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CHAPTER13
ZEKE
The smellof coffee fills the small apartment and I pour a cup, leaning against the counter and staring at her door. It’s been three days, and she only comes out to puke, eat, or when I’m gone to work. When I get home, she disappears again with barely a word.
This was always going to be tricky. The situation is so fucked up that there’s bound to be some stumbling, some overwhelming emotion, some tension between us.
The door creaks as it opens, and Nova meets my gaze immediately.
“Morning,” she says politely. There’s an uncomfortable smile on her face, and she turns to the bathroom without waiting for my response.
“Morning,” I mumble to the closed door. I hate the way my chest tightens with the force of my frustration. What I hate more is how I don’t have the courage to say anything.
I should. I should demand that she tell me what’s wrong. The sound of the shower fills the apartment, and she’ll be in there for a while. Long enough to be sure I’ve gone to work before she’s out.
I take a long sip of coffee, then move to the junk drawer at the far end of the kitchen. I take out a sheet of paper and a pen, setting my coffee down with a thunk.
The door that leads to the laundry room and up to my mom’s place swings open, and my brother walks in.
“Hey,” Jet says.
“What are you doing here?” I ask, abandoning my note to Nova. All I’ve managed to write isNova, I…
“It’s my house.” Jet smirks, grabbing a cup and pouring himself some coffee.
“Xan sent you, didn’t he?” I turn my attention to my very obvious idiot brother. “I told you she isn’t ready to meet you.”
Jet shrugs. “I needed to grab some stuff.”
Sure, he did.
“Hey, you hear that Jess is taking Mom to church on Sunday?” Jet leans on the counter where I was just standing.
I startle. “What?”
“Yeah. I ran into her at the store. She asked what time she should pick Mom up. That’s like, kinda fucking weird…” Jet gulps his coffee and sets the cup next to the sink.
My ex-girlfriend taking my mother to church while I live in her basement with the girl I got pregnant? Nothing weird about that at all…
“Why?” It’s the only word my brain can conjure.
“Mom likes her. Has Mom met your girl yet?” Jet moves to the hall and grabs some outdoor gear from the closet.
“She’s not my girl,” I mumble, and my ordinarily unobservant brother raises a brow.
“But you want her to be?” He grins as I stumble all over myself trying to decide how to respond.
“I didn’t say that.” I cross my arms.
“Your pouting did.” He tosses the gear into a nearby backpack and slings the pack over his shoulder.
“Fuck off.”
Jet raises his hands in defeat. “Alright, man. Forget I mentioned it. But she’s going to have to meet us. You can’t hide her down here forever.”
“She’s hiding herself,” I snap, grabbing my coat off the hook and pointing aggressively at him. “Don’t be here when she gets out of the shower.”
Jet follows me out the door and into the chilly air, but the blast of cold doesn’t do anything to cool the anger in me. I’m not even sure where it’s coming from, but I wrestle it down.
