Chapter 6
ANTHONY
“Are there any objections?” Declan asks as he looks around the room. “Then the matter is closed.”
“Awesome,” Hazen mumbles. “I wasn’t sure how I was going to make it through another day without knowing if we’re switching to a different brand of TP.”
I roll my lips inward so I don’t snicker and gently kick Hazen’s shoe.
“What?” he whispers, his expression the picture of innocence. “Having the status of our tushie paper up in the air like that was really stressing me out.”
“There’s one more order of business we need to go over,” Graycen says from the front of the meeting room. “Then we can call it a night.”
A low murmur filters through the room, but a hard look from Graycen is enough to make everyone stop talking before they’ve had a chance to really start.
Leadership always schedules a house meeting the night we come back from any sort of break or vacation, and tonight is no different.
Only instead of having a few housekeeping issues to go over like usual, we’ve spent the last two hours going over what feels like every single line item on the house maintenance list and voting on the stupidest things like if we want to switch to a different brand of toilet paper, like we just spent the last ten minutes discussing.
No one gives a shit about any of this stuff, but we still have to vote on it, and I’ve spent most of the meeting trying to look like I’m engaged and listening while they go over the pros and cons for each item we’re voting on.
“As you all know, the nominations for next year’s house leadership were closed before the break,” Graycen continues.
Hazen immediately sits up straight, his gaze laser-focused on Graycen, and both Connor and Rath do the same.
We’ve been wondering when they’re going to announce the results of the nominations and how they’re going to explain it to everyone. It looks like we won’t have to wait long.
“Normally we’d announce the nominees so they can get started on their campaigns,” Graycen says, sounding way more bored now that he’s talking about the elections than he did when he was going through the pros and cons list of using scented or non-scented trash bags in the common areas. “But we’re not doing that.”
Another low murmur moves through the crowd as everyone reacts to his announcement.
“This year,” he continues, raising his voice enough to quiet the whispers.
“Things are going to be different.” He flicks his gaze over to where the four of us are sitting.
“It seems we’ve broken a record,” he continues as he looks back out at the group.
“And this is the first time in Keepers history that there have only been four nominees.”
This time the buzz of voices is loud as everyone starts talking at once, and I don’t miss how almost everyone in the room turns to stare at us, even though Declan didn’t mention any names yet.
“So in a Keepers first, we’re announcing next year’s leadership team,” Graycen says, his tone as flat as his expression. “So congrats to Anthony, Logan, Hazen, and Connor.”
A loud smattering of applause rings out, and a few people shout their congratulations, but Graycen quickly raises his hands to once again silence the room.
“And now that there’s no further business to discuss, the meeting is adjourned,” he declares, officially ending the meeting.
The four of us are quickly surrounded by a group of our frat brothers as they come to congratulate us, and we spend the next few minutes joking about prime room assignments and other house perks that can only be granted by leaders.
It doesn’t escape me that there’s one brother in particular who doesn’t come to talk to us, and he also spent the meeting looking like he was a million miles away.
Something is definitely on West’s mind. I wonder what it could be?
A smile tilts the corner of my lips as West finally gets to his feet and haphazardly pulls his hoodie on.
The muscles on his arms bunch and pull enticingly as he yanks the fabric over his head, and the tight material of his tee clings to his hard stomach as it rides up, showing off a strip of smooth skin above his low-slung jeans.
I give the guys a quick upnod to excuse myself, then casually walk toward the door, timing my exit so I reach it at the same time as West.
He’s so distracted he doesn’t seem to notice me until we’re almost at the door, and his double take, along with the little two-step move he does as he stumbles to a stop, is weirdly endearing.
“Oh. Sorry.” He lets out a breathy laugh and scrubs one hand through his fluffy blond hair. “Almost ran right into you.”
We’ve stopped, so I’m blocking just enough of the exit that he can’t slip by without either rubbing up against me or asking me to move.
“It’s all good,” I tell him and shift closer to the door. “Partner.”
“Partner?” His eyes go comically round. “Oh, right. The project.” He huffs out another laugh and shoots me a wry smile. “Can you tell I was in my own world there?”
I motion for him to go first. “Anything going on?”
“No,” he says quickly and steps through the door, his arm and shoulder brushing mine as he passes. “Just tried from traveling.”
I fall into step beside him as we walk down the hall together. “Did you have a good break?”
He offers me a weak smile. “Yeah, it was great. How was yours?”
“Pretty good.”
“That’s good.” He shoots me a quick glance. “Congratulations on the leadership thing. And for breaking a record like that.” His smile is rueful as he shakes his head and drops his gaze to the floor for a few beats. “I bet your dad will be happy you did what no one else in Keeper history has done.”
I quickly rake my gaze over his body, and how his entire demeanor changes at the mention of my father.
It’s almost like he’s folding in on himself as his broad shoulders droop and turn inward, and he even leans forward the slightest bit, like he’s trying to make himself smaller.
“He definitely will be.” I don’t bother telling him that our dads were informed about not only our wins, but our lack of competition before we were, so I already know exactly how he feels about the news. “Your dad wouldn’t be happy if it were you?”
“What?” He shoots me a sharp look. “Why would you say that?”
“Something about your tone makes it seem like you believe he wouldn’t be happy if you were the one who broke the record.”
He huffs out a bitter-sounding laugh. “He’d never shut the fuck up if it was one of my brothers who did it, but he’d find a way to make it a bad thing if it was me.
He’d probably be pissed that I managed to do something he couldn’t do.
” He shakes his head, like he’s breaking himself free from his thoughts.
“But whatever. It’s not like it matters because no one with half a brain would ever put me in charge of anything. ”
“You don’t think you’d make a good leader?”
“Hell no.” He snort-laughs. “I can barely keep my own shit in order. Only a moron would give me any sort of responsibility over anything important.”
“I think you’re being too hard on yourself.”
“You do?” He shoots me a surprised look, and there’s something about his expression that tugs at something deep inside me. Beneath the shock is something soft and seeking, and there’s a sense of vulnerability that I’m not expecting at all.
I’ve known West for three years now, and I’ve been messing with him for just as long. But in all that time, he’s never looked at me like that, and I’m not sure what to do with it.
“Yeah,” I say, not liking how thick my voice sounds. “And I think you need to stop listening to whatever assholes are telling you otherwise.”
“That would be pretty much everyone I’ve ever met,” he says with a self-deprecating smile.
“Then pretty much everyone you’ve ever met is an asshole.”
“You sure that math is mathing?” He tosses me another smile, only this one has genuine humor behind it.
“How can everyone else be wrong? Wouldn’t the law of averages mean that I’m the problem?
” He scrunches his nose up for a few seconds, like he’s thinking really hard about something.
“Is that how the law of averages works? Or am I mixing it up with another math thing?” He shrugs. “Either way, my point stands.”
“Does it?” I pull open the door that will take us back to the main lobby.
He shoots me another confused look and steps through the door. “Yeah?”
I follow him through the door. “I don’t think it does.”
He shoots me another of those soft, seeking looks that hits me deep in the chest. “Really?”
“Really,” I say as we walk down the quiet hallway together.
“The world is full of assholes who will do anything they can to tear you down, and there will always be people in your life who are only there because they’re waiting for you to fail.
As long as you know that, you can protect yourself against them and their influence.
And going into any given situation already assuming that everyone in the room is an asshole until they prove otherwise is a way to do that. ”
He chews on his lip, and I can practically see the gears turning in his head as he processes what I said.
“But then again,” I say as we come up to the door that will take us into the main lobby. “Sometimes all you want from someone is an asshole.”
West does a lurching double-step as he either trips over his feet or stumbles on nothing, and I toss him a quick look over my shoulder. “Catch ya later, partner.”
Ping.
I swipe my phone up from where I tossed it on my bed and check my notifications.
A smile spreads across my lips when I see it’s from the messaging app Liam coded for me.
I spent most of the break contemplating what I should do about the video I accidentally took of McKenna cheating on West, and after going back and forth, I decided to tell him—after I had some fun with it.
I normally don’t give a shit what people do if it doesn’t directly affect me or anyone I care about, and that includes what they do in their relationships.
If people want to cheat on their partners, then whatever. That’s their choice, and their personal business has nothing to do with me, so why would I get involved?
It’s the same reason I stay away from campus drama, and why I try not to get involved in the petty drama that goes on at the house. Not my business, not my problem. Staying neutral and avoiding conflict has always been my MO, but that seems to go out the window when West is involved.
Rather than even attempting to unpack that thought, I settle against my headboard and open his text.
West: why are you doing this?
Anthony: doing what?
West: texting me from that number
Anthony: that number? What’s special about my number?
West: your number????
Anthony: yes, my number
West: it’s not your number
Anthony: it isn’t?
It’s interesting that the first thing he asked was why I used his old phone number to text him, and not anything about McKenna, my identity, or if I actually have proof that he’s been cheated on.
West: it used to be mine
Anthony: it did? what a coincidence
West: why are you doing this?
Anthony: because I want to know if you want to know if your fiancée cheated on you
West: but why use my old number?
Anthony: because I figured there was a better chance of you opening my text if it was a number you recognized and not a random or blocked one
West: that’s the only reason?
Anthony: that’s the only reason
West: do you have any idea how much that fucked with me? How much of my mental bandwidth has been used up trying to figure out what the hidden message of that could be???
Anthony: sorry
West: no you’re not
Anthony: no I’m really not
West: who are you?
Anthony: someone who asked you a question
West: but *why* did you ask me that question?
Anthony: because I want to know your answer
Anthony: do you have an answer?
West: I will once you give me a chance to process the question
Anthony: it’s been hours. how much time are we talking?
West: how much time would you need to process someone asking if you want to see proof of your fiancée cheating on you?
Anthony: no time at all because I’ll never have a fiancée
There’s a bit of a pause, then the little bubbles that show he’s typing pop up again.
A part of me was convinced that I’d send those texts and never hear from him. And if I did get a response, I figured he’d maybe send a few texts demanding answers before telling me to go fuck myself.
But he not only answered me, he’s keeping the conversation going.
West: do you really have proof or are you doing this to fuck with me?
Anthony: I have proof
Anthony: the fucking with you part is just a happy accident
West: you’re an asshole
Anthony: guilty as charged
West: what kind of proof is it?
Anthony: a video
West: did you take it?
Anthony: yes
West: where?
Anthony: at a party
West: when?
Anthony: during the party
West: that’s not what I meant
Anthony: it’s what you asked
West: why do you care?
That makes me pause, and I try to decipher what he means. Text isn’t great for getting a read on people, but something about that last message feels different, like his tone has shifted.
Anthony: what do you mean, why do I care?
West: I mean why do you care if my gf cheated on me? why would you bother telling me?
Anthony: because I’m a good person
West: I thought you were an asshole?
Anthony: two things can be true
West: pretty sure they can’t when those two things are being a good person and being an asshole
There’s another pause, then the bubbles appear again
West: are you trying to break me and M up?
Anthony: no
West: you expect me to believe that?
Anthony: I don’t expect anything from you
Anthony: I just asked a simple question
West: simple?
Anthony: yes
West: who are you?
Anthony: someone who asked you a question
West: and if I don’t have an answer for you?
Anthony: then I’ll wait until you do
West: what if I never have an answer for you?
Anthony: then I guess I’ll be waiting for a long time
Anthony: you have my number when you decide what you want to do.
I send my text, then send a winky face just to be annoying
West: asshole
Anthony: guilty
I wait to see if he has more to say, then toss my phone onto my bed when it’s obvious he doesn’t.
That was way more fun than it should have been, and I’m not sure what to make of the fact that I hope that’s not the end of things because I’m not done with him yet.