Julian: A Dark Angel Series Companion Novella (Dark Angel #3) by Kat T. Masen Page B

week. It could be a delicious ice cream you ate or maybe someone you saw. Something that makes you smile, even for just a moment.” Hazel smiles hopefully at each of us.
    “Does having sex with a cab driver count?” Penny sighs dreamily.
    “What is it with you and sex? I swear, Penny, sometimes you are such a wh—” Jerry is interrupted by a furious Penny.
    “A what, Jerry? A whore? Just because I like sex doesn’t make me a whore!”
    Whoa! We had entered awkward territory.
    “Stop being such a jerk in front of our new member, Jerry.” Penny looks directly at me and shoots me a wink. Jerry rolls his eyes.
    “Thank you…Penny?” I ask politely.
    “Yes, Penny…Penny Tration.” She bats her eyelashes at me this time.
    I accidentally let out a small laugh, and obviously I’m not the only one as Fred is bowing his head with a smirk on his face.
    “Nice to meet you, Penny Tration.” I hold in my laughter as best as I can. “My name is Julian…Julian Baker.”
    The sound of a chair screeching along the wooden floor echoes through the room; my head turns to the noise that comes from the hooded girl. She lifts her head slightly and I am eager to see her face. Only her lips are visible, a pale pink with the right corner raw from where she’s been chewing, most likely due to the anxiety that was this meeting.             
    What the fuck is it about her?
    Whatever it is needs to stop right here, right now. I came here to heal and find peace, not to hook up and sleep with someone in the group. Next time I sit in this chair, I am almost certain it will be my turn to open the vault of my past and lay it bare for everyone to see.
    It terrifies me to the core.
    As if Hazel can sense my trepidation, she casually walks over and places her palm over mine. “Don’t be afraid. It’ll happen when you’re ready.”
    “I think I’m ready, I just…I don’t know,” I blurt out.
    “Julian, dear boy, you will know when you’re ready to speak. Your heart and mind will be in sync. Don’t force yourself.”
    My heart and mind need to be in sync.
    Repeat, my heart and mind need to be in sync.
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     

Chapter 15
    I slam my laptop shut; my frustration and anxiety over not receiving a response from Mr. Grimmer has sent me into a spiral of self-doubt. Fuck that ‘no news is good news’ bullshit. No news means I’m a big fat failure and my dreams, once again, have been flushed down the drain along with my last stash of coke.
    It is a quarter to seven in the evening, only fifteen minutes till I have to leave for the weekly meeting. The majority of this week I had spent in the office without any leads, and I was pretty sure I would be fired any day now. Considering my paycheck wasn’t enough to cover my rent, an eviction was imminent. Life sure was one big bowl of roses.
    Once again I find myself sitting in the uncomfortable plastic chair. Note to self— invent comfortable plastic chairs. How can you open your mind to healing when your nuts are squashed against your dick and shoved somewhere up your ass?
    Hazel walks in and sits down with her Bible in her lap. She closes her eyes and I watch as her lips move. Making the sign of the cross, she opens her eyes from what must have been a silent prayer.
    Fred walks in and takes his usual seat, followed by Jerry and Penny arguing again. I don’t bother to listen to their conversation, assuming they will air it out for everyone to hear shortly.
    Penny takes a seat beside me. Today she is wearing a bright yellow dress that has pictures of candy on it. Her platform pumps, which are painted with the union jack, give her height and she is towering over everyone in this room. Her hair is bright blue; maybe not hair, more like a wig. I am disturbing myself with how much attention I am paying to detail.
    Hazel welcomes everyone back, but I am quick to scan the room and see the mystery hooded girl is not here. I am a little