Page 9 of Being Julia

The two of them shook hands. I wanted to get the hell out of there as fast as I could before my dad had a chance to ask any questions. My phone beeped, and when I looked at it, there was a text message from London.

“Look at the way your dad’s staring him down.”

I shot London a look from across the room, took Brody’s hand, and led him to the elevator.

“We better get going.” I smiled.

“Have my daughter home by midnight, Mr. Sullivan,” my dad yelled from across the room.

“Don’t worry, Mr. Black. I’ll have her home on time. She’ll be safe with me.”

I turned and looked at my dad as he watched us step into the elevator.

“Have fun, you two.” My mom waved.

Connor

When the elevator door shut, I walked over to the bar and poured myself a scotch. Ellery stood on the other side of the room, staring at me.

“What?” I asked.

“He seems like a really nice boy. He was polite, proper, and very well dressed.”

“Those are the ones you have to watch out for,” I said as I held up my glass.

The fact was that I wasn’t ready to release my little girl out into the dating world. Ellery convinced me that sixteen was the appropriate age to start dating. She also threatened me. I knew Julia wasn’t perfect, but she was still my princess and always would be. It was a miracle that she was even conceived. The odds were against her between the reversal of my vasectomy and Ellery’s treatments.

“Look at you. You can’t stand this, can you?” Ellery asked as she put her arms around me.

“No, I can’t. I hate the fact that my baby girl is out with some random guy doing God knows what.”

“I’ve educated her, Connor. She’s a smart girl. She’ll make the right choices.”

“I hope so, Elle,” I said as I kissed her lips.

“You need a distraction. I’ll call Peyton and see if they want to come over for pizza.”

“Sounds good, sweetheart.” I smiled as I poured another Scotch.

Ellery

I walked into the kitchen, took my phone from the counter, and dialed Peyton.

“Hello, friend,” she answered.

“Hi, Pey. I wanted to know if you, Henry, and Hailey would like to come over for pizza. Julia went out on her first date, and Connor can’t relax. He’s going crazy, and I think Henry would be a good distraction for him.”

“Sure, Elle. We can do that. I was just about to start dinner. Now I don’t have to cook. Henry should be home in a few minutes, so we’ll be over within the hour.”

“Thanks, Peyton.”

“Any time, Elle.”

When I walked into the living room, Connor sat on the couch with Collin, looking at his laptop.

“Henry, Peyton, and Hailey will be here within the hour. I already ordered the pizzas and salads.”

“Hailey’s coming over?” Collin asked.

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