Part 14 (1/2)
”Martin's, then?”
”No.” Pete pushed the remaining waffle back and forth on his plate with the fork's tines. ”We all went to school together. So we're . . . friends.” Or were were friends. With all that had happened since they'd come to college, Pete wasn't sure he could define his relations.h.i.+p with Libby or Bennett anymore. The thought saddened him. friends. With all that had happened since they'd come to college, Pete wasn't sure he could define his relations.h.i.+p with Libby or Bennett anymore. The thought saddened him.
”Then she's available?”
The eagerness in the man's voice raised Pete's hackles. He dropped his fork, his appet.i.te gone. ”Why are you asking me?”
Roy shoved his tray to the side. He rested both arms on the table and leaned close to Pete. ”Because I think she's the prettiest girl on campus, and I'd like to get to know her better. I've tried. She resists me. And I'm not one to back off from a challenge.”
Pete shook his head, baffled. ”I still don't know why you're asking me.”
”Because I think you can get me what I want.”
Pete laughed. He hadn't intended to, but the sound rose up without effort. ”How?”
”You just said you went to school together. That you're friends.”
”Yes, but-”
”And I've got something you want. You help me, and I'll help you.”
”What do you have that I want?”
Roy's grin turned conniving. ”A place in Beta Theta Pi.”
Pete chuckled. ”I'm afraid you're mistaken, Roy. I'm not pledging Beta Theta Pi.”
”Sure you are. Your name's on the list. Right below that buddy of yours, Bennett Martin.”
Pete frowned. ”I didn't ask to pledge a fraternity.”
”But your buddy did. And it looks to me like he wants both of you to get in. Well, here's the thing.” Roy c.o.c.ked his head to the side, his eyes narrowed. ”Right now I'm seein' the two of you as a matched set. What one gets, you both get; what one loses, you both lose. If I don't take you, I don't take Martin.” He waggled his hands in the air. ”Is any of this makin' sense to you, pal?”
Roy was making perfect sense. And Pete didn't like it at all. ”Listen, Roy, if you think you can blackmail-”
”Now, let's not use ugly words.” Roy sat back, his expression so friendly anyone looking on would a.s.sume they were best friends enjoying a chat. ”Let's just call it a trade-off. You know what Martin wants-to be a member of Beta Theta Pi. Poor sap-growing up in an orphanage, never having a family.” Roy clicked his tongue on his teeth, his brow puckering. ”Understandable why becoming a member of the fraternity is so important to him. But that'll only happen if you choose to join, too. And I'll only invite you if you help me get what I want: Miss Elisabet Conley on my arm.”
Roy's grin turned smug. ”You pitch a mean baseball, Peg leg. Are you as skilled when it comes to pitchin' woo?”
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO.
Why hadn't he gone straight to the train station and skipped breakfast? Pete could have avoided-or at least postponed- being placed in an impossible position by Roy. Already uptight at the prospect of seeing his parents, he didn't need another worry added to the list. ”Roy, I-”
Roy threw his hand in the air. ”Don't answer now. I expect you to think about it. Take a day. Or the weekend.” His gaze shot somewhere behind Pete's shoulder, and his smile grew. ”Or if you'd rather not put it off, you've got a chance right now . . .” As he spoke, he pushed away from the table and lurched into the aisle. ”Miss Conley, good morning.”
Pete jerked his head to find Libby standing at the end of the table, blocked from pa.s.sage by Roy's body. Her eyes darted back and forth between Pete and Roy, confusion reflected in their velvety depths.
”Good morning,” she said without smiling.
”Peg leg and me were just talking about you.” Roy flicked a grin at Pete then tipped toward Libby. ”But I think we're done. I'll leave you two alone to . . .” He twirled his pointer finger in circles at Pete then ambled off with his hands in his pockets.
Libby watched him go, her face marred by a scowl of displeasure. She spun back to face Pete. ”What are you doing, talking with him about me me?”
She sounded hurt. Betrayed. Heat rose from Pete's middle and filled his face. ”Libby, I . . .” He swallowed. How could he explain?
Sinking into the chair across from him, she searched his face. ”He was just trying to get under my skin, wasn't he? You weren't really discussing me.” She blew out a big breath, nodding as if a.s.suring herself. Sending a venomous look at Roy's retreating back, she pursed her lips. ”Just like Roy, trying to create problems where none exist.” Then she licked her lips, a pained expression creasing her brow. ”At least . . . I wish no problems existed between us, Petey.”
Without thinking, Pete reached out and took her hand. He squeezed. ”None that can't be fixed.”
Relief broke over her face. The beauty of her innocent smile nearly tied his heart in a knot. How he wished he had the freedom to openly profess his love for her. But he couldn't-not without taking something precious away from her. He quickly released her hand and stumbled to his feet. ”I . . . I have to go. I have a train to catch.”
She rose, too. ”A train? Where are you going?”
Out of the corner of his eye, he observed Roy in the far corner of the dining hall, watching them. The man no doubt would a.s.sume Pete was convincing Libby to consider him as a potential beau, so he probably should end the conversation quickly. Yet he didn't want to leave Libby's presence just yet. ”To Clayton.”
Her eyes flew wide. ”You are? Why?”
”To see my . . . to visit the Leidigs.”
[image]
Libby gasped. Did Petey already know about Oscar Leidig sitting in a jail cell, awaiting execution? ”You're going to see your brother?”
Petey looked confused. ”My parents. I . . . hadn't thought about seeing my brothers or sisters.”
So he didn't know. But maybe his parents intended to tell him. ”Did they summon you?”
”It's my idea. Something I've needed to do for a long time.”
Petey sighed, and his gaze drifted away.
She darted around the table and touched his arm. He gave a start and looked down at her. Peering into his sad, haunted eyes, Libby felt as though she were looking once more at the artist's drawing of the courtroom scene. She couldn't let him go by himself. If Oscar Leidig was Petey's brother, then his parents would certainly tell Petey. She couldn't allow him to receive this news from people who cared so little for him they'd cast him aside when he was just a child.
”I'm going with you.”
Petey shook his head. ”You can't do that, Libby.”
”Why not?”
”Several reasons.” He flicked one finger upward. ”I only have one train ticket.”
”I can buy my own.”
He put a second finger in the air. ”You have a.s.signments to do.”