Page 57 of Pack Rivals, Part One

"You sound like a woman rocking her independence and her options. Go Bea."

I cringe and take a large gulp of my coffee, the liquid burning my throat. "Nope, Bea isn't going anywhere. Bea is stopping with the dating and reverting back to the original plan."

"Urgh." Courtney sticks out her tongue, stained purple from the blackcurrant jelly she's spread on her bagel. "I hate the original plan. It's so dull."

"But it's sensible," I say, the coffee and food soothing my body. "And after all the shit that's happened, I need sensible and a chance to adapt to my new circumstances."

"Well, you have more self control than me, girl. If I had six hot dudes pursuing me, I'd milk that for all it was worth."

I shuffle on my seat, picking at my bagel.

"Unless …" she squints at me, "you didn't have as much self control as you're making out yesterday."

"I had plenty of self control," I snap. "It just wasn't easy."

"I bet." Courtney jumps up from her seat, licking the remains of jelly from her fingertips.

I decide to divert the topic of conversation before Courtney convinces me to do something I'll regret. "But how about you, Courtney? I can't believe there isn't anyone on the horizon."

Courtney sighs and rests her chin in her hand. "There is. But I may as well be invisible. I can't seem to catch his attention."

"Who is he?"

"A guy at work. I've tried everything. My short skirt. My flirtiest smile. Bending over to pick something imaginary up from the floor–"

"Wait. But have you tried talking to him?"

Courtney lunges for her keys. "I gotta get to my shift. I'll be back after lunch." She bends down to kiss my cheek. "Jeez Louise, you do smell good, Bea. Hope you feel better."

I kiss her back and watch as the apartment door slams shut behind her.

It's the first time I've been alone in my new home since I arrived in the city. I wait for some sort of sadness and panic to set in. This cramped, little place in the scruffy side of the city is where I belong now. No neat little house with its white picket fence and flowers in the yard.

I should feel sad, right? I should feel like life took a serious detour somewhere along the journey. Yet I don't feel that way at all.

The food in my stomach soothes away the pain in my head and my limbs, and all I feel is relief.

I'm not on edge waiting for an accusation or an angry word. I'm not jumping up to tidy away all the breakfast things. In fact, I'm pretty sure Courtney won't even notice if they're all still laid out across the table when she comes home.

It's quiet and calm and my morning is all my own.

I go for another of those long cold showers and when I emerge a half hour later, I find the phone ringing. I scurry across the apartment, dripping water across the carpet and not caring, and reach for the receiver.

"Hello," I answer, a tad breathless.

"Hello, Bea Carsen?"

"Speaking?"

"This is Diane from the recruitment agency."

I stand up straight. "Hi."

"I'm pleased to say, a position has come up that I think you might be interested in."

"It has?" She seemed so certain last time we spoke that no one would hire me.

"Yes, you can type, right?"

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