Surge - Maya Nicole Page 0,64

were looking, it didn't seem I'd ever get access to the money in the account my mom had set up. She had it set to pay out to me when I graduated college or with a judge's approval in a time of need. That was probably the only way she could protect it from my father.

"I might not be able to pay them back for a while." Another round of tears hit me. "How am I going to pay for college applications?"

"Let me talk to them, okay?" She leaned across the console and pulled me into a hug.

I didn't know how I had gotten so lucky to have a friend like her. I just hoped I didn't lose her by the time everything was over.

The sound of a motorcycle coming to park next to us made me pull away. Morgan sat on his bike, looking over at the car with his helmet still in place. I could practically feel his eyes boring into me through his tinted visor.

"I thought you told Bernardo you didn't want him as a partner." Ivy sat back in her seat with a huff. "It's like they want to make you miserable but can't do it from afar."

I considered confiding in her about the knife and the strong possibility that I was some kind of distant relative of sirens. It would be so much easier if she knew.

There was a reason the Tritons acted fearful of the knife. I would never be able to use it on a person, but its possibilities were constantly on my mind. Not that I'd ever go on a jewel heist or rob a bank.

I flung open my door and stepped out. I gave a quick wave to Ivy as she pulled away. She had volleyball practice, but Bernardo already said he'd give me a ride home since he didn't have a lesson after mine.

I ignored Morgan and walked into the studio. The tightness in my chest instantly decreased as the familiar smell of suede hit my nose.

Bernardo came from around the front desk and pulled me into a hug as soon as he looked up from the computer screen. "Go get changed and let's dance it all away."

He knew it was my last lesson for a while. The owners were still going to let me come to dance classes and practice parties, but it wouldn't be the same as learning in a one-on-one format.

I said hello to another student and instructor on my way to the bathroom. I set my bag on the bench in the bathroom and pulled my shirt over my head. Just as it was completely off, the door opened and I turned my back.

"Sorry, I've gotten too comfortable around here." I laughed and pulled a thinner, more practice-worthy shirt over my head.

"Do you always just change out in the open like this?"

My body froze and my face turned fifty shades of pink. I was lucky I hadn't had my pants off. "It has a picture of Ginger Rogers and the word women right on the door. Most men don't just walk into a women's restroom."

I turned to face him and had to stop myself from having a reaction to the way he looked. He was leaning with his shoulder against the door, his legs crossed. His hair fell onto his forehead and he brushed it back with his free hand.

That wasn't the most drool worthy part about him. He was dressed head to toe in leather that hugged him in all the right places. I resisted the urge to look south of his waist.

"Do you like what you see?" He pushed off the door and put his helmet down on the bench before shrugging out of his leather jacket. Underneath, he wore a skin-tight black shirt and my mouth opened a bit.

My body didn't seem to get the message that he was the enemy.

"Bernardo said he had some clothes for me to change into since apparently leather isn't that easy to move in. I tried to explain to him that in the bedroom I move just fine in leather."

My eyes went wide and I grabbed my skirt. "He probably took that as a come on."

He moved to block my path into the one and only stall. "Going somewhere, vixen?"

"To change." My eyes deceived me and slipped down past his waist. The leather sat snug against his muscular quadriceps, and it was clear he was happy about something. "If you're looking for men's clothing to change into,