Page 21 of If This Was a Movie

I laugh, and Jules gives me a grimace.

“Sorry,” she says under her breath.

I shake my head. “No worries. Yeah, Soph, but a small one and only if you eat real food, too.”

Without looking, I know Sophie rolls her eyes at me, a habit she picked up from Claire. “Yes, Dad,” she grumbles.

“Good thing your Aunt Claire is leaving, Soph, because you’re getting much too sassy.” My daughter just smiles at me.

“Where’d your sisters go?” Jules asks, belatedly looking around and realizing it’s just us.

“Home, probably to call my mom and tell her all about this shit show.” She gives me a small smile, and even though I’m pretty sure this, having an us, isn’t an option anymore, it makes my heart skip a beat. “Come on, let’s get you fed.”

Then I’m opening the door to the diner, the noise tumbling out onto the street as we enter so I can get my girls fed.

EIGHT

NATE

“When you live with us, can we have a sleepover one night?” Sophie asks Jules after we place our orders and right before she takes a long gulp of her sugar-laden chocolate shake.

I groan out loud because, although I love my daughter more than anything on this planet, she cannot read a room to save her life.

Jules had just been starting to decompress, it seemed, relaxing a bit despite the strange circumstances. As we were deciding what to order, she even cracked a joke and told Sophie she could teach her a dance to do with her Ashlyn doll. But with Sophie’s words, her shoulders return to their position at her ears.

“Sophie,” I say with warning.

“What? When Aunt Claire has sleepovers with me, they’re fun, but Jules is a real-life princess! Just like Ashlyn!”

“I, uh—” Jules starts, eyes wide.

“We don’t even know if Jules wants to stay in the cottage, Sophie,” I admonish, though I’m grateful she brought it up. Jules and I have a lot to talk about, but first we need to handle the situation of where she’s going to be staying. I turn to Jules, my face trying to portray a casual offer even though it feelsnothing of the sort. “Claire told me she mentioned the cottage to you. It’s just sitting empty, and you’re more than welcome to stay there. Actually, I kind of insist.” I look at her pointedly before smiling. “I feel like we have a few things to talk about anyway.”

Almost instantly, she averts her eyes, a blush blooming on her cheeks that match the color of the sweater she’s wearing.

She’s cute.

So fucking cute.

But, I have to remind myself, not mine.

“It’s very kind, really, but I don’t know if I’m comfortable with taking advantage?—”

“Hotels are crazy,” I add quickly. I have a few friends who work at the local hotels, and I can’t stop myself from wondering if they’d be willing to tell a stranded woman they were booked so I could convince her to stay with me. It would be better than shelling out the money she could be using to fix her place on a hotel room.

Besides, she clearly is over me, over whatever there once was between us, since she let a whole year span without a word. Unfortunately for me, I haven’t been able to think about anyone but her for a year. I wonder if it could give me the closure I need, some explanation as to where I went wrong with her all those months ago so I could finally move the fuck on.

Every night, my dreams are haunted by the promise of what I thought I had with Julianne, and despite it being only two nights, I can’t seem to get over it, like some kind of lovesick middle schooler.

“Even if it’s just for the night, you should stay in the cottage. Then, if you’re not comfortable, I’m sure I can pull some strings tomorrow, reach out to some friends, and find you somewhere that won’t cost you your entire savings. If I can’t, my mom mightas well be the mayor of Evergreen Park with the amount of people she knows. She’ll figure out something.”

“Nate—”

“I mean this in the most genuine way, you will be doing me a favor if you stay at the cottage tonight.”

She gives me a disbelieving look before speaking. “I highly doubt that,” she says with a roll of her eyes, but there’s also a small smile on her lips.

Progress, I think.

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