Smash into You

by Sherry Soule

  Vanessa shook her head. “No, it’s just—”

  “Whatever.” Raven peeled the label off her water bottle. “Brooklyn only models on school breaks. I’d think somebody from SoCal wouldn’t be so star-struck. And FYI, she’s also an amazing point guard for the women’s basketball team.”

  Kill me now. My dreams of becoming a Zeta Beta were crashing and burning before my very eyes. Jade had affluence and power. Claire had academic excellence. And Brooklyn had beauty and athletic talents. Who could compete with girls who had wealth, prestige, and model-like qualities?

  “Best parties. Hottest boyfriends. Great networking. And friends for life,” Raven said. “Yeah. Being a Zeta Beta sister definitely wouldn’t suck.”

  I silently agreed. Joining a sorority would sure make life a lot more interesting, not to mention all the opportunities that would open up for me at this school.

  “Claire is Jade’s bestie, but they’re really close friends with Brooklyn, too,” Vanessa said.

  Two more girls joined our table and chatted with Raven and Vanessa. I said a polite hello, then went back to picking at my lunch while I stared across the room at the Zeta Beta sisters. I studied the trio like an anthropologist studying some previously unclassified subclass of human. My life could drastically change if I joined their ranks. Envy wasn’t pretty, neither was desperation, but that didn’t even scratch the surface of how bad I wanted to join that sorority now. My dad would be overjoyed if I pledged. And I wouldn’t feel so alone anymore—I’d have sisters watching my back.

  Two more young women sat at the other end of the Zeta Beta table, appearing as sophisticated and poised as the three ringleaders. My chest filled with a gaping loneliness that seemed inescapable. Although Vanessa was friendly, I wanted to expand my social circle.

  Raven and the others gossiped, but I didn’t join in. The focus on the lifestyles of the rich, attractive, and scandalous was all these girls wanted to talk about. This was college—not high school. And I’d had enough drama to last me a lifetime.

  My heart thumped against my ribcage and I pressed my sweaty palms against the thigh of my jeans. I never wanted anything as much as I wanted to go to Paris, and if that meant joining a sorority, then my goal was to become a Zeta Beta.

  If I could just enter that inner sanctum, I was positive my craptastic life would change forever.

  DISTRACTIONS

  On a hot morning for mid-September, Vanessa and I stepped through the arched doorway and into the only class we shared. The room felt like walking into an igloo. The frosty air washed over me, causing goosebumps to explode all over my skin. I shivered in my pink cashmere Loro Piana cardigan.

  I had a bad feeling that the air conditioner had been deliberately set to high, so we wouldn’t be able to snooze through the lecture.

  My eyes scanned the ten rows. I spotted the Zeta Beta trio in the last row. Super. A soft curse left my lips. Claire read a battered paperback, while Brooklyn studied her face in a compact mirror, and Jade scribbled in a notebook.

  One look at them told me all I needed to know about those three girls. Jade was the type who instantly won over professors, only wore designer labels, and lead the sorority with an iron fist. Claire was the brainy, overachiever brunette vixen, and could ruin anyone’s life in a major way if they crossed her. Brooklyn was their loveable sidekick, a naive party girl, who stole boyfriends’ hearts and was regarded as the “it girl” of the Bay Area.

  Vanessa caught my stare, then leaned over and whispered, “Have you seen Brooklyn’s Instagram? It’s, like, all selfies, random poems, and cats that aren’t even hers.”

  I softly laughed. “Microblogging is becoming huge, I guess. You got an account?”

  “Duh. All pics of my favorite celebs—it’s so awesome!”

  Cole Prescott slipped into the room just as the professor closed the doors. My stomach did awkward somersaults. Everyone’s head lifted to stare at the late comer.

  Standing near the first row with Vanessa, I checked the seats. I spotted two empty ones in the second row between a girl texting on her phone and a guy slumped in his seat reading a manga.

  Cole took a seat in the back row near the Zeta Beta girls, where one of his buddies gave him a fist bump. Aviator sunglasses hid his eyes. For a second, Cole and Claire exchanged a strange look that I couldn’t decipher.

  The professor strolled briskly to the front of the classroom. I waited for Cole to remove the glasses and when he did, his gaze found mine. My body felt like it had been struck by lightning. Hair rising on my arms. Electro shocks dancing over my skin.

  A slow smile crept across his face. I didn’t return that grin. I bet he was used to every member of the female race melting into a puddle of lust at his feet. And that would not be me.

  Distracted and still frozen in place, a classmate shouldered past me, taking a seat in the row that I’d been blocking. “Move your ass,” the guy said.

  Vanessa yanked on my sleeve and I plopped down in the nearest seat beside my roommate.

  Near the lectern stood the professor, who resembled a withered Rip Van Winkle. That’s why it was so cold. The professor had tenure, and the professor was doing some form of cryogenics to preserve himself. He gripped the sides of the lectern and cleared his throat. Everyone hushed and faced forward.

  “I am Professor Fleming and this is Introduction to Popular Culture Studies. This semester we will be covering…”

  I pulled out a spiral notebook from my messenger bag and took notes. I fought the urge to turn around and glance at Cole. But I could feel those brown eyes burning into me. While listening to the lecture, I doodled roses with sharp thorns dripping blood in the margins of my notebook. The invention of the multi-colored pen would be my downfall. If I thought Veronica liked the sound of her own voice, she’d met her match with stuffy, long-winded Professor Fleming.

  My mind kept wandering back to Cole sitting behind me. I hadn’t dated anyone in over eight months, and Cole was the first guy in a long time to get my hormones surging. I wasn’t sure if it was a curious interest or a major case of lust. But this wasn’t a Disney movie, and Cole Prescott was no Prince Charming, and I certainly wasn’t Snow White.

  It would be safer to stay focused on my studies. Drop all these lustful reactions like a bad habit. Become a nun. Pronto. Today. ASAP.

  Pulling out a blank piece of paper¸ I outlined a stretch of Cole’s profile from memory. Unconsciously, I shaded the contours of his handsome face and darkened the strands of the messy hair sweeping his forehead. I was so caught up in my drawing that I flinched when Professor Fleming slammed closed a book on the desk.

  The professor turned from the chalkboard, stepped up to the lectern, and tilted the microphone toward him. “That about wraps it up, folks.”

  Vanessa leaned over my shoulder to inspect my depiction of Cole and nodded. “You’re really talented. Except you forgot to include the pierced eyebrow.”

  I turned and glanced up at Cole. He was staring right at me. He was slouched in his seat, one foot casually propped on his other thigh. Our gazes connected, and his expression changed from impassive to downright curious. I snapped around, my face flaming. Crumbling the sketch and shoving my books into my bag, I shot out of my seat and hurried to the door.

  “Blondie! Wait up,” Cole called.

  My stomach dipped like it did those seconds before a roller coaster plummeted.

  “I’ll catch up with you later, Vanessa,” I said, picking up my pace and dodging students like a quarterback with the ball.

  My hand hit the door and the exhilaration of freedom hit me. But Cole somehow caught up with me. Crap. Neither of us spoke until we stepped outside. Emerging from the door into the crisp fall air, I drew in a deep breath.

  “How’ve you been? Making friends?” he asked.

  I turned my head to look at him. “Good. And I’ve made a few…but you seem quite popular.”

  “Does my reputation precede me?”

  “Appears so
.” I turned down a path between the buildings and replaced my expression with my ice queen façade, hoping he wouldn’t follow me.

  He continued to walk beside me in the same direction.

  I had to get rid of him. Now. “I’m headed this way—”

  “Me, too. What luck.”

  “Not exactly,” I mumbled, then shot him a sideways glance.

  I picked up my pace, but Cole only matched my strides. This guy was not taking the hint. Like any animal on the prowl, it seemed he could sense overactive hormones. Cole was seductive, delicious, and also dangerous. Which meant he was potentially hazardous to my heart. And like with any decadent dessert, I had a bad feeling that once I started indulging in Cole, I’d be able to stop.

  I glanced over at him. “I’ve noticed that you’re all about the casual hook up, huh?”

  “I guess. Until I meet someone extraordinary who changes my life.”

  Was he working the broody-guy-looking-for-a-girl-to-rescue-him angle?

  “Does that line actually work for you?” I stopped and rolled my eyes. “It’s older than Professor Fleming.”

  Cole laughed, then tilted his head as if studying me. “You’re tough. There’s nothing duller than a sense of morals, Miss DuPont. So whenever you’re ready to start breaking the rules—let me know.”

  “That’ll never happen.” I spun around to leave.

  He touched my elbow. “Wait.”

  I turned around and sighed. “What?”

  “I need to know if they’re any boyfriends waiting for you back home that I should know about.”

  “Hardly,” I said with a smile, then added, “Actually, my last boyfriend was a vampire, but we broke up. He was too old, slept all day, and basically sucked the life out of me.”

  “Sounds like a keeper.” He chuckled. “And here I thought most women had all these kinky fantasies about bloodsuckers. And I can tell you from experience that most women love a bad-boy.”

  I shrugged. “Well, then it’s a good thing I’m more into hot werewolves. Besides I doubt many college romances last, anyway.”

  Cole nodded. “You never know, Serena.”

  “Trust me, I do.”

  He frowned. “You’ve been burned?”

  “More like scorched and turned to ash,” I admitted.

  In a flash, the images from last spring seared my brain, the betrayal, the sorrow, the heartache. Then memories of my summer vacay spent wallowing in the looney bin made me want to break out in hives. Closing my eyes, I clutched my chest at the pain that struck my heart.

  Someone touched my arm and the present zoomed back into focus.

  “Hey, Serena. You okay?”

  I blinked. “Um, yeah. I’m fine. It’s just a little hot outside.”

  “You sure?”

  “Yup. All good. Sorry.”

  “Look, I didn’t mean to stir up bad memories.”

  “No. It’s cool.” I ran my fingers through my hair. If I started dating someone like Cole, he would just be a Band-Aid and my heart needed a major transplant. “I need to go.”

  “Until we meet again.” Cole gave me a slight bow.

  “You just can’t turn the flirt off, can you?” I shook my head, but my mouth slightly lifted in the corners.

  “Never.”

  Cole walked away, whistling a nameless tune. The cast iron shell that had formed around my heart since the heart-crushing incident began to show signs of cracking whenever Cole was near me. I checked out his cute ass as he sauntered off, then I strolled toward my next class with a defeated smile.

  COMPLICATIONS

  The next night as I was leaving the campus bookstore after buying two ridiculously expensive textbooks, I rounded a corner and my legs became instantly tangled by thin cords. My books and bag tumbled from my arms and smacked the pavement.

  “Ohhh!” I cried.

  Just as I was about to fall flat on my face and break my nose, or god forbid the heel on my new Christian Louboutin boots, a hand flashed out and gripped my elbow.

  “Whoa there, Serena.”

  “Sorry! I wasn’t looking.”

  I lifted my head and locked eyes with Cole Prescott. His eyebrow ring caught my attention as it shimmered from the reflection of the streetlights. My mouth hung open but nothing came out. Five barking dogs milled around us, their tangled leashes twisted around my legs. My first thought wasn’t the dogs surrounding me, or the jumble of leashes, it was—he’s touching me. My gaze drifted over him. The longish strands of his artfully mussed hair rested on the collar of his tight black shirt that stretched over his muscled chest.

  Dammit. I couldn’t seem to avoid this guy. Or my stupid lusty impulses.

  I shuffled away from him, forcing him to release his grip. “You. Again.”

  Cole helped me untwist myself from the tangle of leashes. “Are you lost?”

  “Um, no. I’m going to Stevenson Hall. Which I’m pretty sure is somewhere on this campus.”

  “So you have lost your way,” he said, his lips twitching.

  “Yup, that’s me.” I raised my hand and waved it. “Recently elected ‘Most Pathetic New Student’ at Beaumont.”

  Cole held my gaze. “Don’t be so hard on yourself. It’s a big campus.”

  “Have you gotten lost before?”

  “No. I’m Cole Prescott. But you seem overwhelmed.”

  I shook my head. “How’d you guess? My roommate and I are from different planets. I already have a ton of catching up to do, and now I’m lost. Why did I leave my security blanket at home?”

  “Well, I don’t have a security blanket to lend you, but having a pet always helps.”

  I softly smiled. “Man’s best friend? Is that how you cope?”

  “It’ll get easier.”

  Three dogs rolled around in a pile of autumn leaves and one dug a small hole in the lawn.

  “Are all these dogs yours?” I asked.

  “Only one is mine. He lives with me at the frat house. The others belong to the local dog rescue. I volunteer at the shelter three days a week and I like to walk the dogs. Poor things don’t get enough exercise.”

  A brown poodle with only one ear wrapped itself around my calf and started humping. Can you say awkward? A licking heat rose in my cheeks and burned the back of my neck. I shook my leg, but the dog held on tight. It was becoming comical.

  “Sorry! Lucky is a horn dog.” Cole chuckled quietly and rubbed a hand over his head. “Someday we’ll look back on this and laugh nervously, then change the subject.”

  I glanced down at the dog happily grinding on my calf. “Um, do you mind getting him off my leg?”

  “Yeah! Here.” He handed me the leashes.

  Cole squatted to remove Lucky from my leg. The other dogs panted and bumped into me. I patted a few heads and scratched behind their ears. When Cole had Lucky a safe distance from my leg, I handed him back the leashes.

  “Do you want to offer him a cigarette now?” I teased.

  One side of his lips kicked up. “He’s trying to quit.”

  “Humping girl’s legs or smoking?” I grinned. “Hmmm, I think I just got lucky.”

  Those soulful eyes met mine. “Ha. Nice play on words.”

  Crickets softly chirped and an owl hooted from a lone tree. The weather felt mildly warm on my skin and the sky held a twinkling of stars. And damn, that heated gaze was melting my insides. The intensity of his stare sent flickers of banked embers traveling through my body, ready to ignite at his slightest touch.

  Focus girl. Or run back to the dorm for a cold shower.

  “You know, most guys take you out for a fancy meal before they try to grind on a girl. I feel so used.”

  He stayed quiet for a moment. Maybe I needed the duct tape instead of my roommate.

  Cole snorted. “Pretty and funny.”

  “Which mutt is yours?”

  He pointed at a large Rottweiler with a missing eye and a limp. “This is Maximus. His previous owner mistreated him. The douchebag used
him in dogfights.”

  “Maximus?”

  “Yeah, from my favorite movie, Gladiator.” Cole squatted to stroke the Rottweiler’s head and the dog leaned into him, practically knocking him over. “He’s a big teddy bear. Aren’t you, boy?” He kissed the dog’s head, and then straightened. Cole raised an eyebrow. “You’re out alone at night. Again.”

  “Observant and smart.” I bent to retrieve my stuff, but Cole quickly grasped the strap of my bag from the ground with one hand. I grabbed the two textbooks, straightened, and gazed into those amazing brown eyes. “Thanks.”

  Cole slid the strap back onto my shoulder. “Would you like us to walk you back to your dorm, Ms. DuPont?”

  “Sure. Nice to know that chivalry isn’t dead.”

  We fell into step side-by-side with the dogs straining on their leashes ahead of us. One stopped to pee on the shrubbery.

  “How did you get into dog walking?” I asked.

  One shaggy russet canine paused to sniff the other’s butt, then he playfully nipped at Lucky’s ear. Cole jerked lightly on the leash and the pooch stopped biting.

  “My uncles are all cops, my grandfather was an FBI agent, and my older brother is a federal marshal. One of my uncles used to help bust up dogfighting rings in the Bay Area. One day I was on a ride-along with him and his partner when we got a call about one going down in Hayward.” His voice lowered and hardened. “By the time we got there, two of the dogs were dead, and the other four were in really bad shape. It shook me up...”

  “That’s terrible! Some people are just so twisted.”

  “You got that right.” He swallowed. “Animal cruelty is just so effed up, you know? Four years ago, I started volunteering at the dog rescue center. I even created a website on dog fighting to raise awareness about it.”

  I touched his forearm, his muscles taut beneath my fingers. “That’s pretty amazing.”

  “Just doing my part to make the world a better place. You could say, I’ve got a lot of bad karma to burn off.”

  “Now you can add gallantry to your resume.”

  He turned his head to glance at me and his eyes blazed with heat. “Don’t be fooled. I’m no gentlemen. I may have ulterior motives for walking you back to your dorm.”