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“The sex was amazing, though, right?” Julia asks.
“Jules,” I scold, my eyes bulging. “I can’t talk about that in Dad’s office.”
“He’s not here, so who cares?”
“It feels weird. And yes, you know it was amazing because we already talked about it. Let’s move on.”
“He’s good in bed, hot, smart, financially secure, thoughtful…I can’t think of a single good reason for you guys not to be together.”
“Why am I not allowed to not be ready?” I throw my hands in the air, frustrated. “Or to not want to be in a relationship? I know being married with kids makes you happy, and that’s great. But I’m not sure I want that.”
“Since when? You wanted it when you were with Aiden.”
I walk over to a bookcase and pick up a photo of me and my sisters when we were kids, studying it as I try to figure out the answer to Julia’s question.
“I don’t know,” I say softly. “I guess Aiden felt…more like me. And Olivier is one of the richest people in the world. He has offices in New York and Chicago. His mom lives in Italy. What if he decides to move away when Giselle goes off to college? What if he doesn’t want more kids?”
“Have you asked him about those things?”
I shake my head. “This thing with him…it’s different than anything I’ve ever felt. He’s damn near perfect. You know that woman we found living in her car with her kids that I told you about?”
“Yeah.”
“He got them an apartment. Paid their rent for a year. Had a bunch of groceries and furniture delivered. And he gave Jada a job at his company on the cleaning staff. He changed their lives. And all that stuff I just told you he did? He didn’t even tell me about it. Jada told me when I called her to see if I can help get her kids enrolled in school.”
“That sounds like your dream man, Daph.”
“He is,” I admit. “In most every way, he is. But I’m not using his wealth as an excuse; it really does bother me.”
“He can’t help that he’s successful. And it sounds like he’s generous with his money.”
I exhale and sit down on a leather sofa. “I don’t want a life where I have to wear thousand-dollar gowns to events and decide whether we should take the yacht or the jet for our vacation. You’re one of the only people who really knows how strongly I feel about it.”
“I get it, Daph. I really do. Andrew and I could hire help, but I’ve never wanted to. We grew up with parents who weren’t around much. It was always nannies and housekeepers and cooks playing with us and helping with our homework. I don’t want that life for my boys.”
“You’re an amazing mom. If I ever get to be a mom, I want to be just like you.”
Julia looks down at Dad’s desk and then back up, tears welling in her eyes. “Thanks, Daph.”
“Do I not tell you that enough? Do I not compliment you enough in general? Because that’s another thing our parents never did that I wish they had.”
“Me too. Mom is critical of the way I parent my boys, and it’s a sensitive subject for me.”
“Critical?” I lower my brows in confusion. “I can’t think of one single thing to be critical of, and she of all people has no right, Jules.”
“She just…tells me I need to be more than just a mother. Contribute to the world somehow, like by volunteering or being on the school board.”
“Fuck her. Why does that shit get to you when she’s not a good mom herself?”
Julia blinks and quickly wipes away the tears that fall down her cheeks. “Let’s not talk about her anymore. I really think you need to give Olivier a chance. You said he’s completely different from Aiden, but that’s probably a good thing since Aiden’s a gaping, sore-infested asshole.”
“And yet I was about to marry him,” I say bitterly. “If I hadn’t caught his side piece in our bed with him on accident, I might have still married him. That’s how bad my judgment is.”
Julia waves a hand dismissively. “He had everyone fooled. And none of that is on you; it’s on him. Don’t make Olivier pay for Aiden’s mistakes.”
I meet my sister’s eyes, grateful there’s someone in this world who knows me as well, and sometimes even better, than I know myself.
“There are times when I’m with Olivier and…I can hardly even breathe,” I admit. “I don’t just like him, I feel connected to him. Sometimes I lie in bed at night and I think—I mean, Jules, I seriously think—that when he saved my life that day, it bound us together in a way. And after Aiden, I planned on being a smart, savvy woman who never fell hard for any man again.” I shake my head and look away, my emotions threatening to spill over. “And now, fate throws this perfect man in my lap. I should be thrilled, right? But instead, I’m terrified.”
