Page 11

And here she is. Right in front of me. My lips turn up in a small smirk at the absolute shock on her face.

I know my being here isn’t news to her. The campus all but rolled out the red carpet for Riggs and me.

If I had to guess it has more to do with the fact that I haven’t reached out to her since the news broke.

Or since my birthday passed. She knew when I would be free and I still hadn’t made contact with her.

In my defense, I knew if I tracked her down on my birthday, I never would have been able to accomplish anything else I set out to do.

I would have buried myself inside her and never left.

Everything would have taken a back seat to losing myself in my girl and all her luscious curves.

One glimpse and my revenge would have fallen by the wayside.

I made myself hold out, until this exact moment.

Her friends glance between me and her before mumbling something and heading off inside the arena.

I swear I hear Emmarys call them traitors and my smirk only grows wider.

She looks like she's torn between running away with them or facing me.

My feet move me closer to her, making the decision for both of us.

Excitement, joy and hurt dance in my chest the closer I get to her, and the more I can see her.

Two years and she still takes my breath away.

Her golden brown eyes widen now that I’m fully in front of her, our bodies just a few inches apart.

I wonder what she thinks of the way I’ve changed.

Surviving for two years without my heart close by was painful.

Every day I felt myself getting more and more numb and instead of succumbing to the loneliness and anger, I took it out on my body.

Physically, I began putting myself through a strict training regimen that I would need for the NFL.

In my downtime, I used tattoos to drown out the emotional parts of me that wanted to give in, to break and just call her.

For a split second, my confidence is shaken, wondering if maybe she’ll not like the way I look now.

Maybe a giant, tatted, football player won’t do it for her.

But then her head tilts back, her eyes keeping contact with mine, and I see the flush across her cheeks, hear the little intake of breath she releases, and I watch as her pupils expand so large that they bleed into the golden irises, making them a whiskey brown instead.

My fingers ache to run along her jawline, to snatch her hips with my hands and bring her body into mine.

Baby steps . I have to remind myself to go slow.

If I thought last time at her prom was a fight to get her to hear me out and explain, this time it will be a fucking battle.

Her walls are up and even though her eyes are screaming that she wants me, her body is held back and she’s tense.

“I missed you, Em.”

Her eyes move back and forth between mine and her chest moves up and down rapidly. Shock fades to awe, and that awe is soon replaced by the anger I knew she would be holding back.

“What are you doing here?” she asks, her words sounding strained as she drops her gaze from mine.

“You’re here,” I remind her, and this time I do touch her. My fingers pinch her chin, forcing her head to tilt back up. Now that she’s in front of me again, I can’t not have her eyes on me.

A scoffing noise comes from deep in her throat. “I’ve been here for two years.”

Her fire makes me smile and my unexpected reaction has her gaze narrowing. “You know I couldn’t come for you until I had my inheritance. We might have been a little preoccupied the last time I saw you, but I know we talked about this.”

“Your birthday was in February,” she says before biting her lip and the blush staining her cheeks turns brighter.

I step closer to her. “Are you mad I wasn’t here sooner?

” I ask, and watch as she takes a deep breath in.

My whole body is vibrating with need and my heart is soaring.

Even if she denies my words right now, it will be a lie.

She knew when I would get my inheritance and when my birthday came and went, she clearly thought about it. Her tone was both upset and accusing.

Emmarys shakes her head and steps back from me. The air instantly feels colder and my body misses touching hers. “I can’t do this with you again, Hawke.”

I want to scoff and rage against her words.

My little heartbreaker. She’s such a good liar.

Patience . This is one game that is going to require time and careful precision.

A Hail Mary pass won’t work on the defense she’s blocking me with.

Emmarys has no idea all the things she’s going to do with me, all the ways I’m going to punish her for not believing in me, in us and changing her plans.

Our future starts today, whether she’s ready for it or not.

I’ve been waiting for her for years. She will “do this” with me again and this time we won’t be stopping.

I gently let my lips ghost over her forehead and watch as goosebumps break across the exposed skin on her neck. She practically shivers. “I’ll see you after practice.”

Emmarys jumps back from me, her head shaking furiously. “No. I have nothing to say. I don’t know why you’re here, but the campus is large. There is no reason for us to see each other.”

Her words cut and hurt more than I care to admit.

Once again I have to shove my hands in my pockets just so she doesn’t see how tightly they are clenched, how much her words affect me.

Instead, I watch as she turns and dashes into the arena for her practice.

I’ll let her go for now, but she won’t be rid of me that easily.