Page 43 of The Revenge Plan (Forbidden Descendants 1)

“No.” Certain I could contain this, I assured him, “I’ve got this under control. It’ll be okay.”

With a snort, he rolled his eyes. “Yeah, we’ll see about that.”

11

Haven

I missed my first two classes of the day. But I made it to the third.

The world looked different now. As soon as I stepped on campus and glanced around me, I saw strangers in a strange land, walking past, looking as if they had purpose. As if they had worth. I kept expecting them to glance at me peculiarly and ask what I was doing there. It all seemed so new and foreign all of a sudden.

Hiking my book bag more securely onto my back, I lowered my gaze and started toward the Family and Consumer Science building. As an Early Childhood Education major, I spent half my school day at the university’s preschool lab, where I fulfilled my practicum experience. Next semester, I’d move up to student teaching and actually get to assist in some of the teaching instead of what I did now, which was basically take kids to the bathroom, help pass out snacks, set up activities, and clean messes.

But that took place in the afternoon. So as I hurried toward my Early Literacy and Language Development class, I messaged my professors from the two classes I’d slept through this morning to make sure I hadn’t missed out on anything in Methods and Curriculum or Educational Psychology. Since this was my last year, things were getting more intense. It wouldn’t do if I slipped now. I just needed to hang on a little longer.

Except my step totally faltered when I approached the entrance, only to find Marcus DeShone waiting next to the door, his back propped against the outside of the building and ankles crossed as he glanced around as if looking for…me.

As soon as our gazes met, he pushed away from the wall. I slowed, gaping at him, wondering why Topher’s right-hand man would be hanging out around the Family and Consumer Science building.

When he nervously greeted, “Hey, Haven. You got a minute?” I groaned.

Oh, hell no. Topher had sent him here to speak to me on his behalf, hadn’t he? That was just lame.

I sniffed and shook my head, brushing rudely past as I muttered, “No.”

The idiot followed me inside. “But he’s been going crazy, looking for you. You should answer one of his calls.”

“Except I don’t want to talk to him,” I hissed, continuing down the hall in the hopes that would shake him off and he’d give up on following me.

No such luck. “He’s worried as hell.”

I made a face. “Why?” I lifted my hands. “As you can see, I’m fine. Now go report back and tell him to leave me the fuck alone. I don’t want anything to do with him.”

“Jesus, you’re impossible. He’s sorry, Haven. He never meant for—”

“For what?” I snapped, spinning to face off with him and causing him to lurch back, his eyes widening with surprise. “For me to catch him? Well, I did. And guess what? I never meant to get involved with a cheating asshole either, but I did, so I guess we’re both just going to have to learn to deal with disappointment, now aren’t we?”

“You should talk to him.”

“I don’t want to fucking talk to him. Just get away from me before I pass along the message I really want delivered to him, which is my knee in his junk, as hard as I can plant it.”

When I pulled my leg back as if preparing to jab Marcus right between the legs, he lifted his hands and leaped back even more. “Holy shit. You’re a crazy bitch.”

“And you suck at picking friends,” I snarled back. “Now, get away from me.”

“Gladly,” he gasped before turning and hurrying off.

I didn’t realize my hands were shaking or my breathing had picked up until he was gone. As a pair of girls in my Early Literacy and Language Development class rounded the corner talking, I drew in a deep breath to calm myself, then offered them a smile when they greeted me as they passed. Brushing at my clothes as if wiping my encounter with Marcus off me, I tucked a piece of hair behind my ear, cleared my throat, and started toward class as well.

But while I was physically present, I probably learned less in Lit and Language Development than I had in the first two classes of the day.

God, this sucked.

Thankfully, I had lunch afterward and half an hour to kill before the rest of my day would be filled with energetic little preschoolers.

I started toward the cafeteria, crossing the main quad, only to spot Wick up ahead of me, ball cap and backpack on as he strode away from the history building and headed toward the business department. I slowed to a stop, blinking in amazement because I couldn’t remember spotting him on campus before—not outside the football stadium or around those parts, anyway. Or maybe I had and I just hadn’t noticed him.

Either way, it was a jolt to see him now. It kind of filled me with a bit of that peace and security he’d provided me with last night. I drew in deeply, nodding when I realized I was okay. I wasn’t going to break. I wasn’t completely lost. I could handle this. I could get over Topher and what he’d done to me. I just had to keep going.

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