AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Miles beamed at her. “Exactly.” He glanced at Seth and Nick before turning to Dad. “Aaron! I see you’ve joined the ranks of having your teenager in a queer relationship. If you have any questions, please give me a call. I’ve done extensive research on the matter.”
Dad shook his head. “I’ve already made dental dams out of plastic baggies, so I think we’re—”
“Mr. and Mrs. Gibson!” Nick bellowed. “I haven’t seen you all since … I have no idea. I’m just talking to keep my dad from saying anything he’d regret.” Nick would bedamnedif he’d let his father’s evil infect the other parental units.
Dad snapped his mouth closed. Good man.
Trey grinned as he helped his wife out of her coat. Aysha stepped forward, her earrings bouncing as she hugged Dad tightly. “Aaron,” she said, “it’s been too long. I brought presents. You’d look good with the hemp choker I made. I opened my own Etsy shop. They’re selling like you wouldn’t believe. Mother Gaia gives only what we give her in return.”
“Mother who?” Dad asked as Aysha let him go, whirling around and marching up to Nick and Seth.
She smiled warmly at them both. “I hear congratulations are in order. It’s about time the two of you figured things out.”
Nick gaped at her. “Dideveryoneknow?”
“Only people with eyes,” Aysha reassured him.
“Hello, folks!” Geoffrey said, appearing in the doorway. He was a slender man with spiky black hair and was rocking pink glasses. “Sorry to interrupt the reunion, but I’ve got a schedule to keep. Geoffrey Senior doesn’t like it when I’m behind. I tried to tell him that something as ridiculous as ascheduleshouldn’t matter when dealing with our customers, especially those who spend so much on our products, but what do I know? Nothing, according to him. I have …” He looked down at the invoice in his hand. “Ten boxes for delivery. I see no setup was requested. Is that right?”
“Ten boxes?” Seth asked weakly.
“Setup,” Miles said. “What is it you’re supposed to be setting up?”
“Daddy,” Jazz said, sticking out her bottom lip even further. “Itoldyou I need it for school. You said it was all right, and that I should spare no expense when it came to my education.”
“Right,” Miles said. “Your education is the most important thing. But why isn’t it being sent to our house? Martha! Bob! Look at the pair of you. Picture-perfect. Ooh, cookies.”
Martha thrust the plate toward him as Jo twirled a strand of her daughter’s hair. “Jasmine,” she said, her voice smoky and sweet, “is there anything you’re not telling us?”
Impossibly, Jazz’s eyes grew wider. “Of course not. I tell you guys everything.”
“Mm,” Jo said. “Then why all the secrecy?”
“It’s my fault,” Nick said hastily. “I’m sorry. I thought it’d be best if it could all be sent here, since Seth’s house is central for all of us. Makes it easier to get to. For … school … things.”
Miles nodded, munching on an oatmeal chocolate chip cookie. “Makes sense. If it helps all of you, then we’re all the better for it.” He nodded at Geoffrey. “My good man, please bring in the boxes. I’ll make sure you’re adequately tipped after giving you a hand while also regaling you with the story about how I was once in your position, working my way up the corporate ladder until I owned my own company.”
“Far out,” Geoffrey said, suitably impressed. “Help is always appreciated.”
Aysha, Jo, and Trey all followed Martha into the living room. Bob stayed in the entryway, whispering furiously with Dad, both glancing at the teenagers staring at them with wide eyes. They came to some sort of agreement, then turned and walked out of the house to help with the boxes.
“Ten thousanddollars?” Nick hissed at Jazz. “Are you out of your mind? How the hell did you think your dad wouldn’t notice?”
Jazz’s lips thinned to a bloodless line. “It’s only money. If he hadn’t been called, he wouldn’t have even noticed. I’d appreciate a little more gratitude.”
“Thank you for spending a ridiculous amount,” Nick said quickly, not wanting to face her wrath. “And let’s circle back to the whole ‘it’s only money’ thing at a later date, because man, do I have thoughts on that. But what are we gonna do? We can’t tell them what it’s for.”
“It’ll be fine,” Gibby said. “We gotta make them believe it’s for school, like Jazz said.”
“Exactly,” Jazz said. “And if they ask about the night vision goggles, we’ll say they’re for science class.”
They all stared at her.
“What?” she asked. “I had a coupon.”
Nick shook his head. His brain was his superpower.Think. Think.“Okay,” he said, pulling at one of his thoughts until it tugged loose. “Here’s what we’re going to do. We’ll tell them we’re thinking of our education, and that it’s as your dad said: an investment in our future. We’re planning not only for this year or next, but for college too. And beyond. We have an idea for … a project. Yeah, aproject.” He began to get excited. “Dad’s the head of the Extraordinaries Division, right? We could say this project is about tracking Extraordinary activity in Nova City for the NCPD. That way, it’s notexactlya lie, more just not … being truthful? I’m still working out the particulars, but I think it could work.”
“Why would we help the police?” Gibby asked. “They already have more money than Jazz’s parents. Didn’t they give your dad a new SUV for no reason aside from his promotion?”
