Chapter 19
This was happening.This was really, really happening. And it wasn’t like I didn’t ask for it in the recent past because I did. I had told Julia I thought it was important to start building rapport with her daughters. I expected it to come soon. Would I be lying to say I envisioned myself going to the girls’ school to pick them up for soccer practice?
No.
But it meant a lot to Julia to see I was a person of my word and was there to help because the fact was, I wanted to. Julia needed to embrace the idea of me being in her life as someone she could depend on. Clearly, Peter wasn’t available to help, so she called me. That was what my gut told me. I didn’t ask Julia many questions when she called because the poor woman sounded exasperated and beaten.
This was a big step in our relationship, and I wanted to make a good impression on Julia”s daughters. I knew that gaining their trust wouldn”t be easy, but I was determined to prove myself. I arrived at the school, white-knuckling the steering wheel. This was uncharted territory for me. Being involved in a woman”s children”s lives was completely new, and I couldn”t help but wonder if I was ready for it.
As I parked my car, I took a deep breath to steady my racing heart. I got out and walked only a few steps toward the entrance when Sara and Zoe busted through the doors. They were already dressed for soccer practice: Zoe in green and Sara in white.
“What are you doing?” Zoe asked, with a soccer ball cradled under her arm.
“Oh, I’m here to pick you up.” I pointed to my chest and then over to my car.
“You could have just waited in the car.” Zoe rolled her eyes, already done with me.
“Thanks for getting us, Brett,” said Sara in a sugary tone. “I’m sure Mom was freaking out.”
I guided the girls to my car as we clambered in, sitting in the backseat. Suddenly, a coupe seemed like a dumb choice to drive the girls around.
“I feel like your chauffeur,” I smirked into the rearview mirror.
“Do you know if our mom will make it to soccer?” Zoe asked, completely ignoring my cheesy comment. And then came the eye roll.
“She’s going to try her best. A meeting ran late, and then her car wasn’t starting.” I threw my car into reverse, and we were off. “It looks like you’re only going to be five minutes late. I bet practice won’t even start by then.”
“Great. We’re going to be late,” said Zoe, followed by another eye roll.
“Hey. They will get stuck if you keep doing that with your eyes.” I peered into the mirror.
Sara chuckled, covering her mouth while gazing out the window, and Zoe stared back with deadly daggers.
“Stop laughing,” said Zoe through gritted teeth to Sara.
“Sorry,” Sara whispered.
As we pulled up to the soccer field, I spotted the other kids huddled together, with their coach giving instructions. The girls hurriedly grabbed their bags from the cramped backseat, ready to join their teammates. Sara seemed more excited than Zoe, her eyes gleaming with anticipation. On the other hand, Zoe had her arms crossed tightly across her chest, a scowl etched onto her face.
”Alright, girls,” I said as they clawed out of the car. ”Have a great practice, and remember to have fun!” I even shot them two thumbs up. Who the heck was I becoming?
“Who are you?” Zoe twisted to face me while walking away.
“You know, I was asking myself the exact question.” I pointed to Zoe, but she continued to the field, ignoring me.
“Thanks for the ride, Brett.” Sara skipped by me. “Usually, all the parents stand over there and watch.” She motioned to a group predominantly of mothers, chatting away over fifth cups of coffee for the day if I had to guess.
As the girls joined their teammates on the field, I found myself standing alone near the group of parents. Clearly, I stood out like a sore thumb amongst the mothers, who exchanged knowing glances and whispered to one other. It didn”t help that I was the only man in the vicinity or that some curious eyes would dart in my direction occasionally. I tried my best to act casual as I leaned against a nearby fence, pretending to be engrossed in checking messages on my phone. However, it was impossible to escape the knowing looks of some of the mothers.
“You look so familiar,” said one of the moms, sporting a matching navy workout suit.
My eyes lifted from the blank phone screen, and I popped my brow. “Do I?”
“Yeah,” said the mom, glancing at her other friend, who wore almost the same outfit but in maroon. “Do you work at Stelvio’s?”
“Yes, I do.” I rocked on my heels. “It’s my family’s business.”
“Oh, okay. So, you must always have something great to eat every night,” said the navy mom, scanning me from head to toe before nudging her friend. “Nancy and I go to the ready-to-eat counter almost every day.”
“I swear, without those meals, our families wouldn’t eat dinner,” said Nancy, licking her lips.
A quick laugh escaped me. “I won’t lie, they’re pretty awesome.” I swallowed. “I’m sure I would have recognized you. But I don’t work that counter often, so my apologies.”
The mom dropped her eyes, fighting a blush and a stray hair behind her ear.
“Oh, I’m Rachel, by the way,” said the first mom, extending her slender hand toward me.
Accepting it, I nodded. “A pleasure. I’m Brett.”
The sound of cheering drew my attention back to the soccer field. Sara laughed and high-fived her teammates, her face flushed and chest heaving. On the other hand, Zoe stood at a distance, her eyes fixed on the ground as she kicked at the grass with frustration. I frowned, wondering what Zoe’s deal was, anyway. What was this constant brooding mood she carried? I felt it didn’t have to do with me being a new fixture in her mother’s life, either.
“Who are you here for?” asked Rachel.
I tore my gaze away from Zoe and turned back to Rachel. ”Oh, I”m here for Sara and Zoe,” I replied, my voice laced with a hint of concern. ”Their mom, Julia, asked me to give them a ride today. She was having car issues, and I was available.” I shrugged. “Here I am.”
Rachel”s eyes flickered with recognition. ”Julia?” she repeated, her brows furrowing. “Are you the twins’ uncle?”
I chuckled at the question. ”No, I”m not their uncle. I”m actually...with their mom…” my voice trailed off as Rachel”s eyes widened in surprise.
”As in... romantically involved?” she asked, her tone filled with curiosity and a hint of judgment.
I nodded, unable to hide the small smile that crept onto my lips. ”Yes, exactly. Julia and I are in a relationship.”
Rachel exchanged a knowing glance with Nancy before returning her attention to me. “Well, what a find. Julia will never have to worry about groceries again.”
All three of us laughed, but not one sound was genuine. It was as forced as this small talk. Ugh, these women were terrible. It amazed me Julia could stand amongst them, but there was no question that she wasn’t friends with one of these moms. If I knew Julia correctly, this crowd was far from anything she represented.
“Brett!” Julia shouted.
My head shot to the sound of her unmistakeable voice, and my eyes focused on a frazzled Julia, nearly falling out of an Uber, running to me. Completely ignoring my two new show friends, I jogged to Julia. Her chest heaved, and her face was flushed. Under her eyes looked a bit puffy. Was she crying?
“Hey, slow down.” I met Julia halfway, planting my hands on either shoulder. “Take a deep breath, baby. Do you need water?”
“Oh my God. I think I need everything.” Julia’s shoulders deflated, and I hugged her quickly and kissed her head.
“You can relax now. You’re here.”
“Thank you again for your help this afternoon. I can’t imagine what would have happened if you weren’t around. Peter, of course, went missing.” Julia sucked in a deep breath, putting her weight on me.
Well, that answered my question about Peter’s whereabouts. I knew I wasn’t supposed to like Julia’s ex-husband because, why would I? But I didn’t like Peter because he gave me so many reasons not to. “It’s okay, babe. Let’s go watch the girls.” As we walked toward the soccer practice, I motioned to the field, watching the kids dart back and forth. I didn’t pay much attention to all the gossipy mothers.
“Were the girls nice to you? How about Zoe?” Julia pressed a hand to my chest.
“They were great, don’t even worry.”
“Zoe can be hard to converse with, but she’s getting much better.”
“Oh, she’s always been this way?” I peered into Julia’s tired eyes.
“No. Ever since the divorce, she changed. But I see the old Zoe slowly returning,” Julia admitted.
After the girls finished up their practice, we got into my car to head home. It was right around dinner time, and my stomach growled the entire ride home.
“Is anyone hungry?” I glanced at Julia and then at the girls in the backseat.
“I’m actually starving.” Julia raised her hand.
“Me too!” Sara added.
All eyes fell onto Zoe, and when I saw the signature eye roll, I couldn’t help but smile. “I could go for some pizza,” she mumbled.
“Just some?” I asked, raising an eyebrow.
“Fine. A lot of pizza,” said Zoe.
“It’s done.” I slapped the steering wheel. “A shit ton of pizza for dinner it is!”
“Shh! Language, Brett,” Julia warned.
I winked at Julia but then looked in the rearview mirror, purposely finding Zoe’s eyes. When she looked at me, I made an exaggerated eye roll, and there was no mistaking the grin Zoe tried to hide.
We pulled into the parking lot of the local pizzeria, and the tantalizing aroma of freshly baked dough and melted cheese filled the air. The girls wasted no time forcing their way out of my backseat. This two-door sports car suddenly didn’t seem that cool or convenient, but that was something else to tackle later. I took Julia’s hand, trailing behind the girls, all hypnotized by the smell of fresh bread and baked cheese.
“This is my treat tonight,” Julia insisted, fishing out her wallet from her bag.
“Are you crazy? Put that away before I toss it down a sewer drain.” I wasn’t kidding, either.
“Come on, I owe you.” Julia thrust her wallet to me.
“You don’t owe me anything. I don’t operate with strings when it comes to you, Julia.” I was almost insulted this needed explaining, but it suddenly reminded me how maybe Julia was never treated correctly. Was she never taken care of while caring for everyone surrounding her? She was an object of beauty; all I yearned to do was treasure her forever.
“Are you sure?” Julia frowned.
“Look, if you really want to make it up to me, maybe a great blowjob later.”
Julia threw her head back, laughing. “You really do like those, don’t you?”
I pulled her close, my lips brushing against her ear. “You’re the best I’ve ever had. So, fuck yeah, I like them from you.”
Julia shivered against me, and I wrapped an arm around her shoulder and grabbed the door for her to enter the pizzeria. The twins were already ordering at the counter, and Julia joined them seconds later. Something tugged in my chest as I watched all three girls at the counter in my heart. This was a routine I could get used to, and despite my age and whatever differences Julia and I may have, tonight felt great.
I joined Sara and Zoe, each choosing plain cheese slices.
“Girls, how about we go ape and get one of each slice?” And I wasn’t lying either. From the pepperoni to the veggie slices, this place produced high-quality shit.
“Brett, they’re fine with plain slices,” Julia said, pushing the steaming slices to her girls.
“Did you ask them?” I popped my brow in Zoe and Sara’s direction and immediately knew they were with me. They wanted it all.
“I mean, I wouldn’t mind trying that broccoli slice.” Sara pointed to the mouthwatering triangle with cheddar sprinkled over the florets.
“What about you, Zoe?” I asked, tipping my forehead.
Zoe bit her inner cheek, fighting what she wanted because she would actually agree with me if she gave in. She hesitated, glancing between her mom and me. “Nah, I’m fine.”
I didn’t buy it. “Okay, I will go with that hot honey pepperoni slice.”
“Hey, I liked that one,” said Zoe, and then she stopped. Caught.
“We’ll have two hot honey slices,” I said to the teenager behind the counter, holding up two fingers.
Zoe glared at me. Clearly annoyed I called her out on the bluff, but underneath the facade, there was a hint of amusement in her eyes.
We sat down at a booth with our overloaded plates of pizza. The tension that had once lingered in Julia”s eyes seemed to have faded away, replaced with a warmth mirroring mine. This was a huge step for us. From me barely meeting her children to doing it completely unplanned and under tense circumstances, I’d call this a fucking grand slam. The table fell quiet as everyone devoured their slices, which was always a great sign of excellent food, and this pizza was amazing. The twins sat across from us while Julia’s leg pressed against mine, creating a warmth I didn’t want to fade.
“If you haven’t already, you’ll fall in love with the pizza.” Julia held up her Chicken Marsala slice.
I peered at Julia, savoring each bite while she exchanged adoring glances with her girls. It amazed me how full one woman could be. It sent a jolt to my chest because Julia was right about one thing. I was falling in love.