Page 73 of Shameless

Surprisingly, he answers Jules’s question instead. “An alarm went off at our private boathouse. I just went to check it out but everything looked fine. We have a new security system and it’s way too sensitive, the wind is picking up and I bet that’s what tripped it.”

Jules tenses up. “Are you sure it was our private one? You know we need to keep that area secure.”

Dad nods. “Yeah, that’s why I checked. But everything looks fine. Were you headed there?”

“I just wanted to show Lula the new boat.” Jules says.

Dad’s eyes dart to our joined hands, but again he doesn’t say anything. “Sounds good. Just make sure you lock everything when you leave. The docks are one of the best locations to watch the fireworks show and tonight it’s going to be crowded. The staff are going to start bringing out extra blankets and cushions soon, so the members can get comfortable and enjoy the show.”

Jules thanks him. “Yeah, thanks for reminding me. We won’t be long.”

We wait until Dad walks out of sight, before Jules begins walking again.

“Where are we going?” I ask, as he uses his staff ID to open the door to one of the two boathouses.

The inside is dark and I can smell the salt coming from the sea.

“The only place where I’m sure no one will walk in on us. I would have gotten us a room, but we’re fully booked this weekend.”

The lights come on and I’m confused by the two speedboats I see inside the boathouse. One is moored to the dock, the other one is suspended from the ceiling, hanging off four thick metal chains.

“Isn’t that Eddie’s electric boat?”

“Yeah. And that one,” Jules points out the second vessel. “Is a new prototype Eddie was building with two outboard bigger engines. Always fully electric.”

The second boat doesn’t sport the blue color and the sponsors logos like the one I’ve already seen. “It doesn’t look like much. Is it supposed to be that dull black color?”

“No,” Jules explains. “Tory is still finishing it, that’s just the raw material. She just installed the engine but the electric system hasn’t been insulated and tested yet. Once it’s all done, it’ll look similar to the one we’re already using but it’s going to be way faster.”

I shrug. “Maybe it’ll look better once it’s finished. The other one is much prettier.”

“Girls,” Jules chuckles. “Jenna would say exactly the same thing. If it was up to you, I’d have to paint it pink.”

He’s right, but I don’t want to give him the satisfaction. “Nah. Maybe when I was ten-years-old. Now I would prefer a cool purple or even a glossy black, not this matte, primer color.”

Jules takes a step toward me, stopping only when my back hits the wall of the boathouse. “Once it’s insulated, we’ll paint it. We were going to do the same blue as the other one, but I like purple. I’ll tell Tory.”

Jules’s fingers trace the edge of my jaw, his dark blue eyes lower as he stares at my lips.

My pulse quickens as butterflies take residence in the pit of my stomach. I’m dying to feel his lips on mine, but my curiosity has the best of me. “Why are these boats here? I thought Eddie bought the Hudson’s old premises including their docks and their hangars.”

His fingers slip down the column of my neck, settling at the base of my throat. Jules doesn’t apply any pressure, the way he holdsme there is possessive but not aggressive. I could slip out of his hold if I wanted to.

“We do have Hudson’s old boatyard with all its facilities, but we decided to store the electric boats here, just in case the sheriff decided to go back on his end of the deal and confiscate everything. These are the most valuable assets Star Thunders owns and if everything else was seized, we could still try for the world record.”

It makes sense. “Aren’t you worried about someone seeing them and asking questions?”

He shakes his head. “No one has any reason to come here. Dustin Hudson kept his personal boats here. The members who dock their yachts at the club have no reason to come looking in here. It’s too small for their big yachts anyway. Now if you’re done asking questions, we have about fifteen minutes before we turn into pumpkins.”

His lips are a breath away from mine. “Do you think Dad is going to be mad?” I ask. “He saw that you were holding my hand, he kept looking at our hands.”

My palms are flat on his chest to keep him from kissing me, because I know that once he does, I’ll forget the rest of the world even exists.

“I don’t know, but it doesn’t matter. I’m going to speak to him. I don’t want to hide the way I feel about you from our parents or from anyone else.”

His words make me happy but they also scare me. “Do you think our parents will be ok with the idea of us together?” Dad is surprisingly ok with the idea of me and Stefan being more than friends and stepsiblings, but I’m dreading his reaction when hefinds out that I’m in love with three men. Like I told Stefan, I’m not ashamed of my feelings for them. But there’s still a little girl inside me who needs her dad’s approval.

The corner of Jules’s lips quirks in just the hint of a smile, in a way that reminds me of Crew. “Lula, I’m not going to put pressure on you but I want you to know something. One day I’m going to marry you. It doesn’t have to be this year or the next. I’m willing to wait as long as it takes for you to be ready, but I’m so in love with you I can’t fucking breathe. I’ve been in love with you my entire life, I was too stupid to understand it until after I fucked everything up. You coming back here was our second chance and I’m not going to let that slip through my fingers again.”

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