Page 95 of If This Was a Movie

JULES

We drive home and put Sophie in bed in near silence, both of us lost in our heads.

After Claire got settled, I watched the Donovans do what I’m learning they do best: handle a crisis. Tom grabbed her bags and brought them into the house while Sutton, Sloane, and Nate gently and kindly ushered out the remaining guests at the party.

I stood with Sophie, trying to keep her both entertained and distracted while staying out of the way. When everyone was gone, Claire and the rest of the Donovans sat in the living room to hear her story. I tried to sneak out and clean up while they handled family business, but Shauna gave me a very stern motherly look and told me,“You’re a Donovan now, Jules, like it or not. Sit down.”

Then, Claire began her tale of arriving in California and it being a mess from the start. Her boyfriend, Paul, wasn’t there to get her from the airport, spent nights out late, never telling her where to go, and even when she told him she was lonely and she knew no one there, he simply shrugged off her concerns. With each word, I watched Nate’s jaw get tighter and tighter, hearing about how his baby sister was mistreated.

Finally, Claire gave Paul an ultimatum: either she gets treated better or she leaves. Unfortunately, it seems he chose door number two, leading her to come back home to Evergreen Park where she promptly broke down about seemingly losing everything.

Now we’re on the couch, a movie playing, but I’m barely paying attention. I’ve made my decision, and even though I know Nate is going to argue with me, I need him on board.

“Claire will need the cottage,” I finally say.

“What?” Nate asks, confused as he looks over at me.

“Claire needs the cottage. I’m going to move back home tomorrow.”

“No, you’re not,” he says. “The city won’t let you.”

I give him a look.

“Hank from approvals talked to me at the party. According to him, my place was approved last week. I can move back into First Position at any time.”

Nate’s jaw goes tight, and even though he has both arms wrapped around me, he tightens them as he groans to the ceiling.

“Fucking Hank and his big fucking mouth,” he grumbles, and I laugh.

“When were you going to tell me?” I ask.

“Never.” I glare at him, and he rolls his eyes. “After Christmas,” he says begrudgingly.

“Why didn’t you tell me it was done?” I ask, my fingers moving to push his hair back.

“Technically, it wasn’t. It still needed paint.” I remember him coming home two days ago with paint dried on his hands and instinctively knowing he finished my place then but didn’t tell me to keep me close for as long as he could manage.

“You know what I mean. It was safe to live in a week ago. Or longer.”

He sighs deeply before taking a long moment to answer. “Because I knew the second you knew, you’d be moving out.”

“Well, yeah…” I say, because he’s stating the obvious.

“And at that point, you were still in your denial zone. So moving out of the cottage would mean moving out of our lives.”

I bite my lip, knowing he’s not wrong, feeling a bit guilty over it. “But I’m not there anymore,” I say softly. “And I can’t live behind your house forever, Nate.”

He groans, looking at the ceiling. “Is it a crime to like having you close?”

I give him a soft, sweet smile, putting a hand on his cheek.

“No, Nate. It’s not a crime. I get it. I love being close to you guys.” He reaches over, grabbing my hand and squeezing before I speak again. “But it’s time for me to move back home.”

“No, it's not,” Nate says, but he sounds more like a grumpy kid. It reminds me that once I get through to Nate, I’m going to have to get through to Sophie, who is going to be even more of a force to reckon with. I decided it might be better to play a little dirty, shifting until I’m straddling him. His hands instantly go to my ass, and I smile.

He has to know I can’t live in the tiny cottage forever. I have all of my things at my place, it’s close to my work, and I love the little home I built for myself.

“Nate, your sister needs a place to stay—” I say, trying to bring logic into the conversation.

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