11. Devin

11

DEVIN

W e're gathered in Jace's room, sitting around like we usually do, but the vibe is off. Alec's been staring at the floor, Jace is tapping his pen against the table, and I'm just trying to keep from saying something dumb while trying to lighten the mood. The whole Tessa situation's been gnawing at all of us, and it's time to talk.

"We haven't found anything solid on her," Jace starts, frustration edging his voice. "Nothing that'll make her back off."

Alec lets out a grunt, folding his arms. "There's gotta be something. No one's that clean."

I lean back in my chair, feeling the weight of the silence. "Maybe the problem isn't what we've found, but what we haven't talked about."

Jace and Alec both glance at me, eyebrows raised. I know I'm walking into dangerous territory here, but screw it.

"We've all been spending time with her, right?" I ask, keeping my voice steady.

Jace nods slowly. "Yeah, she's been around a lot. But what are you getting at?"

I give them a hard look, pushing forward. "I mean, more than just running into her. We've all been…close with her. Haven't we?"

Alec's eyes narrow, like he's catching onto something, but not quite there yet. "What exactly do you mean by close?"

I take a deep breath, knowing this is about to get messy. "She and I hooked up a few days ago in her dorm."

The room goes dead silent, and then Jace inhales sharply. Alec's eyes widen for a split second before he recovers, crossing his arms tighter.

"That's…interesting," Jace says, his voice carefully neutral. "Because I hooked up with her too, in the gym."

Alec's head snaps toward him. "You what?"

Jace shrugs, but there's tension in his shoulders. "It just happened. I didn't think it was a big deal."

I can feel the disbelief settling in the room, thick and heavy. And then Alec, looking like he's trying to process something, mutters, "She and I have been getting coffee together at the café lately. One thing led to another and we ended up in the café bathroom together."

Now it's my turn to blink. "Wait, so she's been messing around with all of us? At the same time?"

Jace leans forward, running a hand through his hair. "Looks that way."

Alec lets out a sharp breath, shaking his head. "I can't believe this."

The shock ripples between the three of us, none of us saying a word for a minute. I thought I had something going on with her—something real. But now? It feels like we've all been strung along, fed the same lines, led down the same path.

"She's good," Jace finally says, rubbing his jaw. "Real good."

Alec grits his teeth. "So what now? We let her keep screwing with us?"

"No way," I say, the frustration boiling over. "We get her to come to the next frat party," I say, an idea brewing. "We make her choose. Pick one of us or back the hell off for good."

Jace nods slowly. "She's got to shit or get off the pot."

Alec leans back, eyes narrowed. "You're going to let her come between us?" he asks.

"It's clear she's been playing us against each other. We were too blind to see it but now everything is different," I explain. "There's no way she'd be able to choose after the way she's been acting, so this is our opportunity to finally be rid of her once and for all."

Since I was the one to invite her to the charity carnival, we decide on Alec asking her to come to the next party. It'll be less suspicious since Alec isn't usually the type to trick someone like this.

Tessa agrees immediately, almost too easily. She promises to see Alec at the party tomorrow night and we spend the rest of the evening planning the confrontation in between homework, studying, and doing regular frat planning.

The next day, the party's already in full swing by the time I come down the stairs. Music is pounding through the walls of the house, vibrating under my skin. The lights flicker in time with the beat, casting shadows across the packed room. Sigma parties always draw a crowd, but tonight feels different—or maybe I'm just on edge.

I make my way through the throngs of people, giving half-hearted nods to the brothers and a few familiar faces, but my mind is elsewhere. It's not on the party, not on the drinks, not even on the girls who keep trying to catch my eye as I pass. No, I'm thinking about Tessa. About what she's been doing to us. About what happens next.

Jace and Alec are supposed to come down soon and then the three of us will finally deal with this whole mess, finally get our chance to confront Tessa and put an end to her games.

As I grab a soda from one of the coolers, I glance around, scanning the crowd for her. It's probably too early for her to show up, she's one to make an entrance.

Leaning against the wall, I take a swig of my Coke, trying to ignore the knot tightening in my stomach. This isn't how I imagined things going with her, not at all. After what happened, I was starting to feel like maybe I'd misjudged her, maybe she and I wanted the same things out of life. I could see glimpses of the real her, the one behind the intrepid reporter facade. I saw a side of her I thought was special.

A familiar voice snaps me out of it, and I turn to see Alec pushing through the crowd, his jaw clenched tight.

"Any sign of her yet?" he asks, looking around the room.

"Not yet," I say, glancing toward the entrance. "But she'll be here. Don't stress, oh Fearless Leader."

Alec grunts, crossing his arms. "Yeah, well, I'm done waiting."

We both know what's at stake tonight. If Tessa keeps jerking us around, things are only going to get messier. But we're not giving her that chance. Tonight's the night we put an end to it, one way or another.

"Where's Jace?" Alec asks, eyes scanning the room again.

"Probably styling his hair so it looks exactly like post-sex hair," I joke, but even I know the joke is lame. It's because of how badly I want to just get this over with. The longer it drags on, the more on edge I feel.

It's not long before Jace strolls down the steps, looking far more relaxed than either of us, but I know better. He's been just as wound up about Tessa as the rest of us—he's just better at hiding it. He catches sight of us, makes his way over, and gives a tight smile.

"All good?" he asks, though he already knows the answer.

"Not until we find her," I mutter, glancing at the clock on the wall. It's getting late.

Jace nods, his eyes scanning the room just like Alec's did. "She'll show. Trust me."

I hate that he's right. Tessa's never one to miss out on a party like this, especially when she knows we'll be here. But the question is—what's her move? Has she already figured out that we're on to her? That tonight, we're done playing nice?

We spread out through the house, each of us keeping an eye out, weaving through the crowd like sharks in water. There's a weird energy in the air, one I can't quite put my finger on. Maybe it's just me, or maybe it's the fact that I know what's coming. Either way, the anticipation's gnawing at me, getting harder to shake off.

As I pass through the kitchen, I catch a glimpse of Jace talking to a couple of brothers, but I can see it in his eyes—he's not there. He's focused, watching the door just like Alec and I are. This isn't a social thing for us tonight. Not anymore.

The music shifts to something heavier, and louder, and the party's starting to peak. People are packed into every corner of the house now, and it's getting harder to move through the crowd.

Then, just as I'm about to head back to the main room, I hear Alec's voice cut through the noise.

"She's here."

Alec steps forward to greet her but I can tell by their expressions that something is off about their exchange. I hurry forward, just catching the tail end of their conversation.

"…don't know what you're talking about," Tessa snaps. Her eyes meet mine and confusion turns to clarity as she catches sight of Jace coming from the other direction.

"You didn't think we'd find out?" Alec demands. "You thought you could mess around behind our backs and face no consequences?"

Tessa bites her lip and looks up, her eyes large and bright in the dim neon lights. "I wasn't trying to hurt anyone," she says. "We were just having fun, right?"

"You played with us," Jace says, leaning into her space. "But it's over now. Time to choose. One of us or none of us. You can walk away free and clear, but you'd better not come around ever again."

Tessa tilts her head, studying him for a moment. "What if it doesn't have to be all or nothing?" she asks, voice soft. We have to lean in to hear her over the noise.

"What do you mean?" Alec's voice is tinged with suspicion.

"I mean, what if all of us can have some fun…together?" Tessa offers, twirling a short strand of hair in her fingers.

"Like…together?" Jace asks, raising a brow. Tessa gives him a slow smile, the kind that has my blood rushing south.

"Yeah. What if all four of us went upstairs together right now?" she said, letting the offer hang in the air.

We turn to face each other, the idea settling over us as we exchange glances, trying to get a read on what the others are thinking.

Are we truly going to do this?