I try to push my worries away. There isn’t anything I can do about it. I understand why she moved out. Hell, I’m glad she did. I just—fuck, I wish it wasn’t there.
Class moves at a snail’s pace and I’m so done with all this shit. I’m ready to graduate. Move on with my life. We have five months left before we can blow this taco stand, and I’m counting down the weeks. Only shit is different and it’s getting more and more complicated as time goes by.
I shift César in my arms, slumping lower in my chair to make him more comfortable. I hate not seeing him every day. I hate that I’m not a part of his day-to-day life. We agreed to a visitation agreement, but it isn’t enough. Joaninha isn’t keeping him from me, but I want more time. I want every day.
Living with Jae needs to be a temporary situation, which means I need to figure my shit out so we can get a place. I know she wants to take things slow, but slow with that girl just isn’t in my vocabulary. Rafael and Isa moved in together, so I don’t see why we can’t.
I consider what I’d need to do to make that work. Income is going to be our biggest obstacle. I’ll need to get a job to support my family, but where will I find the time between classes and sentinel training? I can work nights maybe, but juggling a job, school and training will make spending time with them that much more difficult.
Shit. No matter how I look at this, it’s a fucking mess. As a sentinel, I’d get housing on the grounds, but I don’t see Jo wanting to live with a bunch of shifters and I don’t see my Alpha allowing an outsider within our sanctuary. I suck on my teeth. I need to come up with something. I don’t have any other choice.
70
Jo
Isa picks me up and we drop César off at KeAnna’s before going to Meiying’s dad’s house to get ready. He’s human, something I hadn’t known. She says they’re not close. She stays with him maybe one weekend out of each month, though I’ve yet to see him since I walked in the door. I guess he travels a lot for work or something, so she says he’s rarely around.
Meiying pulls out a dress from her closet, holding it up for me to admire, but instead, I’m having flashbacks to the night I first met Jordy. “No.” I shake my head and wave my hand in dismissal.
“Why not?”
Isa plops down on the bed and settles in for the show, already dressed and ready in a red body con dress with long sleeves and a short hemline.
“Because my body is not like your body and I am not going to put every dimple and bulge on display.”
Meiying rolls her eyes. “You’re right. Your body isn’t like mine,” she says, and my shoulders slump. Ouch. I mean, it’s true, but still. “It’s better. Because you have curves I would kill for but am still a few years away from developing. And you have a rack most girls would die for. So, put on the damn dress.”
My brows pull together. “Uh, thanks. But still no.”
“Come on, Jo. Just try it on,” Isa pleads.
“I’m serious when I say it’s going to look awful. And it’s backless. I can’t go braless. I will literally leak everywhere.”
Meiying’s face scrunches up. “Okay. You might have me there.” She returns to her closet and flips through the hangers before pulling out a black lace dress with skin-colored lining. “Try this one.” She tosses me the dress and Isa steps up beside me, fingering the lace.
“This is hella pretty,” she says, and I can’t help but agree.
“Okay. Give me a minute.”
I use Meiying’s attached bathroom to slip into the dress. The zipper is on the side, making it easy to get into on my own. I rub my hands down the front, smoothing out any wrinkles as I look at myself in the mirror.
“Woah.”
The door opens behind me and Meiying and Isa both step inside.
“Damn,” Isa says.
“Told you.” The corner of Meiying’s mouth lifts into a smirk. “Curves in all the right places.”
“Too bad Jordy can’t see you like this.”
Meiying whips out her phone, her fingers flying over the keyboard. “Oh, he will,” she says, right before snapping a picture and sending it to him.
I groan. “I’m pretty sure knowing that this,” I wave at myself, “is how I’m going out tonight isn’t going to make him happy.”
She grins. “I know. Which is exactly why I’m sending it. The guys were already planning on coming over after training, so this will give Jordy a little added encouragement to hurry his ass up.”
Isa and I both laugh. “God. The guys aren’t wrong. You really do like to stir the pot.”
