Page 138 of The Jack*ss in Class

As we left the stage, Tempest met me at the bottom of the steps, wrapping her arms around my neck.

“Congratulations on your almost-victory,” she teased.

“The only crown I care about is having the queen,” I replied, bending to kiss her softly. Anything more and Iwould need to get a room like the onlookers were shouting at us.

The formal continued for another hour, but eventually couples began to drift out, heading to after-parties or back to campus. Tempest and I found Gryff and Bettie near the coat check.

“Heading out?” Gryff asked, his arm around Bettie’s waist.

“Yeah,” I nodded. “And don’t come knocking until it’s time to leave for the Dragon’s Lair to do the captains’ ceremony tomorrow. Tempest and I will be terribly busy.”

“What’s the captains’ ceremony?” Bettie asked.

“It’s a sacred tradition,” Gryff replied solemnly. “The passing of the torch to next year’s captains. Profoundly serious business.”

Usually accompanied by a some kind of video game tournament. We were all ultra-competitive guys after all.

“Including the care and feeding of One-eyed Willie,” I added with a straight face.

Tempest looked between us. “Who or what is One-eyed Willie? Please don’t tell me you guys have some giant peen idol in the Dragon’s Lair.”

“The captains’ mascot. A very distinguished, somewhat ugly, completely hairless cat who lives in the Dragon’s Lair, and has been known to do his own bit of matchmaking of many a team captain over the years.”

“You’re joking,” she said, though her expression suggested she wasn’t entirely sure.

“Completely serious,” Gryff confirmed. “One-eyed Willie has been overseeing the transition of team captains and helping to find and approve of their girlfriends orboyfriends at DSU for fifteen years. He’s practically an institution. If any team captain brings a date to meet one-eyed Willie, you know it’s serious.”

“Somehow, this school gets weirder the longer I’m here,” Tempest said, shaking her head with a smile.

We said our goodbyes and headed out into the cool May night. As the car took us back to campus, I said quietly, “You will come to meet Wille with me tomorrow, won’t you?”

“That’s seriously a thing? I find it completely adorable you big, bad bunch of team captains have a Cat Corleone you bring your girlfriends to for his approval.”

“I nodded. “Yeah, it’s a long-standing tradition. Almost as important as meeting the parents. Willie’s going to love you, but not as much as I do. We’re couple goals, babe.”

Bringing a girl to the Dragon’s Lair to meet Willie had never been on my radar, because I’d never intended to fall in love. Now I couldn’t imagine the rest of my life without Tempest.

I wasn’t the Flynn who’d started this semester, a cocky Kingman looking for nothing more than a fling, a round one draft pick to the Mustangs, and a solid, but hidden fear of change. My girl had changed all of that for me. She made me want to be the kind of man she deserved. Forever.

I kissed my girl, pouring everything I felt about her into it, my love, my hopes, my promises. When we broke apart, she rested her forehead against mine.

“Take me to bed and show me those couple goals, Kingman.” she whispered.

I AM THE STORM

TEMPEST

Papá’s arm was warm and solid around my shoulders as we walked from the English building, where the College of Liberal Arts had held its graduation ceremony. The midday sun beat down on the sea of emerald caps and gowns flooding the central quad, a kaleidoscope of colorful leis, honor cords, and beaming faces.

“I’m so proud of you, mija,” he said, pausing to press a kiss to my temple. “Your speech was magnificent.”

I flushed with pleasure at his praise. Being selected as the liberal arts student speaker had been a complete surprise—especially given the Miranda Milan revelation that had rocked campus mere weeks ago. But rather than hiding from the attention, I’d embraced it, writing a speech about finding your authentic voice in a world that tries to silence it.

As we approached the parking lot, I spotted Flynn leaning against his car, still dressed in his own cap andgown from the Business School ceremony that had ended earlier. The sight of him—tall, proud, undeniably mine—sent my heart into a familiar flutter.

“I’ll see you both at the house,” Papá said, giving my shoulder a final squeeze before heading to his car. “I promised your mother I’d help set up the bar.”

As he walked away, Flynn wrapped his arms around me properly, lifting me off my feet in a quick spin that made my graduation cap teeter precariously.

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