No sooner do I push Justin away than a fist hooks into his chin, and before I know it, a full-blown brawl is taking place right here in front of the coffee counter between Knox and Justin. Fists are flying, girls are screaming, employees are threatening to call the police. A few guys, buff enough to be on the football team, struggle to break it up, but Knox is fighting with wild abandon, with so much fury, so much passion I’m afraid he’ll be charged with a felony before the night is through. I’d throw myself into the heap to try to stop the assault, but I’m not certifiable. I like my nose just where God put it.
Jen staggers over in all her tiny troll glory, skintight latex dress, heels so high they make me dizzy looking at them.
“Stop fighting!” Her helium-inspired voice sounds like a fire alarm, and both boys momentarily glance up at her. “You will not fight over me! I’m done with both of you!” She gives a quick look at the crowd amassed around us. “I am officially breaking up with these two buffoons!” Her eyes stray to the beefy boys whose chests are still puffed from trying to break up the brawl. “As of now, I am officially on the market, boys!” She steps over Justin’s leg on her way to the front, and my jaw hits the floor.
She’s breaking up with both of them? That means she just kicked Knox to the curb for a second time.
The commotion stops, and Knox gets up before holding a hand out to Justin.
Justin glares at it a moment before accepting, and Knox helps him to his feet.
“I’m sorry about that.” Knox sags as he looks to Justin. “I got a little carried away.” He looks over to me with pain in his eyes, something far deeper than physical wounds can provide. “So, is this thing between the two of you”—he swallows hard, and his Adam’s apple goes for a ride—“is it back on?”
“No,” both Justin and I answer in unison, and I pause to scowl over at him.
“No?” Knox keeps those baby blues glued to mine, and his cheek rises on one side with the hint of a wicked smile.
The crowd dissipates, the employees get back behind the counter, and so far no signs of any cops storming the place.
“Take it outside next time!” someone shouts from the back, but both Knox and I are too busy getting lost in one another’s eyes.
“I’m outta here.” Justin takes off without another word, and just like that, both Justin and Janelle are out of our lives for good. Or at least that’s what I’m hoping. But it doesn’t change the fact my heart is still lying at my feet in a thousand shattered pieces.
“You want to take it outside?” I try to sound pissed, ready for a fight myself, but it comes out weak, pathetic, reeking of desperation.
“No.” His cheeks depress a moment, right along with my heart. “I want to take it over here.” Knox picks up my hand and leads me in haste to the side of the establishment closest to the windows, to a table filled with two of my sisters from Kappa G.
“No, no, no.” He has a momentary freak-out. “Where is it? The box. It was sitting right here.”
“Eww—was that yours? One of the baristas came by and tossed it.” The redhead looks as if she’s about to get sick. Then in a moment, her expression morphs into panic. “Oh my God!” She looks to me. “I swear we won’t tell a soul.” She looks from Knox to me. “Congratulations, I think.”
“Shit.” Knox bows his head in defeat before turning to me. “It was a pregnancy test. She wouldn’t take it.”
I suck in a hard breath. “Oh my God! She let you think—”
“Yes. But it wasn’t true.” His lips invert as if he’s trying to hold it together. “I thought it might be, so I withdrew. I didn’t know how to tell you. I didn’t want to say those words out loud to anyone.” He shakes his head as he steps in close. “So that’s why I let everything fall to shit instead.” He scratches the back of his neck while wincing. “Can you forgive me? If I would have been upfront with you to begin with, we might have avoided this entire mess. I want you back in my life, back in my bed. I’ve missed you. It was a slow, agonizing death without you. Will you take me back? I miss the hell out of us.”
The girls at the table break out into a choir of aww as if we just transformed into a couple of cuddling koalas.
“You want me to take you back?” The words break up unnaturally with the sound of my panting. “I’m sorry, but I can’t take you back.”
“You what?” The girl sitting opposite the redhead explodes with frustration.
“Give me a minute.” I’m quick to hush her before turning back to the gorgeous boy before me. “I can’t take you back because my heart never let you go.”
His entire face breaks out into a grin, and those perfectly curved commas that outline his smile make me melt all over again. “Come here.” He pulls me in by the waist, and my body sighs with relief as it adheres to his. I have missed every delicious curve this boy has to offer. “I think it’s time we kiss and make up.” His hands cup my cheeks with an aching tenderness only true affection can provide. Knox pulls me to him as his smile, his lids, both begin to loosen, and just like that, he’s kissing me, his mouth perfectly sealed over mine with love.
This is everything I’ve always thought love should be.
And I have it with Knox.
We have it all.
On Saturday, after spending three glorious, acrobatically intense, sexually charged days in bed—the frozen pizza really did come in handy, Knox says he’s taking me out for a surprise excursion. First, the word excursion quickly deleted all thoughts of a romantic lunch at some fab sushi bar, or even the idea of heading to Forest Orville’s office to profusely apologize for my adolescent behavior. Word on the street—read Knox—is that Forest said he really missed the eye candy. I knew he was an asshole from the get-go.
But Knox takes us in the entirely opposite direction, up the mountains toward the hiking trails, and sign after sign boasts of the Witch’s Cauldron. I know all about those steamy sexual waters. It’s practically a graduation requirement to mate in that boiling vat of debauchery. But try as I might get the teeniest bit excited about my boyfriend’s adventurous sexual side, I can’t seem to keep my mind on anything other than the fact I’m terrified we’re about to flip off the side of this mountain and roll to a fiery end.
“Are you sure we’re going in the right direction?”
He takes a hairpin turn and I crouch in the corner of his truck and let out a yelp.
Knox gives a jovial laugh as if it were the funniest thing in the world. “I’m sure. And in fact”—the truck slows down and I peer a single eye outside the passenger’s window—“we’ve already arrived.”
A big, fat—unwelcomed—sign reads city lookout, and I can’t seem to catch my next breath. Everyone knows those lookout places are just a clever way to lure tourists to the edge of a cliff, moments away from their impending doom. And that’s exactly what it feels like for me.
Knox comes around and opens my door, but I refuse to budge.
“Hey”—he lifts my chin gently with his finger—“I don’t want you to be afraid of anything. I want to help you conquer the world—all of your fears.” The love exuding from him says exactly that. “Will you trust me to keep you safe?”
“Of course, I trust you!” I’m half a second from batting his body away from mine. “It’s the roaring winds, the torrential downpour, the wild beasts roaming around that I don’t trust.”
Knox’s brows create a perfect line over his eyes, a neat trick if you ask me, but more than that, they’re conveying the fact he’s a little disappointed in me.
“There’s no breeze today. The sky is blue.” He glances behind him at a couple of girls walking a Chihuahua on a leash. “And if that’s your definition of a beast, then I think we’ll be just fine. What do you say?” That devilish grin returns to his face.
“Okay”—I hear myself say it, but I still don’t believe it—“but just this once. And lucky for the Grim Reaper, that’s all he needs to kill me.”
Knox barks out a laugh as he pulls me by his sid
e. “I promise I will deliver you safely off this mountain, to my bed where I will hand-feed you all the pie you can eat.”
“You better keep your promise because my mouth is already watering.” I bite down on my lip as I pierce his gaze with mine. “But it’s not for the pie you’ll be doling out later. It’s for the boy who’ll be hand-feeding me.”
“Sounds like you’d better keep your promise too.” He takes a quick bite out of my neck as we start on the trailhead.
My heart starts to race, and it has nothing to do with the fact my boyfriend is munching on me as if I’m his new favorite snack. The railing between us and eternity comes up as the road narrows considerably. Out in the distance, I see the sun shining off tiny reflective specs that I can only assume are the mirrored windows of the skyscrapers in downtown Jepson. The wind picks up and it feels as if I’m about to turn into a balloon and get taken right along with it.
“I can’t do this.” My legs shake as I brace myself against him. “Take me back, please.” I bury my face in his chest just willing myself to die. This is far beyond the normal realms of terror. I’m petrified, worse yet, paralyzed from taking another step.
“Just a few more feet, and you got this.” His arms warm my back as he lands a hot kiss next to my ear. “You’ve conquered your fear. There isn’t a thing you can’t do. You are Harper Kick-Ass Shelton, afraid of nothing or no one.” My legs inch along with him as he leads us farther down the trail. “Remember what you did when that bastard tried to break your heart?”
“Which one?” I slap my hand playfully over his chest.
“Technically both. You said screw getting mad—I’m getting even. Well, that’s what you’re doing here right now. You’re saying screw you to this phobia that’s been ruling your life for far too long.” He scoots us toward the cliff side and wraps his arms around my chest like a human seat belt with me facing the world at this horrible vantage point, but I don’t dare look down. My gaze is still on the boy I love. “Hold on tight.”
“Why? Is this the part where we jump?” My body shakes so hard I can hardly take my next breath.
“Not on your life—or mine. Nope. We’ve got too much to live for.” Knox trails his hot kisses to my ear, and the wind licks a cool line right behind him. “We’ve got each other, and that’s enough. Don’t you think?”
I keep my gaze fixed on his no matter how hard the city campaigns for my attention.
“I think you’re right.” My hands slide up his body as they make their way around the back of his neck. “I think I might be ready to look, but you’ll have to hold me extra tight.”
“You bet.” He dots a quick kiss to my nose. “On three.” Knox counts it out slowly, and on three we both give our attention to the overlook, and my heart leaps to the top of my skull before passing out.
“Oh my God.” The earth pulsates with a heartbeat of its own. My adrenaline hits its zenith, and for a blissful moment my body goes numb. On the bright side, if the wind does pick up and decide to hurl me to an early death, I won’t feel a damn thing.
“Look at the way the sky meets the city”—he whispers warm into my ear—“the cool blue kissing the gray skyline.”
“I believe they call that pollution.”
His chest bucks lightly over my back. “Or a bruise gifted to the environment from man.”
We share a quiet laugh.
“Hey”—I pull back just a notch—“I’m not dead yet!”
“Nope.” He leans in and pulls my bottom lip out with his. “You’re still alive and kicking just the way I like you. And have I mentioned tasty, too?”
“Oh my God!” I look out to the city and lean toward the railing in one brazen move. “And the universe isn’t trying to fling me over the edge by way of that nasty bitch, gravity!”
“She can be a bit moody, but she’s not winning today—not on my watch. The good news is, nobody is out to get you, not the wind, not the rain, not all the heights this world has to offer. You are in control—not the fear, not gravity.”
“I’m in control.” My heart starts up again as if it thought pumping blood through my body were suddenly a good idea. “Not fear, not gravity.”
Carefully, I lead us to the edge of the railing. The cliff side isn’t nearly as sheer as I thought it would be. Wild flowers trail down a soft edge that lazily rambles across the blue expanse. In the distance, downtown Jepson shines as if it were dipped in glitter.
“It’s beautiful,” I pant through a smile. The sky kisses the earth and turns the world into an ocean of loveliness. From this vantage, the world looks smooth as velvet, not at all hardened by reality, but soft with dreams and warm with love. “This is amazing. I’m safe, and this is beautiful.”
“You are beautiful.” Knox lands a kiss just under my ear. “Now come on and do it. You know you want to.”
A laugh gets caught in my throat. “You know me all too well.” I turn my back to his chest, and Knox holds on with a death grip. Slowly, carefully, my arms stretch to the sky, my fingers begging to go farther than my body will allow. A slow curdling scream rips from my throat with joy. “I’m the king of the world!”
Knox howls into the wind right alongside me, and it feels as if there is nothing we can’t conquer.
I spin around and cup the sides of his gorgeous face. “I think technically you are the king of the world. You’re the king of my world.”
“Good thing—because you are my queen.” Knox looks at me as if I really were a queen—as if I’m the only girl on the planet he sees.
I bring his mouth down to mine, and I kiss him on sacred ground, the very spot in which my darkest fears dissolved like snow. Knox held me up while I slayed my dragons, but not before riding them straight into the sky like a badass. In truth, Knox is the badass. He never stopped believing in us, in me. It was Knox who tried to warn me of my relationship’s impending doom that first night at the Kappa G mixer. He was looking out for me even then. Knox pursued me relentlessly that night, even if it was in an effort to warn me. He pursued me relentlessly during our time apart, even if I was too stubborn to listen once again. And Knox pursued my fears and cast them to hell where they belong. Knox has saved me, time and time again, through the relentless pursuit of his love. And I plan on spending the rest of my life repaying him by loving him right back.
It’s the least I can do.
It is my pleasure—and even then, Knox always makes sure my pleasure comes first.
Both Sylvia and I are glad about that.
Knox
The Black Bear Saloon is the very first place I ventured to once I showed up at Whitney Briggs earlier this summer, and so it feels like the natural place to end the summer as well. Inside, the mood is festive, the booze is flowing and so is the pizza—it’s Italian night, and as soon as my best girl shows up, I’ll be ordering up a large one just for the two of us.
I spot Rush, Seth, and Eli near the back and head on over.
“What’s up?” I slap them all a quick five before nodding to Seth. “Where’d you finally settle into? You rushing, or did the charm of the dormitories win out?”
“Neither.” He offers a quick grin. “I’ve set up shop across the street at the Briggs Apartment Building. One bedroom, kitchen, soundproof walls.” He winks over at Rush, and they share a fist bump.
“Nice,” I groan. “So you’re a manwhore-in-training like your future brother-in-law.”
He frowns as he shoves a chip into his mouth. “Something like that.”
“And what about you?” I look to Eli, and he openly laughs.
“I am doing just fine on my own. You are the only hooked fish at the table. The rest of us are all still free agents.”
“But you’re not a player. You’re not keeping track of the notches on your headboard, are you?”
“Nope.” He frowns into the crowd. “I’ve been tarred, and feathered, and burned alive. I’ve more than learned my lesson when it comes to girls. Hold on loosely and all that other good crap. I’
m glad things worked out great for you and Harper, though. Where is she? She cut you loose already?”
Rush and Seth laugh as if it were funny.
“Yup, that’s right. She’s lost her mind again and dumped me.”
“Is that what you say when I’m not around?” That voice. I know it well. I’ve heard it in and out of my sleep, and I should. She’s been keeping my bed warm at night.
I turn around and wince up at the most beautiful girl in the room—in the universe—before leaping out of my seat and doing my best to make things better with a kiss.
She bubbles with a laugh. “Let me get Ava and Lucky. They’re finishing up a game of pool in the back.” She zips off and I fall into my seat.
“Dude”—Eli shakes his head my way—“how did you get so lucky? That chick is unnaturally hot.”
“It’s true,” Seth grunts as if he too is mystified.
“Look the other way, boys, because she is taken.”
Rush presses out a mournful laugh. “You haven’t stepped into your first class, and you already dominate the field and the girls. Good work, my man.” He socks me in the arm and makes it hurt just enough.
“All right”—Lawson smacks Rush as he and Lucky circle his side of the table—“nobody beats up my bro but me.” It feels nice hearing it from Lawson. Our families may have been slow to mesh together, but we’re strong as steel now, a bond unbreakable no matter who decides to stay married. Lawson is great. I couldn’t care about him any more if he was blood.