogant jerk. When he opens his mouth to say something else, still oblivious to my presence, I cut him off. “Alex is very particular in what he likes. You would never pass his standards.” I emphasize ‘you’, while I narrow my eyes a
I sigh as I stare up at the night sky and lean against the balcony railing. Images from earlier dance through my mind. I knew the press conference meant everyone will know about us, but I honestly didn’t expect some upper classman to act like that. I know he knew who David was because the whole campus is talking about us now.I’m almost tempted to teach the guy a lesson, but engineering is David’s territory. I’ll let him and the other hazers handle it. I’m sure they have something up their sleeves.A faint smile dances across my face.Buzz.What is it now?I take a deep breath and pull my phone out of my pocket. I hesitate for a moment as I stare at the notification.Before I chicken out, I tap my phone. The message pops up along with a picture of me hitting the guy this afternoon. The corner of my mouth curls downward as I stare at th
I shake my head and stare across the cafeteria table at Brandon. “My gut is telling me it is someone close. I hate to admit this, but I think it is someone really close to us. I’m hoping I’m wrong. I work very hard to only have trustworthy and reliable people around me, but this all seems a little too personal.” He presses his lips together. “I understand what you are saying, but I still don’t believe it is someone who is close to us. I can vouch for Kai. He would never do anything like this. You already know David is livid about everything that has happened, so you know it isn’t him. Plus, he doesn’t have anything to gain by doing it.” He glances around the almost completely empty area before he turns back to me. “I still put odds on it being your parents or the girl who they wanted you to marry. You were too pissed off and were shooting daggers are your parents to notice the look in the girl’s eyes.&
David wraps his arm around my waist as we walk into the restaurant. “Baby, are you sure about this?”I nod and glance over my shoulder at the others. “As long as our friends are here and Brandon’s father, I have nothing to worry about. My parents won’t do anything to make him think less of them. They want his approval. Plus, they don’t want any rumors getting out about them, which is why I picked a popular restaurant for our meeting. Whatever their problem, it must be important, otherwise they wouldn’t have agreed to meet here. They would have requested someplace else a little more private.”Even though my words come out cold, my gut twists and my heart aches. This is all a game to them in order to get ahead in the business world. Why do they insist on roping me in on it, too? They could have had a good life without involving me.He kisses the side of my h
I wrap my arm around Alex’s waist and rest my chin on his shoulder. I softly ask, “Babe, are you alright? You haven’t been talking much the last few days or bickering with Chance.”He hasn’t been doing a lot of things since we left that meeting with his parents. I called my parents to let them know what had happened, and my mother showed up the next day and spoiled him. Even though she was able to get him to smile, the spark in his eyes was still gone.I have lost count of the number of times she told him she is his mother and no one else matters. However, I can understand how Alex is still fixated on his parents picking their business over their family and him. I can’t even imagine the pain he is going through.Later, Brandon’s father confessed he would have helped them had they said they wanted Alex over any business deal. Unfortunately, now, his parents are stuck d