Anything For Grace

Chapter 2

Penelope's POV...

I flipped onto my side and seen Harper's awkward body overshadowing me. My eyes immediately burst open as she tapped her fingers in her morning coffee. I sit up in bed, rubbing the crust from my eyes and adjusting to the blinding sunlight coming through my sheer curtains. I look at my phone and it was too early for her to be acting like a weirdo. "Good morning to you too." I yawned, while scratching my neck. "Is Grace up?"

"She's still at Veronica's. Lindsey called and said she could have breakfast with them, but you're going to pick her up at noon." Harper informs as she sits at the foot of the bed. She still looked pissed, but I know she was holding her judgments back.

I grabbed the ends of my cover, pulling them up to my neck. "Great, I'll be up in four hours."

She yanks my covers back and the rush of the fabric sent chills over my body. "Get up now!"

I groaned, scrunching my body into a fetal position. "Harper!"

"You are getting up because you have job applications to fill out." Harper barks, sipping her cup of coffee. "Those positions don't stay empty for long and people from Peter's firm are grabbing them too. Get up!"

"Mother, you're being annoying." I kept my eyes closed, hoping she'll leave me alone. I have never been a morning person. Mornings and I don't get along, simply for the fact that me and nights have a wonderful relationship. "I will send an application in; I just need five minutes of sleep."

"You slept all day yesterday and I let you live," Harper reminds. "Think about Grace." Ugh, she knew my weakness. "You need a better paying job that's legal and honest."

I jerk myself up and slouch forward, feeling my muscles relax. My back pops as I stretch my arms and release another yawn. "You said you wouldn't hold that over my head."

"Well since I know you'll stoop something as low as that, it is my duty to fix this." There's that fix-it trait coming out again. "Besides, you'll be working in my building so I can keep a closer eye on you."

"Hooray," I sarcastically cheer. Harper tends to call me out on my shit and keep me honest, so it wouldn't be a bad idea. I'll be able to keep providing for Grace and it'll be less dirty. "Just because I apply doesn't mean that I'll get the job though."

"Pen," she sits back down, looking me straight in the eye, "You filling out an application is the first step of getting the job. You don't know what they're looking for."

"I'm pretty sure they're not looking for a criminal with a record." That was my bad. I've gotten myself out of jail plenty of times. The one time I pressed my luck, my favorite cop isn't in to be easily persuaded. Woe is me. "However," I weigh my options. Without any income, I was beyond broke. "I guess it wouldn't hurt to apply."

Harper gleefully claps her hands, careful not to spill coffee on my sheets. She hops up with energy and leaves. If that was what I needed to say to get her to leave, I should've said it earlier. I quickly snatch my covers off the floor and sprint back into my sleeping position. Within five seconds, she's back in my room, carrying her laptop.

She hops next to me, making the bed swerve and unsettle, which startles me to wake up. It's too early to deal with this. She opens her laptop and it automatically opens to the job application. Fuck! I just want sleep! "Apply."

I groaned, sitting up.

"You got bills and Grace to think about. I said I would help you, not pay those." Harper reminds, nodding her head. I take the laptop and start the process. The faster I get it done, the faster she leaves me to sleep. "Just think about it," she daydreams, smiling to herself as she glances off to a distance. "We'll be lunch buddies again. When I gossip, you can actually put the names to faces. It'll be great!"