by Gina Finley
He takes a drink from his water. “Last night was weird, Dash. You went easy on Miner and don’t even try telling us you didn’t.”
“The fuck are you talking about?” I say, not bothering to hide my annoyance.
Fox leans over the table. “Dude. You would’ve destroyed that guy any other time. You already hate him and now you had a perfect excuse to fuck him up. And, yeah. You busted up his hand. Motherfucker won’t be able to jack off for a month or so. Big deal.” He leans back. “But any other night? You go all in on that dude and it’s not just his hand they’re fixing. It’s his entire body. You went easy on him. And that’s fine. Whatever. Fuck Jason Miner. I think we’re all just asking...why.”
I eat the roll and take a drink from my water. I set the chopsticks down and wipe my hands on the napkin. I look at Shane. “You think I went easy on him?”
Shane nods without saying anything.
I push my plate away. I’m not used to them questioning me at all. And I don’t like it. But it makes me think maybe I am acting differently.
Because of her.
“Alright,” I finally say. “I hear you. I’ve heard you. But I have Cara Byrne under control. She’s going to be someone we can use when the time comes. And I didn’t go easy on Miner. If I’d gone all in on him, that fucking pussy would’ve gone crying to everyone he knows. Doing what I did allowed me to talk to him this morning and let him know what was up. If I need him to go to Winchester and tell him that Cara was the one who broke his hand, he will. So I’ve got him under control, too. Shit, I even got Whitney in line and that’s no easy fucking task. But I got her in line, too. She went to Winchester after I told her to.” I look at each of them. “So I’m not sure exactly what the three of you are worried about, but my shit is together.”
“So you’re not worried she’s gonna burn us?” Tyler asks.
I shake my head. “Nope. Not even a little.” I stare at him. “But if you are, feel free to walk away. Don’t let me keep you here.”
“Dash, come on. That’s not what I’m talking about.”
“If that’s not what you’re talking about, then fuck right off with this,” I tell him. “Don’t question me and what I’m doing.”
He sighs and goes back to eating.
I don’t like that they think I’ve gone soft for whatever reason. Maybe I’m just playing with Cara a little more than usual. Maybe I’m just looking to have a little fun because it’s the start of senior year and I feel like fun is in order. But there’s no doubt I’ve got her under control. I saw it on her face this morning. She knows it and I know it.
Am I into her a little more than I thought I would be?
Maybe.
But that doesn’t mean I’ve lost control.
It just might mean I’m taking my time with her.
And making sure she knows exactly who she belongs to.
TWENTY SEVEN
Cara
Parker passes me a bag of Fritos. “That’s all I can spare.”
It’s the lunch hour and we’re sitting in the back of the room still. He’s jumped over a couple of desks, so there’s just one in between us now. He noticed I wasn’t eating and I explained to him that I hadn’t brought my lunch because I didn’t know I was going to be stuck in some bullshit suspension room for lunch and I’d planned to buy.
I take the bag. “Thanks.”
“You can put an order in in the morning,” he says. “With the cafeteria. You can go in and fill out a form and they’ll have lunch delivered to you here.”
“Oh,” I tell him. “Okay.”
“I don’t because I just bring my own stuff, but they have to feed you.”
“Good to know.”
I open the bag and eat a couple of the chips and look toward the door.
“Anderson sits out in the hallway during lunch,” he explains. “Gives us a little time to ourselves.”
“Got it.”
“Your parents pissed you’re in here?”
“It’s...just my dad,” I tell him. “And not even sure he knows yet.”
“Will he be pissed?”
“I think he’ll be more confused.”
He nods. “Guess that’s better than pissed.”
“Were your parents? Pissed?”
“Oh yeah, but they’re used to it by now,” he says. “They’re just happy I didn’t get kicked. Would’ve been six schools in four years. I think they’re just happy that I made it to a second semester here.”
“You just started in the spring.”
He bites into an apple and nods. “Yep. Made it through spring semester of junior year without so much as a single detention and I think they had hope for me.” He smiles. “This killed that off real quick.”
“I’ll bet,” I say.
We eat in silence for a minute. I’m not that hungry, but I’m grateful for the chips.
“Ask you a question?” he asks.
I nod.
“Why’d you hit her? The thing at the party?”
“More or less.”
“I heard another rumor.”
I look at him.
“I heard maybe Dash was involved in that.”
I’m not sure why, but I shrug again. I don’t want to talk about Dash.
“Like, maybe he set it up?” Parker asks.
“I don’t know,” I tell him. “I just know that she did it and she was giving me shit about it yesterday and I snapped. I shouldn’t have.”
He nods slowly. “Kinda looked like maybe there was something going on with you two.”
“Uh, there was. I hate her.”
“Not Whitney. Dash.”
I look at him.
He shrugs. “I told you I saw you talking with him. It just looked like...something.”
I eye him. “Why do you think that? And why do you care?”
He shrugs. “Just making conversation. I hear a lot of shit about Dash, like I told you.”
“Like what exactly? You were vague the other day.”
“Like he’s rich. Like he and his buddies think they can do whatever they want. And they usually do.” He shrugs again. “Not a guy I spend time with, so I’m just curious.”
I eat a couple more of the chips. “I barely know him.”
He nods. “Okay.”
It’s not a complete lie. I don’t know Dash. I know almost nothing about him, except how he’s treated me and what he’s done to me. Good and bad. I’m not sure why I feel defensive about telling Parker anything about him, given that it’s Dash’s fault that I’m sitting here. I don’t feel like sharing that, though.
“Just be careful,” Parker says.
“Be careful?”
He drops the core of the apple into his bag. “Yeah. The stuff I’ve heard about him isn’t good. And even though you’re in here with me, you don’t seem like the kind of girl who gets hooked up into that kind of stuff.”
“You still haven’t explained what kind of stuff you’re talking about.”
“Drugs,” he says. “Stealing. Just general criminalness.” He laughs. “Is that even a word? I don’t know. I’m just saying. Do what you want. For real, I don’t care. But just be careful. Dash Hamilton isn’t a good dude, no matter how great looking he is.”
I know he’s right.
Dash Hamilton isn’t a good dude.
So why can’t I stop thinking about him?
TWENTY EIGHT
Dash
She walks out of the ISS room, glances at me, and keeps walking.
I laugh and catch up to her. “All day to be mad. I guess that’s to be expected.”
“Uh huh,” she says.
“You’ll forgive me,” I tell her.
She looks at me like that’s a pipe dream.
“I have a surprise for you,” I tell her.
“Oh,” she says. “Am I being arrested for the breaking and entering you did the other night? Because that wouldn’t surprise me at all right now.”
I laugh again. “No.
And Cara?”
She looks at me.
“Keep your fucking voice down.”
She looks away and we keep walking.
When we get outside, she walks right to the bike rack, then stops. “Where the hell is my bike?”
“It’s in the parking lot,” I tell her.
“What?”
I start walking.
I don’t hear her feet behind me at first, but finally I hear her following me into the lot.
I smile.
We cross the lot and stop in the last row.
I point. “Your bike is right over there.”
Her eyes scan the parking lot, but they don’t register it at first. “Why are you fucking with me?”
“I’m not,” I tell her. “It’s right over there. Look at the truck.”
Her eyes finally settle on the cherry red Toyota Tacoma in the last row. The handlebars of her bike are in the bed of the truck, sticking up just over the side.
“Why the hell is my bike in the back of some truck?” she asks.
“That’s not some truck,” I tell her. “It’s your truck.”
She squints at me. “What?”
I pull the keys out of my pocket and hand them to her. “It’s your truck.” I take her hand and drop the keys into them.
She looks at the keys like she’s never seen a set before. “That’s not my truck. I don’t own a truck. I own a bike.”
“You own a truck now,” I tell her, walking toward it. “Come on.”
She follows me toward the truck.
“I took a chance,” I tell her. “You seemed like the kind of girl who would like red.”
“Dash,” she says. “What’s going on?”
I turn around and look at her. “It’s your truck. Paid for. Insurance is covered. There’s a gas card in there for you to use. It’s yours. No bullshit. If you don’t believe me, hit the clicker and see.”
She looks at the keys in her hand, then presses the fob. The truck chirps and the doors unlock.
“I don’t get it,” she says. “You bought me...a truck?”
I nod. “Bike isn’t much fun to get around on.”
She holds the keys out to me. “No. I’m not taking this.”
“Too late,” I tell her. “It’s already in your name. You don’t want it, you’ll have to sell it.”
She looks at the truck, then back to me. “What the fuck are you doing?”
I shove my hands in my pockets. “Trying to make your life easier.”
“By buying me a truck?”
“By buying you something you can drive around,” he says. “To get to school. And to get to my house.”
She examines the truck again.
“Don’t worry,” I tell her. “It’s not stolen. All legit.”
“But...why?”
“Your first couple of days here have been rough,” I tell her. “That’s partly my fault. We haven’t gotten off on the right foot. I’m trying to make it right.”
“After you fucking lied to the headmaster and said I assaulted Jason?”
I shrug. “Sometimes, things are complicated.”
She shakes her head. “I don’t want it.”
“Sure you do. It’s going to make your life easier.”
She shakes her head again. “I don’t want it.”
“Then you can sell it,” I tell her. “All the paperwork is in the glovebox.”
She stares at me for a long moment. “What do you want from me?”
“Right now? Just a ride home would be great.”
“I’m not kidding,” she says. “What do you want from me?”
“I’m not kidding, either,” I tell her. “I really do need a ride home because I drove here in your truck.”
“It’s not my truck.”
“Paperwork says otherwise.” I walk over to the truck and get in on the passenger side. I pull the door closed and smile at her through the window.
She looks away, shaking her head.
I sit there and wait.
Finally, she walks around the front of the truck and opens the driver’s side door. She throws her bag in the rear of the extended cab, then climbs in. She sits behind the wheel and shakes her head.
“It’s push button start,” I tell her.
“Thanks,” she says, glaring at me. “I got it.”
I laugh.
“Seriously,” she says. “What are you doing? What is this? Some sort of game? I don’t want to play games with you, Dash. If you want to leverage me or whatever, fine. Go ahead. You’ve found my weak spot with my dad. I can’t change that. But I don’t want to play games with you.”
I smile at her. “What do you want to do with me?”
She studies me for a long time. “I don’t know. I really don’t know.”
TWENTY NINE
Cara
I don’t get it.
Why the hell am I driving a truck he bought for me?
I’m not going to lie.
The truck is fucking awesome. I don’t know how he knew I’ve always secretly wanted a pickup or that red is my favorite color, but if someone had asked me to describe my dream car, this truck is it. The leather seats are black. It’s got the extended cab, so I can have passengers. It seems like it has all of the bells and whistles.
But why?
Why is he doing this?
“You’re quiet,” he says.
I glance over at him. He’s in black jeans and a gray T-shirt that hugs his chest and arms. He’s got a day’s worth of growth on his face and the waves in his hair are out of control. He’s looking at me with those eyes and this half-smile on his face that makes me want to both slap him and kiss him.
“I don’t understand,” I tell him, turning my eyes back to the road.
“Don’t understand what?”
“Why you bought me this,” I say. “It makes no sense for a million reasons.”
“Maybe I just wanted to do something nice for you.”
“Since fucking when?”
“Since I got you off in the pool last night?”
I feel the blood rush to my face, the memories rushing back to me in an instant.
He laughs. “Okay, look. I meant what I said at school. We got off on the wrong foot. I’m trying to correct that.”
“Most guys would buy me flowers,” I tell him. “Or write me a letter.”
“I am not most guys, Cara.”
Understatement of the year.
“I’m not trying to lie to you here,” he says. “I am who I am. I make no apologies. And, yes, I’m a lot of things. I do a lot of...things. But I’m trying to find some even ground here for us.”
“Why?” I ask. “So I’ll keep my mouth shut? I’ve already told you I’m going to do that because I don’t want my dad to lose his job. You won that battle.”
“I believe you,” he says. “I think we’ve crossed that bridge. I said I needed to see if I could trust you and I think I can now.”
“So then, what?” I ask. “What are we doing?”
“Now I want to know you for other reasons,” he says. “You don’t want the truck, sell it. I mean it. I don’t care. I was trying to do something nice for you, but if I overstepped my bounds, then I apologize.”
“Wow,” I say, glancing at him again. “I didn’t know you had it in you to apologize.”
“Not often,” he says. “Maybe that tells you something.”
I pull up to the front of his freaking mansion and he directs me down the back entrance to the pool house. He gives me the code when we get to the gate and I punch it in. The gates roll back and I maneuver the truck down the drive to the pool house and park the truck in front of the garage. I realize it was the garage they brought me to the night of the party and it gives me pause.
“You don’t have to stay if you don’t want to,” he says. “I’d like you to, but it’s your call.”
I shut the truck off. “I’ll stay for a while.”
He nods and gets out.
I push the door of the truck open and follow him inside.
He sits down on the couch and I sit on the opposite end. I look at him for a very long time.
He smiles. “What?”
“Why are you like this now and the other way other times?”
“I don’t know what you mean.”
“Yeah, you do,” I tell him. “You absolutely do. At school and with your boys, you’re like this fucking...I don’t know what. King. Leader. This air about you that everyone else is beneath you. But then we’re here and it’s just me and you and you’re like...this. Friendly. Relaxed. And you bought me a fucking truck.”
He laughs. “Well...can’t I be all of those things?” He shrugs. “And let’s just be honest. My father is loaded. We have money to burn. That truck was loose change for me. I’m not saying that to be an asshole. I’m saying that because it’s the truth.”
“I don’t think I’ve ever met anyone who is all of those things,” I tell him.
“I’m unique.”
“And arrogant.”
He nods. “Definitely that.”
I laugh. “At least you admit it.”
“Wow you laughed,” he says. “Finally. You should do it more. You have a great laugh.”
I feel the warmth in my cheeks again.
“You’ve never had anyone flatter you, have you?” he says.
“What?”
“Compliments,” he says. “You’re uncomfortable with them, which tells me you haven’t heard a lot of them.”
“I don’t know.”
“Cara, look at me.”
I look at him.
“You’re gorgeous,” he says. “You’re tough. And you’re smart. That’s the triple crown right there. You are all of those things and you need to know it.”
I look down at my lap again.
“Don’t look down,” he says. “Own it. It’s who you are.”
“I don’t know that it is,” I tell him.
“It is,” he says. “Trust me on that. It is and you need to get used to it.”
I don’t know what to say to that.
“Let me get us clear on a few things,” he says. “One. Don’t ever fuck me over. It will literally be the worst thing you ever do. I’m not telling you that to scare you, but you need to know it’s true. Don’t ever do it.”