AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Are you saying that Annisa was selling fake goods online to move into a larger place?” I frowned skeptically.
“She always did have champagne tastes,” Julia said.
I shook my head and said through gritted teeth, “If we’re up to our ears in horse manure helping her out of a jam because she wants a bigger place, I’m going to strangle her scrawny neck.”
“It was a thought! I’ll let you finish getting ready,” she said, backing up into the hallway.
“That’s alright. I’m done,” I said, springing up from the bed.
“Great, let’s go!” Julia waved her hand impatiently. She was roaring to leave, but I managed to get her to wait until I made a cup of coffee to go.
“You and your coffee obsession,” she said, shaking her head as we got into her BMW.
“It’s not an obsession. It’s a must have. I need to be thinking on all cylinders when we get to Sully’s shop, and I hope he’s able to provide some answers.” I peered over at Julia, but she didn’t answer me back. She was biting her lower lip and concentrating on getting us out of the city.
“Come on, dude. Let me in!” she lamented as she tried to change lanes. By the stressed look on her face, she wasn’t ready to discuss our plan for Monterey.
I remained quiet so Julia could focus on the heavy morning traffic. However, once the traffic lessened, she said, “I’m sorry. Could you repeat what you said earlier? Man, I swear, the traffic keeps getting worse every day!”
I didn’t know if Julia’s traffic assessment was true or not, but I nodded in agreement anyway. “I said, I hope talking to Sully will be helpful.”
Julia scrunched up her face as she thought about today’s meeting. “I do, too. By the way, didn’t you say that Aiden was going to pick Annisa up from the police station?”
“Yes, that’s right. Aiden’s going to the police station to collect Annisa and to make sure that there aren’t any other issues before meeting us at the dive shop. Why?”
“I asked because didn’t you also tell me that she was wearing her wetsuit when she walked in. Doesn’t she need a change of clothes?”
Julia inhaled a quick breath, and she had a panicked look on her face. “Do you think we should bring Annisa some clothes? Should we drive to her apartment and get something? It’ll only add fifteen to twenty minutes more to our trip.” She glanced quickly over her shoulder to see if she could change lanes.
“Relax,” I said, putting my hand on Julia’s forearm. “Aiden said that she had a change of clothes in her car.”
“That’s good because I missed the turn off,” she said, looking at the green exit sign in the rearview mirror.
“So, what’s going on between you and Aiden?”
“What?” I asked, placing a hand on my face. I was caught off guard because I was thinking about Annisa strutting around the police station in her neon pink wetsuit.
“I think he likes me, and I like him in return, but I’m not sure where things will head in the long run,” I said and paused, thinking about what I’m going to do when I find out about my next job.
“What do you mean in the long run? Do you think you’ll find someone else?” She was concentrating on navigating the curvy coastal road, but she spared a quick glance in my direction.
“No, no, that’s not it. What I mean is that I work overseas, and Aiden is here in California. I’m not sure if I can handle a long-distance relationship,” I answered honestly. Even thinking about being separated for a few months made me anxious.
“Did you find out where you’ll be teaching?” Julia asked.
“Not yet, but the positions I applied for were in South Korea, Turkey, and Georgia.”
“Georgia, that’s not too far away.” Julia looked hopeful at the mention of the last option.
“Not the state of Georgia but the country. It’s located next to the Black Sea near Russia and Turkey.”
“Yikes, that’s pretty far away. It’ll be great if you could get the South Korea job because it’s the closest to the West Coast,” she said, pursing her lips. Then she added, “Maybe Tristan and I can visit you.” She smiled widely, showing off her teeth.
“I’m sure visiting me isn’t the only reason why you want to go to Korea,” I said, poking her on the shoulder.
She shied away, laughing and said, “You’ve caught me. I want to shop at the outdoor markets.”
The corner of my upper lip lifted when I thought about Julia haggling with a street vendor over the prices. “No doubt, you’ll love shopping at Namdaemun and Dongdaemun,” I said, referring to the large shopping markets in Seoul named after the ancient southern and eastern city gates.
