Would You Rather: A College Romance (Campus Games Book 3)

Meeting the parents

“I did it.” As soon as Lucas opens the door, I jump into his arms, wrapping my legs around his waist when he hoists me up.

“Hell yes,” he says, his hands gripping my ass to make sure I’m secure, or maybe he just really likes my ass. “How did it go?”

“So good,” I tell him, grinning when I remember the audition. It went better than I ever expected. After rejection after rejection and feeling like a failure, I honestly think I’m on my way to getting a little win. Even if nothing comes from this, I’m happy with how it went.

“I’m so fucking happy for you.” He breaks out into a grin, tightening his hold on my waist with one hand while the other reaches up to grab my face. “I knew it would happen for you.”

It’s still too early for him to be congratulating me. They could still pass on me, but I like how he sounds, full of hope. “I know it was you,” I tell him.

“What do you mean?”

His expression gives nothing away, but I know better. I smirk, admiring him for trying to keep it a secret. “I know you called them yourself to get me that audition.”

He furrows his brows for a second but then drops the act, breathing out a sigh. “Did Ana tell you?” he asks. “I asked her not to.”

“She didn’t have to,” I admit, keeping my arms wrapped around his neck when he drops me to the ground. “I knew the moment you told me I got the audition.”

He lets out a laugh, shaking his head. “I guess I wasn’t very good at hiding how excited I was, huh?”

I smile, shaking my head in reply. I love how happy he was for me, how he went out of his way to get me something that I’ve been dreaming of forever. “Thank you,” I whisper against his lips.

“It was all you,” he says with a smile. “All I did was try to contact them, but it was once they saw your audition tapes that I sent them that they decided to give you that audition.”

“You saw them?” I ask him, my heart beating faster. I don’t know why the thought of Lucas seeing my audition tapes makes me nervous, but I would hate if he watched them and thought they were trash.

“A long time ago,” he says, chuckling.

A breath escapes me. “I don’t know how I feel about that,” I admit.

He pulls me closer against him, his hands settling at my waist. “There’s nothing to be nervous about. You were amazing.” He leans down and presses a kiss on my cheek. “You are amazing,” he amends.

His lips land on mine, and I breathe out a sigh, kissing him back. Our tongues brush together, pulling a moan from my throat. Just kissing him feels amazing. I never thought I could feel like this.

But when my phone rings, we both jump apart, and Lucas groans. “I swear to god, if that’s Ana.”

A laugh bubbles out of me as I reach into the back pocket of my jeans and pull out my phone, seeing my mom’s name on the screen. “It’s my mom,” I tell him, my brows knitting together.

“How long has it been since you talked to her?”

I shrug. “A few weeks, I guess. They don’t call often.”

He nods, gesturing to his room. “You want me to go?” he asks.

I shake my head. “No, stay, please.”

He wraps his arms around me and kisses my forehead. “Don’t worry, I won’t leave.”

It mimics the time I was sick, and I wanted him there, even when I was battling my feelings for him. It’s insane how far we’ve come and how important he’s become in my life.

I take a seat on his couch and hit the green button. “Hi, Mom.”

“Darling.” Her sweet voice always makes me smile whenever I hear it. “When were you going to tell us?”

“Tell you what?”

“That you’re dating?” My eyes widen, and I turn to Lucas who’s also hearing the conversation. How did she find out? “Not to mention, he’s famous and very attractive.”

Lucas presses his lips together in an attempt to stifle his laughter.

“Excuse me,” I hear my dad say. “Your husband is sitting right here.”

“Your dad thinks so, too,” my mom says. “Don’t you?”

I hear my dad scoff. “I just said there’s a reason why he’s a model.”

I turn to look at Lucas and see his cheeks have turned the slightest shade of pink.

“Why didn’t you tell us?” my mom asks again.

My mood sobers, and I let out a breath. “I didn’t know how,” I admit. “I guess we never talked about that sort of thing before. Nia was always the one with the boyfriends.”

The silence between us rings like a fire alarm. “I guess so,” my mom says, her tone hushed. “So, this is your first boyfriend?” she asks me.

I pull my bottom lip between my teeth, turning to face Lucas. His hand settles on my thigh, rubbing back and forth, but I just sigh and hum in agreement. Daniel doesn’t count. What I had with him is nothing compared to what I have with Lucas. “Yeah,” I tell them. “We met a few months ago.”

“Oh I saw the pictures,” she says in an accusatory tone. “I nearly had a heart attack when I saw your face on a magazine. I went down a rabbit hole and saw all of the articles. I can’t believe you didn’t tell me.” She sounds upset, and guilt coils around my stomach. “I know I haven’t been checking in as often because I know how you like your independence, but I thought you’d tell me about this.”

I always thought I liked independence as well. For the longest time, I thought I worked better alone; I was better off on my own, but that wasn’t the truth, not even close to it. “I’m sorry, mom. I promise I’ll tell you from now on.”

“You promise?” she asks.

“Yeah.” My lips curve in a smile. “I promise.”

“So then tell me about Daniel.”

My eyes widen and I freeze, staring down at the phone in my hand. “What about Daniel?” I ask her, my heart racing. She knows?

“Baby,” she coos. “You think we didn’t see how shaken up you were when you came home that day?” I turn my head to look at Lucas, and his expression is tight, listening to my parents. “Your father and I didn’t buy the story that you were staying over at someone’s house and just forgot. You had never done that before. You were always so good, so easy.” I let my eyes drift closed. That’s what I wanted, right? I wanted to be easy for them to want, to be able to love, but hearing that just solidifies that the only reason they did was because I didn’t give them any trouble.

But they loved Nia, adored her, and she was always getting herself in trouble. Would they feel the same if I was like that?

“We followed you to school, and we saw you talking to him,” she admits. “At first, I was upset you didn’t tell me you had a boyfriend, but when I saw him talking to you, getting in your face like that…” I hear her shaky breath, and I press my lips together to stop from crying. “I knew there was more to the story.”

She’d be right to think that. All this time. All this time, I thought they didn’t know. I thought I had kept it to myself, dealing with everything that happened on my own, and this whole time, they knew?

“I don’t know if it was because Nia has just died,” she continues, “and you felt like you couldn’t talk to us anymore, but it made me a little sad that we stopped having the relationship we once had.”

“I… I didn’t think you’d care,” I tell her.

“Why wouldn’t I care, darling?” she asks me. “You’re my daughter, and after I heard about him going to prison for hurting his girlfriend, all I could think of was you.” She breathes hard. “Did he ever…”

“He didn’t hit me,” I confirm, my lips wobbling while I try to keep it together. “But he hurt me in other ways.”

“I knew it. I should have kicked his fucking teeth in when I had the chance.” My dad doesn’t swear much, so my eyes widen when I hear him speak.

“He was a minor,” my mom tells him.

“Not anymore, he’s not,” he replies. “No one hurts my baby girl and gets away with it.” A sob catches in my throat, and Lucas pulls me toward him, wrapping his arms around me.

“I wish you would have told us,” my mom continues.

I let out a breath, shaking my head. “I do, too, but you guys were so upset about Nia that I didn’t want to upset you even more. I…” My voice cracks, and I clear my throat. “I thought you resented me.”

“Darling.” My mom’s sweet voice makes me cry even more. “Why would that thought ever cross your mind?”

“Because you lost your real daughter, and I was all that was left.”

“Madeline,” my dad speaks up. “Tell me you don’t think that.”

Lucas’ hand lifts to wipe away my tears, and I let out a shaky breath. “I don’t anymore… but at the time, it felt like you stopped caring about me.”

My mom lets out a sigh. “We were distraught over what happened with Nia,” she starts. “How could we not be? She was so smart and destined for great things. What happened to her was awful, and it broke my heart, but that doesn’t mean we stopped caring about our other daughter, too. I’m sorry if you felt pushed aside because that’s the last thing I ever wanted for you.” Her voice cracks, and I blink away the tears, my heart warming at everything I thought I would never hear. “You were always ours,” she says. “Doesn’t matter who birthed you. You’re my daughter.”

“And you’re my baby girl,” my dad joins in.

“You have been since we laid eyes on you. We love you so much, Madeline,” my mom says.

I wipe away the tears, letting out a laugh through the tears. “I love you guys too. So much.”

“Darling, when can we come see you?” my mom asks. “I want to meet that boyfriend of yours.”

I smile, glancing at Lucas, who sits up straight and brushes a hand through his hair. A laugh bubbles out of me when I turn my attention back to the phone on my lap. “He’s actually here,” I tell them.

“He is?”

“Yeah, do you want to see him?” I ask her.

“Oh my god,” I hear my mother mutter. “It’s happening.” My brows knit together in confusion. “How do I turn the damn Facetime camera on?” she asks my dad, making me laugh.

“Calm down,” he says.

“We’re about to meet our daughter’s boyfriend. How are you so calm?”

My dad scoffs. “Because I’m the only man in her life. This guy is just a little boy.”

Lucas breathes out a laugh, wiping a hand down his face. He fixes the collar of his black shirt. The camera turns on, and my parents are on the screen. I smile down at them. I miss them so much. I haven’t been home since Christmas, and I can’t wait for them to come visit.

“Darling,” my mom says with a smile on her face. “You look so beautiful.”

“Thank you,” I say, feeling my cheeks heat. I debate whether I should tell them or not, but after everything that I did tell them, what’s one more thing? “I actually just came from an audition.”

Her eyebrows shoot up. “You did?” she asks.

“Yeah,” I admit, feeling suddenly a little nervous about what they’re going to say. “I think it went well.”

“And you’re still studying?” my dad asks.

My heart drops slightly. I don’t know what I expected their response would be, but I shouldn’t be surprised that it’s this.

“I am,” I tell them. “But I’m also following my dreams. I want to become an actress.”

Lucas’ arm is pressed up against mine, and it brings me a sort of peace and confidence to be able to tell my parents that the life they wanted for me is not one I want for myself.

“You know it’s unsteady work,” he replies. “We want the best for you, Madi. We don’t want you to struggle.”

“I know,” I agree with a nod. I know how hard it is, but I’m willing to put in the work. “But I’d rather be doing something that I love and I’m actually good at than spending years working toward something that I know I hate.”

My mom’s brows furrow, and my heart sinks. She’s disappointed, but I make myself continue. “I’m not Nia. I know she was going to Harvard to follow in your footsteps, but that’s not me. I don’t want that life for myself.”

My mom breathes out a sigh, and then a smile spreads across her face. “Then I can’t wait to see you in a movie someday.”

My heart soars, a warm feeling building inside me. I’ve wanted to tell them for so long that I always let the fear of them resenting me for doing what I want instead of what they pictured for me stop me from opening up to them.

I pan the camera to Lucas, who’s eyes widen when he’s suddenly on screen. “Mom, Dad, this is Lucas.” I glance up at him and flash him a smile. “My boyfriend.”

“You’re even more handsome than I remember,” my mom gushes, grinning at him.

My dad’s face remains stiff as he looks him up and down. “He’s alright.”

I let out a laugh, and my mom smacks my dad on the arm. “It’s nice to finally meet you, darling,” she tells him.

Lucas smiles. “It’s nice to finally meet you too, Mr and Mrs Davis.”

“Are you taking care of my daughter?” my dad asks him.

My body grows hot from head to head, but Lucas remains calm as he nods. “Yes, sir,” he tells my dad. “She’s my biggest priority.”

My dad tilts his head. “I looked you up.”

Lucas winces, shaking his head. “Sir, it isn’t what it looked like.”

“I know what a PR stunt looks like when I see one,” my dad interrupts, making me freeze. Does he know we started off as nothing but an act? “I can tell from the pictures that those girls you were with were nothing more than contractual agreements, but my daughter…” he trails off, narrowing his eyes at him. “I can see you’re serious about her.”

My shoulders drop, and I breathe out a sigh of relief. Lucas nods, tightening his hold on my thigh below the camera. If my dad knew where his hand was right now, I’m certain he wouldn’t be so kind. “I am, sir,” he says. “She’s the best thing that’s happened to me in a long time, and I can’t imagine life without her anymore.”

I glance at him, my heart thudding against my chest so loudly it’s a wonder he can’t hear it.

“Did you rehearse that?” my dad asks him.

“No sir,” Lucas replies, his face remaining still.

“Hmm.” My dad leans back on the couch, staring at Lucas for a few seconds before he says, “Just so you know, I can fight.”

“Dad,” I chastise.

“I didn’t look out for you once,” my dad says, his expression tight. “I’m not taking any more chances.”

“I’d rather die than hurt her,” Lucas tells him.

My dad nods. “I’ll hold you to that.”

“Stop threatening the poor boy,” my mom says. “It was lovely to meet you, Lucas. We’re coming to visit soon, so I’m excited to get to know you more.”

“Likewise,” he says. “My mother will be ecstatic to meet you.”

My mom smiles. “I’ll see you then. Bye, darling,” she says, her eyes drifting to mine. “I love you.”

“Love you guys.”

The call hangs up, and I turn to Lucas, squinting at his expression. “You met my parents,” I point out.

“I did.” He grins. “Why do you look so shocked?”

I shrug. “I guess I’m wondering how you feel about it.”

He laughs, tugging me up so I straddle him on the couch. His hands fly to my hips, and he pins me with a serious stare. “I couldn’t wait to introduce you to my family,” he says. “So, the thought of meeting the people who raised someone as amazing as you?” He shakes his head. “I loved it.”

“Yeah?” My hands wrap around his neck and his hands start to roam over my body. A warm feeling pools at the pit of my stomach, and I rock myself over the bulge in his jeans.

He lets out a groan, pulling back to gauge my reaction. “Are you sure?” he asks.

I’ve never been more sure about anything. I grip his collar in my hands and lean down until our lips are stacked. “Kiss me.”