Free Premature Evacuation (Underground Sorority #1) by Rachel Shane

Fallon and me. “Where’s Erin?”
    “Campus TV station.”
    “Again?” I plopped onto Erin’s bed and lounged. She’d snagged one of the coveted hosting gigs for our campus channel, where her report on local news would be seen by…probably no one. “We could just stay in and have a girls night instead.”
    “Can’t. The guys are coming.” Bianca concentrated her eyes on her drink and wouldn’t meet mine.
    “Corey too?” My chest stilled, equal parts excitement and dread. I’d just assumed he’d back out after our break up.
    “Of course Corey. The plans haven’t changed. I’m not going to play favorites. You’re both going to end up at the same events with me. Get used to it.”
    Yep, she had PMS.
    “We could go home if you want,” Fallon offered. She braced her hands around her red Solo cup where she huddled in a corner.
    I shook my head. This was my sorority’s event. Plus, yeah, I hoped he was only coming because he’d changed his mind. But when he arrived, he nodded and that was all. Not a single word to me during the entire time we pre-gamed with boxed wine. I took the silence Corey threw at me and brushed it off as if it were crumbs on my shirt. God, he looked good. He’d worn the jeans that made his ass look fabulous and my favorite shirt. Every time I got the urge to drink in the sight of him, I drank my wine instead. Bianca rallied once the pills kicked in and drove the conversation so it didn’t hang heavy and silent like an obstacle.
    When we were nice and lubricated, we grabbed our coats and the three girls scrambled into the back seat. I bided my time watching the night landscape whip by at high velocity. Corey’s head rose an inch over the driver’s seat, swaying every time he made a turn. Once, I caught him checking up on me through the rearview mirror.
    Nate turned to face me from the passenger seat, his jacket rustling. “So, you brought a chick. What, Corey turned you lesbian?”
    “Oh great. It’s pick on Mackenzie time again!” I rolled my eyes. “And let’s say I had brought Fallon as my actual date, so what?”
    Nate’s face drained of color.
    I wasn’t finished though. “In case you haven’t noticed, you have free reign of your room now. No need to be pissed at me.”
    My heart pounded fast and painful. Every muscle in my body itched to crawl into the front seat to see Corey’s reaction. But I kept my eyes focused on Nate.
    “Yeah, Nate, shut the hell up,” Corey said, hands gripping the steering wheel. He stuck up for me!
    We sat in awkward silence for the rest of the ride. Last week I’d had fantasies of stringing my fingers between Corey’s and pulling him through the dark into a desolate spot hidden from view. He’d lean me against a tree and push my underwear to the side beneath my skirt. We’d ride each other while everyone else took the usual hayride. Then we’d stumble back with guilty smiles on our faces and make up some ridiculous excuse to cover our whereabouts. But now I only fantasized about him saying a word to me. Any word! I wasn’t picky.
    We arrived at the Hayride site early and had ample time to browse the baked good selections at the store nearby. Fruity apples and spicy cinnamon scents coated the air. The wind turned the tip of my nose pink but the warm apple cider Corey spiked with a smuggled bottle of vodka kept my insides warm. Night crept around us like shadows and the silence between our group loomed until it became scarier than anything the hayride had in store. After a few more sips, Bianca grew woozy. Nate picked her up and carried her onto the hayride because every time she tried to step up onto the truck, she fell and started laughing hysterically.
    Corey skulked to the back of the ride, far away from where Bianca leaned her head against Nate’s shoulder. By the time I got on, the cart was almost full and I had no choice but to plop down into the only empty space…next to Corey. He scooted closer to the railing to make room