“Don’t. Don’t come near me. Just answer the question. I’ve asked you all along and you wouldn’t give me a straight answer, but I’m not letting you leave this room without manning up and telling me. Why me? Why did you pick me that night at the social?”
“I told you, I—”
“No!” I step toward him. “You fucking coward. I know. I know all about Rush Week and how you set me up, so just admit it before I punch you in the face.”
He drops the flowers on my bed. “Mindy, you don’t understand.”
My chest tightens and I can barely breathe. Even though I already knew it was true, hearing him admit it is too much for my heart to handle. “Oh, believe me I do,” I force out, crossing my arms as if it will guard me against the pain I’m feeling from his betrayal. “You chose me because I’m an upper classman, just like you needed to win that sick bet for the fraternity your father started on this campus years ago.” He steps back as if my words are hurting him. “How am I doing? All the details right so far?”
He nods. “It’s not what you think, though.”
“Don’t try to talk your way out of this, Ben. It’s over! Take your flowers and leave.” I pick up the bouquet and chuck it at him, but he lets it bounce off his chest and fall to the floor.
“Mindy, please. You have to let me explain.”
“I don’t have to let you do anything. You’re an asshole, and I never want to see you again. So go claim your prize with your frat buddies and forget we ever met.”
“I can’t forget I met you. Being with you has been the best—”
“Just stop!” I can’t listen to his lies. I slept with him. I fell for him. A thought slams into me. “Oh my God! Is that why you said you thought you could fall for me right before we had sex? You were trying to make me say it back so you could be done with me sooner. You couldn’t even stand the thought of sticking it out for the full week with me.”
“No.” He steps toward me, but I put my hand up to stop him. “I said it because I meant it. This isn’t a game to me, Mindy. I love you. When I saw you that night, I felt something. I probably should’ve picked another girl to sing to, but I couldn’t take my eyes off you. I don’t know if people really fall in love at first sight, but I was captivated by you. You got to me in a way I couldn’t ignore.”
“Right. You were so into me that you decided to make me the butt of your sick frat joke.” I remember his words the first time we slept together and I cringe. “You said you didn’t want to rush into anything. Was that your way of getting this off your conscience? Slyly telling me that this was a Rush Week prank? Clever word play. Well done. I fell, hook, line, and sinker.”
“Mindy—”
“I’m done.”
“But—”
“She said she was done.” I look around Ben to see Mike standing in the doorway. He steps toward Ben, grabbing him by his shirt. “If you ever come near her again, I’ll kick your ass back to the hole you crawled out of, you little shit.”
Ben doesn’t argue. He looks at me one last time and walks out of my life.
***
How I make it through the rest of the week, I’m not sure. Mike stays by my side, like the most loyal best friend ever. But there’s another social event planned on Sunday night, and I’m not up for running it.
“I’ll tell my dad you’re sick,” Andy says when he stops by my room before we need to head to the event. “Don’t worry about it.”
“No.” Mike shakes his head. “We’re not letting those shitheads win. Mindy’s going, and she’s going to show them that she’s better than they are.”
“Mike’s right,” Noelle says. “She has to face them.”
“And she’s going to look freaking gorgeous when she does it,” Julia says, taking me by the arm and leading me to my desk chair.
I don’t say a word because I have none left to say. I just let Julia do my hair and makeup while Noelle picks out my outfit. I hate that they’re the ones taking care of me. Some R.A. I’ve turned out to be.
We all head to the social together. Safety in numbers and all that, according to Mike, but I still feel like I’m about to become the laughing stock of Timberland College. All the frats are going to be at this event, and their new pledges will be with them.
“You can do this,” Mike says as we walk in.
The room looks just like it did last weekend. Mike probably kept the same decorations up because that’s him—cutting corners everywhere possible.
The karaoke DJ is already taking his first victim onto the stage. I see Ace’s frat in the back corner, and Ben is with them, just like I knew he would be. He sees me the second I enter the room. I think he’s about to walk over to me, so I grab Mike’s hand for support.
Ben turns toward the stage and takes the microphone right out of another guy’s hand. He taps it and says, “Stop the music. I need to say something.”
I swallow hard, waiting for him to tell everyone how he got me in bed and made me fall for him so he could be Rush Week king.
“Last weekend I sang a song to a girl. I picked her out of the crowd because she was so wrapped up in everyone else that she forgot about herself. I could tell she was the sweetest person in the room. Not to mention the most beautiful.”
I shake my head and turn to Mike. “I can’t listen to this.” I head for the door.
Ben steps off the stage and follows me. “Mindy, wait. I think you’re going to want to hear this. And after that if you never want to speak to me again, I’ll respect your decision and stay away. Even though it will kill me to do it.”
I stop, but I’m not sure why. Probably because my damn heart wants to hear what he has to say.
Instead of addressing me, Ben addresses his frat. “Ace, I know my dad started this fraternity, and I came to rush intending to join. But then I met Mindy. The moment I saw her, I knew I couldn’t go through with the bet. Yes, I continued to see her. Yes, I told her I love her. Because I do.” He turns to me now. “Mindy, I love you. That wasn’t a lie.”
I step toward him, summoning all my courage. “How do I know? You kept this from me, played me. Why the hell should I believe a word you say?”
“Because I’m still here.” He extends his arm. “Rush Week is over, and I’m not pledging. I don’t care that I’m legacy or that my dad is the founder of the fucking frat. I’m done. You mean more to me than a bunch of guys calling me brother.”
“What the hell, Whitmore?” Ace yells.
“You can take your frat and your sick bets and shove them, Ace. I don’t want any part of it. All I want is Mindy.” He looks back at me.
My chest heaves as I struggle to get air in my lungs. “Ben, I want to believe you.” I shake my head, and tears fill my eyes. “But I can’t. I opened myself up to you and you stomped all over me.” I take a shaky breath. “I’m done.”
The entire room is silent, watching the show, but then Ben points to the DJ, who nods and starts a new song. I recognize it immediately because it’s from my favorite old movie, Top Gun. Is there anything Ben didn’t think to ask Mike about me?
“You’ve lost that lovin’ feeling,” Ben sings, closing the distance between us and getting down on his knees in front of me. As he sings the song, I think about all he’s done for me. The way he went to Mike to learn all about me. The way he looked at me and made me feel like I was the most important person in the world to him. The way he seemed so afraid of losing me. He knew I’d find out about the bet. He knew the truth would come out in the end, so he held on to me as long as he could.
I look over at Mike, Julia, Noelle, and Andy. Noelle has tears in her eyes, moved by Ben’s romantic gesture. Mike shrugs, knowing exactly what I’m thinking. Ben gave up his fraternity for me. He’s telling everyone that I mean more to him than being a legacy or following in his father’s footsteps. He didn’t tell me about the bet and he didn’t quit the frat until now, but his feelings for me were never a lie.
He finishes the song and stands up. No one
says a word as they watch us. “Mindy, I told you that if you decide to leave me, I’ll accept that. Just so you know, no matter what you do, I’m not going back to the frat. I never wanted to take that bet and was going to throw it anyway. That’s why I was so freaked out when Rick heard you say you love me. I didn’t want to win. For me, winning would mean having you forgive me. That’s all I want.”
I look over at Ace and his frat buddies, who are scowling at Ben. “What will your dad say?” I ask.
Ben waves his hand. “I don’t care. But, honestly, I think when I tell him about this bet, he’ll be calling Dean Decker and demanding a meeting with Ace and the rest of the fraternity.”
“He could shut us down,” Ace yells, his face bright red.
“Good. You fucking deserve to be shut down.” Ben levels Ace with a look before turning back to me. “I understand if you need time to think about all this, but if there’s any chance of you forgiving me…” He lowers his head. “I love you, Mindy. I hope you know I mean that.”
Just like a week ago when we met, I hear someone chant, “Kiss him, kiss him.” And then others chant along, too. I turn to Mike, who winks, letting me know he’s the one who started it, and Noelle, Julia, and Andy have joined in. Before long, most of the room is chanting with them.
Ben looks at me and shakes his head. He raises his hand in the air, indicating that he wants the chanting to stop. “Don’t do anything because they tell you to. This is your decision to make. It was all along. I did rush into loving you, but that was my decision. I never expected you to feel the same way. I only hoped you would.”
I stare into his eyes, which are looking back at me with the same emotion they have since I met him. “I do.”
Ben swallows hard. “What?”
“I love you.”
He reaches for my hands, still not sure if he’s allowed to touch me. Instead of placing my hands in his, I grab his face and pull his lips to mine. I can feel the relief wash over him, and then his arms wrap around me.
When we pull apart he says, “God, I thought I lost you. I promise I won’t keep anything from you again. I should’ve told you the truth from the start and left that frat—”
I put my finger to his lips. “It’s over. We’re okay.”
The DJ plays “Fools Rush In” and I glare at him, thinking he’s mocking the choice I’ve made. Everyone starts dancing, including Ben and me.
Ben holds me close, his mouth next to my ear. “The song’s wrong, you know.”
“What do you mean?”
“Fools don’t rush in.”
“So we aren’t fools for falling for each other so quickly?”
“No. We’re the smart ones, because we know love when we feel it.”
I pull back and press my lips to his, feeling every ounce of love I’ve felt for him from the start.
More Books by Ashelyn Drake
Into the Fire (Month9Books)
Perfect For You (Swoon Romance)
Author Acknowledgements
A huge thank you to my daughter and husband for understanding that my laptop is just as important to me as one of my limbs. To my family, your encouragement and support means so much. To my CPs and beta readers, you ladies are incredible. I couldn’t write without you.
I also have to thank the book bloggers who helped with cover reveal and early reviews. The way you all jumped in to promote this series means so much to me. And finally, but maybe most importantly, thank you to everyone who reads the Campus Crush series. I hope you fall in love with the characters the way I did.
Ashelyn Drake
Ashelyn Drake is a New Adult and Young Adult contemporary romance author. While it’s rare for her not to have either a book in hand or her fingers flying across a laptop, she also enjoys spending time with her family. She believes you are never too old to enjoy a good swing set and there’s never a bad time for some dark chocolate. Drake also writes speculative fiction under the name Kelly Hashway. She is represented by Sarah Negovetich of Corvisiero Literary Agency. Visit Ashelyn’s website at ashelyndrake.wordpress.com.
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