by Tabatha Kiss
“You do?”
“Absolutely. Now, take a deep breath...”
Heidi obeys, audibly filling her lungs and blowing it back out. “Okay,” she says.
I smile. “It will be fine, Heidi.”
“I hope you’re right.”
“I know I am.” I step back onto the sidewalk of Greek Row. “Do you want me to swing by? Say the word and I’ll blow off this house meeting.”
She chuckles. “Brick will have your ass if you skip another one.”
“I don’t care. You need me, I’m there. That’s how this works.”
“No, I’m okay,” she says, her strength returning to her voice. “You go to the meeting and we’ll hook up after?”
“Yeah, I’ll come to your place,” I say. “I have a few things I’d like to say to your roommate, if you don’t mind.”
“Oh. Me, too. She hasn’t come back yet, but... she has to eventually.”
I nod. “I’ll see you soon, okay?”
“Okay,” she says. “Hey, Drew.”
“Yeah?”
“With a close call like this... I really think we should tell Seth sooner rather than later,” she says. “We might not be so lucky next time.”
I pause on the steps of Delta Xi. “Maybe you’re right,” I say, exhaling slowly. “We’ll talk about it tonight.”
“See you then.”
“Bye, Heidi.”
“Bye.”
She hangs up first. I lower the phone to my side as my guts get all twisted up inside. First, that morning Seth showed up at her house. Then, the entire fall out of the dance. Now, this?
Heidi’s right. Our next close call might be the one to hit its mark.
We said we’d cross that bridge when we had to.
Now is the time.
I open the front door and walk inside. My housemates pack the common area waiting for the house meeting to start. There are still a few minutes to spare. I can run upstairs, get changed, and—
“Hey, Rose,” Brick bellows from the sitting room. “Get in here.”
I scan their faces, but the thoughts of my brothers remain hidden behind smirks and shadowed eyes.
The crowd parts as I step forward into the room, then immediately closes behind me to block me in.
That can’t be good.
I reach the middle of the room. Brick stands with his giant arms crossed and his square-shaped jaw tightly closed. Beside him, looking angry and dejected...
Seth.
Definitely not good.
I clear my throat. “What’s up, guys?” I ask. “The meeting starts at four, right?”
Seth looks at his phone. After a few quick taps of his screen, my phone vibrates in my hand. I turn it up. A new photo message.
“Mr. Newbury has come to us with a dispute,” Brick says. “Care to explain that photograph, Mr. Rose?”
I swipe it open.
Fuck.
Heidi was too late.
I pinch and zoom, hoping that there’s something there that could cast some doubt. Maybe my face is cropped, or she drew a mole or a freckle I don’t have. Anything that might argue that this guy isn’t me.
But that’s my face. Those are my hands.
And that’s my distinguished-looking dick.
I zoom in on the title card. Heidi Newbury. Hard to argue she wasn’t the artist with that sitting there, too.
The Objectified Man?
Really, Jenna?
“Rose.”
I look at Brick. “I think good art speaks for itself,” I joke.
He doesn’t laugh. No one does.
Especially not Seth.
“Why is my little sister drawing you naked, man?” he asks me.
Point blank. Eye contact.
I could lie. I could try to bullshit my way out of this. I could say that I modeled for her class. That’s true, after all, but it’d only take Corey to confirm that I wasn’t there on full figure day. Wouldn’t take a genius to determine how she really got up close and personal with my lower half.
Now is the time.
I swallow hard. “Because we’ve been seeing each other,” I answer. “Since September.”
The room shifts. A shiver races down my spine. No one says a word, but the way the air moves when two dozen men all look to their leader at the same time is bone-chilling.
Seth just glares. I wish he would say something, though. Or shout. Or punch me in the nose. I can take it. Hell, I deserve it.
Brick takes a breath and stands a little taller. “Any Delta Xi man who breaks Delta Xi law will be punished to the full extent of Delta Xi law!” he says.
They all raise a fist.
“Drop! Drop! Drop!”
I stand alone, surrounded by the chanting voices of my brothers as Seth looks on.
Well, shit.
Chapter 43
Heidi
My phone rings. I check the screen.
Jenna.
I let it go to voicemail. Not really in the mood to talk to her right now.
It rings again. I ignore it.
A text pops up. And another. Then, another.
With a huff, I grab the phone again.
Answer.
Answer.
Answer.
The phone rings in my palm.
Fucking fine.
I swipe it on. “What?” I ask.
“Okay, so, I know you’re probably still really pissed at me, but have you heard from Drew at all tonight?”
I flex my jaw. “Not in a few hours. Why?”
“You...” she pauses, “might want to get down here.”
“Down where?” I ask.
“The Delta Xi house.”
“Why?”
“He... well...”
I frown, out of patience. “He what, Jenna?”
“He’s in trouble.”
My heart jolts. Of all the days for Drew to be in trouble...
Maybe I’m jumping the gun here. It could be unrelated.
“What kind of trouble?” I ask.
Jenna laughs dryly. “It’s hard to tell over all the... chanting.”
“Chanting?” I squeak.
She tilts the phone for me, and I hear it even louder.
Delta Xi! Delta Xi! Delta Xi!
“I’m pretty sure it’s the I’ve been dating my best friend’s little sister behind his back and now my frat is kicking my ass kind of trouble,” she says.
My gut sinks. “Oh.”
Our luck really ran out this time.
“I mentioned I’m really sorry, right?” Jenna asks.
“I’ll be right there.”
“Because I’m, like... really sorry.”
I hang up as a rock forms in my throat. We should have come clean sooner. I knew we should have, but the taste of the forbidden was just too sweet. For both of us.
I shake it off as a rush of adrenaline tingles my fingertips.
I need to go save my boyfriend.
From my brother.
I hear the chanting before I even reach Greek Row.
People have surrounded the Delta Xi house. They’ve practically blocked the street. I try to squeeze through them, my ears throbbing with the loud chants of Delta Xi.
“Heidi!”
I spot Jenna on the curb across from the house, bouncing up and down and waving her hands to get my attention. A stubborn gaggle of Beta Kappa girls block my path, so I plow through them to get to her.
“What’s going on?” I ask. “Where is Drew?”
Jenna points. “Over there,” she shouts. “On the lawn.”
Laughter and applause rise from the center of the circular crowd.
What are they doing to him?
Jenna hooks my arm and charges forward, butting elbows and forcing people aside to get me through. As we inch across the street, my mind comes up with worst-case scenarios and my heart aches even more. Are they hurting him? Are they making him go through some horrible hazing ritual?
We stop at the fro
nt of the crowd.
Drew.
He’s kneeling in a plastic children’s pool, surrounded by water and soil. He’s holding his arms out to the side with a few leaves in each hand, his skin painted green with body paint. They smeared his face with red paint, too.
There’s a sign around his neck; wild scribbles with black ink.
I betrayed my brother.
Seth sits beside him in a lawn chair, smiling gleefully and looking oh-so-damn proud of himself as he urges on the crowd.
I spot Brick standing on the porch, watching over everything, not doing a damn thing to stop this crap.
“Brick!” I stomp up to the porch.
His eyes flick in my direction. “Stampy,” he greets me.
I stop on the stairs with Jenna. “What’s going on? Why are you doing this to him?”
He looks forward, big and proud. “Any Delta Xi man who breaks Delta Xi law will be punished to the full extent of Delta Xi law.”
“And that means holding him against his will?” I ask. “That’s called kidnapping.”
Jenna crosses her arms. “I’m sure my mother, the federal judge, would love to hear about this,” she says, vague and threatening.
Brick glares at her. “Relax, ladies,” he says. “He can leave whenever he wants.”
I blink. “He can?”
“Yeah.”
“So...” I pause, confused. “He’s doing this on purpose?”
He shrugs. “Yeah.”
“Why?”
Again, he nods with pride. “He’s a Delta Xi man,” he simply says.
I frown.
The fuck is this?
“Well, I’m getting him out of here,” I say. “Come on, Jenna.”
“Wait...” Jenna squints at Brick. “This is the full extent of Delta Xi law? This? Publicly shaming him like a puppy that pissed on a rug?”
I tilt my head, seeing her point.
“What? Did you think we’d beat him?” Brick pivots to face us. “This isn’t the 50s. We have rules. People have rights.” He scoffs. “Stop watching so much TV.”
I hop off the porch and beeline toward the pool. “Seth!” I shout, too angry to care about witnesses.
Seth stares at me from his lawn chair. “Oh, good,” he says, sarcastic. “You’re here.”
I dig my heels into the grass. “Let him go,” I say.
“How about... no?”
I extend my hand to Drew. “Drew, come on,” I say.
Drew doesn’t move. He silently looks at me and shakes his head.
“Drew,” I repeat. “Come on. Let’s get out of here.”
He looks down.
I grit my teeth. “What did you do to him?” I ask Seth.
“Go ahead, Drew,” he says. “Tell the lady what you are.”
Drew raises his head again. “I’m a pretty little rose,” he answers.
“That’s right. He’s a pretty little rose, and he needs his sunshine. Stay out of his light.”
“Drew,” I plead with him. “This is stupid. You don’t have to do this.”
“No,” Drew says, refusing to move. “I’ve done my brother wrong and I will pay my penance.”
“That’s right!” Seth says from his lawn chair. “It’s called having honor and integrity.”
“He’s right.”
He points at Drew. “Shut up, Drew. Flowers don’t talk.”
Drew bows his head, going silent again.
I exhale hard at Seth. “You want to work this out, then let’s work this out. Like adults. Not children.”
Seth scoffs. “You sit around sketching pictures of dicks all day and then call me the child? Come on, little sister.”
Jenna tilts her head, seeing his point.
“Seth, can we please just talk about this?” I ask.
He shrugs. “Go ahead. Talk.”
I look over my shoulder at the crowd, many of whom have gone silent since I showed up. I’d rather not air this dirty laundry in front of the entire Chicago North Greek system, but Seth seems determined to do exactly that.
“Okay, fine.” I step closer so I don’t have to shout. “Drew and I are together. We were going to tell you sooner, but we weren’t sure how you’d react.”
“I think you knew exactly how I’d react,” he says. “You just did it, anyway.”
“Because it wasn’t your decision.” I look at Drew. “It’s not like we planned this. When we first met, I didn’t know he was your roommate. He didn’t know who I was, either.”
“Yeah, yeah. He told me all about it. But it doesn’t matter.”
“It doesn’t matter?”
“When he found out, he should have ended it. That’s what a man does. You’re not a guy, Heidi. You wouldn’t understand.”
“Oh, cut the bro code crap,” I say. “We’re human beings. We have thoughts and feelings, and sometimes, they don’t include you, Seth. And don’t you dare try to take the moral high ground. You want me to consider your feelings? You first.”
He glares at me. “So, you’ve been revenge fucking my best friend for months because I was mean to you in high school? Real mature.”
“No, it’s not like that. We didn’t even...” I lower my voice “We didn’t even go all the way until the night of the dance.”
“Oh, good! He didn’t ditch me that night to fuck a girl I liked. He ditched me to fuck my little sister instead. That’s so much better, Heidi! Thank you.”
Jenna tugs on my arm. “You know, at this point I feel like I have the legal responsibility to tell you to stop talking,” she says.
“Jenna! So good to see you, too!” Seth says. “How does it feel to find out your roommate was fucking him, too? Or did you two take turns?”
Jenna snorts. “Oh, please. Drew and I weren’t doing it. We only pretended to because you almost caught them doing it.”
Seth tilts his head in surprise. “Oh, really?!”
I glare at her. “Stop talking, huh?”
She winces. “Oops.”
I look at Drew. I silently plead with him to do something. To stand up and speak for us.
He does nothing.
“This is ridiculous,” I say around the lump in my throat. “I kept this from you as much as he did. You want to be mad at somebody, be mad at me.”
“Oh, I am,” Seth says. “I’m just not in the position to rub your nose in it like this.” He gestures at Drew. “The fact is that he screwed up. He corrupted my little sister and now he has to pay the price.”
“He didn’t corrupt me!”
“Actions have consequences, Heidi. You’re an adult now, right?”
I glare at him, too disgusted to argue anymore.
“He made a pledge, and he broke it.” Seth looks at Drew. “What was that pledge again, Drew?”
“I pledged I wouldn’t touch her,” Drew answers.
“That’s right!”
“But I never pledged not to fall in love with her.”
My breath hitches. “You’re in love with me?” I ask.
Drew raises his head, the answer written on his face. “Yeah, I am,” he says. “I’m in love with you, Heidi Newbury. I have been since the first time I saw you.”
The crowd swoons.
I fall to my knees by the pool. “You love me?” I ask him again.
He nods. “Yeah.”
Seth groans behind us, annoyed.
I ignore him. I cup Drew’s painted face and lean over the pool. I kiss him on the lips, not caring how much paint or dirt gets on me.
The crowd shouts even louder.
Drew breaks our kiss with the turn of his head. “You should go,” he says.
“Come with me.”
“No.” He shakes his head. “I have to finish this out.”
I sigh, disappointed. “Why?”
“Because I can take it,” he whispers, only for me. “They can humiliate me all he wants, but I won’t let them laugh at you.”
My heart swells. Drew Rose. My protector.
> “I love you,” I say.
He smiles. “I’ll find you later,” he says. “Okay?”
“Okay.”
I caress his cheek with my thumb and give his handsome face one more quick kiss before climbing to my feet.
Seth glares at us, looking even more pissed off than before. I can sincerely say that I absolutely, positively, without a fucking doubt, don’t care.
“You’re being a real asshole about this, Seth,” I say.
He shrugs his wide shoulders. “Doesn’t mean I’m wrong,” he says.
I walk away, quickly turning my back to him to hide my tears. I swore to myself years ago that I’d never let him see me cry again.
Sure as shit not about to start now.
Chapter 44
Heidi
I tap my pencil against the page of my sketchbook. Normally, when I have time to kill, I’ll just sit down and start drawing and the next thing I’d know it’s the middle of the night and all of my thoughts are yesterday’s problems. I can’t seem to get anything started now, though. All I can do is replay Drew’s confession of love in my head.
I’m in love with you.
I have been since the first time I saw you.
It’s the moment people spend their entire lives waiting for.
Too bad Seth had to be there to ruin the whole damn thing.
Jenna passes by my open door. Again.
I sigh. “You can come in, Jenna,” I say.
“Hm?” she asks, pausing in the doorway. “What?”
I sit back in my desk chair, abandoning the sketchbook. “You’ve been pacing around for like an hour.”
“No,” she says. “Well. I don’t know. Maybe a little.”
“What’s up?”
She lingers in place, nervously biting her lip. “Are we okay?” she asks.
“I don’t know,” I answer honestly.
“Are we... going to be okay? Someday? Preferably soon?”
At first, I don’t answer. I’m not even sure how to answer. “I hope so,” I say.
“Then...” She exhales slowly. “I know you probably don’t care to hear what I have to say right now, considering that I literally imploded your life today, but... can I say something real quick? Please?”
I nod.
Jenna walks into the room and plants herself on the edge of my bed. She fidgets for a few moments before taking a deep breath to compose herself. “I’m not sure how obvious this is to you, but I want you to know that I don’t know how to function without you,” she says. “I never want to know, either.”