Page 4 of Furious
I hadn’t thought about that.
“Yeah, you’re right. But we need to keep tabs on her to make sure she’s safe. I don’t like the idea of Fox being anywhere near her.” I tell him. “If he even tried to lay one finger on Zara, getting arrested for racing a motorcycle in town would be just the tip of the fucking iceberg.”
Chance gets my drift. “True. I would fucking kill him. So we agree? Not one word of this to anyone. We’ll just make sure Fox is so humiliated when he loses to us again that he’s going to stay away for good. From us and especially from Zara.”
As if summoned by our words, Zara comes into the kitchen. “Hey guys, good morning.” She covers her mouth with one hand as she yawns. “Is there any coffee left?”
I rise from my chair and go to pour her a cup. Unlike most of the girls I know, Zara likes her coffee black. “There you go, Zee.” I smile, setting the cup down on the counter and pulling her into my arms. “I’m afraid there’s a coffee tax to pay.”
She tilts her head to the side as her hands are resting on my chest and her lips curl in an adorable little smile. “Really? And what’s the price?”
I fight the urge to chuckle. “A kiss.” I keep my tone serious, almost solemn.
“I see. I think it’s only fair.”
Her lips touch mine, soft and warm.
I tease the seam of her mouth with my tongue, immediately deepening the kiss when she lets me in.
Her arms go around my neck and I grab her ass with both hands, pressing her soft body against my hard one.
Someone clears their throat and we part. I had totally forgotten that Chance was in the room. “Sorry.” I chuckle.
“No, you’re not.” There’s a scowl on Chance’s face. “And besides, if someone should collect a coffee tax, it’s me. You don’t even live here.”
Making him jealous is fun. “Potato po-tah-to.” I chuckle.
But Zara pushes out of my arms and leans down to kiss her stepbrother. “Good morning, Chance.” She whispers.
He pulls her down onto his lap. “Now that you’re here, it’s definitely a good morning.”
She traces his jaw with her fingers, dipping her head for another kiss. “Definitely. I missed you last night. How was your Gamma pre-rush night?”
Chance offers her the redacted version; the one without an illegal motorcycle race her ex happens to be involved in.
“It turned out to be more than we expected. There was a scandal involving the last Gamma president, so the Dean put the fraternity on probation. That means they aren’t allowed to recruit anyone except legacies or hockey players. Last night, it was an initiation rather than a pre-rush event.”
That’s smart. Technically, he isn’t lying to her. Even though I think lying by omissions is still very questionable.
“How was your night at the Zeta house?” I ask in the attempt to move the conversation away from the danger zone. I hate the idea of lying to Zara, no matter how.
“Interesting.” She looks from Chance to me. “I like the idea of sisterhood. It was the one thing I didn’t hate about boardingschool. But I don’t think it’s my scene. The past two years, I’ve had little to no freedom. Every aspect of our lives at school was closely monitored and dictated. While the Zetas are really cool, I don’t want to be told how to dress, what to do, and who to be friends with.”
I don’t blame her. “Yeah, I know what you mean. If most of the hockey team wasn’t in Gamma Delta Tau, I don’t know if I would have pledged, despite being a legacy. But I guess it’s a two bird with one stone kind of situation. I get to hang out with my teammates, have a room to crash in after a party, and my parents are happy they can say I’m following in my father’s footsteps.”
“Same.” Chance agrees.
“The only problem now,” Zara rises from Chance’s lap. “Is how to tell Heather without hurting her feelings. She was already disappointed that I’m not interested in being a cheerleader. And she went out of her way to help me fit in with the Zeta sisters.”
Chance and I look at each other. We both know how hard it is to say no to Heather.
“Yeah, she’s going to be disappointed.” I lace my fingers with hers, bringing them to my lips. “If she’s a real friend, she isn’t going to hold it against you. It’s like when I joined Star Arrows, but Chance wasn’t into it. It didn’t affect our friendship.”
Zara nods. “Yeah. I just don’t want to hurt her, though. Heather is the only girlfriend I have in town. And she’s been so nice to me from the moment we met. I really hope she’ll understand that saying no to Zeta Theta Beta doesn’t mean I don’t want to be her friend.”
“You should just say that to her, then.” I suggest.
A noise comes from Zara’s purse, and she lets go of my hand to check her phone. “My ride is here. I’ll see you guys later.”
