Peyton Church is a city girl by anyone's standards. Born and raised in New York City, she grew up wanting for nothing. She attended the most prestigious preparatory schools, shopped on Fifth Avenue, dined with the rich and famous and was adored by...
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"WHAT DO YOU mean I'm supposed to get a job?!" I exclaim, my eyes wide as I stare at my mom in disbelief.
"I mean if you want to keep having a cellphone, you need to be able to pay the bill yourself. Money's tight, Peyton," she explains while buttering her toast at the kitchen counter. "Between the mortgage, the maintenance bills and the car payments, I don't have much left over. And if we're going to eat a hot dinner every night, everyone's got to pitch in."
I hitch my thumb over my shoulder in the direction of Jayden, who'd only just entered the kitchen this morning. "And are you going to make him pay his way too? Or is this just me?"
Mommy's Boy walks over to to Mom and pecks a kiss on her cheeks before turning to me with a smug grin on his face. "A friend of mine hooked me up with a job answering phones at his dad's auto shop."
My glare shifts to him, sour enough to spoil the milk in my cereal. "You know I have no experience, right, Mom?! Nobody's going to hire me to even sweep floors."
Mom rolls her eyes, taking a bite out of her toast while simultaneously throwing her hair up into a ponytail. "As a matter of fact, an old friend of mine owns the diner by your grandmother's apartment building. When I stopped in for a coffee yesterday she told me they have a waitressing position open. It's all yours, you just need to pop by after school and introduce yourself."
Muttering obscenities under my breath, I resume stirring my cereal around my bowl more angrily. "How am I supposed to work and still keep my grades up enough to hold onto my NYU acceptance?"
"Normal teenagers have jobs, Peyton," Mom coos, kissing my hair quickly as she heads for the front door. "You'll manage. Now, I've go to get to the store. Can I drive you two to school this morning or is it still considered embarrassing to get a reuse with your mom?"
"Nah, you're a cool mom," Jayden smiles, wholeheartedly accepting her offer, grabbing a protein bar from the pantry and jogging out the front door. "I call shotgun!"
Grumbling away, I dump the rest of my cereal down the sink and follow.
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