“Mhm,” I hummed as I took another bite of pizza. “Horrible timing?”
“Or…” Eliza tilted her head to the side as she thought. “It could be an opportunity for you to really think about what you want—and how you can get both. If that’s what you want.”
I thought about her words. Could I really have both? Because how was I supposed to pick between my heart and my career? And why was it so challenging as a woman to have both?
I nodded slowly. I thought about the start of the summer, how when I first started working with Lily I had the idea of pitching to Cheryl how we could work with small businesses. “I think it starts with me going to Chicago for a couple of days.”
44
WESLEY
I rubbedmy eyes as the sun peeked through the curtains in my bedroom. With a groan, I rolled over to the other side of the bed, feeling for Juliette’s body. Instead, I was met with cold sheets. I hadn’t even felt her get out of bed this morning.
The last few nights had been long at Lake Ridge, including last night. While I had hoped to see Juliette, I had to keep pushing back the time I could leave, ultimately texting her to go to sleep and not wait up. When I got home, I only had enough energy for a quick shower before I passed out in bed. I slept like a fucking rock. It wasn’t lost on me that I had been getting good sleep recently, and I knew exactly why. I slept significantly better with Juliette in my bed.
I reached over to grab my phone, seeing it was just after seven. I didn’t have to be at Lake Ridge until this afternoon, but I hoped today I would at least be able to get home at a decent time. I wasn’t sure what Juliette’s plans were, but I wanted to either take her out on another date or cook us dinner at home. Whichever she preferred.
I got out of bed and pulled on a pair of gray sweatpants, making my way out to the kitchen. I desperately needed coffee.As I poured myself a cup, I spotted Juliette out on the back deck, a phone pressed against her ear as she paced back and forth. She worried her bottom lip between her teeth, her free hand coming up to rub her forehead.
After she finished her call, I heard her heavy exhale even before she pulled open the sliding glass door.
“Everything okay?” I asked.
Lost in her own thoughts, it took Juliette a moment to register I was in the kitchen. “Oh, hey, handsome. Good morning.” She crossed the distance between us, leaning up to press a soft kiss to my jaw.
My hands instinctively found her hips, my grip tightening ever so slightly. “Good morning,” I said slowly, drawing out the words as I watched her continue to chew on her bottom lip. “Juliette, hey, what’s going on?”
She swallowed, looking up at me hesitantly. An uneasiness came over my body, and I froze. She didn’t have to say the words—they were written all over her face.
“You’re leaving?” I asked her in disbelief, letting go of her hips and creating space between us.
“Kind of.” Her face paled, and she quickly shook her head. “Only for a couple of days.”
It felt like my heart was being ripped out of my chest. “You’re going back to Chicago?”
“My boss, Cheryl, called last night when I was at Lily’s. She has something to tell me but wanted to do it in person. It sounds like a job offer of some sort. I… I don’t know if I want it, but I would like to at least hear her out. There’s also an idea I had that I wanted to talk with her about. I’ve been feeling stuck in my career, and part of why I came to Golden Falls was to find my place again. If I don’t go and talk with her, I’ll always wonder.”
I ran my hand over my face. Fuck, I wasn’t ready for this. You’d think I would be—considering we had all summer toprepare. “And if it’s your dream job? What then? Are you going to move back to the city?” I couldn’t stop the questions from firing off. It was hard enough to wrap my head around Juliette leaving for a couple of days. But Juliette leaving forever? I knew that was a possibility, but… I had also let myself hope that she’d stay here.
While we hadn’t had the chance to talk since dinner at my parents’ house, I had done a lot of thinking. I wanted Juliette to stay, and I wanted to ask if she’d consider moving to Golden Falls.
But I couldn’t do that now.
I couldn’t hold Juliette back. I’d seen firsthand how talented she was. How she took someone’s vision and ideas and turned them into reality. Lily’s face brightened any time someone complimented the café, and she wasted no time telling them it was Juliette who did the work. Louise bragged about her renovated cabin to anyone who stepped foot in Lake Ridge. Eliza loved how the yoga studio brought an increased connection to her parents, especially her mom.
I would never ask Juliette to give up an opportunity that could accelerate her career. Her talent was bigger than Golden Falls. The last thing I wanted was for her to live a life of regret if she stayed. She had to go take this meeting. She had to make this decision.
“I don’t know any of that yet.” Juliette turned, pacing up and down the kitchen. “I’d like to at least talk about it with you once I know more. I’ve been looking for motivation in my career, and this could be it. Would things still work between us if I lived in Chicago?” Juliette’s voice was quiet. “Would you consider moving to the city?”
“I don’t know, Juliette,” I answered honestly. I couldn’t see long distance working with our schedules, and I also couldn’t see myself leaving. My life was here…but I also knew her life andcareer were in the city. I didn’t discredit that at all—I simply had no fucking clue how this could work. “You can have your career here, in Golden Falls. Things have been going so well over the summer?—”
“They have been, but that was never part of the plan, Wes. It’s worked for the summer, but how sustainable would that be? Ultimately I’d run out of clients, right? I don’t know if I can pick up, move, and start over?—”
“You wouldn’t be starting over,” I said, exasperated. “You’ve lived here for the past three months. You’re part of this town.” How did she not see that?
“I just… I don’t know what to do.”
“Then let’s figure this out together.”
