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midnight.”
    Sam looked over at Rita. Her friend was clearly two sheets to the wind as the frat boy groped her, both of them sloppy. “I’ve gotta rescue my friend before she wakes up with a hangover and VD.”
    Chris followed her line of sight. “Yeah, that’s probably a good idea,” he agreed begrudgingly. “I can’t tell if that guy’s trying to feel your friend up or if he’s looking for loose change.”
    “Probably a bit of both.”
    “Can I help?” Chris offered as she stepped forward.
    “Nah, I’ve got it covered. It was nice meeting you, Chris,” she called over her shoulder.
    “Likewise, Sam,” he called back, grinning. “Good luck with your friend.”
    “I’ll need it,” she muttered, squeezing through the crowd.
    *
    August—Friday Night
    Sigma Tau Fraternity House, College Station, Texas
    W E S L E Y
    The Sigs were some of his best customers, and tonight he’d be handing over ten freshly minted driver’s licenses at two hundred bucks a pop. Wes had a strict policy regarding his customers. He only accepted referrals from upperclassmen guys or girls who sponsored a freshman or a sophomore in need of a seriously good ID and had the cash to pay for it. That way, Wes knew his contact had skin in the game, and if any underager got caught with one of his fakes, they wouldn’t know who had supplied it.
    The fraternities and sororities gifted legacy pledges with the fake IDs once they made it through Rush, making fall Wes’s best earning season by far. It was seconded only by spring breakers desperate to get into the bars down in Padre Island, if they weren’t lucky enough to make it to Cancun.
    So in addition to enjoying a good party with plenty of beer and plenty of hook-up prospects, Wes would be pocketing some good cash tonight, and his mood couldn’t be better as he stepped into the fraternity house.
    He spotted Chris quickly—easy to do with a guy his size. His roommate was leaving the dance floor when he saw Wes and waved him over to the bar area.
    “You doing all right, buddy?” Wes asked, slapping Chris on the back.
    “Hell yeah, I am,” Chris replied with a grin. “Met the girl of my dreams.”
    “Where is she?” Wes asked, glancing around.
    “Saving her friend,” Chris sighed mournfully. “She’s heading out early.”
    “Hos before bros?” Wes teased.
    “Hey, don’t call my future wife a ‘ho,’” Chris replied.
    Wes rolled his eyes. “You say that about every girl,” he remarked, thanking one of the Sigs who handed him a fresh beer from the bar. “If you’d married each of the girls you’ve been in love with, you’d have a harem by now.”
    “Yeah, well, this one’s different,” Chris insisted. “She’s smart, sexy, and she’s got a little edge to her.”
    “Stay away from those edges, man. The last thing you need is to fall off a cliff.” Wes sipped his beer, amused at Chris’s longing stare across the room. He had no idea who Chris was hankering after in the throng of bodies he saw undulating and grinding to the heavy beat. Not that it much mattered. Chris was usually in love with a new girl each semester. By New Year’s, it’d be someone new.
    “Hey, Wes.” A pretty sorority girl sidled up to him, tossing her arms around his shoulders. “Long time no see.”
    “Well, hello there, angel,” he murmured, not bothering to try to place her face or name but liking what he saw. He slipped his free hand around her back, his thumb rubbing the warm flesh where her skimpy top rode up.
    “You have a good summer?” she purred, her breath warm and sweet against his cheek as she pressed up against him.
    “No way—Missed you too much,” he answered, smiling down at her.
    Chris coughed a gruff “ bullshit” into his hand. Thankfully the girl didn’t notice as her friend tugged her toward the dance floor.
    “Come find me later?” she asked, eyes sparkling with invitation.
    “Sure thing, angel.” Wes nodded, winking at her.
    Chris shook his