“OH MY GOD, GIVE ME THAT!”
Skyler flies through my bedroom door, kicking it closed behind her before snatching the large burrito I was just about to bite out of my hands. Her soft hair falls into her face a bit as she shoves nearly half of it in her mouth, her eyes rolling up. Moaning, she chews it slowly, like she’s savoring every morsel.
I blink.
“Thank you,” she says, handing me back what’s left of the burrito and wiping the corners of her mouth.
“You sure you don’t want to eat the tin foil, too?”
She swats at my arm before climbing into bed next to me. “Don’t be an ass. This Spring Break diet is going to be the death of me, I swear.”
I laugh. “Ah, it all makes sense now. Want the rest?” I offer her the burrito again but she pushes it back, shaking her head.
“I’m already going to have to do like fifty crunches and run a mile to get rid of that one bite. But seriously, who made kale a thing?” She grimaces. “I just want to eat cheese fries and lose ten pounds.”
“You’re beautiful,” I whisper, kissing her nose. She scrunches it, so I kiss it again.
“Thank you,” she murmurs, blushing a little. “Still, I’m going to be on the beach surrounded by a hundred tiny little things in thong bikinis. I need to be on my game.”
Frowning, I take a bite of my burrito and chase it down with the soda on my night stand. “Don’t remind me.”
“Why are you all grumpy?”
I sigh. “I won’t be with you that week. I’m kind of bummed about it.”
“What are you talking about? Of course we’ll be together.”
“Did you forget what fraternity I’m in?”
Skyler’s still frowning, but as recognition sets in, her brows pull inward and she chews her lip. The Kappa Kappa Betas always go on Spring Break with the Omega Chis, and being that I’m an Alpha Sigma, that pairing doesn’t exactly do us any favors.
“Well, whatever. You can still come.”
I chuckle around another bite. “Yeah, because that would go over well.”
“I’m serious.” Skyler sits up on her knees, making me look at her. She’s dressed in nothing but a small Kappa Kappa Beta tank top and tiny little shorts. No make-up, hair natural and wavy. Stunning as usual. “I’m not giving you the option. You’re my boyfriend and you’re coming on Spring Break with me. Where’s your laptop?”
“Why?”
She rolls her eyes at my question before hopping off the bed and retrieving my computer from the desk. Falling back into the covers, she flips it open without another word, clicking away at the keys.
“Done.”
“What’s done?”
“I just booked you for the all-day boat trip we’re doing on the second day of Spring Break. And…” her voice trails off as she finishes typing off a text. Not a second goes by before her phone pings in her hand. “Perfect! You’re set to go in the van we rented to take down there and you’ll stay in our hotel room. All set!”
I shake my head, finishing off my burrito and chugging down half my drink. “Are you serious right now? You know the Omega Chis are going to flip their shit.”
“They won’t. Because if they do, I’ll bitch at Bear, and he’ll bitch at everyone else until they shut up. Trust me. It’s all good.” Smiling devilishly, she crawls up the covers and locks her lips on mine, grinding her hips against my own. My boxers, the comforter, and her tiny ass shorts are the only things separating us. I groan, tugging on her bottom lip.
“You’re going to be the death of me, Skyler Thorne.”
“At least it’ll be a fun way to go,” she whispers, nipping at the skin on my neck. Fastening my hands on her small waist, I flip her over, pinning her in the sheets.
“Can’t argue that.”
As I kiss my way down her neck, Skyler runs her fingers through my hair and gives it a small tug. “How are the pledges doing? You guys had a killer rush.”
I move my lips to hers, snaking my tongue inside her mouth and stealing a moan before replying. “Good. We’re getting ready for the camping trip before the bonfire next week.”
“I always forget you do that,” Skyler pants, bucking her hips up to meet mine. “Creepers. Kidnapping those poor kids.”
Grinning against her skin, I slip my hands under her tank top and push it up and over her rib cage. “Trust me. It’s the most fun they have in the pledge process.”
“And what’s the worst part?”
I pull her tank off the rest of the way, sucking the sensitive skin on the swell of her breast. “If I tell you, I’d have to kill you.”
“Death by orgasm?”
“Torturous death by orgasm.”
She smiles, biting her bottom lip as she peers down at me with heavy blue eyes. “Tell. Me. Everything.”
EVEN THOUGH SKYLER OFFICIALLY CALLS me her boyfriend, she never sticks around after we have sex. Sometimes she’ll lie on my chest for a while or we’ll talk, but sooner or later, she’s out the door and it’s just me alone in my bed.
And when I’m alone, I think.
About rush. About all the activities coming up. About the whispers I’ve been hearing around our fraternity concerning the presidency next semester.
I know I’m at the top of everyone’s mind, and as fucking stoked as I am about that, I can’t help but wonder if being with Skyler is going to pull me from what I need to do to make it actually happen.
I love being around her, we have fun together, but I can still tell it’s not serious for either one of us. Couple that with the fact that planning events and taking on a presidency requires most if not all of my future time, it just feels like we’re speeding fast toward an inevitable crash.
Sighing, I reach for my phone and type out a text to Cassie.
– Breakfast tomorrow – the usual spot? –
Letting my thoughts drift to that little redhead does absolutely nothing to soothe my stress. After what happened with Clay last semester, I knew she would need someone to lean on over break. Apparently, that someone wasn’t me. It shouldn’t bother me, but it does.
She came to my window that night.
I can still remember the way it felt to hold her, the way my chest ached when she told me I was right about Clay. It fucking killed me, because I didn’t want to be right — not about knowing he would hurt her.
What she doesn’t know — what no one knows — is that I laid that fucker out the next day. I stormed right into his bedroom while he was getting dressed, Paris having just left, and decked him hard across the jaw. I made sure he knew it was coming. Hell, I even told him to hit me back. But he didn’t. He knew he was a piece of shit, even if he didn’t admit it to anyone else.
But then, I didn’t hear from Cassie all break, and when I finally saw her at the Omega Chi party last week, she made me feel like I was responsible for the hurt she endured — not him.
I can’t figure this girl out.
After twenty minutes go by with no response, I sigh, plugging my phone into the charger and setting an alarm for class in the morning. Leaning back on my pillows, I tuck my hands under my head and stare up at the ceiling, brain still not getting the memo that it’s time to turn off.
I’m excited Skyler wants me with her for Spring Break, but I can’t shake the feeling that whatever is happening between us is going to be short lived. She’s smart, funny, and gorgeous — but that’s exactly it. She deserves to be with a guy who can give her all the time in his life, or at least to be able to have the freedom to do whatever she wants. I can’t call her my girlfriend and then put other things before her — like the Alpha Sigma presidency.
Rolling over, I pull a pillow over my head and let out a large puff of air. There are too many “what ifs” and I don’t have enough energy to figure them all out tonight. One step at a time, Brooks. Tomorrow starts the planning for the pledge retreat. I need to just focus on what I can control.
Except, I don’t really feel in control of anything at all.