Rushing In (Ritter University #4) Read online

  Table of Contents

  Title Page

  Copyright Information

  Dedication

  Acknowledgments

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Chapter Thirty

  Chapter Thirty-One

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  Chapter Thirty-Three

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  Chapter Thirty-Five

  Chapter Thirty-Six

  Chapter Thirty-Seven

  Epilogue

  About the Author

  RUSHING IN

  Vanessa M. Knight

  Rushing In

  Copyright © 2016 by Vanessa M. Knight

  Published by Inked Publishing

  Cover Design by Okay Creations

  Book Designed and Produced by Nancy Canu & Vanessa Knight

  Edited by Nancy Canu

  Rushing In is a work of fiction. All names, characters, places and events are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or to actual events or locales is entirely coincidental.

  All rights reserved. No part of this work may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission from the author except in the case of brief quotations for use in critical articles or reviews.

  ISBN: 978-0-9962172-6-2

  edication

  To Katie, my wonderful sister and friend. Thank you for being an awesome person and listening to all my ramblings. I have to say, you don't suck.

  Acknowledgements

  This book would not have been possible without the patience and understanding of my family and friends. Thank you to my critique partners J Leigh Bailey, Nicole Leiren, Stephanie Scott, and Kelly Garcia for countless hours of reading and discussing this book. You helped guide the story into something we can be proud of.

  Thank you to my amazing editor, Nancy Canu, for her perseverance and constant enrichment of story after story. Your attention to detail and talent make the stories stronger. And for that I thank you.

  Thank you to the fans for coming back again and again to see what hijinks and shenanigans the students of Ritter University will find themselves getting into. Your encouragement helps me get through writer’s block and keeps the ideas coming.

  Thank you to my family for understanding when I hide in the writing/editing cave. Without you all I would be nothing. And a special thanks to my husband for answering all my questions and helping to keep my facts on point.

  ~»ΨΡ«~

  Chapter One

  Megan

  THE WHITE BALL sped past Megan Stewart’s nose, a small burst of air the only indication of the near miss.

  Thwap!

  Danny Jones bumped the volleyball, sending it high enough for Megan to spike. She jumped, cartwheeling her arms, and connected with the ball, hitting it over the net and safely onto the ground of enemy territory.

  Point! A bunch of “great jobs” landed on her from all sides. Nice. But only one voice could get her heart rate going. Only one voice could curl her toes and heat her blood.

  “Impressive, Megs.” Danny tugged at the single red curl hanging in her face as he whispered in her ear.

  “Thanks.” She turned her head, her lips turning up in a grin… OMG. His face was inches from hers. Hot minty breath tickling, sliding down her face. His hand dangerously close to her mouth. Her own breath held as heat blazed down her spine. He’d been getting closer and closer to her, but this… this was heaven.

  And then it was gone… Hand, breath, heaven. All gone.

  Speaking of from heaven to hell— A group of women yelled from the sidelines, “Nice job, Danny!” and a nightmare brunette’s boobs bounced as she jumped up and down. “Way to go Danny!”

  For the love of all that’s holy… This was a friendly game of volleyball among friends, not the Super Bowl, for goodness sake. There was no reason her cleavage needed to be so damn excited.

  Danny walked over and gave them all a high five. The brunette completed the high-five swing and grabbed onto his ass. “Nummy.” She licked her lips as he pulled her hand away and gave her a wink.

  “Let’s do this shit.” Danny glided to the back of the court, bouncing the ball. “We only need two to win.”

  “Quit yappin’, Jones, and play the game,” Ryan Kent called from behind the net. He let go of his girlfriend Karina’s hand and prepared for the impending arrival of the volleyball. Ryan and Karina had been going back and forth in their relationship until a few weeks ago, when they finally figured it all out in a grand romantic style. It was a fairy tale— well, a fairy tale with a splash of internet defamation.

  “Maybe I’d hit the ball if you’d stop molesting your woman on the court.” Danny bent over and bounced the ball. He ran a hand through his spiked blond hair before tossing the ball in the air and testing out his serve. His muscles bunched beneath the tight-fitting T-shirt covering his chest The tattoos lining his arms flexed as he twirled the ball on his finger. She hated to agree with the bobblehead brunette, but— well— nummy.

  Another of Danny’s friends yelled from over the net, “Maybe if you had a woman who could stand you for more than twenty-four hours, you’d have a woman to molest.”

  Megan shook her head as she looked around. A year ago, if anyone would have told her she’d have this group of friends— any group of friends— she never would have believed it.

  Slap!

  The ball flew from Danny’s hands and over the net, toward Karina. A few rounds of set, attack, and block sent the ball back and forth between the teams. Every successful hit was punctuated by a shriek and jiggle from Danny’s fans on the sideline. Megan wanted to slap one or two of them, but that seemed violent. She could cover them with a blanket, tape their feet to the floor, tape their boobs… Okay, she was having way too much fun imagining the horrible things she could do to them. And it wasn’t their fault Danny was flirting back.

  Her eyes drifted away from the cheering section and landed on Danny. Actually… he wasn’t even looking at them. His focus was on the game. All that titillating boob-waving for nothing.

  A loud thump, a high spike… and the ball dropped like a brick at Megan’s feet. Shit.

  Danny patted her butt and grabbed the ball, bouncing it under the net to the other side. “Dive, Megs. Sacrifice your body!” The girls booed, but Danny didn’t turn. He looked into Megan’s eyes. “We got this.”

  We got this. Sure.

  No matter how minute a competition, the men of Ritter University took it seriously. Well, at least these men from Psi Rho fraternity at Ritter did. Sacrificing life and limb was expected in every game, from volleyball to beer pong to rock, paper, scissors, lizard, Spock— not that they would play the lizard, Spock version— hell, did anyone actually play rock, paper, scissors anymore? T
he competitive streak was strong in this bunch, so Megan wouldn’t be surprised if an afternoon study session turned into a hand-gesture war.

  She watched the ball fly over the net and land in the back corner of the court. The rivals were slowly shrinking the point spread. Megan shook her head. She hated to lose just as much as the guys.

  “Come on guys, we can’t let them win. They are the enemy.” Danny clapped as he cheered on the team.

  Karina bounced the ball on the other side of the net. “Three points.” Three points and they were tied.

  Karina bumped an underhand serve to the back row. This was Megan’s chance to end this game. Her chance to stop the annihilation of her team. Although team was stretching it a bit. It was more like eight friends who didn’t have homework, so they entertained themselves during open gym at the college recreation center. The usual four-against-four, winner-takes-all.

  “All” being bragging rights until the next competitive game. Oh, and the losers had to buy the beer for the next party. Not that Megan was old enough to buy the beer, being a freshman and all, but there were guys on the team that could. And technically, “buying the beer” was just code for coughing up the money.

  Megan dove for the sliced shot and slid along the nubby-rubber flooring. The shock-absorbent material might be perfect for jumping and running, but sliding? As Karina would say, not so much. The small rounded bumps tore along Megan’s arms, burning angry streaks down the skin covering her triceps. The second the ball was safely up, she turned onto her back and watched Danny's other roommate, Keith, rocket it over the net.

  Score!

  Thank goodness. She stayed where she was and moved her aching arms to get a better look at the carnage. Graveled skin. Welted, red. Dammit, that hurt. Trickles of blood pebbled her skin, best buds with the needles psychotically poking and stinging over and over again. Poke. Poke. Poke. Megan closed her eyes and rested both arms on her forehead. She refused to cry, not in front of everyone. Not in front of Danny.

  “Ooh. That's gotta hurt.” Megan looked up and saw Keith staring down at her.

  “Damn, girl,” Danny said. “When I said sacrifice your body, I didn’t think you’d take it literally.”

  Karina walked up to the net and laced her fingers through it. “Is she okay?”

  “Are you okay?” Danny kneeled down over Megan. His body inches from hers. The scent of sweat and citrus flew from his skin. He did smell good. Goodness.

  She turned her head toward him. His shorts rode dangerously high on his thighs. Was he wearing underwear? She found her eyes searching the loose material hanging from his hips. This was so wrong. She turned her head away from the view. She really wanted to look and check, but that seemed ridiculously inappropriate. Sort of.

  She should have enjoyed his proximity. The scents. The sights. But the brushfire on her arms wouldn’t simmer down.

  “Megan?”

  “Huh?” She moved her arms to her sides, but touching them to the floor only made the overeager needles in her skin frantic. She put them back across her forehead.

  Crap, if her parents saw her like this— her arms bleeding— they’d drag her to the ER, right before reserving her space in the closest plastic bubble. They’d never let her out of their sight. Hell, she’d had to beg and plead just to get them to let her go to college.

  If this wasn’t a small Christian college, they never would have let her come at all. If they knew how incredibly normal the campus was— the parties, the drinking— they’d never let her stay.

  “Are you okay?” Danny asked again.

  Really? Did she look okay? Megan risked an X-rated view of Danny and turned her head to the side, jaw slacking. She sighed and nodded. Just because she was ready to gnaw off her arms from pain didn't mean anyone needed to know.

  Danny offered his hand. She ignored the pull and tug of agony and laid her hand in his. He yanked her to her feet. “You all right to play?”

  “Of course.” She shook her arms, loosening the sting and discomfort. She had this. One more point. They only needed one more point and all of this was over. She loved playing volleyball. It was a release, normally. But right now her arms hurt and she just wanted to be alone. Maybe take a cool shower. Lay in her bed and just groan or something.

  She had time for all of that. They just had to win. Put the final nail in the coffin and then she’d be free to feel sorry for herself all she wanted. She just couldn’t give up. She was not going to wimp out now. Stewarts didn't wimp out. Stewarts were better than that. At least that’s what her dad reminded her every day.

  “Let's go!” She leaned her hands on her knees and prepared for battle. Danny tossed the ball in the air. She watched it soar over the net, landing in bounds with a thud.

  It was over. Thank goodness.

  ~»ΨΡ«~

  Chapter Two

  Danny

  DANNY JONES WATCHED Megan hesitantly lift her gym bag and sort through the contents. She was trying to hide the cringe and frown that seemed to follow every move she made.

  “Meg, you ready?” Karina grabbed her own bag. “We're going to shower at home and head to the frat.” Ryan's arm was already draped over her shoulder. The man was whipped. Danny could see it in every move he made. The guy couldn't keep his eyes off her. Sap.

  Not that Karina's long dark-blonde hair and perky nose weren't cute, but she didn't hold a candle to Megan. The woman was gorgeous— long fiery red hair, fair skin and the fullest lips... He needed to get those thoughts out of his head, quick. She was everything Danny was not. She was sweet, pure, strong. Danny was the polar opposite. He was nowhere near her league. Hell, his league wasn’t anywhere near her league. They weren’t even the same sport.

  Megan shook her head. “I'm gonna walk on the treadmill. You guys go. I'll catch up with you tomorrow.”

  “Are you sure? I can give you a ride home,” Ryan offered. The damn knight in perfect armor. Danny liked the guy, but sometimes all that ridiculous suburbanite perfection was annoying as shit.

  “I'll make sure she gets home.” The words left Danny’s mouth before he could stop them.

  “Oh, okay.” Ryan looked at Megan— looking for her approval, for fuck’s sake. She nodded again and returned to the scavenger hunt in her bag. She tried to hide the cringe on her face as her friends walked out the door.

  “Danny, I thought you were coming by the house tonight.” Daisy or Maisy, or whatever her name was, tossed her brown hair back over her shoulder, pouting the whole time.

  “Not tonight. Busy.” He watched her sorority sister grab her hand and pull. She looked so upset. He almost felt bad. Okay, he actually felt bad. She’d been fun, easy, but she wasn’t Megan. And he wasn’t in the mood for easy, he wanted… fuck only knew what he wanted.

  “Stacy, let’s go.”

  Stacy. Yeah, that was her name. He’d been pretty close. “See you around, Stacy.”

  She smiled and dipped her index finger in her mouth. “You can bet on it.” He wanted to roll his eyes, but he didn’t want her to go away mad. He just wanted her to go away.

  When the sorority party’s loud voices disappeared down the hall, Danny turned to Megan. Her hands were buried in her bag and her face was impassive. Nice try.

  “So, Gingersnap. Treadmill, really?” He walked up behind the actress throwing the award-winning performance. Everyone else seemed to buy her charade. He knew her better than that. “How are the arms?”

  “Fine.”

  “Let me take a look.” He gently tilted her arms into view. They looked so fragile, so thin compared to his. Red slashes and blood lined the delicate skin. Crap, that had to hurt. “We need to clean this out. Follow me.” He wrapped his fingers around her much smaller hand and pulled her to the men’s locker room door.

  She put on the brakes. “Am I going in there?”

  Danny dropped her hand and turned to her. “Don't move. I'll be right back.” He walked into the locker room sweat-osphere and roamed the aisles of naked bodies
and swinging johnsons. Yeah, there was no way he was bringing Megan in here. She didn’t need to witness all the profanity and the leering naked men.

  But her arms needed medical attention. At seven o'clock on a Friday night there was only one person Danny would trust... plus, he was a brother at Psi Rho and would be heading to med school next year. Thankfully, though, right now, he was dressing after football practice. “Ski, I need you.”

  “What you doing here, Jonesy?” The muscled six-foot-five football player dragged a T-shirt over his head. He looked more like a UFC fighter than a doctor, but the man was brilliant. The poster-child for gentle giant.

  “We were playing volleyball, and Megan got hurt. Can you take a look?”

  “Sure.” The big guy grabbed a small red bag and slammed his locker shut. Danny knew he would be prepared. After participating in wrestling and football his entire high school and college career, Ski always had a first aid kit handy. It didn’t hurt he was also pre-med and a genius. “Where de girl?”

  “Follow me.” Danny led Ski back through the locker room and pushed through the door. Megan sat on a bench, her arms held out to her sides. Her head rested against the wall, eyes closed. He had an incredible urge to kiss her...

  That thought came out of nowhere.

  Ridiculous.

  Megan wasn't that type of woman. She was everything Danny wasn't— innocent, respected, sweet. He wasn't close to any of those things. He was a punk from the low-rent subdivision down the road. If she knew half the things he'd done... Hell, if she knew the one thing he'd done. The one thing he could never take back. She'd run from him. And she should.

  Women like her didn't find a rap sheet and juvie tats sexy. No woman did. That's why he never told anyone about his past. And he wasn't about to start now.

  “Megs. Ski's gonna take a look at your road rash.”

  Ski knelt down and gently examined her arms. “Well, you did some damage, but you don't need stitches.” He put a pair of gloves on his large hands and opened a package of antiseptic. “Dis may hurt a bit.” He slid the wipe along each of her arms. Megan hissed a little, but that was it. Ski took a tube of ointment from his bag, and using a Q-tip, he smeared the goop all over her wounds before he wrapped her upper arms in gauze. “You all set. Keep dis dry until tomorrow.”