Page 77 of The Friend Zone

My words have the opposite effect than I intended.

“Fucking awesome. So the three of you can walk into the fucking sunset now.”

I fight the urge to hit him, he’s being an idiot. “You’re jealous. I guess that answers my earlier question. You love her.”

Jagger runs a hand through his hair, more frustrated than I’ve ever seen him. “I do. But it doesn’t fucking matter. Look man, you’re right that I’m jealous. It’s not for the reason you think though. I’m glad Bay has you and Cole. I’m sure you guyswill make her happy. I’m just pissed that Cole’s problem was an easy fix. Mine isn’t. If Topher releases that video, I’m done. Just the idea of my mom and my gran seeing it… without even considering Bay. She’d be disgusted if she saw it.”

“Jagger,” I say, clasping his shoulder. “The truth will set you free. I think you should tell Bay what’s in that video.”

“I can’t.” He wails. “Seriously it’s?—”

I tighten my hold on him. “You should give Bay more credit than that. Don’t forget she’s a Zeta. She understands initiations and peer pressure.”

He laughs, but there’s no mirth in it. “Right. Let’s assume that she won’t run the other way if I tell her. It still doesn’t solve my problem. If Topher finds out, he’ll release it and my family will be embarrassed. My dad is working on a huge merger that would make Connelly Tech an even bigger giant in a lot of different sectors. We would go from a tech giant to a real conglomerate. I can’t afford to cause a scandal right now. If this deal went south, my family would never forgive me.”

I understand the pressure he feels. “I get it, Jagger. You know my family is very similar to yours. Our fathers play golf together, for crying out loud.”

He scowls at me. “Your situation is different and you know it.”

I sigh. “Yeah. Thank fuck my older brother wants to take over from my parents and run the banking group we own. That however doesn’t mean that my family would be indifferent if I was caught up in a big scandal and you know it.”

Jagger shakes his head. “So if you understand that Mumford has me by the balls, why don’t you leave me the fuck alone?”

“Because,” I bite out. “No one is invincible. You should have learned that in all the years you’ve played hockey. No matter how strong and dangerous your opponents are, everyone has atleast one weakness you can use to your advantage. And if you love Bay, you should trust her.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” he snaps. “Trust has nothing to do with it.”

I disagree. “Trust has everything to do with it. You should trust Bay to understand and forgive whatever you think you’ve done in that video. You should trust her to help you stay out of Topher’s radar.”

This time Jagger’s laugh is skeptical. “Are you suggesting Bay and I keep hooking up in secret?”

I nod. “Why not? You were pretty good at sneaking around until my dumb ass got jealous and outed you at that party. If you want to be one hundred percent sure you don’t get caught, you can hook up at my place. In the meantime, we can all work on finding that video and destroying it.”

He looks at me as if he can’t believe what I just said. “Why would you help me?”

My eyes roll right on cue. “Because I don’t abandon my friends in their time of need. Besides, I want Bay to be happy. Don’t ask me why but she’s quite fond of your dumb ass.”

Jagger flips me off, but there’s no heat in it. “If we found that video, I wouldn’t have to worry about Topher.”

There’s still doubt in Jagger’s eyes. “Is there a but?”

He lowers his gaze, exhaling nervously. “I don’t know if it’s possible to fix things with Bay. She thinks I got a blowjob from Candace and Bianca.”

If there was an eye rolling championship, I would win Olympic gold. “Duh. She thinks that because you let her believe it. You’ll have some explaining to do.”

Jagger groans. “Do you really think I should tell her what I did for my initiation? I mean, we’re under oath to never reveal what happens on initiation night. As Zeta president, Bay shouldunderstand. Right? And if we find that video and we destroy it, does she really need to know?”

I give him a back slap, maybe a little harder than needed. “Jagger, she’ll understandbecauseshe knows what happens on initiation night. But if you want to be with Bay,really be with her, I think your relationship should start with no secrets and with total honesty.”

He sighs. “I know you’re right. I’m just scared shitless. What if she thinks I’m a disgusting human being after I tell her? What if she doesn’t even want to talk to me?”

I wrap my arm around his neck, pulling him into a headlock. “Don’t worry, I have a plan. I’ll come with you and make sure Bay hears you out. You helped me out after I pushed Bay into the pool, I feel like I owe you one.”

Jagger hugs me when I release him from the headlock. “If she gives me a second chance and we find that video, I’ll owe you forever.”

CHAPTER 17

DICK MEASURING CONTEST

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