Page 44 of Passenger Princess

“I don’t think you would do well sitting around for any period of time.”

“Maybe, but I’m willing to give it the old college try.”

That makes me laugh before I sit silently, thinking of Jaime sitting around doing nothing. It would never last. The man is always alert, always busy. He'd die of boredom.

“What about you? What’s next for you after all of this?”

I shrug. “Not sure.”

His brows furrow at my answer. “Not sure?”

“Nope,” I say with a smile.

His frown deepens. “What does that mean?”

“I kind of always just…go with the flow. Life is short, you know? Why spend it doing things you don’t like?”

“Hmm,” he says, but it doesn’t sound like he’s buying it.

“I have always just gone with whatever opportunity falls into my lap. Before the pageant and influencer stuff, I was a bartender. Right now, I’ve got prize money from the pageant that I’m not really spending on anything, and every day I’m getting requests for sponsorships on social media. So we’ll see. Eventually, I’ll fall into something and realize it’s what I want to do forever. Until then, I’m just living my life.”

Time passes as we drive, Jaime contemplating my words before, finally, he speaks.

“You know, for a self-centered princess, you’re pretty damn smart.”

‘And don't you forget it, big guy,” I say with a smile, picking my book back up.

TWENTY-ONE

JAIME

"What are you reading?" I ask without meaning to when Ava is silent for a long time. When her head perks up as she takes off the big pink headphones with white ribbons tied to the frame and a broad smile on her lips, I instantly regret it.

"What?"

"What are you reading? You keep giggling."

Her smile spreads on her face, and she shifts in the seat to look at me, tucking her feet beneath her. Peach moves in my lap, stretching an arm out to Ava, and she returns the move, scratching behind her ear.

"An omegaverse."

With my eyes on the road, I take a deep breath. The way she said the simple, nonsensical word, I know she's excited for my response. Still, something tells me I probably don't need to know whatever she says, much lesswantto know.

"Do I even want to know what an omegaverse is?"

"Oh, absolutely," she says, then proceeds to move into a long , drawn-out conversation about alphas and omegas and betas, designations,and mates. Then she gives me a very in-depth explanation of what a fuckingknotis using a straw and wrapper, and I was right.

I didnotwant to know.

"Get it?" she asks. I continue to stare at the road, but when we hit a red light, I turn to her, her smile wide and her eyes wider.

God, she's fucking cute.

"I miss who I was before this," I say, and her head tips back with a twinkling laugh, the blonde of her long ponytail grazing her arm as she does. The light turns green, and I start to drive before confessing, "You know, I thought I'd spend time with you?—"

"Under duress, of course." She rolls her eyes, and I smile because I cannot help it.

"Of course. But I thought I'd spend time with you, and you'd turn it off."

---