Ride or Die (Rejects Paradise 4)

“It’s not your last shot,” he tells me, sitting up in bed and watching as I try to convince myself to get to my feet. “I swear to you, Jade. I'm not going to let that happen. The University of Bellevue Springs wants you, and I know I don’t like to share, but I won’t stop until they get you.”

“But …”

“No buts. You’re going to college, and that’s final.”

I roll my eyes as I finally get to my feet. The rejection letters I'd received Friday morning sit heavily on my mind, but I can't tell him yet. Now’s not exactly the moment to shoot down his hopes and dreams for me. And I really don’t want to get into the ‘I’ll pay for you to go to college’ argument that seems to be a regular occurrence around here.

I make my way across the room, and just as I go to step into his bathroom, I look back at Colton, finding his eyes all over my body. “I missed you,” I tell him. “I know it was only a few days, but those few days without you really sucked.”

A soft smile plays on his lips, and I watch as his eyes shine with joy. “I’m never letting you go back there again,” he tells me. “You’ll have to pry yourself out of my cold, dead hands.”

I laugh. “That can be arranged,” I tell him, winking before I disappear into the bathroom, closing the door on the shocked expression on his face.

I lean into the shower and turn on the water before stripping out of my clothes. I've never been so happy to be naked in my life. The water hardly gets a second to completely warm before I throw myself under it and instantly fall victim to its comfort.

Fuck, that’s good. I’ll never take for granted a good shower again.

I let the warm water wash over my face, and as the minutes pass, I don't move an inch. I kinda expected Colton to come in ages ago and take over my shower. Though I have to admit, for once, I’m enjoying the privacy, and I'm grateful that he’s given me a few moments to myself. I know how hard that must be for him.

I realize that if I don’t speed things up I’m going to be late for school, so I get busy washing my hair and scrubbing the memory of the last few days off of my body. The loofa roams over my skin, and when it passes by my nipples, I cringe as a shock of pain tears through me.

What the fuck was that?

I glance down at my tits and scan over them, but there's no cuts or bruises, nothing that could bring me any pain. My brows furrow as I take hold of them, feeling around and pressing my fingers into the soft flesh. I let out a long sigh, finding them both extremely tender and beginning to swell.

I really am pregnant.

I don’t know why I hadn’t expected any of this, but I should have known. I’m fucking lucky that I haven’t been hurling everything I eat with that dreaded morning sickness.

Maybe it’s about time I start googling these things. I mean, what’s supposed to come next? When will I start to get a bump? I should sit down with Mom tonight and discuss it all. After all, she’s been through it with me. Who better to ask?

I finish up in my shower and wrap my towel around me just as Colton barges through the bathroom door with my phone in his hand. “Here,” he says, handing me the phone with an annoyed expression on his face. "Please talk to Milo so he’ll finally stop calling me.”

I laugh and scoop the phone out of Colton’s hand and hold it to my ear. “What do you think you’re doing bugging my boyfriend at this time of the morning?” I question as Colton steps in behind me and curls his arms around my waist, studying my face through the mirror.

“Girl, where the hell have you been?” Milo questions, most of his perky attitude back in force after it took a hit when he was attacked on Wednesday. “What are you doing today?”

“Umm … I was planning on going to school.”

“Don’t,” he says. “I just got discharged, and now I have to spend the day sitting in bed with no one to talk to.”

“Really?” I question, my eyes going wide. “That's the best news I’ve had in days.”

“Tell me about it. I’ve never been so happy to get out of there. The dude in the next room snores like a fucking trooper, and no matter what I do, I can’t seem to get the sound of it out of my head. So, what do you say? Are you coming? I’m halfway through the Vampire Diaries, and I’m a little obsessed right now, but I’m going to need you to stop and get me some popcorn.”