“At the moment.”
“Cool. It’s nice to know not every sister has a boyfriend. That can get old.”
“Tell me about it.” I spotted Jade standing off by herself. “Can you excuse me for a second?”
“Sure.”
I walked over to Jade. “Did you enjoy your serenade?”
“Ah, yeah. Kind of embarrassing.”
“For who?”
“All involved.” She laughed.
“I might have to agree with you there. Welcome to pledging.”
“Thanks. I think this is going to be an interesting experience.”
“It will be. It’s going to be fun, but it’s also a lot of work. If you ever need to talk or anything, just let me know.”
“Thanks.” She smiled. “You’re why I didn’t drop out of rush.”
“What do you mean?”
“I wasn’t sure if a sorority was for me, but you made Delta Mu sound amazing.”
“Oh, wow. I’m so glad I had something to do with your decision.” I only hoped she enjoyed the experience. I loved it, but that didn’t mean it was for everyone.
“I’m excited to be here, but I feel bad for some of my friends who didn’t get a house.”
I frowned. “Yeah, that’s the worst part of the whole system. I wish there were enough spots for every girl who wants to join a sorority.”
“Do you think they’ll ever change things?”
“No.” I answered honestly. “It’s a combination of wanting to keep things exclusive and there not being enough chapters on campus.” I shared her distaste for the system. I’d even voiced it to the sorority council, but they’d shot me down pretty quickly.
“Yeah. That’s what I thought.”
I needed to lighten the mood again. “Do you want to go check out the desserts?” I gestured to the kitchen.
“Absolutely.”
She had a sweet tooth too? I’d officially found my little sister.
Chapter Eight
The first day of class sophomore year was so much better than freshman year. First, I knew where I was going. Second, I was only taking the classes I wanted to. That would hopefully make keeping my GPA up possible. The only class I wasn’t sure of was intro anthropology, but it would satisfy a humanities requirement, and it was a subject that seemed interesting.
I got to class a few minutes early, and I slipped into an empty seat at a long rectangular table. After taking a quick look around the room to see if I recognized anyone, I pulled out a notebook and opened it to the first page. There’s something about a fresh notebook that I love. It’s almost like it symbolizes new opportunities or something. With a smile, I wrote the date on the top of the page. I heard a few people come in, and I smiled at them in greeting. I glanced at my watch, only two more minutes.
“This seat taken?” a familiar voice asked lightly.
“Colt?” I put a hand to my chest.
He didn’t wait for an answer and took the seat right next to me.
“Did you steal my schedule too?”
“Steal your schedule? You think I’m stalking you?”
“You did follow me to college.”
“Because I wanted to go here. The fact that we’re at the same school is pretty convenient though.” He wriggled an eyebrow.
I sighed. “Well, congrats on Kappa.”
“Thanks. Glad to know it’s the frat you hang out with.” There was something in his expression that made it seem like there was more he wanted to say.
“Yeah. I’m with them a lot.”
“Nice. I heard we have a mixer with your sorority next week.”
“Yeah. We do.” I played it cool. I didn’t feel like mentioning I was going with a date.
“Maybe we can mix?” He bumped his shoulder into mine.
I was spared from mentioning my plans with Tanner when our professor walked in.
Professor Cains was actually a grad student. I’d never had a student as a professor before, and I wasn’t sure how I felt about it. I assumed the university wouldn’t have given him the class if he wasn’t qualified to teach it, but he certainly didn’t look like an expert on anthropology. With crazy hair that stood up in every direction, and a black t-shirt with a picture of an alien on it, if he looked like he belonged in any department, it should have been art.
He cleared his throat loudly. “Welcome to Anthropology 101. Some of you may have signed up for this class thinking it’s going to be a joke. If so, you might as well leave. This class will be one of the most intense you’ve ever taken. Anthropology is one of the most important subjects you’ll have the privilege to study, and it’s going to be an enormous task to cover the entire field in one semester.” His voice got deep and serious. It took every ounce of self-restraint I had not to laugh.
The girl next to me didn’t have the same restraint. She giggled.
“Did you have something to add?” Cains asked.
She blushed. “No. Sorry.”
“Okay, good. Here is the syllabus. Read it.” He tossed a pile of papers down on the middle of the table. Colt took two and slid one over to me.
I glanced down. It seemed pretty standard, except that all assignments were supposed to be done in teams. I looked around the table, hoping I’d missed someone on my first perusal that I knew well enough to partner with other than Colt. Working on anything with Colt wouldn’t be good.
“I’ve already assigned you research teams. There will be no switching. In the real world, you don’t get to work with your friends. You work with whatever prick you’re assigned to.” Cain’s face turned red as he worked himself up. Evidently he wasn’t a fan of all of his colleagues.
I glanced at Colt. Had Cains just said that?
“I’ve listed the teams on the last page.”
I quickly flipped to the last of ten pages. I found my name and the one next to it. Hell no. Random?
Colton laughed, and I knew he’d seen the same thing. “Guess we’ll be seeing plenty of each other, pumpkin.”
I put my head in my hands.
“You heard Cains.” Colton spoke softly, but his feelings on the matter were made perfectly clear. “No switching.”
“This is going to be interesting.”
“More like fantastic.”
“What did I ever see in you?” I mumbled.
“You mean what do you see in me. Don’t pretend it’s past tense.”
I turned my attention back to Cains.
“There will be opportunities to gain extra credit by signing up for additional projects. I’ll have more information on those later.”
I listened as he droned on about the course materials, and I packed up as soon as he finished. I had to get to another class.
“Where’s your next class?” Colt followed me out.
“Marshall.”
“I’m in Tahoe. Any idea where that is?”
“Yeah. I’ll show you.” I remembered how confusing the buildings were when I first started. The least I could do was help him out on the first day.
“Thanks.” He treated me to one of his bright smiles, and that only made everything worse. The smile gave me that fluttering sensation again. Wouldn’t that ever go away? Maybe it would happen at the same time I stopped reliving our night together when I closed my eyes.
We walked across the quad. I waved at a few people I knew, and if it was a guy, Colt moved closer to me. I didn’t give him a hard time about it. I liked the way his body felt next to mine even if I didn’t want to enjoy it.
I stepped away from him. “Here you are.” I pointed to the stone building called Tahoe.
“Great. Want to grab lunch later?”
“I already have plans,” I said honestly. I was meeting my friends.
“Oh. All right. Have a good class.” He surprised me by leaning over and kissing me on the cheek.
“Colt.”
“What? Is your cheek off limits now? Even after everything else you let me kiss the other night?”
I resisted the urge to hit him. “Please stop. That was one time.”
“So you say.”
“What do you want me to say?”
“That you miss me like crazy and can’t get the night we spent together out of your head.” He played with the strap of his backpack.
“I’m not going to say it.” I couldn’t. “Bye, Colt.”
“See you soon, pumpkin.”
“Stop calling me that.”
“Never.” He grinned before walking into the building.
I shook my head and headed to my next class.
After spending so much time talking to Colt, I barely made it in on time. The small lecture hall had only a few rows, and on a quick glance, I didn’t notice many free seats.
“Mallory!”
I looked up and saw Reed waving his arm to get my attention.
“Hey.” I took the seat next to his. “I didn’t know you were in this class.”
“Yeah, I decided to take another econ class before graduation.”
“Cool.” I pulled out my laptop. Although I preferred pen and paper for discussion classes, I liked to type my lecture notes.
The professor, a much more seasoned one, introduced herself and started a lecture on capital markets and supply, and I lost track of time. Before I knew it, class was over.
We packed up, and Reed held open the door. “You’re having lunch with Juliet today, right?”
“Yeah.”
“Tell her I said ‘hi.’ I’m heading down to the school I volunteer at.”
“Oh, cool. I will.” I smiled before we went our separate ways on the quad. I headed back to the house. I couldn’t wait to tell my roommates about my morning. Thankfully, I didn’t have to wait long. I ran into Juliet halfway to the house.
“How was your morning?” She pushed her sunglasses up on the top of her head.
“An experience.”
“An experience? Who was it? Colt or Tanner?”
“Colton, but before I forget, Reed was in my econ class, and he said hi.”
“Oh, I forgot he’d switched into that.”
“You don’t have your boyfriend’s schedule memorized? I think that means you suck at being a girlfriend.”
She laughed. “Come on, spill.”
“Let’s wait for Cara. I don’t want to tell this story twice.”
“Seriously? You’re going to make me wait?” She nearly stepped into me trying to get out of the way of someone on a bike. “Use the road!” she called after him. I loved Juliet.
“Yes. Cara will be here soon.”
“Do you need to go inside for anything?”
“Yeah, to switch books. I have class at one, and I don’t want to come back.”
“Could you bring these up for me?” She handed me a couple of history books.
“Sure.”
“Thanks.” She sat down on the swing.
“Anything else I can do for you, your highness?”
“Some ice water would be nice. But don’t forget the lemon.”
I shook my head. “Drink from your water bottle.”
“If I must,” she said in a horrible attempt at a British accent. What the accent had to do with anything, I didn’t know.
“Be right back.”
I ran upstairs and changed out my books. I only had one afternoon class which meant my pink and white coach tote bag wouldn’t be as heavy. I checked my reflection in the mirror before stopping in the bathroom real quick.
“Hey, Mallory. How’s your day going?” Jana asked.
“It’s been all right. How about yours?”
“It’s been pretty good.” She brushed a few strands of her red hair behind her ear.
“Are you done for the day?”
“Yeah. I only have one class Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.” Her face lit up.
“That’s awesome.”
“There are some perks to being a senior.” She grinned.
“I bet.”
“By the way, I ran into Tanner earlier. He was asking me a million questions about you.”
“Yeah?” I started down the stairs.
“Uh huh. I think he’s going to try to impress you on Thursday.”
“Impress me, huh?”
“Yeah. Did you know I dated him freshman year?”
“Wait, really?” I’d never seen Jana really date anyone. She was at tons of parties, and always seemed to be out, but she never seemed to be with anyone.
“Yeah. It didn’t last long, but we went out a few times.”
“Oh. Cool.”
“He’s a lot more mature now.”
“It’s been three years.” I wondered what she meant, and what had soured her relationship so fast.
“Mallory? Are you coming?” Juliet called in.
“We’re getting lunch at the student center. Want to come?” For some reason, most of Jana’s closest friends had been in the class above her. She seemed a little lonely this year.
“No, thanks. I’m going to make something here, but we should hang out later.”
“Yeah, definitely.” I waved and headed out onto the porch.
“Cara’s going to meet us there. She’s running late.” Juliet took one last swing and then got up.
“Okay, cool.”
We walked over to the student center, talking about nothing in particular, and just enjoyed being back on the bustling campus.
A girl walking out held open the door to the building for us, and we headed to the large cafeteria area.
“Mallory, Juliet!” Cara called.
I followed her voice and found her standing with Aaron and Colt. No freaking way.
Juliet laughed dryly. “That sucks.”
“Tell me about it.”
“I mean now I have to wait longer to hear the details.” She grinned, and I knew she was kidding, but that didn’t spare her from a shove.
“Cara is going to get it.”
“You know she didn’t plan this.”
“You sure?” I nodded toward where she giggled as Aaron leaned in to whisper something in her ear.
“Okay, she didn’t plan on Colt being with him.”
I let out a deep cleansing breath. “Let’s do this.”
“Hey, guys.” I mustered a one thousand watt smile and aimed it at Cara.
She shot me an apologetic look. “Hey. Look who we ran into on the way here.”
“I see. Good to see you again, Colton.”
“Very good to see you, Mallory.” By the look on his face, he was proud of himself for figuring out another way to annoy the heck out of me.
I picked up a wrap and met everyone at a table. Colt pulled out my chair for me.
“Thanks.” I needed to be polite. I just had to make it until Thursday when everyone would see me with Tanner. Then things could get back to normal, or better than normal.
“So what do you girls have planned for tonight?” Aaron asked, probably trying to get the conversation moving despite some very palpable awkwardness.
Cara replied immediately. “Nothing really. The pledges have a meeting, but that’s all Jana’s department. We’re free.”
“Okay, cool. You girls should come over.”
Colt scooted his chair closer, and I inched away. “I’m going to help Jana with the pledge mom duties. I know she could use the help.”
Both Juliet and Cara looked at me. “You are?”
“Yeah. It could be fun.” It would also buy me more excuses. Tanner or no Tanner, visiting the Kappa house wasn’t going to be top on my priority list for a while. “Looks like I’ll have to pass tonight.”
“Oh, that’s too bad.” Juliet nudged me.
“It is, isn’t it?”
Colt laughed. “That’s okay, babe. I wouldn’t have been there anyway. Aaron says we have tonight off.” The look he shot me was both triumphant and challenging.
Cara and Juliet laughed. Aaron looked completely clueless.
“I have to go get ready for class.” I put my
bag on my shoulder and picked up my nearly untouched wrap. I had over an hour to burn, but I’d figure out how to fill the time once I got outside.
I half expected Colt to get up and follow me, but he didn’t.
“Bye. See you guys later.” I waved before walking out of the student center. Colt had already started talking to Aaron. Maybe things could still be normal. I mustered up all the optimism I had.
Chapter Nine
“Is there a reason for this sudden interest in new member education?” Jana sat cross legged on the plush carpet of the pledge room. A large pile of binders and papers sat between us. We were putting together the sorority history packets.
“I just think it could be fun to help with the pledges.” I finished a binder and set it aside.
“So it has nothing to do with any boys?” Her voice lilted slightly.
“Why would you ask that?”
“Just a hunch.” She pushed over another empty binder.
“A hunch?” I asked skeptically.
“It’s just that you’re usually inseparable from Juliet and Cara. I figured there had to be a reason you signed up to do this alone.”
“Juliet was the only one who signed up to help with rush prep.”
Jana smiled. “And she did it for a boy…”
“Good point.”
“So what’s up? Trouble with Tanner already?” She seemed more interested in my answer than normal. We were friends but not particularly close ones.
“No. We haven’t even gone out yet.”
“Not until Thursday, huh?”
“Yeah. Should be interesting.”
“I’m curious how it goes.” She stuffed another binder.
“Do you mind that I’m going out with him?” I had to clear the air. A date with Tanner wasn’t worth making things awkward in the house, or worse, hurting Jana.
“No. Of course not.”
“Okay…it just seemed like you might.” I watched her closely, trying to make sure her expression and body language matched her words.
“We broke up ages ago.”
“I just don’t want to upset you or anything.”
“You’ll be a better fit for him than me anyway.”
“What do you mean?” She had my attention.
“Ask me again after your date.”
“Oh, come on. You have to tell me.”
She shook her head. “No. I don’t want to put any ideas into your head. Enjoy dinner and we’ll talk after the mixer.”
The Hazards of a One Night Stand Page 6