#Rev (GearShark #2)(24)

Rim went back to her seat beside Romeo and Murphy, and Trent went back to icing his face.

“We need names, Trent,” Romeo said, getting right down to business.

Trent rattled off four names.

My fists clenched. I knew every single one of those f*ckers. And now I hated them all. Judging by the looks on Romeo’s and Braeden’s faces, they knew them as well and felt the same way I did.

“First things first.” I spoke up. “Trent will get all his shit out of that house and move in here. Once he’s out, we can deal with Omega.”

Romeo and B nodded.

Trent cleared his throat. “There’s only one problem.”

All eyes turned to him.

“I’m not moving out of Omega.”

I must have just hallucinated. I could have sworn I heard him say he was going to keep living in that house. I laughed, because really, this had to be a joke.

Trent didn’t laugh with me.

Realization dawned.

I wasn’t hallucinating. He wasn’t joking.

Trent was serious.





Trent

What the f*ck?

Did this family think I was some quivering little boy? Did they really think I’d run into this house and hide behind them for protection?

No.

Hells no.

Yeah, yeah, I was broken down. I was bruised, cracked, and physically weakened. I looked like shit (not just their words… I looked in the mirror this morning), and my brothers weren’t the type to just let this go.

But…

I might be down. I might even be vulnerable.

Even so, I was stronger than ever.

It’s amazing what looking into the eyes of your worst fears would do for a man. Hell, those guys at Omega last night did me a favor.

They showed me their opinion didn’t matter. That nothing anyone could say or do would matter. Drew and I were stronger than that. Than them.

Was I still hella concerned about what being gay would cost Drew? More now than ever.

I learned something last night, though, in the midst of the eight ball, the fighting, and the breaking up.

Even during the sex.

Oh my God, the sex…

Pull it together, Trent.

Drew and I were stronger together. I was stronger with him than I would ever be apart. He gave me strength. I gained courage from his love. I knew without a shadow of a doubt, this wouldn’t be easy. A relationship with my best friend would be scrutinized, ridiculed, and, at times, make me feel like I’d done the wrong thing.

There was another side to that, though.

I would know unbridled happiness, unending affection, and a level of connection which I’d never have with anyone else.

Wasn’t that something worth fighting for? Wasn’t that worth enduring the shitty times?

Hells yeah.

This was a time I would need to fight.

Fighting didn’t mean hiding.

“I’m still the president at Omega. Giving that up is what they want. I won’t do it,” I said, leaving no room for argument in my tone.

“Why would you want to be the president of a frat who would do this to you?” Drew spat.

He was getting agitated; it was to be expected. This was going to be hard on him. I was going to have to do what I could to shield him as best I could.

“It’s not the entire frat,” I rebutted. “It was four guys. If I turned tail and ran right now, everything I worked for over there for past few years would be for nothing. I will not just hand that house over to a bunch of Zach wannabes and walk away.”

(Zach, aka the guy I replaced and the worst president in Alpha U frat history.)

“I agree,” Romeo said.

I knew he would. He knew what that frat was like, and he knew walking away wasn’t the kind of man I would want to be. If Drew wasn’t so close to the situation, he’d see it, too.

Drew made a rude, angry sound.

I dropped the ice on my ribs and put a hand on his leg, giving his strong thigh a light squeeze.

“If I move out and abandon my presidency, it would be like admitting they were right. Like saying being gay is a reason to hide. Con’s pissed because I took away his chance at presidency. He’s challenging everything about me. My loyalty. My leadership.” My heart.

“What are you gonna do, T?” Drew argued. “You gonna fight everyone who has a problem with you being gay?”

If I have to.

“It’s not just about him having some man love,” Braeden spoke up.

I swear, man love was like his new favorite saying.

“I know that,” Drew said wearily.

“They think you’re off licking your wounds” Romeo was thoughtful. “They expect you to show up and hand over the house. Con’s probably working right now to discredit you even more because you aren’t there.”

I made a scoffing sound. “He’s probably combing through the frat bylaws, looking for some kind of loophole he can use to get back into the game for presidency.”

“What a douche.” Braeden grunted.

“Why don’t you just kick him and the other three out of the frat?” Ivy wondered out loud.

“It doesn’t work that way,” I answered. “Removing a member’s charter is a lot harder than it sounds. Once they’re in, it’s really hard to boot them out altogether.”