Divine by B.L. Teschner Read Free Book Online Page B

birthday at a fancy, dim-lit restaurant called The
Shoreline. It sat close to the beach and had glass windows for walls
so you could see the amazing view of the ocean. Everything on the
menu was at least thirty dollars, but my dad didn't mind the
cost; he told us to go crazy and order whatever our hearts desired. I
think he wasn’t just celebrating my birthday, he was also
celebrating our new life in San Francisco.
    When we got home I went
straight to bed. Before drifting off to sleep I nestled my head
comfortably on my pillow and thought about how much my life seemed to
be getting better as the days passed.

3.
An Invitation

    Five months had passed
since the day I saw Jonah at the auto shop, and it was now the end of
December. I wanted to go back and see him so badly, but I couldn't
muster up the guts to go in there without my mom's car having a
legitimate problem. Even though I still thought about him all the
time, I pretty much had given up on the idea of something happening
between us.
    I did have something
positive happen in my life, though. I had worked really hard at my
homeschooling and was able to graduate early. That freed up more of
my time, so I decided to throw myself into my job and work more
hours; I wanted to buy a car of my own so I didn't have to depend on
my parents so much.
    I grew close with the
people at work; Brittany became my best friend. It started with us
hanging out after work and eventually we just ended up going
everywhere with each other.
    Brittany also
introduced me to a whole other group of friends since she went to
public school. We would all get together on Friday nights and attend
their school's football games, laughing and rooting for the home
team. I was moderately popular among her friends, mostly because I
was the same age as them but had already graduated.
    I also got to know
Steve much better. We weren't close in a romantic way; it was more of
a big brother, little sister friendship. I would ask him hypothetical
relationship questions and felt like I could confide some of my
thoughts in him.
    Speaking of
relationships, I was still single. I had a few guys ask for my number
at work, but I secretly compared them all to Jonah and felt that they
just didn't measure up. Silly, I know, but my mom always taught me
not to settle.
    But then one day my
life changed . . . again. It happened to be one of those days where I
went into work in a gloomy disposition. The drizzly weather changed
my mood into a quiet depression; I really missed the sunshine. I
wanted to call in sick, but it was my last day before having two days
off, so I dragged myself out of bed and made myself go.
    Fox gave me a key to
the front door after I proved myself to be an upstanding employee, so
I didn't have to wait outside in the rain for someone to open it.
    When I walked inside
Fox was sitting at a table drinking coffee with his new bimbo of a
girlfriend. Her name was Sarah, and she was ultra tan, ultra blonde,
and ultra dumb. Fox hired her to fill in at the counter when Brittany
was gone, and Brittany was on vacation with her family that week.
    I waved in their
direction and went back to the kitchen to find Steve. When I pushed
through the door I found him happily chopping at a pile of bright-red
tomatoes.
    “ Hi Steve,”
I grumbled as I tossed my purse on the floor in the corner of the
room. My nose picked up the inviting aroma of freshly-brewed coffee
and I went over to the glass pot to eagerly pour myself some of the
warm brew.
    Steve looked up from
the cutting board. “You don't look so good today, everything
alright?”
    I looked down into my
cup of black coffee. “Yeah, I'm okay. I just don’t like
the weather, that’s all.” I let out a heavy sigh and made
my way over to the fridge for some coffee creamer.
    “ I'm sorry,”
he consoled me gently. “Give it more time; you'll adjust.”
    I let out another heavy
sigh and poured the milky creamer into the darkness of my coffee,
watching as the two colors