University Park Series Box Set: Books 1-3 (56 page)

A third of the way into the song, Shelby
and Josh started yelling and whistling. I turned around to see Luke doing a
perfect moonwalk, followed by some smooth Michael Jackson moves. My jaw hit the
floor. Never in my life had I seen my brother dance like that. “What the hell?
When did he learn those moves?” I asked Delaney.

Delaney shrugged as she clapped along.
“When your brother is drunk, he really loosens up.”

“Apparently so.” Who knew? Luke
apparently had an alter ego. Maybe it was suppressed like mine had been.
Everyone cheered as he tore up the dance floor, and I couldn’t help but praise
his perfect performance.

The song ended and immediately
transitioned into a top-forty hit. The crowd erupted into a frenzy and everyone
flooded the dance floor. The Latin beat had Raven moving his hips, much to my
body’s delight. I took a step back, taking in every part of him in, from his
head to toes.

Oh yeah.

“Come on, baby.” He swayed from left to
right, enticing me even more. I tried to follow his footsteps, but I had no
idea what I was doing. “I don’t know how to salsa,” I cried, stumbling along.

Raven lowered his hand to the middle of
my back and our bodies molded together; Raven’s body fit perfectly with mine.
“Don’t worry, baby, I’ll show you all the moves.” His voice surrounded me and I
fell victim to his words.

 “Mmmm. You promise?”

His eyes answered me with full, sexual
intent. I couldn’t wait to get him home tonight. He laced my arms around his
neck and I relaxed into him. “Just let the rhythm move you.” I closed my eyes
as his pelvis rocked against mine, showing my body what he wanted it to do. And,
eventually, I got it. We danced for what seemed like hours, sweat trickling
down our bodies and our breathing heavy with exhaustion. But neither of us
wanted to stop. We were too
into
each other.

“We’re going outside.” Shelby pulled on
my arm and I turned around. “Come with us.”

“Want to get some air?” Raven asked,
inhaling deeply.

“Yes, I need something to drink.” I
wiped the sweat from my forehead. “And, I’m hot.”

“You’re damn right you are,” Raven
whispered in my ear and I shivered in excitement.

With hands locked, we followed Shelby
outside. Delaney screamed when we met up with the rest of our friends on the
other side of the swim-up bar. Luke swayed back and forth with a cigarette
hanging off his bottom lip, ready to either pass out or throw up. “Shit, your
drunk.” I flagged the bartender. “I need a water, please.”

“No. I feel good.” He smiled and the
cigarette fell to the floor. “Besides, I’m not passing out. Not tonight.” He
grabbed Delaney’s butt and she shrieked.

“Luke!” She threw herself on him and
they started kissing, showing a little too much PDA.

“Oh God,” I sighed, looking at Raven.

“What? Don’t look at me. He’s your
brother.”

“Yeah, but you’re going to be the one
taking care of him,” I reminded him.

“I don’t think so. That’s what his woman
is there for.” He pointed at Delaney. “She can do it.”

Delaney and Luke laughed, not paying
attention to anyone as they continued kissing each other.

“Shots!” Shelby yelled as soon as the Fireball
song started playing.

“Nine Fireball shots,” Josh told the
bartender.

“Put it on my tab.” Shawn held up his
finger as the bartender flipped over a bottle of vodka and shot a squirt of
something into it with the soda nozzle. Josh shook his head, but Shawn said,
“I’ve got this one.” At lightning speed, the bartender poured our drinks and
lined them up for us. We grabbed our glasses and Raven motioned for us to wait.

“Happy twenty-first birthday to my
baby,” Raven held up his soda as everyone raised their glasses, “and to my good
buddy, Luke.”

Luke gave a slow nod, holding up his
glass with a wobbly hand. “Cheers!”

“Here’s to twenty-one!” Shawn yelled and
we downed our drinks together.

Shelby jumped up and down, screaming,
“Fireball!” Then she slammed her empty glass on the bar, and said, “Another
round. And this time, he’s paying.” She hooked a thumb to Josh.

The bartender poured us another round,
except for Raven, and Luke, when he motioned he didn’t want anymore.

Thank God.

I shimmied against Raven to the beat of
the song, keeping my backside firmly pressed to his front.

Damn he felt incredible.

I could have rubbed on him all night
long if he let me.

I never wanted the night to end.

Raven I continued to dance in our
private circle as our friends danced nearby, with the exception of Delaney and
Luke, who had disappeared after Delaney asked for the keys. They played the Fireball
song what felt like ten more times and every time they did, Shelby ordered
another round. We took a few more shots, until my throat was coated with the
sweet and spicy taste of cinnamon. But I didn’t care. It was my twenty-first
birthday and I wanted to have a good time. As long as I didn’t pass out or
throw up.

“Let’s take a walk.” Raven pulled my
Malibu and Coke from my hand and set it on the bar.

“Okay.” He led me through the crowd and
I held on tight as the floor tilted under me. People bumped into me, but I
managed to make it to the back of the patio. Raven helped me down the stairs
and onto the beach. My feet immediately sunk into the cool sand, but I managed
to stay upright, using him to steady my steps. Tiki-torches lit the path and we
followed it to the shore. Several people were on the beach, drinking and
laughing under the bright moonlight and crystal clear sky. I couldn’t have
asked for a better birthday.

“How drunk are you?” He pulled me close
and I struggled to stand straight.

“Just a little.” I used my index finger
and thumb to show him how much.

“Good, because I want you to remember
your birthday.”

“I will.” I pawed at his chest, eager
for him to help make it more memorable. “As long as I don’t do any more shots.”

“I think you’re done for the night.”

“Well, I don’t know about that.” I ran
my fingers through his hair, eager to feel more of him. Between the liquor and
dancing, I was more than turned on. I definitely had that drunk-sex feeling and
right now seemed as good a time as any. I looked around the beach, but there
were too many people. It wasn’t like the spot near Josh’s house. Someone would
definitely see us.

“Lexi?” Raven called for my devout
attention. I held my gaze to his with blurred vision, even though I wanted to
close my eyes and let him take me right there. “I want you to know how happy I
am that you’re going to be my wife.”

“Aww, Raven. I can’t wait to be your
wife.” My smile enveloped me from the inside out. I loved Raven with all my
heart.

“So, when do you think you want to say
I
do
?”

His question took me by surprise. Between
all of the Fireball shots and Malibu and Coke I had drank, I couldn’t think of
a date, so I said, “Whenever you want.”

“Shit. Mexico is right over there.” He
pointed across the ocean.

I laughed. “I don’t want to get married
in Mexico.” I gave him a slight push and he caught me before I lost my balance.

“No?” He held me tightly in his arms,
keeping me from falling on my butt. “What about Vegas?”

I shrugged. “Maybe.” Then the words
registered. He was asking me when and where I wanted to get married. He was
dead serious. I honestly hadn’t given it much thought. Everything had happened
so quickly, I just wanted to revel in the excitement and all-over-feel-good
sensation that had consumed me night and day. “How about back home? I want my
Dad to walk me down the aisle,” I hiccupped and then giggled, covering my
mouth.

“Okay, we can do that.” Raven’s perfect
white teeth shone bright in the darkness. I’d never seen him so happy. It was
as though nothing else in the world mattered. Only us. I found myself spinning
with him and prayed I wouldn’t pass out. I wasn’t ready for the night to be
over with. I had another agenda.

“Yeah, but I want something else first.”
I ran my hands down his chest, giving his pecs a hard squeeze. I may have been
drunk, but I knew what I wanted.

He raised a brow. “Oh yeah, what’s
that?”

“How about birthday sex?”

His eyes widened in further delight. “I
thought I already gave you that this morning,” he replied, his words hinting
that he’d be okay with another round.

“Oh, yeah, you did,” I said in a
seductive tone. “But the truth is… I can’t get enough of you.”

“Then, I’ll give it to you.” Raven
picked up my hand and trailed kisses along my arm. “As much as you want.” Chill
bumps spread all over me and I shivered. He pressed a kiss to my neck and I
leaned back, allowing him to devour me to his desire and mine as well.

“But you know what?” I pushed him back
as the pangs of hunger struck me.

“What’s that, baby?”

“I think I need a Whataburger first.”

Raven laughed. “Lexi, you never cease to
amaze me.”

“What? Did I say something wrong?” I
repeated the words in my mind. A greasy burger followed by sex. Was there
anything better?

“Come on, baby. Let’s go find everyone
and get your burger.” Raven picked me up and hauled me across the sand, as if
he couldn’t wait. And neither could I. This had been the best birthday ever.

Σ

It was the best-worst birthday ever. My
head pounded viciously and I felt like I’d been dragged up and down the street
a few times. Since I couldn’t remember much after we left the club, maybe I had
been. I stood under the spray of the shower, allowing the warm water to beat
down on me, hoping and praying I felt better once I got out.

After standing there for several more
minutes, I finally shut the water off. I jumped when I saw Raven waiting
outside with a towel. “Raven,” I gasped.

“Sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you.” He
handed me the towel and I wrapped it around my body, too worn out to dry
myself.

“Were you watching me?” My words slurred
together, making me sound half-drunk rather than sexy, as I had intended.

“Yeah.” His eyes traveled up and down,
taking me in slowly.

If I hadn’t been so hung over, I would
have pulled him into the shower with me. But sex was honestly the last thing on
my mind, for fear of puking all over him. “Maybe I’ll feel better later and we
can get wet together.” I ran a hand through my wet hair.

His face lit up, like I had I said the
winning words. “I’d like that.”

I dragged my heavy body to the bathroom
counter and used it for support. Never had I felt this bad. This totally
sucked. With the hand towel, I wiped the condensation from the mirror. Not only
did I feel like shit, I looked like it. I managed to brush my teeth without
throwing up, but didn’t have the energy to brush my hair.

“Are you alright?”

I shook my head. “No. I feel like I’ve
been hit by a train.”

“I told you to slow down.” He helped me
to the bed and I sat down. “I knew you would hate today.”

“Being hung over sucks.” My body swayed
back and forth as I tried to sit up straight. “Never again. What about Luke?
How’s he doing? He definitely had more to drink than me.”

“Delaney said he threw up and then
passed out in the car. Josh and I had to carry him to bed. You probably should
have thrown up. Ya know, gotten it out of your system.”

“I thought that burger would have
helped.” The thought of food made my stomach turn and threatened my throat with
the pungent taste of vomit.

“What burger?”

“I thought we stopped to get something
to eat.” I tried to recall what happened after we left the nightclub, but it
was all a blur. However, I did remember wanting a Whataburger, which sounded
horrible right now.

“No. Delaney wanted to get Luke home.
Besides, I don’t think food was on your mind. You practically attacked me in
the car.” He laughed as he stepped into the bathroom and retrieved my clean
clothes.

“Oh, please tell me I didn’t.”

“Yeah, you straddled me and said you
were ready to take me downtown.”

I laughed. “What the hell does that
mean?”

“Hell if I know. I had to remind you
that driving with you on my lap would definitely be hazardous.” I covered my
eyes with my hands, completely embarrassed. I could only hope everyone else was
too drunk to be paying attention.

“I can’t believe I mauled you while you
were trying to drive.”
Ugh!

Kneeling in front of me, he helped me
slip on my panties and shorts. He even hooked my bra for me. What a man. “If it
makes you feel better, I hadn’t actually started the car yet. But you can show
me what this ‘downtown’ is about later, if you want.” His lips grazed the top
of my shoulder and I collapsed into his arms, too weak to hold myself up. The
offer sounded so enticing, but I couldn’t even think of sex right now. “Do you
want to dry your hair?”

“Nah, it’s okay.” I leaned against him,
wishing I felt better. I didn’t even have the energy to towel dry it.

He pulled my hair to the side and then
slipped my shirt over my head. “It’s really wet.”

“Okay, I guess. But can you do it for
me?”

“Of course.” He kissed my forehead and
returned to the bathroom.

“Grab the brush while you’re in there.”
I tried to run my fingers through my hair, but it was all matted. “Damn, what
did I do to my hair?”

Raven laughed again. “That must have
been the chlorine.”

“Chlorine?”

“Yeah, you stripped down to your bikini
and jumped in the swimming pool.”

“Oh, how embarrassing.” I had become the
thing I despised most — a drunken idiot.

“That’s not all. When we came home, you
rode my ass like never before.” My head shot up just in time to see Raven
adjust his shorts. “Damn, you wore me out before passing out cold.”

“You’re lying.” Heat inundated my
cheeks. I had never acted that wild.

“When you’re drunk, a sexy vixen comes
to life.”

I guess there’s a first time for
everything.

He plugged in the hair dryer and flipped
it on, combing the knots out of my hair. “I kind of like it.” He winked.

I smiled. “I’ll remember that.” My head
fell forward and I stared at my legs and toes. There was a big, purple bruise across
my right knee and the nail polish on my right big toe was scraped. I wondered
how that happened. The gel nail polish was supposed to be durable. Maybe not
for clumsy drunks. That’s when I finally recalled kicking off my shoes and
stripping off my clothes before jumping in the pool. I had done exactly what he’d
said.
What an idiot!

After Raven dried my hair, I pulled it
into a ponytail and got back into bed.

“Do you want me to bring you something
to eat?”

I moaned. “No. I just want to sleep.”

“Okay.” He kissed me on the cheek and
pulled the covers over me. “You picked a good day for it. It’s raining outside.”

I listened for a moment at the sound of
the rain tapping on the window. The soothing sound immediately eased the
throbbing in my head. “Good. It will help me sleep.”

“I’ll check on you in a little while.”
Raven flipped off the light and the room darkened. I slept for a few more
hours, finally getting up around four in the afternoon feeling somewhat alive.

“Good afternoon, sunshine,” Josh said
with a rolling pin in his hand.

“Morning.” I shuffled my feet against
the cold tile, feeling the sluggishness in my legs. It felt like the blaze from
the Fireball liquor had lost its fire, replacing my body with a heap of ashes
instead. I sat at the bar and slumped over the cold marble. I hated this
feeling.

“You had one hell of a birthday.” Shawn
snickered, but I didn’t have the energy to say anything back.

“Leave her alone. She had a great time.”
Shelby wiped her hands on a towel and came to my side. She wrapped an arm
around me and my body practically fell against her. “Didn’t you?”

I gazed up her and smiled. She had flour
on the tip of her nose. It reminded me of myself when I was in the kitchen. I
glanced to see what they were cooking. Flour covered the island, along with
garlic and tomatoes. The smell of Italian food drifted through the air and my
stomach couldn’t decide if it was hungry or gun shy, for fear of tossing it
back up.

“Too much,” I moaned.

She released me and I swayed to the
side. I grab the counter and steadied myself. The room did a quick spin and I
closed my eyes.

“All I know is that you need to show me
how to swing on a pole.” Shelby slapped her hand on the counter and my eyes
shot open. “You worked that thing like a pro.”

 “Wh-what pole?”

“The pole that was by the pool. You were
swinging on it before you jumped in the water.”

“Oh. No. Please tell me I wasn’t.” I
slumped further on the stool and shielded my face with my hands. That’s when I
noticed the bruise marks on my inner thighs. They looked like carpet burns. Or
pole burns, in this case.

“I saw the video. You were workin’ it,
girl,” Delaney laughed as she rounded the corner.

“You filmed me?” I felt all of the color
drain from my face. I had done what Mr. Marshall warned us not to do.

Shit!

“Not me.” Delaney pointed to Shelby. “Her.”

Shelby walked over to the bar. “I’m
sorry. I’ll delete it, if you want.”

“Just please tell me you didn’t post
it.” I suddenly felt the nausea I’d been fighting burn the back of my throat.

She crossed her fingers over her heart.
“I promise I didn’t.”

“I wouldn’t let her, baby.” Raven
approached me from behind and gathered me in his arms. “I told her it would get
us in trouble.”

“And we sure as hell don’t need that,”
Josh added.

“Why didn’t you tell me?” I looked up at
Raven. “Or why didn’t you stop me?”

 “I tried to, but you were determined to
show me what you could do.” Raven’s brows shot up and he gave me a wicked grin.
“And Shelby is right. You can work a pole, baby! Where did you learn moves like
that?”

“Oh, God.” My head hit Raven’s chest.
“Anything else you guys want to tell me about last night?”

“Lexi,” Raven lifted my chin, “don’t be
embarrassed. We’ve all had our nights. Last night was yours.”

“And Luke’s.” Delaney sighed. The dark
circles around her eyes told me she had probably been up all night with him. I
guess she was returning the favor for all the times my brother had taken care
of her. Or better yet, he was getting her back for all the times he had to take
care of her drunk ass.

“How is Luke?”

“Hung over. Big time.” Luke dragged himself
into the kitchen, still looking half-drunk. “Do you have any chicken noodle
soup?”

“Soup?” I asked, wondering if he was
sick or just hung over.

“Yeah, in the pantry.” Josh pointed to
the door to the right of him.

Delaney opened the pantry door and
pulled out two cans. “Want one, Lexi?”

“Why would I want soup? I’m not sick,
just hung over.”

“Are you serious?” Josh looked at me
with confusion.

“It’s the best cure for hangovers,”
Raven said, nodding to Delaney, affirming I would eat it.

“I didn’t know that,” I openly admitted.
Then again, when it came to drinking and partying, I really didn’t know much. At
least, not like my friends and brother.

“Trust me. It works,” Luke slurred as he
plopped down on the seat next to me.

“I’m surprised you’re alive.” I gave him
a once over. His beautiful blue-green eyes were bloodshot and his hair was a
disheveled mess. His after five shadow was a little thicker than normal and he
still reeked of alcohol. “You were downing those Fireball shots like water.”

“Don’t remind me. I’m never doing that
shit again. That cinnamon burns when it comes out of your nose.”

“Gross.” I shuddered as the reminder
suddenly hit my taste buds.

“Oh hell, I was going to ask if you
wanted another one,” Josh laughed.

“Eff you man.” Luke flipped him the
bird. “I’ll remember that the next time we’re in the gym.”

“Aww, hell. I should have kept my mouth
shut.” Josh immediately returned his attention to the ball of dough in front of
him. “Since it’s raining and everyone feels like shit, I thought we could hang
out here tonight and watch some movies on Netflix.”

“And eat some of your homemade pizza.”
Shelby dotted the tip of Josh’s nose with some flour.

“Of course, sweets. I can also make one
of those cookie desserts, if you want.”

“I love those.” Shelby stole a pepperoni
from one of the pizzas Josh had just set on top of the stove behind him.

“I saw that.” He pulled the dishtowel
off his shoulder and popped Shelby on the butt. She shrieked and then grabbed
his hand, using his palm to rub the pain away. They continued to flirt with
each other as Delaney dodged them, carrying a big bowl of soup for Luke.

“Yours is heating up, Lexi.”

“Thanks.”

When the microwave beeped, Raven brought
the soup to me along with some crackers. Luke and I sipped the broth and ate
our crackers slowly, but managed to finish it. And they were right. It
definitely was a cure for hangovers. Although I didn’t feel one-hundred percent
better, I did feel functional.

After everyone ate pizza and Josh’s cookie
dessert, with the exception of me and Luke, we watched a scary movie. Throughout
the entire movie, I snuggled up to Raven, hiding behind his shoulder and
covering my ears with my hands. Watching horror movies was not my thing. I
enjoyed sleeping too much to waste it on being scared all night.

When the movie ended, Shawn walked to
the kitchen and returned with a few beers in his hands. He handed one of them
to Raven, but before Raven took it, he looked at me. “Do you mind?”

“We’re staying here, right?”

“Yeah, we’re not going anywhere, Lexi,” Shawn
said, urging him to take it.

I shrugged. “I don’t care, as long as
you don’t leave or get wasted like I did last night.”