“And text me every day. If I don’t hear from you, I’ll fly out to Seattle myself to track you down. And this Bastion is going to be in a world of hurt.”
I laugh. “Agreed.”
“What do your parents think of all this?”
I bite my bottom lip.
“Let me guess. You haven’t told them yet.”
The truth is that I’m nervous about telling my parents. Not because I think they’d try to stop me. They’ve always been supportive of whatever I wanted to do with my life. But I’m afraid to see the look of disappointment on their faces when I tell them I won’t be living close to them anymore. It’s been the three of us for as long as I can remember. But I’m twenty-four years old now. Maybe it’s time to start building a life for myself.
“I’m going to tell them.”
“When?” She gives me a look as though she thinks I’m full of it.
“Tomorrow night when I go over there for our Friday night dinner.”
“Do you think they’ll have a shit fit?”
I shake my head. “No. I think they’ll have concerns, but in the end, they’ll be supportive.”
Taylor nods slowly. “How are you going to go about finding somewhere to live?”
“Bastion owns some rental properties, and one of his tenants just vacated, so he’s going to let me move in there.”
“How convenient,” she says, making it sound the exact opposite.
“Taylor, stop. I’m lucky he’s offering me this job. I could’ve ended up in fast food, barely able to pay my rent. It’s not likethis is a thriving metropolis and there are all kinds of jobs up for grabs.”
She sighs. “I know. I’m sorry. I’m just worried, that’s all, and I hate being so far away while you’re going through all this.”
I frown. “I hate it too.”
“When are you leaving?”
“Bastion left it up to me, but I figured the sooner the better, right? For both of us. So I’m going to fly out on Monday. Use the weekend to pack up what I want to take. He said that works well because things are usually quieter on Mondays.”
“And what exactly does he do?”
“He’s in the entertainment industry. He gave me the name of his corporation, but Google isn’t much help. I think maybe he deals with a lot of celebrities or something because he’s pretty tight-lipped about it.”
Taylor frowns. “I don’t love the sound of that.”
“Stop. Listen, I’ll text you as soon as I’m in my new place on Monday, okay? You can interrogate me then.”
“All right. But listen, be careful. I love that you’re trying something different and taking some risks. Just keep your eyes open and trust your gut, okay?”
My chest warms because despite her misgivings, I know it’s only because she cares. “I promise to be careful. At the first sign of trouble, I’ll come home. There’s nothing to worry about.”
“If you say so.”
We chat for a while longer, and Taylor brings me up to speed on what’s going on in her life. After we finish the call, I grab the boxes I picked up at the moving depot a few towns over earlier today and pack a few of my things. My personal belongings will come with me in suitcases, but I’m going to ship some boxes to the address Bastion gave me to arrive after I do.
After I’ve packed the first box, I glance around my apartment and wonder if I’ll miss it.
I don’t think I will. I’m nervous, sure, but excited at the same time.
It’s my first real adventure.
