Chapter 10
Asurge of adrenaline shot through Julia, sending her pulse racing as she averted her eyes from the couple, discomfort tightening in her chest.
“Do you normally barge into other people’s houses like this? Wait, don’t answer that,” Sierra said, holding up a hand, “yes, you do. You keep butting into Harrington business at every turn.”
Julia finally flicked her gaze back to Sierra with a tilt of her head, her voice tinged with frustration and her words measured. “That’s not entirely fair, Sierra.”
“What’s not fair is you bursting in here like you own the place. You don’t.”
“I didn’t burst in here! The door was open. I came for my keys. That’s it.”
Sierra cocked a hip, narrowing her eyes. “Well, that’s going to be a problem because you can’t leave here until we get a few things straight.”
“Such as?” Julia asked.
Sierra’s voice hardened, each word a command. “Such as the fact that you never saw any of this. James and I…it’s private, okay? You never saw this. Understand?” The intensity in her eyes held Julia in her place.
“Yes,” Julia said with a nod.
She knitted her brows as Sierra’s scrutinizing eyes narrowed at her. “That’s it? That’s not good enough. I don’t trust you, Julia.”
Julia clicked her tongue and rolled her eyes. “Oh, Sierra, I’m not going to say anything, it’s not my business.”
“It’s not my business,” Sierra mimicked. “Oh, aren’t you just a saint.”
“Sierra,” James whispered, placing a hand on her shoulder.
She shook it off and stalked a few steps toward Julia. “How do I know the first chance you get you won’t sell out my secret to get on my Daddy’s good side?”
Julia heaved a sigh, letting her eyes fall onto the floor, gleaming in the morning’s bright sun. “Because I could have done that a dozen times already.”
Sierra’s eyebrows knit at the words.
“Sierra, I’ve known about you and James since the day we found Evelyn Carter. And I haven’t said a word to anyone. I’m not going to tell. It’s not my business.”
Sierra’s expression softened from anger to contemplation. The subtle change suggested an underlying depth Sierra usually hid. “You’re right. It’s not. So, just keep that pretty mouth shut, and we won’t have a problem.”
She pushed past Julia, knocking into her. Julia stumbled back a step, focusing on Sierra as she stepped into the morning sun. “Sierra…one more thing?”
“What?” Sierra snapped, twisting to face her.
“Why keep it a secret?”
“None of your business.” With that, Sierra spun on her spiked heel and stormed off.
Julia followed her retreat toward the house with a sigh. She seemed like a troubled girl, though her insistence upon secrecy and the veiled threats suggested an undercurrent in the Harrington household she hadn’t fully grasped yet. With a shake of her head, she dismissed the thought. She shouldn’t insert herself into their life.
She turned to find James’s pleading eyes on her. “Mrs. Harrington…”
Julia’s features softened, and she offered him a consoling smile. “James, you don’t need to explain.”
The man clamped his lips together, his features still pinched.
“Really, you don’t. It’s your business, not mine.”
“Have you really known for weeks?”
Julia nodded. “Yes. I heard your voice when I called Sierra about Grant’s arrest. I recognized it later when I came by for your help.”
James set his hands on his hips, his chin dropping to his chest as he blew out a long breath. “And you said nothing to Mr. Harrington?”
Julia shook her head.
“If he knew…”
“Your secret is safe with me. I won’t say anything.”
“Thank you,” James answered, genuine gratefulness shining in his eyes.
“Of course.” Julia sucked in a deep breath. “Uh, now, if I could trouble you for my keys…”
“Keys, yes. Are you sure you don’t want me to drive you?”
Julia trailed behind him through the kitchen, the tension still palpable. “No, I’m happy to drive, thanks.”
“All right.” James retrieved the keys to her Porsche, dangling them in front of her.
She snatched them with a smile. “Thanks.”
She crossed to the sporty little car and slid behind the wheel. “James…”
“Yeah?”
“Don’t worry. My lips are sealed.” She fired the engine and pulled out of the garage and down the driveway.
The grin on her face grew with each mile she drove closer to the city. She craved normalcy from her old life. No secrets, no money trails, no high stakes.
Her smile faded as she glanced down at the Porsche symbol on her steering wheel. She was driving a Porsche. Her eyes shifted to the massive diamond on her finger. She was wearing a wedding ring and an outrageously large engagement ring.
The notion of no secrets flew out the window as she realized she’d have to lie her way through another meeting, this time to her own family.
Her spirits deflated as she quickly vetted spots for parking. She navigated the familiar streets to her old apartment building. The scent of damp concrete greeted her as she pulled into the garage, a stark reminder of the life she once led. She’d never parked here before. Ironic now that she no longer lived here, she found a use for her parking space.
She climbed from the car, the city’s sounds enveloping her in a familiar cacophony. She ran a hand through her hair, feeling the pulse of the city she once knew so well, a stark contrast to the silence of the Harrington estate. She set a quick pace to the hotel. Even at this rate, she’d be a few minutes late thanks to the unexpected snafu.
The chaos of the city at this hour echoed her thoughts. Even with Ethan, she’d need to be guarded. What had her life become?
The hotel came into sight, and she navigated to it, climbed the stairs, and reached for the door. Her heart stopped, and she let go of the brass handle, retreating back a few steps.
With a wince, she tugged off her rings and dumped them into her purse. After another swipe of her hair, she straightened her blazer and tugged the door open.
She scanned the lobby, its well-worn elegance a reminder of a different time. The aging chandeliers and polished wood spoke of a bygone era, making Julia reflect on how much her life had changed.
Ethan waved from an armchair near a coffee bar. “Juju!”
A grin spread across her face as she spotted him and hurried over. He rose from the chair, pulling her into a hug.
“Hi,” she said before she pulled back. “It’s so good to see you.”
She studied him up and down, eyeing his flannel shirt, jeans, and boots. “Well, you can take the boy out of Maine, but you can’t take Maine out of the boy.”
He stomped a hiking boot against the floor. “Darn right. But it looks like you’ve lost a little of your Maine flair. You look great, Juju.”
She chuckled at him as she flicked a lock of hair over her shoulder. “Well, I did trade my hiking boots for riding boots since they seem far more suitable for New Orleans.”
“I can’t imagine you do much hiking around here.”
“Nope,” she said with a chuckle.
“Want to grab something here?”
Julia shook her head at him. “No, I’m taking you a lovely little coffee shop a few blocks away. I don’t want Alicia to think I haven’t treated you right.”
“She won’t. I’ll tell her I was too chicken to walk around in the smog.”
Julia threw her head back in laughter. “There’s no smog. Come on.”
She looped her arm through his and led him from the lobby out to the crowded sidewalk.
He glanced up and down the street as they walked. “How can you take this?”
“What?”
“The noise? The traffic? The people?”
Julia chuckled again, rubbing his arm. “There are people in Maine, too, Ethan.”
“Not this many. I don’t like a place where the tree-to-people ratio is this low.”
Julia rounded the corner and poked a finger at a sign swinging over a door. “Here’s the coffee shop. You still drinking it black?”
He nodded. “I’ll grab us a table.”
Within a few minutes, Julia slid into the window-front table and passed the coffee over to him. They toasted to their meeting before they settled in for their conversation.
“How’s the manuscript coming?” Ethan asked.
Julia’s mind flicked to her computer at Harrington House where her manuscript now resided. The thought made her heart skip a beat, as though somehow Ethan would be able to see through her immediately.
“That good, huh?” He sipped his coffee.
She offered him a chuckle, pushing aside the memories that threatened to creep into her mind. “Sorry, just thinking of a plot point I was working on last night.”
“Anything good?”
“No, just some dinner party shenanigans.”
“Ohh, the kind with the hidden clues laced into each conversation?”
Julia thought of the pointed questions from Veronica. “Something like that, yeah.”
“Well, I’m sure you’ll knock it out of the park.”
She batted in the air. “So, how’s the new Chief of Police position? Have you settled into it yet?”
Ethan bobbed his head around in a half-nod, half-shake. “Yes and no. Some people will never accept that Dad retired.”
“Your dad will always be my chief of police.” She winked at him before they both burst into laughter.
“Thanks for your support, Juju. Really. I can’t even count on my own sister-in-law to accept me as Chief.” He paused, his eyes settling on her. “Although that doesn’t matter much if you’re determined to stay in this concrete jungle.”
Julia’s gaze dropped to the table, her heart caught in a tumult of conflicting emotions. The idea of returning home stirred a whirlpool of both longing and fear, battling the allure of the life she lived now. Her fingers traced the wood grain, seeking solace in it.
Her normally complicated response to going home had become even more messy than it had when she was single.
He reached for her hand, tugging it toward him and squeezing it. “Julia…” His voice softened. “Honey…”
“Don’t,” she said with a quick flick of her gaze up to his face. She didn’t want to get into the lecture about returning home. Not now. Now with the emotions of the Harrington saga weighing on her, too.
“I get it,” he said. “But you can’t hide forever.”
“I’m not hiding. I’m living.”
Ethan slid a dubious glance out of the window and arched an eyebrow. “You call this living?”
Julia scoffed at his remark as visions of galas, ball gowns, glittering diamonds, sparkling champagne, sports cars, and the quiet solitude of the Harrington estate flitted through her mind. “For now, I do, yes.”
Ethan heaved a sigh. “Well, I tried.”
Julia offered a consoling smile. “I’ll tell Ally you really gave me a good long talking to.”
“I appreciate that,” he said, cracking a smile.
“Is there really a conference or did you two just cook this up to check up on me?”
Ethan set his coffee cup on the table as he shook his head. “There’s really a conference. I promise. Two days packed full of all things police chief. Just one morning of lecturing you to come home that Ally asked me to squeeze in. She misses you, Juju.”
Julia grabbed his hand again. “And I miss her. But…”
“You can’t avoid him forever, Julia. Maybe it’s best to just rip off the bandage.”
Julia rubbed at the back of her neck. “I’m afraid the bandage won’t come off cleanly, that’s the problem.”
“You’re afraid it won’t come off at all.”
She nodded at the statement.
“Would that really be so bad?”
“Please, Ethan, I don’t want to get into this. Let’s just enjoy the visit.”
Ethan’s eyes fell on the compass around her neck. “All right. I see you’re still wearing the compass, and as long as that’s around your neck, I guess we should be happy.”
Julia grabbed the necklace and glanced down at it. “I haven’t forgotten.”
“That’s all we can ask for.”
As they finished their coffee, reminiscing about the sleepy Maine town that had once been her whole world, nostalgia tugged at her heart. Reflection filled the walk back to the hotel, each step a reminder of the stark contrast between her tranquil past and the complicated present. The bustling streets echoed her tangled thoughts as they weaved through the crowd.
When they stood outside the high-rise, Julia slipped her arms around him in a hug before kissing him on the cheek.
“Oh,” he said before they parted ways, “I have a care package from Ally for you. I’ll run up and grab it.”
“I’ll come with you.”
“Great,” he said, grabbing her hand and tugging her toward the hotel with a smile. “It’ll give me one more chance to convince you to come home.”
“Not funny,” she said with a chuckle as they disappeared into the hotel lobby.
Once in the privacy of his hotel room, Julia relaxed a little, feeling as though she could disappear from the world for just a little bit.
Ethan rummaged through his suitcase before he found the carefully packed jar of wild Maine blueberry jelly. Ethan showcased the jar in his hands. Its deep purple hue immediately reminded her of late summer days in Maine. A smile bloomed on her face, a mix of gratitude and nostalgia.
“Oh, yay, a taste of home.” She clapped her hands before she accepted the jar and stowed it in her purse.
They spent another half an hour sharing each other’s company before she finally forced herself to stand. With an afternoon session looming for him, she left him behind to enjoy the conference.
The cacophony of the city surrounded her as she strode from the hotel, heartsick to leave it behind. Her hand instinctively went to the compass pendant. She rubbed it as she walked along, lost in thought.
She had to return to the turmoil of the Harringtons. Thoughts of board issues, DG Industries, Sierra, and the puzzling shifts in her husband”s demeanor flooded her mind.
In any instance, she’d made an agreement, and she planned to stick to it. She hadn’t found much in her private investigation of DG Industries. Grant had insisted she leave it to his security team, stating he worried over her safety, but tracking them had proved difficult.
With no headway, the investigation stalled, and they turned their concentration toward winning the board over as the vote of no confidence still loomed.
Lost in thought, Julia’s mind waded through the turbulent sea of conversation she’d had with Ethan. Her mind swam as she processed the words, then the problems facing her at home. With her mind preoccupied, she stepped off the curb, oblivious to the danger lurking. The screech of tires jolted her back to reality, her heart leaping into her throat. She froze, eyes wide in terror as the dark sports car skidded toward her, the world narrowing to the imminent collision.