Page 20 of Ready or Knot

“We’re excited to meet them tomorrow.”

The emphasis causes my mom to pout. “But tomorrow is going to be impossible between the ceremony and getting everything situated for the move.”

Aiden sighs. Dad stands up, sets his plate on the counter, and then surveys the space, hands on his hips. “You said the truck will be here tomorrow?”

I nod, not commenting on him sidestepping what Mom said. “The goal was to have it come Sunday, but cross-country movers are at a premium right now, and they only had a slot left for tomorrow afternoon.”

“Sounds like tomorrow’s going to be hectic. Let’s get this done so that your mom has enough time to actually breathe instead of just bombarding your pack with questions, yeah?” he says, hugging me again, and I smile. Violet laughs, and my mom rolls her eyes even as we all set about getting the dorm packed for the final time.

* * *

My fingers tap on the counter, my eyes glued to the phone next to them, my heart in my throat.

“Still nothing?” Violet asks, stepping out of what used to be her room. Her pack helped her get everything moved to their place yesterday so that my family was only tripping over one set of boxes. When I shake my head, she sighs and steps up next to me, wrapping an arm around my waist. “The flight probably just got delayed. It’s only been half an hour since they were supposed to land.”

I nod, biting my lip.

“Jasper’s outside. Want me to have him come in? We can stay until they call.”

I swallow and nod. “He won’t mind?”

She gives me that half smile that tells me she thinks I’m ridiculous. She pulls her phone from her back pocket and taps out a quick text. My eyes invariably land back on my own dark screen. We don’t break the silence as we wait for Jasper to come in, and when he opens the door a few minutes later, he doesn’t offer any kind of empty greeting. He simply comes to stand on Violet’s other side, setting a soft kiss against her hair.

Each minute that passes ratchets my nerves tighter, coiling in my belly until I’m pretty sure I’ll be sick if I try to say anything. Violet and Jasper are having a soft conversation, the murmurs blurring, and I’m too distracted to try to figure out what they’re saying. Forty-five minutes after they were supposed to land, Logan’s picture finally shows up on my phone as it vibrates with his incoming call. I let out a hard sigh, swallowing twice to try to settle my stomach, and then answer it.

“Faedra?” Logan asks, frazzled, the drone of voices surrounding him filling the background.

“Hey,” I answer.

“Sorry, we just finally got off the plane. It left Denver late and then there were storms over the mountains.” He explains, and I hear Carter murmur something near him, like he’s trying to buy something. “Are you still wanting to meet up with us tonight? We understand if you’d prefer to stay in.”

Violet lifts an eyebrow in question, and I nod, hugging her with my open arm. Jasper grabs her hand and leads her out of the dorm while I collect my purse, the small bag I’d packed, and my dress and robes for the commencement.

“Yeah, I’d love to see you all,” I say. “Where should I meet you?”

He rattles off the name of the hotel they’re staying in, and I switch him to speaker so I can request a ride share.

“Um, Logan?” I ask, my voice growing breathless from my worry.

“What’s up?”

“Can I stay with you all tonight?” I ask, biting my lip. “The dorm’s completely packed, and Violet’s already moved out.”

There’s a short pause, and I hear one of the other men laugh in the background.

“Of course, Red. We’ll see you in a bit, alright?”

Eight

JUDE

The flight to Los Angeles is a complete dumpster fire.

There’s a mixup with our tickets, so instead of being in business class, we’re offered standard economy tickets with free food and a hefty refund. But naturally the seats aren’t together, so I’m wedged next to a woman in her mid-thirties that spends the first hour clearly trying to work up the courage to start a conversation with me. And since the flight leaves more than half an hour late on account of the plane hitting a bird on its previous flight, her deciding to make a move on me ends up being in the first half of the flight—which means the second half was spent in awkward silence due to me turning her down. Why can’t this shit happen to Logan since he’s the one that actually enjoys talking to strangers? And to put salt in the wound, there’s turbulence over the Sierra-Nevadas that’s bad enough to make me seriously reconsider if I, in fact, do get motion sick.

By the time the three of us arrange ourselves into the rental Carter’s assistant booked for us, I’m ready to just lay low at the hotel until the ceremony tomorrow. I’m no stranger to commencements—I sit through two a year, after all. But I can confidently say I haven’t been so nervous for one since awarded my undergrad. Blowing out a sigh, I pull out my eReader, intent on finishing the book I hadn’t been able to read on the flight. Carter pulls his phone and chuckles.

“She text you?” Logan asks, keeping his eyes on the road.

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