by Rachel Shane
I whipped my head to Erin and my glare must have resembled a bull ready to charge because the smile slipped off her face.
“Um. Barbecue?” she asked.
I pursed my lips. “Not bad, but expensive. We’re running low on dues, ladies.”
Mackenzie cleared her throat. “Several of you still owe. Deadline was last week. This was actually our first agenda poi—”
“So let’s think of something fun and cheap,” I said, cutting her off. “We’ll spring for a Keg, but all other costs need to stay low as hell.” Especially because I could no longer dip into my own stash.
Willow Mathers raised her patterned nail-foil covered hand. “Volleyball tourney?”
I considered. If we did it on a Sunday afternoon, we could corner a market the other frats couldn’t touch. “A possibility. Anything else?”
Jenna Rodriquez leaned forward, nose ring gleaming in the glow of the lamp. “That party we had last year with the white t-shirts and markers was pretty fun.”
I pressed a finger to my lips. “And cheap since all it would require was markers.”
Mackenzie lifted her hand, then put it back down again. I raised my brow at her and her hand shot up again. “What if we combine ideas? A white t-shirt party but we step it up. Not markers but maybe paint-filled water balloons or something.”
Snaps erupted in the room.
“And we can charge cover!” Erin shouted excitedly.
My eyes scanned the crumbs that still littered the pillow cushions. I cringed at the thought of all the paint sloshed over our basement, spread across the walls as people filtered upstairs to use the bathroom. “It would have to be held in the backyard.” Which meant we’d need heating lamps to prevent early onset frost bite thanks to the very unhelpful frigid September air.
A couple of the girls nodded, which I took as enough consent.
“Friday?” Erin suggested. “Does that work?”
Several heads shook. “I was invited to go to the Out House recruitment that night,” one of the naysayers said.
A pang of jealousy shot through me so fast I didn’t have time to prepare myself. Fraternities usually stuffed their house with pretty girls to entice potential members.
“Saturday?” Erin tried again and heads bobbed up and down.
“Early Saturday. So we can lure in potentials before the big parties that night,” I said. But another idea thumped through me so wild, it made the corners of my lips turn upright. A way to get Harrison back and off my mind. Last year Out House stole all Beta Chi’s pledges.
This year we’d steal theirs.
THIS WAS WAR, I thought even though I knew I was mostly fighting my disparate feelings about Harrison. Half of me wanted to throw down with fists and the other half wanted to throw him down on a bed and straddle him. Still, I readied my battle gear: push up bra to enhance my already double D cups. Miniskirt that might not pass for more than a strip of fabric according to most grandmothers. Plump red lips and shimmering lotion to draw the eye exactly where I wanted it to go. And I wanted Harrison’s eye to go to all the places he’d never get to see.
Erin lamed out and chose studying over a fun night of cockteasing my enemy—and stealing from him right under his nose. Mackenzie and Corey refused to step foot in Harrison’s vicinity unless it was to kick his ass. Fallon had an art project due, which left Holly McKenna as my only option of companion. Or wingwoman. Or second commander.
Holly had no idea about my real agenda, but she had a legit invitation to Out House’s rush recruitment party—something I didn’t even have—and she agreed to get me in. Holly belonged to the Alpha Omega Chi sorority, a.k.a. one that was fully recognized by the Green Organization. One that wasn’t a threat to me. Our houses had always been allies. I’d met Holly through Erin since they had classes together and Holly had introduced us to Harrison as well. So I guess she might be the root of all my non-mother problems right now.
She eyed me up and down when I met her outside her sorority house. “You look amazing.”
“That’s the plan,” I said with a little swing into my hips. I tilted my head toward her. “You do too.” Over the summer she’d traded her signature sleek ponytail for a chic chin-length bob. “So…has Harrison said anything lately?”
We strutted down Walnut Ave, earning some catcalls from herds of freshman guys headed to whichever frat they thought would get them laid the most.
“About what?” Holly squinted at me, the moon highlighting her cheekbones in a soft glow.
About me. The thought betrayed me fiercely, but I stabbed it away with the truth. “About any additional plans he has for sabotage? Several of our members quit and I can’t help but think Harrison has gotten his greedy little paws all over that.”
Holly chuckled. “That…sounds like him.”
“Why are you even friends with him anyway?” I asked. Holly was the sweetest person I knew, someone who joined the Greek System and came out completely uncorrupted, which was practically an impossibility.
She shrugged. “We went to high school together. He wasn’t always this…”
Sexy. “Smarmy?” I finished for her. We turned onto the Out House driveway and the familiar pain of nostalgia overtook me. I missed this place so crazy hard.
“Ha, I was going to say intense.”
Don’t ask about him. Don’t ask about him, I pleaded with myself. My mouth refused to listen. “What was he like in high school?”
“A little bumbling, actually. Like the kind of guy you always felt bad for. We were on yearbook together and a lot of his ideas were shot down by the editor-in-chief, and I hear the same thing happened on the newspaper staff too. He had a rep for getting stuck with the crap stories. Oh!” She snapped her fingers. “I remember one article he wrote that everyone made fun of. It was called, ‘Solving the Mystery Meat’ and it was all about how he tried to identify what exactly the school put in the sloppy joes. Earned him a lot of snickers.”
I bit my lip. It was kind of endearing that he’d tried so hard in high school and failed, but had managed to succeed in college. Except I was not allowed to find him endearing. “What made him change?”
“He figured out how to be the intimidating one, I guess.” Holly got in line behind the mob of people at the doorway. The thump thump of a pulsing dance track filtered into the street. Even though the temps had dropped to the frigid mid-thirties, I still defiantly wore sandals and refused a jacket. But my teeth clattered when a cool breeze whipped my hair into my face and sent goosebumps popping along my arms.
Holly rummaged through her purse for her fake ID.
I rested my hand on top of hers. “You can put that away, it’s not going to work.”
She sighed and followed me inside where the freshman took one look at the scary bouncers and yelped, rushing toward the sober party near the kitchen. Only a few sorority girls and Out House brothers mingled in the alcohol-approved room. The place was packed with black lights, giving the ambiance of rave. Gone were the board games Harrison had placed for Rho Sig to piss us off. Instead boys stood in clusters talking to Out House brothers and their requisite hotties brought in to lure new members.
My eyes immediately scanned over the tops of heads for the tallest one of all. But I didn’t see Harrison and my stomach swirled. Not in disappointment, I reminded myself, in relief. Where was he?
“This is kind of lame.” Holly wrinkled her nose.
“No it isn’t! Let’s go mingle!” I tugged her in the direction of three boys, clearly freshman by the way they huddled in the corner and clutched their cups of soda as if they were about the squeeze the life out of lab rats. “Having fun?” I asked, sidling up to the scrawniest one. I brushed my elbow against his chest and he practically came on contact.
Holly shook her head. Nope.
But the two other boys nodded.
I leaned toward them, dipping low to offer them a clear view of cleavage. They both took the bait. “Because I know of something better than this.”
Holl
y squinted at me as one of the boys read from the script I hadn’t even given him. “And what’s that?”
“Something more exciting.” I purposefully looked around as if I didn’t want anyone to overhear and then pulled them into a huddle. I made sure to wrap my arms around at least two of them, my fingers circling over their shoulder blades. “A coed fraternity. The only one that exists on campus.” I let that sink in for a second. “Or I guess not exactly on campus, if you know what I mean.”
Of course they didn’t. And just like I suspected, they asked me to elaborate.
“An underground frat. Not officially recognized by the Greek Org. Which means we don’t have to play by the rules. We can have alcohol, ragers, even coed naked sleepovers.”
They sputtered. Holly bit her lip to hold back her giggles.
I flashed them the “candid” photo loaded onto my phone. A blurry glimpse of topless girls lounging around, wearing skimpy plaid pajama shorts. One girl readied a pillow as if to fight the others. Though all seemingly bare breasts were blurred out by a lens flare, you could clearly see my face on the one about to be hit with the pillow.
Their eyes bugged out at the photo. I stifled my smirk. I’d have to remember to compliment Mackenzie on her Photoshop skills later. Holly shook her head at me.
I reached into my purse and produced a stack of glitzy invitations Mackenzie had designed. The printing alone reduced our dues down to zero but hopefully the cover we’d charge tomorrow would substitute until we had more pledges to refill our dues pot. “I hope to see you all there.” I pressed an invite into each of their hands, blew them a kiss, then strutted away.
Holly caught up with me as I was approaching the next group of boys. “Really? A naked sleepover?”
I shrugged. “I’m sure they have unrealistic movie-enhanced expectations of what a sorority entails. Might as well play up the hype. And I’m not teasing, I will actually throw one. Not my fault if said sleepover gets zero female attendance.”
She giggled. “So that’s why you wanted to come tonight.”
“Can’t let Harrison win this round.”
Holly nodded her approval and when we talked to the next few groups of boys, she aided me with a little good cop bad cop routine. She played the good cop of course, offering up the facts. I supplemented with what they really wanted to hear: naked girls, potential sex, and all around debauchery. I’d been so caught up in the fun I’d forgotten to search for Harrison.
But it wasn’t Harrison I found when I moved onto the next cluster. It was Layla Davies.
I stiffened. The former Rho Sigma president, the girl who tried to kick out Mackenzie and accidentally got the entire house shut down as a result, stood in a circle with Olivia Marquez, who’d deflected from Yours before the very first chapter meeting. The two of them were talking to the hottest guys of the bunch, and I wasn’t sure if they were potential recruits or Out House brothers. Layla wore skin tight jeans and a crop top that showcased her glitzy belly button piercing. She gyrated her hips against one of the guys, running her fingers up and down his arms. I’d seen a similar scenario before at our formal last year, when she was high on Molly and couldn’t stop touching everyone in sight. Olivia seemed to have taken the same anti-sobriety precaution as Layla.
I rolled my eyes, if Olivia left us to hang out with that trash, I didn’t want her.
Just as I stopped in front of the next group of guys, a hand squeezed my hip from behind. I whipped my head around to see Harrison pushing into the inner circle. A nervous flutter erupted in my chest and I caught the smile before it bursted onto my lips. I maneuvered my mouth into a scowl instead. He wrapped his arms around the shoulders of each boy in front of me. “So. Which one of you will be the lucky one Bianca makes out with tonight in a vain attempt to make me jealous?”
I cringed. “I did not make out with Matt to make you jealous,” I said, hoping he’d believe me.
A wicked grin crested Harrison’s face. “Really? Well, good news then. He’s here.”
A jolt of fear climbed my spine. “H—here?”
Holly’s head volleyed back and forth between Harrison and me. The boys wore the same dumbfounded expression.
“By the punch. He’s a freshman!” Harrison allowed himself a small chuckle before he went in for the kill. “But of course you knew that. If you kissed him for actual reasons. In fact I might even offer him a bid. You know, for funsies.” He turned to both of the guys in front of me. “Now listen, I’ve heard the rumors. I know what she’s going to offer you. Coed fraternity. Naked sleepovers.” He shook he head. “I can’t believe anyone actually fell for that.”
“Oh?” I raised a brow. “And have you told the recruits the level of indecency you fell to in order to get this house? Lying. Cheating. I’m sure there’s stealing involved somewhere.” I grabbed the hands of the two boys. “Guess what, if you want any fun before you’re twenty-one, this isn’t the place to be. No drinking at parties. No sororities willing to hang with you. You’ll be joining an unstable fraternity that erected its house on a flimsy card stack.”
Harrison wedged himself between me and the boys, forcing me to drop their hands. “At least we’re recognized by the Greek Org.”
I stepped forward in challenge until my nose touched the tip of his. “At least we don’t need to drive twenty miles off campus to use the fake ID we keep in our pocket.”
The hint of a smile played on his lips. “At least we don’t end drug parties halfway through because we live in fear of getting caught.”
“Speaking of stopping halfway through, at least we follow through on our teases,” I said. He could accuse me of kissing Matt for the wrong reasons but at least I’d finished what I’d started.
Harrison stepped forward another inch, his expression morphing from one of anger to one of hunger. I had a choice, stay in this spot, which would only lead to one thing. His lips might land on mine and if they did, I wouldn’t be able to stop myself from indulging. He was my enemy. He was clearly baiting me, teasing me so he could wield the power over me. I couldn’t trust him with both my heart and my sorority’s fate. So I backed up a step, admitting defeat. Letting him win once again.
He raised a brow to acknowledge his victory. “All right then,” he said, accepting my unspoken form of rejection. “Stay away from our recruits.”
I shot him by best smile. “Haven’t you heard? Rho Sigma doesn’t have to play by the rules anymore. Just because they’re here doesn’t mean they’re yours. They can choose whatever house they want.”
He nodded. “And I plan to give them the ammunition they need to make the right choice.”
“So do I.” I crossed my arms, lifting up my cleavage. Harrison’s eyes flew to it.
My breath came out ragged, chest pumping in and out in tune to Harrison’s. We stared at each other in challenge for another moment before we both broke, spinning around in opposite directions to tackle the next group of pledges. It was only after I’d reached them that I realized Holly and the two potential recruits had long slipped away. Still, as I watched Harrison beeline to each guy, offering them lies and deceit, I amped up my incentive, promising more than just empty dreams of naked girls, but the actual truth. Joining Underground Rho Sigma would give them the freedom they wouldn’t get at any other house.
I was so caught up in the game to beat Harrison, I didn’t even realize I was stopping in front of Matt until his whole body lit up.
Crap.
He pulled me into a hug that made me recoil, his confidence lit by the fuse I set off at the concert when I made out with him. “Bianca! I tried calling you!”
I bit my lip. He’d called fifteen times. And that was just today. “Oh yeah, my phone…” I tilted my head to find Harrison leaning in to another recruit but his eyes focused on my every move.
I pasted a smile on my face and twisted back to Matt. “So…you’re a freshman here?”
He nodded vigorously, as if this was great news and I hadn’t just ignored his textin
g question. “Yep. Majoring in marketing.”
I tilted my head, trying to seem interested. “And you intern at the arena?”
“All through high school.” He straightened. “I live ten minutes from here.”
Good. Ten minutes meant off campus.
He glanced up at me with shy eyes. “I hear you’re recruiting pledges? Do you still need some?”
My jaw clenched. “Yes, we do, but…” I placed a palm on his shoulder in what I hoped might seem sexy and not motherly. “The thing is.” Think, Bianca, Think. At that moment, Harrison strutted by me, shaking his head. And suddenly an idea came to me. “It’s illegal for a pledge and a sister of the same fraternity to date.” I pouted as if to show I was really bummed by this fake news. “So I’d rather you not pledge my house? Otherwise…”
I let him fill in the blanks and when his mouth opened in a wide O, I knew he took the bait. “Oh no. Really?”
I nodded. “But this is a really good house. You should join it.” And then I went in for the kill, hoping Harrison was being truthful about the bid for Matt. I leaned into his ear and blew a hot breath. His shoulders jumped. “Actually, I would love it forever if you did a favor for me.”
He swallowed. “Anything.”
“Be my eyes and ears. There’s a file cabinet in Harrison Wagner’s room. Sneak in one day when his guard’s down and steal whatever’s inside. It’ll be worth your while.”
“Yes,” he said, cupping his hands on either side of my chin. I fought back vomit as he sunk his mouth against mine. I told myself this was just another way to prove I followed through when Harrison didn’t.
I counted one, two, three, four, five before it seemed appropriate to break the kiss. I stepped out of his embrace. “Thanks.”
I stumbled away, making an excuse about needing more soda even though I’d never had any to begin with. Harrison leaned against the doorjamb as if he had been waiting for me. “You know, your game really sucks when you’re thrown for a loop. You were cringing as you kissed him.”
I tried to nudge past him into the kitchen. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
