I sat on the floor and leaned back comfortably against the couch. We had nearly perfect attendance, which meant there were close to sixty girls watching the movie. The den was a little over crowded, but no one seemed to mind.
My phone rang halfway through the movie. I saw my mom’s name on the screen and headed toward the stairs to answer it. “Mom?”
“Mallory, hi.” Something was off. She didn’t sound right.
“Is everything okay?” I quickly took the stairs. Juliet glanced up at me questioningly. I waved her off and went up to my room.
“Yes and no.”
“What’s that mean?” I lay down on my bed.
“Mallory.” She paused, as if carefully considering her words. “It’s your father.”
“What about him?” I hadn’t seen or talked to my dad in ages. As far as I knew, neither had she. The birthday card and my quick thank you note were the only communication we’d had in months.
“He had a heart attack.”
“What? Is he okay?” I felt the stinging of tears. We may not have been close anymore, but he was still my dad.
“From what I got from his assistant, he’s still in the critical care unit in the hospital.”
“Should I go there?” I asked nervously. I wasn’t sure what answer I wanted to hear.
“Davie asked the same question. We’re going to wait until morning and reevaluate.”
“Is he going to be okay?”
“I don’t know, honey, but I hope so.”
“Thanks for letting me know.”
“Are you alone?” Concern filled her voice.
“Nope. I’ve got a house full of company.” Although unusually quiet thanks to the movie, there were tons of girls around.
“Good. I’ll update you in the morning. I love you, sweetie.”
“I love you too. Tell Davie and Rob I love them too.” I tried to control my voice before hanging up.
“Mallory?” Cara asked softly from the doorway. She waited with Juliet.
“Hi. Sorry.” I used the side of my hand to dry my eyes.
“Why are you saying sorry?” Juliet took a step into the room. Cara followed and they closed the door behind them.
“I don’t know.”
“What’s going on?” They both sat down on my bed.
“My dad had a heart attack.”
“Is he okay?” both girls asked at once.
“We don’t know.” I wiped my eyes again.
“This is your dad dad, right? Not your stepdad?” Cara slipped off her shoes and pulled up her leg so she could look at me better.
“Yeah.”
“Are you going to Charlotte? Do you want me to take you?” Juliet offered, mirroring Cara’s movements.
“I’m not sure. My mom’s supposed to update me in the morning.”
“I’m so sorry. Is there anything we can do?”
“No. I think I’m going to take a walk.”
“A walk?” Cara asked. “Now?”
“Yeah. I need to move.”
“I’m in then.” Cara slipped on her flip flops.
“Same.” Juliet put on her sandals too.
“It’s okay. You guys can finish the movie.”
Juliet stood up. “Not a chance.”
“I appreciate it, but I need some time alone.”
“You sure?” Juliet asked.
“It’s getting late. Will you get back before dark?” Cara fidgeted with her necklace. It was a ‘C’ with a small diamond.
“I won’t be gone long. I appreciate you guys offering to come though.”
They nodded. I loved that my friends were awesome enough to offer their company, but they also knew me well enough to know when I needed them to back off.
I put on my favorite black flip flops and headed downstairs. A few of the girls looked at me, and I fake smiled. “I’ll be back later.” I figured my roommates could fill them in on the rest.
I wasn’t sure where I was going, but I needed the fresh air. My feelings about my father were already conflicted, this just made it worse. I decided to head to Waterfront Park.
I still remembered the day Dad left Gasden. He’d kissed me goodbye and promised I’d still see him all the time. Ten years later, I saw him once a year if I was lucky. He was an exec at Piedmont Capital, one of the largest banking institutions in the U.S. I was his small town daughter. I had nothing to offer him, and he made that crystal clear. My mother made the best of it when he decided he was tired of commuting back and forth. In other words, he was tired of us.
I wasn’t paying attention to where I was when I heard my name.
“Mallory?”
I kept walking, ignoring him. Was my luck really that bad? Colt happened to be sitting on the Kappa porch with his pledge class?
“Mal! Wait up.”
I slowed, he’d catch up anyway.
“Are you okay?” He put a gentle hand on mine. His eyes were equally gentle, and for some reason, that made me lose it.
“Hey. What’s going on?” He pulled me into his arms. He just held me and let me cry. I appreciated that he didn’t attempt to make me talk again.
I let him hold me for a few moments before I could regain my composure. “I’m sorry.”
“Don’t apologize. What’s going on?” He looked at me with concern.
“My dad had a heart attack.”
“What? When?”
“Tonight. My mom called a little while ago.”
“Is he all right? Are you going to Charlotte?”
“I don’t know.”
“Let me drive you if you do. You shouldn’t do it alone.”
“No. I’ll be fine. You’ve got your pledging and everything.”
He laughed dryly. “Like that would stop me. I know how hard this has to be for you.”
He was one of the few people who did. He was the only one at Harrison who knew the truth of how strained my relationship with my dad was.
In college, having the exec dad was helpful for once. It made it easier to shed my small town image. No one cared about what town I was from once they figured out who gave me my last name. They assumed it meant I had money, and that put me in a different category.
Colt ran a hand down my back. “Have you talked to Davie?”
I shook my head. “No. I figured he’d call if he wanted to talk.”
“Yeah. He’s not the biggest talker.”
“You can go back to whatever it was you were doing.”
“It’s just a stupid pledge thing.” Concern still marred his face.
“Go on. I want to be alone anyway.”
“Are you positive?” He watched me warily. “I really don’t care if I miss anything.”
“Go. I’ll talk to you later.”
“Are you sure?”
“Absolutely. I’ll have to loop back to the house soon anyway. My friends will freak if I’m not home before dark.”
“You’ve got some good friends.”
“Yeah, I do.” I included him in that group. Maybe things with Colton could work out.
“Do me a favor. Let me know what your mom says tomorrow. I’m serious about going with you.”
“I’ll keep you posted.” I had no intention of taking Colton up on the ride, but I’d let him know any updates.
“Okay. Take care of yourself.” He squeezed my hand before jogging back to his house.
I watched his retreating figure. I remembered back on how I’d watched him at football practice during high school. I had such a crush on him, but I spent half of high school dating his brother. It would have looked awful if anyone knew the truth about how I felt. At one time, I’d convinced myself I was in love with Jack. I’d said the words, but the more time passed since the breakup, the less likely that seemed. My mom called it puppy love, and I was beginning to think she was right.
My phone rang a few minutes later. It was Tanner. I let it go to voicemail. I waited for the notification before checking for a message.
Hey,
Mallory. I heard about your dad. If you want to talk or anything, let me know. Also my dad’s a cardiologist at Emory. I can have him get involved if you want.
The sentiment was thoughtful, but I wasn’t in the mood to talk. I made my way back to the house, glad when I realized the girls had put on a second movie. I snuggled in between Juliet and Cara on the couch. The Delta Mu house was beginning to feel more and more like home.
Chapter Twelve
My mom called first thing in the morning. I’d gone to sleep with my phone on the pillow next to me, and the blaring rendition of Taylor Swift’s Red startled me.
“Mom?” I answered groggily.
“He’s looking good, honey.”
I woke up fully. “Oh, good.”
“I didn’t talk to him directly, but it sounds promising. He was moved out of the ICU overnight.”
“Does he want us to come?” I propped myself up with my pillow.
She didn’t say anything for a moment. “Don’t take this the wrong way.”
“He doesn’t want to see me.” I choked back the hurt. Juliet stirred. I’d forgotten the girls had insisted on sleeping in the room.
“It’s not that. He just doesn’t want you to see him in his condition. He wants to wait until he’s better.”
“But he’ll see Davie.” I didn’t have the energy to hide the iciness in my voice even though it obviously wasn’t her fault.
“Please don’t get upset. You know how he is.”
“Yeah, I know.” I needed to calm down. Breaking down in front of my roommates wouldn’t be good. “Thanks for the info.”
“I love you. Please don’t let this get you too upset.”
“I won’t,” I said just to placate her. “Love you too.”
I hung up, set aside my phone, and leaned back against the pillow. Half of me wanted to go back to sleep, but the other half wanted to run until I was so exhausted nothing else mattered.
“What’s the word?” Juliet asked sleepily.
“He’s fine.”
“Great. Are you going to see him?”
“No. He’s too busy with work and everything.” The excuse was sloppy, but I hoped she hadn’t heard everything in my conversation.
“Oh. Well, it’s good he’s okay.”
“Definitely.” I glanced at the clock. It was seven. I crawled out of bed and got ready for the gym. I figured I’d save my run for later. I was positive I’d need it.
“Going to work out?” Juliet asked. Cara still hadn’t woken. She was such a deep sleeper.
“Yeah. I need to get out this nervous energy, you know?”
“You’re crazy, but that’s why I love you.”
I laughed as naturally as I could muster. “Same goes for you.”
I finished getting dressed and found my headphones. “Try to go back to sleep.” I headed down the stairs and over to the gym.
I jumped on the treadmill and turned up my music. Thirty minutes later, I headed into the weight room. There were a surprising number of people there for so early in the morning. I was doing some chest presses when I noticed Colt. I watched him lift, my eyes glued to his biceps.
I finished and moved on to the free weights. “Hey.” I paused my music and picked up some light weights.
“Mallory, hey.” He put down the free weight. “Any news? Is he okay?”
“Yeah. And before you ask, I’m not heading up. I’ll see him soon.”
“You sure?” He furrowed his brows.
“Absolutely.” I carefully hid every ounce of emotion from my face. I didn’t need him worrying about me.
“Glad to hear he’s okay. What are you going to do today?”
“I’m not sure. Are you still interested in working on our project?”
He shifted his weight from foot to foot. “We don’t have to do that.”
“I want to. I need to get my mind back on school, you know?”
He nodded. “Okay. Where and when?”
“Let’s do the Starbucks on King Street at nine.”
“Could we do nine thirty?” He glanced over his shoulder at the clock on the wall. “I’m going to be here a while.”
“Sure. Nine thirty works.” My eyes zeroed in on his arms again. “I don’t remember you being this into working out.”
He shrugged. “I wasn’t.”
Was this all because of Kappa? Admittedly, those guys did spend an inordinate amount of time at the gym. I couldn’t deny that Colt looked good, but then again he’d always looked good.
“I’ll let you enjoy more of your Backstreet Boys.” Colt grinned.
“I’m not listening to the Backstreet Boys.” I put a hand on my hip.
He took one of my earbuds and pressed play on my iPod. “Who is this? One Direction?”
“Is listening to boy bands a crime?”
“No, but it’s definitely worthy of making fun of you for.”
I stuck out my tongue at him. So what if my guilty pleasure was listening to boy bands when I worked out. Some people listened to heavy metal to get them moving. This was just my version of it.
“Quit teasing me with your tongue. If you want to kiss me, just do it already.”
I pushed his arm before getting back to my weights.
I worked on my arms a while longer before heading home for a shower. I needed to get my thoughts in order. I wasn’t going to let my dad get to me. He was the one missing out. He’d regret writing me off eventually, and I’d make him proud one day. I’d make sure of it.
***
“I think we should focus on the downfall of the Mayans.” Colt had his tablet all set up. I hadn’t bothered with a computer, and I sat with a notebook and pen.
“That’s fine with me. I’m really open to anything.”
“Maybe you could do the history and I’ll discuss how it relates to other civilizations, and we’ll do the analysis section together?” He sipped his coffee.
“That sounds great. Thanks for being so organized.”
“Not a problem. I can be a good partner.” The way he said partner let me know he didn’t just mean for school assignments.
“Thanks for being there for me last night. You know it’s not like me to melt down like that.”
“Of course. I like being here for you.” He moved his chair an inch closer to mine. “You have to know how much I care about you.”
“Thanks. I’m fine now though.”
“I know. You’re strong.”
“I try to be.” I straightened my shoulders.
“By the way, you’re not mad I told Tanner, are you?”
Tanner. Damn, I’d never called back. “Oh. That’s how he found out. I haven’t talked to him yet.”
“Really?” Colton didn’t hide his surprise or a certain amount of happiness about my admittance.
I quickly made an excuse. “I wasn’t really up for talking last night, and it’s still pretty early.”
“Gotcha. You still going out with him tonight?”
“I hadn’t thought about it. I guess so.” Dad didn’t want me visiting him, so there was no reason to stop living my life, right?
“Great.”
“What are you doing?” I asked mostly out of politeness, but I couldn’t deny a certain amount of curiosity.
“I’m not sure. Maybe checking out a party with some of my friends.”
“Cool. Well, I guess we’re done here. I’ll see you on Monday?”
“Sure, but give me a call if you need anything.”
“I won’t need anything, but thanks.”
He shook his head. “Accepting the help of a friend isn’t a bad thing. It doesn’t make you weak.”
“I know. But I don’t need it.”
“Okay.” He packed up his stuff. “Hey, Mallory?”
“Yeah?” I put the strap of my bag over my shoulder.
“Take care of yourself.”
“I will.” I walked back outside into the sunshine.
Chapter Thirteen
Tanner
showed up ten minutes early for our date. I’d finally called him back after leaving Starbucks. He sounded relieved I wasn’t cancelling on him.
He was pacing the porch by the time I walked outside. “Hey.”
“Hey. Sorry. I kind of scheduled my prep time down to the minute.” I never liked to seem overly anxious for a guy. Making them wait just made your entrance that much better. Even if I wasn’t trying to impress him, some habits are hard to break.
“That’s fine.” He let his eyes travel the length of me. “You look great.”
“Thanks.” I guess he liked the casual jean skirt look on me.
“Just so you know, we don’t have to go to this party.”
“What do you mean? Aren’t we going out?”
“Yeah, but we can do something else. Considering everything with your dad, I understand if you want to do something more low key.”
“The party sounds fun.” I forced an upbeat smile. Dad was okay, and sitting around thinking about how little he wanted to see me didn’t sound like a great idea.
“Okay, cool.”
He took my hand firmly in his own, and we walked down the steps. “Are you okay walking? It’s a few blocks.”
“Yeah, that’s fine. I wore the right shoes.” I gestured to my strappy flats.
“I see. Hopefully you don’t think I’m always going to make you walk places.”
“Drinking and driving isn’t my idea of cool. I appreciate you thinking ahead.”
“I don’t always have to drink, but I usually do.” He smiled sheepishly.
“Not a problem. I usually drink too.” My guess is most of the student body would have said the same thing. It’s not that alcohol was the only way to have fun, but it definitely helped.
He took my hand as we headed toward Wentworth Street. “The guys hosting are pretty cool. I’m not sure how big this party is going to be.”
“Are they Greek?” If they weren’t in a frat, chances were I didn’t know them. Without meaning to, I’d sequestered myself into the Greek scene.
The Hazards of a One Night Stand Page 9
