There’d been a few texts from my sorority sisters digging for information about my bidding on “Brody,” but I’d ignored them. My parents had called too, but I’d sent them directly to voicemail. Nothing could lift a sexual haze like my parents, and since I was perfectly content in my fog, I had no choice but to refuse their calls.
“Why are you tracing me?” Drew’s voice was sleep-rough, and the low gravel tone of it rumbled through me.
“I’m trying to braid your chest hair.”
His eyes popped open, and he actually looked down at where my fingers were caressing him.
“Really?” I said. “You don’t even have enough hair to braid.”
“Sorry I’m not up on the hair-length standards for braiding. What time is it?”
“Time for you to go get us breakfast.”
“Me? You’re the one who’s been up for hours petting me like a creeper.”
I withdrew my hand from him and propped it on my hip, which probably looked ridiculous since I was lying on my side. “Be sure to remember how creepy it was when you’re begging me to pet you later.”
“Mmm, I’ll beg now if you want,” he replied as he made his eyebrows dance.
Flopping backward, I sighed dramatically. “I would, but I’m afraid I haven’t been adequately fed in order to keep my energy up.”
He rolled on top of me, his weight pressing down on me in the best way.
Maybe I’m not hungry after all.
I shimmied a little, and a sexy smirk appeared on his face. “What time is your first class?”
“Ten,” I replied, a little breathless as I allowed myself to get lost in the feel of him. “Please.” My voice was a low whine, but I didn’t have it in me to care about how needy I sounded.
But Drew didn’t make me wait long. He was the consummate lover, knowing when to tease and when to make me see stars. Even after we fell over the edge together, it took a while to come back to myself. But when I did, I couldn’t help but be a bit of a brat.
“I believe I was promised breakfast,” I reminded him.
His eyes slid slowly open. “You’re going to hold me to that?”
“I’m just trying to help you out. I wouldn’t want you to fail a challenge you set for yourself.”
“How helpful of you,” he muttered dryly.
“What can I say? I’m a giver.”
He burst out laughing. “You certainly are.”
I smacked him as I joined in his laughter. “Perv.”
When he settled down, he took a breath. “Bagels okay? I think we still have a couple.”
Sighing, I replied, “I suppose.” I didn’t anticipate the tickling, though I should’ve. His fingers dug into my ribs, and he didn’t quit until I was a squealing mess.
“All right, I’ll make food while you get ready,” he said when he finally crawled out of bed.
“Sounds like a plan.”
I rushed through a shower and getting ready. When I made it out to the kitchen, a bagel was toasted and smothered in cream cheese waiting for me. He’d even made coffee.
“How did I ever survive without you?” I asked before taking a large bite.
“Beats me.”
There was a prolonged silence after that, as if we both knew there were things that needed to be discussed, but neither of us wanted to be the one who initiated the conversation. Or maybe that was all me and I was projecting. Either way, I was suddenly glad I had to hurry to get to class on time.
It wasn’t that I didn’t want to talk more about the future, but I was also afraid I might find out we weren’t on the same page. We had a lot working against us, and part of me couldn’t blame him if he decided the hassle wasn’t worth it. The other parts were all figuring out where I could dump his body if he didn’t agree to be my boyfriend immediately.
But rather than voice any of that, I said, “I better go.” After gathering my things, I walked over to where he was leaning on the counter and pressed into him. “See you later?”
“Absolutely. I work tonight, but I’ll be home from class by four thirty. We can at least have dinner together.”
“Good.” I lifted up on my toes so I could press a kiss to his lips—a kiss he willingly met, and I almost bagged school so I could drag him back to bed. But instead, I broke the kiss and mentally lauded myself for my restraint.
We said our goodbyes, and I burst out into the chilly morning, ready to confront the day. Until I ran into Sam and Macy when I entered the liberal arts building.
“Oh my God, Sophia, where have you been?” Macy asked as she dragged me into a hug.
“At home,” I replied haltingly, unsure why they seemed like they’d been ready to search local morgues for me.
“Everyone’s been trying to reach you,” Sam said.
I thought everyone was a bit of a stretch, but I couldn’t deny that I’d been dodging quite a few of them all weekend. It probably hadn’t been my wisest move if I wanted to beat Aamee, but I hadn’t exactly been thinking about the presidency over the previous couple of days.
“Sorry,” I said lamely. “I needed a couple days to…decompress.” That’s one way to say it. “The auction took a lot out of me.”
“I bet,” Sam said.
It wasn’t snide. If I had to guess, I’d say she was concerned, which I couldn’t deny made me feel warm and fuzzy inside.
But she continued, voice hushed and eyes darting around furtively. “What was the deal with you buying Brody?”
I should have prepared an answer to this question.
I probably looked like a deer in headlights as I stammered out an explanation. “I, um, well, I kind of…” I took a breath and told myself to chill the fuck out. And in doing so, I had a moment of clarity. “I had a suspicion that Aamee had put someone up to bidding on Brody as a way of messing with me.” I forced out a laugh. “Which I guess worked since I blew a shit ton of money on him. But since he was only in the auction as a favor to me, I didn’t want to chance him ending up in a bad situation. So I just bid on him myself.”
They shared a quick look with one another, as if trying to telepathically figure out whether they believed me or not. After another couple seconds, their postures relaxed, and they seemed more at ease.
“We figured it was something like that,” Sam said.
I managed to quash the urge to call her a liar, knowing she’d probably at least half believed whatever sordid rumors were flying around the sorority house. Not that I could blame her. I was sure what I’d actually been up to was much more X-rated than anything they’d managed to come up with. Minus the fact that they thought I’d been with my brother. That definitely elevated the MPAA rating.
“Your auction was great,” Macy said. “I’m glad it went so well for you.”
I smiled at them. Her words sounded genuine, so I let myself believe they were.
Other than Macy narcing on me to her mother, I’d never had issues with either of these women. I’d pulled away a bit recently in light of everything going on, but I’d need to do better by them going forward, whether I won the presidency or not.
If I couldn’t give them a better leader, I could at least be a better friend.