My Know-It-All Nemesis - Maggie Dallen Page 0,9

She’d had it so much easier. She’d flown through high school the way I had before Miller came along. She’d been the unstoppable force who’d given me huge shoes to fill. She’d set the path and shown me that even if we didn’t come from The Heights, we could set our sights just as high as anyone else—if not higher. What we lacked in money and connections, we made up for in willpower, drive, and the will to succeed.

I still believed that, but none of the lessons I’d learned by watching Daphne had prepared me for Miller Hardwell.

He wasn’t content to sit back and watch me win.

Ever.

Not once could I ever get ahead of him without some massive battle, and even then, it wasn’t a guarantee that I’d win.

It was exhausting, to be honest. I was tired. So tired.

“It’s just not fair,” I said to Daphne for what had to have been the twentieth time.

“I know,” she said. “And it’s not.”

We shared a quiet moment as we stewed in the unfairness of it all. No matter how hard I tried, when it came to Miller Hardwell, I’d always have to fight harder and work more because the deck was inherently stacked in his favor.

I stopped mechanically flipping when I came across a felt skirt. “No way,” I muttered.

“What is it?” Daphne shifted beside me to see what I was looking at. “It looks like someone’s old costume. Probably a dance company or something, or the local theater’s Grease production.”

I nodded because I knew she was right—we were always coming across weird old costumes in this place. It was part of the fun. But right now? This felt like a sign. Or maybe an omen. Whatever it was, it made me inexplicably angry.

“The quality’s not great,” Daphne said, eyeing me oddly. “Not sure what you could do with it.”

“This party,” I mumbled.

“What?”

I gripped the skirt tighter and pulled it off the rack. “This stupid party that Miller is throwing.”

“Ah,” she said. Like suddenly it all made sense. I hadn’t even told her what he’d said about me dressing like I came from the fifties, so I imagined I sounded totally nuts right now. I met her gaze evenly and tried to explain. “Do you think it’s just coincidence that he’s planning a party the same week we’re announcing our candidacies?” I said.

She pursed her lips. “I don’t know. I mean, it is Halloween—”

“Doesn’t matter,” I interrupted. “He’s doing this on purpose. He’s going to throw the super fun party that everyone will be talking about, and he’ll be doing it as a way to gain favor and win votes.”

Daphne stared at me for a second. “Okay.” Her tone was uncertain. Possibly even scared of me, or maybe for me.

It was possible she was questioning my sanity, but right at this particular moment, I’d never felt more sane. I was seeing the world with the stark light of clarity that came from far too little sleep and way too much caffeine, and I was about ready to make some changes.

He wanted a fight?

Fine.

He’d get a fight.

I might not be able to compete with big parties, but I had my strengths…and I knew how to use them.

Miller’s voice behind me in Spanish class cut through the hum of conversation going on around me. “You promised the football team off-campus lunches on game days?”

I had every intention of ignoring him, but he wasn’t having it. I heard him shifting in his seat. “Making promises you can’t keep again, huh, Kate?” He gave a scoff of disbelief. “Why am I not surprised?”

I sucked in a quick inhale and whipped around. Stupid, smirking jerk. So cool, so calm. Such a stinking know-it-all. “I didn’t promise anything,” I said. “I merely threw it out there as one of many ideas I’m considering and promised that if elected I would try to make it happen.”

“Try, huh? Convenient wording.” He leaned all the way forward over his desk so his face was right in mine. “Gentry would never go for it, and you know it.”

“Which one?” I snapped.

“Both of them.”

I shook my head. “You don’t know that. I’ve been talking to them both about ways we can boost school morale and—”

“Blah blah blah,” he cut me off with a harsh tone. “You’re doing it again. This is exactly what happened last time. Everyone here might believe you’re some sort of saint—some miracle worker. But even you have your limits, Kate.”

I narrowed my eyes. “Don’t you tell me what my