The student union of Boston University was packed. The first day back always tended to be hectic with moving back into the dorms. And by lunch, everyone wanted to just find a seat, sit, and relax for a few.
Late August in Boston, while not hot, wasn't cool either, so most wore shorts, tanks, skirts, and various other summer attire. A Dr. Dre Beatbox on one of the outside tables blared some upbeat playlist, and lots of the people assembled outside moved to the music. A veritable feast of hormones.
At least that was how Nikoli Kincaid saw things. His gaze moved over the mass of bodies, categorizing all the women there. He couldn't find a single one outside of the newly arrived freshmen he hadn't bedded who he'd wanted to over the last three years. The ones who hadn't made it into his bed were the ones who tried too hard or he simply wasn't attracted to them. He never had sex with the same woman twice. It was a strict rule of his and one he refused to break for anyone.
He sat there and debated if he should pick up the cute little redhead who looked lost or the brazen blonde who eyeballed him with open lust.
Nikoli smiled at the blonde. He knew the effect he had on women and used it to his advantage daily. His grandmother called his good looks a curse; he called them facilitators of a good time. Hair the color of rich, dark chocolate and onyx eyes pulled women to him like a magnet. His eyes were always full of the promise of mind-blowing sex. His Russian accent only added to his allure. He'd had a woman twice his age tell him that once. He'd been a little grossed out at first being hit on by a woman who could be his mother, but he'd accepted a long time ago what his looks could do for him.
No better way to christen the beginning of his senior year than... His mouth dropped open, earning him a questioning look from the guy sitting beside him. Luther Conway had been his best friend since freshman year of high school and was the only person who really knew him. Hell, some days Nik didn't know himself, but he could count on Luther to keep him grounded.
"She is not a freshman."
"Who?" Luther sat up and scanned the crowd, his gaze coming to land on who'd caught Nik's attention so thoroughly. Hair so black it glinted blue in any kind of light was held up in a high ponytail. Warm blue eyes rested on the guy she spoke with. Her small, delicate face radiated laughter. She was a stunning beauty who had no idea how beautiful she really was. Lily Holmes had no idea the effect she had on men. Nikoli found the trait very rarely in women, but when he did, he appreciated it all the more.
"Don't even think about it, Nik," he warned. "That's Lily Holmes."
Ah, the fabled Lily Holmes. He'd heard her name often. She tutored most of the football team and several members of his own frat house. She'd even helped Luther out once, which made it strange he'd never laid eyes on her before.
"They'll break every bone in your body if you hurt her."
"It'll be worth it." He grinned and jumped up, the lusty little blonde forgotten as he sauntered over to meet Miss Lily Holmes.
Lily smiled but grimaced inside. All she really wanted to do was go find a quiet corner and sit for a bit. Not that it was even a possibility with the crowd she found herself surrounded by.
She sighed as several of Adam's football buddies came over. They all had to say hello, and then more people wandered over, the small crowd around the maple tree in front of the Student Union growing by the second. She'd promised to meet Adam here for lunch, but if he didn't show up soon, she was going to bail. She needed to check with the bookstore to see if her lit book was in yet. As of yesterday, it still wasn't in stock, but they were hopeful it'd be in today. If worse came to worse, she'd rent a digital copy through Amazon until the book arrived.
She scanned the crowd and sighed in relief when she spotted Adam heading her way. He looked so all-American, boy-next-doorish with his sandy blond hair artfully spiked, laughing at his friend Mike Craft as the two of them pushed their way through the crowd.
Lily smiled softly as they approached. Adam Roberts had been her best friend since third grade. She only wished he would wake up and realize how much more they could be, but she'd given up on that hope a long time ago. Now he was engaged to be married to Susan Williams, and she had to pretend to be ecstatically happy for him when all she wanted to do was cry. Or punch Sue right in the face. It sucked to be her, but then, that was nothing new either.
For two seconds, she wanted to growl in frustration. Sue and her little posse of sorority sisters were firmly attached. Adam had been so busy over the summer working for his dad and then spending what time he had left with Sue that Lily had been put on the back burner. She'd been busy herself, interning at a literary agency in New York most of the summer. While she didn't hold it against him—well, not much—she would like to sit down and eat one meal with him, just the two of them. She missed her best friend.
"Lily." Adam grinned and wrapped her in a bear hug, but only for a second. He knew about her phobia.
"Hey." She grinned right back at him. "Hi, Sue."
"Lils, you gonna be too busy to help me with my economics class this semester?" Mike asked.
She loved Mikey dearly. He was the only other person besides Adam who she trusted. Mike's curly brown hair and green eyes were always gentle with the people he cared about. Now, put him on the football field, and people ran from the terror those eyes inspired. It always made her laugh.
"Mikey, I've never taken an economics class."
"What? Why haven't you taken the class?" He frowned at her.
"Um, because I'm not a business major?"
"Well, hell, Lily, what am I gonna do?"
"Hell if I know." She laughed at his chagrined expression. Somehow, over the last three years, she'd become the unofficial football team tutor. She blamed Adam for that. It had started with him asking her to help out a friend or two, and before she realized it, she was tutoring most of them in one subject or another. Now she found it hard to say no. They depended on her. As a result, she was friends with the entire team, their frat houses, and several of their girlfriends and their sorority houses. She'd gained tons of "friends," but really, she could count her friends on one hand. Sad, but true. She had major trust issues.
"He can go sign up for a tutor." Mike's girlfriend, Janet, shook her head at him. Janet was a tiny little thing. She reminded Lily of Tinker Bell with her gamin features and pixie-cut strawberry blonde hair.
"Hey, can I borrow you for a sec?" That was the only thing Lily heard before someone grabbed her hand and she was running to keep up. What the hell?
She ran straight into him when he stopped. They stood about a hundred feet away from the crowd she'd just been in. Yanking her hand free and taking several steps backward, she turned furious eyes on him and nearly stopped breathing. The inky black depths she stared into were alight with amusement.
"That was rude," she told him in an attempt to regain a bit of her composure.
"I thought you needed rescuing, Lily Bells."
"That's not my name," she seethed. The nerve of him.
"I know who you are."
Lily knew exactly who he was too, and what his reputation was, but damn, why was his voice like silk with his sexy Russian accent? She had no intention of ending up on his list of one-nighters, though.
"And I know who you are, Nikoli Kincaid, so you can just march yourself back to wherever you came from. I'm not interested."
"Aw, now, Lily Bells, don't get your panties all in a twist. I never once asked you out."
Lily narrowed her eyes. She could see Adam and Mikey staring at them, a frown on both their faces. "I'm just saving you the trouble."
He smiled, which caused things south of the border to clench, and Lily gasped slightly. The sensation was one she'd never experienced, and it surprised her.
"What if all I wanted was a tutoring session?"
"Your GPA is as high as mine."
He reached up and traced the outline of her lips with a finger, and she flinched. She did not like to be touched.
"That's enough," she told him a little more forcefully than she'd intended. "I'm going back to my friends now. And even if you did just want a tutoring session, the answer is still no."
His words stopped her retreat.
"I don't give up that easy, Lily, and I always get what I want."
"Then get used to disappointment."
Nikoli watched her stomp back over to her friends and leaned against the tree, dumbfounded. No one ever said no to him. It was disconcerting yet fascinating.
Lily Holmes was a novelty.
He should probably turn his attention to the women eyeballing him, but the thought of a chase was too good to pass up. Lily presented a challenge, one he'd not faced yet, but one he'd definitely win.
She had no idea what was about to happen to her.
He grinned wickedly and walked away.