20. The Bro-Code
COLE
I ’ve been in a strange mood all day, since I woke up next to Bay after that hot, vivid dream.
Every attempt to get my best friend out of my thoughts has been futile.
I almost kissed her last night.
If Topher hadn’t interrupted our dance with his stupid party game, I would have crossed the line.
I would have broken every promise I made myself since Bay and I became close. That I wouldn’t fuck this up.
There have been a few moments over the years when the air between us had gotten charged with something more than our usual easy togetherness.
An intense look, a casual touch that lingered for longer than necessary, a conversation that turned unexpectedly flirty.
I’ve thought about kissing her once or twice before, but I knew it would be a huge mistake.
Bay was dating Topher back then and she would have rejected me without the shadow of a doubt. She’s loyal to a fault and she would have never cheated on her boyfriend. That’s one of the many reasons why I love her.
Maybe the fact that she disappeared for the entire summer after their breakup wasn’t for the worst.
I don’t know if I would have been able to keep from crossing the line when it was too soon.
What if it’s still too soon and I was about to make the biggest mistake of my life if I kissed her last night?
No.
There was that vibe between us that gives me hope that she doesn’t see me just as her playboy best friend.
I regret not kissing her at the rush fair, but I didn’t want to do it on some kind of dare, because Topher told me to, as if he was throwing me a bone.
When I kiss her, I want her to know that I mean it. That if she wants me, I’m all in.
“Hey,” I bump into Jagger and Ryker at the bottom of the stairs. “Do you know what Topher is up to?”
I shrug at Jagger’s question. “Beats me what’s so urgent.”
He sighs, clearly annoyed. “I’m sure we’ll find out soon.”
What if I’m too late? With Bay, I mean.
What if her new friendship with Jagger turns into something more and I missed my chance?
Nah, Jagger isn’t into relationships. He said he’s just her rebound .
If Bay wanted more, would my best friend end their arrangement?
On one hand, that would be ideal for me. I don’t want them to turn into more than fuck buddies, but if Jagger hurt her, I would fucking kill him.
When everyone is gathered at the long table and on the couches around it in the den, I’m almost grateful to be pulled out of the vicious cycle of my own thoughts.
“Yo Pres,” Tucker hollers above the other brothers’ chatter. “What’s so urgent? I was about to go hang out with two girls on the dance team when you texted. ”
His eyebrows wiggle suggestively, leaving no doubt on what he means with “hang out.”
Topher’s eyes move around the room, making sure he has everyone’s attention before he speaks.
The guy must be a fucking asshole, but he knows how to command attention. I’m pretty sure that skill is going to come in handy one day in the courtroom.
“This shouldn’t take long,” Topher reassures everyone. “I just wanted to touch base with everyone after the events of last night and make sure we’re all on the same page.”
When he mentions last night, all my senses are on high alert. I’m guessing he’s talking about what happened between Ryker and Bay.
“Unless Ryker was mistaken, do you care to explain yourself, Jugs?”
Judging by the surprised reactions in the room, I’m not the only one who thought that Ryker would be the one in the hot seat.
Jagger doesn’t let Topher’s aggressive tone ruffle his feathers. He has faced bigger and scarier opponents on the ice and he remains in his seat, as cool as a cucumber.
“About?” he answers Topher’s question with another question, clearly irritated by the use of that nickname he’s always hated.
Topher raises from his seat at the head of the table, his fists clenched at his sides, his body leaning forward, vibrating with aggression. “About the identity of the person who helped you end our losing streak by sucking your cock in the locker room before yesterday’s game.”
There are a couple of nervous laughs in the room, as Jagger doesn’t move a muscle.
Our president’s voice goes up by a few decibels when he doesn’t receive a response. “Tell me that Ryker was wrong and you didn’t go after my girlfriend. ”
Jagger finally speaks, his tone calm but ominous at the same time. “I think you’re the one who’s mistaken for calling Bay your girlfriend. Last I remember, she dumped your sorry ass after she found you inside a bunny in her bed. So whether or not Ryker was right or wrong, I don’t think it should matter to you.”
Topher slams his fist on the table, his face red with fury. “Bay is mine!” he snaps. “If you fucking touched her, I swear to fucking God?—”
“You said and I quote,” Jagger interrupts Topher’s tirade. “ Find a chick who’s willing to come to the locker room and let you stick your dick in her mouth until you jizz down her throat. It doesn’t matter if she’s good at sucking cock or not, at this point we’re desperate. Who that chick was shouldn’t matter to you.”
Topher goes from red to purple. “Bay and I are gonna get back together!” he yells.
Jagger’s gaze hardens. “That’s not what she said yesterday in the locker room.”
“Ha,” Tucker chuckles. “Did she? If she could talk with your cock in her mouth, you’ve been doing this wrong this whole time.”
“Shut up, Tuck!” Topher demands before turning back to Jagger. “Bay isn’t a puck bunny. She doesn’t hook up. Fuck knows she made me wait for months to get past a few kisses when we started dating. How did you convince her to do it?”
Jagger smiles. “Actually, she offered. I would have been crazy to say no. I might think you’re an insufferable motherfucker on a good day, Mumford, but before you lost Bay for a piece of trash like Bianca, I couldn’t fault your taste in women. Bay is a fucking knock out. I have you to thank for finding out how good she is with her mouth too. She offered because she liked kissing me at the rush fair. Isn’t that funny? And after last night’s victory, she offered to be my good luck charm for the entire season. ”
That piece of information is the last straw for Topher’s fragile ego. “Fuck that! You need to find someone else. I don’t care who. But stay away from my girl.”
I’ve been watching their exchange, but it’s time to intervene. “But she isn’t your girl, is she, Mumford? You had your chance with her and you blew it, no fucking pun intended. Bay told you clearly that it’s over between the two of you. Playing stupid games like at the fair or at last night’s party isn’t going to convince her to get back together with you.”
His head snaps in my direction. “Butt out, Connelly. You’re just jealous because you’re so stuck in the friend-zone that you might as well be gay for all intents and purposes.”
I hate this motherfucker. “There wouldn’t be anything wrong with being gay, but I’ll tell you what. After what you did, you have no chance in hell with Bay. And I might as well be stuck in the friend-zone, but I’d rather she hook up with a decent guy like Jagger than with an asshole like you.”
That was the wrong thing to say.
“Decent guy?” Topher barks, his laugh full of scorn. “Is that what the two of you are? Decent guys? You two have fucked more bunnies and coeds than all of us combined. I slipped up one time.”
Jagger comes to my aid. “That’s bullshit, and we all know it. You were just very good at covering your tracks. But I’ve seen girls doing the walk of shame out of your room every time Bay wasn’t around. Cole and I might have been sleeping around, but we weren’t cheating on anyone. So yeah, Bay would definitely be better off with me. At least with me, she doesn’t have to fake her orgasms, you selfish prick.” He looks around the room with a triumphant smile. “Our president doesn’t like to eat pussy, but he expects to get head. You’ll be happy to know that as long as we hook up, your girl is being taken care of.”
There are a few whistles and cat calls around the room .
“I’d eat that pussy any day for breakfast, lunch and dinner.” Tucker declares, licking his lips in a suggestive way that causes both me and Jagger to glare at him. “Bay Woods gives me wood.”
If we were expecting Topher to yell at us or say something smart in return, we’re surprise when our frat president stares at us with an icy glare.
“Very well. There’s a reason why I called you all here. Yesterday in the locker room was your last hook up with my girl.”
I don’t like how calm he is, it makes me immediately suspicious.
“Fuck you,” Jagger challenges him. “For the millionth time, Bay isn’t your girl. And besides the fact that I love hooking up with her, you’re forgetting something. I need that lucky bj before every home game and with the bunnies on strike, I need Bay’s help. We’ve all seen what happened when I skipped it.”
A few of our teammates voice their agreement with Jagger, but Topher delivers the blow he had planned since he called this meeting.
“I’ve taken care of your lucky bj. I spoke to Candace and we made a deal. The bunny strike is over. So you don’t need Bay’s help.”
Jagger rises from his chair, done with this whole shit show. “I don’t care. Like I just told you, I love hooking up with her. Bay is the best sex I’ve ever had. I’m not gonna stop.”
Topher’s arrogant smirk widens. “Oh, but you will. I’m invoking the Bro-Code.”
Corey and some of the lower class men look confused. “The bro-what?”
“The Bro-Code,” Topher repeats. “It was established when the first chapter of our fraternity was founded at Yale. It has several rules, but the one that matters now is You will not date or hook up a brother’s ex, unless you have his explicit permission to do so . The penalty for breaking the code is at the chapter president’s discretion and can include eviction from the house and expulsion from the fraternity.”
I don’t believe this guy.
“That sounds like bullshit to me.” I snort.
“If you don’t believe me, read and weep, motherfucker.” Topher passes around sheets of papers from a stack in front of him.
With the commotion of the impromptu meeting, I hadn’t noticed it.
“In case anyone has doubts about this being legit, you can find the extended version on the national chapter website. Stay away from Bay,” he orders, looking at Jagger, Ryker and me. “Or you better believe, I’m going to enforce that code.”
Fuck.
If I tell Bay how I feel about her, he’ll kick me out of the house. My scholarship includes a dorm room, but this late in the semester, everything is full. We’ve seen how hard it was to re-home the Zetas. And there’s no way in hell that I can afford anything off campus until I get my signing bonus from the Heroes at the end of the season.
My heart is heavy with disappointment and fury, as I see no way out of this situation and no future for me and Bay, even if she reciprocated my feelings.
Jagger, however, doesn’t feel the same way. My best friend is loaded. His family is actually richer than Topher’s. “Fuck your stupid code,” Jagger laughs. “If you had been a decent boyfriend to Bay, and I believed your feelings were genuine, I’d back off. But you don’t deserve to kiss the floor Bay walks on. And I don’t care if you kick me out of the house or the fraternity. I’ll find a couch to crash on, or something. I’m not scared of you, Mumford.”
I admire Jagger’s determination, but Topher doesn’t look impressed by my best friend’s attempt to stand up to him.
“How brave, Connelly.” Topher laughs. “But maybe you’ve taken too many pucks to the head, because you should be. Or do you want me to reveal why I call you Jugs? I bet your family and the Dean would find your initiation video very interesting.”
Jagger pales, as if he’d seen a ghost. “You’re bluffing. Initiation videos are kept in a vault at the central chapter headquarters.”
Topher’s smile widens. “That’s true. But it’s the president’s job to send them. Too bad our president at the time we all pledged delegated that boring task to the pledges. He never thought someone would make copies for insurance purposes. Some people have more money than sense.”
This guy is the fucking devil.
“If that’s true,” I say, wondering what Jagger might have done that’s so embarrassing. “Jagger wouldn’t be the only one to suffer repercussions. You abused your position by making copies, you’d get kicked out of Gamma Delta Tau.”
Topher doesn’t look concerned. “To kick me out, they would have to prove I released the video. And we all know how easy it is for cyber attacks to cause data leaks. The vault might contain physical copies of those videos, but they were forwarded electronically and they’re backed up in the central chapter’s server’s database. Look at Bay for more than two seconds at a time and you’ll find yourself homeless and with a ruined reputation. Are we clear? I’ll go after anyone who breaks the Gamma Delta Tau Bro-code.”
Jagger looks defeated and I don’t blame him. I feel the same way.
As everyone files out of the den, headed to continue whatever activity they interrupted to attend the meeting, Jagger and I don’t move a muscle.
“What does he have on you?” I finally ask him.
He doesn’t meet my gaze. “Don’t. If that video came out, I would have no career. I wouldn’t be able to look my family in the eyes. I don’t want to give up on Bay, but I’m afraid Topher just won.”
I know how he feels. “I almost kissed her last night. I love her, Jagger. And now, I can’t tell her, unless I want to be homeless. Even if I had the money to pay rent anywhere, everything is booked up on campus and in town.”
It’s the first time I admit my feelings for Bay out loud and it doesn’t feel anything like I imagined it would.
“Dude,” Jagger claps me on a shoulder. “I don’t get it. Why did you never say anything? Why didn’t you kiss her at the fair?”
I shrug. “I’m not worthy of her and besides, I’m terrified she doesn’t feel the same way. Sometimes I think there’s a chance she might, but what if she doesn’t? I love her too much to risk losing her friendship. I’d rather be stuck in the friend-zone than not have her in my life at all.”
Jagger sighs. “I’m starting to understand how you feel. Bay is special.”
We look at each other for a moment. “You care about her too?”
“What does it matter?” Jagger says, a dark expression in his eyes. “You heard Topher. I don’t think he was bluffing.”
Jagger is right.
Is it possible that there’s no way out of Topher’s Bro-Code?
Will Bay and her men find their way to a well deserved HEA or will Topher succeed in enforcing his Bro-Code?
Find out in the final book of Bay’s story The Friend Zone.