Cowgirl Coed (Redneck Debutante Series Book 4)

by Jenny Hammerle

  Kelsey and the girls all climbed in the car.

  “You were cutting it a little close there,” Lucia laughed. “Your shin looks like it hurts.”

  “Pretty badly. What about Travis?”

  “They won’t shave his head. He didn’t get in the hot tub.” Kelsey laughed. “These are our friends Karen, Becky, and Monique.”

  “Thanks, we can’t thank you enough.” Brandi sighed.

  “Oh, but you can. We were on a mission of our own when the SOS came in from Lucia. And if you don’t want shaved heads, you’ll have to stick with us.” Monique explained.

  “Okay, we’re in. What are we doing?” Rachael offered.

  It was just then that she noticed all of them were wearing black long-sleeved shirts, biker shorts, and their hair up in buns. She instantly had the feeling that a Shannah-esque event was about to unfold.

  “There’s these girls. We don’t like them. They’re from a house across the street from yours. One of them slept with Becky’s boyfriend last week. And, the others, well they’re just rude.”

  “Would this be our rival house? Just a guess.” Brandi inquired.

  Everyone nodded their heads in unison.

  “The plan is this: we’re spray painting their lawn. Her name. A few other choice words. We need a lookout. You two are it.”

  “What? No painting for us?” Rachael questioned.

  “Not this round. You’re kind of noticeable, with the kickass body, big boobs, and bikini.” Kelsey winked. “So, you two will stay back, near the car. Here, put these on.”

  “Ski masks?” Brandi laughed.

  “Yep, they have cameras at the house of ill-repute.”

  They circled the block and parked at another house next door. They all pulled their masks down to cover their faces. Rachael and Brandi did the same.

  “See that walkway. You both stand there. If you see anyone yell- and be ready to run.”

  Rachael hoped she had enough energy left in her to make another dash. This one wasn’t nearly as far as the other one had been. Maybe fifty yards or so, but she was ready. And she owed them. One by one they crept out of the van, through the hedge, which Rachael was sure scratched her side, and towards the front lawn. Rachael and Brandi stopped at their designated location and squatted down in order to better conceal themselves. A couple of guys passed by on the sidewalk and glanced over at them. Rachael merely turned her back towards them, as did Brandi, and pretended to be crying about some fight with her boyfriend. Brandi acted out her role as well, consoling an apparently drunk friend in the midst of a relationship crisis. The other girls sat hidden from view, behind a half-walled garden, waiting to spring into action once the guys vanished beyond view.

  Rachael whistled signaling the all clear. Monique led the charge, with Becky and Karen alongside. Rachael couldn’t see what they were scrawling on the grass, but they certainly seemed to be taking their time. Lucia and Kelsey were up on the front porch of the house, completely out of sight. Rachael saw headlights coming up the road and whistled once more. The girls all ran for the van and dove in. They drove away and Rachael thought that no one had even spotted them.

  “Could you drop me off at the party?” Rachael asked.

  “You’re crazy if you’re going back in there.” Brandi shook her head.

  “I don’t think they’d shave my head, but I guess I’ll find out.” Rachael climbed out.

  “You’ve got guts.” Kelsey nodded. “Good luck.”

  Rachael heard them discussing her as she walked inside. She knew she must look like a hot mess. A skinned shin, filthy feet, grass on her upper thigh, and wild hair with probably near perfect make-up. She’d gone all out before leaving for class, knowing she’d see Travis tonight and not wanting to look bad in front of his friends.

  I guess I blew that.

  Guys cheered as she walked past. She was sure everyone knew by now that she was supposed to get her head shaved, yet no one stopped her. Out back she spied the guys who’d chased her down and merely waved as she strolled past them. Their awe-filled stares locked on her frame. She walked over to her clothes and picked them up, turning and exiting the way she’d come.

  “Do you know where Travis is?”

  Just as Rachael said the words, she spied Travis coming through the French doors. He looked less than pleased to see her, yet happy she had hair. One of the guys pointed over at him.

  “Yep, I see him.” She nodded and walked over to greet him.

  He wrapped a towel from around his own neck around her, bent his head and kissed her lips. “Let’s get out of here.”

  He grabbed her hand and led her out a side gate in the backyard and out to the street. There were far fewer people here now than had been here earlier.

  “You scared the crap out of me.” He walked Rachael towards her own house. “Running like that. I really thought they might shave your head, but I knew they’d shave your friend’s head for sure. I went looking for you. I came out of the woods a few seconds after you drove away. I nearly got into a fight with two guys, punched a guy who tried to keep me here. It got ugly.”

  “I’m sorry, Travis. I just wanted to go in that hot tub. I didn’t think they’d have some stupid head shaving thing like they do. That has to be one of the dumbest things I’ve ever heard.”

  “I’d never heard about it. I’d seen the sign, but thought it was just a formality and not some strictly enforced rule. Then, you go climbing in there. I thought you looked hot as hell, but little did I know what would happen. Then, Roy and Jay come over and are like, ‘Is that your girl in the hot tub? Dude, you better get her out of there. Even we can’t go in there. It’s for house residents only.’ I said, What’ll happen? They said, ‘They’ll shave their heads.’ I almost choked on my gum. At that point I thought I could get y’all out of there. That they hadn’t noticed, but no such luck. I had it under control, but then you ran.”

  “I figured they might not shave my head, but I wasn’t about to let them shave Brandi’s head either. They’re oafs.”

  “Agreed. Just because they’re my brothers, it doesn’t mean I like them all. And let’s be clear, I told them if they ever shave even a hair on your head I’ll kill them.”

  “No worries, I’ll stay out of that hot tub.”

  “And, then, there’s the other part. That little suit. You baling over the side of that hot tub- in that. That’s the only reason they didn’t catch poor Brandi. They were too busy gawking at you and your figure. I could’ve poked their eyes out.”

  “I like this suit.”

  “Every guy here likes that suit.”

  A few guys walked outside and stood to talk to them. Rachael recognized one of them as the big guy who helped chase her down.

  “We’re sorry about the confusion, Travis. Rachael can use the hot tub any time she wants. Chad told us who you are and all that. Your grandfather was a founding father. We had no idea. The hot tub thing- it’s always been the rule. Otherwise, it ends up full of vomit and stuff.”

  “No worries. I’m sorry I broke Moe’s nose. No hard feelings.”

  “No, it’s cool. Even Brandi can come back.” The guys shook Travis’s hand and walked away.

  “My grandfather paid to build this house.”

  “That’s no surprise.” Rachael grinned.

  “Back to the suit.”

  “What about it? You were in there shirtless, strutting your stuff.”

  “I was going to say, don’t throw it away. Hang onto that one for our honeymoon. I have plans for that suit.” Travis bent and kissed her sweetly. “You staying at your place?”

  “Yep,” Rachael handed him the towel. And waltzed across the street to her house.

  “You sure? Your roommate won’t have company?”

  “Nope, she’s out with the girls.” Rachael turned and waved, “Night, Travis.”

  “Are you trying to kill me?” He put his hand to his heart, and then, folded his hands in a steeple as if praying.

 
“Goodnight, Travis Baxter. See you next Sunday.”

  “That’s in two days.”

  “Your rule, not mine. I’m just keeping you honest. Besides, I’m going out dancing tomorrow night with my suitemates.”

  “Where to?”

  “No idea.” Rachael waved as she closed the front door.

  Chapter Ten

  Rachael slept most of the day, and when she crawled out of bed she saw Lucia had never come home. Rachael could hear her suitemates Carly and Alexa banging around in the bathroom. Rachael knocked on the door and Carly opened it.

  “Girl, I heard all about last night.”

  “What about?”

  “You, the hot tub, the killer body, a mad sprint through the woods and near head-shaving. The other sorority’s house.”

  “I’ll admit to the other stuff, but I have no idea what went down at that other house.”

  “That’s not what they’re saying. I guess you’re on camera in that same suit.”

  “Any number of girls have probably bought that suit this year. Can you see my face?”

  “No. The girl was wearing a mask.”

  “Hmm, then, it could have been anyone really.” Rachael picked up her toothbrush and applied a dab of toothpaste to it. “What about a vehicle?”

  “Couldn’t see one on any of the cameras.”

  “So, it could’ve been any number of bikini clad girls from last night’s party. There were a lot of them.” Rachael spit into the sink. “Tattoos? Did she have any identifying tattoos?”

  “No, other than big boobs.”

  “Could be any girl, with big boobs and a bikini. They’d be hard-pressed to prove otherwise.” Rachael rinsed her mouth out with water. “Are we still going dancing tonight?”

  “Sure are.”

  “Good.”

  Rachael returned to her own room and gently closed the door. The entire conversation had made her more than a little bit nervous, but she couldn’t let anyone know that. She had to play it off as it wasn’t her- especially since she had no idea what they’d written on the lawn. But the lawn was the least of her worries. The lawn could be mowed in a week and in the warm Florida climate the writing would be gone with one swipe of the lawnmower blade. The part that really concerned her was what Lucia and Kelsey did on that front porch. She’d rather not know. Not having knowledge meant that Rachael wouldn’t be able to slip up and implicate anyone- not even herself.

  Rachael perused her closet, searching for the perfect outfit for a late night dance adventure. They’d talked about this club that played a great mix of Top Forty and Hip Hop Hits. Everyone said it was the best place to go dancing for miles around. Rachael hadn’t danced in so long and she truly missed it. The club stayed open until four o’clock in the morning. Rachael picked a cute skirt, fitted top, and really cute heels. The outfit was red and gray, the shoes gray as well. It was stylish, but not over the top. A light knock at her door. Rachael went to open it, thinking that any knock on her door was quite unusual. In the house the other girls usually wrapped once and waltzed in. There was nothing as formal as an official knock.

  Rachael opened the door and saw that her house mom stood there, looking a little frustrated. Rachael didn’t know Mama Jean, as they called her, all that well. She wasn’t what could be called sweet and kind, or even granny-like. She was older. Rachael estimated her age to be somewhere around seventy years old. Her hair was gray and so were her eyes. She was quite terse and always smelled of stale tobacco. All of the girls joked about her no smoking policy for them in the house, yet she chain-smoked Marlboro 100’s like a chimney in her own attached apartment.

  Rachael had always dismissed her gruff exterior and personality as necessary components of running a house with eighty girls in it. It had to be a tough job. Girls sneaking guys in, girls sneaking out past their designated three o’clock in the morning curfew, girls setting the house alarm off and waking all of Greek Row. Then, there were even bigger issues. Girls smoking pot in the house, girls drinking in the house, and girls propping the doors open allowing any person off the street access. Rachael had heard whispers of all of these things and considered them typical college campus stuff. She tried to mind her own business and stay out of other people’s way.

  “You have kitchen duty tonight. It’s on the schedule.” Rachael was relieved. She was expecting Mama Jean to say something along the lines of, “There’s a couple of campus cops out front and they want to speak to you.”

  “Thank you for reminding me, Mama Jean. I totally forgot.” Rachael felt guilty. She was only on the schedule twice each semester and she’d forgotten the last time, too. Carly had covered for her and let Rachael do her set-up the following week. There were two possible shifts: set-up and clean-up. Set-up was clearly more desirable and girls were constantly trying to trade out their clean-up duty for set-up duty. Rachael knew tonight she was on both. Lucia had a date and had asked her over a week ago if she could cover. It was really no big deal. Rachael knew that if she worked quickly she’d still have time afterwards to go out dancing with her friends.

  She set her outfit out across her bed and headed out to the front of the house and the awaiting kitchen duties. She was thankful that they had the food professionally prepared and catered. It was already there, set up in large serving dishes with warmers underneath. Set-up was truly a simple task. All she needed to do was set out the silverware, plates, salad bowls, and dressings. Napkins were already on the long serving bar along the wall. Next, Rachael would need to mix two pitchers of lemonade and set them out along with some glasses.

  Round one complete.

  Rachael went back to her room and checked her phone, a new message in Remind flashed across her screen.

  Lit test Monday. Chapters twelve through twenty.

  Rachael closed her eyes and sighed. She’d forgotten all about the test on Monday. She knew that she hadn’t read a single page of the next eight chapters that had been assigned over two weeks ago. She’d never been a procrastinator, but as of late she’d just been overwhelmed between trying to balance Travis and her social calendar. She knew, even as she thought it, that it was a lame excuse. She’d had more than ample time to read the chapters and prepare for the written test. The previous test had been downright grueling. Rachael had read the book and not studied in the least. On test day, she was able to eke out a low B, but she could’ve done better. In her own defense, she had never taken one of Mrs. DelRio’s Lit Exams before. None of her sisters had taken her class and Rachael had prepared as she would have done for any test in high school. Read the book, and then, go take the test. It seemed simple enough.

  But when she arrived on that day last month, she was greeted with a vocabulary list like she’d never seen before. She remembered a few of the words from the book, but the majority of them were completely foreign to her. Then, there were the comparisons.

  A myriad is to a plethora, as a lot is to…

  What is many? Few? Some?

  Rachael remembered getting so frustrated and wondering if it was myriad or plethora that had even been in the reading material. And, if so, what did they mean? So, in the end she found herself guessing. Her guesswork hadn’t been all that great and she would’ve come away with a high D if it hadn’t been for the essay at the bottom. It was extra credit and asked about the foreshadowing events that occurred in chapters six and eight. What were they? How would they foreshadow the downfall that was sure to follow? Furthermore, how did they add to the building of the story and the ultimate climax that would come?

  And, this is where Rachael had gotten lucky. She’d been bored one night and looked up the synopsis of the book. In the description it clearly discussed the author’s use of foreshadowing and the book’s impending climax and doom of the main character.

  Rachael knew that this forthcoming test on Monday spelled disaster for her night on the town and dancing. There was no way she could actually read the assigned material, study, and go to Travis’s for her Sunday date. It wou
ldn’t be possible. As a realist, she had to at least admit that much to herself. Rachael fiddled with the strap on her book bag.

  If only there was a way to fit it all in.

  Lucia swept in and plopped down on her bed.

  “What did y’all put on their front porch last night?” The suspense had been killing her and Rachael knew she simply had to know what Kelsey and Lucia had done.

  “A care package full of crap. Literally,” she grinned widely and nodded her head.

  “As in poop?” Rachael couldn’t believe it.

  “Yep, a box full of dog poop with Jade’s name written on the outside. It said you’re full of it and you know it!”

  “You gave her a box of crap? From where?”

  “That doo-doo bin across the street at the Lakeview Apartment complex. Seemed fitting.”

  “But I thought she hooked up with Becky’s boyfriend? I don’t get it.”

  “She’d always pretended to be her friend. Then, Dex, Becky’s boyfriend comes clean about the whole thing, out of guilt I guess. And Jade tries to pretend it never happened. Starts crying and carrying on about how she’d never do that and all this- crap.”

  “That’s pretty bad.”

  “I see you have all of your hair still.” Lucia touched her own hair that had now grown into a really cute pixie. It softened the angles of her face and Rachael realized just how pretty she was.

  “I do. I don’t think I was in any danger of them shaving my head.”

  “That’s because your fiancé is a badass. He broke Moe’s nose and then, laid out some other guy. Then, he was darting through those woods. He’s a keeper.”

  “I know.” Rachael grinned at her. “Tell me about this date.”

  “There isn’t much to tell. I think he’s been using me. I don’t know that he was really that in to me. He has some social tonight and decided he’d rather be there than here with me.”

  Rachael didn’t bother asking who it was. Lucia seemed hurt by it all and not really in the mood to elaborate.

  “I was going to go dancing, but not now. I have this Lit test and the last one was totally insane.”