Finding Paige: (The Paige Diaries #1)

by D. K Lake

  I hope so.

  Maybe he can make me forget about Dario for good.

  Chapter 19

  After classes are over for the day, I meet up with Em and we grab a bite to eat at the cafeteria. She talks nonstop about Spencer, and as her best friend I listen intently and try to get on board with this new love interest. He's just turned twenty-one and has moved here from Las Vegas. He knows the Torres brothers from when they lived there as well, so he followed them here to Colorado to help them grow their drug empire. At least that’s what I make from everything she tells me. But as soon as she mentions the Torres brothers my guard goes up.

  My sister had a lucky escape when our mom uprooted us and moved us to Nebraska. I wonder what would have happened to her if we had stayed in Colorado and she had continued her toxic relationship with Mitchel Torres. Thankfully, she's met someone else in Nebraska and they're engaged, and they welcomed their first child not too long ago. My niece, Blue, is currently eight months old and is the definition of cuteness. Big blue eyes and jet-black wavy hair. I don’t know where she gets her looks from as Kelsey is naturally dark blond and has different blue eyes, and Blue’s father is brunette with green eyes? I have no idea where Blue gets her black hair from. But anyway, she’s the cutest thing. I don't get to see her as much as I would like to because I left Nebraska to come back here, but I still think about her and my sister all the time.

  It's as though Spencer can hear us talking about him because as soon as I ask Em about her plans for tonight, her phone chimes with a text from him asking her to go bowling. She invites me to go with them and says they can drop me off later before I have to meet up with Maverick, but I politely decline and tell her all about Dario's hilarious texts and she can't stop laughing. So, I stay in and pretend I’m dying from chronic period pain.

  When we get back to our room, Em crashes on the bed and asks me to wake her up in about an hour. I nip to the showers while she's asleep. I get changed and pick out a cute white dress but then realize my mistake. I would never wear anything white while I’m on my period. I go for the next best thing which is a black halterneck dress that hangs just above my knees and flows nicely. It shows off just enough of my back to draw attention but not look too sexy. I borrow a pair of Em's glittery sandals. We're both the same size which is handy. I leave my hair loose and fix my makeup.

  I find myself waiting around, checking out the windows to see if I can spot Dario.

  Where is he? Where's my phone? Is Maverick messaging me right now? Is Dario telling Maverick I have herpes or thrush or something just as bad to send him running? Probably.

  Shit.

  I need to get that phone back.

  I check the time. Em's been asleep for about fifty minutes.

  "Em, I gotta go out. I'm setting an alarm on your phone." I tell her and she mumbles in response.

  I quickly grab my bag and hurry outside, praying I don't run into Maverick. I don't know how I will explain this if I do.

  I check the bus timetable and luckily there should be a bus coming in the next five minutes that's heading into town.

  Dario's had all day to drop my phone off. What's taking so long? He could have just given it to Spencer to drop off. No, that would be too easy. He's probably waiting for Maverick to message me. I bet he loves this. Playing havoc with my life.

  I hop onto the bus and find a seat that looks semi-clean. It’s hot inside the bus and my seat feels sticky. Yuck. I jump off and hurry along the sidewalk. It's nearly 5 o'clock and the stores are starting to close. I don't even know what time the garage closes, but no doubt Dario will be there because he lives there. I see the garage in the distance and the metal shutters are still up and there are cars parked outside. I slow down and try to calm my racing heart. I feel hot and a little sweaty from rushing.

  I put on a brave face and head inside.

  There are a few mechanics in overalls working on the cars and one of them is talking to a woman about the work he's got to do to her car and she goes pale when he gives her an estimate. Another mechanic wheels out from underneath a car and sits up when he sees me.

  "Can I help ya, darling?" he asks.

  "I'm just here to see Dario," I tell him.

  "Dario, huh? He's in the office at the back." he says, his eyes roaming the length of my body and I quickly walk away.

  "Who's that?" I hear another mechanic ask.

  "Dunno. She wanted to see Bos." the other replies.

  I realize they're talking about Dario. I sometimes forget everyone else calls him by his surname. Bos or Boston. I've always called him Dario. The name he had printed on his nametag when we used to work at the grocery store together.

  I snake around a couple of cars and can see Dario inside the office through the open door. He's wearing dark blue overalls with the garage's name on and he's talking to one of the Torres brothers.

  I'd recognize him anywhere. He's tall with a lanky frame, shockingly blue eyes, and strikingly dark hair.

  Mitchel Torres.

  My sister's psychotic ex.

  "Look at this one. I mean, there's no question that she's my child." Mitchel says and I hang back a moment, wondering who he's talking about.

  Mitchel had a baby with someone?

  "I don't know how Kelsey can lie to everyone and pretend Blue's not mine. She doesn't even look remotely like Colt." he scoffs.

  Kelsey? He's talking about my sister and her fiancé, Colt.

  Wait a minute. Blue is Mitchel's baby?!

  Ohmigawd!

  Now it makes sense why Blue looks so familiar and doesn't look like Colt in the slightest.

  I have a hundred questions. Does Mom know? Does Colt know the truth? Does anyone know? Mitchel knows!

  I feel like someone just dropped a bombshell on me.

  Kelsey has been lying to everyone all this time. First, she lies about not knowing she was pregnant and now she's lying about who the father is. Is there anything my sister doesn't lie about?

  "Look, I know you're pissed-" Dario starts.

  "You're FUCKING right I'm pissed!" Mitchel talks over him.

  "But I don't think going over there and showing up on her doorstep is the right thing to do. She's engaged to Colt, Mitch. I think it's serious this time."

  "Exactly why I should go over there and get her back. He's not right for her. I don't know what she thinks she's playing at, getting engaged to him and pretending Blue's his daughter."

  "Listen to what your mom keeps telling you. Blue is better off with Kelsey right now. You need to sort yourself out first. You’ve gotta stop drinking, lay off the fucking coke, and get your head on straight before you go charging over there and make another big mistake and lose her forever."

  "And if I don't go over there, I will lose her to Colt if she decides to marry that giant douchebag. I need to see her. I can't stay away from her any longer. I'm going out of my fucking mind!" Mitchel appears to be crying and I feel bad for eavesdropping, but not bad enough to move away from the door.

  I can't believe what I'm hearing. My family is so messed up with all their secrets and lies.

  Mitchel digs his fingers into his eyes to stop himself from crying and Dario places a hand on his arm to comfort him. His eyes flicker my way and he catches me lurking.

  "Paige," Dario says my name and Mitchel whips around and frowns at me.

  "What's she doing here?" he says to Dario, and he doesn't even care that I can hear him.

  Dario shakes his head at Mitchel. "At college, remember?"

  "Oh, fuck. I forgot." Mitchel mumbles and plasters a fake smile on his face. "Hey, Paige. How's that hot sister of yours?" he asks, his demeanor changing in an instance. It’s almost frightening how he can change his emotions so quickly.

  "I wouldn't know. We don't talk that much." I cross my arms and glare at him.

  He's so fucking creepy. I don't know what my sister ever saw in him.

  "How's the kid?" He wanders closer and I try not to take a step back, but it's har
d not to. He seriously gives off a stalker vibe and I don't trust the guy.

  "Blue?" I ask, standing up tall.

  "Yeah, how is little Blueberry?" he asks, referring to my sister's child.

  His child.

  How many secrets does my family have?

  "She's fine, I guess. Like I said, we don't talk all that much."

  "All right, leave her alone." Dario gives Mitchel a push in the direction of the door.

  "Later, Paige." Mitchel smirks and exits the room.

  I slowly turn and fix Dario with a glare.

  "What the hell was that?"! I demand.

  "Shhh." Dario quickly closes the door so no one can hear us. "Mitchel is Blue's father? Is he for real?"

  "Paige," Dario sighs. "I can't talk about it."

  "You can't talk about it? Why the hell not?! Who else knows?"

  "No one. Not even Kelsey knows that Mitch knows about Blue. She's done a good job of trying to keep Blue a secret, but Mitch found out anyway."

  "So Blue's really Mitchel's daughter? Does Colt know?"

  My sister's fiancé is one of the good ones. He puts up with Kelsey and he loves her to pieces, and the thought of my sister lying to him makes me mad. He's too good for her.

  "You weren't supposed to hear any of that." he mutters.

  "Well, I did. So, tell me everything or I'm walking."

  "Paige," He looks tired as he scrubs a hand through his messy blond hair that is hanging loose today and curling around his ears. "I don't wanna talk about it. I don't want to be responsible for if your sister finds out about this. Mitch doesn't want her to know that he knows yet."

  "He's really going to turn up on her doorstep and surprise her? Is he insane? She's engaged to Colt!"

  "I know. He knows that. I've told him to leave them alone but he's fucking obsessed with Kelsey and he's not going to let this go."

  "What makes you think I'd tell Kelsey about this anyway? We don't talk. Not after she lied about being pregnant the whole time when I was-" I quickly stop myself.

  Dario arches an eyebrow at me.

  "I won't tell her. Anyway, it sounds like Mitchel is planning to tell her. He'll wreck her life. He knows that, right?"

  "I know, that's why I keep trying to persuade him not to go to Nebraska. Even his mom has told him to leave Kelsey alone and not go after her."

  "How did he even find out that Blue's his?"

  "That dates add up, and have you seen photos of Blue?"

  "Of course I have."

  "She's a mini version of Mitch." Dario says, leaning on the edge of the desk.

  "Why would Kelsey lie to everyone about who Blue's father is?" I say, more to myself.

  I get that she'd want to keep this a secret from Mitchel but lying to everyone else isn't the way to go about it.

  "I'm guessing she didn't want Mitchel finding out." Dario reads my mind.

  "He needs to be locked up." I let my arms fall to my sides, giving up.

  My sister isn't my concern. If she wants to lie to everyone then she's only got herself to blame when it all blows up in her face. If our mom ever found out that Blue is Mitchel's child, she'd probably disown my sister. Mitchel's the reason we had to leave Colorado in the first place.

  "He's not that bad." Dario says.

  "He's crazy." I give him a pointed look and he smirks at me.

  "About your sister." Dario adds.

  "Whatever. I don't care anymore. I came here to get my phone seeing how you haven't bothered to drop it off."

  "Must have slipped my mind." he says although I can detect a hidden smile.

  "I can't believe you sent Maverick those messages," I say and he bursts out laughing. "It's not funny. It was embarrassing for me. I waited all night for him to show up and he never did and it was all because you told him I got my period."

  "You can thank me later," he says smugly.

  "I'm not thanking you at all. You can't do stuff like that. You can't keep interfering."

  "Paige," He laughs darkly. "I only just got you back. I'm not giving up that easy." he says seriously, his eyes fixed on mine.

  "You're as crazy as Mitchel, you know that?"

  He doesn't respond and just smiles at me.

  "Well, where is it?" I snap, wanting to get my phone and get out of here.

  "Umm..." He looks around the office.

  "Dario, come on. I need to get back, I have a da-"

  Crap.

  "You have a what?" he asks, lifting up some paperwork, searching for the phone.

  "Coursework, and I have a lot of reading I need to do before tomorrow."

  "Hey, you hungry?" he randomly asks.

  "What? No. I need to get back."

  "Come on, my treat."

  "I said no. Where's my phone?"

  He taps his head as if trying to remember where he put it.

  "Fine. Keep the damn phone. I'll buy a replacement." I say as a threat. I have hardly any money and the best I could buy would be one of those crappy-looking flip phones that kidnappers and drug dealers use as burners.

  I bet Mitchel has a burner phone. Yes, he definitely has one of those.

  I go to leave but Dario swoops in front of me with a big grin on his face and I have to stop myself from walking into him.

  "You're not funny."

  "Am too, but you've had a stick up your ass ever since you got back." I turn around to get away from him but there's nowhere to run. "You need to loosen up." He reaches for my shoulders and tries to give me a massage.

  "Stop touching me." I tell him, pulling away. "Let me out!" I yell, turning around and trying to get past him.

  "So, was that a yes to takeout?" he asks with a laugh.

  "Seriously?" I sigh with frustration, trying to dodge his hands that have a mind of their own.

  He tickles my sides and I scream and try to fight him off and manage to drop my tote bag in the process and a few things fall out.

  "Stop it!" I cry, trying not to laugh but it's hard not to when he's tickling me.

  "Dario, stop it. We're not kids, pack it in." I laugh, trying to dart around him.

  I hear a familiar jingle.

  blink-182, I Miss You.

  Coming from Dario's pocket.

  "Give me my phone!" I beeline for his pocket and he tries to stop me, and we end up struggling against each other. The door opens and Spencer walks in.

  "Well, well, well, what do we have here?" Spencer laughs.

  I stand up straight and shake my hair out of my face.

  "You two need to just fuck each other again and make up already." Spencer says and I look at Dario for a moment wondering how much he's told Spencer about us.

  More than he should by the sounds of it.

  "What do you want?" Dario asks, pushing my hand away as I try to reach for his pocket again.

  "I didn't want to carry all this around." Spencer says and hands Dario the bag from his shoulder, and then he winks at me when Dario's back is turned.

  I pick up my tote off the floor and collect my Chapstick and tampons that have spilled out. Dario goes behind the desk and twiddles the dial to the safe and it pops open and I pretend not to notice all the cash that is stashed in there. Dario empties the bag and adds more stacks of money to the safe.

  "You out tonight?" Dario asks.

  "Nah, Mitch is out making deliveries tonight." Spencer answers.

  I should be shocked that they are openly talking about drugs in front of me like it’s totally normal, but surprisingly I'm not.

  "I've got a hot date with this college chick. We’re going bowling and then I'm gonna take her out of town clubbing." Spencer adds.

  "Clubbing? On a Monday!" I blurt.

  Spencer is most definitely a bad influence on Em.

  "It was Em's idea." Spencer says as if that makes it any better.

  "Well, have fun, and use a condom." Dario jokes and it bugs the hell out of me.

  They do some weird handshake-hug gesture thing and then Spencer walks out a
gain, slinging his now empty bag over his shoulder.

  "What are you doing with all that money?" I ask once he's gone. "Whatever. I don't care." I change my mind. "Can I get my phone now?"

  Dario reaches into his pocket and lifts out my phone and swipes his finger across the screen, his eyes lifting to mine.

  "Stop reading my messages." I snatch the phone away from him and read the last message.

  Maverick: Did you find out if Em is going out or not? Or are you gonna come back to my room? Either way, I don't mind, I just need to know so I can clean. My roommate is a slob. xx

  He's added a little wink Emoji at the end.

  "You've got a date with Maverick." he asks, scowling at me.

  "Yup." I smile breezily. "So, I better get back. See ya!" I throw over my shoulder and open the door and he doesn't follow me this time.

  Chapter 20

  The bus is late, and I make it back to the dorms just after seven. I hurry back to my room and fumble with my key in the lock and drop it on the floor. I crouch down to pick it up just as the door opens and Maverick stands inside my room, staring down at me. He's dressed in board shorts and a casual t-shirt with his Converse.

  "Mav, you're here?" I ask, confused, grabbing my key off the floor and standing back up.

  "Em let me in. When you didn't reply I came up here looking for you and Em said I could wait in here."

  I casually check my phone as I step inside and see another message from Emily asking me where I am and that Maverick's waiting for me.

  Crap.

  I shut off my phone and notice Maverick's set up his laptop on the bed and his rucksack is on the floor.

  "Where were you?" he asks casually but I can tell he's not happy about something.

  "I was in the library." I think quickly. "Sorry, I had my phone on silent and I must have lost track of the time."

  "Oh," He thinks about it and then smiles. "You should have told me, I would have come with you."

  "Next time," I tell him and drop my bag on the floor.

  "So, what are we watching?" I ask.

  He grabs his laptop from the bed and sits on the edge.

  "Something on Netflix? I'll let you pick. And FYI, I won't say no to a good rom-com."