Page 17 of Pucking Bad Boys

That means a lot, and I don’t have the heart to deny her. Especially since her family has had some financial struggles too this summer after her dad got laid off from his job.

“Fine. I’ll support you and be the Thelma to your Louise.”

“That’s what I needed to hear,” Sam squeezes my hand. “Let’s go and make this happen.”

I thought I got here early, but the dining room is already packed with all our sisters.

“Sisters, order!” Madison, the head of the Nominating Committee appointed by our past president before last year’s graduation, bangs her gavel to begin the first meeting of the new academic year.

Some Greek organizations have complicated election procedures that last several weeks. Zeta Theta Beta prides itself on a much more streamlined process in the spirit of sisterhood.

To ensure that someone competent is appointed, after a few challenging years, a bylaw was approved that states that in order to run for President, the candidates must have been active members of the sorority for two consecutive academic years.

That limits the number of eligible sisters to juniors and seniors. The election of the rest of the governing officers will be completed within the next two weeks, before Rush Week.

“We have a very important task to carry out tonight.” Madison reminds us once silence has been restored in the room. “I don’t need to tell you how important. The Zeta presidenthas the honor and the responsibility to uphold our values of sisterhood, our presence on campus, and our outreach with the local community. Especially in a year like this one, when we have a housing crisis on our hands.”

My ears perk up at Madison’s last words. This is the first I heard about a housing crisis.

Someone else asks the question that’s on the tip of my tongue. “A housing crisis?”

“Sadly, the news has just begun to spread, as today is moving day for everyone except the freshmen. A pipe burst at Hunter’s Hall, and the damage is so extensive that the whole building has been declared unsafe until major repairs can be carried out.”

There’s no need for her to explain the impact on something like that. Hunter’s Hall is the largest coed dorm on campus.

“One of the tasks of the new president will be to find a fair way to sort out our housing situation. A number of our sophomore sisters were supposed to live in Hunter’s Hall and have already informed me that they wish to apply for a room in the Zeta house. That, combined with the unprecedented number of juniors and seniors in our ranks this year, puts us in a difficult spot. The ratio of rooms to sisters is over two to one.”

Sam raises her hand. “I’m sorry, but our bylaws state that only juniors and seniors are eligible to live in the house, unless a sister is elected to office. So we might have to look elsewhere for our sophomore sisters, as sad as this is.”

Before Madison can respond to Sam, Genevieve rises from her seat. “I’m afraid that’s incorrect, Samantha.” She says with a flick of her long, dark hair.

I grab Sam’s hand under the table and squeeze to calm her down. She absolutely hates being called Samantha. And of course Gen is more than aware of that fact.

“Our bylaws state that in case of an emergency, our lower class men are also allowed to apply for accommodation in the house. And this is definitely an emergency.”

“I get that,” Sam bites out. “But that’s true if there is availability. And, like Madison says, there isn’t enough room for all the sisters who would be eligible under normal circumstances.”

Gen’s manicured hand flies to her chest, outrage written all over her heavily made-up face. “I can’t believe this, Samantha. Are you telling us that you’d turn away your sisters in their time of need?”

I have no doubt that Gen’s concern is faker than a three-dollar bill.

Sam knows that too and goes right on the offensive. “I’m saying that tough times might require tough decisions. What’s your angle, Gen? You usually don’t get involved in anything that would require any amount of work.”

“That’s so unfair.” Gen looks around the table and at the sisters who are standing. She’s obviously looking for an audience. “I’ve always strived to support our leaders. God knows Candace always valued my opinion. And there is no angle. I care about Zeta Theta Beta. The women in my family have been Zeta sisters for four generations. This sisterhood is in my blood. And since we’re facing unusually tough times right when we’re without a leader, I decided to step up. My first action as Zeta president will be to solve this crisis. Tonight.”

My jaw drops. So this is why Gen got involved. She wants to run for president.

“Really, Gen?” Sam looks as shocked as I feel. “You’ll solve the situation tonight?”

“I already have a plan.” She crosses her arms over her chest.

Sam’s eyes narrow as she looks between Madison and Genevieve. It’s no secret that they’re best friends. It wouldn’tsurprise me if Madison had informed Gen about the dorm crisis in advance to give her an advantage in case anyone else wanted to run for president.

Of course, we have no proof that this is the case. I guess technically the dorm flooding isn’t a secret either. We just didn’t know because everyone was on summer break.

“So,” Madison interrupts the standoff between Gen and Sam with a breezy smile on her face, confirming my hunch that she must have given Gen a heads up. “Since many of us expected to move in tonight and have our belongings packed in our cars, it would be great to get on with the election and let our new president tell us her plan. Are we all in favor of Genevieve Bergen as our new president? We can vote by a show of hands since there aren’t any other candidates.”

“Wait. There are other candidates. You just didn’t ask.”