Page 28 of Cause and Effect

I pulled into Julian’s driveway and stared at the outside of his home while putting the car in park. It was big, modern, and I couldn’t wait to see the inside. Walking up to the porch, the door opened, and Julian stood there.

“Welcome to my humble home.” He grinned.

“How did you know I was here?” I asked.

“My security system. Come in.” He gestured.”

I stepped inside, and his scent instantly smacked me inthe face. “Wow, your home is beautiful.” My eyes scanned the immaculate space.

“Thanks. Dinner will be ready soon. You didn’t have to bring wine.”

“I wanted to.” I followed him into the kitchen. “It smells good in here.”

“I hope you like surf and turf.” He smiled.

“I do. It’s one of my favorites.” I walked over to the sliding door and stared at the large pool with several lounge chairs.

“Nice pool. That was the one thing I wish my house had. When we lived in San Francisco, the girls loved to swim every day at the apartment pool.”

“You lived in an apartment?” he asked, opening the wine and pouring some into a glass.

“Yeah. I knew San Francisco wasn’t long term.”

“Is Los Angeles? Because you rented a house instead of buying one.”

“The home I want to buy will be my forever home, and I didn’t have the time to look for said forever home. So, I’m renting for now.”

He turned to the stove, and my eyes diverted to his perfectly sculpted ass in his docker pants. I swallowed hard as I tipped the glass to my lips.

“This house is really big for a bachelor. How many bedrooms?”

“Four bedrooms, five baths, thirty-six hundred square feet,” he replied. “It was in foreclosure when I bought it, so I got a great deal. So did Parker.”

“Where does he live?”

“Next door. And Roman lives down the street. The owner of this house also owned Parker’s. He’s our client and had to file bankruptcy when his business went under.”

“Speaking of your brothers, tell me the story about your dad.”

“I already told you that he was cheating on all three of our mothers, and he impregnated them at the same time.” He set the food on the table. “Let’s eat.” He smiled.

“How was it growing up with three moms?” I asked.

“We got bullied a lot in school, but that all stopped when we beat the shit out of the kids who made fun of us.”

“I bet you three had a lot of suspensions.” I smiled.

“We did. But our moms always told us to stand up for ourselves. So, they weren’t too mad about it. What about you? How was your childhood?”

“It was great.” I cut into the filet. “I was born and raised in North Carolina.”

“Is that where you met—I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have?—”

“No. It’s fine. Jason and I met at Duke when I was nineteen. I got pregnant with Stella when I was twenty and had her when I turned twenty-one.”

“Before or after you graduated from law school?”

“Two days after I graduated.” I smiled. “After I found out I was pregnant, Jason proposed, and we got married in a courthouse and had a small reception with family and friends. Then I got pregnant with the twins two months after having Stella.”

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