And there it was. The lion had finally clawed at me until I couldn’t fight back. At least not in any way that made me think I could win.
“You’re no good for either of my kids, so stay out of their lives.”
“You think I’m going to stay away from the woman I love for four hundred dollars?”
“No,” he said, grabbing the door handle. “You’re going to stay away from her for four hundred thousand.” With that, he closed the door, leaving me standing in an apartment I wondered if I’d ever see again.
Mr. Mason was right about one thing: Brody was a fucking idiot.
Then again, so was I.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
S O P H I A
Standing in front of the door of my sorority, I tried to get my breathing under control. This was it. All the bullshit of the last couple of months had led me to this moment. I would either vanquish Aamee to the depths of hell where she belonged, or I would be able to free the kingdom so that we could live in perpetual sunshine and happiness.
I was clearly losing my mind.
I took one more deep breath and went inside. There was a steady murmur of voices coming from the large room where we held our meetings. When I walked into the room, all the conversations going on ceased as everyone’s eyes fell on me. It was a tad overwhelming.
“Hey,” I said dumbly, because what the hell else was I supposed to say? I’d been waiting for this decision for months, but now that it had arrived, I wanted to be anywhere but here.
“Hi, Sophia,” Sam said, her voice friendly but professional.
I looked around at all the officers gathered at the front of the room and was suddenly overcome by how seriously they took all of this. They all stood there in cute outfits, perfectly pressed and tailored, with their makeup and hair done impeccably.
I’d thrown on jeans and a sweater of questionable cleanliness because of my parents’ surprise visit and also because I’d been too busy fucking my secret boyfriend over the past few days to do laundry. Our priorities were so wildly different, and I wondered if they’d always been or if this was a relatively new development.
“Why don’t you come sit over here? Aamee has called an emergency meeting to address some…concerns.” Sam’s eyes cut to Aamee when she spoke, and the look Sam gave her wasn’t a kind one. If anything, Sam looked annoyed, which immediately piqued my curiosity.
I shot a look at Gina as I walked to my seat, but she shrugged in return. Getting no help from that direction, I settled into my chair and clasped my hands on my lap.
After looking around the room to make sure she had everyone’s attention, Sam began. “Aamee came to me and alleged that the rules concerning the fundraiser weren’t honored. She would like us to discuss the matter and vote whether anything improper has occurred.”
I narrowed my eyes in confusion. “What’s the allegation?”
Sam took a deep breath and faced me. She looked as if what she was about to say would pain her as she expelled it. “That you violated the rules by contributing money to your own fundraiser.”
My head jerked back as if I’d been slapped. I turned my attention to Aamee. “Are you for fucking real with this?”
Aamee lifted her head high, but she didn’t look at me as she spoke. “It’s true. It clearly states in our bylaws that a sister running for president cannot unduly impact her own efforts. That includes donating to your own fundraiser.”
I jumped out of my chair so quickly, I practically levitated. “I didn’t do that to throw things in my favor, and you know it.”
“How would I know anything? You’ve been combative and standoffish throughout this entire process. Traits, might I add, that aren’t exactly appealing in a new president.”
“I may have been that way to you because you’re a manipulative jerk on a power trip.”
“Okay, okay, none of this is helpful,” Sam said as she got between us. I hadn’t realized how close to one another Aamee and I had shifted, but we weren’t more than three feet apart. Almost close enough for me to wring her neck.
“How much money did Aamee’s fundraiser bring in?” I asked.
Sam looked to Kyla, who said, “Almost eight hundred.”
Which was pathetic for something she’d had much longer than me to plan. Suddenly, I saw this for what it was. Aamee was afraid. Terrified really. Because there was no way I hadn’t made more money, so the only thing she had left was to discredit me another way. It was such a sleazy way for her to behave, and I practically shook with rage.
“How much did I raise?” I asked through gritted teeth.
“Almost two thousand. Seven dollars short of it to be exact.”
I looked at Aamee and sneered. “I could spot you the five hundred, and you still wouldn’t have won.”
“This isn’t supposed to be decided solely on who brought in more money,” Aamee argued. “It should be based on who’s more fit for the job. And that isn’t someone who violates the rules and has a scandalous relationship with her brother.”
“For Christ’s sake, will you drop the brother thing already? It’s getting old,” I replied, because it so was. I was tired of defending a mistake I wasn’t even making. I didn’t owe these people all my secrets. I didn’t owe them anything.
And that thought…gave me pause. If I wanted to be their president, then I did owe them things. Maybe not to unleash every sordid detail for their entertainment, but I at least owed it to them to be honest. And while in this instance I couldn’t be because the secret wasn’t only mine to tell, I also didn’t want to.
I looked over at Aamee. She was red-faced and shaking, but it wasn’t from anger. Her eyes were red-rimmed, and I could see her furiously blinking back tears. And while she’d never win any presidential awards from me, at least she wanted the job. And deep down, I think she wanted to be good at it.
She had me beat on both fronts.
“Can I speak to Aamee alone for a second?” I blurted out, interrupting Sam and Macy as they addressed the rest of our sisters about conducting a vote.
“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” Sam said.
“Please,” I said, looking at Aamee. “I’ll be calm and rational. I promise.”
Sam looked to Aamee, who nodded, before saying, “Okay. We’ll wait for you to get back to hold a vote.”
I nodded and then turned and led the way into a small room we used for studying that was on the other side of the house. I heard Aamee’s footfalls behind me and knew she was following me. Hopefully she wouldn’t decide to seize the opportunity and literally stab me in the back. Once we were in the room, I moved aside so she could enter, and then I pulled the pocket door closed behind us.
Aamee took up a defensive position immediately, her arms crossed tightly across her chest, hip cocked, bitch glare in full effect. “What?” she asked icily.
I sighed heavily. “Can we not do this?”
“Do what?”
Gesturing at her, I said, “This. Despising each other was fun for a few months, but I’m kind of over it now. Can’t you be?”
“Why should I be?” she asked, though she dropped her arms back to her sides. “You’re the one who started this whole nightmare.”