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After a few minutes and a few towels to soak up the blood, Maddox appears. In all the commotion, I didn’t realize he found us. He and I get Ridge to his feet, so we can get him home, but it’s not an easy task.
“Shuttle’s here,” Maddox says.
With Ridge in the middle, he strings his arms around mine and Maddox’s neck, and we walk out the front door to the campus shuttle waiting for us. It’s a rarity to get space on one of these things, but I’m grateful we’ve got it tonight because Ridge’s head seems to be in a fog.
The shuttle is packed full of students leaving Delta Chi and some who are coming and going elsewhere. My muddy state warrants me a glare from the driver, but I keep moving down the aisle. There’s only one seat in the middle of the shuttle, so we get Ridge in it. Maddox slides in next to him and pats his lap. I hesitate, unsure how Ridge is going to react. It’s more than apparent he doesn’t play nice when it comes to me and other guys—or anyone for that matter.
But when his head rests against the window, blood dripping down the side of the seat, I’m sure he’s not paying any attention.
“You’re gonna get dirty,” I warn Maddox, referencing the mud all over me.
“I don’t mind.”
“Suit yourself.” I sit down, one foot in the aisle and the other snug against the seat in front of us. I keep my back straight. This whole situation is tense as hell. “You’ll have to keep him awake for a while,” I tell Maddox, hoping to ease some of the awkwardness.
“I’m fine,” Ridge grumbles, lifting his wobbly head. It wavers back and forth as he tries to hold it upright, and now I’m starting to wonder if he’s drunk.
“Has he been drinking tonight?”
“Yeah. He’s shit-faced,” Maddox tells me, and I sigh.
Ridge pats at his shirt before looking at the open leather jacket I’m wearing. Lustful eyes pin to my chest and I grasp it quickly, covering myself.“You got my booze.” His hand extends and pushes one of the flaps of his jacket open, fingers grazing the skin of my breast. Goosebumps erupt over my body and my breath hitches as he pulls out a pocket-sized bottle of some clear liquor.
I gulp and toss a glance at Maddox, who’s watching me with heavy concentration. It’s apparent he saw my body react to Ridge’s touch.
“What? Why are you looking at me like that?”
He turns his head away without a word. Maddox is so damn confusing and his behavior lately is giving me whiplash. He pushes me away, then pulls me back in. It’s frustrating as hell. I liked him. Ireallyliked him. But he made this choice for us, not me.
The shuttle stops in front of the main campus and a handful of students stand to get off. Maddox pats the side of my thigh, telling me this is where we exit.
I stand up…but he doesn’t. “Are you coming?” I ask, gaze wandering from Maddox to Ridge, whose eyes are closed with an open bottle tilted in his hand.
“This is your stop. Not ours.”
My heart drops. I’m not even sure why I assumed we were all going to the same place, but of course we’re not.
I nod in response. “Take care of him, ’kay?”
Ignoring me, Maddox takes the bottle from Ridge before it spills and doesn’t give me a second look.
“You getting off or what?” the driver calls out to me.
So I do, part of me wishing I’d never left Delta Chi with these guys in the first place.
CHAPTER27
MADDOX
Three years ago,my dad sat me down and explained to me what a Guardian is.
We’re the good ones, son. We make good choices and we protect the good members by weeding out the bad ones.
Those were his words, among many others. In conclusion, I’ve been taught Guardians do no wrong. I’ve always believed it to be true. I walk alongside my friends, watching as they make wrong choice after wrong choice, never judging them in the process, but praying like hell they never get caught because I know what happens to those bad seeds. They never flourish. They’re stomped in the dirt and left behind with no roots to grow.
Every choice I’ve made has been done with my dad in mind. All I’ve ever sought in life is his approval, and so far I’ve got it. He pats me on the back when I do good. He praises my achievements. And I walk away from him with my head held high and a smile on my face, knowing that I made him proud.
But what will he do when he finds out I’ve not only shared secrets with another member, but I’m also protecting her?
