I sat frozen, dreading the worst and unable to stop it.
She took a deep breath and stared in her lap, wringing the crowd for sympathy. "When I left the party, Dakota got in his car and tried to run me over."
Chapter Four
Morgan
I felt Dakota stiffen beside me. I'd gotten him good, and he knew it. The whole class was glaring at him while I played the victim.
"Shit, Morgan." Dakota scowled at me and looked around helplessly at everyone else. "It's not what it sounds like." He turned his attention back on me. "If you'd let me walk you home—"
"I don't remember you offering. In fact, I don't remember much at all." I made it sound like an indictment of his lovemaking.
Our "lovers' spat" had the class enraptured. Which was exactly what I wanted.
Dakota's eyes were hard and his jaw was set as he stared at me like he really did want to commit vehicular homicide on my person now.
Come on, Dak! I wanted to say. Lighten up and play along. This meeting is going to kill us with boredom if we don't have some fun with it. I winked at him so only he could see, hoping he caught my conspiratorial meaning and played along.
"If you hadn't laid down behind my car—"
"I think we have a pretty good picture of why both Dakota and Morgan are here," Larry said. "Alcohol impairs good judgment. Am I right, Morgan? Dakota?"
I had a hard time holding down my smile as I nodded. "Totally." I shot Dak a sideways glance.
"Sure," he said. "It impaired my judgment much earlier than when I got in my car."
One of the guys sniggered.
Larry clipped Dakota's introduction, only allowing him to give his name and crime. I didn't pay much attention to the rest of the introductions. None of them compared to ours, and I think everyone knew it. After introductions, class lapsed into a dry lecture about the effects of alcohol and other drugs.
Finally, nine rolled around and Larry dismissed class for the evening. "See you all bright and early at eight tomorrow morning. No hangovers. If I so much as suspect one, you've violated the terms of your agreement with the prosecutor and courts."
"On that cheery note," I said as I slid my coat on and gathered up my purse and workbook. I dashed out of the room, eager to breathe in the bracing night air and be done for the night with the tension of the stupid class. Done with dealing with Dakota Bradley.
I raced down the hall toward the exit, walking as quickly as I could, hellbent on escape.
"Morgan!" Dakota called to me. "Hey! Wait up."
I ignored him.
I wasn't fast enough. He caught me at the door as I stepped outside. "How are you getting home?"
"Walking." I looked up the hill toward campus, thinking I would take the shortcut through the Hillside Apartments and past the science and engineering buildings to Greek Row.
Dakota read my mind. "Seriously, Morgan? Shit. You're going to walk right through rape alley?"
"You're exaggerating."
"It isn't safe."
I held my keychain pepper spray up. "I'm prepared. What are you going to do? Offer to drive me home?" I laughed.
"You're a cruel bitch, Morgs." He actually smiled, which caught me off guard. He took my arm. "I'm not letting you make a fool or a murderer out of me again. I'm walking you home."
I could have shaken his arm off. But I didn't. His firm grip felt good and protective. I didn't know why I suddenly felt I needed protecting. And I didn't know why I was reacting to Dakota when we'd never really been more than fuck buddies in times of great need.
"You got me good in there with your gag order." His breath made puffs of white in the clear night air.
"So you caught that, did you?" I was glad he was smart enough to recognize my stealth move. "You haven't bragged about it already, have you?"
He looked straight ahead, unreadable. "No. You?"
"Why would I admit to it?" I looked straight ahead, too, fighting the wounded feelings I didn't understand. "Good. Then no one else ever needs to know."
"Except the other nineteen people in the room," he said drily.
"If they squeal, they'll get their asses kicked to jail. Kind of delicious, isn't it? The best drama of the night and they can't talk about it." I walked at a brisk pace, but he had no trouble keeping up.
We reached a red light. I hit the walk button with a force that surprised me.
"You're pissed at me," he said.
The light turned green. He held me back as I took a step forward. "Morgan, what did you expect?"
"A text to see how I was doing would have been nice." I couldn't believe the words slipped out. Had I really been sitting around waiting for him to text me? Crap.
He frowned. "Fuck. You probably wanted flowers."
"I was in the hospital overnight."
"I had my own shit to deal with." He swung me around so I faced him. He looked like I'd verbally slapped him. "Shit, I'm sorry. That was harsh."
I stared at him. "I'm the villain," I said. "Do you know what it's been like around the house? Seth is the only one who understands, and everyone glares at me whenever I talk to him. Like I'm corrupting him or something."
"Maybe if you didn't try to scare the shit out of everyone they would work up a little sympathy for you. You're scary when you want to be, Morgan. You can lie to me if you want, but you can't lie to yourself. You've been bitchier than normal, especially to Alexis."
"What do you care?" My breath caught. "I forgot who I was talking to. You would take her side. You're a fool, Dak."
"She's your little. You could take pity and show some sympathy."
I couldn't believe what I was hearing. "Be as sympathetic as you want. You're not going to win her back." I took a deep breath. "Grow a pair. You were being two-timed."
He just stared at me until the silence was painful.
"Seems like we could have come to each other's aid. Two villains are stronger than one. At least we'd have each other to talk to." I laughed, but it was at myself. My love for Zach may have died, but the embarrassment lingered.
Dakota stared at me like he was trying to determine whether he could trust me. I liked that he didn't offer me platitudes. "You think we should stick together?" He sounded almost amazed.
I shrugged. "As two wounded parties, why not?"
He was quiet a moment. The light changed and the traffic streamed by.
He held my gaze. "It's nine o'clock on a Friday night. Do you really want to go home?"
"What makes you think I'm going home?" I looked him in the eye.
He grinned. "Can it, Morgan. What kind of a fool do you think I am? You can't afford to be caught drinking. Which means partying is out. At least until this damn class is over tomorrow. And unless I miss my guess, you're on social probation."
If he expected me to blink, he was crazy. "Very perceptive."
"You're not denying it." He held my gaze.
"Why should I?"
He shook his head. "I'm not under the oath of ADIS right now. I could spread the rumor around."
"You're an ass." I tried to step around him.
"But I won't."
I stopped short.
"But. If you head back to the house now, the infamous party girl Morgan will give herself away. The way I see it, you'll either have to feign a headache or illness and hide out in your room. Or go to the movies by yourself and pretend you've been out on the party scene." He paused. "I'll save you the trouble. I'm taking you to the movies."
My mouth fell open. He took my arm, looked both ways, and dragged me across the street against a Do Not Walk sign.
"Living on the edge?" I said. "Won't a jaywalking conviction be three strikes?"
"Dream on." He grinned, and my heart did an unexpected, odd little flip. "I haven't been convicted of anything yet."
The movie theater was two blocks away down Main Street. We walked there in silence. At the box office, Dakota picked an action-adventure comic book flick and insisted on paying. Inside the lobby,
he bought a huge-sized popcorn, two huge cups of pop, and a box of Nerds.
The theater was nearly full, but we found two seats in the back. As we made our way up the aisle, I spotted Brenda with a couple of her friends. She gave me the death glare.
Crap! I was already in her crosshairs. She had the completely wrong idea, I could tell. But that didn't matter. I couldn't explain. I wouldn't. Now it would be all over the sorority that I'd been out with Dakota.
For his part, Dakota ignored her. He made his way to the far center of the row and lifted the armrest separating two seats. When we'd settled in, he rested the popcorn on his leg and mine between us.
The previews had already started. Neither of us spoke. Our hands brushed as we reached for popcorn at the same time. I felt almost like I was on a junior high date. Everything was so innocent. But I was nervous and out of my element. Like, what were we?
Frenemies. That was all I could think. But every time our hands accidentally brushed, I felt a spark. And almost shy, like he thought I was doing it on purpose.
At one point, I half expected him to put his arm around me and try to cop a feel of my breast. But he kept his hands, arms, and all appendages to himself. And stupidly, I was disappointed.
When the movie was over and the credits started to roll, Dak popped right up. I stayed in my seat. I wanted to give Brenda and company a chance to exit before we did. The last thing I needed was a run-in with her.
Dak looked at me quizzically. "Coming? The movie's over."
"No, it's not." I stared straight ahead at the screen. "It has a stinger. You know, one of those little surprise scenes at the end of the credits? Victoria saw this movie last week. She said the stinger's awesome."
"Oh. You're one of those." He sighed like he was resigned, and sat down. "Irreconcilable differences."
"You're not?" I actually turned to look at him. "Stingers can make the whole movie. Either they set up a sequel or they highlight the whole point of the film. Worst case, they just give you a laugh."
"Or they irritate the cleaning crew."
"Shut up! Stinger haters miss the point. We paid to see the movie. The whole movie. Don't sell us short. You should be looking for the fun surprises in life, waiting patiently for them. Not cheating yourself out of them."
The theater was nearly empty. Brenda gave up and left, shooting me a glare over her shoulder before she disappeared from sight. Only the half-dozen hardcore stinger lovers remained. And the cleaning crew was already sweeping up popcorn.
"But—"
"Shhh! Here it is."
He shut up and watched it with me. When it was over, those of us who were left clapped.
I turned to Dak.
His eyes were wide. "Awesome!"
"See!" I said. "Made the movie." Then I nearly did something stupid and reached for his hand. I stopped myself just in time. "Can't wait for the sequel now, can you?"
We spilled out of the theater, laughing and picking apart the weak plot points of the movie.
"You're a harsh critic, Morgs," Dakota said with admiration in his voice.
"Not harsh. Just discerning. Despite its flaws, I enjoyed it. The storytelling swept me away."
"Me too." He stuffed his hands in his pockets as we walked up the street toward campus.
There was no way I could grab it without thinking. He saved me from stupidity. But I was almost insulted by the clear message that he didn't want to touch me.
We took a different route back from the theater than we would have from the counseling center. No rape alley for us.
I didn't know what compelled me, but I had to ask: "Is your heart very broken, Dak?"
He stopped and stared at me, frowning slightly, like he was puzzled.
I didn't understand his confusion. I prompted him. "Alexis sleeping with your best friend?"
His face was dark and unreadable. "Yeah, it was a stab in the back. But then, he saved you. So I guess we're even."
My heart pounded out of control. Saved me? Like that mattered to Dak, other than he wasn't going to jail for vehicular homicide. I felt myself blushing in the dark. "That's an evasive answer."
"He and I are still tight. He asked the prosecutor for leniency on my behalf. We've forgiven each other."
I didn't understand it. Nobody did. But he didn't elaborate. I started walking again.
I caught him off guard. It took him a few steps to catch up with me. "Alexis and Zach belong together." His voice was soft and understanding, like he was trying to avoid a landmine that was me and my tender feelings for Zach. "I'm over it." There was a long beat of silence. "You?"
"I'm over him. I kind of have to be." I took a deep breath and blew a white cloud of it out. "Being with Zach was always just a fantasy, anyway."
We both let it drop. He walked me all the way to the end of the walkway in front of my house. For an insane moment, I wanted to kiss him, and he looked like he wanted to kiss me.
His hands were still jammed in his pockets. "I'll be by to pick you up at seven thirty tomorrow morning. Be waiting for me."
On impulse, I leaned over and kissed him on the cheek. His cheek was cold, and bristly with stubble. He smelled like that damn cologne he always wore. I had a flash of having sex with him and steeled myself against the inevitable lust attack. I didn't want Dakota. I couldn't afford to care about him. He wasn't my type. Why did scent have to bring back memories like it did?
Without waiting for his reaction, I turned and ran up the walk. At the door, I finally looked back at him. He was exactly where I'd left him, waiting to make sure I was safely inside. How sweet. And I don't mean that cynically.
I called out to him and gave him a safe-arrival wave.
His face was in shadow. It was hard to tell, but I imagined he smiled. He did, in fact, nod before he turned and walked away.
A ridiculous smile popped up on my lips. I was grinning like the first time a guy had given me a secret Valentine. I was still smiling when I let myself in and nearly ran into Alexis.
I skidded to a stop, and she stepped out of the way just in time to avoid an embarrassing collision.
I knew from the look on her face she'd seen me with Dakota. What did she want from me? She couldn't have both Dakota and Zach.
I caught her off guard by smiling sweetly. "I've been a bad big. We should do coffee. Get to know each other better. Sunday morning. The College Grind. I'm buying."
Chapter Five
Dakota
When I got back to the frat, it smelled like Friday night, or maybe I should say early Saturday morning—of smoke and beer, sweat and perfume. The floors were sticky. Guys were passed out on the sofas. The pounding sounds of sex emanated from rooms along the hall as I made my way to the presidential suite and turned a blind eye to any infractions or underage drinking.
In my room, I felt guilty as hell as I pulled out my phone and called Jordan. "Hey, babe," I said when she picked up.
"Hey to you, too. You're back late from your class." Her voice held the edge of a frown.
"Yeah. Some of us went to a movie after." The truth. And a lie.
"What did you see? Was it any good?" Her voice softened.
"Ah, an action flick. It was okay." The company was better. The stinger was killer.
"And class?"
I could either lie by omission or come clean. "Boring. Surprising." I paused for a beat. "Morgan was in it."
"What?" She spoke the word harshly, coloring it with jealousy and anger. She inhaled like she was trying to get control. We'd had too many fights over Morgan in the past. "Awkward."
She had no idea. "Yeah." I had to defuse the situation and put Jordan at ease before the powder keg we were walking on exploded. I doused my voice with sarcasm. "She hasn't changed. She's still the same sweet girl."
I paused again. "She had the nerve to threaten me, saying she was going to see if she could get on the victims' panel I have to sit in on. She's determined to make my life hell."
Jordan gasped. "No? The wi
tch!"
I winced, thinking of Morgan's warm, gentle lips brushing my cheek. "Yeah. Nice, huh?"
"She'll be there tomorrow? Can you avoid her?" Jordan's tone was so sympathetic, she was practically cooing, Poor baby, baby to me.
I felt like a jerk. I shrugged, even though we weren't on Facetime or Skyping and she couldn't see me. Which was intentional on my part. "I'll damn well try. But it's a small class. And we have share time, you know, to get our demons out."
"No! That's awful," she said. "What did you share?"
"As little as possible. That's my plan going forward." I changed the subject. "I talked to Zach. He said you visited him."
She paused for so long, I wondered what I'd done wrong. Jordan and I had known each other long enough to sense each other's moods.
"Yeah," she said at last.
"How is he? Really. He says he's doing better—"
"He is!" Too exuberant. Like she was covering for something. "He looks almost like his old self."
I had to tease her. We'd all gone to high school together. Zach had been Mr. Popular. All the girls drooled over him. "Does that mean he's not as hot as he used to be?"
She laughed, but it sounded nervous and forced. "Dream on! He's hotter. Girls love a guy they can nurse."
"Shit." I laughed, too. "Guess I'll always be number two."
"Not with me, Dak." She sounded fierce again. "Never with me. You're always number one. Way hotter than he is."
It was like she was over stroking my male ego. Yeah, I knew girls sometimes thought us guys were fragile, but seriously? Something was off. Maybe my own guilty conscience was simply projecting. Maybe she was picking up the awkward vibes between us. Neither of us seemed to be into it tonight. Maybe we were both just tired.
"IloveyouDakota." She spoke quickly, slurring the words together.
It took me a sec to understand what she'd said. I knew the expected response. But I hesitated an instant too long, nearly tripping over the words. "Love you too."
She picked up on my reticence. "Is something wrong?"