“Could we just go somewhere else?” I ask, watching the road as Kristoff drives toward his favorite French restaurant, which also happens to be Julian’s favorite destination for dinner. The maitre d’ has seen me with Julian, and I’m afraid he might ask me about him.
“Why?” He looks over at me. “We like it there.”
“I know. I just want to try something new. Maybe a fast-food hamburger place?”
Kristoff displays a charming grin, clearly delighted. “I’m actually craving pasta, but a hamburger is fine. I had one from Trey’s the other day. Excellent suggestion. Let’s go there.” He drives in the other way of Le Papillon, to the left.
Why did I say hamburger? Probably the first word tha
Kristoff drives me to Lora’s apartment, but she isn’t home. The silence is deafening as I take the takeaway hamburger into the kitchen and set it on the counter.I check my phone, and sure enough, my best friend has texted me. She has a date tonight with Ned, the guy she met last week. Still, nothing came from Julian. Is he still working? What is he doing now? Is he mad at me? I wanted to talk to him.After giving it some thought, I decided to see him at his house.I grab my purse and leave the apartment once again. I hail a cab and instruct the driver to take me to Julian’s address. His place is on 59th Street, just a couple of miles away.When I got to the condo, the lobby knew who I was, so they let me into the elevators that go to the penthouse.
I’ve only seen such a vast estate in movies. We go down a long hallway with white, glossy tiled flooring and a lot of doors, much like at a fancy hotel. Before making a left turn into another hall, Julian’s bedroom is at the front. My heart is throbbing at an erratic pace when he opens the door.“Wow. I didn’t expect this,” I mumble as I find a king-sized mattress with blue and white linens, concert posters and a classical guitar on the wall, black carpeting, a desk, a bookshelf, and a collection of plaque discs and a phonograph in a corner.“I like collecting stuff.”“I can imagine what your adolescence was like. My teenage years were tough for me. It’s a miracle I survived.”His expression darkens. “What
“Obviously, I survived. Everything happened so quickly that a truck hit us from the side. The drunk driver had also died. And my parents were not answering my cries. I saw them die in front of me, drenched in blood. Can you imagine my mom was pregnant at that time? I passed out and awoke in a hospital room with a social worker waiting for me.” “You were fostered,” Julian presumes. “I did. Nerissa, the woman, took me in. She was Mom’s friend from the neighborhood. She found out what had happened and offered to help me. Leon, her son, was a different story.” I swallow dryly, remembering how terrified I used to be whenever he came home. “He’s my age, wasn’t always home, but whenever he was, it’s just chaotic. He took different girls at home, doing drugs and other things. He used to hurt Nerissa when he was high. I always went into my room and hid.”
I can feel the controlled tension steaming from Julian’s body as he pulls my panties down and yanks them like some sort of distraction. Then he effortlessly rolls my body to my stomach.He whispers as well as bites my shoulder, “I’ll show you how much you mean to me. I’ve always wanted to appear before you, and you’ve driven me crazy for years because I couldn’t do it right away.” He then sucks my earlobe, coaxing me as his hand slides down the line of my buttocks, then touches the tip of his finger to my inner labia. “If only I’d known what you went through,” he laments, “I wouldn’t have wasted time chasing you.”“You mean saving me from my misery,” I clarify.“Does it sound like that?” He thrusts two fingers
The Sebastians are eating breakfast on the veranda, where Julian takes me first thing in the morning. There’s Rachel and another man who resembles Julian. The resemblance is uncanny because I can’t tell who is older, but there is one distinction. Julian has darker hair.So, this is probably Carter.“My darlings,” Rachel says as she notices our arrival. She invited us to join them, which Julian and I had already planned.“Good morning,” I say with a small smile as I glance at Julian’s brother, who appears to be preoccupied with his coffee and iPad.Rachel gives me a sweet smile. “Good morning, Anya. That dress suits you perfectly. Please take a seat.” Now I understand where Julian got his polite demeanor. “
Aleph is a jet capsule waiting for us on the beach, and two more are lining up nearby. I can’t help but drool over Julian in his black sports rash guard and Bulgari ray bans. God, I want to lick him from head to toe. To compensate for his rugged, handsome look, I wore a black two-piece swimsuit inside my beach wrap.“Are we sailing?” I ask Julian as he gets up onto the deck.“Yes, come.” I grab his hand as he helps me board the boat. “Wow.”It looks like a yacht I’ve seen on TV, but in the shape of a ‘capsule.’ It can accommodate four to five passengers. It has leather seats and a dining area.“I’m assuming you can drive her?” I ask.“Ye
Julian takes me to the beach, and I’m having one of the best times of my life. And God, I could swim forever! Be with Julian in this beach house, far from everything else. Something about the seawater and sunlight makes me feel alive. When I wish to rest, I sit on a mat on the white sand. Julian then drops next to me. “This is nice,” I say. I sense his heated breath as his gaze falls over my body. “We’ve only just begun. It feels good to be with you.” I rock myself while hugging my legs and admiring the skyline that meets the ocean. “I never expected this. I’m scared because it’s too perfect. Too much happiness does not always last. Something bad could happen one day. It’s just the way life goes, but I don’t mean us. Nothing is ever truly perfect.”
Julian waits as I place my fingers on the first chord on the piano.“The song is called ‘Is This Love?’” I say.Julian’s lips form a half-smile. “Let’s hear it.”I take a deep breath and begin singing the first line, beginning on a soft, calm tune that is communicating... expressing my emotions... exactly as he taught me.Do you hear the harmony?That comes from my soul.It speaks about eternityYou’re my only home.I enter an interlude and sing a short line while humming. I continue with the sam