“It doesn’t matter if I say it to you now or later, it’s going to be said, and the sooner you realize that, the faster we can move forward with it.”
“What exactly are we moving forward with?”
“Us.”
“There is no us.”
“There will always be an us, and you know it.”
“Listen.” She stepped back, making her way to the exit. “If you want me to forgive you, how about you start with reaching out to my family and we go from there, alright?”
“Will it get you back in my bed?”
“No. But maybe we can be friends.”
“We’ve never just been friends, Autumn.”
Before I could stop her, she turned and stepped off my jet.
Bottom line, when push came to shove, she chose to confront our past in Texas rather than dealing with me and my confessions.
Chapter SIXTEEN
—Julian—
I followed Autumn into the group home I hadn’t seen since my eighteenth birthday. The day I became a legal adult I was out of there and never looked back.
She must have sensed my hesitation. “You okay?”
Eyeing the production crew in front of my face, I warned, “You’ll be lucky if I don’t break that camera by the end of the day.”
“Julian,” she coaxed. “We need footage for your social media.”
“Excuse me?”
“You heard me.”
“I never agreed to that.”
“I know. I did it for you.”
“It’s going to cost you, kid.”
“I imagined it would.” She smiled at the camera. “Can we talk about it later?”
“You mean after I’m done taking you over my knee?”
She glared at me. “I’m not a child, Mr. Locke.”
“No, but you’re in definite need of some discipline.”
“Julian,” the director of the facility greeted, bringing our attention over to her. “It’s so good to finally see you after all these years.”
I nodded, extending my hand, but she smiled, pulling me into her embrace instead.
“I can’t tell you how proud we are of you. These kids idolize you. You have no idea how big of a role model you’ve been to them.”
I was never any good at receiving compliments, so I nodded again, pulling away with Autumn hugging her next.
“Good to see you, Miss Jones.”
“Please call me Anne.” She stepped back, holding Autumn’s hands. “Look at you! Oh my God! The last time I saw you, you were what? Ten? Eleven?”
“Twelve.”
“Right! Well, you look amazing.” She glanced back and forth between us. “I read The New York Times article. I can’t say I was too shocked over the news of you two falling in love with each other. You’ve always had such a special friendship, and those always turn into the best relationships. I bet your parents are ecstatic. Do I hear wedding bells in your future?”
Autumn nervously giggled. “I wouldn’t go that far.”
“I would.”
Both their stares snapped toward my direction.
“Julian…” Autumn zeroed in on me, not appreciating my answer.
“What, baby?” I reached around her waist, caging her in with my arms as I held her against my chest to run my nose along the nape of her neck. I inhaled her comforting scent, leaving a trail of longing in my wake. She tensed in my arms, but I didn’t give a shit. If she was insistent on taking a trip down memory lane, then I was using it to my advantage as much as I could.
Whispering into her ear, “Smile for the camera, kid.”
“Oh, my goodness!” Anne exclaimed. “You two are absolutely perfect! The gorgeous babies you will have!”
“Who knows, Anne.” I winked at her while kissing Autumn’s neck. “There may already be one in there.”
She squealed, and Autumn glanced at the camera. “You can’t use that.”
“Baby, now’s not the time to be shy.” For only her to hear, I murmured in her ear, “You want the world to know me, and I’m just showing the best part of me.”
Without taking in what I’d addressed, she elbowed my ribs, making me groan and let her go.
“Let’s go see the kids.” She grabbed Anne’s arm, rushing to get away, but before she could take a step, I grabbed her hand.
Determined to remind her who was still in control.
—Autumn—
For the next few hours I watched in fascination how Julian was interacting with the kids. I had no clue he liked children—we’d never been around any before. This whole time I thought I was going to have to threaten him to play with the kids, but he genuinely seemed happy and not showing off for the cameras who were filming his every move.
Anne wasn’t exaggerating—the kids were ecstatic over having him there with them. They adored him, and the feeling was very much mutual. Half the time I couldn’t believe what was in front of my eyes. Julian was laughing, joking, bonding with each of them. From playing basketball to soccer, to throwing around a football. At one point, he was carrying around two toddlers in his arms, showering them with affection.