Page 31 of Shifted

"But you still defy the odds, as usual." He raised his glass to me, wanting to cheers, the audacity this man had. I still couldn’t stand him and didn’t understand why he was still here in Boston. I thought everyone in Chicago would drown without him.

"You know I hate you, right?" I say bluntly as his proud expression remains unbothered.

"I wouldn't have it any other way, Hope." I squinted my eyes at him and sighed, "Come on, we were always meant to be enemies, according to the 19-year-old you." I smiled at the remark, promising, like Elizabeth Bennett, to loathe Theo for all eternity—but in a different way, in our way.

"And twenty-five-year-old me just wants to dig a hole and bury myself in it." Things have recently become more complicated and stressful. I’ve also been blowing off therapy due to needing the time for work and client meetings.

"It's been that good, huh?" I nod and sip my wine again.

"Oh yeah, stellar. But I'm okay. Seriously, Joely’s, that's all I need. She's the best thing that ever happened to me." He looked as if he wanted to ask a question but held back as Bella walked back over with food. The door opened again, and this time Maria came through.

"Mom?" Arabella says, surprised, and she ignores her, going straight into the kitchen. "I did not invite her," she mumbles frantically.

"Oh, you know Maria gets FOMO," I whispered. I didn't tell her I was here, though." Our eyes drifted to Theo, who awkwardly sat there.

"I was talking to her earlier, and she asked what I was doing tonight and said I was coming here." Bella buried her face in her palms, groaning at Theo’s idiotic move. Her Mom tended to show up unannounced if she heard I was over. She picked up the box containing noodles and began eating them.

“Bella.” Maria walked into the living room.

"Hey, Mom." She spoke with a mouth full, slightly irritated by her presence.

"I'm sorry I needed to speak with Theo.” She turns to her son and sighs, “I know you're looking for a date to that charity event." Her eyes then shifted to me, fuck. She better not do what I think she is about to, "Why don't you take Hope?" I felt my eyes bulge; this mother fucker. She always wanted me and her son together. Now that Theo was conveniently back and there was an open spot for a date, she’d obviously try to fill it out with me.

"I'm dating someone," I replied quickly, taking Maria by surprise. From what she knew, I had never dated anyone besides Joely’s father. But this took her by surprise, so she pivots as her expression relaxes.

"Dating is not a relationship, honey; it's dating, not boyfriend or fiancé! It's more like a formality if anything," she added, and I looked at Theo, who just smirked at me.

"Mom!" Bella spoke, flustered. She didn’t like the idea of me and her brother, and she almost always shut down any conversation that alluded to an idea of it. Even me being alone with him in a room drove her to be weirdly possessive in a way.

"You do not have to," Theo reasoned, and I smiled at him. At least he wasn’t going to beg like his mother. He had the decency to remain himself while his mother went on a tangent.

"Hope you never get out of the house. I think it'll do you some good!" she urged again, and I looked to Theo, who was shaking his head at Maria. “Mom, come on, lay off the girl; she obviously doesn’t want to,” He was quick to dismiss it and seemed slightly relieved. But that only made me want to go.

"Since it bugs you just so much," I smirked at Theo as he pleaded with his mother, "Oh, I would be delighted to go with you, Theo." His jaw dropped in annoyance, and he looked at me.

"Are you challenging me?" he asked. I didn't know what he meant by that, but I was no chicken.

"Well, challenge accepted, I guess?" Grabbing the box of Chinese from his hand, I raised the chopsticks. "Thanks." I leaned back into the seat as I could feel his death stare on me, along with Bella’s. Now, I’ve unsettled both the Jones siblings, but at least Maria was pleased.

“What about Reed?" Arabella asks again as her gaze focuses back on me. She takes her Gatorade bottle and squirts it into her mouth like she's some soccer player, though she's never played a sport in her life. "Reed?" Grayson asks, and I bite my lip. Arabella has a habit of mentioning things before they are truly something. For what intent, I do not know, but she's done it since we were teenagers.

"You know Reed Austen? Your cousin, he's Hope's boyfriend." The ball drops, and I am almost shocked by how forward she is. My head shot to her in shock, and I honestly debated whether I should jump out a window or fight her straight on.

"Boyfriend?" Grayson asks, surprised, mostly because I haven't been on a date since my daughter was born. They didn't even know I was intimate with Joely's father until the obvious fact that I got pregnant, "Since when is Reed your boyfriend? He's busy with residency, you know?" His voice sided with more concern than any hint of excitement like Bella's. But I knew he was just protective of me, and I was like his little sister. My gaze meets Theo; he seems more annoyed than anyone else. The expression on his face looked a smidge concerned, and his head could burst.

"Boyfriend is a stretch." I glanced back at Bella, who showed a wide grin.

"But you like him!" She mused.

"We are just a boy and a girl who have been on a couple of dates, okay?" She glared at me, knowing my tiny white lies. It was the truth, but I really did like him, and going with Theo felt a tinge wrong for some reason.

"He's your boyfriend without any labels, got it?" A throat is cleared, and I see Maria left intrigued.

"Boyfriend?"

"You haven't-" I raise my hand before she goes there, talking about my sex life. I and Reed have not had sex, and as I’ve explained, I haven't even had sex since the night Joely was conceived... well, maybe a couple of nights after. But that’s not important.

It's not that I'm fully opposed to it; it's that I'm someone's Mother, and I can’t picture loving anyone else the way I did. So I've been a bit more preoccupied with her than satisfying ‘my needs,' as Bella calls it. But Maria would be the last person I'd talk to about it; it's as if I were telling my mom.

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