I Promise You
Copyright © 2020 by Ilsa Madden-Mills
Cover Designer: Letitia Hasser, RBA Designs
Photographer: Wander Aguiar
Model: Kaz
Editor: C Marie and Rebecca, Fairest Reviews Editing
Proof Reader: Deaton Author Services
IMM Publishing
Copyright Law:
If you are reading this book and did not purchase it, this book has been pirated and you are stealing. Please delete it from your device and support the author by purchasing a legal copy. All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of the above copyright owner of this book or publisher.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, brands, media, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. The author acknowledges the trademarked statue and trademark owners of various products referenced in this work of fiction, which have been used without permission. The publication/use of these trademarks is not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owners.
First Edition October 2020
Contents
I Promise You Playlist
Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Epilogue
About: Dear Ava
Excerpt: Dear Ava
Also by Ilsa Madden-Mills
About the Author
I Promise You Playlist
Click below to hear the music that inspired I Promise You!
http://bit.ly/IpromiseYou
This book is for all the girls in the world who believe in the power of destiny and true love.
Prologue
There’s a universal truth at Waylon University: the first girl you kiss freshman year at the annual bonfire party is the one you’ll never forget. She’ll crawl under your skin and make her way into your heart. She’ll spark a passion so fierce you’ll burn the world down to possess her.
You might even put a ring on it.
But…
As in all things with fate, the caveat is timing. That kiss can go horribly wrong. She might not want you. She might run in the opposite direction.
And because you kissed, you are screwed.
Supposedly.
The ridiculous legend—the warning—swirls around in my head as I saunter around the crackling fire, my eyes surveying the party in the meadow. The September night is crisp with autumn, the scent of leaves and smoke from the fire wafting in the air. The crowd of students is thick and mostly drunk, some headed to the barn for games, others dancing as a band plays on a stage. My gaze snags on a couple as they sit under a giant oak tree and make out. Here’s some truth: I’m kissing no one tonight. I’m not the superstitious sort, but I’ll admit to a good sense of self-preservation.
Sorority girls follow me as I shoulder my way through the crush of people. I shake off an insistent blonde in a Theta jersey who’s been tailing me since I got here.
“Not tonight, sweetheart,” I tell her with a lazy smile when she latches onto my arm again. She’s hot, all long legs and big tits. “Find me tomorrow.” After this legend crap is null and void.
“Sure, baby. Call me. I stuck my digits in your back pocket.”
Of course she did.
She gives me a blinding smile, strokes my arm, and flounces off.
Some of the guys from the team call my name, motioning me over as they stand next to a keg. I head that way and am almost there when—
Wait.
I stop and my body tenses when I see her.
This girl.
I do a double take.
What the…
An unseen hand strokes down my spine.
She dances alone in the midst of a crowd. Flickering light from the nearby fire glitters over her body, half of her in a dusky shadow, the other draped in glowing illumination. Tanned, slender legs bend as she twirls in a short red mini skirt and black military boots. Swinging her hips, she holds her long hair up as she sways. There’s a dandelion tattoo on her nape.
A silver piercing in her belly button glints under the lights. Closing her eyes, she undulates her body in a hypnotic body roll, her arms stretched toward the sky as she moves to the bass of the guitar.
Her face is heart-shaped with high cheekbones, her lips bee-stung full. Dark eyebrows frame eyes with a slight tilt at the corners. Her breasts are small but pert as they push against a white crop top with suspenders that snap to her skirt. “Not my type,” I murmur to myself, taking in her petite frame.
“Get over here, rookie!” comes from one of the guys, and I wave them off, still watching the babe. From a few feet away, a dude with a red Solo cup in his hand also checks her out. His buddies slap him on the back, urging him on. He takes a deep swig of his drink, hands it off to a friend, and pushes his way through the throng toward her. Dancing behind her, he grabs her hips and leans into her. She shoves him away, and I smile. That’s right, sweetheart. Be you. Dance alone.
Or not, I muse.
Screw that legend. It can’t be real, and my type or not, I’d like a taste of her.
I maneuver her way, moving through the crowd—
“Dillon! Let’s go, man. The guys are asking for you,” comes from Blaze as he grabs my shoulder and drags me to the group of football players. He hands me a beer and grins broadly. He’s a sophomore, and we just met at summer camp. I have a good feeling about him; in fact, the whole team is like a dream come true. I know I’m not the best player—yet—but it’s the happiest I’ve been since my brother died.
“We’re gonna get a group together to enter the rope pull contest. Those Kappa guys
