Out of Her League (Love & Other Disasters Book 2) Read online

  Again I shake my head.

  “I can’t take no for an answer.” Her eyes soften. “It’s okay, your secrets are safe with me.”

  Oh god. My eyes fill. I can’t. I cannot cry here. I need a moment to collect myself. I want to tell her I’m fine, but the words are lodged deep, unable to come from my lips. I shift away, to stand and escape. But then I stare up into Xavier’s face, and I sit back down.

  His expression—I can’t read it—it’s desolate. Or haunted or something.

  Everyone stills.

  I want to look away, but I can’t.

  I blink, and twin tears track down my cheeks before I brush them frantically away.

  “Tessa.” Xavier’s voice is strained, almost cracking at the very end of my name.

  Helpless, I gaze at him.

  Everyone is watching us, waiting.

  Suddenly, Xavier drops down to his knees, shocking me as nothing else could. He puts his hands on my thighs and squeezes before looking into my eyes.

  Somewhere from my left I hear a gasp, but I can’t look away.

  His lips part as though he’s going to say something, but then he stops, shakes his head, licks his lips and tries again. “I love you.”

  The words shock me as nothing else could have; unable to believe I heard them. Xavier doesn’t love anyone, least of all me. He doesn’t want to. Ever. He’s been very clear on that. Everyone knows that, me especially. I shake my head.

  “Yes. I love you.” The statement is clearer now, more sure.

  Ashley says, “What is—”

  “Sssshh.” Shelly cuts her off.

  I can only blink, unable to process what is going on.

  Xavier’s hold tightens on my legs. “Please, I know I’ve been a complete idiot. My only excuse is I’ve never been in love before and I don’t know what I’m doing.”

  “No,” I whisper, and more tears slip from my lashes.

  “Yes. I’ve always said I didn’t want to be in a relationship, and that’s not true, I just didn’t want to be in a relationship with anyone but you.”

  I want to believe, but I can’t, this only happens in books. Real life never falls into place. Unable to stop myself, I brush his strong jaw. “Xavier, you’re just upset.”

  His features twist. “Of course I’m upset, I’ve messed up the greatest thing in my life and I have no idea how to fix it.”

  “Xavier—”

  He grips my thighs and then waves one arm wildly in the air. “The only thing I could think of is to make a grand gesture in front of everyone I know.”

  Some of the tension in my chest loosens, just a little. I bite my lip.

  “I had no idea that this misery was love.” He blows out a breath. “I’m not going to lie, it’s as awful as I thought it would be, but if it’s going to be awful, I want it to be awful with you.”

  Laughter bubbles, unexpected from my chest and I finally manage to say, “That’s the least romantic thing I’ve ever heard.”

  “I know how you like romantic gestures.” He looks frantically around the room, searching for what I have no idea, before he turns back to me. “I would have brought flowers, but I didn’t have any idea that I was going to do this.”

  I shake my head. “You don’t have to bring me flowers, Xavier.”

  “Yes, I do, I should. I’ll bring them to you every day if you’ll let me.” He leans down and puts his head on my lap and I brush his hair back with the tips of my fingers. “Please, please, Tessa, tell me what you want and I’ll do everything in my power to get it for you.”

  I’m speechless. Beyond words.

  He lifts up and stares at me. “I know this is hard to understand because your heart is so open and pure, but falling in love with you was the hardest thing I’ve ever done. Because of…” He frowns, glances around, before returning to me, his jaw tight. “How I grew up, I never thought I could fall in love. I think I thought maybe I was unlovable.”

  “Xavier.” His name comes out as a sigh.

  “Is there anything I can do? To make it up to you? I’ll do it. Anything, I swear.”

  I wonder if I should make him suffer more. The heroine in a novel would make him suffer more. But I don’t have the heart. That’s not who I am. Not when he’s in such despair. I smile. “I love you too, Xavier.”

  Relief floods over his features, and if I was unsure before, I’m one hundred percent certain now. “You do?”

  I nod. “I do.”

  “Thank god.” He stares deeply into my eyes. “I swear to god, Tessa, you won’t be sorry.”

  Christopher taps him on the shoulder and he jerks around, snarling. “Do you mind, I’m trying to have a moment here?”

  I giggle, covering my mouth with my hand.

  Christopher grins and hands him a wilted stub of a yellow rose. “It’s the best I could do on short notice.”

  Xavier stares at it, scowls, then sighs and takes it. He turns back to me and holds it out. “Tessa, love of my life, will you please do me the honor of being my girlfriend?”

  I take the sad little flower and beam at him. “Yes. I will.”

  He scoops me into his arms and crushes his lips to mine.

  My last thought, before his mouth makes me forget everything but him, is maybe I’m pretty exciting after all.

  Epilogue

  Xavier

  “My god, how the mighty have fallen.” Jace shakes his head, as though he’s too disgusted for words.

  I stand, sliding off my barstool, and throwing a twenty on the table between my friends and me, shrugging. “Got to get home to the little woman.”

  Ted grins. “What’s it today?”

  I don’t pretend not to know what he’s talking about. It’s been a month since I confessed my love for Tessa and I haven’t regretted it for a single second. I’ve spent that month making up for my stupidity. “I found an old edition of Jane Eyre to add to her collection.”

  Three sets of male eyes roll.

  I’ve been intent on giving Tessa the romantic grand gestures she not only desires but also deserves. Every day since that night of the party, I’ve done something. Surprised her with adventures, taken her to the fanciest restaurants, sent her four dozen roses, brought her a heart-shaped box filled with chocolates to make up for her disastrous Valentine’s Day she insists wasn’t a disaster at all. I bought her jewelry, a pair of shoes she’d been lusting after, and pretty, silky nightgowns. Just to name a few things.

  In short, I’ve turned into an obnoxious romantic and take endless shit about it.

  But I don’t care. I need her to know I’m worth the risk, that I’m committed.

  I grin and wave to my friends. “See you later.”

  I make my way to the car and drive to Tessa’s apartment. I have a key now. I want to move in together but she wants to wait, until at least the honeymoon phase, as she calls it, wears off. According to her, somewhere around the four-month mark of our courtship we’re supposed to be out of infatuation, but I don’t believe it.

  Because what I feel for her isn’t infatuation. It’s peace and contentment and passion all rolled into one.

  I stroll down the hall and unlock the door, stepping into Tessa’s fairytale apartment. She’s at the stove, stirring something.

  My mouth goes dry and my cock gets hard as I take in her lush ass in sheer pink panties, and what looks to be a laced-up corset from the back. She completes the picture in white thigh-high stockings and ridiculously girly pink high-heeled shoes. Like a very perverted princess.

  Spoon in hand, she turns around and smiles at me. She’s wearing an apron. “You’re not supposed to be here for a half hour.”

  “I couldn’t wait.”

  She puffs out her lower lip. “You ruined my surprise.”

  I shake my head. “Nope, believe me, I’m surprised.” I gesture at the apron. “I wouldn’t mind if you took that off.”

  With an exaggerated sigh, she puts her spoon down and slowly, seductively unties the apron, pulli
ng it over her head.

  I lose what’s left of my breath, and that heated lust takes over the more civilized part of my brain. Her tits are fantastic, spilling out over the tight top that makes her waist impossibly small, and her hips incredibly rounded.

  I can’t believe I almost gave this up. What an idiot.

  I crook my finger.

  She strolls over, a sexy, powerful smile on her lips. “Do you want something?”

  “Yes.” I wrap my arms around her.

  “What?” The word is hot and breathless.

  “You.”

  She bats her lashes at me. “You have me.”

  “I do.” Then I claim her mouth like I will be claiming her body soon enough.

  Turns out, Ted was right, this love stuff only makes you miserable if you’re resisting it.

  When you give in, it’s fan-fucking-tastic.

  Hey there!

  Thanks so much for reading.

  I hope you enjoyed the next book of the Love and Other Disasters series, OUT OF HER LEAUGE, as much as I enjoyed writing it. Tessa is such a romantic and I loved watching her not only get her happily ever after, but topple the great Xavier. It’s always so fun when a heroine brings a hero to his knees, don’t you think?

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  To sweeten the pot you get not one, but TWO stories for free! Not only will you get CRAVE, book one of my Undone series, but you’ll also get a top secret bonus story, featuring Ted and Shelly, that is available ONLY to my newsletter subscribers. I hope to see you there!

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  The Story Behind The Story

  Awhile back I conducted a contest asking readers to share with me their worst dating disasters. The idea behind the Love & Other Disasters series was to use real life stories as the inspiration behind each of the books.

  Below is the true story behind Xavier and Tessa’s Valentine’s Day date. Enjoy! And thanks again to M. Farley for sharing her disaster with me.

  I had been crushing on a guy in my English literature class for a while, but he never seemed to notice me, so I had resigned myself to be hopelessly crushing on Mr.Cute, sexy, renaissance.

  I decided to move on and go out with a guy my bestie Whitney had been trying to set me up with that following Friday.

  Friday finally rolled around and there I stood looking in the window of the restaurant. Bob was the friend of a friend. I've never really been good at dating, to begin with, and blind dates are just the worst.

  I walked in and looked around, and to my surprise, I saw Mr. Cute, sexy, renaissance sitting at a table in the corner. I was surprised, but I knew his name was Brice, and he wasn't my Bob. Bob had told Whitney that he would be wearing a blue dinner jacket and white shirt, Whitney had filled me in on his general looks, so I glanced around and until I see him. He was sitting at the table right next to Brice.

  At that moment the floor could have swallowed me up, and I would have been happy. I slowly walked over to where Bob was sitting, and I noticed Brice looked up and his gaze followed me to the table where my blind date sat.

  I looked down at Bob, and his blank expression, as I moved to stand next to his table. In my peripheral vision, I saw Brice smiling and looking me up and down. I steadied myself and addressed Bob.

  "Bob"? He looked up slowly and smiled at me, but it was off, I just couldn't put my finger on it, but something was wrong. He held his hand out to and an empty seat, and I sat down.

  Our conversation was strained, and I knew the conversation was lacking because of Brice being so close and for the mere fact that Bob was an ass. Bob was rude, vulgar, and chauvinistic. He wanted women to be seen and not heard, he wanted a trophy wife and had his whole life planned out 2.3 kids, 401k, the perfect house, job, and wife. I was so bored with the conversation and frankly tired of hearing what the little wifey should and shouldn't do.

  I was trying so hard just to get through dinner and promised myself that I was gonna give Whitney a tongue lashing for this horrid date. I promised myself that I was never again going on a blind date. I had had enough of his sexist and perverse view of the world.

  I injected that I neither liked or cared for his views and that I was tired of his company and I was leaving. His face was priceless he lost all color in his face, and slowly I saw the red blotchy rage work it's way up his neck. I stood to leave, and he grabbed my wrist and yanked hard making me falter forward. I looked down, and his eyes were cold and filled with rage.

  To my surprise, his face turned white, and he dropped my hand. I looked at him wondering what he was looking at just beyond me. I turned to see Brice standing there with an older gray-headed lady who smiled sweetly at me. Brice had a furious look on his face and was directing it at Bob.

  "Hello, Mistyanna," Brice said never looking in my direction his enraged gaze still boring into Bob's.

  The old woman who I later learned was Brice's grandmother, said "Come dear," as she put her hands on my shoulders and turned me towards the exit.

  When we hit the night air, I released the breath I hadn't known I was holding. I looked down at the little woman that now stood beside me and saw the kindness in her eyes. She was smiling at me and introduced herself as Minnie. Brice joined us and apologized for intruding and explained that he and Minnie had overheard Bob. He explained that he couldn't help but intervene. He went on to tell me that his mother, Minnie's only daughter had been beaten and killed during a domestic dispute by his father.

  I was so relieved that he had stepped in and so sad that he had lost his mother in such a tragic way. I thanked him, and Minnie and I didn't know what to do I was overwhelmed. Brice asked if I would stay and wait while he said goodbye to his grandmother and I agreed.

  When she left he told me about the horrible events that took his mother's life. I was stunned by his admission but I let him talk encouraging him to talk and vent. We ended up walking about twenty minutes in the little park across the way from the restaurant. We decided that we would go out the next weekend. I have to say it was crazy night to say the least.

  Also by Jennifer Dawson

  Want more books? I’ve got something for everyone.

  The Love & Other Disaster Series

  Sexy Contemporary Romance inspired by real reader’s dating disasters.

  The Walk of Shame

  The Undone Series

  Romantic Erotica that’s all about the journey.

  Crave

  Sinful

  Unraveled

  Debauched

  Taken- Coming in 2017

  The Something New Series

  Small town, contemporary romance with a big city twist.

  Take a Chance on Me

  The Winner Takes it All

  The Name of the Game

  As Good as New

  She’s My Kind of Girl

  Head Over Heels- Available for Pre-Order

  About the Author

  Jennifer Dawson grew up in the suburbs of Chicago and graduated from DePaul University with a degre
e in psychology. She met her husband at the public library while they were studying. To this day she still maintains she was NOT checking him out. Now, over twenty years later they’re married, living in a suburb right outside of Chicago with two awesome kids and a crazy dog.

  Despite going through a light FM, poem writing phase in high school, Jennifer never grew up wanting to be a writer (she had more practical aspirations of being an international super spy). Then one day, suffering from boredom and disgruntled with a book she’d been reading, she decided to put pen to paper. The rest, as they say, is history.

  These days, Jennifer can be found sitting behind her computer writing her next novel, chasing after her kids, keeping an ever watchful eye on her ever growing to-do list, and NOT checking out her husband.