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“So what’s going on?” I plop down on the couch and hold my shoulders back. Elina sits opposite on the couch facing, and Isabel sits beside her. Isabel meets my gaze while Elina does the talking.
“Charlotte, you’re out,” she says quickly.
“Wow, rip that Band-Aid off,” I reply, trying to laugh. “Look, I’m sorry for my shitty behavior...”
Isabel grimaces as she shifts in her seat. “It’s not just that...”
I interrupt her, hoping I can still change their mind. But I fucked up and might’ve run out of second chances. “I’ve seen what’s trending. I’m not proud, but it’s over.”
Elina stands and sits beside me, encroaching on my space. Her habitually friendly, sometimes shy personality is replaced with a determination that I can’t battle. She cares about Gamma while I used them like they were better than nothing.
She stares me down like a hawk on the hunt. “Have you spoken to Theta, Charlotte?”
Looking away instantly tells her yes. “Helen stopped by to say hello,” I reply. “She said a few things, but I said nothing.”
Isabel scoffs as she gets up and walks over to the boxes. Total honesty was the wrong approach.
Elina continues, “Charlotte, you’ve pledged to sisterhood. It’s not a hookup, and you can’t come bouncing back in the morning.”
“It’s not like that…”
She cuts me off, her eyes narrowing while her cheeks turn pink. “They shamed you over and over again while we stood behind you. Gamma was willing to ignore conduct that would have gotten any other pledge kicked out. We liked you. We trusted you.”
“We only talked,” I reply feebly.
“Is this how you plan to act, to have us continually put up with your shit? We’re done, Charlotte. I’m sorry, but Gamma doesn’t want you.”
“Your stuff is here.” Isabel taps the boxes with the toe of her boot. “I’ll get an Uber.”
They offer to carry my boxes to the curb, but I refuse their help. I won’t look at them as I carry my stuff to the waiting car. Did Theta tell them or someone else? I thought I had made friends at Gamma, but there were conditions. My mistakes obviously overshadowed my usefulness. But at least I didn’t insult them by pulling out my checkbook.
CHAPTER 5
Jaxon
I sit on the porch, freezing my balls off while sucking down a burning hot coffee. I rock back and forth in a creaky patio chair as I watch nothing happening on High Street. Pledging isn’t what I thought it would be. It’s either dull as shit, like cleaning up after a sty of sweaty pigs, or the other end of the spectrum. I don’t like thinking about that. I’ll never talk about the shit that goes on in the basement.
A blonde wrapped in a wool coat walks up the hill into my view. Charlotte? Finally, someone interesting. I toss the cup over the railing and hurry to meet her. The stitches have dissolved in my side, but there’s still some phantom pinching. But nothing’s going to slow me down. I hug her gently, but the worried look on her face makes me pull back.
“What’s the trouble, angel?” I ask. “I’m here for you.”
She smiles, barely. “How are you feeling?” She frowns at my torso, covered in a puffer jacket, as if she can still see the wound.
I wrap my arm around her waist and guide her toward the porch. “Better. Come hang out with me.”
She pauses at the end of the walkway. “I’m looking for Asher.” She looks past my shoulder. “Or Hudson?”
I frown. “Am I the third choice?”
Her eyes widen. “No, I just—” She stares into my eyes while seeking the right words. She has no idea how beautiful she is when she’s being real. “I need to talk to someone.”
I place both hands on her shoulders. “And that’s what we will do.” I slip my hand in hers and hold on to Charlotte as I guide her down the walkway. “Hardly anyone is here during the day except on the weekends. Kurt’s not around.”
She digs in her heels at the bottom of the stoop. “Maybe I should go to the Oak and wait for Asher there.”
I stop moving, and Charlotte stumbles against me. I grab hold of her and take advantage of the moment, holding her in my arms. A tremor races through me as I hold her against my chest while her breath rises out of her mouth in a fog. The need to cover her mouth with mine is demanding as my cock starts to twitch. People call me brave to my face and crazy behind my back for taking a knife. I’d do it again for a moment with her like this.
“Come on,” I whisper. “You can talk to me. I’m your Jaxon.”
