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Our gazes lock and that same pull from the auction is there. I close my eyes to break whatever spell I’m in, and when I open them back up, I find that it’s worked. He’s looking off into the distance, lost in thought.
“Come on,” I say, grabbing his hand. “Let’s go back and sit,” I motion with my free hand to the porch off in the distance.
Back on the porch, I lean over and pluck a juicy piece of pineapple from the tray and pop it into my mouth. I can’t help but moan around the sweet fruit. Julian’s lip quirks.
“That good?”
“Yep,” I say around a mouth full of pineapple, looking anywhere but at him.
Juice slides down my chin and as I’m grabbing a napkin to wipe it off, Julian leans forward and wipes it away. My cheeks heat.
“Thank you,” I say, sounding breathy. I want to crawl under the chair at how easily this man makes me lose my senses, despite that I know what he is and what he’s capable of.
We’re so close, neither of us moving. I wait for him to give a sign that he’s read my mind and the fact that I all but called him a monster yet again, but nothing comes. There’s no sign he’s reading my mind.
“Julian, can you read my mind?” I just up and ask. Why the hell not? If he’s giving answers freely today, I might as well shoot for the moon.
“No,” he says, but I can tell he’s lying. He won’t look me in the eyes, and he’s suddenly shifting in his seat.
“No?” I press, hoping he’ll come clean. If he can’t tell the truth about something like this, how can I trust him with his promises?
“No. I can’t read your mind, Marina.”
I bite my lip, wanting to call him out, but sensing it wouldn’t go well if I did. The day has been amicable, and I have been offered a truce for more freedoms. As much as I want to push, it’s not worth it right now.
I’ll be patient. As it is, I have all the time in the world.
“Tell me about your parents,” he says.
I grimace. “What’s to tell? They’ve hardly been part of my life the past few years.”
He shoves his hands in his pockets, looking even more boyish when he does. He doesn’t say a word, so I continue.
“Both of them have addiction issues,” I say, and he winces.
“And I was drunk the other night. I’m so sorry, Marina.”
I glance over at him, not sure what to say to that. He should be sorry, but I feel like I’ve beaten that horse enough for one day. He appears to be genuinely remorseful for his actions, and although it’ll never be all right, I believe in forgiveness. I’ll never forget, but I can forgive if it’s earned.
“They’ve both had a tough life. They’ve lost two children, and now I’m missing.”
“I can only imagine what they must be going through.”
I scoff. “That’s assuming they’ve even realized I’m gone.”
“It’s that bad?” he questions, as though he can’t fathom it.
“It comes and goes with my dad. My mom has been numb my entire life.”
“Have they tried to get help with it?”
I shake my head, even though he isn’t looking at me. “I have, but the cost was too much. We couldn’t afford to help them both, and my fear was if one got clean and the other didn’t, it would only be a matter of time before they were both back at it.” I pause for a moment, thinking through the problem as I’ve done thousands of times before. “It’s better this way. At least they aren’t worried about me.”
“I don’t believe that. No matter what state they’re in, they care about you. I know it.”
“At least one of us does.”
He stops and spins toward me. “Let me help them.”
