Win Big:A Bad Boy Sports Romance(33)

"Austin, what the hell are you doing here?" I asked while Evan was still on the line. Where was Nick? He must have seen Austin walk up, so why didn't he step outside of his car to tell Austin to back off?

"Sam, are you okay?" Evan shouted into the phone. "Is he bothering you?"

"I'll take care of this. Hold a sec."

I put my hand over the phone speaker and took a step away. Austin took two steps toward me.

"What do you want?"

"You've been avoiding me, Sam. We need to talk."

"No. We don't need to do anything. There's no we, Austin." He took another step toward me and was now dangerously close to crowding my personal space. "Austin don't you dare come any closer." He grabbed my wrist, and I jerked it hard to pull away from his punishing grip. "Get your hands off of me!"

I should have been ready for anything, but I didn't expect him to go off the deep end after leaving me alone for well over a month. He put his other hand at the base of my neck and started dragging me to God knows where.

"Austin, no!" I shouted.

When he noticed my phone was still on, he ripped it from my hand and crashed it down to the concrete. "I'll get you another one … something sleeker and more expensive … something that Evan Marshall prick won't be able to phone."

"What the hell is wrong with you?" I struggled against his grip on my neck, glancing back to where Nick was parked. Where was he?

"Looking for your douchebag athletic trainer bestie?" He let out a cunning laugh when I didn't answer. "I'm afraid the ole Nickster is indisposed at the moment."

"What did you do to him?"

He opened the passenger door of his car, shoving my head down to get me inside. I fought hard to get him to let me go, but he was way too strong. I was not getting in his car though. I had to get away somehow, so I tried begging.

"Why won't you leave me alone? Please, Austin, just let me go. I don't want you to lose everything you've worked for, but this has gone too far."

"What are you going to do about it? Call the cops? Try your luck with campus security?" He straightened up behind me. "We own them. They won't touch me. So, what else, Sam?"

Begging didn't work. I went with low down, dirty, street-fighting self-defense. Lowering my head forward, I shot it up and back with all the force and speed I could manage, catching Austin hard in the chin, mouth and nose.

"Fuck!" He reared back, cupping his nose, which I hoped I'd broken. Some blood trickled down one nostril, and I didn't wait to find out what other damage I'd done. "Get back here, you fucking bitch!" he shouted, stumbling after me.

I ran to Nick's car. He wasn't in the driver seat where I'd left him. I ran around the back of the car to the driver side. That's when I saw him sprawled out on the sidewalk with a bloody forehead. "Nick? Oh God. Nick?"

He didn't respond, but I couldn't stop to help him. Austin was still trudging over to us. If he had done this to Nick, there was no telling what he'd do to me. Kicking off my heels, I started running away from the area toward the student center a block away. College kids studied, ate and socialized there. Someone had to be around.                       
       
           



       

Before I could get half a block down the street, Austin caught up to me, grabbing me by the hair and roughly jerking me backwards. I screeched out in pain and shouted out. I begged him to stop. I begged the empty Sunday night streets for someone to get help. Tragically, no one was around.

Austin started babbling on almost incoherently about something. I wish I understood what he was talking about. Maybe he was high, or off some vital meds, or drank too much … or all three. Or maybe it was the pulsing under my scalp from his tight hold on my hair that took away my capacity to focus on his words.

"Please. I don't want to fight. Please stop."

"You're. Not. Listening. There's something you ought to know. Your Evan let the word get out that you were still a virgin when he met you." He shook at my hair. "Do you fucking know how humiliated that was for me? You had to go and fuck him, then sit back and let him drag my name through the mud every time he broadcasted that I didn't score with you."

"None of that is true, Austin," I lied, hoping he would believe it long enough to release my hair.

"Lie all you want. Everyone knows. Ask any guy on any athletic team. Actually, just ask Nickster when he wakes up …  if he wakes up. Anyway, the damage is done, Sam. Now the only thing left to do is make you pay … make Evan pay."

He must have lost it. "You're not well. You should let me go now. Please, Austin. I promise, I'll act like none of this never happened."

"I'm as clear headed as I'll ever be," he growled, his voice thick and condescending.

"What are you going to do?"

"Whatever the hell I want to, princess." He put his lips to my ear. "And when I'm done with you, no one will want you."

"You can't be serious."

"As a heart attack."

Out of nowhere, Austin yelped, and his grip in my hair loosened. I looked back for a split second before running like hell to find someone with a phone to get some help and make sure Nick was okay. All I could make out was a dark figure tackling Austin to the ground. That was help enough for me. Finally back to Nick's car, I tried the driver side door. It was unlocked, and Nick's phone was in the cup holder. I was about to jump inside when someone touched my shoulder.

"Stay away from me!" I screamed out, turning slightly so I could find just enough space to open the door and jump in.

"Hold on, ma'am," the person said calmly.

I turned the rest of the way. It was not Austin. Thank God. It was Pat's bodyguard, Logan De Luca, the one who had given me his card weeks ago.

"Thank you!" I could almost hug him, but I crouched to the ground beside Nick. "We have to help my friend. Can you call 911?"

"Yes." He pulled out his phone and dialed while I tried to wake Nick. His pulse was strong, although he was still unconscious.

"Nick? Can you hear me?" He was unresponsive. I looked up at Pat's bodyguard. "Was it you back there?" I asked after he hung up. "Did you stop Austin?"

"Yes, ma'am. I did."

"Where is he now?"

He looked around to make sure no one was there before saying, "At the moment, locked in the trunk of my car. Don't worry, I didn't hurt him. He's sleeping it off. I'll take him back to the Grant residence shortly."

"God, I can't thank you enough."

"That's my job …  I'm sorry I wasn't here to make sure this didn't happen in the first place."

"It's not your fault."

"I'm responsible for you, so it is. That Mr. Grant is a smart one. He had someone on his father's staff call me away so he'd have an opening with you, but Mr. Salvatore, my boss, set me straight."

"I'm glad you showed up when you did."

The sound of ambulance sirens pierced though the air. They couldn't be more than six or seven blocks away.

"I'll be leaving now," Pat's bodyguard announced. "I'll need to get Mr. Grant home before they arrive. We don't want to attract any unnecessary attention."

I was confused. "You're … protecting him? After he attacked me like this?"

"It's more like saving him from himself while safeguarding my employer. Mr. Grant is under our … organization's protection. If you'd like more details, you should speak with Mr. Salvatore."

"Okay … so are you asking me not to tell the cops or ambulance exactly what happened? Because I don't see how that will stop Austin from trying this again." I shook my head. Pat and his people were a complicated bunch.                       
       
           



       

"You're free to do as you please when the authorities arrive. I'll make sure your concerns are heard. Have a good night, ma'am." He left promptly, disappearing in the darkness just before the ambulance van rolled up bedside Nick's car.

The paramedics gave us first aid and took Nick and I to the nearest hospital emergency room. I was treated and released right away. My only injury was a small cut on the back of my head where I'd head-butted Austin. Nick had a moderate concussion, so they were holding him for observation. The police also came on the scene. They took my statement of what happened. I told them everything. The officer took detailed notes, and informed me I could file a formal complaint whenever I could come down to the station.

I was too numb to think of anything when Kristy finally came to the get me home. My throbbing head hit the pillow, and I was sure sleep would kick in to help me rid myself of the memory of such a wretched night.



Kristy and I sat in the hospital's emergency room waiting area the next morning. I didn't sleep a wink overnight. Every time I closed my eyes, I'd see Austin or hear his sickening voice as he threatened me, or relive seeing Nick passed out on the sidewalk. Which was why I convinced Kristy to go back to the hospital with me so we could be there when Nick was released. I didn't message Evan to tell him I was okay. I figured Pat would, and honestly, I didn't to speak with him after my talk with Nick.