Funny he should say that. If past experiences at Bainbridge Hall mean anything, none of us are ready for what’s to come. We never are. Even though the event is the same every year, there’s always a hidden twist. Hopefully we’ll come through whatever they have planned for us tonight unscathed.
NINETEEN
KINGSTON
We arrivefifteen minutes later to a house that rivals our own, though Bainbridge Hall has been home to a brotherhood for far less time than Hawthorne Hall has. New money, I guess would be the right term for it. They don’t have nearly as stringent requirements for membership either. But they know we do… and I fuckin’ dread hearing what their take on it will be when they realize Elliot is part of our brotherhood. We haven’t been hiding her exactly, but we aren’t throwing our female initiate in anyone’s face either. Especially not the likes of the Bainbridge Hall guys, who have a standing rivalry with us—or more specifically our alumni. Our predecessors didn’t take kindly to it when Bainbridge Hall was built. They’re all flashy where we’re more understated elegance. Their sense of self-worth is all tied up in their money and showing it off, which is exactly what they’ll be doing tonight.
The truth is, I’m irritated that we have to deal with a frivolous function when we have all sorts of shit going on back at the house, the most important of which are the threats being made against Elliot, and they’re coming from more than one direction. I grind my teeth together. It’ll just have to fucking wait.
Seeing the other two SUVs have emptied, I gesture through the windshield to Alec that he should lead the rest of the brotherhood inside.
From the back seat, Elliot mumbles, “I guess it’s a good thing the party is masked. Hides the ugly lumps on their stupid heads.”
Cannon raises a brow as he side-eyes me, while Archer doesn’t hold back, snickering. “Peaches, baby, you’re not wrong.”
I glance in the rearview mirror, meeting her eyes, and shake my head in amusement.Yeah.That sass is back. I think she’ll be fine tonight.
“Just an observation.” She shrugs with a small smile as she watches the idiots in question tie their masks on.
Once the rest of the brotherhood is on their way in, I pull out the masks I’d stowed for us in the console at my side. The instructions this year were to wear a mask and dress in a way befitting of the gentlemen of Kingston University’s brotherhoods, and, last, to bring a large sum of cash. The requested attire might change every year, but we can always expect to walk in blind, so to speak, to whatever situation they’ve cooked up. It’s generally something equal parts crazy and fucked-up.
I have full confidence that Duke and his buddies will put on quite the show for us with this being their first big event of the year. I simply wish I didn’t have to deal with that arrogant fuck at all. He can’t leave things well enough alone. I shake off memories of shit between him and me that I’d rather keep locked away.
It’ll be fuckin’ fine, though.I think.We’ll lie low at first to see what they have in store for us. I swiftly exit the SUV, and the others do the same. Gathered at the front of the Escalade, I hand Cannon and Archer each a mask—all of ours are alike—then hold up the fancy beaded black mask I had made for Elliot yesterday.
Her face lights up, but her eyebrow quirks as she accepts it from me, her manner all kinds of saucy. “Did Dane wear this one last year, or did you buy a new one just for me?”
Archer huffs out a laugh as he swings his mask around in circles by the strap. “Cute, Peaches.”
I tug her to me, gripping her chin in my hand, and look into her dark eyes. Wetting my lips, I lean down and hover close to hers. Her breath hitches as our gazes connect, and it sends a jolt of lust straight down my spine. I’m on the verge of kissing her, but instead, my skin barely brushes hers as I whisper gruffly, “Just for you,” then touch my lips to her forehead as well.
She lets out a ragged breath and smiles with a nod as we separate.
While we were busy, Cannon wasted no time, having already donned his mask. He gestures to hers, holding out his hand for it. She bites her lip and hands it over, then gives him her back, demonstrating a trust in him I’m unsure either of them is fully aware of. But it’s definitely there. He carefully situates the feminine half-mask over her eyes and the bridge of her nose, then takes the long ribbons and ties them in a bow at the back of her head, careful not to catch strands of hair. Once he’s done, he rests his hands on her shoulders, squeezing lightly.
I’ve never seen him be quite so gentle with anything or anyone before… and I’ve witnessed it more than once now. The way he lifted her in his arms when she was unconscious. When he carried her into the pool yesterday. And now this. It’s not that Cannon is incapable or anything like that. He simply doesn’t physically show it that much.
I scratch my hand over my chin. Perhaps that has to do with the fact that most women don’t get him. His silence frustrates them, and then they leave. I shake my head. But not Elliot. Not our girl. Even when he showed his aggressive side to her with the incident the other morning, they’d mended fences quickly, and without many words from either of them. The fact that he stood up for her with Alec and Joel had apparently been enough.
I blow out a breath, smiling at the effect of the mask on her. She looks gorgeous and sophisticated, her doe eyes standing out nicely behind the lush black velvet of the mask. And those red lips. She’s going to fucking kill me tonight with the way I want to kiss that lipstick off her. I blow out a breath before I secure my plain mask into place. “I put a rush order on that yesterday when I received our invitation.”
Elliot tilts her head to the side, studying me. “Was there a chance we wouldn’t get invited?”
Archer laughs again before he finally dons his mask, then fields the question. “Nope, but the brothers here like to keep things under wraps until right before the event. They’re always kinda formal. Fucking showing off, mostly. They wouldn’t dare insult the Hawthorne Hall brotherhood by failing to invite us. Invitations are only extended to a few of the elite. Occasionally they’ll allow a brother from one of the frats on campus, but not often. Depends on family ties and such.”
Elliot’s gaze falls back to me. “And how many people will be here tonight?”
“Thirty-five to sixty, I’d say? Depends on who merited an invite this year.” I put my hand to her back, guiding her toward the steps up to the house. Cannon takes his place on Elliot’s other side. His fingers brush mine as we both guide her up the stairs, and he glances at me, but doesn’t move them.
“You’ll see, Peaches. They do this event up right. The dress code for the evening, along with the masks, perfectly disguise the debauchery and madness that’s likely to go down.” Archer takes the stairs two at a time beside me.
Elliot purses her lips as she considers his explanation. “Debauchery and madness. It sorta sounds like you’re saying that if everyone looks good and we’re all masked… then we can do whatever we want. Because it’ll seem like some sophisticated hush-hush secret.”
A low rumble of laughter barrels out of Cannon, surprising the hell out of me. He puts his pointer finger to the tip of his nose, nodding his agreement with her assessment. Mine, too, honestly. She’s spot on.
“The truth is that these dudes definitely don’t give two fucks how insane things get tonight, so long as it stays within the bounds of the house. That’s one of their rules for everyone who accepts their invitation. If anyone talks about what goes down here, they ruin it for their brotherhood forever after. They’re strict about it, too. No one from Gamma Chi will ever be invited again.” I shrug. “It was dumb of the brother that was here to tell his friends what he’d witnessed.”
“And what was that?”
