Page 9 of Deadly Sacrifice

We have a bit of a stare off, and then with a rough swallow, I nod and break her gaze.

***

“Whew, I thought for sure I was about to be right in the middle of a cat fight,” Annie murmurs as we walk down the long hall on the main floor toward all the bedrooms.

I roll my eyes and give her a half smile. “Who knew? Heather is the embodiment of two-faced.”

Annie finds an open door — a closed door means the room has been taken already — and walks inside, dropping her enormous zebra print suitcase onto the bed on the left. “What do you mean? She’s always like that. I may be a freshman here, but I’ve heard all the rumors about her. She’s a rude bitch at the best of times,” she tells me distractedly while she unzips and starts to unpack.

I set down my two duffel bags at the floor by the other bed, and then plop down, laying back and spreading my arms to my sides. Squinting up at the ceiling, I say, “That’s news to me. She couldn’t have been more of the stereotypical preppy nice girl when we met. I thought she was going to buy us matching sweaters and make me a friendship bracelet.”

My new roommate snorts out a soft laugh, and when I look at her, she’s shaking her head at me. “Whoever you met wasn’t Heather. There’s nothing nice about her. Not unless you’re rich and gorgeous, and she can find a way to use you for her benefit.”

I hum as I let that sink in.

“Hey, baby,” a deep voice says, startling the absolute crap out of me. We’re in a sorority house. The very last thing I expected to hear on move-in day was a guy.

I sit up on my new bed, locking eyes with the man standing in the open doorway. He’s got a deep tan, gelled back black hair, and light brown eyes, and he’s wearing gym shorts and one of those oversized tees with the armpits cut way down low.

“Hi,” Annie says softly, tucking hair behind her ear as she smiles shyly at him.

The guy licks his lips, cocking his head. “You’re not going to come kiss me?” he asks. His smile is playful, but the hard edge in his tone isn’t. At all.

Annie breathes out a laugh, dropping the folded jeans she was getting ready to put away. “No, of course I am,” she murmurs, flicking her eyes to me as she crosses the room and hugs him.

“Kiss,” he says dryly, staring down at the top of her head.

She tips her chin up and offers her lips, and he inhales her. There’s tongue and sloppy wet sounds, and he even gropes her butt and yanks her more firmly against him.

My stomach flips over itself. I’m caught between wanting to excuse myself to give them some privacy and wanting to shout I’m right here. Keep your goddamn dick in your pants, dude. Fortunately for my eyeballs, they break apart before too much longer.

Annie avoids looking at me as this guy takes her hand and leads her into the room again. He tosses her open suitcase onto the floor, sending a few pieces of clothing scattering across the carpet, and reclines on her bed. “The bed’s not very big, but we’ve never had a problem getting creative with our positions,” he rasps, tugging on her hand until she almost stumbles onto him.

I try my best not to let my lips curl up in distaste, but I’ve never been very good at controlling my outside emotions. If I feel it, my face is undoubtedly gonna show it.

Annie sighs, whispering something too low for me to hear. The overly horny guy tenses his jaw, staring at her, and then rolls his eyes and releases her hand. Then she turns to face me, smiling as though this entire scene isn’t so fucking weird. “This is my boyfriend, Mark. Mark, this is my new roommate, Prudence,” she says meekly, gesturing to each of us.

Mark scans me up and down, chuckling under his breath. “The name fits. You look like a prude,” he says, a malicious smile on his stupid face.

Annie drops her gaze, her cheeks turning bright pink. What the ever loving fuck does she see in him? Slapping on a sharp smile, I say, “Wow, I didn’t realize we were still in middle school.” He arches a brow at me, grinding his jaw, so I add, “I figure a smart college man like yourself could at least think up better insults.”

Something in his expression darkens, and it churns my stomach. Annie cringes, opening her mouth like she’s going to say something, but I don’t know if she’s coming to my defense or his. Either way, I’m not interested in sticking around to find out.

“I have more shit to grab from my dorm. You two have fun,” I say on my way out without looking at either of them.

“Oh, we will. Don’t rush back,” Mark calls after me, like the dick he is.

7

Creed

Come get your girl.

That’s all the text reads, but I don’t need any more information than that. I practically race from the house and across the street.

Move in weekend for Alpha Chi Omega is kind of like being the only sane one in the middle of a madhouse. Been there, done that. It’s chaotic, and everything feels too rushed and crowded for comfort.

I don’t bother knocking before I enter, because not a single girl in this three-story house will hear it. And just as I suspected, when I close the door behind myself and walk through the busy first floor, there are hot, half-naked college girls running around everywhere.

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