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“I guess.” I pause for a second and then add, “But I’m not leaving the house at the ass crack of dawn with you. I’ll meet you and Bex for the second half of the games. Maybe Bex has some hot friends she can bring along for me. And I’ll warm up to her… do some recon for you.”
Somehow, he always manages talking me into doing shit I don’t want to do. Like getting up early on one of my few days off from school and hockey.
He slaps me on the back. “I knew I could count on my wingman.”
“You know, you could just ask Bex whatever you want to know. Stop acting like such a pussy.”
Preston groans. “Whatever. I’m going to go hit the showers. I’ll catch you later.”
“I’m making dinner later.” I lift the bar somewhat out of breath. Damn, this is sad. “Make sure you’re home.”
He narrows his eyes at me. “You’re making dinner? What, in the microwave? You don’t know how to cook.”
“Shannon’s making dinner for me, by extension, she’s now cooking for the entire house.”
“Sounds good. Don’t do anything stupid. I don’t want my food poisoned.”
I laugh. “Nah, Shannon’s cool.”
I tell him about Shannon and her sisters dancing in a contest this weekend at The Sixth Floor. He agrees to come with our friends and me. Not like he’d miss an opportunity to watch half-naked girls shake their asses on a bar.
About to leave, Preston glances over his shoulder at me. “Did you get any new leads on The Queen?”
“No. I wish. I looked again this morning before I went to class. Whoever’s running the blog is good. Better than I expected.”
“So, what’s that mean? You can’t find her?”
“I can and I will. But I need more time. She’s a coder with real skills.”
He laughs. “You’re getting beat by a girl?”
His question irritates me. “No, of course not. She’s just making it harder for me to find her.”
“If we don’t react to her, maybe she’ll go away.”
“She posts new pictures of us every day,” I point out. “Everyone on campus is talking about her. They’ve even downloaded her app. I doubt she’ll go away anytime soon. When you feed an animal, they keep coming back for more.”
That’s the worst part about all of this. The Queen has infiltrated the cell phones of almost everyone on campus because of her stupid app. You can scroll through pictures of most of the popular students on campus in compromising positions all because of the mastermind behind Dethroned. She’s good, way better than I could’ve imagined. I hate being bested by anyone, and The Queen has really gotten under my skin.
“Then all we have to do is stop feeding her ego,” Preston counters.
I chuckle. “Good luck with that. You might be able to get our team to listen to you, but I wouldn’t hold my breath when it comes to the rest of the students on campus.”
He rolls his eyes at me. “I’ll see you at home.”
After he stomps off, my cell phone vibrates in my pocket. It’s Shannon telling me she’ll see me in an hour. My heart crashes into my chest. For the first time, in a long time, I’m excited about a date.
But it’s not supposed to be one… or is it?
Chapter Six
Shannon
After work, I rush over to the Kappa Delta sorority house to practice the dance routine for this weekend with my sisters. I stumble through the front door, already fifteen minutes late. Abby has a strict policy about being on time.
She narrows her eyes at me when I walk into the living room, crossing her arms over her chest. “Where were you?”
“My professor wanted to talk to me after class,” I lie.
Only a few of my sisters are aware of my financial situation. Abby is the last person I would ever tell anything personal. She still believes my parents have money and that I can afford to buy expensive clothes. Or at least, she doesn’t say anything if she does know the truth. Jordan is her closest friend, but I doubt Jordan would ever tell on me. Not when she’s the one who helps me conceal the truth.
For a second, Abby glares before extending her hand for me to take my place among my sisters. “Now…” she hisses turning back to the group, “… where were we before we were rudely interrupted?”
I roll my eyes at the back of her head, and Jordan notices. A smirk turns up the right corner of her mouth as our eyes meet.
In a hurry, I strip off my jacket and assume my position in line. Abby raises her hands above her head, gesturing for us to follow. Our routine is ridiculous. I hate the fact we have to dance on a bar this weekend for money. It’s for a charitable cause, so I guess that makes it less demoralizing. Still, I’m not thrilled about shaking my ass for any amount of money for any reason. But I can’t be the only girl in my sorority to bail.
