99

Ryan

Chickens Come To Roost

There'd been at least ten hours of media training in my lineup but I had nothing to say to Kassie.

I held my breath, watching her dress disappear into the crowd. Kassie was gone. The shock settled into my system and left my blood pulsing. A new play had been passed on the field and I stood there, frozen in place.

I crossed back to the ceremony and scanned over the faces, not able to put a name to any of them. Donors, investors, administrators in football, none of them mattered to me. All of this shit was so fucking unimportant I couldn't stay.

"Captain!"

Stunned, I glanced back to see Adam with a huge grin on his face.

"Hey, we're going to Gianna's —where's Kassie?"

"She's—" I stopped myself, still shocked. "She's gone."

"When's she coming back? We're heading out in an hour. I need some time with my date." He grinned, raising his eyebrows at me. "Kegel instructor at the gym."

"She left," I croaked.

"Who? What?"

"Kassie."

" What? Left where? "

I didn't understand the rest of the questions he threw at me and I ignored him, passing through the crowd. I was looking for Kassie's dark waves. At the counter, the dance floor, outside, somewhere, maybe sketching something.

Where is she?

"Ryan," Cleo interrupted me with a smug smile. "Contract is null and void."

I stared at her, ears ringing. "What? What contract"

"The one with Kassie?" A grin played on her lips. "She asked to end it. Something about being tired of sneaking around?"

"She said she loves you, man." Miles grinned too. "We're happy for you."

"And I am a genius. " Cleo smirked.

My mouth ran dry. "When did—when did she say that?"

"After Peter's speech—I thought he was still Director of Student Affairs—Ryan? Ryan? "

I needed to find Kassie. I had to find her and apologize and explain and everything would be okay. But she wasn't in the student center's lobby, she wasn't out on the stairs, she wasn't in the parking lot. My heart thudded in my chest.

I fucked up.

Driving down the clogged streets of Marrs wasn't an option. My car stalled between every other one, an endless line of traffic. At the earliest I could, I ditched the car in a no parking zone and made my way to her apartment complex. I'd pay the fines later.

"Ryan!" Adam's shout followed me.

I closed the door after me but a smirk met me behind the receptionist's desk. I stared at him, dumbfounded, as he pushed up his glasses.

"I need to go upstairs," I told him.

There was no way they only had one front desk employee, but it was the same guy, every time. Fucking every time. And the look on his face told me everything. I had a better chance at a lottery ticket than I did taking that elevator.

The words blurted out of me. "I need to get upstairs."

He shrugged. "You are no longer allowed in this building. The chickens have come to roost."

"No. She wouldn't—she wouldn't do that to me."

"Sir, you are no longer allowed in this building."

My mind raced through all possible scenarios and I shook my head, trying to think straight. I fucked up, I did, but now I needed to apologize. I needed to make it right, and everything would be okay. It would be. It had to be. Any alternative was too painful to think about.

"Please," I rasped. "I just need ten minutes, I just need to see her."

"I have pepper spray."

Fuck, I'd take getting pepper sprayed.

The doors burst open and I heard them behind me before I even saw them. A hand went to my shoulder and I shook him off as quick as I could.

"I need to see Kassie," I insisted.

"Captain." Adam dug his hand into my shoulder. Both Adam and King dragged me back to the door. I could've fought them off if I wanted but I was still in shock and I didn't know what to do about it.

"Leave the premises or I will be calling the police!"

"We got it!" King shouted back and the two of them brought me to the sidewalk.

I shook my head and took a walk back to the dorm. "I need to see her."

"No, you don't," Adam told me and made long strides in front of me. "Dude. Stop. You have to have some idea how this looks. How the cameras are going to see it."

" Fuck the cameras—"

"Captain," King said, his voice low, and stopped me too. "Take a breath."

"I need to talk to her."

King shook his head. " No, Ryan."

Next to him, Adam snapped his fingers and grabbed me by the jacket. "Hey? Ryan, listen to me. Kassie wouldn't like it. You know how she is, she wouldn't be cool with this at all. Look at me. She wouldn't be down for this."

My eyes flickered off to the dorm and back to him. "Kassie wouldn't like it?"

" No ."

King nodded in agreement and I was left looking back and forth between them, fucked up. I shook my head. "What am I supposed to do?"

"First of all, we need to get the fuck out of here." Adam pushed me back to walk the opposite direction but I couldn't look away from her dorm. She was up there and I hurt her. I had to show her how sorry I was.

I started walking back towards the dorm and the guys grabbed my shoulders, yanking me back.

"What am I supposed to do?" I asked them, dumbfounded. "What am I supposed to do?"

"I—yeah, I don't know," Adam admitted.

She told the receptionist that they couldn't allow me up.

She didn't want me anymore.

If I stayed and they arrested me, it wouldn't change anything. She wouldn't come downstairs. I wouldn't get to see Kassie again and I'd never get a chance to see her look at me the way I knew I looked at her every day. I'd been living every day for that chance. And it was gone.

A dull, fuzzy ringing surrounded me and I shoved my hands in my suit's pockets, walking with the guys.

Kassie was done with me.