Total pages in book: 91
Estimated words: 88212 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 441(@200wpm)___ 353(@250wpm)___ 294(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 88212 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 441(@200wpm)___ 353(@250wpm)___ 294(@300wpm)
As if I’m gonna make it that easy for him.
I catch the shuttle to fraternity row, pulling up Instagram on my phone. I’m not friends with Dax, but I’ve stalked his account before. It’s what you’d expect—lots of hot shirtless pics, and he’s all smiley with his buddies. Always having a great time.
Though clearly, there’s more to him than he shows his frat buddies.
Since we’re not friends on Instagram, my DMs will only go to his requests, but that’s good enough for me. I draft a few messages:
You acted like me running was such a big fucking deal.
You could have at least told me you didn’t want to fuck around again.
And then there’s always just: Fuck you.
That would be very me, but I’m not sending him any of that. I’m not giving him the chance to ghost me on socials. He’ll have to tell me to fuck off to my damn face.
The shuttle pulls up to the block with some of the frats, and I get off and head for Alpha Theta Mu.
Will he even be there?
Will he give a shit?
What the hell am I here for?
I don’t have answers, just know I must do something or my head’s gonna explode.
When I reach the front door, I knock, more aggressively than intended. Damien Westbrook opens it. He’s towering over me at six feet plus too many inches, looking like the bouncer of Alpha Theta Mu.
“Dax here?” I ask, amazed I manage to sound cooler than I feel.
Maybe I’m doing Dax a favor. Maybe once I give him hell over this class shit, his fellow fratholes will know he’s no friend of mine and won’t give him grief over sticking up for me.
Damien folds his arms, cocking his head back like a real fucking tool. In fairness, from what I know of the guy, he’s cool and he’s big on helping at the local nonprofit, Activate Kindness, but fuck if I care right now.
“What you need Dax for?”
“That’s between me and Dax.”
“He’s Alpha Theta Mu, so really, it’s between you and me too.”
Really? You gonna suck me off to cheer me up, big boy?
I won’t say that, but damn, I want to.
“Tell him I’m here.”
“If you think I’m letting you in so you can start beef with one of ours, you’re outta your mind.”
I shouldn’t. If I had half a brain, I wouldn’t. But Dax has me so fucked up right now, I don’t really care what the hell this giant does to me. Hell, if he beats the crap out of me, that might be better than this intense discomfort that’s constricting my chest like a motherfucker. I start to shove past him, and he keeps in my way.
“Not happening, Omega Psi.”
“I’m not Omega Psi anymore, remember?”
“Exactly. You’re lucky we’re even letting you back into parties.”
I fucking go for it, shoving him, and not a half second later he’s got me by the collar. He lifts me off the porch, whirls around, and shoves me against the side of the house. In the commotion, some of the guys head outside.
“Try me,” he says, getting in my face. “I’d love it.”
The last thing I need right now is getting into shit for this.
Stop it.
“You should go,” he says with a clenched jaw.
He’s right. I shouldn’t be here anyway.
“Fine,” I say. “It’s cool. Just back the fuck off.” I give him a shove, and he releases me.
Six Alpha Theta Mus are congregating outside, looking at me like I’m out of my damn mind. Maybe I fucking am. It’s like everything I’ve pushed down suddenly lays siege to my brain: Dax not being in class. Dad’s call. Mom. And now these fuckwads.
I start to head off when the tightness in my chest knots up, my muscles locking, blood rushing to my face. As a bout of nausea hits, the rest happens so quickly—I lose my balance and tumble into the porch rail, which snaps apart like it’s made of popsicle sticks. Collapsing into the bushes in front of it, I barely feel myself hit the ground because I’m stuck in my head and body, struggling against it all, though I’ve experienced this enough to know fighting won’t do me any good.
I’m having a panic attack.
The frats surround me before I hear Dax’s voice. “Miles?”
As I lie in the bushes, my thoughts terrorizing me, all I can think is, Fuck. My. Life.
10
Dax
When I heard the commotion outside, the last thing I expected was to come out and find Miles hunched down in the bushes, where he clearly fell through the porch railing. His breaths come out in short, sharp pants between moments when he’s trying to suck in air but can’t seem to pull enough into his lungs. He looks up at me, this panicked expression on his face, a painful mixture of embarrassment, stress, and fear, and…my heart breaks for him. It aches in my chest, feeling like the damn thing is falling apart for this man I used to believe was the biggest asshole on the planet but instead might be the most misunderstood person I’ve ever met.