Payback is Sweet

by Kristy Centeno

  “Why don’t I get straight to why I’m here?”

  “Please do.”

  “I know Dakota. You’re not the type of girl he usually goes for. He doesn’t like heartless, spoiled rich girls like you.” She glared at me as if that single look would send me running off like some scared ninny.

  “He doesn’t seem to have a problem with me at all.” I winked at her. “So, what’s your point?”

  Her eyes rounded. “My point is, why are you forcing yourself on him?”

  “Forcing myself on him?” A quick bark of laughter escaped my lips. “Now there’s a tempting thought. FYI I have not forced myself on him. He’s been more than willing.”

  Margaret bit her lower lip. I wasn’t sure if she did it to control her growing anger or to keep from screaming her head off, but she chewed on her lower lip until it was red and puffy.

  “I don’t know what you’re doing exactly, but Dakota is not the type of guy you should mess with. He’s not like other guys.” She straightened her back a bit. “He’s actually a really nice guy.”

  “Oh, I have come to find that out myself.” I folded my arms over my breasts and allowed my gaze to travel from her face down to her feet, and then back up again—a look of contempt crossed my features as I observed her. “What I don’t get is what exactly you’re trying to say? That you’re allowed to mess with Dakota but I can’t?”

  She raised her chin up defiantly. “That’s not what I did at all.”

  “Oh, no? It sure looked that way to me.”

  “I love Dakota,” she argued.

  I scoffed. “You have a funny way of showing it.”

  “Look, I didn’t come here to discuss my feelings for him. I came here because I can see straight through your ruse and I don’t like what you are doing to him. I know you’re going to hurt him.”

  I’d never been as tempted to lash out as I was then, but I was damn curious to see what she was trying to get at. I knew a jealous woman when I saw one and Margaret was practically burning with jealousy.

  “Oh, honey, I think you already took care of that. More than once for what I hear.”

  She paled. “What?”

  “Kirk wasn’t the first, was he? You have cheated on Dakota before. He just never found out about it.” I shrugged. “Or never confirmed it anyway.”

  “Did…” She hesitated. “Did he tell you that?”

  “Does it matter? I heard it nonetheless.” I shook my head. “You sure are something.”

  “I…” Margaret’s eyes wavered for just a bit, but she recovered quickly. “Whatever problems Dakota and I had we can solve them on our own. You need to back off and leave him alone. You’re just using him.”

  “Care to explain what you mean?” I arched an eyebrow. “What is it exactly you think I’m doing?”

  She pursed her lips, her eyes spitting daggers at me. “You don’t care for Dakota. Not really. You’re just trying to get back at Kirk and you’re using Dakota for that.” She actually got in my face. “Why don’t you count your loses like a real woman and move on?”

  I grabbed a hold of her chin and pushed her back against the wall behind her. By the look of surprise in her eyes it was obvious I’d caught her off guard. She didn’t fight back though so I took that as a sign that she was either too afraid or wasn’t sure what my intention was.

  “You get in my face again and I will clean this floor with you,” I hissed. “Let’s get something straight here; you’re the one who failed Dakota not me. You were the one who could not keep her damn legs closed not me. As far as Kirk is concerned, you can have him. He’s nothing but a conceded jerk, and seeing as you think too highly of yourself too, you two deserve each other.” I squeezed her chin with my fingers a little harder for emphasis. “Dakota is a grown ass man. He doesn’t need your permission to be around me. To hang out with me if he so desires. The way I see it, he’s been missing out while he was with you and,” I sneered, “I’m a confident woman, not an insecure little girl like you so handling his needs won’t be a problem for me at all.” I released her and took a step back.

  Margaret’s hand flew to her chin where she immediately began to massage it. “You’re a despicable person.” Her eyes filled with tears. “You’re one of those girls that think because you were born in a silver crib you’re better than everybody else. But there’s some things you can’t control, and I will prove it to you soon enough.” She added nothing more as she walked away from me and down the hall.

  Well, it seemed like Margaret did have the guts to face me. After the incident in Kirk’s apartment, I didn’t think she would come anywhere near me, but she had proven me wrong. Only a jealous woman would come out of her way to face her rival, and it was obvious to me that Margaret was seething with envy.

  I figured she must have some feelings for Dakota after all. Why else would she bother challenging me? Then again this might not have anything to do with jealousy but pride. I could understand her not wanting to appear as a complete loser much less when her opponent was me.

  Shaking my head, I sighed and hurried back to class.

  “What was that about? As I didn’t already know,” Audrey said the second I rejoined her.

  “Margaret has just declared war.” I laughed softly. “She’s at that stage where she’s regretting her mistake and wants Dakota back.”

  “How do you know that?” Audrey kept her gaze forward, staring directly at the instructor.

  “I’ve seen these kinds of games many times before. Plus, it was her departing last words what gave her away.” I grabbed my textbook and opened it.

  “What did she say?”

  “She said there are things I can’t control and she would prove it to me soon.” I made a face. “What a waste of time.”

  “Yeah, that definitely sounds like a threat.” Audrey took a moment to look at me. “What do you think she’s planning on doing?”

  “I don’t know and I don’t care.” I rolled my eyes. “I’m getting too old for these games.”

  Audrey smiled and turned her attention back to the instructor. “Knowing you, even if you are tired, you won’t back off.”

  “When have I ever backed out of a challenge?” I looked up at the instructor, still talking endlessly about assets and numbers and I don’t know what else, and sighed heavily.

  “That’s exactly what I mean.”

  While it was true I had no idea what was going through Margaret’s mind, or what kind of bullshit move she was going for, I did not care enough to let it bother me. I had enough in my mind as it was. And truth be told, I didn’t consider her a threat at all.

  The next couple of classes passed by without incident. I was bored enough that I actually cooperated and paid attention to the lectures, and finished my labs on time.

  As I walked out of my fourth and final class before lunch, I bumped straight into Dean McCarthy as he strolled out of the classroom across the hall from mine.

  As usual, he wore mostly black, displayed a variety of piercings, and had a pair of girls walking just a few paces behind so he wouldn’t notice them following him. I almost laughed at their immature behavior. I could understand a ten year old acting like that, but a college girl? Jeez.

  The moment he spotted me, Dean hurried toward me and draped one arm over my shoulders.

  “Janessa.” He pulled me close and gazed down at me, “Just the girl I wanted to see.”

  “You might want to back off there Casanova. I wouldn’t want your entourage to throw a fit.” I pointed behind us at the two girls still following him.

  Dean glanced back over his left shoulder and smiled. “Those girls want what you don’t.” He turned his attention back to me and laughed when he caught sight of my frown. “But, I’d rather keep my distance.”

  “Funny, I thought you didn’t discriminate,” I said, referring to the two well dressed, but obvious inexperienced girls. They had a church going look to them that kind of made them stand out a bit more than the rest.

&
nbsp; “Hey.” Dean puckered his brow, “You have me all wrong. Girls like that would get the wrong impression with me. They’d feel committed and would want me to feel the same way. I don’t do that so I keep as far away from them as I can get.”

  I rolled my eyes. “Right. I forgot you don’t do commitment.”

  “For the record, I’ve never said I would not commit.” He leaned his face closer to mine. “I’d think seriously about if the right girl came along.” He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively.

  “The right girl doesn’t like players.” I gazed forward.

  Dean stared forward too. “Commitment implies there would be no playing involved.”

  “Well then, why don’t you try committing to one of those girls back there?”

  He shook his head. “They look like nice girls, but they are not the one I want. However, I will take what I can get.” He smiled down at me. “Your presence seemed to have scared them off,” he said, glancing over his shoulder. Apparently they had walked away, heading in the opposite direction.

  I pushed his arm off me as we started down the stairs. “So, you’re using me to scare them off? How nice of you.”

  “Actually.” He reached inside his jeans’ pocket and pulled out a small, blue envelope he then handed over to me. “I wanted to give you this.”

  I took the envelope he offered and opened it, inside was a ticket and a backstage pass to see a band by the name of Dejected. I stopped at the end of the stairs and studied the bold, black letters in front of the ticket.

  “Dejected?” I asked as I gazed up at him.

  He smiled. “It’s the name of my band.”

  “What’s with the name?”

  “I started the band during one of the toughest times in my life. It’s actually kind of a long story, but the name…well; it just fit at the time.” He took a hold of my arm and pulled me aside so that the traffic of students going down the stairs could pass by without a problem. “That and the name kind of stuck afterwards.”

  What little he had said already sounded interested and for a moment there, I wondered what the real story behind Dejected was.

  “So you’re playing ten days from now?” When he nodded, I asked, “Is this your first gig?”

  “No. We’ve played in other places.” He shoved his hands in his pants’ pockets. “This is just the first time I reserved a ticket for you,” he added a little too sheepishly. The look in his face made me want to burst out in laughter. I’d never seen the normally confident, sexy, and usually arrogant Dean show this other side of him and I have to admit, I really liked it.

  I smiled. “How come?”

  “Well, you were still going out with that jackass, Kirk.” He made a face that clearly communicated his dislike for Kirk.

  I laughed. “I would have gone to see you play anyway,” I blurted.

  Even though I had not intended to say that aloud, and Dean seemed to have picked up on it, he smiled appreciatively. “I didn’t know that. I would have invited you before if I had.”

  “So, uh, where are you playing?” I hurried to change the subject.

  “Earthquake.”

  “Earthquake? Really?” I was surprised to hear he would be playing at the one restaurant in town that had the longest waiting list ever. Especially since their clientele were usually people with lots of money and so high end you could not get in unless you had connections, or enough cash to back you up.

  The restaurant boasted of the best food, entertainment, and service in town. I knew they hired bands, and solo artists during special events, giving customers their money’s worth.

  “Their having a rock and roll theme during that week and we’ve been invited to play Saturday night.” He fidgeted a bit with whatever was inside his left pocket.

  “You’ve been invited? That’s awesome.” I tucked the ticket and backstage pass back inside the envelope. “I thought the owner was a snob and didn’t invite local bands to the restaurant?” I opened my bag and slipped the envelope inside.

  “I thought that too, but he saw us playing during the rock and roll festival in Marion County, and liked us so much he hired us to close their rock and roll themed week with a bang.” He grinned. “Those being his exact words.”

  I laughed softly. “He might not be such a snob after all.”

  “Anyway, I want you to come and check the band out.” He removed his hands from his pockets and cocked his head to the side. “Will you come?”

  “I’ll be there.” I fidgeted with the strap of my bag.

  “Great.” He reached out and touched the side of my face with the tips of his fingers.

  I didn’t move to stop him. For some reason, I just stood there and allowed it even when knowing that anyone could see us.

  He snapped his hand back when someone yelled out his name at the top of the stairs. He glanced back and spotted one of his friends motioning for Dean to join him.

  “Well, I gotta go.” Dean turned back to me and added, “I’ll see you around.”

  “Sure.” I watched him run up the stairs and join his friend. I didn’t know if Dean ever went out for lunch, or if he simply grabbed a bite at the campus’ cafeteria, but I was suddenly curious about it.

  With a shrug of the shoulders, I descended another set of stairs and made my way out of the building where my group of friends was waiting for me.

  Chapter Twenty

  Instead of heading to a restaurant for a bite to eat, the guys picked us up some burgers, fries, and soft drinks and we decided to enjoy the unusually warm weather for autumn and use the round tables and benches at the back of the campus’ building instead.

  Now that Dakota and I were supposedly an item, his cousin Uziel, and best friend Demarco came with the package so to speak. They were part of our group now and all eight of us huddled around one of the tables and made plans for Saturday night.

  “My boss gave us the okay so we can use the VIP room number four.” Dakota picked up a couple of fries and popped them into his mouth. “It has to be on Friday instead of Saturday though. No one has cancelled their reservation for Saturday.”

  “I’m free on Friday,” I announced contently.

  “How did you manage to reserve the room in such short notice?” Delilah asked Dakota.

  “Well, two for two I guess.” Dakota picked up his drink. “The person who reserved the room cancelled and I happen to be good friends with the owner.”

  “It pays to have good friends in high places.” Michaela beamed.

  “I’d say.” Delilah finished up her burger and crumpled up the wrapper. “So what’s the plan?”

  “There’s once catch.” Dakota turned his head to the right to look at me. “I have to cover the front entrance for about an hour until Lex, my replacement, makes it. He can’t make it until seven so I have to cover for him.”

  “That’s all right.” I took a sip of Pepsi. “I’ll wait for you.”

  “Let’s all meet around six thirty then,” Michaela suggested.

  “I’ll hand over the keys to Demarco so that you guys can get settled while I join you,” Dakota added.

  “It’s a plan then.” I grinned, realizing that things couldn’t possibly get any better. I wondered just how far Margaret was going to go. It didn’t really bother me or frightened me, but my ego did not allow me to just expect nothing of my rival.

  She had one advantage over me. She held the key to Dakota’s heart. He could learn to live without her, but that would take some time. Of course, that could only happen if he decided to move on. If his love for her was too much, perhaps moving on would not be as easy.

  I had loved that deeply, that intensely at one point, so I knew how difficult moving on after a heartbreak could be. Back then I had been young and stupid, immature and naïve and I paid the ultimate price for it.

  Having gone through that experience had made me into the person I was today. Yes, maybe my personality wasn’t the best one. Maybe, I was a bit of egocentric myself and yes, my attitude was d
ownright mean most times, but regardless of all that my bad experiences had taught me to be stronger.

  We chatted for a little while longer, enjoying our scarce forty minutes of lunch before returning to endure another few hours of afternoon classes.

  My afternoon was typically long and boring. I wrote down notes, either started or finished labs, researched for upcoming essays, and of course, gossiped some more with Audrey, and prayed time would pass by so that I could go home.

  My wish came true a few hours later and I finally met up with the crew near my car. We annoyed each other, much as we always did, and parted ways soon after. Dakota left with Uziel and Demarco because he was needed at work early.

  After bidding my friends goodbye, Delilah, Audrey, and I went home and scattered. Delilah hurried to her room, Audrey scampered to the kitchen saying she was in the mood for cooking sirloin steak with sautéed onions, French fries, broccoli, carrots, and snow peas, garnished with chives, and I made a beeline for the bathroom where I planned to unwind.

  I took a nice and hot shower after which, I joined the girls for diner. We sat around the dinner table and enjoyed our meal with a nice glass of wine.

  A good thing about sharing a home with people you like was being able to sit and chat and enjoy each other’s company. Though Audrey, Delilah, and I were girls with different tastes, personalities, and outlook of life, we got along great.

  When diner was over, I offered to do the dishes while the girls took turns showering. As soon as the dishes were washed, dried, and put away, I ran up to my bedroom and jumped onto my bed. I watched TV for a couple of hours because my laziness wouldn’t allow for something more entertaining.

  Once I got tired of watching TV, I turned it off and grabbed my bag, which I had left on top of my bed earlier, and placed on top of my desk. I removed my textbooks and notebooks, turned on my computer, and made myself comfortable on the office chair. I decided to catch up on my school work since I had nothing better to do.