“Are you kidding? Dressed like this? I’ll freeze to death.”
“All right, let’s head upstairs. I need to get away from this noise or my head will explode.” And if Lucky is with me, my job as her indentured servant is still in full swing. I feel very much indentured despite the fact her brother threw a grand in my face.
“You want me to head up to that STD riddled vipers’ nest?” She chortles out a laugh. “Yeah, sure why not. Ten bucks says I find a condom on the floor. If it’s used, you owe me fifty.”
“Deal.” I know for a fact my room is spotless because Beta house pooled their dues and hired a housekeeper who just so happens to sweep my floors of all condoms, used and otherwise.
We head up, and I lead her down the hall before entombing us in the quiet sanctuary of my bedroom.
“Wow.” Her eyes widen in wonder as she walks a small circle, soaking in every tidy inch of it. “I’m actually a little impressed.”
A smug grin comes to me.
“You actually have an entire assortment of condoms to choose from.”
Crap. Lucky heads over to the boxes lined neatly on my bookshelf. The room might be neat as a pin, but I may have forgotten that Rush likes to take his empty boxes and display them on my shelf as if they were art.
“Glow in the dark?” She picks it up and shakes it, only to find it hollow on the inside. “Smooth as skin?” She nods as she continues down the road. “Neon brights! I’m sure those are a big hit—something has to bebig, right?” She gives a devilish wink my way, and I snarl at her. “Extra ribbed,” she continues. “Tickle Me Pink! Nothing like a girly condom to get a chick going.” She snarls right back. “Alligator skin? I pray that’s just a replica. Pleasure Point, Slip and Slide Delight.” She flicks each box back an inch with her finger, only to discover each one sits empty of its contents. “My, my, you have been a busy,busyboy.” Her lavender eyes snag on mine. “I bet you keep student health services pretty busy, too. Have they developed a missile shield defense system strong enough to ward off those STDs you’re up against?”
“You’re not funny.” I pat a spot on the bed next to me and pull out a deck of cards.
“And you’re not getting laid tonight. At least not by me.” She hops over and lands next to me. Her perfume plumes in the air like a fresh floral breeze, and as much as I hate to admit this, I can appreciate it.
“You smell nice.” It comes out quiet, like a surrender. “I’m betting nice is not typically a word many people associate with you.”
She wrinkles her nose as if she knows it’s true. It is.
“I am nice—in fact, I’m diving headfirst into that community interaction project next week.” She takes the deck from me and starts to shuffle. A real shuffle, not the crashing and smashing of cards together that I’ve seen most girls do, and now I’m the one who’s impressed.
“So, how many boxes have you helped empty?” I glance up at Rush’s condom display that she’s left in disarray. Rush is so anal he’ll spend half an hour trying to align them just right once again.
Her face explodes a candy apple red, and something stirs in me to take a bite.
“None—of your business.” Her brows tick up a notch. Lucky has those dark wiggle worm brows that you see so many girls trying to replicate. Lucky is a natural beauty—on the outside at least. She seems to be a bit of a rough diamond on the inside. “How about you?” She hands the deck back to me and cuts it.
“More than you, and less than you think.” Truth. I’m calling her bluff. I’d bet every dollar her brother gave me to keep her on a leash that she’s still a virgin. As much as she likes to bark at the world, she’s a toothless kitten at the end of the day.
“More than me? So, you assume because I’m a girl that I haven’t amassed a body count? You’re ridiculous, emphasis on thedick.”
I lay a pair of cards in front of both of us, one face down, one face up.
“Twenty-one.” She slaps her hand over her card that’s face down and pulls it up slowly.
“Blackjack,” I correct.
“Call it what you want. It’s twenty-one.”
“I guess there’s no use in arguing with you. I’d have more luck arguing with those boxes you unsettled. They’re not mine, by the way. They belong to your big brother. He likes to keep them in my room so the girls don’t catch on to how prolific he really is.”
“Not sure I believe you.” She asks for a hit and goes over.
I uncover my card and hit twenty-one on the nose. “Dealer dominates every time.” I study her as she glares down at the cards. “So tell me something about you. What do you do for fun? Kick puppies?” Sounds like a fair guess, considering who I’m speaking with.
She growls at me as if she were about to bite my face off—she most likely is. “I keep to myself. Ava and Harper are nice. They’re the only girls I’ve ever been close to. I’ve been a loner most of my life.”
“A loner, huh?” I find it odd, considering she’s upfront and personal with just about everyone in Beta house. “So, how do you meet these studs you’ve bedded if you’re holed up alone in your room?”
“Please. Dolts like you are everywhere.” She doesn’t miss a beat.
