Page 42 of Cole (Dirty Misfits MC 4)
Then, my eyes watered. “Really?”
She nodded, massaging my shoulders. “Yes, really. I’ve never resented my mother for what she had to do to keep us afloat, and your son won’t resent you, either. Especially not with Auntie Bridget around.”
I blinked away the tears. “I even went to the dog park a few times, you know. With Max. To see if he was there.”
“I know you did, beautiful.”
“And I haven’t seen him around town anywhere. I mean, he was everywhere at one point, and now he’s nowhere. How the fuck does that even happen?”
She kissed my cheek. “Santa Cruz is a massive place with a lot of people, and you haven’t been doing much other than working and hanging out here with me. It doesn't shock me that you haven’t run into him anywhere, especially at the dog park.”
I sniffled. “He’s actively avoiding me, isn’t he?”
She paused for a while before she spoke. “This world is going to be hard enough without dwelling on what could have been. I can give you answers until I’m blue in the face, but those answers won’t do you any good until you can move on from him, Molly.”
I rolled my eyes. “I know, I know. It’s just hard when I close my eyes and still feel him there, you know?”
“You really fell for him, didn’t you?”
My lower lip quivered, but I chewed on it to get it to stop. “Yeah, Bridget. I really did.”
She wrapped her arms around my thickening waist. “Why don’t you and I go out for a nice, juicy burger and a milkshake at that place you love so much, hmmm?”
I blinked. “The place with those chocolate mint shakes?”
“That’s the one.”
I whipped around as my stomach growled out with a need for food. “Do you mind driving? My hips are a bit sore.”
She smiled brightly, taking my hand in hers. “Girl, I’ll drive your happy ass anywhere. Come on, let’s go stuff our faces and then come back for a movie marathon.”
I gasped as she led me out of the bathroom. “Can we do a Harry Potter marathon this time!? We only got through movie three the last time we tried.”
“Then, we can pick up on four.”
“Hell, yeah!”
As my best friend—and godmother to my son—led me out of the apartment, I thought back on what I had accomplished over the past few months. I managed to work long enough to receive my winter holiday bonus before I put in my two weeks, I paid off the rest of my education debt I owed, and I took every test and got every certification I needed in order to be licensed to teach English as a second language. It was a far cry from my wild dreams of owning my own vineyard one day, but it would prove to be lucrative in a hub like Santa Cruz where English Language teachers were in high demand.
And every day, I put in at least two applications to full-time and part-time jobs I thought I’d be qualified to do.
My only hope was that I had a job waiting for me by the time my son was born.
“So, talk me through your ideal job for right now,” Bridget said as we walked out to her car.
I opened the door and fell down into the seat. “Well, if I could work from home that would be outstanding. But everywhere I’ve put in applications seems to prioritize teaching English as a second language in person rather than online.”
Bridget quickly slipped behind the driver’s wheel beside me. “All right, so what are your options? What all have you come across?”
“Here’s the thing: there’s more money to be made in-person doing this stuff, but there’s more demand for being able to take classes online. I’ve spoken with people that make a couple hundred bucks a week teaching online, and I’ve met people that make a full-on, full-time income teaching online. I think it all depends on the hours I’m willing to work and how much time I’m willing to invest in finding students.”
She drove us toward the diner. “What kind of hours are people working that make a full-time living working from home and doing this?”
I sighed. “They’re running on other country’s schedules, essentially. They’re up sometimes at three or four in the morning teaching individuals and online classes until around nine, and then their schedules pick back up in the evening around six or so and sometimes they’ll work until damn near midnight.”
She whistled lowly. “That’s a hell of a schedule.”
I snickered. “Yeah, and not very sustainable. At least, it won’t be as Bryson starts to grow up.”
She smiled. “Bryson. I like that name.”
I rubbed my belly softly. “Bryson James. It’s a good, strong name.”
“That it is. Oh! Remind me while we’re eating to show you the list I’ve complied of places that have gotten back to me with availability. We can’t stay in that apartment, so I’ve found everything from massive studio apartments to townhomes to three-bedroom condos to a couple of houses that are willing to rent to us.”
