to convince me or herself, but she definitely didn’t seem thankful. She seemed…dejected. Defeated. And I hated to see her like that, especially when I thought if she ran against Aamee, it wouldn’t be Sophia who’d experience the feeling of defeat.
“But?” I asked.
“But I have absolutely no desire to be president.”
“Why? You’d be great at it.”
Of course I didn’t know that for sure. I’d only known Sophia for a few weeks, and I’d only been in college slightly longer. But while I admittedly knew little of Greek life, I knew leadership potential when I saw it. And Sophia definitely seemed to outshine Aamee in that department.
“No offense,” Sophia said with an expression like she already felt bad for what she was about to say, “but do you know what it takes to be a sorority president? It’s a ton of work, and you need to know the ins and outs of pretty much everything and everyone in the sorority. I don’t think I’m cut out for all that, and more than that, I don’t want to be.”
“That’s how you know you’re a true leader.”
“I have little faith in myself?”
That made us both laugh. “No. You’re humble. And granted, everything I know about Greek life I learned from Animal House and a sorority handbook I got ten minutes ago, but I think you have what it takes. You don’t seem like the type of person to shy away from something just because it seems difficult. You tutor Carter in psychology, for Christ’s sake. I don’t even know if he knows it starts with a P.”
I was glad when that made her smile.
“Well, that doesn’t say much for my tutoring skills.”
“I’m serious, though. I think you should at least consider it.”
Her expression told me she wasn’t going to. “And you should consider looking through the handbook some more. I’m not running for president.”
I mumbled a “Fine, but I think you’d be good at it,” before turning back to the computer to continue my mission.
There were other possible loopholes that I found—like Aamee not giving Sophia written notice of what she did wrong—but Sophia would’ve had to request that before the initial meeting. Sophia’s eviction should’ve also been cleared with the dean of students, but since Sophia technically had broken the rules, that likely wouldn’t help her case.
I’d almost given up when I stumbled across something that I knew would pique Sophia’s interest. I read through the paragraph to make sure it was feasible before I alerted her to my findings.
A stupid grin spread across my face. “You can appeal it.”
Immediately Sophia’s attention was on me. Her eyes locked on me before she bolted up from her seat and hovered behind me.
“Really? What does it say exactly?”
“It’s right here.” I pointed to the spot on the screen and selected the text with the cursor. “If the decision was made in bias, you have a right to appeal that decision and ask the other sorority members to vote.”
“Oh my God! You’re a genius! This is amazing!”
Sophia was practically dancing behind me. When she stopped, she spun the chair I was sitting in so I was facing her. Then she leaned down, grabbed my cheeks, and brought her lips closer to mine than a sibling ever should.
I was torn between fearing someone would catch this near-intimate exchange and hoping she’d do it.
But for now, the excitement on her face was enough for me.
“That bitch is gonna get a taste of her own medicine,” she said.
I grinned proudly. “Fuck yeah, she is.”
Chapter Nine
D R E W
I wasn’t sure if inviting such an odd group of people into a one-bedroom apartment was a good idea, but it was too late to reconsider now.
When my business ethics group had wanted to meet in a place to study where we wouldn’t have to worry about our decibel level and could spread out in a more comfortable way than we could in the library, I’d offered my place. Well, Brody’s place.
Xander enthusiastically seconded the suggestion, but Toby had asked if we could meet later. It would be an added distraction to have to play gay big brother to a beautiful debutante who was having her own study session with a guy who seemed to have been bashed in the head ten times too many, but I hadn’t wanted to rescind my offer.
“How many people did you say were coming?” Sophia asked me.
“Three.”
She gave me a long-suffering look. “You’re lucky you found the appeal thing yesterday. You practically walk on water