Page 24 of One Mistake

When we got to the coffee shop, it was empty. Not surprising since almost everyone from the college was standing out on Fraternity Road watching the action or protesting the house.

As soon as we had our drinks, we took a table in the corner by the window. Apparently, they didn’t know each other better than I knew them because Felicity held out her hand to Avery. “Felicity Fields, co-star of Finn Makenzie.”

Avery replied with, “Avery Stroh, and Keaton Shaw made me a porn star.” She turned to me, hand extended, one eyebrow cocked.

“I’m Reese Winthrop. I date Ryder.” They looked at each other then at me.

“Date like…” Avery wiggled her eyebrows. “Or date like movie theater and hands touching over the popcorn? Or date like we’re all going to Vegas for the porn awards this year?”

“I don’t have a video.” They looked at each other. “It doesn’t prove Ryder is…the one.”

“Keaton, Finn, Jameson, and Ryder are the only Alphas they brought to the police station so far.” Avery pursed her lips. “It’s Keaton’s boat. And Finn has the most videos. Jameson is the computer guru. And I heard Ryder made all the money.”

Fuck. Was that how he paid for Boston? A weekend inside the fanciest hotel I’d ever been to. Room service. Champagne and chocolate-covered strawberries. Then the trip to Camden where we spent a few days hiking and relaxing at the cutest bed and breakfast. Oh, God. The necklace.

I ran a finger over the teardrop diamond. Shit.

“Who did you hear that from?”

Again, they looked at each other. “Finn.” Felicity closed her eyes.

Avery shook her head and took a long drink of her iced coffee. “I don’t know about the two of you, but I’m not feeling all stand-by-my-man. I’m more thinking I’m in the he-better-hope-I-don’t-ever-get-access-to-a-gun situation.”

Felicity’s pensive, curious look could easily have been mistaken for constipation. “You’re Ryder’s girl.” She looked at Avery. Something silent passed between them again. “I don’t want to freak you out or anything, but…Finn said Ryder was all twisted over Avery and Keaton being together.”

What? “I don’t know what you mean.”

She opened her mouth and Avery put a hand on her arm. “She’s…It’s nothing. It’s Finn’s imagination gone wild. Don’t listen to her.” She turned to Felicity. “And shame on you for repeating weird gossip. Right now, we need to figure out what to do. How to help them. Or if we should.” She adjusted her scarf, then adjusted it some more, and finally unwound it and flung it on the floor. “Holy shit. All of you straight-laced bitches wear a lot of unnecessary clothes.” She sighed, looked at me, and pursed her lips. “Finn has it wrong. It wasn’t…I was the one with the crush. I asked Keaton to help me…be what Ryder wanted. You know. A Sigma. Soft-spoken. Gentler. But I ended up…happily, I mean…until now…with Keaton.” She paused and I wished I’d stayed at the frat house. No way could I compete with Avery Stroh. “And you have Ryder.”

But did I? Did I really? And knowing everything I knew, did I even want him? Felicity pulled a laptop from her shoulder bag. “I want to check and see if the website is still up.” She clicked the keys, closed her eyes, and hit enter. A second later, she typed some more. “Website’s down, but some Einstein reposted all the videos.”

“You’re probably going to have to go to the police to get them removed permanently.”

Avery shook her head. “I went today before they arrested…or whatever…” Her sigh sounded so sad. “Anyway, the cops said they can’t really prove who posted the videos so unless someone confesses…” She looked over my shoulder. “Holy shit! Look at that.”

The TV hanging in the corner was tuned to the news and the on-scene—at the marina—reporter stood in front of the boat where Ryder and I had spent so many nights. “Oh my God.”

“Was it the protestors?”

“Maybe one of the Alpha brothers is trying to protect Ryder and Finn and Keaton and Jameson.” It was reasonable. Even if my statement lacked the conviction I’d intended.

“Or maybe the guys are trying to hide evidence.” We were probably all thinking it. I was just glad Avery was the one who said it.

The newscast ended with footage of the guys leaving the police station individually. Felicity stared at the table and traced a heart carved into the wood. “I know I should want to go to find them, but…” She puffed one cheek and blew the breath out slow. “I don’t want him to lie to me about it.”

“Maybe he won’t.” Of course he would. If he was smart, he would find a good story and stick to it. No matter who he was talking to. Especially if it was one of the girls who’d ended up in an online video with him and he’d been arrested for it.

Avery finally glanced away from the TV. “Then he’s stupid. If he doesn’t figure out a good spin, all of them, they’re going to jail. This could even be federal since it was online.”

Every facet of this felt off. Wrong. And until I talked to Ryder, heard him admit what he’d done, I was going to stand by him. But if he did this…all bets were off.

10

Ryder

I didn’t have any choice. I had to go see her. My mother. The woman who cut me off from the family fortune, forced me into homelessness, and refused to release even a dollar of my trust fund even though it was mine and I needed it. I wasn’t any more bitter. But I wasn’t any less bitter either.

She “received” me on the back patio, but insisted I walk around the outside of the house, as if she didn’t even want me inside her precious showplace. The table was covered in plastic and the chairs had been taken away so I had nothing to do but stand and wait for her to make her appearance. And wait I did. Ten minutes. Then twenty. An hour. And she damned well knew what she was doing.