Before he and Hallie got together, Ben lived in the big loft apartment above his bar full-time. Last summer, he moved into Hallie’s house a few streets away from me, but since he and Jeremy own the building, Ben ended up leaving the loft as is. He and Hallie occasionally crash here when they’re at the bar late.
Ben opens the door, shirtless, with a dishtowel slung over his shoulder. I bet he’s making breakfast. It’s a Parker family tradition for the men to make breakfast. My dad made breakfast for all of us every morning while I was growing up and still makes breakfast for my mom. I love that Ben carries on the tradition with Hallie. I also have the sudden urge to turn and run back down the stairs, so I don’t intrude on a morning routine clearly meant for two.
I hesitate a second too long.
“Jules!” Ben’s eyes light up when he sees me, and he pulls me into a hug. A real one, where he wraps both of his arms around me and holds on. Ben is so much like my dad that it makes me smile against his shoulder. When family is around, the Parker men are gooey.
“Did I hear Jules?”
Hallie’s voice has me pulling away from Ben and turning towards the kitchen where she’s perched on a barstool at the counter wearing an old University of Pittsburgh t-shirt that must be Ben’s, her hair piled on top of her head.
“Yep. Hey, Hal.”
I slide onto the barstool next to her while Ben busies himself at the counter.
“What are you doing here? Did you eat? Ben’s making breakfast, so you’re just in time.”
I realize suddenly I have no idea what to tell her.Oh, I’m here because I kissed Asher Hansley last night and have no idea what to do about itisn’t an option. In my rush to get out of my house and away from my thoughts, I didn’t plan what to say. I always plan. My mind races to conjure a believable lie.
“Oh, well, I was just in the neighborhood, so I thought I would stop by and say hi.”
Weak Jules.
She looks at me strangely. “Why were you on the South Side?”
Shit. I’m at the loft on the South Side where the bar is and not Hallie’s house which is in my neighborhood where it would be logical for me to be at nine o’clock on a Sunday morning.
“There’s a new coffee place I wanted to try.” Not my best lie but believable. I really need to get better at thinking on my feet.
Hallie looks skeptical but seems to forget about it when Ben puts a coffee mug in front of her. She glances down at it before looking back up at him with a big smile.
“Exactly what I wanted.”
Ben gives her a wink and then puts a latte in front me before turning back to the stove. Hallie’s eyes are still glued to his back, the love on her face so strong and undeniable that I’m uncomfortable—like I’m intruding on a moment meant to be theirs alone. There are a lot of those moments lately.
Ten minutes later, we’re all sitting with breakfast plates in front of us. I mostly push food around my plate, my mind preoccupied with thoughts of last night and my left hand tapping out a pattern on my thigh. I smile at the right times and join the conversation when it would be weird not to, but in my mind, I’m a million miles away. I’m thinking about Hallie and Ben. How they practically exist as a single person—always turned towards each other, always touching each other in some way like they would die without that tiny, constant connection. How in sync they are. How well they know each other, all the way down.
No one knows me like that. Not my friends or my parents or my brother. I’ve never let anyone see below my Perfect Jules shield, and the shield is impenetrable enough that it’s never occurred to anyone to look.
Not until Asher.
Improbably, he seems to like what he sees. It’s unbelievable, considering I don’t even like what I see most days. But I think about our almost kiss at the gala five months ago. His wink at the football game. His quiet offer to stand with me in the friends and family room so I wouldn’t be alone. The way he laid his big hand over both of mine in the car. The feel of his hands on my face. The way he pressed me against the door.
I feel my shield drop just the tiniest amount.
As soon as I get in the car after leaving Ben and Hallie to their Sunday, I pull out my phone and save Asher’s number.
Asher
Morning Blondie. Sleep well?
Me
I did. Thanks for asking.
Chapter Nine
Julie
