Page 34 of Peaceful Chaos

I try to text Sin,but he doesn't respond. I try calling the office next, but Javier's direct line goes straight to voicemail. The only other number I have is for the guard shack.

"Mrs. Sinclair, how can I help you?" the guard on duty answers.

"I have a project to do at school. Last minute thing. I can't reach my husband, or Javier, but I know I need an escort to leave the complex."

"What building do you need to go to?"

"The library," I reply.

There's a momentary pause and the sound of keys clacking before he comes back on the line. "We can make that work. I've got the schematics for the building. If you give me thirty minutes, I'll have the advance team in place and have an escort stop by your apartment to take you."

I thank him and end the call. Then I text Jenna and let her know I can meet her. I write Sin a note, because I know he's going to be pissed at me for leaving without him. I'm serious about school, and I can't let Sin's over protective nature cause me to fail. There's only one thing I can do to lessen the anger he's going to feel with me heading back to campus.

I grab my phone and call Ford. He answers immediately. "Raven? Is something wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong. I've got to head to the library to work on a project, but Sin and my brother are behind closed doors with Javier. I've got the guards arranging everything, but Sin will be mad if I don't take one of you with me. Up for a trip to the library?"

"Shit, firecracker, he's still going to be pissed. Can you put it off?"

"I wish. My partner's only free night is tonight."

"Let me see if Ted is free and the three of us can head to the library. That might keep Sin from trying to kill me when we get back."

A few minutes later there's a knock at my door. Teddy and Ford stand waiting for me with their backpacks ready. The guard is waiting next to another armored vehicle. I grab my bag and follow them to the car.

"Thanks for doing this," I say to them.

Teddy smiles at me. "Don't worry about it, tiny one. I've got a lot of homework to do, so it's no hardship."

When we get to the library the security team hurries us into the building. Jenna is waiting at a long table in the research section of the library. She waves me over.

Ford grabs my hand and stops me from moving forward. "We're going to set up at that table over there." He points to a table near Jenna.

She waves her phone at me as I head over to where she's set up. Dropping my bag on the table, I start taking what I need out of my bag. "I have so many questions. You're married? Why? And more importantly, who are the hotties who came in with you?" she peppers me with questions.

I blink several times. I guess we're jumping right into this "getting to know each other" thing. "Yeah, I'm married. I'm nineteen. And those guys are friends of mine and my husband's."

"No shit? Married at nineteen? Why?" she pushes.

I flip open my book. I haven't decided if Jenna is a possible new friend or not, but her intrusive questions are tipping the scale in the wrong direction. "I get that it doesn't make sense to most people, but it makes sense to us." I flip open my notebook and nervously click my pen. All I want is to finish this stupid assignment and get back home.

"Don't you miss it?" she continues, oblivious to my mounting irritation.

"Miss what?" I try not to sound as snappish as I feel.

She shrugs. "Being single. Freedom. Don't you miss the possibilities that come with it? You're tied to one man for the rest of your life, and so early. Doesn't it get boring?"

"Trust me, life with my husband is never boring." I click my pen several more times. "Can we just get this assignment done? I'd like to get back home."

"Need to go home and make dinner?" She laughs at her own joke.

I force a laugh. "God no. I'd like to keep my husband. I don't cook."

We're quiet after we divide up the list. Thankfully, she seems to sense I don't want to answer her questions with any real depth.

I have to make a few trips into the stacks to complete my portion of the assignment, and the guys shadow me each time I get up.

Once I'm back from my final trip, with several books surrounding my workspace, Jenna starts to fidget in her seat, and I know the silence is about to end. She leans forward, resting her elbows on top of her stack of books. "Look, I can tell I made you upset. I have a bad habit of sticking my foot in my mouth. Can we start over?"

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