University Park Series Box Set: Books 1-3 (46 page)

“I don’t know about you, but I don’t
like someone watching me piss in a cup.”

I bit my lip. I hadn’t thought about the
humiliation associated with the testing. “At least it’s just one time.”

He cast me dubious stare. “It’s weekly.
And I’ll also have random breathalyzer tests.”

“But you’re not an alcoholic.”

“Tell them that.” He rolled his eyes.
“All they see are the medical reports and assume if I’m drinking, then I’m
doing drugs.”

I brushed away a few pieces of lint that
had fallen onto his shoulder from the tissue. “Then you’ll just have to prove
them wrong.” I hoped to God that I was right and he was willing to follow
through with their requests. He was at their mercy.

“I know. And don’t worry.” He tucked my
hair behind my ear. “I’m not going to let either of you down. I want to do
this. I’ll see that therapist and allow them to help me this time.”

Hearing those words were like hitting
every right chord on the piano. I suddenly had a dying urge to take Raven and
play every happy song for him as we sang at the top of our lungs.

He turned toward me, eyes red and glossy
from crying. I wanted to kiss every tear that he’d ever shed. Kiss him until he
felt nothing and had no remembrance of whatever had pulled him to the ground.
My heart swelled, overcome by the problems he had faced, and the pain he’d
endured. I knew with the help of his therapist he would win.

We would win.

I smiled as tears dripped from my eyes.
“I love you and I’m going to be right here, by your side, every step of the
way.”

“You promise?”

“With all my heart.”

“Good. Because I want you with me. It’s
all or nothing, baby.”

“Then you have all of me.”

Σ

We had a great lunch, celebrating the
success of Raven’s news. I could tell Raven was well on his way to accepting
what he had to do. The way he talked to his friends, it was obvious football
was in his blood. It was his life. And if he wanted it, then he was going to
have to swallow his pride and allow a therapist to help him. The part that made
me the happiest was that he wanted me by his side, and I knew that I was
equally as important to him. It was all I ever wanted and asked for from any
guy.

The question was — would it last?

I was relieved that his mom had asked
him those tough questions. I wasn’t sure if he would’ve completely opened up
and told me everything. Something inside of me hinted that there was a little
more to the story.

“I’ll call you later, Mom.” Raven opened
the car door for Trish.

“You better,” she warned, using her
index finger for emphasis. “Lexi, make sure he’s on time for his first
appointment.”

“I will,” I assured her.

Raven closed the car door and we waved
to her as she drove off. Josh darted past us as he chased Shelby in the parking
lot. She giggled, playing hard to get before he scooped her into his arms.
Seeing the way they interacted with each other was cute, but sometimes it was a
little much. Were they always that happy? In the time I’d spent at Raven’s, I
never saw them fight or get angry with one another. I wanted to know what their
recipe to success was because Raven and I needed it.

Just as Trish exited the apartment
complex, a silver car that looked like my dad’s entered the parking lot. I
started to turn when I did a double take.

“Come on.” Raven pulled on my hand, but
I didn’t budge.

“Just a sec.” I stared at the car,
trying to get a better glimpse of the driver.

“What’s wrong?” Raven looked at me and
then followed my line of sight. “Who’s that?”

“My dad.” I shuffled my feet, unsure of
whether to run inside and lock the door or run toward him. I hated getting
pulled in two directions at once. Not only was it confusing but also heart
wrenching.

“Shit. What’s he doing here?” Raven
squared his shoulders and puffed out his chest. His jaw tightened and his
nostrils flared. He eased me behind him, clearly trying to protect me.

The car stopped a few feet in front of
us. My dad rested his hands on top of the steering wheel and leaned forward,
looking at us through the front windshield. His face looked sad and my heart
ached, wishing things had been different between us. If only they would have
handled the situation like adults, none of this would have happened.

“I don’t know.”

“Do you want me to tell him to leave?”

I shook my head. Was he here to tell me
he was sorry? Did he want us to have a father-daughter relationship? I had to
find out. Not only did I owe it to myself, but to him as well. “No, let me see
what he wants.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes.” I eased from behind him. “But if
he tries to pull me in the car, you better save me. I’m not going back home.”

Raven took my hand and pulled me next to
him. “Don’t worry,” he traced his finger down my cheek, “I won’t let him take
you. Not this time.”

“You promise?” I stared into his eyes,
searching for the answer I wanted to hear most. “Because you didn’t come for me
last time.”

“Lexi, I promise I’ll never let you out
of my life.” Raven closed his eyes and pulled me close. Enveloped tightly in
his arms, he pressed his lips to my forehead. Through that one kiss, he
transferred every care, all his concern, and most of all, the love he had for
me. I knew he would never let me go again.

“Let me see what he wants,” I muttered
against his chest. “I’ll be right back.”

Raven released me, but kept a firm grip
on my hand. I moved forward, keeping ahold of his hand until his fingers
slipped from my reach. I straightened as I approached my dad’s car, but with
each step I took, my feet seemed to get heavier. I broke out in a cold sweat
despite the cold air that blew across my face and swept through my hair. I told
myself I had nothing to be afraid of, but the images of how he pulled me into
the house when Raven took me home were all too recent.

“Hey, Josh!” Raven yelled as I walked
toward my dad’s car. I assumed Raven was preparing in case he had to swoop in
and rescue me.

My dad remained in his car and it made
me feel a little more at ease. He rolled down the window and rested his arm
along the door. “Hey, princess.”

At those words, my heart did a double
beat and my eyes instantly watered. I blinked rapidly, trying to keep the tears
at bay. I cleared my throat, hoping my emotions weren’t going to give me away.
“You haven’t called me that in a long time.”

“Maybe I should’ve never stopped.” He
smiled at me and then winked with his left eye; his signature expression that
got me every time.

Instead of stopping at a safe distance,
I found myself right at his door, wanting to feel his hugs — the only kind a
daddy can give.

“Why did you?” I crossed my arms over my
body, trying to hold myself together.

He stared at the ground for a moment
before looking back at me. “I guess I thought you were too big for me to call
you that.”

Tears formed and I quickly sniffed them
away. “I’ll never be too big for that name.”

“Good, because I’d really like to call
you that more often.” He inclined his head toward me and I felt horrible about
everything. I knew my dad all too well. He did whatever it took to appease my
mom, but I couldn’t help but wonder why he never stood his ground. Her ways
weren’t always right, regardless of whether she thought it was to protect us.
“Do you think we could go somewhere and talk for a while?”

I nodded and smiled at him. “Sure. Give
me just a minute.” I dried my tear-streaked face with my palms and walked back
toward Raven.

Raven hadn’t moved from his position,
keeping a keen eye on my dad and me. Josh stood next to him with Shelby behind
him. “Is everything okay?”

“Yeah. I’m going to go with him so we
can talk. I’ll be back later.”

Raven eyed me suspiciously. “Are you
sure?”

“Yes.” I let out a long breath I hadn’t
realized I’d been holding. “I’ll be fine. I really do want to talk to him.”

 Uncrossing his arms, Raven relaxed his
shoulders. “Do you want me follow you in my car?”

A low laugh escaped my lips. Raven
really was trying to protect me and it was so sweet. “No, it’s okay. I’ve got
my phone and some money.” I held up my wristlet. “I’m good.”

Raven turned to Josh and he shrugged.
Then he stepped up to me. “Okay. Let me know if I need to come get you.”

“I will.”

We exchanged a kiss and then I walked
back to my dad’s car and got in, noticing a huge stack of clothes in the back
seat.

“Ready?” Dad smiled at me as I clicked
my seatbelt.

“Yes.” I smiled at him, feeling the
dryness of the tears that had stained my face. “What’s with all the clothes?” I
turned around and noticed they were my clothes along with a couple of bags.

“You didn’t take much with you, so I had
Luke help me gather a few of your things.”

“More like my whole closet.” I reached
over and shuffled through them. “Thanks.” In all honesty, a part of me was glad
that I wouldn’t have to go home to get my belongings, but another part kind of
felt sad. Like my dad was confirming the fact that my mom disowned me.

“You’re welcome. So, where to? Do you
want to get something to eat?”

I adjusted the strap across my chest.
“Well, I already ate.”

“Okay. We can go to the mall, or —”

“Dad, you hate shopping,” I reminded
him.

He waved off my comment. “I know, but
this is about you. Not me.”

I reached for his hand and he took my
hand in his. “No, it’s about us.”

His eyes glistened and the wrinkles
around his eyes appeared. At that moment, I hadn’t realized how much my dad had
aged. Silver framed his face, his dark hair quickly turning a salt and pepper
color. He and Luke looked so much alike, but his bright blue eyes they shared
were now a paler blue.

“You’re right, it is.” He squeezed my
hand. “I don’t care where we go, I’d just like to spend some time with my baby
girl.”

The threat of tears inundated me once
more. I took a deep breath, pushing the emotion back. “How about we go to the
duck pond down the road?”

“Like the one I used to take you and
Luke to when you were little?”

“Yes.”

“Sounds perfect.” Dad shifted the car
into drive and we circled around the parking lot. I gave a small wave to Raven
to let him know that everything was okay. I watched him for a moment, waiting
to see if he was going to follow us, but we turned onto the street and Raven disappeared
from my view. I knew I had nothing to worry about; my dad was trying to mend
things between us. And for that, I was grateful.

We stopped at the corner store and
bought a loaf of bread before going to the park. Luckily, there were some
Mallard ducks floating in the water, catching the afternoon sunrays. We sat on
a nearby bench and opened the bread.

“I saw the press conference last week.
How is Raven taking everything?” Dad handed me a few slices.

Wow.

My dad had actually been following PHU
football? That was a first for him, since he was a huge baseball fan — living
and breathing the sport while encouraging Luke to do the same.

“As good as he can, I guess.” I tossed a
few pieces into the water. “I mean… he was disappointed that he didn’t get to
play in the bowl, but he did meet with the academic board today.”

Dad popped his head in my direction. “He
did? What happened?”

I hesitated for a second, wondering how
much information I should divulge. Remembering the media would be featuring his
story by the end of the day, I figured my dad would find out regardless. “It
was good. They’re going to allow him to play.”

“That’s great news.” An appeasing smile
appeared across his lips. “I’m happy for him.”

I froze, holding a piece of bread
midair. Had I heard my dad correctly? Something had definitely changed. He
sounded like he was rooting for
Team Raven
, taking an opposing side to
my mom’s quest for
Team Collin.

“Seriously?” I lowered my arm.

A low chuckle filtered through my dad’s
smile. “Look, Lexi, I’ve come to realize that you’re going to see Raven whether
we approve of him or not.” His smile turned serious and he inched closer toward
me. “I just want the best for you and if being with him makes you happy, then I
guess I have to accept it.”

“What about mom?” I took a tough
swallow, feeling the tightness in my throat. “Does she agree with you?”

Dad looked away, keeping a steady eye on
the ducks pooling around the edge of the pond. He tossed a few more pieces of
bread into the water. “No. Unfortunately not.”

“She doesn’t know you’re here with me,
does she?”

He shook his head. “Just because your
mother is being hardheaded doesn’t mean we can’t talk.”

My throat relaxed. He was right. And I
was glad that he was finally doing what he knew was right, despite what my mom
was probably telling him. “Thanks, Dad. That means a lot to me.”

“I’m sorry, Lexi. I’m sorry that I
didn’t stand up for you and that I allowed your mom to take over. It’s just
that… well, it’s a long story. One you don’t need to worry about. You have to
understand that you’re my daughter and I want what’s best for you, in any form
that may be. I know we’re not perfect and we all have our faults, but I applaud
for you being there for Raven. Sticking by his side through his tough times
shows me how selfless you really are and what you must feel for this guy. So,
if you choose to be with him, I accept that.”

“Oh, Dad, thank you!”

My dad’s eyes watered and he hesitated
for a moment before leaning forward and gathering me in his arms. I embraced
him, holding on to him like never before. His arms comforted me, just like when
I was little. It was an affection I could never forget. I needed my dad’s
support. Being with Raven was tough at times and I knew it would take a lot of
perseverance as I walked with him down his winding path. Having a parent by my
side would make it easier for me.

“I love you, princess. Don’t you ever
forget it.”

“I love you, too, Dad.” Tears flooded my
eyes and it felt so good to finally let go of all that negative energy.

“Looking back, I understand why you
didn’t approve of me being with him. From the outside, Raven doesn’t appear to
be the right one for me. He has a past, as you know, and still struggles with
walking the right path, but he cares for me and shows me how it feels to be loved.
Collin never did that. I couldn’t be with a guy that was afraid to show me how
he felt about me, much less marry him. With Raven, there’s no question. I don’t
doubt his love for me.”