Second Circle Tattoos, The Complete Series by Scarlett Cole

Author:Scarlett Cole
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2019-04-28T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Five

“Hey, Harper,” Joanie said, as she and Harper were cleaning down the coffee machine, “could I talk to you about something?” The café was closing up, and besides Drea, who was in the office counting the cash, they were the only ones left.

“Sure, what’s on your mind?” Joanie had worked there longer than Harper, though she’d only just turned twenty.

“Well, you always seem so smart and organized. I wondered if you could help me with something.”

Joanie pulled some crumpled sheets of paper from the front of her apron and smoothed them out on the surface of the counter, using her palm to press them flat. It was an essay with a large D- in the top corner.

“I don’t really want everyone to know, but I never graduated high school. Long story. I decided to try community college to see if I could make up the classes, but … it’s really hard for me.”

Harper took a deep breath and reached across the counter, taking the paper so she could read the teacher’s comments. “Going back to school is the most awesome thing you can do. What do you need help on?”

“All of it, really. I can’t seem to get organized, I keep missing deadlines, and I’m getting shitty grades. I thought it might be easier now I’m a little older. But … no.”

Her heart pounded like it was about to beat right out of her chest. Harper stared down at the essay in her hand. It was such an innocent thing. Some lines on paper, but to her it was a crossroad. She could either take a step forward, reclaim a small part of who she was, or turn away. “Well, for sure, I can help with managing your time, especially on assignments. And we can take each piece of homework as it comes, see what we can do.”

Tears filled Joanie’s eyes. “You’d really do that? Can we talk more at the pool hall tonight?”

Harper sighed. She always avoided social gatherings, anything that put her in the path of too many people in an unknown environment. Until now, she’d declined José’s standing invitation to hang out with her coworkers, and had stood firm in the face of Drea’s constant persuasion. But the look of hope on Joanie’s face made it hard to say no.

“Of course. Bring a notebook and a list of your current assignments, and we’ll find somewhere quiet to sit and figure it out.”

Being somewhere so public was her worst nightmare. It was too hard to avoid contact with so many people milling around. She watched Joanie dart through the swinging doors into the back, and hoped she could find the courage to keep her promise.

* * *

Trent lay back on the sofa in his office, rubbed his hands over his face, and closed his eyes. If he’d known that Eric would flake on opening this morning, he’d never have gone out drinking with Cujo last night.

A knock on the door made him groan. Pixie walked in. “Good news.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.