Page 77 of Evil Queen

Nathan

Nikita had her arms crossed in the passenger’s seat of my car, so I reached over and stroked her cheek. “Baby, I know. I know that you don’t like this, but I already said that I would do it. Besides, she tried to do her finals. Doesn’t that stand for anything?”

Nikita didn’t respond. It was the Saturday before graduation, and I was finalizing the down payment on D.J. Motley’s house in order to ensure that Cherri would graduate. I’d told Nikita everything, and I even felt better about it after Cherri seemed to suddenly give a damn and do her finals, but even if she had found a way to pass them, which I doubted, there was no way she got good enough scores to pass.

“It’s my final act, Nikki. I swear. After this, I’m done with Cherri for good.”

“Really?” Nikita asked, looking over at me with a raised eyebrow.

“I swear.”

She rolled her eyes. “Fine.”

“Thank you. I’d ask you if you want to come in with me, but I’m afraid you’ll cut me, so I’ll be quick. I promise.” I leaned over and kissed Nikita on the cheek, then hopped out of the car with my briefcase in tow.

I entered Postings Proper National Bank, the bank that was underwriting the loan for D.J. Motley’s house, and one of the greeters immediately approached me. “Good morning, sir. Can I help you?”

I pulled out my phone and navigated to the email from D.J. with the name of the specific loan writer who was handing her documents. “Yes, I’m here to see Miss Dee Hart.”

“Oh, yes, of course. She’s expecting you. Follow me.”

I followed the woman through the bank, toward the offices in the back. The one that was marked Dee Hart had the door closed, but the greeter knocked a couple of times and then ushered me in. Dee, a redhead with a towering height, stood up out of her chair and held out her hand to me.

“Mr. Loche, it’s good to meet you.”

I shook her hand with a smile. “You as well. Thank you for squeezing me in today. I promise I’m not going to take up too much of your time.”

She motioned to the chair across from her desk, and I sat down in it, setting my briefcase up on the desk and immediately opening it. I pulled out the check and smiled at the devious move I pulled at the last second. I handed the check and verification form that D.J. had signed over to Dee, and she took it and looked at it. Her eyes widened, and she looked up at me.

“You’re co-signing on this home?” she said.

“Yes. That’s part of the reason I’m offering the down payment. D.J. and I go back, so I just want to see her have her dream home,” I said.

Of course, D.J. had no idea of the change I’d made. I’d played my cards right and made sure that all her paperwork was already signed. All that was left was to hand the check over. Thankfully, the Loche name has a lot of weight behind it, so they bent the rules a little to make it work. With D.J. not there, I was able to add myself discreetly to her deed as a co-signer. I had no plans to take her house or plans of reneging on my deal, but I wanted to have a vested interest, just in case. Connor Loche may have taken my childhood from me, but being a business shark was the product I got for the price I paid. I was well versed in how to make sure a deal always benefitted me more, and this was exactly how I planned to do it.

Dee gave me all of the necessary paperwork that already had all of D.J.’s signatures on it, and I signed as the co-signer in all the appropriate spaces. By the time D.J. realized what I’d done, it’d be too late, and she would be in no position to cause a fuss because if she did, I’d let the world know she’d taken a hefty bribe for a hefty cheat in the system.

Once I’d signed everything and the check had been accepted, I shook Dee’s hand and saw myself out of the office. A smile crossed my face as I walked out. I was proud of the leverage I’d gained in that situation. I almost wanted to tell Nikita about it to try and improve her mood about the situation, but it was probably best to just drop it with her and tell her if the situation ever came up.

Heading back out into the fresh sunlight, I walked back over to my car and got in, leaning over to kiss Nikita as I did. Despite her frustration, when I got nearer to her cheek, she turned her head suddenly, kissing me on the lips. As she tried to pull away, I set my hand on her cheek and pulled her back to me to kiss her once more.

“I really don’t want to take you home, but it would ruin the surprise to keep you with me,” I said.

Nikita chuckled and rolled her eyes. “I know. It’s okay. I’ll see you again tomorrow.”

My stomach twisted with frustration. I’d never spend another day apart from Nikita if I didn’t have to, but I had a plan in my head, an important one, and it was going to have the greatest effect if no one saw it until its big reveal. That meant Nikita had to go home for the remainder of the day.

Reluctantly, I started my car back up and pulled away from the curb, bound for Nikita’s home. Every time we got near the block her house was on, I would turn and head down a different street and circle the block until Nikita started laughing. The sound was such a beautiful and happy one that I was almost tempted to do it all day, but eventually, I did turn down her street and park my car in front of her home. I looked around for the guys that tried to snatch Cherri, but we hadn’t seen them since they got their assess handed to them after our prom, so they were likely laying low for a little bit after such a close call.

“I don’t wanna go,” Nikita complained.

“I know. I don’t want you to either.” I reached over and took her hand, linking my fingers into hers. It was so easy to do now that it almost felt unfair. “Just come back with me. Fuck the surprise.”

She snickered. “You’ve been so excited about whatever you’re planning. Don’t throw it all away just because we’re grossly in love.”

She was right. I’d mentioned needing the afternoon to plan things out half a dozen times or more, maybe because I knew how difficult it was going to be to say goodbye to her when the time came. She tugged on my hand, and I leaned across the seat and into her so that I could kiss her. We lingered that way for a while, just being with each other for a moment. Finally, Nikita pulled away, pinched my cheek, and climbed out of the car. I let her go, as frustrating as it was, and after she got safely behind her front door, I pulled away again and made my way back home.

All the joy that spending the morning with Nikita gave me was gone by the time I stood in front of my parents’ house on our property. I’d made a handful of absolutely necessary trips in for no more than a couple of minutes over the course of the last six months, but I hadn’t gone in with the intention of changing or moving anything. It’d been the subject of conversation in my therapy sessions as of late since I realized I’d been avoiding going in. Did I think they were suddenly going to come back somehow? Did I think my mom wasn’t going to be dead, that my dad wasn’t going to be a psychotic murderer?

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