Still Jaded (Jaded #2)(32)

I wanted to sprint down the hallway but knew I would've looked even more ridiculous than I did. My face was cut up with sunglasses over my black eyes. Add running to the mix, and someone would think I was being chased by the person who had beaten me up.

Once outside, I caught the first cab I saw. "Drive. Just drive."

Soon we were on our way to nowhere. I ignored the smell of rotten bananas and sweat and closed my eyes for a moment. I felt my way through my purse and brought out the pain medication. When I got a pill free, I grabbed a small bottle of water out of my purse. After I'd swallowed the pill, I knew things would get a little better. I needed things to get better.

"Where to, ma'am?"

I gave the Alpha Mu's address. After we pulled up and I paid the cab driver, I thought about my decision to go there. Maybe it hadn't been a good idea, but I stood on the sidewalk and took a breath. For once, their front lawn wasn't full of fraternity brothers playing football or whatever drunken game they always had going on. It was silent and a little eerie. I checked my phone and saw it was nine in the morning. Most of the guys were probably asleep or in class.

When I went inside, I ignored the few guys who played pool. Raz called my name, but I didn't pause until I kicked open Corrigan's door.

Two bodies scrambled for cover on his bed. I only cared about one. When the girl wrapped herself in a blanket, I took her arm and pushed her out the door.

"Hey!"

I bent down and nabbed a shirt and shorts of Corrigan's, then chucked them at her. "Goodbye now." I gave her a forced smile as I shut the door in her face.

Corrigan groaned. "What the hell is going on with you? That's the second time you've done that this week. I might start getting ideas, Sheldon."

I glared and threw clothes at him. "Get dressed. There's been a new development I need your help with."

He caught the clothes in one hand but stood in his boxers and stared at me. "Are you okay?" His nose wrinkled up. "You reek of booze."

I have such smart friends.

"Let's go. Dress!"

Then I left and looked for my next victim. When I rounded the kitchen, I spotted Leah. She had an arm around the girl I had kicked out of Corrigan's room. Both of them looked furious. But I needed caffeine, badly, so I veered to the coffee maker first.

Leah patted the girl on the arm. "Vicki said you literally threw her out of Corrigan's room."

"Shut up." I savored the smell of my coffee. After I'd taken a few seconds in coffee bean heaven, I regarded her again. "I need your help."

Leah's expression switched from one of anger to concern. Her hand dropped from Vicki. "What's wrong?"

The girl's mouth dropped as she looked between Leah and me. When Leah crossed the room, she stomped her foot and left in a huff. I fought the urge to smirk, but Leah was predictable. That's when I took another sip of coffee before I took off my sunglasses and she gasped as I knew she would. "Is this from yesterday? Corrigan said it wasn't good, but you look like you got hit by a bus."

"Something like that. I need help with my dressings. Would you do that for me? My shoulder is hurt so I can't do it myself."

"Sheldon, you look like road kill," Michael, one of Corrigan's brothers, said as he bounded into the room.

"Not all of us can look like an academic juicehead."

"Uh?" He jerked his eyes away from Leah's br**sts.

"Nothing."

"Why do you want me to help you?" Leah eyed me with suspicion.

I was already prepared. "Because Cadence and that psycho sorority house put me on edge. Grace is off her rocker right now, which leaves me with you and you alone. Think you can handle it?"

Michael lifted up his own coffee cup. "And because if you do anything to her, she knows Corrigan will go watchdog on your ass, Leah."

She pursed her lips. "There goes my secret plan of knifing the bitch."

I grinned. This morning I felt like more of a crazed bitch than normal.

Corrigan came into the kitchen and stopped short. "Can you come upstairs, Shel?"

Leah flashed a smile. "I get to do her dressings first."

He narrowed his eyes and looked between the two of us. Then he shrugged. "Whatever. Just come up when you're done."

Leah showed me to a bathroom near the backdoor. "Do you have bandages and ointment?"

I took my purse and pulled out a plastic bag that the nurse had insisted I take with me. "They gave me enough for a couple of dressings."

"Does it hurt a lot?" Leah sucked in her breath when she started peeling some of my dressings away on my forehead.

"It stings." But that wasn't where the real pain came from. "I'll be fine with pain. I'm on booze and meds."

As she started to clean and reapply the ointment, Leah murmured, "Anyone else and I'd probably think they're crazy. You, Sheldon, this is almost a daily habit like brushing your teeth."

I shrugged before hissing with pain. "I've been through my fair amount of hell."

"You are one crazy bitch, that's for sure." Leah leaned forward to inspect some more of the cuts. "I know you don't like me. And I know you're backed into a corner which is why I'm the one doing this for you, but I wanted you to know something." She moved back and stared me in the eyes. "I am not using you for anything. You've said some awful things to me, and I know why you did. You were defending your friendship with Corrigan. I get it. He's your territory, and you were making sure I didn't move in, but those other sorority girls, the ones from Zeta Gamma Phi just want you because of Corrigan and Bryce. That Cadence bitch is bad news. Trust me."