Work Rules
Page 18
“No, that’s okay. It isn’t a big secret or anything. Over the holidays, my parents found out I’m gay. It didn’t go over well. They’re refusing to pay for next year’s school. They even tried to get a refund for this semester, but they were too late. That’s the only reason I’m able to go this term.”
“Shit, sweetie, that sucks. But you can get financial aid, can’t you?”
“Yeah,” Matt chimed in. “I used financial aid to pay for my entire education. It’s out there, you just have to find it.”
“Not for me.” He shook his head. “So, um, my parents are kinda wealthy. Like wealthy-wealthy. They were paying cash for everything. I have a trust fund that I get when I turn twenty-five. I’ll have to wait until then and use it to pay for the last year.”
“But if they aren’t going to pay, can’t you get aid? I don’t understand what them being rich has to do with it.” I was missing something here because that made no sense.
“No, you’re required to use your parent’s income for aid until you turn twenty-five. With their financial status, I would never qualify even if they would do the paperwork, which they’d never do. Basically, I’m screwed.”
“Maybe, maybe not. I have an idea though,” Casey told him with a gentle smile.
“And in the meantime, I can help you with your schedule, so I can get my yoga on. I need to up my flexibility game to keep Alex here interested,” I said with a wink.
“Sunshine, if you up your game anymore you might kill me,” Alex laughed.
I wondered if I should go talk to Stevie. I understood what it was like to lose your family when you came out, but he and Casey were deep in conversation. I thought about what Denise had said about what a perfect pair they would make. But as many times as Stevie had hung out with us, I had never got anything from them but a friend vibe.
I leaned over to Alex and whispered, “Hey, I made sure the box with all my toys made it into the bedroom. Want to go unpack?”
“Hell yeah!” he said to me, but to everyone else, he said “We gotta go unpack. Catch y’all later.”
I laughed as we made a hasty exit and headed to the house that was now our home.
The End.
Epilogue
Alex
I sat out on the back porch and looked out over our yard. What Nathan had done with the yard was amazing. He'd mentioned that he liked to garden, but I wasn’t prepared for what that would mean. The back part of the yard had been transformed into neatly tilled rows that were just waiting for the last frost so plants could be planted.
The porch was covered in large decorative pots filled with flowers that I hauled inside anytime there was a threat of cold weather. Nathan was over in his shed—if you could call what he had out there a shed. I guessed that what it was, but it was a shed Nathan-style. I was pretty sure it was nicer than my first apartment. But he loved it and I loved him, so if a shed like a palace made him happy then I was all for it.
“Lexi, sweetie,” he called. “What time is it? I want to finish these centerpieces and then I need time to shower real quick before they get here.” He came out of the shed, juggling mason jars with flowers in them.
“It’s a little after two, so you've got about an hour.” Today would be the first time our families were all together at the same time. Patty and my mom had met and Mike and my Dad both joined us for a hockey game toward the end of the season but so far, we hadn’t all been together at once. Nathan and I had cooked a great meal, and we were really looking forward to having them all over.
He set the jars on the table and stepped back to look at his handy work. “I think this looks good, don’t you?”
I stepped up behind him and pulled him against me. “Sunshine, it looks fantastic.”
He sighed and rested his head back against me. “I love being a nurse, but I have really missed working with flowers. It's wonderful to have a yard where I can grow them.”
“This yard is going to be fabulous this year. I would've just mowed it and called it good if you hadn’t moved in.”
“So now it all comes out. You moved me in here for my gardening skills. I see how you are.”
“Oh, I moved you in here for your skills all right but the not ones in the garden.” I waggled my eyebrows at him.
He just shook his head, gave me a quick kiss, and headed in to shower. I sat back down in the chair and looked around again. I couldn’t believe this was my life. This time last year I never would've guessed that when I pictured my future it would include a gorgeous man and a couple of kids with my eyes and his sass. We weren’t sure yet how we planned to make that happen, but we would figure it out. Probably sooner rather than later because ever since we held Suzie and Tom’s baby a couple of months ago we'd both been thinking about it.
I'd also been thinking about rings lately as well. Mark told me about a special place Nathan wanted his ring to come from that was in Alabama. Well, James Eldridge, the designer, was in Alabama anyway. He mostly did his business over the internet, but I messaged him and set up a meeting. I knew that Nathan would like to have a say in the design of his, so I felt like a face to face would be best. Next month there was a conference in Atlanta I needed to go to and Nathan had taken off to go with me. I figured we would detour through Fairpoint, Alabama on the way back.
A few minutes later, Nathan came back out. He looked fabulous as always. He was wearing skinny jeans, a peacock blue shirt, and of course my favorite peach lip gloss. He slid into my lap and snuggled in.
Yes, we had exciting plans, and I couldn’t wait to see what the future held, but at the same time, right at this minute, with this man in my arms, I had everything I needed.
About the Author
Jacki James has been saying she was going to write a book since she was sixteen and wrote fanfiction about her favorite Rockstar. She is a believer in love of all kinds but MM romance is her favorite by far. She has a romantic heart and a dirty mind and likes to write stories that let both shine.
When she isn’t writing she is either creating beautiful pieces of glass art or reading. She is an animal lover and dreams of having a small hobby farm where she can raise goats, chickens and organic veggies. In the meantime she lives in town with her two cats, awesome husband, and two college aged kids.
For updates and news, visit Jacki’s website at www.jackijames.com
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Also by Jacki James
Breaking the Rules Series
Family Rules - Book One