Smash into You

by Sherry Soule

  “It didn’t take long for the GHB to hit her,” Ethan said.

  “You played your part beautifully,” Claire replied, patting him on the shoulder. “Now that bitch will de-pledge and go back to Los Angeles where she belongs.”

  Ethan scratched his unshaven cheek. “I still don’t get why you’re hating on her so much.”

  She sneered. “Serena DuPont’s a spoiled princess who needed to be brought down a notch. And she was secretly dating Colton Prescott. Legacy or not, it was an infraction that could not go unpunished.”

  “I thought you were over that dude! Carry a torch much?” Ethan exclaimed. “Why the hell are you hooking up with me if you still like him?”

  “Don’t be an asshat. I hate him a much as I do Serena.” Claire sighed. “Just tell me that you didn’t have sex with her while she was passed out.”

  He snorted. “Hell no. Necrophilia is not my thing. But you should’ve seen the look on Cole’s face the next morning. I thought we were going to throw down, but instead, Cole publically dissed that hot piece of ass right in front of the GAD house.”

  “She was harder to break than I thought,” Claire said. “I figured after those stalkery notes, the nasty VD rumors, and you delivering that bloody cow heart to her room that we got from the butcher shop, she’d run away with her tail between her legs.”

  “Me too, but Serena wouldn’t have lasted much longer once the dean saw that sex email you sent her professor. Or that other Psi Theta chick—”

  “Shhh,” Claire said, lifting a hand to silence him. “Did you hear that?”

  The screen went fuzzy, and Brooklyn lifted the remote and the TV snapped off. Everyone’s head turned in Claire’s direction. Mouths dropped open and the other girls stared with wide eyes.

  My heart did a little thump and a surge of lightness engulfed my senses. Everything was going to be okay.

  “Thank you, Brooklyn,” Jade said, “for your excellent undercover work.”

  “Please, in the name of Coco Chanel, say it isn’t so!” Raven exclaimed. “A Zeta Beta would never do this.”

  “Raven, what the hell?” I said. “Do you have eyes and ears?”

  Grinding her teeth, Claire blinked rapidly. “This was a setup!” She jumped to her feet and turned pale as a corpse. “I-I didn’t drug anyone! It was Ethan’s idea!”

  Jade clucked her tongue. “You used a date-rape drug on a PNM—a legacy. You spread nasty rumors about Serena having an STD and even tried to get her kicked out of school. How do you plead, Claire?”

  “Not guilty!” Claire yelled, stumbling back near the doorway as if planning an escape.

  The room was humming. Girls sat up and glanced at one another. I almost felt sorry for Claire, then again not so much. There was a certain pleasure in watching her squirm.

  “Please let me explain,” Claire said, waving her hands in the air.

  “This ought to be good,” I muttered.

  Claire tossed her hair. “This was just a hazing. A stupid prank that got out of hand. No biggie.”

  My blood started to boil in my veins. “You bitch. You and your pervert boyfriend should be in jail!”

  “How is any of this a prank?” Jade asked, in a harsh tone. “We just watched a video of you and Ethan discussing how you drugged Serena and harassed her for months. That is serious criminal work. That type of sick hazing is against both the sorority and Greek council laws, not to mention the college.”

  Brooklyn crossed the room and stood beside Jade with a disapproving frown. “Claire, do you have anything else to say?”

  After a long, heavy breath, Claire Crazypants stared into Jade’s eyes. “The whole thing was Ethan’s idea.”

  Jade sighed. “Too bad Ethan already came clean to campus police and his fraternity. I had Kellan confront him and he confessed to everything. And a copy of the video has been given to the dean and Panhel—thanks to Brooklyn’s stealthy filming skills.”

  “The Lannisters send their regards,” I said to Claire with an evil smile.

  “Um, Claire,” Brooklyn said. “You may want to read the Zeta Beta handbook again. You’ve crossed a line.”

  The room fell mute again. Claire appeared tongue-tied and lifted one trembling hand to clutch at the collar of her blouse. She backed away slowly, glanced at me, and muttered, “I’m sorry, Serena. I didn’t mean to hurt anyone.”

  Brooklyn and I shared a glance. Fake tears? How dumb did Claire think I was? But this was better than anything we could have hoped for. She had more or less confessed to harassing me in front of all the Zeta Betas.

  I folded my arms over my chest. “Too bad I don’t believe you.”

  Claire’s blue eyes watered. “I’m not resigning, though. I didn’t do anything wrong.”

  “But you did,” Brooklyn said. “If we could do a quick vote about Claire’s status as a member that would be great.”

  “All in favor of Claire’s resignation, effective immediately, say ‘Aye,’ ” Jade said in a loud, clear voice.

  “Aye!” a chorus of voices rang out.

  “All opposed?”

  No one responded. Adios, chica.

  Claire’s gaze—hollow and empty—drifted to the floor. Big fat tears ran down her cheeks. “This isn’t fair. I deserve a second chance.”

  Two Zeta Betas walked over and stood on either side of Claire. “We’ll help you pack.”

  Claire sniffled. “My dad’s an attorney and he’s going to have a field day with this!”

  “First he’ll have to keep you out of jail,” I said.

  Jade pulled out her phone. “Would you prefer an Uber-Cabby or Blue Transpo taxi?”

  Claire walked to the foyer, shoving two girl’s out of the way. “I don’t want any of your grubby hands on my stuff.” She left the room with her head down.

  Jade put her hands on her hips and called out, “Just be ready when your ride to Loser Land, gets here.” She turned to the quiet room and added with a smile, “Meeting adjourned.”

  FORGIVENESS

  The fallout from Claire and Ethan’s confession was the biggest scandal to ever rock the campus. Claire and Ethan were assigned community service, and both of them were asked by the Panhel Executive Board to officially resign from Zeta Beta and Gamma Alpha Delta. They also had to make an official apology and submit it the Beaumont Review for the entire school to read.

  The apology was mainly Claire and Ethan admitting that the hazing had gotten out of hand and how embarrassed they both were by what they’d done. After their pathetic excuses appeared in the newspaper and the video of them circulated around campus, I felt vindicated and my name was cleared. I went from being Beaumont’s dirty skank to its conquering heroine.

  The other Zeta Betas came up to me in the cafeteria or in the corridors at school just to say that they supported me and how sorry they were for what had happened.

  When “Preference Night” finally arrived, my selection for the final round of recruitment was Zeta Beta—the diverse group of young women with whom I had an automatic legacy—and the only one I still wanted to join.

  Soon enough, UC Beaumont was coated in winter’s frost and attacked by billowing winds.

  Cole had dropped the one class we shared and I never bumped into him going to and from classes. He kept to himself and even stopped dating as far as I knew. Gossip had it that he was busy at the animal shelter and studying for exams. But I missed him terribly and a tender place in my heart pinched whenever I thought of him.

  While I was painting a self-portrait for art class and Vanessa sang along to her iPod and danced around the room, there was a knock on the door. Vanessa lowered the volume and opened it. She froze once she noticed Cole standing there.

  “Hey.” Cole shuffled his feet, his hands sunk deep into the pockets of his pants. He wore bootcut jeans with a heathered gray Abercrombie hoodie over a wrinkled black shirt. “Can I come in?” His eyes were bloodshot and watery.

  My mouth opened, but nothing came out. He took that
as an invitation. Vanessa stepped back as he entered our room.

  “You were just going to lunch, right?” Cole asked Vanessa with a raised eyebrow.

  “Um…yeah. Actually, I need to go to the library,” Vanessa said, snatching up her books and bag. “I’ll see you guys later.” She closed the door behind her.

  Cole stepped further into the room. “How have you been?”

  “Fine.” I shifted backward until my knees hit the bed. “What’re you doing here?”

  “I thought we should finally talk. Clear the air, so to speak…” He stared at me, the gold flecks in his brown eyes seemed to pulsate. “I was so angry the day I found you in Ethan’s bedroom that I couldn’t think straight. But after I read Claire and Ethan’s bogus apology, I realized how wrong I’d been about everything.”

  I nodded as I let his words sink in. “We were both upset that day—”

  “Please let me finish.” He blew out a breath. “I’m not sure how to say this, so I’m just going to put it all out there. I still love you, Serena, but I also consider you one of my best friends. And somehow, I really screwed that up. Before I met you, I didn’t do relationships, but with you, I want to try…”

  My heart panged. I shifted on my feet. “I don’t want to ruin our friendship, either.”

  “Serena, please understand,” Cole said, stepping closer. “I didn’t mean to yell at you like that or say those terrible things. I didn’t mean any of it. I lost my temper and lashed out.”

  I stared at him. What was I supposed to say? Oh, okay—no problem.

  “What do you want, Cole?” I took a cautious step toward him.

  “Forgiveness…I’m so incredibly sorry, Serena. I made a monumental mistake. I don’t know what came over me…” He pushed his hands over his face and up into his hair, then moved further into the room. “No, that’s a lie. I was blinded by jealousy and frustration. I feel like such a dick.”

  The closer we moved toward each other, the more our breathing quickened.

  I moved closer to him, all my emotions flickering across my face. “You should.”

  When we stood within a few feet of one another, Cole’s eyes dilated and he repeatedly glanced at my lips. I didn’t flinch when he reached for my hand. For a moment, he stared down at our entwined fingers.

  “I know you won’t forgive me, but I wanted to apologize in person. I’ve been trying to stay away from you all this time, but it’s been hell.” A tear spilled over his cheek. “I never meant to hurt you, Serena.”

  “I’m sorry, too,” I said, my voice choked with emotion. “I chose you over a sorority. Over the Zeta Betas and a trip to Paris that doesn’t even seem that important now.”

  He nodded. “Is there a Hallmark card for, ‘Sorry I thought you slept with a frat guy and made an ass out of myself”?”

  “No,” I said with a soft laugh. “But there should be.”

  “So you forgive me?”

  I glanced up at him. One look into those tortured eyes and the entire female population could be reduced to a puddle of goo.

  “There’s nothing to forgive.” Tears spring to my eyes. “We’ve both made some stupid assumptions.”

  Cole’s face lit up in a way I had never seen before, like a boy who’d just been given a shiny new bike. Or in Cole’s case, perhaps a Porsche.

  “You have no idea how glad I am to hear you say that,” he said. “I was freaked that you would stay mad at me. And I’ve missed you so much, you’re all I think about.” The muscles in his shoulders under his shirt rolled as if he was working out a kink. “For some reason, you’re the first woman to bring out the best in me. I’ve changed so much since I met you, and you make me want to be a better man.”

  Tears slid down my cheeks. “And you make me strive to be a better person, too. You never once looked at me with pity or made me feel like I was less of a woman for spending time in an asylum.”

  “So are we good, Serena?”

  “Yes,” I said automatically, without any brain involvement needed. “But you’re still a jerk.”

  “I know.” Cole turned away, his jaw working. “Serena, I care about you and that’s all that matters.” He raised his eyes to look at me. “Everything that happened in your past is insignificant. All that matters is you and me. From now on, I’m going to protect you from jerks like Ethan and Seth.”

  A small smile tugged at my lips. “But you don’t even carry the most basic form of protection.”

  He frowned. “A gun?”

  “No.” My grin inched wider. “I was referring to condoms, silly.”

  Cole’s mouth dropped open. “Is that a hint to buy some more?”

  I shrugged. “Well, yeah.”

  “Then we’re good?”

  “Better than good.”

  Cole pulled me into his arms and kissed me hard on the lips. I put my hands against his chest, then under his shirt to caress the muscles in his back. He moved his mouth away from mine and he kissed along my throat, sending warm shivers over my body. His minty breath stroked my skin. He gripped my hair at the base of my neck to keep my head from moving as his lips begin gently sucking at my pulse. I moaned, the sensation shooting down my whole body and pooling between my legs. Cole’s mouth found mine again, and I swooned in his strong embrace. He’d never kissed me this tenderly or intimately before, as if I would break in his arms.

  When he finally pulled back, we were both breathing hard.

  Cole pressed his forehead to mine and whispered, “I want to be good for you, Serena. And I don’t want to date anyone but you. Ever. You’ve seeped into my heart and I want to spend every free minute I have making you happy from this moment on.”

  My pulse quickened. “I don’t want to be with anyone else, either.”

  His dark brown gaze scanned my face. “I’m even willing to leave ATO so you can still pledge Zeta Beta without violating any of their lame ass rules.”

  “Y-you’d do that for me?”

  “Hell, yes.”

  “The offer is very sweet, but I can’t let you do that,” I said. “There has to be another way.”

  “If you could find out why it’s a ZB law in the first place, then you could talk to Jade and get it tossed out,” Cole said.

  “I know why.” I bit my lip and sat on the bed. “It was because of Claire, but now that’s she’s no longer a Zeta Beta, maybe they’ll overrule it after everything I’ve been through.”

  “That would certainly make things easier, but I’m tired of talking about the ZBs.” Cole went to lock the door, then sat next to me. “You’re roommate should be gone a for few hours and I think our time could be better spent doing other things…”

  He leaned closer and sealed his mouth over mine. We lay down on the bed, never breaking the kiss. I melted at the feel of his tongue stroking slow and gentle with mine. It was a heart-wrenching fusing of our mouths, full of desire and passion that made my heart ache. He was kissing me so fervently, my body hungered for his touch. I deepened the kiss, greedy for more of him. There was so much intensity behind it that the rush of sensations frightened me, but in a good way. We were lost in each other, and the feeling of being in his arms again sent thrills throughout my body.

  Finally, I pulled back to whisper against his lips, “I’ve missed you so much, Cole.”

  “Well, I’m here now and I’m not going anywhere,” he promised, kissing my forehead and pulling me tighter against him.

  I nuzzled my head into his shoulder and sighed, still feeling breathless and dizzy from his ardent kisses. No one in this world could make me feel as safe as Cole did when we were together. My eyelids fluttered closed.

  “Don’t even think about it, Miss DuPont.”

  “What?” I murmured, lifting my head.

  “Don’t even think about falling asleep on our anniversary.”

  I pushed myself up on one elbow. “It’s not our anniversary.”

  Cole smiled. “You’re so unromantic. It’s our three month anniversary.”
<
br />   “Are you serious? What are you—a thirteen-year-old girl?” I teased. “Plus, we’ve been broken up for a month.”

  “Worst thirty days of my life.” He sighed. “Does this mean you don’t want your present?”

  My eyes lit up and I held out my hands. “Give me.”

  “Uh-uh, blondie. Be patient.”

  “But I don’t have anything for you.”

  He gazed lovingly into my eyes. “I don’t need a gift. You are everything to me.” I smiled and leaned down to kiss him, but he stopped me by pressing a finger gently to my lips. “I meant it, the last month has been the hardest of my life. I miss you when I’m not with you, and when I’m not with you—all I do is think about you and it’s been torture.”

  “I feel the same. When we’re together, I know what it’s like to finally feel completely safe and comfortable around someone,” I said.

  “That’s my goal—to keep you safe. When I’m near you, Serena, I’m a better me, and when you’re away, I’m only half the man I want to be. If you only knew how much I would regret life without you in it.”

  His sweet, heartfelt confession made my heart skip several beats.

  “What did you think when you first saw me?” I asked, kissing his neck

  “Whenever I see you and not just the first time, my mind focuses on your face, your beautiful blue eyes and everything else just fades away. Then my heart starts beating really fast and I start getting a little nervous. And I can’t stop thinking about how amazing you are. What did you think when you first saw me?”

  “What a conceited man-whore.” I laughed. “No, seriously, I thought you were drop-dead-gorgeous, but major trouble.”

  He wiggled his eyebrows. “The kind you’d like to get into?”

  “Oh, yeah.” I smiled. “My present?”

  Cole removed a slender box from his pocket and handed it to me. Inside laid a delicate gold bracelet that sparkled under the lamplight.

  “Oh! It’s beautiful, Cole. But it’s too much.”

  “No, it’s not enough, and something this exquisite should be worn by someone worthy of its beauty.”

  I held out my arm and he fastened the bracelet to my wrist, then I kissed his cheek. “Thank you.”