#Rev (GearShark #2) (23 page)

I glanced over at Conner. “That’s a really low thing to do, man.”

“I didn’t do it!” he roared.

“It’s all right here,” one of the frat members said, passing the papers back up front.

“Sir, on behalf of Alpha Omega, I’d like to sincerely apologize for the cruel and thoughtless actions of this boy.” I held out my hand as I spoke.

He stared at my hand like I had two heads. “I’m calling the cops.”

“We’d appreciate it if you wouldn’t.” I inclined my head. Secretly, I was having a dance party in my mind.

Karma. That’s what this was.

“I’ll give you the money back!” Con said, desperate.

I lifted an eyebrow. “So you admit to conning this man and taking his money?”

“No!” Con faltered. “Yes…
Fuck!
”

I glanced behind me at all the brothers. They all wore grim and annoyed looks. I made eye contact with them all. Each of them nodded slow.

I turned back. “Conner, you know as a brother of this house, your actions reflect on us all. You’ve disgraced the fraternity.”

“I didn’t do it,” he growled.

“That’s not what you just said,” the guy behind me said.

“You did this.” His eyes lit up and malice dripped from their depths.

I drew back. “What?”

“You somehow set me up, all to get revenge.”

I plastered an innocent, shocked expression on my face. “Revenge for what?”

Our eyes connected. We had a silent conversation no one else heard.

You did this as payback.
Conner’s eyes accused.

Karma’s a bitch.
My eyes laughed at him.

“For what I—” He stopped abruptly.

I smothered a smile as satisfaction filled me. He almost ratted himself out.

What a loser.

I sighed sadly. “Conner, I really don’t know why you think I would do something like this to my own brother. I take my role as president very seriously, and I would never do anything that would reflect poorly on this frat. I can promise you I had nothing to do with this.” My words rang out with truth because the truth was what I told.

Although I did wish I was responsible.

Conner’s chest was heaving. I pushed the listing into it. “Pay the man back and try to convince him you being a dick shouldn’t punish us all.”

I started back in the house.

“Wait!” Con yelled out in fear.

I glanced over my shoulder and pinned him with a knowing stare. “Surely you don’t need my protection. It’s only one man. It isn’t as if you’re being ambushed.”

His eyes widened.

I stepped in the house and shut the door behind me, leaving Con to clean up his own damn mess.

“First, he tries to overthrow you as president, and now, he blames you for something as childish as this?” one of the house members said in wonderment. “What the hell is that guy’s problem?”

“I don’t know, guys. I really don’t.” I spoke like I felt regret about Con’s and my relationship.

“You did the right thing,” Jack said, slapping a hand on my shoulder.

“Thanks.” I looked up to address everyone. “All right, assholes. I’ve got a charity game to get ready for. I’ll see all of you at the field in just a few hours.”

I hid my smile all the way up the stairs, but when Conner’s shriek carried through the door and to my ears, I just couldn’t suppress my emotions.

I grinned.

The door was unlocked when I put my hand on the doorknob to my room. I pushed it open and went in. Drew was going to love hearing what kind of trouble Con had gotten himself into.

But he was gone.

In his place on the bed was a note.

Sneaking out while everyone is occupied. See you at home.

PS: Couldn’t find my pants so I took yours.

PSS: I miss you like a fry misses ketchup

—F

I read his scrawled words three times just because he wrote them. After I tucked the note into my nightstand, I quickly got ready.

Drew

Could you hear that sound?

It was me laughing.

I might not have used my fists, but I could still hit.

Man, I would have loved to see Con’s face when the biker showed up asking for him. I also would have loved to see him take a couple punches, because there was no way in hell he wasn’t going to get at least a couple.

Asshole.

After the commotion started downstairs, I snuck down an old service stairway (thank God this was an old house) and crept to the back door. No one saw because they were all too busy being secretly amused Con was such a douche.

I stood there and listened as long as I dared. I mean, it was funny as shit. That kid was probably having diarrhea in his PJs. I knew he’d probably try and blame T, but it wouldn’t go that far because he’d have to rat himself out in order to explain.

He was too interested in self-preservation for that.

Besides, Trent had no idea I was the one who totally set up Con. He had nothing to do with it, so when he said so, everyone would believe him. The family was very adamant at the family meeting I not burst in the house and throw some punches.

No one said I couldn’t put my computer skills to good use.

It was earlier than I liked, so I drove to a Dunkin Donuts and ordered a coffee, and then on impulse, I grabbed a bunch of donuts and a second cup of coffee. Today was game day. I knew everyone at home (well, the guys) would be gearing up for some fun, and I was anxious to get home and join them. Hopefully, T would come over so we could all go to the field together—you know, as a united front.

Up until this point, the guys that attacked Trent thought he was keeping their identities to himself. Today, they were going to learn otherwise. They would know he told, and they would also know this little charity game wasn’t only benefiting the organization the frat voted on, but also our need to exact some physical pain.

I didn’t drive home, though. Not right away. Instead, I pointed the Fastback in the opposite direction and drove to a place I’d only been once before. The private airport looked the same as the last time I was here, with the large fence all around and the top-notch security on the gate.

Since I didn’t know the code and I didn’t see a buzzer, I pulled up close to the entrance and laid on the horn.

It was so loud it annoyed even me.

As I held my palm over the noisemaker, I consoled myself with some coffee.

A minute later, there was some movement across the way, and I eased off the horn to flicker my headlights.

A second later, the gate opened, and I nosed the Mustang through and sped over to the hangar where Arrow lived.

The wide door on the front was still closed, but there was a small man-sized door on the side, and he was standing in it, watching me. All he was wearing was a pair of loose sweats, his chest bare. He was definitely tall and lanky, but maybe not quite as skinny as I originally thought. He did have some definition to his chest and arms, but his abs were flat.

Arrow also had quite a few tattoos; almost his entire left shoulder was covered in them, and he had some on his chest as well. I wasn’t about to stare long enough to know what kind of designs they were. He might think I was checking him out.

I carried over the extra coffee I’d gotten and held it out between us.

He glanced at it, then at me before taking it.

“You drink coffee?” I asked.

“Doesn’t everybody?”

I wondered what his conversation with Lorhaven was like after our talk in the garage at home. I wondered if Lorhaven told him about T and me. I wondered what Arrow thought about us. I wondered if he was embarrassed because he had a crush on me.

Oddly, I wasn’t embarrassed by it. It was kind of flattering, I guess. Mostly, it kind of endeared the kid to me. (Yes, I know I’m supposed to think of him as a man, but it’s hard, okay? He’s kind of like the baby brother I never had.)

I felt this odd sort of kinship with him even though we were nothing alike. Well, at least I’d thought that before.

Now?

Now I was starting to think maybe he and I had more in common than either of us realized.

“Thanks,” Arrow said, gesturing to the Styrofoam cup, and took a sip. Then he gestured with his head to the door, and I followed him inside.

It smelled like oil and car parts. You know, that sort of metal tinge to the air.

“What are you doing here?” Arrow asked, blunt, as I glanced around, looking into the back of the hangar toward the bed he slept in. Clearly, I’d gotten him up. The sheets were still tangled and there was an indent in the pillow.

“Going to a football game this morning. Thought you might wanna come.”

“Why?” His eyes were suspicious.

I had a feeling Arrow was suspicious of people a lot, and it was because he’d been conditioned that way. I remembered Lorhaven saying something to the tune of Arrow always wanting to see the best in people, and I wondered how he balanced that with the wariness.

I shrugged. “Might be fun.”

“Trent gonna be there?” he asked.

I nodded. “My whole family will be there. You’ll like them.”

“I don’t think so,” he said.

I lifted an eyebrow. “You don’t strike me as the type to judge people before you meet them.”

“I meant I don’t think they’ll like me.”

I lowered my coffee away from my face. “They like me. They like Trent. They’re totally cool with our relationship.”

“So you
are
in a relationship with him.”

I nodded. “Your brother told you, didn’t he?”

“I thought he was making it up. Trying to keep me away from you.”

I laughed. “He would do something like that.”

Arrow grinned.

“Your brother is a lot of things, but I don’t think he would intentionally hurt you. He wants you to be happy.”

“I know.” He looked away, giving all his attention to the cup.

“My father kicked me out, too,” I said softly.

His head snapped up.

“That’s why you live here, right? You told your father you’re gay, and he kicked you out.”

“He hates me now.”

My stomach clenched. I knew exactly how that felt. I knew exactly what it was like to be suddenly unloved by people who said—
no, who were supposed to
—they always would.

It sucked real bad. But something whispered in my ear that as rough as I had it, Arrow had it ten times worse.

I at least had a family who loved me, a whole house full of people who cared. And I had Trent. With him, I would never, ever have to feel alone.

Who did Arrow have besides Lorhaven?

“I don’t think he hates you. I just think he doesn’t understand, and it scares him.”

“The result is still the same.” His tone was matter-of-fact.

Oh yes, Lorhaven was right. This kid was definitely beyond his years.

“You’re right.” I agreed. “And it doesn’t make it suck any less. But for every person who is narrow-minded, there’s one who isn’t.”

“Yeah? Where are they?”

I held out my arms. “Right here.”

He ran a hand through his blond hair, pushing it over to reveal the ultra-short side.

“What about Trent?”

“What about him?” I asked.

“He know you’re here?”

I smiled. “He will if you come with me.”

The look on his face made me smile. “I’m the possessive one, not him. Besides, he likes you.”

“I hit on you.”

I couldn’t help it; I laughed out loud. “Dude, you need to work on your game. I had no idea.”

“Way to crush a man’s ego,” he said and pressed a hand over his chest.

“I’m here, aren’t I?” I said. “Look, I’m all in with Trent. That’s not gonna change. But I got room in my life for friends.”

Arrow stared at me for a long minute. I saw the debate rage in his mind. He wanted to be friends, so badly. He was almost desperate, but it was that desperation that made him hesitate. He was asking himself if he could trust me. If this would only come back to bite him in the ass.

It made me ache for him.

“You can invite your brother if you want,” I offered, barely able to say the words without choking. Obviously, his brother was the closest person to him, and his loyalty went beyond the bonds of blood.

To trust.

Seemed like Lorhaven might be the only guy in Arrow’s life that actually cared and wouldn’t screw him over.

“Yeah.” Arrow nodded. “Okay.”

I grinned. “Get some clothes. Trent’s not possessive, but if I show up with a half-naked gay dude, he might learn to be.”

Arrow laughed, and I thought I saw the tinge of a blush across his cheeks.

Did I just kinda flirt with him?

Like for real?

I was getting good at being gay.

No, strike that. I was getting good at being who I really was.

I wasn’t interested in Arrow, not like that, but it felt pretty good to give him a little boost of confidence. I didn’t think he got those very often.

Maybe this good deed would help counteract the bad one I put into play at the frat this morning.

Not that I cared. Con deserved exactly what he got.

And it would be good for Arrow to see the bigots of the world didn’t always win out.