~*~ TT ~*~
“Okay everyone, I’m sure you all are upset that we’ve cut classes short in order to announce the results of the election,” Headmistress Witherspoon announced, standing on the stage of the theater room.
We had been dismissed a half-hour early from classes so we could hear the results from the morning polls. I really had no idea how this was going to go, though I did fear that the video and Trina’s rally this morning may have hurt my case. Taking Jaxson’s hand, I laced my fingers into his. He shot me a sexy grin and winked.
“First we’re going to announce our treasurer, then secretary, vice-president and finally the one you’ve been waiting for, our new school president,” Headmistress Witherspoon, continued, “so let’s get down to it.”
A round of cheers. I was surprised at how excited people in this school were about the election. At my school back in Florida it wasn’t a popularity contest, not in the least. Most students didn’t want the hassle of student council. Here, however, it seemed to be the ultimate when came to popularity contests. Everyone running was at the top of the school hierarchy.
“You’ve got this,” Olivia whispered, placing her hand on mine and giving it a gentle squeeze.
“I hope so.”
She grinned, leaning into me and lowering her voice. “Besides, good always prevails over evil. It’s the rule of the universe you know.”
I softly chuckled. “If you say so.”
The group of us watched as she announced the election winners. Each winner went up on stage and gave a brief acceptance speech. The fifteen minutes it took to get to the president announcement was excruciating. I was so nervous that my hand was shaking against Jaxson’s.
“You got this,” Jaxson assured me, “Calm down and make sure to remember your speech.”
I wished I had the confidence in myself that he had in me because I was as nervous as hell right now.
“This was the closest race we’ve had in Greisbach Academy. So close in fact that we had to tally the ballots twice just to make sure they were correct,” Headmistress Witherspoon announced. The revelation was met by a series of ohhs, ahhs and chattering.
I looked up at Jaxson once more for reassurance.
Closing my eyes, I began to recite in my head; Keira Rigby. Keira Rigby. Keira Rigby.
“If you could all put your hands together for a very talented and driven young woman, who I know will make great changes in our school, Trina Kayne!”
The room exploded with cheers and applause as Trina, who was seated down on the first row, stood and made her way to the side of the stage and up the stairs to join the headmistress on stage.
I’d lost… My heart sank. I’d felt sure I had a chance of winning.
“It’s fine. It was going to be a huge time sink for you anyway, honey,” Damien said.
I turned my head to the left and looked at Damien. “Yeah, you’re right. It’s not the end of the world.”
Looking up at the stage again, I could see Trina speaking as she stared at me, a huge shit-eating grin on her face.
“You put up an amazing fight. No one else could have held up against her like you did,” Olivia added.
I could feel just as many eyes on me as there were on her, all watching and no doubt hoping for some extreme reaction. I couldn’t give it to them. Instead I smiled and clapped along with everyone else, as if it weren’t any big deal that she’d won.
Fine Trina, you won this one. This isn’t over by a long shot.
Chapter 19
“I know you wanted this, but you can’t let it get to you,” Jaxson said, giving my hand a squeeze. This was one of the only times we actually walked home from school. The last time was when I’d gotten suspended for fighting with Trina and he’d ditched school to spend the afternoon with me at Coney Island. It was a little chilly for Coney Island.
“So why are we walking home anyhow?”
“Because.” He gave me a devious grin. The guy had something up his sleeve. “You’re always complaining that we never walk home and need exercise, well, this is the exercise.”
Frowning, I suddenly realized we weren’t headed in the right direction. “Wait a second. Where are we going?” Fifth Avenue, that was where we were headed. Turning onto Fifth Avenue, he directed me across the street and I immediately knew what our ultimate destination was. “I don’t need retail therapy.”
“Of course you do. You’re going to my fight tomorrow night aren’t ya?”
His fight! I immediately perked up. As much as I didn’t want to see him get hit, kicked or whatever. I was excited to be asked to go with him. He needed to win to make up for the fight I’d cost him and I planned on being the most supportive girlfriend ever.
“Try and stop me!”
He chuckled, “I did try, it didn’t work. I figure if you can’t beat them then you might as well just take them with you to the fight.” There wasn’t even a trace of anger in his gaze. I was relieved that the anger was done and over with.
“Okay, so I’ve already deducted we’re headed for Versace. I really don’t need new clothes.”
“You do. See, I’ve always been told that when a woman is down in the dumps, shopping does the trick, so I’m taking you shopping at your favorite store.”
It touched me that he knew that much and noticed how much I liked their stuff. As we reached the large double doors of the Versace boutique, the guard opened the doors for us to enter. Each time I entered the store I was amazed by the beauty of the boutique and how everything was displayed with the utmost care.
“So here’s the deal Miss Richey Rich,” Jaxson said, taking my hand and leading me up the stairs to the third floor, which had women’s clothing. “You’re going to find the perfect outfit including a handbag and shoes and even jewelry if there’s something you like, and I’m paying for it.”
Laughing, I shrugged. It was still a crazy concept. When I lived in the trailer park you’d be lucky if a guy would pay to take you to a movie. It was always a fifty-fifty thing. But here, I had a guy I’d only been dating a little over a month and he was prepared to slap down over ten grand to take me out.
“What’s that look for?”
“I just find it crazy how life has changed for me.” Reaching the third floor, we were immediately greeted by one of the sales associates, who gave us a wide smile and offered us a glass of wine. “I never imagined that I’d have a boyfriend who would take me to a place like this for a shopping spree.
“Is there anything I can help you with?” the saleswoman, who didn’t appear to be much older than us, with make-up applied immaculately and blonde hair in a classic wrap-around ponytail, asked, passing us each a glass of white wine.
Jaxson took a sip from the glass and slipped his arm over my shoulders. “She wants everything. Just keep the wine and clothing flowing.”
“One outfit,” I knew I had to concede to that. “One!”
He winked. “We’ll see.”
It didn’t take long for us to find a number of items for me to try on. When I say us, it was mostly him. Part of me felt like a princess while another felt like a Barbie doll he was playing dress-up with. That being said, he had pretty damned good taste and there was nothing wrong with feeling like a princess for a day.
The saleswoman led us to the dressing room and hung up the potential outfits on a hook at the back of the room. Each of the dressing rooms was large enough to fit several people, and Jaxson was quick to utilize that fact, surprising me by following into the dressing room behind me and closing the door. Grabbing the wine from my fingertips he placed mine along with his on a corner ledge inside the room.
“You’re joining?” I felt slightly embarrassed by the fact. Sure, we’d been intimate and he’d seen me naked plenty of times. I’d just never put on a dressing-room strip show for a guy before.
“I am. I have to check out our purchases on you.”
“I could come out.”
He sat down on the plush chair in the corner
and leaned forward, his elbows on his knees. “You could, but what would be the fun in that?”
I could feel the heat coloring my cheeks. “This is non-negotiable, isn’t it?”
Nodding, Jaxson confirmed, “It is.”
Deciding to put my shyness to the side, I began to strip out of my uniform, removing the clothing slowly, enjoying the look of desire flare up in his eyes as he watched me. “Suit yourself.” Stripped down to my underwear, I grabbed the first pair of jeans and then a tight-fitting t-shirt to go with them.
Slowly, I turned, making sure he got a good look at every inch of me. “What do you think?”
“It’s really good.”
Giving him a wink, I began to strip and put on the black and yellow asymmetrical dress he’d chosen. The dress had one full length sleeve and the other was just a spaghetti strap. Examining myself in the mirror, I was automatically in love. It fit perfectly, hugging all the right spots. The jeans and t-shirt were awesome, but this rocked.
I attempted to look at the price tag, but he swatted my hand away. “No peeking. This is on me.”
Scrunching my nose up at him, I asked, “Do you like it then?”
Jaxson stood and closed the distance between us in two steps, grabbing my waist and pulling me into him. “You look amazing,” he growled, lowering his lips to mine.
My heart stopped for a brief moment, electricity shooting through me as our lips connected. A sigh escaped past my lips as I slipped my hands up his chest and laced my fingers behind his neck. Sliding his hands around my hips, he pulled me into him so our bodies were flush against each other. My lips parted and his tongue sought out mine, amplifying the feeling emerging between my legs.
“I think we have a winner,” he whispered against my neck, the warmth of his breath sending another delicious shiver through me. Grasping the zipper at the back of the dress, he slowly began to lower it.
Giggling, I attempted to push him away so I could get undressed, but he wasn’t budging as he began to slip the dress off my shoulders until it fell and puddled at my feet.
“Have you ever—”
I knew where he was going with that question and heat rose to my cheeks. I didn’t have a chance to answer as the saleswoman rapped on the door. “Is there anything I can get for you?”
My eyes widened as I pushed him back with a little more force, making him chuckle. “No. We’re okay. I think we’ve found the one already,” I called back, hoping she wouldn’t hear the strain in my voice as I quickly stepped out of the dress and put it back on the hanger.
There were a couple more outfits that I tried out but none of them competed with the dress. “Do you think that dress will be a bit much?”
“What do you mean? A bit much in the sense that I’m going to have to fight the men off at the club. Because I’m more than willing to do that in order to have you on my arm wearing it.” Giving me another appreciative up-and-down look, he backed away from me, giving me space to put my uniform back on.
“Cute. But I’m being serious. Will it be okay?”
“Of course it will. It’s perfect. Now all we need is shoes, bag, and all that stuff.”
“I have a pair of shoes and all that.”
“But nothing specifically bought for this dress. You can’t just wear a dress like that without buying specific stuff to go with it. Besides, you had a bad couple of weeks, this is retail therapy. It’s something that has to happen.”
Rolling my eyes at him, I buttoned up the last button on my blouse and then got up on my tip toes and gave him a light peck on his neck. “Thank you for this. I really appreciate how much you care.”
Sliding a large, muscular arm around my shoulders, he placed a kiss on the top of my head. “How much I love you, you mean.”
Grinning I looked up. “I love you too, Jaxon.”
~*~ TT ~*~
“Thank you so much for all of this.” Standing at the top of the steps of my house, I took the bags from him.
“You’re welcome. Do you want me to come in and you can model a little more for me?”
Laughing, I shook my head. “My mother is home now, remember? Besides, we’re opening the restaurant soon and we have some things to go over. I’ve been so preoccupied with everything in my life that I was hoping that I could spend some time with her. Things are finally starting to come around for us. It’s been so rocky.”
He looked disappointed but nodded. Leaning forward he kissed me long and hard once more before breaking away and taking the steps back down. “Then I’ll be talking to you later, babes.”
“Thank you again, hun. I’m overwhelmed. I love you.” Just looking at him gave me butterflies. I wondered if those butterflies would eventually go away or if I would get to have this feeling every time I saw him for the rest of our lives.
“Love you too, babes.” Turning, he jogged across the street and gave me one more look back, our eyes locking for a split second before he disappeared into his house.
Breathing out a sigh, a smile pasted on my lips, I entered my house and headed up the stairs, not even bothering to take off my shoes in the foyer. I was just too excited to show my mother what he’d gotten me. It wasn’t until I reached the fourth floor and was walking down the hallway that I remembered how just a few hours prior I’d lost the school election to the bitch Trina.
Not bothering to knock on her bedroom door, I dropped the bags from one hand and opened it up. The knob turned in my hand and I pushed the door open. My excitement quickly turned to shock as my mouth dropped open, though no words came out.
I’d just walked in on something that no child—or teenager for that matter—should ever walk in on. There in the flesh was my mother with the cook in the middle of the throes of passion. Tony the cook!
As quietly as possible I backed away, closing the door behind me, thankful they hadn’t noticed me.
Don’t get me wrong, I wanted the best for my mother. But I was sure that the cook was not the best for her. Not because he was a cook, but because I had a funny feeling about him. He was using my mother; I was sure of it. I had no choice at this point. I was going to have to get to the bottom of this.
Chapter 20
“Yeah, she was there, naked and on the cook.” I sat on the edge of Jaxson’s bed and watched him pack his bag getting ready for tonight’s fight.
He was grinning. He shouldn’t have been grinning, it wasn’t funny.
“It’s not good. He was a womanizer back home if I recall correctly.”
“Now are you remembering correctly or are you remembering the way you want to remember to justify your view that he isn’t good enough for your mother?”
I frowned, my brows knitting tightly. “Are you implying I’ve become a job snob?”
“I would never imply that.” He stuffed his shorts into the bag and zipped it up. “I’m just saying that you need to step back and make sure this vendetta is justified.”
“Of course it’s justified. My mother is a very kind-hearted woman and falls in love quickly and with her money she’s a prime target to be taken advantage of. Did you know that he convinced her to make a bunch of changes to our original plan for the restaurant?” The more I talked about it the angrier I got and the louder my voice became. “Mom and I came up with lots of plans and he’s come along and is messing with everything.”
“I did not know that. But maybe his ideas are good.”
“No, they’re not. Even if they were, it’s still not the vision my mother and I had for the restaurant.”
He walked around the bed and sat down beside me. “So the problem has less to do with the fact he’s fucking her—”
I crinkled my nose up at him. “Don’t say fucking. That’s crude.”
“Make love then?”
I growled, “She’s not in love with him.” I wasn’t sure if that was any better. My mother could do better than be in love with some dude she picked up from the wrong side of the tracks in Florida.
Jaxson laughed so hard he
doubled over, holding his stomach.
“Not sure what is so funny,” I grumbled, a hint of a smile appearing on my lips. “But we need to be serious, this could be a problem.”
Once he stopped laughing, he swiped at his eyes, removing the traces of tears. “Well, if you feel he isn’t being legit then hire a private investigator. That’s simple enough. It won’t cost all that much and honestly whatever it cost it would be totally worth your peace of mind, wouldn’t it? I told you before that I have someone and he’s a hell of a good one.”
“Of course. That is the best solution at this point. It’s better we find out now before he takes her for a ride and then gallops off into the sunset.”
“Let me hit you with this question then. What happens if you find out that everything is on the up-and-up and their relationship is actually real?”
“I’ve got a feeling about it, you know?”
Leaning into me he gave me a quick kiss and then stood. “Well the one thing I do know is that we’ve got to get going, can’t be late.”
I looked him up and down as I stood, grinning. He was wearing a pair of gray jogging pants and t-shirt with a gray hoodie over it.
Grabbing his bag, he threw it over his shoulder and pulled out his phone, quickly typing a message to his driver. Looking up at me he gave me a curious look. “What’s so funny?”
Motioning to my outfit I raised my brows at him. “I feel very overdressed.”
“Well you’re not going to potentially get your ass kicked tonight so you can look pretty for the both of us. Perhaps with you looking as hot as you are people won’t notice me with my face halfway busted apart.”
I cringed, almost beginning to second guess my decision to go with him. It had been damned hard to see him get taken out the last time. Each time he’d taken a blow it had seemed as though I felt it.
“What’s wrong? You don’t have to go if you don’t want to. It would be a damned shame since you look fucking amazing right now, but there’s no requirement. I won’t be offended.”
Power Play: Upper East Side (Greisbach Academy #2) Page 13
