Page 23 of Please, Stay

“When I said I didn’t want to end up a spinster, he laughed and kissed the top of my shoulder.” Juliana glanced between the three women with their eyebrows raised almost to their hairline. “I almost fell off the motorcycle, but I don’t think he noticed.”

Ms. Iris motioned for her to continue.

“When he looked up from the kiss, his eyes were so blue and his mouth so close, I thought for sure he was going to kiss me. A second longer, and I’d have kissed him.” She ran a stiff hand through her hair, not caring when it encountered a tangle and pulled. “Then he asked me ‘What do you want, Juliana’ in that incredibly sexy voice. God, the scene could have been straight out of a movie.”

The two cooks at the stove turned to listen as well. Becky came around the counter. “What did you say?”

“You say that like I said something bad.”

“You said something wrong since you’re here standing in the kitchen of this diner instead of sleeping off a bout of mind-blowing, morning sex across the street at the bed and breakfast with an incredibly hot man.”

Lexi snorted.

“Becky!” Juliana’s face flushed hot. She avoided eye contact with Ms. Iris, a woman who was like a second mother to her, but the two male cooks smirked and went back to the fryers. Becky didn’t shock most people anymore, but it didn’t make her any less uncomfortable for her to announce it in public.

“I’m serious, Jules. We can’t fix this unless I know what you said. And since I’m guessing your answer wasn’t ‘you, Henry, right now on the bike’ before you straddled him, you said something that scared him off.”

Ms. Iris set a hand on her hip. “I can’t say I’m for all the naughty bits like Miss Loosey Goosey over here, but you’ve got my curiosity up as well.”

Lexi held her hand up. “Me, too, and I’m notorious for waiting months before being with a man, but that entire scenario you just described might have done it for me.”

Becky held up her hands for everyone to stop talking. “Here. Pretend I’m Henry.” She dropped her voice and cut her eyes in a horrible attempt at sexy. “What do you want, Juliana?”

“I want a family.”

Becky might have said a four-letter word since Ms. Iris popped her upside the head. It was hard to hear with the two male cooks cackling over fried chicken and fries. Lexi coughed and reached for her glass of water.

“It was the truth. It’s what we talked about, Becky.”

Becky picked up the tray, glaring at her like she had two heads. “I need a minute.” She bumped open the door to the dining room with her hip and disappeared.

Ms. Iris patted Juliana on the shoulder and mumbled, “bless your heart,” as she left with the to-go orders.

She looked to Lexi for support. She hadn’t known Lexi long but considered her a friend. But the grimace she saw didn’t give her hope. “I’m not the best person to give advice on wanting a family since I don’t want kids or anything, but I know that statement would have scared me off.”

“Really?” It had been an honest statement. She wanted a family. That realization had hit her square in the chest when Carrie asked her if she was going to have babies for her to babysit someday.

It’s not like she asked Grayson to be the father. Her heart stopped.

Shit.

Is that what he’d thought? That she meant she wanted the husband, house, and children with him?

No wonder he ran.

“I’m an idiot.” She didn’t deserve to date men. Society should relegate her to the rocking chair on the porch reserved for when “crazy family” comes to visit.

The best part was that Lexi didn’t contradict her assessment of herself.

Becky pushed the kitchen doors wide open, carrying in the bucket of dirty dishes. “I’m not done with you.”

“I think I figured out what I did to scare him off.”

“Hallelujah!”

Juliana ignored Becky’s sarcasm. “Why would he think I meant him?”

“Duh! He asked you want you wanted. From him, Juliana, not just in general. He was probably hoping to flirt back. To kiss you. To do something amazing to your body besides father your children.” Becky shook her head and started emptying the dirty dishes into the sink. Juliana grabbed a tray to load up the next round of orders for Becky. “Those would be some pretty kids, but I can almost guarantee that his mind was headed in a more literal, immediate sense.”

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