Colin squeezed my hand, and breath was held tightly in my lungs as the board exchanged looks.
Judy gaped at the board. “You’re actually considering it?”
The vice president shifted uncomfortably, visibly nervous. “I’d, uh, like to withdraw my second on the motion.”
It was quiet as everyone considered what that meant.
“What?” Judy shrieked, realizing that while she was about to get kicked out, potentially no one else would be.
“I think we have to vote on accepting her withdrawal,” Vicky said. “All in favor?”
“Aye,” the four of them said.
“Opposed?”
“Nay,” Judy hissed, knowing it was futile. She’d lost, and as she scanned the room, she must not have found a single sympathetic face because her expression filled with bitterness. “I don’t know what is wrong with you people. You’re all a bunch of perverts and sexual deviants.”
Gasps and sounds of disapproval filled the room.
“Sure we are,” Erika said sarcastically, before turning utterly serious. “And we’re not going anywhere. So, why don’t you take your five-hundred-dollar mailbox and get the fuck out of our neighborhood?”
The room erupted in applause.
On the first day of the fall semester, I spotted a ‘for sale’ sign on Judy Malinger’s lawn as Nina drove me to class.
I was glad I’d been able to help the Woodsons and the rest of the neighborhood. We even had a little party over at Dr. Lowe’s house afterward to celebrate toppling Judy’s regime, and everyone expressed their gratitude for my investigation.
It’d been nice getting to know Colin’s friends better, especially Lilith.
Our situations weren’t the same, but we were both in non-traditional relationships, and I found her poly one with Clay and Travis fascinating. It was something I wasn’t sure I would have understood five months ago because I’d had such a narrow view of love. Now that my eyes were open, it made total sense.
The three of them fit together perfectly, complimenting one another, and it gave me hope for me and Colin long-term.
After the first week of school, I told Nina I no longer needed rides to class. I felt safe and everything was going great . . . which meant I should have known better. The universe had a habit of striking precisely when I let my guard down.
I’d just come out of my corporate finance class and was halfway across the green when a figure stepped out from beneath the shade of a tree and blocked my path. I jolted and my heart stopped.
Riley.
He looked . . . weird. Nervous. His gaze darted around the quad, maybe checking to see if Colin was nearby.
“Madison, hey. Can we talk?”
“No.” I tried to get around him, but he side-stepped to stay in front of me.
“Please? I wanted to tell you I’m sorry.”
I narrowed my eyes as I scrutinized him, my body filling with distrust. “Sorry for what?”
He shoved a hand through his hair, visibly uncomfortable. He was a guy who never did anything wrong, so he never needed to apologize, and now he struggled with how to do it. “Everything.”
Seriously? “That’s it? I don’t have time for this.” Once more I tried to get by him, and he moved to block me.
“Wait. Fuck.” He sighed. “I’m sorry I got in your way at the tournament, but I wanted to win.” When he realized how that sounded, his eyes widened. “For Grady,” he amended. “I wanted to win for Grady.”
I wasn’t sure if I believed him, but what did it matter now? I’d moved past it. Plus, he’d done something much worse that he needed to apologize for.
So, I simply stared at him, saying nothing as I waited.
“I don’t know if Colin told you,” he finally continued, “I was fucking wasted when I made those posts. Like, blackout drunk. When I came to later and saw what I’d done, I took them down as fast as fucking possible.” He set his hands on his waist and his shoulders slumped. “I was pissed at Colin for what he’d said and how he wouldn’t help me. I mean, come on. I wasn’t asking for much.” He frowned at himself for straying off topic. “Look, I don’t know why I did it because I don’t even remember making the posts, and obviously I wasn’t thinking about the aftermath.”
“That’s not an apology,” I said. “It’s an excuse. Do you know what it did to us? To Colin?”
He winced like I was causing him pain. “I know, and I’m sorry. I wish I could take it back.”
But he couldn’t. There was no un-ringing that bell, as Nina had said.
Riley’s guilty gaze drifted away from mine. “Will you tell Colin for me? I think he blocked my number.”
My pulse sped up. His apology seemed genuine, but there was likely a motive driving it. “This isn’t going to do anything to get you in with Petal Productions. You know that, right?”
He’d burned that bridge until it was nothing but ash.