Chapter 6 Mia #2
Ash looked doubtful as I stared him down. “You sure?”
“Can you just agree to the terms and let me practice?”
“Terms?” His nose scrunched as he thought about it. “Nah, you’re being crazy.” He turned and went through the doorway, and dimly I could hear the game resume. “I’ll read your paper.” He closed the door behind him, and I waited a full minute before I relaxed.
He was impossible. Living with him was going to be impossible. They put me in this impossible situation while they played house in the big house, and I got stuck with Goliath in my apartment.
I needed to practice, but more importantly, I needed Ava.
She would understand this craziness; she had kind of dealt with the insanity that was a result of being involved with a Devil.
I mean, Jett was great and all, but he was really intense, and Ava just .
. . wasn’t. It had taken her a few weeks to acclimate to Jett, and I knew she still struggled with his crazy possessiveness.
Grabbing my phone, I was opening my recent calls when I got an incoming call. Mom. Drat.
“Hey, Mama,” I answered with false cheer.
“Mia, did you use the credit card again?”
No greeting, no how are you, just right in there. “Yeah, you said I could.”
“I did?” She sounded worried.
“What’s wrong?” I asked, already knowing the answer as I sat on the edge of my bed.
“Nothing.”
I could hear the distraction in her voice, and I swallowed before I spoke. “Royalty check late?”
“Yes, I told them I needed it by the first.”
“Of November?”
“No, Mia, of January, of course of November,” she snapped.
“Geez Louise, calm down.”
“Don’t be smart,” Mom reprimanded me.
“Sorry.” My tone was contrite, but I was already wishing she would get off the phone.
“You need to get a job.”
My mouth dropped open. “Why?”
“How am I supposed to pay for your school, your clothes, your food, and you do nothing?”
“Um, because you told me you had saved for this and that your checks would cover it? Because you also told me I could go to school, this school, and not rack up student debts.”
“Well, I was wrong,” Mom said casually.
“Mama, you can’t tell me mid-semester in my sophomore year that you were wrong, and we need a new plan!” I tried to keep my tone even, as Mom didn’t like me to raise my voice.
“I can do what I want, I’m your mother, get a job, stop using the card.” She hung up on me.
I immediately called Ava.
“Hey, Mee.” Ava sounded so incredibly cheerful that I couldn’t tell her what my mom had just told me.
“Hey, you good?”
“Will you hate me if I say yes?” Ava asked me.
“Why would I hate you?” Lying back on my bed, I closed my eyes.
“Because I’m being shitty and selfish?”
“Ava, don’t be silly,” I scolded her. “Your boyfriend is insanely hot, but he’s also insane, you know, just in case you forgot. We both know you had no choice, and his twin’s about three million times worse. It’s fine. I’m glad you’re settling in.”
“You’re the bestest friend ever,” Ava said softly. “I am truly sorry this involved you though.”
“Meh, I’m sure everyone’s just being overly cautious.”
“How’s your protector?” Ava asked, and I could hear the smile in her voice.
“Watching football and eating his weight in salad wraps,” I answered dryly.
“Seriously, you okay?”
“Yeah, he’s fine. It’s zero awkward.”
“It’s awkward as fuck?” Ava guessed.
“Like you wouldn’t believe.” I laughed as I opened my eyes and stared at my ceiling. “It would be okay, but he keeps talking about yesterday.”
“About Quinn?” Ava asked in surprise.
“Huh?” I sat up, confused. “What are you talking about?”
“What are you talking about?” Ava asked in bewilderment. “Ohhh, that’s right, the fact you jumped his bones already.”
“Ava!” I groaned. “Do you need to do it too?”
“I think so.” She giggled down the phone, and I scowled. “Sorry, I’ll stop. Ash is a big teddy bear. Talk to him, he’ll stop.”
“I did talk to him, and his exact words were, ‘Nah, you’re being crazy.’”
“Oh.” I heard a murmur, and I guessed Jett was talking to her. “You’re okay though?”
No. “Absolutely.”
“Okay, hey, I need to go. See you tomorrow?”
With a sigh, I nodded. “Sure.”
“The guys have practice first thing, so we’ll come meet you before class, okay?”
“Fine.” There was no point arguing that the creepy bad guys weren’t interested in me.
“Okay, and Mee, you can tell me then why you called, okay?”
With a small smile, I felt a little better. She wasn’t as clueless as I accused her of. “Okay, thank you.”
“Love you.”
“Love you too,” I whispered as she said goodbye, and we hung up.
With a resigned sigh, I got back up and headed to my lectern. Practice.
I heard a muffled cheer from the living room, and accepting that this was my situation and he was my current roommate, all I could do was accept my lot and get on with it. Plus, my mom could be erratic; she was an actress after all. I would talk to her again tomorrow.
Pushing everything to the back of my mind, I practiced, shutting everything out except the music.
Tonight’s problems, well, they would still be there tomorrow, and there was nothing I could do about them right now.