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“Yes, although Tricia, of course, has moved down your way since that is where your brother’s house is. You’ll have to meet them all.”
The panty-melting smile he gave Julie almost made her forget the question she wanted to ask. “Wait, did you say you joined the firefighters?” She remembered the trouble he’d had with his father around that subject.
He nodded. “Full circle in a way, right? Out here, the firefighters are all volunteer and part-time, but Harper and his Uncle Phil were professionals with the New York City Fire Department like my dad, although not at the same firehouse. I actually had my father come out here and give training lessons a couple times.”
“So it sounds like you and your father have found a way back to each other.”
“Only you would understand that.” Noah looked at Julie with a tenderness that told her he remembered all the times they’d shared personal stories of their family issues and she wondered if he might still care for her in some way. If what they’d shared back then might be as precious to him as it was to her. His gazeshifted and he added, “I’ve never talked to anyone else about the strained relationship my dad and I had for so many years. But yeah, we kind of found some common ground and developed a heartfelt respect for each other.”
“That is great to hear, Noah. Be glad you did it before he is gone. Unlike me,” she said, her words going flat at the end.
“Is that why you gave up your plans for the interior design career?” he asked. Wow. Bold and to the point.
“You mean aside from flunking out of the program? Yes. And aside from Bryce, you are the only one who knows that about me. I tried so hard to be someone I’m not because I wanted to work for my dad’s company and make him proud of me. Maybe finally get him to actually see me.”
Noah said, “But if you were being someone other than yourself, then it wouldn’t really have been you he saw.” Then he touched her arm and it was all she could do not to hurl herself against his chest and pull his head down to hers for a kiss.
“Said the wise man with X-ray vision.” Julie looked up into his warm brown eyes and before she realized what she was doing, she whispered, “What a fool I was. How could I have ever thrown away what we had?”
Noah froze, as shocked by Julie’s stark revelation as she was.
Her hand covered her face. “Oh, God, I didn’t mean to say that out loud. I’m so sorry. And so embarrassed.”
She started to rush away, but he caught her arm and pulled her hand away from her face, then kept a hold of it in his. “Don’t be,” he said. “It’s something I’ve waited years to hear. In fact, if we’re ripping off the masks now, my jealous male ego is going nuts wanting to know who the man is that got you to say yes to marrying him.”
Her jaw went tight. “Not here, Noah. Please. I promise I’ll tell you, but not now and not here. I don’t want to ruin my brother’s party.”
“That bad, huh?”
“Yeah, that bad.”
Noah let goof her hand as they walked back into the main room where a feast was laid out on two long tables. Typical of Jordan the world traveler, there were international dishes like Malaysian nasi lamak and Egyptian koshari, as well as the standard American fare of roast beef and turkey and salmon.
“Do you still eat a bag of spinach every day?” Julie asked him as they got in line.
He laughed, both self-conscious and thrilled that she remembered that. “No, but I do try to get some in every few days. Back then it was an inexpensive way to make sure I got certain nutrients.”
“Mostly it was for the iron, right? You were always worried about becoming anemic.”
“Yeah, because a couple times it happened when I was a kid and my dad made me feel so ashamed. Like the sorry weakling in a cartoon.” Noah hadn’t meant for that to slip out, but it seemed, being with each other, they were both susceptible to dropping their guard a bit too low. He pivoted to, “I hope as a female you know it’s important to get plenty of iron during that time of the month.”
She smirked and said, “Yes, Doctor Taylor.” They reached the long food table and Julie handed him a plate, as she was in front of him. She took a piece of salmon and a slice of turkey as well as some sweet potatoes—and creamed spinach—then said, “Do these choices meet with your approval?”
“Pretty good, but you need some raw greens and maybe something that is whole grain too.”
“I’ll eat those tomorrow. I’m leaving room for wedding cake.”
“There’s a wedding cake?”
“Of course. Look over there,” she said, pointing to the corner of the room where a multi-tiered cake topped with four bride and groom figurines stood on a table. “Isn’t it pretty?”
Noah turned to look at the towering white cake and said, “Did you have a big wedding?”
Her smile dropped and Julie said only, “No.”
Shit. He did not mean to say that. Why did he keep twisting the knife in his own gut? Not to mention making Julie uncomfortable.
She turned away and walked across the room. Damn, she’d made it clear she did not want to bring up that subject and he went and did it anyway. Did this mean their conversation was over now?
