Hoping for Forever (The Lottery Winners Book 1) Read online

  He watched as she bounced off the brick retaining wall, bracing himself when she rushed over to him. She looked so damn pretty, it was hard to pull his eyes away from her!

  “I read it,” she announced, looking up at him with those gorgeous blue eyes of hers.

  He wanted to laugh at her expression – a combination of triumph and challenge.

  “Yeah?”

  She swung her shoulders back and forth. “Yep. And you’re right. The snake doesn’t…”

  “Serpent,” he corrected.

  Blinking, she looked up at him and he wanted to pull her off to the side and kiss her. A completely inappropriate reaction, he knew. Scarlett was off limits to guys like him. She was perfect, pretty, and rich - a princess in the truest sense of the word. Oh, he knew that she was smart, too, but at the moment, with those blue eyes looking up at him and with that faint smile on her soft, red lips, he couldn’t focus on the “smart”. He was more focused on the “pretty”.

  Those enchanting blue eyes widened when he corrected her term. “What’s the difference?”

  Mick shrugged and started walking again. Of course, she fell into step and, because she looked so gorgeous and excited, he shortened his stride, slowing down for her. “The author doesn’t actually say that it is a snake. And if you look at the text, it could be a lizard or a snake. Even a dragon.”

  She shook her head slightly. “Dragons have wings.”

  “Prove it,” he challenged.

  The smile she flashed his way made his gut tighten.

  “Good point. I think I’m going to read the story again tonight.”

  He stopped and looked down at her, surprised and impressed. “Why would you do that?”

  She shrugged and his eyes glanced at her breasts pressing against the soft material of her sweater set. “Because you were right. I reviewed it through my conservative, Christian upbringing. Yesterday, you said that if we read the words through a different perspective, we might find some other meaning. I want to discover other meanings.”

  He laughed softly, nodding as his respect for this woman increased. “And so it begins.”

  Her smile disappeared and he felt like his sunshine had just gone behind a cloud.

  “What do you mean?”

  He shrugged off his disappointment as best he could. “I mean that you have the bug. Once you have it, you can’t get rid of it.”

  She blinked and he wanted to pull her into his arms. Instead, he shoved his hands into his pockets.

  “I can’t?”

  “Nope. Did you read Hypothalamus?”

  The pretty woman sighed. “No. I researched it though. That’s bad, isn’t it?”

  Mick chuckled at her desolate expression. “Yeah. Pretty bad. A writer goes through a great deal of pain to put words out into the world. The least you could do is read the actual story. Respect the effort that the writer put into the work. And possibly, respect the possibility that you might learn something from another person’s words.”

  She nodded and her smile came back. “That’s fair.”

  “Come on. Class is about to start,” he put a hand to her arm, leading her towards the English building where their class would begin shortly.

  Mick sat behind Scarlett again, trying hard not to roll his eyes when her friend stepped in as well and started discussing wedding plans before the professor came into the classroom. It grated on him that the other woman didn’t take the class seriously, but not everyone loved literature.

  Scarlett might be here to find a husband as well. He had to accept that. But the fact that Scarlett had actually read the book was amazing. Yesterday, he’d immediately noticed her because…hell, because she’s gorgeous! But as soon as she’d spoken, Mick had put her into the loss category. She might be beautiful and sexy, but he’d never thought she’d actually read the book.

  It was doubly exciting that she’d enjoyed the book last night. Seeing the look on a reader’s face when they really “got” a story…that’s what he wanted, and what he loved. As an aspiring writer, Mick wanted to change people’s lives with his words. He wanted to write a story that asked a person to look in the mirror and question their life, their ideas, their hopes and dreams. He knew that it was okay if the person saw a good image in the mirror. But if they saw something they didn’t like, he would be thrilled to help them change that.

  “Okay everyone!” the professor announced, dumping his book bag on the desk. “We’re going to continue to discuss…” and the class continued.

  While the professor talked, Mick noticed that Scarlett wasn’t as quick to raise her hand today. She was more interested in listening than trying to impress the professor. She asked questions that were insightful and interesting, perspectives he hadn’t considered before.

  The class period ended and everyone gathered their books, shoving them into their bags before leaving.

  “Mick!” the professor called out.

  Mick watched as Scarlett turned, those big, blue eyes watching at him. But she smiled and turned away, respecting the professor’s need to discuss something with him privately.

  Mick turned around and looked down at the tweed-clad professor, smothering his disappointment at not being able to discuss class with Scarlett again. “Yes, sir?” he asked. It wasn’t often that he conveyed that level of respect to his professors. But this man was good. He wasn’t haughty or condescending like too many of the other teachers. This one listened to his students and accepted that he didn’t know everything, that perhaps there were things he could still learn.

  The shorter man pulled papers out of his leather briefcase. “I read your short story last night,” he handed the sheaf of papers to Mick.

  “And?” he asked, prompting the professor for feedback. The muscles in his shoulders tensed, waiting for…anything.

  “It was brilliant,” the man gushed. “I couldn’t put it down. You’ve created characters that are highly complex. I wasn’t sure whom to root for and who to hope would be captured and imprisoned. The emotions are deep, the symbolism wasn’t too obvious and still multi-faceted. I can imagine reading that story again in ten years and thinking something completely different,” he continued. Nodding at the papers, he continued, “Expand that story. Go for a deeper effort and keep going.”

  Mick stared at the man, shocked by that kind of feedback. Finally, he nodded, still reeling, but said, “Thank you, sir.”

  “And enter it into the school’s literature competition coming in January. It will be a worthy submission. Also, if you can work it into a book length story, I’ll personally send it to my publisher with my recommendation.”

  Wow! Mick wasn’t sure what to say, so he nodded. “Thank you. I’ll do that,” and he turned to leave.

  Stepping into the sunshine, he took a deep breath, trying to understand what had just happened. The professor that he admired most had just offered his support for Mick’s novel! Damn! Holy…!

  “You’re Mick Munroe!”

  Mick turned and saw Scarlett Jefferson standing in the late morning shadows, clearly waiting for him. “And you’re Scarlett Jefferson,” he replied, still stunned by the praise, but moving closer to the fascinating woman.

  “What were you and Professor Collins talking about after class?”

  “Nothing much,” he lied, unwilling to mention the conversation for fear of jinxing things. He wanted to pull this woman into his arms and kiss her, seal the absolutely perfect day. But…

  “The heroine in the story. Was she just there to irritate the protagonist?” she asked, referring to the book the professor had assigned.

  He realized that she was asking his opinion and wanted to laugh. Could the world get any better? They walked down the steps and he led her over to the student union. With the leftover quarters in his pocket, he bought each of them a Coke and they migrated towards one of the towering oak trees on the quad, as they argued back and forth about the assigned book. He noticed that her eyes were alert, alive and she was more than read
y to debate, but she was also willing to listen to his opinion. She didn’t always agree, but they worked their way through most of the story and he laughed at some of her assumptions, thinking she might be right.

  But after two hours, she gasped, twisted his arm to check the watch on his wrist. “Oh no!” she gasped and stood up. “I have to go! Will you meet me again to discuss this week’s book? Same time tomorrow?” she asked, gathering up her books and hurrying away without waiting for an answer.

  Mick watched her jog across campus to the science building, admiring her long, sexy legs. Well, what he could see of them. The long, full skirt hid most of her legs, but she had nice calves and ankles.

  A gentleman wouldn’t notice. But then, Mick never claimed to be a gentleman. Leaning back against the oak tree, his mind considered the possibility of life with Scarlett Jefferson by his side. He knew it would never work. She was so out of his league. Scarlett was one of the rich kids on campus. A female in the mostly male world of college classrooms.

  She was a princess, obviously pampered by her parents. All the girls from his high school were married now, most with at least one child already.

  Scarlett was different. She was fresh and alive, eager to learn. And so incredibly wrong for him. But damn, she was beautiful. And a man could dream, couldn’t he?

  Scarlett was thrilled with her newfound understanding of literature. Previously, she’d dismissed it as unworthy of her time. But as she met up with Mick each day, she found herself eager to learn more, understand the stories and the nuances of the characters more deeply.

  For the next two months, Scarlett met him after literature class and they would eat lunch together while debating about whatever book the class was currently discussing. And since Scarlett had skipped over reading many of the other books in her previous classes, she went back and started reading those as well, debating the merits of each as she worked through the pile. Every once in a while, some of the other students in the class tried to join in with their debates, but Mick and Scarlett had developed a unique language all their own. Sometimes, they wouldn’t even finish a sentence, instead gesticulating wildly. They knew what the other was going to say and jumped in with their own ending. It was hard for others to keep up with that kind of communication, so most just drifted away.

  Chapter 3

  “Excuse me?” a feminine voice called, the sound echoing against the concrete floors and cinderblock walls.

  Mick pulled his head out from underneath the hood of a Buick with a burned out radiator, thinking that the voice sounded familiar. Grabbing the rag, he walked around and, sure enough, there she was.

  “Mick?” Scarlett gasped, surprised.

  Busted! Up until this point, he’d been scrupulous about cleaning the grease out from underneath his fingernails before going to class. But now, seeing Scarlett in her beautiful blue dress, and delicate white cardigan, he knew that she’d never speak to him again. The weather was still warm enough that she didn’t need a winter coat. His gorgeous, fascinating, argumentative princess had discovered his secret - that he was just a mechanic and she was…hell, she was the princess of the college campus.

  Accepting that there was no chance she’d ever see him as anything other than a grease monkey now, he nodded politely at her in greeting. “Hey Scarlett. What are you doing here?”

  She pointed over her shoulder at someone outside the mechanic’s area, then looked back up at him. For some reason, her smile didn’t dim. Not even a little bit. Strange, Mick thought.

  “We’re getting gas, but the pump isn’t working. Any chance you might know what we’re doing wrong?”

  Mick looked around and spotted the flashy car with another pretty girl standing beside the gas pump looking harassed. “Umm…it’s been a bit finicky lately. I’ll just…” he gestured with the wrench in his hand. “I’ll fix it for you.”

  Scarlett’s smile brightened. “That would be awesome.” They started walking over to the gas pump and she looked up at him. “I finished reading ‘The Headmistress’ last night. Are you ready for my arguments on the author’s posthumous award?”

  He stared at her for a long moment, then reached out and fiddled with the gas pump. “You liked it?”

  “Hated it, actually,” she admitted, still smiling. “Mitzy, you know Mick. He sits behind us in literature class.”

  Mick put the gas nozzle into the car’s gas tank. “How do you do?” he asked, nodding politely.

  Mitzy smiled up at Mick. “Professor Collins is tough. I didn’t think I’d get through the last few books but Scarlett has helped me so much! But from what I understand, it’s really been you getting all of us through the work.”

  “My pleasure,” he muttered, not sure what else to say. He pumped the gas for the ladies, wondering what was going through Scarlett’s mind now that she knew where he worked, that he wasn’t one of those rich college guys that could give her a big house and a secure future. All along, he knew that Scarlett was out of his league. But he’d thoroughly enjoyed their daily debates.

  Now, they’d be done. She’d know that he was a dirt poor mechanic with an uncertain future and she’d move on.

  Scarlett’s whole body tingled with awareness of Mick. She’d been reading the books for class, trying to keep up with Mick over the past couple of months, but nothing she did seemed to impress him.

  “Thanks for your help,” Scarlett smiled up at Mick. She wondered if he would ever get around to kissing her. She knew that he was just as attracted to her as she was to him, but something was holding him back.

  In the past, they’d always been on campus during their conversations. Maybe that was why he was always so polite even though she suspected that it wasn’t his regular personality. Now that she knew where he worked, she had a few good ideas on how to get around his reserved nature.

  “I’ll see you tomorrow,” she called, waving as she stepped into the passenger seat of Mitzy’s car. They drove off, Scarlett watching Mick from the side view mirror. He was so tall and achingly handsome…and so different from any other man she’d ever met. She was fascinated by him and…he felt the same towards her! She just knew it.

  “He’s a mechanic,” Mitzy sneered, disdain dripping from her voice.

  Scarlett turned startled eyes to her friend. “And?” she asked, wondering where Mitzy was going with that statement.

  “And…!” She emphasized the word as if Scarlett should already know the rest of the statement, “He doesn’t have a good future! He’ll have dirty hands for the rest of his life! Is that what you want for your kids?” she scoffed.

  Scarlett thought about the way Mick made her feel and shrugged. “I’ll work,” she told her friend. “Once I’m hired on as an engineer for the aeronautics industry, I’ll be able to support both of us.” She glanced over at her friend’s perfect dress, one that Scarlett knew Mitzy’s mother hadn’t made. “Besides, there’s nothing wrong with being a mechanic. It’s a good, honest living.”

  “Yeah, but it won’t be an easy living. You won’t be invited to the country club or able to afford…anything,” she scoffed. Mitzy sighed and turned slightly towards Scarlett. “Mick is the kind of guy you have fun with. Not someone you marry. And right now, we’re approaching the time when we should be finding husbands. The time for finding someone to have fun with was freshman year. We’re juniors now. It’s business now, honey.”

  Scarlett knew that Mitzy was right. But that didn’t diminish her feelings for Mick. He was…fascinating! As well as sexy and interesting, he made her smile, challenged her mind, and …she liked him! She really liked him!

  Deciding that a change of subject was in order, she lifted her eyes up to the sunshine. “Do you think Diane will show up to the picnic today?” she asked. “Last week, she snuck off to be with Greg. I think they’re going to become engaged soon.”

  Mitzy took the bait and laughed at the couple that had been dancing around each other for more than a year. “I certainly hope so!”

&nbs
p; Chapter 4

  When Scarlett laid eyes on Mick, her heart raced. He stepped through the doors of the classroom and paused, looking around, then walked directly towards her. She knew that he was going to take the seat behind her like he always did. But every time she saw him, this crazy excitement ramped up higher.

  “Here,” he dumped a thick stack of stapled, typed papers onto her books, and slid into the chair behind her.

  “What’s this?” she asked, pivoting as she picked up the papers, her eyes skimming along the top page.

  “Just read it. We can talk about it when you’re finished.”

  Professor Collins stepped into the room and the class began. Scarlett tucked the pages into one of her textbooks, not sure what to make of them. What were they? Some sort of crazy story? She thought about that stupid Senator McCarthy and the witch trials. Were these papers something about communism? Of course, McCarthy wasn’t really afraid of communism so much as Stalinism, which is what was happening in the USSR. They were two completely different forms of government, but…well, Scarlett tried to focus on the class discussion, but her mind was too intent on what might be written on those neatly typed sheets of paper.

  When the class ended, Mick stood up and hurried out the door. Scarlett stared after him, hurt because they usually left class together. For weeks now, they’d go to lunch and argue about the merits of whatever book Professor Collins had assigned.

  Why had he left so abruptly?

  “I’m glad he’s gone. Maybe now you and I can have a normal conversation,” Mitzy teased.

  Scarlett stared at her friend, trying very hard not to let the hurt of Mick’s departure show on her face. “What did you want to talk about?” she asked, following her friend out the door.

  She ate lunch with Mitzy, but she wanted to pull the pages out and read them the whole time. Scarlett suspected that Mick’s abrupt departure was somehow tied to those pages. She went to all of her classes, but when the day ended, she hurried back to the sorority house and rushed up the stairs. Pulling the pages out, she flipped through them quickly, then started at the beginning.