Chapter 325

Tessa’s POV

Great, not only did I force Joseph out of his private shell and write a very public article about him, but now I’m forcing him into presenting him publicly as Joseph Evergreen, a famous writer. He was never going to forgive me after I told him that I agreed to this. It’s not like I could say no. Not with the way Megan was staring at me.

All the other girls were waiting for me to crack; I was under a surreal amount of pressure. I was glad he wasn’t home when I got home because I wasn’t sure how I was going to tell him about this. However, I was smacked in the face with the most delicious-smelling foods as soon as I entered the living room.

My stomach was growling furiously, and I already knew before I entered the kitchen that Patty and Claira were cooking dinner.

“Welcome home,” Esme said.

“Hey,” I said in return. “Did you guys get practice in today?”

“Sure did,” Esme said as she yawned. “A lot of it. I’m exhausted. You know at some point I need to practice with you as well.”

I nodded; it’s not that I didn’t want to practice my magic, I did. I just didn’t have a lot of time and truth be told; I was kind of terrified. Especially now that I was carrying a child. I didn’t want to accidentally do a spell that could potentially hurt my baby.

As if she could read my mind, Esme said, “Trust me, your baby will be fine. I would never let anything happen to my niece or nephew.”

“Oh, it’ll be a girl,” Claira chuckled.

I raised my brows.

“How do you know that? I’m not even showing yet?” I asked.

She shrugged.

“I just know these things,” she said winking.

Before I could dive into that one, the kitchen door opened, and Laura walked in followed my Amy and Hannah.

“How was your interview?” I asked Laura.

“I got the job. I start on Monday. Bright and early,” she tells me.

I practically squealed in delight for her.

“That’s wonderful! I’m so happy for you,” I say, and I truly mean it.

“Thanks,” she chuckles.

“I was thinking about sneaking into Austin’s room tonight,” Hannah said casually as she sits on the table.

I watch Laura’s face redden and Amy laughs, shaking her head.

“You need to leave that poor boy alone,” Amy said, still laughing.

“He wants me. I know he does,” Hannah said. “We’ve always had the same flirty back and forth. It’s about time he finally gave me what I want. I have no idea what he’s so afraid of but I’m not going to wait around any longer.”

I had to stifle an eye roll; I know girls like Hannah very well and it irritates me that she feels she’s entitled to his affection. I wasn’t sure why she was so stuck on him; sure, he was a good-looking guy. He’s 20, which makes him the youngest. Hannah and Amy are both 23, which makes them a year younger than me, and Laura was 21.

The older ones were in their late 40s to early 50s. Out of all the guys in this house, she had to be stuck on Austin, the least willing to give her what she wanted.

“I can tell he wants me, he just needs a little persuading,” she says as she takes a bread roll from the basket on the table.

I glance at Laura, and I see she looks defeated. My heart goes out to the girl; I know what it’s like to have a crush and feel as if it’s not reciprocated. By the way, Hannah was speaking, it sounds like Austin flirts with her and wants her but is too afraid to go for it.

I don’t think that’s the real thing though. I honestly don’t see Austin wanting Hanna in that same way.

Without saying a word, Laura turns and leaves the kitchen. I wanted to go after her, but I stopped myself. She needs to work things out by herself. I can’t do it for her.

“You are such a slut sometimes,” Amy chuckles, nudging Hannah, who just shrugs.

“I take what I want,” she says. “And right now, I want Austin.”

“You only want him because he’s emotionally unavailable,” Amy teases. “But I get it; he’s pretty cute.”

I heard the front door open and shut and I went to the living room, expecting to see Joseph. But instead, I see Austin, Cole, and Bennet.

I frown.

“Where’s Derek?” I asked him.

They looked at one another and a grin spread on their faces.

“He met a girl,” Cole answered. “So, he’s taking her out tonight. He said not to wait up.”

I rolled my eyes; I was around the same age as all of them, so I’m not sure why I felt like their mother. Maybe it was the maternal part of me. I stared down at my flat belly and sighed. I needed to lighten up and stop worrying.

“Dinner smells great,” Bennet said as he wandered into the kitchen, Cole right behind him.

I shake my head at them, and I look at Austin who starts to walk up the stairs.

“I would lock your doors tonight,’ I blurted, making him freeze on the bottom steps. “Unless you want Hannah to sneak into your room that is. Which is what she plans to do.”

He sighed and stared up at the ceiling like he was praying to the lords above.

“She thinks you have a flirt thing going on,” I added; I’m not sure why I’m prying or where I’m going with this, but I’m stupidly curious and I need a distraction.

“I don’t flirt with her,” he muttered. “I don’t flirt with anyone.”

“I know that,” I told him. “Since I’ve known you, you’ve been pretty closed off. Is everything okay?”

He turned to look at me.

“I have no family and no home. I lost 2 years of my life,” he said, narrowing his eyes at me. “Sorry if I’m not chipper.”

“Austin, you know that’s not true,” I said, folding my arms across my chest. “We are your family now; we are your coven. Your home is here… with us. You have not lost everything. From what I knew of your past home, it was a horrible place to be, and you were better off without them. They were not your family; at least they didn’t act like it. You should be happy to be out of there.”

He was quiet for a moment, staring at the ground.

“I am,” he admits after a moment. “I guess I’m just having trouble finding my footing here.”

“Well, what do you like?” I asked him.

He thought about it for a moment and then grinned.

“I loved baseball. I was on a little league team a long time ago and I wanted to go pro. I was pretty good at it,” he admitted.

I smiled in return.

“Joseph has connections everywhere. I’m sure there’s something we can figure out,” I told him. “If not on an actual team, we could get you a job at a stadium or something. You can work your way up from there.”

“Really?” He asks, his face lighting up.

I nodded.

“Yes, really. I’ll talk to him when he gets home. But please try to be happier and live a little. Derek was a mess when he first got here, remember? And now he’s out on a date. Laura just got a job at the library, and—”

“She got the job?!” He asked, his face lighting up even more.

I bit my lower lip, trying not to laugh.

“You know she likes you, right?” I asked without thinking.

His face grew impossibly red, and he stared down at the ground.

“I don’t think I’m ready to take on anything new right now; at least relationship-wise,” he told me. “I would destroy her, and I can’t do that to her. It’s why I’ve been staying away from all things females.”

I frowned.

“Why do you think you’d destroy her?” I asked confused; he seemed like a pretty decent guy, and he was young. I found it hard to believe he would hurt anyone.

He just shrugged.

“I hurt someone in the past. It’s a long story,” he muttered, gaining my interest. “But I don’t want to make the same mistakes.”

“You’ll never know if you don’t try,” I tell him.

He runs his fingers through his hair at the same time the front door opens. This time, I knew for sure who it was. I could feel his presence immediately.

Joseph wraps his arms around me and pulls me into his chest.

“Hey,” he said, peppering kisses along my earlobe.

I chuckle.

“Hey back,” I reply.

“I’ll see you at dinner,” Austin says as he rushes up the stairs. He doesn’t go to his attic apartment though that he recently moved into with Derek. I heard him knocking on a bedroom door and Luara answering. Her surprised gasp was enough to make me laugh.

“What’d I miss?” Joseph asked, turning me around.

I looked up at him, grateful to have this wonderful man in my love. I stood on my toes and kissed him deeply. I should tell him about the banquet and about my run-in with Penny, but I didn’t want to think about anything right now. I just wanted my man.

I took his hands and pulled him toward the stairway.

“Help me forget about today,” I teased.

His eyes darkened.

“Is there a reason you want to forget?” He asked, following me up the steps.

I bit my lower lip.

“Just make love to me, Joseph,” I replied.

Before I knew what was happening, he scooped me in his arms and threw me over his shoulder firemen style, making me squeal and laugh.

“Don’t have to tell me twice.”