Chapter 16
Julia
Iwoke slowly, awareness creeping across my consciousness as I rolled onto my back on an impossibly comfortable mattress. Marcus’s lingering scent remained in the air around me, and I smiled.
Marcus.
Memories of last night came rushing back. The way he kissed me. The firm pressure of his hands on my skin, and the way my body responded to his every touch. Moaning quietly, I turned onto my side, sensing I was alone in bed and wishing I wasn’t.
Except I wasn’t alone.
When I opened my eyes, Noah was standing beside the bed in his pajamas, staring at me with curious eyes.
“Ohmigod!” I yelped, clutching the sheet up to my neck.
How long had he been standing there?
“Good morning, Miss Julia,” he said, completely unfazed in the way only a child could be.
“Hi. Good morning, Noah.” My gaze flitted around the room, hoping Marcus would suddenly appear, but I didn’t hear him in the adjoining bathroom. “Where is your Uncle Marcus?”
“He went to get breakfast. He told me to be quiet because you were still asleep.”
Clearly, he forgot to tell Noah the most important part—do not come into this room. You have to be very specific when you give instructions to children.
“Well, you did a very good job because I had no idea you were standing beside the bed,” I said.
“Did you and Uncle Marcus have a sleepover?” Noah asked, his head tilting to the side.
Sleepover. Cute.
“Um... yes, we did.”
“Did you play the tickle game?”
“The what?”
“The tickle game. Sometimes Uncle Marcus plays it with me when he puts me to bed, and I can’t stop screaming and laughing, and I mess up the sheets.”
“Oh, um... yeah, we did play the tickle game. There was some screaming, and the sheets definitely got messed up.”
“Uncle Marcus is really good at the tickle game,” Noah said in a matter-of-fact voice.
“He sure is.”
I heard the front door open and close, followed by footsteps in the hallway. Marcus eased open the door, perhaps thinking I was still asleep. He took in the scene with me clutching the sheet like a lifeline and Noah standing beside the bed.
His eyes widened. “Hey, buddy. Let’s give Miss Julia some privacy.”
“But we were talking about the tickle game.”
Marcus frowned in confusion.
“I told him we played last night during our sleepover,” I said.
“Oh. Right. Yeah, we played twice last night, didn’t we?” His face shifted into amusement. “Okay, big man. Let’s go into the kitchen and give Miss Julia some privacy.”
He scooped up Noah and carried him out, closing the door behind them. I covered my face and laughed. Then I rolled out of bed and went into the bathroom. After washing my face and rinsing out my mouth, I finger-combed my hair into some semblance of order and then I started hunting for my clothes.
One by one, I found them strewn across the room and slipped them on. As I was closing the snap on my jeans, Marcus knocked and then came in, closing the door behind him. He leaned against it, an apologetic but amused expression on his face.
“I’m sorry. I ran next door to buy breakfast, and he was already awake when I was on my way out. He saw your purse in the living room and asked about you, so I explained you were here but sleeping—and not to bother you or make any noise. Clearly, he did the opposite.”
“It’s fine.”
A lazy smile appeared on his lips. “Good morning.”
I sauntered over to where he stood and allowed him to fold me into his arms. “Good morning.”
He kissed the tip of my nose and then my lips. “I bought sausage, egg, and cheese sandwiches on bagels. They’re my favorite. Coffee too, if you’re interested.”
“Sounds divine.”
He kissed me again and slapped my bottom. “I like these jeans,” he murmured.
I whimpered and pressed my face into his neck, taking a deep inhale to drag the intoxicating scent of him into my lungs. “Okay, enough. I need food,” I said.
He chuckled. “Right this way.”
Noah was already at the table, his legs swinging as he ate a hash brown. “Miss Julia, Uncle Marcus got a lot of food so you can eat too.”
“That was so nice of him.” I took the chair across from him, and Marcus handed me a sandwich and a large coffee. He grabbed sugar from the cabinet and cream from the fridge and then sat down at the table with us.
We ate breakfast together, like a domestic unit, and the moment stirred emotion inside me. I used to believe I never wanted this life, but sitting and talking with Marcus and Noah as we ate breakfast changed my perspective. I wouldn’t mind doing this every Sunday morning.
The funniest part was, Marcus and I didn’t have to say much.
Noah dominated the conversation with factoids and lots of questions.
Watching them together was also very sweet.
They had an easy affection between them, and Marcus was patient and loving with Noah, alternating between answering his questions and asking questions of his own.
He wiped crumbs from the boy’s mouth and showed such gentleness that a dangerous yearning tightened my chest.
Maybe I wanted this life after all. Or maybe it wasn’t that I necessarily wanted a family as much as I wanted this family. I had fallen for both Marcus and Noah and wanted to be a part of their lives in a substantial way.
I finished my food and helped Marcus clear the table. I was reluctant to leave, but I needed to take a shower and had to go home at some point.
Noah plopped down on the sofa to watch cartoons, and Marcus walked me to the door.
“Last night was amazing,” he said in a low voice, cupping my jaw and looking deeply into my eyes. “I want to see you again. I want to keep seeing you.”
“You’re really different, you know that?”
“How?”
“You wouldn’t believe how much men play games and don’t say exactly what they want. But you’re direct, and I appreciate it.”
“I don’t want there to be any confusion about what I’m looking for. So what do you think? You and me...?”
“You’ve been direct with me, so I’ll be direct with you.
Yes, I’m definitely interested, and I want to see where this can go.
” I placed a hand on his chest. “You’re nothing like I thought, Marcus.
When I first met you, I assumed you were a player.
The Romeo license plate tipped me off. But now that I’ve gotten to know you better, there’s a little bit of Romeo—yes—but there’s quite a bit of Batman and Marcus too. A nice blend of all three.”
“Human beings are complex.”
“Yes, we are,” I agreed.
His thumb stroked my cheek. “You’re okay with group dates for a while?”
“I am. Just call me.”
I lifted onto my toes and kissed him briefly. Then I peered around him to catch sight of Noah. “Bye-bye, Noah.”
He jumped off the sofa and ran over, his bare feet slapping on the hardwood floor. I bent down and gave him a hug and kissed the top of his head.
“Bye,” he said, gazing up at me and waving.
I left the two of them in the doorway. The elevator ride down felt endless, and my insides felt as if they were being torn apart.
I used to say I didn’t want to be a mother, but now I could see myself being a surrogate mother, at least. Little Noah had stolen my heart, the same way his godfather did.
I drove home with the radio on, singing at the top of my lungs so I wouldn’t be consumed by my thoughts. When I entered my apartment, the silence hit me. Leanne and the girls had already left. There were no toys scattered on the floor, and I couldn’t hear the distant sound of children’s laughter.
The silence had never been this loud.
I found a note from her on the table behind the sofa.
Thanks for everything. I guess the date went well? Call me. I want all the details!
I replaced the piece of paper on the table and stood in my pristine living room with everything in its place. I was completely alone. I almost turned around and ran back to Noah and Marcus, where they were both probably sitting on the sofa watching cartoons.
The two of them had changed my outlook on life and reshaped my expectations for the future. I no longer pictured myself as a woman alone in her apartment. I wanted the chaos of family—the noise, the mess, and the kind of love that ran deeply.
I hadn’t gone searching for it, and now that I’d acknowledged my new vision for the future, I hoped Marcus didn’t disappoint me.
Because in my thirty-three years of life, he was the only man who had ever made me want that life. He would either become the best decision I ever made or the worst.
Only time would tell which.