Joseph’s POV“Sorry, Elder. I didn’t mean to do that,” Jack, one of the warriors, said as we both stared down at my crushed cell phone.I spent most of the day training the new warriors while Carter did some patrolling at the North borders after we had a recent invasion. Jack was my sparring partner and when my phone fell to the ground, he attacked it with a sword.“I got a little carried away,” Jack said, gritting his teeth nervously.I rolled my eyes and picked up the remains of my phone. Now I wouldn’t be able to talk to Tessa and I wasn’t due to leave the mountains until tomorrow night. I hadn’t spoken to Tessa all day yesterday and I was planning on calling her later.But now that was out of the question. She was probably already worried.“I’ll buy you a new one,” Jack continued when I didn’t say anything.“Don’t worry about it,” I said, my tone dry as I placed a hand on his shoulder. It took everything I had not to lose my shit on this kid. “Just be more wary next time. You did
Tessa’s POVJoseph was here. He was actually here. And we just made the best love. My entire body was still tingling from his touch, and I didn’t think anything could ruin this moment.Until I heard the bathroom door closing and I remembered that we weren’t alone in this apartment. I felt completely paralyzed and my entire body was heated from the embarrassment I felt. I wasn’t sure I was going to be able to move, but then I saw Joseph looking as if he was ready to hunt whoever was in my apartment and I had to stop him.I wrapped my arms around his biceps to keep him calm before telling him that my father and Penny were in my apartment. He didn’t look relieved by that, but his body relaxed.“They are early,” he said, furrowing his brows. “Graduation isn’t until tomorrow. I thought they’d be getting in tonight or tomorrow morning.”“Yeah, you and me both,” I said, sitting up. “If you had answered your phone, you would have known that they got here yesterday morning.”He frowned and the
Tessa’s POVMy mouth fell open upon seeing Joseph.I had no idea he was going to be here today, and I wasn’t quite sure if he knew I was going to be here either. We hadn’t really spoken in the last couple of days and when he returned, we didn’t talk much.He certainly seemed surprised to see us; all of us.His eyes remained on my father’ and I could feel my father’s rising anger as he glared at Joseph.“Why the hell are you here?” My father asked again, his face red with fury.“Dad, he goes to this school,” I said quickly, not wanting him to know that Joseph was actually a professor at this school.Not just any professor though; my professor.He would be furious if he knew that information.“Rick, it’s how they met. Remember?” Penny said as she placed a hand on his shoulder, attempting to calm down.“I don’t want him anywhere near my daughter,” my father seethed.Joseph raised his hands in front of him like he was surrendering.“I don’t want any issues with you and your family,” Josep
Tessa’s POVJoseph seemed genuinely confused by my question. It was as if it was the craziest thing he had ever heard, and I couldn’t figure out why he was so confused. It seemed like a normal question to ask, but his lips pursed, and his eyes narrowed as he choked, his head to the side.“I already assumed that was the plan,” he finally said after a long pause.Suddenly, it felt like a weight had lifted off my shoulders. I was glad that he didn’t see our relationship ending or wanting to do any long-distance type thing. But at the same time, did I really want to live in the mountains? I mean that was the point of the trial run, to see if could live with him in the mountain village. But as time went forward, I wondered if that was truly what I wanted.“Is that not what you want?” He then asked, surprising me.“I want to be with you,” I told him honestly. “I don’t care where we are. As long as we are together.”The smile that spread across his face was radiant. He wrapped me in his arms
Tessa’s POVI jumped off the couch quickly as I stared at the email.Fable Magazine wanted to offer me a full-time position for their New York branch. I couldn’t believe this was happening. This was something I’d been wanting, knowing that they had a branch in the big city. Ruby was going to lose her shit when she found out that I had a job offer in the very city she was hoping to move to after graduation.Just then, Joseph stirred on the couch.My entire body froze, and I turned to look at Joseph who was now opening his eyes and peering up at me with a timid frown.“Where did you go?” He asked, holding his arms out for me to return to him.I opened my mouth to respond to him and tell him what had happened. But just as I did, I remembered that he wanted to return to the mountains after I graduated, so I shut my mouth and put my phone on the coffee table.“Maybe we should go to the bedroom,” I suggested.He groaned but he sat up; he looked so good freshly woken. His hair was messy, and
Tessa’s POVI wasn’t sure why I was saddened by Penny’s text. I did tell them I wanted them to leave; I mean my father attacked Joseph and I almost got hurt in the process. He deserved to get his hand broken and I didn’t want him to cause anymore unnecessary drama. Especially at my graduation ceremony.But there was still a part of me that wanted my father there. I hoped we’d be able to talk and that he’d actually apologize for his behavior.Maybe it was just wishful thinking.I decided to call Penny before leaving for the apartment. I didn’t have long before I needed to be at the school.“Tessa?” Penny said as soon as she answered the phone.“Hey, Penny,” I said, almost sheepishly. “I just wanted to check in and see how Dad is.”She was quiet for a moment like she was processing what I had said.“His hand is broken, and he’s upset. But he’s fine. We are packing up right now and we'll be out of your hair soon. That is what you wanted, right?”“He tried to punch Joseph and almost punch
Tessa’s POV“Her heritage is the reason my wife is dead,” my father said through his teeth. “I don’t want my daughter associated with that any of that shit, Pen.”“You’ve been searching for a way to get rid of her powers for years with no luck, Rick. Eventually, her powers will grow, and she will be more dangerous than ever. Next time, it won’t be just your hand,” Penny said in a harsh whisper. “The coven already told you that there is no way to get rid of it. Why can’t you believe them.”“Tessa wasn’t the one who broke my hand,” my father muttered, ignoring the rest of what she had said.I heard enough. I couldn’t stay here any longer. My father was keeping more secrets from me and by the sounds of it, he knew who and where my mother’s coven was.I didn’t bother waiting for them to emerge from the kitchen room. I didn’t bother telling them I was leaving. I managed to leave the apartment without them noticing.As I walked outside the apartment building, I felt an overwhelming sense of
Joseph’s POVTessa stared at me wide-eyed when she realized I was standing behind her. I had her purse clutched in my fist and my eyes never left her as she slowly turned to face me.She got an incredible job offer this morning and she didn’t bother to tell me. It was clear to me that she was afraid to tell me out of fear that I wouldn’t want to move to New York. In reality, New York was only an hour's drive from the mountains my tribe resided in, so, I would be able to commute if necessary.“I’m going to the auditorium,” Ruby whispered to Tessa, unaware that I could hear her clearly as if she was standing right beside me. “I’ll see you in there.”She put a reassuring hand on Tessa’s shoulder before shutting her locker door and heading toward the auditorium.Tessa stood frozen.“How much of that did you hear?” Tessa finally asked, nervousness clear in her tone.“All of it,” was all I could think to say.She sighed and lowered her gaze.“I didn’t want you to find out like that…”“About