Chapter 4 No.4

Did You Miss Us?

I couldn't believe it.

"Did you miss us?" Frazier asked.

Standing at my door were Frazier and Jordan.

"We heard you were a little homesick," said Jordan.

I wrapped my arms around their necks, pulling them into the biggest hug I could manage.

"Guess so," Frazier said.

I pulled away, looking at them. The guys looked past me and saw the bag. "Going somewhere?" Jordan inquired.

I opened my mouth, then closed it. I couldn't tell the guys it was right; I would run.

Frazier crossed his arms. "She was! She would run away from college!"

Now I felt embarrassed. It's true; I would run because I felt alone.

"What? Are you five?" Jordan smirked. I shot him a glare.

"Ooh, the boyfriend will not be happy to hear this," Frazier remarked.

"Nope," Jordan said, popping the p. "Better make the call."

"Please don't," I begged.

"No can do. Ryan sent us here for a reason," Frazier said, making a call.

I heard the other end answer with Ryan's husky voice. Frazier turned his back to us as he spoke to Ryan. I clenched my fists, standing there. Then I heard, "She did what? Put her on!"

"I don't think she's in the mood to talk," Frazier said.

"I don't give a flying fuck what you think. Hand Alex the damn phone, you idiot!" Ryan barked.

"Here, it's for you," he said, shoving the phone at me. I grabbed it and pressed the end call.

"What the hell, Alex? He will be even more pissed at me!" Frazier exclaimed.

I shrugged, then Jordan's phone went off, and he answered it before handing it to me. "It's for you."

I took the phone and almost hit the end call when Jordan gave me a look, shaking his head. I put the phone up to my ear and muttered, "Hello."

"What the fuck, Alex," his tone was harsh. "Why are you running?"

I started babbling into the phone. Ryan let out a sigh. "Look, baby, I know it's hard, but it was hard last year, then you met us, and we made it better for you. Thus, I sent those two idiots to you now. I know it will piss off their girlfriends, but I could fucking care less. You need us right now. Plus, I have another surprise for you."

"What?" I sniffled.

"Someone dropped out, and I'm off the waitlist. After I finish up here, I will be there with you, but please, stop running for the love of God. I love you," he said.

"I love you, too," I told him.

We hung up, and I handed Jordan back his phone. You know how you have that one annoying friend who likes to tattle on you, well; I have three, and one of them is my boyfriend.

I walked over and laid back onto my bed. The boys followed suit and lay down with me, one on each side. "What's happening, hot stuff?" Frazier asked with a grin.

I grabbed a pillow and hit Frazier with it, which he grabbed and put under his head.

"Do you guys know where you'll be staying?" I asked them.

"Here," said Jordan.

"Ew, gross, I don't want to hear you both making out with your girlfriends!" I exclaimed.

"You're jealous that lover boy is back home," Frazier countered.

I hit him with another pillow, and he added to the one his head was already on.

"Not in your room," Jordan said as he rolled his eyes. "The one connected via the bathroom."

"How? That room occupies with three guys," I said to him.

"You didn't?" I said as I looked at Frazier.

"Oh, but I did. Oh, and I helped your boy toy out too," he grinned.

I grabbed him into the biggest hug I could think of at that moment. "Thank you, thank you. Thank you."

"Can't breathe," he said gasping.

I let go of him. "Oh, sorry," I apologized.

He was rubbing his neck. "It's no problem. Man, you have a tight grip."

Jordan rolled his eyes, mumbling, "Pansy."

"So, what else has happened since you arrived?" Jordan asked. "Well," I said.

I filled them in about the guys in the next suite who, thanks to Frazier, are no longer an issue. They might have been pleasant guys if it wasn't for their eagerness and lack of confidence around us.

I wouldn't have cared if they were into Dungeon and Dragons, but they creeped me out with it. Okay, most people creep me out. Even the guys did at first. You know, Ryan stares at me. Frazier makes jokes that I didn't get, and Jordan with his towering stature. It was a little unnerving.

Then I told them what happened when we went exploring the day after we arrived and about Max. I could tell they weren't happy with the way their expressions changed. They started cracking their knuckles. I also said to them how Cole stepped in and helped me out.

"Shit, I forgot Cole went to this school," said Frazier.

"This is not good," sighed Jordan.

That confused me. Cole seemed nice. So, why are the guys not happy about it?

"Because while people feared us, they feared Cole. He was more ruthless," Frazier offered.

"How did?" I asked.

"Know what you're thinking? Well, when you say it out loud, we do," added Jordan.

"What about Ryan?"

"Cole is his family. They would never go against the family. It's a loyalty thing. And they don't go after the other's girl, that's an honor thing," Frazier explained.

"Sounds like they have some endearing qualities," I commented.

"One thing you have to know about the Jones family, they take care of their own. Yes, they have qualities they take seriously. That's what makes them powerful," Jordan said.

"So, how do you both fit in?" I asked them.

"The minute we became friends with Ryan, we became a family. It's how they work. He has our back, and we have his. We trust each other," Frazier said in a severe tone.

"Our home life wasn't the best as you saw, and Ryan helped us, keeping it hidden from people. We didn't need people's pity, and for that, he earned our loyalty," Jordan added.

"Anything else you want to know?" Frazier asked.

"No," I answered. My brain was on information overload with everything the guys told me. It all made sense now, like when I saw Ryan fighting, and they wouldn't talk to me. Their loyalty belongs to Ryan.

I also thought about Ryan and everything he did for me. They all said the same thing when a Jones man falls in love; they claim one woman. Ever since we became a couple, I never saw Ryan look at another woman but me. Even at Christmas, he never put his hands on that girl while she was all over him.

Or that time they had "boys" at night but ended up at that party. A girl tried flirting with him, and he rejected her. In case you're wondering how I knew, he told me. He had to when I noticed his knuckles.

It all made sense. Even with my doubts most of the time, it made sense. It flooded my mind with thoughts, and I didn't realize someone was calling my name.

"Alex?" Frazier said. "Stop overthinking things. We're the same lovable idiots you've known for the past year," he grinned.

"Speak for yourself," Jordan said, smacking him with a pillow. I giggled. I missed them. As they duke it out on my bed, the girls came in with Cole.

"What the hell?" Someone exclaimed.

They stopped to find the three of them staring at each other.

"Ryan sent us." Jordan shrugged.

Elena looked at him, then saw my bag and understood.

"He said someone needed help, so here we are," Frazier whistled.

"Leave it to my cousin to take care of things being miles away. Taught him well," Cole said, taking a seat in a chair.

"Well, would someone like to tell me why my boyfriend is here and didn't bother to see me first?" Marissa asked, stomping her foot.

Frazier got up and pulled her into a kiss, then released her. "A friend needed help."

I thought she would faint, "I forgive you," she sighed.

I rolled my eyes. Leave it to Frazier to make it sexual.

"Going somewhere?" Cole asked with a deep stare, which unnerved me. It made me so uncomfortable that I ran this time, slamming the door behind me. The guys looked at each other and shrugged.

"Someone cares to tell me why she ran into the bathroom?" Cole asked them.

"It's an Alex thing," they all said together.

"That explains nothing to me." Then the bathroom door opened a crack, and I held out my cell phone. Jordan grabbed it from me, and I shut the door once more. He walked over to Cole and handed him the phone. "Your cousin would like a word with you."

Cole took the phone. Everyone could hear a lot of cussing on the other end, with Cole nodding and a few "uh huhs" thrown in there. He hit the end call, handing the phone back to Jordan, who knocked on the door and slid the phone through the open crack. The door slammed shut.

"Well, that was interesting," Cole mentioned.

"What did my brother say?" Elena asked him.

"He told me to back off," he answered.

They all looked at each other, confused.

"And he would see me soon," he added.

Whatever Ryan said to Cole, Cole didn't divulge to anyone. One thing was for sure, things were about to get interesting.