Walking Disaster

pull a sock onto the other. “I meant to ask you last night. What did you say to Marek?
You leaned into his ear and said something. He looked like he swallowed his tongue.”
    “I thanked him for taking off out of town a few weekends before, because his mother was a wildcat.”
    Shepley stared at me, dubious. “Dude. You didn’t.”
    “No. I heard from Cami that he got a Minor In Possession in Jones County.”
    He shook his head, and then nodded toward the couch. “Did you let Megan spend the night this time?”
    “No, Shep. You know better than that.”
    “She just came over to get some morning nookie before class, huh? That’s an interesting way to claim you for the day.”
    “You think that’s it?”
    “Anyone else gets her sloppy seconds.” Shepley shrugged. “It’s Megan. Who knows. Listen, I’ve gotta take America back to campus. Want a ride?”
    “I’ll meet you later,” I said, slipping on my Oakleys. “I can take Mare if you want.”
    Shepley’s face contorted. “Uh . . . no.”
    Amused at his reaction, I saddled up on the Harley and ripped the engine. Even though I had the bad habit of seducing his girlfriend’s friends, there was one line I wouldn’t cross.
America was his, and once he showed interest in a girl, she was off my radar, never to be considered again. He knew that. He just liked to give me shit.
    I met Adam behind Sig Tau. He ran the Circle. After the initial payout the first night, I’d let him pick up the tote returns the following day, and then give him a cut for his trouble. He
kept the cover; I kept the winnings. Our relationship was strictly business, and we both preferred to keep it simple. As long as he kept paying me, I stayed out of his face, and as long as he
didn’t want to get his ass kicked, he stayed out of mine.
    I made my way across campus to the cafeteria. Just before I reached the double metal doors, Lexi and Ashley stepped in front of me.
    “Hey, Trav,” Lexi said, standing with perfect posture. Perfectly tanned, silicone-endowed breasts peeked from her pink T-shirt. Those irresistible, bouncing mounds were what begged
me to bag her in the first place, but once was enough. Her voice reminded me of the sound made by air being slowly let out of a balloon, and Nathan Squalor bagged her the night after I did.
    “Hey, Lex.”
    I pinched the cherry off my cigarette and threw it into the bin before walking quickly past her through the doors. Not that I was eager to tackle the buffet of limp vegetables, dry meat, and
overripe fruits. Jesus. Her voice made dogs howl, and children perk up to see what cartoon character had come to life.
    Regardless of my dismissal, both girls followed.
    “Shep.” I nodded. He was sitting with America, laughing with the people around him. The pigeon from the fight sat across from him, poking at her food with a plastic fork. My voice
seemed to pique her curiosity. I could feel her big eyes follow me to the end of the table where I tossed my tray.
    I heard Lexi giggle, forcing me to restrain the irritation boiling inside me. When I sat, she used my knee for a chair.
    Some of the guys from the football team sitting at our table watched in awe, as if being followed by two inarticulate tarts was an unattainable aspiration for them.
    Lexi slid her hand under the table and then pressed her fingers into my thigh as she made her way up the inseam of my jeans. I spread my legs a little wider, waiting for her to reach her
mark.
    Just before I felt her hands on me, America’s loud murmurs traveled down the table.
    “I think I just threw up a little bit in my mouth.”
    Lexi turned, her entire body rigid. “I heard that, skank.”
    A dinner roll flew past Lexi’s face and bounced off the floor. Shepley and I traded glances, and then I let my knee give way.
    Lexi’s ass bounced off the cafeteria tile. I admit, it turned me on a little hearing the sound of her skin slap against the ceramic.
    She didn’t complain much before walking away. Shepley seemed to appreciate my gesture, and that was good enough for me. My toleration for girls like Lexi only lasted so long. I had one
rule: respect. For me, my family, and for my friends. Hell, even some of my enemies deserved respect. I didn’t see a reason to associate longer than necessary with people who didn’t
understand that life lesson. It might sound hypocritical to the women that have passed through my apartment door, but if they carried themselves with respect, I would