Fight Night

Chapter 15: Tread Carefully

Deja pulled up to the valet parking attendant of the Sassy Boutique and Spa, then handed over the keys to her shiny new Maserati. She took her ticket then headed inside to meet up with her new potential client.

"Hello, Ms. Carter! How may I help you today?" the receptionist smiled.

"Hello, Daisy…" Deja smiled back. "I'm looking for a woman named Becky Lynch. She asked me to meet her here."

"Ah yes, she's the fiery haired woman over in the waiting area," Daisy replied, pointing to the young woman. Deja nodded and proceeded to walk over to her client.

"Becky?" Deja said cautiously.

"Ms. Carter! Nice to meet you…" Becky rejoiced, standing up from her seat to shake Deja's hand.

"It's nice to meet you too and please…call me, Deja" she smiled as they took their seats.

"Great." Becky blushed.

"So Becky, what can I help you with?"

"Well, it all started when I moved down here from Tampa. I'm originally from Ireland" she chuckled. "But I moved to America in pursuit of a fitness career. After I got here, I decided to open my own training facility. It's called Lass Kickers…"

"I love the name…" Deja grinned. "Please continue."

"I train girls ages 6 through 17 in self-defense courses, Monday through Thursday. Friday and Saturday, I train ladies ages 18 through 35. I was in the process of moving my business down to Miami and I didn't have much time to look for a house."

"Okay…" Deja nodded, making a few notations on her iPad. "What happened next?"

"I found Mizanin Realty. It's owned by a guy named Mike and his wife, Maryse. I thought I had found some really trustworthy people but apparently, I was wrong." Becky shrugged.

"So you ended up buying a house from them?" Deja asked, making further notations.

"Yes. I didn't time to come down a physically view the house for myself, but Miz took me on a FaceTime tour. I thought the house was absolutely amazing. It was newly renovated and everything was up to code. He told me that the house had several people willing to make offers on it but he guaranteed me that I could get it first since I was willing to buy it outright." Becky sighed.

"And how much did you pay for the house, in total?"

"About three hundred and fifty thousand dollars."

"Wow." Deja exhaled. "So what happened when you got to the house. I mean, that's a steep yet decent price for a home here."

"Everything was hunky-dory at first but about 3 weeks in, I began to notice changes." Becky huffed. Deja simply nodded for her to continue while she documented the details.

"The tiles in my bathroom shower cracked and fell off the wall. My friend discovered a patch of mold in the kitchen. Thankfully I had that taken care of. Uh… There's a short-circuited ceiling fan in my guest bedroom. I also have insulation issues. My floorboards are not complete and there's a giant leak in my roof."

"Oh boy… They really got over on you, but that's okay. We're going to make them pay, big time." Deja smiled reassuringly.

"I can't thank you enough for taking my case." Becky beamed.

"You're more than welcome. And I look forward to working with you. I'm going to take what I got from you today back to my office and get your paperwork started."

"What about your fee?" Becky implied.

"We'll discuss that during our next meeting. Which reminds me, when you come to my office be sure to bring your original contract with Mizanin Realty as well as any receipts for any kind of repairs you had done on the house. I want everything on these clowns." Deja said sternly.

"No problem," Becky smiled. "Well, I'll see you next time then."

"Perfect. I'll have one of my assistants give you a call to schedule our meeting. It was great meeting you, Becky." Deja gleamed.

"The pleasure was mine. And feel free to drop by Lass Kickers anytime." Becky waved as she headed for the door. Deja grinned and packed her iPad back into her briefcase. She noted the chipped polish on her nail and pondered getting a fresh coat.

"Well, we did say we would go to dinner and a movie later so… I've got time" she grinned to herself as she walked back over to the receptionist.

"Hey Daisy, is Ms. Val in today?"

"No, she's on vacation with her husband but I can take care of you today. Kara can take over the receptionist desk." Daisy replied, standing up from her seat. "What do you need?" she smiled brightly.

"Just noticed my polish was chipped so… I'm thinking a new color with my mani-pedi." Deja giggled.

"Sounds like a plan. I'll get the first chair ready for you." Daisy nodded. Deja smiled and placed her belongings in the locker that she and Kendra split. By them being regular customers, they had their own storage inside the shop. She grabbed her wallet and phone before locking up her stuff.

"Color, color, color… What will I wear this time?" Deja thought, tapping her chin as her fingers roamed over the bottles of polish. She finally settled on a beautiful powder blue polish then made her way over to the first chair.

She kicked off her shoes and climbed into the chair, relaxing as the massage rollers took over. The day was going fairly well until a distinct voice caught her attention.

"Deja…. What are the odds of running into you here? This is such a pleasant surprise." Giada smiled wickedly. Deja's eyes shot open, immediately glaring at the person to her left.

"The nerve of this bitch, talking to me like we're old friends or some shit." Deja thought as her eyes burned a hole through Giada's skull.

"Listen, I hope there's no hard feelings about your little dress" the lanky woman giggled.

"Little dress? Sweetheart, that dress was Valentino, but I wouldn't expect you to understand its importance because it's way out of your price range. I sent the bill to your weak accomplice, Wade." Deja said rolling her eyes.

"Excuse me, but how do you know what's in my price range? You don't know me…" Giada retorted.

"Yeah maybe not personally, but I know gold digging behavior when I see it. Plus… I looked into your profile after the Governor's Ball and honey, you couldn't afford a trip to Miami if your life depended on it. So enjoy your little outing away from Pensacola because it's all on Wade's dime. That's why it's such a surprise for you to see me here at the spa. I come here all the time. You're here because Wade's paying your way." Deja simply stated.

"But…" Giada started but was quickly cut off.

"And I don't know what kind of little game you two idiots think you're playing but you better believe you're messing with the wrong one because I am that bitch…" Deja scoffed.

"Wow…threatened much?" Giada snorted.

"Not one bit. Just thought I'd give you a fair warning because I guarantee you, it won't go so well the next time. So if I were you, I'd tread carefully." Deja half smiled before returning her attention to Daisy. She could feel Giada staring at her but she knew her adversary had nothing further to say. Giada sent a quick text message before placing some money on her manicurist table. She didn't even give her toes a chance to dry before grabbing her things and storming out of the salon.

Deja looked on as Giada stood outside and made a phonecall. She was simply amused that her boyfriend's ex-girlfriend was desperately trying to get under her skin. A few minutes later, a familiar silver Jaguar pulled up to the front of the salon and Giada was soon out of sight.

"You look rather angry for someone that just left the spa." Wade commented as he drove Giada back over to her hotel.

"Well… I ran into your ex-play thing while I was there and she's quite a bitch." Giada snarled.

"She's only like that if you approach her the wrong way… Or ruin an $2,000 Valentino dress" he shrugged. "If you want to go about getting Roman back, I highly advise you stick to my plan. Deja has a very sharp tongue when provoked and you should not engage her alone."

"I didn't plan on running into her today, Wade. She just happened to show up at the salon. I think she was meeting a client or something. I figured I would rattle her cage a little bit. She did seem threatened by the potential of me stealing Roman away from her, though." Giada giggled.

"Trust me, she wasn't threatened. That's one thing that woman does not feel when it comes to other women. In case you haven't noticed, she's very high maintenance. If anything, she was aiming to draw blood first." Wade sighed.

"If I can't get into her head, then how the hell am I supposed to get her to turn on Roman?" she huffed.

"Ms. Carter is a very factual person. In order to sway her away from something, the evidence must be laid out in front of her. From personal experience, betrayal seems to be her only weakness… Not saying I was the person that betrayed her, but I know she's not fond of it." Wade stated as they pulled up to Giada's hotel.

"So… We're basically going to have to make Roman look guilty?" she smiled wickedly.

"Precisely, but you must have a bit of patience and remember... Do not engage her without my presence. There's only so far that you can push her before she takes a swing. And when she does, it can be lethal. We're playing with fire, but I'm going to love watching their relationship burn." Wade chuckled.

"Nice to know I'm not the only twisted person involved in this…" Giada grinned as she got out of Wade's car. "Have a nice night, Mr. Barrett."

"You too, Ms. Pavel…" Wade winked, driving away afterward.

"Hey, baby girl!" Roman smiled, answering Deja's call.

"Hi handsome!" she replied.

"What's going on? You on your way back home or you want me to meet you somewhere?"

"Uh… I'll come back home so we can consolidate cars. No need to waste gas." Deja giggled as she finished typing up the paperwork for her new client, Becky Lynch.

"Sounds like a plan." Roman agreed.

"Okay. I'll see you soon." Deja said as she hung up her phone. She printed out the complaint letter and sealed it in an envelope for processing. Before heading home, she dropped off the letter with the county clerk and requested that two letters be presented to the Mizanin's at their office and home addresses.

As she was leaving the parking lot of the courthouse, blue lights began to flash behind her. She sighed pulling over right in front of the courthouse. A little laugh escaped her lips when she noted the officer approaching in her mirror.

"Hello, Officer Orton" she grinned. "What can I help you with today?"

"Just checking out your new ride, Ms. Carter…" Randy nodded.

"And you had to pull me over to do it?" Deja chortled.

"Sorry about that" he chuckled. "Just wanted to get a good look at it. She's a beauty."

"Thankfully, my man knows how to pick a damn good car" she smiled.

"And a damn good woman as well," Randy added. "Anyway, didn't mean to hold you up. Just wanted a good look at your car. I'll catch you later." Randy waved, walking back to his car as Deja drove off.

Roman was sitting at the table scrolling on his laptop when Deja walked into the house.

"Hi, babe!" Deja rejoiced, pecking Roman on the lips. "What you up to?"

"Just browsing real estate agents… I'm thinking we should move in together" he said with an impish grin.

"What's wrong with how we're living now?" Deja inquired, taking a bite of an apple seconds later.

"Well, for starters, your clothes are beginning to dominate my closet. Not that there's anything wrong with that, but damn baby girl…" Roman chuckled.

"My closet is bigger than yours…" Deja pondered, taking another bite of her apple.

"My house offers a better view…" Roman contested.

"Mine has a gourmet kitchen…" Deja huffed.

"And I've got a jacuzzi soaker tub in my bathroom." Roman snorted. "Look baby girl, we both have amazing features in our separate homes. I'm just saying that I'd like it if we combined those features into one home for us" he shrugged, closing his laptop.

Deja stared at Roman for a bit after he stood up from the table. She hadn't quite thought of her response, though.

"No need to rush with your answer baby girl… I was just giving you some food for thought." Roman smiled, pulling her into a tight squeeze. "Now go get changed before we miss the movie."

With that, Deja made her way upstairs and switched into some much more casual clothes. She grabbed her clutch bag and rejoined Roman downstairs.

"All set" she smiled, walking towards him.

"Good… And hey, I meant to ask you how your new client meeting went?" Roman asked.

"It went really well. Becky is such a sweet girl… It's a shame she got screwed over by Mizanin Realty." Deja sighed, shaking her head.

"Mizanin Realty? Shit looks like I'm crossing them off the list real quick." Roman bellowed.

"Oh yeah, if we're gonna do the real estate agent thing, we are not using them!" Deja concurred.

"Duly noted," Roman grinned as they got into his Range Rover. "Well, I'm glad your new client seems cool. What else happened today?"

"Yeah… Officer Orton pulled me over to check out my car. And... I saw Giada while I was there. After meeting with Becky, I decided to get a fresh mani-pedi since I noticed my polish was chipping. As soon as I fired up my massage chair, there she was talking to me outta nowhere." Deja growled, rolling her eyes as she thought about her earlier encounter.

"Ah shit… She didn't say anything stupid to you, did she?" Roman cringed.

"Nothing I couldn't handle. She laughed while apologizing about my dress so I read her right then and there. I don't exactly know what she and Wade are up to but I'm onto them and their bullshit."

"Yeah, whatever reason he brought her here for is definitely not good. I swear I regret dating her for so long." Roman sighed.

"Aww babe, don't regret it. Take it as a lesson learned. That goes for both of us… I mean, we hella upgraded." Deja giggled.

"Yeah, you're right. We shine together… Not to mention everything else that goes so well with us. I compliment you and you sure as hell compliment me." Roman beamed as they pulled up to the movie theater.

"Ugh...we're just too good." Deja cackled. Her bitterness from earlier in the day instantly melted away the second Roman tossed his arm around her shoulder. Thoughts of idiot ex-lovers and slimeball real estate agents were officially on the back burner as Roman and Deja settled into their seats to enjoy their date night.

Looks like the wheels are turning for Wade and Giada. Who knows what these fools are capable of... As always, thank you all so much for reading and I hope you enjoyed. See you for the next update.

**The 2016 Olympic Games are officially underway. Go Team USA! And good luck to the countries my fellow readers around the world. Enjoy the games!**

XoXo

-S