Page 28 of Obligation
Carissa blew out a breath. Her only saving grace was that Danny didn’t have a class until early afternoon, which meant he wouldn’t be on campus right now. Maybe she could complete the task and burn this shirt before he ever found out.
Finally, she nodded, and Tiffany smiled.
Here goes nothing.Carissa removed her lightweight, short-sleeve sweater and yanked the T-shirt on in its place. She adjusted the shoulders and pulled the hem down. The size was a perfect fit, and the material was rather comfortable. If she concentrated hard enough, she might be able to forget that she was wearing a photo of her glaring infidelity on her back.
“Oh, and there’s one more thing.” Mallory opened the envelope she’d been holding and slipped out a small stack of paper. “You’ll need to recite this as we walk.” She passed each pledge a single sheet.
“You have got to be kidding me,” Carissa mumbled under her breath as she scanned the printed words.
Chapter Eleven
Bradley hit the automatic lock button on his key fob, then shoved his keys into his front pocket. “Ready?” He stood near the rear of the car, waiting for Jeremy to catch up.
“Yep.” Jeremy hitched his backpack onto his shoulder. “Let’s go get educated.” He slapped Bradley’s shoulder and laughed.
Together, they walked from the commuter parking lot toward the college campus, which took about five minutes, and then another three minutes to reach the quad. Luckily for Bradley, both of his morning classes were in the same building that stood on the north side of the quad, so he wouldn’t have to trek back and forth across campus.
“What’s going on up there?” Jeremy asked.
Bradley followed the direction of Jeremy’s gaze. A large group of people surrounded the quad, cell phones raised in the air. Laughter and encouraging catcalls filled the morning air.
“I have no idea,” Bradley said, his tone distracted. “A fight, maybe?”
“Whatever it is, I need to see.” Jeremy picked up his pace, and Bradley followed.
Unfortunately, the crowd was so thick and unwilling to make room for anyone else, so Bradley climbed on top of a nearby picnic table to get a better look. A group of girls were walking in a single-file line toward the quad while several other impeccably dressed girls followed.
Bradley squinted and shielded his eyes from the blinding sun. Who was that girl leading the line? She looked vaguely familiar, but he couldn’t quite place where he’d seen her before. Jeremy climbed onto the table, too, and stood shoulder-to-shoulder with Bradley.
The girls drew closer, and as they did, he was able to hear what they were saying. Or rather, chanting.
“Theta Omega Pi girls got game! Forget the walk of shame! We do the stride of pride! Theta Omega Pi girls got game!” Their voices rang out loud and clear and in perfect unison.
Bradley’s eyes widened. That was the sorority Carissa was pledging. He scanned the line for her and found her near the end. The chanting continued, and the crowd cheered. The girls stopped walking, shouted the chant one last time, then turned their backs to the group.
Jeremy laughed and pointed, but Bradley was too focused on the image on the back of Carissa’s shirt. She had her lips pressed to his cheek, almost touching the corner of his mouth, and they were both glancing at the camera. Even from this distance, he could see the sparkle in her hazel eyes the moment she’d kissed him.
Slowly, the crowd dispersed. Bradley jumped down from the table and wove his way through people to reach Carissa before she disappeared on him. When he finally stepped foot in the quad, he found Carissa talking to Tiffany and another girl he didn’t know.
The mere sight of her had the ability to steal his breath and make his heart flutter. Though, if he were being honest, a lot of his reaction right now was nerves. After rejecting her kiss yesterday—and her ignoring his text messages—he had no idea how she’d react to seeing him this morning. But he had to try to make things right.
“I gotta get to class. I’ll see you later,” Tiffany said just as Bradley approached.
“So, who do I need to talk to about getting me one of those shirts?” he asked.
Carissa spun around. Her face was flushed, and her eyes were more green than brown. “Shut up.” She laughed.
Okay, laughter was good. Maybe she wasn’t still pissed at him.
The other girl Carissa had been talking to glanced at Bradley. “Hey, I’ll talk to you later, okay?”
“Okay. See ya, Ella.” Carissa waved as the girl walked away. Then she turned her attention back to Bradley. “I’m guessing I wasn’t lucky enough for you not to have seen that?”
The corner of his mouth lifted. “I saw every wonderful moment of that. Heard every word, too.”
Carissa flung her head back and groaned. “How embarrassing.”
“So now you’re embarrassed to have kissed me?” He raised a brow, his smile widening. “The other night you said you liked it. A lot.”
