She nods, and then unties the black apron from around her waist, dropping it on the counter behind us. “What am I supposed to be tutoring him in?”
“Business Law.”
Eden frowns. “Seriously? I don’t know much about law. This should be interesting.”
I pull her into a one-arm hug and whisper ‘thank you’ into her ear. Nervous energy floods through my veins as I stand there like a coward and watch Eden approach Tucker’s table.
He glances up at her, his eyes lighting with realization. She was there the night we met. Eden even dated Romeo for a while, and since the president of Delta Sigma Phi is close friends with Tucker, there’s no way Tucker doesn’t know Eden.
And now, I have to suffer in silence and wait for this torture to be over.
Chapter Five
Tucker
Eden Caulfield is my tutor. Weird, considering I was expecting a girl named Sam. She takes the seat across from me, tucking strands of blonde hair behind her ears with a forced smile. Something about this situation feels off. As far as I know, she doesn’t tutor on the side. Romeo talked about her often when they were dating, but he also never mentioned anything other than the sex.
“Sorry, I’m late,” Eden says in her singsong voice. “I had to finish my shift first.”
“That’s okay. I didn’t know you work here.”
She smirks. “Some of us have to work for a living. We all can’t be trust-fund babies.”
I roll my eyes. “Like I had a choice in parents. Don’t give me that woe is me crap.”
“Same asshole I remember,” she deadpans with a playful look on her face. “Some people never change, huh?”
“Same player. Same game.” I wink, and she looks repulsed. “How come you told me your name’s Sam?”
She shrugs. “It’s my middle name. I use it when I tutor cocky jocks like you.” Eden shifts her weight, crossing one leg over the other, her hands folded on the table in front of her. “So, where do you want to start?”
Hesitant, I remove my Business Law textbook and the latest assignment from my bag on the floor and slide it across the table in her direction. Eden studies the paper first, and then glances down at the dog-eared book, flipping through the pages.
“You know most of this is just memorization, right? If you’d take the time to read the chapter for this week, I’m sure you could answer the questions on this paper.”
“Well, I was hoping you would help me with that,” I say, tilting my head toward the open book. “Otherwise, why am I paying you?”
“I’m tired and have better things to do with my time, Tucker. Don’t waste it, or I’m out of here.”
“Maybe this was a bad idea.”
She raises an eyebrow at me. “Maybe.”
I remove a fifty-dollar bill from my pocket and get up from the table. “For your time.” Then, I shove the book back into my bag and sling it over my shoulder staring down at her. “As always, Eden, it’s been a pleasure.”
The corner of her mouth turns up into a cross between a snarl and a smirk. “Good luck, Tucker. You’re gonna need it.”
Annoyed she wasted my time, I leave Broad Street Beans in a hurry and head straight over to Greek Row. I walk into the Delta Sigma Phi chapter house without knocking. At this point, I’m pretty much an honorary brother, though I never once considered pledging the fraternity.
A group of guys is lounging on the couches in the living room drinking cans of Bud Light.
“Yo,” Professor says, raising his beer in the air. “Tuck’s here. Time to party.”
I receive a similar greeting from the rest of the guys. With how much time I spend here, I could probably move in if I wanted to. But that would be a horrible idea. My grades are already shit.
Professor lifts a beer from the table in front of him and throws it at me. Palming the aluminum can in my right hand, I shove it in my jeans pocket. I’m not about to ruin a three-hundred-dollar shirt with shitty beer. I’ll save it for later.
“Is Romeo upstairs?” I ask, heading toward the steps.
“Yeah, should be.” Professor sips from his beer. “Tell him to come down and chill and stop being a pussy.”
I laugh because the thought of Romeo turning down an opportunity to drink is unusual. I’m surprised he’s not drunk already.
Once I reach the top floor, I push open the door to Romeo’s presidential suite and climb the final set of stairs. He lives in a furnished attic that’s been converted into a bedroom with a small living room and bathroom—one of the perks of being the president of the fraternity. We’ve had our fair share of crazy parties in this room.
Before I see him, I hear the sound of metal clanking together and a whooshing sound. Romeo’s on the floor in front of the oversized flat screen hung on the wall in his living room, leaning back in a gaming chair while tapping the buttons on a controller.