Chapter 28 #2
“I think I’m more excited than she is.” My lips lift in a wide smile. “We can watch these KPop Demon Hunters I know nothing about.”
“Better you than me.”
“And me,” Seb adds. “I can recite the whole movie in my sleep.”
“What are you all having? Should we order for the table?” Leo asks.
“Fine with me. I eat everything.” Everyone agrees, and as Leo reads over the menu suggesting options, I take in our surroundings.
The restaurant is unique, almost as if we’re sitting inside a curated beach shop.
But not one you see with trinkets and town sweatshirts; instead, an upscale store with precisely placed driftwood, expensive pottery and furniture, and even gorgeous clothing, like kaftans, hanging as art.
There’s rattan everywhere and white lines flowing from the open windows.
There’s a beautiful patio off to the side, with greenery filling the space and stringed lights.
“It’s owned by a fashion designer,” Juliette says as she sits down. “You can buy anything you see.”
“Smart concept.”
“It’s one of our favorite restaurants.”
“Do you guys come out here often?” I ask.
She nods enthusiastically. “I love it here. If I weren’t a city girl at heart, I could live out here all year round.”
“You’re from the city like the guys are, right?”
“Born and raised.”
“Lucky.” I smile. “That’s me when I come back in a different life.”
“Well, you’re here now. Tell me about work.” She leans in and whispers, “I heard Leo is an asshole.”
Nate pours me a glass of wine, and I sip it before spilling the gossip. “You have no idea. I was shocked. Look at him.”
We both turn to find him making funny faces with Claud, leaning back, not a care in the world.
His brown hair is haphazardly swept to the side, easily sipping his wine in between his fun.
“When I was dropping off Claud one day, I heard him yelling. I thought maybe it was a one-off, but then I overheard employees say he’s a hard-ass when I was in the elevator.”
I nod with force. “He is. He’s Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.”
“You know, I can hear you two.”
“We don’t care,” I say, then go on to Juliette about how he made a guy cry last week. “Leo is one of the smartest people I know. He doesn’t take incompetence lightly, and I understand that. If he’s putting in one hundred and ten percent, he expects his employees to do the same.”
“Heyyy.” Nate playfully pulls my ponytail. “I’m the smartest guy you know.”
My wine almost spurts out of my mouth. “Don’t make me say it. I’m not a liar.”
Harrison barks out a laugh. “Nate’s always been so touchy over this.”
My shoulder lifts. “I only speak the truth.” I lean over and kiss Nate’s cheek. “You should have tried harder in school,” I mutter and wink.
It always killed him that Leo and I scored higher than he did on all our tests, but to say Nate is not smart would be a lie.
He was just not in the top two in his class like Leo and I were.
“Was it always like this with you guys?” Juliette asks.
She doesn’t need to elaborate; I know exactly what she means.
“Always. The three of us were inseparable. We had a blast in college. It was the only time in my life I had a six-pack; I was constantly cracking up.” I duck my head, for a moment, thinking of Camila, and I’m done hiding away from my feelings.
“But it was even better when we came to New York to see Camila.”
Nate smiles softly and nods. “Until she tried to make you break the rules.”
“Don’t remind me. She gave me a heart attack every other day.”
“I was driving you to the airport when she told you she was going skydiving,” Harrison adds. “I thought you were going to throw up.”
“I tried to talk her out of that one. It didn’t work.”
Juliette’s head bounces between us all, smiling fondly.
“Maddie is a rule follower, goody two-shoes,” Leo adds. “So being friends with our sister never made sense. She lived to push the boundaries.”
Chuckling, I agree. “This is why we were more like sisters than anything else. This is so cliché, but I swear we clicked from the second we met. For me, that just never happened. When I was younger, I was much shyer but even more reserved and cautious. I grew up in a small town where my brother was king—”
“So you didn’t know who was genuine or not?” Juliette asks lightly.
“Bingo. Then Camila came barreling into my life, barely one word out of her mouth before she was hugging me, telling me Nate loved me and she wanted to be my sister-in-law.” The last words get caught in my throat.
“She really was so aggressive.” Harrison laughs, then adds, “With the kindest, most thoughtful heart.”
Juliette glances at Claud, who is listening to all of us with the biggest smile on her face. “Sounds like you had the best mom in the world.”
“I know,” she singsongs, and we all chuckle. “But now I’m the luckiest, because I have two best mommies.”
Juliette, clearly not expecting that, covers her face and starts to cry. Harrison drags her chair closer to him, pulling her close to his body, rubbing a soothing hand down her back.
“I’m sorry, it’s all the hormones.” She holds out her arms. “Come here, sugar plum.” She plants kisses all over Claud’s face, telling her how much she loves her.
Everyone at the table is taking it in except Seb, whose head is hung.
He’s had a hard time adjusting to Juliette “taking Camila’s spot,” so to speak, so maybe it’s hard to watch.
Juliette wipes her tears. “Okay, distract me. Are you working on any fun projects, Maddie? I find your job so interesting. When I’m at Leo’s and Nate’s, I can stare at their blueprints for hours.”
“Leo and I are on a huge project together that I’m beyond grateful to be included in. It will be my first New York City skyscraper. It’s literally a dream come true.”
“I love that. Is it an already existing building?”
“No.” I beam. “Ground up. I still can’t get over it. You should see the initial designers, it’s like nothing you’ve seen here in the city.”
Leo interrupts. “She’s being modest. Maddie is going to win us awards for the building’s sustainability.” He smiles across the table. “You were a great addition to the team.”
“Thank you.” My face heats from all eyes on me, then I pause to think before asking, “You know, there’s something I’ve always wondered. Why M-Squared? Who picked the name?”
“Well, the M stands for Morales.” Nate pauses, looking around at all his brothers. “And…there are four of us. So it’s squared.”
“That’s…yeah, you are all Morales’s at your core, aren’t you?” I glance at Harrison, then Nate, and try not to get emotional again. “Rosa and Javier must have loved that.”
Leo nods. “Dad even shed a tear.”
I can imagine why.
I turn my focus back on Juliette and listen as she tells me about the new dance studio she’s opening, Petit Papillons School of Dance, which will be opening next year after she takes maternity leave.
Juliette was a well-known prima ballerina who suffered a serious injury in a car accident. When her career ended, she helped her mom run their family bakery, which now sounds like they are both retiring from that dream.
A couple of hours later, we’re finally having dessert, and it’s been a great night.
“I’m glad I like you,” I joke, feeling completely comfortable with Juliette. “Leo and Seb are probably never settling down; we could be the only two in the family.”
She lowers her voice. “Seb and I didn’t start on the right foot—”
“I know, I’m sorry. My brother told me.”
“I don’t blame him. At all. He’s just misunderstood…but I think he would be an amazing husband. You should see him with Claudina, he’s born to be a dad.”
“Maybe one day. You never know.”
Juliette reaches across the table and takes my hand. “I know it’s a year later, but I want to apologize for you not being invited to the wedding. Had I known the full story, I would have offered an invite.”
“I completely get it. If I came, there would have been drama between Nate and me.”
At the time, I was devastated. It felt like my family was pushing me away. Even though I wasn’t as close to Harrison anymore, I still felt betrayed.
Now, looking back, I know they were protecting their peace.
“Well, you’ll be there for the birth of our baby. That’s probably more important anyway.”
I glance down at her stomach and hold out my hand. “May I?”
She gestures enthusiastically. “Be my guest.”
Like a paid actor, the baby kicks, and my eyes explode with excitement. We awe and coo over the baby as it puts on a show.
“Do you have names picked out?” I ask.
“We are torn on boy names, but…” She leans in close, whispering, “If it’s a girl, it’s either Colette or Chloe. But don’t tell anyone, it’s a secret.”
“Juliette, you didn’t need to share that with me.”
She puts her hand over mine. “I wanted to. I know I’m not the sister-in-law you originally planned for, but I hope we can one day build our own special relationship.”
I’m so touched that I don’t have the words to express my feelings. Instead, I pull her into a hug and assure her that I’d love that.
Maybe one day the wives can build a bond as strong as the one their men share.
“Mads, wake up,” Nate whispers, peppering kisses along my forehead.
I swat him away. “That’s so annoying. Stop.”
He chuckles. “Very cranky. Come on, we’re home.” He leans in and unbuckles me, then leashes up Skye, who is sleeping on my legs.
I blink my eyes awake, blinded by the city light. I can’t believe we’re back already. I don’t remember falling asleep.
We left late tonight—Sunday—we were all having the best weekend, and no one was ready to go back to reality.
Nate walks Skye down the block and back to go to the bathroom, then we all walk into the lobby, straight to the elevator. All exhausted, barely saying a word.
We step off, and Leo salutes us. “Night, kids.”
We wave, then go into Nate’s side.
“I need to go home before work in the morning. I have no clothes for tomorrow.”
Nate makes a noise under his breath, not addressing my comment, and when we step inside, I see why.
“Welcome home, Mads.”
“What in the world…”