Chapter 25

CHAPTER 25

Chase

Frat Rules #5: Never ever leave your girl alone at a frat party. The vultures will descend.

" B aby! Please stop." I close in. "It's not what you think." I finally get ahead of her, stopping right in front of her path. She nearly barrels into me, but I brace myself, catching her weight. She tries to shrug out of my hold, but I tighten my grip. "I need you to listen to me, Ruby."

"I don't want to hear some lame excuse," she sobs. "Please just let me go, Chase."

"No!" I wrap my arms around her, holding her close. The sobs rock through her body, and I feel her pain through my soul. She's scaring me. I feel like I'm about to lose her. "It was a dare, baby." I hear the soul-scorching desperation clinging to my voice, the tears blurring my vision. "They dared us pledges as our final initiation. We all had to ask a girl on a date. I only took Stella out for a friendly dinner. It meant nothing to me. Absolutely nothing. I swear to you, baby. You're my entire world. You're my everything."

A tear slips down my cheek and I cling to her. I've fucked up in my life before, but this is the biggest mistake I've ever made.

"If it meant nothing, then why didn't you tell me?"

Her swollen eyes raise to me, and my heart cracks down the center. I never wanted to cause her pain. I should've fucking told her. I should never have let Hunter fucking Karsen have power over my choices. I let myself get bullied into it. And for what? I don't give a shit about the frat. I don't even like the guys. Matt's the only one who matters in the house. But I betrayed my girl for them.

"I was going to tell you. The night after we were told what was expected of us, I was planning on asking you if you'd be okay with it. But you started talking about being worried I'd meet someone else, and I didn't want to feed your fears. I was only taking Stella out to fulfill the requirement, so I decided I'd tell you after the fact. But it just never seemed like the right time. I was so afraid of losing your trust over something that meant nothing to me."

I should've told her before it happened. I should never have let it go on this long.

"Baby, I'm sorry. I'm so fucking sorry that I even succumbed to the stupid dare. Please. You have to forgive me. I don't want to lose you. I love you so much."

Another sob rocks through her, and another crack forms in my chest.

"I can't do it anymore, Chase." Fear unlike anything I've ever felt hits me in the gut. "It just hurts all the time. I feel like I'm constantly sick to my stomach. And you have so much going on here. Football, the frat. But me…all I have is school and tutoring, and a lot of time on my hands to miss you. I've been worried sick, thinking that it's only a matter of time before you pull away from me, wanting your freedom. That you'll find someone else. I don't think I can do it for the next four years, Chase. I don't think I'm cut out for long distance."

I grip her tighter. It feels like I'm about to hyperventilate. She still doesn't trust how in love with her I am. There's not a chance I could fall for anyone else because she's the one I want to spend my life with.

I lift her head, looking into her beautiful sad eyes. "Don't you get it, babe?" I press my forehead to hers as the emotion tries to clog my throat. "The reason I text you a hundred times a day is because I need to feel like you're here with me. Our calls at night are the only thing that helps me get to sleep. And the few times I didn't get to talk to you, I was up all night waiting for the sun to rise so I could hear your voice. It's just as hard for me, babe. I always think that you could be tutoring some guy and realize there are more fish in the sea. That you shouldn't just settle down with your first boyfriend. That you can do better than this dumb jock. So, for as much as you worry about losing me, I can promise you that I worry about losing you a million times more."

The only time I get a reprieve from my worry is when I'm out on the football field. In classes, I think about her. When I'm at the frat, I think about her. When I'm sleeping, I dream about her. She's my obsession.

"I know it's hard, babe. I'm living it. But I know that losing you would be far worse. I want to grow old with you, baby. I want to see your smile when I wake up in the morning and hold you in my arms at night. I don't want a future without you in it. You light up my whole fucking world. You're my everything, Ruby."

I reach into my pocket, feeling for the diamond ring. Thankful I didn't leave it in the truck for fear of it getting stolen.

"I was going to wait until tomorrow to give you this," I drop down to my knee, "but I need you to know how much you mean to me. This"—I hold out the ring—"is how much I love you, Ruby. This is why you never have to worry about losing me. Because I want to marry you, baby. You're my best friend and the only one I can imagine spending my life with. You're it for me."

Another sob rattles her frame. I reach up, bracing her cheek, feeling like my life is hanging in the balance of her choice. If I lose her, I lose everything. The rest of it has no meaning without her to share it with. Football, college—neither one will matter if I don't have her.

"Please don't give up on us, baby." My desperate plea is thickened with the heaviness of my fear. "Please, Ruby. I dare you to say yes. I dare you to spend forever with me. And I promise to prove that it was the best decision you ever made."

Her eyes finally meet mine. The stream of her tears trickling down her swollen cheeks. I hold the ring steady between us, my mind searching for more to say, but I've poured my heart out and now it's up to her.

"I'll take your dare, Chase." My heart leaps inside my chest. "I'll marry you. But you have to promise me something."

"Anything, baby." As long as she says yes, I'll promise her anything.

"Please don't ever keep things from me again. I'd rather know than to feel like I can't trust you."

I rise off the ground, pulling her into my arms. "I promise it will never happen again. You can trust me fully, babe. And this ring…" I reach for her hand and finally slide it onto her finger, watching it sparkle under the moonlight. Seeing it on her hand brings me comfort. She's mine now. No one else can take her from me. "This is a symbol of that trust." Never again will I let anything come between me and my girl.

Her eyes drop to her hand and the curve of her lips finally start to tip up. "It's so beautiful."

" You're so beautiful." I hug her tighter, feeling like I want to hold on for dear life. "Can we go to the hotel now, babe?" I just want to be alone with her.

"Please," she nods, her lips quirking up into a sly little smirk. "By the way, you owe me makeup sex now."

I lean down and swoop her up into my arms. It's time for me to start groveling.