Page 45 of The Lake of Lost Girls

I didn’t know what to say.

“Have you heard from that cute frat pledge you were drooling over before we left?” Her change of subject was welcome, even if it was to grill me about Ryan.

“He said he’d call me when we’re back on campus,” I told her. I felt myself flushing as I remembered the way he’d looked at me.

“Okay, well, I asked around about him—”

“Daisy, seriously?” I groaned, cringing in mortification, but still eager for any information she had on him.

“Of course I did. I had to vet out the guy you seem interested in. That’s what us gals have to do for each other. Anyway, it seems like he’s apopularguy, if you know what I mean. His pledge nickname is Wam Bam McKay, and that’s not all,” Daisy cautioned.

“What is it?” Did I really want to know? I liked putting my head in the sand. It was safe there in the dark.

“Apparently he has a temper. Erica says—”

“Oh God,” I groaned. “Are you really taking anything Miss Shit Stirrer says seriously?”

“This is legit, Jess. Don’t be so dismissive. Because it’s common knowledge that Ryan has a rage button. Erica’s been hooking up with Dave Wendle for weeks and he’s also a Sigma Kappa pledge. Anyway, he says everyone knows to giveRyan a wide berth if something pisses him off. He told Erica that Ryan punched a hole in the wall after his favorite football team lost a big game. So be careful, okay?”

“So, he hit a wall. That doesn’t mean—”

“Jess, a man that can destroythingscan just as easily destroyyou. That’s all I’m saying.”

“Okay, I get it.” I didn’t like the unsettled feeling the information gave me. And I hated the crushing disappointment that another man wasn’t who he pretended to be.

“Anyway, Ryan seems okay, maybe not serious dating material, though. So, be careful if you do get up close and personal with him. A guy like that isn’t worth ruining a good time for.”

“Says the woman whose whole life is a good time,” I joked good-naturedly.

“That’s very true. Though I’ve seen you at the last couple of keggers. You’re clearly vying for my flirty, party girl crown.”

“I will never dethrone you, that’s for sure.” We both laughed.

“You won’t be missing out on anything if you decide to forget about Ryan,” Daisy went on. “Plus, it would probably be a little weird being with a guy who’s been with not only Tammy but Phoebe, too.”

My heart stuttered and the smile fell. “What?”

“Oh yeah. From what I heard, he hooked up with Tammy during the first week of school. And according to Dave, Ryan dated Phoebe in high school. And then there’s the fact that he went around bad-mouthing Tammy, calling her a cocktease. Real classy. Sounds like Wam Bam McKay doesn’t like a woman with agency. It seriously irritates me that his piggish behavior is forcing me to defend Tight Ass Tammy.”

“He dated TammyandPhoebe?” I asked, my voice shaky. The thought of him with both of them made me ill.

“Well, maybe dated is too strong a word. All I know is he wasinvolvedwith both of them. I wonder what he has to say about them being missing?” Daisy pondered, her voice taking on that terrified edge that had become familiar.

“I guess we have some things to talk about when we get back to school,” I finally said, sounding hoarse.

“Yeah, it sounds like you do.” I heard a door opening on the other end of the line and Daisy shouting at someone to leave.

“Daisy?”

A few seconds later she came back. “Sorry, Jess, I’ve gotta go. My brother needs to use the phone.”

She hung up before I could say goodbye.

I put the phone back on the cradle.

I could hear my mom and Lindsey singing along to a Britney Spears song downstairs. They sounded like they were having fun. I wished I could sit with my sister, drink my mother’s hot chocolate, and forget everything.

But I couldn’t. And that was a problem.

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